The Weapon Genius: Anything I Hold Can Kill-Chapter 31: The Aftermath of Power

Darkness pressed down like a weight.

Jin floated in it — heavy, numb, detached from his body. Time didn't exist here. Just silence. A thick, suffocating void.

Then came the pain.

It crawled in slowly at first. A dull ache, then a sharp, spreading agony. Every muscle throbbed like he'd been torn apart and stitched back together with barbed wire. His chest burned with every shallow breath, and his bones felt brittle, like they might snap if he moved.

Ping.

A faint, glitching sound echoed through his mind, distant and broken.

[Basic Recovery Beacon Active — HP/Stamina Restoring...]

The notification faded as quickly as it came.

He tried to open his eyes, but they felt glued shut. He pushed harder, pain flaring behind his eyelids like sparks. Slowly, the darkness peeled back.

Fluorescent lights hummed overhead.

The cracked, water-stained ceiling of the police station's med bay loomed above him — a reminder of the old world. The room smelled faintly of disinfectant and blood, the sharp scent mixing with the metallic tang of dried sweat.

The faint glow of the beacon pulsed in the corner like a dying heartbeat, casting soft, rhythmic flashes of light across the room.

Jin shifted, and agony streaked through his body. His throat clenched around a broken gasp.

Something scraped against the floor. A faint, metallic noise.

He forced his head to turn.

Ryu sat on a rusted chair near the door, arms crossed, one leg propped up on an overturned supply crate. His iron skin had receded, leaving behind a thin, healing cut on his forearm — a red, angry line that shouldn't have been possible.

His shirt was still torn from the fight, blood smeared across his skin, but he didn't look like he cared. His eyes, cold and sharp, never left Jin.

Jin's chest tightened.

He tried to sit up, but his body refused. His muscles locked, tremors rippling through his limbs. He barely lifted his hand before it dropped limply onto the thin mattress beneath him.

His fingers wouldn't stop shaking.

He glanced around the room, heart pounding.

They were back at the station.

The walls were lined with rusted cabinets and old medical equipment, most of it useless now. The glass windows were reinforced with scrap metal and bars, but thin cracks still spiderwebbed across them.

The others were there — scattered across stretchers and old cots.

Seul sat on a chair beside Chul's bed, carefully re-tying the bandages around his arm. Her hands shook, her fingers red with dried blood, but she didn't stop.

Joon lay sprawled out, one arm dangling off the side of the cot, eyes shut tight. His chest rose and fell in slow, uneven breaths.

Echo was slumped against the wall, head tilted back, his hoodie pulled up to block out the light. His legs were stretched out, boots scuffed and torn, his fingers twitching every few minutes like he was dreaming about the fight.

They were alive.

All of them.

Jin's heart hammered, nausea curling in his stomach.

He didn't remember how the fight ended.

The last thing he could recall was the feeling of the blade in his hand. The overwhelming surge of strength, the way his body moved on its own, faster, sharper, hungrier. The weight of Ryu's arm beneath his sword.

And blood.

Ryu's blood.

Jin's breath caught.

He tried again to push himself up, muscles screaming in protest.

This time, he made it halfway, slumping against the cot's thin metal frame as he propped himself up on a shaky elbow.

The movement finally caught Ryu's attention.

The older man straightened, cracking his neck as he uncrossed his arms. His gaze stayed locked on Jin — unreadable, heavy as stone.

For a long moment, he didn't say anything.

Then he reached down, picked up a bottle of water from the floor, and tossed it onto Jin's lap.

The impact jolted Jin, pain streaking through his ribs like fire.

"Drink up," Ryu muttered, voice rough as gravel.

Jin blinked, throat raw and dry as sand. He grabbed the bottle with stiff fingers, nearly dropping it twice before managing to twist off the cap.

The first sip burned.

He forced himself to drink anyway.

The med bay stayed quiet, except for the faint hum of the beacon and the slow, labored breathing of the others.

Jin let the bottle slip from his fingers, collapsing back against the cot.

His body screamed to rest. His mind refused.

He turned his head toward Ryu, voice barely above a whisper.

"...What happened?"

Ryu wiped the blood from his mouth with the back of his hand, eyes never leaving Jin.

"You don't remember?"

Jin shook his head, regret pooling in his gut.

Ryu's gaze didn't waver.

"You lost control," he said flatly. "You tried to kill me."

Jin's heart stopped.

His fingers curled into fists, nails biting into his palms. He waited for Ryu to soften the words, to walk it back, to add anything that made it sound less final.

Ryu didn't.

He just leaned back in the chair, tilting his head up to stare at the cracked ceiling.

"You'll get the rest later," Ryu muttered. "For now, just be glad you woke up."

Jin didn't feel glad at all.

Jin's breath rattled in his chest.

His body felt like it was made of glass — every small movement sending jagged pain tearing through his limbs. But the physical pain wasn't what made it hard to breathe.

It was Ryu's words.

"You tried to kill me."

Jin swallowed, throat raw. His voice scraped out like sandpaper.

"..Did I hurt you."

Ryu didn't answer right away.

He stood, stretching his shoulders, joints cracking like snapping twigs. Then he grabbed a metal chair, dragged it over with a screech, and sat down right beside Jin's cot.

"You cut me," Ryu said, rolling up his sleeve to show the thin, mostly healed scar on his arm. The faint glow of the recovery beacon reflected off the skin, but the line was still there — a thin, pink reminder of what Jin had done.

"No one's ever done that before," Ryu muttered, rubbing his thumb across the scar like he was trying to make it disappear. "Not monsters. Not people. Just you."

Jin stared at the scar, blood draining from his face.

His fingers twitched, curling against the thin blanket on the cot.

"I... I didn't mean—"

Ryu cut him off with a quiet sigh.

"I know."

That somehow made it worse.

Jin tried to speak, but the words tangled in his throat. He couldn't even fully remember the fight — just pieces of it, flashing in fragments like a broken film reel. The glow of his stats flaring out of control. The world slowing down around him.

And the feeling of the blade sinking into flesh.

His breathing hitched.

"...Did I hurt anyone else?"

Ryu leaned back in the chair, rubbing his temples.

"No, I stopped you before you got to that point."

Jin's stomach turned.

The room felt too quiet. The faint hum of the beacon pulsed in the background, but the others didn't move much. Seul sat beside Chul's cot, quietly changing his bandages. Joon lay on his back, an arm draped over his eyes, chest rising and falling with shaky breaths.

Echo sat against the wall, head tilted back, his hoodie pulled up to block out the light. His legs stretched out, fingers occasionally twitching like his body hadn't realized the fight was over.

They were alive.

Because Ryu had stopped him.

The older man rolled his shoulder, testing the arm that had been cut. He let out a slow breath, voice steady but not as sharp.

"You're strong," Ryu muttered. "But strength doesn't mean anything if you lose control."

Jin didn't move.

Didn't speak.

Couldn't.

Ryu turned to leave but paused in the doorway.

He didn't look back, but his voice dropped lower.

"If you wanna feel bad, feel bad later," Ryu muttered. "But you need to figure out how to maintain control. Because if you plan to leave with your friends..."

The words lingered like smoke.

He shook his head.

"They might not be able to stop you."

Ryu left, his boots echoing down the hall as he disappeared.

The room was quiet, too quiet.

The glow of the beacon pulsed faintly in the corner, casting dim light across the station's med bay. The rhythmic hum of its energy filled the silence, slow and steady, like a heartbeat.

Jin couldn't move.

He sat slumped against the cot, fingers digging into the thin blanket, his chest still heaving from the weight of Ryu's words. His body shook with exhaustion, but he didn't feel tired. He felt hollow.

The guilt gnawed at him, sharp and relentless.

He'd almost hurt Ryu.

The man who had taken them in when he didn't have to.

And the worst part?

He didn't even remember doing it.

The others rested around him — broken, bruised, and barely conscious. Joon lay still on his cot, only shifting to groan whenever he tried to breathe too deeply. Seul never moved from Chul's side, her fingers trembling as she traced slow, mindless circles on the back of her brother's hand.

Echo was the first one to stir.

He sat up slowly, wincing as he rubbed the back of his neck. His hoodie was half-torn, blood dried in patches along the sleeves. His knuckles were scraped raw, and a faint bruise bloomed along his jawline, dark and ugly against his skin.

He didn't say anything at first. Just cracked his neck, stretched, and let out a shaky breath.

Then he turned his head.

"...You look like hell man," Echo muttered, voice raspy.

Jin didn't respond.

Echo rubbed his face, fingers dragging through his messy hair. He sat there for a moment, like he was trying to decide if he had the energy to talk.

Apparently, he did.

Because he scooted his cot closer with a loud scrape of metal and flopped back down, hands resting behind his head.

"You've been out for a solid few hours," he said, eyes flicking to the beacon. "Ryu carried you back. The rest of us kinda... dragged ourselves."

Jin swallowed hard, voice barely a whisper.

"...Back where?"

"Station's med bay." Echo nodded toward the room. "We dealt with those guys from before. The system gave him a bonus for us beating Jisoo's crew."

Jin lifted his head, brow furrowing.

"...Bonus?"

Echo tilted his chin toward the glowing pillar in the corner.

"The beacon thing. He said it's called a Basic Recovery Beacon or whatever. It heals you up if you stay inside the territory. Slow as hell, though."

Jin's gaze lingered on the beacon, watching the faint pulses of light.

He hadn't even noticed the ache in his body easing. The pain was still there, sharp and constant, but somehow... duller. Like someone had turned the volume down.

Echo stretched, wincing as his joints popped.

"Honestly, without that thing, we'd probably be dead," he muttered. "Or, like, half-dead. Zombie mode."

Jin's throat tightened.

He clenched his fists in the blanket, fingers digging in like he wanted to tear the fabric apart.

"I..." His voice cracked. "I almost—"

"Yeah," Echo cut him off.

Jin flinched.

Echo turned his head, looking at him for a long moment.

"You almost killed us," he said, blunt but quiet. "But you didn't."

Jin shook his head, voice shaking.

"You don't get it. I—I don't even remember what happened. It's just... gone."

Echo sighed, rubbing his eyes with the heel of his hand.

"Good," he muttered.

Jin blinked, looking at him in confusion.

"...Good?"

Echo shifted, sitting up a little straighter.

"You don't need to remember it, man. We do. And we'll carry that so you don't have to."

Jin's chest tightened like a vise.

"But I hurt Ryu," he rasped. "I could've hurt you guys!"

"Ryu's built like a brick wall, and we wouldn't have just let you hurt us," Echo interrupted, voice sharper now. "We made it out. That's all that matters."

Jin opened his mouth, but Echo shook his head.

"I get it," Echo muttered, rubbing the side of his face like he could physically wipe the exhaustion away. "You feel like shit. You should. But we're alive. And no one here blames you."

Jin's chest cracked open like splintering glass.

He wanted to believe that. But how could they not blame him? How could they look at him the same way after what he almost did?

Echo let out a slow breath, leaning back against the wall.

"You saved us, you know," he muttered.

Jin's head snapped up, eyes wide.

"What?"

Echo scratched his cheek.

"If you hadn't saved Chul from the sword guy most of us would've probably been taken out and overwhelmed."

He tilted his head back, eyes fluttering shut.

"You're probably the strongest of us all," he whispered. "Even though you could've abandoned us... you still fought to protect us."

Jin didn't know what to say.

He didn't feel like he'd saved anyone.

He felt like a loaded gun someone had accidentally fired into a crowd.

Echo sighed, rubbing at his face again like the weight of everything was physically stuck to him.

"But if you want the truth..." He let out a tired laugh. "Yeah, man. You're a freakin' monster."

Jin's heart dropped.

Echo cracked one eye open and gave him a faint, lopsided smile.

"But you're our monster."

Jin's chest collapsed.

He pressed his hand over his face, shoulders shaking, his vision blurring until all he could see was the dim glow of the beacon burning behind his eyelids.

He didn't cry.

He couldn't.

But the shaking didn't stop.

The beacon pulsed.

Soft. Slow.

Not enough.

Not nearly enough.

AN HOUR OR SO LATER1

Jin sat on the edge of his cot, body sore but steady.

The others were awake, sitting or lying back on the makeshift beds scattered around the med bay. No one was talking, but it wasn't the crushing silence of hopelessness.

It was just... fatigue.

The aftermath of survival.

Seul sat cross-legged beside Chul, carefully adjusting the sling around his arm, her brow furrowed in quiet concentration. Joon lay on his back, tossing a crushed can between his hands, eyes half-lidded but alert. Echo stretched against the wall, rubbing his bruised jaw, wincing every now and then but still smirking to himself like he was replaying parts of the fight.

They were hurt. Banged up.

But not broken.

If anything, there was still a faint spark of resolve lingering in the room — dim, but alive.

Jin flexed his fingers, watching them tremble slightly before he forced them to still. He shifted, wincing as pain lanced through his ribs, but it was manageable. Bearable.

He cleared his throat, voice rough.

"...Do you guys think we're ready to head out?"

The question wasn't heavy.

It was just... there.

Seul glanced up from Chul's arm, her hands stilling.

Joon stopped tossing the can, letting it roll off the side of the cot with a hollow clink.

Echo propped his elbow on his knee, raising an eyebrow.

"You really wanna have this talk now?" Echo muttered, tilting his head back against the wall.

Jin shrugged, fingers curling into the blanket beneath him.

"I figured we should... at least talk about it."

Joon groaned, stretching out and cracking his knuckles.

"Man, we were ready to leave before we got jumped. Still ready now."

"But..." Seul cut in gently, her voice careful.

She tightened the knot on Chul's sling, then rested her hands on her lap.

"Are you ready?"

Jin blinked, caught off guard.

"I... yeah. I think so."

Seul's eyes softened, but her words stayed firm.

"It's not about whether you can walk again, Jin," she said quietly. "We just... we need to know that if something happens — if it happens again — that you'll be okay."

Jin's chest tightened.

Joon sat up, rubbing his face.

"It's not that we don't wanna leave," he muttered, voice muffled against his hand. "But you straight up tried to take Ryu out, man. What if you lose control when we're out there and no one can stop you?"

Echo scratched his jaw, nodding slightly.

"I get it. We all get it," he said, voice lower than usual. "We're not blaming you, dude. But you gotta admit... that was scary as hell."

Jin exhaled slowly, rubbing the back of his neck.

He'd expected doubt.

He just hadn't realized it would hit this hard.

"I... yeah," Jin muttered. "I get it."

He ran his thumb over the edge of his sleeve, voice quiet but steady.

"That's why we have to go."

The words settled like a weight in the room.

Seul tilted her head, brow furrowing.

"...What do you mean?"

Jin flexed his fingers, watching the way they twitched involuntarily.

He hated it.

He hated not feeling in control of himself.

"When I cut Hanseong, that's when it started," Jin said carefully. "My skill — Limitless Weapon Mastery — has a subskill called Bloodlust. It... activates whenever I draw blood."

Echo let out a low whistle.

"That's messed up."

Jin gave a hollow laugh.

"You're telling me."

He rubbed his face, trying to piece the words together.

"I didn't even know it would get that bad," he admitted. "I thought... I thought it would just make me stronger. I didn't know it would take over like that."

Joon leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees.

"And you think leaving the station's gonna fix that?"

Jin shook his head.

"Not right away," he muttered. "But if I stay here... I won't be pushed to grow to the point where I can."

They all fell quiet.

Jin pressed on, voice raw but steady.

"You guys saw it," he said. "Jisoo's people almost killed us. And they weren't even that high on the leaderboard."

He swallowed, throat tight.

"There are people way stronger than them out there. And if one of them decides they want this territory..."

His fingers dug into the blanket.

"Ryu's strong," Jin said softly. "But he can't fight off everyone. Not forever."

Seul looked down, brushing her fingers over Chul's knuckles.

Jin's voice cracked.

"And I can't keep fighting alongside you guys if I can't even trust myself not to hurt you."

The words lingered in the room, heavy and unspoken.

Jin rubbed his hands together, swallowing hard.

"I don't know how to control it yet," he whispered. "But the only way I'm gonna learn... is if I try."

He lifted his head, eyes sharp despite the exhaustion weighing him down.

"So if you guys still wanna leave... I'm ready."

Seul inhaled shakily, blinking a few times.

Joon ran a hand through his hair, muttering something under his breath before shaking his head.

"You're gonna get us killed, dude," he muttered.

Echo stretched, letting out a long sigh.

"Probably," he mumbled. "But I'm not sticking around to become a scavenger."

Jin watched them, heart pounding.

Seul finally looked up, meeting his gaze.

"If we go..." she whispered, voice trembling but sure.

"We go together."

Jin's chest caved in.

The weight of everything pressed down, but somehow, he felt lighter.

The decision was made.

They were leaving.

The room didn't shift immediately — no grand declarations or rallying speeches. Just quiet resolve, like everyone was too tired to do anything but move forward.

Joon pushed himself up with a grunt, cracking his neck.

"Guess we should, like... start packing or something," he muttered, rubbing the bruise on his ribs.

Echo stretched, wincing as he lifted his arms.

"Packing what? We own, like, two water bottles and a knife."

Jin stood slowly, rolling his shoulder. The ache lingered, dull and persistent, but it didn't stop him. It wouldn't.

Seul gently brushed her fingers through Chul's hair, her eyes soft.

She started to stand, but Chul grabbed her wrist.

"Seul," he rasped. "Wait."

Seul froze.

Her heart skipped.

Chul swallowed hard, voice quiet.

"Can we talk?"

Seul blinked, surprised by the weight in his voice.

Jin caught the shift immediately.

He motioned for the others to follow him, stepping toward the door.

"We'll give you guys some space," Jin said quietly.

Seul opened her mouth to object, but Jin just gave her a small, understanding nod before leading the others out of the room.

The door shut softly behind them.

And then it was just Seul and Chul.

Alone.

The glow of the beacon flickered, casting faint shadows against the cracked walls.

Chul shifted, wincing as he tried to sit up.

Seul reached out, steadying him with gentle hands.

"You sure you wanna sit up?," she whispered.

"You can wait a bit until we're all ready to leave out."

Chul nodded, teeth gritted.

"I need to."

Seul helped him carefully, adjusting the pillows behind his back.

"Okay," she whispered, her voice soft. "What's wrong?"

Chul looked down, fingers curling into the blanket.

"I'm not coming with you," he said quietly.

Seul's fingers stiffened.

The words hit like a punch to the chest, knocking the air out of her lungs.

She swallowed, carefully lowering her hand to her lap.

"...What?"

Chul kept his gaze down, voice trembling but steady.

"I'm staying here," he whispered. "With Ryu."

Seul's heart cracked.

"Chul—"

"I need to get stronger," he said, voice shaking. "I can't keep being the one you throw yourself in front of."

Seul bit her lip, her voice barely steady.

"You don't slow us down," she whispered.

Chul flinched, shaking his head.

"But I almost got you killed," he muttered, voice tight.

He lifted his head, eyes glistening.

"When we fought Jisoo's people... I tried my best," he said, voice rough. "I really did. But the second they went after you... I lost it."

Seul's chest tightened.

Chul's hands shook as he spoke, voice cracking.

"I hit you, Seul," he whispered. "I hurt you with my own power."

Seul's breath caught.

"I keep replaying it," Chul rasped. "The way you fell. The way you looked at me and still tried to protect me even after I hit you."

His voice broke completely, chest heaving.

"I never want to feel that again."

Seul clenched her jaw, holding herself together by a thread.

Chul swallowed hard, blinking rapidly.

"You've been protecting me since we were kids," he whispered. "You stood up for me when people bullied me at school. You fought off that guy who tried to steal my bike. You even worked extra shifts so I wouldn't have to worry about college loans."

He wiped at his face, voice shaking.

"And now the world's ended... and you're still protecting me."

Seul closed her eyes, willing the tears to stop.

"I don't want that anymore," Chul whispered.

Seul opened her mouth, voice barely a rasp.

"I'm your big sister," she whispered, her throat closing up. "I'm supposed to protect you."

Chul clenched the blanket, his body trembling.

"And I'm supposed to protect you too," he said, his voice low but sure.

His eyes locked on hers, the desperation bleeding into determination.

"I need to learn how to control my power," he whispered. "I need to get stronger. So the next time someone tries to hurt you... I can stop them."

He swallowed hard.

"So I can stand next to you, not behind you."

Seul pressed a hand to her mouth, chest rising and falling with shaky, uneven breaths.

Chul exhaled, voice breaking.

"If I leave with you now... I'll just hold you back," he whispered. "But if I stay, if I train with Ryu..."

His hands clenched tighter.

"I can become someone who deserves to fight beside you."

Seul's vision blurred, her entire body trembling.

But she didn't cry.

She held it back, biting down on her lip until she tasted blood.

Then, slowly, she reached out and pulled Chul into her arms.

She held him tightly, fingers gripping the back of his shirt, her chest shaking with every uneven breath.

Chul buried his face against her shoulder, hugging her just as tightly.

They stayed like that for a long time.

The glow of the beacon dimmed.

The night settled over the station.

But neither of them let go.

Okay so apologizes for this time skip moment in the chapter

I made a mistake with posting a chapter wrong so I had to do this to kinda fix my mistake so whatever comes after this mark shouldve been another chapter so just putting that out there.