"Hey you two, I have something to discuss with you, are you free?"
"Of course, Young Master."
Yuri and Odette looked at Ken curiously when the latter entered Yuri's room. It was the middle of the day, and Odette spent the past 24 hours in Yuri's room except for the time she was asleep. She did it for both their sakes.
They were alone and confused, seeing the familiar face of each other was their only source of comfort, and they found strength by sticking together until they find out what comes next.
"I talked to Mr. Darma earlier," Ken stated directly without going around.
"Young Master, we can't hold him drugged and weakened forever, we should just kill him and avoid any risks later. I will gladly do it myself as to not soil your hands with the deed of murder, let me avenge the deaths of my comrades."
Odette spoke with eagerness. She hated the man to the core. Since she cleared Ken from all charges in her mind, the only option was to direct everything to Darma. She now despised the old alchemist and wished nothing less than his death.
"I know how you feel, but we must not resort to murder as a tool to fix our problems. Instead of seeking punitive justice and dealing pain to all sides, we should pursue restorative justice and mend our wounds."
Ken talked gently, conveying his deep care. Odette and Yuri were mainly confused by the unfamiliar terms.
"I can understand what is punitive justice from the name, but what is restorative justice? He can't restore the lives he had taken, what's lost is lost."
Yuri spoke slowly and inquired. He was willing to listen to Ken, but he also didn't want to let Darma go scot-free from killing Tiffany and Octavia.
"Restorative justice works on letting the offender make up to the victims or their relatives. You need to face Darma and let him show his sincerity. I already talked to him, and he wants to apologize to you and work to gain your forgiveness. Only this way we can make the world a better place."
Yuri and Odette shared a doubtful look before turning their heads back to Ken. This sounded too surreal, it could not be true. Apologizing? What's that?
ραΠdαsΝοvεl ƈοm "Young Master, do we have to give you our answer now?"
"No, you can think about it. I must go back to the sect by tomorrow, so please take a few hours to discuss it between yourselves, I will follow your decision even if I think it's wrong."
Ken already gave up on the duel he was supposed to have; it was too late now. The trip back would take him at least 24 hours, and 60 hours already passed, which meant he missed the date.
"Of course, Young Master. We will give you our answer before the night falls."
The two cupped their fists and bowed to show their respect.
"Before I leave, I wanted to offer you to work under me. Having two faithful subordinates like you would make me feel reassured, and you can keep an eye on Maria for me. Hopefully, after traveling with the two of you, she will learn to be a better person," Ken said benevolently.
"Thank you, Young Master. We will consider your invitation and give our answers by tonight."
As soon as Ken exited the room, the two spoke in hushed voices.
"Can we really give up on revenge for this restorative justice thing?" Yuri asked his friend with hesitation.
"I don't know… it sounds unrewarding. Can he really atone for killing Tiffany and Octavia? How did Young Master Ken even convince him to do it?"
"I thought of the same question, what if he is only deceiving Young Master Ken into that by abusing his kindness?"
The two remained silent for a while as they could not reach a conclusion.
"I think in the end it all converges to the question of whether we want to work under Young Master Ken or not. If we do, we can't choose to kill Darma or we will fail Young Master's expectations before we even started." Odette eventually said.
Ken also knew they'd reach that simple deduction, which was also why he was confident enough to announce he'd follow their verdict. The two were dependent on others, they needed to work under someone. Ken was the only one available, and he already said explicitly that he thinks killing Darma was wrong.
"Honestly, I do want to work under him. He is the purest human I've ever met, and only he can vision making the world a better place by letting murderers make amends. Maybe Tiffany was right. Maybe he does have the protection of the heavens. Isn't he safe after all those dangers?"
Yuri voiced his thoughts on the matter. They understood they had to choose between revenge or their future.
"Avenging our dead comrades is important too. Wouldn't you want revenge if you died?" Odette reproached with a ping of guilt. She understood they had let their selfish motives cloud their judgment when deciding about avenging their teammates.
"I would. But thinking about it, didn't Young Master offer another form of justice for Tiffany and Octavia?" Yuri defended their previous attitude.
"That's also true. Do you have any alternative if we decline his offer to work under him?" She wasn't a big believer in anything that was not a punishment, but if they choose to follow Ken, in a way, it also means to follow and promote his beliefs, and restorative justice is also part of his beliefs.
"I don't have any alternatives."
"Me neither, we should listen to Young Master's new approach to justice. If someone like Young Master Ken visions the world as a better place with it, we should not dismiss it."
The two made the logical choice and prioritized their well-being and future over revenge. It did not take long for other explanations of why they made the right decision to appear.
"They lost their lives for protecting Young Master Ken. By working under him we can make sure their sacrifice yields fruit. He is too naïve and requires our help when dealing with questionable people like Darma and Maria."
With the final reason strengthening their resolve, the two reached a consensus. Now they only needed to report the news to Ken.
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