Wht no he is trying to change and end this hell he created in his previous life
Are we reading the same story hun?? He could just choose to set him free, but doesn't. The emperor clearly knows mc is kind-hearted (that's why he threatened to kill everyone close to him if he ever ran away in the previous life and in this one) He spared some lives this time around sure but he knows mc won't let him actually go through with it because he's too f-ing kind, even towards him. Do I think he'd actually cut off his own foot? Yes, since he's batsh*t crazy but again, it's more for his own benefit- 'look, I crippled myself for you so you should forgive me and take care of me for the rest of your life' In the end it's still just a ploy to keep mc by his side. Don't forget how he straight up murdered all his friends and family! And don't say "well that was in his previous life" because they BOTH remember now. That pain, that anger shouldn't just go away because "iT wAs dOne OuT oF LovE"
Okayy yes we r reading same story but with different view , as for me yes he had done bad and if u expecting him to set him free then how would story go ahead also he knows uke would only think of killing himself rather than tht , seme wants to change things now eve if he free uke he will eventually die of illness or so this hell will repeat also u are forgetting the point of seme being kind is actually setting uke free from this hellish life repeating being raped by his own brother isn't it hell? This is the only way for both of them to set free themselves from circle of bardo if u got my point right it's okay and if not then it's either fine by me cuz u r missing points here
The point is there are much better ways to get the uke's forgiveness. Letting the uke see how he apologizes to his own kid, allows the kid to spend time with the uke as much as he wants, etc etc, for example. Not being able to think of anything beyond this self-harming bull means the emperor hasa looooong way to go to convince anyone of his improvement, as he doesn't realize yet that this is just as bad as all the sh*t he did before.
Setting Heun free actually will not work in this lifetime as well. Very soon, that ass of a brother will make his appearance. He is hellbent on making Heun his again. If Heun were set free from the palace, that sicko brother would have swooped down and took him by force. He was that crazy. He is the one we need to worry about, not the king.
And the king have changed, if Heun decided to run away, he would not be as cruel now as he had been 100 yrs ago. From now on, he would seek consent from Heun. Except maybe for a few kisses that he stole here and there...
And him trying to cripple himself is not done out of spite or manipulation to get pity. He was sincerely trying to make things even, knowing full well he can't undo his past deeds. You will understand this after reading ch 33.
He would still be a bit harsh and being a jerk around his kid. Yeah, he is just not a father material. But he begrudgingly let the kid have a good bonding time with Heun going forward. His past self probably would've murdered the child b/c he didn't want to share Heun with anyone. But now, Heun is teaching the king and he would listen, you'll see that in future chapters. But yeah, you just can't change the guy 100% & make him into a completely different person overnight, there will always be a few traces that are left behind. But hey, at least he listens now, instead of acting all mighty & killing everyone off. That should count as progress, right?
This is some serious manipulation here