By Zephyria 
Tae-un, who had been clinging to him with his arm draped modestly over his shoulder, showed no intention of letting go even after they ascended to the penthouse. Kim Si-baek could clearly feel his determination to make the most of this opportunity by rubbing up against him, but having seen that earlier sight, he couldn’t bring himself to push him away coldly.
[Death and Beauty close their eyes tightly, unable to watch such a sight.]
Biyendwe’s wingbeats were unsteady as he fled to the room, showing just how shocked he was. Kim Si-baek swallowed a sigh and patted Tae-un on the hip.
“What are you talking about? Why would I abandon you?”
“Suddenly you disappeared, and I didn’t know where you went, your phone was off, and everyone said they didn’t know where you’d gone…”
“My phone was off?”
Surprised by those words, he checked his phone and found it had indeed shut down. The battery must have drained while he was attending the one-day class.
Kim Si-baek quickly shook the dead phone.
“I went out to perform a quest, and I guess the battery ran out and it turned off.”
Only then did Tae-un’s face relax into a soft smile.
“I was worried that you might have left the house for good and moved into something like a dormitory.”
“Uh, huh?”
“Ah, maybe I went a bit too far with that. Would you really think of leaving the house without telling me?”
“….”
“You wouldn’t think of leaving me alone in this huge house to go to some cramped dormitory, right?”
“….”
“I’m accustomed to the house where you are and where we live together; surely you wouldn’t leave to go to some dormitory? Haha.”
“R-right?”
That beaming expression ruthlessly squeezed Kim Si-baek’s conscience. He had been pondering how to bring up the fact that he intended to move into a dormitory, but the timing was terrible. It seemed he had received some kind of tip from Yang Eun-ho…
Kim Si-baek avoided his gaze and quickly changed the subject.
“More importantly, don’t put eye drops in for no reason. I was really surprised earlier, thinking you were actually crying.”
Tae-un wore a look of being caught, which was rare for him.
“…How did you know?”
“Do you think I don’t know you?”
Since he was young, Tae-un had often been on the verge of tears in front of him, but he had never actually shed a tear. There was only one time Tae-un had truly wept—that day when his small hands had become drenched in blood while saving him.
Tae-un discreetly took the eye drops out of his jacket pocket, threw them on the floor, and cleared his throat.
“In my heart, tears of blood were pouring, but it’s because my tear ducts have all dried up. I even tried stabbing my thigh, but no tears came out.”
“You haven’t cried since you were fourteen?”
“I didn’t even cry the night my parents passed away, probably.”
The playfully exaggerated expression vanished, replaced by a thin smile. Tae-un had no memories from before the age of five. To be precise, his memories were unnaturally severed up until the moment his parents were murdered by Tae Cheol-hun. It was likely due to the shock of witnessing the murder scene.
As a shadow fell over Kim Si-baek’s face, Tae-un gave a light shrug. He wasn’t pretending to be nonchalant because he was in front of him; he truly seemed indifferent.
“It was such a long time ago.”
“…Right.”
Since he put it that way, there was no need to force him to dig up past memories. Kim Si-baek withdrew his thoughts and ruffled Tae-un’s hair. Perhaps Tae-un also didn’t want to dwell on the topic, as he brought up something else.
“Oh, there was an experiment the research department asked for; do you want to try it with me?”
“What kind of experiment?”
“Do you know of a plant-type magical beast that resembles a cornelian cherry tree? One that grows to about three meters in height.”
“Ah, the magical beast whose flowers and fruits have hallucinogenic effects?”
“Yes. They processed it into liquor and want to see to what extent it’s effective on A-class or S-class individuals.”
Even if it was a hallucinogen, it wasn’t like a drug that caused dependency or brain damage. Since it showed the illusions the user desired for a short period, it was used in the process of psychological treatment in the case of mak slecht.
It was the same on Earth, but the direction seemed slightly different.
“Here, they research magical beasts that affect the mind quite intensely to find a way to suppress the Id Portal. I’m not entirely sure, but the hallucinations will probably be a bit stronger than what we drank at mak slecht. The alcohol content is quite high, too.”
“Well, it’s just something extracted from a magical beast anyway.”
Since he possessed divine power, which was the polar opposite, he answered readily without much concern. Tae-un immediately brought two wine-sized bottles of liquor from the study.
Since he intended to drink only one glass for the experiment, they didn’t prepare any snacks and simply poured the liquor into wine glasses. Kim Si-baek downed the shimmering light-green liquid in one gulp.
As Tae-un had said, the alcohol content was higher than imagined, and a flash of heat surged up from his throat instantly.
‘Wow, this is really strong.’
Feeling his face flush, he fanned his cheeks with his hand. The scene he wanted to see was obvious. Wasn’t the fragment of longing he obtained as a quest reward also a young Tae-un? With the excitement of seeing a cute, adorable, young Tae-un again, Kim Si-baek turned his gaze and suddenly gasped.
There stood the Tae-un of that night, his hair disheveled and wounds scattered across his body due to the prolonged raid.
Watching Kim Si-baek finish his glass in one shot, Tae-un also drank the liquor. There was no change. It was only natural. His body had long since become numb to changes caused by the intake of chemical substances, to the point where he would have to drink espresso by the bottle to feel the awakening effect of caffeine.
He had never drunk this liquor before, but he had expected this from the moment he brought the alcohol while looking for a way to change the subject. Tae-un was slightly afraid of how clearly he knew what image of Kim Si-baek he desired.
He feared he might be distorting him, as much as the selfish deception within himself.
Tae-un contemplated whether to vaguely make up what he saw, but then he drank the liquor straight from the bottle. It was evident that he was a terrible human being. Even if he looked away now, nothing would change.
The strong liquor slid down his throat with a sensation no different from swallowing water. Only after emptying a bottle did he feel a slight buzz.
Rubbing his face roughly, Tae-un turned his gaze to face the ugliness within him. And he saw it.
The image that had appeared in the clear, vivid vision that had momentarily opened when Kim Si-baek treated him that night. Not the murky, blurred, and distorted surroundings that only cleared after suppressing the intrusion into his vision, but a distinct brightness. And at the center of it, his face.
“….”
Even though it was the second time he had experienced it, the shock was just as intense. Tae-un, entranced, touched Kim Si-baek’s face ecstatically, as if this moment were the last.
By the time he came to his senses, he was licking the sweet breath flowing from between Kim Si-baek’s lips with his tongue. To hide his distorted expression, Tae-un pulled him into a tight embrace and buried his face in his shoulder.
I just… wanted to see this person one more time.
The sensation of overlapping lips as he tilted his head had become familiar. Unlike the kisses that had seeped in through his lapses in vigilance until now, Kim Si-baek was clearly aware that Tae-un was trying to kiss him. The hand that had been carefully cradling his face as if engraving it into his fingertips slowly slid down to rub his lips and then cup his cheek, and his breath and lips slowly approached.
The act of opening his lips to the tongue that traced his neatly closed teeth with a pleading urgency was clearly his own will. A shred of reason warned him, but just like that night, a desperate, suffocating longing bound him once again.
The kiss was not long. Tae-un hugged him tightly, swallowing a low groan, and Kim Si-baek lightly bit his lower lip while catching his breath. His face was red for a reason other than intoxication.
If Tae-un hadn’t been the one to pull his lips away first, something truly serious might have happened.
The sweet breath barely subsided. Kim Si-baek, glancing around to pretend everything was normal, only then properly smelled the scent of liquor, which was subtly different.
He reached his arm past the waist of the Tae-un who was hugging him and brought over the empty bottle. The boy who claimed he couldn’t handle alcohol had emptied a whole bottle.
Kim Si-baek licked the small amount of remaining liquor, and his brow furrowed.
“Un-ah. This liquor… don’t tell me it was brewed separately using female and male flowers?”
At those words, Tae-un finally looked up. Fortunately, the hallucinogenic effect had already ended. …Though it seemed a new problem had arisen.
“Are there separate female and male flowers?”
Tae-un looked genuinely puzzled. Kim Si-baek briefly wondered if he had brought the different liquors on purpose, but this reaction was real. He truly hadn’t known. Kim Si-baek let out a low groan and clutched his forehead.