By Zephyria 
“Who are you?”
Tae-un introduced himself as he had in the past.
“I’m a close younger brother of Si-baek hyung.”
“Ah.”
Cloud’s expression softened slightly. When he had given the same answer in the past, he had been filled only with urgency, but now, a friendly aura emanated from him. Aside from that urgency, he had shown no change in emotion no matter how many times they met—like a carving made of wood—but having reunited with Kim Si-baek, Cloud now seemed quite human.
Tae-un clenched his fist. Because of old memories, his fingers kept itching.
Their temperaments were completely different, but their shells were remarkably similar. Thus, Tae-un had been curious. Whether he resembled Kim Si-baek on the inside, just as he did on the outside.
Suddenly, he felt the weight of a heart in his palm.
The organs removed from a belly sliced open to resolve that curiosity, and that heart. No matter how many times he checked, Tae-un still wasn’t sure if the inside of Cloud’s shell resembled Kim Si-baek.
Still, by believing it did and fiddling with that heart, he could soothe his terrible longing for Kim Si-baek, if only a little.
He no longer needed to do that.
Tae-un smiled softly, recalling the sound of Kim Si-baek’s heart, which he could listen to whenever he wished.
“Hyung slept in my room last night because he said the Doctor, who traveled a long way, needed to rest comfortably. He said he couldn’t bring his clothes because he left quietly in the night, so I came to get them for him.”
“Please, come in.”
Cloud stepped aside. Tae-un entered with a slight bow, carrying the clothes for Kim Si-baek to change into and a pouch containing skincare products. As he turned to leave after greeting him, Cloud called out to stop him.
“How has my brother been all this time? He only told me that he’s been doing well.”
My brother.
Despite being separated for decades, the extremely natural way he used the term made the veins stand out on the back of Tae-un’s hand, despite his facade of politeness. Tae-un felt an intense impulse to rip that heart out again. Not for the purpose of soothing longing, but to satisfy a base desire for monopoly.
But he couldn’t.
He had set up this ridiculous play to let Kim Si-baek meet Cloud; he couldn’t destroy everything here. For him, there was no longer a ‘next time.’ This was the last chance.
Tae-un let a hint of concern show on the surface.
“I don’t know how much you’ve heard, but Hyung believed the Doctor had passed away when he was young. He missed you terribly and struggled a lot. To the point where it was hard for those watching him from the side.”
Pretending to recall a distant memory, Tae-un looked upward, then bowed his head slightly to Cloud in a gesture of request.
“I truly hope you have a wonderful time with Si-baek hyung.”
Though the time they would spend together wouldn’t be long.
So that he could become a definitive shackle.
* * *
While Kim Si-baek trained as a hunter in the training grounds or the field, Cloud watched his brother from afar. Since they spent all their time together even after training ended, the two naturally drew the attention of others.
However, it was difficult to ask about private family history. Since there was no one close enough to Kim Si-baek to ask him openly, the arrows of curiosity were directed toward others. But it was of little use.
Tae-un remained consistently dismissive, and Gwak Yun-sang vehemently denied it, claiming they weren’t blood-related. Though it was plain to see.
“They look like brothers, right?”
“The age gap is too big for them to be father and son.”
“Looking only at their appearance, they look like an uncle and a nephew…”
In a raid team where the biggest issue was deciding on a team name because there was nothing else to enjoy besides dragonfish raid training, the recent hot topic was undoubtedly Kim Si-baek and Cloud.
Unless they had a special interest, few hunters properly remembered the faces of scholars from other countries, let alone famous domestic ones. Because of that, they hadn’t made the connection when the two were apart, but seeing them side-by-side in person made it clear.
“They really look so much alike.”
During the break, Lee Sarang, who had come out to the outdoor tables, kept glancing over while munching on peanut butter grilled squid. Kim Si-baek and Cloud were sitting side-by-side on a bench in conversation; Kim Si-baek’s face was full of smiles, suggesting the topic was quite pleasant.
Justina also peeled a roasted chestnut, blowing on it with her thick fingers.
“How old was Doctor Carter?”
“I’m not sure about the age, but I think Hunter Kim Si-baek is the older brother.”
“Why?”
“…Well, he’s incredibly overprotective. Just like how he treats Uncle Tae-un.”
Even Lee Sarang, who wasn’t the subject of the conversation, felt a bit embarrassed. An older brother with the appearance of a 20-year-old overprotecting a brother in his 30s and another in his 40s.
Thinking similarly, Jo Byeong-seok let out a low groan and agreed with his daughter’s opinion.
“Even if circumstances force someone to send a child for international adoption, they usually raise the eldest themselves.”
“They’ve been separated for decades and finally met; imagine how happy they must be.”
Lee Sarang sniffled, feeling a heart-wrenching sense of emotion. Having experienced the loss of her mother in Seoul, their family reunion resonated with her more deeply. Jo Byeong-seok patted his daughter’s shoulder.
Amidst this, Justina popped a roasted chestnut into her mouth and spoke nonchalantly.
“As expected, our Sarang has such great empathy and a kind heart; I really like her. Sarang, do you want to come to my guild? I’ll take good care of you.”
“Wait, Guild Master Yu! Are you trying to seduce the guild successor right in front of the Guild Master?”
“Byeong-seok, think about it.”
Justina smiled slyly as she popped a roasted chestnut into the mouth of the stunned Lee Sarang.
“In this day and age, isn’t the idea that a successor must be one’s own child a pre-modern way of thinking? And besides, if Sarang comes to our guild, I might just decide to hand over the guild to her after doting on her, right?”
“Ohhh.”
“Then Sarang would become the successor to two whole guilds. What a woman truly needs is money and ambition. Girls, be ambitious.”
“Ohhhh…”
Hearing the words spoken with a strong Polish accent, Lee Sarang’s eyes began to sparkle like newly replaced LED lights.
“Sarang, what are you ‘oh-ing’ at now?”
“If I become the Guild Master of two guilds, Dad’s retirement will be perfectly guaranteed!”
“Your father is still sprightly, so just eat your squid.”
Jo Byeong-seok sighed and tore off another piece of squid to put in his daughter’s mouth.
Unaware that such conversations were happening about him and Cloud, Kim Si-baek shared many stories with his brother. Cloud didn’t find the fact that Kim Si-baek looked young to be particularly important. The 21-year gap was the same.
“I looked into it before coming to see you, and I heard you were a National Intelligence Service black agent for 21 years? You probably can’t disclose the details of your work, so you don’t have to tell me how you lived.”
Gwak Yun-sang’s setup had provided unexpected help. While relieved, Kim Si-baek felt troubled that he had to lie to his brother.
The brother in his dreams, whom he had reunited with long ago, had been expressionless as he was in childhood, but the brother in reality was a bit different. Perhaps because they were meeting after decades, he was much gentler and his emotional expression wasn’t as… Kim Si-baek suddenly bit his tongue.
He didn’t know why he kept comparing him to the dream. It wasn’t even reality.
If such things were true, was it also true that Tae-un died at age five?
Forcing the thoughts away, Kim Si-baek reflexively bent over to pick up a phone that Cloud had accidentally dropped. He then gave a sheepish smile.
“You’re an adult too, yet here I am being unnecessarily overprotective, aren’t I?”
As Cloud took the phone, he responded in his characteristic slow tone.
“At home, I’m the second oldest and have two younger siblings below me, so I had to become an older brother quickly. Being treated as a younger brother at this age isn’t bad.”
“Right. You mentioned you have many siblings?”
“I have an older sister, and one younger sister and one younger brother. Only the youngest is my parents’ biological child. Only my older sister awakened to become a hunter.”
Cloud’s adoptive parents had adopted three children who had nowhere to go and raised them with love, without discriminating against their biological child.
While he had at least some good memories of his own mother, Cloud did not. The fact that Cloud, who had known nothing but his biological father’s malice, grew up under wonderful adoptive parents was one of the few great joys in Kim Si-baek’s long life.
However, the time to enjoy the joy of reunion was not very long.
Two days before the dragonfish raid, Cloud spoke after a long phone call with the laboratory.
“I have to return to the United States tomorrow.”