By Zephyria “Ah! An apple!”
Yohan-ssi exclaimed joyfully, raising his hand high. In his hand, he held a rather large apple.
With Lee Hyun-muk having turned into a Madman again, and the situation being dire if Yoon Seung-ryong were to burst out of the cave, Yohan decided to put some distance between himself and the cave. He somehow managed to find his way back to the stump they had designated as their temporary shelter.
But that was all. Unable to move an inch without knowing the way, their emergency rations ran out. As he was starving for about half a day, a strange Man-faced Fruit tree came into view. Hoping for the best, he braved the grotesque appearance and purified one fruit. It turned out to be a bright red, precious gem.
“…No, why is the expression still the same.”
Even after purification, the screaming human-like expression remained, causing Yohan to frown. It felt very unsettling. Just in case, he cut off the part with the expression using his knife and then cut the apple in half, offering it to Lee Hyun-muk.
“Are you hungry? Please have an apple. If you need more, I can purify another one for you.”
Even though he had been purifying them intermittently, Lee Hyun-muk, who was still a Madman after half a day, accepted the apple slice. As always when eating, there was a slow, crisp sound. However, for some reason, while Yohan quickly devoured his apple, he took only a bite or two before returning it.
“Huh? You’re not eating? It’s sweet and delicious…”
Yohan lamented, trying not to think too deeply about why the apple, which didn’t seem to have been fertilized, was so sweet. Taking a bite of the apple Lee Hyun-muk had returned, he thought.
‘Perhaps he thinks there isn’t enough to share.’
If I purify two more, will he eat them? As he thought this, he unconsciously licked the juice dripping from his hand with his tongue. Something moist brushed against his lips. Lee Hyun-muk, who had lowered his head at some point, had licked the apple juice from Yohan’s lips.
“Uh…”
Startled, Yohan dropped the apple. As his mouth opened to say something, Lee Hyun-muk seized the opportunity and thrust his tongue in.
“Hyun-mook, mmph!*”
Yohan’s mind went blank. A thick tongue pushed its way in, stealing the sweet saliva that had pooled from eating the apple. Only then did he regain his senses and try to push Lee Hyun-muk away, but it was no easy feat to push away a High-level Awakener Dealer.
“S-stop…!”
He turned his head left and right, but the other man persistently followed, licking. He hadn’t even acknowledged it before, but now he was snatching the remaining apple slice from his mouth and licking up all the saliva that came out. Eventually, overpowered, Yohan half-gave up and thought blankly.
‘Is, is this what a kiss is like.’
In his 23 years of life, Yohan had only experienced one innocent kiss with a girlfriend he dated for a month before breaking up. This was a profoundly shocking contact. However, as he let it happen and calmly observed, it seemed more like licking and devouring something delicious than a kiss.
…But, in any case, the feeling wasn’t that bad. In a way, it was a bit dog-like, and actually, it felt slightly good. Thinking this, Yohan was suddenly startled. No! Isn’t it inappropriate to feel this way about the actions of someone who isn’t in their right mind?
…But right now, I’m the one being subjected to it?
Unconsciously, Yohan’s arm moved stealthily. It was unclear whether he was trying to push the other person away or pull him closer. The moment his fingertips touched Lee Hyun-muk’s shoulder, the Madman’s movements faltered. He lifted his head from Yohan’s lips, which had been persistently sucking. The red glow in his eyes had disappeared. He murmured slowly.
“…Yohan-ah?”
“Aargh!”
Yohan shrieked and tried to push him away, but instead, he was pushed and almost rolled off the stump. Lee Hyun-muk quickly grabbed him. Yohan, who had barely regained his balance and sat up properly, stammered profusely.
“I-I’m s-sorry.”
“Looking at it, I don’t think there’s anything for you to be sorry about.”
Lee Hyun-muk, considering the circumstances of him just regaining his senses, said while looking at his swollen lips. Yohan, his face flushed crimson, tried to calmly explain the situation.
“Well, well, no, um… Lee Hyun-muk-ssi, perhaps? You must have wanted to eat the apple?”
It didn’t go well.
“You don’t have to make excuses for me…”
“Thinking about it, you’re supposed to return to normal, and blood isn’t good… But now that I see it… Isn’t bodily fluid effective, somehow…?”
“Yohan-ah, calm down.”
Only when Lee Hyun-muk firmly grasped his shoulder did Yohan, who had been rambling with a flushed face, finally stop. He took three deep breaths and muttered in a voice barely above a whisper.
“I’m calm…”
“I’m truly sorry. It seems that when I’m crazy, I’m very drawn to you… I can’t promise this won’t happen again. If it does next time, I’ll gouge your eyes out or punch you.”
He apologized in a contrite voice and lowered his gaze. Yohan couldn’t tear his eyes away from Lee Hyun-muk’s handsome face. He said unconsciously.
“It wasn’t bad enough to gouge your eyes out, you know. So… if it helps Lee Hyun-muk-ssi regain your senses faster, I don’t mind cooperating a little…”
With his face still flushed crimson, Yohan tried to appease him. After a moment of silence, Lee Hyun-muk murmured.
“You’re too young, and my conscience aches a bit.”
“Huh? I’m an adult. Twenty-three years old… I still have my ID, should I show you?”
Yohan said with a frown. The ID he had brought for the Rift expedition was still safely stored in his backpack. However, upon hearing Yohan’s words, a look of greater bewilderment crossed Lee Hyun-muk’s face.
“Twenty-three years old… Hmm.”
Lee Hyun-muk stared into space for a moment, then murmured again, “Twenty-three years old.” Recalling the ten-year age gap, Yohan quickly said.
“And a ten-year gap means I can call you Hyung!”
“…What if it’s not a ten-year gap?”
This time, Yohan was truly bewildered. The profile he knew for Lee Hyun-muk was definitely thirty-three years old. Did he lie about his age on his profile? Was he actually older? Hesitantly, Yohan carefully said.
“Hyung-nim?”
Lee Hyun-muk burst into laughter and ruffled Yohan’s hair as if he were cute, making Yohan feel embarrassed. Internally, he breathed a sigh of relief. If the atmosphere had become awkward, he wouldn’t have been able to bear it. Before the previous incident could be brought up again, Yohan quickly said.
“By the way, what were you doing in the cave to become like that?”
He felt a shiver just thinking about those unfathomably deep, dark pupils that had vanished cleanly. He was curious about what exactly Lee Hyun-muk had done to suddenly become a Madman again.
“Since you’re a High-level Awakener, you wouldn’t have other abilities, so did you do something with your spear…?”
Unlike Intermediate and Low-rank Awakeners who had secondary abilities in addition to their main one, High-level Awakeners possessed only a single ability. He had wondered why that was before, but now that he was a High-level Awakener himself, he understood. Having only one source was more than enough, leaving no room for other waters.
Therefore, like Yohan, Lee Hyun-muk’s only ability was lightning strike. His spearmanship was something he had acquired through solitary training.
“It’s a dangerously unstable ability gained through Corruption. I don’t think there’s much good for you to know about it, so I don’t want to say. I’m sorry.”
“Ah, no!”
Sensing that he shouldn’t ask further, Yohan nodded as if he understood. Then, he quickly changed the subject.
“So, are you going back into the cave?”
“No, it’s too dangerous there. I could manage alone, but I can’t protect you. It’s entirely Yoon Seung-ryong’s territory, and it’s like a maze and narrow, so there’s no way to handle it. It’s better to return to our shelter and find another solution.”
So, I’m just a burden. He felt guilty thinking that he was preventing Yoon Seung-ryong from being brought back because of him.
“Then, can’t we lure that guy out of the cave?”
“That guy is as greedy as he is lazy. That’s why he’s settled there, sitting comfortably and eating. Nutritious things will flow in without him having to move, so he’ll never come out.”
Does that mean he lives by drinking the swamp water… That dirty, disgusting water? Nausea and pity welled up instinctively. Was there no way? Yohan wrung his hands, deep in thought. Then, a piece of information flashed through his mind.
“Um, I don’t know if I’m remembering correctly, but doesn’t Yoon Seung-ryong like samgyeopsal?”
In a documentary he had rewatched a few times, there was an interview where Yoon Seung-ryong said he liked samgyeopsal so much that he ate it two or three times a week. However, Team leader Lee Hyun-muk tilted his head a couple of times, trying to recall. Then, as if he finally remembered, he nodded.
“Ah, that’s right. Yes… I think that was it.”
“Then, do you think he might still like it? You know, there are pigs living underground near your house. Samgyeopsal smells amazing, so if we bring some and grill it, wouldn’t he come out because he wants to eat it…?”
As he spoke, Yohan awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck. Even with his strong appetite, he wondered if he would really come out for something like that. Unexpectedly, however, Lee Hyun-muk seemed quite taken with Yohan’s suggestion.
“…That’s plausible.”
“Huh? You really think he’d come out from that deep place for something like samgyeopsal?”
“Yohan, you don’t know the extent of obsession caused by Corruption.”
Lee Hyun-muk said with a gentle smile to Yohan, who still seemed half-incredulous. A faint red glow flickered deep within his eyes. Despite the conversation being perfectly ordinary, Yohan tensed up without realizing it.
“It’s far more severe than you can possibly imagine.”