By Zephyria The next day, Yohan woke up after a deep sleep and thought positively in his half-awake state.
‘But now that I think about it… aren’t the conditions pretty good for a one-sided love?’
One-sided love! After last night’s events, the feelings that had been confused between fan affection and something else were neatly sorted out. It wouldn’t be possible to feel this fluttery, want to reach out to someone, and wish for them to feel the same way, just out of fan affection….
‘This was bound to happen. How could anyone not like someone like Lee Hyun-muk?’
He’s practically Korea’s savior, isn’t he? He’s incredibly powerful and handsome. Even the occasional drawback of becoming a Madman could be covered by his purification ability!
‘If it weren’t for the Abyss, he would have been hard to even meet.’
Although he fell into a hellish place called the Abyss, he was so fortunate to have Awakened as a Purifier. Thanks to that, he could save Lee Hyun-muk, and because of that, they had both accumulated immense mutual affection. So, in Yohan’s opinion, the conditions were really good for a one-sided love that had just begun.
There was plenty of time to spare anyway. Yohan nodded inwardly. If they spend a long time together, affection will grow, and affection will turn into love. Besides, I’ve already kissed Lee Hyun-muk twice and done… things! Although the former was closer to a rescue, and the latter was merely something I enjoyed alone, still….
As the sleepiness faded, Yohan finally registered the warm heat on his side. It was Lee Hyun-muk’s body heat. He liked the warmth so much that he lingered, pretending to still be half-asleep with ulterior motives, but then a sudden scream made him jump and open his eyes. Lee Hyun-muk patted Yohan’s rapidly beating chest a few times.
“W-wasn’t that Seung-ryong Hyung’s scream?”
“It seems so.”
Lee Hyun-muk replied with a face and voice that suggested he might or might not have slept. Yohan sprang up from his spot. Even though he was his teammate, Lee Hyun-muk didn’t seem worried at all. Yohan, concerned only for himself, urged Lee Hyun-muk on.
“Let’s go out quickly! Something might have happened.”
At Yohan’s urging, Lee Hyun-muk finally got up. Then, he strode over, opened the door first, and quickly surveyed the situation outside. Only after confirming it was safe did he give permission to go out. Yohan hurried outside to find Yoon Seung-ryong screaming on the rooftop.
At first, Yohan thought Yoon Seung-ryong had become a Madman again. However, upon listening closely, he realized he was just incredibly angry and throwing a tantrum out of sheer frustration.
“Joo Ho-young, that bastard! I’ll kill him if I catch him!”
Yoon Seung-ryong screamed at the top of his lungs, tearing at his hair. His face and body, which had been clean before going to bed yesterday, were now covered in all sorts of filth. Huffing and puffing, Yoon Seung-ryong leaped down from the rooftop. Even though he jumped from a height of three stories, he showed no signs of physical shock.
“Aargh! Seung-ryong Hyung, there’s ice stuck in your back!”
Yohan screamed and rushed over. Only then did Yoon Seung-ryong notice the dirty ice shards stuck in his back.
“Ah, damn it. This is just too much.”
Yoon Seung-ryong irritably yanked out the ice shards. Due to the regenerative power unique to Awakened individuals, blood flowed down but soon stopped. Only Yohan diligently purified him, worried about infection. Soon, his dirty appearance became clean, but Yoon Seung-ryong’s anger remained.
“Did Joo Ho-young do all this?”
“Joo Ho-young? What are you talking about, this bastard! He’s nothing but a troublemaker. He was so annoying all night long.”
Yoon Seung-ryong said, grinding his teeth and his eyes gleaming.
“Let’s catch him.”
“How do you plan to catch him?”
Lee Hyun-muk replied indifferently, tossing a piece of metal Yohan hadn’t noticed yet, which had been stuck in his thigh.
“I don’t know! Let’s set a trap or something. Team leader is good at planning those things.”
Lee Hyun-muk looked at Yoon Seung-ryong, who was scratching his thigh irritably, and casually suggested.
“Then how about lying in wait and spraying some paralyzing or sleeping poison? Or perhaps a hallucinogen.”
“Ah! Right. We should use poison!”
Yoon Seung-ryong, his eyes lighting up with delight, ran off somewhere. …Did Lee Hyun-muk just mutter ‘idiot’? Doubting his ears, Yohan was inwardly pleased. After all, he was now alone with Lee Hyun-muk.
“Then, shall we go look for drinking water and food?”
“Shall we?”
Actually, food wasn’t much of a problem. The biggest issue was drinking water. There was a limit to the moisture that could be squeezed from monster eyeballs. Since it was heavy and essential, they would have been in great trouble if not for Yoon Seung-ryong’s ability. While searching for food, Yohan kept stealing glances at Lee Hyun-muk.
‘How can I make Lee Hyun-muk feel this way and that towards me?’ was his biggest concern right now. A girlfriend… he must have had one, right? Well, he was handsome and smart even before Awakening, so it would be strange if he didn’t. Just as he was trying to subtly bring up his ex-girlfriend, Lee Hyun-muk stopped walking abruptly.
“Yohan-ah.”
“Yes? Yes?! Wh-why?”
Yohan, feeling guilty for no reason, stammered in surprise. Lee Hyun-muk gestured with his chin towards somewhere and said.
“How about that for lunch today?”
“That?”
Squinting, he looked and saw small, plump birds, about the size of a fist, huddled together on top of a tall building.
“No, wait a minute…?”
Even from this distance, they looked like fists? Looking again, if the building was that big, they were definitely not small birds! Looking at the monsters that seemed capable of eating them alive, Yohan asked worriedly.
“But won’t they all fly away by the time we get up there?”
“There’s no need to go all the way up there.”
Lee Hyun-muk shrugged and smiled at the bewildered Yohan. A few hours later.
“…What are you eating without me?”
Yohan flinched and put down the large leg skewer he was enthusiastically devouring. Black soot and oil stained the tip of his nose as he gave an embarrassed smile. Yoon Seung-ryong, looking like he had gone through considerable hardship, crossed his arms.
“Welcome back, Seung-ryong Hyung. Have you ever tried roasted sparrow?”
Lee Hyun-muk had instantly struck a few birds on the building with lightning, turning them into roasted carcasses. Going up to the rooftop to check, they were enormous, so big one could mistake them for giant ostriches. While purifying them and contemplating their species, seeing their three pairs of wings and immense size, Lee Hyun-muk said.
‘Judging by the feather color, they look like sparrows.’
‘…These are sparrows?’
Sparrows! Like snake meat, it was a type of meat he had never eaten before. Yohan excitedly carried them back to their shelter, not feeling tired at all. They smoked a few, and one was prepared on the spot, sprinkled with salt, and grilled. The meat was so tender, soft, and savory…. While they were eating voraciously, Yoon Seung-ryong returned.
“S-sparrow? Sparrow? So you were eating sparrows without me.”
Yoon Seung-ryong grumbled, sat down, and grabbed a wing the size of his forearm. After taking a bite, his eyes immediately widened. Yohan quietly placed a sparrow on the grill. Chewing down to the bone, Yoon Seung-ryong lamented.
“Team leader, are we really going to catch that bastard Joo Ho-young like this?”
“Don’t start complaining after lying in wait for just one day.”
Lee Hyun-muk replied, wiping the soot off Yohan’s nose.
“…Is that so?”
Yoon Seung-ryong scratched his head, received purification from Yohan, packed some smoked meat, and left somewhere again.
The next day, with plenty of food secured, the two decided to find drinking water. This time, there was no need to search for a water source. The road was full of ice that Joo Ho-young had frozen. Yohan carefully moved across the slippery ice, gauging where to strike with his blunt weapon.
“Yohan-ah.”
“Yes?”
Holding his weapon high above his head, Yohan replied cheerfully. And then he realized. I was trying to seduce Lee Hyun-muk, but the roasted sparrow yesterday was so delicious that I forgot for a moment…! As he lamented inwardly, Lee Hyun-muk said.
“We have plenty of time, shall we play for a bit?”
And when Yoon Seung-ryong returned, looking like he had gone through hell, Yohan was happily riding a sled pulled by Lee Hyun-muk.
“…What are you two doing?”
At those words, Yohan finally came to his senses. Oh no! The sled was so much fun that I forgot about finding drinking water…! Yoon Seung-ryong, arms crossed, glared at Lee Hyun-muk with narrowed eyes and said.
“The hallucinogen didn’t work!”
“What good is a hallucinogen? You need a paralyzing agent to slow him down.”
Lee Hyun-muk replied, spinning Yohan’s sled around in a dizzying and fun way. Yoon Seung-ryong, with a doubtful expression, uncrossed his arms.
“…Is that so?”