By Zephyria Jin Mu-hae was the kind of person who naturally drew attention.
Though his intimidating looks deterred people from staring openly or striking up conversations carelessly, gazes still gathered on him in various ways, even after his years of hardening in the mercenary business.
That day, many mercenaries were gathered at the makeshift bus stop. As Mu-hae’s group passed through them, Joo-oh suddenly raised his head and greeted someone at random.
Unfortunately, it was Jackal’s crew. They hadn’t had any particular conflicts with them, but getting involved would undoubtedly be a hassle.
Did he swing his hand while trying to press down on the back of his head?
Thwack. The sound of a rather impactful hit rang out from Joo-oh’s head, struck by Mu-hae’s hand.
He felt a twinge of guilt, but didn’t apologize. It was Joo-oh who had ignored the order to stay put.
But once they were alone in the mobility and Joo-oh took off his hat, well.
He didn’t know. Mu-hae’s gaze was involuntarily drawn to his head.
Was it because he felt guilty? Or was it simply because his expression didn’t seem good?
Looking at the round side of his head with hair sticking out every which way, Mu-hae unconsciously reached out his hand.
It wasn’t like he intended to touch him… But as the soft, fine hair brushed against his fingertips, he impulsively ruffled his head.
Yes. He stroked it.
‘…….’
Up to that point, it was fine. It wasn’t like he’d hit him again. And it wasn’t like he was the type to throw a fit just because someone touched his head.
However, Joo-oh showed a slightly unexpected reaction. He seemed to wear a slightly surprised expression, then suddenly made a whimpering sound and closed his eyes.
In an instant, the ends of his eyebrows drooped pleasantly, and a bit of his tongue peeked out from between his slightly parted lips.
At the sight of the red, soft tip of his tongue, Jin Mu-hae felt his fingertips to his spine stiffen like plaster.
The hand that had been ruffling his hair stopped abruptly, and Joo-oh slyly opened one eye and looked at Mu-hae.
‘Kiring.’
He definitely made that sound. As if there was an organ at the end of his throat that opened and closed.
Through narrowed eyes, happy pupils held a mischievous smile.
Mu-hae, belatedly regaining his senses, returned his hand to its original position, and that bizarre moment quickly ended.
Joo-oh tilted his head to one side, then went back to looking out the window as usual, and Mu-hae clenched his fist tightly while checking his pad.
He thought that day’s incident had quietly passed by…
‘Damn it.’
For some reason, starting the next day, Joo-oh kept subtly leaning his head against him.
He wasn’t openly pushing it, but he did it while circling around as if he didn’t know.
Naturally, Mu-hae ignored him, pretending not to notice. After being consistent like that for a few days, Joo-oh suddenly had a look of realization on his face.
‘Maybe, hit me first?’
‘……What?’
Crazy bastard. He didn’t know what kind of thought process he’d gone through, but he had an expression that suggested he’d learned something seriously wrong.
He immediately told him not to talk nonsense, but from then on, “Touch me” and “Hit me and touch me” were added to Joo-oh’s lineup of nonsense.
“You. I’m telling you again, just try going somewhere and spouting weird things.”
It was already the umpteenth time Jin Mu-hae had growled at him like that.
Even Jin Mu-hae, who didn’t have much emotional fluctuation, felt his hair stand on end whenever he heard those words.
Of course, Joo-oh always said what he wanted, regardless.
“Wanna watch TV.”
“If you talk nonsense, no TV or anything.”
“Okay! Got it!”
After much tribulation, he managed to get permission to watch TV late and was beaming.
Mu-hae pressed hard on his temples, feeling a fresh headache coming on.
Damn it. At this point, thinking about it any further was a loss. Jin Mu-hae forced his confused mind back to work.
If there was anything that came to mind right away… Right. Mu-hae had agreed to see Director Gil early tomorrow morning.
It was the first time they were meeting since sharing the ’emergency contact list’ information a few days ago.
‘This needs a signal device.’
‘A signal device?’
‘Yeah. If you put that into a security-protected device, only designated personnel can communicate with each other.’
Director Gil’s eyes seemed a little red as he scanned the emergency contact list.
After a moment of silence, the answer he gave was a communication component that only certain members of the perpetrators had used.
‘Then maybe…….’
‘No. I don’t have it. I already disposed of it. Didn’t want to get caught.’
‘Is there a way to get it again? Like, make it. You’re good at that kind of thing.’
‘I don’t know. I didn’t develop it in the first place. If I had the schematics, I’d try. But I wonder if they’re still around.’
The man, sipping his usual leaf tea, opened his mouth after a long time.
As always, he had a face that said everything was a hassle, but his furrowed brow was tightly strained.
‘Was it a number that came out after entering a specific code?’
‘Yes. They had it tattooed on them.’
‘Then there must be something left. Somewhere. Sung-jo must have hidden it well.’
It was a tone closer to certainty than speculation.
When Director Gil answered like this, nine times out of ten it was correct. The equipment he said he could fix returned to its original state even if it was completely wrecked, and the requests he said would be difficult never made any money no matter what he tried.
So, the first thing to do was to find the schematics or the device. In the midst of feeling lost, at least a signpost had appeared.
From then on, Mu-hae began to search through the documents he had skimmed over one by one.
Nothing new was discovered regarding the signal device, but a few hours ago, Director Gil had contacted him.
He asked if he remembered the folding knife he used to use often.
‘That’s not really my father’s item.’
It was the first weapon Mu-hae had bought with his own money. In this neighborhood, even the less grown-up guys felt more comfortable carrying a blade.
That simple weapon had been modified a few times by Director Gil before it developed a major crack and was left in a drawer.
The knife, which only came out when swung hard, moved semi-automatically and eventually had an ultrasonic vibration function, so he had used it enough.
‘To tell me to bring that.’
It was an incomprehensible request, but he agreed.
The knife, which he had taken out after a long time, had run out of power and the blade was slightly rusted.
“Jin Mu-hae. You’re not eating any more?”
Someone pulled Mu-hae’s mind, which had been quietly lost in thought, back to reality.
It was Joo-oh. He was clattering his fork, his face so clean that one wondered if he had eaten anything.
“Why. Not enough with that?”
“No, I was just asking! I won’t steal Jin Mu-hae’s anymore.”
Joo-oh vehemently shook his head. Come to think of it, he hadn’t coveted anyone else’s plate lately.
It wasn’t that he was eating less, but he didn’t even touch what was set aside for Mu-hae’s share.
“You eat more. Don’t pick up weird things in the middle of the night.”
Buying such a large poultry whole was for the purpose of feeding him.
Joo-oh made a suspicious sound, then sliced thick pieces of meat and piled them on his plate.
‘Must be nice to be so carefree.’
He has no home, no money, and doesn’t remember much. Perhaps that’s why he’s so cheerful about everything.
Does he even know about the hierarchical human society or reform? No matter how enormous the food expenses are, he doesn’t get paid for his work, so it seems he’s not interested in anything other than eating, sleeping, and playing.
“Can I be alone for a bit tomorrow morning?”
“No.”
“Yeah. I thought so.”
That’s why he’s also a suitable person to keep around. If a sane guy overheard this, he would have to be sent away under the guise of an accident.
Unaware of what kind of chilling thoughts were passing through his mind, Joo-oh was humming a tune.
He had never heard it before, but somehow it was familiar.
Joo-oh’s daily routine was simple and straightforward.
He would wake up at dawn and stare blankly at the ceiling, then faintly hear Jin Mu-hae’s voice from outside the door.
The sound of breathing. The sound of tossing and turning. While listening to those sounds and opening the system window, the date on the notification message changed at some point with a click.
He learned in this way that the moment he fell into the game was early in the morning. Joo-oh reaffirmed the quest list that he read over and over again every day, and shook his feet.
Ten fingers. Ten toes. A head on his limbs, no tail. The sensation given by the changed body was always amazing to feel.
He must have always looked like this before falling into La Vida Blue. No matter how much time had passed, that time felt strangely unfamiliar and distant.
Maybe it was because he had no memories. In fact, Joo-oh’s consciousness began within the Aberrant and repeatedly flickered like fireflies whenever he felt like he was going crazy.
After dazedly gathering his hazy mind while thinking about this and that, he would gradually hear the sounds of people living outside.
The sound of Jin Mu-hae getting up and tidying the bedding. The movement of checking the incidents and accidents or contacts of the night through the Watch.
Then the sound of the bathroom door closing and the sound of water pouring down. Jin Mu-hae had a habit of bending his neck this way and that while showering to loosen it up.
The sound of small bones cracking flowed through the stream of water. The sound of brushing his teeth, and the sound of putting on clothes on his damp body.
Joo-oh could grasp every single subtle and small sound without missing a thing. He just didn’t usually listen.
If he focused on too many sounds, his mind would become distracted, and Jin Mu-hae probably wouldn’t like it very much.
And if he waited just a little longer…
Tap tap.
The perfunctory knocking sound woke his ears. It was a call to eat.
Joo-oh turned off all the system windows displayed in front of him and jumped up.
He hurriedly opened the door, but Jin Mu-hae had already walked into the living room.
“Eat something different today.”
“Why?”
“Don’t you remember? We finished the last box yesterday.”
“Jin Mu-hae’s is not tasty.”
Breakfast was cereal. After finishing the meal and washing up, Joo-oh moved according to Jin Mu-hae’s schedule.
Today was finally the day to move according to the quest. Joo-oh’s heart thumped a little.
“We’re going to the Electronic Store.”
“Okay.”
“We’re not buying equipment today, so sit still in the chair and wait.”
Joo-oh answered casually and watched Mu-hae’s wet hair.
According to the Player, he looked much better than when he was just a computer graphic.