FSA 11

‘Yang Yohan!’

At the sharp voice calling him, Yohan flinched. His family members, each with an annoyed or cold expression, glared at him fiercely. Already intimidated, Yohan lowered his gaze.

‘I don’t expect you to be as good as your Hyung. How can you not even be half as good?’

‘Every time I get asked what the second son is doing, I’m too embarrassed to answer.’

‘Crying again? Such a grown man, so pitifully tearful….’

His father, mother, and Hyung took turns with harsh scolding and nagging. Yohan had a lot to say too. Even if I study hard, how can I get grades like my Hyung? What can I do if I’m not interested in studying? What can I do if I was born with a tendency to cry easily? He argued point by point, but no one seemed to understand him at all.

‘You don’t do anything well. It’s frustrating, so frustrating!’

‘Once you graduate, I’ll make a spot for you at the company, so just work hard under your Hyung.’

‘You’re so clumsy, how are you going to live your life?’

I don’t want to work under my Hyung! I’ve lived my whole life being compared to him, and I don’t want to live like that anymore…! The moment he shouted that, Yohan woke up from his dream.

“Hk, hnn….”

He opened his eyes wide, then tossed and turned with a groan. His nose felt tingly, and then tears streamed down. The dream was harsher and crueler than reality, but seeing his family’s faces, even like this, made him feel glad and happy. He wished the dream could have lasted a little longer.

Yohan thought of his Hyung, Yang Yosep. They were brothers three years apart, and Yohan was always the one who was completely dominated by his Hyung, like a mouse caught by a cat. Even their parents had stood by and watched. Unlike Yang Yohan, Yang Yosep was perfect in every way.

Yang Yosep was always first place wherever he went. He always entered school as valedictorian and graduated as valedictorian, and his speech and conduct were impeccable. Seeing such an exemplary eldest son, Yohan never quite measured up in his parents’ eyes. They constantly compared him to his Hyung, and he rarely received any praise.

Even if he wasn’t as good as his Hyung, Yohan had managed a decent life. While not valedictorian, his grades were in the upper tier, and he entered a good university based on his scores, even if it wasn’t the same one Yang Yosep attended. Perhaps in another family, he would have been a sufficiently proud son. But not in Yohan’s family.

Ultimately, this was why Yohan wanted to join the Rift Awakening Party. Annoyingly, Yang Yosep had even achieved Intermediate Awakening. On top of that, hearing he was expected to work under his Hyung his whole life was unbearable. After the Rift Incident, the world had become even more harsh to live in. Even though he had a guaranteed job thanks to his parents, he couldn’t feel grateful.

But thinking about it now, it was all just being spoiled.

‘Still, I should have just endured it and lived….’

He impulsively decided to awaken, and the result was falling into the Abyss. It was too much, no matter how you looked at it. Yohan sobbed, regretting it over and over, wishing he could return to his comfortable home. As he got up, his eyes swollen from crying, Lee Hyun-muk looked at him.

“Did you sleep well…?”

He offered a greeting, but there was no response. Seeing the blank, vacant look on his face, it seemed he had turned back into a Madman while sleeping. Yohan dejectedly examined his leg condition first. Fortunately, the fever that had been rising in his body had subsided, and his leg didn’t hurt any more. It seemed the treatment was effective.

After that, Yohan stayed at their shelter for several days, sharing food with Lee Hyun-muk. After eating, sleeping, and resting well, his leg stopped oozing. Yohan’s face brightened as he saw scabs forming on the wound and the swelling significantly reduced. He felt like he would recover safely like this.

“My wound has healed a lot, right? It should be completely recovered soon!”

Chattering, Yohan habitually rummaged through his backpack. He took out one of the few precious chocolate bars left and broke it in half. He put one half into the mouth of the dazed Lee Hyun-muk and shoveled the other half and the crumbs into his own mouth. Chewing, Yohan was tidying his backpack when he casually pulled out his phone.

“The battery is running low….”

He muttered in a somewhat disappointed voice. Of course, he had a power bank to recharge it, but he didn’t want to waste it since he didn’t know when or how he would use the battery. Anyway, he had no use for his phone anymore. The words “Service Unavailable” were clearly displayed at the top of the screen.

When Yohan took out his phone, the Madman showed interest and tilted his head. Then, he yawned and muttered strange sounds.

“Today’s weather, clear, blood rain, should hang laundry. Warning, warning, warning. Typhoon approaching.”

“Wolf goes nom nom, crash, crunch, your stomach stones are delicious. Roll roll.”

“Lipstick, apple, tripe, rose, lantern, sunset….”

These were nonsensical ramblings that were impossible to understand. Naturally, the outside was anything but clear; it was still dark. Just in case, he poked his head out to look, but saw nothing but monsters occasionally ambling by.

Yohan, letting the somewhat creepy monologue go in one ear and out the other, crouched on the soft padding and touched the screen. With less than 10 percent battery left, he opened his photos first. Looking at pictures taken outside the Abyss, he felt tears welling up. Had a mere cafe scene ever looked so bright and pleasant? Scrolling through his photo album, he scowled at a picture of Park Seung-min.

“Bastard….”

As he grumbled and deleted all of Park Seung-min’s photos, the battery was already below 3 percent. He knew he should save battery, but he decided not to, for the sake of his mental recovery. Yohan hastily took a moment to look at family photos, and when only 1 percent remained, he checked the messages he had exchanged with his family. The most recent message was a conversation with his Hyung.

Hyung, stop fooling around at home and study.

Don’t be lazy just because your job is guaranteed.

If I hear any talk about the Yang family’s parachute, you know what happens, right?

Me

Ah, if you’re going to nag, I’ll take it in cash.

And I told you I’d get a job elsewhere.

Hyung

Stop bullshitting.

Yang Yosep has sent you ₩500,000. Please check on mobile.

It’s good that I had a lot to say anyway.

Since I received the money, if you ignore me from now on, you’ll die.

Me

Yes……

Even the subsequent nagging, which was so harsh it made his eyes sting, brought tears to his eyes. As he sniffled, checking the messages with his family, a languid voice brushed past his ear.

“Youngest?”

“Aaaah!”

Completely caught off guard, Yohan jumped up with a start. Clutching his pounding chest, he quickly turned his head to see Lee Hyun-muk standing right beside him, also looking at the phone.

“Oh, when did you come back to your senses!”

“Since you started receiving pocket money from your Hyung.”

“Now that I think about it, I haven’t even spent all that money yet….”

Once his startled heart calmed down, what came to mind was relief. He missed Lee Hyun-muk, who was as sane as his family. He was worried he might not see him again for months, so Yohan, without realizing it, exclaimed in a cheerful voice and grabbed his hand.

“You came back quickly this time too! I’m so glad you come back often!”

“…Mm, yes.”

Lee Hyun-muk looked at the hand Yohan was holding, seeming slightly taken aback, but didn’t pull away. Yohan realized his actions belatedly, but the warmth of the person’s touch felt so good that he lingered, pretending to have just realized his rude mistake.

“Ah, yes, I’m the youngest. I’m three years younger than my Hyung. I’m twenty-three years old….”

He was giving Lee Hyun-muk personal information that he would never be curious about when his phone finally died, forcing a shutdown. Yohan stroked the phone with a regretful look and carefully put it back in his bag. He planned to charge it briefly later, only when he really missed his family. Lee Hyun-muk nodded and said,

“Let me see your leg wound again.”

Yohan obediently rolled up his pants. The former doctor, after removing the gauze, glanced at the wound and nodded.

“It’s healing well.”

“It’s all thanks to you, Lee Hyun-muk ssi! Thank you so much. I really thought I was going to die, or at least have my leg amputated….”

As he expressed his sincere gratitude, Yohan doubted his own eyes. A faint smile flickered across Lee Hyun-muk’s face as he heard the thanks. It was then that Yohan realized for the first time.

‘Come to think of it, he’s really handsome.’

He had known he was handsome from various media before falling into the Abyss, but due to the circumstances, it had only been a mental recognition, and now it was finally sinking into his heart. As he glanced sideways, trying not to be too rude, Lee Hyun-muk said,

“Take off your clothes.”

“…What?”

Yohan, who had been admiring the other person’s handsome face, asked again, doubting his ears. Lee Hyun-muk spoke with a calm face, devoid of any hint of playfulness or teasing.

“I need to see if there are any Contamination Symptoms. Sometimes it’s better to just cut it out.”

As he said that, he took out a scalpel and disinfectant, and Yohan’s already frightened leg began to tremble. Although Lee Hyun-muk said he was checking for Contamination Symptoms, his demeanor clearly indicated he was convinced there were symptoms and they needed to be cut out. Frightened, Yohan instinctively stepped back and said,

“From what I saw, it was really fine….”

“You didn’t check the back, though.”

“…That, that’s true, but!”

As Yohan hesitated, half embarrassed and half fearful, Lee Hyun-muk commanded in a deep voice,

“Take it off.”