By Zephyria “Ah, you were watching because the Special Unit’s movements were suspicious.”
The family, who had been surprised by Lee Hyun-muk’s sudden appearance despite being glad to see him, understood with these words. Yang Hwa-pyeong, in particular, whose distrust of the Special Unit had grown due to this incident, nodded his head vigorously. Only Yohan awkwardly crunched on the apple Lee Hyun-muk had finished peeling. Yang Yosep, who had been gazing at Lee Hyun-muk with admiration without even looking at the fruit, politely requested.
“Um, if you don’t mind, may I ask for a handshake?”
“Of course. Anytime.”
“It’s an honor, Lee Hyun-muk Sunbae. Please, let’s drop the formalities! I’m younger.”
Seeing Yang Yosep’s foolishly delighted expression after shaking hands with Lee Hyun-muk, Yohan felt inexplicably displeased. However, since Yang Hwa-pyeong and Kim Ye-ju were also smiling brightly, he ate his fruit quietly without a word. Next, Lee Hyun-muk spoke in a soft and kind voice to the parents who were worried about their son who would be living independently in the guild building for the first time.
“I will live with Yohan and take good care of him, so please don’t worry too much. Yohan is the most important talent in the Sun Guild, so we will always pay attention to him and treat him with the highest priority.”
Ugh! Yohan, who hadn’t expected him to openly mention living together, inwardly screamed, feeling guilty about something. He even choked on his surprise. Coughing, Lee Hyun-muk patted his back with appropriate force. Kim Ye-ju watched the scene with a pleased expression and said,
“My goodness, if Lee Hyun-muk-ssi lives with us and takes care of our Yohan, there’s nothing to worry about.”
Yang Hwa-pyeong, who had been inwardly concerned, also smiled warmly with a look of great relief. Lee Hyun-muk’s already high favorability now soared to the sky, and he was invited for dinner. It was a feast far more elaborate than breakfast.
After eating their fill for dinner, Lee Hyun-muk came to see Yohan’s room, using the excuse of needing to discuss guild matters.
“It’s a bit messy, isn’t it? I didn’t have time to clean…”
Yohan felt awkward at the sight of the room, which was somewhat messy though not dusty, and quickly put the pile of clothes hanging on the chair into the laundry basket. He was relieved that Lee Hyun-muk didn’t seem to mind at all. On the contrary, he slowly surveyed the room with eyes clearly filled with affection, making Yohan’s face flush with heat.
“When did you start living in this house?”
“Since elementary school. My parents were busy, so before that, I lived with my Hyung and Grandfather. I don’t remember much, though.”
Yohan acted awkwardly, finding it hard to believe Lee Hyun-muk was in his room. He busied himself pretending to tidy things up, moving around restlessly, but then, as if suddenly gaining courage, he sat down right next to Lee Hyun-muk. He remained stiff and did nothing, causing Lee Hyun-muk to burst into laughter and pull Yohan into his embrace.
“Are you going to stay the night?”
Lee Hyun-muk’s eyes curved as he answered the question asked with bright, impudent eyes, the intention clear.
“Of course, no. I’m leaving in a bit.”
Though a little disappointed by the answer, Yohan held back, knowing they would be living in the same house starting in a week. Instead, he checked for any signs of people outside and quickly kissed Lee Hyun-muk. After stealing a few kisses while being mindful of the outside, Yohan leaned back leisurely in his lover’s arms. Lee Hyun-muk stroked Yohan’s ear and asked,
“Wasn’t it a waste to give Park Seung-min your purification ability?”
Come to think of it, Lee Hyun-muk must have seen Park Seung-min visit his home with Special Unit members escorting him not too long ago. Yohan nodded in agreement.
“It really was a waste. He wasn’t even that talented. But then I thought, if he were to awaken with a different ability, he’d obviously just harm others. It’s more beneficial for humanity if he becomes a Purifier. If he became a Dealer or a tanker, how much would he torment those around him?”
Yohan eagerly anticipated the day of revenge that was fast approaching. He felt he wouldn’t be satisfied until he saw Park Seung-min float up to the sky and then crash down to the ground. He knew that even if his revenge failed, Lee Hyun-muk and others would help him. So, he would just endure a little longer for the sweetness of his revenge to ripen.
As he thought about his own revenge, someone else suddenly came to mind. Go Jae-won. He had been embroiled in gossip and faced immense criticism since the former Sunrise Team members returned. He remained secluded in the Sun Guild, only offering nonsensical explanations like their friendship growing stronger in the Abyss when asked why they had formed a separate guild, excluding Lee Hyun-muk and others.
“Is it okay to ask? What you plan to do about that Go Jae-won person…”
“For now, we’ve decided to give full authority to Chan-ha. None of us hates Go Jae-won as much as Chan-ha does.”
“Ah, Chan-ha Hyung… That makes sense.”
Yohan recalled that Lee Chan-ha had the most horrific appearance among the group. While other team members also hated Go Jae-won, their eyes weren’t as sharp as Chan-ha’s. He hated him not only for causing all the team members to fall into the Abyss because he was deceived by Go Jae-won, but also for going mad and suffering from obsessive-compulsive disorder, and for repeatedly plunging his colleagues into the Flood.
Yohan eagerly anticipated the day when his revenge against Go Jae-won and Park Seung-min would be fully realized, chatting about various things with Lee Hyun-muk.
He felt it was a shame to let him leave, so he pestered Lee Hyun-muk to stay the night, but Lee Hyun-muk gently persuaded Yohan and eventually left the house.
The next day, Yohan went out for a walk, but he didn’t see a single strand of hair of Lee Hyun-muk. It was quite disappointing.
Respecting Lee Hyun-muk’s intention to be so considerate, Yohan fully enjoyed his time at home. Surprisingly, his parents didn’t make any comparisons between Yang Yosep and Yohan for the entire week. Thus, Yohan spent his time happily without any upsetting incidents.
After resting well, a week later, news arrived that the Sun Guild building was finally completed. Yohan quickly packed his bags. Even though he only packed clothes haphazardly, the luggage was full.
His parents, busy with their company work that had piled up, managed to make time, but escorting Yohan to the gate was the best they could do. Instead, Yang Yosep offered to drive Yohan to the Sun Guild. Kim Ye-ju, who was packing Yohan’s belongings one by one, said with teary eyes,
“Always be careful. Stick close to Lee Hyun-muk-ssi. Okay? Understood?”
Yang Hwa-pyeong, who was lingering around the car, regretting his son’s independence, added,
“Yes, always be careful and cautious. Your health is always the priority.”
“Of course. I’ll always be careful.”
Yohan got into the car, receiving his parents’ farewell. As he watched his parents’ figures recede through the window, he felt a lump in his throat and sniffled a little, but Yang Yosep clicked his tongue.
“Crying again.”
“What! What is it!”
“Go on, cry. Crybaby.”
Even as he said that, his tone was more teasing than genuinely critical, so Yohan just glared at him for a moment. In any case, seeing him take his side and give him a ride like this, it seemed the effect of the purification would last quite a while.
Yohan’s home was located in Daejeon, and the Sun Guild was in the southern outskirts of Seoul, so it took quite some time to arrive.
After the Great Rift occurred in Seoul, a large number of people began moving out of the big cities. However, considering the various infrastructure, they couldn’t move too far, so they mostly settled in areas that were moderately close and moderately far from Seoul’s outskirts. Consequently, the Sun Guild was also located in the outskirts.
This was a socially quite troublesome issue. High population density increased the probability of Rifts occurring, but if one moved to a sparsely populated rural area, it would be difficult to receive protection immediately when monsters appeared. Yohan was fortunate to live well thanks to his parents, but many people were living difficult lives, facing threats to their lives.
‘If we just purify the Rifts, monsters will appear much less often. If we chase after Great Rifts and starve the Abyss, it will eventually close.’
This was when Yohan was having such hopeful thoughts. The car slowly began to get stuck in traffic, and suddenly loud honking sounds erupted from everywhere, followed by sirens. It was an alarm siren that everyone heard at least once every few months. It meant monsters had appeared nearby. Both Yang Yosep and Yang Yohan tensed up, turned the radio to a local channel, and listened intently.
― Five presumed Class 3 monsters have appeared in the direction of Anseong IC. Citizens are urged to evacuate immediately to Anseong Rest Stop. We repeat. Five presumed Class 3 monsters have appeared in the direction of Anseong IC. Citizens are urged to evacuate immediately to Anseong Rest Stop.
Screams and shouts erupted from all around. Since the cars were stuck and couldn’t move, everyone hastily got out of their cars and started running towards the rest stop. Every face was filled with fear. Yang Yosep pondered cautiously and glanced at his younger brother.
“Five Class 3 entities… Wait here. I’ll go catch them.”
“No, I’m going with you.”
Yohan shook his head and demanded to accompany him. Yang Yosep hesitated but soon agreed. He still couldn’t quite grasp that his younger brother had Awakened, but if he was a High-level Awakener, he would be of help rather than a hindrance in combat. He quickly opened the car door, got out, and pulled something out of the trunk.
“Hey, you don’t have a weapon, do you? Use this!”
It was a short spear. When manipulated as Yang Yosep had shown him, it instantly lengthened into a long spear. Yang Yosep had also grabbed his weapon, which he always carried, at some point. Yohan thought of his own sleek weapon. It was too conspicuous for him to carry around now, so unfortunately, Lee Hyun-muk was currently keeping it safe for him.
Instead of forcing their way through the evacuating crowd, the two men climbed onto the cars. Then, they lightly leaped from the roof of one vehicle to another. No one worried about the cars getting damaged. Rather, seeing the two holding spears making inhuman leaps, people felt reassured that an Awakened was present.