By Zephyria “That’s a white ant?!”
The ‘white ants’ were not white at all. Their plump, swollen abdomens were vibrantly colored in different hues. Ants like small Christmas lights with tiny legs swarmed towards Yoon Seung-ryong. Their numbers seemed to be in the hundreds, no, thousands. Even from a sufficient distance, Yohan recoiled in disgust and stepped further back.
“Poison fights poison. Uh… what was this called again.”
Yoon Seung-ryong muttered nonchalantly, unfazed as the bulb-like ants crawled all over his body.
“Antidote?”
Yohan, watching, writhed in discomfort. The reason each ant had a different color was likely due to their different poisons. Meanwhile, Lee Hyun-muk calmly explained to Yohan, who was shuddering.
“If the birds are like sardines or anchovies, then those are like plankton.”
The white ants, which had vibrantly covered Yoon Seung-ryong, burst their bulb-like bodies. Or, they would arch their tails and shoot out the potent poison stored in their bodies. However, Yoon Seung-ryong, who had immense resistance to poison, yawned as if bored and then simply sprawled out on the ground.
A gray toxic miasma constantly flowed from his body. The ants self-destructed, bursting on their own, or died from Yoon Seung-ryong’s toxic miasma. Some targeted the other three people instead of Yoon Seung-ryong, but they could not cross the circle Yoon Seung-ryong had drawn with his toxic miasma. The dead ants’ vibrant colors faded, bleaching white. Only then did they look somewhat like white ants.
The ants that had poured out endlessly gradually decreased in number as time passed. Then, Yoon Seung-ryong suddenly stood up. He pounded the center of the ant nest with his fist. The wall, unable to withstand the Dealer’s power, crumbled, creating a hole large enough for a person to enter.
“Heave ho. Shall we go catch the queen ant?”
Not long after entering the ant nest, Yoon Seung-ryong’s toxic miasma began to leak out. In less than 10 minutes, Yoon Seung-ryong emerged, holding a strange insect presumed to be the queen ant in his hand, and gestured.
“Could you purify this? We’re staying here today.”
“There are no more ants, right?”
Yohan, approaching with suspicion, began to steadily purify the toxic miasma around the ant nest. Light, stronger and more refined than before, swept through the area and covered the nest, eliminating the toxic miasma of Yoon Seung-ryong and the white ants. By then, Bone Birds that had crawled out of the ground were cautiously pecking at the dead ants.
“Should we roast this for dinner tonight?”
Yoon Seung-ryong said cheerfully, shaking the queen ant, which was grotesque enough to warrant a mosaic. Yohan jumped and objected.
“There’s plenty of other food. I really don’t want to eat ants.”
“It’s really nutty and delicious…”
Licking his lips, Yoon Seung-ryong nevertheless tossed the dead queen ant far away. Instantly, Bone Birds and Flesh Birds swarmed and began dismembering the queen ant. Yohan, watching the scene with a grimace, went inside the ant nest.
The ant nest, which Yoon Seung-ryong had cleared out, was more spacious and comfortable than expected. The temperature and humidity were just right, making it a pleasant place to stay. It became an even more comfortable dwelling after Lee Hyun-muk scanned the nest with his electric field detection, assuring them there were no other living ants. After catching and eating a few Flesh Birds that had emerged to peck at the dead ants for dinner, Yohan began to thoroughly explore the ant nest.
“Wow, there are so many rooms.”
The internal structure of the giant ant nest, like a skyscraper, was complex. There were dozens of round rooms diligently built by the ants, making it even more so. The holes dug for ventilation looked like round windows, making it feel like the dwelling of some alien creature.
“Can I see the queen ant’s room?”
Yohan looked at Lee Hyun-muk and asked for permission. Even though it was a temporarily safe dwelling, he absolutely could not wander around alone.
“Sure. I was curious about what the queen ant’s room looked like too.”
Lee Hyun-muk replied in a gentle voice. Despite his words, Yohan knew he wasn’t particularly interested in the queen ant’s room. It was simply his kindness to consider Yohan. Feeling a little better, Yohan headed towards the passages the ants had used.
Unlike the rooms, which were large enough for humans to inhabit, the passages required him to bend his back to pass through. Yohan became a little excited when he discovered a food storage room piled high with the byproducts the ants had hunted. There were quite a few things that looked like seeds or Fruit.
“Hyung Seung-ryong would love it if I told him!”
After a thorough purification, Yohan moved again with light steps. After moving from room to room a few times, he quickly grew bored. The rooms made by ants with no aesthetic sense were monotonous and all looked the same. Noticing Yohan’s boredom, Lee Hyun-muk said.
“Go down the right passage, go straight, then left, and then down to find the queen ant’s room.”
Yohan marveled at his ability to find the way immediately, even to a place he had never been before. He had been inwardly worried about getting lost, given how complex the ant nest was.
“Can you find your way with that ability too? I’m jealous.”
“Jealous? Yohan, your ability is much better than mine.”
Yohan felt shy at the words, which were filled with pure sincerity. He had been with the Sunrise Team, including Lee Hyun-muk, for quite some time, yet there were still moments when it felt unreal. They were the only ones who provided solace and joy amidst what was generally a nightmarish existence here.
‘No, it wasn’t that much of a nightmare when we were in the Japan sector.’
He missed the life where they purified a building cleanly, cultivated a vegetable garden, and lived comfortably and well-fed. Yohan wasn’t the only one who cherished that dwelling. The three people who lived there often seemed to find comfort similar to, or even greater than, Yohan.
While lost in thought, he eventually arrived at the queen ant’s room. It was wider and taller than any other room, spacious enough to be used as an auditorium. The room, which must have once teemed with corrupted ants, was littered with byproducts that worker ants had brought for the queen and dead ants. It was a sight that dashed Yohan’s subtle expectations.
“Ugh.”
Right, this was the Abyss. Yohan stepped back, looking at the byproducts that could have been from any part of any creature. Lee Hyun-muk caught him as he stumbled over an unseen chitinous shell.
“You have to be careful.”
Yohan tilted his head back to look up at Lee Hyun-muk and blinked. He thought he saw a flicker of red light in his eyes. Leaning halfway against Lee Hyun-muk, he asked.
“Shall I purify it for you?”
“Would you?”
Lee Hyun-muk, who readily agreed, had his eyes curve into a smile. None of their companions had ever refused Yohan’s purification, and Lee Hyun-muk was no exception. Yohan, standing properly, looked around unnecessarily and said softly.
“In a different way… meaning, in a more pleasant way.”
“Ah.”
Perhaps surprised by the unexpected suggestion, Lee Hyun-muk let out a low, unintelligible sound. But it was brief; a firm hand slowly grasped his chin. Yohan instinctively held his breath.
Warm body heat touched his lips. A thick tongue gently licked his slightly parted lips and entered his mouth. As if coaxing his frozen mouth, it rubbed against it. A thrilling, pleasant sensation pulsed heavily from his tailbone.
Yohan, barely regaining his senses, grabbed Lee Hyun-muk’s forearm. As they kissed, he poured purification energy from his palm to the point of contact. Meanwhile, Lee Hyun-muk’s tongue sharpened, gently probing near his frenulum. Then, stimulated, he sucked out everything that had gathered thinly under his tongue and licked it persistently. Yohan’s grip on Lee Hyun-muk’s arm tightened.
‘It feels so good….’
No matter how intimately and kindly Lee Hyun-muk treated him, Yohan always felt a sense of intimidation from him. Was it because he was a High-level Awakener and a Dealer? This intimidation evoked complex feelings; sometimes he found Lee Hyun-muk scary, sometimes wondrous, and sometimes he felt like a fan meeting a superstar. The feeling of such a great and fearsome person treating him specially was indescribably thrilling.
Lee Hyun-muk gradually became engrossed in the kiss, acting as if he would devour him, but then, showing patience, he slowly pulled away. Yohan lingered with a sense of regret and opened his mouth.
“But, Hyung Hyun-muk.”
After escaping Black Mountain, Yohan had started calling Lee Hyun-muk ‘Hyung’ often. It felt more familiar than ‘Mr. Lee Hyun-muk’. “Mm, Yohan,” Lee Hyun-muk replied affectionately. He seemed to enjoy it immensely as he playfully rubbed Yohan’s lips with his thumb.
“I’ve always wondered, are you only enjoying my body?”
“…Huh?”
His hand, which had been caressing Yohan’s lips, stopped, and Lee Hyun-muk’s usually calm and composed expression wavered for the first time. Because he was somewhat deranged even normally due to the Corruption, he looked at Yohan as if questioning if he had just heard an auditory hallucination. Yohan realized his mistake and rephrased.
“Ah. That sounds a bit strange when I say it like that, doesn’t it? What I mean is… are you purely enjoying my purification? No, that sounds weird too. Uh, how should I put it appropriately?”
Seeing a novel expression he had never seen from Lee Hyun-muk before, Yohan spoke incoherently.
“Partner? Business…? Partner? Benefit, something… Friends? Ah! But I’m not presuming to be friends with Mr. Lee Hyun-muk, of course.”
“…Uh, Yohan.”
As Yohan’s address shifted back from Hyung Hyun-muk to Mr. Lee Hyun-muk, Lee Hyun-muk suddenly closed his eyes as if the world had gone dark and rubbed his face. It felt like he was even sweating a little. He looked around and then placed Yohan on top of a large skull, which must have once belonged to some living creature. It seemed like he did it to make Yohan comfortable, but Yohan felt rather uneasy…