By Zephyria 
As the spilled water began to run dry, Director Gil’s water-writing evaporated more quickly. Mu-hae decided to trust the head of Joo-oh, who had returned at some point with sparkling eyes.
It seemed true that he hadn’t paid any attention to that side since leaving Central; Director Gil’s knowledge showed a significant difference from what Teacher Jung had told him.
“And as for the Mayor’s side… I can’t rule it out entirely. That’s all I’ve got. It’s just a personal guess, so don’t trust it too much.”
“No. Thank you. Where else would I get information like this?”
Mu-hae poured about half of the freshly brewed, steaming tea into Joo-oh’s cup.
As Joo-oh stubbornly drank the remainder, another long and suffocating silence fell.
As expected, he couldn’t tell what the tea tasted like. Especially when it was water with leaves chewed in it.
Now that he looked closer, what Joo-oh was holding wasn’t a cup, but rather a soup bowl with a handle. Whether he realized it or not, the guy was truly insane.
“Seong-jo… didn’t hate you.”
After nearly five minutes of silence, Director Gil broke the stillness, biting his lip. This time, his gaze was fixed entirely on Mu-hae.
“Well, I don’t know everything perfectly, but I can guarantee that much. He probably cared for you in his own way. It’s just…”
It’s just that there was something more important to him than his own child. The unfinished consolation seemed to echo clearly in Mu-hae’s ears.
Mu-hae gave a half-hearted shrug and set down the empty cup.
“I’m leaving. You should air the place out.”
Despite having forced Director Gil to eat some of the pie, two slices remained intact on the table.
Mu-hae stood up, pretending to brush off Joo-oh’s mouth, even though there wasn’t a single crumb on it.
Then, just before stepping out the door, he gave the guy’s shin a light poke with his toe.
“You said you had something to give me.”
Only then did Joo-oh beam and rummage through his pocket. A green figure was plopped onto his white hand.
“Tetelong. I found a prettier one.”
Director Gil’s eyes shifted from Mu-hae to the toy. Joo-oh pressed the perfectly crafted Tetelong into the hand of the man standing still.
“He says he’ll grant a wish, whether it’s a rough one or a sloppy one. There’s no harm in tossing it at home.”
The moment he gave a light greeting and turned away, a complex surge of emotions flickered across Director Gil’s face.
There are clear tiers even in the life of the slums. While there are those who, despite not having proper jobs, somehow earn an income and start families, there are also scoundrels who sell off the accidental brats they produce.
Of course, the latter was overwhelmingly common, and the environment Jin Mu-hae grew up in was closer to that. Naturally, he had no fantasies about parents or a harmonious home.
Perhaps that was why, even after hearing a fairly serious story, his stomach didn’t churn and his breathing didn’t grow labored.
He was becoming more curious about the person called West Wind. Still, it wasn’t as interesting as Joo-oh’s way of showering.
“You don’t know what washing is?”
“But I was clean.”
Damn it. All this time, what he had been doing after going in to wash was simply standing still under the showerhead and spinning in circles.
Then, once his hair was wet, he’d lather up with shampoo, and if he got bored, he’d sit on the cold floor and let the water hit him.
This wasn’t a shower; it was practically playing with water. Joo-oh, who had blurted out the story without knowing what was strange about it, belatedly pouted while glancing at others.
Mu-hae pressed his hand to his forehead with an expression that said he didn’t know where to start explaining, then instinctively pulled him close and pressed his nose against the nape of his neck.
This bastard, who had never washed properly unless he went in with Mu-hae, had a damn fragrant body scent.
The skin touching the tip of his nose was soft and smooth. If he were to stick out his tongue and lick it, there would likely be the characteristic sweetness of clean skin.
He understood now that the guy wasn’t human. But even so, wasn’t he an Aberrant?
If Aberrants emitted anything, it was usually a foul stench or a peculiar odor; he’d never heard of one being soft, smelling good, and clean without washing.
“Haha! That tickles.”
The companion whose existence could not be defined laughed playfully. Feeling annoyed, Mu-hae bit the back of his neck hard and, pretending it was a mistake, poured his cereal into the deep purple milk.
“Kibble.”
“Stop saying rude things.”
Joo-oh gobbled up the grain cereal, using the sweetened milk as a side dish. Seeing his gaze repeatedly drift toward the colorful box, it seemed he wanted more Fruit Tornado.
“Everything you saw earlier, you remember it all, right?”
“Yeah. Are you going to look for them?”
“I think an opportunity to meet them will come up anyway, but I should be prepared just in case.”
He didn’t harbor the optimism that the ‘big shot’ who knew the secret paths through Cheong’s help would be friendly toward him.
Come to think of it, the vegan society, which had gone quiet after three important figures disappeared, would likely know about the Return flight and its research purpose.
“Your exposure level has gone up a bit.”
“Is someone noticing me?”
“No. I don’t know about that.”
Joo-oh was a guy with sensitive senses. He probably instinctively detected the gazes or suspicious vibes when passing through the streets.
Mu-hae wondered if there was a need to express it with a strange term like ‘exposure level,’ but regardless, he knew it wasn’t a positive thing.
“I think it’ll go up more if we meet the people Director Gil told us about.”
Likely so. If they possessed the prestige fitting the term ‘big shot,’ the reaction wouldn’t be quiet when poking around them.
However, what mattered now wasn’t whether it was exposure level or an exhibitionist. Before that, finding a way to meet them was a bit daunting for a mere former mercenary turned defense force instructor.
“Park Young…”
Joo-oh, who was about to say something, suddenly shut his mouth. Then, he began to empty his bowl with a suspiciously quiet intensity.
Even when met with a gaze asking what he meant, he simply averted his eyes. He looked exactly like someone with a guilty conscience.
Did he cause some trouble without me knowing? It was sad that this was the first thought that came to mind. Mu-hae frowned slightly and cocked an eyebrow.
“Park Young, what.”
“…It’s nothing.”
“That’s why I’m asking what the ‘nothing’ is.”
“I don’t know.”
After hurriedly finishing the cereal, he fled from the dining table.
Mu-hae quickly grabbed the hem of his clothes and dragged him back into the chair.
“If you don’t tell me, I’m making you wash again.”
“I like washing.”
“Sleep in the study by yourself.”
“…”
Joo-oh’s face turned sorrowful, as if he had said something he shouldn’t have. He looked back and forth between the sturdy bed he had newly acquired and Mu-hae, then let out a sigh like the saddest person in the world.
“What did you do to be tucking your tail like that?”
“I didn’t do anything.”
“Then. Park Young, what. Park Young-chan?”
At the words spoken without much thought, Joo-oh’s eyes widened slightly. Park Young-chan was a defense force member who had been quite helpful when searching for the vegan society or Joo-oh.
He had been entangled with him, received a medal, and had attended various events for a while…
‘Your tongue is smoother than I expected.’
The image that instantly surfaced wasn’t the well-built Park Young-chan himself, but his aged father, whose cunning eyes sparkled from behind him.
Park Tae-sun. A businessman entwined with the political scene of Goryeo City and a representative funding source for the Councilor faction. He had memorized the name while being scolded so much by Teacher Jung that the information followed immediately, as if it were one body.
“Certainly…”
If it were him, he could likely connect with almost any figure. Since he wasn’t mentioned by Director Gil, he was likely completely unaware of the Return flight, but because of that, he might still have his eye on Jin Mu-hae.
Joo-oh, who had been quietly observing Mu-hae, gave a small click of his tongue. He frowned slightly, as if something was deeply displeasing.
He was a guy who would excitedly strike up a conversation and laugh whenever he ran into Park Young-chan back in the defense force.
‘It’s a bit like that, but.’
It was true that he had saved his life against a Grade 1 Aberrant, but Mu-hae had also received quite a bit of help from him.
Recently, he remembered receiving almost nothing but help. Especially when someone had disappeared outside the city and he had been half-out of his mind…
This time, it felt a bit shameful to blindly ask him to arrange a meeting with his father. Even if Park Tae-sun were to welcome him first, he didn’t want to keep incurring debts to one person.
“Hey.”
“…”
“Did you hear something from Park Young-chan?”
“No.”
Joo-oh answered curtly and scraped the empty bowl with his spoon.
As expected, he seemed to be hiding something. Mu-hae pointedly glanced at the bed.
“…Jin Mu-hae is mean.”
“So, do you hate it?”
“I like it.”
As if he had never been sulking, Joo-oh surrendered instantly, mumbled a few times, and then confessed.
“Park Young-chan said he’s been busy lately. He said he lost muscle because he’s been sleeping late.”
“You two actually exchange that kind of talk?”
“He said he wants to do a good job with what Park Tae-sun ordered. But I don’t know what he’s doing yet.”
It wasn’t that he enjoyed others’ misfortunes, but the thought that Park Young-chan was struggling flashed through his mind as a good thing.
Mu-hae checked the Link Watch for the date and class schedule. Coincidentally, there was training involving him in two days.
Since the guy seemed to consider him quite close, he might be able to hear about his troubles if he questioned him well. While helping solve them, he could simultaneously dig for a way to meet Park Tae-sun, and a path would open somehow.
“That was an excellent demonstration. You may leave.”
“Yes.”
Park Young-chan wiped the sweat from his forehead and returned to his spot. His throat was scratchy from imitating an Aberrant until just now.
Since the training method changed, his skills had certainly improved, but it wasn’t particularly welcome that he had become equally good at mimicking Aberrants.
For some reason, it felt like Instructor Jin kept calling him for the role of the Aberrant… It felt like it meant he was the most capable, which brought joy, but at the same time, he didn’t want to be recognized for this kind of ability.
“Good work, everyone.”
After the grueling three-hour training session ended, everyone left through the door, exhausted.
Park Young-chan also untied his wrist guards, tucked them under his arm, and bowed.
“Ah, and Member Park Young-chan.”
At that moment, the instructor, who had been making a clicking sound with the pen he was holding, called him. A man who wasn’t much older than him, but who was more mature and upright than anyone else, from his physique to his mental age.
“If you have time, let’s have a cup of tea.”
Beside him, an assistant with a neat appearance, as if he had just had a haircut, smiled, revealing his teeth.
He didn’t know what it was about, but it was a welcome proposal. He happened to have some time before the next task. Park Young-chan gave a short “Yes” and turned around.