By Zephyria 
Jeil Heon remained silent, Kang Suk-young burst into laughter, and the child snapped open a folding fan to cover their twitching lips.
Jeil Heon rubbed his face bitterly.
“I was born in the 70s, but calling me ‘Grandfather’ is a bit… much, isn’t it?”
“Among my mom’s friends, there’s someone who already became a grandmother because her son got married early after causing a scene…”
“….”
Kang Suk-young even pulled out a handkerchief to dab her tears.
“Ha! So here was the natural enemy of Sunbae’s slippery tongue.”
“…Jiha. People usually call their parents’ friends ‘mister’ or ‘uncle.’ I’d like it if you called me that. Please, I’m begging you.”
Since he pleaded for it himself, Yoo Jiha returned to calling him ‘mister.’ To be honest, he didn’t find the title burdensome. Even he felt that the 22 years spent captured by an Aberration should be subtracted from his age, and Jeil Heon certainly had a youthful aura. It was simply the Confucian boy dwelling within his soul who cried out in opposition.
Once the titles were settled, he finally asked what he had been curious about.
“I’m not the only person with the true eye, right?”
Among the tests conducted by the crazed researchers, there was one where another possessor of the true eye called out Jeil Heon’s name. Of course, there was no reaction. The only individual whose Corruption Level was lowered when Yoo Jiha called their name was Jeil Heon, and Jeil Heon’s Corruption Level could only be lowered by Yoo Jiha.
Only Yoo Jiha defines Jeil Heon as human.
“How is it that only I can turn mister back into a human?”
“It is a very simple and obvious logic. Making the impossible possible, turning dreams into reality. There is only one answer to all miracles.”
Jeil Heon, who had previously repeated “I don’t know” like a parrot, responded to him softly. His low, resonating voice held a vivid conviction, as if wondering why he was asking about something so obvious.
Not only Yoo Jiha and the child, but even Kang Suk-young, who had been listening with indifference, straightened her posture, and Jeil Heon placed one hand over his heart with solemnity.
“It’s love.”
While someone’s curse—“Ah, fuck. I got fooled by that mouth again”—could be heard from somewhere, Yoo Jiha replied lukewarmly.
“I don’t love you, mister.”
“Then I must be the one who loves you.”
“When have you even seen me…?”
“Think of it as love at first sight. They say seven seconds is enough to fall in love.”
“….”
Yoo Jiha felt a bit cheated. This was the first time he had been confessed to since elementary school, yet he didn’t feel the slightest bit of excitement.
“Stop playing games with a kid who’s twelve years younger than you even by face value. Anyway, are you saying Sunbae is the cause?”
“The timing of the Blind Eater’s appearance at Eight Phases Mental Hospital is very coincidental. It was less than an hour after Yoo Jiha entered. Why would an entity that had never shown itself at Eight Phases Mental Hospital suddenly appear?”
“Room 404 was a place that wouldn’t open no matter what we did. We even kidnapped a doctor entity and tortured them, but we couldn’t find out. Why were the Blind Eater and Sunbae there?”
Jeil Heon’s answer to Kang Suk-young’s resumed questioning remained consistent. I don’t know. As he listened to the interrogation, which was gradually becoming more formal, he only laughed, while cold sweat poured down the back of Yoo Jiha’s neck beside him.
Eventually, Kang Suk-young growled with burning eyes.
“I want to hang Sunbae upside down from the roof of the Management Bureau.”
“Are you making me the mascot of the Management Bureau? Thanks.”
“That mouth! That mouth!”
The hearing ended haphazardly due to the subject’s lack of cooperation, leaving only the amount of white hair in her head increased. Kang Suk-young rubbed her forehead with a face that looked five years older in a short span of time.
“Even if it’s stabilized, a Corruption Level of 48 is a dangerous figure. Whether we modify Ji-hwan or use other restraints, I’m putting a leash on Sunbae. Will you help us, Your Highness?”
“Hmm.”
As if Jeil Heon’s consent wasn’t necessary, Kang Suk-young spoke with the child, and Jeil Heon simply wore an expression that said ‘do whatever you want.’
“And Yoo Jiha. What do you intend to do? As for the Management Bureau, we would like to entrust Sunbae to you.”
“M-me?”
“Since you’re the only one who can lower Sunbae’s Corruption Level, it’s a natural decision. Oh, of course, we’ll make sure the leash is securely on before handing him over, so don’t worry.”
The gaze directed at him was quite persistent. Kang Suk-young even added a relatively kind explanation: “We aren’t a group crazy enough to entrust a bomb that could explode in five seconds without a safety device to a twenty-year-old brat.” However, Yoo Jiha was simply bewildered. He hadn’t even decided whether to join the Management Bureau yet, and now he was being made responsible for Jeil Heon.
As he swallowed dryly, unable to find the words to answer, Jeil Heon firmly cut the conversation.
“I’ll talk to Jiha about that separately. Don’t pressure the kid. Why are you thrusting that terrifying face in his direction?”
Suggesting they have lunch together, he opened the door first, and Yoo Jiha awkwardly stood up and followed.
Before the two left, Kang Suk-young threw out one last remark.
“Sunbae, you can contact your siblings now. If it’s difficult, I can do it for you.”
Without answering, Jeil Heon turned his back, leaving only a bitter smile.
The cafeteria at the Management Bureau headquarters had an atmosphere similar to a department store food court. There were several cafes as well as restaurants. Since it was an agency requiring secrecy, he had lunch while being told that retired employees or families of employees operated them. Assistant Manager Jang had also told him about the Management Bureau, but for some reason, Jeil Heon’s explanations were easier to digest.
At first, he wondered if it would be awkward to eat alone with him. The time he had spent with Jeil Heon amounted to only a few hours, and he didn’t have a sociable enough personality to be completely at ease with someone over ten years older. But it was a needless worry. As he talked with Jeil Heon, who was both a skilled conversationalist and a good listener, he soon found himself talking fluently about his family.
Suddenly, he felt Jeil Heon’s gaze. The gaze of the man, who was staring at him without barely touching the pork cutlet served for the meal, was incredibly deep.
“What is it?”
“I’m just happy that you grew up loved by your family.”
A low whisper with a faint smile drifted softly. It was a strange look, seeming both relieved and proud. It was an emotion far too intense to be directed at a stranger he had known for only a few days.
His heart felt strangely ticklish at the soft, caressing voice, but he also felt puzzled. Jeil Heon soon withdrew his gaze.
“What do you think about joining the Management Bureau? Have you thought about it much?”
Did he see it wrong? Yoo Jiha tilted his head but shared his recent worries. Hadn’t he wanted to ask for his advice anyway?
Only after listening attentively to his rambling, disjointed words did Jeil Heon speak.
“I can’t lie and say it’s safe, because the Exploration Division always has to visit Aberrant Realms. However, it’s not at a level where you’re throwing your life away as you fear. Even the Management Bureau couldn’t handle it if lives were ground down to that extent.”
He further explained that when the Investigation and Exploration Division sets out to search an Aberrant Realm, agents from the Annihilation Execution Department, who combat Aberrations, provide escort, and that a change in position is possible after three years of employment.
Then, if Jeil Heon returned to the Enforcement Division, could he escort him when he went exploring? …Just imagining it made the fear of the Aberrant Realm feel slightly diluted.
However, the practical problems remained.
“I’m still a sophomore, and I haven’t been to the military yet…”
“Hmm? I think college students can work as interns. In name, it’s an internship, but the salary will be based on a full-time employee’s standard.”
“There are college student interns? I thought the Management Bureau had to be kept secret from others.”
“One must have a public job. With the government’s cooperation, we are disguised across various government agencies. The Exploration Division was… hmm… under the National Heritage Agency, was it?”
“…!”
Although he had entered a top-tier university by luck without considering his major, Yoo Jiha was a Folklore major. Once he entered, he found it suited his aptitude and wanted to get a job utilizing his major if possible; now, an opportunity to work for the National Heritage Agency, even if in name only, had appeared.
That wasn’t all. Jeil Heon laid out vivid stories from the front lines of the military. Yoo Jiha’s shoulders flinched at the realistic descriptions of the army, which he already didn’t want to go to.
“But if you join the Management Bureau, alternative service is possible.”
“…!”
Feeling the fear of the Aberrant Realm fade further and further, Yoo Jiha asked one last question. Honestly, this was what he was most curious about.