199 – HGL 199

199

What flashed through my mind was a phrase I’d seen on Prometheus’s homepage. That humanity must prevent Doomsday with its own power. That we must gather strength to stop Doomsday. A chilling coldness ran down the back of my neck. If Lee Sa-young was right, wasn’t even that a signal calling for Doomsday?

“Then… you don’t even know when it will come…”

“I don’t. No one will know. Except…”

His lavender eyes stared into the dark void.

“Since my world and your world are gradually merging… it will come faster than what I experienced.”

“……”

“As much as a world that should have been annihilated remains and merges, as your world transforms into the image of the Destroyed world… the number of those who recall past memories will increase. Because fear engraved in the Soul is like that.”

And, the more that happens, the faster Doomsday will come. Eui-jae swallowed. His throat felt swollen and uncomfortable. Lee Sa-young tapped his temple with a black finger.

“It would be good to prepare well. Although even preparing will be difficult…”

It was a dilemma. To prevent Doomsday, everyone’s strength must be combined. But the more that happened, the more Doomsday would accelerate. Eui-jae sighed. It was overwhelming. It was a problem that didn’t have an easy answer. But even if it was overwhelming, he had to do it. Hadn’t he already sworn? That he would do it.

Lee Sa-young, who had been quietly looking down at Sa-young in Eui-jae’s arms, tilted his head slightly.

“That’s right. Once you get out of here… why don’t you go find Yoon Ga-eul.”

An unexpected name came up. Eui-jae widened his eyes and raised his head.

“Student Ga-eul?”

“Ah, is she still a student there?”

Hmm, Lee Sa-young muttered, humming lowly.

“She’s one of the last people to survive in the place swept away by Doomsday. Along with me. Most of them died… but she managed to survive. That was commendable. Surviving is also a talent.”

It was a scathing assessment. Lee Sa-young pointed somewhere with his black finger. Eui-jae lowered his head and looked where the finger was pointing. The watch on his wrist. The second hand of the worn-out watch was diligently moving even here. As if to announce the remaining time.

“Yoon Ga-eul was the one who told me about the existence of the watch.”

“What?”

“She came to me one day and said that maybe we could use the watch to turn back time. Didn’t you have a watch like that among your things?”

“……”

Beyond his glasses, he recalled eyes shining with gold. Had Ga-eul read the traces of the first world even in the Destroyed world? Had she read the memories of Doomsday alone in a peaceful world?

Lee Sa-young stood askew.

“As much as she survived to the end… the fear engraved in her Soul must be great. Why don’t you try talking to her nicely? Yoon Ga-eul seemed to like you quite a bit too.”

“……”

“Well… I think I’ve said all I need to say.”

As he waved his hand, the black curtain around them receded. A pure white wasteland surrounded them.

The Destroyed world. Eui-jae looked at Lee Sa-young with complicated eyes. Lee Sa-young did not avoid his gaze and met it. His dry lips parted.

“I still haven’t changed my mind. The thought that you can’t stop Doomsday.”

“……”

“Maybe that fact will never change. I saw Doomsday, and you’ve already died once. You can’t convince me.”

Cha Eui-jae also knew. The Lee Sa-young before him was the only survivor of Doomsday. No matter how much he shouted that he could stop Doomsday, it wouldn’t resonate with him. Because in his world, Cha Eui-jae was already dead, and the world had been destroyed. Lee Sa-young, who had lost everything due to Doomsday, was just wandering.

“Still…”

Lavender eyes turned downward. His own image was reflected in those two eyes, which had been robbed of their original color. To another self who had not been betrayed, who had proven his faith.

“‘I’ believe in you…”

“……”

“I’ve confirmed that what I did wasn’t meaningless.”

A white wind raged. Lee Sa-young’s figure gradually faded away. Soon the wind became so strong that it was difficult to stand properly. Eui-jae steadied Sa-young and shouted towards the wind.

“Hey, Lee Sa-young! Wait a minute! Hey!”

“……”

The wind seemed to have subsided a little. Eui-jae didn’t miss the opportunity and shouted.

“Did you meet me at the West Sea Rift?”

“……”

The blackness that surrounded him as if to block the distant vision stained with blood. Someone’s voice echoing in the quiet space. Eui-jae raised his voice.

“Was that you back then? Hey, just answer that and go! Hey!”

No answer came back. The wind grew stronger. He took a step towards the wind, but Sa-young in his arms stirred. Eui-jae immediately stopped. His vision reeled dizzily. Damn it. Eui-jae squeezed his eyes shut.

…The moment he opened his eyes again.

A room much more desolate than the room in his dream came into view. It seemed he had returned properly. Eui-jae sighed in relief, then paused.

The first thing he felt was a large body clinging to his. Eui-jae tried to prop himself up on the bed, but he couldn’t because of the body wrapped around his waist and legs like a snake. He could force his way out, but…

Damn it, he’s holding on tight. Eui-jae struggled to move his body and turned to check the snake wrapped around him. Lee Sa-young was asleep with his mouth slightly open. He could hear the sound of small, colorful breaths.

“……”

He’s so pretty when you only look at his face like this. Unable to overcome his annoyance, Eui-jae pinched Sa-young’s cheek for no reason. His delicate face twisted slightly. With a groan, his thin eyelids fluttered and moved. Vivid lavender eyes appeared beneath his eyelids.

“……”

“…Are you awake?”

As if answering, his eyes blinked slowly. Yes, he had returned properly. Before he could feel relieved, the hand wrapped around his waist pulled him closer. Eui-jae’s eyes widened. As he faced him closely, embarrassment gradually surged.

“…Um, shouldn’t you get up soon? I have a lot to tell you…”

Chu, his lips touched his chin. Eui-jae’s eyes widened. Here we go again! But his lips didn’t stop, and they bumped against his cheeks and the bridge of his nose along his jawline. Wi-jae reached out to push him away.

“This is not the time to be doing this―”

“Ha, what do you mean it’s not the time…”

A husky voice muttered. Lavender eyes shone brightly. Soon his lips covered his. The black tongue that dug into the gap between his teeth, which had opened in surprise, raged as if to devour him. The wet sound of tongues mixing echoed as if to melt his ears.

Ah, seriously!

Eui-jae grabbed Sa-young’s forehead and pushed him away. Then, a sullen gaze that didn’t even try to hide his displeased mood glared at him. Eui-jae also sprang up and glared back without giving in.

“Hey, what are you doing as soon as you wake up!”

“Kissing.”

“I’m asking why you’re doing that!”

Sa-young’s eyes flashed. It was a look that said he had said something right. He gritted his teeth fiercely and muttered.

“Do you know how much I’ve been holding back? Because of some crazy bastard…”

The crazy bastard was probably Lee Sa-young. Eui-jae slowly moved his butt back, preparing to escape from the bed. But Sa-young was also an S-rank Hunter. Sa-young glared.

“Where do you think you’re going?”

“…To get water.”

“……”

“I, I’m thirsty.”

The excuse he blurted out worked surprisingly well. Sa-young lowered his head and sighed deeply, then wriggled out of bed. And he grabbed the doorknob and warned.

“Don’t even think about going anywhere and wait here.”

Sa-young’s face, as he said that, was much smoother than before he went to sleep. It seemed he had finally found a compromise with the other guy. After he left, Eui-jae sighed in relief and got up to tidy up the blanket. And then a thought suddenly occurred to him.

‘Come to think of it…’

When he thought about it, Sa-young had a wide circle of acquaintances for someone so rude. The Wave Guild was an elite group, but only the number of affiliated Hunters was elite; in terms of influence, it was quite large. It meant they had gathered only the best.

Bae Won-woo taking care of Lee Sa-young like a younger brother, Kang Ji-soo throwing jokes, Honeybee too, and Jung-bin being much more intimate compared to the second world. Of course, he wouldn’t want to admit it, but to a third party, it was obvious.

‘If Director said so, Jung-bin and Bae Won-woo fed him right after his Awakening, right?’

Not only that. He seemed to have a lot of give-and-take with Hong Ye-seong, and he seemed to have met Nam Woo-jin several times, and he seemed to get along well with Min-gi Seo. Romantic Opener… he didn’t know about him.

Anyway, just looking at this much, wasn’t it completely different from the Lee Sa-young of the second world, who had no social skills whatsoever? He had only looked at Cha Eui-jae.

Where was the difference? Eui-jae, retracing the differences one by one, slightly opened his mouth. There was a biggest difference without having to go deep.

Could it be.

‘Was it because I wasn’t there… that his social skills developed instead?’

Why did that sound plausible?

No, that seemed to be the answer. To think that his existence could change him so much. His heart was in a turmoil. Eui-jae covered his face with his hands. He stayed like that for a long time. Even when he heard the sound of the door opening, he stubbornly stayed like that.

A voice filled with bewilderment stopped near the bed and asked.

“What are you doing? …Does your head hurt?”

“…No.”

“Then?”

“…I was just thinking that parenting is hard.”

“Ha.”

Sa-young scoffed.

“Are you finally trying to understand my feelings a little?”

A cold energy touched the back of his hand covering his face. Eui-jae slyly parted his fingers to secure his vision. Sa-young was holding out a 500ml bottle of water.

With a softly smiling face.

“I brought it because it was in the refrigerator, but I don’t know if you can drink it… It probably hasn’t gone bad thanks to the Preservation Stone, though.”

“……”

“Smell it and throw it away if it’s weird. I’ll buy a new one.”

His heart was strangely turbulent. Eui-jae took the plastic bottle. The surface of the bottle filled with water was cold. He felt like he could see Lee Sa-young’s smiling face reflected in the transparent water, so he closed his eyes.