55.
It would be a lie to say he hadn’t noticed at all, but he had pretended not to know hoping it wasn’t true. However, Ryu Ho-yeon was not so easily fooled. From the very beginning, he cut away all conventional beginnings and endings, going straight for the core.
Though his mouth itched to protest immediately, Choi Jae-won decided to hold back and listen to what followed. He could ask questions after Ryu Ho-yeon finished speaking.
“Second. As soon as we get to Korea, you will personally report Dr. An.”
“Hmm… Yes, I’ve written that down. What’s next?”
Since the goal was to increase the total guiding capacity and matching rate, Choi Jae-won didn’t much care what happened to someone like Dr. An. He lightly wrote down the second condition.
“And third.”
“Third…?”
Ryu Ho-yeon, who had been proceeding smoothly without hesitation, uncharacteristically faltered and paused briefly. Choi Jae-won looked up. Ryu Ho-yeon’s face was faintly lined with subtle anxiety, or perhaps guilt.
“Come with me to apologize to Jun-young hyung.”
“Ah.”
Choi Jae-won let out an unconscious exclamation of relief that it wasn’t as serious as he’d thought. Perhaps misinterpreting this reaction, Ryu Ho-yeon hastily added that he would go together, so there was no need to worry too much.
‘Ho-yeon is a very sensitive child. Pretending to be insensitive, oblivious… pretending not to be hurt, but in truth, he’s just acting that way because he couldn’t bear reality otherwise.’
He suddenly recalled an assessment of Ryu Ho-yeon he’d once heard. Someone who pretends to be insensitive and oblivious with an expressionless face, but who actually has very sensitive aspects. That evaluation was remarkably accurate. It was certainly true, seeing how he showed such thoughtful consideration for people within his inner circle.
“Are you not going to change your expression? Even though I said I’ll go with you, is it still that difficult?”
“Ah, no, no. I was just concentrating. Really!”
One more thing was clearly established. Even if he hadn’t yet received the stamp of approval for the boyfriend position he’d applied for, Choi Jae-won had “definitely” secured a place within Ryu Ho-yeon’s inner circle. That fact made him proud.
“Last, number four.”
“Yes, there’s a fourth?”
“Be quiet. Just listen without arguing. This is the most important step.”
Giving up on the experiment, reporting Dr. An, apologizing to Kim Jun-young… what else was left? And it was supposedly the most important step. Choi Jae-won gulped and perked up his ears toward Ryu Ho-yeon.
“…Fourth. Tell me that you like me.”
“…!!”
His white face, lowered shyly with downcast eyes refusing to meet his gaze, flushed all over like autumn foliage. The redness, probably soaked with a little embarrassment, unfamiliarity, excitement, and anticipation, was so beautiful it made the viewer’s heart feel full to bursting.
Choi Jae-won nodded more vigorously than ever before. Their eyes met briefly, curving at identical angles, too busy just smiling. Happy? Probably so. Quite, quite a lot.
“By the way, promise that you’ll never participate in any other experiments on your own from now on. You know Han-seo’s father is a lawyer, right? I’m going to ask him to notarize it.”
After laughing for a while, Ryu Ho-yeon suddenly turned serious and spoke gravely, almost ready to grab him by the collar. Choi Jae-won, who still had considerable attachment to the matching rate that was only 2 percent away from 80 percent, dawdled and stretched his answer.
“Umm, but hyung. Then our imprinting… it’ll be completely off the table. Isn’t that a little, just a tiny bit of a waste? It’s only 2 percent. If we just fill that…”
“If you’re planning to live a life where priorities are completely reversed, go ahead and do that.”
“What? Could you explain that in simpler terms?”
Ryu Ho-yeon stared at Choi Jae-won with a pitying look, as if wondering how such a complete idiot could exist in the world, then slowly opened his mouth.
“Why did you want to increase the matching rate so badly?”
“Well… to properly support you, and above all, to achieve imprinting…”
“And why did you want to achieve imprinting?”
“I didn’t want to be pushed out from beside you. I wanted to make sure no other Guide who might suddenly appear someday could replace me.”
“I see, I understand. So the position of pair Guide is better than the position of boyfriend, is that it? I’m sorry I didn’t recognize your excellent professional consciousness and sense of calling until now.”
“No, hyung! Ryu Ho-yeon, where are you going!! We should go together!!”
It was no different from their usual selves—Ryu Ho-yeon stating his piece and walking away without thinking of the consequences, and Choi Jae-won immediately scrambling to follow him.
Even in a world facing destruction in 25 years, romance and peace somehow manage to bloom.
* * *
It had been a dreamlike month-long vacation. Choi Jae-won had been anxiously counting down the days, eager to return to Korea and swiftly complete the four steps Ryu Ho-yeon had outlined so he could secure the boyfriend position as quickly as possible. He was even trying to figure out if they could switch to an earlier flight. Yet Ryu Ho-yeon’s expression was clouded with gloom.
“When… will we see each other again…?”
“Sob, Ho-yeon…”
“Han-seo…”
The one who had prepared for this to possibly be their last face-to-face meeting had already burst into tears long ago, and the other, who didn’t know the grand circumstances about the world’s destruction but still knew they would be too busy with dungeon conquest to see each other for at least a few years, was also openly dejected.
The two facing the departure gate were in quite a state, dabbing at tears and embracing tightly, as if filming some heartbreaking melodrama.
Though years of friendship had made it clear this was purely an expression of friendship, Choi Jae-won couldn’t help but grimace every time he saw it.
They say one gets jealous even when their cousin buys land. In this case, it was as if the cousin had swallowed whole the famous mountain he had been desperately hoping to visit, so his jealousy was doubled.
Still, today was quite bearable. Until now, he had no right to intrude and could only watch with his hands behind his back. But in the future, if Choi Jae-won could successfully complete all four steps after returning to Korea, he too would be able to put his arm around Ryu Ho-yeon’s shoulder and keep him away from Lee Han-seo, just like Park Woo-jun who was always openly complaining.
‘Huh? Come to think of it, he’s unusually quiet today.’
Choi Jae-won surreptitiously glanced at Park Woo-jun, who was standing a couple of steps away, uncharacteristically calm as he quietly watched Lee Han-seo.
All members of the U-class dedicated team had already agreed to maintain their current affiliations until the world’s complete destruction, except in case of death, rather than returning to their home countries.
Even though the world’s end was confirmed, if they failed to close a U-class dungeon and a gate burst open, humanity could face extinction much sooner than the predicted 25 years. In the absence of other viable solutions, the best option was for the team members, who had been working in sync for a long time, to continue handling emerging U-class situations without changing their composition.
So Park Woo-jun also knew. Truly, that this moment might be the last time Lee Han-seo and Ryu Ho-yeon would meet. That was the only reason Park Woo-jun maintained his composure at this airport where tears were freely flowing.
Time passed unbearably slowly for Choi Jae-won, but cruelly fast for Lee Han-seo and Ryu Ho-yeon. Before they knew it, it was time to enter for boarding.
“Don’t cry. We’ll call often like we do now, and you can come to Korea later when you get vacation time. Don’t cry, Han-seo. Okay? Don’t cry.”
“Sob, I know, but the tears keep coming, sob…”
It was time when he could no longer hold onto his friend. Lee Han-seo, overcome with emotion in the middle of speaking, couldn’t finish his sentence and buried his face in Park Woo-jun’s chest, crying loudly. Park Woo-jun patted Lee Han-seo’s back with a rather mature touch while saying his final goodbyes to Choi Jae-won and Ryu Ho-yeon.
“Take care, Jae-won. You too, Ryu Ho-yeon.”
“…It’s strange to see you giving greetings first.”
“Yeah, who would’ve thought this day would come. Oh, and say hello to Senior Jun-young and Senior Jung-hyuk for me when you get back.”
“I will. Take good care of Han-seo.”
Though their passing greetings were brief, the final sentiments left long trails behind each person. Now Park Woo-jun and Lee Han-seo would go their way, and Ryu Ho-yeon and Choi Jae-won theirs, continuing to walk their predetermined paths with unwavering dedication.
Lee Han-seo wanted desperately to believe that the intersection of his life with Ryu Ho-yeon’s wasn’t completely over yet. Very desperately indeed.
