51.
“The Future Strategy Team’s comprehensive annual reporting presentation… has been abruptly canceled.”
Lee Han-seo quietly recalled the pale face of the U-class dedicated team leader who had delivered the pessimistic news in a devastated voice.
Espers reaching the point of rampage weren’t entirely uncommon, but somehow their numbers seemed to be increasing. The Future Strategy Team under the Union’s direct control—said to have gathered the world’s elite—had drawn a specific inference that this world had only about 25 years left until its end, based on a comprehensive analysis of the accelerating dungeon intensification, the global supply of ability users, and various resource depletions. They had planned to either refute this inference or find ways for humanity to survive at this year’s regular comprehensive reporting. The fact that the reporting presentation was suddenly canceled meant that indeed, there were only 25 years left until the end of this world.
Only the members of the Future Strategy Team who had directly derived this hopeless outlook, a few Union executives, and the members of the U-class dedicated team knew the unfiltered truth about this. Even if the world’s destruction was certain, it wasn’t happening tomorrow but 25 years from now. If they were to spoil this confirmed ending without any pointed solutions, even the minimal social safety nets that had been barely maintained until now would shatter. What would remain would be Sodom and Gomorrah or a hell from Dante’s Inferno. By then, perhaps everyone would pray for equality in swift annihilation.
The invitation extended by the U-class dedicated team members was essentially the Union’s consideration—if there was someone you absolutely wanted to meet before dying, this was your chance to call them. The extraordinarily generous conditions like “power vacuum support” and “granting guest status” weren’t without reason.
Nothing in the world is free. Even Lee Han-seo’s invitation, which Choi Jae-won and Ryu Ho-yeon believed to be a golden lifeline, was no exception. From the perspective that the price was being paid by Lee Han-seo and Park Woo-jun rather than those two, they would only believe they were getting something for nothing.
“It won’t take that long. The Esper rampage you saw today, Jae-won… Soon you’ll see plenty of that in Seoul too. Instead of wasting time flailing around then, think of this as an early practice opportunity. Or you could talk to Jung-hyuk hyung and Team Leader Park Gyu-gwan beforehand. Those two could whip up an emergency guiding manual in no time.”
Having chewed and swallowed the predetermined tragedy for so long, Lee Han-seo’s words showed not the slightest tremor. Park Woo-jun, sitting prominently beside him, also remained as cheerful as ever.
Lee Han-seo and Park Woo-jun had previously agreed not to relay the far-fetched story about the world ending in 25 years. Originally, they had planned to discuss only carefree and innocent topics all month long, but unintentionally, the tempo had stretched a bit.
“Alright. That’s enough serious talk. Now order something. Eating is what matters. Don’t be discouraged. Grit your teeth and pretend you’re fine. Don’t feebly claim you’ve lost your appetite or whatever.”
“Wow, hyung, you sound exactly like my aunt. It’s creepy. When you talk like that, what does that make me? Fine, I’ll eat, okay?”
“Good thinking, little brother. The patties here are amazing. I guarantee it.”
When Lee Han-seo gave an exaggerated thumbs-up pose, immediately next to him came a clamorous exclamation: “Kyaa, baby, you’re so cool!” Though the couple had resolved to live as they pleased without concern for others’ opinions during their lifetime… their behavior seemed excessively undignified.
Park Woo-jun and Lee Han-seo’s unbridled displays of affection continued tirelessly even as Choi Jae-won ordered a burger and struggled to finish it.
“Hmm…”
Ryu Ho-yeon carefully observed himself and Choi Jae-won, sitting at a respectful distance apart, versus the pair opposite them who were stuck together like a four-legged monster with just one body. The resentment that had briefly subsided began to creep up again, gripping his ankles and intensifying. Though he couldn’t pinpoint exactly what he resented, the direction of his emotions was clear.
Ryu Ho-yeon impulsively grabbed Choi Jae-won, who was meticulously wiping his mouth with a napkin, by the collar and yanked him toward himself. Their noses almost touched, and the distance between their eyes was less than a few centimeters. Staring at him steadily without blinking, he watched as Choi Jae-won’s face instantly turned bright red.
While grabbing his collar, his forearm happened to touch Choi Jae-won’s chest, where he could clearly feel his heart beating rapidly and loudly. Was this why there was no room for confusion about how Choi Jae-won viewed him?
“H-H-Hyung…? W-why is this happening all of a sudden…?”
Choi Jae-won seemed to have no capacity to hide his trembling voice. As clean, direct pitches that make people’s necks snap back were Ryu Ho-yeon’s specialty, he decided to demonstrate his specialty to his trembling counterpart without delay.
“You. Why haven’t you confessed?”
“What…?”
“You like me, don’t you? So why aren’t you properly confessing?”
Lee Han-seo, who had somehow switched to spectator mode and was intently watching with interest, kept hitting Park Woo-jun’s shoulder, repeatedly asking, “How? How?” Such reactions were mere static noise to the ears of Choi Jae-won and Ryu Ho-yeon, who had entered their own world. At least for this moment.
“I… I thought you wouldn’t accept…”
“Why do you make such assumptions on your own?”
“What…?”
“I mean, without even trying, why do you think like—!”
Pffft.
“Ah-hup. Pfft, sorry, pfhehehe… Keep going, pfft. Puhehe…”
Could anyone deflate the mood this thoroughly? Though it seemed he tried to hold it back, the continuing “puheh, puhehe” bursts of laughter just made Ryu Ho-yeon utterly embarrassed. Just turning his head slightly, he saw those sharp eyes—so unlike Choi Jae-won’s—curved in mirth as if finding the situation hilarious.
What wounded his pride even more was that it wasn’t just Lee Han-seo… even Park Woo-jun, whom Ryu Ho-yeon had considered his lifelong rival, was covering his mouth with his palm while his Adam’s apple bobbed up and down uncontrollably. It was a suppressed burst of laughter.
“Eek…!!”
Ryu Ho-yeon flung Choi Jae-won’s collar away, jumped up from his seat at once, and frantically ran off. Hearing “Hyung, where are you going, hyung!!” from behind, he didn’t forget to threaten that he would kill him if he followed.
To suffer such humiliation in front of Park Woo-jun of all people…!!
Even though no one had intentionally caused this and he had rushed off on his own impulse, Ryu Ho-yeon just breathed heavily in frustration the entire time he ran.
After running for who knows how long, he finally slowed down when he felt his breath reaching his chin, unable to run anymore.
“But… where am I…?”
Hmm. This is bad. At twenty-eight years old, he had suddenly become like a lost child waiting for an announcement in a foreign land.
* * *
“Maybe I should have just stayed there.”
Walking aimlessly through an unknown place, Ryu Ho-yeon patted his legs that were starting to ache and looked around. This place was annoyingly huge. He should have brought his mobile phone, but he had impulsively dashed off at such an unexpected moment that he hadn’t had time to grab it. His phone, neatly placed on the table, was probably now in Choi Jae-won’s care.
Thinking that he’d eventually find his way if he just kept walking, he continued without a plan, but the more he walked, the more lost he felt. How could there be so many buildings and even more people?
Though physically located in Berlin, due to the diverse cultural backgrounds and nationalities of the people affiliated with it, most communication at this headquarters was conducted in English, the global lingua franca. It was no wonder that Lee Han-seo, who had lived in Berlin for several years, had improved only his English and couldn’t speak a word of German. Therefore…
“…No, never mind. Let’s walk a bit more.”
If he could just drop his stubborn refusal to speak with strangers, finding his way back to the original restaurant or guest accommodation building wouldn’t be a problem at all.
Already walking with his head stretched out like a meerkat, looking around, several people had politely approached him with “May I help you?” Ryu Ho-yeon would put on a stern face each time and recite “Thanks but I’m okay” like a mantra. His expression and voice suggested he wasn’t thankful at all.
Though his emotional expression had improved remarkably in recent years, his innately introverted nature remained unchanged. Even in a situation where he needed help, casually conversing with strangers? For Ryu Ho-yeon, it was absolutely impossible.
He thought about creating a map. However, this method had a fatal weakness. Making the map wouldn’t be much effort, just creating a printed piece of paper. But the problem was the exact content that should be printed. Unless the geography was perfectly inscribed in his mind, he couldn’t produce a map. Just some vague scrap of paper maybe, but that wouldn’t help. Still, hoping against hope, he tried making a couple, but as expected, it didn’t work. He just wasted guiding power for nothing.
“Sigh… What is all this…”
As he sat down heavily on a bench right in front of him, sighing deeply, someone’s shadow suddenly invaded his downcast gaze.
