Chapter 6
There were many things to point out. Rolling and falling, from where? And if he was going to do this, why did he ask for his name? He thought they would at least exchange names, but it turned out he just satisfied his own curiosity.
He was about to say something when he felt the arm around his waist being released. Just as he looked at the man in shock.
“Hah!”
“If you don’t want to bite your tongue, keep your mouth shut too.”
The man immediately jumped down below.
It was so dizzying that his heart sank. The falling speed was considerable with the weight of two people, not just one. More than that, falling without any mental preparation made it feel like his entire body would be crushed when they hit the ground.
Seo Won tightly embraced the man with both arms and legs and squeezed his eyes shut.
“…!”
However, as soon as the man’s feet touched the ground, they soared back up into the air. Bewildered by the feather-light leap contrary to his expectations, the man stepped on a building and landed on the ground again, then began running at tremendous speed.
Seo Won swallowed his dry saliva as he watched the ruins rushing past.
The man was exceeding the limits of speed humans could achieve. Perhaps it was even faster than the speed at which the creatures had been chasing. It was so fast that it felt like his entire face was being beaten by the fierce wind.
Ever since he woke up, only things he couldn’t understand within his common sense had been happening. Seoul that seemed to have met its end, strange creatures, and even a man with abilities beyond human limits.
Seo Won couldn’t help but seriously wonder what kind of world this was.
Seo Won’s eyes looking at the man were trembling finely.
***
The man who entered the residential complex settled on the second floor of a building that was at least half maintaining its form.
Only then did Seo Won, whose tension was released by relief, collapse and sit down on the floor.
On the way here, they had encountered groups of creatures several times. Sometimes they hid to avoid being detected, and when that wasn’t feasible, they took detours, which had drained his energy. At least this place seemed safe in the surroundings, so the man appeared to have stopped briefly to rest.
Seo Won, who had relaxed his tension with deep breaths, belatedly massaged his trembling arms and legs while grumbling inwardly.
‘The arm around my waist was just decoration, really.’
Actually, another reason his strength was drained was the man’s indifference.
The man had only formally wrapped his arm around Seo Won’s waist, without applying enough force to support his weight. So he had no choice but to use all his strength to avoid falling.
The only way to survive was to tightly embrace the man’s neck with both arms and wrap his waist with both legs to hang on.
‘…How embarrassing.’
If the man’s movement speed hadn’t been so fast, he wouldn’t have had to hold on so tightly. He felt like he would be thrown off at any careless moment, so he had no choice but to endure the embarrassment.
But he couldn’t just complain endlessly. Because he was the person who had saved him.
He had saved his life in a desperate situation where he would be devoured by creatures, hidden his body from the betrayer, and even brought him to this relatively safe place.
He didn’t seem like a bad person… but apart from that, he had selfish aspects. It wasn’t that he had to be kind, but still, wouldn’t it be better if things were good?
Perhaps because of this, it wasn’t easy to figure out what kind of person the man was.
Seo Won slowly raised his head with weakened movements. When his gaze met the eyes looking down at him, the man took something out of a bag at his waist and threw it.
Startled by the unidentified object, Seo Won reflexively caught what he had thrown.
‘What, it’s water.’
What the man had given him was a water pouch made of translucent vinyl. Inside was clear water, about half full.
“…Thank you.”
Though he felt embarrassed for shrinking unnecessarily, he gave thanks for the kindness and took a sip of water. He hadn’t realized it, but the water flowing down his esophagus tasted quite sweet.
Only then did Seo Won let out a long breath and lean his body against the wall. As he closed his eyes and just breathed in his drooped mood, the man had approached at some point.
Now that he had room to catch his breath, the man’s appearance finally caught his eye.
His jet-black hair like the night sky and pale, smooth skin should have created a static atmosphere, but his large, long-slitted eyes without double eyelids created a mysterious feeling.
Moreover, when his long nose bridge and sharp jawline came together, he could immediately understand what masculine beauty was.
His height was so tall that he had to look up at him, and his physique was very well-balanced.
Apart from that, his attire was somewhat unique. He wore a black jumper with a goblin pattern drawn on a white t-shirt, leather gloves on his hands, and two swords at his left waist.
Seo Won examined the swords that particularly caught his eye.
One was a long sword that reached the ground, and the other was a medium sword that came up to his knees. The man had used these swords with both hands to deal with the creatures. Seeing how he handled them without difficulty, he was probably quite skilled.
Seo Won nodded slightly while recalling the man’s movements he had glimpsed.
Then the man flicked his finger. It seemed like a gesture asking for something. What? Asking for what?
‘Ah, right.’
He belatedly felt the water pouch in his hand. I drank it all by myself. Hiding his embarrassment, he hurriedly threw it to the man.
The man lightly caught the flying water pouch and drank the water. Rather than quenching his thirst, he drank just enough to moisten his mouth and quickly closed the cap. Then he stared intently at Seo Won and finally opened his mouth.
“Yoon Seo Won.”
Instantly, Seo Won’s eyebrows twitched. He had felt this since earlier, but the man was speaking informally without hesitation. Though it didn’t seem like a situation to worry about manners, he couldn’t help but say something.
“We just met, so speaking informally is a bit…”
“Wouldn’t formal speech be worse for people who just met?”
“What?”
Why would formal speech be bad for people who just met?
Not understanding what he was talking about, he looked puzzled when the man slowly bent down and crouched. Then he made eye contact and opened his mouth.
“You.”
Seo Won’s brow furrowed.
“Where did you come from?”
Seo Won, who had been about to respond in kind if the man continued speaking informally, momentarily lost his words. He wasn’t simply asking which region or area he came from. He was probing as if expecting something and trying to confirm it.
Seo Won couldn’t hide his bewilderment.
“Where did I come from. Well…”
Though he had blurted it out inadvertently, continuing the explanation was impossible. His lips that had quivered several times ultimately couldn’t say anything and closed.
The man was still watching silently.
No matter how he thought about it, this world wasn’t the place where he had lived. Seeing the ruined Seoul and the man who took creatures for granted, he became certain.
Perhaps he had come to a different world.
But to say so directly – even he didn’t believe it, so would the man readily believe it? He should be grateful if he wasn’t treated like a crazy person.
‘Should I just pretend to be a person from here?’
He became needlessly anxious and all sorts of thoughts came to mind.
What if he said he was a person from here, but didn’t know much because he didn’t interact with others? Or that he had amnesia and only remembered his name but forgot everything else. That seemed more convincing than saying he came from another world.
“……”
However, this lie had far too many loopholes. Too many to list one by one.
When his briefly escaped mind returned, Seo Won squeezed his eyes shut.
Whether the man believed it or not, telling the truth seemed better. He didn’t have the confidence to deceive a man who didn’t look easy to fool. Most importantly, wasn’t lies bound to be discovered eventually? There was no need to take unnecessary risks.
Seo Won slowly opened his eyes and looked at the man. They seemed to be similar in age, so speaking informally wouldn’t be awkward.
“Rather than where I came from… it would be faster for me to ask where this place is first.”
“Where this place is?”
Feeling the man’s gaze looking at him with interest, Seo Won nodded.
“The Seoul where I lived wasn’t such ruins.”
At the calm answer, a strange light appeared in the man’s eyes.
He supported both arms on his thighs and leaned his body forward. Seo Won felt burdened by the man’s face getting closer and closer. But he didn’t avoid his gaze.
The man who had approached right in front of him carefully looked over Seo Won’s face, then asked in an indifferent tone.
“…Did you come from another world?”
Seo Won remained silent. Actually, even he was still suspicious. He had never imagined such a thing would happen to him. Perhaps it would be more rational to dismiss it as a dream.
But the vividness when he was chased by creatures wasn’t false.
His heart that had been pounding and beating, his overloaded muscles, his shoulder that was hurt when he fell still ached, and he still couldn’t forget the dizziness when he was floating in the air and then crashed.
This was definitely not a dream.
“I’m not sure, but if this isn’t a dream, probably.”
“……”
“It might be right.”
Seo Won turned his head and took in the ruined Seoul once more. This surreal scene rather calmed his complicated mind.
He didn’t know why such a thing had happened, but there was only one thing he could do now.
Survive in this place.
Only then could he hope for what comes next. Whatever that might be.
Seo Won turned his head again and looked at the man. Even after hearing his answer, he was just quiet. As if telling him to say more. So Seo Won was able to add about what he didn’t know.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
