Seo Suho’s gaze seemed to ask, Can you really do this for me?—and Lee Shin felt more and more heartbroken.
Ever since returning to the ship with Seo Suho, Lee Shin had been too busy sorting through everything that had happened to him to truly rest. He wanted to live with Seo Suho, but for his sake, he endured his longing and stayed quietly within his designated area.
No. The truth was, he knew that he wasn’t the one who brought Seo Suho the most comfort.
That role belonged to a man with a strikingly developed physique—so much so that it stirred a competitive instinct in him—a man with white hair and eyes full of desperate, almost obsessive longing, fixed solely on Seo Suho. That was the one who could truly console him.
Lee Shin knew how much the humans on the ship feared the surface. Yet, for that man who had set foot on the ground to find Seo Suho, it was clear that his fear of death was outweighed by the fear of losing him.
Seo Suho’s eyes looked different when they rested on that man, too. Eyes that gazed upon something he’d cherished deeply for a very long time.
Even someone who knew nothing about them would instantly realize just how deep and special their connection was.
“……”
Lee Shin’s lower lip began to jut out.
Seo Suho had come to him sincerely today, like always, but that wasn’t what Lee Shin truly wanted.
He just wanted to stay by his side. If only he had been Seo Suho’s mate instead of that man, he thought he would’ve been truly happy. That tiny fantasy had slowly taken root in his heart and was growing.
But now, Seo Suho’s request to stay behind on the ship—without knowing anything—felt unbearably cruel to Lee Shin.
His shoulders drooped. Just then, his eyes met Sun Woosung’s, who had been silently standing by.
…Ah.
Lee Shin gasped inwardly.
It finally made sense. That dangerous bastard must have already known Seo Suho had decided to leave the ship—there was no other reason for the heavy atmosphere around him.
He was an unsettling presence with a perpetually blank expression and monstrous strength enough to overpower Lee Shin. But just this once, Lee Shin could relate to how he felt.
“…Fine.”
Wearing a gloomy expression, Lee Shin finally nodded.
Just imagining being separated from Seo Suho made him miserable, but he couldn’t bring himself to refuse his request.
If Seo Suho had placed any expectations on him, he didn’t want to disappoint him.
***
Min Yugeon had more or less expected Yeo Wonjin to reach out to him. He just hadn’t expected him to come directly to the Engineer Center.
“He said he wants to speak with you alone. Go quickly, he’s waiting.”
The center director looked visibly flustered by the captain’s unexpected visit as he directed Min Yugeon to where Yeo Wonjin was waiting. Min Yugeon rose from his seat without protest.
“W-Wait a second.”
The director caught him by the arm.
“Um… you didn’t do anything wrong, right?”
“…Excuse me?”
Min Yugeon raised an eyebrow. The director scratched the back of his head awkwardly.
“You know, because of everything that happened before. He’s not trying to scold you about anything now, is he?”
He wasn’t referring to the time Min Yugeon piloted a fighter to the surface. That incident had been officially chalked up to a communication error between the hangar staff and Min Yugeon, who was responsible for the inspection. That resolution had Yeo Wonjin’s fingerprints all over it.
But the situation with Min Sanghan was different. The entire ship already knew who Min Sanghan was, and his execution had been carried out with such publicity that people inevitably became aware of his family.
Surprisingly, though, most people didn’t view Min Yugeon with suspicion just because he was a murderer’s relative. If anything, sympathy was the more common reaction. Lee Minha had always lived quietly without causing trouble, but more than that, it was because Min Yugeon had built an overwhelmingly positive reputation for himself—as a skilled and good-natured engineer.
The center director, too, felt sorry for Min Yugeon. To have it suddenly revealed that he was the family of a heinous criminal—whose very deeds were unspeakable—was tragic. The boy who used to smile so often had grown cold and distant. He could only imagine how much emotional turmoil he’d been through.
“I’m sure it’s nothing like that. Don’t worry, Director.”
Min Yugeon wasn’t quite as cheerful as he’d once been, but he gave a faint smile, as if thankful for the concern.
“Yeah? That’s good to hear. But if anything unfair happens, you tell me, okay? I’ll go straight to him.”
“Thank you. I’ll be back soon.”
Leaving the director with a quick bow, Min Yugeon walked away.
Yeo Wonjin stood in an area where foot traffic was sparse due to its odd location. Perhaps he’d insisted on being alone, as there were no escorts in sight. His back was turned, staring motionlessly out the window at the bright landscape beyond the glass.
He must have heard the footsteps approaching, as Yeo Wonjin turned his head.
“Engineer Min Yugeon.”
“Hello, Captain.”
The two exchanged greetings and then stood in silence, watching each other as if trying to read the other’s intentions.
“I must’ve surprised you by showing up so suddenly.”
Yeo Wonjin turned his gaze back to the window and spoke gently. Min Yugeon gave a small nod.
“I figured you’d ask me to come see you.”
“You already came in person to submit your application, so it’s only right that I come to you this time.”
Yeo Wonjin wasn’t someone easily met without prior arrangement. So yesterday, Min Yugeon had handed a document to the person assisting with Yeo Wonjin’s administrative tasks.
A formal request stating that he wished to join Seo Suho’s deployment to the surface.
“Asking how you found out about the deployment would be a meaningless question, wouldn’t it?”
Even at a glance, Yeo Wonjin’s profile held no trace of a smile. A face that didn’t match his soft tone in the slightest.
“I didn’t even provide a form, but you submitted a perfectly detailed document.”
“I’m glad if the contents were satisfactory.”
Min Yugeon responded with a slight crinkle of his eyes.
“I acted first because I was confident. No matter who stays with Suho in such an isolated place, I don’t think anyone would make him feel more at ease than I would.”
His tone wasn’t particularly boastful, which somehow made it all the more grating. Yeo Wonjin’s eyes turned cold and sharp.
“…Yes. I think so, too. There’s no better option than you, on several counts.”
His voice was stripped of all politeness, brimming with bite. Min Yugeon calmly studied him.
Wounded pride and insecurity—he could sense them both.
Just how many people has Suho bewitched, besides that beast? The thought passed bitterly through his mind with a silent sigh.
Still, he wasn’t worried.
Because in the end, Seo Suho had chosen him.
“So, did you come here to tell me I’m a suitable candidate for the deployment?”
“……”
Yeo Wonjin fell silent, then turned to face Min Yugeon fully. The engineer’s expression was composed as ever, still gazing at him. As though the barbed words from earlier hadn’t made even a scratch.
Either he’d taken it at face value, or he was magnanimous enough to brush off provocation without a blink. Most likely the latter.
A self-deprecating breath slipped from between Yeo Wonjin’s lips. He felt ridiculous for having tried to assert dominance. Even a child wouldn’t be this petty.
“There are a few assessment procedures you’ll need to go through before departure, but I believe you’ll pass them without issue. I’ll send you the specifics later.”
Min Yugeon nodded. He had already anticipated that physical and psychological evaluations would be part of the process.
“Oh. I’d like to get a full grasp of the base layout, so I’d like to participate from the blueprint drafting stage. Would that be possible?”
“Go ahead.”
“And…”
As Min Yugeon continued, clearly having already given this considerable thought, Yeo Wonjin felt mixed emotions.
He was relieved, realizing Suho could be entrusted to someone this well-prepared and meticulous—far more than he had expected. But at the same time, the certainty with which Min Yugeon acted, as though deployment was a done deal, left him a bit dumbfounded.
After the conversation ended, Min Yugeon saw Yeo Wonjin off and then finished up the rest of his duties at the center.
But when he returned home, he was met by Seo Suho sitting in the living room, looking at him with a prickly expression.
“Uh… Suho?”
‘Did I do something wrong?’
Min Yugeon reflexively broke into a cold sweat. He hunched his large frame and cautiously approached. Seo Suho quietly pointed to the seat next to him. The moment Min Yugeon sat down obediently, Seo Suho gave a curt command.
“Explain.”
“Explain what?”
Min Yugeon tilted his head, confused. Seo Suho tapped on his watch.
“The Captain contacted me. Said he found someone to join the deployment with me. And apparently, it was done by application.”
“…!”
Annoyance surged in Min Yugeon.
He’d been planning to surprise Seo Suho with the news the moment he got home, excited to see his reaction.
‘Yeo Wonjin… he definitely did that on purpose.’
“Min Yugeon.”
Seo Suho was clearly upset that Min Yugeon had gone ahead with something so major without consulting him first.
“You’ve lived your whole life on a ship. Life on the surface is completely different. There’ll be monsters crawling all around. This isn’t something you just decide on a whim.”
“…A whim?”
Min Yugeon’s eyebrows drooped pitifully.
“It wasn’t a whim… it was just obvious. Of course I’d apply. Being by your side is the most important thing to me.”
His voice trembled with sorrow, and Seo Suho faltered.
