43
Minjae smelled soap. What’s with the soap smell? As he wondered, he heard the steady beeping of a machine.
Soon after, his entire body was engulfed in excruciating pain. His limbs felt like they were in tatters.
Minjae opened his eyes, remembering that he’d been shot down. His eyes were dry, making it difficult to see clearly.
I’m alive. Minjae muttered. At this point, he couldn’t tell if that was good luck or bad.
As his vision cleared, he saw Jihwan staring intently at him. Not expecting anyone to be watching him, Minjae felt a little embarrassed. But seeing that he had the strength to sit, he seemed to be okay.
“Are you alright?”
It was a perfunctory question. Minjae expected to hear that he was fine or to get the question thrown back at him.
However, Jihwan asked something that someone who’d just escaped death would rarely hear.
“Why did you do that?”
Did he mean why did he survive, or why was he asking if he was alright? Minjae was silent for a moment, trying to understand the question. Then he felt anger rising. Why do I have to understand this kind of question right now?
“What?”
His voice came out cracked. Trying to speak forcefully, his tone and pitch came out strangely. Jihwan’s expression changed. Thinking he looked amused, Minjae felt even more irritated.
“What are you talking about? You…”
“I understand.”
Jihwan was squeezing his brows together with his eyes closed. His attitude suggested he was facing something unbearable. What’s more, Jihwan had cut off Minjae mid-sentence. You understand? Understand what? Minjae was incredulous.
“I understand, so please heal yourself first. Please.”
Jihwan spoke as if suppressing something.
Minjae was so exasperated he wanted to grab Jihwan by the collar and shake him vigorously. But to do that, he would need to use his healing ability as Jihwan suggested. He was so injured that even moving his lips required great effort.
“Get out.”
“No.”
Jihwan defied Minjae’s command again. What’s he trying to do? Minjae didn’t have the strength to say more.
But he didn’t want to heal himself while being stared at. He didn’t want to feel like an experimental subject again.
Minjae decided not to budge if Jihwan wouldn’t leave.
“Leave while I’m asking nicely.”
“I told you I can’t. If showing your wounds bothers you, I can turn around.”
Rejecting Minjae’s words again, Jihwan spoke in a placating tone. Then he stood against the wall, looking like he was being punished.
Is he really crazy? Minjae couldn’t believe the treatment he was receiving.
Jihwan truly seemed determined to stay, not moving an inch. Minjae realized that holding out against the mounting pain would only hurt himself. Light began to emanate from Minjae’s body.
For some reason today, his guiding levels remained optimal even when using his ability. This sometimes happened after being pushed to the brink of overload.
At times like this, Minjae felt as if fate or some deity had bestowed a blessing upon him. Wooseok must have poured his guiding into him out of urgency, which would also have an effect. Regardless of how Minjae felt about it, it was good for avoiding unnecessary suspicion.
Minjae sat up with his now refreshed body.
“Hey.”
Minjae called out to Jihwan. Jihwan’s shoulders flinched before he slowly turned around.
Minjae leaned his upper body back slightly, supporting himself with his arms, and tilted his head back a bit. As he glared from beneath lowered eyelids, Jihwan’s shoulders seemed to droop slightly.
Eventually, Jihwan tightly closed his eyes before opening them again and made a strange sound.
“I’ll go get some gauze or something to clean up the blood stains.”
Is he kidding? Minjae felt the back of his head becoming tense.
“What are you trying to do? Repeat what you said earlier. What did you say?”
Jihwan didn’t answer and glared at the wall. Minjae continued staring at Jihwan’s profile.
After some time like this, Jihwan heaved a deep sigh and looked at Minjae sideways. This bastard?
“You almost died.”
…What? Minjae was momentarily stunned by Jihwan’s words.
“…And?”
“I mean you really almost died. Why…”
“…”
“Why did you use Hill on me instead of yourself?”
So that’s what he was saying. Is this rebel kid asking why I saved him? Minjae wondered what to do with this defiant brat. He felt like returning him to the state he should have been in originally.
“But you didn’t die.”
“…What?”
“You survived, right? So isn’t that enough?”
When Minjae shot back sarcastically, Jihwan’s face contorted.
“Why are you so…”
Jihwan couldn’t finish his sentence. His face twisted again. His eyes and nose were red. It was an expression Minjae had seen a few times before.
Only then did Minjae begin to understand Jihwan’s attitude a little. Through Jihwan’s expression, he sensed that he had truly been at death’s door. Though all humans might die at any moment, it was different from going to work at a place where death could come at any time.
Minjae suddenly thought that he had become too accustomed to this reality, and felt a little bitter.
“You taking me to the Center had the highest probability of survival.”
Minjae answered honestly as far as he could. In doing so, he implied that if the probability hadn’t been high, he might have left Jihwan behind. It was meant to alleviate Jihwan’s sense of debt.
“You… trusted me?”
It was an unexpected response.
Minjae had thought of Jihwan as an arrogant youngster and immature, but never as trash.
He hadn’t fully believed that Jihwan would take him all the way to the Center. But if he’d been certain Jihwan would abandon him, he wouldn’t have used Hill on him. At that moment, it had simply been the best option.
“…You said you don’t leave people who need help behind. That’s what being a hero is, right?”
“But Sunbae, you said you’re not a hero.”
Is he playing word games? Minjae couldn’t understand why Jihwan was picking at his words.
Or was he venting the anger of not having been able to be useful in a situation where he should have been? At me? Minjae felt indignant and glared at Jihwan.
Jihwan’s face was distorted. His reddened face seemed to have twitching eyes.
Is he anxious? Minjae began to gauge the mental shock Jihwan must have experienced, and concluded that he seemed a bit unhinged from experiencing these things for the first time.
“For now, you should probably…”
“Sunbae!!!”
As Minjae was about to suggest that Jihwan should rest, Eunjeong burst through the door and flung herself at him, causing him to fall backward. More precisely, he fell back onto the bed.
Since Eunjeong was taller than Minjae, it appeared as if she had knocked him down, but Minjae patted the shoulder of the sobbing Eunjeong.
“Hey, hey. You’re going to kill me again.”
“Ah, don’t say such unlucky things!!!”
Eunjeong buried her face in Minjae’s shoulder, sniffled for a moment, then abruptly raised her head.
“Let me see, have you healed yourself? Are there any spots you missed? Does it hurt?”
Eunjeong was trying to examine Minjae thoroughly. I healed everything. I’m fine. Minjae was giving perfunctory responses to keep up with her.
That’s when it happened. One of Eunjeong’s arms was suddenly lifted and pulled back.
“Sunbae must be feeling heavy. It’s only been a few minutes since he recovered.”
It was Jihwan. His voice was so low, it seemed like Minjae was hearing it for the first time.
Ah. Momentarily flustered, Eunjeong moved back slightly and asked again if Minjae was okay while examining him. Minjae nodded.
“And please leave.”
Jihwan’s voice was heard again. Minjae and Eunjeong both froze simultaneously.
Eunjeong slowly turned to face Jihwan. A small creaking sound came from the bed.
“What did you say?”
“I said please leave. Sunbae needs complete rest.”
Minjae could see the back of Eunjeong’s neck turning bright red. He began to wonder if Jihwan had suffered brain damage when he was shot down.
***
Wooseok entered the office and massaged the back of his neck. He had just visited the hospital room to check on Minjae’s condition and witnessed an insane chaos.
Eunjeong was grabbing an S-class esper by the collar and shaking him vigorously while unleashing a barrage of terrible curses in the sacred special room of the Guiding Department.
“You fucking bastard! Do you think I’m a pushover because I’ve been keeping my mouth shut?! Hey! What reason do I have not to come here? Huh?! How the hell did you fly that would make you…! You piece of shit! You’re so full of shit!”
“That’s exactly it. He’s injured and exhausted, so he needs to rest. Who was it that rushed in and nearly suffocated him right away?”
“What?! Look at how this fucking bastard talks?”
“Hey, hey.”
Until just a while ago, the rookie S-class who had been staring at Minjae with a face that looked about to cry was now glaring at Eunjeong with a ferocious expression.
Jihwan had his collar grabbed but didn’t seem to care at all, even going so far as to mock Eunjeong. Today’s events must have really filled him with rage.
Minjae was leaning against the bed, calling out to them with an exhausted face, but the two causing the commotion seemed to have no regard for Minjae’s feelings.
Because of this, Wooseok had to shout at the top of his lungs before he could embrace his close friend who had nearly died. Wooseok struck Jihwan and Eunjeong on the head with the chart he was holding.
“Hey, you bastards!!! Why are you making such a commotion in front of someone who needs to recover. Get out!”
Spotting Wooseok, Minjae slightly raised his body and pulled Wooseok, who was standing at the entrance, towards him.
“Director, please chase those two away.”
“Sunbae!”
“Sunbae!”
As soon as Minjae finished speaking, Eunjeong and Jihwan shouted. They both fumed with identical expressions. It was the moment when the winner became clear. In the end, both were kicked out of the special room.
“…How are you feeling?”
“Thanks to everyone, I’m in top condition.”
In response to Wooseok’s question, Minjae waved his wrist showing a green light. That’s not what I meant. Wooseok felt a surge of emotion, but hesitated to bring up various topics where there might be listening ears.
“I want to shower.”
Minjae’s voice was filled with fatigue. I’ll come by in the evening. Wooseok urged him to stay put in his quarters and nodded.
Wooseok cleaned the noticeable bloodstains on Minjae’s body with antiseptic cotton. This was to prevent anyone Minjae might encounter on his way to his quarters from spreading strange rumors after seeing the bloodstains.
After seeing Minjae off, he had just entered his office with his tired body when someone knocked on the door again.
“Come in.”
“You’re having quite a day, aren’t you?”
The person who peeked in with a bright smile was Seoyeon. Wooseok laughed softly and offered her a seat.
“I just came from stopping your friend from causing a scene.”
“I heard. Eunjeong was told late that Sunbae Minjae had arrived at the Center, so she rushed there. But what kind of scene did she cause?”
“…It’s nothing.”
“Is Sunbae Minjae alright?”
“Well. He’s fine.”
Wooseok nodded with a smile. There was no need to mention how terribly Minjae had entered the Center. Exaggerated rumors would already be circulating within the Center.
“What brings you here?”
Wooseok got up and steeped a tea bag in a cup, placing it in front of Seoyeon.
“I did some research about the guiding medication.”
“Ah, yes. Did you find anything?”
“It has never been sold on the black market.”
Never been sold? Then where on earth does it go? Wooseok held his forehead.
“…That seemed very strange, so a few days ago, I stood guard when the guiding medications were being delivered. And they didn’t unload one box and took it back.”
“Could it have been meant for another Center?”
“No. That’s what was strange, so I followed as far as I could… but I lost them at the second intersection after they left the Center. So I searched for highways in that direction and contacted all the Center branches in nearby cities. None of them had received any guiding medication that day.”
“…Then.”
“It means there’s a place within this city where guiding medication is being delivered, but it’s not appearing on the black market.”
Wooseok mentally traced the route Seoyeon described and recalled a particular location.
“Do you have a place in mind? Should I investigate that area more?”
Seoyeon asked while examining Wooseok’s face. Wooseok shook his head, thinking he needed to discuss this with Minjae.
“No, I should handle this from here on. If anything comes up, I’ll let you know. Really, thank you so much.”
“It’s nothing. I wish I could have found out more.”
More than this? Wooseok had to work hard to maintain the face of a composed workplace superior in front of Seoyeon, who had unearthed such incredible information yet still seemed disappointed.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
