Chapter 7
The most urgent matter was the pig right in front of them.
Even after filling the freezer to capacity like a game of Tetris, more than half the pig remained, completely filling the refrigerator too. Smoking it at home wasn’t feasible. As they started grilling what could be grilled and boiling what could be boiled, the smell of food permeated the entire house.
After spending hours cooking, they ended up with so many containers of side dishes that the two of them couldn’t possibly eat it all.
“Good food should be shared…”
Though he wasn’t one to particularly value interactions with neighbors, his best friend lived right upstairs. Thinking it would be a nice gesture to share, as long as it wasn’t something Jaeyoon violently disliked, Jaeha glanced at him to gauge his reaction. Surprisingly, Jaeyoon seemed calm.
“That bastard… If you’re taking it to Joo Dojoon’s place, I’ll do it.”
“Really? I can go give it to him myself.”
“You think I’d let you and that bas— Joo Dojoon meet alone?”
“Alright, alright. Don’t fight when you go there. Just give him the meat and come back.”
Whatever had twisted Jaeyoon’s mood, at least he wasn’t turning his back when needed. That was enough for Jaeha, who started stacking all the meat dishes he’d prepared and handed them over to Jaeyoon. Soy-braised pork, pork chop steak, grilled meat, boiled pork, and more. Various meat dishes were packed to overflowing, like side dishes a mother would prepare.
“Why are you giving so much?”
“Well, I asked for some pork belly, but someone brought home a whole pig instead.”
Though Jaeha’s comment was half-joking criticism, Jaeyoon’s expression was filled with dissatisfaction. Still, he left the house with his lips tightly shut.
After Jaeyoon left, Jaeha listened carefully for a while. Fortunately, he returned without any noticeable commotion. Within seconds, Jaeha received a message from Dojoon thanking him, which put him at ease. He then poured a special herbal drink over some pig’s feet and focused on preparing the final dish.
Late that night, after spending the entire day cooking until exhaustion…
“I can’t sleep…”
Black Pig. It really does seem to be good for men after all.
Unable to fall asleep, Jaeha sat at his desk.
Since things had turned out this way, he decided to play the game he couldn’t play earlier. He played all night. As usual, only the guild master stayed with him until dawn, and thanks to their 1:1 sessions instead of a full party, he monopolized experience points for once.
The guild master even had to leave the game first, saying he needed to rest.
“Whoa, what’s this? The sun’s already up?”
After staying up all night, Jaeha was puzzled by his still-perfect physical condition. Even his skin was glowing and in top condition when he washed his face.
“This seems to be good for more than just men?”
As he stepped out in amazement, the kimchi stew with pork he had prepared the night before was bubbling away, emitting a delicious aroma.
“Hyung, eat breakfast before you go.”
A set table after coming out of the shower?
This might have been normal when living with their parents, but it was a rare sight when living with just Jaeyoon. Most of the time, Jaeha himself reluctantly prepared their meals.
If this was the kind of positive change happening, Jaeha welcomed it even if Jaeyoon had some peculiar thought processes. Impressed by his thoughtful younger brother, Jaeha praised him while picking up a large piece of meat.
“Hey, this Black Pig thing is really good! Even better than Boong Boong Drink.”
“Yeah. It’s especially good for people like you and me. After all, things from dungeons tend to work well for ability users.”
Even though the roleplaying continued a day later, Jaeha just nodded without pointing it out. Having decided to look positively at good things, he planned to be endlessly positive in these situations.
“Whew, I’m really full.”
The tender, rich taste of the kimchi stew that had been stewed overnight prompted overeating even on a morning with little appetite.
After brushing his teeth again, Jaeha was planning to go to school with Dojoon as usual, but he sensed something ominous when he noticed Jaeyoon following right behind him.
“Are you really going to follow me?”
“Yeah, I need to see for myself.”
“Then don’t pick fights with Dojoon from the morning. Just follow quietly.”
“Let’s go separately today. You’re not a kid anymore; you don’t need to go to university with a friend.”
Though it seemed ridiculous for college students to walk to school holding hands with siblings, Jaeha decided to indulge his brother’s stubbornness just for today.
When Jaeha messaged Dojoon about going separately, fortunately, he replied that he had already left early because he couldn’t sleep last night. Jaeyoon, who checked the message over Jaeha’s shoulder, stepped into the elevator with a light gait.
‘I’ll just consider it showing my brother around school for a day.’
With a mindset of service, Jaeha decided to accommodate Jaeyoon as much as possible today.
## 2. Why Are You Managing My Friendships?
The university Jaeha attended had an awkward location but incredible air quality. Surrounded by mountains, one had to use transportation from the foot of the mountain to reach it. How common was such a location for a university in downtown Seoul?
While it had a countryside-like atmosphere within Seoul, its facilities were no less impressive than those of prestigious universities. The faculty was decent, and above all, the cafeteria food was so exceptional it seemed like that’s where all the tuition went.
Jaeha planned to show Jaeyoon the campus and then treat him to the cafeteria’s delicious food.
“Universities aren’t anything special. The entrance is rather grand, but that’s just because the president has bizarre tastes.”
From the entrance, the overwhelming size and unique decorations reflected the president’s extravagant spending and strange preferences. Jaeha, making excuses, felt even more embarrassed seeing Jaeyoon’s sour expression.
“Hey, hey, it gets normal once you’re inside. It’s actually more sophisticated than other universities.”
Embarrassed, Jaeha quickly made excuses and hurried past the entrance. Jaeyoon, who had been gripping Jaeha’s hand tightly until now, let go and stood still, staring blankly at the entrance.
“…Why is that here?”
“What do you mean?”
Jaeha, who had gone inside, asked, and Jaeyoon took his eyes off the entrance decorations to look at him.
“The ability detector.”
“Ability?”
“It’s for collecting pre-awakening data, but why is it here?”
No one would have imagined installing an ability detector at a university entrance. Above all, this wasn’t the time for such things to be available to the public. Jaeyoon’s mind became complicated at encountering a part of the future in an unexpected place.
Seeing Jaeyoon’s serious expression, Jaeha returned to the entrance and grabbed his arm.
“What are you talking about? Let’s go inside and you can explain. Everyone’s staring at us.”
With a large man dressed in black standing in the center of the school gate, attention was focused on them.
Even when Jaeha pulled his arm, Jaeyoon remained immovable. Frustrated by whatever concept he was playing at without restraint, Jaeha gave up and went inside. Jaeyoon avoided the entrance and moved to the side. He nimbly climbed over a wall that seemed to be at least 3 meters high and jumped inside in an instant.
“Huh?”
Jaeha, who had been watching to see what he would do, was startled to witness Jaeyoon climbing over the wall and rushed inside. He was both amazed and bewildered at how easily Jaeyoon scaled the high wall that seemed to have no handholds.
“Hey, why climb over the wall when there’s a perfectly good entrance?”
Instead of answering Jaeha’s question, Jaeyoon continued to glare at the entrance and asked back:
“Hyung, what kind of university have you been attending?”
“What do you mean? I got in based on my grades. This place is known for its tough interviews though.”
As Jaeyoon’s expression remained serious, Jaeha found himself explaining almost defensively.
“Someone with better grades than me failed the interview. When I had my interview, the atmosphere was really good.”
“You had your interview here? You came through that entrance?”
“Yes, of course.”
Jaeyoon’s expression became even more serious after asking such an obvious question. Even his parents hadn’t questioned him so intensely. Embarrassed by Jaeyoon’s excessive concern, Jaeha pulled his arm.
“I’ll show you around the school. Let’s go in.”
Jaeyoon’s eyes were sharp as he followed Jaeha around the university.
Initially, he had come along to check on the people surrounding Jaeha, but now the situation had changed. Had he been an ordinary person, he might not have noticed, but Jaeyoon recognized this place as one prepared for awakening.
The impossibly solid walls, the excessive number of emergency exits and fire facilities. Even the number of security guards, who looked more like bodyguards than mere security personnel, was considerable.
In this suspiciously odd university space, Jaeyoon’s eyes continuously scanned the surroundings. Unaware of this situation, Jaeha casually spoke to him.
“I need to stop by the club room. Are you coming?”
“You go first. I’ll look around a bit and catch up.”
“Huh? You’re not coming with me?”
Until they arrived at the university, Jaeyoon had acted like he wouldn’t leave Jaeha’s side. Yet since arriving at school, his attention was elsewhere, and he responded casually despite Jaeha looking after him.
Thinking that if Dojoon were here, Jaeyoon wouldn’t have been so careless, Jaeha suddenly startled and shook his head.
He was disconcerted by his own sense of disappointment. It was embarrassing to have become so accustomed to his clingy brother after just two days.
“Then look around. I’ll be back soon.”
“Okay.”
Perhaps the whole act of protecting him and clinging to him was just a role-playing game that couldn’t last more than two days.
The indifferent and bothered Jaeyoon was familiar to Jaeha. Shaking off the slight disappointment that tried to creep in, Jaeha headed straight to the club room.
After using the elevator installed on campus and walking through a wide corridor, Jaeha noticed anew how good the school’s facilities were. From what friends at other universities had told him, even new buildings, while clean, weren’t this spacious and comfortable.
He felt hopeful that perhaps Jaeyoon, who had claimed to have no interest in college and failed after jumping into the job market, might start dreaming of attending university. If that was the case, Jaeha could understand with an open heart why Jaeyoon was so distracted by the buildings.
Arriving at the club room with a somewhat excited mood, Jaeha raised his energy.
“I’m here!”
Opening the door covered with posters befitting a gaming club, he found the place unexpectedly quiet.
The club room, equipped with the latest computers, various game consoles, and comfortable sofas, had always been bustling with students.
“Did you come, Jaeha?”
“Huh? Youngwoo Sunbae?”
As luck would have it, the only person in the club room was Lee Youngwoo, whom his brother had been wary of.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
