He spent a long time agonizing over what to bring Haru.
Then, the moment he spotted a youthful-looking man at a nearby table devouring a bowl of soodae gukbap with gusto, he ordered four servings on the spot.
“Hehe, thank you for the meal.”
At the mention of “four servings,” Lee Haru’s eyes lit up, and he immediately picked up his spoon, tearing open the plastic wrapper with practiced ease.
Yu Je-hyun sat across from him on the couch, quietly observing Haru as he ate.
He had not eaten yet either, but oddly enough, just watching Haru enjoy his food made him feel strangely full.
It was the first time he had ever experienced something like that. As he folded his arms and furrowed his brows, trying to make sense of the feeling, Haru poured two bowls of rice into the gukbap container and stirred it carefully so the broth would fully soak into the grains. Then, he glanced up at Yu Je-hyun.
Those glossy, coal-black eyes flicked back and forth between the container in front of him and the unopened one beside it.
The food had been packaged in sets of two servings per container. From what Yu Je-hyun had said earlier, it was clear he had bought all four servings just for Haru—but now that he was about to eat them all by himself, he felt a twinge of self-consciousness.
Haru quietly set down his spoon, pulled the unopened container toward him, and pushed it across the table to Yu Je-hyun.
“Esper Yu Je-hyun, you should eat too. Food always tastes better when you share it.”
Such a small gesture—and yet, somehow it moved him.
Yu Je-hyun looked at the soondae gukbap Haru had offered and felt a gentle wave of emotion rise inside him. Haru’s expression made it obvious he wanted to eat all four servings. Even so, he had willingly given one up.
Oddly, the fact that Yu Je-hyun had been the one to buy the food never even crossed his mind as important.
“Thank you.”
“Aww, it’s nothing.”
Haru grinned bashfully, scrunching up his nose in embarrassment, and Yu Je-hyun found himself staring at him for a moment. Then, following Haru’s lead, he dropped a bowl of rice into the steaming container of broth.
It was a flavor he knew well, one he had eaten countless times—but somehow, with Haru sitting across from him, it tasted better than ever. Just like Haru had said.
***
“Thank you for everything.”
“I was just doing my job. But you remember our agreement, right? If anything feels off, you will come back in for treatment.”
“Of course.”
Just as he had seemed at first glance, Jin Sung-joon had been unfailingly attentive during Haru’s entire stay at the Association’s hospital.
In truth, Haru had not sustained any injuries during his kidnapping by Black. Physically, he had been fine—his naturally frail constitution was not something that could be fixed with treatment anyway.
The reason he had remained hospitalized for a full week was due to the combined insistence of Jin Sung-joon and Yu Je-hyun.
“You look even skinnier than you did before the kidnapping. You are not going home until your body is back to normal.”
Haru had indeed lost weight. Being unconscious for three days meant he had been unable to eat during that time.
While it was something he could have recovered from without hospitalization, Yu Je-hyun had been unusually firm, gently shutting down any attempts Haru made to discuss discharge.
“Even if the patient thinks they are fine, that is often not the case.”
Backing up Yu Je-hyun’s stance, Jin Sung-joon had also urged him to stay just a little longer under observation.
And so, Haru ended up living like a pampered prisoner for a week.
In addition to the hospital meals, Yu Je-hyun had shown up every day, arms overflowing with snacks and food.
That morning, Haru had looked in the mirror and noticed the slight roundness returning to his cheeks.
“Esper Kang Min should be waiting at the reception desk.”
“Esper… Kang Min?”
As Haru exchanged farewells with Jin Sung-joon and glanced around the hospital room he had grown used to, he froze the moment Kang Min’s name came up.
“Yes. It seems Esper Yu Je-hyun was called away for a mission.”
Jin Sung-joon was about to gently probe further, noticing the unnatural stillness in Haru’s expression—
But just then, a knock sounded, and the hospital room door opened.
“Guide Lee Haru, I have come to escort you.”
Haru’s fingers curled into fists.
Trying to keep his unease from showing, he forced the corners of his lips upward into a polite smile.
“…It has been a while, Esper Kang Min.”
Throughout Haru’s week-long hospital stay, only Yu Je-hyun had come to visit.
Kang Min and Hong Seong-jun had not shown their faces even once.
That had actually made things easier. He felt awkward around both of them, so their absence had been a relief.
He had fully expected to return to the mansion alone today.
Just yesterday, Yu Je-hyun—clearly annoyed—had warned him that he had a mission he could not skip, so he likely would not be able to pick him up upon discharge.
Naturally, Haru assumed no one would be coming. But now, someone had appeared without warning, and his thoughts went blank.
“Well then, I will be going.”
Still, it was not like he could tell Kang Min—who had come all this way—that he would manage on his own and send him away.
Left with no choice, Haru bid farewell to Jin Sung-joon and walked over to Kang Min, who stood by the doorway.
Kang Min gave a polite nod to Jin Sung-joon, who was sizing him up with a subtle gaze, then turned and walked beside Haru, shoulder to shoulder.
“……”
“……”
The walk that followed was steeped in silence.
Had it been Yu Je-hyun, even silence like this would have felt calm and comfortable by now.
But walking with Kang Min felt like trying to swallow ten dry sweet potatoes all at once—tight, heavy, and choking.
Kang Min stopped in front of the black sedan parked in the garage. He opened the passenger door and gave a slight nod.
“Get in.”
“…Alright.”
Truthfully, Haru had wanted to sit in the back. But the scenes flickering through his mind made him quietly obey Kang Min’s direction.
Kang Min slid into the driver’s seat and pulled the car out of the parking lot with fluid, practiced ease.
Haru fixed his gaze on the window. He had meant to focus on the passing scenery, but instead, his eyes kept drifting to Kang Min’s reflection in the glass.
Was it really Esper Kang Min who pushed Lee Haru to the brink of death?
Just before being kidnapped by Black—and gang-raped by multiple Espers—Haru had passed out in Yu Je-hyun’s arms, the one who had come to save him.
But then, the very person he had been so desperate to identify appeared in a dream.
Though he had been unconscious, the vision had felt far too real—disconcertingly vivid, as if it had actually happened.
Ugh… ngh…
Crumpled sheets flickered in and out of his blurred vision like afterimages.
He could feel the crushing weight pressing down on him. Just like in those fragmented memories he had once glimpsed, someone was holding him from behind.
The broken sounds slipping from Haru’s lips were not moans of pleasure. They were gasps—pained, stifled, as if he were being struck.
The veins bulging along the back of his hand, clenched tight around the wrinkled sheets, betrayed just how much agony he was in. Haru’s heart sank.
Tie it properly. Do not ruin the mood by acting like a used-up slut.
The cold voice that fell from above sent a violent shiver down his spine.
His vision wavered again, this time for a different reason. Droplets began to fall onto the sheets—soft, scattered taps—and he realized he was crying.
I’m sorry… ngh… I’m so sorry…
Sorry for what?
Even within the dream, the question burned inside him. The helplessness, the rage—it was overwhelming.
It was then that Haru turned his head and finally saw the man behind him.
Before, his features had always been obscured—blurred out like inked-over lines in a sketch. But this time, the man’s face filled his vision in sharp, vivid detail.
Esper Kang Min…?
He had suspected it before, based on the voice. But Kang Min had always kept a cool distance, hovering just outside reach like a passive observer. It had left Haru unsure.
The way Kang Min had acted around him never quite aligned with the cruelty he remembered.
But the face he had seen—briefly, yet unmistakably—had been Kang Min’s.
Even in the dimly lit bedroom, that unnaturally pale skin and chillingly perfect features had been impossible to mistake.
That moment had struck him like a bolt to the chest.
He could not think, could not move—only watched as the scene played on. Haru burying his face into the mattress, sobbing in silence, over and over again.
Haa… Tomorrow, guide both Yu Je-hyun and Hong Seong-jun. Keep going until their Rampage Risk Index drops below 30.
The moment the act ended, Kang Min left the bed without hesitation. His voice—calm, commanding—hung in the air like an order.
As those words lingered, Haru slowly closed his eyes, his strength completely drained.
He waited, wondering if there would be more—another flash of memory—but the world went dark.
And when he next opened his eyes, he was lying in the expansive hospital room.
He had awoken to the sight of Yu Je-hyun holding a knife. Then, once again, everything went black.
Since then, he had spoken with both Yu Je-hyun and Jin Sung-joon, and the shock of the dream had gradually begun to fade.
But when he found himself alone again, the memory returned in full force.
God… I really have no instinct when it comes to people, do I?
Even after all that, even knowing Kang Min had been the one who nearly destroyed him, all Haru had done was admire his unrealistically beautiful face.
He had not felt the slightest chill. Not even a hint of dread.
The man was practically split in two—like a walking case of dissociative identity.
His words, his actions—everything he had done to Haru had been vicious.
He had taken advantage of Haru’s feelings, exploiting them mercilessly to push him further and further toward the edge.
