Chapter 7
“Creatures, turncoats, people with glowing eyes, ruined Seoul – I’m seeing all of this for the first time.”
Then the man’s blue eyes, which had been quiet, began to ripple little by little. Those eyes, visible at such a close distance of less than a span, had a mysterious power to draw people in.
Seo Won continued speaking slowly without avoiding his gaze.
“So tell me. About this world I don’t know.”
At that moment, the man’s lips curved into an arc. It was a subtle change that was barely noticeable, but the man was definitely smiling.
Not sneering or finding it ridiculous, but genuinely delighted. Like someone who had heard exactly what they wanted to hear.
That’s how the man’s smile looked to Seo Won.
The man stared at Seo Won with an expressionless face as if he had never smiled. Only after a long while did he ask Seo Won back.
“What kind of world was the place you lived in?”
He had hoped to be believed, but to accept it this quickly and easily. Suspicion and questioning should have come first.
Seo Won was swept up in a strange feeling.
“You believe what I’m saying?”
Then the man nodded.
“Yes.”
“Why? From your perspective, isn’t this nonsensical? Or… is this kind of thing common here?”
“You’re saying something interesting.”
It sounded like telling him not to talk nonsense. That made him even more puzzled. What was he looking at to believe him?
“Then why…?”
At that moment, the man suddenly extended his hand. Startled by the sudden action, he felt the characteristic smooth texture of leather gloves on his left cheek.
He slowly stroked his cheek, then swept under his eyes and came down a little more to lightly rub his lips. Not knowing what his intention was and frowning, the man opened his mouth.
“A face like this couldn’t exist in this world.”
“…What?”
It was an incomprehensible statement. A face that doesn’t exist in this world.
Seo Won couldn’t hide his confusion. The man, who had been quietly watching those wavering eyes, slowly moved his hand again.
The touch of his thumb stroking his cheek was very careful. It was also cautious, like someone touching something small and fragile for the first time.
That’s why he couldn’t push away that hand.
It felt as if he could feel the skin beyond the leather glove. Like the man’s skin, his fingertips seemed very soft. His eyes naturally twitched at the ticklish feeling. Then he was startled. Wondering what he was doing right now.
Seo Won belatedly tried to remove the man’s hand and grabbed his wrist.
“What are you doing…”
“Here.”
At that moment, the man suddenly opened his mouth.
Seo Won couldn’t push away his hand and looked up at him.
“There are no people with this kind of skin.”
“What?”
“White skin with a rosy complexion.”
Come to think of it, no red tint could be seen in the man’s skin at all. His skin was pale with a grayish tint, as if he had never seen sunlight.
“And unless you’re a hunter, you can’t be this smooth.”
“Hunter?”
“People with power like me.”
The man smiled triumphantly with curved eyes. His light-emitting pupils particularly caught the eye.
The more he heard, the more confusion filled his head instead. The statement that his appearance didn’t match this place meant that many things were different. But the reason was too absurd.
“Why is skin like this…?”
The man pointed to the sky with his finger and asked.
“What does it look like?”
“What do you mean, of course it’s sunset…”
“No, it’s daytime now.”
Seo Won blinked and looked up at the bright red sky. He had thought the sunset was strange, but this was daytime? Where did the sun go? It was certainly bright enough to secure visibility, but to call it daytime was too…
“Gloomy.”
“……”
The man quietly stared at Seo Won’s absent-minded face. Just his appearance alone was full of vitality, and his expressions that directly showed his emotions were as rich as a child’s. A stranger who didn’t match this place at all, eroded by death and fear and sunken. That was exactly Yoon Seo Won.
So how could he not believe? Rather, if he had said he was from this place, he would have been suspicious.
‘Though it wouldn’t matter if he said no.’
The man tapped Seo Won’s cheek to bring him to his senses. Confirming that focus returned to his dazed eyes, he cleanly removed his hand.
“Yoon Seo Won.”
Seo Won turned his head as if responding to his name and met the man’s gaze. Though he had come to his senses, the man who had been quietly watching Seo Won who was still confused slowly opened his mouth.
“Shall I help you?”
The reason Seo Won had requested to be told about this place was to survive. The man knew this well. It was something absolutely necessary for Yoon Seo Won, who was a stranger.
Though his tone was dry enough to feel detached, the content was an incredibly sweet proposal. Even so, Seo Won couldn’t readily answer. Though he hadn’t known the man for long, he could tell that he wasn’t the type to make such proposals first.
Saving someone once and taking responsibility were completely different realms. Especially for someone ignorant of this world.
“Of course, there’s a condition.”
So he rather felt relieved at the man’s words that there was a condition.
“…What is it?”
The man slowly stood up. His appearance looked like a giant beast revealing its presence. Seo Won swallowed dry saliva and looked up at him. When he felt tired from his neck bending backward, the man spat out.
“You do as I tell you.”
“What?”
Seo Won jumped up from his spot at the meaningful demand.
Do as he tells him? What…?
It was strange. Anyway, he who knew nothing had to believe the information he gave and also had to do as told. But emphasizing that specifically could only mean there was something else.
What exactly did he want?
“Will you do it or not?”
The man tilted his head sideways and urged for an answer.
It was no different from telling him to stamp without showing the contract contents, which brought him to his senses. Seo Won caught his breath to steady his mind. Though he didn’t like the man’s attitude, anyone could see that he was the one who needed this relationship.
Seo Won asked in a subdued voice.
“What do I have to do?”
“Whatever I tell you to do.”
“Um, so could you explain in detail what that is…”
Before he could finish speaking, the man suddenly turned his head sharply and glared somewhere. At that ominous reaction, Seo Won’s heart began beating with anxiety.
“What’s coming again?”
“Creatures.”
The man who answered briefly turned his head again to stare at Seo Won. Unlike before, he was giving off a sharp atmosphere.
“Night is coming. We need to move to a safe place.”
“……”
“Your answer?”
The man extended his hand and asked one last time.
So… if he didn’t agree to his proposal, he would leave him here alone? Seo Won clenched his fists and glared at the man. He didn’t know if he was too naive or if the man was too calculating.
Anyway, there was only one path he could choose here.
Seo Won roughly grabbed the man’s extended hand. Even at his somewhat irritable attitude, the man just chuckled and pulled Seo Won toward him. This time, firmly wrapping around his waist, he whispered in Seo Won’s ear.
“A wise choice.”
“……”
This could be called a choice if it were a choice, but it was purely moving according to the man’s intentions. Annoyed and glaring at the man, his body was suddenly lifted.
“Ugh.”
At the sudden floating sensation, he reflexively grabbed the man’s shoulders. He was dumbfounded at treatment that an adult male wouldn’t easily experience. It was more shocking that he was held as lightly as a child compared to when he had clung earlier.
However, the man had an indifferent expression as if it didn’t matter at all. Rather, looking at the sky that had begun to darken, he informed him of a frightening fact.
“From now on, it’s time for humans to hold their breath.”
“What, huh? Why?”
At the same time as asking for the reason, bizarre howling sounds echoed like an echo from far away. It was an eerie sound like scraping a steel plate lengthily with something sharp.
Seo Won flinched in surprise and turned his head toward where the howling came from. This sound was definitely from creatures. It was exactly like the screams those things had let out when they showed their sharp teeth and charged to devour him.
How could he forget the sound that reminded him of the moment of death?
“Because darkness doesn’t belong to humans.”
Once the howling sounded, creatures from here and there screamed in response like a pack of howling wolves. It was as if everywhere was completely full of creatures. Strength naturally entered his hands, crumpling the shoulder part of the jumper the man was wearing.
Masters of the night.
A world of monsters that couldn’t coexist with humans was approaching.
The man immediately ran out while holding the completely stiffened Seo Won. The bright red sky began to rapidly dye into dark colors as if black ink had been dissolved.
‘The night…’
It created the illusion of being sucked into the deep sea. Into pitch-black darkness where nothing could be seen, where even moonlight had disappeared.
Seo Won squeezed his eyes shut to shake off his anxiety, then opened them. Then he looked at the man who was running while holding him. As everything lost its form being eroded by darkness, only the man’s eyes were shining completely intact.
Separate from finding the man disagreeable, it strangely brought relief. With a feeling like discovering a landmark in the vast ocean, he couldn’t take his eyes off his face.
May this night pass quickly.
In the darkness, the howling was getting louder and louder.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
