I was at a loss for words.
How did I know? I had no good excuse. I couldn’t exactly say, “I read the entire novel you appear in—minus the epilogue—so I know everything about you,” now could I? Unable to answer, I kept my mouth shut, and Baek Tae-beom’s gaze grew more intense. His suspicious expression made me feel unfairly accused.
“How did you know, hyung?”
His persistent questioning left me flustered—until, suddenly, a sly idea came to me.
“Actually…”
I whispered as if I were revealing something incredibly difficult to admit.
“I have a Constellation too.”
“What?”
“I have a Constellation, just like you. But mine told me not to reveal their existence unless absolutely necessary, so I haven’t mentioned it until now.”
[Constellation, ‘One Who Knows of Destruction,’ tells Baek Tae-beom that what was just said is true.]
[Constellation, ‘One Who Knows of Destruction,’ whispers to Baek Tae-beom that it’s the truth.]
Inside and out, it felt like I needed two brains just to keep up with the lies and the con.
“My Constellation told me something useful would come out of this dungeon. So I used a skill to head there in advance, and just happened to run into you and those ba— uh, guys.”
Even I had to admit—what a dumb explanation. I handed the remaining Heart of the Crimson Mist to Baek Tae-beom and laughed awkwardly.
“And here, take this. I’ve got no use for it. You could probably get a decent price selling it.”
“Hyung…”
“What? You still have more questions?”
I smiled innocently at him, pretending nothing was wrong. There were no more excuses left to use. Cold sweat trickled down my back.
Then, Baek Tae-beom slowly shook his head and said, in a voice filled with emotion,
“You care that much about me… Hyung, you’re really a good person.”
I was absolutely sure of it.
‘This guy… he’s a total pushover.’
***
As soon as I got back home, the first thing I did was focus on checking the skill. As a result, I was able to confirm a number of things.
First, after testing it with two watches, I found that the flow of time inside the Sanctuary was the same as in the outside world. I also discovered that bringing objects from the outside—like the watch—into the Sanctuary was entirely possible.
Which meant, essentially, I could use this Sanctuary as a kind of home.
After hauling in some books and a mattress from my studio apartment and trying to sleep there, I found that nothing out of the ordinary happened. So I cleanly gave up the rental and decided to live here instead. The Sanctuary even allowed me to create new facilities.
[Miniature Interior Set for a Tiny Constellation – E]
[An installation item created for a Constellation that wants to play house.]
[Price: 10,000 Coins]
I briefly imagined Constellations taking a bath in the bathroom and shook my head. Obviously, this was the kind of thing only someone in a special situation like mine would use.
And perhaps because things had escalated so quickly, I realized something else—belatedly.
I wasn’t feeling hungry.
Like someone whose metabolism had just… shut down.
It was unsettling, but not entirely unacceptable. I chose to see it in a positive light. If I didn’t need to eat, I could save on food expenses. That was a win, right? And besides, it wasn’t like I couldn’t eat at all.
Especially considering I’d been fired from my part-time job not long ago. No more living off ramen and wrecking my health.
I unwrapped the bandage from my wrist. In just half a day, the wound had healed enough that I could move it without any pain. It gave me chills—my body didn’t even feel like my own anymore. But then again, without some kind of extreme advantage, survival wouldn’t be possible in this world.
Still… what was Baek Tae-beom doing right now?
[According to your will, the Contractor’s real-time streaming service will now commence.]
Maybe he was sleeping. It was morning now, but the fatigue from everything we’d gone through yesterday probably hadn’t worn off yet. Then again, he could be doing something else entirely by now.
As far as I remembered, Baek Tae-beom was a college student who had taken a leave of absence to work part-time jobs and pay for his younger sibling’s medical bills. I didn’t know exactly what time he started work, but it wouldn’t be surprising if he was already busy even this early in the morning.
But then, one side of the wall turned cloudy, and I frowned.
“What the…?”
Suddenly, a handsome face popped into view. Damp white hair clung to his cheeks, and his golden eyes glowed as they looked straight ahead. Below them were a high, sharp nose, full red lips, and a neck and collarbone lined with tense veins… and that chest…
“Wait, what the hell, no—stop! STOP!”
The screen naturally started zooming lower, and I shrieked in panic.
[According to your will, the Contractor’s real-time streaming service has been cancelled.]
My heart was pounding like crazy. I clutched my chest and gasped for breath. Damn this streaming system. Shouldn’t it give a warning or something before broadcasting someone in the shower? I just found out today that a man could die of cardiac arrest from seeing someone too good-looking.
Ding-a-ling!
And then, all of a sudden, the default ringtone of my phone echoed through the room, making me clutch my chest a second time. The loud sound ringing out in the silence felt like a rebuke of my impure thoughts.
“H-Hello?”
– Hyung?
“Ah… Beom, it’s you.”
I instinctively glanced at the now-blank white wall as I answered.
– You didn’t reply to my text. Did you get home okay?
“Huh? Oh, yeah. Of course. I got back fine.”
I forced my voice to sound casual.
“What’s up so early in the morning?”
– I missed you.
“What?”
– You told me yesterday what your Constellation said, remember? I wanted to hear more. About the dungeon, the items, all of it.
Ugh. I thought he meant he actually missed me and nearly had a heart attack. Baek Tae-beom seriously needed to be more aware of just how ridiculously good-looking he was.
– I quit my part-time job, so I’ve got free time now. Thanks to the gem you gave me yesterday.
“Part-time job?”
– Yeah. Actually… I have a younger sibling who’s sick. Paying for their medical bills made things really tight. But someone offered 5 million won per gem you gave me, so I’ll be able to rest for a while. That’s why I quit.
“I see.”
Even as I said that, my mind was in turmoil.
Originally, Baek Tae-beom was supposed to be manipulated by Yoo Jin-woo and Kim Yong-tae, get into a serious accident at work, lose his job, and end up with nowhere to turn but them—falling straight into despair.
In other words, the entire storyline of the novel had completely veered off course.
‘Is this really okay?’
Maybe it was a good thing. If I thought about it, I had already prevented the end of the world from happening right at the start. If I stayed close to Baek Tae-beom and kept treating him well for the next two years, there was no way he’d end up destroying the world. He’d probably just grow up to be a cute pushover who couldn’t even handle watching lions eat rabbits in documentaries.
– Hyung?
“Ah, yeah. Let’s meet.”
– Should I come to your place?
“Huh?”
I slowly looked around the stark white room, where a single bathroom door and a mattress were set up, and replied in the calmest voice I could muster.
“No, no. Let’s just… meet at a café. I’ll send you the address.”
– Okay, hyung.
After hanging up, I fell into deep thought. If things continued like this, didn’t that mean everything I knew about the novel two years down the line would become meaningless? But Baek Tae-beom’s voice, so bright and cheerful as he talked about paying for his sibling’s treatment, made me think this alone was enough.
“Contractor info.”
[Displaying contractor information.]
[Contractor – Baek Tae-beom, Who Cleaved the Mist]
[Title: One Who Cleaved the Mist
Status: Anticipation
Contracted Constellation: One Who Knows of Destruction
Owned Coins: 18,000
Skills: [Sword Aura] [Hermit]
There are additional skills that have not manifested due to unmet conditions.]
At this point, I figured I might as well do my job as a proper Constellation. Clearing dungeons with Baek Tae-beom would also earn me Coins.
[Displaying owned Coins.]
[Owned Coins: 8,000]
Feeling randomly proud, I decided to sponsor Baek Tae-beom.
[Activating skill: Sponsorship.]
[You have sponsored 100 Coins to Baek Tae-beom.]
[Remaining Coins: 7,900]
About thirty minutes later, I turned the contractor streaming back on. There, I saw Baek Tae-beom sitting at a café table in casual clothes, his hair still slightly damp.
Watching him like this, it really did feel like I was watching a movie.
“Back then, I reached out first and lost my balance and fell over, but…”
I muttered as I slowly walked toward the screen.
“If I do it like this…!”
Then my vision blurred. With a sinking sensation in my body, I landed steadily somewhere and managed to sit down without issue. Feeling proud that I didn’t embarrass myself this time, I realized something troubling.
Baek Tae-beom’s face was way too close.
“…Hyung?”
I was sitting on Baek Tae-beom’s thigh.
