#95
Oh-yul seemed to sparkle even more today, as if he had made an effort for his lover’s birthday. Instead of the Esper uniform he wore every day, he was dressed in a neat three-piece suit and had his nose slightly buried in a hydrangea bouquet. Ho-woo thought the scene flowed slowly, like a moment from a movie.
His eyes, which had closed and opened, belatedly noticed Ho-woo and curved into a gentle arc. The affectionate gaze, when actually received, was so sweetly heart-fluttering that it seemed to have a slightly mind-numbing effect. Oh-yul, who had suddenly approached Ho-woo, gave a polite greeting to Mi-yeon standing next to him.
“Hello.”
“Oh, hello.”
Mi-yeon’s voice trembled at the end as she stuttered. Ho-woo let out a small sigh at her pale complexion. Although Mi-yeon was friendly towards Espers, it seemed she too couldn’t escape from an inexplicable fear.
Why is everyone so afraid?
Ho-woo felt the need to clear the air for both of them. Mi-yeon was a good person, and Oh-yul was his lover. He didn’t want the two of them to feel uncomfortable unnecessarily.
“Ms. Yu, I’ll see you tomorrow then.”
Appreciating Ho-woo’s consideration in sending her off first, Mi-yeon squeezed out a final courageous greeting, “Have a good birthday,” before staggering away as if escaping. The sight of her retreating back was bitter.
“If we knew why everyone is afraid, couldn’t we prevent it?”
Oh-yul briefly glanced in the direction Mi-yeon had disappeared, seeing Ho-woo’s face twisted with complex emotions. His world was narrow and deep, so he didn’t care how others viewed him. It was quite cute how his lover seemed to worry that it might just be a pitiful means to him.
“Do you dislike that other people are afraid of me?”
“Of course I dislike it. They look at you like you’re a monster.”
“Hmm…”
The man took a step back and gently rubbed Ho-woo’s shoulder with one hand, having trampled on the truth. Power, interestingly, was perfect for hiding things. For example, past records.
The ability of mental Espers to never forget something once seen was sometimes annoying but quite useful. He had easily driven out Kim Dong-cheol and seen many interesting things from his seat. Would that stupid man have known these things properly?
“While organizing past reports recently, I saw some content…”
Oh-yul, who had piqued Ho-woo’s curiosity by pausing his words, handed the hydrangea bouquet to Ho-woo and pulled him close with an arm around his waist. His Pair, distracted by focusing on his words, yielded to his touch. The Esper was very satisfied with this.
“There were records of similar research topics.”
“Really?”
Ho-woo naturally followed Oh-yul’s lead towards the parked car. After opening the passenger door and even fastening the seatbelt for his lover, Oh-yul sat in the driver’s seat and finally spoke again.
“The reason ordinary people fear us seems to be connected to the origin of Espers and Guides.”
Oh-yul started the car and checked that Ho-woo was focused on his words before clearing his throat slightly. The slightly furrowed brow and slightly pursed lips were cute.
“When the monsters first appeared, their form was just a black mass, it seems. They were discovered quite a long time before the full-scale attacks began, apparently. At least, it was recorded in research from a hundred years ago.”
“That long ago?”
As Ho-woo looked bewildered at this new information, Oh-yul shrugged lightly.
“It’s a bit different from what’s usually told to ordinary people, right? Actually, these black masses were discovered worldwide, but their numbers weren’t that great. Although physical attacks didn’t work, they could be killed by burning, so it would have been good if they had been killed right away…”
Oh-yul trailed off, and Ho-woo could easily guess what came next.
They didn’t do that.
“Well, even if they attach a plausible reason like research purposes, it doesn’t change the fact that humans raised them. Considering they ended up feeding them things they should never have given to creatures that had already devoured so much.”
“…”
Oh-yul paused for a moment, noticing Ho-woo’s pale complexion.
“Should I continue? I don’t particularly want to talk about unpleasant things on your birthday.”
“Please tell me.”
“…Alright. It is rather shocking content. I was speechless when I saw it too.”
Oh-yul made a throat-clearing sound as if choosing his next words while gently turning the steering wheel.
“You know that those black masses could imitate what they devoured, right? Naturally, those that ate humans imitated humans. They begged to be let out, cried, proposed deals, threatened – they were so human-like that people thought real humans were inside them.”
“That’s horrible.”
“What’s more horrible is that those monsters eventually escaped.”
“What? They escaped?”
“They say they devoured every human in the research facility and escaped, so they must have had an exciting meal time.”
The Esper chuckled, speaking in a light tone as if making an amusing joke. However, Ho-woo didn’t find it funny at all. This man sometimes had a knack for saying chilling things so casually.
“Anyway, they couldn’t find any of the escaped monsters, and the prediction was that they lived mixed among people.”
“But you said it was about the origin of Espers and Guides. It seems like you’re just talking about monsters…”
Oh-yul smiled silently at Ho-woo’s words. That smile amplified Ho-woo’s anxiety. Ho-woo’s brown eyes trembled, filled with unease. All the stories kept leading to one thought.
Oh-yul had been talking about monsters while saying it was the story of the origin of Espers and Guides. Monsters in human form. Somehow, the naturally arising conclusion made Ho-woo’s face turn pale.
Good heavens.
He couldn’t even imagine how far the treatment of Espers and Guides would fall if people knew. This was a secret that needed to be kept silent until death.
“It’s good that I’m handsome, isn’t it?”
Ho-woo furrowed his brow at Oh-yul’s sudden question as he was piling heavy responsibility on top of the truth. With his mind reeling from the shocking facts, he couldn’t understand what this meant.
“What?”
“Even if we’re the same monsters as those crawling outside the city, isn’t it better to have a decent appearance?”
Oh-yul tilted his head slightly as he parked the car. The flickering streetlights in the darkening surroundings settled on the Esper’s face. Under the shadow cast by his long eyelashes, his dark blue eyes looked like the sea at sunset.
He pulled up one corner of his mouth crookedly, self-deprecatingly. Ho-woo belatedly realized that Oh-yul had taken his reaction negatively. He had been too shocked, but did Oh-yul think he was disgusted by his pale complexion?
His lover’s expression was smiling but cold, and his self-deprecating tongue was sharp. His lover had no qualms about hating himself, and Ho-woo didn’t like that.
“Oh-yul.”
Ho-woo called out to Oh-yul, reaching out with both hands. The man sitting in the driver’s seat didn’t avoid his lover’s approaching hands. The Esper, who had been quietly offering his cheek while blinking slowly, opened his eyes wide at the sudden impact. A fairly loud slapping sound echoed inside the car.
“Ow, how come my hand hurts more.”
Ho-woo, who had slapped Oh-yul’s cheek, checked his reddened palm and pouted. Why did he look so shocked when there wasn’t even any impact? Ho-woo spoke grumpily to the man.
“Don’t talk nonsense.”
“…”
It might have been better to speak more gently, but to Ho-woo, it really sounded like dog barking.
What? It’s good to be handsome even if you’re a monster?
If Ho-woo had simply liked his face, he would have accepted him from the start without even worrying whether he was an Esper or a monster. And anyway, even if Espers and Guides started from monsters, they were here, not outside the city.
Obediently wearing a leash by Ho-woo’s side.
“Whether monster or whatever… Espers and Guides are a set, so in the same boat as monsters, let’s not worry about that.”
“The same monsters, you say.”
Oh-yul’s muttering voice sounded a bit dazed.
“Why, do you dislike being an ordinary monster?”
Ho-woo deliberately responded lightly. He acted completely nonchalant with a blank face to his lover who was scrutinizing his expression.
“…No.”
The Esper hesitated for a moment before gently curving his eyes.
“I like it.”
“Then let’s keep that good feeling.”
Ho-woo got out of the car first and looked around. The high walls and the large mansion shrouded in darkness beyond were familiar to Ho-woo as well.
“This is…”
“We came here together, remember? Our home.”
Oh-yul, who had gotten out of the car after Ho-woo, approached with leisurely steps and nodded. As his gaze fell, the lights inside the house, which had seemed devoid of any presence, turned on by themselves, emitting a bright light. At the same time, Ho-woo witnessed the marvelous sight of pure white frost spreading from Oh-yul’s feet, engulfing the enormous mansion.
