This whole situation was utterly absurd. Seo Eui-woo was inside a Gate, locked in a life-or-death battle against creatures, yet here he was, worrying about Kwon Jae-jin, who was leisurely brushing his teeth in his new residence—secured with not just one but two layers of security systems, including a backup.
Wasn’t this completely backward?
Seo Eui-woo was standing on the true front lines. Bluntly speaking, he could die at any moment. Even if he focused entirely on the fight, there was still a chance his arm or leg could be torn off, his body riddled with injuries. If he got distracted by texting, a single moment of carelessness could lead to a horrific disaster.
Was Kwon Jae-jin the strange one for worrying about Seo Eui-woo? Or was Seo Eui-woo the strange one for worrying about Kwon Jae-jin? Everything was so twisted that he couldn’t even tell anymore.
[Jae-jin, I’m telling you, it’s really dangerous. The higher-ups have already put together a search unit.]
[.]
[That bastard Mateo is leading the charge to track you down. They’ve gathered esper trackers for this.]
[.]
[How can I not worry when I hear something like this? You better not take forever to reply. Seriously. If you do, I swear I’ll flip everything over and head straight home, so keep that in mind.]
[…]
A search unit, huh…
Esper trackers, of all things. Seo Eui-woo wasn’t exactly sure how that worked, but judging by the way he spoke, it did seem like something worth worrying about. Still, even if that was the case, it was insane for Seo Eui-woo to be spamming texts like a madman while in the middle of an intense battle.
If he was typing by looking through his goggles, then when the hell was he actually watching the creatures and assessing threats? Could he really be fighting without even looking at his enemies, just shooting them down purely by instinct? Was that even possible? It was reckless beyond belief.
[Jae-jin, I want to see you. I’m so worried. I’ve never felt this anxious before.]
[.]
[I’m sweating… Wow… I’m sweating like crazy…]
[.]
[Jae-jin, do you remember when we first met? When I lost my mind over the Guiding? Even back then, whenever I had to leave for work, I missed you so much it felt like I was going to die… But right now, this is nothing like that. This is worse. It’s eating me alive. Mateo, that bastard… Even though you stopped me, I should’ve just killed him that day.]
Kwon Jae-jin let out a quiet sigh and stepped into the dressing room. As always, various firearms were neatly lined up on the wall-mounted shelves, perfectly arranged in a row.
Jae-jin examined each gun in turn, carefully selecting one while reading Seo Eui-woo’s relentless stream of messages. With a complicated expression, he typed out a reply.
[Eui-woo, please calm down. I’m perfectly fine.]
[I just… I miss you. It’s too much right now…]
Jae-jin picked up a few guns, testing their weight in his hands, loading bullets, disengaging the safety, then setting it back again—practicing over and over until handling them became second nature. Even as he trained, he made sure to reply to Eui-woo.
[I told you, after work, you can see me as much as you want. I won’t stop you then.]
[Of course. The moment I get back, I’m going to hold you tight and stick to you.]
[.]
[I’m not going anywhere. I won’t let go.]
[.]
[Don’t tell me no. I’m not letting you go, no matter what.]
[I won’t say no.]
[Really?]
[.]
A sudden thought crossed Jae-jin’s mind, and he stared at the tablet screen in silence. Slowly, he moved his fingers to type out a single sentence. After finishing, he hesitated for a moment, staring at the words.
[If you return safely, you can do whatever you want.]
Right before hitting send, he wavered slightly.
But leaving Seo Eui-woo like this wasn’t an option. If he let him be, his separation anxiety would only spiral further, making him reckless. If that happened, he might get seriously hurt—or worse. Unable to shake the uneasy feeling, Jae-jin pressed send.
This time, there was a short delay before the reply came.
[Everything?]
Jae-jin reinforced the condition once more.
[I said, if you return safely. No injuries, Eui-woo. Come back in one piece.]
[So that means… I can do anything I want? Anything?]
[You can’t trick me with the healing factor. I’ll check if your combat suit is torn, if there’s any trace of blood. I won’t let a single hair be out of place.]
[Same goes for you, Jae-jin. No backing out this time. You said it. Don’t try to take it back later. Keep your word.]
[What exactly are you planning…]
[What do you think?]
A chill ran down his spine. He could feel the hairs on the back of his neck standing on end, each one bristling separately.
An ominous premonition settled over him, but it was too late to take it back now. Kwon Jae-jin braced himself for whatever was coming.
‘It’s fine. No matter what Eui-woo wants to do, at worst, he’ll just lick my eyeballs a little too hard and… shove into a hole a little too roughly….’
That much, Jae-jin could handle by now. It wasn’t like he hadn’t spent countless nights glued to Seo Eui-woo before. If he really set his mind to it, he could endure it. It’d be tough, sure… but he’d just grit his teeth, shut his eyes, and push through.
Jae-jin had survived worse. There was no reason to back down now. Besides, it wasn’t even guaranteed that Seo Eui-woo would return without a scratch.
If he got distracted, even for a second, and came home injured, it was over. Whether it was because he was too anxious about leaving Jae-jin alone or too excited about what he planned to do to Jae-jin later—either way, it didn’t matter.
[I’ll come back safe. You stay safe too, Jae-jin.]
[.]
***
Afternoon.
Seo Eui-woo returned home, covered in blood.
His sleek black combat suit was soaked in a dark crimson mess, stiff in some places and wet in others. His strikingly handsome face was also drenched in blood, and even the ends of his soft, translucent curls were speckled with red droplets.
“Jae-jin! Are you okay? Nothing happened, right?”
“S-Seo… Eui-woo.”
“You’re really okay? Haah, I was… I was so worried. The whole time.”
“No, but… that blood—”
Kwon Jae-jin had been on the treadmill in the home gym when he turned and saw Seo Eui-woo, his eyes widening in shock.
He’d told him to come back unscathed. And yet, here he was, looking like a goddamn massacre.
Jae-jin’s face turned deathly pale, but Seo Eui-woo just murmured nonchalantly,
“Oh, this? It’s not my blood.”
“What…?”
“Just got splattered a bit. I need to wash up.”
Seo Eui-woo casually switched off the treadmill and grabbed Jae-jin’s arm, yanking him down. His movements carried an unmistakable hunger, as if he had been waiting for this exact moment all day.
“Come here.”
“Wait, but… Are you really okay, Eui-woo?”
“Me? What do you think?”
Without another word, Seo Eui-woo dragged Jae-jin across the hallway with quick, impatient strides, not giving him a chance to resist. Like a helpless pup being pulled along, Jae-jin had no choice but to follow.
His destination was the bathroom.
Once inside, in the same dry bathroom where Jae-jin had brushed his teeth earlier that day, Seo Eui-woo pulled him in—pressing him tightly against his still-damp, sweat-slicked body.
“Haha, go ahead and check. Just like I promised, I came back without a single hair out of place.”
“No, but… there’s way too much blood for that to be true.”
“I told you, it’s not mine. Sure, some of the other guys had a rough time, but no one died… And, well, getting injured is just part of the job for them. They’ll be fine.”
“What…? Seo Eui-woo, what exactly did you do out there?”
“What do you mean? I worked my ass off. So I could make it back to you, safe and sound.”
“……”
“Haa… It was exhausting.”
Seo Eui-woo let out a slow, heavy sigh as he pulled off his goggles. Only then did his gray eyes come fully into view, shadowed with fatigue. He looked genuinely worn out.
“If every time I go to work is going to be like this, what am I supposed to do? Worrying about you, being scared all the time… Should I just take an extended leave? Hm? Maybe I should.”
Muttering nonsense like a man out of his mind, Seo Eui-woo walked into the shower booth, still holding Kwon Jae-jin tightly. Then, without even bothering to take off his clothes, he turned on the shower.
He looked desperate, like he couldn’t wash fast enough.
“Ugh, Eui-woo, hold on a second… Let’s calm down, yeah? You being this frantic is making me lose my head too.”
Cold water came rushing down in a harsh torrent, so Jae-jin reached out and turned the knob toward the warm setting. As the water temperature softened, Eui-woo quickly scrubbed the blood off his skin.
“No, we don’t have time. I need to get clean, fast.”
Rivulets of red streamed down his broad, muscular frame, washing away in swirls.
As the wet combat suit slowly regained its original black sheen, it became clear—no rips, no tears, no wounds. He really had come back unscathed, without a single injury.
“Would it kill you to take your time? What’s with the rush?”
“There’s too much I want to do. I can’t help it.”
“…What?”
“I spent all day thinking about it. All the things I want to do to you. There are so many, I can’t even count them.”
“……”
“If we actually do everything, I don’t think even a few nights will be enough… Even this time spent showering feels like a waste.”
“Haa…”
“Just stay still. We’re about to get very, very busy.”
Seo Eui-woo’s eyes curved into a slow, deliberate smile.
The soft gray of his irises, usually filled with warmth, now gleamed with something dangerous—something predatory.
It was as if the deep, wild instinct lurking beneath his composed exterior had finally come roaring to life.
