He dazedly felt the warmth in that breath tickling his skin, then snapped back to his senses and quickly clamped his palm over Tae Woon’s mouth. Just barely above his lips. A bead of cold sweat trickled down his temple.
I almost let him kiss me again without thinking…!
Tae Woon’s eyes drooped pitifully. But despite looking all defeated, his tongue snuck out and slowly licked Sibaek’s palm. The pointed tip traced his palm lines with deliberate pressure, poking and rubbing in a way that sent a shiver down his spine. Kim Sibaek barely swallowed a groan and cursed inwardly. He thought Tae Woon was just good at kissing—turns out, his tongue had skills of its own.
Trying to mask his fluster, Kim Sibaek swallowed dryly and forced his voice into a casual tone.
“You said you didn’t have any tricks to seduce me.”
“Aw, come on, Hyung. This isn’t seduction. It’s just a good night greeting.”
“What?”
“Good night.”
With his lips still pressed against Si-baek’s palm, Tae Woon gave him a soft, audible kiss. Unlike the blatant licking earlier, the kiss was so unexpectedly gentle that it made Si-baek narrow his eyes. Tae Woon just grinned, his eyes curling into crescent moons.
“…Yeah. Good night to you too.”
Well, at least he managed to stop himself from crossing the line and kissing Tae Woon again.
Feigning nonchalance, Kim Sibaek reached out and lightly pinched Tae Woon’s cheeks, giving them a playful shake before turning around and heading back to his room. Watching his retreating figure fade into the dark, Tae Woon smiled lazily.
If he bit into that prominent Adam’s apple and sucked hard enough to bruise it black and blue—would Sibaek remember him for a little longer?
***
[Death and Beauty comforts you, saying the bastard never even touched the mouth of the water bottle.]
“You were asleep in your room…”
[Death and Beauty claims your god can observe everything through the eyes of the heart.]
“Sure.”
When Kim Sibaek responded with zero enthusiasm, Biendeoé’s eyes narrowed sharply.
[Death and Beauty scolds you, saying you already had your lips all over him, so what’s the big deal about a kiss over a water bottle?]
“Well, it’s not just that… But still, don’t read my mind this time. It’s not safe for minors.”
[Death and Beauty tilts her head innocently, eyes wide and sparkling, pretending not to understand.]
“……”
She never used to act like this. But ever since a certain someone showed up, she’d started playing the ‘cute little thing’ act. No doubt Tae Woon was the culprit…
“What do you think Death and Rest would say if she saw you right now, Lady Biendeoé?”
[Death and Beauty flinches at the mention of her terrifying sister.]
Having successfully stopped her cutesy nonsense, Kim Sibaek stepped out of the elevator and walked toward the meeting room.
Of course, as a guardian, it was only natural to find a child adorable. But still, he worried. Her twin sister, Death and Rest, had already fully matured—yet Biendeoé remained a childlike god.
Even setting aside the suspicion that Tae Woon might be a bad influence on the young deity, the whole situation left his heart uneasy. Maybe it had been too naive to think living under the same roof as Tae Woon would be fine.
Still lost in thought over whether he needed to get his own place, Kim Sibaek knocked on the meeting room door and stepped inside.
“Ah, Mentor.”
Yang Eunho greeted him with a polite smile, already waiting.
“Have you been waiting long?”
“Oh, not at all. Still ten minutes before our scheduled time. Please, take a seat.”
At Eunho’s gesture, Kim Sibaek pulled out a chair across from him and sat down. Today was the day they’d officially sign the contract with the 7777 Guild.
Yang Eunho began explaining each clause of the contract in detail. Since neither Tae Woon nor Eunho were the type to screw him over, Sibaek just nodded along, half-listening. Biendeoé, who had been paying close attention at first, started yawning before eventually dozing off in boredom.
“Any questions?”
Eunho looked hopeful, but Sibaek had zoned out through most of it and honestly had nothing to ask. He signed the contract without hesitation.
“Now that you’re officially part of our guild, we look forward to working with you.”
A connection he thought completely severed from his younger brothers had been restored—just faintly, but it was there. Once he returned to Mak Slechth, that bond would be broken again, but until then, he intended to do everything he could not to shame them as their older brother.
After the paperwork was done, Yang Eunho handed him a guild uniform embroidered with the 7777 emblem—a simple but striking number 7—and explained further.
“The uniform’s enchanted against blades and fire, so it’ll hold up under most attacks. If the sword we gave you before doesn’t suit you, feel free to browse the armory for another. Or, if you want something customized, we can place an order with the workshop. Just let us know. Oh, and about housing… You’re still staying with Tae Woon-hyung, right?”
“Does the guild provide housing separately?”
“There’s a dorm, a bit away from HQ, but yes.”
If he ever decided that moving out of the penthouse was the smarter choice, at least he now had an option. Wrapping up the general welfare details, Yang Eunho finally got to the real question.
“We’re preparing to announce your recruitment officially and start building out our strike team formations… so I need to ask—this ‘Power of Faith’ you use… which religion is it specifically tied to?”
“It’s a form of polytheistic faith. Among the many gods, the one I serve governs the domains of death and beauty.”
“…Sorry, what?”
“She is the God of Death and Beauty.”
“Why… why that, of all things?”
“Death is an unavoidable fate for all humans. If only fear and dread awaited us at life’s end, how could anyone endure such a finite existence? Death isn’t something to fear—it’s a continuation of life’s beauty.”
“……”
Faced with Kim Sibaek’s sincere explanation, Yang Eunho fell into deep thought. Wait—he’s not just playing up some quirky character… he’s actually serious?
“Ahem, well… sure, that makes sense. But still… with a name like ‘Death and Beauty,’ people are definitely gonna say you’re going through an edgelord phase. Are you okay with that?”
“Edgelord phase?”
The term rang a bell, but he couldn’t quite remember what it meant. Tilting his head in confusion, Kim Sibaek watched as Biendeoé casually tapped away on her phone.
[Death and Beauty cheers, saying ‘Dark Flame Dragon’ sounds awesome.]
Once the search results popped up on the screen, it finally clicked what the phrase meant. But hey, if she was enjoying it, that was good enough for him.
“I don’t mind.”
“In that case, let’s move on. Mentor, what exactly is your ability? Tae Woon-hyung just told us to ask you directly and didn’t explain anything, but I heard from Gaeun-noona and Minhyung-hyung that you erased a Portal Keeper in a single hit?”
“Well, for starters, I have healing abilities—not that impressive, though. I can close wounds, but I can’t reattach severed limbs or regenerate missing parts. I can’t cure diseases, either.”
Even that was more than enough. Being able to save someone on the brink of death or patch up injuries in the field to keep hunting longer—that was a huge tactical advantage.
“I can also provide some targeted buffs… but the real core of my power is that I’m fundamentally opposed to monsters. I can hunt them faster and more efficiently. And in the right circumstances—like the Eid Portal incident at the department store—I can completely erase them. Though, it doesn’t work on ones that are too close to Chaos. Named-class monsters are out of my reach.”
The more he explained, the more appealing it all sounded. Yang Eunho even found himself swallowing hard. And the kicker? Kim Sibaek never once claimed his power was combat-based. Which meant that terrifying swordsmanship he showed at the department store—that was all pure skill.
“With that kind of ability, I imagine the energy cost must be pretty steep?”
“Of course. It’s not limitless. While it’s not mana I’m using, the power comes from faith.”
“Ah, right. So… how much do you have, roughly?”
Kim Sibaek, who had been explaining steadily up to that point, suddenly paused. He reached out and gently stroked the baby crow hopping across the table. It wasn’t his pet, so Eunho didn’t say anything—but man, it was ugly. It probably had some link to his Trait, though. Not that anyone could tell the little crow was currently chirping divine words, claiming it was nurturing a Dark Flame Dragon in its right wing.
“It’s hard to quantify. It really depends on the situation.”
Yang Eunho interpreted that to mean it was tied to his mental state. For some Awakeners, their ability use could fluctuate based on their psychological condition. Kim Sibaek didn’t seem like the fragile type, but still.
Then Kim Sibaek spoke again, slowly.
“If I want to maintain my powers longer…”
“…Yeah?”
“You’ll need to praise me.”
