#081
There were definitely lingering effects from being pushed to the point of exhaustion. Eunseok returned to Choi Hanseo’s bedroom, was laid on the bed, and fell into a deep sleep before he even realized it, not long after. When he opened his eyes again, five hours had passed.
Outside the window, darkness had fallen.
Eunseok sighed deeply, looking at the IV needle still inserted in his forearm. If this were the aftermath of being kidnapped and beaten, at least there would be no shame. But for this to be merely the aftermath of sex…
At this rate, shouldn’t he break up with Choi Hanseo?
Eunseok thought about it very seriously.
He was thirsty. Turning his eyes to the side, he saw a water bottle on the bedside table. As he reached out, the effects of severe body aches enveloped him. It had been a long time since the simple act of grabbing a water bottle, opening it, and bringing it to his mouth felt so difficult.
“Are you awake?”
Choi Hanseo entered the bedroom and turned on the light. There was a bowl on the bed tray he was carrying.
“Have some porridge.”
Choi Hanseo put the bed tray on the bed and helped Eunseok sit up. He didn’t forget to stack pillows behind his back for support.
Eunseok wasn’t used to this kind of attentive care. Hiding his awkwardness, he looked into the bowl of porridge placed before him. A savory aroma wafted from the steaming porridge.
Grumble-.
His stomach rumbled at the smell of food.
“Go ahead and eat. You’ve been starving all this time.”
Choi Hanseo kindly placed a spoon in his hand. Eunseok was about to say he could do it himself but closed his mouth. Then he silently began to eat the porridge. It was fortunate enough that Hanseo wasn’t feeding him the porridge. If he had, Eunseok would have jumped up and escaped this bedroom immediately.
As if watching Eunseok eat porridge was something amazing, Choi Hanseo sat in a chair beside the bed and observed intently. His eyes showed that he found great satisfaction and pleasure in watching Eunseok’s every move.
This is… almost like pet-keeping.
Eunseok began to consider the possibility that Choi Hanseo might have some unusual tendencies.
It didn’t take long to finish the bowl of porridge. After filling his stomach with the warm porridge, he felt the aching muscles throughout his body relax a little.
“You need to take medicine too.”
Choi Hanseo opened a medicine packet and handed over pills along with a water bottle. Eunseok silently accepted and swallowed them.
“How is the situation unfolding?”
His voice still came out hoarse. At Eunseok’s question, Choi Hanseo briefly looked at him, then picked up the tablet on the bedside table. After tapping on it a few times, he handed it to Eunseok.
[…This is about the attempted kidnapping of Lee Eunseok, an S-class guide who is the first in Korea and one of only four known worldwide. Guide Lee Eunseok was reportedly in danger while dispatched with the Baekho Guild’s First Combat Team to handle a variant that appeared at a certain high school. The kidnapping was led by none other than two S-class Hunters from Russia. It was revealed that they planned to kidnap Guide Lee Eunseok and then use a boat to escape to Russia from the east coast. The Russian side has just officially expressed deep regret through diplomatic channels, stating that this kidnapping was an individual act of misconduct by the S-class Hunters and completely unrelated to the Russian authorities.]
“That was fast.”
Eunseok muttered softly. It was quite unusual for Russia to take such measures in just a few hours. Was Choi Hanseo’s threat that effective and threatening, or was Korea’s response that strong?
[Guide Lee Eunseok was miraculously rescued by Choi Hanseo, the guild master of Baekho Guild, before being loaded onto the boat. A major battle took place during the process, but fortunately, as it was on a secluded beach, there were no other casualties or property damage. However, it has been confirmed that Ivan Ivanovich, an S-class Hunter of Russian nationality, died during the battle. The Russian government has assured that they will not make any protests to South Korea regarding the death of Ivan Ivanovich, who attempted to kidnap a guide of Korean nationality. Guide Lee Eunseok is reportedly recovering under the protection of Baekho Guild due to the aftereffects of the violence he suffered during the kidnapping.]
The screen that had been showing the announcer changed. A shot of Choi Hanseo and Eunseok appeared.
In the image, Eunseok was barely standing, leaning on Choi Hanseo as if embracing him, and his face was pale, looking unwell to anyone who saw it. While viewers would think this was due to the after-effects of the kidnapping, for Eunseok, who knew the truth, it was painful to watch.
He was about to turn off the tablet when the screen, which had been zoomed in on Choi Hanseo and Eunseok, moved downward and enlarged significantly. What filled the screen was none other than the watch Choi Hanseo was wearing on his wrist. The color displayed on the watch was an impossibly deep blue, and the number showed exactly 0 percent.
[As you can see on the screen, despite engaging in an intense battle with two S-class Hunters of Russian nationality, Guild Master Choi Hanseo’s current reading is at 0 percent. This is a miraculous figure that even Hunters of any rank would find difficult to achieve, yet S-class Hunter Choi Hanseo is maintaining it. This miraculous figure is due to Guide Lee Eunseok’s…]
Eunseok couldn’t stand it anymore and turned off the tablet as if he wanted to break it. It was already a great exercise in patience that he didn’t throw it against the wall and shatter it.
“Damn…”
Eunseok slowly rubbed his face, which had become hot with embarrassment.
“Hmm. Looks like your fever is rising again.”
Choi Hanseo calmly said as he felt Eunseok’s forehead.
“…Who exactly are you showing that watch to, walking around with it so openly?”
Eunseok finally turned his embarrassment into anger towards Choi Hanseo.
What could it mean for an S-class Hunter’s reading, especially one who had just been in a life-or-death battle, to be at zero point? It could only mean that Choi Hanseo and the S-class guide Lee Eunseok had very smoothly cooperated to bring down the reading. Of course, that ‘smooth cooperation’ meant nothing other than sex.
“I didn’t know I had to hide my watch too.”
Choi Hanseo said with a slight grin, his eyes twinkling with joy and satisfaction like stars.
“Why? We agreed to date. Are you that against other people knowing?”
“Ha! Why don’t you just go around telling everyone we had sex?”
“If you’d just give me permission, I really want to do that. Just thinking about telling everyone that Lee Eunseok is mine makes me feel good.”
“Choi Hanseo!”
When Eunseok called out sharply, Choi Hanseo moved from the chair to sit on the bed, still smiling. He wrapped an arm around Eunseok’s shoulders and patted them gently.
“Alright, alright. You don’t want your sexual private life known to the public, right? I’ll make sure to hide the watch well from now on.”
Choi Hanseo tried to appease Eunseok as if coaxing a child. That made Eunseok even more irritated. His hand itched to give Choi Hanseo a good smack.
“Huu…”
Eunseok rubbed his face again, trying to think rationally.
Even without looking at the watch, the fact that Choi Hanseo was fine now meant that he had received good guiding. Whether the reading was shown or not, that fact alone meant their sexual relationship was already as good as known to the entire nation.
Right. Think positively. The guild members… they’re used to this kind of thing, so they’ll just accept it. But when his army juniors, seniors, and peers hear this news… They’ll definitely burst into laughter, holding their stomachs.
“Damn it.”
Eunseok slumped his shoulders, feeling as if he was giving up on almost everything.
“You sweated a bit while sleeping, don’t you feel uncomfortable? I’ll help you wash up.”
Choi Hanseo whispered affectionately. His voice dripped with honey.
“Please stop that.”
“Stop what?”
“Acting so disgustingly.”
When Eunseok looked at him with a disgusted expression, Choi Hanseo raised one eyebrow.
“Am I disgusting?”
“Acting like you just did is disgusting.”
“We’ve only just started dating, and you’re already hurting my feelings.”
Choi Hanseo pretended to look hurt.
“…Anyway, stop that.”
Hmm.
Choi Hanseo stared at Eunseok for a moment, then nodded. Then he tapped the forearm with the IV needle.
“Still, you can’t wash yourself with this hand, so I’ll help you wash.”
“I can wash just fine with one hand.”
Eunseok protested, but Choi Hanseo, as if no longer trying to persuade with words, simply picked Eunseok up in his arms.
“Choi Hanseo. Choi Hanseo! Choi Hanseo! Damn it!”
