TTOA Chapter 59
by VolareLooking at how things are turning out now, it seems like someday I’ll even understand and accept that.
Really, I’m going crazy. Seriously. Mad as hell.
“I’m tired of Seo Eui-woo’s greatness. Why can’t you ever be satisfied?”
Asking if things were like this even after four years, fidgeting… what, is he jealous of himself or something?
Kwon Jae-jin frowned blankly. Maybe it was because he had been in the bathtub for too long, but he felt dizzy. His hands and feet were numb, and his head was foggy.
“Seo Eui-woo has had Kwon Jae-jin in his grasp since long ago, yet he insists on digging up that fact and blatantly shoving it in my face. It’s overwhelming.”
“……”
“It’s excessive. The obsession, too.”
Yeah. I have to admit what needs to be admitted.
Seo Eui-woo already has it all.
Kwon Jae-jin’s body and emotions, past and future, even his life…
He doesn’t need to covet it so much; it’s all Seo Eui-woo’s.
“It’s such a childish way of… dating.”
Ah, I misspoke.
Seo Eui-woo narrowed his long eyes.
“Dating…?”
“No, it was a mistake.”
“So, we’re dating?”
“I said it was a mistake. The words just slipped out. As of now, this relationship cannot be defined in any way.”
“Then let’s define it now. Let’s date.”
“…Haa, I don’t want to.”
I wonder if he even heard me saying it was excessive.
Jae-jin let out a series of weary sighs. He really just wanted to rest now. To be at peace.
Jae-jin, who was sprawled out, sank a little lower into the bathtub. Seo Eui-woo supported him, hooking his arms under his armpits. He persistently fiddled with a tiny mole, demanding an answer.
“Why don’t you want to? And why again?”
Ah, that violent brute. He’s about to go wild again.
Jae-jin shook his head wearily.
“Just… wait a little.”
“What, do you think I’m that young?”
“Yes. You’re too green; I can’t use you. Maybe later.”
Right now, Kwon Jae-jin didn’t have the余裕.
He wasn’t ready to play house with him when his own heart wasn’t settled. At least, he needed time to escape and recover from all the buried emotions.
“…I can’t help being young. Jae-jin, you keep asking me for the impossible.”
Seo Eui-woo grumbled unhappily. His lowered voice sounded quite fierce, but Kwon Jae-jin decided not to pay attention. He was just too tired.
“Just quietly wait; that’s the easiest thing to do…”
Jae-jin avoided his sharp gaze and turned his eyes away. Far away, he saw cracks in the bathroom wall, from the water droplets to the ceiling.
The bedroom was like that too, and now the bathroom. How much did Seo Eui-woo unleash his ability that the house was torn to shreds like this? He had a silly worry that the house might collapse.
Anyway, impossible…
Impossible…
Jae-jin, who had been staring blankly at the deeply split cracks, slowly closed his eyelids.
As he closed his eyes, sleep washed over him again.
The sound of water droplets faded away little by little in his ears.
“Seo Eui-woo. Let’s make a request.”
“What is it? Tell me.”
“Someday… in the far future.”
“Yes.”
“When the day comes when I die… whether I die of old age or sickness, when that time comes… could you return my memories, Seo Eui-woo?”
I really need to sleep a little more.
And when I wake up, I should start eating properly again. I’ve been resting from exercise for too long. Instead of being cooped up in the bedroom, I should start moving my body and recover my ruined physical strength.
“…Huh.”
Seo Eui-woo let out a hollow breath, as if he were dumbfounded.
No matter how far in the future it was, Kwon Jae-jin’s death seemed unacceptable to him in the slightest.
He replied bluntly with a stiff, frozen face.
“Impossible. I’ll definitely die before Jae-jin. Do you even know the average lifespan of an Esper?”
“Well, there’s a high probability that Seo Eui-woo will die in battle first… but I’m also older. You never know what will happen.”
Jae-jin, who had closed his eyes, couldn’t see Seo Eui-woo’s expression.
What kind of expression is Seo Eui-woo making now?
What color are those gray eyes, which are as good as Kwon Jae-jin’s, emitting…?
“I didn’t even know that I would suddenly get caught up in a Gate and die… and maybe I’m destined to die four years from now.”
I think I’ve heard such a saying.
People have a set lifespan, so they receive the day of their death in advance from the moment they are born.
If that story is true, Kwon Jae-jin may end up dying on the same day and time that his first life ended, four years later.
Whether he changes the predetermined future or not, regardless of his efforts.
Jae-jin chuckled quietly.
“Haha, so… if something really bad happens to me. Whether it’s in four years or whenever, when the time comes when it’s irreversible…”
“……”
“Before my breath is cut off, as the last thing… let me remember my family, please return them to me.”
By then, it’s okay even if I fail.
Waiting quietly is the easiest thing to do.
*
For several days, the weather remained lukewarm.
Kwon Jae-jin slowly returned to his daily life, and Seo Eui-woo responded accordingly.
They ended up falling asleep tangled together in the blanket, started eating proper meals and exercising, and eventually even Guiding together.
If you only look at this, it seems as if they have returned to their old selves as if the fight was a lie, but even so, an uncomfortable silence occasionally flowed between the two.
Kwon Jae-jin was organizing his mind.
Seo Eui-woo was waiting for Kwon Jae-jin.
“Then, I’ll be back.”
“Yes, please return safely.”
Seo Eui-woo, dressed in black combat uniform, entered the Sterile Transfer Room with a short send-off.
He passed through the double doors, underwent full-body sterilization, and stood on the circular disc. When he presses the button and the light turns on, it means it’s compatible.
Before coordinate movement, you must send a signal and depart. This is to prevent a tragedy in which the movement overlaps with someone else.
If two people appear at the same coordinates at the same time, you can know the result without experiencing it.
Soon, a bright light spread, and Seo Eui-woo, who was standing on the disc, disappeared. It seems he went to work safely.
Kwon Jae-jin, who was outside the Sterile Transfer Room, watched the scene of the light droplets scattering and then slowly turned his steps.
Seo Eui-woo had left for work, so it was time for him alone.
Jae-jin was thinking of running on the treadmill or something, but he stayed in the living room and lit the fireplace made of white bricks. The flames instantly flared up with gas ignition.
He should sit on the sofa for a while, relax, and watch the flames.
‘…Hoo.’
Jae-jin swallowed a heavy sigh and washed his face roughly.
He wants to go back to the way things were, but it seems that everything is not the same as before.
It’s like a once-abundant garden was completely swept away by a typhoon, and he has to reclaim the ruined land from now on, sow seeds, and make flowers bloom.
He honestly doesn’t know when the flowers will bloom or when the land will become fertile.
Jae-jin, who had been holding his breath and staring at the flickering fireplace flames for a long time, raised his head. He thought he should stop being sentimental and move his body to sweat.
Jae-jin, who had made a decision, repeatedly rubbed his face with his palms and got up from the sofa.
He was about to walk straight to the second floor, which had been turned into a home gym, when he caught sight of something outside the window.
A black shadow.
This is a mountain villa located on a private property full of trees and grass, so wild animals are often seen. Squirrels are often seen, and occasionally raccoons or owls have been seen.
However, that dark shape looked so big and ominous that it could not be compared to the mountain animals he had seen so far.
It was difficult to accurately identify what kind of beast it was because it was crouching low next to the rock, but its pointed ears sticking out from behind and its intense eyes were unusual.
‘Is it a wolf…?’
Feeling a question, Jae-jin moved closer to the living room window. If he drew the curtains to hide the inside of the house, the unidentified beast would lose interest in Kwon Jae-jin and leave.
The moment Jae-jin grabbed the curtains, it got up.
The posture on all fours was similar to that of a wolf as expected. But it was not a wolf.
The widely opened mouth was abnormally large and hideous.
Hundreds of fangs were densely attached to the inside of the mouth like a shark, and the freely moving tongue was long like a tentacle.
It’s a Creature.
A devil that stole the form of a wolf, a Beta Creature.
‘…!’
As soon as he made eye contact with Kwon Jae-jin, the wolf Creature, with its mouth wide open, leaped up with a terrifying force. It quickly closed the distance and jumped, sinking its teeth deep into the living room window glass.
Crash!
The bulletproof glass shattered hopelessly. Jae-jin crouched down to avoid the broken glass shards.
Fortunately, a large piece of glass was stuck in the Creature’s mouth. The wolf coughed painfully.
‘This, this can’t be.’
A Creature appearing in the Special Residential District.
‘Did a Gate burst in the nearby area? Or did only one sneak in?’
In general residential areas, there were occasional accidents in which creatures crossed the border walls, killed, and ate humans. However, he didn’t know if that could happen even in the Special Residential District.
Either way, he had to run away.