The Way of Life for a Terminal S-Class Hunter - C91
“I ate so much yesterday, but I’m hungry again this morning.”
“What do you mean ‘so much’? It’s normal to be hungry after eating like that.”
“What do you mean by how I ate?”
Lee-han snorted and retorted.
“You ate like a bird yesterday. It’s not good for someone who usually eats well to suddenly reduce their meals.”
“No, I ate a lot too. You must not have noticed.”
“How could I not notice when I was only watching you?”
Lee-han said something that seemed deliberate again.
“Lee-han, are you saying these things on purpose to leave me speechless?”
“You finally figured it out?”
Lee-han replied with a mischievous grin.
“Let’s do some light training and then go eat.”
Although he knew I was changing the subject, Lee-han nodded readily. However, a problem arose before we even reached the training room.
[The effect of the special skill <Life Force> has weakened.]
[You have 116 days of life force remaining. Due to decreased body durability, all skills will be disabled for one minute.]
The pain I thought had completely disappeared suddenly struck. Caught off guard, I had no choice but to collapse to the floor.
Is it because I’m not receiving life force from Seo-heon? Or is it because the distance is too far?
The former possibility seemed greater. Though shocked by the unexpected event, it was something I could adapt to again. The worry was…
“Hyung?”
It was the first time Lee-han had seen me suffering from skill deactivation. I wanted to tell him I was fine, but the groans that flowed every time I opened my mouth made it difficult to speak.
“Hyung, are you okay?”
Lee-han crouched down beside me to check my condition. To make matters worse, my nose started bleeding.
Due to my physical condition, today’s training plan ended up fizzling out. It was disappointing because I wanted to help the Fiesta guild by loosening up a bit and possibly sparring if I could. But there was no point in insisting on going in this state. Especially seeing Lee-han’s trembling hands.
I guess even I would be shocked if I suddenly saw someone in front of me suffering and bleeding from their nose.
“I’m sorry. I think I need to go back to my room.”
“Is that the issue right now? Get on my back.”
“It’s not that bad. I’m okay.”
In the end, I returned to my room on my own feet. Lee-han had been silently staring at me for a while, as if he had something he wanted to say. The fact that he wasn’t opening his mouth despite this made me even more uneasy.
“I’ll wash my face and come out.”
As soon as we arrived at the room, I grabbed fresh clothes and headed to the bathroom. More blood had flowed than I thought, leaving a small stain on my top.
Ten o’clock, considering the time difference with Korea, it was almost the same time as before.
From now on, I should be alone at this time. More worrying was that the symptoms were the same as before. It meant I would soon enter a state of hypnagogia…
The physical condition I had been trying hard to forget while focusing on escape came to mind. It would be troublesome if I fell into hypnagogia here at the Fiesta guild. No, even before that, I was worried about Lee-han.
“Hyung?”
Lee-han knocked on the door, probably worried because I was lost in thought without moving. I shook my head to clear my thoughts.
“Yes, I’ll be out soon.”
I washed my face thoroughly and got dressed. After carefully checking for any other issues, I came out of the bathroom. Lee-han, who had been sitting on the bed, jumped up and approached me.
“Are you feeling better?”
“Yes. There’s nothing to be too alarmed about. It just hurts for a moment.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
Lee-han asked, clenching his fists tightly. Judging by his severely chapped lips, he must have been biting them. I hung my head low.
“I didn’t know this would happen suddenly either.”
“If you had known, would you have told me?”
Hearing this piercing question, I realized I probably wouldn’t have. Hadn’t I just decided to be alone during the times when seizures occur? Lee-han was pointing out this fact.
“It’s terrible, but I’m glad you didn’t know about your condition. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have even known you were sick.”
Lee-han stroked my face. I should have pushed away his rough hand, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it. I didn’t want to cause Lee-han any distress, but I kept doing things that went against that. I was showing him my worst side.
I wish he was the kind of kid who would be disappointed by this…
But Lee-han wasn’t like that. If anything, he would feel more responsible for me. Perhaps that’s why I now resolved to tell him the truth. About my physical condition, and about why I’m avoiding Seo-heon.
Before getting into a serious conversation, I wanted to change the atmosphere. I stepped back, met Lee-han’s eyes, and asked:
“Shall we have a cup of warm tea? Yesterday, Aitana showed me the pantry and said we could use it freely.”
From what Aitana said, it was almost like a self-service cafe. She even insisted that I must go there at least once a day, just like she does, so it was a good opportunity.
“Is it okay for you to go out?”
“I’m telling you, it’s really nothing once it passes.”
Lee-han didn’t seem pleased with the idea of someone who had just been groaning in pain walking around, but he eventually followed me to the pantry.
“Hello. Did you come to have coffee?”
Three guild members were conveniently leaving the pantry.
“Yes. Aitana recommended it.”
“It’s worth recommending. Make sure to make toast with the bread there. It was baked today.”
“And try the cookies too. They’re our guild’s pride.”
Although we had only exchanged a few words during conquests, they treated me in a friendly manner. I nodded, smiling along with them.
“I’m looking forward to it since yesterday’s meal was so good.”
“I tell you, I come to work to eat. I hate going on business trips the most.”
The friendly guild members stepped aside at the door to let Lee-han and me enter.
“About half of us will be away today because we have a conquest. Please rest well.”
“Alright. Have a good conquest.”
After the sociable people left, we entered the pantry. The interior was well-equipped enough to boast about. It could easily be mistaken for a cafe or restaurant.
“Coffee or tea? Oh, there’s cocoa too… There’s so much I’m not sure what to choose.”
Looking at the names on the packages, there was everything from toffee nut powder to green tea powder, vanilla beans… all sorts of ingredients. The refrigerator had five types of milk. Almond, oat, low-fat, and two types of regular milk. There were plenty of snacks too. Not to mention, the cabinet was full of cocktail spirits.
“I’ll have coffee.”
Lee-han said with an expression that, like me, suggested he didn’t know what was what. As I was choosing coffee beans, I spotted a brand that Seo-heon often drank and that I was familiar with. Not wanting to be caught with my hand suddenly stopping, I quickly put an unfamiliar brand of beans into the machine. An unfamiliar yet savory aroma filled the room.
“There’s a TV too.”
“Here, drink this.”
I handed the freshly brewed coffee to Lee-han first.
“Thanks.”
Lee-han received the mug with both hands but instead of drinking it right away, he put it down on the desk and turned on the TV. News providing information about hunters started playing. The first news was about a new dungeon appearing somewhere in Europe. I took a sip of coffee while listening to the news that had nothing to do with me.
“The aroma is really nice.”
It tasted good even to me with my lack of appetite, so someone who likes coffee would have been even more impressed.
“Yeah, it is.”
On the other hand, Lee-han, for someone who said it was delicious, hadn’t touched the coffee since taking one sip. It seems the frown after that first sip wasn’t because it was hot.
“Do you not handle bitter tastes well?”
Lee-han’s shoulders flinched.
“If so, why don’t you have something like cocoa? Should I make you a new drink?”
“I’m not a kid, why would I drink cocoa? I like coffee.”
Then he took a big sip of the still-hot coffee. Judging by his furrowed brow, it was clear he couldn’t handle bitter tastes.
It’s not even that bitter.
“Don’t force yourself to drink it.”
Lee-han still hadn’t given up, holding onto the mug without letting go.
“Does he drink coffee well too?”
“Who do you mean by ‘he’?”
I took another sip of coffee and turned my eyes to the news.
“Kang Seo-heon.”
The moment that name came out, my heart sank again.
“He’d probably enjoy savory ones. I think he didn’t like ones with acidity…”
I was reciting similar tastes to mine when I abruptly stopped.
“Why are you asking about that?”
“It’s nothing.”
Lee-han gulped down the still steaming coffee. Seeing that, I strongly felt that I had made a slip of the tongue.
“It’s not like I liked Seo-heon because he was good at drinking coffee, why are you acting like this?”
Although I tried to stop him belatedly, Lee-han only put down the cup after emptying it completely.
“I don’t want to look immature to you.”
This aspect makes him seem even more childlike and cute…
Instead of expressing my true feelings, I steeled myself to tell him the truth about my condition and send Lee-han back as soon as possible, even if just for a day. I felt like I might keep taking advantage of Lee-han’s kindness at this rate.
It seems too late even now.
“Lee-han, you’re an adult now, why would I see you as a child?”
I turned my eyes to the news, pretending to watch while gathering my thoughts before broaching the topic. But just then, breaking news appeared and Kang Seo-heon’s photo was shown. It truly couldn’t have been worse timing.