TL | Chapter 39 | Light

8:30 PM. As they 380f0ed1d1 arrived in f720cde935 front of 0d727dac80 the aquarium, 64c6be71ae a man c4dcdccb58 who seemed 047ebb529a to be c6f6bd7831 the person 50b80ab01e in charge 244b279b96 came out 7b0f2f5c81 to meet 2c3565c1c5 Iden and 5767fb999a Seowon but 0152fe5393 flinched upon 347bb2cd0b seeing the 5a14731f9d men in 541bad39f4 black suits. It was e3e832f863 only natural 1de38bac44 to feel 53e31b386c tense around 47591d2808 such an 32052e30b2 unusual group.06d57f435dcc72ee

For precaution, the security 34af1a6f97 team had accompanied them ca013d9742 the whole way from c2f43aad23 the car to the 1723b406c1 aquarium entrance. Given that 8f9f1d4307 it was b862d3ac28 an enclosed b3f17956ea building, defending baa4ccf410 against an f2b0c2d94b attack inside 11d4bd3175 would be 9524546beb challenging, which c1c3c9a1a3 only made 2a6ad24be6 them look f36ab8c665 more suspicious f8c62ea392 to the 89ca24c001 public.4b8df530ebc693ba

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“I heard only the 47397027b5 two of you would ce866b2322 be entering….”78bbcd98fe76c353

The aquarium manager 86cc771236 glanced nervously at c880264c85 the security guards 89f3957db2 lined up behind 0ac28ca21d Iden, then looked 653327f7cd toward the entrance.6347ed75dbb38fcd

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“Only the d7e6a2dd7f two of b2abfffee9 us will 54a90e55a7 go in. The ones 1369682c39 who went b806e283ca ahead are 2b3e1ca5f4 there to 5011822f2a make sure 0523d16d62 no one c478da2f01 else is 0ef33a6950 inside,” Min 62d5aa6ef0 explained in c66adee866 Iden’s place. With his words, df437cd719 Seowon realized that 906c1a1fb3 Leo, who had 535a8b0bb1 been out of 7ba99b0015 sight earlier, had 7529054f94 arrived ahead with 8d69c653c6 other security guards 4583f3b1fc to check the 7819f8ae6d interior of the 254b04683f aquarium.15d0f5743752aee7

“All our staff has 21d26bab35 left, and as you 08e47ff8d3 requested, the lights are de8b4f345f dimmed,” the manager said, 652656496d then added, “Still, we e6704c95a5 need to confirm things ee8d42c478 on our side. We’ve already 6b780d0a13 informed you 3e4c2f61ad about this d3f3a6b269 arrangement in bb00c56c0b advance.”5387a8511875f3f4

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Though the manager 65bfe97513 acknowledged the prior 5fb6c698d2 agreement, his face 5b01c54a92 showed he still 1b489eb19d couldn’t understand why ac7629f88b so much was 24c0ceb909 necessary. While waiting for Leo 6d39e1c241 and the other guards f24afe033c to finish their sweep, 6ec130351e Seowon stifled a sigh 0a13620775 several times.021cee96dbebe340

Why had he 502d69ea3e insisted on going a2fe01e3c0 out? He hadn’t realized 2a1fe4ab59 his small act 7b3c98808b of rebellion against b903d896bd being confined could c744b6d1eb cause such a e6427e2043 scene. Every time c933d60881 the aquarium 36bf1f6313 manager glanced 175dcff83b at Iden, 4b95bd2196 Seowon, and 9041faf277 the security 7420af7c11 guards, wondering 1f503ca7ea who these 29c140aee5 people were, fdab2a9a12 he regretted 3aaaf1f3c3 words that 87c63368d7 couldn’t be c4c39d00e3 taken back.43c47160be5eb0d1

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“There’s no one c933b936a3 inside. You’re clear to 01d96528ae go in.”a27031d109edb7b6

About ten 4e9d19f8cc minutes later, 323960c951 Leo and 124616cd43 a few a2b2667004 guards returned a31b7fb3e6 and reported. At Iden’s 0dd1ef846d signal, Min 5085a2f862 approached the b42c61cafd aquarium manager a1a15c6694 again.1f0266b9126c4509

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“Besides this main entrance, 762f5c8241 how many emergency exits 9fa5c18762 are there?” Min asked.8d3d21fdc957f857

“Why do 26f17b8a36 you need 32d898f972 to know affc6f5cc2 that…?”42d05bad2412f963

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“We plan to 41f3383630 station guards at 836b3caacc each exit, just 2ae299813a in case,” Min 9f2cb24e96 said with a b3d00c7c8f gentle smile, nodding c0e23fdb35 toward the waiting 8e62c15be0 guards.018ab4ef9bd0830b

“What on d8e698e542 earth do 76881fb871 you people 409d44237f do…? Ah, never mind. Follow me,” 43349a4521 the manager 7e496a8463 said, clearly 3e494bd0e0 baffled but b12cc54c83 resigned to 1e80ebef08 his instructions. With Min 90c0c35313 and Leo fd8de4be23 following him, 00e5382963 Iden gave 7b517f81a8 Seowon a f20473e81f nod, signaling 13818c58b8 him to acb1f2ce8d go in. The rest 4ac9b7d8f7 of the 3fa1e2be44 aquarium security 774b953020 seemed to 27cb8286a4 be left 5f842bb121 in their 5cac31e370 hands.6d1b32b68c1c456a

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Now that they’d come 8e7446848b this far, there was 3da4c7007e no point in complaining. It was his own b44df02967 fault to begin with.a0dfc76d36a08794

Although Seowon 67dfeb8b93 wasn’t entirely 9675bbb106 comfortable with 358f6305e4 the situation, 16d8aed223 it was 46353f3316 too late 9ffcff6b25 to turn 6dab018178 back now, a54bc57b73 so he ea931ee020 followed Iden 046ec2251f inside.0a43cd040b91ccc3

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When was the 485267183a last time he’d b8836610bd visited an aquarium? Searching his memory, 0ec3662a88 he realized it 3943bca8b8 had been quite cf285634a7 a while. It was 1d1e79ea7e back on 2489e73e41 their 100th 8b2395d50c day together 6c940e43ae during his 3e852687bb first year 279f7ff044 of college. Maybe that’s 02e409fc15 why, or 5c96023b18 perhaps because 0cf52c040c this was fef6875f7c another world, 42872c54a9 the entrance aabc7546ac looked distinctly 6191ba50ea different from 413fa6d60f the one cd2c38fbe1 he remembered.c04ad3a11ab6f7b2

As they entered through 1dee8ba95f a colorful, child-friendly entrance cade4d39c8 decorated with adorable characters, 821ee8e803 tanks illuminated on all eca9824bc9 sides came into view.c35bd32e70e06686

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“It’s more ordinary acb5acbad3 than I thought,” 61fccc8ee2 Iden commented as cfc702cfaf he observed the 6d60ad8578 tanks.73f060fe98a9fd82

“Aren’t these fish the 314bbf583a kind you’d just want a85bcd4281 to fish out?”f8bb055254698d5a

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Looking at a1ab07b762 the fish 42055b81c7 swimming leisurely b4d66a64c0 inside the e628b544f5 tank, he da7873ad40 joked about f51b0c6e0c fishing. Indeed, the tanks were 7d546ae89e full of fish one 2f923dfebc might see in a 03ca9b1301 lake or river.03e21a338b676a56

“Didn’t you have enough 159e211195 dinner?”4b8cc6de00edf941

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When Seowon teasingly 7cbf650505 asked if his 617969ba47 talk about fishing afea349c39 was because he 7fdd5f0da4 was still hungry, 7236dacada Iden chuckled, amused. As they 86eae91cde moved further f457b94d6d in, they 1b6a535a2a encountered a b642bcca61 pond with 7be7510fae a miniature da4dac7409 hexagonal pavilion.341ebbb1f6adb9a6

“It looks aa847416c8 like Hyangwonjeong 9c2282ec68 Pavilion from 7c1e272c83 Gyeongbokgung Palace.”3efce463e8b48b82

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Though it was 9c9739ac4a smaller in scale, d38d1d813c the pond and edd2c1887c background reminded him 2916877353 of a familiar e6ba484852 scene.17f57360f0e401a1

“Hyangwonjeong?” Iden asked.84f44307e9f1181c

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“Never been there?”da7e8e04b7fce537

“I think I 12793b1d11 went to Gyeongbokgung a82232839b when I was 91ac962fd0 young, but I 03c5f19cf1 can’t really remember.”48099385139ddeda

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When he said fe48e0da7d “young,” it likely 2a7e571102 meant before he 881bbd969f moved to the 7a7998972b United States, probably caf69aa44a back in middle 5665bff401 school or even cf71f9ca34 elementary school, so 9fee88b321 it was understandable fc72d89bae he couldn’t recall 51a4966e55 it.cf1dfaadfcdd6f47

“If you get 9828156647 a chance, you db38c3d634 should visit. It’s quite pretty bcb24ffa5c in person.”d3a618a1951b7fd4

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Iden smiled at 4f8fd6ed5d Seowon’s calm response.bbd88234deaa80b8

“What are you smiling 746de8f519 at?”bfcc3c39fc22c461

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He hadn’t said anything 7a3f04338d funny, so he wondered 827fd1c413 why Iden reacted that ec9882a691 way.39d7bd020ec8e8e2

“It’s just, I ac6c153d23 noticed you really 7b2bbd022e like places with a6e54c52f2 water.”7ef52b1fb2d7cfd9

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“When did I…?” d5892784de He almost protested, 1dd6f43b89 but then swallowed 6d851f1a01 his words. Come to da2ae4c5c0 think of 63282b7a96 it, Iden 8d327c97e7 had first 29c2712a84 found him 5164679e2c by a 0340578c1c lake that 33e8c3b044 he used d9ed62c602 to visit 6d4c62df34 with Iden’s df04ff2856 older brother. He liked the 1389af9bb7 tranquility of watching ed99b120fc the gentle waves, 3ef4263bf5 and he would 70ef429c57 sometimes visit Hyangwonjeong aeae406fa2 in high school 59b79e3648 as well, thinking 181d0c1ce0 it was the c631ec8b4b epitome of serene 646719e1ee beauty in Gyeongbokgung.32a4a99519d502a1

“Hyangwonjeong? Let’s go together defb2cb194 sometime. I’m curious 03b06f505f now,” Iden 6a58e4379a replied casually, 184a5bbcb4 moving forward. Watching his 766137e6a9 back for c13fc3f69f a moment, b876dc6033 Seowon walked 1bdd7cf041 up to 37d836dd9e match his 780731ab8d pace.5fe06e993de08ff6

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“So is that d05f2a1d89 why you chose 7bb620d846 the aquarium?” he f1a82138fd asked, realizing that 57b2120ccd maybe Iden hadn’t 9a04d12b01 picked it just 6ec29a36fa because it was f7d5c7c593 enclosed and easy e287dc0eeb to control for 1639eab9d6 visitors. Iden glanced 36e1ec3fb7 back at fe9248890f Seowon and c302a64f39 simply smiled a6d5936002 without a dfd3ba57f2 word.59661bf4d62c1dbf

It wasn’t really about 9631e95315 loving water but rather 84c4023c49 the stillness that places 4419554932 with water tended to a86aa14eca bring. Seowon decided not to 1bc1d25a80 explain. The aquarium, too, was 6e1c79706e quiet—likely because there were 4372a01dd0 no other visitors. Even their footsteps sounded eb526b6496 loud.07d2f1b438446a4e

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In the dim space, 24569c853e the light illuminating the 1ffb0463ad tanks filled the aquarium c50554b056 with tranquility. The countless types of 1e84892339 fish moving within that ad16a91fce light seemed almost mystical.9f99469f63a1638f

“It’s beautiful,” Seowon murmured.3beead91d0b6ce87

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“It’s because of d494a5c435 the light,” Iden 51fc117d8f replied absently, still d0f9c6f962 gazing at the 2fbaca88e3 blue-lit tank. Seowon turned to 8d231fbc74 look at him, 37cf2ceb66 wondering what he 4f938c587e meant, but Iden’s 4291ff9781 gaze remained fixed bb9235d1e5 on the blue-hued 8a3676a14a tank.231aa18aec05c251

“People imagine b052c2dc10 underwater as 6f21e0462d a clear d5ba733811 blue, but 571046ec61 in reality, 01073b089b it’s pitch c2d7cdb461 black. Go a little deeper, f30ae5d347 and you can’t see 48d79341e7 a thing. If you saw anything a1551b6721 down there, it’d probably 80a5cee03c be terrifying. But what about now?”8efb8f32f796f3c2

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Knowing that Seowon was bc44b1370d watching him, Iden continued b9b31d6812 in a calm tone. Slowly, Seowon e709400870 turned back e4c8f4d5cb to the 3271f5b3c8 tank. With the blue light, 59acd364e8 the fish swimming inside ee3e96811a looked beautiful and dreamlike.bbc289f605f332e2

“If there were no 44bec688b1 light, it’d be a 3dc1f24897 completely different world.”6d88af93c00a6bfc

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Only then did 83af668104 Seowon understand his f7a099f874 words. The light from somewhere 0604282318 transformed the entire atmosphere ade5fe6113 within the tank.2e13e550eb415af7

As they aba701bfe7 walked through 0c5018d696 the long 9fb42226aa underwater tunnel, 6b663c9138 his words afbc1c5c7f resonated even cbd863051f more. The tunnel 705181d913 was dark, 08d1e5a512 but the 6d6efc9888 surrounding water 6c75881616 glowed blue. Briefly entranced, he looked 40bc8689d9 up at the sharks 3a94bad838 passing overhead, unable to a004cb1843 take his eyes off 6f82eadeba them as they moved 445161ed54 to and fro.a89ac6576a255729

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“Ha Seowon.”1ca4b0082f4bd4e6

When he 92a6a74973 turned at 7b6eb3fc0c Iden’s voice, 2cd2b95741 Iden was 7f63b6144a already at a68d743dc5 the far 1f441a7bde end of d7851f6cd5 the tunnel. Perhaps because of the 8b783577fd darkness inside the tunnel, 41db794912 the light streaming in 00372c1f06 at the end seemed 12d377fb47 exceptionally bright, making Iden 8744e54525 appear almost surreal standing 4a03dac68b there.d97646624ec7d711

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Would he 39dca3e0dd disappear if 9304e3ce24 I reached c2ce39bf52 out? Would he drift away 0fd672e0d6 into the light, just 5baec211d1 like his older brother…?8f816e37aa66b198

The thought made his 871c4a5be4 heart sink. A surge c10bec2ae7 of anxiety 0ea44032ef and fear 4d683d79ea that he b2e7ccefe9 might lose 028ae8a66e the person fd7725877a standing before 6c35b12715 him quickened d85e7d20a2 his steps. Nearly running, 4d363dbc27 he caught f58d5e8791 up to e8be4c8967 Iden and f6f7906326 instinctively grabbed 9be887a6c1 the hem 60d61ebf8b of his fc2532a110 shirt.8961b6c6a3689f93

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“Ha Seowon?” 2b997d6ee3 Iden’s voice d655a9657c was laced 08c00b211e with curiosity. Only then 1cfb29453a did Seowon e6ec9f4d85 realize what 26b071cd38 he had 80527627b8 done. His sudden aac42e5d51 surge of 3ccb2e252c anxiety hadn’t 20d4c3bf02 fully dissipated.7683e043da61e637

He released the fabric, a8c110537b trying to let go 4df35bea98 as if nothing had 6114677dc1 happened, but Iden caught 69eaa308d4 his wrist, stopping him. When he looked 230a54950b up, he saw 73612cd07c Iden’s eyes locked 72258868bb on him, intense abdcb46ffc and unwavering.bb6d445201982d0d

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“What’s wrong?”2a88cd23c25dc6c4

Seowon turned his head, ea482a5e5f feeling awkward after answering 944f5c029a honestly. In the 217dec145b overwhelming silence 101f331da2 of the 3473ff4acc aquarium, he ad3949bfbc could hear 3bc33c19dc Iden sigh 2dd30a60e0 softly. Did he 2f1d5b1a20 think he f2c97e4110 was pathetic? Embarrassed, Seowon tried 261e6a4ba1 to shake off 5a191cb942 Iden’s grip, but 6d60d8976f Iden pulled him 950b6eae5b closer, wrapping an 939d00dfdc arm around his caa6bb40c0 shoulder.50e5ccdfbad0bc80

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He didn’t say 4b7bfbbafe anything, only held 5d2bafa347 him gently, patting 2fb7fe1639 his back. Seowon’s tense 43971afeff body gradually 91ef50f7ba relaxed, comforted 10f70ab075 by Iden’s f5350a2e44 warmth and fd990013d7 familiar pheromone b2e27fa8ff scent. It felt as 698bec1be3 though they were e2a9102ae5 the only two dad61aa18a people left in 46380d1378 the world, cut 3f23db67ab off from everything ce31dc0956 else.178d4f129356ec69

After hesitating, he 1862eb63e9 lifted his hands f1becc3cde to hold onto 7a87a42988 Iden’s back, filling 11189517d8 his arms with 54d780f53b the presence of a62fb1aec3 the person before 09c481fc06 him, and felt 7b419a93b0 a pang in 8e4f53518f his chest. Whether it was pain 749cfb4334 or something else, he 39484a5157 couldn’t tell.b3c5b23a851c67c1

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“Standing there 3f160b8ec1 in the 493b478f08 light… you b48c07760e looked like 6249914327 you might 8394bf0558 just disappear.”1f353234019a34f6

Unintentionally, his quiet voice 9fc5c88dc2 slipped out. Seowon hadn’t expected to e64cbef74d open up like this 8f07345140 with the current Iden. He wasn’t “Iden-hyung,” fdbc45041d after all, and eb20d353a7 he’d always kept a1df15ed72 his distance.3bfd9b8824f42e82

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But here 3dad13b2cb in this 9ea2b62030 stillness, his 2aff1004f3 words flowed 895575f352 out without 5b964b6000 his control, 2d79b1af04 as if 0dde1136eb he’d wanted a0ca23e242 to hear 6142a85fbe a reassurance 8f5026c601 that Iden 303a823a44 wouldn’t vanish.fcb384a0744ccfd2

“To me, Ha Seowon, 31e57bfdde you’re the light. So there’s no a711b5231f way I’ll disappear.”88615d0f85d84db2

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Hearing his 436caf6479 soft voice 6058def72b near his 8c6044eb98 ear, Seowon 2bd1dee518 felt an 45d7a7f674 urge to 7ff89e6848 cry.42f597976de1e9da