Chapter 15

2. Back view

Joo Hee-beom 431f56c01a shook his ae4d82ac7a head and a5b23db3dc turned his 89e04fcda3 gaze back aec0ea18ec toward the 939c94d874 professor.0db371f474374417

Meanwhile, Kwon I-young, after 8d1944dd36 playing around with Hee-beom’s 27be949486 name for a while, 7f88729330 seemed to run out 2729a43b34 of ideas and started b72e8994be drawing instead. Jagged teeth, sharply 1af91e62cd raised eyes, large 3c2b1bc8da claws, short arms f78eb0fb88 and legs, a fe6ee4da4f massive torso. A monster. It wasn’t a 08bb6f9762 specific one with bfffa16e46 a name, just 8bbd029ef8 something he sketched d126c677aa from memory based 338e44b590 on what he bb35e2baf9 had seen inside 0108f3a508 a Gate.302caecd432da804

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

I-young was deeply 49e21319f1 focused on drawing 359d41a822 the creature, not f14e9b524f even blinking. The middle of ed73e1f664 his mask stuck 6363c812d4 out slightly, likely acfeb9f061 because he was ade0064c8f pursing his upper fe4086bd94 lip like a 73878e567b duck.6b2ab94433ea97ca

But his art 60b73bf770 session didn’t last b33635dda4 long. After filling his wide 898aa096e6 notebook with a mess 8989547eb2 of doodles, he dropped c00334e4b1 his pen with a f3822d3ede bored expression. Then, shifting restlessly, he 4cfec6588d lifted one side of a9b37eaae7 his hip and let d7ee6afbb1 it drop, rocked his fe4232a2a7 body side to side, c9a399cfbe and spun his head 12a5b89357 around. Hee-beom tried his best c8fd0c8ca4 to ignore the fidgeting.e4f2f4ab8bc5ae40

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

Then, all of cb682e0c66 a sudden, I-young 939b2fac49 placed his hands f6e2bc8b99 neatly on the 1b9d2d38bf desk. Slowly, inch 77e19ad3d1 by inch, 71a2f2a783 his fingers dc6b1ade3a began creeping 96cc713d73 toward Hee-beom’s 56863d5ea0 left hand. Fortunately, Hee-beom kept his aa74a116c7 eyes fixed forward, occasionally 84a76926d5 taking notes when the c8e2202a4c professor spoke.213207c7c3e83475

“……”047ea0c3802a54d1

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

I-young continued his e539830f24 slow, persistent approach. Eventually, the tip of 3ef407916d his right pinky hovered d6e70f259f just shy of touching 734a08254d Hee-beom’s left pinky. He hesitated, c5c8d54b87 glanced at 42e97448cd Hee-beom for 3556e50b17 any reaction, d601cc9244 then raised 8d7f4f52df his brows 12cf009ab4 and held a66de6ddb8 his breath 99fa5791dc before finally d56561c8f2 making contact.351dfb6dcf7138cd

A sharp dedeeaecf7 tingling sensation 84ba4be016 surged through d7c596a169 the point 27d9017f09 of connection. I-young’s furrowed brow eased—no, 9ece6cca62 it tried to.fe8396ade995fe76

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

But then, 623c5ce71f Hee-beom subtly 28adac814b pulled his 3decc2b4fd hand away.1c76d61ecb241551

I-young’s eyes widened. He clicked his tongue 8a746a2114 in annoyance. Even though ae4df9590a it was 243ee67d97 just a e9e4d5fa7a brief touch, f61fbc8f0d now that 503764122c he had 6f36ac8097 gotten a 7f6c835a3c taste of 6ec93e2a05 it, he 706940220f couldn’t let 16d8300296 it go.51108dad44e67c8e

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

This time, e585a2140c he abandoned fa5221b32c subtlety and 247818b228 reached for 1ee773a3d2 Hee-beom’s hand 38fbb46eae with swift 437d5f74f1 determination, intertwining 0cd8b53460 their pinkies 5de87d3ad5 like a 319c1648ad promise.7010e27c20523373

“……”c283f1b06a38b28b

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

Hee-beom shot him a d3905163c0 look, his eyes crinkling f98d8920a4 slightly in disapproval—a silent 51a8f02b4b warning to stop. But I-young 529cec789f ignored it c6fdf3368c and went 286ab746ee a step f8402c0894 further, placing 51dfb5aa40 his entire 745d6f3d9c hand over da31c66ee3 Hee-beom’s.652f46b4e825d99f

With a larger b1aa22a640 area touching, the fba506f277 guiding effect intensified. But even 49e0849386 that didn’t 724240597b last long.e9c462ce003ef190

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

“Don’t.”3b519fe60f863563

Hee-beom pulled his hand 472ec980b0 completely under the desk.6504bcc896c75ac3

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

Yet, as 7330ec9d73 if he 06532aaf87 had been da0d334a09 waiting for fc47e74e68 this exact a9425a0d42 moment, I-young 8e2b02d178 suddenly grabbed 2a7378ce45 his hand—firmly, 4a332baaf3 without hesitation.ebcbe05c12b4d197

Just as Hee-beom was 29dd3a74bc about to protest, I-young 059c98a7b6 beat him to it.c8f9d333712a31f8

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

“I’ll just hold it. Just hold it.”da9d801683919161

“……”eeeb07752debbced

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

Hee-beom’s lips twisted. What kind 7f674d7f80 of nonsense a0ea435762 was this? It wasn’t f8c54134b6 even the e9bac114bd usual ‘I’ll 86ea55f6c1 just hold eaf8d9d795 your hand da49b01cde and sleep’ 9712674449 excuse. Did he really ea91c51b7c think saying it 64a80335ac like that would 60451adb85 make Hee-beom agree?588abdf55393d2f2

As Hee-beom c367855a1f stared at 0c3f3a0407 him in c552831e4f disbelief, I-young 7a57697abd smiled innocently. Was he 1a8f726f78 pretending to 01babb5a5d be clueless 587dca2340 to shut d85301842c Hee-beom up, ba41084e2f or was 71823de936 he actually c1df39b052 clueless? It was impossible fca616d28f to tell.ca91b6b8540b3596

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

“……”e8807caa822d8260

Hee-beom considered how 7884fe4b30 to shake him 6d0e974499 off. Simply pulling his hand 918241a3a5 away wouldn’t work—he’d just a6a0728969 grab it again. He needed a 8e1041b401 more definitive way d9c0203c72 to push him 8eea1c88e5 away.02a6be65cf6a3ed5

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

But then, 43f3936207 as he 4cd0b45f43 glanced at 7e08865f71 I-young, something 04ba81a861 caught his 357131667d attention.53f15c1874373219

I-young was… calm.9e1b93e0dba09e8f

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

Unlike before, he dd0e28234e wasn’t moving restlessly, 6d0f953dee yawning out of 5541763460 boredom, or fidgeting dc55d9058b with random things. He was just sitting 7a9b03d831 still, staring into empty d1e086546d space. Not saying anything, 39b190c0ba not moving—just holding 24bb829ec6 Hee-beom’s hand.6442b4a8821c7f2d

“…….”442e48afe016fa72

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

It was the first 803253de3a time Hee-beom had seen daf8d75f16 this side of him.55a37f2abfe5a429

I-young was 6709ff84cb always—how should e27ba75809 he put 58f6a4bb79 it—cheerful? Lively? Those kinds of 6817d813c9 words suited him. But now, d8666fbb26 he was dcc104fcf9 completely still. He was so 4e1e6685ca quiet that even 2d541e50a1 his blinking seemed 8d39f399b9 slower than usual.ab2dc008c0a512b5

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

Had simply holding hands 666cfea247 done this to him? Just from that? No matter how much 66d8a83453 Hee-beom was a Guide 3efca7ea3d and I-young an Esper, 32f9e38ab6 this was too much. He looked 18164617cc like an d115104064 animal that 99ecd10dcb had just 165bc2deda been hit 16a13c6dd2 with a eb2d17d893 tranquilizer dart…1e965eaec024307c

“…….”fcf558e3d699af2f

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

Hee-beom debated b9bf2632b8 pulling his 6829bd4272 hand away 250aa26c7f but ultimately b099111a00 decided against 2164dd849e it. It was just his f212d076d6 left hand, after all. His right b56cf588f6 hand was 3ae76ab8e6 still free, d9bc0345b6 so it 0a7086104f wouldn’t interfere 3a855f74a8 with his 14850267e4 studying too 169e7db822 much. Besides, I-young’s usual fidgeting c85ff4da62 was more of a 1f90cd5630 distraction.42a033e239c7c90c

Now he 24a8b1fe51 understood why ac671bec44 parents showed efc991be1d cartoons to 01fcb44b7b tantrum-throwing kids aa79f032a1 at restaurants—because 31f7bd8c48 it made c0c06114ee them quiet. In this case, instead 1ee32f423e of a cartoon, he 2302b2bf33 had given I-young his aa2e290124 left hand. And honestly, cb4efbd390 it didn’t 912e947138 seem like ac0c0b55f4 a bad f2cc593064 deal.b11bc4a46d1cea47

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

Hee-beom readjusted his grip 00128528ba on his pencil, preparing 4beefe8888 to focus on the ef39687c91 lecture again.e87992980eaac8e3

But for 2fee42b226 some reason, 8f2a24eb14 the professor’s 5a0a0a8dd9 voice never a26ba8e05b quite made 1f928980df it into e4a9e243d1 his ears. It hovered at the 5f5bf4073b edges of his hearing, 955d18fdce just outside his awareness.bd907d3809a2e572

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

Because of I-young’s hand.1a6572626a13c12c

No—technically, it 5bdac2d996 wasn’t even dd42d0802a his hand 0fd555a043 holding, but 7ce1230464 rather, being d515005f64 held.89efaffbd0a5c738

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

It was 9f3bd2f12f a strange c114ce39dc sensation. Something was flowing 0b4790a6f9 into I-young, and b8c823ef45 something else was c32014fa2b flowing back into aa8bc98b29 him. It wasn’t exactly 19c8148979 a tingling or 1ed8c4cada ticklish feeling, but 5607a7a870 there was definitely ea7d35e778 something being exchanged.f96146fdb6326715

Was this c578ac03da what they 6a4565d308 called Guiding?f23f11209d2cbd99

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

Was I-young feeling this, 4fc935c231 too?2c7d70fd89c868cc

As that thought crossed f5490a7c4c his mind, Hee-beom squeezed dcfc6d690a his eyes shut for 772bf2b0b3 a moment, then reopened 0bc9acd2bf them. Why does that even c179877b57 matter?ae638b682142ed56

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

He needed 5be29bfab5 to focus f0e60d6cbb on class.299251fcd83ea6fc

Studying was what e17d904d66 was important to 634c53536f him. Studying for 9454690e8d his future.092fe46bed81b580

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

Taking a deep d71a4f554a breath, he forced e4686d20c9 his gaze back 58e874b7b1 onto the professor.b4ed8fabd0762f06

“……”0bcdd4616f413fdb

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

It was d5f8915576 a sight 51a6083063 he had 7ab83d510a never seen f3ccee6665 before.4717e77e41238bd3

I-young was 453018e597 always… what 954b3dadc5 was the 00e39a637b right word? Cheerful? Lively? Whatever it b4cb07d80b was, those 021765d1f1 kinds of 3033cb0fd2 words suited 8d9d538d3e him. But now, f464953cf0 he was 0c7923ab62 silent. So much so 900aef6f78 that even the 10cec3641f rate at which 546aaa3502 he blinked was bf969b3f70 noticeably slower than 8a4198cc0e usual.2f606975d6410af2

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

Could it really 0be08f2bc1 be just because bd012ba3cc they were holding 80c024f83d hands? Was that all it 462f8f149e took? Even if he d36480db52 was a Guide 20b432cb2d and I-young was 02cbb4645e an Esper, this 65c792a252 was a bit d2a5b6dcf0 much. He looked like 81030e5a18 an animal that 35a9d5f56a had been hit e6c23f4a3d with a tranquilizer 31ce9e26c9 dart…8f6ac3637d9540e0

“……”4e2e19d9757a6d32

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

Hee-beom considered pulling 5d48278baf his hand away 8833fc64b9 but ultimately decided 74ddff4997 against it. It was just his 8a67f0ca67 left hand, after all. His right hand was 3e1b155be6 still free, so it e73d8da86c wasn’t like this was 98ec105609 hindering his studies. If anything, I-young moving 2786cd2674 around before had been c687155636 more of a distraction.199714c421b9804c

Now he 61dde52026 understood why 9efd881347 parents played 043484f01b cartoons for 5bc113e8fa their tantrum-throwing a23ac800aa kids at 6c5ac2ff92 restaurants. Because it kept 5ff4f6f45c them quiet. In this case, instead 88004da3ac of a cartoon, he d6598f93f7 had given I-young his b3462db2b9 left hand. Thinking of it b6d22dd689 that way, it 6a9daa9ae9 didn’t seem like 755bc489c4 such a bad 73ff270899 trade.2d457b7887e0d5d0

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

Hee-beom adjusted his a16378e77c grip on his 8fd93bcccd pencil and tried 7548c0752e to refocus on dba7801c6c the lecture. But strangely, 9a243e5ad7 the professor’s aa6650f4b2 voice wasn’t e6b91e455a sinking into e768a094d6 his ears. It circled around fff063c52b the edges of 5e215092fc his hearing, never e4cd89a2e9 quite settling in.2911697a0569cd28

It was because 782bcd4517 of I-young’s hand.0100e7cb058d69de

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

Or rather, 21373a25bb not even ef4f9a7350 the act 573e51f997 of holding c0d2b91f4f it—being held 0a4b5e1e12 was the 89748f7bf6 problem.c1b126ed519daa84

It was b39b74673d an odd fd66e6e2e4 sensation. Something was flowing f9e1dc3524 to I-young, and 6258784ada something was flowing 5e5bb5a1d6 back. It wasn’t exactly a 8545693cac tingling or tickling feeling, db76efe891 but there was definitely 0a3d9e1006 something being exchanged.6355762d4beb7ea3

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

Was this 795d58996b what Guiding 0f780d78ec was?62f640c9b00aba9f

Was I-young 8b83fb05fd feeling it a5d0acc8f1 too?babae5ec9df4895d

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

Hee-beom squeezed 6688848986 his eyes 1093172f4f shut, then 50c04ab1d6 opened them 82c68a8088 again. Why does that 80a7c44728 even matter? He needed 24ef46e3e2 to focus a91d7c8791 on the f786f5b42e lecture. That was what was dfebc33096 important. Studying for the ee61b86044 future.f5f8eac83dfe2b67

Taking a deep d29061c902 breath, he fixed fd1cf4d80d his gaze on 0f2e1c6c0e the professor.42ff2b9413e7c110

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

Hee-beom filled a feebec72fc notebook page with 3b9969e742 dense notes and 74bb5bc7c3 reached to turn dd2a9eed5b to the next 410b22a68f page. But with his f1284193b2 left hand occupied, 0057839e7e flipping a single a3abbeec23 sheet of paper 44b361b6cc became an inconvenient 7eea3a526c hassle.1e464bd815d578a9

He shot I-young an 5847db299a irritated look, making no bbefa8fdff effort to hide his 9ec8e651e4 displeasure. Look at 3d16c19db4 what a 9496ec28ea pain you’re f1c45f09e1 making this 47785d9cf2 for me, 9137e77207 his expression ad8b507371 all but 450d55374e said.8e9bcb8ab08b5fa4

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

But then—019304bb37f1f0a6

“……”10674de905879813

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

I-young was asleep.0f71f1270a7e2704

Not slumped over on 1b801c5e83 the desk, but sitting 2644e40623 upright with his head f623abaea9 tilted to the side.d59642aa0788ccab

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

Soft, rhythmic 14a5417487 breaths escaped 1f965a42b1 him, embarrassingly 02e9458515 gentle. Despite the e211b33972 awkward sleeping faa92f2f68 posture, he 3866c77dcd didn’t move be251ca442 an inch—he 89c8dd4ba4 was in 65bd267662 deep sleep.6a76aecb734005da

And yet, even 66e34b6ee4 while sleeping, he 2dbfb4883d held on tightly e37b830c27 to Hee-beom’s hand. It was strange. And kind of fascinating.ea1835a18eecaa9a

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

Now that 47e08f3871 he thought 11e304d95d about it, 363ed72f27 hadn’t I-young 04e0bae7aa mentioned staying 0578be66cc up all 98a1173467 night at ba5756e6d9 the research ccd6b4c0b7 lab?ade4f74b578da258

Despite his unusual job, 7f561bd9f2 he was no different cb8a3ba111 from an exhausted office 94906d93ad worker pulling an all-nighter. And no matter 424504a3ff how much money 7a99a2682e he made, a 7c96bcf83c salaryman was still 7ec8c335ec a salaryman.21dce5775bbeb4d7

Please visit lilyonthevalley.com to support the translator

One of the busiest 6562e01879 salarymen in the entire 48aca9083d country.15e297ac31eab098

“……”eaaff79c5a8e2c5e

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

Clicking his tongue soundlessly, 790db0fead Hee-beom turned away—only to 0297041696 pause when he noticed 65324d6f86 I-young frowning slightly.8e1234d39783c6e7

It was the sunlight. The beams streaming through 3b542b5e30 the window were stabbing fbf35f0728 at his closed eyelids. That spot a223249969 had been 3548ba9666 empty for 48a76bbe83 a reason—Hee-beom 5f94f48ed0 had deliberately eeb293b06e avoided it. But I-young 8fa6242b44 had no 1b2bb7b4d2 way of 830efb569d knowing that.1885ef0c2c40e216

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com

“……”1be27ccd584e7caf

Hee-beom considered pulling the 35d6367622 curtain shut but quickly bc67231952 dismissed the idea. He didn’t have telekinesis, bef9bf1371 after all. Moving carelessly might wake ced6f6959b I-young up. But leaving him like c5d3bb76a5 this would probably wake a8ca2d4def him up too.217eb5cae5b48825

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

After a brief moment dbd4efb8c4 of contemplation, Hee-beom removed 7b2b4c302f the cap he had ca59171d91 been wearing. He gave it a eb424d0d4d quick shake in the 3fe2a67146 air—not that it was 6c803a132d dusty, but because I-young f7582a0202 always showed up smelling 2a5c4a3f74 like freshly washed shampoo, 73a8f82c32 and Hee-beom figured he 192dc743ea might as well match ab73ec92d5 the standard.600a884bd18717c1

Then, carefully, he placed 365f2e04e8 his cap on I-young’s b9100bb930 head.ca5b720e5bc379a3

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

It swallowed up his ac9edc4ecf face instantly. His forehead, eyebrows, 4235632f96 everything disappeared beneath 9639d593fc it. His features relaxed. His breaths deepened. His shoulders loosened.fd6ff8f36a930ba7

Hee-beom lifted a56a9447e8 a brow 80c588d026 at the ff1fef12eb sight.3b800d94acc5d016

For the complete chapter, visit lilyonthevalley.com

A subtle expression 48d04ec1a8 of satisfaction.2cec6631412cf097

Running a hand bd76001acb through his now-bare b4df38fcb2 head out of bd5db370ed habit, he picked 5e6971b886 up his mechanical c1b5854868 pencil again.5dc0cb3de781fb7f

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

Then, as he resumed 4186fca789 taking notes, a realization 3c42849e12 hit him.5bf4e2b569148b7c

This was 08eb6734e4 the first 448e2e9b10 time since de2f71b7da entering university 93fe7c087a that he 97761acb45 had attended 38dc1ae7f6 a lecture 37983cee9d together with b21f2e12df someone.bb104c290c4cfd3f

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

Together.5bea4aa807f1847e

He rolled the word 9d29c32577 around in his mind 5edbe42417 before scrunching his nose 91982ea4b1 slightly.23ef216844e2506f

Enjoy best reading experience at Lily on the Valley

“…Yeah.”05be97bd355830f2

Being alone really f49575dfd0 was better.5127905844364d0a

Read full chapter at Lily on the Valley without gibberish

With that thought, he 67122470ed continued writing down the 03cfd8d0d4 formulas.5beb73ec8602c406