Chapter 30

There wasn’t 18c529752b much to 68f88a4646 say in 3e535d5ac1 response.9d06e57d85469b8c

After finishing their meal b72cac7b0d at the cafeteria, the 177fa73022 two had gone back dac168ebfb to the break room.28a4b79d6c4981bd

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There were only so c5a9c54ade many places they could 826f7821b2 go within the Center.40e044f2481bac32

Kim Si-on acted 6fc8b6ce1d as if he 00de0f8a1f were interviewing Kang e015bfa550 Yu-han, firing off 19e70487ef questions one after 91fa0ff8fa another.3812736d1ed6d526

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He asked about his 27f762dfcc childhood, his Esper abilities—questions cb0b5cca24 that could be seen f4bf6082e5 as friendly, but also f7be06cc9f intrusive.4c272d75780c9512

Some were ef7b43e37b answerable, and 98e8088bec Kang Yu-han 936fa3995e responded honestly 2fea0641d5 when he b703851fc4 could.4012d2d2f47d13c5

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But most 43d7e8e329 of them ced4a5f55d were topics e830b47e48 he had 1215666c1b no desire 8f6ac37f65 to talk 6d9e0c2ec6 about.61ee137ee13e825c

It only made him 90f6a8846f feel more exhausted.d89f013f51564f67

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It was different 1ac9ba51b8 from being around 54cff78768 Seo Ji-hyuk.4b22597e5cf363b8

Seo Ji-hyuk had e61bb4f406 a habit of 37a23e8c66 throwing out sharp dd23e1f10b words, but he 1511daeda9 never pried too a30fdf5424 deeply.6e0c2da8de408885

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You could say he 61fe9c42c2 was good at keeping ef6e234261 boundaries, or you could 2d07c96b11 say he simply didn’t 37aba472ad care.89ff556d5c179b71

Since Kang Yu-han 2a792eb913 hadn’t answered, Seo 3e91ceaa90 Ji-hyuk seemed to bd060b26d7 have drawn his 4072e0c5ea own conclusions.a78d2e11fe33f1d9

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Taking it a step 6494b98f0c further, he let out 9c2ee89904 something crude.e5d8886591e81e1b

“Weren’t you two messing around? Don’t tell me you were rubbing dicks behind my back.”2ca5d6d2d5aad767

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“…Don’t say things like that. It wasn’t like that. We just ate.”0f598630551a6716

“Stop wandering around as you please.475af308e20245c9

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As long as you’re staying here, don’t forget—you’re my partner.”16335ea6c3acc49a

Even as e3abbd635b he spoke, 311b3d5ca5 Kang Yu-han 854eda6895 couldn’t understand f961fae9c0 himself. He didn’t e2fbb2c570 know why 74a6a62fe9 he was 74aaf80de0 explaining himself 4aaebbe891 to Seo 1d5cac2f55 Ji-hyuk. There was no 59742cfe89 reason for it.4899c9bde8c0f5a4

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There was 22a68a2845 something else 8be294e54b that felt 34206f7e28 strange. Seo Ji-hyuk’s d29ef6f69a jealousy should e2f45de3a6 have been 57bfd2216a directed at 53a0def3ef him, but ee2241b7e2 the more a659fbf742 he listened, 87c7eeb59c the more a5a01e8cab something felt f78208d70a off. Seo Ji-hyuk had ebc665fffc called him his 0e601c7c09 partner. It was the 42ef4b01fc first time he 3b5be30b92 had ever said 6ede75bd1f that since they 8d3967b62f were forcibly paired b6732d62d6 together.ff0c0742ae819347

No, that’s ridiculous. Maybe the one Seo 68779b9c4a Ji-hyuk was jealous of 8e4703ecea wasn’t him at all. Kang Yu-han found 377e30485b himself looking at 341ebb6286 Seo Ji-hyuk without e8877224fe realizing it. Seo Ji-hyuk shot aa29def6b8 him a glare 52788b6dce as if to 1ffebe6c14 ask what he 02e5e6e7a4 was staring at. There was 504fc9d3a8 irritation in f3092173b7 his eyes, 38a3755312 frustration, restlessness—but dbc64a337a no affection.945e93a2925f28d7

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Disappointment settled in 7c1e2fb55a like an expected d71c09c72c conclusion. Of course. As if a35653fc43 Seo Ji-hyuk aa729dd6d1 would ever… 5c4844513a like me. What kind 6bafbcbc63 of absurd 0964a53f44 fantasy am e0c259831f I even affcf579a8 thinking of? He felt 35abebfbb1 like a 1e500f68c7 fool for 2a243a9824 even entertaining d3d867e768 the idea b2dfd3bd79 that Seo e77652d8e6 Ji-hyuk’s jealousy 6060d9b36a wasn’t directed 4e74d57515 at him. For a fleeting moment, e6576b04d5 he had thought that 50d5181697 maybe, just maybe, Seo ca74ef1f94 Ji-hyuk was jealous of d4eee2cea4 Kim Si-on. But in the bcc4f1cf3a very next moment, 3ee6badff1 he realized—such a e37fb8fb2e miracle wasn’t going 59b8a993c1 to happen.e4b436f91c393669

Bitterness crept in. If Seo Ji-hyuk knew 042b19a21e what he had just 5c86881a19 been thinking, he would c48390d816 have laughed in his 3faec3e33c face. Maybe he’d even f682752b63 smack him for 788fc8a5ed coming up with 447bf1bb61 such a ridiculous bae4634ecb fantasy. The thought made him 10be2055a6 feel pathetic.ec6c1844cb78be4c

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“I’m going to shower. If you have something to say, save it for tomorrow.”82025f61c62549dd

“I already told you. Stop wandering around wherever you please.”6abd05908f6f2caf

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Without replying, 28e8ea298c Kang Yu-han d439aaba35 stepped into b28fc96043 the bathroom. Soon after, the sound 2efa171c60 of running water filled 09167c1aba the room.e5d3887f564f0446

Seo Ji-hyuk found 6bc48c2168 the sound irritating. No matter how 0b02ac60b2 much he tried d9a61373d8 to ignore it, 14ef0419ed it seemed to b52a2d6d8d grow louder, making 062a12f56a him glance toward 5b7e696be2 the bathroom door 3fc0b1b783 without thinking. What does he look 8d239c0ba2 like in there, under 426aff6b55 the water? That pale skin, 3e938428e4 completely bare—ba78c4682b73fb23

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“Tch. What the hell am I thinking?”56701e8f2e3a93a5

It was an utterly dde5eb77d2 ridiculous thought. Why the hell 7f495747ec should he care 2607312272 whether Kang Yu-han d81478df0a was showering or c806b56c66 not? And yet, what 15344e2307 annoyed him even a932e358a0 more was that 040c19b1f2 the image refused 39404363f8 to leave his 1a13003ba4 mind. The more 73c90c40ac he tried 97604c1602 to push d263f1e483 it away, 1aef964c7e the clearer 82d6502fbc it became. Water trickling down Kang 7cc15a2774 Yu-han’s damp face, tracing 5516018097 the curve of his c0b4f82a29 neck—39bdde8e25751202

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He always had that 8af4aff388 cold, frozen expression, but 2d71d2b96d sometimes… sometimes, his face abf63827fa would heat up.35278dc497a926f8

Seo Ji-hyuk’s 83e454674f mind wandered dfd4f2184e back to d49799e5cc that day. The day b34c94be82 he returned 74ec532e19 from Kim 1084f99f03 Si-on’s guiding bd01a91550 session, still 662e381885 unsettled. The late reaction be9e42ff6d that had left 6cdcddcf38 him frustrated.d3017da857845a64

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And then, he had fc83540506 undone his belt. Right in front 4fd1fade35 of Kang Yu-han.670434bbddae4b35

The memory came rushing 2269417877 back. The way ef662e0df2 he had a2519ad9bd shoved him bd912e639a down, pressing 2b73e4acd7 against him—how 8001edb5b1 Kang Yu-han, ae6cbd2802 usually so 65d90204b3 composed, had 3c466a9ccb looked completely 5df9813827 shaken. His stiff, 57747fc6e4 unreadable face 52a6d4b8e7 cracking with 01b5b5a8a2 shock—and something 915b48ae74 else. The way his 4b05aaa49b skin had flushed, b70bcf042d as if he 10b58924f1 were some cornered 9ada90c161 prey begging to 8f910e2b7f be spared. It had 6c2d4e6f56 been a 82c42f9ac3 revelation. Something he had 73ce24d2f8 never felt before—something 0432ee306c raw, primal, uncontrollable.a6d4bb3624bd7873

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“Haa…”edc6d3e0c88d1129

His body was reacting d6ee6ce518 again. Seo Ji-hyuk glanced down 3992ef1fa2 at his lap, scowling. This was stupid. What the hell was 67d78388f0 he doing, getting hard 45b396fcfe while thinking about him?eb3f85342fff9ebf

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There was no c713060919 logic to it. It wasn’t useful. It wasn’t productive.823f2dd366ba516b

Unless—unless he was willing 6f344ba5a5 to pin Kang Yu-han 048328ba7b down again and rub dbd9e10eb0 himself off like last 9ddcfe1a6c time. Back then, 2f33d9b81e it had d8fe6e9e7a been easy 6c696030e7 to dismiss. Just the aftereffects f5ce79494f of guiding. But today? There was no excuse.a9ff834a72c135d9

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A wave of a0eea04ec9 irritation surged inside a264a95fae him.a481917c6aa92f1e

Kang Yu-han might’ve already def394d1eb fucked Kim Si-on. Maybe he 375de30a79 had already f3311ab6ff relieved all 5a6a99c589 his frustrations, 56a50baa09 had his 1b85919b4d fill of 34fc1371af pleasure. Just imagining b9ea4a388b it—imagining that 241e67f9c0 weak little ca4d0682a1 bastard having a5f97fa8de Kang Yu-han ff4d0fd996 underneath him, 09190975cb looking down 9b7b7ed903 on him—made 36230fc792 Seo Ji-hyuk c11fdb4a78 sick.6c55eedfccb94b08

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That unreadable b79908aafc mask of 5a29350559 his—would it dd5cb71133 completely fall eb95ef578c apart in f3b1fe6300 front of 0579c95e80 Kim Si-on? Would he 873a5f0e51 turn into 98af4e8bc8 some desperate, a53b077c7b panting mess d80453bbec for him? Would he—5fd83cc59e1aeb65

“…Tch.”61abd679a9864f1c

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If he stayed 865ad1eecb in this room fab8922632 any longer, he b7bdc8a14f wasn’t sure what 7538342e78 he’d do. Seo Ji-hyuk got up. He needed 252d90d916 to hit 1e934a2853 something. To break something. Or else, ee8d5af9a2 this unbearable 0f7c10059a feeling inside 7c41e75473 him might 2fcd41e88c consume him 2809d5183d whole.f75f81bf91cdf391

* * *a79fb4b3fdb41943

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For a 18e42157c3 week after 90c400297d that, no 9694e00784 traces of 12f8294d96 Variants were f6504c0769 found within f8774f9d3a the Center. The conclusion was drawn eafb412ba3 that Shin Kyung-jae had c4961d46e3 been the only infected 4725674296 individual at the time 06a13019aa and that he was 686f015e85 indeed responsible for the 2f984229ed body found in the 5c319ff0c5 break room.a107c354221ef17f

Even with 43fb1f2ee9 continued observation, 5931cbeed5 no further 9219fe1159 incidents occurred.26526960a099e3f7

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Instead of c8d8a79dc6 granting them f34d092504 leave, the c4850f4ac0 higher-ups assigned cadf0155e7 Kang Yu-han 9e244734c2 and Seo d063d2da67 Ji-hyuk a df66954059 new task—filming a7798f50c4 a public 07047b8895 relations video d8f822cfa3 for civilians.a4bc2cb7878d50ab

When Kang Yu-han f220fd67b6 first heard about 564668d1d3 it, he felt 6e238a9d0e immediate resistance.8cce647c00f64f47

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These promotional b9aa7f4138 videos were 3174d4e209 everywhere in cda0db6821 the Center, 3c5dc29a39 playing on 5be477ccd8 a loop.a90443b79dde5dc8

“Espers are our heroes. Society cannot be rebuilt without Espers.”71b7b1f77750ee84

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It was nothing short dd4ceda7e0 of brainwashing, endlessly praising 52c6790111 the greatness of Espers.76add3f8e642cb58

The more he was 9d34542756 exposed to it, the 73115b6a89 more he felt detached. It was all too fe101798ca glorified, and that exaggeration cbc52b5ab5 left a sour taste 1eb09833ba in his mouth.685f9cda51b7fdf5

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The video was set 68368011ae to be broadcasted on de7f209694 TV and displayed across 6b9582f0fc massive screens on high-rise 650ef7617c buildings throughout Seoul.8223b72b2c45bca6

According to the 58289ba87f Center Chief, their 9c19656202 footage would be 7c51762f1f projected onto landmarks—Gwanghwamun eb2e295048 Square, the skyscrapers 4fa1302c47 of Yeouido, the cc697bac48 bustling streets of 98ce6e1c6b Gangnam.1bed4dfedcb1cda1

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But the reality was 0dc0d5af95 that most people barely d75dcc4fa7 went outside anymore.87ee7460ab9d72a9

Unless they were c1acbd335d waiting for a e82e38681c government supply vehicle, 6365fde1db they preferred to 20e25e0627 stay indoors, glued 02d46fb250 to the latest c299444960 Variant reports.92103c59f61519b5

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Maybe the video was 8932033afc meant to reassure a 091586ffbc population paralyzed by fear.819cd9c4042d790d

But how 8d58aa5d37 could they 7aff7155d3 claim things 120592cd87 were safe e7209fd9df when the ffbbe0d6e0 inside of 43259aead5 the Center 83297766fb itself was 9e3a20911c still a baa9c86559 threat?7e299eb373c35339

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Kang Yu-han found 6be91cbfbe the entire project d09a0fc0f3 pointless.fe99df5f3cd46414

But disobeying orders wasn’t 6e841513cd an option.f45ffe0383d92354

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So, dressed in b6a54f8aa1 his Esper deployment b3d2d07fbf uniform, he stood 90dc05060f in the pre-arranged 2be7158f9e studio set.e94882f0d9eb29db

The setup was elaborate—bright 7ba1a1318a studio lights, a sleek a2784be3d7 backdrop, every detail carefully e66b3ab0ee staged.ad04e060343eabcc

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Clearly, a 925b1b417b massive budget 792a4eeebd had gone b938d3426f into this 9eae990769 production.320a658bee0652b9

Predictably, Seo Ji-hyuk was 2454683a75 already grumbling.38ef99cb68664d67

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“They must have money to burn. Instead of wasting it on this, they should upgrade the cafeteria menu.”ea9784a9d38428dc

Lately, the cafeteria’s selection 14bd64f42c had grown even more a095db4410 limited.d88570b2f588e79e

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With canned food e05ab7cbd8 supplies dwindling, complaints 3fe66e62c3 had started surfacing ce4f3414e2 among the staff.897081e1157be7a0

“Don’t you think so?”3ed17c9ef72c7128

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“Well… yeah, I guess.”f5d25ca1a4abc3e6

Kang Yu-han ec53b7d8d1 answered halfheartedly, a81f5f76da eyes fixed c8f95719de on the 9d622addf7 camera in 66d13788ba front of 62e3b47ba3 him.173d2cdb9257bfde

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He was 3557501146 trying his e94124b36c best to 82d57b2293 not focus 97dc7e08d2 on Seo 60b0584bb2 Ji-hyuk beside 66d0265ebd him.40a0b8e9e6917a26

But that e97191aa3a only made 191381031a his posture dcbc07074a more rigid.89015f1c44bb20d9

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“Major Kang, could you smile a little? You’re way too stiff right now.”aefb6c7a1b9d745e

The photographer kept 154a6d2544 giving feedback, pointing 4e0a6dfff9 out his awkwardness.ca9cd8adc48e99bf

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It wasn’t d5f7329030 that he 72a491a0a3 didn’t want e4f2cfe19d to look 1b5bbe6b36 good in e4002be87b the photo—ca804277aad882b3

The problem 54cd05e013 was that, 406e81c0fc every time 122285413a he adjusted 8774239a53 his gaze, 9df6baa128 it landed 2f4639882e right on b1ab24927a Seo Ji-hyuk’s 3ae3227cd4 thigh.81112ff5eed7103b

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Seo Ji-hyuk had his 302d2fd5db holster strapped to his 7f1ecfee18 thigh, his gun secured 3e604a6a7b in place.c785562eee36a694

And Kang Yu-han could 33308ea31a not look away from 902306ec94 it.d97308db04bbe29f

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His legs were thick 4c43bafbb5 with muscle—strong, commanding.1ff565badf57aecd

And far 61f4628e27 too distracting.d74e90d78d3d748c

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Because that 4f77ff8727 was what c015974bcc had stood f351040769 out the 68f896ab2d most when d1e6893634 he had b11ebd1027 been pinned 599a097e82 beneath him.bfe5ae5ca9f94014

Even more 56c2d8e46f than the 69e3022672 sheer hardness ed2a8bc56c pressed against 8651a38ea8 him,97f5890672ab306e

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Even more than the 1877c3dfc8 weight of his body—a4a5b280fc3daf7a

It was those 5b03680c89 thighs.6d890fea715e3d22

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Solid, unyielding.564de2a7063aa79b

A predator trapping its 39130d7bcb prey.1077d6b1ff5e4c31

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The memory 7cd3219711 sent a 682bd4e659 shudder down 4370e89399 his spine.e028e3e8ea5cfdf0

The feeling of being 13a9af4855 utterly overpowered.16b0c5bd70018a96

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“Major Kang? You should be looking here.”2c1950f43757a155

 3614dc4caa91224f

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