Free Web NovelThe glass door soon opened, and the very person Yohan had been longing for stepped inside with confident strides. Yohan leapt to his feet and ran forward. The man bent his upper body with an open smile to make it easier to embrace, and Yohan threw himself into his arms.
“...I missed you.”
He felt embarrassed to admit he had missed someone after only a few days apart, so his voice came out muffled and low. But Lee Hyunmook hugged him tightly in return and answered:
“I missed you too, Yohan.”
Yohan had desperately wanted to see his face at least once before leaving the facility, and now he finally had. Hyunmook cupped Yohan’s face, gazed quietly down at him, and asked:
“Yohan, were you crying? Why? Did you... have an interview with Commissioner Kim Jongseok?”
His voice was soft, but there was a faintly chilling undertone. Yohan, however, too overjoyed just to see him, didn’t notice. Rubbing at the tear-stains around his eyes, he replied sheepishly: frёeωebɳovel.com
“He kept pushing me to sign a contract no matter how many times I refused. So I just cried like some spoiled kid. It’s embarrassing, but... it worked. I did good, right?”
Then he rested his cheek against Hyunmook’s chest with a sigh. Maybe it was because they’d been apart too long, or maybe because Hyunmook was so much older, but Yohan suddenly felt the urge to act spoiled. Hyunmook stroked his back gently and said:
“You did well. Shall we get you discharged now?”
Yohan’s head shot up, his face beaming. He hadn’t voiced it aloud, but he was sick to death of isolation. He pushed at Hyunmook’s side, eager to leave, until Hyunmook looked around the room and asked:
“Nothing you need to pack?”
“No!”
All he needed was his phone, which had already been returned. As they walked out, Yohan suddenly remembered something and blurted:
“Ah, they confiscated my weapon...!”
During the first contamination test, they had stripped him of all belongings along with his clothes. He hadn’t cared ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) about the clothes, but he had worried every night about the weapon—whether they would ever return it.
“Don’t worry. I kept it safe. Let’s go.”
At those words, Yohan’s face lit up, and he followed Hyunmook with light, triumphant steps. For his discharge, surprisingly, it wasn’t a regular Suppression Division soldier who escorted them, but Captain Jung Siyoung herself. Half from nervousness, half from fighting the instinctive urge to purify her, Yohan discreetly placed Hyunmook between them. Jung Siyoung’s curious gaze lingered on him.
In truth, it wasn’t just her. Some of the other Suppression Division members with accumulated contamination also tended to stare intently at Yohan. Even though he hid his ability as much as possible, it seemed they could instinctively sense someone who could erase their contamination. It only made Yohan’s feet feel heavier.
“Strength-enhancement type....”
Jung Siyoung murmured under her breath, making Yohan flinch. Hyunmook noticed and smiled faintly, shielding him more thoroughly. Raising her eyebrows, Jung Siyoung halted. They had reached the exit of the Rift Management Agency’s Special Quarantine Headquarters. Once outside, Yohan realized the building looked disturbingly like a prison.
“When will you return to duty?”
Her blunt question needed no clarification—everyone knew she was asking when Hyunmook would go back to fighting monsters. Her bloodshot eyes, worn from overwork, left Yohan unable to think she had no right to ask. Jung Siyoung was as much a hero of Korea as Hyunmook himself.
“For now, I plan to rest well.”
“When you say ‘rest well’... how long is that?”
“Well... at least a month?”
Her face darkened at “rest well,” and when he added “a month,” it sank into a full scowl. She glanced toward the military vehicle waiting nearby.
“I’ll take that as a joke. Do come back soon—and make a lot of money.”
With a nod, she strode back inside the Quarantine Headquarters. Only then did Yohan realize her residence had to be there, given her level of contamination. His heart ached with the urge to purify her. He was still watching her retreat with regret when Hyunmook tapped his cheek lightly, snapping him out of it.
“Everyone’s waiting. Let’s go?”
“Ah, yes!”
He hurried to open the waiting vehicle’s door. Inside, Lee Chanha and the others were already seated. Overjoyed, Yohan hopped in. After being isolated alone, it felt so good to be reunited. Seo Yakrin ruffled his shining head with a grin.
“Shall we have a celebration party for escaping the Abyss and your discharge?”
“A party? Really?”
“Come to think of it, Yohan, have you ever been to an office party? You’ve never had a job, right? Ever worked part-time?”
Yoon Seungryong’s question made Yohan smile awkwardly—he had never had a job or even a part-time one. Joo Hoyoung, looking just as excited as Yohan, shouted cheerfully:
“Let’s party! I wanna go to karaoke too!”
“Oh, karaoke sounds great! It’s been forever since I heard actual songs. I’ve forgotten all the ones I used to know.”
Seo Yakrin chimed in. Amidst the noisy chatter, the vehicle arrived at the Rift Management Agency gate. As the barrier lifted and the heavy iron doors swung open, a black swarm of people rushed them. Yohan gaped. Reporters flooded in like a swarm of bees, pounding on the vehicle and shouting.
“Lee Hyunmook! Lee Hyunmook! Are you inside?!”
“Is it true you’re too contaminated to continue working?!”
“Please roll the window down! Just one word!”
“Say something! Just one word!”
Even through the tinted glass, Yohan could see the constant blinding flashes of cameras. He nearly fainted, but the others burst out laughing.
“It’s been ages since we saw this.”
“Didn’t think we’d be happy to see reporters.”
“Look at Yohan’s face. Totally shocked. First time experiencing this?”
Dazed, Yohan nodded. The car couldn’t move forward, so the guards at the gate began shoving the reporters back with practiced ease. Though they screamed and jabbed fingers furiously, they couldn’t withstand Awakeners and were pushed away with no effect.
“Yohan will get used to this too.”
Half-stunned, Yohan only half-heard Lee Chanha’s words, still staring wide-eyed at the mob. One thing was clear: with this crowd, there would be no party or karaoke outing tonight.
* * *
Like a newcomer to Korea, Yohan gazed eagerly through the car window at the city outside. Just watching people living their ordinary lives on the streets brought tears to his eyes. Immersed in his emotions, he didn’t notice when the vehicle arrived at the entrance of a mansion.
The reporters who had chased them so doggedly were stopped at the gate. Passing leisurely inside, Yohan climbed out in the underground parking lot, confused.
“Where are we?”
Joo Hoyoung answered with a booming laugh, bouncing on his light steps:
“Our team leader’s house!”
At the words “Hyunmook’s house,” Yohan’s eyes went wide with excitement. Yoon Seungryong thanked the Suppression Division soldier who had driven them. The man nodded and walked toward the mansion gate, where he took up position. Clearly, he was assigned as a guard. Yohan could sense other watchers stationed around the building as well.
“Strictly speaking, it’s a guild headquarters, provided for members to use comfortably. The top floor’s the team leader’s residence, and below are spaces for members. I didn’t live here before, but the house I used to live in vanished while I was gone. Same for Hoyoung.”
They boarded the elevator as Yoon Seungryong explained casually. Yohan remembered seeing reports in the news: when someone went missing in the Abyss or rifts, they were usually declared dead, and their families liquidated their assets. That must have been what happened to these two. After all, they’d been missing for three years.
Yet both wore indifferent faces. Whether from practiced control over their emotions or simply from so many long years in the Abyss, neither showed any sign of longing for family. When the elevator reached the top floor and the doors opened, a voice cried out:
“Hyunmook!”
A middle-aged woman, pacing anxiously, shouted his name and rushed forward. Breathless, she collapsed into sobs as Hyunmook caught and supported her.
“Thank God, thank God.... Are you hurt? Are you contaminated...?”
“I’m fine. Look—my arms and legs are all intact. Perfectly normal.”
“Your hair’s gone so white.... No, never mind! As long as you’re alive, that’s all that matters. I prayed so much.... Oh, thank you, thank you for coming back alive....”
“Yeah. You worried a lot, didn’t you. ...I’m sorry.”
Yohan stared wide-eyed. Hyunmook’s voice was calm and gentle as he held the woman trembling with emotion. They were so close, so intimate, that Yohan’s gaze flickered with confusion until it landed on Yoon Seungryong, who mouthed quietly:
“Team leader’s older sister.”
“Ah...!”
No wonder she looked familiar—her face resembled Hyunmook’s so much. Yohan realized he had seen her in the news before, giving statements as the director of a hospital about the condition of hospitalized Awakeners. He finally recalled her name: Lee Hyunmyung. A name that, without question, marked her as Hyunmook’s sibling.
