Free Web NovelThe sensation of the pain fading instantly felt far more welcome than the fact that my body was actually healing.
“Hah....”
A groan slipped out on its own. Panting, I followed Do Yehyun with my eyes. I saw him, expressionless, lower his hand and grab hold of my shoulder.
“...Hyung.”
When I tried to lift myself up at his voice, I was immediately stopped. Do Yehyun pressed down on my shoulder with some force and spoke in a quiet tone.
“You’re badly hurt.”
He stated it calmly. Maybe because my condition was so serious, but Do Yehyun’s tension felt unusually subdued compared to his normal self.
After staring at me for a moment, Do Yehyun lowered the hand that had been gripping my shoulder and began to carefully trace over my wounds. Each time he touched an injured area, the dizzying pain flared up—then settled almost immediately, over and over.
‘His skill feels like it’s improved.’
Could it really increase this much in such a short time?
I searched my memory for the last time I’d been treated by Do Yehyun, but no particular moment came to mind. ƒгeewёbnovel.com
Do Yehyun’s expression gradually hardened as he continued healing, then he suddenly opened his mouth.
“I’m here now... so it’s okay.”
He wasn’t wrong. I’d never put this kind of trust in Do Yehyun before, but the moment I saw his face just now, I’d even felt like smiling.
Do Yehyun traced around my ribcage area, then met my eyes.
“Your condition is really bad.”
“Yeah. I know.”
Still, it was definitely much better than a moment ago. Just earlier I couldn’t even answer properly. Now I could at least get my voice out.
I turned my head and spat out the blood that had pooled in my mouth. Do Yehyun’s hand, which had been touching my wounds, flinched and trembled.
“...Does it hurt?”
“Feels like I’m going to die.”
It wasn’t an exaggeration. If Do Yehyun hadn’t arrived with perfect timing, I definitely would’ve died—whether from shock, blood loss, or at Ahn Jinha’s hands.
“You look like you’re in pain.”
“Mmm.”
Obviously.
I’d already been vomiting blood, so from my mouth to my chin was probably a complete mess. On top of that, thanks to the blood Gi Cheongmin had spilled when he died, my vision was trashed too. I must’ve looked like I’d washed my face in blood, so I didn’t even feel like asking.
Do Yehyun wiped at my mouth with his hand. Blood fell to the ground with soft splattering sounds.
“...You’re really hurt.”
He whispered it again, then added the same thing once more.
“But since I’m here... you won’t die.”
“......”
“If I’d been even a little later, hyung, you would’ve died.”
“......”
“I saved you.”
Everything he said was true. The strange part was that it felt like Do Yehyun was issuing a warning.
When I blinked, his hand moved up to my eyes this time. He rubbed away the blood with his thumb and looked straight at me, his face calm.
“Are you grateful?”
Thinking that was the response he wanted, I forced my voice out.
“...Thanks.”
Do Yehyun lifted one corner of his mouth slightly.
“...That’s not what I wanted to hear.”
“Then what?”
“.......”
Smiling, Do Yehyun didn’t answer and continued healing my wounds.
“Haa....”
The sensation of the areas that had been burning hot and freezing cold healing all at once, new flesh filling in, was sickeningly satisfying. And by now, I was sure of it.
‘This isn’t just better... it’s absurdly better.’
I knew he’d been busy running around the guild, but this didn’t feel like the result of simple effort.
Then Do Yehyun, who’d been silent for a while, quietly asked,
“I think I should check something....”
“.......”
“Is it okay if I take your top off?”
“Go ahead.”
After meeting my gaze briefly, Do Yehyun lowered his hands and pulled part of my clothes away. Of course, after rolling around like this, my clothes were already half in tatters, so rather than taking them off, it was closer to tearing them open to expose the wounds.
“It’s torn here.”
There wasn’t any particular emotion in Do Yehyun’s voice as he reported the situation. His hand, already smeared with blood from wiping my face, brushed over my chest.
“I know.”
“And right now... it’s fine.”
“Yeah. Seems like it.”
Do Yehyun briefly touched the protective gear, then moved his hand to the arm beneath it.
“Hyung.”
“What?”
“There’s something on your arm.”
“What?”
When I lifted my arm, I saw a faint mark left behind.
“A scar?”
But it wasn’t possible for a scar that hadn’t existed before to just suddenly appear. As I tried to sit up a little to look more closely, Do Yehyun hurriedly stopped me.
“I didn’t see it properly.”
“I know what it is.”
“What?”
What kind of nonsense was this? He knew about some mark I didn’t even know about?
Do Yehyun silently stared at the mark for a moment, then slowly nodded.
“You had it before, hyung. It started on your arm... and went up to your cheek. Back when we almost died because of the lava.”
That immediately brought back the memory. The day we nearly died with lava right in front of us, making a whole dramatic scene—then my freezing skill got exposed right in front of Do Yehyun.
When I absentmindedly reached up to touch my cheek, Do Yehyun shook his head.
“It’s only on your arm. And it looks like it’s disappearing.”
“.......”
It was strange. Ever since I’d put on the protective gear, the thing on my palm hadn’t acted up even once. For a mark to appear again meant...
Just in case, I asked,
“Does it continue over the protective gear too?”
At that, Do Yehyun quickly checked the mark.
“No. It’s not.”
“Good.”
I recalled what had just happened.
‘Does it come out on its own when my life’s in danger? Even with the protective gear on?’
With most of the pain gone, I could faintly feel a pulsing sensation in my hand.
“...The healing is almost done. But I think you should still drink the potions I brought.”
A moment later, Do Yehyun helped me up as he spoke. I obediently sat up, took the potions, and quickly downed two bottles.
After drinking one to replenish mana as well, strength returned to my body that had been chilled to the bone.
‘Now I’m finally thinking clearly.’
With my condition pulled back up from rock bottom, I finally had room to ask the questions I’d been putting off. Only then did I look at Do Yehyun and ask,
“Can you explain what the hell happened?”
“It’s probably going to be a long story.”
As he said that, Do Yehyun turned his gaze toward the two corpses sprawled on the floor.
“Gi Cheongmin... you killed him, right?”
“Yeah. I almost died because of him, but either way.”
“.......”
“That was the plan, remember.”
I went to run my hand through my hair without thinking, then noticed it was covered in blood and roughly wiped it off on my clothes.
Feeling someone staring at me, I lifted my head and met Do Yehyun’s eyes directly.
As I quietly looked at him, I felt a peculiar sense of dissonance. Could someone’s overall atmosphere really change this much in such a short time?
‘Hard to put my finger on it.’
Maybe he just seemed calmer. Hard to say if it was because he’d also gone through a near-death experience.
I lowered my gaze to Ahn Jinha’s outstretched body and kicked him around the shoulder.
The back of his head, completely crushed and exposed, came into view.
“Hit him from behind.”
“The situation was... it was urgent.”
“Good job.”
“.......”
I had asked Do Yehyun to kill someone before—but I never thought he’d actually go through with it. Seeing the scene with my own eyes made me laugh without thinking.
“Haha....”
“.......”
“I didn’t expect you to really kill him.”
And to do it by smashing the back of his head, when he didn’t even have a skill for killing people. No matter how desperate the situation was, I’d never thought Do Yehyun could pull something like this off, so the situation itself felt surreal.
I roughly tore a strip from my shredded clothes and wiped the blood off from my forehead down to my chin, then strode over toward Do Yehyun. He’d been gripping my wounds and wiping blood off my face just moments ago, so there was still some blood on his face as well.
I reached out to wipe the blood from Do Yehyun’s cheek and jaw, but it just smeared and spread instead of coming off. When my hand moved up near his eyes, Do Yehyun flinched and lightly closed them. I paused to look at him for a moment, then moved my thumb to wipe away the blood splattered just beneath his eye.
“Yehyun.”
“...Yes.”
“Thanks for saving me.”
When I whispered it, Do Yehyun’s head ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ slowly lifted. His closed eyes opened, and our gazes met.
“Yes.”
He answered briefly and let a faint smile curl his lips.
I had no idea what kind of change he’d gone through to become a completely different person in just a few hours—but it didn’t matter.
‘Saving me is enough.’
I had no reason to dislike the fact that my healer hadn’t died and had made it here to save me.
What was I supposed to feel looking at the corpses on the floor? Guilt? I’d almost died myself just moments ago—there was no way I’d feel something like that.
‘Then what about Do Yehyun?’
The fact that Do Yehyun held loyalty—and affection—toward me was undeniable. The corpse of Ahn Jinha lying on the floor was proof enough.
I quietly watched Do Yehyun and returned his smile.
“Ahn Jinha said he’d... kill me. Since I was going to die anyway, he said he’d cut my life short a little sooner. Said it’d hurt less.”
“.......”
“I thought the guy was completely insane, but... maybe that was kindness, in its own way?”
“.......”
“If I’d talked him into it, I might not have had to kill Ahn Jinha. If he hadn’t intended to kill me, that is.”
Of course, that was probably more consideration than Do Yehyun could’ve afforded at the time.
What I was really curious about was Do Yehyun’s thoughts after hearing all that. No—more precisely, how he felt right now.
I looked at Do Yehyun quietly and asked,
“How about you?”
At that, Do Yehyun lowered his gaze as if thinking for a moment, then let out a small laugh.
“I don’t know.”
“Yeah?”
The way he answered made it clear that wasn’t true at all, and it made me smile back. I cupped Do Yehyun’s cheek, pulling him closer and tilting his head slightly back.
“No.”
“.......”
Ah. I hadn’t planned to make him like this from the start.
I moved the hand that had been on his cheek down to his neck and lightly kneaded the nape. As my thumb slowly traced over it, I could feel the strong flow of blood coursing just beneath a thin layer of skin.
This was a feeling I knew well. Clear excitement, satisfaction—or relief. Beneath it all was affection. Almost blindly dog-like devotion.
“Right now you’re feeling really... good.”
With that, I pressed my lips to Do Yehyun’s after a long while.
A breath slipped out naturally through our parted lips. There were still wounds inside my mouth, so every time I moved my tongue, the taste of blood filled it thickly. Do Yehyun must’ve felt it too, because even as he moved his tongue, his body kept twitching.
After lightly sweeping his mouth and pulling away, Do Yehyun’s gaze came straight into view. His lips, parted and wet with saliva, closed and opened a few times before he answered softly,
“...I think you’re right.”
