Chapter 101

Yet Eui-rim could not reveal the source of his knowledge. He knew all too well the brutal systemic backlash that followed if he leaked locked timeline information.

“…Someday, the time will come when I understand you completely, Kang Eui-rim-ssi,” Hae-gun murmured.

Because Seo Hae-gun sensed that unbreachable wall, he let the inquiry fade with a soft, breathy murmur. Eui-rim gave a wordless nod as Hae-gun lightly brushed through his hair once more. For now, silence was the only answer he could offer.

After washing the cold sweat from his skin, Eui-rim stepped out of the bathroom to find every light in the penthouse extinguished. He peered through the dim living room before walking softly across the hardwood.

Did he already go to sleep? It sounded like he was on the phone with Na Yeojin when I stepped into the shower.

“I knew you’d do this. Why are you lying on the sofa again?”

The moment Eui-rim sank onto the cushions, having masked his presence as much as possible, a voice cut through the dark. Jolting upright, Eui-rim whipped his head toward the sound.

No one was here a second ago! When did he even slip out of the bedroom?

“Could you please make a little noise when you move around? My heart nearly jumped out of my chest.” Eui-rim clutched his collar, trying to catch his breath.

“You barely flinched, yet you whine just like Moonhyuk,” Hae-gun said with dry amusement.

Didn’t he see me bolt upright just now? I did my best to show I was startled, but I guess it wasn’t dramatic enough for him.

“Get inside, quickly. Before I hoist you over my shoulder.”

“Can’t I just sleep on the sofa?” Eui-rim pleaded.

Even if circumstance had forced them into the same bed last time, Eui-rim wanted to draw a firm boundary tonight. It wasn’t that he was particular about where he slept, but rather an instinctive warning that he must not grow comfortable with this intimacy.

Yet Seo Hae-gun had no intention of indulging his stubbornness. Closing the distance in a single stride, Hae-gun leaned over the back of the sofa, gazing down at him with an unyielding look.

“It bothers me to sense someone out in the living room.”

“Then even the storage room—”

“Stop talking nonsense and get up.”

Ugh. A sudden pinch to the tip of his nose drew an involuntary groan. Eui-rim gauged Seo Hae-gun’s expression, and seeing that the man truly seemed about to throw him over his shoulder, he immediately got up.

“Isn’t it uncomfortable for you?” Eui-rim asked hesitatingly.

As they stepped into the dim master bedroom, Seo Hae-gun turned back toward him from the edge of the mattress.

“What is?”

“Having me sleep right next to you.”

“Mmh. If you were as massive as Moonhyuk, it probably would be.”

The darkness was too deep to discern his expression, but Eui-rim was certain Hae-gun was wearing an amused smirk. Swallowing down a sigh, Eui-rim followed him toward the bed.

Last time, Eui-rim had been carried to the bed while unconscious; lying down beside him wide awake felt intensely surreal. How long had it been since he shared a bed with another living person? The last time he could recall was when Eui-jun had crept into his room after having nightmares about ghosts.

Was it because he was needlessly hyper-aware? Even the rustle of the linen sounded unnaturally loud. Carefully lifting the duvet and slipping beneath, the cool, silken texture of the sheets against his skin made him hold his breath.

Though Eui-rim had pressed himself toward the far edge of the king-sized mattress to leave ample space, a peculiar tension made it impossible to relax. He could feel the steady warmth of Seo Hae-gun’s presence through the shared blanket, making his own chest tighten.

“Anyone watching would think I was going to eat you alive,” Hae-gun’s low voice murmured from the dark. “Is it really that burdensome?”

As if finding the sight of Eui-rim lying curled up at the far edge of the bed amusing, a quiet chuckle sounded behind him.

Sure, laugh it up. Even I know I’m making a fuss. I don’t understand why I’m this tense either.

Clearing his throat with a small cough, Eui-rim steadied his voice. “It’s not that, it just feels a little strange.”

“What about it is strange?” Hae-gun asked.

“Lying side by side with someone else.”

At those words, Seo Hae-gun laughed again. He chuckled quietly to himself until the amusement subsided, his voice softening.

“Thanks to that, you won’t be thinking about your family. Since you only have to focus on me.”

“…”

Swooping in out of nowhere again.

Laughter proved contagious, drawing an involuntary, quiet chuckle from Eui-rim as well. He rubbed at his sore throat and grumbled, “If that’s the case, you should have just stayed out of it. Why jump into that muddy water yourself?”

Beyond not thinking about them, Eui-rim hadn’t had a spare moment to contemplate anything. Hae-gun was so adept at idle banter that Eui-rim had his hands full just keeping up.

Had he checked the scenes from his precognition alone, his mind surely would have been overflowing with thoughts. The fact that he had resolved to focus on what he could do right now was undoubtedly influenced by how casually Seo Hae-gun had brushed it off.

Glancing back, Eui-rim met Hae-gun’s gaze. Hae-gun was propped up on one elbow. With every slow blink, their eyes tangled more deeply, and the tension that had briefly scattered pooled back into Eui-rim’s stomach, tight and restless.

In a split second, Hae-gun reached out and pulled him in. Dragged clumsily across the mattress, Eui-rim ended up tucked against him, the sheets rustling loudly with the shift.

“You looked like you were going to fall off,” Hae-gun murmured.

“…Ah.”

“Sleep comfortably. You only get used to it quickly if you make a habit of it.”

Unable to voice his worry that he might actually get used to it, Eui-rim simply nodded, and the curve of Seo Hae-gun’s lips softened lazily. Watching him relax his posture and lie down properly, Eui-rim rested his head on the pillow a beat later.

Given how long the day had been, he thought he would drift off right away, but the thumping of his heart felt louder than usual, keeping his eyelids from closing easily. “…Seo Hae-gun-ssi. Are you asleep?”

“No.”

After tossing and turning for quite a while, Eui-rim cautiously broached the topic, and a subdued voice tickled his ear. Staring at the ceiling with dark-adapted eyes, Eui-rim continued, “There’s something I’d like to ask, if that’s alright.”

“Go on.”

“Back when we raided the Isolation Ward. How did you know the domain had been nullified?”

When Eui-rim had used the skill 〈Rewind〉 and everything connected to the shadow was forcibly pulled back, the dark boundary had dissolved completely. Eui-rim added in a calm voice, “The domain and the Fragment were linked. Once the Fragment was destroyed, the domain naturally vanished as well.”

But that was purely from Eui-rim’s perspective. Hae-gun shouldn’t have been able to see that notification, so Eui-rim had wondered all along how he had sensed the shift in that situation.

Furthermore, Seo Hae-gun had known that attacking would become possible once the domain was nullified. He had seemed fully aware that his own skills, which hadn’t worked properly until then, would affect the fragment the instant time rewound.

Hae-gun did not answer the question for quite some time. It was a silence hard to decipher—whether he was lost in thought trying to find an appropriate explanation, or simply unwilling to answer.

“It’s similar to when I found where Eui-rim-ssi was.”

After a long pause, a simple answer followed. Eui-rim turned his head to look at him.

“You mean you just… knew?”

“Mmh.” Hae-gun hummed low in his throat, pausing before adding, “I read through a notification window that Eui-rim-ssi used Rewind to nullify the domain. Some of the text was corrupted, so I couldn’t tell exactly what kind of domain it was, though.”

A notification window popped up for him?

Surprised by the unexpected answer, Eui-rim’s eyes widened, prompting a faint, crooked smile from Hae-gun. Looking up toward the ceiling as if recalling that day, Hae-gun elaborated.

“As for thinking my attack would work… I’m not sure. It was almost an instinctual realization.”

“…”

“Back then, all I thought was that I had to help Eui-rim-ssi. I was also certain that my attack would be quite effective.”

His gaze, which had briefly drifted through the empty air, returned to Eui-rim. Looking quietly into his eyes, Hae-gun soon covered Eui-rim’s eyes with his palm and whispered, “If Q&A time is over, go to sleep now. Stop thinking.”

“Wait, your hand is a bit—”

“You don’t like it?”

With his vision blocked, the voice felt even closer, sending a small tremor through him. Eui-rim hesitated before shaking his head. If he had to divide it in black and white, it wasn’t something he disliked.

As if pleased with his sudden docility, Hae-gun’s characteristic chuckle scattered alongside a soft sigh.

With Hae-gun’s warm palm still covering his eyes, Eui-rim closed them and slowly exhaled, matching the other’s steady breathing.

For quite some time. Until sleep finally claimed him.

Shaking off the lingering daze of sleep as he cracked his eyes open, unfamiliar nightstands and a clock came into view.

Not even seven in the morning yet. I woke up earlier than expected. How long has it been since I woke without an alarm? Sleeping like I’d passed out without even dreaming left me feeling refreshed.