# Side Story 5
Daily life was still imperfect. At a glance, it seemed peaceful, but occasionally anxiety would spread quickly through the slightest crack. It was the same now.
Kay reached out to take a plate, but his hand slipped. The plate instantly escaped from his grip. He hurried to catch it, but the sharp shattering sound came first.
CRASH—
Since it fell near his feet, fragments pierced into his foot. Kay moved his body, awakened by the stinging pain.
“…Ah.”
He tried to hurry and clean it up, but Haylen quickly stopped Kay.
“I’ll clean it up.”
Haylen’s gaze, which had been thoroughly examining Kay’s body, shifted to his foot where blood was beginning to flow. He frowned slightly and lifted Kay in his arms.
After placing Kay on the sofa, Haylen took tweezers from the first aid kit and began removing the pieces embedded in his foot.
“If you stay still—”
“It’ll heal with the fragments still in it, right?”
Kay’s mouth closed gently. Indeed, it was as he said. The wound was actually disappearing, but the fragments hadn’t come out. Although the wound had healed, pain surged as Haylen dug in to remove the broken pieces.
Haylen quickly removed the remaining fragments after noticing Kay’s slightly pained expression. Only after wiping away all the blood did Haylen stand up.
“…Will you continue cooking?”
Cooking involved using fire and knives, so injuries like this could happen frequently. Haylen was probably worried about that. Kay stared at Haylen.
“Are you anxious?”
“Half and half… I suppose.”
Haylen looked at the broken plate and expressed his honest feelings.
“If you died now, it would be good to die when you’re happy, but that would also mean this happiness ends, which makes me sad.”
Haylen took Kay’s hand and spoke lightly, but the weight of his words was anything but light.
“If Haylen wants, I’ll stop.”
It might be better to quit rather than continue causing such worry. After all, Haylen was already skilled at cooking, so there was no particular need for Kay to do it.
Kay spoke as if he would quit immediately, but Haylen shook his head firmly. It was a resolute action, as if that wasn’t what he had meant.
“…No. Please continue.”
“Why?”
“Because this is something we need to overcome. We can’t keep avoiding it forever.”
Every time Kay got hurt, his lifespan shortened. That’s why, every time Kay was injured, Haylen couldn’t help but think about the time they had left. It was like an inescapable shackle.
At first, Haylen had been happy just to be able to die with Kay, but now he wanted to maintain this tranquility for as long as possible. But for that to happen, Kay needed to avoid getting hurt.
However, that was extremely difficult to achieve. Kay wouldn’t want a daily life filled with anxiety about when he might get hurt. That’s why they couldn’t keep avoiding it like this.
“Can we… overcome it?”
Haylen hesitated momentarily at Kay’s uncertainty. Haylen also empathized with his concerns. So it was difficult to be certain about the future. But he wanted to gradually get better. He wanted to focus on the present without worrying about the remaining lifespan.
“We can. As long as you stay by my side.”
For that, Kay was absolutely necessary. If he would say that he’d stay by his side for life, then this worry would gradually fade.
“Is that so…”
Kay quietly looked at Haylen, who was smiling brightly. Encouraged by his words, Kay unconsciously began to think he could change. Even if he got injured, he could focus only on the injury like normal people, that kind of daily life.
* * *
Alex arranged a meeting with Ben, who had wanted to see him. What he heard there was unexpected.
“You’re making a request?”
The director of Peace making a request to their organization. What could this be about? Alex watched him carefully. Ben handed over documents across the table.
“I’m trying to establish a facility to protect superhumans. So I’d like to ask for ‘Alice’s’ help.”
A facility to protect superhumans. Certainly, there was no such institution yet. After all, in the public eye, superhumans were seen as beings to be guarded against rather than protected.
Moreover, since most villains were superhumans, society would strongly oppose it. Those who had been harmed by villains would likely disapprove of protecting superhumans.
Alex began to skim through the contents of the documents. He himself had long thought it would be good to have such a facility. Though he had eventually given up due to the low feasibility.
But Ben was the director of Peace. It might be possible for him to create such a facility.
“I think we could help with this much…”
From a quick glance, there wasn’t anything particularly problematic in the documents. He would need to discuss it with the other executives, but all the organization would need to do was find victims and hand them over.
Most of those receiving protection would likely be unable to live normal lives. If so, it would be faster to find them in the shadows rather than in the light. The shadows were ‘Alice’s’ territory. That’s probably why Ben had made this request to him.
“Is there a problem?”
“I’m a bit concerned about the compensation.”
“If you want, I can increase it.”
Alex immediately waved his hand at Ben’s simple response. That wasn’t what he meant.
“No. I’d rather not accept any payment.”
“But that would be a loss for you, wouldn’t it?”
Ben frowned as if he couldn’t understand Alex’s intention. It wasn’t that Alex didn’t need money at all. He was thinking of receiving compensation in another form.
“We’re actually looking for new members for our organization.”
“…Do you mean you want to take people from the facility?”
“If you’ll allow it.”
Since it was a superhuman protection facility, there might be potential organization members there. After he became Boss, several positions had opened up in the organization. Recruiting members was important since those positions hadn’t been filled yet.
“I can’t send them without their consent.”
“I intend to ask for their clear consent.”
It wasn’t something that could be done by force anyway. Ben, who had seemed full of opposition, appeared to change his mind after hearing Alex’s words, and after consideration, he finally nodded.
“…Alright, for now.”
“You’re giving permission so easily?”
No matter how friendly their relationship was, ‘Alice’ was still a villain organization. It wouldn’t be prudent to easily trust the boss of such an organization. Alex began to carefully consider the reason.
“If they want to go, I have no reason to object. I’ll create the positions.”
“Then we’ll also cooperate actively. Let’s discuss the details once the facility is established.”
The reason was simpler than expected. Among those at the facility, some would find it difficult to properly function in society. If they couldn’t live normally, perhaps Ben judged that letting the organization take them was one option.
Alex nodded and, as if suddenly remembering, brought up another point.
“Oh, by the way, I heard that many of the former test subjects have recovered significantly.”
He knew this thanks to communication from Kane. It was an impressively fast recovery. The side effects might not completely disappear, but being able to walk and talk was already miraculous.
“Yes, thanks to Kane-ssi’s hard work, they’re improving faster than expected.”
Kane must have a strong sense of responsibility, as he worked harder than anyone. Thanks to his efforts, many former test subjects were able to recover at a rapid pace. Alex had heard this from Kane as well, and he was glad that things were going well.
“If any of them need jobs, please let me know.”
“You want to accept them as organization members too?”
“We’re facing a severe labor shortage these days.”
It wasn’t a form of volunteering for job creation. But he could assign work based on their individual abilities. After all, the direction he had in mind for ‘Alice’ was to solve these kinds of problems.
If left as is, even with treatment, they would still have to live in suffering. Even with Peace’s support, there would be limitations, so working together temporarily was for their benefit.
“Understood.”
Ben did not refuse, recognizing that Alex’s offer was close to genuine goodwill. Now Ben could finally understand how Kay could maintain such an upright character despite being a villain.
It was a moment when his definition of a villain was changing.
* * *
Right now, Kay was in a very awkward situation. He slightly averted his gaze from Haylen’s expectant stare.
“Haylen, do I really have to do this?”
He could accommodate most requests, but this was just too embarrassing no matter how he thought about it. But Haylen seemed unwilling to back down, blinking pitifully.
“It’s not a demand, but I’d really like it if you did.”
What was this that Haylen wanted so badly? Finally, Kay nodded as if conceding defeat.
“…Just for today, right?”
“Of course.”
As Kay was about to enter the room to prepare, Haylen added:
“Ah, can I take a photo?”
“…Do as you please.”
Kay couldn’t understand why Haylen was so excited, but he had promised, so he had to do it. Entering the room, Kay slowly exhaled. What Haylen had asked for was simple, in a way.
“A wolf form…”
In the field, he transformed all the time, so it should be nothing unusual. But in front of Haylen, he just couldn’t find the courage to change.
Kay suppressed his reluctance and focused energy throughout his body. He felt his body gradually changing according to his will.
His field of vision lowered, and his sense of smell and hearing became more acute. His hands had already transformed into a wolf’s front paws with sharp claws.
Thinking he had completely changed into a wolf, Kay walked to the door. Opening the door had never felt so difficult before.
