# Chapter 199
As Iyeon came out after showering, he heard a loud noise from the kitchen. With a towel around his neck, he approached there as if entranced.
It wasn’t an exaggeration—he was genuinely starving. Having gone a full 12 hours on an empty stomach, his stomach felt like it was sticking to his back. The savory smell that was gradually spreading was enough to stimulate Iyeon.
“What is this? Soy sauce rice?”
“You’ll die if you drip water from your hair.”
Intimidated by the fierce warning, Iyeon quietly pressed his hair with the end of the towel. His stomach growled. Ah… Iyeon awkwardly rubbed his stomach and stepped back half a step.
Sensing his movement, Sano glanced to the side while flipping the fried egg, and slightly furrowed his eyes.
“What’s that?”
“Huh?”
His gaze fell on the forearm exposed below the short-sleeved T-shirt. There was a bright red laceration on the white skin.
“Oh, this… I made a mistake during the battle with Dumugwi earlier.”
“Fortunately, you didn’t die by mistake.”
Sano said sarcastically as he lifted the frying pan and placed three fried eggs each on two bowls of rice. He put the frying pan in the sink. After naturally turning on the water and washing his hands, he turned around, and somehow a metal strand had emerged from the floor behind them, dangling a first aid kit. One held the first aid kit, while the other large hand that gripped Iyeon’s wrist had moisture on it.
The action of trying to treat him as if it were natural amplified Iyeon’s internal sense of intimacy. It seemed like if he asked now, Sano would answer.
“Actually, I’ve been wondering about something.”
At this casually tossed question, Sano maintained silence as if telling him to speak. Iyeon promptly opened his mouth.
“About Dumugwi, why did you go to catch it? I thought you didn’t do those long-term missions.”
“If it takes less than half a day to complete, it’s usually called a short-term mission.”
“No, that’s… only because I went.”
As he spoke, he felt a bit embarrassed that it sounded like self-praise, but since it was true, Iyeon firmly finished his statement. Sano glanced at Iyeon’s slightly reddening ears. The ever-changing white skin was one of the things that fascinated him.
“It was a family composition I’d seen somewhere.”
“Huh? Seen where…”
“And the stupid things you say are also similar.”
Normally, it would have been someone else’s situation that he wouldn’t care about. What could he do about someone who deliberately went where they were told not to go and got into danger? Since they didn’t die but merely fell into water and got out, there wasn’t much of a problem in the end.
If the face murmuring that it was all his fault hadn’t been so vivid, he would have just let other hunters handle it.
“But at least they weren’t hurt.”
However, as always, that clarity never faded.
“I don’t understand why you keep getting hurt at every opportunity.”
“…When did I ever get hurt that much…”
Iyeon grumbled weakly, but Sano was merciless. His cold voice flowed steadily.
“Getting stabbed by Kim Cheoljae.”
“No, that was.”
“Getting betrayed with your eyes wide open at Cho Jeonryeok.”
“…That.”
“Not even able to walk properly, rolling down a mountain and spraining your ankle. Climbing back onto Lee Taejin’s experiment table on your own feet to find a kid. Crawling into Dabalsin and getting trapped in a nightmare. Should I continue if you don’t remember?”
Listed like that, there was nothing to say. Well, there was nothing to say, but there were plausible reasons each time… Though his mouth remained shut, Sano saw through his still rebellious gaze and delivered the finishing blow.
“Looking at you, I think it’s not just about the strength of one’s ability.”
“Hey, want to fight?”
“Or get promoted.”
Ignoring Iyeon’s angry challenge lightly, Sano opened the first aid kit. His hands searching through the box for medicine and gauze were quite natural.
While speaking indifferently, Sano briefly dried his hands on the towel Iyeon was holding, careful not to let water touch the wound. His touch applying the antiseptic was unhesitating, as if he knew that it hurt less if done quickly in one go. Iyeon quietly endured the stinging pain in his forearm while blankly staring at Sano’s lowered eyelashes as he focused on Iyeon’s wound.
“Would you like me to get promoted?”
It wasn’t the first time Sano had spoken like this. Come to think of it, even before Iyeon confessed his identity, Sano had subtly hinted at it, and after the confession, he urged it explicitly. Each time, Iyeon had changed the subject, but…
“Rather, I don’t understand why you don’t.”
Sano’s tone genuinely indicated he didn’t understand. Iyeon awkwardly scratched his cheek.
“Well, you know, you’re involved in it, and Lee Taejin is involved, and the terrain configuration function is involved too. It’s much better to keep it hidden.”
To get promoted, he would have to confess that he had taken the previous assessment under false pretenses, and a hearing would be held to determine the truth. There, he would have to speak honestly about everything.
What Lee Taejin did, the connection with Je Sano, the actions Jung Iyeon took in the past. Those were necessary to explain why Iyeon had hidden his ability.
If a new Tier 5 appeared, especially if it was originally a Tier 2 hunter who changed to Tier 5 after reassessment, people’s attention would also be focused on him. The content of the hearing would gradually become known to the public.
If that happened, the terrain configuration function would be completely discarded. After all, the government, which so strongly condemned illegal superpower experiments, couldn’t knowingly use a product of those experiments.
It was also too obvious that the fact that Sano was a former test subject would become scandalous. The public had a tendency to want to pull down admired figures if they weren’t perfect, and Sano had been established as a flawless hero for too long.
“Jung Iyeon.”
“Yes?”
“You still see me as an idiot.”
Sano raised his head. His cool gaze stared directly at Iyeon. It felt like being stripped naked and having his insides exposed. Iyeon stared back at him, then suddenly raised the corner of his mouth.
“Do you not like me if I’m not Tier 5?”
Sano’s eyebrows slowly contorted. With a face that looked like he was dying of irritation, Sano growled.
“Why do you talk like that? Do you want to die?”
“It was a joke. Hey, why are you so angry?”
“If you talk nonsense one more time, I won’t let it slide.”
His tone seemed annoyed enough to turn and leave right away, but the hands treating Iyeon’s arm didn’t stop. Soon, white gauze meticulously covered the wound. The burning pain gradually subsided.
“Thanks.”
While Iyeon was examining his arm, Sano placed two bowls of slightly cooled rice on the table. His sullen gaze hadn’t settled.
“You think too much.”
“Huh? What?”
“I wish I could take the brain out of your skull, wash it clean, and put only me in it.”
“Hey, that’s a bit cruel…”
“Just eat your food.”
Sano picked up his spoon as if there was nothing more to say. This guy and his temper. Iyeon grumbled but followed suit and picked up his chopsticks. It was because his growling stomach was asserting itself.
Though Je Sano’s cooking was always good, dinner was especially delicious. In fact, soy sauce rice wasn’t a dish Sano particularly liked—he once asked if it had any proper nutrition in it—but Iyeon, a slave to sodium, enjoyed it. It was also easy to make… Sano’s expression changed to somewhat displeased as he watched Iyeon eagerly eating his rice, but he managed to hold back his words.
Come to think of it, this guy Je Sano doesn’t seem like he ever learned to cook separately, but he’s strangely good at it. Especially the ratio of soy sauce, sesame oil, and sesame seeds was fantastic. Not to mention the taste of the glossy fried eggs… After a satisfying meal, the two had a brief trivial conversation for digestion and soon went to the bedroom and lay down side by side.
As soon as he laid his back on the soft mattress, the energy that had been depleted from moving around all day rushed in as fatigue along with the sense of fullness. Just as Iyeon was about to close his eyes contentedly, his collar was suddenly grabbed.
“…Whaaaat.”
Iyeon’s voice had already grown lazy. The hand gripping his T-shirt wasn’t using much force, but it wasn’t playful enough to ignore and fall asleep. The culprit was, needless to say, Sano beside him.
“Don’t be distant.”
“Huhh?”
“We’re dating.”
…Am I so sleepy that I can’t understand what he’s saying? While Iyeon narrowed his brow thinking this, his body was suddenly pulled. As always—perhaps even more easily than usual—Iyeon’s body, which was drawn along, pressed close to Sano. Sano, who had lightly embraced Iyeon, finally closed his eyes. The firm chest felt through the soft fabric touched Iyeon’s cheek.
“…Isn’t this e-excessive? We’ve been dating for less than a day, and such unnatural skinship…”
“What’s excessive about it.”
Interrupting Iyeon’s stammering words, Sano slightly moved the arm wrapping around Iyeon. The arm that had slowly stroked his back firmly encircled his waist. A fierce murmur touched the crown of his head.
“I’m being lenient.”
“…”
Whatever it was, it felt like he would lose if he continued the conversation any further. Iyeon deliberately closed his eyes. Fortunately, his exhausted body could quickly let go of consciousness. The sound of a heartbeat—he couldn’t tell whose—patted Iyeon like a lullaby.
It was a warm dawn.
