It was an answer far too insufficient to understand, but even waiting, there was no further explanation. Evil’s short patience exploded.
“Hey, don’t pack anything for that bastard! From now on, wherever he eats, absolutely don’t pack anything. Got it? A refugee acting so arrogant!”
“Yes… Director.”
James, who had been quiet to avoid catching flak, once again received an order he wanted to defy but found hard to defy. He looked resentfully at Cheche, but Cheche was just expressionless as if it had nothing to do with him.
Cheche made Evil speak twice and made him explain the meaning of the word satiety. Evil got angry but didn’t drive Cheche away. Everyone was secretly shocked by this situation without showing it, but only Cheche himself didn’t know he’d just received special treatment.
It wasn’t only Cheche who didn’t know he’d received special treatment. Evil, who clearly didn’t realize his own actions just now, took out the medicine bag.
“…Why am I doing this for something like this…”
Evil stuck out his lips and threw the medicine bag onto the table with a face full of resentment. When Cheche showed no intention of picking up the medicine that fell right in front of him, Evil looked toward the window and said bluntly,
“Eat it. Don’t spread your cold and cause trouble.”
“Me?”
“Yeah, who else here has a cold besides you? Why do you keep asking when you already heard everything? Is your comprehension lacking? You’re getting more ignorant because you don’t eat.”
Cheche slowly picked up the medicine bag. It contained medicine for all kinds of symptoms from coughing and sneezing to chills and body aches. Cheche quietly looked down at the bag.
“I’m sorry, Director.”
“For what! For what why again! Do you not want to take cold medicine either? Pack it to go?”
“For catching a cold… I’m sorry. For being a burden.”
“Ah, damn it!”
Evil, who hadn’t expected an apology, threw a fit. He stood up abruptly and looked down at the small Cheche with his imposing, large frame. Everyone worried a violent incident might occur, but no such thing happened.
“……”
Evil had to quietly sit back down. It was just cold medicine, but to Cheche, it didn’t seem to be just cold medicine. Those weren’t the usual indifferent eyes he’d always seen—deep emotions were rippling. Emotions thick enough for Evil to perceive… regret, remorse and sorrow, distant anguish, bottomless loneliness.
‘What. Did someone die from taking cold medicine wrong or something.’
Evil, muttering inwardly, thought that perhaps around Cheche there really was someone who died from not being able to take cold medicine.
Evil, an SSS Soul Aura User, had felt countless people’s emotions until now. If he could, he wished to stop reading them even if it meant crushing his brain. But now he was grateful for this ability and rather felt it was insufficient.
He wanted to know what that small head was thinking. More precisely… he wanted to know what emotions were raging behind that indifferent face that hid everything as if nothing had happened.
***
After lunch ended, they got into the actual business discussion. The executives took jewelry from their cases and displayed them on the table. There were three types—red, gold, and blue light—all round in shape. The sizes varied: the red light was the largest, about the size of an adult’s face; the gold was about the size of a child’s face; and the blue was about the size of an adult’s fist.
‘Luzem’ was a gemstone that could contain the illusions of Aura Users inside, and So&So wanted to obtain ‘Holiagem’ crafted by renowned users from the Aura User Center. The government and User Center had already made an agreement on which users would craft the illusions, but it hadn’t been decided yet which gemstones to craft on, so they came to coordinate today.
While the User Center’s practical team and So&So’s executives were meeting, Cheche sat quietly looking at the jewelry cases on the table. Inside the cases were many gemstones the executives hadn’t taken out. Beautiful, sparkling gemstones about the size of fists.
Evil, who was paying extreme attention to Cheche, noticed that gaze.
“What. First time seeing Luzem?”
“Yes, first time.”
Gemstones that preserve illusion techniques were rare and very expensive. The raw stones themselves were precious, Luzem even more precious, and Holiagem was literally a treasure. In war-torn countries, these were priceless gemstones beyond dreams.
“Is this called Luzem?”
Strictly speaking, these were in raw stone state and not yet Luzem. These gemstones were divided into three names according to processing stage: unprocessed ‘raw stone,’ ‘Luzem’ processed to preserve illusion techniques, and ‘Holiagem’ with crafted illusion techniques.
But generally, they were all called Luzem without distinction. Evil, finding explanation bothersome, roughly nodded.
“Want to have one?”
“If I can have it.”
At the answer without a moment’s hesitation, Evil let out a deflated laugh.
“Shameless bastard. Do you know how much one of these costs?”
“For this size, I know it’s about two to three million Daal.”
Evil was briefly surprised that he knew the market price accurately while not even distinguishing Luzem, but soon scrunched up his expression.
“You money-obsessed bastard, if you get this, you’re going to sell it, right? Sell it to bring out Tar…”
“……”
“Tar…”
You’re going to bring out Tar refugees, right.
Those words didn’t come out. If he said those words, this refugee would surely be flustered and troubled, but looking at those calmly staring golden eyes, his voice somehow wouldn’t come out. It was strange.
“Tar?”
Rather, the refugee asked back. When he should be saying anything to avoid the topic, with those large eyes sprinkled with gold dust wide open, he was utterly shameless.
“Director, why Tar?”
He was a very aggressive refugee. What if he just blurted out that he knew the truth?
What if he gets caught acting like that?
Facing that densely pretty face, Evil somehow felt heat rising in his body.
“Look away, fuck. The honey trap doesn’t work on me.”
He muttered, turning his head with a flushed face. But before even blinking once, he soon glanced at Cheche again.
While Evil and Cheche were having a private conversation, the people in the conference room were constantly trying not to inadvertently stare at Evil’s continued strange behavior. There was no way Evil couldn’t sense that effort. But just as Evil soon glanced at Cheche again, the others were also busy glancing at Evil and Cheche.
Then a phone vibration was heard. At the same time, James fumbled in his jacket pocket and left his seat. Evil raised one eyebrow. The fact that someone contacted him knowing it was during a meeting with So&So meant it was quite urgent, and soon, as always, the phone conversation could be heard whether he wanted to hear it or not.
It was news that a massive sandstorm had begun to rise in the western region of Mahanbiniya, a city-state.
***
The period when humans developed the ability to handle Aura and the period when natural disasters dramatically increased were cunningly intertwined. Whether natural disasters increased because Aura Users were born, or Aura Users were born because natural disasters increased—no one knew which came first.
However, because the periods were intertwined, some would say this: Aura Users were a gift the Earth gave to humanity to respond to natural disasters. Many people believed that theory. Because that theory was a very persuasive theory that imposed ‘responsibility’ on Aura Users.
Among the numerous natural disasters, the sandstorm in Mahanbiniya that occurred this time was a major disaster that could completely annihilate a city. No one could stop it unless they were an SSS-rank Aura User. As soon as Mahanbiniya observed the sandstorm, they immediately contacted Alcity and requested that Evil Endem be dispatched.
If it were an ordinary person, when such a huge disaster occurred, they would put other things aside and rush over, but since Evil had declared he wouldn’t accept any requests unless the wildfire incident claim citizen knelt and apologized, many people were interested in how he would act.
Not long ago too, Evil had made a similar declaration, and only resumed activities after the other party committed suicide. Would someone have to die this time too? If so, it meant that having Cheche, a hero of Tar, by his side was completely useless in improving his personality.
“Wouldn’t it be better to go in through the back door? A lot of reporters have come…”
“Why would I avoid them like I’m scared of those things?”
More reporters had gathered in front of the Center, but Evil got out of the car with a leisurely, relaxed face. Despite there being a back door to the parking lot, he unavoidably insisted on the main entrance and walked toward it with the attitude of an arrogant dictator. James and Cheche followed behind him.
“Evil has appeared.”
“That’s Evil Endem over there!”
The countless crowd parted to Evil’s left and right. Reporters thrust microphones and cameras at him, but kept quite a distance. There wasn’t a reporter who didn’t know that Evil was a violent devil with no hesitation in wielding violence.
“Evil User-nim, have you been informed about the sandstorm in Mahanbiniya?”
“I just heard.”
“Are you departing now by any chance?”
When a brave reporter asked, Evil raised one corner of his mouth in a sneer.
“I said I won’t go until I get an apology—don’t you have a brain?”
The reporter who had asked the question backed away in fright.
And next to him, another brave reporter stepped forward.
