The voice repeatedly giving thanks trembled very faintly, so slightly that an ordinary person couldn’t feel it. In this place, only Evil felt that trembling. Evil looked at the small crown of the head that was even lower than himself sitting down, then turned his head sharply.
“Now that we’re done talking, I’m leaving. I’m going straight home, so don’t follow me.”
He spoke as if making an announcement and immediately stood up from his seat.
No one could stop Evil, who ignored things like working hours.
“Phew…”
“Haah…”
As soon as Evil left his seat and the door closed, everyone except Cheche sighed without anyone going first.
“That bastard hasn’t changed.”
“Still, he agreed fairly easily today.”
“Yes, Cheche-ssi’s courageous statement seems to have changed his mind.”
Victoria smiled gently while looking at Cheche.
“But what did he mean by ‘in exchange’? Cheche-ssi, you know, right?”
From the opposite side, the bruise marks that Evil had lifted with his finger couldn’t be seen. Only Cheche and James understood the meaning that he would dispatch user volunteers in exchange for the strangling incident. James looked at the back of Cheche’s head with an anxious heart.
“I don’t know. I think his mind just changed.”
Fortunately, Cheche wasn’t clueless enough to say that straight out. James approached the table in relief. The scattered documents and tablet PC on the table were James’s responsibility to gather. Cheche helped James organize the documents.
Photos of villages destroyed by bombardment and water sources that had turned to muddy water were stacked one by one.
“Should we stay a bit longer? The tea hasn’t even cooled yet.”
“We’ll be leaving now. Since we’ve finished the main discussion.”
They were as decisive as cold adapters should be. Victoria, as if she had no expectations of them, suggested only to Cheche that they chat a bit more before leaving.
Cheche looked at James. It wasn’t a look asking for permission whether that would be okay. Of course, it wasn’t a look making an announcement either, it was just eyes indifferently waiting for instructions. Naturally, like a soldier waiting for orders. James was momentarily flustered, then soon shook his head.
“I’m sorry, but we can’t.”
He shouldn’t leave Cheche alone with the doctor. If the two were left alone, the injury on his neck might be revealed to an outsider.
“We also have to leave soon. We need to return to the secretariat.”
“Ah, really? Then it can’t be helped. Let’s all get up.”
Cheche and James saw the visitors off to the Center’s main entrance. On the way, Victoria asked Cheche for his contact information, and Cheche held out the secretary business card the Endem family had made for him. Victoria, who had been curious about his personal contact information, left with a slightly disappointed expression. After parting with Victoria, James glanced down at Cheche and said,
“You did well. From now on, when people ask for your contact information, give them your business card.”
“Yes.”
“Then please get off work. Since the young master has left work, Cheche-ssi’s work is also finished for today.”
“But I heard we’re returning to the secretariat.”
“Go. Go and…”
He wanted to tell him to treat the wound on his neck, but he couldn’t tell him to go to a hospital. James turned his head away from the fairy-like face and said,
“Treat your injury.”
At James’s words, Cheche touched his neck area as if just remembering.
“Don’t go to a hospital, treat it at home. At least apply medicine.”
“But is that okay?”
“…What do you mean?”
He stiffly asked back, thinking Cheche meant how could treatment be possible at home, shouldn’t he go to a hospital? However, Cheche said something completely unexpected.
“Evil Director-nim said this injury was in exchange. He said he would send Aura User volunteers in exchange for the injury.”
“……”
“I’m worried his mind might change if he knows the injury has healed. I’ll definitely wear clothes that cover my neck. So please don’t make me treat the injury.”
James couldn’t say anything for a moment to Cheche asking that way. However, he soon had no choice but to tell him to do so while looking into his expressionless golden eyes. Cheche returned to the secretariat to gather his bag, and James stood there with a troubled heart.
Perhaps because of his too small and pretty appearance, or perhaps because of his personality that doesn’t object to anything and accepts everything, he felt particularly sorry. His conscience, which he had abandoned long ago while serving Evil, kept pricking him.
James sighed and entered Evil’s office.
“Heok.”
He who opened the office door was greatly startled and fell on his bottom. It was because Evil, who he thought had left, was standing leaning against the table with his brow furrowed. Evil’s face had a complicated expression that was difficult to define as either “feeling bad” or “feeling good,” and had a very sunken atmosphere.
“Ah, you didn’t… leave.”
Looking at James getting up while soothing his pounding chest, Evil only pulled up one corner of his mouth.
“You idiot, why are you so surprised? Did you see a monster or something?”
“…I apologize.”
“I’m leaving now.”
Evil passed right by James and exited the office. When he passed beside him, James couldn’t even breathe.
Why hadn’t he left and was still here? He couldn’t guess the reason at all.
***
The next day, the Center announced the news of dispatching Aura Users to Tar. A press conference was held in the morning, and Evil and Cheche attended together. Evil only read one line from the A4 page script about awarding honorary merit to the Aura User volunteers to be dispatched to Tar, but Cheche was faithful to the script he received.
“On behalf of Tar, I express my gratitude to all the Aura Users who are heading to the battlefield at risk for the suffering Tartarians, and I also express my thanks to Dr. Victoria of World Peace Citizen, Saint Adapter and David Adapter of the Adapter Center, and Advisory Director Evil-nim of the User Center for making this difficult decision.”
After the Q&A session with reporters ended and the lights in the hall went out, a video of Tar came on. It was a three-minute video containing the horrors of war.
The video started playing, and soon in the sad music, a refugee appeared crying while clutching the corpses of family members. As soon as the video started, Evil yawned and stretched. Normally even a B-rank Motioner could easily stay up for about a week, and since he was an SSS-rank Motioner, that yawn was an expression of “I’m bored with this gathering.”
It felt long even though it was only three minutes, and the press conference wasn’t completely over yet, but as Evil was considering whether to just get up now, Cheche’s appearance entered his eyes.
Cheche, sitting in the seat beside him, was watching the video with his back straight, wearing a shirt that covered his neck. Both hands placed neatly on his thighs were clenched into tight fists.
‘I’m worried his mind might change if he knows the injury has healed.’
Yesterday, Cheche had answered that way when told to apply medicine to the injury on his neck. James had thought Evil had left, but Evil had been up in the office at that time.
‘Arrogant bastard. Knowing I was still in the Center building, he spouted such arrogant words for me to hear.’
Just as Cheche didn’t trust Evil, Evil didn’t trust Cheche either. He had been momentarily surprised when he heard those words. He was confused whether it was picking a fight or whether it was thoughtlessly blurted out words befitting an ignorant fool, but after going home and thinking about it alone, he concluded it was flattery to sound pleasant. Flattery that he wouldn’t upset his mood while he was still inside the building.
Even now, Cheche was viewing his homeland’s tragedy with an expressionless face that gave no hint whatsoever of what he was thinking. With faded golden eyes that revealed no emotion.
Evil had manifested as a multi-user since childhood and had seen countless people, but this was the first time he’d seen someone with such faint emotions. Evil had seen people who experienced war besides Cheche, and had also seen people who had experienced the crisis of death countless times, but they were all the same. Even monks who claimed to be detached from life and death felt fear toward Evil, and even religious figures said to be virtuous and wise had their ugly insides read through and through by Evil.
This was because Evil was a Soul Aura User who received emotions. Just as water falls downward, in front of an SSS Soul User, the lies and pretenses of all people with emotions were exposed.
But Cheche was different. His emotions were so faint and dim, almost nonexistent, that nothing was transmitted at all.
“……”
As if feeling the gaze, Cheche slowly turned his head to look back. When their eyes met, Evil jerked his chin telling him to watch the video, then openly adjusted his posture to observe Cheche. Just as he was about to lean back in his chair, cross his legs, rest his chin in his hand and properly observe him, the video ended.
“Reporters, what did you think? Wasn’t it truly tragic and terrible?”
The lights came on in the hall and the host opened his mouth.
“I hope this cruel civil war ends soon. Ah, by the way, this video was filmed directly by Cheche-nim who is here.”
“Huh? What?”
Evil spoke out loud without realizing it.
