# Chapter 166
“Is it okay now?”
Sano asked this while lightly running his hand down Iyeon’s ankle. The sensation of fingers brushing against his ankle bone felt strangely vivid. A tingling feeling like electricity running through his skin made Iyeon unconsciously tense his foot.
“I received treatment with superpowers back then. Now I don’t feel anything special.”
He only hoped his voice didn’t sound strange as he answered.
“What about your stomach?”
“…That was, much earlier than the ankle…”
Iyeon mumbled blankly as he looked at Sano. Sano’s hair, disheveled on the mattress, and his face looking up at Iyeon burned clearly into his eyes. Strange. Why am I doing this? The moment he realized the oddness of his posture—straddling Sano’s stomach with his legs apart—his thinking slowed by at least five beats. Thump, thump. His heart pounded hard.
“Why add unnecessary details to your ability.”
Sano’s tone was as blunt as usual, but his hand holding Iyeon’s ankle didn’t let go. Warm heat slowly spread through just one leg. The unbalanced rising body heat was so awkward that he wanted to run away.
Strange. Why is Je Sano so compliant today? He should be pushing me away now, saying I’m heavy. He should be breaking this atmosphere. Despite thinking this, Iyeon didn’t consider standing up first. The ankle held by Sano felt like a thousand-pound shackle. Yet there was hardly any strength in Sano’s hand actually holding Iyeon.
Sano, who had been staring at the frozen, helpless Iyeon, suddenly raised his other hand. His green eyes were particularly shadowed and dark.
It was like some kind of signal.
Iyeon’s instincts sounded the alarm. A strong premonition that he shouldn’t stay still here pounded his head.
“Th-that time.”
At his voice, which felt almost urgent, Sano paused his action and looked at him quietly. Iyeon blurted out words randomly.
“When we were looking for a hobby. Why did you make me try drawing?”
Sano didn’t answer. It was obvious he thought the question came out of nowhere. But perhaps because he had just heard Sano’s previous words, the only thing that came to Iyeon’s mind was this meaningless question. When Sano showed no particular reaction, Iyeon hastily continued, as if grasping at straws.
“You said you already knew it was me. Then you must have known there was no need to develop drawing skills.”
Sano just stared at Iyeon for a while, as if measuring something. As Iyeon grew anxious under that gaze and slightly bit his dry lips, a slow voice flowed from below.
“Not revealing my intentions and not having any desires are different things.”
“Huh?”
It was like catching at clouds. Iyeon asked back in confusion.
“Usually when someone is presented with the worst option, they tend to reveal their true feelings.”
Sano’s face as he replied lightly was the same as usual. The somewhat dangerous atmosphere from just before had disappeared as if it had never existed.
“It seems that wasn’t quite the worst for you.”
“…Isn’t drawing materialization not bad?”
To obtain a hunter license, one had to undergo a superpower grade evaluation, and since terrain setting functionality was already being implemented at that time, Iyeon couldn’t fully reveal his ability. Pen and paper caught Iyeon’s eye opportunely as he was contemplating how much to hide. The improvised examination miraculously allowed him to barely pass as Tier 2.
He thought it was quite a clever choice. Iyeon subtly defended himself, but it didn’t work on Sano.
“It’s the worst.”
You’re incredibly bad at drawing, Sano added with a snicker. His laughter, close to incredulity, strangely resembled that of an innocent boy, so Iyeon just stared blankly at his face.
Thump-thump-thump.
What caught Iyeon’s attention was Mungchi. After lying quietly in the living room throughout their meal, Mungchi belatedly noticed the mattress that had suddenly appeared in the kitchen and the two people entangled on it, and came running in surprise. All the fur on its body was standing on end.
Mungchi, glaring at Sano and Iyeon, looked as if it had encountered an enemy. A sharp growl flowed from between its muzzle, and its long tail was standing straight up.
“Mungchi, come here. It’s okay.”
Because it had occasionally reacted this way to Sano before, Iyeon reached out to soothe Mungchi. Glancing at this sight, Sano got up. The hand touching Iyeon’s ankle finally fell away.
“Just put away the dishes.”
Sano, speaking indifferently, looked like someone for whom the recent situation was truly nothing unusual. Well, since Sano thought of him as a friend, that made sense… Feeling a bit embarrassed for his belated overreaction, Iyeon stopped calling Mungchi and quietly got up to gather the plates.
This time, without being greedy, he carried three or four at a time, and finished quickly. The mattress disintegrated back into white sand the moment the two left their spots.
When he finished cleaning up, Sano was already in the living room sitting on the sofa, and only Mungchi remained crouched under the dining table. What are you doing? Iyeon bent his knees, crouched down, and examined Mungchi.
“Mungchi, what’s wrong?”
But Mungchi’s reaction was a bit strange. Sano had long since gone to the living room, radiating disinterest, yet Mungchi’s wariness hadn’t subsided at all. Feeling awkward about Mungchi, who was lowering its body as if ready to pounce at any moment, Iyeon called again.
“…Mungchi?”
Normally, Mungchi would have already clung to Iyeon, acting cute and making a fuss, but Mungchi remained resolute. Iyeon looked around, but there was no one in the neatly organized kitchen except himself. Even FT-4 had finished cleaning the kitchen and gone into the small room. Iyeon slightly narrowed the distance on his knees to coax Mungchi into coming with him.
“It’s okay, Je Sano’s already far away.”
However, even at those words, Mungchi only responded with growling sounds. What’s going on? Just as Iyeon was tilting his head in confusion and about to reach out—
Kyak!
Mungchi suddenly leaped up. Along with the cry, its soft fur twisted. In the moment Iyeon paused in surprise, Mungchi rushed at him, violently thrashing its limbs. Mungchi’s claws flashed in front of Iyeon’s wide-open eyes.
Kang!
Just as the claws were about to touch Iyeon’s face, a thin metal plate slid between Iyeon and Mungchi. The plate, which slithered like a snake and slammed Mungchi into a corner, was hit directly by blue lightning and disappeared. Bang! Along with the smell of burning, black soot formed on the floor, and the dining table split completely.
Simultaneously, Iyeon was grabbed by the nape of his neck and pulled back. The sound of the broken table collapsing, ku-dang-tang, came after.
“If it obviously looks like it’s going to attack, be cautious, idiot.”
Sano, who had come from somewhere, pulled Iyeon into his arms and clicked his tongue. Mungchi, a few steps away, was still glaring at Iyeon but didn’t immediately pounce again. However, it didn’t forget to lower its body as much as possible, ready to charge at any time. Its yellow eyes flashed viciously.
It was a scene of pure shock.
“Mung… Why is our Mungchi acting like this?”
Iyeon’s voice trembled. This was the first time Iyeon had been attacked by Mungchi. Our Mungchi, always gentle and good… attacking me? Is this a dream? Iyeon, his face pale, muttered before finally shouting in outburst.
“Hey, are you mistaking me for Je Sano? I’m Jung Iyeon!”
“Are you insulting me?”
“Does it make sense that our Mungchi would swing its paws at me?”
The image of Mungchi, who had rubbed its face against his leg while radiating cuteness the moment they first met, was vivid. Also how it jumped up and down with joy every time they played, and how it ran excitedly on walks… The last scene in the panorama of memories with Mungchi was it attacking Iyeon?
“Could it be puberty? Do variants have that too?”
“How would I know?”
Sano replied indifferently, but Iyeon didn’t even hear him. Normally, even if it took a few beats to notice being completely held by Sano, he would have hastily backed away, but he didn’t seem to be aware of his posture at all.
Iyeon stared at Mungchi with unsteadily wavering eyes. Mungchi, it’s me. Me. But no matter how desperately he looked, Mungchi didn’t withdraw its ferocity. If Iyeon tried to approach even a little—though he couldn’t actually move because Sano was holding him—a small growling sound flowed through Mungchi’s teeth, and its ears, which would usually perk up when called “Mungchi,” remained still as if broken.
It behaved as if it didn’t know anyone like Iyeon.
This… this doesn’t make sense. After facing off with Mungchi in a dazed state for a while, a solemn voice, like an ultimatum, flowed from Iyeon.
“…Call Jaekyung-ssi.”
