Jeong Euijin showed no sign of surprise.
“You’re better off not knowing.”
But beyond the stiff tone, there was a clear change.
Heo Yunji didn’t miss the way Jeong Euijin’s eyes — always so indifferent to the world — carried just a hint of warmth.
Well, well.
Come to think of it, Jeong Euijin’s gaze had been strange ever since he first met Lee Jaea.
Like he wanted to devour him alive.
I’d never seen a look like that before.
Overwhelmed by that intensity, Heo Yunji had ended up going along with the lie Jeong Euijin had casually spun on the spot. No matter how she thought about it, something felt off, and she’d been about to carefully press him on it — but she never expected to see this side of Jeong Euijin.
“Hmm….”
Heo Yunji had been studying Jeong Euijin’s face with meaningful eyes when she suddenly broke into a grin.
“Okay. This big sis will turn a blind eye.”
She patted Jeong Euijin on the shoulder and gave a thumbs-up.
“I’ll tell his team that the meeting ran long. I’ll let them know he can sleep over here afterward, so don’t worry.”
“Fine.”
Jeong Euijin looked at her quizzically as she made no effort to hide her strange anticipation, but he didn’t try to stop her. He wanted to end this conversation as quickly as possible and get back to the room.
Fortunately, Heo Yunji turned around with a light step.
“Briefing’s at ten, so bring him on time.”
She gave a wave and headed down the stairs to relay the message to Lee Jaea’s team. Faintly, the sound of Heo Yunji humming drifted back.
***
Returning to the room, Jeong Euijin pressed his hand against the palm-sized square security item attached to the door. The square pad scanned his hand, and a green pattern was etched into it. Now, only the leader and he could open this door — not even Heo Yunji could open it without permission.
Back inside, Jeong Euijin still didn’t turn on the lights as he undressed and finished his shower. Without a blow dryer, he roughly toweled off his hair, then stood for a moment staring at the living room sofa.
It was a slightly worn sofa — big enough for two people to sit in comfortably.
Tall as he was, Jeong Euijin pictured himself curled up and asleep on the sofa, then quietly shifted his gaze toward the other room. The leader’s bedroom. Currently vacant, with no one inside.
Even so, I can’t use someone else’s bed without permission.
His gaze then drifted — as naturally as if it were the most obvious thing in the world — to the door of his own bedroom.
For some reason, his eyes rolled around in a slow circle or two before he picked up his two beloved swords and headed for the bedroom where Lee Jaea was sleeping.
Lee Jaea was still out cold, sleeping like the dead. Swallowing a bitter feeling at the sight, Jeong Euijin propped his swords against the side of the bed out of habit and rolled his eyes around once more.
He quietly lifted the blanket. Lee Jaea’s slender frame came into view, asleep in the exact position he’d been laid down in.
Jeong Euijin paused there for a moment, then slowly slipped under the blanket. The movement was so unhurried and careful that anyone watching would have pounded their chest in exasperation.
He managed to lie down beside Lee Jaea and pull the blanket over himself — but with both of them lying there, the bed felt considerably narrow. He’d never had cause to think about it before, since he’d always figured a space just big enough to close his eyes for a bit was enough, but now he found himself thinking he should have gotten a bigger bed.
Jeong Euijin fidgeted under the blanket. He turned onto his side to take up less space and pressed a little closer to Lee Jaea.
…It’s cramped.
Lying awkwardly beside him, Jeong Euijin deliberated for a moment before carefully sliding his arm under Lee Jaea’s head.
Slowly. Slowly enough not to disturb his sleep. Achingly slow.
Having finally succeeded in slipping his arm under Lee Jaea as a pillow, Jeong Euijin felt an unguarded sense of satisfaction rise in his chest as he wrapped his other arm around Lee Jaea’s waist. Their bodies drew closer together.
Not so cramped now.
A faint smile touched the corners of his lips. Breathing in the faint scent of Lee Jaea, Jeong Euijin closed his eyes.
Time passed. It was seven in the morning.
***
So, to sum it up…
Because I fell asleep out of nowhere and it could’ve stirred up trouble, he just kept me here for the night?
Jeong Euijin’s judgment was sound, I’ll give him that. Thinking about Seo Wonil, who had been so worried about me that he’d gotten into a standoff with Jeong Euijin, I couldn’t rule out the possibility of drawing unnecessary attention over nothing.
Still — was it really necessary to lie in the same bed together when it wasn’t even that big?
I was genuinely grateful that he’d laid me down on the bed instead of the bare floor, but waking up to find Jeong Euijin’s face right in front of mine was nothing short of disorienting.
Annoyingly handsome.
Then and now, my feelings whenever I came face-to-face with Jeong Euijin were always the same.
His features were so striking you couldn’t forget them once you’d seen them, his face all sharp angles like something sculpted. The glass-bead eyes that lightened in color when they caught the light, and the elegantly shaped mouth that seemed too refined for his age — those were especially striking.
When expressionless, an overwhelming aura radiated off him that made it hard for anyone to approach, but the moment his eyes curved and the corners of his lips lifted ever so slightly, it became the warmest, gentlest impression imaginable. Seeing someone’s entire atmosphere shift 180 degrees with just the smallest movement of the facial muscles — I couldn’t help but think he’d have made it big as an actor, had he gone that route.
And then, the body beneath that face.
A towering height that rivaled 190 centimeters, fingers long enough to match those drawn-out bones, and firm muscles naturally sculpted as his level climbed.
When we first met, he’d clearly been a lanky beanpole — but now he’d become such a strikingly beautiful man that it was hard to believe he was the same person.
Having watched that transformation unfold gradually over two years, I couldn’t help but envy him, one man to another.
…And maybe feel a little jealous, too.
Lucky bastard.
You’re even more handsome in the light, seriously.
Grumbling inwardly, I looked at Jeong Euijin in front of me. Whether or not he sensed how I felt, he sat cross-legged on the bed across from me, just as I was, and calmly opened his mouth.
“How much do you remember? No — from where to where can you recall?”
There was no room to even ask why he’d slept in the same bed.
Jeong Euijin’s voice was far more composed and weighty than it had been yesterday.
All manner of emotions swirled in his eyes, but it looked as though he was desperately working to keep any of it from showing on his face, forcing it into stillness.
And somehow… there was an air about him, like someone calmly explaining a situation to an amnesia patient.
“Do you know you’re an NPC? Do you know why you fell asleep the moment midnight hit? That’s been happening ever since Lee Jaea was an NPC at the Special Supply Station…. Ah, do you remember what the Special Supply Station is?”
“Hey….”
“I’m sorry if you didn’t know. It might be confusing, but everything I’m about to say is the truth, so I’d like you to trust me.”
“So what I’m saying is….”
“Lee Jaea and I met at the Special Supply Station. I was a customer, and you were the shop NPC. I was a regular for two years….”
“Hey, Jeong Euijin.”
“Ah, it might be better to start from when we first met.”
This guy, just listen to me for a second.
Jeong Euijin had taken my amnesia as a given and was on the verge of launching into a detailed account of our relationship going all the way back two years. I learned for the first time today that he could be this much of a talker.
You and I are just an NPC and a regular from the Special Supply Station — does that really need such a lengthy explanation?
“The truth is, I nearly died a long time ago. If I hadn’t met Lee Jaea two years ago, I’m certain I would have….”
“Euijin.”
Sensing I might have no choice but to sit through Jeong Euijin’s endless story if this kept up, I dropped the formal speech and called him by name out of nowhere.
Whether it was the change in address, Jeong Euijin’s voice cut off completely. His startled eyes, holding mine, trembled faintly.
From the start, just as I’d made up my mind right before falling asleep — I intended to come clean to Jeong Euijin.
Why I, now free, was going around pretending to be a Player.
Why I’d tried to join Eclipse together with the other team members, and how I’d ended up being mistaken for a Monster Tamer — and why I was shamelessly running with that as my cover.
If it was him, I felt like I could tell him.
He’s the one Player who has always, without fail, seen me as a human.
I smiled at Jeong Euijin, who was looking bewildered. The same way I had smiled whenever I saw him at the Special Supply Station.
“First, let me return the handkerchief. Ah, I left my bag behind…. Can I bring it to you later?”
If I’d known it would come out this soon, I would have grabbed my bag when I followed him here yesterday.
At the word “handkerchief,” Jeong Euijin’s eyes went wide and his lips moved several times, struggling to form words.
“Lee… Jaea…?”
“Just so you know in advance — I used it once, then folded it neatly and put it away. Even in a pinch, I’m not the type to use something carelessly when I borrowed it from a Player.”
“You remember?!”
Jeong Euijin, who had seemed completely beside himself, grabbed both my arms and thrust his face close to mine. The uncomfortably close distance and the blazing intensity in his eyes made my shoulders instinctively shrink.
“You remember me? You do remember, right? Don’t you?!”
Even with the tremendous pressure on both my arms, it wasn’t painful, strangely enough. Enough to make me wonder if he’d somehow been practicing how to control his grip strength when dealing with NPCs.
“Yes, yes. I remember just fine, so let go of me.”
Jeong Euijin’s expression began shifting rapidly.
The eyes that had been clouded with confusion, doubt, and bewilderment gradually filled with joy, and his pupils shimmered transparently, as though they held moisture in them. The upturned corners of his eyes softened gently, forming a flowing, picture-perfect gaze.
“…Thank goodness.”
The rigid line of his mouth slowly curved into a beautiful arc. That alone was enough to make the air feel instantly warmer.
The hands gripping my arms gradually released their tension. I thought he was letting go — but instead he slowly drew me in and held me against his chest.
I instinctively tensed for a split second, an involuntary resistance at being held by another man — but I didn’t push him away.
From Jeong Euijin, who was holding me carefully so as not to apply too much force, came an undeniable wave of relief. I didn’t particularly want to dampen that feeling of his.
“I’m so relieved. Really… I really thought you’d lost your memories, Lee Jaea….”
Jeong Euijin’s voice shook badly. The atmosphere felt like he might even shed tears if left alone, and I was the one caught off guard.
I should never tell him I don’t remember something again….
Such an unusual reaction over a mere NPC losing a few memories.
If I jokingly said “Who are you?” even as a joke, I’d probably become history’s biggest asshole.
At the same time, I genuinely found him remarkable.
To hold onto an NPC he’d never even seen the face of, this deeply….
I’d felt it when he readily handed over potions and expensive items without hesitation, but he was far more sentimental than I’d realized.
And he talks a lot, and he’s full of feelings, too.
Yesterday he’d seemed like nothing but a frightening, cold-blooded person — but watching him now, he looked for all the world like a little kid.
Thank God, no misunderstanding phew 😅 🙏
Almost started crying 😭