Round and round, Yeon Dogyeong’s eyes were prettily folded. Chief Lee forcibly opened her throat and lifted one corner of her mouth.
“Yes. We also tried various experiments with that condition, but it didn’t open on this side. In fact, there’s no guarantee it will open on that side either. So whether on this side or that side, I hope you can open the Guimun.”
“Thank you.”
Yeon Dogyeong smiled and bowed his head slightly. Chief Lee, who showed him the ends of both lips lifted, opened the door and came out of the weapons storage. It was worrying, but it would be okay. Anyway, Yeon Dogyeong didn’t know much and his skills were good. Chief Lee stuck her hand in her lab coat pocket and exited the corridor.
* * *
Semi-humans first appeared in the human world about 120 years ago. The semi-human who appeared in a small village through the Guimun attacked people, and after several casualties, the villagers could capture and confine it, then report to the authorities. Scholars from various fields investigated the strange life form they had never seen before by the king’s order. According to records, a total of fifteen more semi-humans appeared after that, but the scholars couldn’t find out anything except a few minor characteristics and commonalities of the semi-humans. And 30 years after the first appearance, the semi-humans suddenly disappeared.
Unable to conduct deeper research due to the absence of captured semi-humans, the scholars made a secret oath and withdrew from all research. Thus, semi-humans became a legendary story passed down only to a small number of scholars and high-ranking officials. These semi-humans crossed the Guimun and invaded the world again about 20 years ago.
The President, who knew of the semi-humans’ existence through classified documents, quickly assembled the Semi-Human Department to hunt semi-humans, and erased witnesses’ memories with drugs that were in the final stages at the time. And he established a research institute to continue the research on semi-humans and Guimun that the ancestors hadn’t been able to finish. This was the history of semi-humans that the Semi-Human Department was educated on.
“It’s older than I thought.”
Joo Seonghan, who heard the story, cleared away the tree branch blocking his view. The softly scattered leaves made a rustling sound.
“Yes, it’s old. Ah ah, careful. Look below and walk.”
Han Jaejun shined his flashlight toward Joo Seonghan’s feet. Tree roots were sticking out, perfect for tripping over.
“Thank you.”
“Sure, yeah.”
Although pitch-black darkness hadn’t fallen, the path was sufficiently dark because they had entered a forest of tall trees. Nevertheless, Han Jaejun moved forward unhesitatingly as if walking in broad daylight. It seemed that improved vision included good night vision. Even though he had heard the inside story of how such a thing was possible, Joo Seonghan still found him fascinating. No, rather, this place was more fascinating.
This place beyond the Guimun really had no sunrise. Even though a day and a half had passed, the crescent moon and stars in the sky hadn’t moved a single step. The fact that a lush forest was formed in a place where not a single ray of sunlight entered didn’t match common sense, but common sense no longer had any meaning.
“Please tell me any characteristics or weaknesses of semi-humans you know. I think I need to know too.”
Objects used by humans were scattered throughout the forest. Joo Seonghan and the Semi-Human Department team members were following them like Hansel and Gretel. On the way, they encountered semi-humans several times. When there were few, they approached and killed them with knives, and when there were many, they avoided them and went another way. Kang Hyeonjoo gave him a short knife, so Joo Seonghan could fight too. However, Han Jaejun and Kang Hyeonjoo dealt with the semi-humans so quickly that Joo Seonghan’s knife didn’t even properly catch the moonlight once. There was a high possibility it would continue that way, but still, he needed to know the semi-humans’ weaknesses to prepare for situations. Joo Seonghan looked at Han Jaejun, who was walking alongside him. Han Jaejun, who wiped the sweat beading on his forehead, opened his mouth.
“Characteristics… Just think of them as wild animals that can’t be tamed. They faint or die if you hit their vital points, and they die if they lose a lot of blood too.”
At Han Jaejun’s half-hearted answer, Kang Hyeonjoo looked at him pathetically. Then he kindly added an explanation.
“First of all, their eyes are red. They have freckles on their nose bridge and under their eyes, broadly extending to their cheeks, and they can’t speak. Also, they’re highly aggressive and have more diverse genders than humans. Cases where the upper and lower body are the same gender, cases where they’re different, and cases where the genitals below have both male and female parts. In the last case, they can even get pregnant by themselves.”
Joo Seonghan swallowed dry saliva and nodded while recalling the appearance of the semi-human he saw at the karaoke. The gender of the face was ambiguous, but the upper body wearing nothing was flat like a male’s. Yet it was pregnant. He’d have to check between the legs to know for sure, but anyway, it seemed to be a semi-human with female genitalia.
“It seemed to lay eggs, is that correct?”
Han Jaejun glanced at Joo Seonghan. Though he was walking with his eyes downcast, paying attention to his feet, Joo Seonghan easily noticed his gaze.
“When we crossed over to this side, I saw eggs flowing out from the belly of the pregnant semi-human.”
Han Jaejun narrowed his brow as if searching his memory. Seeing that he didn’t nod, he must not have seen the eggs because he was too frantic at the time.
“Yes, well. We know they’re mammals, but semi-humans lay eggs. Usually they lay four or five eggs, of which only one or two are real eggs. The rest contain some kind of mucus, but they’re essentially fake eggs. The researchers say they carry fake eggs together for shock absorption and nutrient supply, but we don’t know exactly.”
Semi-humans were beings that seemed simple yet were complex. If he dismissed semi-humans as simply wild animals like Han Jaejun first said, he would have accepted them as new lifeforms without question. He couldn’t do that because of their appearance and origin. Because of that upper body with human form, people saw semi-humans as monsters. And semi-humans weren’t born and raised on this land—they crossed over through an unknown door called a ghost gate. As a human, he couldn’t accept them. Somehow, the more he heard the story, the more he thought about semi-humans, the more difficult it felt.
“They’re fascinating beings. Complicated too…”
“That’s right. But for now, don’t think too deeply and just focus on surviving. That’s the most urgent thing.”
Having finished speaking, Han Jaejun took the hip flask attached to the waist of Kang Hyeonjoo, who was walking ahead, and drank water. Though he frowned a little, Kang Hyeonjoo didn’t say anything and moved his feet. Han Jaejun’s Adam’s apple moved largely. As Joo Seonghan watched this, Han Jaejun handed him the hip flask. When he glanced at the back of Kang Hyeonjoo’s head, Han Jaejun gestured with his eyes to drink quickly. Joo Seonghan took a sip of the water that filled the place where alcohol should be. He was thirsty, but since it was Kang Hyeonjoo’s, he only moistened his throat a little and returned it to Han Jaejun. Though it was a small amount, it was like sweet rain. Joo Seonghan licked the moisture clinging to his lips with his tongue.
“If I survive and return home, will you erase my memories too?”
Han Jaejun stopped walking. He slowly closed and opened his eyes, then poured the remaining water from the hip flask over his head. His short hair became soaked.
“Yes.”
Han Jaejun, who roughly scrubbed his hair, closed the lid of the empty hip flask. Joo Seonghan, who had stopped beside him, lowered his eyes without any particular change in expression.
“I told you there are no exceptions. In Joo Seonghan-ssi’s case, since the period to be erased is long, the side effects will be severe too. I’ll apologize in advance.”
Han Jaejun, who continued speaking in a low voice, rubbed and wiped his wet face and moved his feet. Joo Seonghan followed him. Suffering from migraines or having memories mixed up, was it? Since he experienced migraines once or twice a month during his school days, it wasn’t particularly threatening. Having memories mixed up wasn’t frightening either. Joo Seonghan didn’t have any special memories worth mixing up. No matter which moment he recalled, they were all similar.
“Sunbae-nim, when you apologize, you have to look at the person’s eyes.”
At Kang Hyeonjoo’s voice, Joo Seonghan, who had been walking while looking at the ground, raised his head. The Semi-Human Department Team 3 members, showing their backs side by side, were bickering.
“Want to get hit? Where do you get off lecturing me?”
“The lecture starts now. Why did you waste water by pouring it on your head? You know that was my water, right? I’ll forgive you, so look at my eyes and apologize quick… Ah, did you see something by any chance?”
“Yeah. I see a river.”
“Joo Seonghan-ssi! Did you hear? He says there’s a river!”
Kang Hyeonjoo, who had a cool expression, smiled brightly and spoke to Joo Seonghan. It was hot and he was thirsty, so that was fortunate. Joo Seonghan wiped the nape of his neck where some sweat had formed and answered, “That’s good.”
The three people who escaped the endlessly continuing forest threw off their clothes as soon as they discovered the river and jumped into the water. Though the sky had stopped, there was still weather. It was more humid than yesterday. Not the humidity that felt like rain was coming, but the stifling heat of a midsummer night.
“Ah, I think I’ll live…”
Kang Hyeonjoo, who came out of the water after diving for a while, closed his eyes and floated in the river. Han Jaejun also rubbed his face and head satisfactorily. And Joo Seonghan, who perched on a rock, put his uninjured hand in the water and firmly massaged his feet.
Though he was dressed similarly to the Semi-Human Department team members in a suit, Joo Seonghan’s clothes weren’t made for activity. The long-sleeved dress shirt without elasticity and the suit pants were extremely uncomfortable, and especially his feet wearing dress shoes hurt. He alternately massaged both feet and kneaded his stiffly hardened thighs. Even though he usually exercised, his body complained loudly that walking through the forest path all day was too much.
Joo Seonghan loosened his muscles to some degree and submerged in the water with his right hand kept out to avoid getting the wound wet. He immersed himself up to the top of his head and came out when he ran short of breath. It was refreshing. Joo Seonghan continued to repeatedly enter and exit the water.
“Hey, I’ll look around the area and come back. You and Joo Seonghan-ssi eat something.”
Han Jaejun, who came out cutting through the current, put on clothes over his wet body. His thigh looked better than right after the injury, but it was still split open and red. As if it didn’t even hurt, he didn’t furrow his brow once.
“Come back safely.”
“Sure.”
Han Jaejun, who received Kang Hyeonjoo’s farewell, went down along the river while armed. When his back disappeared from view, Kang Hyeonjoo swam noisily, splash splash, to Joo Seonghan’s side. Joo Seonghan brushed back his wet hair and sat on the rock, leaning comfortably against the edge of the ground. Kang Hyeonjoo, who perched on a lower rock, stretched out his arms.
“Our Team 3’s nickname is the Accident-Free Team.”
