Chapter 110
Chapter 110
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 110
Chapter Title: Another Universe
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‘Why is it doing this again!’
Haon hunched her shoulders in bewilderment, gripping the hem of Juyeol's clothes tightly.
Perhaps thinking she was scared, Juyeol gently stroked the back of her head with his large hand as if to soothe her.
‘S-Stop…!’
Haon felt like her heart was about to leap out of her mouth.
She didn't know exactly when it started, but there were times when her heart would race in front of Juyeol.
It was different from the trembling she felt with a gun under her chin not long after they first met.
Instead of her blood running cold, it felt like it was circulating so fast that it was making her hot.
A ticklish sensation that made it hard to meet his eyes.
A strange tension that didn't exist in the list of emotions she'd experienced before.
The fact that she didn't dislike it made her even more confused.
‘But it's never beaten this hard before…!’
Haon wondered if her ears had moved right next to her heart. Her own heartbeat sounded louder than Bell's approaching footsteps.
Then, the footsteps stopped abruptly behind her.
Juyeol's hand, which had been stroking her hair, also froze.
‘W-What's going on?’
Tense for various reasons, Haon cautiously lifted her head to study Juyeol's expression.
He was staring at Bell with narrowed brows.
‘That's right. This is what he looks like.’
Seeing Juyeol watching someone else from this close, Haon was struck anew by how handsome he was.
‘He is handsome. But…’
Her childhood friend, ‘Juyeol’, had also been popular with the girls. When they were young, she would often be asked to pass gifts to ‘Juyeol’ for them.
‘They have the same face, so why does this one look more handsome?’
It was a face that should have been nothing but familiar and friendly.
Haon carefully studied his face, which felt strangely unfamiliar today.
The neat eyebrows that gave him a strong impression, his high nose, and sharp jawline all came together harmoniously on one face.
His characteristic rebellious aura was accentuated by the sharp, upward-slanting corners of his eyes, but thanks to their depth, he didn't look as frivolous as an adolescent boy.
‘He looks even colder from this angle.’
And the moment his gaze turned to her, his sharp expression softened.
“She's finally gone. If it were anyone else, it might be fine, but if that one caught us, she'd never let it slide.”
At that sight, Haon's heart skipped another beat, and she answered, awkwardly averting her eyes.
“S-So, we're not supposed to be here?”
Juyeol's eyes widened at Haon's beet-red face before a subtle smile spread across his lips.
“It's fine as long as we don't get caught.”
Haon, whose heart showed no signs of calming down, hurriedly pulled away from him.
“D-Don't smile like that.”
Juyeol stepped out of the shadows, his eyes crinkling into a gentle smile.
“How was I smiling?”
“Like Nova.”
“…”
He grabbed the wall, trembling with a look of shock.
“How could you compare me to such a frivolous guy…”
Worried someone else might pop out of the dorms, Haon glanced around and hurried him.
“Q-Quick, let's go inside. Someone else might come.”
“…”
Juyeol seemed dazed even as he managed to pull himself together and open the door to his room.
“Come in. This is my room.”
The moment she stepped into his room, a familiar scent brushed past her nose.
The gentle scent of fabric softener and a cool men's aftershave.
The smell of singed leather and a faint scent of gunpowder.
‘It's the same scent from the safe house. Juyeol's scent.’
Even though it was her first time here, Haon felt a sense of comfort.
With his belongings gathered in a space smaller than the safe house, it felt like she was getting a glimpse into Juyeol's private world.
Haon's gaze, which had been slowly scanning the room, stopped on top of a drawer.
“Ttiyong…”
There lay the broken Ttiyong, damaged while fending off the attacks from Bae Anjae and the mechanical mantises.
Juyeol guided the blankly standing Haon to the only chair and perched on the edge of the bed himself.
“I call it my room, but I sleep in the penthouse. This place is more of a lounge and storage, so it's a bit messy.”
“…”
Haon suddenly recalled how, for the past few days until just yesterday, she had done nothing but sit in the lab.
In this situation, going outside the lab would be lucky if she didn't end up as someone's hostage, and staying put meant she wouldn't be in the way.
It felt less like living and more like just breathing.
‘But now…’
Haon stared down at her own hands. They were empty, not clutching a phone.
Simply having something to do, having fixed something with her own two hands, made her finally, truly feel alive.
Clenching her fists as if grabbing onto something, Haon looked at Juyeol.
“Juyeol. Thank you.”
“You're the one helping Headquarters. I should be the one thanking you.”
He cleared his throat with an embarrassed expression and hesitantly continued.
“Actually, there's someone I want you to meet.”
“Huh? Who?”
“I'll tell you later. After you've settled into the engineering room.”
*Later.* Haon rolled the word around in her mouth before replying.
“…I'll have something to say then, too.”
“Not now?”
“Yeah. Later.”
“Whatever you say,” Juyeol replied, slightly opening the window blinds.
The sunset, pouring in through the gap in layers, spread at Haon's feet like a staircase leading to another universe.
***
Old Downtown, District 3.
Bae Anjae gazed at the test subject that had finally survived the experiment, his eyes filled with ecstasy.
“It worked. It worked.”
Unable to contain his elation, his hands trembled.
“I can finally move on to the next stage.”
Bae Anjae 3 asked while checking how many spare potions were left.
“What are we going to do about the potions? We'll have to keep making them.”
“I'll convert one of Rusty's factories to potion production. I'll make the ones for the batteries myself.”
At Bae Anjae's immediate response, Bae Anjae 3 furrowed his brows.
“Mass-producing them in a factory will lower the quality, won't it?”
“That much doesn't matter. The potions are just a means to make money, anyway. This is what's really important.”
Bae Anjae dramatically spread a blueprint across the workbench.
The device, which looked like a small window, was an incredibly complex piece of machinery.
Bae Anjae 2 peered at it and asked doubtfully.
“Can you really finish it? We're already halfway done. The loss would be immense if we fail now.”
“Fail? Impossible.”
Bae Anjae looked up at the ceiling with thirsty eyes.
“I know what's up there.”
His eyes, filled with the void, looked paradoxically greedy.
A divine realm only he had reached. An omnipotence no one could imagine.
He could never forget the sensation of every molecule in his body synchronizing with dark energy.
“I can reach it again.”
He burned with the desire to do so, no matter what it took.
“What about Two-Shot? He's getting impatient, asking when we're going to hit Eun Haon's territory.”
At Bae Anjae 3's question, he immediately replied with an annoyed expression.
“Why is he so obsessed with that stupid turf war? Just leave him be for now. If he gets annoying, just give him some more potions.”
As Bae Anjae was waving his hand dismissively like shooing away a fly, Halo appeared, opening the lab door.
Before Halo could even speak, he snickered and held out a vial.
“How's Sniper? A bit better than yesterday, right?”
Halo snatched the vial and forced her reluctant lips to move.
“…Yes.”
“You look a lot better too. What did I tell you? I'm no con artist.”
Halo, who had been rapidly wasting away, had been recovering over the last few days.
It wasn't just because she had overexerted herself drawing blood to stabilize Sniper's abilities and condition.
She had reached her limit from constantly pouring her light ability into some unknown device Bae Anjae was building.
Every time Sniper showed disgust while still relying on Bae Anjae's drugs, Halo was flooded with regret as scorching as the midday sun.
If only she hadn't met him, if only she had left ‘Eun Haon’ alive instead…
Halo shook her head, trying not to think about the days that were now irreversible.
Then, she flinched at a scream coming from deeper inside the lab.
Soon after, a wet popping sound was followed by the thick, metallic smell of blood, and the cheers of the Bae Anjaes echoed out.
“…You're all insane.”
Halo muttered unconsciously.
These beings were on a different level from the villains of Gwonyoung, a city infamous for its high crime rate.
“So what are you gonna do? Quit? You're just as crazy. You should be thinking you found the perfect partner.”
As Bae Anjae mocked her outright, Halo's jaw tightened.
He cackled at the sight before adding magnanimously.
“Ah, don't worry. Once things go smoothly, your daughter will become a full-fledged Awakened, and she won't be in pain anymore.”
“…”
Halo sighed, her face drained of energy, and left the lab without another word.
“That's right. Be obedient. What's the point of controlling villains in a town with no Mana Engineering? They're all just flies that bring in money.”
Bae Anjae turned with a satisfied expression and dramatically pulled back a blackout curtain.
“So you two better not die either. Hold on tight. You're going to be the best batteries.”
Behind the curtain, inside a glass prison, were Rusty and Weaver, an Awakening Sphere shield implanted in their chests.