FTE 014

“Hunter Chae.”

“Are you going to say something inappropriate again, hyung?”

“Yes. Don’t cross the line before saying it.”

“What line exactly?” Chae Won-u asked as if he genuinely didn’t understand. “We’re holding hands and touching foreheads—how can there be a line?”

Shit, he had a point.

“If this is only possible inside a dungeon, I want to quickly return to one.”

Now, he was talking nonsense. I sighed and tickled Chae Won-u’s palm with my fingers. Surprised, he hastily withdrew his hand. With a grin, I narrowed my eyes and leaned closer to whisper:

“Just remember, if you really cross the line, I won’t hesitate.”

Chae Won-u, who was usually quick to respond, closed his mouth tightly. This was Chae Won-u, who had no idea about dating. He must be inexperienced. I hadn’t been properly taught about relationships either, but at least I knew the boundaries. To be precise, I knew how to cross them back and forth. The relationship between partners was like playing cat’s cradle. At least, that’s what I learned.

“Hunter Chae, can you answer again? Do you like spicy food or not?” I pushed the cart forward.

Chae Won-u chased after me until the next corner and then muttered, “I don’t really handle spicy foods well.”

“I thought so.”

For some reason, Chae Won-u reminded me of rainbow-colored lollipops and marshmallows. Honestly… isn’t he cute?

***

Tears kept streaming down Chae Won-u’s face.

“It’s spicy.”

He spoke while sniffling with his nose turning red.

“That’s why I told you to let me know if it was too much,” I said, clicking my tongue and handing him a glass of cold water. Chae Won-u gulped it down but still panted heavily afterward. His lips, nose, and eyes were all flushed red. It actually suited him quite well. Who knew such a color combination could look good on someone? Impressed, I continued munching on the spicy peppers.

As they grew spicier over time, I fished out all the peppers onto my plate. Chae Won-u watched me devour them without batting an eye, alternating between fear and admiration—it certainly kept him busy.

“You should stop eating those; your stomach will hurt later. Have some snacks instead.”

“Yes.”

Chae Won-u promptly responded by bringing over various cookies. Even without opening the packaging, I could smell their overwhelmingly sweet aroma. As both a guide and hunter, my calorie consumption was higher than average, so naturally, I ate more. However, despite consuming much food, it didn’t contribute to body mass but rather enhanced my abilities. Chae Won-u, standing before me, wore loose triple-X-sized clothes, yet beneath them were not bulky muscles but well-defined ones. It seemed as if his broad frame effortlessly supported the clothing. How low might his body fat percentage be? With these borderline creepy thoughts, I finished eating the remaining noodles.

“Hyung, have some too.” Chae Won-u neatly arranged the cookies in front of me. I started with the expensive, scarce, and delicious ones while pushing aside the pot. Chae Won-u agreed to do the dishes, although whether he’d perform well remained uncertain.

It was already close to 10 p.m. It was very quiet outside. Some teams might have gone out on missions, while others were diligently training for matching exercises. There would also be those holed up in their rooms not wanting to come out.

However, I bet there were only a handful of teams like us boiling ramen together in the living room of our shared accommodation. When intoxicated by alcohol, even people with low familiarity could easily mingle without hesitation.

Suddenly, I wanted to drink. I brought beers from the fridge and placed them on the table, just as Chae Won-u had done earlier with the snacks. Koreans seemed to have DNA that compelled them to sit on the floor instead of using sofas. We each propped one knee up, rested our arms on it, and passed around cans of beer.

“Aren’t you drinking?”

“Nope. I’ll just pretend.”

“Why? You’re not underage or anything. Haven’t you had alcohol before?”

“It’s not that I haven’t…”

Yeah, right.

I nodded reluctantly. Chae Won-u didn’t care about my gaze as he ate cookies. In fact, I could hold quite a lot of alcohol. I brought beer because I wasn’t sure how much Chae Won-u could drink, but my preference was so-maek, which is a mixture of three parts soju and seven parts beer. I told Chae Won-u to wait for a moment, then went out into the corridor.

“Ughh, it’s cold.”

The weather was very fickle. Shivering, I pressed the button for the dining floor. Thanks to being close with the responsible noonas and hyungs who worked all hours including late night, evening, morning, and lunchtime, I could secretly obtain some soju.

“Just give me a moderate amount.”

“Yes, yes.”

Just then, they were drinking soju with dry snacks. I quickly grabbed a sturdy bottle and returned to my room. There were only three rooms per floor. The soundproofing was excellent, and the doors were overly sturdy. Every time I saw this spotless corridor, I somehow wanted to get drunk. It annoyed me, making me feel like breaking out in hives. Yet, I still wished to stay here as long as possible.

The strange charm of the Hunter Association’s dormitory was that you wanted to leave when you were there, but desired to return once you left.

“It’s not even dawn yet, and you’re already getting all sentimental.”

I grumbled while undergoing fingerprint and iris recognition. After entering the password and opening the door, I saw Chae Won-u levitating beer cans in mid-air. It was impressive, yet annoying.

“Don’t keep playing around with your ability.”

Feeling embarrassed, Chae Won-u drew hearts with beer droplets before dropping them back into each can. Can I still drink this? With somewhat civilian-like thoughts about not wanting to consume something used for his ability, I sat down.

“So, anything liquid, you can control?”

“I don’t know about ‘anything’. I haven’t finished testing its limits.”

Not ‘haven’t tried,’ but ‘haven’t finished.’ I decided not to press further and just nodded. 

The broader the ability, the better. Versatility and adaptability were key to surviving encounters with ever-evolving monsters, no matter how much data you crunched.

My partner’s survival was my own. Inside a dungeon, we had only each other. Didn’t matter if I loathed the bastard or wanted him dead, emotions became irrelevant once we were inside. 

“I’ll get some cups.”

I took out plastic cups from the cupboard and familiarly mixed soju with beer using a spoon. Chae Won-u tilted his head back, admiring the foaming mixture. I was impressed as well. Looking closely now, it resembled the wave he had created inside the dungeon.

“I haven’t tried that before. Can I have a sip?” 

“I thought you were only pretending?” 

“Just a little.”

“You won’t cause any accidents, right?” I asked, feeling slightly uneasy. I worried that if he got drunk, he might recklessly use his abilities. However, since he has been under the Hunter Association’s supervision since his teenage years, he likely underwent alcohol reaction tests, giving him a good understanding of his limits…

“Don’t worry about that. I’m told I’m very well-behaved when I drink.”

“…If you’re lying, you’ll die.”

“From your hand, hyung?”

“No. I’ll be the one who ends up dead. Murdered by our superior.”

And I wasn’t exaggerating. 

I shuddered. If Chae Won-u’s ability, which had widespread effects, went out of control here… I didn’t even want to think about it. Moreover, I didn’t know the exact limits of his power. Dealing with an unknown partner felt like handling a time bomb. Naturally, it wasn’t a good feeling.

After Chae Won-u repeatedly assured me, he was able to take the cup from me. He took a few sips, and his eyes started to sparkle. Seeing this, I could finally pick up my own cup again.

“Is it tasty?” I asked after one more sip. Chae Won-u nodded.

“Please drink it.”

He was somehow cute. This is why uncles often give kids a sip when they hang around nearby. Faintly through the open window, I could hear music playing from some unknown room. It must’ve been turned up quite loud for me to hear it here. While the person next door might be deafened, the sound was quite pleasant to my ears. The atmosphere of this night felt overly romantic with Chae Won-u by my side.

“Hyung, do you drink often?” Chae Won-u asked and then took a sip. I furrowed my brow and nodded.

“Not much, but yes, fairly frequently.”

“Why?”

Apparently, it seemed like drinking alcohol was habitual for me. It was difficult to deny that it wasn’t a habit since I often drank moderately so as not to get drunk. Moreover, I didn’t discriminate based on the type of drink.

“I may have dropped out of middle school, but I read many books.”

Suddenly, Chae Won-u looked puzzled about what book I was referring to.

“The ‘Little Prince’ is a recommended reading for teenagers. Do you know it?”

Chae Won-u neither nodded nor shook his head.

“In there, the Little Prince meets a drunkard on a planet and asks him why he drinks. Then the drunkard says he drinks to forget something shameful. When asked what is shameful, he replies that it is drinking itself. The Little Prince thinks adults are strange and leaves.”

It had been really long since I spoke so openly and honestly… Feeling somewhat embarrassed, I quickly took a drink. Unfortunately, this amount of alcohol wasn’t enough to get me drunk.

“It’s just like that. I’m not addicted but at least on days when I come back from dungeons, I want to drink.”

No matter how monstrous they were, even if we maintained distance by calling them monsters with a foreign word, they were living beings. Sometimes, there were creatures resembling those I knew, such as dogs that reminded me of my favorite breeds. It made me feel awful.