BRH 38

“Ugh, ump, cough!”

“Easy there, take your time.”

Moon Tae-yi’s eyebrows drooped as he patted Do-heon’s back with a look of pity. Ha Do-heon was bent over, covering his mouth with his hand as he struggled to swallow the sandwich blocking his throat.

As soon as the owner appeared, Ha Do-heon had crammed the sandwich in his hand into his mouth, swallowing it rapidly to destroy the evidence. He’d shoved it all in at once, causing it to get stuck in his throat, but as he chewed diligently, it began to go down bit by bit.

But then, Ha Do-heon’s shoulder twitched. An odd sensation ran down his spine. It felt like eyes were glaring in his direction, and that a torrent of abuse was about to erupt…

“You fucking Moon Tae-yi, you here again? Is this your living room?! Why don’t you just move in, huh?!”

The premonition was clear. Glaring, Cheon Seo-hyeok cursed at Moon Tae-yi and threw a fit.

“Well, I was just wondering if this was a place worthy of our Do-heon-ssi. So, I came.”

“Get lost, you bastard! You said the same thing yesterday! I’ll protect the kid, I don’t need you to say anything. Ugh, I’m so frustrated! Someone sprinkle some salt after that bastard leaves!”

And having finally swallowed the entire sandwich, Ha Do-heon shot up from his seat. With his deeply flushed face bowed low, Ha Do-heon quickly began to leave the area. Seeing Ha Do-heon’s retreating back with the tips of his ears bright red, Moon Tae-yi let out a deflated laugh.

“…And he’s cute, too. What am I going to do.”

More and more… I don’t want to show him to anyone.

But, whether it was Ha Do-heon’s revenge or not, Ha Do-heon didn’t come near Moon Tae-yi again until 8 PM.

It was a series of eventful incidents, but the Morning Star Cafe was somewhat bustling and filled with the scent of people.

Ha Do-heon’s workplace was peaceful and harmonious as always.

*

“Aigo… my shoulders.”

With a steaming cup before him, Ha Do-heon tapped his shoulders like an old man. For some reason, he felt so drained that he wouldn’t have been surprised if he’d face-planted on the street.

There are days when people wake up feeling unusually sluggish, with a strangely heavy heart. Days when you feel like you slept soundly but your ears are ringing, your head is heavy, your throat is scratchy, and your mouth is dry.

Ha Do-heon felt that way as soon as he opened his eyes that morning. Uh, my body feels strangely heavy? It was a fatigue he hadn’t felt since regressing, and whether it was because he was nervous about changing jobs, it clung stubbornly to Ha Do-heon’s shoulders from the morning on, tormenting him.

But once he got up, he felt like he was okay. After drinking cold water and stretching, he felt lighter again, and wondered if he was just imagining things.

“Those guys… they raided the fridge again while I was sleeping.”

The fridge, which had been filled to the brim with milk, bread, and kimbap the night before, was now empty, with only banana milk left. They knew well enough to avoid getting scolded, so they didn’t touch the banana milk.

Pop-

He stuck a straw into the milk carton and drank it down in one go, then headed straight to the bathroom to get ready for work. He washed up thoroughly and picked out some clothes. It was 10:30 AM. If he left at 11 and took the subway to Hoehyeon-dong, he’d be right on time for work.

He was humming a tune and looking for socks when-

Bzzzt— Bzzzt—

The phone he’d left in the living room was vibrating. After putting on his socks, he came out and craned his neck to check the phone screen, and his eyes widened. The caller was Moon Tae-yi.

‘Why is Tae-yi-ssi calling?’

He usually didn’t call at this time? In the first place, the two of them didn’t really contact each other. One might think that’s strange for people who are supposedly flirting, but Do-heon himself didn’t initiate contact with the other person, and Moon Tae-yi was the straightforward type.

Rather than bothersome calls, he preferred to appear suddenly and show his face. So, contact between them was rare.

And that wasn’t all. Moon Tae-yi was so busy that there was a joke that he worked 366 days out of 365, making him one of the busiest people in Korea. The fact that he was taking a vacation and sitting around Ha Do-heon’s workplace these days was so absurd that it was enough to make him clutch the back of his neck and wonder if he’d eaten something wrong.

Something feels off…

Ha Do-heon, looking at the caller ID on the screen with a sullen expression, cautiously answered the phone just as it was about to stop ringing.

“Yes, this is Ha Do-heon.”

[Do-heon-ssi, it’s me. It’s Tae-yi.]

Hearing Moon Tae-yi’s voice, Ha Do-heon briefly took the phone away from his ear and dug into his ear. At this point, am I the problem… why does he sound shy again?

[I was going to give you a wake-up call… but it sounds like you’ve been up for a while. Your voice sounds energetic. What were you doing?]

“Well, I was just getting ready for work. Tae-yi-ssi, did you… did you sleep well last night? No, did you get home okay?”

A laugh came from the other side of the phone at Ha Do-heon’s ambiguous question. His throat felt dry for no reason at the voice, which was a tone lower than when he heard it up close. Maybe it was because it was a phone call, but he couldn’t gauge his expression, so he was more nervous than usual. But why are my fingertips tingling?

[I’d like to say I slept well, but after dropping Do-heon-ssi off yesterday, I had some official business to take care of. So, I’m on my way to work right now.]

“Then is your vacation over?”

[Hmm… why does it sound like you’re happy about that?]

Do-heon inwardly clicked his tongue. As an S-rank Hunter, he was incredibly perceptive.

“Happy? No. I was just… surprised.”

[Why?]

“Well… you don’t usually contact me. So, I thought something might have happened.”

That’s exactly how he felt before answering the phone, but Moon Tae-yi’s tone and conversation were no different than usual. Thinking that he might be worrying for nothing, Do-heon put the phone between his ear and shoulder and continued getting ready for work.

[Do-heon-ssi.]

“Yes?”

[I guess I should contact you more often from now on. You can’t be surprised by things like this when we’re about to become a couple.]

“……”

Ha Do-heon fidgeted with a flushed face, then, realizing what he was doing, banged his head against the wall. You crazy bastard, you can’t get flustered here. He scrubbed at his hair, then plopped a hat on top of his now-messy bird’s nest.

Just then, a third person’s voice came from the other side of the receiver. Listening carefully, it sounded like they were about to enter a Dungeon.

The other person was driving and seemed to be trying to explain the Dungeon they were entering, shouting something. But when Moon Tae-yi didn’t hang up easily, they seemed frustrated and pounded their chest. It was probably Gwak Chan-uk, the leader of the Taerang Guild.

[Do-heon-ssi, I don’t think I can talk for long. It looks like you’ll have to go home alone for the next two weeks, starting today. Will you be okay?]

‘Of course, I’ll be okay….’

Judging by the situation, it seemed like a rank 4 Dungeon had appeared nearby. It seemed that Moon Tae-yi had been selected for the Dungeon raid, and the fact that he was selected even after taking care of official business in the early morning meant that it was a sudden decision.

“Tae-yi-ssi, are you going into a Dungeon? Then Tae-yi-ssi should be careful. I’ve always been fine on my own. And there are so many Hunters in Hoehyeon-dong, what could happen?”

It wasn’t a Dungeon, and he was just going back and forth between his house and the cafe in the heavily populated Hoehyeon-dong, so what could go wrong? Before he knew Moon Tae-yi, he was doing just fine on his own, and Ha Do-heon was a sturdy 183cm tall, and even if he was only a B-rank Hunter in name, there was no one in the world who could beat Ha Do-heon in terms of strength.

[Don’t work any extra shifts for a while, Do-heon-ssi. And don’t cry because you miss me.]

“I don’t cry. I’m such a heartless dino— ahem, you’re the one who shouldn’t cry, Tae-yi-ssi.”

Do-heon changed his words after putting on a serious face. Since the word ‘dinosaur’ was stuck in his mouth, he almost made a mistake. But even so, he probably wouldn’t think he was a dinosaur. No, he shouldn’t.

[You’re strong as always. I’ll give you a contact number, so if anything happens, contact them. It’s a contact that I can receive even in the Dungeon, unless there’s a major incident.]

A contact method that could be used in that way could only be a small monster. They were so rare that only a few could be tamed, each costing hundreds of billions, but it wouldn’t be a stretch for Moon Tae-yi to have one on hand.

When Ha Do-heon readily agreed, there was silence on the other end. Wondering why, he stopped what he was doing and listened carefully. After hearing a faint breath, a sound like a sighing laugh came over.

[Hearing Do-heon-ssi’s voice makes me not want to leave you behind… should I not go?]

“If you don’t want to leave me behind, well, there’s nothing you can do… I’ll get ready quickly. I’ll go with you to the rank 4 Dungeon-!”

Before Ha Do-heon could finish speaking, a loud laugh came over. The sound was so loud that people around him were startled, and the voices of third parties could be heard from time to time. Most of them were absurd, saying that Moon Tae-yi had finally gone crazy, or asking why he was suddenly acting like that.

[I guess I’ll have to go alone. I can’t take Do-heon-ssi to a dangerous place.]

“Wow, that’s too bad…. If you don’t want to go next time, tell me. Since we’re getting to know each other anyway, let’s just spend the night together in a rank 4 Dungeon and have a cozy time. And there’s no one who can keep up with me when it comes to being strong, so I’ll be fine.”

[Haha, okay. I’ll keep Do-heon-ssi’s words in mind. I’ll try to get out as soon as possible.]

The words urging Moon Tae-yi on became more intense. Ha Do-heon didn’t drag out the conversation any longer and just gave a small “fighting.” Even though there was no one watching, he raised his arm and clenched his fist tightly.

For a while, only Moon Tae-yi’s breathing could be heard. Only after a furious honking sound rang out did Moon Tae-yi promise to see him in two weeks and end the call.