Chapter 121: Eel

Bodam woke up quite early for once.

9:30 AM.

For Bodam, who usually woke up when he was hungry, this was practically a dawn awakening.

“Haaa-.”

Stretching, he patted his morning-empty stomach and felt a little peckish.

‘I should eat something and then wash up.’

Staggering out of bed, Bodam went down to the first-floor kitchen.

The sound of the news and the scent of coffee from the living room suggested the Team Leader was here.

As expected, Bodam gave a light nod to Seung Ho, who was sitting at the dining table watching the news and reading a newspaper at the same time.

Seung Ho, who was watching Bodam get warm water from the dispenser, asked.

“…Are you just going to bed now?”

It wasn’t Bodam’s usual wake-up time, and he was in his pajamas, so he thought he had pulled another all-nighter.

It was common for the sound of the TV to be heard from the second floor until late at night, so Bodam’s sleeping in had become a daily routine for the Espers.

“I just woke up.”

“Can’t you sleep?”

Bodam, who just shook his head and gave a vague answer while yawning, opened the refrigerator and took out milk.

He was about to sit at the table with a bowl and a box of cereal but offered some to Seung Ho.

As expected, Han Seung Ho had no interest in cereal.

“What do you even eat, Team Leader?”

Seung Ho missed the question while observing Bodam pour a heap of cereal into a large bowl and then pour in a torrent of milk.

“Don’t tell me coffee is your staple food? Does that make you full?”

“Not really.”

“Then what do you eat? I eat from the moment I open my eyes until I close them. I’m eating now before my lunch appointment too.”

Bodam, who had become quite chatty, gave another long answer to Seung Ho, who asked who his lunch appointment was with.

He boasted that he was going to hit up a famous eel rice bowl place with a new guide friend he had made.

It was the hottest spot among the residential hall cafeterias recently, so much so that people lined up to eat there.

“You line up to eat?”

“Yes. That’s why I have to go early. It opens at 11, so I’m planning to go and wait before then.”

Bodam, who had been vowing to eat the extra-large eel rice bowl, which was limited to 50 servings, soon quieted down.

It seemed he had gotten carried away with his chatter, excited at the thought of eating eel.

Being next to the usually quiet Seung Ho, he wondered if he had talked too much and silently finished his cereal.

Just as he was about to refill his cereal without a sound, feeling like he had disturbed his newspaper reading, Seung Ho spoke.

“Eat here. Don’t stand in line.”

“No. I have to go there to eat. It’s more delicious when you wait and eat.”

“What’s the name of the place?”

“…Why?”

“I’ll order it, so tell your colleague to come here.”

Seung Ho put down his newspaper, took out his phone, and asked for the restaurant’s name again.

He also casually asked if the colleague was a man or a woman.

Bodam didn’t answer everything.

“It’s okay. I’m going to go and eat there. We already made plans.”

“Why wait? Just eat inside.”

“It’s more delicious when you eat at the restaurant.”

“Why do you stand in line to eat?”

“Because it’s that delicious!”

Bodam stood up with his newly filled bowl of cereal and went upstairs.

He was the type to enjoy the fun of waiting in line and eating.

Instead of exhausting himself trying to make Seung Ho, who couldn’t empathize with that small happiness, understand, he decided to eat one more spoonful in peace.

“I said it’s a popular spot where you have to line up, and he asks why you have to line up.”

The uncommunicative Han Seung Ho was frustrating for no reason.

‘If it were Lee Tae Hwan, he would have annoyingly asked if he could come too. Making a fuss about how he likes eel too.’

He thought of Tae Hwan, who was out providing support in Sector 4 where a large number of gates had burst open, and quickly erased the thought.

He told himself it was only natural to think of the guy who used to commute to the waiting room without missing a single day, now that he was gone, and continued to eat his cereal.

‘This cereal was also bought by Lee Tae Hwan.’

***

Bodam, who was the third in line to enter the eel restaurant, didn’t find the wait boring thanks to the chatty Yeon Yeok.

Yeon Yeok, who had become Bodam’s first and only guide colleague, was deeply impressed by the appearance of the eel rice bowl, which looked like something straight out of a TV show.

“Wow. Hyung, I’ve never seen anything like this! I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve eaten eel in my life!”

“Eat a lot. I’ll buy it for you often.”

The table, where they had also ordered assorted tempura and a soba set, was packed.

He wanted to order more eel, but it was limited to one menu item per person, so they regrettably decided to fill up on side dishes.

Yeon Yeok, who loved eating as much as Bodam, was also very excited.

It was exactly the kind of energy Bodam had been hoping for.

“It would have been nice if Jo Yeon could have come too.”

“Nah, it’s okay. That hyung can’t eat eel.”

Jo Yeon, who was allergic to eel, couldn’t eat with them.

He had been the one to recommend it as a good restaurant that Bodam would like and had told him to go with Yeon Yeok.

Remembering Bodam, who used to sing about going on food tours after quitting.

“Hyung, but didn’t we order too much?”

“Are you full?”

“No. My stomach is fine, but the prices here are a bit…”

For Yeon Yeok, who never spent more than 15,000 won on a meal, it was a burdensome amount.

A bowl of rice was almost 50,000 won.

Although it tasted like it was worth the price, the more he thought about the price, the longer he chewed.

“Just eat up. I’m paying.”

“Hyung-nim…!”

Bodam, high on his hyung pride, and Yeon Yeok, high on his hyung’s charm and wealth, happily restored their energy with eel and decided to go for dessert as a second round.

They chose a cafe close to the Sector 3 common waiting room for Yeon Yeok, who had to go back to work by two o’clock.

“Yeon Yeok-ah. Get in this.”

Bodam pointed to a black sedan for Yeon Yeok, who was looking for the shuttle bus line.

Everyone passing by seemed curious about who the owner of the luxury sedan was.

“H-hyung-nim, is this your car?”

“No. It’s provided by our team. The team leader told me to use it.”

Yeon Yeok, his mouth agape, was speechless at the back door being opened by the driver who had gotten out of the driver’s seat.

Seung Ho had told him to use the exclusive vehicle provided only to high-ranking team leaders.

It was a car that was just sitting around since he usually traveled with a teleport Esper.

He had also silently sent the driver’s phone number to Bodam, who had been awkward about not having a license.

“Ahem. Hyung-nim, as expected…. You’re rich, right?”

Seeing the luxury shopping bags inside the car, Yeon Yeok lowered his voice and asked, and Bodam, who chuckled, shrugged his shoulders.

He neither denied nor confirmed it.

“I’ll buy the coffee!”

“Uh-uh. Put your wallet away.”

“Please let me buy it!”

Bodam and Yeon Yeok bickered at the cafe counter.

Bodam, saying he had nothing but money, barely managed to beat the strong Yeon Yeok and paid for dessert too.

There were quite a few furtive glances cast at them as they bickered harmoniously.

They were people who recognized Bodam, the former dedicated guide of Attack Team 3.

The number of onlookers whispering, “I heard he came back, I guess it’s true,” grew one by one.

“Hyung-nim, please have a seat. I’ll bring it over!”

Bodam left the drink pickup to his reliable younger brother and sat down in an empty seat.

It was lunchtime, so it was crowded, and he almost couldn’t get a seat.

Leaning back in the comfortable sofa, he leisurely checked the Espers’ wavelength readings on his watch first.

He checked Tae Hwan’s readings first, who was probably busy slicing up monsters in Sector 4.

Bodam, focused on his watch screen, was unaware of the gazes fixed on him.

“Is that Yoon Bodam? He’s even smaller in person. So pale.”

“You go ask him. If he really slapped Han Seung Ho.”

“I’m telling you, it’s true. My friend saw it at the scene. He threw his resignation letter in Han Seung Ho’s face, cursed him out, it was insane.”

“He doesn’t look like that. He beat up Kang Yi Jun with those arms and legs?”

“Isn’t it the other way around? He looks like he’d cry after one hit. Should I go ask?”

“Yes. Go ask him yourself.”

Yeon Yeok approached the group whispering in front of the drink pickup counter and whispered along with them.

The group, startled by the sudden appearance of the large-framed guide, was flustered.

“I’m saying, go ask him yourself whether he hit or got hit.”

Yeon Yeok, holding a large tray, smiled slyly and emphasized his last words.

“Ah, but the Team 3 Espers are super protective, so they’ll mess you up just for talking to him. You’d better watch your mouth. Right?”

The group, intimidated by Yeon Yeok, who boasted a physique comparable to an Esper’s, quietly backed away.

Yeon Yeok, who clicked his tongue at their backs, headed to the table where Bodam-hyung-nim was waiting.

Bodam was on the phone.

“Isn’t it heavy? You should have called me.”

“It’s okay. Continue your call.”

Yeon Yeok effortlessly set down the tray carrying two drinks and three types of dessert and set up the forks.

“No. He’s not picking up anyway.”

“Who is it?”

“Lee Tae Hwan.”

“Wow.”

Yeon Yeok, who had taken a sip of his iced Americano, pretended to shudder at the oppressive presence of the S-class, whose name alone was intimidating.

It was a name as scary as Han Seung Ho’s.

As expected, his Dam-i hyung-nim, who was more of a man’s man than he looked, didn’t seem to be afraid of them at all.

Where else would you find a guide who could curse out an S-class Esper?

Only his cool Bodam-i hyung-nim.

“The bread here is delicious. Hurry up and eat!”

“Okay. You eat first.”

His cool Dam-i hyung-nim was feeling a little uneasy.

Even with his favorite bread in front of him, his gaze kept drifting to his phone.

Because Lee Tae Hwan wasn’t answering his call.

“You don’t go out to the field anymore, do you, hyung? Our side is still crazy busy. It’s chaotic because they’re dragging out even the attack-types to annihilate the unregistered Espers.”

“That must be tough. Be careful whenever a gate opens. Don’t go near them.”

‘That bastard Lee Tae Hwan. Who is he talking to?’

“Jo Yeon-hyung tells me not to go out, but I’m the one who goes. I’m a good fit for fieldwork, and it’s fun to catch monsters.”

“You catch monsters too?”

“The small ones are possible. I used to work out, so I like using my body.”

‘I told him not to use his phone when he’s working.’

“But, Dam-i hyung-nim.”

“Yeah.”

“Are you dating?”

“Huh?”

Bodam had been fidgeting with his phone ever since he came to the cafe.

To Yeon Yeok, who was very interested in dating at the moment, it just looked like he was concerned about a message from his lover.

“No. Why?”

“You were just looking at your phone. And you’re so handsome, hyung.”

Bodam explained that he was just concerned because Lee Tae Hwan’s readings were a little high and he wasn’t answering his phone.

At this, Yeon Yeok looked at Bodam, who was frequently checking the wavelengths, with admiration.

Everything his hyung did just looked cool to him.

‘He’s got great abilities, and he’s diligent too? No wonder the thugs of Team 3 fell for him.’

“Oh, did you know? The atmosphere in Team 3 was super tense when you left, hyung-nim.”

“…After I left?”

“Yes! They ditched all their work, it was a total mess. They rejected all the guides, and I heard someone had a nosebleed every day.”

“They rejected all the guides?”

Bodam, who took a big bite of his ice cream croffle, told him to explain in more detail.