Chapter 24: Cozy Morning, Complicated Day

It’s cozy.

Of course it felt cozy, sleeping under a warm blanket in bed, but today it felt far more comfortable than usual.

It was as if the warmth of a heated mat on a cold winter day wrapped around my body pleasantly.

Half-asleep, I turned toward the warmth.

When I buried my face where the heat emanated, something wrapped around my back.

It hugged me so tightly I could barely breathe…

Wait, this…!

The moment I realized the source of the warmth, I snapped awake.

“Seon Jaeyul!”

“Awake, hyung?”

I pushed the large body aside and sat upright on the bed.

Suddenly, all sleep disappeared.

“I told you not to keep coming into my bed! You scared me.”

“Hmm… can’t I just lie down a little longer…? I had a bad dream again and couldn’t sleep at all today….”

Ah… my heart softens.

He’s eighteen now, almost fully grown, yet when he makes such pitiful expressions, I just can’t push him away harshly.

Sigh… eventually, I had to pretend I couldn’t resist Jaeyul tugging at my arm and lie back down.

“Ha… what kind of dream did you have?”

I slid my arm under his neck and hugged his back.

Wow… I’m really surprised.

When did he grow so much?

Now, even hugging Jaeyul’s body isn’t easy.

His shoulders don’t even fit in one arm.

Did I make him exercise too much…?

At this rate, he might become a muscle monster instead of a villain.

“What was it…? I don’t know. Anyway, it was a scary dream.”

I stroked Jaeyul’s back as he murmured into my chest.

Sometimes he seems so grown-up, but at moments like this, he’s endlessly a child.

Looking at him now, he really was fully grown.

He hasn’t grown much since sixteen, but even then, he was nearly 190 cm tall.

His body grew so fast that after fourteen, even lifting him was difficult.

We had already needed nine sets of school uniforms in middle school, which says it all.

Still, I was glad he grew up healthy.

When I saw him as a child, I sometimes doubted he was really the ‘X’ I knew, but now that doubt was completely gone.

As he aged, he increasingly resembled the memory of ‘X.’

Somehow… the feeling was very different, though.

“You should go to school now.”

“Today’s Saturday.”

“Ah… then I should prepare breakfast.”

“When did you start preparing breakfast, hyung? I set it up earlier, so let’s sleep a little more.”

Jaeyul had no intention of getting up.

Though he claimed he hadn’t slept well, his breathing gradually relaxed in my embrace.

Since he was young, he had always helped around the house.

Having prepared breakfast in advance was just adorable.

Thanks to that, I could be a little lazy.

“Just sleep a little more, okay?”

“…Mm. Pat me.”

He asks for a lot.

Still… he’s cute, so it’s fine.

I hugged Jaeyul’s back heavily, stroking it evenly.

Even so, this would have been a pretty good weekend morning… if only.

“Arf! Arf!”

Sigh… it won’t be a quiet morning.

“Ppoppi, you’re heavy.”

We were probably too close.

Ppoppi ran over and mercilessly trampled us on the blanket.

Ppoppi was a curious creature.

He had remained in the appearance of a puppy despite all this time.

Jaeyul thought he was just a small breed, but Ppoppi likely maintained his puppy form through some special magical ability.

“Arf, arf!”

“Okay. I’ll give you food, just wait.”

Judging by how he begs for food like this, his intelligence might really be that of a dog.

Reluctantly, I released my arms from around sleeping Jaeyul and stood up.

Before leaving the room, I heard a low sigh behind me.

I turned and saw Ppoppi frozen in place.

Jaeyul was still motionless in bed.

…Did that little Ppoppi just sigh…?

Even after the meat was prepared, Ppoppi wouldn’t leave the room.

Truly a strange creature.

“Today I’ll be late, so go play outside and come back slowly.”

“What are you talking about, hyung? Did you forget?”

“Uh…?”

“Today you said you’d let me watch your work.”

Ah, right.

Until now, I had vaguely talked about my work.

How could I say, “I illegally guide criminals for money!”

Though he probably guessed I wasn’t earning legally, I wasn’t brazen enough to openly admit it.

Besides, I couldn’t show Jaeyul the decrepit underground workshop.

So I’d held off letting him see my workplace.

Now, after moving the office, I promised to let him see it.

Today was the first day of business after the move, and Jaeyul remembered the long-standing promise.

“…Sigh… you really don’t have to see it….”

“Hyung.”

This might be the biggest change in Jaeyul since childhood.

“Uh, hmm…?”

“I have the duty to know how hard you work to feed me. That way I can appreciate how precious the money is. If I were just to receive it without gratitude… okay, I’ll work too. I’ll make sure we can both eat. Even if I have to do manual labor, we won’t starve, right?”

He had grown articulate.

When he was younger, a simple “Okay” would suffice.

Now, he spoke logically, leaving no room for excuses.

And… work for money?! That’s impossible for a kid this young…!

“No! L-let’s go! Together….”

“Thanks, hyung. And sorry for complaining about something difficult.”

I was slightly uncomfortable at the request, but Jaeyul hugged my waist, and the discomfort vanished instantly.

“Nothing difficult. It’s okay, Jaeyul.”

Why is he still so sweet and good?

Even though he’s grown in size, he still looks pure and kind to me.

Like when I first met him at thirteen.

“Then let’s get ready and go.”

“Okay. Hyung, what will you wear today?”

“Clothes…? Just a black hoodie. Why…?”

He asked strangely.

I usually have a uniform-like set of clothes.

At this chilly time, I alternate between gray and black hoodies.

“No, we think alike. I was going to wear black too.”

Jaeyul went to shower first, and I started tidying the house.

Though small, our home was precious, and I wanted it clean.

Even after struggling to leave the rooftop room, we were still renting.

Still, it was a two-room villa, so a small success.

Sunlight from the south side made it satisfying.

When I finished tidying, Jaeyul came out in a black sweatshirt.

“Jaeyul, eat this before we go.”

“…Eat again…?”

“It’s just a supplement.”

I gave him a Petra, something I had already given dozens or even hundreds of times.

At first, I hesitated, worrying about his young body.

After learning he was ‘X,’ I increased the dose gradually.

‘X’ was strong, but why not let him have even more power?

Anything beneficial, he would get.

Yet it was strange.

Jaeyul had used ‘X’s’ technique at thirteen.

Still, he hadn’t awakened.

I tried guiding him, but it rebounded like using powers on an ordinary person.

Besides healing, my power had no effect, confirming he hadn’t awakened.

Typically, at this age, awakening should have occurred, but Jaeyul was slow.

Perhaps late, but his growth in size made the delay inconsequential.

“Let’s go. Take care of the house, Ppoppi.”

“Woof!”

…Why does Ppoppi seem happy about our outing?

His face was bright, tail wagging wildly.

He normally hates being left alone…? Truly strange.

“…Here…?”

“Uh, yeah… it’s small since I do it alone! Not just me, the whole industry is like this…”

Jaeyul glanced at the office, looking embarrassed.

Although we moved, it was still the second floor of a shabby building.

We couldn’t afford more, and finding a better place for an illegal business was hard.

Being above ground instead of underground was already fortunate.

“Hyung’s place is clean. Preparing alone must’ve been tough. I should’ve helped during the move…”

“R-really…? No! You have school to attend. I hired movers, it’s fine.”

“Good… do you treat people here?”

Fortunately, Jaeyul found it acceptable.

I could barely carry the load alone during the move.

“Yeah. Not serious cases, just… people with weak energy, like… therapy.”

I couldn’t call it an illegal guiding office, so I found the closest analogy.

He wouldn’t understand guiding anyway since he hadn’t awakened.

Still, it was awkward.

“Therapy…?”

“…Uh, yeah… like…”

Before I could explain, a sound of salvation arrived.

Ding!

A customer entered.

I told Jaeyul to sit briefly and ran out quickly.

“Welcome!”

“I’m here. Is it okay now?”

“Ah….”

But the customer was troublesome.

A somewhat famous difficult esper with a scar on his cheek.

He didn’t touch physically, but his mouth was foul.

Still, he tipped well, so I couldn’t turn him away.

“Sorry, it’s hard today due to the move. Next time, I’ll do better.”

“What? I waited until morning despite pain because of you, and now you can’t? You full now? Others give kisses and more, but I come only here and you’re rude?”

Ah… damn. He’s in a bad mood.

“Then… come back later?”

“Don’t tell me it’s because of that kid? Huh?”

The man’s gaze fell on Jaeyul.

He stepped toward Jaeyul.

No, absolutely not.

I grabbed his shoulder urgently.

How dare this crazy guy…!

“Stop. Move even one finger, and you won’t enter here again. Sit quietly while I handle this.”

I was furious but couldn’t show it freely.

Even if I transformed his senses into pain, I couldn’t guarantee quick control.

He was a B- or A-rank esper, manageable but risky near Jaeyul.

And I couldn’t show such a harsh side in front of Jaeyul.

“You should have done that earlier.”

Finally, he calmed down, leaning against the small bed’s head with a pillow.

As I approached to guide him out quickly… he suddenly stripped his T-shirt and said:

“I’ll make an exception today. Try it here. Spread your legs, climb on.”

With an obnoxious smile, he began groping his chest.

“Better if it’s with lips.”

Utter nonsense.