Chapter 36: The Warmth That Wasn’t Hers.

Bright morning sunlight.

A soft voice brushed past his ear.

『”Oh, you’re awake?”』

With a drowsy mind, Seo Jin couldn’t open his eyes easily.

“Umm…….”

Because the fatigue from the night before remained, still pressing heavily on his consciousness.

So, as he buried his face in the bed and only let out a groan, a voice chuckling softly at his bedside returned.

A voice so clear and beautiful that he could only dream of it.

『”It’s okay to sleep a little more. We’re both off today, you know.”』

A loving touch gently stroked the back of his neck.

With that familiar and reassuring feeling, Seo Jin was able to close his eyes again.

A gentle touch stroking his hair.

The warmth of the side that shared the night together.

A calm and gentle breath.

Seo Jin silently felt her touch, realizing once again that the presence of a loved one was so comforting.

Then, a gentle voice patted his back once more.

『”That’s right, you really worked hard for the first time in a while. Rest a little more.”』

As she said, there was a reason for his fatigue.

It was the night before, where they had wanted each other even more than usual, as if washing away all the regrets of not having even a moment to spend alone during this particularly long operation.

It was only at dawn that he barely fell asleep after that.

“Umm….”

Therefore, Seo Jin still couldn’t lift his heavy eyelids.

The fatigue that had been accumulated steadily during the previous operations also contributed to this weariness.

Looking back, it was that difficult of a mission.

There were many urgent moments, and many casualties as well.

If the situation had been a little worse-,

Perhaps he was anxious just by unconsciously thinking of that possibility.

The anxiety that a precious person might get hurt.

That’s why they desperately sought each other out within reach the night before.

He was feeling both the fullness and fatigue after desperately clinging to each other as if engraving the fact that the other person was still safe by his side, and then pouring everything out.

In fact, if he could have his way, he didn’t want to do anything like this.

Lying together in a bedroom filled with each other’s warmth, he wanted to spend only this moment together forever without stepping out into the dangerous outside.

But they already knew too well.

That nowhere in this world would ever be safe until the last colony of encroaching species rooted here was burned down.

Knowing that in order to reverse the predetermined fate of the original and protect the peace of the days they would spend together, they had no choice but to continue fighting.

Until then, Arcel and Seo Jin had promised to fulfill their respective roles.

But if this war really ends, and if they ever regain the safe tomorrow they desire, then that’s when they should reap the rewards they’ve been putting off…

The story of the long night, where they shared their true feelings, became the driving force that allowed them to endure even the most difficult missions. Thanks to that, he could really endure any difficult battle.

A resolve that Seo Jin, who had first fallen into this world, would never have imagined.

The reason why he decided to fight beyond just surviving.

Her existence was really an undeserved fortune.

She was a person who made him happy just by drawing a tomorrow together.

And to protect this precious happiness, he was determined to do anything…

Not wanting to lose such a person even in his dreams, Seo Jin reached out even in the midst of the drowsiness pouring in.

He suddenly pulled the slender wrist that was quietly stroking his hair and hugged her.

『”Eung? But shouldn’t we get up soon now?”』

He could feel her warmth being hugged into Seo Jin’s arms without resistance even while saying that. He cherished the feeling of her hair leaning against him, the familiar scent and the gentle voice, and Seo Jin kept thinking.

That he would never let go of this warmth.

He vowed anew that he would protect her no matter what happened.

“Arciel….”

『”What’s wrong? Is something wrong?”』

“No. Nothing…. Just…….”

But it seemed like his voice trembled a little.

She always noticed his feelings quickly and asked back as always.

『”Seo Jin, we promised not to hide anything from each other, right?”』

He hesitated a little more, and finally answered quietly.

“…. I just had a bad dream.”

It was a memory that was so vivid that his heart still sank.

“It was a nightmare where you disappeared and didn’t come back even after searching for a long time. Because I was left alone like that, I didn’t know what to do there…”

Even to a trivial story, she always comforted him with a gentle voice as always.

『”It’s okay. Seo Jin, I’m not going to leave you.”』

“Arciel…..”

As if to comfort him, as if to reassure him.

『”I promise. No matter what happens, no matter how long it takes, I promise to come back to Seo Jin’s side. So everything will be okay.”』

『”Now, rest a little more with peace of mind.”』

To that whispering voice, Seo Jin-

『”I love you.”』

The sound of rustling brushed past Seo Jin’s ears, who was asleep.

Fingertips stroking his hair from beyond his drowsy consciousness. As if handling a fragile pottery, that delicate yet loving touch felt somehow familiar…

Seo Jin suddenly came to his senses.

‘….Arciel?’

The name he unconsciously repeated in his mind.

He woke up with a feeling that made his heart sink with just that one word.

But… he couldn’t open his eyes.

Because he wanted to believe it even for a moment.

That the person sharing warmth by his side now,
That the her he wanted to meet again even in his dreams was right…

But in fact, he knew.

That the person who was so precious that he wouldn’t trade her for anything had already left his side, and the reality that she would never return.

So, even if the warmth of another person he faced in his sleep, the loving touch stroking his sleeping hair was similar to that…

Even if the soft touch of her lips that carefully touched his forehead made him recall how much the nostalgia of the past days…

Seo Jin already knew too well what the real reality was.

That’s why he couldn’t open his eyes even more.

Because he was afraid that the fiercely swirling emotions would leak out even by mistake.

He was just pretending to be asleep forever.

After holding his breath for a while,
He felt a presence quietly getting out of bed.

After a few small footsteps, the door closed gently and the surroundings became quiet.

A space left alone. All that remained was the warmth of the side where someone had stayed.

Seo Jin finally opened his eyes calmly.

At the same time, the memories of the night before also vividly came to mind.

As he slowly raised his body, the scene that appeared was quite stark.

A disheveled bed and clothes scattered randomly on the floor.

Mixed in with the cloths scattered at his feet were his and hers.

And above all, the stains clearly left on the bedding.

In the middle of the sheet, which had a subtly different color due to the damp traces, there was even the particularly red trace of the first time…

All the scenes that had been hidden in the darkness of the night became too clearly revealed in the morning.

At the sight, Seo Jin unknowingly let out a low sigh.

“….Haa.”

Beyond the memories mixed with the dreams of dawn sleep, an indescribable aftertaste remained, and he was stiff for a while.

It was a complex and difficult state of mind that he couldn’t describe at all.

A frustrating yet bitter feeling was tightly knotted in his chest and wouldn’t go down.

Above all, the guilt was the greatest.

Because the act of the previous night was no different from an act of betraying his own heart, which he had cherished more than anything else…

‘In the end, I…….’

But in the end, this cannot be blamed on anyone.

Because it was his choice.

Because it was ultimately his decision to prioritize revenge for his own satisfaction over the heart for the her who had left.

It wasn’t even a sacrifice.

He doesn’t even have the right to say that his heart is painful.

So just….

Seo Jin slowly bent down and picked up the clothes that had fallen under the bed.

Outside the quiet bedroom where he was left alone, a faint presence was felt.

There are only two people staying in this space.

Is she, who went out first, waiting for him to gather his mind and come out?

He hesitates a little.

Nevertheless, because he knows that he can’t turn back anymore.

Seo Jin got up from his seat.

And he slowly opened the door of the bedroom and went out.

Now was the time to face the price of the choice.

The price he had grabbed even by throwing everything away.