Chapter 82: A Bitter Yuzu and the Air Lane’s Proposal

[I’m leaving now. I should be able to re-enter the country within a month. Enjoy your vacation.]

After their parting at the cafe, Han Do-hoon had sent no further messages to Sa-yoon. The brief, business-like sentence above was his last communication after days of silence.

A month and a half had now passed since Han Do-hoon departed for the battlefield.

Initially, Sa-yoon had been wracked with anxiety, wondering if Han Do-hoon would lead other Irregular Hunters into the country within the promised month. Now, however, he calmly watched the days tick by on the calendar.

‘What could Han Do-hoon be thinking?’ Sa-yoon mused. ‘Knowing I’m an Irregular, why would he leave me alone like this?’

“Team Leader. Here, drink this. It came in as a gift.”

Chae-jun approached Sa-yoon, who was lost in thought at his desk, holding a glass.

“They say it’s homemade yuzu. I mixed it with ice for you. I’ll leave some cookies next to it.”

As Sa-yoon picked up the glass, the clinking ice resonated clearly against the rim. Taking a sip, the refreshing scent of yuzu spread, and the sweet liquid coated his tongue. It was so sweet that even Sa-yoon, who loved sweets, paused in surprise.

“Chae-jun, isn’t this a bit too sweet?”

“But you like sweet things, Team Leader.”

Still, this was sweet enough to make his teeth ache. As Sa-yoon frowned and set the glass down, Chae-jun gently placed it back in his hand.

“Drink it. If I had my way, I’d make you drink the pure yuzu syrup, but I held back and mixed it 1:1.”

‘No wonder it was so intensely sweet.’ Chae-jun looked at Sa-yoon with a stern expression.

“Do you realize how thin you’ve gotten lately, Team Leader? You used to be so muscular and sturdy, but now you’re practically skin and bones. Goodness, your arm looks like it might break just holding that glass.”

Sa-yoon awkwardly glanced down at his wrist, hearing words that sounded like a grandmother doting on her grandson. He was indeed thinner.

While not quite as emaciated as Chae-jun exaggerated, his body felt significantly lighter than before.

“Summer is almost over, so why is our Team Leader still losing weight? Shouldn’t you really get a check-up?”

“It’s not that serious.”

He already knew the reason for his weight loss. The problem was that he couldn’t tell Chae-jun.

After Han Do-hoon’s return to the battlefield, Sa-yoon hadn’t slept properly. Even when he managed to drift off, nightmares plagued him, forcing him awake almost immediately.

He had even torn down the blackout curtains hanging over his window. The darker and quieter it was, the more relentlessly the nightmares tormented him.

Nightmares of Han Do-hoon coming to capture him, scenes of Levian Christine laughing with him as he was caught, and dreams of seeing his own corpse displayed like a trophy beside Myeong-ah’s body.

Every day, the nightmares, seemingly never tiring, tormented Sa-yoon with new repertoires. They were dreams as painful and heavy as the burden of worries he had carried.

Since he wasn’t sleeping properly and his food intake had decreased, losing weight was only natural.

“Anyway, finish that. I can’t monitor your meals, so at least I need to make sure you’re eating snacks.”

Chae-jun, determined to restore Sa-yoon’s health, placed his hands on his hips and spoke with conviction. Fearing Chae-jun would insist on eating breakfast together every morning if he refused, Sa-yoon nodded and took another sip of the yuzu tea. Perhaps it would be more palatable once the ice melted.

–The Federation announced today that 3.5 hectares of land were destroyed due to a recent clash. This area, exceeding 10,500 pyeong, has prompted authorities to….

The urgent voice of an announcer blared from the TV in the corner of the office. Such reports had become increasingly frequent lately.

Since the Esper Federation declared its active response to terrorist organizations, it had begun disclosing information to the public.

They were broadcasting detailed breaking news, an astonishing change for an organization that had previously kept battlefield matters strictly under wraps.

–While there were no fatalities in this battle, three A-rank Espers and twenty-one B-rank Espers were injured, with two of them transferred to the ICU.

The screen showed Espers engaged in fierce combat. Han Do-hoon had once vividly described the battlefield, mentioning how Espers competed to hunt Lanes and even harmed comrades to meet their quotas.

However, the scenes on screen diverged sharply from the reality Han Do-hoon had described. The broadcast depicted Espers working together, comforting the injured, and bravely confronting Lanes as a united front.

This implied that what was being broadcast was a staged portrayal.

It seemed like a device to dramatically highlight the Espers fighting on the battlefield, making them appear as noble beings risking their lives for the people.

–Ah, do you see the white dot at the far right of the screen? That is our Esper Han Do-hoon, single-handedly holding back the opposing force. Truly remarkable!

And the protagonist of this theatrical display was Han Do-hoon.

“Seeing him like this, it feels different,” Chae-jun mumbled, watching the screen with Sa-yoon. Indeed, Han Do-hoon was unlike his usual self at headquarters.

Standing alone before a vast plain, he appeared almost reverent. Chae-jun confirmed Sa-yoon had finished his drink and contentedly cleared away the tray.

“Team Leader Han Do-hoon got along well with our Team Leader before he left, didn’t he? So I only thought of him as a kind and patient person.”

“Why does getting along with me make him kind? It’s probably because I was kind enough to tolerate him.”

“Yes, yes. That’s what I meant.”

Chae-jun, giving a perfunctory reply, chuckled as he gathered his documents. Sa-yoon, instead of pressing the issue, picked up the stack of papers piled before him.

Lately, Sa-yoon had been diligently processing documents. He was tackling not only urgent tasks but also papers with ample deadlines. Sa-yoon was preparing to leave.

He had already finished speaking with Jung Hyun-woo. Jung Hyun-woo was also planning his departure from headquarters. As for his mother…

Sa-yoon’s hand paused momentarily. Though he visited frequently these days, his mother’s condition hadn’t improved. If anything, she was growing weaker. Perhaps he had only three months, at most.

Jin Jung-woo no longer used his mother as leverage to threaten Sa-yoon. He knew Sa-yoon visited the annex regularly but didn’t stop him, nor did he care if he encountered the doctor.

Jin Jung-woo must have been troubled himself. He desperately wanted to hold onto Sa-yoon but lacked the means to do so.

Sa-yoon picked up his pen once more.

Even with most documents handled digitally, the regulations stipulated that team leaders must confirm certain papers in hard copy. It seemed this public corporation had no intention of rectifying its inefficiencies. The scratch of his fountain pen on paper filled the quiet.

‘When Mother passes, I’ll leave with Jung Hyun-woo. I’ll stay for her final moments, bury her in a peaceful, warm place, and then depart with a clear conscience.’

With his current mindset, any destination felt acceptable. Perhaps even contacting the Air Lane directly to uncover the truth wouldn’t be so bad. After all, was there truly a difference between dying in a laboratory and dying deceived by the Air Lane?

As Sa-yoon chuckled bitterly at his desperate reality, the urgent voice of the announcer blared from the TV again.

–Breaking news. Reports have just come in that the Air Lane has, for the first time, proposed dialogue with the Esper Association.

“Why are you so thin again? You’re absolutely skin and bones.”

“Chief, did you conspire with Chae-jun?”

“Conspire about what? Just look at yourself. How could I *not* say something?”

The Chief clicked his tongue as soon as he saw Sa-yoon. Seeing his drastically emaciated appearance, he repeated Chae-jun’s exact words, shaking his head.

“You know why I called you, don’t you?”

“Probably because of the breaking news from a few days ago.”

It had been three days since the terrorist organization, Air Lane, requested dialogue with the International Esper Federation. The content hidden within that shocking news was even more extraordinary.

The Air Lane had requested reconciliation, stating they would align with the International Esper Federation’s intentions. This was a radical shift in attitude for an organization that had never revealed its motives.

This unpredictable move plunged Esper headquarters in various countries into emergency response mode. Korea was no exception.

“It seems the Federation has issued directives after three days. What did they say?”

“The usual, really. They can’t predict the Air Lane’s actions, so strengthen perimeter security. And request additional necessary forces to be dispatched to the battlefield. Nothing more than that.”

“It seems they haven’t gathered much information either.”

The Chief nodded. Though not as gaunt as Sa-yoon, the Chief had also grown noticeably thinner over the past few days, running a hand through his dry hair. The smattering of white hairs had increased in just a few days.

“What a hardship to face in my twilight years. I should have just retired early.”

“Hmm, it’s hard to disagree.”

Sa-yoon, who would normally tease him about still being robust, wasn’t so heartless as to joke in such a situation. The Chief grumbled about problems arising late in his career before bringing up the meeting again.

“The meeting will be held on the battlefield. Specifically, right in the center of the Lane habitat and the Espers’ operational base. The principle is to hold it unarmed in the center, but…”

“As soon as Espers are involved, being unarmed becomes meaningless.”

📚 Also on NHV Novels

Could It Be That I’m Actually the Strongest Final Boss?

ComedyFantasyFemale Protagonist

Read Now →
Not interested