KEG 34

“Just because there’s no pain doesn’t mean it’s all healed…!”

“Yes, is that possible?”

“Patient… I’m here to help you, not to make your injury worse….”

“Not letting me wash is what’s making it worse.”

Washing was one thing, but I desperately needed to brush my teeth.

My mouth felt so gross. I could only hold out with mouthwash for a day or two.

“Don’t give the healer a hard time.”

Kim Hwanhee, from the bed next to mine, tried to stop me.

“I know a freelance healer, should I put you in touch with her?”

“You’ve got quite the network, Hwanhee.”

Sergeant Lee Seungmin, sitting next to him, chimed in admiringly. His cheeks flushed like a fool’s, [unauthorized copy]he fidgeted restlessly, looking like a private clutching a grenade with the pin pulled out.

I wondered if he even realized how he looked. Such clumsiness from a soldier who’d been rolling around in the dirt all this time and had only just started dating.

“Um, ahem, but the price is a bit high. She’s A-class.”

Kim Hwanhee, unable to hide his flushed cheeks either, kept fanning himself with his hand. With two bright red heads side by side, they looked like cherries.

“Money isn’t an issue.”

The amount didn’t matter.

I don’t skimp on things like this.

“Then I’ll put in a request. It’ll probably take about three days for her to come. She’s a pretty laid-back person.”

Three days.

Does that mean I can’t wash or brush my teeth for another three whole days?

“I’ll go find her myself.”

I couldn’t stand it.

If I stayed like this, I might just lose my mind.

***

Thump, thump, thump.

I knew intellectually that the sound was just vibrations in the air, but here, my ears and body were in agony.

“Three, two, one! Drop!”

“Aah!”

As the DJ swayed and raised his arms, the crowd went wild. It felt as if the whole world was trembling, even when I stood still.

“Make some noise–!!”

My ears hurt. Stop screaming already.

Now my eyes hurt too. The lights were dazzling, and people were dressed in flashy outfits.

The scent in the air was strong. It was like a group of ring-tailed lemurs in mating season.

“Did you come alone?”

I was leaning against a wall in a secluded corner when someone spoke to me.

A young-looking person with a cute face.

But the clothes she wore were short, tiny, tight-fitting scrap of fabric that looked like something someone even younger should be wearing.

“I haven’t washed up yet.”

“Oh my…”

The nails on the hand raised to cover her mouth were flashy.

“What do you think of me?”

“Your nails are pretty.”

“Want me to wash you?”

“You’ll ruin your nails.”

I’d started the conversation just to brush her off, but she acted as if she was growing fonder of me by the minute. Not a good sign.

“I’m a Guide. Want to come get guiding?”

I’d been mistaken for an Esper again.

What exactly makes someone an Esper, and what makes someone a Guide? Does everyone who looks like they could fight get labeled an Esper?

If that was the case, then gorillas must be the strongest Espers on Earth.

“I’m good at guiding.”

“I’m not.”

Maybe it was because I grew up among nuns, or maybe it was because I was thrown into the savanna-like back alleys of romance. In relationships, I’d always been a total jerk.

“If you kiss me, it’ll just be a kiss.”

When I clarified that it wasn’t guiding, she laughed heartily.

I was used to women.

“I’m not an Esper either.”

I knew exactly what made them angry or sensitive, and I tried not to upset them. If I played along quietly and did what they wanted, before I knew it, we’d be kissing and having sex.

“It’s just a flirting technique Guides use. That’s cute.”

“Not tonight.”

“Not tonight?”

If I talked calmly without using harsh words, somehow I ended up being the asshole.

Apparently I gave off the impression that I was the one leading people on.

“When will it be okay?”

“Are you planning to wait?”

“Even popular restaurants have waiting lists. What’s the big deal? You’re driving me crazy.”

This was why I hated having long conversations with people. I get fewer misunderstandings [visit our site]if I just cursed, stayed silent, and exchanged brief greetings.

“Guess  you’re not into her? What do you think of me?”

This time, a man showed up.

“I’ll do whatever you want.”

“Ah, you crazy slut. Heh heh.”

The two seemed to know each other.

Maybe they came here often.

“Do you know your way around here?”

“Yeah, I booked a room. Wanna come hang out with us?”

The club’s private rooms were spread across two floors: the second floor had standard rooms, and the third floor had VIP rooms.

My goal for today was to get into a VIP room and blend into their secretive, exclusive culture.

“I’m not going unless it’s the VIP room.”

The man looked at me, then fidgeted with the watch and ring he was wearing.

Then he turned to the woman beside him.

“Hey, do I look like I don’t have money?”

“Yeah. You look like a fucking nouveau riche. An Arab oil prince type.”

“A nouveau riche is still rich.”

After exchanging a few words, they turned to me.

“We’re VIPs.”

This was a high-end club in Gangnam.

It wasn’t a private club owned by the top 1% of South Korea’s chaebol, but even for the middle class, it was hard to book a regular room here. The entry requirements were so strict that I had to pretend to be a staff member to sneak in.

“Let’s go.”

I followed the man and woman inside the private room on the third floor.

I was used to these kinds of bars, I’d been to them so many times while managing them back in my days as a thug, gangster, and loan shark that I was sick of them. Aside from the different kinds of alcohol, they were all pretty much the same.

As I walked in and took a seat, a few curious glances turned my way.

“You’ve got good posture. Did you used to dance? Did you get injured while dancing?”

No, it was because I used to be a thug.

“You’ve got a man’s body…”

I just got tough from doing physical labor and roughing it out.

“Why’d you bring a guy here? It ruins the mood.”

“This guy looks like total loser. Take off your hat. Let’s see your face.”

I haven’t washed up. Drop it.

“You’re hot.”

You… what?

I was taken aback by the unexpected attention. I thought they’d just hang out among themselves, but apparently they were pretty bored.

“Hey, I said take off your hat!”

The guy who kept picking a fight reached out to pull my hat off.

Given my temper, I wanted to beat him to a pulp and take control of this room. If I’d come here before enlisting, I wouldn’t have hesitated to do just that.

But I’d grown up now, and I didn’t want to do that. Above all, since I’d snuck in, I had to keep a low profile.

“Hey, quit bothering him, babe. Try this. Ah~”

The woman who’d brought me here shooed the troublemaker away and poked some food with a fork before shoving it into my mouth. Something squishy touched my lips.

It was a peach slice.

I chewed it slowly.

“Aww, so cute~!”

“Let me feed you too~ Ah~”

“Heh heh, is this a zoo?”

Why are there so many people trying to feed me these days? Do I look pitiful because I can’t use my arms?

Amidst the barrage of fruit being thrust at me from all sides, I heard the sound of a glass being set down right next to me.

“Hi.”

People naturally made room for her, and the woman who spoke took the seat next to me as if it were the most natural thing in the world. The moment she sat down, the questions and attention directed at me stopped.

“I don’t think I’ve seen you before.”

“I haven’t seen you before either.”

“Hehe, what do you do? Office worker?”

“I’m just taking it easy right now. Because of my arms.”

I shrugged my shoulders, showing her the black shoulder brace.

“Can I touch it?”

When I nodded, she touched my shoulder and then slid her hand down to stroke my forearm.

Physical contact.

Her intentions were clear, but I couldn’t shake her off. She seemed to be a central figure here.

“Is this the famous VVIP room?”

The woman nodded, put a cigarette in her mouth, and lit it with a Zippo lighter. She offered one to me, so I took it.

“Talk to me informally.”

A high-handed tone.

Yet, a detached attitude that suited her as if it were second nature.

I felt like I was getting closer to the answer.

“Aren’t you going to tell me what you’re really up to?”

“You’re a deadbeat.”

“Want some pocket money from noona?”

“How much are you going to give me?”

Perhaps she liked my answer, because a wad of bills was immediately thrust at me.

“I’ll give you more if we go on a date.”

“Is that prostitution money?”

“If it is, would you put out?”

It was a veritable animal kingdom. I didn’t expect to find refined entertainment at a bar, but places like this never changed.

“Don’t sleep with some guy who’ll only do it for money, Noona.”

I didn’t even know if she was actually older than me. I just said what I thought she’d want to hear.

That gaze swept over me again. It was the kind of look that turned me into a total bastard.

“What am I supposed to do when all I’ve got is money?”

She held her cigarette in her hand, draped her arm over my shoulder, and whispered in my ear, her breath mingling with mine.

“Wanna try that too?”

Here it comes.

My heart raced with the anticipation of finally escaping this sticky, clammy body. I whispered into her ear. Her thick, wavy hair tickled my cheek.

“How am I supposed to know what you mean by ‘that’?”

At my question, she giggled and clicked open a silver tin case to show me a purple pill. The purple hue glowed under the dim light of the room.

“It’s a drug designed to prevent Espers from going berserk. It has no side effects and just blocks senses.”

The problem was that ordinary people were taking it.

As Awakeners, whose bodies differed from those of ordinary people, appeared in the world, conventional pharmacology began to veer off course.

A molecular neurophysiology that the nervous system of Homo sapiens couldn’t handle, and national capital poured into ultra-high-concentration synthetic pharmacology.

“Just one of these, and you won’t feel any pain for a week.”

Technology designed to control Awakeners.

For ordinary people, a drug disguised as something legal.

“Just… think of it as a sleeping pill. It puts your mind at ease.”