Magic on the Dead Chapter 125

“Can you not sleep?”

Eden stroked Hajin’s cheek with the back of his hand as he kept tossing and turning. Hajin, who was wriggling on the dusty blanket, nodded his head. Pie and Jeffrey were fast asleep, snoring loudly. Snore, snore.

The inside of the hangar, with the lights off, was as dark as a cave. Hajin turned his body toward Eden and whispered softly enough for only him to hear.

“Why aren’t you sleeping, Mr. Jung Taegeon? You should hurry up and sleep.”

“I plan to sleep after watching Mr. Do Hajin fall asleep.”

“Okay. I’ve closed my eyes, so you close your eyes too, Mr. Jung Taegeon.”

The neat hand that had been stroking his cheek now caressed Hajin’s eyelids.

“What are you doing.”

“To check if you really closed them.”

“Pffft…”

Hajin, who had stifled a laugh, grabbed the long hand fumbling with his face and pulled it down. Then, as if he could not lose, he stretched out his arm and slowly traced the lines of Eden’s face.

His smooth skin, without a single blemish, was as soft as a rice cake. As he moved a little further down, just as expected, the stubble on his chin, as short as grass, tickled his fingertips.

To remember this sensation, Hajin carefully felt his face. Passing over the surface of his dry lips and his indented philtrum, he reached the tip of his nose, which was as high as a mountain. After brushing past his slippery nose bridge, this time, his well-groomed eyebrows caught on his fingertips.

It was a meticulous and obsessive touch, almost persistent. The deliberate touch continued as if performing some solemn ritual.

“……”

The fingertips of a magician were more precise and sensitive than any of the five senses, capable of keenly detecting even the change in the thickness of a card depending on the humidity. Hajin was clearly engraving Eden’s face, of which he could not leave a single photograph, onto his fingertips.

In the future, if he could not remember his face, he planned to recall the sensation engraved on his fingertips tonight, over and over again. Would it not be okay to be that greedy? To his own surprise, Hajin was quite desperate in this moment.

“Mr. Do Hajin. Are you touching me after washing your hands?”

“Stay still. I’m concentrating.”

Hajin gently caressed the corner of Eden’s lips, which was turned up. A low voice chided him softly.

“With you being so clingy, where do you think you’re going all by yourself.”

“Why do you think people find magic amazing, Mr. Jung Taegeon?”

At the sudden topic, Eden’s mouth closed shut. Hajin did not withdraw his hand and elaborated.

“It’s because it’s their first experience. A completely new stimulus that they’ve never seen anywhere else.”

“……”

“Because bodies float, defying gravity, or time is overturned and the future is predicted. Those are phenomena that you can’t experience before or after. Hmm, should I say it catches you off guard? The novel, wondrous stimulus of a first experience becomes deeply ingrained in the heart as a lasting impression.”

Lastly, after stroking the tip of Eden’s chin, Hajin smiled quietly.

“So, you’re like a first experience to me, Mr. Jung Taegeon.”

He would probably never forget him as long as he was alive. Because to him, Eden was no different from a magic trick with no solution.

“You should be honored.”

Hajin, who had finished his words playfully, withdrew his hand.

Eden, who had been listening intently all along, grumbled as if dumbfounded.

“Isn’t it a bit of a foul to say something like that when you’re leaving.”

Even without seeing, he could easily imagine his strangely contorted face. Hajin chuckled and turned his body, which had been facing Eden, to look up at the ceiling. He had been anxious that he might shed tears, but surprisingly, he had remained composed the entire time.

A sense of relief that he had managed to protect Eden from danger, at least for now, filled his chest tightly.

“Mr. Do Hajin.”

Hajin turned his head slightly instead of answering.

“Try to stay away from villages and streams as much as possible, and stick to the forest paths. Of course, it will take a lot more time, but never forget that safety is the top priority.”

At the unexpected advice, his gray eyes, like a drop of ink had been dropped into them, wavered for a moment.

“I’ve packed a rope in your bag, so if you run out of weapons, try making your own and using it as I showed you before. I’ve also packed more necessary medicines, but if it feels heavy, just take out the saline solution and throw it away. This is a time when people are more dangerous than zombies, so try to travel alone if possible.”

“……”

“You will be able to endure well on your own, even without me, Mr. Do Hajin.”

At the last words, Hajin’s eyelids trembled finely. A sudden wave of tension washed over him, and his mouth went dry. He consciously tried to breathe evenly.

He focused all his attention on him, wondering what else he might say, but Eden did not open his mouth any further.

Surprisingly, their conversation ended there.

🃏

Hajin got up before dawn. Pie, sensing his presence, wagged his tail and pressed his body against Hajin’s leg. After gently stroking Pie’s back, he carefully slung his backpack over his shoulder.

He could not see well in front of him, so he crawled on the floor and barely managed to get out of his sleeping spot, then crawled on all fours to the back door he had spotted earlier and placed his hand on the doorknob.

‘It’s cold.’

Before opening the door, he turned his head and scanned the dark interior of the hangar. Suddenly, his heart began to pound as if it would burst.

Did Miso feel this way too? Recalling her back as she bravely set off on her own, Hajin tried to ease his tension.

After checking once more that he had not left anything in his bag, he knelt down in front of Pie, who was panting and guarding his back.

He held back the words he wanted to say in his heart and hugged Pie’s neck. As if sensing something was amiss, Pie let out a whimper, whine…, and began to lick Hajin’s cheek desperately. He quickly wiped his wet cheek with the back of his hand and got up.

“Be well.”

After whispering, he turned the doorknob. Creak…. This time, Pie hung onto Hajin’s back, placing his front paws on him. Staggering for a moment, Hajin kissed the bridge of the restless Pie’s nose several times as if to soothe him.

In that moment, he felt a presence from somewhere. Growing anxious, Hajin finally pushed away the reluctant Pie, who was trying to follow him, and stepped outside. Click…! Pie’s whining whimpers could be heard from between the closed door.

He covered his ears and walked as if he were running. It was still before dawn, but the brightness was much better than in the dark hangar. As he walked distractedly, a tall wire fence came into his view. Outside of it, round clumps were gathered here and there.

When he narrowed his eyes and looked closely, he could finally see the faces of people who had sat down on the street and fallen asleep. Hajin deliberately averted his gaze from the pitiful sight and walked with long strides toward the back gate.

He still felt dazed. To leave Eden’s side. It was utterly unbelievable. Could he be dreaming? He rubbed his dry face to clear his head and hoisted the backpack on his shoulder with all his might. All the while, Hajin desperately tried not to think about his lover’s sleeping figure.

In front of the back gate, there was a young Sergeant Major dozing off, leaning against the fence. It was the moment he cleared his mind of thoughts and approached him.

【Do Hajin!】

He heard a voice calling him from somewhere. Startled, Hajin instinctively turned around. Through the faintly brightening dawn light, Jeffrey was walking towards him, fuming.

“Jeffrey…?”

Soon, a strong force snatched Hajin’s shoulder. Whip.

“Ugh!”

【If you’re going to go, you should have said so. What is this?】

He dragged the staggering Hajin, who was pushed by the force, to a corner.

【Are you a thief? Why the hell are you sneaking out at the crack of dawn without even saying goodbye?】

“No, it’s just, I was worried Byeol would cry a lot if I left in the morning, so I was just going to sneak out before he woke up…”

【You heartless bastard. Seeing this, you and Eden are exactly the same.】

Jeffrey glared at Hajin with reddened eyes. Feeling awkward, Hajin scratched the back of his innocent neck.

“I didn’t think you’d wake up, I’m sorry.”

【Say it in English.】

【…Okay. But Jeffrey, I don’t have time for this. If Mr. Jung Taegeon wakes up and comes out….】

【What are you talking about? Eden is already awake.】

【What?】

Jeffrey let out a deep sigh in front of the bewildered Hajin, who had asked back.

【Anyway, they’re all just trying to act cool… I’m telling you, they’re a perfect match for each other. One of them leaves without a word of goodbye, and the other one calmly pretends to be asleep even though he knows he’s leaving.】

【…….】

As if resentful, the space between his bushy eyebrows crumpled mercilessly. After grumbling for a moment, Jeffrey suddenly grabbed the waistband of his pants, pulled it out, and began to rummage around inside his underwear.

【Wh-what are you doing?】

【Wait a minute.】

After making strange movements with his legs spread wide, he fumbled around for a while as if looking for something, and then finally straightened his body. In his hand, which had emerged from inside his underwear, was a single white card.

【Take it.】

【…Excuse me?】

【Hurry up and take it. It’s important.】

What…. Hajin stared intently at the card Jeffrey was holding out with a foreboding expression. Upon closer inspection, the card’s identity was an employee ID card. And it was one with the face of a person he missed, clearly imprinted on it.

As he just blinked and looked at Chunbeom’s employee ID card, he shook the card as if to urge him.

【It’s the key to the Yongun Research Institute entrance. Chunbeom said he loses things easily, so he asked me to keep it just in case, but now that I’m leaving this place, I don’t need this key card anymore.】

【…….】

【Don’t you get what I’m saying? I’m telling you to run straight to the Yongun Research Institute after you find your younger brother.】

Hajin finally realized Jeffrey’s intention and lifted his widened eyes.