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Chapter: 18
Hadaem called him “mister,” but Kim Hyun was nothing like the typical middle-aged man one would imagine. He was a handsome young man with refined features.
His facial lines and high nose bridge were as sharp as a model’s, his cheekbones slightly prominent, giving his face a strong three-dimensional look. His long eyes were piercing, and his thin lips made him seem somewhat sensitive and sharp.
Hadaem asked the same question she had asked several times already.
“How old are you, exactly?”
“I stopped counting a long time ago, so I forgot.”
“You must have a rough idea.”
“Just say I’m twenty-five.”
“Not two hundred and fifty?”
“Why not make it two thousand five hundred?”
“Hey, that’s too much.”
“And two hundred and fifty isn’t?”
“Well… honestly, that’s pretty extreme too…”
“The coffee’s ready. Drink.”
Kim Hyun held out a pink cup filled to the brim with coffee.
“It’ll be good. I went out of my way to get it.”
“Oh, now I’m excited.”
Hadaem carefully took a sip. The floral aroma layered itself beautifully across her palate.
“Well? It’s good, right?”
Hadaem nodded vigorously.
Normally, she avoided high-caffeine drinks because of potential risks. When Kim Hyun learned this one day, he started keeping decaffeinated coffee stocked in the security office.
A good person—no, a good goblin.
“Alright. Now tell me.”
“Tell you what?”
“Why you came today.”
“Do I need a reason just to visit?”
“You always come with a reason.”
“Now I feel a little guilty…”
“It’s fine. Tell me. I’m bored.”
“It’s hard to talk when you look so stiff.”
“That’s something you’ll have to understand.”
Despite his gentle voice and considerate actions, Kim Hyun was always expressionless. He claimed it was because he was emotionally dull, but that didn’t make it any easier to get used to.
“Okay. The reason I came today is…”
She hesitated, trailing off, then finally spoke.
“A student from Taebaek Hall transferred to the main building.”
“Doi-gyeol?”
“Huh? You know him too?”
“I didn’t. Now I do.”
Hadaem’s eyes widened. Kim Hyun’s face, however, remained unchanged.
Watching him sip his coffee indifferently, she urged him on.
“How? Who told you?”
“I ran into him. Last night.”
“You ran into him? Where?”
“He was trying to cross over to Taebaek Hall, so I had no choice but to warn him. It’s been so long since something like that happened—it felt strange.”
Hadaem thought she understood what he meant by “strange.”
Kim Hyun never revealed himself to students first.
Unless, like her, they requested it.
She frowned and tilted her head.
“Why?”
“I don’t know either. Anyway, no one is allowed to freely move between Taebaek Hall and the main building without a permit, so I had to stop him.”
“You need a permit? I’ve never heard of that.”
“Sometimes ignorance is better. Curiosity can get children hurt.”
“Has anyone gotten hurt before?”
“Many times. The law of the jungle never changes.”
“Gasp…”
Hadaem covered her mouth with both hands.
That meant beastfolk—small animals—had been injured by predators.
She knew from beastfolk history class that their stabilization as humans was relatively recent, but hearing it directly was shocking.
Kim Hyun continued in his flat tone.
“It’s all in the past. After a few incidents, patrols became strict. It’s annoying, but unavoidable. I don’t like blood.”
“You’re not scared?”
“…No.”
Kim Hyun replied a beat too late.
Hadaem barely managed to swallow the laugh that escaped her.
“So what happened?”
“He went back. No permit.”
“I see…”
“So what are you trying to say?”
“Well, you see…”
When it came time to talk about Doi-gyeol, her voice trembled strangely.
Hadaem took a sip of her now lukewarm coffee and continued.
“He’s my mate.”
Kim Hyun gestured lightly with his chin, signaling her to continue.
“Do you know what I did with him on the first day of school? I took a ‘Life Four-Cut’ photo with him!”
“That photo you wanted so badly?”
“Yes! Isn’t that crazy? Not even with Yuna, but with someone I just met… Ah! I brought the photo. I haven’t even told Yuna yet because I thought she’d feel hurt.”
Hadaem scampered over to the bag she’d tossed on the sofa and pulled out a photo tucked between the pages of a small diary. She slid it across to Kim Hyun.
“Cute.”
It was a dry, brief comment, but she knew he meant it. Kim Hyun never said things he didn’t mean.
“He even pulled an animal hat down over my head! We’d just met! Isn’t that insane?”
“What part of that is insane?”
“Well, I mean… I’m a girl, and he’s a boy.”
Remembering how bad Kim Hyun was at reading emotions, she added,
“Being friendly with someone of the opposite sex isn’t easy when you’re not close. Especially if you just met.”
“I see.”
“And he even went up to Byeol Yoonseong and bragged about how well the photo turned out!”
“He probably gave you an earful.”
“He did! He looked at me like I was pathetic. Anyway, after that…”
She told him everything—how Yi-gyeol had waited from dawn, how students had gathered just to watch him, what happened in math class, seeing him on the rooftop, studying together with Yuna, and how he didn’t show up this morning.
Kim Hyun listened seriously, occasionally responding or asking questions, though his expression never changed.
“…That’s why I came here. I wouldn’t have anything to do even if I went back to the dorm.”
“Well done.”
“Ah, I talked too much. My throat hurts.”
“Want more coffee?”
“Yes!”
Kim Hyun poured all the remaining coffee from the glass pot into her cup.
“I’ve never seen that face before.”
“What face?”
“Yours.”
“Mine?”
“You look happy.”
Hadaem froze just as she was about to take a sip.
Had she been that obvious?
Feeling awkward, she stared down at her mug, pretending to savor the coffee.
But the calm she tried to regain shattered at Kim Hyun’s next words.
“Do your best.”
“Mister!”
It felt like an alarm was blaring from her watch, even though it was on silent.
* * *
It was Sunday evening.
Doi-gyeol hadn’t contacted her all weekend. Yuna, who had been sulking the entire time, brought out the group chat.
[Anyone seen Doi-gyeol yesterday or today]
[Why]
[I need to ask him something]
[Didn’t see him]
[Me neither]
[22233344]
[Who’s his roommate?]
[He’s got a single room lol]
[Why?]
[Who knows]
[Why do you think lol]
Snickering emojis flooded the chat, and subtle trash-talking about Yi-gyeol began.
[But isn’t Doi-gyeol’s attitude kind of trash]
[Yeah, was shocked on the first day]
[Even wearing wired earphones pissed me off, like we can’t even talk to him wtf]
[Right??? His self-importance is insane]
[So what if he’s a tiger beastman, are we supposed to be scared lol acting tough when he doesn’t even transform]
Only a few people were driving the conversation.
Hadaem checked the participant list in disbelief.
“He’s not in the group chat.”
“That’s why they’re going wild. A bunch of anchovies.”
Yuna scowled.
“It’s like they set the stage just to talk behind his back. So annoying.”
Hadaem immediately invited Yi-gyeol. The chat went silent in an instant.
“Look at that. Can’t say a word to his face.”
Yuna clicked her tongue in disdain.
Hadaem felt oddly upset.
Probably because she saw herself reflected in Yi-gyeol’s name.
How many conversations like this had happened behind her back?
The days she had endured with difficulty were nothing more than entertainment to someone else.
Being forced to acknowledge something she wanted to ignore felt awful.
She let out a long sigh and flopped onto the bed.
Yuna hesitated as if she wanted to say something, but Hadaem closed her eyes, pretending not to notice.
She clenched her phone tightly for no reason at all—then, right on cue, it vibrated.
She checked the screen, unable to ignore the repeated buzzing.
[Aunt]
Hadaem shot upright and answered immediately.
“Aunt? What’s going on at this hour?”
—Hey, Hadaem. If you have time, could you come to the infirmary for a moment?
“Now? Why?”
—A friend is looking for you.
