---

Heavy. 

For some reason, he feels something heavy on his chest. It’s not unbearable, but it’s enough to bother him. 

On top of that, this weight doesn’t stay still but keeps moving around. Whenever it moves, it presses on his bones, so… it really hurts.

“It hurts….”

Jiho mumbled, but his voice was so hoarse and weak that he shocked himself. Hearing this, the weight on his chest got off… or not. It carefully stopped.

At that moment, a familiar voice reached Jiho’s ears.

“He says it hurts. Move.”

“Mrow, MROW!”

…A cat?

Though a common sound, Jiho’s eyes shot open since it’s a slightly unnatural sound he himself’s not usually able to hear.

When he opened his eyes, what was proudly standing on top of him on all four with its claws out to resist Yiwon’s pull was… a cat.

Gray stripes and soft fur. Its round eyes and face that give it a cute, obedient impression is familiar. 

“You, you’re the system… wait, I said it hurts when you step there.” 

No matter how small of a cat it is, it hurts when his bones are stepped on. At this, Joo Yiwon sternly grabbed the cat, whose round eyes widened even more, by its scruff and lifted it up. 

“Meow….”

The cat bitterly cried. Jiho sat up in alarm. 

“Hey, how can you hold a cat like that?”

“But this isn’t a real cat.”

“But it looks like a cat! Stop hurting it and let it go.”

“This thing hurt Honey.”

Yiwon lifted the cat up to his face and stared at its eyes in displeasure. The cat avoided his eyes as though guilty. 

Well, it’s true that this cat can kill a monster with one punch. Lifting it by the scruff of its neck probably won’t hurt it, but… it still looks like Yiwon’s bullying a small, pitiful animal. 

“It’s fine, just let him go.”

“If we have a kid, Honey will take the kid’s side over mine, right?”

“…Not only do people who say something like that have no right to be parents, but there’s also no way you and I will have a child together, so instead of worrying about useless things, let the cat go while I’m being nice.”

In the end, Joo Yiwon scowled as he set the cat down on the ground. The cat dashed to Jiho’s side and rubbed its head on Jiho’s hands and arm. So soft…. Jiho unconsciously petted the cat as he looked around.

He’s never seen this room before, but it looks like a hotel. It doesn’t look like a lot of time has passed….

“Can you explain the situation?”

“It’s been three hours since you fainted. We lost Cho Seung Taek and… it’s chaos outside, but the other people in my guild and your guild are going to take care of that.”

“I should also….”

“You need to rest. You breathed in a lot of poison. There’s a limit to treatment.”

“I feel fine?”

“That’s because your insides are festering…. If you leave, I won’t explain a single thing.”

Jiho, who was thinking he should go, even if he had to push himself, stopped at Yiwon’s words.

Is this not unfair? Jiho sighed but still leaned back on the bed.

“Fine. I won’t leave, so….”

Suddenly, the cat beside him cried desperate meows and jumped up and down.

There’s nothing to hear. Don’t talk to this thief!

“Why do you keep calling him a thief….”

Because he stole your power!

Jiho glanced over at Yiwon who was avoiding his eyes. Since Yiwon said he’ll explain everything if Jiho rests….

“Joo Yiwon. Did you know that already?”

“Sorry. I’m trying to find a way to return it to you. So….”

Who needs your filthy mana!

The cat cruelly spat out. The cat’s fur shot up as it furiously glared at Yiwon with sharp eyes.

It’s because that thief’s been stealing away your power since you were young that you’re so weak. You were supposed to be the most perfect being as Earth’s first administrator! He must’ve done something with that stolen mana because it’s so filthy that it’d be poisonous to you to accept now!

“I’m not sure what you mean by… filthy, but he didn’t steal my mana, I gave it to him.”

Jiho corrected the cat’s words. The expressions of both the cat, whose eyes widened in confusion, and Yiwon, who was shocked, were slightly alike, making Jiho laugh.

“Shin Jiho.”

“I gave it. That power’s not something that can just be stolen, you know?”

Like the cat said, that’s the power the Earth bestowed upon Jiho as the first administrator. It’s impossible for someone to steal it.

This, Jiho was certain of as a bit of his sealed memories returned. 

That power wasn’t something Joo Yiwon stole, but rather something he gave to Joo Yiwon.

Joo Yiwon caught Jiho’s eyes from the moment he first saw him. 

Though incomplete, as the soon-to-be administrator, Jiho started to see the true identity or flow of mana from objects around that time.

Yiwon’s spirit had the most stunning light that Jiho had ever seen. Jiho was naturally drawn to that light. 

Later, Jiho lingered around Yiwon in order to get closer. But Yiwon, whose body was weak, always got mad and pushed Jiho away. The rejections continued until even Jiho started to get upset.

However, when Jiho saw Yiwon hiding his pain so that he wouldn’t burden his adopted parents, Jiho could only offer his hand to Yiwon one more time. 

When Jiho first offered his hand, it was definitely out of pity.

Jiho had a vague idea of why Yiwon was in pain. Yiwon’s spirit was beautiful, but the plate holding that spirit was cracked, making the connection between his spirit and physical body fragile. Yiwon wouldn’t die immediately, but Jiho vaguely knew that Yiwon’s life would end much earlier than others’.

Yiwon’s plate was severely damaged, and his power was spilling out. Even when Jiho tried to use a bit of his power, there were no signs of it mending.

It’s not enough to use a bit of his power. Jiho must restore this huge fissure in order to help Yiwon get better.

That… seems like it’ll be very difficult. 

Jiho was vaguely aware that if he does it, he’ll be in a lot of pain.

But despite this, the reason he decided to help Yiwon was because he saw Yiwon’s face covered in tears.

‘Yiwon-ah, does it hurt a lot?’

‘Go. Go away….’

‘Can I stay if I can make you better?’

‘What?’

‘I’ll blow the pain away. Hm?’

‘Stop saying nonsense. I hate getting my hopes up….’

The young Yiwon sniffled. He was tired of hearing people tell him they’ll make him better. 

His adopted parents were such warm people that even though he was picked up from the streets, they loved him like their own. His parents tried everything to find a way to treat Yiwon, but all of the treatments hurt and didn’t help.

‘I promise. I’ll make you better.’

‘…’

‘Just pretend you’re being fooled and trust me one time. Here, pinky promise.’

Yiwon hesitated before hooking his pinky finger around Jiho’s outstretched pinky. Jiho hooked it tightly and smiled. 

‘Don’t worry. You’re going to be okay now. So….’

So if I make you feel better, like me.

Is what Jiho wanted to say, but for some reason, he was too shy to say it out loud, so he hid it and began to restore Yiwon’s plate.

However, the price was much heavier than a child’s limited knowledge could’ve imagined.

It might’ve been fine if Yiwon was a normal awakened one, but the size of Yiwon’s plate was comparable to Jiho’s own. 

This hasty and clumsy contract continued even after Jiho lost consciousness, and the price for piecing Yiwon’s plate back together was Jiho’s own plate cracking.

If Jiho had known the price he’d pay, he might’ve not helped Yiwon. After all, he can save more people if he doesn’t help Yiwon.

However, even though he made that choice without knowing the consequences, Jiho already grabbed Yiwon’s head. As a result, Joo Yiwon is helping Shin Jiho. At least for now, even if that “help” might go against Shin Jiho’s intentions.

Fool!

“I think so too.”

Jiho nodded at the furious cat. Even he knows he’s too soft on Yiwon.

But… there’s still a lot of things he doesn’t know about Yiwon yet to place the blame on him. It’s not too late to be angry after that.

“So what happened? After that bastard dragged you away.”

Yiwon weakly smiled, like someone cornered, and started to narrate.

---

Where Joo Yiwon followed Cho Seung Taek was a completely different world.

That place was called Ipeulis.

Ipeulis was a planet with no land and whose surface consisted entirely of seas. Unlike Earth, that place had many different species living on artificial islands.

However, Joo Yiwon wasn’t allowed to live openly on such islands. Because to enter an island, one must prove their identity, and once the king discovers Joo Yiwon, he’ll immediately send a team to hunt him down.

Inside a gloomy cave on the ocean floor with all the facilities for land animals to breathe, Yiwon’s face remained bleak like he’d rather die.

“Please do not make that expression as though You would rather die.”

“…”

“Why do you suppose the king sent You to another world? It is because You must remain alive to prevent the birth of another king. If you are caught this time, Your memories will be sealed and You will be sent to another world.”

Yiwon didn’t want that.

It was unfair as it was that he was separated from Shin Jiho, let alone forgetting him altogether.

Compared to resisting and having his memories erased and chased to another world, he would much rather die right now.

“Hoo….”

Setero sighed loudly, like he found this Yiwon troublesome.

“For now, let us think about it once you have killed Tenev… this world’s king and taken the throne.”

“This doesn’t make sense…. What do you mean killing a king, I’ve only ever killed a mosquito.”

Yiwon himself was bewildered. This isn’t some fantasy novel; just a second ago, he was just an ordinary human with nothing other than the memory that he had come from another world.

“No, You can do it. The system has already designated You as the next king. And if You fail, it is likely that Your soul will fall to the lowest of places.”

A religious metaphor? Setero’s threat didn’t really affect him, but Yiwon didn’t want to die like this.

Joo Yiwon might find peace by dying here, but… Shin Jiho will definitely be sad. Of course, now that they’re worlds apart, they have no way of communication, but Yiwon wanted to try to fight for that child who must be alive somewhere.

---

LaZ Bird Corner

They’re both fools for each other.

---