What Happens When The Second Male Lead Powers Up [EN]: Chapter 833

Dartanyan and the Moon Hunt (5)

A little later, I was holding a plastic bag filled with a large bowl of strawberries.

I contacted my brother to let him know I’d be a bit late. After stopping by a delicious fruit store on the opposite side of the exit and going back into the subway station with my sister, who wanted to pop into a convenience store, the place was bustling with people heading home from work.

Jeong Eun-seo, having paid for an idol sandwich with the ‘generous second older brother’s’ card, repeatedly linked arms with me and skipped around like a puppy.

At times like this, it made me laugh because it felt like nothing had changed since middle school.

“The strawberries smell so good. They look delicious.”

“Yeah, Hyung [older brother] will love them too. Jeong Hyeon-seo is a strawberry fiend.”

“Yeah. Big brother has loved strawberries since he was in Mom’s belly.”

“Really? How did I not know that?”

We crossed the underground passage, chatting about trivial things.

Jeong Eun-seo continued to chatter.

“I heard it for the first time when I went to the nursing home this time. Mom had really bad morning sickness when she was pregnant, but strawberries were one of the few things she could keep down. But it was the same even after the morning sickness disappeared and she was full-term. She’d finish a whole bowl in half a day, and she couldn’t shake the craving, so she’d sneak out to buy strawberries and eat them alone while Dad was at work.”

“I see. So that’s why Hyung is a strawberry slayer.”

“Exactly. Finally, one of the seven wonders is solved.”

I burst into laughter right away.

We chuckled aimlessly and walked toward the exit where the escalator was visible.

But Eun-seo’s pace seemed to slow down little by little.

“…It’s little brother.”

“Huh?”

The little one who turned around had a rather serious look on her face. I felt a chill in that instant.

“…You know Yohan Uncle, you said he was big brother’s friend? Former colleague.”

“Huh? Uh, yeah… that’s right…”

Good heavens, I’m doomed. I’m really bad at lying.

Of all times, a topic related to Yohan Gyeong came up when it was just Eun-seo and me!

I tried my best to relax my facial muscles as quickly as possible.

Stay calm, Jeong Ye-seo. Nothing will happen. It’s okay.

“Why are you twitching your mouth all of a sudden? Did you get a cramp in your face?”

“No… Sorry.”

I just ended up twisting my mouth in front of my sister.

While I switched the strawberry bag to the other hand for no particular reason, Jeong Eun-seo slowly continued to speak.

As if she was planning to pour out all her inner thoughts inside the station, she stopped completely and seemed to settle near the exit.

“He seems like a really good person at first glance, right? He’s polite to big brother and treats brother well, and he’s polite to me, who’s much younger. He’s tall and handsome, and he even helps out with housework.”

“Uh, yeah, that’s true, but if you’re uncomfortable…”

I reflexively started to fidget, but then I quickly lowered my hand, thinking about how that action would look to my sister.

Even though Hyung, Yohan Gyeong, and I were meticulously planning our movements morning and evening because we were worried that Eun-seo would be uncomfortable—fortunately, the two bathrooms were separate, and the washing machine was originally set to run on separate days, so there hadn’t been any major problems so far—it was also true that Yohan Gyeong’s stay was lasting much longer than everyone had expected.

Yeah, it’s natural that a strange male guest staying at home for a long time would be a big burden for Eun-seo.

It wouldn’t be strange if she said she wanted him to leave soon.

In the meantime, Eun-seo was acting politely, never asking about Yohan Gyeong’s ‘return schedule’ or anything like that. But now it seems like she’s reaching her limit…

Oh my gosh. I guess that’s why she’s been looking so thoughtful these past few days.

I couldn’t lift my head because I felt so sorry.

“If you’re uncomfortable, brother will talk to big brother about it later. There are accommodations right nearby, and if you go to Jamsil Station…”

“No, no. It’s not that I want Yohan Uncle to leave! It would be a lie if I said I wasn’t uncomfortable at all, but it’s definitely not that kind of problem. I’m serious. The real problem is something else.”

“The real problem…?”

I blinked in surprise.

I didn’t expect this development, so my reaction was slow. What is it?

“…Don’t be surprised. I’m not kidding right now, so get your mind right and listen carefully.”

“Uh, uh…”

Jeong Eun-seo looked up at me with a sharp gaze.

Seeing her like this, she looks like Gain [Korean singer] when she’s serious.

“I think Yohan Uncle is… a psychic.”

“Cough!”

Ether burst out in that instant!

“Shh!”

-Slap!

My sister slapped me on the back, telling me to be quiet.

With a perfect strike that only targeted areas out of reach, I twisted my body like an earthworm that had gone out on a rainy day.

Ouch! Crazy, ether is leaking from my fingers!

“I saw it clearly with my own two eyes. He was doing something like telekinesis… But it’s not telekinesis. It’s kind of like wind? Something like that. Anyway, I saw him floating things in the air.”

“Gasp…”

-Rustle…

When? When did she see it? There’s no way Yohan Gyeong would be so careless.

Eun-seo is an ordinary person—she’s also a Jushin [a person with supernatural powers], but for now—was he careless for even a moment?

I stammered and moved my lips, trying to hide the ether as if I were rubbing my palms on my pants.

My heart started beating to a danmori [Korean traditional music rhythm] rhythm, thinking that I had finally been caught!

“I’m not lying, really? I’m not mentally ill, and I didn’t see things. I witnessed it in a perfectly normal state.”

“Oh… I see…”

“I even saw it one more time after that. In the living room last night.”

“Wow… I see…”

I see? Is ‘I see’ the right reaction right now? Is it okay? Is it okay for Eun-seo to know this now?

I didn’t plan to keep it a secret forever, but it’s true that we missed the right timing—I was caught off guard by this kind of preemptive strike, so I was breathless.

It was too sudden of an ordeal for me, not to mention the notorious liar Jeong Hyeon-seo!

“Wait, why are your eyes like that, brother?”

“Huh? What? Ah, just a moment. Something got in my eye.”

Jeong Ye-seo, you crazy bastard! Purple! Your eyeballs turn purple when you use ether!

I hurriedly tilted my head back and pretended to blink.

I thought I had become proficient in controlling my power to the level of an expert, but I guess because it’s a world without ether, once it’s released, it’s released without end…!

“…Did you take what I said seriously? You look like you’re just joking around?”

“No? Absolutely not. Brother is also taking the current situation seriously. If what you said is true, I believe we should judge the gravity of the matter equally and continue to watch closely in the future.”

“…Why are you making a statement like a White House spokesperson?”

“Hahaha…”

I couldn’t bring myself to meet my sister’s eyes—because I was still worried that my pupils were purple—and quickly laughed it off.

Jeong Eun-seo’s disapproving gaze stung my cheeks.

That’s when it happened.

“Besides, starting this week, in my dreams…”

-Thud!

“Ah!”

“Oh!”

A large man who was coming around the corner accidentally bumped into Eun-seo and us!

Fortunately, the youngest didn’t fall, but what the other person was holding fell to the floor with a crash!

-Clatter!

“Oh my, I’m so sorry! I didn’t see you because I was in a hurry. Are you okay?”

The man was also on his way to buy strawberries, and a refreshing fruit scent wafted up from the cold floor.

However, he seemed to have completely forgotten about the strawberries, worried about the young student he had bumped into.

Eun-seo rubbed her arm and smiled as if she was okay.

The man spoke in Seoul dialect, but there was a slight accent in his intonation.

“I’m okay. I bumped into the side, so it doesn’t hurt much.”

“I think I bumped into you too hard… I’m sorry.”

“No, I was standing in the aisle. I’m the one who’s sorry.”

While the two people apologized to each other and bowed their heads, I quickly picked up the strawberries that had fallen on the floor and put them in the man’s bag, after confirming that my sister was not hurt.

Unfortunately, a few were crushed and difficult to eat.

Then the man quickly bent down and put the strawberries in with me.

His brown hair fluttered around his eyes.

“Thank you. My wife is pregnant and she loves strawberries so much… I was in a hurry to buy them and go in. I was walking and running without thinking, so it turned out like this.”

“It’s okay. But a few can’t be eaten… I’ll give you a handful of ours.”

“Oh my, no. It’s okay.”

The surprised man waved his hand.

I smiled brightly at his simple reaction and packed our strawberries for him.

“I’ll think of it as my sister ate a few for the baby. Enjoy them with your wife when you get home.”

“…Oh my. Thank you.”

He smiled kindly and bowed repeatedly.

His back, as he said goodbye to Eun-seo and hurried out of the exit, looked very busy and happy.

Jeong Eun-seo, who had taken out a wet wipe from my backpack, was wiping the strawberry juice on the floor.

I looked down at the back of her head and then turned back to the direction the man had disappeared.

It was only a few seconds, but somehow it looked familiar…

“Maybe it was then…”

The pregnant woman I met on the subway a while ago came to mind.

I smiled faintly and adjusted my bag. Maybe the two of them are a couple.

Maybe not.

“…Jeong Ye, let’s go up and talk more. There are a lot of people here.”

“Uh, let’s do that.”

Oh, right, we were talking about something incredibly important.

We threw the wet wipes in the trash can and got on the escalator.

The way the youngest was tapping the handrail was unusual.

I stood behind her as usual and swallowed hard.

I felt like the thread of tension that had been loosened by the small accident was tightened again.

“Hoo…”

…What should I say?

Eun-seo said something difficult first, so should I just tell the truth and be done with it?

Or should I get Hyung’s opinion first?

If she knows that she is a Jushin, the youngest will feel guilty in some way and be shocked.

She’s healthy and going to college now, but she was going in and out of the hospital until two years ago…

But if I vaguely gloss over it here, I’ll only be piling up more lies.

That might hurt the future Eun-seo even more.

‘Crown Beer’.

It’s difficult…
Hmm?

“…Crown Beer?”

White letters on a red background. Large, honest font.

I tilted my head as I looked at the sign outside the exit.

Did we have such an old billboard in our neighborhood?

“Wow. Jeong Ye, look at that. It looks like an old newspaper.” Eun-seo, who came out to the sidewalk first, pointed to one place.

I gaped at the newspapers placed in various types at the street vendor.

The full-page advertisement printed in five colors was catching the eyes of passersby.

Wait a minute, that’s…

‘World-class comprehensive tourism leisure distribution complex’

‘-Lotte World-‘

‘It is being built in our country now’

…What?

‘A land full of adventure and mystery!’

‘Lotte World is finally revealing its magnificent appearance’

‘-Lotte World Adventure-

Opening July 12th’

I hurriedly raised my eyes and looked around.

The buildings on the street were generally low in height and small in size.

The numbers were also much smaller than I remembered, and above all, the appearance itself was different.

This was not simply an error of the level that we had come out of the wrong exit.

It was on a different level than that…

‘Seoul Olympic Commemorative Festival’.

A long vertical banner with Hodori [the mascot of the 1988 Seoul Olympics] wearing a black sangmo [Korean traditional hat] on his head caught my eye.

I was speechless.

“…Eun-seo, come this way.”

Yeah. The feeling that something was seriously wrong, ‘different from’ what I felt inside the subway station, was shaking the whole bowl.

I grabbed my sister’s wrist and hurriedly turned my body in the direction of the station.

The expression on the youngest’s face, who had looked around, was also hardening in an unusual way.

Unconsciously, I raised my head and the letters engraved on the subway exit caught my eye.

‘Subway Line 2’.

‘(217) Sincheon’.

“…No way…”

‘Excuse me, is your home in Sincheon?’

“Crazy. No way. No way…”

Goosebumps run all over my body.

‘Then, although it was not your intention, the ether of the earth attribute… You have obtained the result of specializing in a kind of poison attribute. Is that correct?’

Her Majesty Hanan Lumayan.

‘-Yes. The fact that the time inside and outside the tomb was different is also due to that reason.’

‘Does that mean that ether also affects the flow of time?’

Thump, thump, thump…!

‘-What can’t it do? My tomb was a swamp of highly condensed ether for a long time.’

“…Brother, did we get off at the wrong station? The atmosphere here is completely different?”

“Jeong Eun-seo, go down quickly. Now!”

‘-The distortion of space you mentioned must also have been the work of ether.’

-Whoosh…!

Golden ether burst from my fingertips.

I grabbed my sister like a madman and ran down the stairs.