Lee Sa-young’s body, nestled in his arms, curled up a little more. Through the strands of black hair, Uijae could see the tips of his ears flushed red. The skin pressed against him was radiating heat. Uijae barely held back a laugh threatening to escape.

Thick arms and hands wrapped around Uijae’s waist and back, tugging him onto his lap. Uijae ended up awkwardly straddling Sa-young, who was seated in the chair. Sa-young muttered gruffly.

“You act like taking off your mask is some kind of ultimate move…”

“It is, though.”

“At times like this… it’s not you who should be taking it off.”

Every time Sa-young spoke, his throat and collarbone vibrated. For some reason, Uijae felt breathless. The hands around his waist gave his sides a few taps, like urging him.

“I should be the one taking it off.”

“……”

“You should at least allow me that… if you’re sorry.”

Somehow, it felt like he was digging his own grave. Before Uijae could say anything, careful fingers brushed along the jaw of his mask. Click—the lower part of the mask lifted. His jaw and lips were exposed. Sa-young’s lips brushed against his chin.

“Lower your head a little.”

Uijae hesitated, then tilted his head slightly downward. A low chuckle followed. Lips tickled his chin and neck. Thud—the mask fell to the floor. Uijae slowly opened his eyes. Slender, upturned eyes were looking at him as if in praise.

“……”

The hand that had been brushing his face moved to the back of his neck and pulled. Uijae didn’t resist and leaned in further. Soft lips met his slightly parted ones. Light kisses rained down on his face like drops of rain. Playful kisses. Uijae couldn’t help but let out a small laugh. As Sa-young rubbed his cheek with his lips, he whispered.

“How long can you stay?”

“I don’t know either. Only while Gaeul maintains the connection… Hey, don’t touch my waist. It’s ticklish.”

“Will you come again?”

“I’ll keep coming until I leave with you… Wait, hold on. We could’ve just gone together back then instead of making a fuss like this!”

As he shouted, lips pressed against his again, as if telling him to be quiet. Uijae pulled his head back to protest again, but a large hand clamped down on the back of his neck, and at the same time, a thick tongue pushed between his parted lips. “Hey—” The small cry got swallowed. The snake-like tongue teased the roof of his mouth, draining his strength. The tingling sensation spread from his mouth through his whole body.

…Damn it, it feels good.

Tongue against tongue, a wet sound echoed between them. Uijae panted softly, leaning forward. A firm body and strong arms supported his collapsing upper half. As he grabbed onto Sa-young’s shoulders, fingers stroked gently along the spine of his back. When Uijae twisted from the overwhelming sensation, Sa-young soothed him with slow, teasing swirls of his tongue. A faint moan escaped Uijae’s throat.

“Nngh…”

A small laugh came through the kiss. The tongue that had been exploring his mouth withdrew. While Uijae caught his breath, Sa-young kissed along his jawline and murmured.

“You’ve gotten more sensitive… since I last saw you.”

“Shut up…”

“Of course you have,” the voice came with a teasing laugh, brushing against his ear. The lips that had been lightly biting his chin came back to meet his mouth. Heated breaths mingled through their open mouths.

“Does it feel good?”

“……”

“It should…”

“Why…”

Why are you asking like that? Uijae twisted his head, but firmer lips chased him down, landing across his face. After the barrage of kisses, Sa-young gave his nose a playful nibble.

“So you’ll want to come find me again.”

“……”

“And… every time you feel something like this,”

A large hand slipped under his shirt and stroked his bare skin. What the—? Uijae flinched upright. The palm rubbed gently up and down his back and side, as if to calm him.

“You’ll end up thinking of me again.”

Uijae blinked slowly. As his blurry vision cleared, Sa-young’s face came into view.

“……”

The flush in his cheeks, the red rims around his eyes, his gaze lowered to kiss Uijae’s jaw and neck. Slightly damp lashes. Swollen lips. Maybe he sensed Uijae’s stare—Sa-young’s eyes flicked upward. Their gazes met, and Uijae’s heart thudded. It wasn’t quite the same as pleasure. It was closer to…

The feeling he got right after slaying a monster.

Satisfaction. And…

Excitement.

‘…Damn.’

Sa-young blinked slowly. Uijae squeezed his eyes shut.

‘I really don’t know anymore.’

He cupped Sa-young’s face with both hands, leaned in, and kissed him. His tongue slipped past the surprised, soft lips. Just like Sa-young had done—he twisted his tongue and rubbed against the roof of his mouth. He could feel the body beneath him jolt. Uijae opened his eyes a crack. Sa-young’s were closed, entirely focused on the kiss. His long lashes trembled slightly.

‘This is actually…’

Fun.

He slowly pulled away, and those closed lids opened again. Uijae wiped his damp lips with the back of his hand and spoke.

“Lee Sa-young.”

“……”

“You didn’t have to do all that…”

Uijae hesitated for a long moment, then continued softly.

“These days, I only ever think about you.”

“……”

“So stop doing pointless things. And get your hand off my waist. Who said you could act like that?”

He firmly grabbed the hand that had slipped under his shirt and pulled it out. Sa-young let out a chuckle.

“You liked it, though.”

“Shut up.”

“Didn’t your waist go all limp?”

“Enough!”

Uijae snapped, and Sa-young burst out laughing.

“Aha ha…”

The laughter trailed off slowly. A bright smile bloomed on his flushed face.

“Is that so?”

“……”

“I didn’t think I’d already succeeded…”

He suddenly yanked Uijae into an embrace, burying his face in Uijae’s chest and rubbing against him like an annoying kid. Uijae sighed and patted his messy hair. But as he did, a sense of resentment welled up. The petting hand froze. Sa-young looked up.

“And you ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) should be thinking about getting out, not dragging me here.”

“You knew what you were walking into, didn’t you? That I wouldn’t be able to leave right away.”

“……”

Uijae clamped his mouth shut. Sa-young continued casually.

“I have to be here for the notebook to stay connected. The more it’s linked, the faster the cure can be developed. The faster the cure comes, the fewer people will die from mutation.”

Sa-young shrugged.

“Me staying here has way more benefits, doesn’t it?”

“But still…”

“This isn’t about some noble sense of sacrifice.”

Black fingers brushed Uijae’s hair. Maybe because his fingers were so dark, Uijae’s hair looked starkly white in contrast. Sa-young smiled with just the corner of his lips.

“It’s about preventing the worst outcome.”

“You…”

Uijae opened his mouth but swallowed his words. His heart sank with a thud. Did he notice? Does he know? But how? Even I only realized it recently. Sa-young rubbed his ashen hair and asked.

“Did you know? Your hair’s been getting whiter.”

“……”

“Even when you dyed it, it never lasted long—it just kept going white. At first, I thought it was because you’re S-rank. Dye never lasts on them, you know?”

“……”

“But after watching so many people mutate in this world… I realized that wasn’t it.”

Those violet eyes swept across Uijae’s face. Worry clung to his voice.

“It looks even whiter than before…”

Uijae didn’t respond. It was true. The Whiteout, the mutation—it was eating away at his body, little by little. Sa-young ran his fingers through Uijae’s hair and whispered.

“I won’t ask what happened at the West Sea Rift. I’m not even curious.”

“……”

“Just… answer this one thing.”

Their eyes met. Those purple eyes stared into him, unblinking.

“How much time do you have left?”

Uijae stayed silent. Sa-young gently prodded.

“If you don’t know, let me rephrase. How much time do you think you have left?”

“…I don’t know.”

Uijae finally managed to speak. At some point, he’d stopped looking in mirrors. He didn’t want to see his hair growing lighter. He had no will to fix it. All he could do was desperately avoid it. Run from his mutating body. From the future waiting for him.

He replied in a small voice.

“…I don’t know. How much time I’ve got left.”

“…Really?”

“But I’ve still got a decent amount. It’s not urgent.”

Sa-young tilted his head slightly. Uijae averted his eyes. He knew. He knew he didn’t have much time. But he didn’t want that urgency to burden Sa-young, too. And—

Uijae flicked Sa-young’s forehead with his finger.

“Don’t worry about stuff like that. Focus on getting out of here.”

No way was he going to leave Lee Sa-young trapped in a place like this over something like that. Just as Sa-young opened his mouth to say something again, Uijae leaned down and pressed their lips together. Sa-young tried to twist away, but Uijae chased after his lips with stubborn persistence. Sa-young snapped in irritation.

“Hyung…!”

In that moment, he felt his feet lift from the ground. The time had come. Uijae clamped a hand over Sa-young’s mouth.

“I’m looking for mana stones. So I can come back here. Don’t you dare dig your heels in and refuse to leave next time.”

“……”

“I’ll come back.”

He kissed Sa-young’s forehead. His vision blurred. Uijae forced his eyes wide open, wanting to remember Sa-young’s face one last time.

And then—

He saw eyes glaring fiercely at him,

“……”

And realized something was very, very wrong.