Ch.6464. Inside the Shower Booth

“Ui-seok, good morning.”

“Oh. You’re up early.”

Kang Yerin approached Jung Ui-seok’s office carrying two cups of coffee. She placed one on his desk, and Jung Ui-seok greeted her lightly.

Yerin naturally sat down beside him. Recently, she had been spending almost all her time with Jung Ui-seok at the association, except for nights. The feeling of sharing daily life with him filled her with continuous satisfaction.

“Latte base with unsweetened condensed milk. You know my taste well.”

“Of course. We’ve spent so much time together. I know a lot about you, Ui-seok.”

“Oh, that’s a bit creepy.”

“Well, not everything.”

Jung Ui-seok laughed lightly.

Kang Yerin found his face so lovable that she barely suppressed the desire to kiss him right then and there by pinching her thigh.

“How did the recruitment go?”

“E.lena was a complete failure. I got beaten badly and came back. She said she hates mixing breath with disgusting heroes. Maybe approaching her outside identity was a mistake.”

“I see. What about the girl?”

“I found and protected her. She was living in pretty terrible conditions. But she was still undeveloped. How did you hear rumors about her, Yerin?”

Yerin realized her mistake.

Does this mean Dark Matter raised her abilities instantly from awakening to attacking Shin Yukyong?

Kang Yerin thought Dark Matter must truly be a monster.

“I received reports about the incident. I had no idea she was undeveloped when she went berserk. That makes her even more interesting. It means she has incredible talent, right?”

“That’s true. But she doesn’t seem willing to cooperate either.”

“Really?”

“Let’s go meet her briefly.”

They headed to a private room. It was a place that partly functioned as a prison. Kang Yerin followed behind Jung Ui-seok, carrying a breakfast tray for Dark Matter.

When they entered the room, she was sitting quietly on the bed.

Kang Yerin felt she gave off a much more innocent yet devastated impression than when they had met on the battlefield.

“Hello, Lu-a. Did you sleep well?”

Jung Ui-seok waved his hand and greeted her in a friendly manner. Lee Lu-a glared at him.

“Get lost. And let me out.”

“She’s like this.”

Jung Ui-seok turned to Kang Yerin and shrugged. Kang Yerin slowly walked up to Lee Lu-a.

“Um, hello. I’m Kang Yerin. Would you like to have breakfast if you’re comfortable with it?”

Lu-a glared at Kang Yerin.

“Are you a hero too?”

“Yes. I’m Yellow Cloaker from Dragon King Sentai… Eek!”

Lu-a generated dark matter and knocked away the tray. Food splattered all over Kang Yerin’s face and body, making a mess.

Jung Ui-seok looked at Lu-a with a slightly disappointed expression.

“Lu-a. We came here because we want to be friends with you.”

“Get lost. I feel sick looking at hypocrites like you. You’re planning to send me back there, aren’t you?”

“There?”

“Don’t pretend you don’t know. Get lost, I said get lost…”

Lu-a gritted her teeth, showing clear hostility.

Jung Ui-seok put on a serious face.

“If you reject us that strongly, I’ll do whatever you want. But I don’t think you want to wander around slums not knowing when you might die.”

“…Shut up.”

“We are heroes. We protect justice and peace. You have talent, and you can protect citizens with us. Lu-a, there’s goodness in your heart too.”

Lu-a narrowed her eyes, mocking Jung Ui-seok’s sincere words.

“You like justice, huh. You guys like transforming, don’t you?”

“It’s not that I like it, but I need to transform to fight.”

“Do you know where those switches you use to transform come from?”

Both Jung Ui-seok and Kang Yerin remained silent at Lu-a’s strange question.

She twisted her lips into a bizarre smile before returning to an expressionless face.

“I want to leave. This place is disgusting.”

In the end, they couldn’t keep her any longer.

***

“I need to change clothes first. Maybe I shouldn’t have suggested meeting her.”

“No, it’s not your fault. I was the one who brought up Lee Lu-a… There are many people in the world who hate heroes.”

“Villains naturally hate us. Let’s go back to the office.”

“Ah, wait.”

Kang Yerin grabbed Jung Ui-seok’s collar.

“I’d like you to escort me…”

“Alright, alright.”

Kang Yerin was happy with Jung Ui-seok’s acceptance. At the same time, anticipation began to creep up.

The two entered the office together. Kang Yerin went into the shower and turned on the light. Her silhouette was lightly visible from outside the shower booth.

As she turned on the water, warmth rose. Kang Yerin deliberately scattered her clothes where they could be easily seen.

With her underwear on top.

She let down her tied hair and covered her entire body with water droplets. Her body gradually heated up.

Kang Yerin placed two fingers lightly between her thighs.

A sticky liquid formed a long line before breaking off.

Being close to Jung Ui-seok always made her like this.

“…I can’t hold back anymore.”

Kang Yerin slightly opened the shower booth. Steam rushed out. She called his name.

“Um, Ui-seok.”

“Yes?”

Jung Ui-seok, who was outside, answered. Hearing his voice made Kang Yerin’s heart beat faster.

“I’m sorry, but I didn’t bring a towel. Could you bring me one?”

“Sure. Just a moment.”

Kang Yerin closed the shower booth door again. Jung Ui-seok approached soon after.

“Yerin? I’ll leave the towel here.”

“Please bring it directly to me.”

Jung Ui-seok’s silhouette grew larger as he approached through the booth. He stood in front of the door.

Kang Yerin slowly opened the door. Her body was covered with water droplets and foam. Without any intention of covering herself.

“…Yerin?”

Jung Ui-seok wasn’t naive. By now, he understood Kang Yerin’s intentions.

Kang Yerin slowly parted her lips.

“Um. About the reward I mentioned before… I want to receive it now…”

“Yerin.”

Jung Ui-seok’s expression looked a bit complicated.

Kang Yerin sensed it immediately. Jung Ui-seok only thought of her as a colleague and disciple, never as a woman.

That was a somewhat painful realization. She had been too impatient. Too rushed.

Jung Ui-seok put on a serious expression. It was the face he made when giving advice during training.

“Having a physical relationship without being in love isn’t necessarily wrong. These days, it’s actually a good means of communication, and I recommend it. But it’s not my style.”

Jung Ui-seok was a man who didn’t say things he didn’t mean.

He was being gentle with his rejection because it was her.

It was a clear rejection.

Kang Yerin’s breathing quickened. She couldn’t be rejected after coming this far, after all that effort. She became desperate.

“I love you!”

“What?”

“I love you, Ui-seok. From before, from long before. I only realized it recently, but maybe it was from the first time I saw you.”

“…Really? For that long?”

Jung Ui-seok’s gaze changed.

It was working. Kang Yerin began to feel hope.

“Really, really. This is the first time in my life. I’ve never been interested in men before. But when I think about you, my heart goes crazy. If I don’t get your attention, if you hate me, it’s too painful. I couldn’t hold back anymore. That’s why when you were dating Somi, I was so sad…”

“Somi. That’s right.”

Jung Ui-seok slowly nodded.

Kang Yerin could tell. How much he had loved Han Somi, how much he had been loved. How deep their connection had been.

At the same time, a strong desire to receive that love herself rose within her.

If she was going to confess, now was the opportunity.

The timing to tell him about Han Somi’s death, about what happened that day.

But what benefit would that bring me now?

The three people who had committed the act were all dead. Jung Ui-seok had no one to take revenge on. There wasn’t even a body to mourn.

Isn’t forgetting everything the best option for both him and me?

“…I won’t presumptuously say that I can heal your pain.”

Kang Yerin slowly approached Jung Ui-seok and caressed his cheek.

“But we can share pain, can’t we? The burdens you’ve carried as a hero all this time, share them with me. The pain from your ability’s side effects, the pain of losing Somi, I want to be your strength, even if just a little.”

She slowly caressed his firm body. Unlike her soft, tender female body, his was sturdy and large.

Every time her fingers touched him, electricity ran through her entire body. Her lower abdomen throbbed unbearably.

She realized once again how men and women were primitively made this way.

“I want you to move forward too.”

Kang Yerin slowly embraced Jung Ui-seok. It was a gentle hug, with her strength withdrawn out of fear of his rejection.

Jung Ui-seok arranged Kang Yerin’s wet hair so he could see her face. He gently lifted her chin with his finger to meet her eyes.

The temperature difference between Kang Yerin, who had been showering with warm water, and Jung Ui-seok, who had been in the cool living room, was stark. Even the warmth in their eyes differed.

“Yerin.”

“…Yes.”

Those eyes contained not affection but only pity.

“I can’t truly love any woman other than Somi. Is that okay with you?”

Kang Yerin’s lips trembled.

It wasn’t despair or disappointment.

She was drowning in happiness.

He would love her even if it wasn’t genuine.

Jung Ui-seok was asking for her permission to fulfill that duty.

She already knew she could never surpass Han Somi. She knew he would never forget her.

But Han Somi was gone now.

From now on, she would be the only one standing beside Jung Ui-seok.

Kang Yerin’s brain was melting with ecstasy.

She slowly nodded.

“…I love you.”

Kang Yerin wrapped her arms around Jung Ui-seok’s neck. Her heels lifted off the ground.

She raised her head and their lips met. She extended her tongue to taste Jung Ui-seok. He didn’t reject her and entwined his tongue with hers.

‘Ah… So this is what it tastes like.’

Her first kiss ever numbed her reason.

Intelligence no longer mattered.

Kang Yerin instinctively removed Jung Ui-seok’s top and unbuckled his belt, running her palm over his thighs.

Another part of Jung Ui-seok that wasn’t yet fully hardened.

Kang Yerin rubbed her cheek against his body as if marking her territory and moved her face downward.

Finally, her mouth was level with Jung Ui-seok’s groin.