Chapter 70

"It's a comeback."

As if he could no longer bear it, he shook his wet head once.

Seo-un's mouth gaped open. Despite her worries about what might go wrong, his response was so trivial that she was utterly speechless.

Was he so averse to being held that he forced the poison out?

Seo-un knew that the fluid seeping from his skin, like the blood, was the jellyfish's poison. In fact, when Chahaya first regained consciousness, she had intended to suggest trying to expel the poison from his body.

Seo-un, being a top-tier species well-versed in the operation of Cosmos, could have given such advice. However, seeing the young child in shock, she couldn't bring herself to respond coldly.

Despite knowing that Chahaya was mature inside, she was deceived by his youthful appearance.

Feeling annoyed that Chahaya had quickly returned to his usual self after being held and shaken, she wondered how much he must have hated flying to endure such pain.

As Seo-un's eyes narrowed, Chahaya tilted his head in confusion.

"Chaseun, what's with this temperature difference?"

"Move."

She pushed his chest, but Chahaya added more weight and said,

"You said you'd let me ride the plane."

The pressure from above was immense. Seo-un's face, which was suffocating, turned red unintentionally.

"Have you lost your conscience?"

While saying, "How am I supposed to carry you now?" Seo-un exhaled a hot breath.

"Finally back to being an adult, but you seem to dislike it?"

"...You're naked, you know?"

Meeting his eyes was burdensome, but what was below was even more so. Thus, Seo-un couldn't blink as she locked eyes with Chahaya.

"Right. I'll bring you some clothes."

Because Chahaya was now completely naked, Seo-un had to touch his bare skin again. Her tone was quite sharp. Seeing no sign of him backing off, she applied more force, and Chahaya finally gave in more easily than before. However, as Seo-un stood up, Chahaya suddenly pounced on her from behind.

"Are you crazy, what are you doing?"

"Rat, let's go to my room like this."

Something pressed against the base of her spine. As Seo-un recoiled in shock, Chahaya clung to her shoulders even tighter.

"Just stay still! I'll bring them."

"I need to shower first, I'm sweating."

Chahaya, sticking to her like a burr, made her walk forward by leaning his weight on her. Although the guild members were probably all gone and no one would be coming to the top floor, she wasn't cold-blooded enough to run out naked. Moreover, he was so persistent that she couldn't even shake him off.

Seo-un deliberately walked with her legs spread wider than usual. However, the more she walked, the more something pressed firmly against her spine.

"Hey, damn... Why are you erect?"

The words stuck in her throat. In such situations, it was best to pretend not to notice.

Seo-un pinched the inside of one wrist with her other hand to distract herself from the sensation of Chahaya's erect penis pressing into her back. It was like when, as a child, she would pinch her good arm to distract from the pain of an injection.

The problem was that the pain from her wrist and the sensation from behind both demanded her attention.

Moreover, the guild leader's office and Chahaya's room were at opposite ends of the corridor. Despite disliking being held even as a child, he was now pressing his body against her as if carrying her.

"Wow, slow. Chaseun, the plane is completely broken."

His voice tickled her ear, making Seo-un shrink her shoulders before shouting,

"Didn't you know you're overweight?!"

Feeling insulted, Seo-un started walking down the corridor quickly. The increased friction made Chahaya's penis grow even harder and point upward. Since it wasn't the last part to grow, it was definitely an erection.

As her pace slowed, Chahaya teased her, asking if she was refueling.

Is this kid even aware that he's erect?

"Crazy kid... You're... erect."

"Huh?"

Chahaya, pretending not to hear, brought his ear close to Seo-un's cheek.

"You're erect."

"What?"

"Erect...! You pervert."

Chahaya, who had been holding Seo-un's shoulders from behind, suddenly pushed her forward. Surprised by the sudden action, Seo-un turned around to see Chahaya lowering his head. She followed his gaze but quickly looked away.

As she tried to free her shoulders, Chahaya moved even faster.

She could only stare at him, wondering what he was doing.

With her eyes wide open, his back was etched into her mind. Her gaze traced the well-defined muscles of his back, down to his firm, lean lower body, before quickly looking away, feeling uncomfortable. However, the fault lay with the naked man walking down the corridor.

Click. The sound of the door lock turning and the door closing echoed.

"Wow, really, I'm speechless..."

Despite being embarrassed by his erection, he left her in the corridor without a word. Seo-un was momentarily angry but then wondered if such a sense of shame even existed in him. Normally, Chahaya would have laughed off an erection caused by a stimulus.

"Come in."

Seo-un, standing in the corridor, was called by Chahaya. He was only sticking his upper body out of the door. Not expecting him to come out, Seo-un was startled.

"I'm not going in."

"Should I come out naked and catch you?"

Seeing Chahaya really about to come out, Seo-un hurriedly walked over.

That stubborn kid.

Seo-un muttered to herself. Chahaya had already gone inside, but he had left the door open by placing a door stop at the bottom of the entrance.

Seo-un kicked the door stop with her foot and went inside. Chahaya was loosely wrapped in a towel around his waist, and the silhouette was visible.

"Since you're in, that's it. I'm leaving now."

As Seo-un tried to leave, he grabbed her wrist and pulled her back inside.

"I have something to say to you."

The moment she opened her mouth to tell him to speak, Chahaya punched the inside door lock, breaking it.

"I can't let you run away while I shower."

Her mouth hung open.

"I'll come out after I shower."

If he had something to say, he should say it now, but Chahaya went straight into the bathroom. The sound of water hitting his body soon followed. Not only had he broken the door lock, but he was also showering with the bathroom door open.

Seo-un, intending to ask what he had to say, approached the bathroom but only slammed the door shut after seeing his wet back.

She had once admired the guild members' physiques, but that was out of pure respect for their muscles. She had never felt the urge to touch or had her mouth go dry from tension like this.

There's no point in staying here any longer. Although she was curious about what Chahaya had to say, a phone call would suffice.

Seo-un pressed the broken door handle down, but it only made a clunking sound without locking. Whether it was the cold door handle or the heat from her hand, the silver handle soon became lukewarm.

Seo-un, venting her frustration on the door, spread her aching hand. As she looked at her palm, the memory of Chahaya's skin, which had clung to her without a gap, resurfaced. It was firm and surprisingly smooth.

She had never deliberately imagined such things, but now she knew the weight that had pressed down on her and the texture of his skin. Moreover, the expression on Chahaya's face when he turned around after hearing her say he was erect was truly enigmatic.

He seemed surprised and flustered. When their eyes met again, his eyes were more vivid and almost glaring. If Chahaya hadn't passed by first, Seo-un might have taken a step back.

Seo-un opened the closet to clear her mind of thoughts about Chahaya. She wanted to prepare clothes so he wouldn't come out naked, but the closet was filled with guild uniforms.

The deep blue jacket had a goat emblem with a horizontally slit pupil on the chest. Although it was the uniform she wore for official activities, it felt awkward to see it after a long time.

The shirt color was left to the guild members' discretion, but most chose dark shades to avoid showing stains from mutant fluids. However, Chahaya often wore white shirts like the ones hanging there.

Seo-un took out a white shirt and black pants that he often wore. Opening the first drawer, she found it filled with unopened underwear. She personally opened the packaging and placed the underwear, shirt, and pants in front of the bathroom door in that order.

The water sound continued for a while, indicating that he was washing thoroughly. Seo-un turned a chair to the side, sat down, and rested her chin on her arm on the desk. She planned to scold him for breaking the door lock once he was dressed.

The longer the water sound continued, the more her mind wandered.

What a despicable guy. If he had stayed a child a bit longer, it would have been so much better. It was only half a day, but the small pain in her chest, which she could once touch, had grown so thick that she couldn't even bear to think about it. If she had known he would grow so quickly, she would have asked for more clothes to try on different outfits. But then, why did he shed his skin so quickly if he hated being treated like a child so much?

Seo-un felt a surge of affection for his child form, followed by a sudden heat at the thought of the adult Chahaya. It had been at least 30 minutes since he went in, but the water sound still hadn't stopped.

What if he had collapsed...? If he had any abnormalities from expelling the poison?

Just as Seo-un was about to rush over, the bathroom door opened. She quickly sat back down as if nothing had happened, still facing away from the bathroom.

The sound of Chahaya dressing himself was heard. The cold air from the shower seeped out and reached her feet, making her toes curl even though she was wearing socks. At the edge of her lowered gaze, she could see Chahaya's bare feet.

"Chaseun."

Lifting her head, she saw Chahaya's eyes, which were unusually lazy as he removed the towel from his head. His hair and eyelashes were damp, making him look even more sensual, causing a tingling sensation in her lower abdomen.

Her patience wore thin as he called her but didn't speak.

"What do you have to say?"

"Do you like anyone?"

Seo-un doubted her own ears.

<Indonesia, Sulawesi, July 15: A 6th-stage mutant is expected to appear. It is the first human mutant on Earth.>

It felt as if two bombs had exploded in her mind simultaneously.