Escape from an Ancient Civilization Ch 182

Chapter 182 Side Story 4

 

The soothsayer raised both arms and thumped his own chest.

“See? I’m standing here perfectly fine!”

Because the very first thing they did upon arriving in the modern era was head to the hospital, Nataek’s game CD was still left as-is in his studio apartment. Seeing Nataek wavering, the soothsayer spoke firmly.

“Just in case, smash it the moment you get home.”

Lost in thought, Nataek slowly nodded. Even while glancing at Medeus’s mood, the talkative soothsayer went on to say everything he wanted to say. It couldn’t be helped—Nataek was the only person he could talk to about ancient civilizations. As time passed, Nataek began to regret getting back in touch with the soothsayer.

Should’ve just ignored the note.

By the time the noisy visitor finally left, it was already deep into the night. Only after Nataek told him to go back three separate times and Medeus shot him a murderous glare did the soothsayer take his leave. Medeus stared at the door for a while, and once he confirmed no more footsteps could be heard, he returned to Nataek.

“Don’t ever contact that man again.”

“Why?”

“He’s the one who made you suffer.”

Having heard the whole story of Nataek’s relationship with the soothsayer, Medeus felt all the more hostile toward him. Exhausted, Nataek stretched out his legs and leaned back against the bed wedge pillow, letting out a long stretch.

“Still, if not for him, we’d never have met.”

Medeus’s expression darkened at that. Nataek, who had been stretching out, saw his face and hastily drew his legs back in.

“Wh-what… what is it? Did something happen with that guy?”

Medeus’s gaze slowly shifted to Nataek.

Did they actually exchange messages while I was gone?

Worried, Nataek pushed himself upright again. Medeus pulled over a chair and sat right up close to the side of Nataek’s bed.

“Teresi.”

Nataek gazed steadily into those pale eyes. Medeus’s gaze traced Nataek’s neat brows, his long eyes, the smooth bridge of his nose, and his pale lips.

“If I hadn’t met you, I’d already be a dead man, wouldn’t I?”

“What are you talking about? Dead? Why would you die?”

Medeus pinched the cuff of Nataek’s hospital gown with his fingertips.

“In the fight with the Hittites… if you hadn’t been there, I would’ve been stabbed by a sword.”

“If I hadn’t been there, you wouldn’t have gone into that fight in the first place.”

Nataek shot back at once. This time, Medeus’s hand slipped into Nataek’s sleeve.

“When I was captured by Samuagon… I might have had my head lopped off right there.”

Suppressing the ticklish sensation at his wrist, Nataek replied,

“If I hadn’t been there, you wouldn’t have been captured by Samuagon like that.”

Medeus’s hand slowly traveled up his arm. With that movement, Nataek’s sleeve began to ride up bit by bit. Medeus shook his head and continued.

“Even if not then, I might not have escaped from Uruk. Or I would’ve drowned in Delam’s flood.”

In the end, Nataek cupped Medeus’s cheeks in both hands and lifted his face.

“Medeus. Don’t even think like that. You’re alive and well right now—why dwell on that?”

Then Nataek let go and lay back down on his bed. Pressed to the very edge of the mattress, he patted the empty space beside him with his palm.

“Come here.”

Seeing the empty spot, Medeus let out a disbelieving laugh.

“It’s cramped.”

“Quit yapping and just come here when I tell you to.”

Nataek put on a mock-stern voice.

“Ah-ah. Not listening, are we?”

“……”

“Hey, hurry up. Come on, hurry.”

When Nataek coaxed him playfully, Medeus finally gave in and climbed onto the cramped bed. Ever since learning Medeus’s age, Nataek had unconsciously started treating him like a kid. He raised his casted arm into the air and scooted himself even closer to the edge. Medeus scrunched up his big frame and burrowed into Nataek’s chest. With every shift of his bent legs, the bed creaked.

Hope this thing doesn’t collapse…

The thought crossed his mind for a moment, but what worried him more was how suddenly downcast his lover had become. Nataek looked down at Medeus, then gently stroked the pale hair with his fingertips. His lover, who had lived in a time that rejected him, all alone. Imagining Medeus leading a solitary life there and dying alone made Nataek’s throat tighten and his chest ache.

The hardships he had endured in that ancient civilization were no longer pain. If he thought of those difficult memories as steps needed to save Medeus, to free him from loneliness, and to bring the two of them together, then everything about it felt nothing but fortunate.

Nataek pressed a kiss to Medeus’s forehead.

“I’m really glad I went there.”

“Mm.”

Medeus nodded. Thinking he had nearly missed out on something this beautiful for a lifetime filled him with a profound sense of relief. Medeus’s hair tickled his chest. It was the dead of night, in a cold hospital room, on a narrow steel bed, yet the moment he had Medeus, Nataek’s wish might as well have been fulfilled.

Nataek slowly closed his eyes and savored the lover in his arms. Feeling the heat of that solid body and hearing his breathing, his body and mind grew noticeably calmer. Then a ticklish sensation stirred at his waist. Nataek slowly opened his eyes. Medeus’s hand, resting at his waist, began to drift backward and then gripped one side of Nataek’s buttock. The tips of those large fingers reached the boundary at the cleft of his rear.

Medeus spoke in a low voice.

“I hope you get better soon.”

“……”

The words held pure concern and a heartfelt wish, but the indecent placement of his hand made the sincerity of the line suspect. Nataek raised his hips slightly, pushing his waist forward. Medeus, in turn, pressed his own waist forward. Because he lay lower than Nataek, Nataek’s center brushed against Medeus’s abdomen. A hard club pressed against Nataek’s thigh. The serpent hidden inside those loose training pants was gradually stiffening.

“Soon… I hope you get better soon.”

Medeus voiced his true feelings once more. The hand that had been kneading Nataek’s buttock slowly slid down, digging into the space between his thighs where it led toward the perineum.

“…Medeus.”

Nataek sensed impending danger at once.

“Yeah, Teresi.”

“Not now.”

He didn’t really think Medeus would try anything with him injured, but it felt necessary to apply the brakes. Medeus nodded.

“I know. I won’t do anything.”

Even so, Medeus kept murmuring the same thing.

“I want you to get better soon.”

“……”

“I wish you weren’t in pain.”

The heft pressing against Nataek’s thigh grew more distinct and more solid. Trying to act calm, Nataek brushed back Medeus’s hair.

He means he hopes I’m not in pain… right…?

At last, the hospital stay—which had dragged on longer than expected—was over. He still wore a cast and had gotten his stitches out, but above all, the fact that he could leave the hospital flooded him with joy. Nataek took in the outside air with a light heart.

“Wow. Discharge, at last.”

Seeing Nataek breathing deeply, Medeus beamed.

“Good work, Teresi.”

Nataek playfully bumped Medeus’s arm with his shoulder.

“You’re the one who worked hard.”

Medeus tilted his head with a soft sway and asked,

“Are we going home now?”

“No.”

With a firm answer, Nataek walked toward the sign for the taxi stand.

“Then where?”

Medeus matched his side with long, easy strides.

“Before that, we’re making a stop.”

Just then, a taxi with a passenger just dropped off pulled in. Nataek stepped off the curb and waved it down. Medeus, still in the dark, asked,

“Where are we going?”

Nataek opened the back door and answered,

“To buy a bed.”

Throughout the entire hospital stay, what had weighed on Nataek’s mind most was Medeus’s sleeping arrangements. The hastily bought short training pants were a concern, but what really tugged at him was that ever since coming to the modern world, Medeus hadn’t been able to stretch out properly and had to sleep curled up. From experience, Nataek knew all too well how hard it was when even a sleeping space felt uncomfortable in an unfamiliar environment. That’s why, as soon as he was discharged, he headed straight for a department store.

The moment they stepped out of the taxi, the scene before them was a road packed with cars and sidewalks full of people. Tall buildings obscured more than half the sky. Medeus looked up at the sky, then stared for a long time at the sidewalks and roads in the buildings’ shadow. Then he blinked his eyes wide and gave a faint shake of his head. Even after Nataek finished paying, he quietly waited for Medeus to take it all in.

The department store sat at the very center of a bustling downtown district. As such, there was an incessant swell of noise.

“Medeus.”

Just as Nataek softly called his name, a loud honk blared from not far away. Startled by the sight of the crowd, Medeus flinched and hunched his shoulders. Surprised by a reaction he’d never seen before, Nataek moved closer.

“You okay?”