DrinkyL C3

Chapter 3

After finishing the weekly report, which took place once a week, Ban Jinyeong lingered instead of leaving the vice president’s office. Normally, he would bolt as if his tail were on fire, but for some reason today he was dawdling, and the sight made Ban Dayeong’s brow crease slightly.

“Boss. How was it? Was it tasty?”

“What was.”

“You know, the one I sent you as a gift a few days ago!”

At Ban Jinyeong’s words, Ban Dayeong tilted his head. The expression on his face clearly said he had no idea. At his attitude—transparent to the point of being see-through—Ban Jinyeong’s brow also furrowed.

“What, you didn’t eat it?”

“I’m asking, eat what.”

“The half-elf! Was it Baekgu, or Baek Seolgi?”

Having mangled Baek Seolgu’s name to his liking, Ban Jinyeong stamped his foot. As if the outburst jogged his memory, Ban Dayeong nodded at last.

“I didn’t eat him. Why would I, not knowing what kind of trouble that might cause?”

“Ah, why! I told you he’s an elf, didn’t I? Huh? An elf who drinks only the purest water! Shit, he looked freaking delicious!”

“If he looked freaking delicious, then go eat him yourself.”

At Ban Dayeong’s calm retort, Ban Jinyeong shrugged.

“The best always goes to the boss first.”

“Not interested, so do as you please.”

“No can do, even I have some professional ethics. Wait, then what about Baekgu?”

Only now seeming to wonder where Baek Seolgu had gone, Ban Jinyeong widened his eyes. Ban Dayeong, who had no interest in where some elf riffraff might be holed up, ignored him and looked over the documents.

“Ah! No! Shit, I brought him in on purpose to screw those damn rude elves over, and if he goes back to the forest, that just means doing them a favor! No way!!”

Rolling his eyes at the tantrum-throwing man sprawled on the floor, Ban Dayeong rose to his feet. If that bastard wouldn’t leave, then he would.

“Where are you going!”

“Escaping from a rabid dog.”

“Boss! Go to the officetel and just check if that bastard ran away! If he bolted, bring him back!”

Though Ban Jinyeong barked after him, Ban Dayeong ignored him neatly and turned away. Lunchtime was near anyway; stepping out for a few minutes wouldn’t cause anything catastrophic. He paused to consider where to go for lunch, then his expression hardened. Now that he’d heard it, like it or not, it seemed he’d have to take care of lunch at the officetel today.

Had he not heard it, it would be one thing, but after hearing what was said, he couldn’t help thinking about the person—no, the elf—who might be at the officetel. There probably wasn’t proper food; he should at least make sure the kid hadn’t starved to death. Cleanup would be simple enough, but having one of the residences under his name dirtied was extremely irritating. And nothing good would come of letting something like this leak.

“Anyway….”

Muttering again about how that idiot managed to think up such outlandish stupidity, Ban Dayeong’s figure faded like mist.

He reappeared only seconds later in the officetel living room. Scanning his surroundings, Ban Dayeong checked where the elf brat might be sprawled.

“Where is he?”

His steps, set in an annoyed line, grew faster and faster. Then he looked somewhere and drew in a breath; even he, usually unflappable, couldn’t help but be shocked at what met his eyes.

The terrace garden, landscaped to perfection since move-in, was overrun with nameless weeds. Through weeds that had shot up to half his height, a bright brown head seemed to flicker in and out of sight, but with his mind consumed by the terrace disaster, Ban Dayeong saw nothing else.

“Shit.”

He spat a short curse and strode to the terrace entrance, flinging the door wide open. He yanked up weeds by the roots with irritable hands and tossed them to the ground. Only after repeating the action several times and reaching the center of the terrace did his eyes land on the officetel’s unfamiliar guest—or rather, on the idiotic little elf.

“Hey, you bastard. Come here.”

Clutching a few ripped-out weeds, Ban Dayeong growled low at the small, bright brown head.

Not only had the brat touched his things without permission, he’d ruined them into a grotesque eyesore. He was just about ready to grab the idiot by the scruff of the neck and shake him down thoroughly. However, the sight of the small head turning with a hiccuping “Hic!” sapped even the strength to be angry. The terrace terrorist was shaking in just a pair of trunks.

“…Ha.”

The creature before him wasn’t an elf; he was the very picture of a caveman. Of all things for that bastard Ban Jinyeong to bring, he had to bring half a wit like this…!

Two hours earlier, before Ban Dayeong came to the officetel, Seolgu was in the midst of the most serious dilemma in the world. The clothes he hadn’t been able to change for days felt unendurably clammy. He’d been showering diligently every day, but laundry wasn’t as straightforward as a shower. Grabbing the hem of his T-shirt and flapping it again and again, Seolgu finally made a drastic decision. He would wash all his clothes while showering, then tough it out in just his underwear until they dried.

Fortunately, the weather was warm; if he wrung out his underwear and wore it, it would probably dry on its own. He worried a little that someone might come by, but considering not even an ant had shown up in the past few days, it seemed like needless fretting. Having lived in the elf forest, he had always hand-washed his clothes, so the washing itself wasn’t hard. The only pity was the lack of a broad rock where he could thwack the laundry hard.

“Hm-hm, hmm-hm-hmm!”

Raising his spirits for the work with another unplaceable little tune, Seolgu, wearing only trunks, carried the freshly scrubbed laundry out to the terrace. The vegetables that had received the “grow strong” incantation yesterday were sturdy and thriving, which lifted his mood even more.

After hanging the laundry over the terrace railing, Seolgu began in earnest to harvest the vegetables he would eat today. He separated seeds from flowers or fruit, thinned out weeds, and moved around to avoid disturbing the original plantings, and before he knew it, time had flown. Just as he’d expected, the underwear he’d worn still damp had dried to a nice fluffiness. He was in the thick of fieldwork when it happened. A chill wind seemed to blow at his back, and then a voice even colder than that wind sounded.

“Hey, you bastard. Come here.”

He’d heard that voice only once, but it was resonant enough not to be easily forgotten. It was a shame such a fine voice chose such murderous words.

Unable to hide the hiccup that bubbled out on its own, Seolgu nonetheless did as he was told and approached the man. He had no time to realize how embarrassing he must look to anyone’s eyes.

“What exactly do you think you’re doing on someone else’s terrace?”

“Y-yes…?”

“Where did you even get these weeds!”

Ban Dayeong roughly slammed down the kidney bean vines.

Gasp. As the kidney beans he had painstakingly cultivated with magic were strewn across the floor, Seolgu drew in a sharp breath.

He wanted to tell the man before him that these were not weeds, and that he hadn’t so much as touched the leaves of the plants already on the terrace, but under that lethal gaze, all he could do was bow his head and apologize.

“And that getup of yours—what on earth…!”

Raking his eyes up and down Seolgu, Ban Dayeong’s brow crumpled mercilessly.

What about my getup—I showered this morning, too. Muttering inwardly in aggrieved protest at the way the man looked at him like trash, Seolgu followed his gaze downward. Three seconds later, realizing he was nearly naked, Seolgu’s eyes bulged as if to pop.

“Uwaaa!”

With a short, sharp scream, Seolgu stumbled backward at speed. It was still within the terrace, of course, but it was a desperate retreat fueled by the wish to get as far away from the man as possible. Yet the effort was for naught; Seolgu’s foot caught on a large planter beside the railing, and he fell sprawling in grand fashion.

At the sight of Baek Seolgu rolling around making a spectacle of himself, Ban Dayeong’s eyes sank again.

“Seriously, you pull every damn stunt…!”

He was just about to unleash a fierce scolding on Baek Seolgu, his face twisted in disbelief, when it hit him—from somewhere, an insanely sweet scent assaulted his nose. Saliva flooded his mouth at the delicious aroma, and his eyes moved of their own accord toward the source of the scent. At the end of his gaze was Seolgu’s ankle, with a faint bead of blood where it had scraped against the edge of the planter.

“…Ha.”

Ban Dayeong strode toward Seolgu without hesitation. It was irresistible. Every organ in his body urged him to drink that blood at once.

Though he had never once in his life engaged in the barbaric act of direct bloodsucking, in this moment he was preparing, as if it were the most natural thing in the world, to taste the idiot’s blood. In only a few steps, Ban Dayeong was right in front of Baek Seolgu.

“I-I’m sorry…!”

Looking up at the tall man blocking his way, Baek Seolgu could only repeat his apology. At this rate, he might be done for before he’d even served his purpose. Especially the eyes of the man who had been silently looking down at him since earlier—those eyes didn’t seem of this world.

If he could, he would have gotten up and run then and there, but the muscles in his thighs had already given out and gone on strike. In the end, Seolgu gulped and covered his head with both arms, bracing for the impact to come. It was a gesture born of experience; being beaten in the village had taught him the places slowest to heal were the face and head. How many seconds passed like that? The man, who looked like he might swing one long leg and kick him at any moment, made no move at all.

“…Huh?”

Unable to overcome his curiosity, Seolgu slit his eyes open and took in the scene before him—then sucked in a breath. Incredibly, the man was kneeling on one knee, sitting properly in front of him.

Hic!

The kid’s hiccups began again. Each time the brat hiccuped at the slightest thing, a flash of irritation shot up—and then, when that sugary scent tickled the tip of his nose, calm returned in an instant. Annoyed at his own mood swings, up and down like a madman, Ban Dayeong clicked his tongue and grasped the ankle beaded with blood.

“Ah—uh!”

Apparently not expecting his ankle to be grabbed, the kid sucked in a breath and rolled his big eyes to stare at Ban Dayeong.

“What’s your name?”

“B-Baek Seolgu.”

“All right, Baek Seolgu-ssi.”

It was an abrupt exchange of names. Hearing Seolgu’s name, Ban Dayeong stretched his lips into a long smile.

“Nice to meet you, please call me scumbag.”

With that brief self-introduction, Ban Dayeong’s lips moved toward Seolgu’s slender ankle.