Bang!
“Kyieeek!”
The ferocious roar of the creature echoed. Yu-geon felt his mind blur as he sprinted madly. Soon, a blurry figure emerged. A dark shape sat on the ground, gulping down blood ravenously. Yu-geon’s eyes stung with tears.
“Gu Sa-weol!”
He launched himself off the ground, throwing a punch with a wide swing of his waist and shoulders, without fully assessing his target.
“…!”
At that moment, a subtle fragrance, like a summer rain, brushed past his nose. It was a familiar scent, reminiscent of wet grass. Instinctively, he halted his movement.
As if sensing his presence, the figure turned its head, coming into view as the dense fog gradually dissipated. Their eyes met. Sharp, piercing eyes stared intensely at Yu-geon.
“Why are you….”
Before Yu-geon’s fist was a human, not a creature. No, calling them human didn’t seem quite right; there was a sense of unease about them.
“Baek….”
The scent he mistook for rain was mixed with a fishy smell.
Sharp claws and teeth. Blackened sclerae and yellow eyes reminiscent of a beast.
Time seemed to stretch out like a slowed-down tape. The dark blue veins on the forehead stood out starkly against the pale skin.
“Yu-geon…?”
It was the hallmark of a half-human, half-creature. What stood before him was… a cremon.
“You…”
The creature that had smashed through the walls lay on the ground, its stomach ripped open. Gu Sa-weol sat in front of it, her hands and mouth covered in the creature’s blood.
* * *
Boom! Crash! Rumble.
The thunder roared as if the sky were splitting apart, echoing in all directions. The rain poured incessantly through the night. Outside the window, trees swayed violently in the fierce wind. The stubborn roots held on until finally, they snapped like a pencil lead and the tree toppled over.
“Just a bit longer.”
I lay back down on the bed, tossing and turning, wrapping the blanket over my head.
My ears felt muffled. My breath came in short, tight gasps. Whenever the storm seemed to tear the world apart, I remembered that day.
The sensation of sharp teeth sinking into my flesh. The poison of the creature spreading through my veins, coursing through my entire body. Cells writhing in agony. The ensuing lethargy and the insatiable thirst that followed. Every detail was vividly etched in my memory.
And then… what happened? I seemed to recall hearing a familiar scream.
My parents were researchers at the center. They were working on developing an antibiotic to reverse cremons back to humans at the B-region lab. That’s why, even after a creature bit into my neck, they administered the experimental antibiotic, preventing me from turning into a full creature.
However, the antibiotic was not yet perfected, and I became a cremon, neither fully human nor fully creature. I still don’t know if what happened to me was fortunate or unfortunate. My parents would be furious if they heard me say this from heaven, after all, they sacrificed their lives in the process.
At that time, while the antibiotic spread through my body, I lost my rationality. I was driven by a fierce desire to kill.
My entire body burned with fever. The sound of a living creature’s pulse and the smell of blood made my mouth water. If I didn’t destroy what was in front of me, I felt like I would be consumed by the heat.
When I regained my sanity, there were no humans around me, only unrecognizable corpses scattered everywhere.
After that, I attempted countless acts of self-harm and suicide. I couldn’t bear the thought that my digestive system might have consumed my parents’ blood, that my cells, nourished by that blood, formed part of me. But strangling myself didn’t stop my breathing, and even when my heart exploded, I survived.
If my arm was severed, it regenerated immediately, and if I threw myself into a river, I’d find myself somewhere on land when I came to. I had become a body that couldn’t die.
As a cremon, I must have a core somewhere in my body, like creatures do. Despite numerous attempts at self-harm, I still haven’t found that core after living as a cremon for five years.
Living because I can’t die. That’s my current situation.
Then, I met Baek Yu-geon.
Baek Yu-geon. He’s a new esper who recently joined the Alpha team. He awakened at the relatively late age of twenty-three, but his S-class telekinetic abilities made him a highly significant esper.
The center welcomed him. Not just the center, but the entire nation celebrated, with news bulletins highlighting his arrival. An A-class could protect a district, while an S-class could protect a whole region, so the excitement was understandable.
Han-gyeol had hinted for days that his younger brother would be joining the Alpha team, so I was aware beforehand. Unlike the calm and composed Han-gyeol, Yu-geon had a bright and cheerful image.
He wandered around the center, marveling at everything like a child at an amusement park. To be brutally honest, he seemed like a naive rookie who didn’t know the dangers of the world.
But since Han-gyeol had asked me to look after his younger brother, and as a newcomer, I wanted to get along. I genuinely intended to be amicable at first.
“Are you Gu Sa-weol?”
However, he started speaking informally right off the bat. He had a small face with neat, well-defined features. His light-colored hair and eyes gave off a soft and warm feeling.
His slightly slanted eyes curved nicely when he smiled. His smile was indeed beautiful.
He was appropriately young and handsome, creating a good impression. But his arrogant demeanor made his appealing appearance seem wasted, irritating me to no end.
“You’ll pair with me, right?”
He had the nerve to propose pairing as if it was already a done deal.
“You’re pretty.”
His sudden compliment didn’t feel pleasant at all. Instead, I felt evaluated and uncomfortable.
When I didn’t respond, Yu-geon awkwardly smiled and extended his hand for a handshake.
It was a gesture typical of ordinary people. Espers usually avoided handshakes, even during first meetings, because their wavelengths might unintentionally transfer.
If the first impression was bad, their mood might be reflected in their wavelengths. But Yu-geon seemed unconcerned about such things.
Although my first impression of him was terrible, I decided to hide my wavelength and extend my hand, thinking of Han-gyeol. However,
Drip. Drop.
“Uh? What’s happening?”
Drops of red blood fell. Blood was flowing from Yu-geon’s nose. The drops soon turned into a stream, gushing out like a faucet.
“Oh, crap.”
“…?”
I couldn’t help but curse at that moment. It wasn’t intentional. But Yu-geon’s blood scent intensified, causing my stomach to churn violently. My breathing became labored, and a buried savage desire surged forth.
I wanted to bite. To tear his flesh and drench myself in his bright red blood. To suck with such force that my jaw muscles ached from leaving bite marks on every part.
What would the deeper blood taste like? It must be even sweeter.
As the sudden rush of excitement made me dizzy and my body swayed, Yu-geon grabbed my arm urgently to support me.
“Why, why are you like this? Are you okay?”
The moment we touched, every cell in contact with him felt like it was boiling. I immediately brushed his hand away.
“Don’t touch me.”
I closed my mouth and held my breath. Yu-geon seemed at a loss, unsure of what to do. Leaving him there, I ran out of the office.
But even in that brief encounter, his scent left a strong impression in my mind. That was our first meeting.
Since then, I’ve kept my distance while observing him. His scent wasn’t a figment of my imagination; he emitted a fragrance that provoked my thirst.
Typically, I could suppress my urges by consuming blood once a week. But Baek Yu-geon was an exception, causing my mental state to crumble.
To maintain my routine, I kept my distance from others, especially from him. I couldn’t risk revealing my identity due to some arrogant newcomer. Yet, despite my attempts to push him away, he kept coming back.
“Gu Sa-weol!”
“Stop speaking informally.”
“Gu Sa-weol, I need to talk to you.”
“I have nothing to say.”
“Did you check our matching rate? We’re destined to be together.”
“Destiny, my foot.”
“I’ll make sure not a drop of creature’s blood stains your hands.”
In that case, I’d die from hunger, you idiot.
“Want to go for ramen? Or see some cats? How about butterflies? Goldfish?”
“Will you get lost already?”
“Gu Sa-weol!”
“Gu Sa-weol!”
“Gu sa…”
“Why do you hate me so much? At least tell me why!”
When I finally couldn’t take it anymore and exploded,
“Don’t you know?”
“Of course not! You never say…”
“You smell.”
“What…?”
“You smell bad.”
I meant it. Most of what I said to Yu-geon was true, but that was the truest. The fundamental reason I pushed him away was that he emitted a ‘delicious scent.’
No matter how many times I kicked him away, Yu-geon always came back like a punching bag. But when I told him he smelled, he looked utterly devastated. More so than when I had cursed at him initially.
I didn’t explain everything, but I felt a strange sense of relief as I turned away. That night, I thought of his dejected face and almost felt sorry for him. But knowing he wouldn’t bother me anymore, I had the best sleep in a long time.
If that misery-loving fool approached me again, I planned to say even harsher things.
I considered telling him his breath was suffocating or that his childish personality wasn’t to my liking. I even thought of saying that espers with ten fingers couldn’t pair with me. At some point, I began rehearsing lines to reject him.
“What’s up? Why are you smiling while eating? Did something good happen?”
“No, it’s just funny.”
“What’s so funny? Tell me too.”
“Never mind. Let’s finish eating. I’m tired today.”
That day was my once-a-week trip to consume blood. Drinking the blood of a living being, a practice known as vampirism.
Among cremons, we referred to drinking blood as ‘having a meal’ in our slang. Naturally, regular meals were just ‘eating.’
This subtle difference allowed cremons to identify each other. That’s how I met Emily.
Cremons prefer human blood, but creature blood can also suppress the urges. Thanks to Emily’s recommendation, I found a place that discreetly sold creature blood.
The restaurant catered to both cremons and gourmet humans who enjoyed unique tastes. They drank creature blood mixed with coloring, making it look like wine. It was convincing enough to not raise suspicions among ordinary people.
However, since it wasn’t legal, the restaurant had a maze-like, complex structure and consisted entirely of private rooms.
