“How was it?”
Emily asked with an expectant look. Yu-geon glanced at her while drinking and emptied the glass in one gulp before he could even taste it.
“It’s good.”
It shouldn’t be. Creature blood is toxic and has a bitter taste. It also contains a mild narcotic element. Even if the fruit masks the bitterness, the distinctive sharp taste would be unpleasant for most people.
As I covered my mouth to suppress a laugh, Yu-geon handed the glass to Emily, asking for another. He pretended to be fine, but from the second glass onward, the speed at which he drank noticeably slowed down.
“Still, it’s pretty good with this, isn’t it?”
“Right?”
Yu-geon said while eating the salad with lemon that Emily had made. She looked at him with concern, but as she saw him eating better than expected, her expression gradually brightened.
“How often do you have to drink this?”
“It varies for each Cremon. I drink it three times a week, but Sa-weol probably drinks it about once.”
“So, do all Cremons like creature blood?”
Emily looked at me before answering. She seemed quite interested in Cremons.
‘Maybe she’s being cautious because I’m a Cremon. Or maybe she’s just curious.’
When I looked away, signaling it was fine for her to speak, Emily continued answering Yu-geon’s question.
“It’s like how ramen tastes best when you’re really hungry. When we’re starving, it tastes good. Normally, it doesn’t always taste great. But we have to drink it to prevent physical changes.”
“What kind?”
“This also varies for each Cremon, but it can cause veins to bulge, skin to dry out, or even headaches. If it gets worse, it can lead to forced creature transformation.”
“Oh. It sounds similar to the symptoms Espers get when their wavelengths drop. Creature transformation is also similar to going berserk.”
“Right. Thinking of it that way makes it easier to understand. Espers need wavelengths for survival, just like Cremons need blood. You prefer guides with high compatibility. For us, consuming blood is like that.”
Listening to Emily, I realized that Cremons and Espers had a lot in common. Instead of guides, we drank blood to sustain our lives.
“Do you also get attached to a specific person like Espers do?”
“Attached?”
Yu-geon’s next question was a bit different. Emily also found it unexpected and laughed as she answered.
“It’s funny to call it attachment. There might be some who only drink what suits their taste.”
“So, you could get as obsessive as Espers do with their guides?”
“But it wouldn’t be as bad as you guys. Finding a guide with matching wavelengths is like finding a needle in a haystack for you. We don’t have such clear indicators.”
In this aspect, Espers and Cremons were different. We were not as picky as Espers. When hungry, any person before us was just a blood provider. That alone satisfied our need.
I looked away from them and grabbed my glass, swallowing its contents.
The fresh blood made my stomach dance with joy. My dry skin became moist, and my body felt a degree warmer. The anxiety that had plagued me eased with just one sip.
‘Now I feel alive.’
From then on, I didn’t gulp it down hurriedly. I continued eating at my usual pace.
As I focused on eating for a while, I sensed a gaze. Yu-geon had been watching me intently for an unknown period.
“What.”
Now I noticed Emily was no longer there. I heard clattering sounds from the kitchen, suggesting she was bringing out another dish.
‘I didn’t even notice Emily leaving.’
I must have been hungrier than I thought.
“Nothing, you just eat so well.”
“I was hungry.”
This time, I ate the salad Emily had made with the blood. The blend of the creature blood and the tangy sauce created a rich flavor.
It would probably taste better to humans. But it wasn’t to my taste.
“It feels strange.”
Yu-geon now openly observed me. He stopped eating and rested his chin on his hand, looking mischievous.
‘Are my lips very red?’
Creature blood is thick and often stains the lips. For a regular person, it might look quite unappetizing.
I understood Yu-geon’s reaction. It wasn’t surprising. It felt like he was pretending to be fine but was actually struggling to drink the creature blood.
Not that I felt sorry or guilty about it. No one here had forced Yu-geon to drink creature blood.
I ignored his gaze and emptied my glass greedily. To survive next to that guy for a week, I figured it was better to drink more than usual.
“You really do eat well.”
“……”
“I thought you were picky and had a small appetite when eating at the cafeteria.”
How did he know that? Yu-geon always finished eating first and waited for me, so he must have noticed my eating habits.
I kept drinking without answering.
“Emily said Cremons have food preferences too, but it seems you aren’t picky when it comes to drinking blood?”
“……”
Emily had already answered all his questions. They say not to disturb someone while they’re eating, but he kept talking.
“Is it good?”
“Yeah.”
His expression grew more serious, looking somewhat upset.
Why was he acting like that?
“Is it better than me?”
“Cough, cough. Cough, cough.”
“Are you okay?”
I was startled by his unexpected question and choked. Yu-geon handed me a glass of creature blood as I kept coughing.
I slowly drank the blood to calm my startled heart. After catching my breath, I asked in disbelief.
“Are you crazy?”
“You said you felt an unbearable thirst for me. You said I tasted so good you couldn’t stop thinking about it before bed.”
“……”
“Now it seems like you just go crazy for fresh blood. I feel tricked.”
“Tricked, my foot!”
He seemed somehow disappointed.
‘Is he upset because I’m enjoying the blood more than him?’
Was he really saying that?
“What are you even talking about?”
I was so baffled that I avoided his gaze. I had teased him with the intention of ending our partnership, but the truth was, I did crave Yu-geon as a source of nourishment.
My head throbbed. As soon as he mentioned it, memories I had buried resurfaced. The taste of Yu-geon’s blood during the compatibility test.
Yu-geon’s blood tasted sweeter than chocolate. Holding it in my mouth brought a fresh, tangy flavor.
His well-toned muscles had a chewy texture, and I regretted not drinking more of his blood, dreaming about it.
Compared to that, creature blood felt like drinking a beverage long past its expiration date.
Before tasting his blood, I used to enjoy creature blood. Once that memory resurfaced, it grew bigger and bigger.
Suddenly, I lost my appetite. I put down my glass.
“Sa-weol, are you done already?”
Emily returned, carrying human food for Yu-geon, like pizza and fried dishes.
“Wow, that looks good.”
Yu-geon was an increasingly perplexing guy. He made a shocking statement and then acted like he had forgotten it immediately. Watching him, I fell into thought.
‘Could he have a strange fetish?’
Like enjoying pain or liking being submissive. Some people have such tendencies. But when I first drank his blood, he seemed genuinely embarrassed. He even seemed a little scared.
‘Did he develop a new taste after that?’
I was silently horrified by the chilling speculation. He was now engrossed in eating the pizza Emily had brought.
‘So much for saying creature blood was drinkable. It was clearly a lie.’
“It’s nice to see you eat well, Yu-geon. Come over often, and I’ll make you more delicious food.”
“Should I?”
They smiled at each other warmly, looking overly familiar for people who just met today. Both of them were naturally sociable.
‘But I need to ask her soon.’
I needed to ask Emily about the progress on the antibiotics. But with Yu-geon around, I couldn’t bring it up.
Soon, Emily went back to the kitchen. She came back with a wine we often drank. I signaled to her, and she put the wine back in the kitchen and walked over.
“Yu-geon, I’m afraid we only have creature blood to drink.”
“I’ll just have water then.”
“We’re out of cheese to go with it too. Could you buy some from the store nearby? Sa-weol really likes the kind with fruits and nuts.”
“Really?”
Without any complaints, Yu-geon got up. He asked Emily for directions and left. He really was obedient.
“He’s different from what you said. Did he really threaten you?”
“Yes. He’s here to watch over me, using the excuse that it’s dangerous. Don’t get too friendly with him.”
“It doesn’t seem that way.”
Emily tilted her head. I had to finish talking before Yu-geon returned, so I spoke quickly.
“Did you find out anything about the attack?”
“Yes. There are strange rumors going around in Area C.”
Although I only knew Emily among the Cremons, she had many Cremon friends. They lived mostly in Area C and had a secret network.
“They say eating a guide makes the core smaller.”
“The core?”
“That’s probably why they targeted you.”
I visibly showed my surprise. Making the core smaller by eating a guide?
“Is it true that eating a guide makes the core smaller?”
“It’s not certain. They always do weird things.”
Last summer, there was a rumor among Cremons that drinking white people’s blood had a whitening effect, so white people became targets. At Christmas, they believed eating children made their skin younger, and they started kidnapping children.
With such incidents, it was understandable why the government considered Cremons dangerous creatures. Eventually, it was all debunked, and the attacks subsided.
“But if eating a guide really makes the core smaller, could it be related to why I don’t have a core?”
I spoke with a sudden surge of hope.
