My gaze followed the man who had just entered the café, and Do Yi-hyun also turned his head to confirm the man’s face.
“Who is that?”
“Eun Ba-da’s older brother.”
“Older brother? They look really alike.”
Eun Ba-da’s older brother, Eun Ha-neul, shared such a strong resemblance with Eun Ba-da that it was almost uncanny.
Although he wasn’t an Awakener, it seemed like he had frequented this café quite often.
Since he was sitting in a corner seat, there was no way the staff behind the counter could see us, but still, we lowered our heads.
He kept glancing around furtively as if sneaking in secretly, trying to hide his face while preparing to take his drink to go.
Seeing him like that, I felt like he really needed to cover his face.
“Wow, seriously.”
“For now, keep quiet and lower your face too.”
Do Yi-hyun, although confused, obediently covered his face, then shifted his gaze toward Eun Ha-neul.
The drink Eun Ha-neul had ordered was a red-colored beverage known for its stamina recovery effects.
Judging by the deeper color compared to what we ordered, it seemed to be a more effective and expensive version.
‘Why would a non-Awakener buy and drink something like that here?’
Of course, I knew how tough the medical profession was, but that couldn’t be the reason he came here.
The drinks in this place only worked on Awakeners.
For non-Awakeners, no matter how much they consumed the expensive stuff, their stamina wouldn’t recover at all.
In the end, it would only fill their stomachs with water, so why would Eun Ha-neul, a non-Awakener, come here and buy these drinks?
“I’ve heard that Imo-nim has been giving this to him regularly these days. She said it’s good for stamina recovery, so he’s been drinking it diligently.”
At that moment, Eun Ba-da recalled the thermos he started bringing to school ever since he began spilling coffee recently.
Inside the thermos was the same red-colored refreshing drink, which Eun Ba-da said was definitely prepared by Imo-nim, who worked at home.
Hm, really?
The seemingly strict older brother turned out to care deeply and worry about his younger sibling — a heartwarming story painted vividly in my mind.
While I was lost in these thoughts, Eun Ha-neul gathered his drink and stepped out of the café.
“Let’s go out too.”
“Alright.”
Without protest, Do Yi-hyun followed my lead.
It seemed like Eun Ha-neul was heading straight to the hospital.
If he really bought that drink out of concern for his younger brother, I definitely wanted to share that news with Eun Ba-da.
I wanted to tell him that even among their seemingly strict family, there was someone who genuinely cared for him.
“Even if just following blindly won’t give us much chance to find out anything…”
Still, my body moved on its own.
Chasing after Eun Ha-neul, we soon arrived in front of the hospital.
I hesitated, wondering if he was about to go inside, when suddenly—
“Hey, someone’s coming.”
“Uh? That person is…”
It was a middle-aged woman I’d never seen before, but somehow I felt like I knew her.
“Imo-nim who works for the Eun Ba-da family?”
My intuition whispered that, and seeing her hand a paper bag to Eun Ha-neul confirmed it.
So I kept watching their actions closely.
“She’s handing him a drink.”
Do Yi-hyun, standing beside me watching them, muttered quietly.
Eun Ha-neul didn’t touch the drink he’d bought at the café but handed it directly to Imo-nim.
Of course!
It was definitely Imo-nim who made sure Eun Ba-da drank that every day.
‘I should tell him later. Or… is it really okay for me to get involved in family matters?’
After following them this far and seeing everything, such worries crossed my mind.
While I was still debating, Do Yi-hyun tapped my shoulder.
Following the direction he pointed to, I saw Kang Ye-dam, Hae Mal-eum, and Yeon Hyeong-gwang sneaking out of the hospital wearing patient gowns.
Do Yi-hyun and I immediately flinched without saying a word.
What kind of mischief were they up to, sneaking out like that?
“Should we call them out?”
They were friends after all, so they might act on their own, but Do Yi-hyun asked me first.
I shook my head and whispered plans with Do Yi-hyun on how to approach them.
Quickly, Do Yi-hyun disappeared right in front of me, hiding his body like a phantom.
“Ahh!”
Hearing a scream, I guessed he had already reached them.
Kang Ye-dam, Hae Mal-eum, and Yeon Hyeong-gwang almost fell backward in shock when they suddenly saw Do Yi-hyun.
“Where are you going?”
His cold voice carried a chill.
Just how much trouble had they caused for Do Yi-hyun to speak like that?
“Uh, 07.”
“But why are you here?”
“Is our boss here too?”
Flustered, they dodged the question about their destination, changing the subject deliberately.
Do Yi-hyun’s eyes narrowed fiercely as he saw through their act.
“No, we just wanted to play some games…”
“It’s too boring staying only in the hospital!”
While the three of them were busy explaining, Hae Mal-eum happened to walk in our direction. His eyes sparkled as if he’d seen a savior, but I didn’t have any intention of rescuing them from Do Yi-hyun.
Instead, hearing that it was boring only staying in the hospital made me wonder something.
So, as I approached them, I asked.
“If it’s so boring, why not just not get admitted and buy expensive potions like Ban Eun-hyeol?”
Why waste time and suffer by being hospitalized unnecessarily?
Come to think of it, except for Ban Eun-hyeol, no one else had chosen to spend such huge sums on treatments to remove their wounds.
‘Could it be that Ban Eun-hyeol is so wealthy that his generosity is extraordinary?’
But the others must have quite good backgrounds too.
They wouldn’t be part of the Insoju or Jo Yeon-kyup clans without reason.
I already knew what kind of family Yeon Hyeong-gwang’s younger sibling, Yeon Ha-yeon, belonged to, and Kang Ye-dam and Hae Mal-eum were also from prestigious third-generation families.
“Aren’t you guys rich?”
I asked sincerely, and Hae Mal-eum clicked his tongue.
“This guy only knows one side of it.”
Suddenly, Do Yi-hyun slammed his hand hard onto Hae Mal-eum’s back.
“Hey! Why—”
“Clueless much?”
Barely keeping his balance, Hae Mal-eum rubbed his back and yelled.
But instead of explaining, the others just glared at Do Yi-hyun with annoyed eyes.
Hae Mal-eum looked utterly wronged, muttering with a pouting expression as if it was unfair to get hit without knowing why.
“What? What don’t I know?”
Just as Hae Mal-eum was about to retort, Kang Ye-dam interrupted.
“That’s because having a scar left behind looks way cooler.”
He tilted his chin up, acting as if he were talking about something really great and amazing, leaving me speechless.
“Why are you looking at me like that? Do you know how amazing a scar from a Grade 5 Gate wound is? This kind of scar is an honor that you have to carry with you for life.”
“You’re not saying you all got admitted for the same reason, right?”
“Actually, yes.”
“It’s cool. Our boss didn’t drink potions for that reason.”
“Ah…”
Yeon Ha-yeon too…
“And also, if you’re admitted like this, you don’t have to go to school.”
“You guys skip school all the time even without the hospital excuse.”
“That’s different.”
These guys often ditched classes to hang out on the rooftop or run around the city during lessons.
Their ‘hospitalization’ was just another excuse.
The more I heard, the less I could understand their reckless antics.
“Anyway, get back inside quickly. You’re wearing patient gowns and wandering around like that—you’re going to cause trouble again.”
“We’re not causing trouble!”
“Go inside. Yi-hyun, you…”
I was about to tell Do Yi-hyun to hurry and get them back inside the hospital, but his face was unusually serious, and the scar on it looked clearer than ever.
“…You’re not scarred for the same reason as them, are you?”
“Of course not!”
“Quiet.”
Seeing the doubt in my eyes, Do Yi-hyun hesitated to answer.
Just then, Hae Mal-eum was about to speak but was immediately silenced by Do Yi-hyun.
His earlobes turned bright red as he threatened Hae Mal-eum and hurried inside the hospital.
Even Do Yi-hyun, whom I trusted, bore the same scar for that reason.
That’s cool… unbelievable.
Then the protagonist Ban Eun-hyeol was actually the normal one for spending so much on expensive potions to heal his wounds.
‘I guess Ban Eun-hyeol was the odd one out. Still, he’s the main character of this world.’
I watched Kang Ye-dam and Hae Mal-eum being dragged inside, holding onto Do Yi-hyun’s arms, shaking my head.
“You’re not going anywhere. Come with me.”
Yeon Hyeong-gwang, who had been standing beside me leisurely, saluted and immediately followed me inside.
As we entered the hospital, we saw Eun Ha-neul crossing the corridor, probably heading to see a patient.
“Doctor!”
A child spoke to him, who was walking with a bored and irritated expression.
Looking closer, I recognized the child as someone who had gotten caught in the sudden Gate incident at the hospital and had been helped by Eun Ba-da.
The child held a photo of Eun Ba-da’s autograph in one hand and a toy figure in the other.
“Could you please give this to Bada hyung?”
The child handed over a drawing that depicted Eun Ba-da as a hero from a superhero movie.
The drawing perfectly captured the moment on the bridge when Eun Ba-da was fighting, making it very impressive.
Eun Ha-neul accepted the drawing silently and gazed at the figure of Eun Ba-da in the picture.
“Why aren’t you coming in?”
“Ah, just a moment. You go in first and lie down.”
After sending the kids into the ward first, I leaned halfway into the hallway and the ward, waiting for Eun Ha-neul’s answer.
He rolled up the drawing and roughly stuck it into the pocket of his gown.
“You drew this?”
“Thank you!”
Ignoring the cheerful child’s greeting, Eun Ha-neul’s gown fluttered as he passed by our ward.
‘Still, he didn’t refuse it.’
It was clear Eun Ha-neul cared at least a little about his younger brother.
And not long after, due to a commotion that broke out, I would come to understand Eun Ha-neul’s true feelings.