After experiencing a chaotic and massive operation, the weekend passed by as quickly as a machine gun’s burst.
Though I had valuable experiences and enjoyed my time, the weekend felt so fast that it was hard to recall once it was over.
During weekdays with important schedules, time seems to fly even faster. While the reviewed reports from above were important, there was another personal matter that weighed on me.
Throughout this operation, I received a lot of help from many people. The support from the girlfriends and team leaders who executed the mission alongside me was invaluable.
Klugger and Theo. While I was deeply grateful for the assistance from these long-time friends, I also felt a lingering unease about not having shared my situation with them yet.
Klugger sensed something while decoding a cipher in the ward, though I couldn’t tell what exactly he experienced. However, his sharp focus towards me was palpable.
Theo played a crucial role in laying the groundwork for the operation. He knew about the existence of the hacking tool we created and helped locate it, which expedited many processes.
I met Yubin at headquarters, and although I understood her reasons, I postponed giving an immediate response. She didn’t rush me for an answer despite knowing my situation.
Even when we held meetings at SuA’s place for days leading up to the operation, Theo patiently waited for my explanation without making a phone call. Although I momentarily forgot to explain my situation during our preparations, after the storm settled, I often thought about how best to approach the topic with both of them.
My situation isn’t particularly special.
There have been countless instances where individuals invaded planets and fell in love with planet inhabitants, got married, and formed relationships.
While part of the same organization, Kirk from another team in the Seoul Branch also had such a precedent.
Of course, the difference is that Kirk’s wife is an Earth civilian, whereas my girlfriends are hyper-humans. This distinction isn’t significant enough to be considered a major difference.
Another point is that typically, one has a single partner, but I have five girlfriends. Harems are common in space, and it’s not a big deal. However, within a short period, I ended up with five girlfriends, all of whom are part of the HunterKiller Team we’ve been dealing with for years.
I had been hiding this fact under the guise of investigating, but now I felt the need to reveal it.
While telling Theo was important, I decided it would be better to first speak with Klugger, who had been in Team 3. As soon as the weekday arrived, I went to the hospital and entered his room.
Without knocking, I stopped at the doorway.
When visiting Klugger’s room, the presence of Silver was always the most concerning factor.
For some reason, she frequently visited the hospital, and I even encountered her when Yubin and I came. Knowing she was there, I had no reason to sit with Klugger in his room.
What could have happened in my absence?
“Hello.”
She turned her head upon noticing a stranger and relaxed with a faint smile upon recognizing my face.
“Oh, hello.”
Caught off guard, I returned the greeting and shifted my gaze to Klugger.
With a look that said, “What’s going on?” Klugger averted his eyes. Our silent exchange made the atmosphere awkward, and Silver, who had been looking at me, redirected her attention to Klugger sitting on the bed.
“Come and sit.”
I grabbed a chair next to him and sat at the end of the bed.
“Is your friend Yubin here?”
Recognizing her but pretending not to, I asked.
“Yes. We couldn’t introduce ourselves properly last time. I’m Chae Eunseo.”
“Nice to meet you. I’m A.”
Despite the simple exchange of names and pleasantries, the atmosphere felt heavy.
It wasn’t just me feeling the heaviness; after Silver and I exchanged greetings, Klugger cleared his throat to break the silence.
“Have you finished work at the company?”
Focusing intently, I imagined the words he might say to Silver.
I hadn’t visited Klugger’s room for a while. I didn’t know exactly when Silver started frequenting his room. If she had been doing so for quite some time, they likely had many conversations, including discussions about me and Yubin.
I assumed Klugger might think I worked for a company. To deceive a hyper-human, I pretended to be part of a company like Spacystro.
“Yeah, I wrapped things up last week and submitted the report.”
The invasion of the radio base was classified information, so I couldn’t disclose it to Klugger yet.
Though I couldn’t share the critical details, I believed Klugger, who was aware of the overall situation, could understand roughly what had happened.
Klugger nodded, and his gaze, which was wavering, shifted to Silver.
“Should we give you some privacy?”
Given the serious tone, Silver offered to leave. It would be easier to talk without her, but…
“No, it’s fine.”
I stopped her from leaving.
Understanding their dynamics was necessary, but if she knew everything and was here, removing her from the scene could be more dangerous.
Klugger seemed to glare at me, but I couldn’t focus on anyone else at the moment.
“But why is Eunseo with Klugger?”
“It’s complicated…”
Complicated? Could it be that Klugger and Silver are involved?
If so, I could imagine the sequence of events. How did these two become close, and when Klugger learned that Silver was aware of my visit with Yubin when I came to see Klugger in the hospital, he must have realized the truth.
If Silver introduced herself as a colleague or friend, Klugger likely assumed she was a hyper-human. Even if she didn’t explicitly mention being Red, Klugger would have known that one of the visitors was a hyper-human.
And he concluded that the other person with the hyper-human was me.
The person with the hyper-human, the one investigating the hyper-human.
Someone who seems to be hiding something important.
To Klugger, every detail was suspicious, so any suspicion wouldn’t be out of place.
“I’ll hear more from Klugger later.”
Deciding to stop gathering information through Silver, I realized I had come here to talk about my relationship with a hyper-human, only to find out that a colleague was also in a relationship with a hyper-human.
Still, since I came to discuss my situation, I wanted to start by explaining my circumstances rather than delving into specifics.
The problem was that with Silver present, I couldn’t do that.
Silver believed I was in a relationship with Yubin. While this was true, the issue was that Yubin and I weren’t the only ones in a relationship.
I am in a relationship with the entire HunterKiller Team.
Living with the girlfriends had somewhat dulled my sense of Earth’s emotions, but it hadn’t completely vanished.
Moreover, Klugger probably kept his identity as a Spacystro hidden. Given his secretive nature, he wouldn’t easily reveal it, so I couldn’t risk exposing him as a Spacystro here.
“How are you feeling?”
“Just okay. Since I’m here anyway, I might as well rest a bit more.”
Last time, he mentioned he was ready to be discharged but the hospital wouldn’t release him. Today, however, it felt different. It seemed like he was voluntarily staying longer.
In a regular hospital, he would have been discharged if deemed fit. But since this was a Spacystro-operated facility, his extended stay was entirely possible if he requested it.
Why was he staying?
My gaze naturally drifted to Silver.
“Good to hear. That’s great.”
Initially, I found it natural that Klugger was in a relationship with a hyper-human. It gave me a sense of camaraderie and relief.
Despite this, Klugger’s expression remained stern, indicating he still harbored suspicions.
“How is Yubin these days? It’s been a while since I last saw her.”
“Huh? Yubin? She’s doing well. Together. Hahaha…”
I responded awkwardly to Silver’s question about Yubin’s recent status. Though there was a slight twitch in Kruger’s eyebrows, his expression didn’t change much.
Could he be jealous because he thinks I’m talking to his girlfriend?
We’ve known each other for a long time, but we’ve never seen each other dating. So, his jealousy felt strange and unsettling.
Of course, once I explained my situation, such feelings wouldn’t arise. However, due to Silver’s presence, I couldn’t explain anything.
“Must be busy lately. No major issues, right?”
“Not really. Things seem busy.”
Silver’s busyness likely referred to the embezzlement case. While busy with that, Yubin had also been preoccupied with the radio base infiltration operation.
But I couldn’t pretend to know either.
If I said I was busy with Yubin, both Silver and Klugger would suspect me further.
Though Klugger knew I was busy, he didn’t know the root cause. Without understanding his thoughts or how much Silver knew, I couldn’t grasp the atmosphere.
Unable to read the mood, continuing the conversation was difficult, and the room filled with an oppressive air.
“Who is Yubin?”
Klugger asked in a low voice.
Calling her my girlfriend was easy, but it didn’t fully explain the situation.
“She’s a friend I mentioned before,” I replied.
Before I could answer, Silver spoke.
“My friend. And a woman connected to you.”
Given that Silver is a hyper-human, her friend is likely a hyper-human too.
Klugger’s expression didn’t change, but he nodded slightly, as if confirming something.
“So, that friend of yours… Is she your girlfriend?”
“Yes.”
Suddenly, a bad feeling came over me.
Investigating a hyper-human, and having a hyper-human girlfriend myself.
If I were to consider this situation from the perspective of the Earth Defense Union investigating hyper-humans, I’d want to punch someone.
A guy with a hyper-human girlfriend who doesn’t even explain his own situation and suspects his colleagues?
I wasn’t in a position to criticize since I hadn’t explained my situation to my colleagues either.
