DPGR 87

Dojin’s family only got up to leave after sharing dinner together at his house.

By then, Jiho’s shyness had eased up considerably.

Dojin’s mother, warm and sociable, had taken quite a liking to Jiho and even chuckled while telling him to call them Mom and Dad.

“Jiho, Mom and Dad are heading out now. It’s cold outside, so don’t come out. If there’s anything you want to eat, just let Mom know, okay?”

“Y-yes… okay….”

“Wait, before I go—here.”

To top it off, she handed Jiho an envelope at the front door.

Even without opening it, it was clearly a money envelope—and a thick one at that.

“A-ah, no, I really can’t—”

“This is just some allowance from Mom to our youngest son. Use it to get yourself something good to eat, okay?”

“……”

“You’re heading to Japan soon, right? Don’t do anything too dangerous there. Be careful. Let’s meet again when you’re back—then I’ll make that meat side dish you like.”

Jiho’s nose stung.

Aside from Dojin, this was the first time anyone had ever genuinely cared for him and looked after him like this.

‘If I’d had a mom… would she have been like this?’

Afraid that opening his mouth would make him cry, Jiho bit his lip and just nodded in response.

“Ahem. The kid’s legs must be hurting. Let’s go now.”

Thankfully, Dojin’s father stepped in at just the right moment.

He stared at Jiho for a while with his usual gruff expression, then reached out and awkwardly patted Jiho’s head.

“W-well then… Dad’s heading out too.”

“……!”

“Let us know when you’re back from Japan. So we don’t worry. Ahem.”

“Y-yes, okay…!”

Behind them, Dohee giggled and teased their father for acting so stiff.

Flustered, he snapped at her, only to be told off again by Hyunie for saying “you little punk.”

“Granpa! You said ‘you little punk’ again!”

“No, no. Grandpa didn’t say that.”

“Well then, we’re off. You two take care, alright?”

“Yes. Please get home safe.”

“Ah, g-goodbye….”

With those parting words, Dojin’s family finally left the house.

Now alone with Dojin, Jiho felt a strange quiet settle around them—leaving him with a slightly lonely feeling.

‘They were all so kind…’

Jiho thought he now understood how Dojin had grown up to be such a good person.

Anyone raised in a family like that was bound to grow up gentle and kind.

‘I’m jealous…’

For the first time in his life, Jiho felt envious of Dojin.

He wished he had a family like that too.

“Guide Jiho.”

“Y-yes?”

“My parents were a bit overwhelming, weren’t they? Sorry about that.”

Unaware of Jiho’s true feelings, Dojin smiled awkwardly and offered a quick apology.

Jiho shook his head and hands in a flurry.

“No, not at all! I-I actually… liked it.”

“You liked it? What part?”

“Um…”

Jiho fumbled, mumbling under his breath.

“W-well, I… don’t have a family… so when they called me the youngest son… and worried about me like that… it felt like I really had parents…”

But his soft muttering was abruptly cut off.

Because Dojin suddenly cupped Jiho’s cheeks and pressed his lips firmly against Jiho’s.

“Mmph!”

Dojin bit Jiho’s lower lip, then licked it with the tip of his tongue before pulling away.

“That part, I don’t like.”

“Huh? What…?”

“If you’re my parents’ youngest son—”

Smack!

He kissed him again, teasingly, before finishing his sentence.

“—then I can’t do this anymore.”

“W-why not…?”

“Because if we’re siblings, that’d be incest, right?”

“W-w-what?!”

“I’m joking.”

Dojin’s eyes softened into a gentle smile—the one Jiho liked so much.

Then, with Jiho still frozen in shock, Dojin lifted him up effortlessly and pressed kiss after kiss along Jiho’s jawline.

His voice dropped to a low murmur.

“Are you tired right now?”

“Uh, n-no?”

“Then… can you guide me for a bit?”

But Dojin’s eyes didn’t carry their usual clarity.

It was that unsteady gleam Jiho had only seen in the bedroom—just before he snapped.

Jiho realized that and gave a little shiver.

‘What even triggered him this time…?!’

He quickly tried to complain about being tired and sore, but Dojin—half gone already—wasn’t listening.

“Then let’s just kiss. Okay?”

“N-no, I…”

“Jiho.”

“……”

“Just a kiss. Let’s just kiss, okay? Can’t we? You don’t want to?”

Dojin adjusted his hold, lifting Jiho higher.

Now Jiho was looking down at him from above.

Dojin was gazing up with pleading eyes, a sly smile playing at his lips—irresistible.

Eventually, Jiho shut his eyes tight and answered in a small voice.

“I… I don’t hate it…”

“Then?”

“…Just kissing. That’s it.”

Dojin’s lips curled up with a wide grin.

Like a predator who’d just cornered his prey, he gave a low, rumbling chuckle.

“Alright. Just kissing.”

But no one said where the kisses would go.

Jiho only realized that too late—once Dojin’s lips began to travel all over him.

***

“How have you been lately?”

“Mm, I’m okay….”

“You don’t look so good. Is something bothering you?”

In a consultation room at a psychiatric clinic in Incheon,

Dojin and Jiho had stepped out for a session before their departure to Japan.

Dojin glanced at Jiho, who was sitting beside him and responding softly to psychiatrist Cha Seongyeong’s questions.

“Uh, um… Lately, I’ve been having nightmares… I can’t sleep well.”

“Oh no. Nightmares?”

“Yes. So, um…”

Jiho gave Dojin a quick glance, then briefly explained the nature of his dreams—leaving out the parts about regression and everything else.

“In the dream, after Dojin hyung dies… I lose my guiding ability.”

“In the dream, Mr. Baek Dojin dies?”

“Yes. Then I leave the Center because I can’t guide anymore.”

The only person who fully understood Jiho’s words was Dojin.

He was the only one in that room who knew Jiho had regressed with all his memories intact after being affected by an artifact.

Until now, Dojin hadn’t asked about the nightmare in detail for fear of making Jiho anxious. This was the first time he was hearing about it—and his expression stiffened.

Seongyeong, unaware of the truth, would naturally assume that the nightmare stemmed from fear and excessive tension ahead of the Japanese dungeon mission…

‘Jiho has seen me die with his own eyes before.’

Dojin worried that the shock of that moment had become a lingering trauma still tormenting Jiho.

“If you’re having trouble falling asleep, I can prescribe a light sedative—not sleeping pills, just something to help you relax.”

“Y-Yes.”

“Anything else bothering you?”

“Other than that…”

While Dojin was busy worrying about Jiho, the session continued.

As the topic shifted away from nightmares, Jiho’s expression quickly relaxed.

He looked flustered or burst out laughing at some of Seongyeong’s comments.

Though he still ran out of breath and sometimes dragged his words, he no longer slurred them as he once did.

In fact, his vocabulary had noticeably improved, and the childlike tone of his speech was gradually maturing.

It was a positive change.

“Alright. Let’s end here for today.”

“Okay.”

“Please contact me once you’re back from Japan.”

The session finally ended. Dojin received the envelope of pills from Seongyeong and got in the car with Jiho.

Only then did the silent Dojin finally speak.

“Guide Jiho.”

“Yes?”

Jiho turned his wide eyes toward him, looking cheerful. A little tired perhaps, but not a trace of shadow darkened his face.

“…Never mind.”

Dojin couldn’t bring himself to mention his own death or the nightmare to Jiho when he looked like that.

It was a conversation they needed to have someday, but not right before flying to Japan.

There’s no need to make him anxious right now.

Later.

After they’d returned from the Japanese dungeon, once Jiho was in a more stable condition—it wouldn’t be too late to talk then.

At the time, that was what Dojin believed.

“Should we eat before heading back?”

“Yes, sounds good.”

Dojin’s car glided smoothly onto the road.

Unlike before, the interior of the car was filled with Jiho’s gentle chatter.

***

News about Alpha Team’s departure to Japan began to circulate online.

It had only been four days since the article announcing their successful raid of the Taean dungeon, so public concern was at an all-time high.

[Isn’t Alpha Team overworking these days?

They just finished Taean, and now they’re heading into an S-class dungeon in Japan? I watched the footage of that dungeon, and it looked insanely dangerous. I’m scared someone’s going to get hurt or even die.]

└ Exactly… even Japan’s elite S-class espers all died there. What if the same happens to us…

└└ Nooo!!! We must protect Baek Dojin!!

└└└ Nooo (X) It’s “No” (O)

It feels like huge dungeons are popping up too frequently these days.

The one in Incheon, the one in Gangwon, and now the one in Taean too. Something’s off. Is it just me?

└ Incheon wasn’t that big of a dungeon though.

└└ (scoffs) Well, it was small, but the boss monster was reportedly off the charts. I think the article said the boss alone was estimated to be A-rank. (link)

└ But we had this level of dungeon activity last year and the year before too.

└└ (serious tone) That’s true, but globally, the frequency of dungeon appearances has shortened. Plus, the number of B-rank and higher dungeons has gone up. Something’s definitely going on.

└ The end is near. Only those who believe in the Father of Dungeons will be saved. If you want to live, believe. There is no other way.

└└ No thanks.

But Japan broadcasts their raids live, right?

Will Alpha Team be in the footage too?

└ (serious tone) Yeah, they probably will. But it’ll likely only be streamed online.

└└ I know I shouldn’t say this, but I’m kind of excited… Baek Dojin fighting monsters??? Ugh… I’ll shut up before I end up in jail.

└└└ Are you insane? This is a life-and-death situation;;;

└└└└ You’re gonna watch it too, aren’t you? o.o

└└└└└ Okay yes but still…

They’ve probably arrived in Japan by now, right?

Title says it all. Please let them complete the raid safely…

└ Please come back safely…