I felt a little embarrassed by the sudden change in atmosphere and all the attention focused on me. It was even more awkward now that I was in my true form, rather than as Han Yi-gyeol.
"What's up with you all?"
As I asked, running my hand across the back of my neck, Min Ah-rin, who had just come back to her senses, gave an embarrassed smile.
"I'm sorry, Yi-gyeol ssi. This is the first time I've seen you change in a situation like this, so I just couldn't help myself…"
At Min Ahrin's words, Park Geon-ho also spoke with a serious expression.
"Um, it was always in the middle of battle, so we've never had a chance to just sit back and watch like this."
"What's there to watch anyway?"
I replied indifferently to Park Geon-ho, who was talking nonsense, and examined my body here and there.
The sleeves of the white shirt I was wearing had shortened quite a bit, leaving my wrists clearly exposed. It didn't really matter since I was only going to use my intervention ability briefly then revert back to Han Yi-gyeol anyway, but because the clothes were getting stuck in various places, it made it pretty uncomfortable.
'Is there an item which could stretch my clothes infinitely?'
At this rate, I'll have to carry around clothes specifically for Kwon Se-hyun in my inventory, just like Woo Seo-hyuk. I was looking down dissatisfiedly at the short sleeves when I sensed someone approaching, so I looked up.
"...?"
I saw Park Geon-ho's dark eyes that had suddenly come right up to my face. As I met his gaze with a puzzled look, the corners of his mouth curled upwards and he reached out his hand.
Tap, I flinched and lowered my head, seeing Park Geon-ho's hand resting very naturally on my chest.
"...!"
"Oh, compared to Han Yi-gyeol's body, this is pretty nice."
A chill ran down my spine. Startled, I grabbed Park Geon-ho by the collar.
"You crazy… what the hell are you doing all of a sudden?"
"Oops. I was only going to take a look, but my hand moved on its own."
"And you call that an excuse?"
As I stood there in disbelief, a powerful aura erupted around Park Geon-ho, who was still laughing with my hand gripping his collar.
Crack! Ha Tae-heon brutally smashed one of the sofa's armrests.
"Hold on a minute, Ha Tae-heon ssi! Don't break the furniture!"
"Han Yi-gyeol, move aside. I'm going to kill him...."
"Kill him? What are you talking about? Kim Woo-jin, you stay put too!"
"Instead of killing him, shouldn't we report him? For sexual harassment?"
Peeek! Peeek! Peek!
"This isn't fair. Hyung, please let me touch you too."
"What disciplinary actions can be taken against a guild member who committed sexual harassment, Secretary Woo Seo-hyuk?"
"How about dismissal?"
The atmosphere in the room instantly turned into a complete mess. Even the fox, which had been quietly nestled in Min Ah-rin's arms, was howling at the top of its lungs.
Regardless, Park Geon-ho apologized with a smile on his face.
"Sorry. You wanna touch my chest too, Han Yi-gyeol?"
"No, thanks."
I let out a sigh and released Park Geon-ho's collar. Kim Woo-jin glared fiercely at Park Geon-ho, who raised both hands and stepped back as if recognizing his mistake.
"Stop joking around and let's get to the point. I'm going to use my intervention ability now—can you check to see what changes occur in the cult members?"
"Since there are CCTV cameras installed, we can do it by connecting to the TV like last time. If you want to do it right now, I'll bring a laptop."
As I nodded at Woo Seo-hyuk's explanation, he had his attendant quickly retrieve the laptop. When the laptop, which was connected to the server linked to the CCTV, was connected to the TV, the interior of the training room, where the cultist was tied up, appeared on the screen.
The cult member was hunched over, tied to a chair. He appeared quite exhausted, having attempted suicide repeatedly during the two-hour interrogation.
"I'll begin now."
I immediately closed my eyes and gathered my energy to use the ability.
From the moment I transformed into Kwon Se-hyun, my heart was entirely occupied by Kwon Se-hyun's energy. Han Yi-gyeol's energy could not hold its own against Kwon Se-hyun's powerful energy and was pushed into a corner.
As I used my intervention ability, the energies of all the ability users and items in the Requiem Guild building began to appear in various colors. Among them, I located the energy of the cult member locked in the underground training room.
As expected, a thread of unfamiliar energy extended from the head of the cult member. Fortunately, I could confirm that it was not connected to another person's ability, but rather to an item.
'Is this… Kali's blood?'
Just like before, red blood was smeared thickly on the thread of energy. It seemed that this was the main cause which had been hindering the interrogation.
Cutting the thread of energy was not difficult at all.
No, to be more precise, the moment I thought, 'I must cut it,' the thread of energy snapped. It was because my power had become strong enough to cut the thread of energy mixed with Kali's blood without lifting a finger, just as Elohim had said.
As I now realized the sheer magnitude of my power, fear washed over me rather than joy. Trying to ignore the heavy feeling in my chest, I opened my eyes and spoke as if nothing were wrong.
"…It's over."
"That was quick."
"Yes. It wasn't another person's ability, but an item effect. I've severed the connection."
I checked the TV screen again while explaining the situation to my teammates. The person in question didn't seem to notice that the item's connection had been cut off, as they looked no different than before.
"Then I'll go back to interrogating. Thanks, Hyung."
"I'm counting on you."
Upon hearing my story, Kwon Jeong-han, Cheon Sa-yeon, and Woo Seo-hyuk left the room to resume the interrupted interrogation. Min Ah-rin followed behind the three of them in case anything unexpected happened.
"I'll head back to Roheon first then I'll come back in the afternoon."
Ha Tae-heon checked the time on his wristwatch and stood up. Since there was no need to stay here during the interrogation anyway, it seemed he intended to go to Roheon to get some work done before returning.
"If you're too busy to come, please give me a call. I'll let you know the results of the interrogation."
As I followed Ha Tae-heon toward the front door and spoke to him, he turned back toward me, shoes already on. The look in his eyes was unreadable, and seeing him stare at my face like that left me a little puzzled.
"Why are you looking at me like that?"
"It's the first time I've seen you see me off with that appearance."
"Ah."
That's right. Right now, I wasn't Han Yi-gyeol—I was Kwon Se-hyun, wasn't I? A shy smile unknowingly came on at this belated realization.
"It's a bit… awkward, isn't it? It's the first time I've changed in this room, too, so I keep forgetting."
"It's a bit awkward, but it's not bad."
Ha Tae-heon reached out and gently stroked my cheek. Seeing that I did not pull away, Ha Tae-heon then wrapped his right arm around my waist and pulled me towards him.
Perhaps because I am taller than Han Yi-gyeol, our eye levels were about the same now. After studying me carefully, he leaned in.
"hut...."
A tickling sensation spread through me as his lips silently brushed against mine. Even though I knew he was going to kiss me, I couldn't help but flinch.
Ha Tae-heon pulled away after the brief kiss and let go of my waist as well. The warmth in his gaze as we faced each other up close was palpable.
"No matter how busy I am, I will be here in the afternoon, so don't worry."
"…I understand."
Ha Tae-heon gave a satisfied smile and left.
Now alone, I walked into the living room after calming my racing heart a little. The fox who was sitting at the table noticed that Ha Tae-heon had left and flew over quickly.
Peek!
I looked around the room while holding the whining fox. Unlike before, the room was very quiet now that most of the team members had left for work and only Kim Woo-jin and Park Geon-ho remained.
"Han Yi-gyeol."
"Mn?"
As I pondered what to do until the interrogation was over, Kim Woo-jin approached me with a hesitant expression.
"You still like sweets, even when your body is like this, right?"
"Huh?"
"Want a snack?"
Kim Woo-jin's hazel eyes, looking at me, somehow sparkled with anticipation. What was this reaction?
"My tastes haven't changed, but...."
"I have some cookies you like."
"Well, I'd eat them if you offered them to me…"
Why is he so happy about this? Still… It's much better than him pulling away because it feels strange.
"Han Yi-gyeol."
Park Geon-ho, who had been watching me and Kim Woo-jin with his chin resting on his hand, also opened his mouth with an expression full of interest.
"Is it really okay if you don't go back to being Han Yi-gyeol? You don't feel any pressure?"
"Um, probably."
When I first transformed into Kwon Se-hyun and used my intervention ability in the space the Doctor had created, it wasn't this comfortable. Using the ability was exhausting, and I couldn't maintain Kwon Se-hyun's form for long.
But now… there was no difference from when I was Han Yi-gyeol. Is this also because my power has grown stronger? It might be different if I used my intervention ability more excessively, but as things stand now, there was no reason for me to return to being Han Yi-gyeol.
"As long as I'm not expending energy, there doesn't seem to be any significant downside."
As Elohim had warned, the intervention ability must be used only when absolutely necessary. However, Kwon Se-hyun's appearance itself could be maintained without using any energy.
"That's fascinating."
Park Geon-ho, who had been looking at me while touching the corner of his mouth, tilted his head.
"Then, you don't have to go back to being Han Yi-gyeol anymore, do you?"
"Huh?"
"Since you said you could use your wind abilities in that form as long as you don't use them at the same time as your intervention ability, I don't see the need for you to change back."
"...."
You mean... I don't have to go back to being Han Yi-gyeol?
This was a situation I had never even considered. No matter how comfortable Kwon Se-hyun's appearance was, I naturally assumed that the body I would return to was, of course, Han Yi-gyeol.
I could hardly hide my bewilderment. After hesitating for a long time with my mind in such a mess, I finally managed to give an answer.
"Well, the clothes are a little… tight like this."
'Your clothes?"
"Yes. The clothes are too small for me, perhaps because I'm bigger than Han Yi-gyeol."
For some reason, it sounded like an excuse. As I needlessly fiddled with my wrist exposed beneath the now shortened sleeve, Park Geon-ho sprang up from the sofa.
"Wait a minute."
Park Geon-ho left the room just as he was and returned in less than five minutes. In his hand was a paper bag that I had never seen before.
"Here."
"What is it?"
Park Geon-ho grinned as I casually accepted the paper bag he confidently handed me.
"My clothes."
"Your clothes, Team Leader?"
"When I'm busy with work, I usually sleep at the guild or go to the gate and come straight back. These are the clothes I left in the department for times like that. They're clean, so don't start getting any weird ideas."
"...."
"My clothes might be a little big, but wearing something bigger would be more comfortable than wearing something tight like you're wearing now."
Faced with his explanation, I couldn't bring myself to argue back.
In the end, I couldn't refuse and took out the clothes from the paper bag. A strange feeling, like a sharp needle, kept piercing my heart.