Vicious Darling

[33]

With that shout, the precariously stacked materials suddenly began to collapse towards Yuri.

It was truly a critical situation.

Yuri quickly tensed his body. He had confirmed the trajectory, but the problem was where to move.

He factored in the slippery ground from the rain and his heavy body.

However, what he didn’t know was that the conman Peter nearby would push him.

“H-Help! Save me!”

Peter, who realized the falling materials a step later than Yuri, knew it was too late to escape. Just then, he saw something he could grab onto.

He grabbed Yuri’s arm and pulled, using the momentum to leap forward.

For the conman Peter, the relief that he had survived came before the thought that Yuri, who had been pushed aside, might be crushed to death.

“Ugh…!”

Yuri, greatly staggered, reflexively tried to regain his balance.

Despite his quick reaction, the ankle that had been painful this morning wouldn’t support his weight.

In an instant, his body plunged to the ground.

Right above his head, the foretold disaster began to collapse onto Yuri.

‘So, it ends like this.’

Yuri no longer felt the raindrops falling on his cheeks. As if that instant had become eternity.

Instead of closing his eyes, he looked up.

He thought he could face any crisis calmly, but his heart was pounding more fiercely than expected.

It seems that despite thinking it was tiresome, he ultimately wanted to live.

‘Chris.’

He longed for the dog he had chased away after telling him not to follow.

Humans were so fickle.

Everyone tightly closed their eyes, anticipating a horrible sight.

When they opened their eyes again, not a single person thought that newcomer would be alive.

At that moment, something unexpected happened.

CRASH!

The loosely tied rebar slipped due to the rainwater, making a loud noise.

The construction materials pouring towards Yuri, who had fallen in the muddy water, hit the rebar and bounced off, changing direction and spilling to the opposite side.

But it was too early to feel relieved.

Creeeeak…

The metal structure that had been stacking the materials began to topple over, unable to withstand the weight leaning to one side.

Yuri looked up at the sky.

Under the dark clouds pouring rain as if pierced with holes, a massive death was falling towards his head, as if determined to end his life this time.

The rebar that had been precariously hanging on the opposite side without falling poured down. It hit the toppling metal structure with a bang, making a chilling sound.

Crack!

The solid metal structures collided and bent.

As if an invisible hand had grabbed the rebar on the left and the metal structure on the right, making them clash in the middle.

The edge of the metal structure, bent from being hit by the rebar, stopped barely thirty centimeters away from Yuri.

It was truly a miraculous escape.

Yuri finally felt the sensation of rainwater flowing down his cheek.

It was evidence of his still vibrant life.

Yuri let out a hollow laugh.

“My goodness…”

However, his extraordinary luck didn’t extend to everyone.

Some of the rebar that had bounced off while fixing the metal structure hit the pipes piled up in the uneven parts of the pit. These were pipes specially made to protect the transport ducts.

This round and heavy object that had rolled down didn’t stop until it covered the conman Peter, who had just barely escaped and was catching his breath.

“Ah…! Aagh…!”

The scream of the person being flattened under the pipe was truly heartrending.

Those who came to their senses a step late ran to pull out the conman, but his leg bones were already completely crushed.

While he was being carried away on a makeshift stretcher, the pale-faced Bjorn and Larry ran over to support and lift Yuri.

“…Thank goodness.”

Larry glanced at the conman Peter and muttered in a barely audible voice.

“It might really have been divine intervention.”

“Indeed,” Yuri murmured as if talking to himself.

Larry, who inadvertently met his eyes and encountered the fierce spirit in Yuri’s purple eyes, unconsciously drew in a breath.

The strangely twisted sneer disappeared like a mirage before its existence could even be confirmed.

‘God? There’s no such thing.’

Yuri knew one person who could fake such an elaborate coincidence.

***

Yuri, with two layers of blankets wrapped around his wet body, lowered his head with an expressionless face.

“I’m fine. I can still work.”

Despite his words, Yuri’s body was trembling like an aspen leaf.

The middle-aged illegal immigrant who had escorted Yuri to the container looked at him with complex eyes.

“You’re shaking so pitifully, how could you…”

All sorts of thoughts were flashing through Bjorn’s mind.

‘He wants to go back to work after such a big accident, not even two weeks since coming to the site.’

While every illegal immigrant has their story, Yuri was quite young comparatively.

Moreover, well, the circumstances of illegal immigrants driven to places like this are similar.

Success in settling after illegal immigration depends on fake identities. The more elaborate they are, the more they cost a fortune.

No money, no power. But no place to return to in the Winter Continent either.

Citizenship is urgent, so they prioritize other things over their own well-being.

“I’ll… talk to the foreman for now, so rest here.”

Bjorn sighed.

He couldn’t promise to smooth over missing work today. He’d try, but who knows how the quota-obsessed foreman would react.

At least right after the incident, being human after all, he didn’t stop Bjorn from taking Yuri away in shock.

But he told the other workers to clean up the inside of the pit where Peter’s blood had barely been washed away.

They needed to lift the metal structure again and clear away the scattered construction materials to resume work.

“I’m sorry. Thank you…”

Yuri bowed his head.

After Bjorn closed the container door and left, Yuri was completely alone. His body, which had seemed to be shaking from shock and cold, instantly returned to normal. It wasn’t difficult to pretend to be frightened.

Living as a Guide often involves playing the role of a hostage.

Yuri scanned every corner of the room with his device. Soon, the results appeared on the screen.

[Scan Result: 0]

As he had checked when first assigned to the lodging, there were no cameras or bugs for surveillance.

“Chris.”

After final confirmation, Yuri called out softly to the empty air.

The surroundings were quiet.

“…Chris, I know you’re there.”

Nevertheless, Yuri repeatedly called for his dog.

If anyone were watching, they might think he was out of his mind from the shock of the recent accident.

“Chris. Come to me.”

At that moment, a rectangular hole appeared in the container wall Yuri was looking at. He immediately recognized it as the Keysmith’s door.

But before he could even identify what was visible through it, the scent of forest trees with rain pouring in wafted in strongly.

Raindrops fell plop, plop right in front of Yuri’s feet.

And a soaking wet silver wolf slowly walked out of the forest.

As it lightly landed on the floor, the rain the wolf had brought in gradually reversed upwards.

The sight of raindrops, which only knew how to fall, seemingly returning to where they came from, filled the observer with wonder.

Yuri looked down at the wolf lying at his feet with an expressionless face.

“Return to human form.”

With a whine, Chris looked at Yuri and barked at the empty air.

Clothes dropped from beyond the door with a thud.

Along with Peter’s grumbling voice saying “Really! Don’t make me do this kind of thing,” the ‘door’ in the empty space closed.

The silver wolf took those clothes and headed behind the partition in the next compartment.

The dim light from the other side cast Chris’s shadow.

The beast’s shadow on the partition slowly changed into that of a human.

Yuri watched quietly as Chris, who had been on all fours, slowly rose to stand on two legs and stretched.

Finally, the platinum blonde hair that slightly protruded above the partition swayed gently.

Chris, now dressed in the clothes Peter had thrown, finally activated his illusion device and walked out from behind the partition.

Rather than worrying about someone seeing, he wanted to hide his expression even in that way.

“Yuri.”

Calling out to the man sitting cross-legged on the bed, Chris felt his mouth go dry.

He would be severely scolded for watching without permission.

But rather than fear, he felt anticipation at that fact.

If he had become human while having such depraved thoughts, he would surely have made an embarrassing sight. He changed clothes behind the partition as naturally as possible.

While moving busily, not wanting to keep Yuri waiting, he was inwardly anxious. It was due to the instinctive feeling that Yuri would know all about his condition.

‘But.’

Using power while possessing two abilities was inefficient.

He had enough leeway until saving Yuri. But he even manipulated the metal structure to deal with the one who had grabbed onto him.

From that point on, Chris’s body began to crave guiding.

“Come here.”

When Yuri held out his hand, Chris unknowingly approached and knelt at his feet.

A firm grip caught Chris’s chin, which had been hesitating to touch, and pulled him close.

In that moment of contact, Yuri pushed guiding energy into Chris.

The guiding that spread to his chest in an instant made his heart throb hotly. There was no doubt that the dizziness in his head was due to his Guide, not the rain.

“Yu…ri…”

Chris’s lips moved, unable to continue speaking.

It meant “please let go.”

Yuri’s lips curved up gently, easily understanding this.

“You did a good deed, so you should be rewarded.”

It was a gentle voice that could almost be mistaken for affection.

“A good… deed?”

Yuri closed his eyes briefly and recalled the construction materials and rebar falling towards him.

While others held their breath and turned away, Yuri had stared directly at his own death.

This wasn’t because he didn’t know fear.

“Because you saved me.”

As always.

The man who added quietly murmured as if to himself.

“I thought you’d be watching. So you followed from the beginning after all?”

“…Yes.”

Yuri smiled.

His expression was so relaxed that even Chris, who had spent a long time with him, felt a sense of discomfort.

“I knew it would be difficult to act alone once I came with you. It really turned out that way.”

Then why did he tell him not to follow?

A look of confusion crossed Chris’s face.

As if punishing him for daring to doubt his master, Yuri’s foot moved to slowly press down on Chris’s center, which had been making its presence known for a while.

“Nngh…!”

Chris’s face contorted mercilessly as his sensitive area was suppressed.

Pain and the overwhelming pleasure that surpassed even that oppressed his body.

“Endure it.”

Yuri whispered, lowering his eyes.

“This cheap container doesn’t have proper soundproofing, so if you cry out, the people outside might notice.”

“It’s hard… it’s too hard.”

Chris begged.

Rather, anywhere but here.

He didn’t care how he was punished there.

‘If I manipulate the device to call Peter…’

Yuri, who had been looking down at his writhing dog with an indifferent gaze, threw out a bait that was impossible to refuse.

“Shall I tell you why I’ve been moving alone since coming to the Spring Continent?”