Chapter 49

Theo almost screamed before he clamped his mouth shut, yanked the blanket over his head, and quickly rolled onto his side. His heart thumped in guilty panic, as if he’d just peeked at something forbidden. Blaine’s still-boyish face overlapped with the image in his head, stirring both guilt and a restless pulse. He held his breath, chest tight, afraid that even his heavy breathing might give him away.

Unaware of Theo’s turmoil, Blaine glanced back, feeling his gaze. But all he saw was Theo buried under the blanket, hunched up and turned away from him.

“…Ah.”

A sigh slipped out of Blaine. His hands, which had been folding his cloak, fell still, his brows drooping sadly. He stared at Theo’s back for a long moment before resigning himself to lie down.

Not wanting to disturb Theo’s sleep, he turned off the light and lay staring blankly at the ceiling. After some restless tossing, he rolled over to face Theo. But all he could see was still that unyielding back. Curling himself up in the same way, Blaine whispered softly,

“Good night, hyung…”

No reply came.

Meanwhile, out in the quiet hallway, three people were plastered against Theo and Blaine’s door like barnacles: Father, Holanghee, and Noquia. They strained their ears for any sound inside, but the room was dead silent.

“Hey, why’s it so quiet in there?”

Father grumbled.

“Those brats already asleep? Just sleeping?!”

Holanghee ground her teeth, eyes wild with frustration.

“Not even a scrap of tension from those kids.”

Noquia muttered irritably.

No matter how long they waited, nothing stirred inside. With deflated expressions, they finally pulled away from the door. Dissatisfied, they headed outside the inn to blow off steam.

By then, night had fallen over Rakvana. Both in-game and in real time, the desert town was cloaked in darkness. The three strolled through the cooler evening air back to the restaurant they had visited earlier that day. The shop owner spotted them and, overjoyed, ran barefoot to welcome them back like honored guests.

Even in the desert, the night brought a cool breeze. Settling at an outdoor table again, they began ordering all kinds of food.

Date strudel, baklava, tulumba, harira soup, lemon posset, khobz bread. And of course, alcohol.

As they ate and drank noisily, members of the Kilimanjaro guild passed by from time to time, patrolling with grim faces. Yet not one of them recognized Father’s group. Their disguises were perfect. Feeling bold, the trio even made eye contact or threw out flirtatious looks. But Kilimanjaro’s people were utterly clueless.

The more they passed, the more familiar the faces became. Some even greeted them politely. A few looked like they wanted to join their table, but a three-person table had no space left.

That was when mischief sparked. Each time Kilimanjaro members walked by, they secretly snapped photos—pictures of themselves with guild enemies in the background. The photos grew into a collection dripping with mockery. Eventually, they even called them over to pose together. At the peak of their antics, they posed holding up a Bayan Mushroom.

Hours slipped by in laughter, drinking, and teasing their rivals. Only when dawn was approaching did they finally call it a night. Their steps back to the inn were light with mischief.

We have to show these to Theo and Blaine in the morning.

The next day, all five of them wore the same exhausted expressions. The trio had been drinking until late, while the other two had lost sleep from nerves around each other. But since none of them knew the others’ reasons, they just traded sharp insults about each other’s haggard faces as they boarded the ship back to Ratteon.

After an hour’s voyage, they docked at Ratteon’s harbor. Father immediately sent a mass mail to all guild members.

Attached were photos. At a glance, they looked like nothing more than casual shots of Father, Holanghee, and Noquia eating and drinking. But look closer, and in every corner of the frame lurked members of Kilimanjaro.

As Theo handed their ship over at the pier, he checked his mail—and his eyes widened.

“What the hell is this?”

Theo asked.

“We went back out at dawn and kept drinking.”

Father replied casually.

“What? And you didn’t think to call us?”

At Theo’s protest, Father just shrugged.

“You two looked like you were already asleep.”

“It was dead quiet in there.”

Noquia added.

“Did you have a peaceful night?”

Holanghee followed up slyly.

Theo stared at the three of them in disbelief, then muttered,

“Peaceful, my ass. I didn’t sleep a wink.”

The three blinked.

“What?”

Theo waved them off, annoyed.

“Nothing.”

While he brushed it aside, Blaine was staring seriously at the photos, worry etched on his face.

“Wasn’t that risky? They didn’t notice you?”

“They were blind as bats. Look here—see this? We literally called them over and took pictures shoulder-to-shoulder, and they still didn’t notice.”

Holanghee pointed at one shot where a couple of Kilimanjaro members posed right next to them.

Blaine looked like he might faint. Father added,

“Maybe it’s because the Chief or the Traffic Light Trio weren’t around.”

Sure enough, Kim Na and the Traffic Light Trio weren’t in any of the photos. Blaine exhaled in relief.

Beside him, Noquia pressed a hand to her forehead, pretending to swoon.

“Ha! There’s no way they could miss my beauty. Guess my disguise was just too perfect.”

She strutted with mock arrogance, but no one paid her any attention.

Meanwhile, the guild chat was buzzing. Everyone had clearly checked their mail. Then one of the twins came up with a devilish idea.

[Guild] [If It’s You Then Me: LMAO when Serengeti notices the royalty, let’s send them these pics hahahahaha]

[Guild] [Father: Huh?]

[Guild] [If It’s Not You Then Me: LOL they’re gonna lose their minds]

[Guild] [Yorkshire: Damn hahaha they’ll never see it coming]

[Guild] [Noquia: That’s genius!!!! Hahahahaha]

[Guild] [Bastard Kid: Don’t forget the one with the mushrooms, that one’s a must LOL]

[Guild] [Theo: Are you kidding me, why didn’t you call us?]

[Guild] [Blaine: ㅠㅠ]

[Guild] [Holanghee: Exactly! If Blaine had been in those pics too, it would’ve been legendary!!]

[Guild] [Leather Flute Hip Song: You guys are wicked, seriously wicked.]

[Guild] [Marco: If it were me, I’d have lost it hahahaha]

[Guild] [Yorkshire: Just edit him in LMAO]

[Guild] [Red Snapper: Ack I can’t wait to see their reaction LOL]

[Guild] [If It’s Not You Then Me: Wonder how long before they realize the royalty kicked in hahaha]

[Guild] [Theo: Since they got robbed yesterday, if they replanted right away it’ll take a bit under three days.]

[Guild] [Father: Damn, it’s gonna be a long three days.]

[Guild] [Noquia: Sooo looking forward to it hahahahahaha]

Seeing those three cackling in person instead of just through the guild chat sent a shiver down Theo’s spine. He trembled as he watched them stride ahead and leaned toward Blaine.

“You’re okay with this, right?”

“Huh?”

“I mean the situation. You’re not just forcing yourself to go along with us, are you? If you’re scared about being exposed, we could talk to the others and come up with another way to steal the mushrooms. If you don’t like it, don’t hold it in—just say it.”

“It’d be a lie if I said I wasn’t scared… but it’s fine. You’ll be with me, won’t you, hyung?”

Blaine smiled innocently, trusting him without a shred of doubt. That unguarded trust shone in his eyes, gently crinkled into a soft curve. A faint blush touched his cheeks, making him look almost beautiful.

Theo froze mid-step, blindsided by the thought.

Beautiful?

The words startled even himself. His expression stiffened, and he shook his head in flustered denial.

I must’ve lost my damn mind.

Time flowed smoothly without incident. On the third night, when the Bayan Mushrooms had fully matured, Kilimanjaro’s guild members gathered in Rakvana. Prepared for another raid, they wore grim expressions as they slipped out through the back gate.

They moved past the palm grove under the cover of night, tense eyes scanning their surroundings. The patrols in the grove and the guards near the cliffside cave hadn’t reported anything unusual yet. But from experience, they knew it was impossible for things to stay quiet.

Kim Na was burning with curiosity. This place, this mushroom—it was supposed to be a secret known only to a handful of trusted guild members. So how had the thieves found it? And why were they targeting nothing but the Bayan Mushrooms?

Maybe there was a traitor inside. Otherwise, how could the raiders time their attacks exactly with the harvest and avoid every carefully placed trap?

Whoever they were, traitor or not, the thieves were persistent, relentless. Grinding his teeth in anger, Kim Na leapt down the cliff and headed straight into the cave.

The interior was quiet. The traps were still intact. Were they robbed again? Or had the intruders simply not arrived yet? His heart thudded in his chest. The Traffic Light Trio followed behind him, checking the traps for themselves.

In that silence, the sound of four people swallowing echoed loud and heavy. They crept past the traps and turned the corner into the inner chamber.

“?!”

Shock froze them on the spot. The Bayan Mushrooms were standing there, untouched and thriving. Staring dumbly at the glowing caps, the four quickly came to their senses and scrambled to search the area. But there was no presence, no trace of intruders.

Exchanging bewildered looks, they waved down the guild members waiting above the cliff and began harvesting the mushrooms in a frenzy.

It was too easy. There had to be a catch. Eyes wide with paranoia, they ripped the mushrooms from the ground as fast as possible, desperate to secure as much as they could before some unseen trap sprang.

“Hy-hyung! Kim Na hyung!”

Kim Na snapped his head up. One of the harvesters was running toward him, face pale, clutching a mushroom tight.

“Th-this… this thing!”

“What about it?”

“Look! Check the info!”

The man all but shoved the mushroom into Kim Na’s hands. Kim Na frowned and opened its information window.

“?”

It made no sense. As a hybrid crop, the mushroom shouldn’t have displayed any information at all—unless it was officially registered. Yet the window appeared clearly before his eyes.

Blaine. That familiar name was stamped there in bold clarity.