Black Badger

Ska blinked.

“Do you know him?”

I do.

He was Rose’s husband on paper, a sexual harasser, and the president of Green Dream Pharmaceuticals.

Honestly, I’d forgotten the part about him being a pharmaceutical CEO.

Too many things had happened when I ran into him back then....

“Yes.”

I answered awkwardly.

“We’ve met once before.”

“Perfect timing, then.”

The man who had been staring at me spat the words out irritably.

“There’s something I need to say to you. Wait outside until the meeting is over.”

“Huh?”

I was a little surprised.

Everyone else looked even more shocked. Eyes widened all around the room, Ska included. Sasu didn’t widen his eyes, but even he lifted one eyebrow, clearly puzzled.

He was issuing orders far too naturally.

Ami blinked and muttered,

“That’s strange. He used to be very polite....”

“I’m sorry, but that staff member will be on active duty from now on.”

Ska cut in.

“As I mentioned, we’re severely understaffed at the moment. If this isn’t urgent, I’d appreciate it if you could call later. And if it is urgent, why not discuss it here and now?”

“Then let’s do it now, as you wish.”

...Is he angry?

I blinked at the growling man.

Why?

Nothing came to mind. As I stood there, baffled, Heath clicked his tongue.

The situation only grew more confusing.

Hadn’t he bowed to me in thanks the last time we met?

While I was retracing the past, Heath strode up and grabbed my shoulder.

I let myself be pushed back without resistance.

“Why are you doing this?”

The casually tossed question only seemed to enrage him.

“Why?”

His brow creased sharply.

“Is that really something you should be asking me?”

Right.

I had no idea why he was angry, and he was lashing out without explanation....

“I’m sorry, but I honestly have no idea why you’re this upset.”

“I’m sure you don’t.”

“Yes?”

“Come to think of it, you approached me like that back then too.”

Explain things properly, would you.

I tried to convey that with my eyes. We’d parted on decent terms ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ that day, hadn’t we? And after that, there’d been no contact at all. I didn’t even have Heath’s number saved on my phone.

It was bad enough that I wondered if he was on something....

“My wife.”

Heath said.

Rose?

“Why is my wife’s phone background your eyes?”

My jaw dropped.

The seniors watching nearby also widened their eyes.

Everyone froze at once. The room went numb, like someone had pressed a pause button.

A suffocating silence settled in.

I barely managed to pull myself together.

“It’s a misunderstanding.”

“That’s what you’d say.” 𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

Ska sat back down.

He leaned long against his chair, then pulled out some kind of snack from somewhere and started eating.

Crunch.

I didn’t have the luxury to protest the aide who’d happily slipped into spectator mode.

Rose!

“No, seriously, it’s a misunderstanding! There’s no way that’s true. I even explained why I went there in the first place!”

“Now that I think about it, you only came out of the mansion with my wife after quite some time that day.... I remember thinking it was strange, but it was my mistake not to press you on it.”

“I swear, we only talked about official matters.”

“In this world, who else besides you has gold-colored eyes?”

“Even if they’re my eyes, it wasn’t that kind of relationship. I swear.”

“Who sets the eyes of someone they have no relationship with as their phone background?”

“I want some too.”

Behind Heath’s shoulder, I could see Ami reaching toward the quarantine barrier.

I was currently being grabbed by the collar, mind you.

Ska calmly rejected Ami’s request.

“Can’t. Infection risk.”

“Hng.”

“And I even greeted you politely, not knowing any of this....”

“No, I’m telling you, that’s not it! I swear on the World Tree!”

As I protested with both hands raised, indignation finally welled up.

Only now?

After treating Lacy Clair like garbage all that time?

Granted, if you went into the details, Heath Clair was technically the victim. Rose had married him knowing she’d be treated coldly. The neglect and public ridicule were exactly what Rose wanted. She enjoyed playing the role of timid Lacy Clair.

So I’d let it be....

But now I was getting irritated.

Even if Rose had planned it, Rose was my subordinate.

“Then why are you acting like this now, after treating your wife so coldly?”

I snapped back curtly, and small sounds escaped from the onlookers.

Heath’s eyes flew open in shock.

I added irritably,

“I heard you’ve got a boyfriend too. And when I visited, you openly humiliated your wife right in front of me. Don’t you think it’s ridiculous to neglect her like that and only now get furious over her phone background?”

If he argued back, I was ready to scold him harder.

Honestly, I’d assumed they were already divorced. I vaguely remembered Rose saying she’d start the proceedings.

Or was it that the divorce was still in progress, and he’d discovered the background image in the middle of it and come to confront me? To prove her fault weighed heavier?

If so, that was truly despicable....

“I know I’m at fault.”

I was genuinely startled by the guilt-laced tone of his voice.

“I’ll handle that myself. You just explain.”

“I already did....”

“You think that explanation makes sense? She’s been absent far too often lately and visiting Center Core far too frequently. How do you explain that?”

“She probably had work.”

“She’s a naïve woman. Easy to twist around your finger, I imagine.”

Naïve....

“Weren’t you two getting divorced?”

“I have no intention of granting it.”

“Huh?”

My brows knit together.

“So you let yourself have all your fun with other men, but when it comes to divorce, you refuse? That’s absurd.”

“You were thinking of seducing me too.”

“That was part of the mission.”

“So Black Badger orders honey traps now?”

“I was just trying to get permission to tour the Green Dream factory. You know exactly why, so why are you like this?”

“And you even resorted to skinship.”

“That was you sexually harassing me!”

My voice rose despite myself.

The more I thought about it, the more outrageous it felt. Was it really okay to leave Rose tied to someone like this?

We argued back and forth for a while. But our scuffle didn’t last long. Ska, who had been enjoying the spectacle, stood up and ordered us to stop.

Ricardo, who looked like he was barely holding back laughter, and Yun, who was watching with clear interest, stepped in and separated us.

“Sorry, but we’re quite busy right now~....”

Ricardo flashed Heath a sly smile, then gently ushered me out of the meeting room.

The moment the door closed behind us, he put a hand on my shoulder and started chuckling.

The senior’s body shook lightly.

Yun came up on my other side and peered into my face.

“Skinship?”

“Sexual harassment.”

“Honey trap?”

“Please pretend you didn’t hear that.”

I muttered in a tired voice.

“It wasn’t even my idea to begin with.”

The seniors teased me a bit more, then dispersed.

I headed for the underground parking lot after receiving some perfunctory consolation from Kairos, who’d also been watching the whole thing with interest. I planned to grab the things I’d need from home while staying at headquarters.

Separate from being angry over Rose’s phone background, I knew Heath would seriously try to develop medicine.

I just hoped the antibiotics would come out soon.

Brooding, I got into Kairos’s car.

***

I bought a suitcase, packed two weeks’ worth of belongings, and returned to headquarters. I spent the rest of the day until sunset getting a better grasp of the situation.

Fortunately, Yehyeon had tested negative. He did have mild symptoms—coughing, fatigue—but nothing severe yet. Which meant he could turn positive at any time. He said he’d work out of a business hotel near headquarters for now.

[I’ll let Yun use the house.]

“Wouldn’t it be better for you to use it, since you have symptoms?”

[My subordinates need to bring me materials constantly. Being near headquarters is more convenient, and if my condition worsens, I can move straight to the quarantine zone.]

That made sense.

I’d just toured the quarantine zone myself. Ska Owen, who’d been more relieved than anyone upon hearing Yehyeon was negative, had suggested I take a look.

A massive gymnasium had been converted into a temporary ward.

It was a Black Badger–only temporary hospital ward, fully equipped with medical devices. Those who’d tested positive but weren’t in critical condition were isolated there. The main hospital at headquarters needed to stay available for uninfected Badgers who might be injured, so separation was necessary.

Nearly seventy Badgers lay there now, each occupying their own bed.

There were a few I knew personally. Leeho, Asil, and others.

Thankfully, both of them were feverish and weak but not on ventilators.

Ah. And Rose was there too.

Rose, who said she’d come as Lacy Clair to volunteer as a nurse and observe patients.

“...Is your phone background, by any chance, my eyes?”

When I quietly asked her at the back of the gym, Rose’s pale face flushed red.

She covered her mouth shyly and turned her head away, leaving me at a loss for words.

She peeked at me, eyes just visible.

“H-h-how did you know...?”

“...Your husband....”

I couldn’t help it. I buried my face in my hands.

After letting out a long sigh and explaining, Rose’s eyes widened in surprise.

Her eyes looked black because of the lenses she wore.

“Did Heath say that?” she asked, then paused in thought before answering,

“You can just say I’m a fan of yours, Captain. There’s no need to worry too much!”

She clasped her hands and tilted her head, smiling as she added,

“And it’s not like there’s no proof. I can show him the posts I uploaded to the fan page as evidence.”

What exactly did you post on that fan page?

I decided not to ask. I didn’t want to know that much. I just asked her to explain things properly to her nominal husband and told her Heath didn’t seem willing to agree to a divorce.

“Oh dear. I didn’t expect him to get this invested,” Rose murmured, and that reassured me somewhat.

It really did look like Heath was the victim here.

Anyway, she said she’d be staying in the temporary ward until the epidemic was brought under control.

“If you need me, call me anytime...!”

Not long after I parted from her—her eyes sparkling—and returned to the lounge, Yehyeon called.

After briefing me on the situation, he expressed deep gratitude for my subordinates’ voluntary help.

Yoow was still analyzing enemy movements via drone footage, and Igor was providing biological data before roaming Center Core to exterminate creatures.

Deltei had also come by to check on the patients....

[There’s not much I can do myself, unfortunately.]

“I’ll pass along your thanks.”

[Thank you. And... since I’m here and Ami’s gone to the outskirts, could you keep an eye on Yun’s health for me?]

He asked carefully.

Not as the Supreme Commander, but as Yun’s longtime friend.

[If he has symptoms, he usually goes straight to the hospital. But when he gets fixated on something, he sometimes doesn’t even realize his body’s in bad shape. You know how scientists are.]

“Why are scientists all like that?”

[Exactly.]

“I’ll watch him.”

I reassured the anxious Yehyeon.

“Don’t worry too much. Take care of yourself.”

Thus began the emergency standby.

Things were probably noisy on the other side too—the ones I intended to erase.

In the chaos, I could gather information on the Elders. In that sense, it was an opportunity for me.

I wouldn’t miss it.

Still, I hoped those dear to me wouldn’t be swept up by the tide of pestilence.

It would probably be fine.

Praying the situation wouldn’t worsen any faster—and that even if it did, a solution would emerge—I went to sleep.

***

But things didn’t unfold as hoped.

Not even two full days into emergency standby.

Ricardo came running into headquarters, carrying a man on his back.

“Rick.”

I’d just finished cutting down a creature near headquarters and ran toward him.

The senior carrying the limp man looked back at me.

A pitch-black quarantine mask covered half his face.

Sweat-soaked hair clung to his forehead. His brow was tightly furrowed.

And slung over his shoulder, nearly unconscious, was a familiar face.

“Jonathan?”

I lost my composure and rushed toward the senior on Ricardo’s back.

“Senior?”