"Did she return safely?"
"Yeah..."
The brunette's father was currently in something akin to his daze, his eyes darting around as if looking for some hidden assailant.
He couldn't be blamed since his daughter had just escaped from a vicious mob. As for Mark himself, the old man didn't have the slightest idea about what happened to him up until now. The person at the door might have been a hoodlum who had trailed the brunette to the house.
It was likely a relief to hear Mark's voice across the wooden barrier, and a fright to see his condition.
With blood sprawled across his face, the young man's ear was torn and he had a gruesome hole on the back of his left shoulder. The wound burned and soaked the clothes around it in red. Yet the most remarkable thing was Mark's absolute calm, who, rather than being in utter shock, looked as if he had come back from a light walk.
And that was slightly true, as after curfew all he did was leisurely make his way in the darkness, but even Mark felt a bit too indifferent.
His pistol was hidden in his windbreaker, but it still radiated a calming cool- perhaps that had something to do with his condition.
After curfew came, there was suddenly a lot of time left to his convenience. He thought about the two attendants and even the callous man who had once ambushed him. A small connection was made.
The higher ranking a member is in the Spheks, the more apathetic they become.
And with that, Mark concluded that the leader must be one of the Blessed. From the weird side effect of the gun and the attitude of his direct subordinates to the authoritative aura he gives off, the rosy-eyed boss is too abnormal.
Hopefully that lunatic will stop chasing after him.
The brunette's father, Jack, eventually broke out of his stupor and brought Mark into the house.
"First things first, let's get that patched up..."
Amusedly, the old man couldn't bear to look at Mark's wound for more than a second. His timidness was a perfect contrast to his domineering appearance like a lion having the temperament of a housecat. It goes to show that he truly grew up and lived out in wealth, never having been directly exposed to the underbelly of the streets.
It didn't take long before Mark was eventually sitting on a luxurious couch in the living room. His shoulder had been bandaged to the point of stiffness, the white dressing layered so thick that his movements were impeded.
Jack was sitting across from him while his wife was preparing some food. They figured that Mark would be hungry after having run from the horde for what would be a few hours. And they were completely right. Running aside, he felt empty after that confrontation with the leader, and maybe some food would be able to fill the void.
As for the brunette, she was in her room. Perhaps the chase had given her a shock. Like her father, she probably hadn't experienced anything so dangerous before. Mark wanted to go and comfort her, but Jack stopped him and said to let her have some time alone.
With nothing else to do, Mark sat in the living room, retelling the events of the night.
"Did anyone go with my daughter when you split up?"
Mark shook his head.
"No, it was only us two."
In hindsight, separating was a fairly risky move that could have easily ended up with the brunette getting caught. The plan might have failed if he hadn't been the target of the mob.
Seeing the old man's displeasure, he continued.
"Don't worry, before letting the brunette escape I made sure that they wouldn't escape. In fact, their target was me all along!"
Jack raised his eye.
"Why?"
Mark hesitated. It probably wouldn't be a good idea to reveal all his exploits on the streets. Who knows how the old man's opinion of him would change?
In the end, he simply feigned arrogance.
"What can I say… I've simply beaten my competition in the field."
Unconvinced, Jack eventually let go of his doubts and moved on.
"What did you do then, did you accept their invitation or not?"
Mark embarrassingly laughed.
"They weren't really nice about it all, so I eventually rejected their offer."
A regretful sign fell from his mouth.
"Can't say that they took it very well."
The leader was truly meticulous, planning his actions down to every possibility. Using all sorts of tactics from dreams to threats to win him over. And since none of that worked, he tried to get rid of Mark so that he wouldn't go to any of the enemies.
What a truly great figure that man is!
Reaching in his pocket, Mark felt the familiar touch of a pierced coin. In the heat of action, he had never thought of throwing it away.
'Perhaps this will have some use later on.'
At the very least, a few threats can be made with the impromptu relic.
While lost in thought, Mark realized that he had been ignoring the old man who was now staring at him.
"W-what is it?"
Jack shook his head.
"I just hope they won't be chasing you anymore."
The old man stretched his hand out before continuing.
"It's a bit late for this, but thank you for helping out my daughter."
Mark smiled and shook his hand.
"It's the least I can repay after all the things you have done for me these past few months. I should be thanking you instead."
Faint steps could be heard on the distance, it was weird how he had already memorized their sound and rhythm.
Turning his head, Mark saw the brunette approach him with a shaking smile. She seemed truly shocked by chase.
He still had some greviances, that he had almost died in an attempt to save her, yet all of that was drowned out.
Seeing her intact and unscathed brought an indescribable warmth to his heart.
He stood up and watched as she raced into an embrace.
Her head buried itself in his uninjured shoulder and remained there for a good moment.
Mark caressed her back, softly and endearingly soothing her shaking body. He lightly whispered into her ear.
"Don't be afraid of them. I'll keep you safe."
It was hard to come up with something to placate her, he could only hope that his words would have some effect.
She raised her head.
Tears lined the sides of her eyes.
Mark felt drawn in by the delicate sight.
"M-Mark?"
He met her peach eyes, drawing a strand of caramel hair to the side.
"Yeah?"
He felt the hands on his back cling with more intensity, as if asking him to never leave their embrace.
"I-"
She didn't finish the sentence that words failed to express.
Instead, she leaned in, and met his lips with a kiss.