Chapter 52

“When does grade A eat?”

“After I feed you… .”

“Do you eat the same thing?”

“Yes.”

Kalisten suddenly remembered what Aselia had said before. He couldn’t ask properly then, but he wanted to ask now.

“How do you receive food?”

“We don’t have food distribution. Just… Eat the rest of the food after the other classes have eaten.”

“What?”

Aselia answered as if it was obvious, but Kalisten was outraged.

“You mean you can’t even eat the same food you have to serve?”

“Uh?”

“… Nevermind.”

He suddenly felt terrible. The food was dreadful. Most of their nutrients came from pills, and they were only given enough food to move their stomachs. Most of it tasted horrible.

That’s why he thought the quality was low because the other grades had to eat too.

But that wasn’t the case? How could that be?

He completely bent the spoon he was holding so he couldn’t open his hand in front of Aselia.

“Eat the bacon too.”

“But if I eat this… .”

“I hate greasy food the most.”

Aselia didn’t hate the oily bacon. On the contrary, it was delicious since protein and meat were so rare.

“Ah.”

“What?”

“Open your mouth.”

“Ah, yes.”

Just as Aselia had fed him before, Kalisten intended to do the same. Since he had fed him so many times, of course, he had to do it too.

“Ah.”

Aselia opened her little mouth, and he fed her the bacon.

“This is too big for you.”

“Right.”

He cut up the bacon with the spoon and brought it to her mouth. Aselia took it and ate it, chewing it. The smell of oil was strong, but it was pretty delicious once it entered her mouth.

He looked so beautiful even when he ate it that Kalisten’s body stiffened.

“Go away.”

“What?”

“No… I will go there.”

Spoon still in hand, he sat down a little further away.

“The rest of this… .”

“You eat it all. Because I really have no appetite.”

“Are you feeling ill or in pain?”

“No.”

His chest felt stuffy and pained, but he couldn’t say it because he thought that if he expressed it, Aselia would worry. More than anything, he was uncomfortable being alone with Aselia, but he couldn’t understand his feelings because of his contradictory desires about not wanting him to go.

Maybe he was still drunk? He was wary of his condition.

“Can you have some porridge?”

“Why?”

“I’ll worry if Kal doesn’t eat properly.”

“… alright.”

He took another deep breath and sat down nearby. Then he spooned the tasteless porridge into his mouth. He dutifully ate porridge, which tasted like nothing, and Aselia would watch him, making sure he ate.

Every time their eyes met, Aselia smiled reflexively, but involuntarily he frowned each time.

The meal continued in silence.

When it was time to finish eating, Aselia broke the silence first:

“Kal.”

“… .”

“I don’t know what kind of dream you had, but I hope you didn’t get too offended.”

Even as Aselia said that she struggled to smile and went out.

Kalisten was left alone in the room, his face hot from the scent Aselia had left behind, making it difficult to breathe.

***

“You’ve really calmed down these days.”

In regular experiments, the deputy director did not directly participate. She mostly just gave orders and watched, and plenty of researchers moved like her limbs.

However, she was quite engaged regarding Z-class Kalisten’s experiments.

“If I awakened, will you let me go outside?”

“Yes. And I’ll let your friend go with you too.”

Kalisten knew that the deputy director was talking about Aselia. That’s why he didn’t reply.

“So please awaken up this time.”

The deputy director stabbed the syringe into Kalisten’s arm. A mixture of many drugs.

And she didn’t let him know that Aselia was watching all this on the other side of a one-way mirror.

Because she hoped the shock of the upcoming experiment would awaken Kalisten.