The man was there again, holding Le An in front of the wall beside his bed, drawing guiding energy from him.
It was another night. Despite the late hour, the main floor buzzed with noise. He could make out several conversations clearly and realized the house staff were discussing some files, which he had seen earlier in the cabinets.
"That item… we didn't present it like that, and they found a loophole in our wording."
"If you had done your job properly, this wouldn't have happened!" That was the voice of Theo, the treasure's private esper. "Do you even realize who we're dealing with? The moment Le An goes into heat, they'll make their move!"
The man glanced at the frail wrist he was holding. The guiding energy flowing from him tonight was so smooth that it felt like a trance. From this angle, Le An's face appeared simply... tired.
"Your parents are fighting," the man remarked.
Le An seemed to return to his senses at that. He tried to turn his head to look at the man, who loosened his hold slightly and withdrew his hand from Le An's nape. Le An stared at the ethereal strings dancing across his vision, as he often did.
He knew the man behind him could hear everything, too. But what could he do? His life was an open book to this man now.
To prompt a response, the man tightened his grip just slightly and asked, "Sounds important. Should I be eavesdropping on this?"
Le An looked at him. "That would just add another ace to your hand." He sighed and focused again. His eyes closed, then slowly opened, blinking as though he had something to say but wasn't sure how.
"What?" the man asked.
"I won't be here tomorrow. I'll be staying somewhere else for two days."
The man understood immediately. "Another one of your houses?"
"Yes," Le An said. So, he was going to follow him anyway.
Before the experiment began, Le An had been instructed to take certain medications and undergo a detox in his capital residence. He opened his mouth to give the address, but-
"I know all your houses." The man had already anticipated his thoughts.
"Are you going to wander around every one until you find the right one?"
The man didn't answer immediately, as though deciding which would be more troublesome, asking for the address or simply wandering. Eventually, he said, "It'll take minutes."
"Oh…" Le An let out an impressed sound. "That's…" But he didn't finish.
"Besides, we need to make sure you're not planning anything, right?" the man added.
After a minute, Le An raised his head again to look at the floating strings. His energy was trembling once more. He looked like he wanted to say something else, but this time, the man didn't ask.
Le An wanted to ask if he would come even while he was in heat. But being face to face with him… he couldn't bring himself to say it.
---
He found the house where Le An was staying with ease. Slipping past buildings and trees, he crept inside in his shadow form.
Spiraling through the shadows cast by the moonlight, he moved past the dim corridor and up the stairs. If anyone had sharp esper senses, they might have noticed him, but no one did. He reached a half-open door, light spilling out through the crack. Just as he was about to shift back into human form, he sensed two people inside. Le An wasn't alone.
The opening was narrow, the light intense, too risky. So, instead, he listened.
"I don't want… I don't want to drink that. It stinks too much."
"The treasure, as per the detox schedule for the experiment… I must ask again."
"Can you…" There was movement. The man squeezed into a tiny shadow to peek through the door.
"Help me sit up, please."
Le An was in bed, and a man in a lab coat stood in front of him.
"Will you drink it?"
He could see Le An's face, framed between the doctor's arms, resting at his waist. His expression was one he hadn't seen before, subdued, weary.
"Will you not help me if I refuse?"
"Oh, my apologies. Of course…" The doctor helped him sit up, supporting him under the arms like a child. "Although you're exhausted, I must say you've shown remarkable strength, sir. I know the injections have taken a toll on you. This drink will help your body adjust."
"I was told you would brief us on every intervention—its purpose, its ingredients," came another voice from beyond the man's view. It was Theo.
"But you only seem to explain things when Le An refuses."
"I'll be more thorough from now on, Mr. Esper. But the drink hardly has a scent. I didn't expect the treasure to be so sensitive to such minor details."
"Hah, are you accus-"
"Theo, it's fine. I'll drink it. Hand it over."
He watched Le An take the cup, an IV line already inserted in his arm. He took a sip, his face contorting with disgust, but he finished it in one go. The doctor retrieved the cup and examined the IV bag.
Le An's eyes followed, then drifted to the wall behind the bed. He glanced at his watch. "Can I move with this IV?"
"Yes, but why?" the doctor asked.
Only the man in the shadows knew the reason.
"You should really rest," the doctor continued. "The treasu-"
"Can you please call me by my name? And… and I'd like to rest now."
The doctor quietly gathered his equipment and approached the door. He peeked inside, looking behind the door. "Mr. Esper, are you not coming?"
In that brief moment, the shadow slipped in, clinging to the layer of shadow beneath a nearby painting. He was inside.
"I'll be there. Go downstairs first."
"Very well. I'll return in the morning for the injection, our treas- Mr. Le An. Good night."
The doctor closed the door behind him. The man observed Theo, who was gazing at Le An with quiet concern. So, this was his protector, his duo partner… and clearly someone close.
Le An, too, was aware of Theo's eyes on him. Theo approached the bed.
"Is it hurting?"
"No," Le An replied. "But it's draining me. And the doctor…"
"He's a douchebag," Theo muttered, sitting on the edge of the bed. He gently massaged the arm with the IV. "Maybe that drink will help after all."
"Yeah," Le An replied quickly, glancing out the broad window. He hesitated, then turned to Theo with an expression the shadowed man had never seen before.
"Theo, my shoulders and neck too…"
"You should've said something earlier. Want me to call that practitioner Emerald sent last week?"
"No... You do it. I can only ask you."
At that, a flicker appeared in Theo's eyes. He cradled Le An's head, his fingers brushing the nape of his neck. That flicker deepened. The treasure trusted him, deeply.
The man watched as Theo massaged his shoulders for a few quiet minutes. After a while, Le An reached out and gently touched Theo's hand.
"That's enough. Thank you," he said softly, offering a brief, sincere smile.
Then Le An checked his watch again, his eyes growing sleepy. The man looked into Le An's eyes, searching for some trace of hesitation. There was no flicker of tension in Le An's gaze, no subtle warning that he might confess their nighttime guidings to his private esper.[1] Only drowsy detachment. This experiment was just one more burden stacked onto the one he already carried, clearly.
"I'll sleep now. Please don't let anyone in, Theo."
"Don't worry. I told the doctor the sleep-monitoring items haven't been set up yet. They won't disturb you."
"Thank you." Le An gave him a brief smile. Theo left the room, unaware of the shadow's presence.
Now Le An was alone-or so he thought.
As the footsteps on the stairs faded, the man watched Le An slowly sit up. He stretched his arms and legs, removed his watch, and let his eyes roam around the room.
"He's probably searching all my houses by now," he muttered aloud. "How can he do that in just minutes?"
He leaned his head against the wall, his thin back exposed.
"Ugh, my feet are cold…" he said, rubbing them together slightly. "Shadow powers… is that why he can only sneak in when it's dark? No, wait… the sun casts shadows too…"
He trailed off, staring at the ceiling.
"Are these injections making me dumber? He's right—I'm too slow-witted to figure out what his deal really is."
The man's shadow flickered once more. At six minutes past midnight, he shifted back into his human form. The scent of medicine and herbs filled the air, making his nose twitch. Le An turned, sensing him.
"Oh… you're here," he said. "This is where I'm staying for now."
The man took quick steps toward him, eyes on his arm. Le An followed his gaze.
And just as he was about to turn his back as always, the words stopped him.
"You don't have to turn around," the man said. "It'll only last briefly."
Le An blinked, then let his gaze drop to the floor as he nodded. Maybe the man's frost had thawed a little, just a little, since they'd started speaking more often.
But he was feeling dizzy from the medication and couldn't dwell on it long enough to be sure.
[1] There’s an unregistered S-class esper haunting his room like a curse, face wrapped in black strings and silence, but you know, Le An’s got deadlines. Oh, and sedatives :) Priorities...