Chapter 199: Chapter 199- Different Connection
The interior of the room was aesthetically bleak and yet carried an elegant feeling to it that no one could fathom. It didn't have any grandiose decorations or over-the-top luxurious items scattered around.
In fact, apart from furniture, there wasn't much else in the room that could be worth looking at. If anything, it was so bland that it almost seemed like it was the simple background to something far more important that needed attention.
The man glanced around for a moment before he focused on the other person in the room. A man was sitting on a comfy leather chair with his back turned toward Evan as he stared through the window. Since they were on the highest floor of the building, the view was really nice.
On the table next to him, the man had a cup of black hot coffee still full. Next to it was a plate filled with sugar cubes. Evan stood there silently for a moment as he sucked in a deep breath. No matter how many times he entered that room, he would always feel like he submerged himself underwater because of how suffocating it was.
The entire room seemed like it was way smaller than it actually was and it was all because of that man.
In the end, he forced all of that down and spoke. "It has been over a week and I haven't received any news from you."
No answer came from the other person.
"That kid declared war against us. Who knows what he's planning right now? We need to act!"
Yet again, the man didn't seem to acknowledge his words at all. That naturally made Evan even more annoyed. But, he didn't want to lose his temper, especially not in front of this person.
"Can you hear me?"
"Do you like coffee with milk or without?" Out of nowhere, a deep yet extremely gentle voice spoke to Evan. The soothing, almost angelic nature of that voice was so hypnotizing it made Evan go completely silent. The man had finally spoken after a while.
"Huh?" Evan was naturally confused by the sudden odd question.
"Coffee, with or without milk?" The man repeated his question in a clear, slow, and elegant manner.
"... I don't know why you're asking me that but… Without milk? I drink black coffee." He replied confusedly.
"What about sugar?"
"Not sweet."
"Hmm, so you're someone who enjoys the bitter aftertaste of a cup of coffee. Interesting choice."
"Why are you asking me this now? It's not important."
"No particular reason. I felt how tense you were coming in here, so I simply wanted you to relax a little bit."
At that moment, Evan realized what the man in front of him had done. Feeling his heart rate drop considerably and his tense muscles relax, he had indeed forgotten about the huge problem in front of them for a second there.
'This bastard…' But, the fact that he played the exact way the man wanted didn't sit well with him.
"Besides, I heard that one's taste in coffee tells you a lot about their character."
"What?"
"Taking you for example, you like your coffee without sugar and milk. I'm going to assume that you also don't like to drink it with sweets or anything like that. You don't smoke either and you seem to like to drink it at least three times a day. Even if I didn't know you in person, I can easily determine that you're a very tense, serious, and boring person."
Evan: "..."
"No, boring is a stretch. Let's say 'Uninteresting'."
Evan was completely speechless from what he heard. He didn't understand why this conversation went this way. From being here to talk about a potential war with another group of survivors, it somehow became a character diagnosis based on their taste in coffee.
"Me personally, I love my coffee with milk and exactly two and a half teaspoons of sugar. But, surprisingly, I noticed that the more I feel like I'm in a sour mood, the less sweet I want my coffee to be. Isn't that quite interesting?"
At that moment, for the first time, the chair turned around, revealing the man's appearance to Evan.
His relaxed smile made Evan more tense. For some reason, he couldn't feel any 'gentleness' from that smile, as warm as it was.
"Today is a very interesting day, indeed…" In the end, he sighed and approached the table before he sat down.
"Are you don't with your psychology lesson now? We need to talk about the conflict!"
"Hahaha, the mind is arguably far more intriguing than muscles. Why give the joy of exploring this floating, thinking piece of flesh for a more barbaric matter?"
"Because we have to actually use it to think of an immediate plan! We're late, goddammit! My daughter is in the hands of a stupid brat and I want her back!"
"Evan, my friend. That's your problem. You're too stupid sometimes."
"What?!"
"Your daughter willingly went there. Miss Sophie is quite clever, unlike you so her decisions aren't always foolish. I heard that she shares some kind of past with that young man."
"Tsk, sadly, yes. They have been in a relationship before. But, it ended years ago. I thought she was going to move on quickly. But, all she talked about for the past 5 years is that kid. She's obsessed with him." Cursing under his breath, Evan explained.
'Even though it went as I wanted. Why didn't she forget about him? She had far more important things to focus on! But, it's all Talon, Talon! I'm going to lose my goddamn mind!' He mused to himself.
"What an odd thing, indeed. I have never expected Miss Sophie to have such a side to her. It makes me even more eager to meet this young man. I don't know why, but I feel like we would get along."
"Get along?! I'm saying he is threatening to invade this place!!"
The more Evan talked to this man, the more he felt his head getting more and more chaotic. It was as if he was speaking to a toddler. Yet, at the same time, he felt like the person in front of him was the smartest human he had ever met.
It was a weird mix that made no sense and yet existed in the same person.
"That's simply because we haven't met yet. Violence isn't the answer to everything. We are humans, not some kind of wild beasts."
"So… Your plan is to simply talk to him?"
The man shook his head. "No, I don't talk. I connect with people. If you talk to someone, they might agree and they might disagree. Connecting with them makes them feel what you mean rather than hear it. That makes it a lot easier to convince them." He said with a smile.
"..."
"The first step to do that is simple: he will be tense, perhaps even angry. So, I have to make him relax first. Then, when he relaxes, we can finally establish a connection. Something like… Yeah, something like what's happening between me and you at the moment."
Evan raised an eyebrow as he blinked. "We're sharing a connection?"
"Of course. Our connection runs deep. So deep in fact, that you're already drinking from my cup of coffee on your own."
"... Huh?" Hearing those words, the man's eyes naturally went down to his hands only for them to widen again. He noticed the same cup of coffee that was on the table was now in his hands, half as full as before.
'When did I…' He couldn't even finish the thought in his head as he quickly put the cup on the table in fear. His heart rate started rising again as he stared up hesitantly. Seeing the man's smile, his face paled.
"Our connection isn't some kind of friendship or camaraderie. No, that's too simple. My connections with people are far more complex than that."
"..."
"Don't you agree?" The tone of his voice didn't change at all the entire time.
Evan wanted to speak, say something about this terrifying situation. Yet, all he could muster up at that moment was one word.
"... Yes."
***
*Rustle*
"It's from here, right?" Talon pushed a thick bush away as he moved ahead. Looking behind him, he saw Sophie, Hyun-Jae, and Chin-Hwa in tow.
The group was moving through a thick forest in the middle of the day. Their bodies were camouflaged with their surroundings as they approached their destination.
"We're almost there. Beyond that bush, we could see it." Sophie replied.
Nodding his head, Talon continued moving silently. A few dozen meters away, they finally reached the end as an open field appeared in front of them. On the other side of the field, standing out like a sore thumb were tall walls that stretched all around what seemed to be a massive base.
The walls were made out of armored concrete and metal and seemed impenetrable for the normal human. Around the base, men with all kinds of weapons moved around constantly guarding the place.
It was a magnificent sight to witness in such a ruined world.
"So that's…" Talon blinked.
"The human society." Hyun-Jae finished the sentence.
A//N: Don't forget to support the book if you enjoyed reading 😀