The Hunter’s Gonna Lay Low - Chap 140
“…Hyung?”
His mind went blank. Lee Sa-young was frozen in place as if he were nailed to the ground. He couldn’t breathe. Cha Eui-jae, still on his hands and knees, was staring at the bones covering the floor.
“This can’t be happening…”
His voice was weak and hollow, sounding almost dazed. It was a tone Lee Sa-young had never heard before, to the point where he could hardly recognize it as Cha Eui-jae’s.
Before long, Cha Eui-jae wobbled as he stood up and began to walk. The palms of his hands and the knees of his pants were smeared with white stains from the ashes on the ground. His expression was empty, devoid of any emotion, except for the tears that kept falling.
He’s crying. Cha Eui-jae is crying.
The trembling voice pierced through the fog in Lee Sa-young’s mind.
“Wait, if this whole floor is made of bones…”
Yoon Ga-eul approached a small mound and brushed away the accumulated ashes, revealing what appeared to be ribs. She let out a small shriek. Their eyes met, filled with anxiety.
“Here, over here. Could it be… could all of this be…”
“…”
Lee Sa-young turned his head to follow Cha Eui-jae’s retreating figure. Cha Eui-jae was staggering toward something. His movements seemed strangely familiar.
The terrain here was uneven, with small mounds scattered all around. If all of this were really bones, as Yoon Ga-eul suggested… and if Cha Eui-jae’s behavior was as familiar as it seemed… a world destroyed, resembling the West Sea rift… and the only survivor of that rift…
Cha Eui-jae.
Lee Sa-young urgently gestured to Yoon Ga-eul.
“Follow him!”
“What? Oh, okay!”
Lee Sa-young began to run, chasing after Cha Eui-jae, who was now far ahead. He couldn’t let Cha Eui-jae be alone. He had a strong feeling about it. Strangely, the closer he got to Cha Eui-jae’s retreating figure, the more his anxiety grew. Lee Sa-young clenched his teeth. As he finally closed in on Cha Eui-jae, he found himself stopping in his tracks. Before them loomed the tallest mound they had encountered so far, and entwined around it were smooth bones.
At the top of the mound, a massive skull with its mouth wide open was faintly visible.
Cha Eui-jae was staring up at the mound. His face, drained of all color, remained expressionless, save for the unending stream of tears. He muttered,
“I was… too late.”
“No, you weren’t.”
Lee Sa-young instinctively denied it. But Cha Eui-jae wasn’t listening.
“No… even before this… there were so many bones here.”
His muttering continued. Relentlessly.
“I killed the basilisk and tried to gather the bodies of my comrades… but they were all mixed up with the monsters, and I couldn’t find them all. The bodies were all in pieces.”
Lee Sa-young had seen it too. The ground covered in bones, soaked in blood, with no distinction between monsters and humans, everything tangled together in a horrific mess. And in the midst of the scattered bodies and pools of blood, there was someone huddled, drenched in blood, muttering to himself as he stared at a few human limbs laid before him.
Cha Eui-jae.
…Me?
Lee Sa-young winced and clutched his head. It felt like his skull was splitting open. The sea of bones covered in white ashes and the sea of bones drenched in red blood overlapped and flickered before his eyes.
He had never seen it.
But he had seen it.
Lee Sa-young doubled over, clutching his head. He felt as if he were about to vomit from the dizziness.
“Ugh…”
“Are… are you okay?”
Meanwhile, Cha Eui-jae took another step. His white, ashen hand reached out to touch the mound. The spot where his palm touched was wiped clean, revealing what lay hidden beneath.
It was all bones.
“Everything was mixed together… I couldn’t tell them apart.”
“J! Wait…”
“I… I tried to do something, anything. But in the end, I couldn’t save anyone.”
Cha Eui-jae knelt down in front of the mound. His trembling hands brushed away the ashes on the ground. Mixed in with the bones of non-humans were human bones. Clear tears fell, drop by drop. A small, trembling voice escaped from his frail figure.
“I was too late… and now, everyone is like this…”
No.
“All of it…”
No!
“It’s all my fault…”
“Cha Eui-jae!”
His name pierced through the ringing in Cha Eui-jae’s ears like a lightning bolt. Startled, Cha Eui-jae lifted his head and turned toward the voice that called his name. Lee Sa-young, clutching his head, was glaring at him. His violet eyes were blazing with intensity. Amidst the sea of white, they were the only things…
“Don’t say something so stupid.”
“What?”
Lee Sa-young gestured urgently to Yoon Ga-eul, who was nervously pacing behind him.
“Yoon Ga-eul. Look around for anything unusual. I think this place is connected to the West Sea Rift.”
“Oh… okay! I’ll call you if I find anything.”
Yoon Ga-eul nodded, then closed her eyes and opened them again. Her eyes began to shine brilliantly with a golden light. Before she left their side, she looked at Cha Eui-jae one last time. Her gaze was resolute, as if to say that everything would be okay.
The sound of light footsteps faded into the distance. Cha Eui-jae stared blankly at Lee Sa-young. Without hesitation, Lee Sa-young knelt on one knee in front of Cha Eui-jae. His warm, large hands cupped Cha Eui-jae’s cheeks and ears. The cries that had been echoing around him melted away in the warmth. Lee Sa-young’s lips moved.
Stop thinking about it.
“But…”
Hyung did your best.
“All these people ended up like this…”
Look at me, Cha Eui-jae.
Their eyes met. In Lee Sa-young’s violet eyes, Cha Eui-jae was wholly reflected. His thumb, darkened from the ash, gently wiped away the tears from Cha Eui-jae’s eyes. It was damp. Only then did Cha Eui-jae realize that he had been crying. Lee Sa-young’s face drew closer. His forehead brushed against Cha Eui-jae’s, warm and soft. His lips moved gently.
I’m right here.
The only one who can deny Cha Eui-jae,
is the person you saved, who stands right in front of you.
Sa-young.
It’s okay.
Cha Eui-jae swallowed the sob rising in his throat. Their foreheads parted, and soon after, a comforting warmth washed over him like a wave. It was what he had longed for. Cha Eui-jae wrapped his arms around the warmth’s neck and buried his face in it. Only then did a small sob escape him.
A large hand gently stroked his back.
***
Sniffling, Cha Eui-jae blinked his swollen eyes. Even just blinking made him aware of how puffy they were. Suddenly, a hand appeared in his field of vision, covering his eyes. Cha Eui-jae mumbled,
“I’m okay now.”
“Of course, you are.”
“No, really. I’ve calmed down.”
“Then just pretend I’m doing this because I want to.”
“…”
Cha Eui-jae fell silent. A small laugh tickled his ears. Just then, light footsteps approached, accompanied by a gloomy voice.
“I’m sorry. I went around the whole area, but I couldn’t find anything. It’s all just…”
Her voice trailed off, but they all knew what she meant to say. It’s all just ashes and bones. Yoon Ga-eul coughed softly. Upon closer inspection, her neck was damp with cold sweat, and her complexion didn’t look good. Cha Eui-jae asked,
“Ga-eul, are you okay? Are you feeling sick?”
“Oh, no… my stomach is a bit queasy, but it’s bearable.”
Yoon Ga-eul didn’t have much time left. She had been the first one dragged here, had wandered around this place the longest, and had been separated from her soul and body for the most extended period.
“…”
“…We need to go back quickly.”
“But…”
Yoon Ga-eul hesitated, looking down at the ground. Lee Sa-young, sitting beside her, asked,
“Hyung, do you remember the last thing you killed in this place?”
“The last thing I killed?”
“Even though this place is connected to a destroyed world, it’s still a type of rift. In that moment, it would have followed the system’s rules. If that’s the case, there must be a master of the rift. We need to kill the master to get the rift stone…”
And open the closed rift. Cha Eui-jae removed the hand covering his eyes and answered.
“Oh, that would be…”
Cha Eui-jae looked up at the top of the mound. Even after a long time had passed since its death, the flexible bones wrapping around the mound still belonged to it. The basilisk. Lee Sa-young, who had also looked up at the mound, narrowed his eyes. Cha Eui-jae gave a brief answer.
“I stabbed a sword into its head.”
“Really? Then let’s try stabbing it again.”
“What? But it’s already dead.”
“Well, we have to try something. We need to get back quickly. What sword did you use? Any sword?”
“No… I still have it.”
Cha Eui-jae pulled out the Basilisk’s Fang, which had been buried in the deepest corner of his inventory. The black sword twitched in his grip like a freshly caught fish.
[‘Basilisk’s Fang’ wants to have a chat]
[Fang’s Thoughts: To think you’d neglect me like this, you’re bound to be cursed!]
[Fang’s Thoughts: Do you even know how long it’s been since you took me out?]
[Fang’s Thoughts: Not only did you neglect me, but you even placed other weapons beside me!]
[‘Basilisk’s Fang’ looks a bit lonely]
So swords can feel loneliness too. But it was true; it had been a long time since he last took it out. Probably not since the Artisan Exhibition. He had even used a spear when fighting the golem.
‘…Should I feel guilty?’
With a slightly awkward expression, Cha Eui-jae thrust the sword towards Lee Sa-young. The fang twitched again.
[Fang’s Thoughts: How dare you hand me over to someone else right after finally taking me out! You’re asking for a curse!]
[Fang’s Thoughts: …Huh?]
The restless movement in his hand suddenly stopped.
[Fang’s Thoughts: Master?]
