The Hunter’s Gonna Lay Low - Chap 214
…He blinked his hazy eyes and twitched his fingers. Yesterday, he got scolded for getting out of bed. They said the unknown wires connected to his body were keeping him alive. That he mustn’t pull them out. The people in white grumbled as they tethered him to the wires again.
Really?
He blinked his blurry eyes. People had covered his eyes with a thin cloth. They said his eyes shouldn’t be stimulated. Not that it made much difference since he couldn’t see anyway.
“…”
A world without J was dull, and time dragged on excruciatingly slowly. He spent most of his days lying in bed. The days when even breathing was hard had passed, and now he could walk a little, but it seemed people thought staying safe was the best option.
The only comfort was that he slept regularly. Maybe they were pumping some kind of sedative into him through the wires attached to his body.
It was a small relief. At least it forced time to pass.
It was boring, yes, but bearable. He had something to hold onto. J had promised, after all. He promised to come back. He had always come and gone sporadically, so a bit of lateness was understandable. Unable to move his body, his thoughts wandered in all directions. Most of the time, they wandered to J.
On his good days, J would lift his mask slightly and let him touch his face. J’s face was soft. In comparison to the stiff sheets and rough bandages, it was incomparable. Sometimes, out of greed, he would try to stretch his fingers deeper into the mask. When his fingertips brushed the hidden corners of J’s eyes, J’s eyelashes would tickle his fingers. The faint tremble of his cheeks, as if laughing, was pleasant. “I can’t show you my eyes. No way.” That gently reprimanding voice was good, too. Not that he could see them anyway.
Sometimes, J would stroke his head. He would touch his marred skin without hesitation. For areas like his arms, J would even wrap them in bandages himself. Doesn’t it disgust him? He must have a strong stomach.
J’s hands always smelled of soap. Sometimes, they were even slightly damp. Isn’t a hunter supposed to be someone who kills monsters? The constant pleasant smell made him curious. Perhaps J always washed up cleanly before coming to the hospital.
The last time J held him, there was a faint but bitter smell. Did he smoke? The more he thought about J, the more questions piled up like mountains. There were so many things he wanted to ask. He practiced speaking under his blanket. Most of the time, only hoarse, winded sounds came out.
What’s your name? Where do you live? How old are you? What do you like? What do you hate? What do you do? Do you smoke? Do you wash your hands before coming to the hospital?
When will you come again?
One day, with no one to ask these questions, they just kept piling up. He wasn’t sure when it started. After all, he couldn’t know the seasons or the dates. But anyway, the number of visits from the people who used to come every day decreased. Now they only come twice a day to attach an IV drip for nourishment in place of meals. The wires connected to his body had lessened, and even when he sneakily got up and wandered around the hospital room, no one seemed to notice.
By the time the IV drip was almost empty, he pulled the needle out himself. He wiped away the blood with a bandage.
His thin legs touched the cold floor. He felt a little dizzy, but it was bearable. He rubbed his foot against the cold floor for no particular reason. At that moment, faint voices could be heard from outside. He carefully approached the door. Pressing his ear against it, he listened.
“…We’re not getting supplies. No matter how much we try…”
“But the detoxification process is almost finished anyway. The needles aren’t even melting anymore…”
They must be talking about him. He listened more intently.
“This all started because J funded everything. He provided all the money and materials, so it was possible.”
“…”
“But now that J isn’t around, the support has completely stopped. We still have a flood of patients. We don’t have the money or time to spare on that kid, Doctor.”
“But we can’t just give up on the child. He’s recovering well. We just need to wait until J returns…”
“…Haven’t you heard the rumors?”
The already small voice grew even smaller. He pressed himself even harder against the door, frowning.
“They say the rift entrance completely disappeared after J and the hunters went in. It didn’t close. It vanished.”
“…”
“I have friends in government agencies, Doctor. They’re already preparing.”
“But the child is recovering well. We can’t just give up. I’ll even use my own money if I have to…”
“You know that has its limits. Medicines made from monster byproducts are incredibly expensive.”
“Then how about this?”
Someone interrupted. It was a lively female voice. He recognized it— the same person who would hum strange tunes while connecting the IV drips in his room.
The woman, who suddenly joined the conversation, spoke up.
“I’m moving to a new team. Hehe, I was going to tell you later. Anyway, the place I’m going to has a lot of money… I think they can take care of one kid like him.”
“What? Ga-young-ssi, but…”
“I know! But keeping him here won’t create any new solutions, will it? I’ve grown attached to the kid, too. I want to see him walk healthily one day.”
“…”
“…”
“Don’t you all feel the same?”
A silence followed. The lively voice continued.
“I’ll tell the director myself. Don’t worry too much. There are people far more capable than me there. I’ll even give you regular updates on how he’s doing.”
“…Are you sure this is okay?”
“Of course. Don’t worry.”
“Shouldn’t we tell the kid? He seemed to really like J.”
“I’ll handle that, too.”
The voices faded. It seemed the strange woman was about to enter. He wobbled back to his bed and lay down. Pulling the thin blanket over himself, he heard the door open. The sound of footsteps approached and stopped right beside the bed. A cheerful voice spoke.
“Hello, you’re awake, aren’t you?”
“…”
“I assume you heard everything outside. So, how do you feel?”
“…”
“You should start wearing slippers. Your feet got a little dirty~”
Tsk, he hid his feet under the sheets. Ga-young chuckled softly and bent down.
“You miss J, don’t you?”
“…”
“But, hmm… J can’t come back.”
“…”
I know that. Of course, I do. J, who used to visit once a week at the latest, hadn’t come in a long time. But still, he had to wait. J promised.
“If you come with me, you might be able to see J.”
Liar.
“And not just that, you might be able to go rescue J yourself.”
…
The grip on the sheets loosened a bit. Ga-young whispered.
“So, how about it? Do you want to come with me?”
“…”
“Oh~ You can’t speak, so I can’t hear your answer. What did J do? If you want to go, just nod your head.”
His black hair scattered on the pillow. Ga-young smiled.
“Good, you’re a good kid.”
Her cold hand touched his marred cheek. She smelled like medicine. It made him uncomfortable. But he endured it. If it meant he could wait for J. If it meant he could see him again.
If it meant he could go and rescue J.
A small desire sprouted. Ga-young wasn’t one to let such desires slip away. He removed the cloth covering his eyes. In his blurry vision, he saw red lips. Lips that curled up as if smiling.
“That’s right. Good boy.”
***
“Doesn’t it look familiar?”
“…”
Ga-young casually patted its head with her gloved hand. Then, she frowned slightly and shook off the black liquid that had stained her gloves. He mustn’t show emotions. He mustn’t…
“What is that?”
A voice, tight with clenched teeth, escaped. Ga-young smiled brightly.
“What do you think it is? Doesn’t it look a bit familiar?”
The skin visible beneath the black cloth was distorted and mangled. Just like the boy’s skin beneath the bandages. And the black liquid seeping from various parts of its body— it was melting the asphalt. Likely toxic. Cha Eui-jae remained silent. Perhaps he didn’t want to admit what he already suspected.
“…”
“It’s a cute friend. It listens well~ and fights even better.”
“Is this part of the Samra Guild?”
“Oh, Samra Guild?”
Ga-young lifted the ID badge hanging around her neck, glanced at it, and shrugged.
“The Guild Leader was impressed with my abilities.”
“Does Song Jo-heon know about this?”
“Hmm, who knows?”
Ga-young looked up at the sky as if she were deep in thought, then smiled sweetly.
“He probably doesn’t know. Most likely.”
“…”
“To be honest… none of us expected the end to come this suddenly~ It caught us off guard too.”
“You didn’t know what you were doing when you caused this?”
“The original plan was to take advantage of the hunters being away and, you know, try to shift perceptions a little~”
Screams could be heard from all around. Cha Eui-jae’s hand trembled. He knew. He had to take her down quickly and then go save others. But he couldn’t move his feet. His gaze kept drifting to the large, hunched human-like figure in front of her. Cha Eui-jae bit down on his lip.
“You did this for that kind of reason? Can’t you see? How many people are dying right now?”
“Should we not do it? Are we supposed to just sit around and twiddle our thumbs, waiting for those almighty hunters to save us? Stay back and endure this endless fear, not knowing when it will end?”
Ga-young’s eyes gleamed sharply.
