The Hunter’s Gonna Lay Low - Chap 217
Jung Bin stared at Gyu-Gyu with a lukewarm gaze.
“Aren’t you supposed to be out there helping to rescue people, Gyu-Gyu-ssi? The director will check on you.”
“Well, was I ever really needed~? I’m a freelancer, so I’m a free spirit.”
“Didn’t you used to hang around with Honeybee-ssi?”
“Oh… you know about that too?”
Gyu-Gyu tilted his head lazily and smiled, resting his chin on one hand.
“That was then, this is now. If you want me to get involved in this situation, you’ll have to pay me.”
“…”
“You already have other people taking care of the situation, don’t you~? Why would I go out there and work up a sweat for no reason… It’s not like I have a guild to look after like the others. Watching the artisan slapping Lee Sa-young is far more entertaining.”
Gyu-Gyu started inspecting his fingernails as if nothing was happening. Jung Bin stepped forward with firm strides and stood in front of Gyu-Gyu. Then, he slammed his palm on the table.
Bang!
The table trembled. Jung Bin bent down to meet Gyu-Gyu’s gaze and asked,
“How much?”
“…”
“How much will it cost for you to go out and save people?”
“…Can your civil servant salary even cover it?”
“Let’s hear it.”
Gyu-Gyu stretched out his arms across the table and started whining.
“Ah~ I came here because they said I could meet J, but I couldn’t even get a proper word in. J just disappeared somewhere. I’m depressed. And the civil servant is pulling scams.”
“Well, you met him anyway. Just name your price.”
“My price?”
Gyu-Gyu rolled his light-colored eyes and then grinned.
“Let me meet J one-on-one.”
“…”
“Look at that, I’m being considerate of your wallet with this condition. How much do you earn a year?”
“That’s confidential.”
“What level of civil servant are you now? My father’s church has a lot of high-ranking civil servants.”
“That’s confidential too.”
“Ah~ so boring.”
“Heh.”
Just then, a snicker was heard nearby. Both Gyu-Gyu and Jung Bin immediately turned their heads toward the source of the sound. Sitting cross-legged next to Lee Sa-young, Hong Ye-seong was chuckling intermittently with little “heh” sounds. What’s that? As the two stared in confusion, Hong Ye-seong didn’t even bother hiding his smirk and sneered. Gyu-Gyu raised an eyebrow.
“What? Artisan?”
“I just find it funny, how you’re so hung up over a mere fan meeting.”
“…”
“I’m super close to J, you know? If there’s ever a problem, they come to me first. They even came to visit me in the deep mountains.”
“…”
“I’m J’s pillar of support, you could say. Hm? I’m like a master key, or like Doraemon.”
“…”
For once, Gyu-Gyu’s expressionless face turned to Jung Bin, shaking his head. Jung Bin also nodded. It was a gesture filled with deep meaning and, in essence, a thorough disregard. Hong Ye-seong, his fist raised high, burst out in anger.
“You don’t believe me, do you! Hey!”
So he didn’t notice.
Lee Sa-young’s eyelids were trembling.
***
Kang Ji-soo lowered her phone and shook her head.
“Not answering.”
“…”
“But you know, it’s strange when our Guild Leader actually answers the phone on time. He always ignores my calls. And he ignores the Vice-Guild Leader’s calls too.”
He always answered my calls. And if he couldn’t reach me even for a moment, he’d call like a madman. Cha Eui-jae fidgeted with his cracked phone. Kang Ji-soo stretched nonchalantly.
“He’ll call when he feels like it. So don’t worry too much.”
“…”
Cha Eui-jae didn’t respond.
“Are you worried? That he might have fainted again?”
“…When I saw him before leaving… um, he didn’t look in great shape.”
“But the Vice-Guild Leader even caused an accident, didn’t he? He’ll recover soon. I passed out and woke up quickly too.”
Kang Ji-soo clumsily patted Cha Eui-jae on the back. Was his concern really that obvious? Cha Eui-jae rubbed the back of his neck with his hand, feeling awkward. Just then, Kang Ji-soo checked her phone again. She stepped a few steps away, pretending to answer a call. Unfortunately— or fortunately— Cha Eui-jae could hear every word of the conversation.
“…Yeah, yeah. What? So what should we do? Just wait?”
“…”
“Ugh, stop saying such nonsense. Then what about them?”
“…”
“…The director said not to approach them at all? Why? Because we look like a threat? What does that even…”
After a while, Kang Ji-soo returned, puffing in frustration. Her face was now sulky. Before Cha Eui-jae could even ask, she pointed her chin toward the distance.
“Orders came down from the higher-ups. Those people in the white tents have popped up all over the place, and hunters are being told not to approach them.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know, but it looks like they’re the same group that was protesting and fighting monsters earlier… They’re treating the injured, calming people down, doing some kind of relief work.”
“…”
“But if hunters get close, they make a huge fuss. Saying it’s the hunters’ fault that people got hurt because we were too late or something…”
Cha Eui-jae frowned. The same people who brought about the apocalypse were now putting all the blame on the hunters?
“Talking with J. Having a deep conversation.”
Was this why Ga-young had kept him here?
“People don’t know what’s real or fake anymore. And hunters did lose their minds and react too slowly…”
Kang Ji-soo scratched her head in frustration.
“Anyway, that’s how it is. You be careful too.”
“Thanks for letting me know… What will you do now?”
“Mm, I’m going to check on the people at the shelter where the Vice-Guild Leader is… Then I’ll take him and head back to the Pado Guild. We’ve got to clean up this mess.”
Cha Eui-jae took a step back.
“Then I’ll head off.”
“Huh? You’re not coming with me? Where are you going?”
Cha Eui-jae fiddled with the black mask covering his face. Its smooth texture still felt unfamiliar. He glanced in the direction Jisoo had pointed earlier.
“I’m going to see what those people are up to, up close.”
“How? They told hunters to stay away.”
“I have my ways. Don’t worry.”
This young man, Cha Eui-jae. Former part-time worker at a hangover soup restaurant.
He had some confidence in his acting skills.
***
Tap. Worn sneakers stepped onto the cracked sidewalk. Faded jeans, a gray hoodie, slightly damp black hair, and a black ball cap. Under the brim of his cap, Cha Eui-jae glanced around before quickening his pace.
After parting ways with Kang Ji-soo, Cha Eui-jae had visited the hangover soup restaurant for the first time in a while. Other than a light layer of dust, nothing had changed. The old tables, the chairs, the hunters’ signed pictures on the wall, Honeybee’s poster, and even the glowing magic stone at the center of the automatic side dish machine were all the same.
Would he ever be able to reopen the restaurant?
Cha Eui-jae looked around the place with a hint of longing. But there wasn’t time to dwell on this. He entered a small room and rummaged through a pile of gifts he had carefully set aside. Finally, he found what he was looking for.
[Change your Color! Kraken Ink Black]
It was the hair dye Honeybee had given him as a gift.
Cha Eui-jae looked at his reflection in the mirror. Even if he took off the mask, walking around with his ash-colored hair might draw attention. He could claim he dyed it this way because he was a J fan, but…
“Better to minimize any risks.”
There was no way the Prometheus group would welcome J’s fans. And it wasn’t like he could get a wig in this situation.
“I’ll just have to dye it.”
Resolutely, Cha Eui-jae tore open the packaging of the hair dye.
Now, back to the present.
The streets were quiet. Everyone had likely evacuated to shelters or taken refuge inside buildings. Strangely, instead of hunters, people in white clothing were walking around. They were busy, either stabbing their knives into monsters that were already dead or moving large boxes.
Are they all from Prometheus?
Just then, two people dressed in white approached Cha Eui-jae.
“What are you doing here?”
“Excuse me?”
“You look like a civilian… Did you fail to evacuate?”
Here’s my chance.
Cha Eui-jae lowered his head and trembled slightly.
“Y-Yes… I was just coming back from the convenience store, and outside it’s like this…”
“Oh, my. I see. Would you like to come with us? There’s a place to rest in one of the tents over there.”
“Oh, then maybe I could impose for a moment…”
“Wait a moment!”
Beeeep— A loud whistle blew, piercing the air. The men in white hurriedly fled from Cha Eui-jae’s side in a panic. What? If they’d stayed still, he could’ve infiltrated easily. Cha Eui-jae frowned and raised his head. And then—
“…Oh my gosh, part-timer?”
Cha Eui-jae’s eyes widened. Part-timer. It was a title he hadn’t heard in a long time. Instinctively, his body turned toward the voice, as if by habit.
‘Shit.’
A woman stood there, staring at Cha Eui-jae in shock, as if she’d seen a ghost.
Wearing a bright neon green vest that was hard to miss even from afar, the woman was a regular at the hangover soup restaurant and a Rift Management Bureau civil servant— Hunter Yang Hye-jin.
