The Hunter’s Gonna Lay Low - Chap 223
“…Huh.”
At the same time, Lee Sa-young gasped deeply and opened his eyes. Everything before him was white. He couldn’t see a thing.
‘Ah.’
His entire body grew cold. His fingertips trembled uncontrollably. He hastily looked around, but the blinding white light remained. Panicking, Lee Sa-young covered his eyes with both hands. Darkness returned. But his breathing, once rapid, didn’t easily calm down. Then, a voice came from beside him.
“Lee Sa-young-ssi! Are you alright?”
Who is it? Who is it? Who is it? Who is it? Who is it? Who is it?
Lee Sa-young gritted his teeth so hard a grinding sound could be heard. Another voice interrupted.
“Should we splash some water on him? Should I fetch some from the stream? There’s a mountain right outside!”
“Would that help? Lee Sa-young-ssi… are you alright? Is your condition bad?”
Don’t come closer. Don’t come closer. Don’t come closer.
“Officer-nim~ I think you shouldn’t get too close.”
“What? But we can’t just leave him like this, having a seizure…”
“No. If you get close now, he’ll attack. That one’s acting strange right now…”
“Hey, Kkokko… wait? Where’s Kkokko gone?”
“Kkokko hasn’t been here since we came to our senses.”
“Oh? Really? So did Kkokko follow J?”
J.
J?
His trembling slowly subsided. Lee Sa-young blinked heavily. Through his fingers, he caught a glimpse of a dark ceiling. Hesitant, he lowered his hands from his eyes. A chandelier, overly ornate and adorned with candles, and a wooden ceiling. Catching his breath, Lee Sa-young turned his head. A little distance away, Jung Bin and Hong Ye-seong stood awkwardly, while Gyu-Gyu stood beside them, clattering dice in his hand.
Hong Ye-seong, clinging to Jung Bin’s waist, asked.
“Sa-young? Are you okay?”
“…”
“Lee Sa-young-ssi, are you alright?”
“…”
“Seems like he’s more himself now~”
Without answering, Lee Sa-young continued to catch his breath. Through his fingers, he scanned his surroundings. This place…
A space created by Hong Ye-seong. They were in a meeting. A lot of people had gathered. I…
‘I came here with J.’
Just then, something shiny caught his eye. Lee Sa-young raised his hand. A watch slid slightly down his wrist before stopping. It was broken and worn. Among the many clock hands, only one was moving.
In a hurry, Lee Sa-young sat up. He demanded urgently.
“Where’s J?”
“Probably off saving the world~”
“Shut up.”
“Could you please be quiet, Gyu-Gyu.”
“Yes, yes~”
Jung Bin, now kneeling closer to Lee Sa-young, met his eyes. Worry was etched on his face.
“When we woke up, J had already disappeared. It seems he left to deal with the situation outside first. However, there are reports, so there’s no need to worry about his safety.”
“…”
Lee Sa-young didn’t answer and hung his head. He felt nauseous, like he was about to vomit. Jung Bin glanced at Hong Ye-seong and raised his voice slightly.
“Um, how about a little change of pace? The part-time worker from the hangover soup restaurant has shown up. You may not be interested, but you used to visit that place often, Lee Sa-young-ssi…”
Jung Bin’s voice trailed off as he widened his eyes. Lee Sa-young’s expression had twisted strangely. He moved his lips a couple of times as if he had much to say, messed up his hair, stared at the air, swept his bangs back, took a deep breath, and finally opened his mouth.
“…The part-time worker from the hangover soup restaurant?”
Maybe the shock of collapsing was too great. When looking at Lee Sa-young, a feeling of pity would arise. Was it because of those sleepless nights he spent tossing and turning at the straw-roofed house? Bae Won-woo used to agree that it was like a father’s concern. Lee Sa-young still seemed unable to shake off the shock. Jung Bin looked at him with sympathetic eyes.
“Well…”
Thinking about it, it wasn’t strange that Lee Sa-young didn’t know. He had been asleep for three months. Jung Bin kindly explained.
“After the Day of Change, the part-timer closed the shop and disappeared. Everyone was very worried. But earlier, Hunter Yang Hye-jin said she ran into him.”
Shit. It seemed a small curse slipped out. Lee Sa-young, after rubbing his face dry, asked.
“…What was he wearing?”
“Um, they said he was wearing a gray hoodie. The same as before, so they recognized him immediately.”
Crack, Lee Sa-young’s hand scratched roughly at the air. He staggered as he got to his feet. His violet eyes gleamed coldly. He dragged his feet as he walked toward the door. Gyu-Gyu, still tossing his dice, asked.
“Where are you going~?”
“…”
Bang! Lee Sa-young kicked the door, escaping from Hong Ye-seong’s cozy love house. Now clinging like a cicada to a pillar instead of Jung Bin, Hong Ye-seong muttered.
“Wow~ Lucky he’s too out of it to notice. I don’t think he realized I texted J using his phone, huh?”
“No way he did~”
“But why did you even do that in the first place?”
“Hm?”
Hong Ye-seong slid down the pillar.
“I don’t know. It just felt right!”
Jung Bin, his eyes cold, stared at Hong Ye-seong for a moment before turning away.
***
Cha Eui-jae opened his eyes.
“…”
It seemed the order to leave him alone was real, as no one approached him anymore. They must have stashed him away in some back room. Out of boredom, Cha Eui-jae wiggled his fingers. The room offered little information.
‘And it’s dull.’
If Lee Sa-young had stayed in a room like this, how did he manage? There’s only so much you can think about and imagine before you reach a limit. Cha Eui-jae was already itching to move.
‘Is that why his personality turned out that way…?’
Cha Eui-jae smirked. The researchers hadn’t come near him since their last visit either. They must have been strictly following the orders of “Hyung-nim.” He rubbed his head against the wall out of frustration.
‘Is “Hyung-nim’s” command really that absolute?’
Is “Hyung-nim” their leader? Cha Eui-jae wanted to meet him, to figure out what was going on in his head to make him do all this. By now…
‘Ga-eul must have met this “Hyung-nim” person.’
He should’ve arranged a way to contact Ga-eul.
‘I was a bit too overconfident.’
Yawn. Cha Eui-jae let out a big yawn and clicked his tongue. Well, how could he have known without trying to infiltrate? Maybe relying too much on power isn’t the answer… Just then.
Ssshhh… He heard a hissing sound. Cha Eui-jae lifted his head. A faint mist was seeping through a slight gap in the ceiling. Thud, thud, thud… The distant sounds gradually faded. Cha Eui-jae raised his wrists to check the time. 5 p.m.
‘Do they release it at set intervals?’
Damn it. Cha Eui-jae frowned. There was no avoiding the gas in a small room like this. He could only hold his breath for so long. In the end, he would have to breathe it in. Cha Eui-jae glared at the ceiling in frustration. The room was slowly filling with a hazy gas, thick enough that he could no longer see ahead.
***
“Something just came to mind.”
A man wearing clear goggles suddenly spoke. The other man, who was jotting something down on a tablet while observing the liquid dripping drop by drop, answered halfheartedly.
“Mm-hmm.”
“That room earlier. The one hyung-nim told us not to touch.”
“Yeah.”
“Doesn’t gas get released in there too? It’s on a blanket release system, right?”
The busy hand stopped. The man holding the tablet frowned.
“Aw, crap… Were we also supposed to not release gas in there?”
“He did say not to do anything reckless. Said to leave him alone.”
“Ah, damn it… Now we have to get him out.”
“Can’t believe we didn’t think of that.”
“See, I told you we should have installed separate ventilation systems, but no one listens.”
Grumbling, the two grabbed protective suits hanging on the wall. After putting on the full-body suits, goggles, and gas mask filters that only covered their mouths, they tightened their gloves. Once fully suited up, they headed to the last room at the end of the long hallway. The rest of the rooms were already silent.
The iron cell at the end was already filled with a hazy gas, and through the fog, a faint black shape could be seen. It looked like someone sitting on the floor. Something about it was unsettling. The man with the tablet frowned deeply and stepped back.
“Hey, you go get him out.”
“What? Why?”
“Ugh, I don’t wanna go in there.”
“How am I supposed to get him out alone?”
“Figure it out. I’m swamped right now, seriously.”
“Ugh, fine…”
The man wearing goggles grumbled as he opened the side door and disappeared into the gas. He has the nerve to ask me to handle it with him, even though it’s his fault for not paying attention. Some people have no conscience. Left alone, the other man quickly skimmed through the data on his tablet. Valuable time was being wasted… Then,
Thud.
A heavy sound echoed. The man lifted his eyes from the tablet, looking for the source. The sound had come from inside the cell.
“…”
He frowned. What was that? He knocked on the iron bars twice with his fist.
“Hey, everything okay in there?”
No answer. Instead, there was a clinking noise. It sounded like chains rattling.
“…”
Could something have gone wrong in there? No, he’s probably too drugged to think straight. Plus, he’s tied up. Should I have gone in with him? Is something going wrong over something so trivial? A whirlwind of thoughts swirled in his mind. He anxiously glanced down the hallway before knocking on the bars again.
“Hey, do I need to come in? Or should I call security?”
“…No.”
A low, oddly calm voice replied. Was that his colleague? Or not? The man frowned and listened carefully. A throat-clearing sound, followed by a voice tinged with amusement.
“The chains are just too tight, that’s all.”
“…”
“Why’re you so freaked out over something like this? You scared?”
The joking tone eased his tension a bit. His stiff shoulders relaxed. Bastard. He should’ve just answered right away. The man responded curtly, hiding his embarrassment.
“Scared? Nah… I just thought you’d passed out from the gas. You sure you’re okay? Nothing weird, right?”
“Yeah… but the chains won’t come off. How about we just leave it?”
“What? You think that’s a good idea? What if hyung-nim finds out later…”
“It’s fine.”
White smoke swirled beyond the iron bars. The man instinctively stepped back. Creak. The door opened, and the figure in a white protective suit emerged from the gas, fumbling with the filter. He waved his hand.
“Move back a bit. There’s too much gas in here.”
“Uh, yeah, okay.”
The gloved hands brushed at his body. The man suddenly felt an odd sense of discomfort and tilted his head. What is it? Something’s off. Aren’t the sleeves of his gloves a bit rolled up? I could’ve sworn I saw him put them on properly. And those shoes… aren’t they a bit too loose?
At that moment, the man stopped.
“…Aren’t you busy?”
“…”
The man gulped. Something’s wrong. This can’t be the same guy who was just with me…
“Go on ahead. I’ll catch up after I shake this off.”
But he didn’t want to think about it any further.
He wanted to avoid it.
This situation.
He wanted to run away.
From that… thing.
“O-okay, yeah…”
The man awkwardly shuffled away. It’s probably nothing. No way it’s what I’m thinking. Step by step, his pace quickened, and soon he was running. His hurried footsteps echoed down the long hallway.
‘Was this hallway always this long?’
He felt anxious. Cold sweat soaked his back. What should I do? What’s happening?
And then—
A sharp pain struck the back of his neck. He collapsed without even a scream. Behind him, the figure in the white protective suit appeared. The eyes behind the transparent goggles were blue.
