The Hunter’s Gonna Lay Low - Chap 224
“…”
Yoon Ga-eul sat in the bleak room. It was a dim, cramped space, much like an interrogation room, with nothing but a metal desk and chair. The man who had brought her here left her with a simple instruction to wait and then disappeared. It resembled an interrogation room from the Awakened Management Bureau. No, it was exactly the same.
‘Did they do this on purpose?’
They might have. The interrogation rooms at the Awakened Management Bureau were ranked number one as the most hated places by Awakeners. Maybe it was to suppress their energy. Yoon Ga-eul stretched out her legs for no reason. She should have brought an English vocabulary book or something.
How much time had passed? There was no clock, but it must have been at least a few dozen minutes. The number of songs she had hummed in her head had surpassed ten. She looked around. Could this place have something like a two-way mirror, just like at the Bureau? Were they observing her from outside? She knew she shouldn’t panic, but her body wasn’t listening.
‘If only I had more experience…’
The last time she saw J, he had been kicked to the floor. Was he going through unnecessary suffering because of her? Yoon Ga-eul rubbed her sweaty palms. There was no end to these thoughts if she kept digging. She tried to think of something else.
‘They called him “Hyung-nim”…’
Yoon Ga-eul bit her lip hard.
‘How did they find out about me?’
Her information was top secret, even within the Awakened Management Bureau. A third-year high school student, a minor, and a mental-type S-grade Awakener with zero combat abilities. She had all the traits that made her a perfect target for weird people. The only thing the public knew was that a new S-grade Awakener was underage and would begin activity once she became an adult.
‘Where did the information leak from…’
Yoon Ga-eul gnawed at her thumb nail. She was anxious. Though she felt the responsibility to stop the apocalypse, she was helpless. Even when she was dragged into the ruined world, she relied on J’s help. While others fought for their lives, here she was, kidnapped, unable to do anything. She had been talking about stopping the apocalypse, but when the time came, she was utterly useless…
‘Am I really this useless…’
Maybe she had been given abilities far too great for her? Thoughts piled up on top of each other, weighing her down. Her body felt heavy. The helplessness and guilt pressed down on her like a weight. She had done nothing but run away while others died. Even the ceiling lights seemed to be judging her. Yoon Ga-eul buried her face in her hands.
At that moment.
“Ah, you’ve been waiting for a while, haven’t you?”
A voice came from the corner speaker. It was a calm, gentle male voice. Yoon Ga-eul’s shoulders flinched. She lifted her head and stared at the speaker. The man continued speaking from beyond the speaker.
“I apologize for keeping such an important guest waiting for so long… Circumstances being what they are, I’m truly sorry.”
“…”
“I heard our brothers were a bit rough when they brought you here? I apologize for that too. I specifically told them to treat you with care…”
The man’s voice sounded regretful. Yoon Ga-eul kept her guard up, glaring at the speaker. The gentle voice continued.
“Well, since you’ve waited so long, why don’t we get straight to the point? Yoon Ga-eul, you can read fragments of the ruined world, can’t you?”
“…”
“And you knew about the apocalypse before anyone else.”
He knew everything about Yoon Ga-eul.
All of it.
Yoon Ga-eul swallowed. They were said to be a group that despised Awakeners. She clenched her fists and stared at the speaker. Were they going to mock her? Maybe say her abilities were wasted on her… Even if they did, she couldn’t deny it. It was true.
But then.
“You’re truly remarkable.”
It was a response she hadn’t expected. Yoon Ga-eul’s eyes widened. Clap, clap, clap… The man on the other side of the speaker was clapping. His applause was sincere, and there was a trace of sympathy in his warm voice.
“You must have been through so much on your own… Seeing those horrific scenes of destruction every night, even though you didn’t want to.”
“…”
“Enduring that fear, all alone, as a young student. It’s truly remarkable.”
‘…What?’
Hearing his kind words and tone, Yoon Ga-eul suddenly felt tears welling up. She quickly lowered her head and bit her lip. She blinked rapidly, trying to push the tears away. But the man didn’t stop.
“I know how much you’ve sacrificed, Yoon Ga-eul. Among people who refuse to believe in the apocalypse, among those who think this twisted peace will continue forever, you’ve been carrying that terror, struggling all alone.”
“…”
“But.”
The man’s voice grew firmer.
“The apocalypse has arrived.”
“…”
“This isn’t your fault. And…”
His gentle voice whispered softly.
“You are not alone, Ga-eul.”
“…”
“I, too, remember the ruined world. Not as clearly as you, but enough.”
Yoon Ga-eul’s head snapped up. The kind voice now had a smile in it.
“And that’s why I began gathering people. To prevent the end. We can’t let the world be destroyed again.”
“…”
“Ga-eul.”
The gentle voice whispered.
“We need your power. More than anyone else.”
Yoon Ga-eul clenched her fists tightly. Her nails dug deep into her palms.
***
“Ah~”
Cha Eui-jae squatted in front of the man and properly adjusted his gloves. The man had collapsed on the ground, foaming at the mouth. Judging by the way his back was rising and falling, he was still alive.
‘He’s in such a damn rush.’
Thanks to him, Cha Eui-jae hadn’t even had time to change clothes properly. He had planned to strip the man of everything, including his coat. With a sigh, Cha Eui-jae stood up. Through the unzipped hazmat suit, his gray hoodie was plainly visible. He lightly slung the fallen man over his shoulder and picked up the tablet lying on the floor.
‘I’m sure I can find some use for this.’
He couldn’t take too much time. People would start getting suspicious. Cha Eui-jae headed back to the room he had been held in. The room was still filled with thick white smoke. In the middle of it all were shattered handcuffs, a broken leash, and a man who had fainted with his eyes rolled back.
Cha Eui-jae first laid the man he was carrying next to the unconscious one. Then, he used the broken chains to tie their ankles together. If they wanted to escape, they’d have to master the art of three-legged racing.
‘I don’t know what kind of gas this is, but…’
He tore some fabric from the man who lost his hazmat suit to fashion a new mask for him and used the unconscious tablet owner’s finger to unlock the device. After giving a polite bow with clasped hands, Cha Eui-jae stepped out of the cell. He zipped up the hazmat suit properly and glanced around. Would it be okay to walk around in this?
Even though it was a golden opportunity to escape, his feet wouldn’t move. If only Lee Sa-young were here…
‘Does Hyung even think before he acts?’
‘When are you ever going to break that habit of moving before you think?’
‘Is your brain just a decoration?’
He would’ve berated him with all sorts of scary remarks. Cha Eui-jae rubbed his arms as if he were cold and clicked his tongue. But who knows when he’d get another chance like this?
‘For now.’
Cha Eui-jae peeked beyond the bars. The two researchers, their ankles tied together, were leaning awkwardly on each other. Of course, it was a structure that was easy to see from outside. Cha Eui-jae scrolled through the tablet. It was filled with some data— indecipherable numbers and red and blue graphs, but no Korean in sight.
‘Ugh, what a pain.’
With a frown, Cha Eui-jae held the tablet a bit farther away. It was then that something round and black suddenly popped out from his shadow. The round head glanced around before its gaze moved upward. Their eyes met.
“Hmm?”
Through the black sunglasses, he could see the figure squint slightly.
“…Hmm?”
It was Seo Min-gi, the very small but dependable ally. Though a bit dusty, Seo Min-gi seemed to be in good shape, which gave Cha Eui-jae some relief. Seo Min-gi tilted his head, looking Cha Eui-jae up and down. Cha Eui-jae lowered his mask slightly.
“It’s me, Seo Min-gi.”
“Oh, customer! I almost attacked you, thinking I had come to the wrong place. What are you doing here? And where exactly is this?”
“Well, I escaped after being held captive. And, I think this is Prometheus’ headquarters.”
“…”
“…”
Seo Min-gi flopped down onto the ground and wailed.
“No way, customer!”
“Ah, keep your voice down! We’ll get caught!”
“Why on earth are you here? And how did you even find this place in the first place? I couldn’t even locate Prometheus’ headquarters myself!”
‘Isn’t that the main point?’
Indeed. Seo Min-gi was more upset about the fact that Cha Eui-jae had found Prometheus’ headquarters, something even he had failed to do, than about Cha Eui-jae being captured. Seo Min-gi, still half-emerged from the shadows, furiously pounded the ground with his fists. Seeing this, Cha Eui-jae couldn’t help but want to tease him. He flashed a peace sign.
“I got kidnapped. Impressive, right?”
“Damn it, you used a dirty trick I could never pull off, even in a million years…”
“How is this dirty? I got this far with my acting skills.”
“Ugh…”
Seo Min-gi, still flustered, suddenly lifted his head.
“Oh, by the way, what about your phone?”
“Oh, it broke earlier.”
“Ah, so that’s why you didn’t respond…”
After glancing around cautiously, Seo Min-gi spoke in a serious tone.
“I’m only telling you this because we’re close.”
“Yes?”
“The Guild Leader is really fucking pissed off.”
