The Hunter’s Gonna Lay Low - Chap 235
A click. The sound of the call ending. Cha Eui-jae handed the phone to Lee Sa-young. He was strangely relieved that he wasn’t the one in charge. Cha Eui-jae recalled the faces of the guild leaders who had passionately spoken. Since they were a mid-sized guild, they likely knew each other well. Some might have even lived like family. If he had been the one to make the decision, what would Cha Eui-jae have done?
‘I might have destroyed everything before even getting to that point…’
As Lee Sa-young shifted awkwardly, Cha Eui-jae motioned with his chin toward Ivan.
“You heard everything, right?”
Ivan was already smiling brightly, nodding his head while nervously fiddling with his fingers.
“Y-yes, of course. We will set up the schedule and contact you. Haha… This is a huge step. We’ve taken a big step toward a new world…!”
His hunched body swayed side to side. He almost looked like a madman. He began humming a small tune.
There was just one thing that bothered Cha Eui-jae. The site of the massacre committed by Lee Sa-young. Cha Eui-jae had braced himself for all-out war when he saw the place, but oddly enough, Ivan didn’t seem to care. Cha Eui-jae crossed his arms.
“This.”
“Huh, what do you mean?”
“This place.”
Only then did Ivan look at the ground they were standing on. Lee Sa-young had done a rough job of cleaning up the poison, but the brutal evidence of battle was still evident. Scratches from fingernails clawing in terror, bullet holes, footprints running toward the buildings.
Ivan blinked.
“What, what’s the issue?”
Cha Eui-jae’s face contorted slightly. Ivan thought for a moment, then clapped his hands as if he’d finally understood.
“Oh, you’re worried about the dead, aren’t you? You’re so kind-hearted. It’s really touching that you care about such sacrifices… Perhaps that’s why you’re called a hero?”
“…”
“But it’s all f-fine. Thanks to your cooperation, we’re now connected to the management bureau.”
Ivan spread his arms wide in a large circle.
“If you think of it as a small sacrifice for the greater good, it’s not such a big deal.”
Cha Eui-jae’s face twisted further under his mask. “A small sacrifice for the greater good.” While Cha Eui-jae had acted in line with this belief, it was still a phrase that rubbed him the wrong way every time he heard it. Sacrifices can never be justified, not for the people who died.
‘This guy really doesn’t sit well with me…’
Annoyed, Cha Eui-jae snapped.
“Bring Song Jo-heon.”
“Huh? What?”
“We should be the ones to hold him accountable, not you. He’s not someone you can just leave lying around. Bring him here, in one piece. And don’t pull any funny business.”
“…”
“And bring Yoon Ga-eul too. The conversation should’ve ended a long time ago.”
Ivan scratched his head and shifted his eyes before finally nodding and disappearing quietly into the building. Should they also request the release of the captured hunters? Most of them had lost their minds under the influence of drugs, increasing their aggression. Releasing them as they were could lead to another disaster.
Cha Eui-jae glanced at Seo Min-gi.
“Seo Min-gi, would it be possible to transfer the captured hunters to Seowon Guild for treatment?”
“Hmm…”
Seo Min-gi pushed up his sunglasses, humming to himself.
“Should I be frank with you?”
“Go ahead.”
“It’s unlikely they can be treated even if we move them. Matthew is still in the Seowon Guild basement, but there hasn’t been any significant news yet. They say they’re analyzing the drugs, but who knows.”
“…”
“But it should be safe there. No further experiments will be done.”
“No.”
Lee Sa-young murmured with his eyes closed.
“Contact the director. Include a condition for the release of the captured hunters. They’ll negotiate anyway, and they probably expected us to ask for something like this.”
“Huh? Oh, yes.”
“They have places to return to…”
“…”
“They should be sent back to those waiting for them.”
His long eyelashes fluttered. Their eyes met. A small smile flickered in the violet eyes looking back at him. At that moment, the heavy weight lodged in his chest seemed to melt just a little. Cha Eui-jae pressed his fist to his chest. His stomach churned.
A little while later, Seo Min-gi, who had been bustling around, raised his hand.
“Well, I’ll head to the Awakened Management Bureau first. Guild Leader, how did you get here?”
“I rode Kang Ji-soo’s motorcycle.”
“And Kang Ji-soo?”
“She said she’s on standby outside. Take her with you.”
“How will you get back?”
“I’ll figure something out.”
“Then I’ll call a van for you. Kang Ji-soo has work to do as well.”
“Do what you want.”
“Alright, I’ll be going now.”
Seo Min-gi bowed and vanished into the shadows. For the first time in a while, a calm silence settled. He wanted to ask Lee Sa-young if he was okay, but for some reason, the words wouldn’t come out.
Just then, there was a faint sound of footsteps from inside the building. Two light sets of footsteps. It wasn’t a combat unit, and the presence felt familiar. It didn’t seem to be Song Jo-heon. Was it Yoon Ga-eul? Just as Cha Eui-jae was about to investigate further, the arm that had been lightly touching his trembled. He quickly turned his head to check on Lee Sa-young’s condition. His arm and shoulder were overly tense, his nape pale as a ghost, sweat gathering under his disheveled hair… Something was wrong. Cha Eui-jae whispered quietly.
“What’s going on… Are you okay?”
“…”
What if he fainted again? There was no response. Lee Sa-young’s lips quivered, opening slightly, but then closing repeatedly. Instead of answering, he reached out and gripped Cha Eui-jae’s arm tightly. So tightly that it hurt. Then, he buried his head in Cha Eui-jae’s shoulder. His breath was heavy and quick. His pulse was oddly fast. Cha Eui-jae whispered hurriedly.
“What’s wrong, are you hurt?”
The head resting on his shoulder shook side to side. He wasn’t in pain, but clearly, something was wrong. Cha Eui-jae reached out and gently brushed back Lee Sa-young’s hair.
“Lee Sa-young. Are you sure you’re okay? If you’re hurt, you need to be honest…”
“…Just a moment.”
Lee Sa-young muttered in a broken voice.
“Just a moment… It’ll be fine soon…”
Hot breath tickled his neck. Cha Eui-jae could hear the grinding of teeth. The grip on his arm tightened painfully, but Cha Eui-jae couldn’t focus on such trivial discomfort.
‘…Wait, didn’t I call him Lee Sa-young just now?’
No matter how distracted he was, he always corrected him to just call him Sa-young. But now, he was simply clinging on, saying whatever he wanted. Cha Eui-jae rolled his eyes.
‘This is serious…’
A primal warning rang in his mind— he couldn’t leave him like this. Seo Min-gi wasn’t here at the worst possible time. He should have kept him around longer! That guy always vanished when needed most. Just as Cha Eui-jae was fumbling through his inventory, searching for one of Hong Ye-seong’s special scrolls, a familiar voice rang out cheerfully.
“Huh? Why are you two alone? Where did Ivan go? I thought the conversation would be over by now~”
Lee Sa-young’s body jerked violently as if struck. Cha Eui-jae slowly turned his head. There stood Ga-young, wearing her white lab coat. She smiled as she pushed her glasses up her nose. And beside her…
“…Ga-eul?”
Yoon Ga-eul stood there, her hands clasped together, shoulders hunched. At the sound of her name, she flinched and avoided eye contact. Her pale lips and the beads of sweat on her forehead made it clear something was wrong. Had they tortured her in the name of experimentation? Or maybe injected her with drugs. Cha Eui-jae glared at Ga-young.
“What did you do this time?”
“What do you mean? I just~”
Ga-young wrapped her arm around Yoon Ga-eul’s shoulders, smiling brightly.
“Had a little chat, that’s all. Heroes sure are suspicious~ Right?”
“…”
Yoon Ga-eul bit her lip. Her body trembled unnaturally. Something had definitely happened to her. As Cha Eui-jae clenched his fists, Ga-young exaggeratedly raised her hands in surrender.
“Come on now, don’t be like that! It was really just a conversation. And Ga-eul has something to say. Right?”
Yoon Ga-eul nodded slightly. At the same time, the grip on Cha Eui-jae’s arm grew even stronger. The pain made even he, who usually hid such things well, frown. Yoon Ga-eul fidgeted with her hands and mumbled.
“I, I remember you saying you’d save me. I was so happy J came with me. I felt reassured. It’s not that I don’t trust J… I trust you more than anyone. But…”
Her voice grew quieter.
“I just… wanted to know more.”
“…”
“Anyway, what I want to say is…”
She slowly raised her head. Her eyes shone with a golden hue. There was hesitation in them, but beyond that, there was…
Conviction.
“…I’ll stay here. You can just go back.”
The heavy breathing that had been ringing in his ears suddenly stopped.
