The Hunter’s Gonna Lay Low - Chap 279 Intersection
“I will now administer the prototype treatment.”
Ssshh… The space beyond the transparent glass wall filled with hazy smoke. On the cloudy glass, the reflections of two figures could be seen— Ga-young with a sly smile and Nam Woo-jin’s expressionless face. Then, suddenly—
Thud!
Through the haze, a grotesquely twisted beast’s hand shot out, gripping the wall. Covered in fur and claws, the hand was completely white. A guttural, eerie growl echoed. Ga-young, lazily twirling a strand of her hair, muttered indifferently.
“Another failure. Not that I had high hopes.”
“It appears to have no discernible effect whatsoever.”
“Indeed. Business as usual~”
The monster confined beyond the glass opened its enormous maw. With a human-like set of teeth inside the beast’s mouth, it looked increasingly uncanny. Monsters with traces of humanity still remaining— did these mutated beings hold any shred of their former selves? Nam Woo-jin pondered the question briefly.
Ga-young turned away nonchalantly.
“Well, how about we conduct a tissue analysis? Who knows, there might be cellular changes.”
“You seem particularly fond of experiments involving physical specimens.”
“Hehe, isn’t it the most accurate way to gather data?”
Ga-young giggled, covering her mouth. Her eyes gleamed brightly behind her glasses.
“Oh! Surely… you’re not still thinking of that thing as human, are you?”
“…”
“Surprising. Quite the compassionate heart you have there. Very unexpected.”
“Instead of mockery, how about considering other solutions? The number of mutants continues to rise.”
“Isn’t the government and the Awakened Management Bureau working hard to cover it up?”
“That can only go so far. Not all information can be suppressed.”
“Once the truth that humans are turning into monsters comes out… Oh, it’s going to be so noisy. Can’t wait~.”
Ga-young let out a low chuckle and nodded lightly in farewell.
“I’ll take my leave now~ Ah! Please have someone sever a finger from that creature and send it to my lab. Could you do that for me, dear partner?”
“…Sure.”
“Thanks so much~”
The sound of her footsteps grew distant. The partnership with Prometheus continued to limp along despite its frictions. Ga-young had settled in one section of the Seowon Guild with her team of researchers. Their access was heavily restricted, but she claimed it didn’t matter.
Prometheus researchers harbored both malice toward Awakeners and love for humanity. Their conversations were often along similar lines;
“We’re the ones who can save humanity.”
“Just a little more effort.”
On the surface, they seemed like the most righteous of individuals, though their righteousness was twisted.
According to investigations, most of Prometheus’s members had tragic pasts— people who lost their families to monsters, suffered crimes by rogue Awakeners, or lost everything to rifts. Their tragedies had been nurtured into resentment toward Awakeners.
‘And the one who provided that nourishment…’
It had to be the leader of Prometheus. Nam Woo-jin removed his glasses and rubbed his face. A boy who had been standing nearby approached with quick, small steps.
“Master, shall I sever the finger now?”
“Yes. Give her what she wants. And keep an eye on her. Never let your guard down.”
“Of course, Master. Not just me, A Small Miracle Seo Min-gi is assisting as well. The two of us can manage.”
Nam Woo-jin merely nodded in response. The boy, wielding an axe as large as his body, headed toward the tightly sealed iron door. The monster stared at the boy entering the room and opened its mouth wide. Moments later, a terrible scream echoed from beyond the wall.
Kyahhh!
Splat! White blood splattered against the transparent glass. Guild members winced at the chilling screams, covering their ears. Nam Woo-jin watched the entire scene without a flicker of emotion.
Was the mutation of humans into monsters a disease, a curse of the system, or the whim of an apocalyptic force? Could it be stopped by human hands?
‘Does any of this even matter?’
Reversing the mutations, preventing them— both felt like an unattainable future.
The boy returned, drenched in white blood. His clear, marble-like eyes reflected Nam Woo-jin. The boy clasped his small hands together, holding them out to reveal a severed, blood-dripping finger.
“I’ve returned, Master.”
“…Good.”
Nam Woo-jin reached out to take it but froze mid-motion. For a moment, he saw a skeletal, mummified hand as an afterimage. He clenched his fist in the air and withdrew his hand.
“Boy.”
“Yes, Master.”
“Work with Seo Min-gi to establish a contact route with Yoon Ga-eul.”
“Understood, Master.”
The boy disappeared, leaving a trail of white blood. Nam Woo-jin put on his glasses. Beyond the flowing white blood, the monster’s anguished wails were piercingly clear.
The cries sounded far too human.
***
118 hours until Cha Eui-jae’s death, Seowon Guild.
Cha Eui-jae was sitting, leaning against a collapsed bookshelf. His sight still hadn’t returned. Even so, he spent his time amidst the piles of books. Unable to see, he would run his fingers along the spines to identify the titles, picking out books that seemed worthwhile. It wasn’t an easy task with books that weren’t specially treated or embossed.
Reading them?
‘That’s Lee Sa-young’s job, anyway.’
Cha Eui-jae opened a book and squinted his eyes. Darkness still prevailed.
He put in considerable effort to hide his blindness. When the task of research was divided, Cha Eui-jae had lied, claiming that he hated books and felt sleepy just looking at words. Lee Sa-young and Honeybee had believed the lie without a shred of doubt.
It annoyed him.
‘Who do they take me for, an idiot?’
He was, after all, the author of the Monster Encyclopedia. It was a survival manual and practically a bible for rookie hunters. He had written it. They’d grown up studying from it! Cha Eui-jae brushed against the stack of books piled beside him. At that moment, he sensed someone approaching. A quiet voice called out.
“J, are you here?”
It was Yoon Ga-eul. Cha Eui-jae nodded in the direction of the voice. Yoon Ga-eul let out a sigh of relief and whispered.
“Thank goodness… Please, don’t go anywhere. Okay?”
“I’ll stay put.”
“Good… I mean it. Please, I’m begging you.”
After pleading earnestly, Yoon Ga-eul moved away. Cha Eui-jae let out a deep sigh and rested his head against the bookshelf.
The moment Cha Eui-jae set foot in the Seowon Guild with the help of Romantic Opener, Nam Woo-jin came charging in like a man chasing a hornet and struck Lee Sa-young’s head with a stethoscope. A crisp and clear clang! rang out. He was about to swing again when Jung Bin, who had followed behind, stopped him.
“Let go of me! Why are you stopping me?”
“Nam Woo-jin-ssi, you’ll hurt your hand! Please stop!”
“Even if my hand breaks, I’ll knock some sense into that rude brat! Let me go!”
“Please calm down!”
Lee Sa-young, surprisingly, stayed quiet. Though his expression was fierce, as if he were ready to kill someone, he didn’t resist.
Afterward, Nam Woo-jin, veins bulging in his neck, launched into a fiery tirade. Are you out of your mind?! Well, of course you’re not, but what were you thinking, pulling such a reckless stunt that could have harmed J’s body?! And to top it off, you even broke through the building’s wall! Have you completely lost it?! His words were so undeniably correct that there wasn’t even a chance to interrupt.
Eventually, Nam Woo-jin, clutching his neck, staggered off with Yoon Ga-eul’s support. Jung Bin, still smiling warmly, looked at Lee Sa-young, Cha Eui-jae, Honeybee, and the Romantic Opener sprawled on the ground. The pressure of his smile was overwhelming, perhaps due to the experience he had gained over the years. He kindly spoke to Honeybee.
“Honeybee-ssi, Matthew is looking for you. Please return with the Romantic Opener.”
“Oh my, is it urgent? I’ll head over right away.”
Lee Sa-young glanced at Honeybee.
Are you running away?
Honeybee glanced back at Lee Sa-young.
Yep, I am.
She picked up the Romantic Opener and promptly disappeared. In the end, only Lee Sa-young and Cha Eui-jae were left in front of Jung Bin. After a long silence, Jung Bin handed something to Lee Sa-young.
It was a hammer and nails.
“You’ll need to repair the wall yourself, won’t you?”
Clicking his tongue, Lee Sa-young reluctantly took the hammer. Jung Bin then turned to Cha Eui-jae with a smile.
“And as for you, J…”
“…”
“It’s best if you don’t leave this place. Your body isn’t in good condition.”
Understood. Cha Eui-jae nodded compliantly. This version of Jung Bin didn’t seem like the type to humor him, even if he whined about how many monsters he had killed. He missed the softer, more approachable Jung Bin…
Clang, clang, clang…
Cha Eui-jae’s thoughts were interrupted by the clear sound of hammering. Coming from the direction of the infirmary, it seemed Lee Sa-young was hard at work repairing the wall once again.
‘It’ll be a while before he’s back.’
Cha Eui-jae listened to the rhythmic hammering and slowly lay down. The old book smell, mixed with the scent of wood and the cold floor, felt comforting. Just as he closed his eyes,
Thunk.
Something fell on his head. Cha Eui-jae quickly moved to avoid a collision. What the? Frowning, he grabbed the object that had attacked him.
‘A book?’
It was a small book. Carefully running his fingers over it, Cha Eui-jae noted the cover and pages felt quite old.
‘Huh?’
It felt oddly familiar. Cha Eui-jae flipped through the book cautiously. Its size and the texture of the pages were unmistakable. Where had he encountered such a book before? His mind raced.
‘Ah!’
Eyes wide, Cha Eui-jae sat up abruptly. The voice of an emotionless boy echoed in his mind;
“You’re the first guest to find that book. Can you recognize it?”
“That book was found in a dungeon. No one has been able to decipher those characters. It might be a language from our world distorted by dungeon magic, or perhaps an entirely foreign language. For safety, the Seowon Guild keeps it here.”
It was the same book he had stumbled upon while visiting the Seowon Guild in search of Lee Sa-young.
‘This has to be important!’
Cha Eui-jae rolled his eyes desperately, as if that would restore his lost sight— but of course, it didn’t. He turned the book over in his hands, feeling every inch of it, before silently screaming.
‘This is insane!’
For Cha Eui-jae, who had solved everything through brute strength, this was a monumental crisis.
