Chapter 134: Attraction (4)
“How did you…”
My voice trailed off as my legs buckled beneath me. The strain of enduring everything suddenly caught up with me, and I nearly collapsed—but Yuhyun’s arm caught me…?
The small lizard had somehow taken on a humanoid form. Though not completely human in appearance, like Ismuar, its body was shaped from flames.
“…You can even do this?”
— It’s a capability I gained from the Hong Kong incident. But it’s too taxing to maintain for long.
“Taxing? How much?”
— For one thing, my actual body is completely vulnerable…
“Are you out of your mind, Han Yuhyun?! Get back there right now! You’re in the middle of an S-rank dungeon!”
— Don’t worry. With only guild members around, the dungeon is safer than outside right now. Besides, there are two S-ranks there. Peace and Park Yerim will protect my body for your sake, hyung.
My younger brother spoke casually, but his words made my heart clench with worry. Maintaining a spirit at such a distance wasn’t easy; he’d mentioned it would remain dormant unless it sensed Grace. Had he not noticed the scar on my chest? I’d instinctively covered it the moment I heard Yuhyun’s voice.
— I can only maintain full assimilation for about thirty minutes at most. Iryn will also return to sleep afterward. You should contact Sesung’s guild leader.
Yuhyun spoke as I watched Song Taewon brush off the flames clinging to his clothes.
“Shouldn’t Seong Hyunjae still be in the dungeon?”
— He went abroad after Hong Kong but returned this morning. Hunter Evelyn is handling the dungeon instead.
So another S-rank hunter from Sesung was managing the raid in Seong Hyunjae’s place. I didn’t know what he was up to, but at least he was keeping Haeyeon informed as promised.
“Well, I was planning to avoid Seong Hyunjae for about three days, so calling him… might not be the best… Noah’s nearby too.”
— Hunter Noah won’t be enough. Chief Song Taewon has more experience fighting S-rank hunters than anyone else in the country. He specializes in combat against humans. As a support type, he wouldn’t last three minutes against him.
Three minutes? That stung. Still, I really didn’t want to face Seong Hyunjae right now. I swallowed hard and glanced at Song Taewon. When our eyes met, a shiver ran down my spine.
— Call him immediately.
Yuhyun conjured a spear of fire as he spoke. His low voice carried an edge of tension.
— Whatever happened, he won’t let this slide easily.
At that moment, Song Taewon began to move. Without the Teacher skill, his movements were nearly impossible to track. All I could register was the ground shaking beneath his feet.
Bang!
The flaming spear struck the earth, raising a wall of fire. Yuhyun had vanished from my side. Feeling the heat swirling around me, I pulled out my phone. I really didn’t want to do this, but there was no other choice.
The call connected quickly. Seong Hyunjae answered with his usual relaxed tone, though something about it seemed different today. Just hearing his voice made me nervous. If I had to face him in person, I might as well pretend I’d dialed the wrong number.
“…Could you spare some time to come to the dungeon break area? If you’re busy, don’t worry about it.”
[Is Chief Song not enough? Even for an S-rank lycanthrope, it shouldn’t be too challenging. I heard Noah is with you as well.]
He spoke with mild curiosity. You’re well-informed. That S-rank lycanthrope has already been reduced to mincemeat.
“The problem is Chief Song. You said he wouldn’t kill me since I’m F-rank, but this time, Seong Hyunjae, your judgment was off.”
[Was my item too tempting?]
“I’d rather not see that damn item shattered to pieces. Get here in ten minutes.”
I didn’t truly believe Song Taewon would kill me. But knowing him, he might break a limb or two to teach me a lesson. Maybe it was because my fear resistance had dropped, but even imagining it made my leg throb.
Better to keep my legs intact—I hoped he’d show some mercy.
‘Should I risk using the Teacher skill?’
All I could see were flames and occasional flying debris. In my current state, processing the skill’s information might overwhelm me, but it seemed better than the alternative. With C-rank fear resistance, facing Seong Hyunjae directly would probably knock me unconscious. Maybe playing dead wasn’t such a bad strategy.
If I just lay still, perhaps Song Taewon would leave me alone. He’s not a bear, but… didn’t they say playing dead in front of a bear might actually get you eaten?
‘I’m out of options anyway.’
Before Seong Hyunjae arrived, I decided to abandon my expectations. First, I used the Teacher skill on Yuhyun and Iryn. Instantly, my body felt like it was burning up. My mouth went dry from the pressure. With L-rank fear resistance, it would have felt like watching a distant fire, but now it was as if the flames were right in front of me, just beyond my reach.
And Song Taewon…
‘…How terrifying.’
Even while engulfed in flames, his calm gaze remained colder than ever.
With the skill’s doubled effects gone, his plundering ability’s range had decreased. Still, he appeared to be wearing flame-resistant equipment, as the fire swirling around him left few visible burns.
Not that he was unscathed. His shoulder bore a deep gouge, likely from a direct hit from Yuhyun’s flaming spear.
Crunch. His foot stomped the ground, launching a thick chunk of asphalt into the air. The flames that tried to consume Song Taewon melted the black mass instead.
In that instant, a hand wreathed in shadows slashed through Yuhyun’s chest. Since it wasn’t his real body, no blood spilled. He wouldn’t feel pain either. Still, Yuhyun’s current form was essentially a skill itself. The deeply split flames couldn’t easily recover, and his fiery red brows furrowed in discomfort.
‘At this rate, he won’t last fifteen minutes, let alone thirty.’
Without his physical body, Yuhyun couldn’t use most of his skills or any equipment. That left him relying purely on raw firepower, which consumed even more energy. Meanwhile, Song Taewon’s skills were steadily wearing him down.
Well, if worst comes to worst, he can just pass out.
I used the Teacher skill on Song Taewon again. My vision swam. My breathing grew labored, but I wasn’t about to lose consciousness.
‘Song Taewon still isn’t resisting, huh.’
I found it strange but transmitted Song Taewon’s sensations to Yuhyun anyway. Yuhyun narrowly avoided a kick and swung his arm forcefully. The flames formed a bludgeon-like mass that sent Song Taewon flying.
Song Taewon’s body spun mid-air, his foot crashing into the side of an unfortunate building.
Crash.
The wall cracked and a massive hole appeared. Concrete dust filled the air, and sprinklers activated, spraying water to combat the heat. Steam rose violently where fire met water. Within the mist, the two clashed again.
That building’s definitely coming down today.
Each violent clash of their powers made my stomach churn as though I were seasick. Eventually, I just slumped down where I was. I’d hoped to faint before Seong Hyunjae arrived, but my willpower seemed stronger than expected. Should I just commit to playing dead?
— Hyung!
Suddenly, Yuhyun shouted. I, too, sensed an ominous presence. Damn it.
Rumble.
The ground trembled. Damn it all. Before I could get back up, a massive mole-like creature burst through the shattered pavement. Had the monsters from the first or second floor finally shown up? I’d forgotten for a moment that I was a monster magnet.
— Squeeeeee!
The mole screamed at me like I was a delicacy. Probably. Right before its massive claws could reach me—
Boom!
Its black head burst into flames, cooking it instantly. Another mole behind me had its head pierced by a flying dagger. The one that collapsed toward me with a giant hole in its head was yanked away by a wire wrapped around its body.
Thud. I watched the monster’s corpse tumble to the side, barely missing me. I couldn’t help but feel slightly dumbfounded. Still, Chief Song, didn’t you just say you were going to crush me or something?
‘Efficient, though.’
— Hyung, are you okay?
Yuhyun reappeared beside me, his flames surging forth to incinerate yet another mole trying to emerge. I’d seen plenty of monsters before, so this wasn’t particularly frightening—just nerve-wracking. I still couldn’t stand up, though. The ground kept shaking beneath me… They’d need a full reconstruction team for this area afterward.
“They’re the type that moves underground, so Hunter Noah can’t stop them without poison.”
Song Taewon spoke as he grabbed a mole by the throat and crushed it. At some point, a long burn scar had stretched across his forehead and down to the corner of his right eye. Just looking at it was painful, but he didn’t even flinch.
“Han Yujin.”
The muscles on his arm bulged as he ripped out the mole’s spine and hurled it into the eye of another mole. At the same time, a stomp from his foot crushed yet another mole beneath him with a pitiful screech.
As Song Taewon approached me, Yuhyun glared at him. His fiery aura was fierce, but the flames had weakened significantly.
“Come here. I’ll protect you.”
He extended a hand, still slick with blood and bits of flesh. The fact that he sounded completely sincere made him seem even more unhinged. Yuhyun pulled me halfway into his arms, his expression twisted into a scowl.
— What the hell happened, hyung? It looked like Chief Song was trying to take off the bracelet earlier, but now he’s offering to protect you?
“…I think we had some kind of discussion about life.”
Something along the lines of, “Stop dancing around like a pretzel and help me with my work,” while he, with his own twisted life, decided to meddle in mine. Looking back, if Song Taewon had ripped out my tongue, I probably would have had to let it slide.
We did get along decently during our first meeting, though. Then his car got wrecked, and my neck got choked… Actually, not much has changed, has it? I guess it’s good to maintain a healthy dose of fear. Otherwise, you might end up like this.
“I’m sorry, but I’m too scared of you right now, so I’ll pass.”
“In this situation, being scared is normal. But being swallowed by a monster would be worse.”
Song Taewon spoke as though consoling a disaster victim.
“How can you be sure which is worse? Being caught by you might be worse than ending up in a monster’s stomach.”
“If you behave and follow my instructions, I won’t have to lay a hand on you.”
The words I’d said earlier came back to haunt me. Meanwhile, more moles kept emerging from the ground. They didn’t dare approach the area blazing with fire but instead gathered in groups a little farther away.
— …I’ll come out as soon as I can.
Yuhyun, who had grown faint, looked down at me with concern.
“There’s no need. I’ll be fine.”
Yuhyun’s body began to shrink. He returned to his lizard form, Iryn, then perched on my shoulder before sinking into my skin like a tattoo.
Song Taewon strode down the ruined street toward me. I didn’t even have the strength to get up, so I just looked up at him from where I sat. Despite the summer night, I felt a chill. To be honest, my body was trembling.
“I’m just a frightened civilian. Please be gentle.”
“If you’re going to stay where you are, I have no reason to interfere.”
“How about sharing a beer, having some meaningless chats, that sort of thing?”
“Not during work hours.”
“Do you treat your neighbors this well too?”
“You’re not a good neighbor to get along with.”
“Well, I won’t be a good neighbor if I get scared enough.”
Song Taewon bent down and gently picked me up.
“So, you’re still not going to make that call?”
“I will. And I’ll keep doing the things Chief Song dislikes, too. You’ll keep doing what you want even if I hate it, won’t you? But since I’m just a civilian, S-ranks like you should go a little easy on me.”
Thunk!
Instead of answering, he kicked a piece of pavement. It shattered the head of a mole creeping toward us. These creatures could easily burrow through the ground and wreck the city if they got past the barricades. For now, though, they were all focused on me.
At this rate, I’d probably gain a new reputation as a must-have item for mitigating dungeon break damage.
“I still don’t know how to deal with you, Han Yujin. Sometimes I think it’d be easier to get rid of you right here.”
His calm voice made it all the more chilling. Suppressing the creeping fear, I carefully chose my words.
Boom!
Thunder roared. A blinding light flared, wiping out the pack of moles. Their screams were drowned out by successive thunderclaps.
In an instant, the monsters were reduced to lifeless heaps. Along with them, an unfortunate villa and two nearby houses burst apart like popcorn.
“Chief Song.”
Seong Hyunjae lightly jumped across the cracked pavement, approaching us. A faint smile played on his face as he looked in our direction.
“If you pick something up, you should return it to its rightful owner. According to lost property laws, public officials can receive finder’s fees, right? My item happens to be exceptionally rare and valuable.”
He spoke in his usual irritating tone, as though he’d hit the jackpot. For once, I felt like Song Taewon and I shared the same sentiment.
–TL Notes–
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