RG 161

I leaned deep into the sofa, grinning. “So that’s it. You ran away from the district because you were worried about me. Because you missed me. Yeah.”

“Did you forget how much you used to annoy me? I came because just thinking about how much you’d freak out if you got kidnapped again was so fucking irritating!”

“This must be why people say having friends is important in life. Out of everyone from the district, you’re probably the only one who worries about me.”

“Ugh, my blood pressure…”

“Big Bro, what about me? I was seriously really worried about you too.”

“Anyway. What are you going to do now?” Kwon Seoyul tried to butt in again, but I didn’t even glance at him and instead asked Hyeon Dowun, “You’ve seen that I’m fine, so you’ve accomplished your goal. What now?”

“Before that, let me ask first. I have a shitload of questions, you know?” With his arms crossed, Hyeon Dowun glared at me with his naturally sharp eyes.

‘Doesn’t look like I can brush this off lightly.’

Well, considering Hyeon Dowun came all the way here because of me, I guess I do owe him some answers.

“Fine. Ask away.”

“Why the hell couldn’t we reach you? What the fuck happened to your phone? When we tried tracking you from the district and got no signal, that must’ve meant you were outside of Seoul, right? Where the hell were you? Why did you stop by the Circle Guild? And why is the Yesung Guild watching your office?”

“Wow…”

I couldn’t help but be genuinely impressed at the barrage of questions rolling off like a rap, when Kwon Taehyeok, who had been silently sitting by, quietly spoke up. “It wasn’t surveillance. It was for security purposes.”

“I wasn’t asking you,” Hyeon Dowun snapped back sharply, then looked at Kwon Taehyeok with a complicated expression before turning his gaze back to me. “Ha, and… and…”

“What now? Ask it all at once so I can answer everything together.”

“Well… it’s just…” he struggled to continue. 

What the hell could it be that’s making him hesitate so much?

While I stared at him in confusion, Hyeon Dowun chewed on his lip and tightly shut his eyes. “This is something you don’t have to answer if you don’t want to… but I feel like I need to know for the future…”

Because he had already been ignored twice, Kwon Seoyul, who had been sitting there with a sulky face, suddenly burst out yelling, “Argh, so frustrating! What’s so hard to say? He’s trying to ask if you and that bastard are fuck buddies!”

“You psycho, shut the hell up!”

“What?” I turned my head toward where Kwon Seoyul was pointing and saw Kwon Taehyeok. I let out a helpless laugh. “Keep talking shit, I dare you. Didn’t I tell you last time that it wasn’t like that?”

“Maybe it wasn’t back then, but it could be now. What if that bastard seduced you in the meantime?”

“What do you mean, ‘what if,’ you crazy fuck? I said no!”

“I asked that bastard earlier, and he didn’t deny it though?”

Since Kwon Seoyul’s comment about being fuck buddies, Kwon Taehyeok had been quietly rubbing his face in frustration. He twitched his shoulders and then twisted his expression.

“I ignored it because it wasn’t worth responding to.”

“There, see?”

“Listen, Big Bro. The way I see it, this bastard—”

“Use honorifics properly while I’m still being nice.”

“…He seems really interested in you. Like he wants to be something more.”

“Enough. You’re better off just keeping your mouth shut.” I barely swallowed down the curse that had risen to my throat. I was trying to maintain the image of a decent Support in front of Kwon Taehyeok, so I had no choice. I turned to Hyeon Dowun instead. “Are you seriously trusting Kwon Seoyul of all people?”

Hyeon Dowun fumbled with his hair, unable to offer a proper rebuttal. “It’s not like I trusted him that easily…”

“But you did doubt me, didn’t you?”

“Yeah, but still…”

“I’m disappointed, babe. Do I really come across as some reckless idiot?” I let out a big, deliberate sigh. 

Hyeon Dowun’s eyebrow twitched, and after eyeing me for a moment, he started glaring again. “Hey. Sure, I was dumb for even considering what that psycho said—but you didn’t exactly behave like a saint either, did you?”

“Me? What did I do?”

“Like you haven’t been living like a slut in the district for ages?”

“Slut? That’s harsh.” Well, I am a slut, technically. “Still, it’s not like I’ve ever rolled around with another guy.”

“I figured maybe it was just his face that got to you. You’ve always been weak to good looks. And the way that fancy-ass guildmaster of Yesung keeps hovering around you? Suspicious as hell.”

Hyeon Dowun didn’t hesitate to press the point, even though Kwon Taehyeok was sitting right across from him. He had the attitude of “if you’ve got a problem, get lost.”

“Come on, you know my type. And even if he is my type, he’s still a guy, so it’s not like I would ever… huh?”

Crack! A strange sound suddenly rang out.

I stopped mid-sentence and looked toward the source of the noise. The edge of the table had shattered into pieces—and there was a small hand that had crushed it like a cracker.

‘Shit…’

Cha Sahyeon was looking up at me, his green eyes flashing ominously. There was a deadly gleam in his suddenly chilling gaze.

What the hell was that about?

I didn’t know the reason, but if Cha Sahyeon got upset enough to use a skill or take off his choker, we’d be in serious trouble.

“Ha ha, let’s drop this topic. There’s something more important, right?” I gave a strained laugh and quickly pulled Cha Sahyeon, who was sitting next to me, into my arms. Hugging him tightly, I patted his back as I continued talking, “So, uh, what were you asking again? Oh, why my phone was broken? And where I went?”

Hyeon Dowun, eyeing the shattered table and my sudden move to soothe the kid, looked irritated but finally gave a reluctant nod. 

“It’s all connected, so it’s actually easy to explain.”

I told Hyeon Dowun and Kwon Seoyul about the office attack, how the Circle Guild helped me, and how I’d gone to Mount Taebaek to repay that favor. Of course, I conveniently left out the parts about Cha Sahyeon being kidnapped and me chasing after him all the way to the church.

Kwon Seoyul might not have picked up on it, but Hyeon Dowun, who had previously helped me look into labs at my request, quickly grasped the situation.

“Fuck, those bastards are still after you?” Hyeon Dowun pushed up his glasses, clearly flustered. “But why? Is there something special about you that—ah.”

He was muttering to himself when something seemed to click. He furrowed his brow and, after a short pause, slowly began to speak.

“I was going to check anyway. Was it really you, the Healer who showed up at Gwanghwamun?”

I shrugged my shoulders. “You already knew before coming here. I’m sure the other brothers know too.”

“…We’re not the only ones who know.”

“Yeah. Including him too.”

When I answered calmly, Hyeon Dowun looked like he wanted to say something but waved it off instead. “Forget it. You’re probably the most pissed off about it anyway. So the lab bastards are after you because you awakened some new skill?”

“Who knows. I don’t really know the details yet. I need to find out.” The lab wasn’t after me, but after Cha Sahyeon. Still, if my newly awakened Divine Power skill could serve as a convenient excuse, all the better. “I think I’ve satisfied your curiosity enough. Now it’s your turn to answer. What are you planning to do next?”

It was easier with Hyeon Dowun misunderstanding things on his own, but dragging out conversations about the lab made me anxious. There was always a chance that at some point, the truth—that Cha Sahyeon and I weren’t real brothers—might slip out.

Just as I was trying to wrap things up naturally and shift the topic onto Hyeon Dowun—

Knock, knock.

“Excuse me. Hunter Cha Seohu?”

With a neat knock, the reception room door opened and Kim Suho peeked in.

“Um, the guildmaster is calling for you. Would you be able to come up to the office now?”

The fake one was calling me? It had been about thirty minutes since meeting Song Ji-un and Ryu Seonghyeon. Had something happened?

“I’ll be right there.”

Honestly, it was a good thing. I didn’t want to keep these four in the same room for too long.

“Guildmaster, let’s go together. You guys wait here. I’ll be back soon.” I stood up from the sofa, holding Cha Sahyeon’s hand, which I had been clutching this whole time. Maybe the hug had helped a little, because Cha Sahyeon looked less upset now.

“Yes.”

At my suggestion, Kwon Taehyeok also got up without hesitation. He must have been uncomfortable here too.

“Stay out of trouble while I’m gone.”

“We’re not kids, you know?” Hyeon Dowun, showing clear annoyance that the conversation had been cut off so awkwardly, leaned back against the sofa.

Kwon Seoyul was pouting a little, but seeing that he stayed quiet, it seemed like he planned to wait obediently for now. Well, if anything looked like it might blow up, Hyeon Dowun would probably handle it.

Not knowing exactly why the fake called me, I thought I should settle it quickly and headed out of the reception room.

Once we were far enough that the voices from the room couldn’t reach us, Kwon Taehyeok, who had been following behind, finally spoke. “You seem very close to Hunter Hyeon Dowun.”

Given what he’d overheard earlier, it wasn’t surprising he’d be curious. I answered while casually walking, “We’ve been like brothers since we were kids. Of course, as you know, Guildmaster, we’re not real brothers.”

“…The kind of ‘brothers’ the district assigns?”

“Yes. But Hyeon Dowun is different from the others. He never treated me like a buff machine or a possession.”

“…”

“He’s the one and only friend I trust and rely on.”

Since Hyeon Dowun had acted a bit disrespectfully toward Kwon Taehyeok, it was fair to explain at least that much.

“Oh, and… regarding the misunderstanding that came up earlier, I want to apologize.” After making sure there were no eavesdroppers nearby, I turned to Kwon Taehyeok and spoke clearly. “Just to be absolutely clear, so you don’t have to worry—I’m not interested in men at all. All that dirty talk from earlier is just stuff from the past, and every single person involved was a woman. So there’s no need for you to be concerned.”

If things got awkward or distant between me and Kwon Taehyeok because of this misunderstanding, it would only hurt me. That’s why I made sure to explain firmly, leaving no room for doubt. And yet—

“…Yes. Understood.”

For some reason, after hearing my explanation, Kwon Taehyeok’s expression just got even worse.