Chapter 361

I was almost impressed by my own thoughtfulness in going so far as to arrange an actual meal for this. I flicked my hand toward Sung Uijae, whose expression had gone stiff.

“Not going to introduce yourself?”

If he didn’t want to, whatever. It wasn’t like things absolutely had to start with an introduction anyway. At that moment, Kang Sojeong set her cup down with a sharp clack and spoke.

“I’m Ms. Kang Sojeong, and you’re Hunter...?”

“Then why don’t you two just speak casually? This is Uijae, and this is Sojeong.”

“You speak politely. You’re younger than me, rude as hell, and you don’t listen to a word I say.... What did you even do with all that Hunter Association information I gave you?”

“Put it to good use. Didn’t you see the articles? Public opinion is fucked.”

I had actually exchanged messages with Kang Sojeong several times. Anyway, since Kang Sojeong’s objective wasn’t all that different from mine, they had been more cooperative than I’d expected. Like sharing all the Hunter Association information they had completely spilled, for example.

Being able to kill Director Choi and then cobble together all kinds of controversies to feed to the media was all thanks to Kang Sojeong.

‘As for where Kang Sojeong got all this information....’

Well, there might be someone behind them. I nodded as I recalled what had been recorded on the recorder I’d taken from Joo Seowon.

“Wait, wait. Stop.”

Sung Uijae reached out and cut off the conversation, then frowned deeply as he rested a hand against his chin with a serious expression.

“So... what exactly is going on here? I’m the only one who didn’t get an explanation, right? Hunter Seo, you... after that contract, you didn’t tell me a damn thing and suddenly set up something like this? I told you to go to a hospital.”

“I explained it to you.”

“So you’re saying you’re going to talk about everything I told you right in front of them? I didn’t tell you that stuff in confidence for this.”

Was it really important enough to call confidential?

I instantly found that ridiculous and frowned as I looked back at Sung Uijae.

“Confidential?”

“Hey, did you think I expected you to turn it into an article?”

“Then what, were you planning to write it in your secret diary and have it buried with you? You told me because you wanted it solved anyway, didn’t you? The reason you told me back then was because you wanted to find ‘that person’ too.”

Kang Sojeong cut in.

“That person? Are you talking about me?”

“I’m talking to Hunter Sung first, so don’t butt in and wait a little.”

“Ha.... You’re really pissing me off.”

“Even so, he’s being really polite by his standards. Last time, once we were done talking, he told me to get the hell out of the car.”

Wanting to calm down the idiots who were making noise with useless comments, I struck my plate three times with my spoon.

Clang, clang, clang.

“Quiet.”

“See? He’s seriously rude.”

“I’ll give both of you a chance to speak after I’m done, so keep your mouths shut.”

“.......”

“I’ll explain the situation. Back when Hunter Sung was either newly awakened or right before awakening, anyway, when a Dungeon Break happened and you were about to get completely fucked, there was a Hunter from the Hunter Association who saved you. At the time, you completely ignored the favor because you were too busy worrying about your own safety, but after thinking about it carefully, apparently you decided you ought to repay it.”

“What? Hey. How about you stop making shit up? I thought about that really seriously before I came to....”

He just kept interrupting. I brought my index finger to my lips once to tell him to be quiet, then tapped the plate again.

Clink, clink.

“And the terminally ill lover you talked about back then just happened to be Ms. Kang Sojeong. Right?”

“.......”

“You even went as far as scamming people in another country to get an Elixir. You probably would’ve died before now otherwise. Your body’s doing a little better these days, right?”

“No.”

“What an incredible coincidence. Everything Ms. Kang Sojeong was doing back then looked suspicious from beginning to end, so I dug into them. But maybe because their life was on the line, there were tons of things Ms. Kang Sojeong failed to clean up properly. Well, honestly, I’d already gotten all the information and was basically certain when I tested the waters....”

“.......”

“And it matched perfectly.”

I clapped my hands once, smiled, then pointed alternately at Sung Uijae and Kang Sojeong.

“So the two of you can have a symbiotic relationship. Ms. Kang Sojeong wants revenge, and Hunter Sung wants to repay his debt by granting Ms. Kang Sojeong’s requests. Win-win.”

“.......”

“.......”

“Ants and aphids?”

When I even gave them an analogy to help explain it, Sung Uijae clutched his forehead. Kang Sojeong stared at one spot on the wall with their arms crossed as though glaring at it, then sighed.

“If I ever met someone involved....”

“Yes.”

“I thought I’d meet them under circumstances a little more moving than this.”

Hm? I had absolutely no idea what part had made them imagine something like that.

I effortlessly ignored Kang Sojeong’s incomprehensible comment and served myself some food.

“Then you two talk. I’m going to eat.”

“.......”

“.......”

Even if I vouched for everything, they would still need to verify the facts with each other. Out of consideration for the two of them, I focused on my meal. I reached for a few dishes that were awkwardly far away and placed them in front of Do Yehyun, who had been sitting quietly, then gestured toward him.

“Need anything else?”

“No, I’m... fine. What about you?”

“I’m good. Can you pass me some water? Talking made me thirsty.”

I took Do Yehyun’s water and drank while focusing on my meal, when I felt eyes on me. When I finally raised my head, I saw Kang Sojeong and Sung Uijae both looking at me.

“What?”

“No, Hunter Seo. I expect absolutely nothing from you.”

“.......”

After saying that, the two of them went quiet for a moment, then started talking on their own.

“Should we confirm the name first? What I know is Park Seoncheong.”

“...That’s right.”

“Mm, I’m sorry. I tried to find them too, but... the Hunter Association had restricted access from the beginning, so it wasn’t easy.”

“.......”

“I’m sorry I didn’t look right away. I’d even prepared myself to think it was my fault if they’d died... I’m glad you’re alive. You got an Elixir? Even though you’re unawakened.... Mm, any side effects?”

“There are a few. It’s fine.”

“I see.”

Sung Uijae interlaced his fingers where his hands rested neatly on the table and fidgeted with them for a moment before speaking again.

“You had a rare disease?”

“My immune system had problems, so I wasn’t going to live long anyway. They knew that when we started seeing each other.”

“Doesn’t an Elixir interact with mana?”

“It was processed before I drank it, so it’s fine. There are some minor side effects too... and it cost quite a lot.”

“I think I can take care of the money.”

I chewed and swallowed my food, then abruptly cut into their conversation.

“Talk about something constructive instead of money. Ms. Kang Sojeong’s objective is wiping out the Hunter Association.”

“...How exactly can I help?”

“I am planning to drag back up the whole thing where the Hunter Association went after Hunter Sung over your nationality. Right now is the time to bombard them through public opinion.”

“.......”

“At first I’ll probably be too busy using Hunter Sung to beat the shit out of the Hunter Association, but there could be some backlash later. Well, it’s not like that really matters much. You can just stop looking at your phone.”

At that, Sung Uijae looked at me with a strange expression. I could sense a faint irritation in his eyes, so when I stared back at him awkwardly, Sung Uijae cleared his throat once.

“...No, you’re surprisingly thoughtful.”

“......?”

“You’re even worrying about my public image... and asking me about it?”

“Did you perhaps miss the part where I just said there might be backlash, but I don’t really give a shit?”

“I’ve known this guy for quite a while, and if he gives you this much warning, that’s an enormous favor. Usually he causes the whole mess, then when you ask if he did it, he just goes, ‘Wasn’t me.’”

What the hell was that supposed to mean?

I picked up some food with my fork, cut off Sung Uijae’s pointless chatter, and continued my explanation.

“Of course, before that, there’s one more thing you need to do. I need a justification to suddenly bring that issue back up.”

“...And what’s that?”

“You need to enter a Gate. I’ll set everything up, so all you have to do is go in.”

At that, Sung Uijae planted his elbow on the table and pointed sharply at me.

“Hey, Hunter Seo. Don’t just gloss over it with an explanation like that. It makes me nervous.”

“.......”

“You were talking about killing people and all that last time too. I’m... against that kind of thing.”

Kang Sojeong lifted their eyes from their plate.

“Do you have some kind of conviction about it?”

“It’s more of a complicated internal issue than that. You understand once you awaken as an S-rank Hunter. Going from human to inhuman overnight is one thing, but realizing the entire process is made up purely of exhilaration and intoxication feels really unpleasant.”

“I’ve never been an S-rank Hunter, but I do know someone who lived as a Hunter and died because of the Association. And I don’t care if they all die. Frankly, definite revenge is better than forgiveness. Forgiveness is something you can only talk about when you’re completely on the perpetrator’s side.”

“Hey, if you don’t forgive them, then the positions of perpetrator and victim end up reversing.”

“You can only say that because you’re an S-rank Hunter.”

“Sorry, but can we not fight? If it were Hunter Seo, sure, but I don’t really want to fight with you. If possible, I want to grant whatever you ask.”

Before their argument could grow any bigger, I slammed my hand down on the table to settle things.

“Stop fighting and talk properly. I went through the trouble of introducing you two, so you should be fucking grateful.”

“Hunter Seo, did you just say fucking....”

“The reason I brought the two of you together was because I wanted to wedge my own request in between yours. I’m going to set this entire thing up completely around what I want. Anyway, you two get what you want, and in between that, I get what I want too. That’s what I’m saying.”

Only then did the two of them quiet down again, and I finally got to the point.

“You’re going into a Gate with the Hunter Association. Of course, I’ll be going in too. And something is going to go wrong with the Hunter Association in there. I’m going to position Hunter Sung as an appropriate victim and build the public-opinion campaign around that, so all you need to do is listen to what I tell you.”

“.......”

“No one’s going to die.”

“You said you’d grant my request too.”

Kang Sojeong threw down their fork and shot to their feet. I jerked my chin at them to sit down and spoke.

“We’ll talk about that separately.”

“I never trusted you from the start. How am I supposed to trust a psychopath who even threw his own colleague off a cliff?”

“If this was going to end with killing one or two people, why the hell would I have gotten all that Hunter Association information from you in the first place? You’re smart, so stop acting like a fucking idiot and listen. I’m going to collapse the structure.”

“How does the structure collapse if the people are still alive? Are you going to put them in prison or something?”

“Obviously I am. I’ll take care of that part.”

At that, Kang Sojeong crookedly raised the corner of their mouth.

“Who the hell are you? Are you somebody important? You acting like this because you’ve got the Haeseong Guild Master backing you?”

“Well, the Guild Master is basically a cheat code, but I’m the one who’s gotten us this far. I’m the decision-maker too. We have the same objective, so how about you stop being so uncooperative?”

“Speak politely.”

“Yes, anyway, the conclusion is... first, you’re going to a Gate with Hunter Sung. You agree, right?”

Sung Uijae, who had been watching the conversation with his chin propped on his hand, nodded a beat later.

“...Yeah. I agree. But the exact schedule....”

“We’re going tomorrow.”

“.......”

“.......”

The moment I said it, my phone rang with perfect timing, and I lowered my eyes toward it. I glanced at the name on the screen and stood up, and all three pairs of eyes followed me at once.

“...Tomorrow?”

“Tomorrow evening. That means you’ve got a whole twenty-four hours.”

“.......”

“I’m going to take this call. Don’t dig into Yehyun’s personal information, and just talk between yourselves. Yehyun, you don’t have to answer anything, so just sit quietly.”

“Okay.”

“Sorry, but what exactly is your relationship with this one? Younger brother?”

“We live together.”

“.......”

At my simple explanation, Sung Uijae reflexively frowned. I completely ignored his strange reaction and started to leave, then met Kang Sojeong’s eyes and lightly mimed tapping on my phone. Kang Sojeong seemed to understand the gesture and checked their phone while watching Sung Uijae’s reaction.

Don’t worry. I’ll kill them.

Kang Sojeong must have seen the message I sent, because their expression relaxed compared to before and they quietly leaned back in their chair. I subtly confirmed it, snorted with amusement, answered the call, brought the phone to my ear, and headed outside.

-Jehyun, is the conversation going well?

“Splendidly.”

-So that means no....

“You’re free tomorrow evening, right?”

Im Haekyung went quiet for a moment before answering in a voice no different from usual.

-Of course. I was actually calling... to tell you about that.