Snake Venom Ch 9

Chapter 9

The half-blood stared intently in Yeonwoo’s direction before stretching his lips into a wide, torn grin. Even though he had neither seen Yeonwoo’s face properly nor heard his voice, he realized it just the same as Yeonwoo had. That was the rat he had been waiting to catch.

“Well, well. You heard everything, huh?”

The sensation of the half-blood’s attention locking onto him brought a wave of fear far stronger than anticipated. Yeonwoo’s fingertips began to freeze. He barely managed to raise his voice.

“There was nothing to hear. You didn’t even last three minutes.”

“You little shit—”

Yeonwoo glanced toward the direction where the man was standing. He was still rooted in place. Yeonwoo couldn’t tell if it was because he was trying to follow the advice he’d been given, or because his body was still frozen with fear.

Either way, Yeonwoo prayed silently. He didn’t know the man’s name or face, and probably never would. But still—he hoped he would survive. That even in despair, he would hold on, just as Yeonwoo had. Rather than being consumed by the humiliation and the memory of being assaulted and doused in food by President Park, Yeonwoo chose to plant the seeds of hope. As always, he looked toward the light.

As the half-blood closed in with large strides, Yeonwoo stepped backward until his fingers touched the stool. Without hesitation, he picked it up and hurled it at the half-blood.

“You fucking bastard—!”

It wasn’t enough to inflict real damage, but it was more than enough to complete his provocation. The half-blood batted it away, and a flash of murderous light passed through his eyes.

“Still playing tricks. Just wait until I catch you…”

“Quit flapping your mouth.”

Yeonwoo cut him off mid-sentence and snapped back,

“Try catching me already.”

With that, he dashed up the stairs.

Infuriated, the half-blood gave chase. But just as he rounded the corner, Yeonwoo—who had crouched beneath the stair railing—kicked his shin hard. As the half-blood stumbled, Yeonwoo shoved him with all his strength. Crash! The half-blood tumbled down the stairs but barely managed to grab the railing.

“You little rat!”

Yeonwoo peeked over the railing and called down.

“If you don’t want to share your little rat, maybe keep quiet.”

Snarling and baring his teeth, the half-blood began bounding up the stairs at terrifying speed. Without a moment’s hesitation, Yeonwoo plunged into the darkness.

The provocation had worked, but now came the real challenge. How would he shake off this beast who had now singled him out as a target? In a long-term chase, Yeonwoo was at a disadvantage. Facing a carnivorous half-blood in one-on-one pursuit was essentially suicide.

The only advantage Yeonwoo had was his heightened sense of smell and his memory. He relied on the mental map he’d drawn in his mind. He moved by stepping only on places he remembered, avoiding even the smallest obstacle. Barefoot, he made almost no noise. Still, the half-blood was right on his tail. It would be a grueling fight.

Maintaining a consistent distance, Yeonwoo sprinted down the fourth-floor hallway. He passed the first and second rooms quickly. Then, as he approached the third—

He lured the half-blood toward the field of glass shards he had scattered earlier. At the start of the glass-covered floor, Yeonwoo leapt, stretching his airtime as long as possible. As he couldn’t precisely gauge the landing, he tucked his body into a roll.

“FUCK! Shit!”

The half-blood hadn’t seen the glass in time and screamed in pain. He staggered, examining the soles of his feet before roaring in rage.

“I’LL FUCKING KILL YOU!”

The scent of blood suddenly thickened in the air. Success. Yeonwoo smirked. The half-blood’s scent was now more potent, easily identifiable. Like putting a bell on a cat. At the very least, Yeonwoo now had a way to avoid surprise attacks.

Now I just need to get as far away as I can and hide. I just have to survive until the signal sounds. Yeonwoo repeated this to himself.

He had survived a game with nine frenzied half-bloods in heat. Compared to that, this was nothing. Bolstered by this thought, Yeonwoo ducked behind a bookshelf taller than his head.

Thud! Suddenly, a heavy crash rang out and the shelf tilted. Yeonwoo looked up, drawing a sharp breath. There was no need to look back—shelves of the same size were collapsing in a chain reaction. If he stayed, he would be crushed or trapped. He hurled himself out just in time, but—

“Urgh!”

His hair was yanked back violently.

“Got you.”

He had expected retaliation, knowing the half-blood must be familiar with the terrain too. But not this fast. Not this strong. No—this had been a plan. The half-blood had cornered him here intentionally, where the surroundings gave him the advantage.

Dragged by the scalp, Yeonwoo felt like his skin would rip off. He clawed and tore at the half-blood’s hand, but once caught, he couldn’t break free. His body was hoisted into the air. SMACK! A sharp slap tore at his cheek. Before he could recover, his hair was yanked again. The half-blood hauled him along like a sack of grain and spoke.

“You called me a premature ejaculator, didn’t you? Know why? Because the guy I was fucking died mid-fuck. I’m not into corpses. But you? I bet I can make you cum over and over.”

He spoke such terrifying things without a trace of hesitation. Then he pulled Yeonwoo’s body inward with a violent tug. Gagging as his airway compressed, Yeonwoo still scoured the surroundings. The wall drew near.

Yeonwoo kicked it with force and flipped his body. At the same time, he twisted the wrist that was gripping his hair as hard as he could. Crack! With the sound of twisting muscle came a scream.

“ARGH!”

Only one shot at this. Planting his hands on the floor, Yeonwoo gritted his teeth and grabbed the half-blood by the collar.

Wounds to the sole weren’t enough—he knew that now. Close combat like this was also something he should have avoided at all costs. But now that he’d been forced into it, he had to turn it into an opportunity. Slamming himself into the half-blood’s chest, Yeonwoo pulled his fist back.

“Where do you think you’re—!”

The hit landed cleanly, but the half-blood’s durability was the real issue. His eyes widened with fury as he slammed his fist upward into Yeonwoo’s abdomen. THUD! The impact was brutal—strong enough to force up stomach acid. Yeonwoo couldn’t even groan as the half-blood pinned him to the ground and sneered.

“Yeah! Fuck! Now that’s what I’m talking about.”

This was a man who made money violating others. With zero hesitation, the half-blood bound Yeonwoo’s hands behind his back and shoved his nape down hard. Thunk. His cheek ground into the floor. Yeonwoo whimpered, the pressure making him feel like his neck would snap. The half-blood gripped the back of his neck and growled.

“Listen up. Every time you fight back, I’m smashing your face into the ground.”

“Hhn… Let me go.”

“Didn’t I say, this oppa is talking?”

WHAM! WHAM! The half-blood slammed Yeonwoo’s face into the floor before straightening up. As if his rage still hadn’t cooled, he unleashed a torrent of profanity, then began grinding himself against the cleft of Yeonwoo’s ass.

“President Park told me to go easy when I fuck you. Said don’t be a bastard. But I do whatever the fuck I want—!”

It was then.

PFFFT. A controlled rupture sounded from behind Yeonwoo. In the next instant, the half-blood collapsed on top of him, and a thick wave of blood filled the air.

Time seemed to stop.

“……”

Just now…

What was that?

His mind couldn’t catch up with the situation.

In this hunting ground, the most you could call a weapon was a piece of scrap or a broken piece of furniture. Lethal weapons that could inflict real damage were banned by President Park for fear of ruining the “fun” of the game. The only sharp object Yeonwoo had brought was the glass shard. Yet, the half-blood now lying atop him had no heartbeat. It was a clean kill.

That’s when he caught the faint scent of gunpowder.

Still gasping under the weight of the massive body, Yeonwoo’s eyes flew wide.

“……!”

A gun. There was a participant in the hunting ground with a gun.

And before the shock had even begun to fade, a clear, heavy voice calmly spoke his name.

“Yeonwoo-ssi.”

Yeonwoo thought he’d misheard.

Due to President Park’s strict control, the participants didn’t know each other’s identities. No matter how depraved the game, anonymity was strictly preserved. So how—

Yeonwoo slowly turned and flinched.

The half-blood’s bulky corpse was being casually moved aside, its head held by someone. Yeonwoo raised his gaze further. Amidst the thick stench of blood, a familiar scent drifted through. A scent he could now never mistake—it was that man. The human he had helped.

Thud. The man, having tossed aside the corpse, knelt down on one knee. He lowered himself and pointed the gun directly at Yeonwoo’s forehead. The smell of gunpowder was strong. It was a real gun. As Yeonwoo held his breath, the same composed voice flowed into his ears.

“Wanna team up?”