IH Ch 138

Chapter 138

The youth leader, who had been trying to pull the child off, withdrew his hand and shuffled backward. In the meantime, Jaehyun crept closer to Jae-i and grabbed the right side of his own pants. Sneaking glances at Jae-i, he slowly rolled up the hem of his trousers, lifting his right leg just a little. Unlike the other children, he wasn’t being loud or rowdy—more as if to say, “Look at this.” Jae-i’s attention snapped to him at once.

But as soon as Jae-i’s gaze landed on him, Jaehyun panicked and lowered his leg immediately, tightening his grip on the rolled-up fabric. Seeing all this, Jae-i asked in passing,

“Does it bother you?”

“…N-no! No, sir!”

It took Jaehyun a moment to realize Jae-i had spoken to him; only on the second try did he manage to answer with proper energy. Rolling his pants up again, he proudly displayed the smooth, sturdy leg.

“I can climb the mountain now, and I can play soccer and run too! It doesn’t hurt when I get up in the morning anymore, and I can crouch down now—look!”

To prove it, Jaehyun squatted down right there and then rose to his feet, bouncing lightly in place. The other kids immediately burst into excited chatter.

“Jaehyun runs super fast now! And he kicks the ball so well!”

“But he still shouldn’t run too long at once, so he has to take breaks!”

“So we were gonna climb the mountain with him after school, but um, the grown-ups said it was dangerous, so we only walk behind his family’s café.”

“But isn’t it okay now? They said Chairman Jang disappeared!”

That’s what the adults had said—Chairman Jang, who had been thoroughly beaten by Guildmaster Hwang Jae-i, had vanished without a trace. The most dangerous person was gone, so at least for a while, they could breathe easier.

But regardless of Chairman Jang’s presence or absence, the mountains and ocean were inherently dangerous. When the sun went down, children were not to leave their homes. But now, standing right before them, was Hwang Jae-i.

“Since Hwang Jae-i is here, can we go deeper into the mountain to play now?”

“……”

“Can we go swimming at the beach?”

Even with the brilliant blue ocean right before their eyes, the children had always been forbidden to go down alone. Long before they were born, the village had two minor Gate occurrences. The adults who had lived through those incidents had warned them over and over again that the mountains, the sea—people too—were dangerous, and that they must be careful.

But here stood Hwang Jae-i. Korea’s top S-class hunter. Someone this strong and incredible—surely everything would be fine now? All four children gazed up at him with bright, sparkling eyes.

“……”

He hadn’t come here for leisure. A web of complicated circumstances surrounded him, and his presence here wasn’t entirely positive for the villagers. This quiet, peaceful place was now attracting unwanted attention because of him, and that could bring trouble.

Yet the moment he had come just to offer greetings, the villagers had welcomed him with a holiday-like feast, and these naïve children had been so overjoyed they could hardly stay still. They weren’t afraid of him, nor wary—they seemed to welcome him. Looking at the earnest little faces, Jae-i finally spoke.

“…Don’t do anything the adults told you not to do.”

The children immediately drooped, shocked he would say such a thing.

“But if I check first, I’ll make you a walking path you can use safely tomorrow.”

“…Really?”

“Wow!!”

Disappointment vanished instantly, replaced by exploding delight. All four children threw their arms up in the air.

Kwon-su, the youth leader standing behind them, grew increasingly nervous. Was it really alright to leave things like this? Would the guildmaster, already busy and exhausted, be further troubled because of the children? He was about to intervene when Jaehyun quietly approached Jae-i again.

Unlike the other children who had tugged or clung to the guildmaster nonstop, Jaehyun reached out hesitantly, his small hand brushing against Jae-i’s waist. Jae-i looked down at him, then lowered himself slowly. Kneeling on one knee, he squatted to meet the child’s height. Jaehyun flinched at first, then blushed bright red as he whispered,

“…Thank you for giving me my leg back. I should’ve thanked you then, but I was really startled.”

He wanted to speak calmly, but remembering the moment his artificial limb had turned into a real leg choked him up. He rubbed his eyes with his fist and sniffed, then continued while looking straight at Jae-i.

“Mom wanted to thank you too. She said she’s really, really grateful… and she still sneaks into my room when I’m asleep to touch my leg and cry.”

“……”

“Sometimes I still can’t believe I have a real leg again… but I’m getting used to it. So I’m going to exercise really hard with my friends, and get even healthier. And study a lot too, and… and also…”

Jaehyun had many things he wanted to say to the hunter, but now that he was here, the words stuck in his throat. Twisting his joined hands shyly, he watched as Jae-i spoke quietly.

“I got the drawing.”

Jaehyun’s face lit up in mortified joy. “Y-you saw it…?” he whispered. Jae-i nodded, then leaned in slightly.

“The thing inside that drawing is a secret between us.”

“……”

Jaehyun froze, then looked up at him.

Through Jae-i’s shoulder, he could see someone seated behind a slightly opened door—a figure wearing a deeply pulled-down hoodie and thick glasses.

It was Dohwa.

“……”

Jaehyun still dreamed of the day Jae-i restored his leg. And he still remembered how terrifying the hunter had been who tried to hurt him—and how Dohwa had protected him. Everything he had witnessed remained vivid even now.

So it was something to keep secret. Maybe he shouldn’t have included that part in the drawing at all. Jaehyun slowly nodded.

“Yes… it’s a secret.”

“…Good.”

Only after hearing the answer did Jae-i roughly ruffle the boy’s hair again and stand.

He felt that he had dealt with enough children for one day. His stomach was pleasantly full—perhaps it was time to head back. Looking at Kwon-su, he wordlessly conveyed the message. The youth leader nodded immediately, about to escort him back when, suddenly, loud intro music blasted from somewhere nearby.

“……”

Doo-doo-dung, koong-koong, followed by a bright, bouncy trot melody. Everyone—Kwon-su, Jae-i, Dohwa, and the children—turned at once.

“I mean, the second I saw the karaoke machine, I just had to sing. They fed us all this delicious food—wouldn’t it be rude not to do anything in return?”

A perfectly straight-faced Ahn Yuna held a bottle of makgeolli in one hand. Beneath the platform where the hunters had been eating was a row of over twenty empty bottles. Sitting cross-legged, shaking the bottle, she suddenly looked up at Jae-i and giggled. She looked fine at first glance, but her eyes were half unfocused.

Turning away from her, Jae-i glanced at Seowon, who had been tormenting his eardrums for a while—belting out a mix of falsetto and chest voice with enough force to burst a blood vessel. Next to him, Yohan shook a tambourine, and close-combat hunter Jigyu twisted his limbs into bizarre shapes before dropping to the ground and spinning like a breakdancer.

Even ordinary people would have drawn a crowd like this—but they were hunters. People you’d see on TV doing heroics. And now they were willingly clowning around for entertainment. Naturally, the villagers loved it—clapping, cheering, and even queuing up the next song.

“……”

When Seowon first started singing, Jae-i wondered what on earth he was doing. Though he himself had never cared about looking proper in public, he at least made sure the guild members carried themselves decently. He could survive anywhere alone, but they might not. Unless they planned to remain with Jae-i Guild forever, they needed to know how to present themselves. Yet here they were—completely letting loose.

Normally, Ahn Yuna would be the one to rein them in, but she had deliberately refrained from using her alcohol-detox ability and was thoroughly drunk. She swayed, sang along, and burst into laughter whenever Jigyu attempted another ridiculous move. The other hunters looked relaxed, and the villagers were delighted. Everyone was smiling.

“……”

Not wanting to disrupt the warm, joyful atmosphere, Jae-i quietly stepped back. Keeping a respectful distance, he slipped out of the village square.

He had never lost attention to others before, yet this time he had no chance of competing with the scene. Moving quietly, he checked that Dohwa was following him, reached out—and froze when he spotted Soonim emerging from Kwon-su’s house.

Holding an empty tray, she looked at the two of them and asked curtly,

“Heading back?”

“Yes.”

Soonim gestured pointedly at the house with her tray.

“I gave you food, and you didn’t touch half of it.”

“…We ate a lot.”

They had eaten most of the soup and rice, and sampled every other dish. They were full even now. But the plate wasn’t spotless, and that seemed to displease her. Clicking her tongue, she clasped her hands behind her back and approached.