IH Ch 128

Chapter 128

“G–Guildmaster Park Jaehwan…?”

The reporter, who looked completely at a loss, stared up at him. Park Jaehwan narrowed his eyes and spoke.

“Reporter-nim, don’t waste your time here. Go dig into Hwang Hajin instead. If you do it right, you’ll strike a massive gold mine.”

“…Hunter Hwang Hajin? Guildmaster Hwang Jae-i’s father?”

“That’s the one.”

Park Jaehwan nodded, then tapped his own temple with two fingers.

“Think about it logically. What sane parent hides a child born out of wedlock by disguising him as someone else’s? They deceived everyone, sucked up all the sweet benefits, and the moment things got dangerous, they suddenly exposed the fact that he’s an illegitimate child. And you’re telling me those people are normal?”

“…….”

“Sure, keeping the guild’s base in Seoul would’ve been comfortable for Jae-i. Do you know how many employees are here? But the situation was shitty enough that he had to move. If you people in the media don’t prove that it wasn’t only your fault, you’re going to get roasted for the rest of your lives.”

The mere fact that an S-rank hunter had abandoned Seoul to move all the way down to Pohang was enough to terrify the public. Even if they knew he would still show up to handle gates, people didn’t care—they hated it. Out of selfishness, they believed every S-rank hunter must exist within the Seoul metro area so they could feel safer.

As the public’s anxiety grew, they would desperately look for somewhere to direct their anger. For now, they wouldn’t dare attack Hwang Jae-i—he needed to be soothed. So the first target to be torn apart would be the media.

“…….”

The reporter’s face went pale as the implications sank in. Park Jaehwan patted his shoulder lightly.

“I noticed earlier—someone from the media followed Jae-i to Pohang. And that video he shot? It practically helped Jae-i shift the guild base. If a video can do that much for him, imagine what it can do against him. If you investigate properly and make real progress, who knows? Maybe he’ll even decide to come back.”

“…….”

“Are you planning to stand here all day?”

“N–No. My apologies.”

The reporter quickly bowed and hurried off. The moment he disappeared, Park Jaehwan turned away.

Forget drinking—he needed to go home and stay inside. Wherever he went, these vultures would cling to him. Maybe he shouldn’t have said anything at all. Not that his words would change anything anyway.

“…….”

‘The kindness and warmth I felt there brought me great comfort. I want to live in a place that truly needs me and treats me kindly.’

As if he actually meant a word of that. Anyone else would have been fooled by the expression, the breath control, the tone. But Park Jaehwan saw every meticulously engineered detail behind each cut.

And now everyone left behind was in immense trouble. No one knew how the Association President or Hwang Hajin would respond. Should he call Jae-i? Not to ask why he’d made such a choice—just to ask if he was okay…

“Forget it.”

Saying something like that now would just be cringe. If something happened later, he’d help then. Hands shoved into his coat pockets, Park Jaehwan trudged away.

When Hwang Jae-i opened his eyes, his expression immediately hardened.

He was in an unfamiliar place, strapped to a chair with his entire body restrained. His arms and legs were tightly bound, leaving him unable to twitch even a finger, and a gag was wedged between his teeth. What? He tried to exert strength but his body wouldn’t respond.

Then it hit him: this wasn’t reality. It couldn’t be. Binding him like this was impossible. So what was this? Far too unfamiliar to be a dream. The cold, eerie surroundings were unlike anything he knew. A metal bed lay before him, leather straps dangling from it, cracked and rotted. Even the stains scattered around the room were unsettling.

Creak—

The metal door opened.

People in lab coats entered, wearing masks, goggles, and gloves. They approached and prodded him mechanically. After several pokes, as if disappointed by his condition, they exchanged curt words.

‘It seems to have failed.’

‘He’s still breathing. We can run a few more experiments.’

‘If there’s no reaction, isn’t it meaningless?’

‘…Don’t dispose of him yet. Monitor his condition for now.’

‘Understood.’

At the researcher’s signal, a man pushed in a wheelchair. They transferred him into it and rolled him out. Down a long corridor they went, eventually stopping before a massive cage. Inside were sub-cages stacked on levels—and inside those were humans.

Cramped spaces too small to stand or lie comfortably. Bodies twisted awkwardly, faces drained of expression. Lifeless eyes stared into nothing.

They tossed Jae-i into a relatively larger cage.

The helplessness—being unable to move even a finger—was nauseating. He struggled to force strength into his body when he felt a gaze. Moving only his eyes, he spotted a child beyond the bars, looking down at him.

‘…….’

After a brief exchange of glances, Jae-i drew in a deep breath and mouthed the name.

Dohwa?

Then someone appeared behind the child, gripping his small shoulder.

‘What are you doing here? Move.’

Dragged away, the child didn’t resist. His thin clothes exposed wrists and ankles marked with tiny scars. Hair overgrown and uneven. The memory of those black eyes lingered sharply.

Metal beds. Dangling straps. Stains everywhere. Surgical tools tossed on a rusting table by the door.

He remembered the first time he met Dohwa. The lab coat. The iron mask. The tiny cell that only one person could fit inside. The thick steel door. The cheap furniture.

Piece by piece, everything aligned—until a wave of nausea crashed into him. He felt like vomiting. His eyes flew open.

“……!”

He suppressed the sound instinctively—because Dohwa was lying asleep beside him. Not wanting to wake him, Jae-i took a deep breath, then froze.

A child stood on his torso, one foot planted on him. Long black hair. Red eyes glaring down. A sulky expression identical to his own.

The beast.

Last night, he had confirmed it was quietly curled in its cage in its original form. So when had it escaped? As he reached to grab the foot, the beast nimbly hopped away, bouncing to the floor and darting out of the room.

Jae-i first checked Dohwa.

After an exhausting night moving to Pohang and handling everything, Dohwa had fallen into a deep sleep. Satisfied that he was resting, Jae-i swung his legs off the bed and stepped out quietly. On his desk sat the beast, crouched with its hackles raised like an angry cat.

“That little—”

Near the door, the metal bars of the beast’s cage were bent sideways.

“…….”

It was supposed to be an A-rank cage. If the beast could snap it like that, he’d need an S-rank cage next time. Even then, it might break free. Meaning it could cause trouble while he and Dohwa slept. And yet it had only rested its foot on him?

Was that why he’d had such a bizarre dream? Whether the dream was real or not, he couldn’t tell. Maybe it was just stress from the last few days…

The beast continued to stare him down. Then its lips twitched. As it looked away awkwardly—

Grrrrrrr—

A loud rumble echoed.

Startled, the beast leapt straight up, panicked. It tried to flee into Dohwa’s room but tripped over itself and flopped to the floor. As it scrambled upright, Jae-i instinctively pulled out a mana stone.