IH Ch 137

Chapter 137

Skinny? This thick body?

Maybe the elders couldn’t tell because he was dressed. Beneath the clothes, his body was all solid muscle—dense, heavy, defined—and also—

As he followed that thought, Dohwa bent one knee, picked up a fresh piece of yukjeon the elder had brought, remembered the advice to eat it with scallions, and neatly placed a bundle of the sliced scallions in the center before rolling the meat around it.

“Try it.”

Holding the chopsticks almost like he was cupping them, Dohwa carefully offered the scallion-wrapped yukjeon. Jae-i hesitated, then slowly opened his mouth. He still wasn’t used to being fed; he accepted the bite cautiously, chewing with care. Dohwa watched him with eyes full of expectation. After slowly savoring the flavor, Jae-i nodded, speaking through his eyes: It’s good.

“The elders here are really good at cooking.”

Even though he hadn’t made the food himself, watching Jae-i eat so well filled him with a warm pride. Feeling his own lips rising, Dohwa saw Jae-i imitate him—rolling another generous piece and offering it back.

“……It’s huge.”

He hadn’t realized earlier how big the portions were when he was feeding Jae-i, but now that Jae-i was holding one up to his mouth, it looked enormous. He had no idea how Jae-i had eaten a piece like this in one bite.

Studying it with uncertainty, Dohwa inhaled deeply, then opened his mouth wide. He pushed the food inside and forced the rest in from the opposite side, somehow succeeding in fitting the entire thing into a single bite. Chewing was difficult, but the flavor—warm, savory—burst across his tongue. The rich taste of the meat mixed with the crisp, slightly sweet bitterness of the scallions, filling his mouth. Even after having eaten so many different things thanks to being with Jae-i, this was a new flavor.

Lost in the food, he didn’t notice that his cheeks were round and full—but Jae-i certainly did. Jae-i stared at Dohwa with an intensity that was almost fervent, as if the world would collapse if he looked away. Without blinking once, he reached out and touched one of those plump cheeks. Dohwa, still chewing diligently, lifted just his eyes.

What? he asked silently.

Jae-i kept tapping Dohwa’s cheeks, then gently stroked them. When his fingers slid lower toward Dohwa’s chin, Dohwa swallowed hard.

“…….”

He wasn’t sure where it happened, but Jae-i’s gaze had turned… indecent. As if he wanted to eat something other than food in this room. Dohwa rolled his eyes and whispered:

“Not here—”

“Why not?”

The voice came from outside.

Dohwa closed his mouth, and Jae-i turned toward the closed door. It fell silent for a heartbeat—then came a whiny complaint:

“Why can’t we?! We want to see Guildmaster Hwang Jae-i too!”

“Jaehyun already said he got to meet him! And he even got a present! That’s why Jaehyun’s running around right now, right? Jaehyun!”

“Jaehyun, what are you doing over there? Come here.”

“We’re not asking Guildmaster to do anything for us—we just want to say thank you! Because of him, Jaehyun can run again. Now he can play soccer and basketball with us! Before, it was only three of us, but now we have a fourth who can run fast!”

The voices were young and excited. And one name was familiar—Jaehyun.

As he stared at the closed door, rising slowly, Jae-i stood up. Dohwa, who had been on his knees, hurriedly rose with him.

“We just want to say hello! Just to see him!”

“We’re not asking for autographs or pictures! Why are you blocking us? You adults just want to hang out with the guildmaster without us, don’t you?!”

“So unfair!”

“What do you mean hang out? He’s not that kind of person—!”

Youth association leader Kwon-su was sweating buckets.

He’d volunteered to stand guard so the guildmaster could eat in peace, but he never expected the village kids to mob the door. Listening to them, he wanted to grant every request. A small peek, just a quick hello—they weren’t asking for much. But what if the guildmaster felt burdened and left without finishing his meal? That would be worse.

They needed to move the kids somewhere else before things got out of hand. Kwon-su raised a finger to his lips.

“Not here. Let’s step aside fir—”

The door creaked open.

He shut his mouth instantly and turned. Hwang Jae-i stepped out, head bowed, then straightened slowly. For something so simple, the moment felt cinematic—overwhelming. Kwon-su panicked.

“S-so sorry! They just—kept begging—!”

They weren’t bad kids. They just wanted to see the famous guildmaster they’d only seen on TV—and Jaehyun wanted to offer thanks for being able to run again.

There were only four kids in the whole village. Different ages, but they all played together like siblings. They hadn’t come with bad intentions.

As Kwon-su tried to defend them, Jae-i slipped his feet into the youth leader’s slippers—crushing the backs as he shoved them on. They were clearly too small, but he didn’t bother fixing them. The fact that Hwang Jae-i was wearing his slippers alone made Kwon-su emotional enough to tear up.

While the youth leader was busy admiring the slippers, Jae-i had already walked toward the children. With both hands shoved in his pockets and his stance slightly crooked, he looked almost rough—his expression cold, his gaze sharp, nothing about him kind.

But the kids stared at him with awe.

After all that whining to see him, once they did, they were speechless—eyes round, mouths open.

Watching their stunned faces, Jae-i asked first:

“If you’ve got nothing to say, I’m going back in.”

“N-no!”

One child squeaked, then spun around.

“Jaehyun! Come here! Guildmaster Hwang Jae-i is right here!”

At that, Jae-i lifted his head toward the iron gate, where Jaehyun hid, peeking timidly around the edge.

Startled, the kid ducked back instantly when their eyes met. Suddenly shy, skittish. Jae-i frowned slightly, wondering why, and spoke:

“Come here.”

Jaehyun peeked again. His eyes trembled. Really? Can I? After hesitating long enough to gather courage, he stepped out slowly. When he reached Jae-i, the guildmaster took one hand from his pocket and gently ruffled the boy’s small head.

Then stopped.

That single touch turned Jaehyun’s entire face bright red, and the other kids erupted.

“Whoa!! Hwang Jae-i touched Jaehyun’s head!”

“Me too! Me too!”

“Me toooooo!”

Like something monumental had just happened, they all shoved forward, competing for head pats. Jae-i’s expression stiffened. The youth leader panicked, taking off his cap to block the charging children like a shield.

“Hey—don’t do that! And you can’t just shout his name! He’s not your friend—!”

“But his name is Hwang Jae-i, so we’re calling him Hwang Jae-i!”

“That’s—! That’s not the point—!”

He was desperate, but four energetic, overexcited kids were too much to handle.

One slipped past and stood before Jae-i, tilting his head up and lifting one hand.

“M-me too.”

“……”

The boy gripped his own hat so tightly the brim crumpled. His sweat-dampened hair stuck to his forehead from running around all day. Seeing this, one of Jae-i’s eyes narrowed. Then he lifted his hand and placed it firmly on the boy’s head—rubbing hard enough to make the kid sway left and right.

“Whoa—whoaaa—!!”

Another kid appeared immediately, offering their head like it was the most natural thing. The absurdity didn’t even make Jae-i blink anymore. In the end, he ruffled the heads of all four children.

Youth leader Kwon-su looked like he might faint.

“S-sorry… They’ve never seen an S-rank hunter up close before…”

“But you’re the same as us!” a child shouted. “It’s your first time seeing Guildmaster Hwang Jae-i too!”

“Don’t call him by name like that—!”

The children weren’t listening at all.

With the guildmaster right there—and having just patted their heads—the distance between them felt nonexistent. They clung to his legs, grabbed his wrists, touched his thighs with awe.

“Wow, he’s so solid—!”

Seeing them grab at the guildmaster like an idol at a fan meet gone rogue, Kwon-su felt ready to collapse. What if Hwang Jae-i snapped, exploded, stormed off?

He urgently tried to pull the kids away—then looked at Jae-i’s face.

“…….”

Hands stuffed back in his pockets, expression dark and unreadable—yet somehow, despite everything…

He didn’t look like he was going to get angry at all.

Footnotes

1. Yukjeon Korean pan-fried beef dish, often served with scallions.