IH Ch 62

Chapter 62

Then a tremendous yell erupted from the other end of the phone. Whatever was being shouted came through loud and clear to both Kim Inseok and the others nearby, but Jae-i responded calmly, as though he were used to it. He explained his current location, described the English letters printed on the clothes of the unknown man from the photo, and added,

“I think someone’s been tailing me to deliberately stir up trouble. Check for any links to Pungjin’s side. I’ll contact you again later.”

Having said what he needed to, Jae-i ended the call. Kim Inseok, now holding his returned phone, saw the number on the screen and his eyes lit up. There were only a handful of people Hwang Jae-i would speak to like that, and among them was Hunter Ahn Yuna. After all, she was the one who handled most of his affairs. Was it really okay for him to know her number? As he debated whether to delete it, he realized his eyes had already memorized it.

Just then, the sound of a beast’s low, guttural growl echoed from not far away. At once, Kim Inseok’s body shivered, and he hunched his shoulders in reaction. The villagers were no different. They immediately recognized that the beastly cry was unlike anything they had ever heard before. Only now did they realize Kim Inseok had not been lying, and a mild panic began to spread.

“Don’t tell me Chairman Jang actually intends to unleash monsters on us to clean up his mess?”

“No way he’d go that far, right? I mean, trading monsters is illegal, and using them like this is also—”

“If he cared about what was legal, would he be treating us like this in the first place?!”

“…”

At someone’s outburst, everyone fell silent. It was true—if he had any respect for legality, he wouldn’t have sent Hunters to begin with.

“…What should we do?”

Most of the Hunters under Chairman Jang were around D-rank. The villagers had been able to capture them, but monsters were a different matter. According to that man earlier, the creatures were A-rank. Weren’t such things supposed to only appear inside Gates? Their expressions hardened as they turned to look at Hwang Jae-i. While everyone else fidgeted with anxiety and dread, he alone remained composed, as though this had nothing to do with him.

And in fact, it didn’t. The people, disheartened by the realization that Chairman Jang was truly insane enough to resort to monsters to wipe them out along with the village, began to speak hesitantly.

“Um, Guild Leader…”

“We can handle this ourselves.”

Cutting off the villagers mid-sentence was the youth association leader. Stepping deliberately in front of Hwang Jae-i, he spoke with unwavering resolve.

“That bastard Jang—everyone knew he was capable of this. There’s no choice now but to fight with our lives on the line.”

“B-But there are monsters!”

“So what?! Even if they’re monsters, they can’t survive bullets!”

With a spirited shout, the youth leader rallied the others.

“Arm yourselves, everyone! Move the elderly and kids into my house—quickly now! Hurry!!”

As if unwilling to hear any objections, the youth leader moved first. The stunned villagers, watching him in disbelief, slowly began to follow.

Even more shocked than the villagers was Kim Inseok. Had these people even heard what he said? He’d mentioned A-rank monsters. Sure, maybe they’d turn out to be lower-ranked once the bags were opened—but still, they were monsters. Bullets wouldn’t kill them. Maybe C-rank ones would go down, but from B-rank upward, regular weapons were useless.

“This is insane.”

Muttering to himself, Kim Inseok quickly turned around.

These ordinary people were preparing to take on A-rank monsters. Was he really going to do nothing? That couldn’t be right. He was about to speak up—when he saw Jae-i’s expression, cold and immovable like a mask, and flinched.

“…”

Being S-rank didn’t mean he could act however he pleased. He had to report to the Association before entering a Gate, and every time he traveled abroad, he had to declare his destination and obtain approval from neighboring countries.

That’s how significant—and dangerous—he was considered. Especially now, after the events earlier in the day had stirred public opinion, if it became known that he was not in Seoul but in Pohang, he’d be bombarded from all directions. If Hwang Jae-i were to step in, the issue could be resolved in a heartbeat—but that wasn’t the point.

Before now, Kim hadn’t thought much about it. If someone had asked what to do in a situation like this, he would’ve answered purely in theory.

“He’s S-rank, after all. Using powers privately? That’s a no-go.”

But that was the kind of thing you could only say from the comfort of a safe space, pen in hand.

Suddenly, a large hand clapped down on Kim Inseok’s shoulder. Startled by the unexpected touch, Kim turned around to find a man wearing a bulletproof vest with a shotgun slung over one shoulder. It was the same man who had first spotted him lingering at the village entrance and dragged him in.

Was he going to be detained again? Kim panicked and waved his hands, saying to wait a moment. But instead, the man handed him a set of car keys.

“Take it.”

“…What is this?”

He accepted them automatically, but was clueless.

“It’ll only get more dangerous here. Leave while you still can. The car’s at the red-roofed house over there.”

“…”

“If you make it out safely, write an article about what happened today. Expose Chairman Jang and his backers. Write about what happened here and in the village up north too. People probably won’t care, but… whatever. Just go.”

The man gave Kim a push on the shoulder and glanced at Hwang Jae-i. He looked like he wanted to say something, but just pressed his lips together and hurried off.

Behind the village hall was a warehouse that served as their armory, and the village men—now dressed in similar gear—scattered in all directions. Others swarmed the youth leader’s house, mostly elderly and children. Among them were some familiar faces.

The café owner and her son Jaehyun lit up upon seeing Jae-i. Jaehyun started to raise his arm in greeting, but the woman quickly clapped her hand over his mouth and rushed them inside. In all the frantic movement, Hwang Jae-i alone remained standing still. And leaning quietly against the back wall of the village hall was Dohwa.

What had been a quiet space turned noisy. The room that just moments ago had held only Jae-i and Dohwa was now filled with elders and children. Even then, they barely numbered ten. The village men weren’t much better. Fewer than twenty, half of whom were middle-aged or elderly with graying hair. Still, they all picked up rifles and scattered as if it were their duty to protect the village and its people. Feeling the weight of a gaze on his face, Dohwa looked up.

An elder stood just inside the open gates of the village hall, hands clasped behind his back. He was the one who had given them delicious banquet noodles and bibimbap for free. Dohwa, watching the man who was now silently watching him, began to walk over. As soon as he stopped in front of him, the elder spoke.

“Staying here will only get you caught up in trouble. So take that big guy with you and leave.”

“…”

“Whatever else may be, that guy’s got a lot of lawsuits hanging over him already. No need to add more fuel to the fire.”

When Dohwa just stood there silently, the elder quietly studied his face. Then, turning away, he spoke as if in passing.

“You should go too.”

“…”

He probably didn’t know anything specific. But perhaps, having lived so long, he saw something in Dohwa that others didn’t. Looking back toward Jae-i, who still hadn’t moved, Dohwa clasped his hands together.

Amid the wind, the low growl of beasts echoed once again. The monsters were gathering, drawn to the scent of fresh prey. Amid it all, Dohwa picked up on the faint sound of footsteps—quiet and masked—and began walking toward Jae-i.

In the village hall remained only Hwang Jae-i, Kim Inseok who still couldn’t decide whether to leave, and two villagers standing guard over Chairman Jang’s captured lackey.

Standing behind Jae-i, Dohwa spoke.

“Hey.”

“…”

At first, there was no reaction. But eventually, Jae-i slowly turned around, his face filled with disbelief. He himself had casually called Dohwa “hey” all the time—but clearly didn’t appreciate being addressed the same way.

Staring at that face, Dohwa whispered,

“If you get rid of all of them, no one outside will ever hear about it.”

“…”

His hardened expression slowly softened—not because Dohwa’s suggestion was correct, but because of the way he’d phrased it: get rid of all of them.

What kind of thought process leads to saying something like that? Dumbfounded, Jae-i looked at him, and Dohwa quietly added,

“If you’re not confident, I’ll do it.”

That, truly, left nothing more to be said.

A series of coincidences had brought this suspicious person along with him. Anyone else would’ve gone to great lengths to hide and cover themselves—but not him.

What was even stranger was that Hwang Jae-i didn’t seem to care much either. His face still stony, Jae-i stared at Dohwa and finally opened his mouth.

“What if I eliminate them all and word still gets out?”

“Then let them talk. Who cares? We didn’t do anything wrong.”

“…”

An S-rank Hunter wasn’t allowed to use his abilities for personal reasons. The rules alone filled a thick book. Ahn Yuna was always waving it in front of Hwang Jae-i, shouting, “Why don’t you follow what it says here?!”

How did he used to react back then? He never even listened. So why hesitate now?