Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Oh Jongyeop, realizing there was no longer any way out, bolted on the spot. They say fear is the best medicine, and that first meeting had done its job. As expected, the fist beat the law, and fear beat the fist.

“From now on, just call me comfortably, friend!”

Then he’d pop up out of nowhere and flash an easy grin. I had to admit, that hard-to-hate charm of his was still there.

Even on his first day of work, Oh Jongyeop showed a knack for melting into the National Guard Bureau. The guy I’d seen in my past life had been the same—rare among villains, he wasn’t sharp-edged but round and easygoing.

It was just that a harsh environment had sharpened him. Thinking about it that way, maybe the same applied to me. Now that I’d come to my senses, I could afford to show some mercy and think things through one more time.

Maybe that was the difference between being crazy and not being crazy.

After we exchanged greetings, Oh Jongyeop kept subtly planting himself at my side, so I gave up trying to shake him off and showed him around the National Guard Bureau. The way he smacked his lips and said the cafeteria food was delicious reminded me of myself, marveling at a warm meal from society.

No way. He hasn’t regressed too, has he?

“……”

Jung Dahyun, left standing alone, hovered awkwardly at a distance, watching, and then ate separately.

When lunch break ended, we were summoned to the Director’s office.

“So the two of you are friends?”

“Yes, that’s right. I owe Junho a great deal.”

“Choi Junho is our National Guard Bureau’s ace. He’s exceptionally skilled. Stick by him and you’ll have plenty to learn. Just don’t pick up any of his strange habits.”

“Yes!”

“I heard you’ve adapted well for your first day. I have high expectations, so let’s see you do well from here on.”

“Yes! Director! I’ll work hard. But I have one question.”

“What is it?”

“I’m Grade 7 and Junho is Grade 9, but is it really all right for him to keep talking to me so casually?”

This guy—still hadn’t given up, had he? He glanced at me and curled his lip smugly, but the answer he wanted didn’t come from Jung Juho.

“And? You want me to make him use honorifics? If you can, go ahead and try.”

“Excuse me?”

“If you’ve got a complaint, go educate him with skill and come back. This place runs on ability.”

Jung Juho curled his lip.

“But can you pull it off? It’d be funny if a ghost story started going around about a public service Hunter who went missing on his first day.”

“……”

Oh Jongyeop’s eyes trembled as he looked at me.

It felt like he’d feel hurt if I just stood there, so I threw in a word.

“He keeps running his mouth—want me to give him a lesson?”

“…I have found the light in my life for the first time. I want to live long and happily. Please spare me, Director. I’ll devote my complete loyalty.”

“Loyalty is something you give to the nation. As for me, I’m equally fond of my current posting. So let’s avoid our little firecracker here. Let the small stuff slide. Got it?”

“Yes! I’ll trust and follow only you, Director!”

“Good, good.”

Honestly, I had no idea why those two hit it off. Did they have some common topic I didn’t know about?

After we finished our business and the two of us stepped out of the Director’s office, Jung Dahyun came toward me, then stopped short when she saw Oh Jongyeop.

“Official Jung! You’re the savior of my life. I’ll serve and honor you from now on.”

“Nice to meet you, Jongyeop.”

“I’ve heard of your fame for a long time, Official. As expected, your personality is as kind as your dazzling beauty. You even saved my life—so when could we have a meal together at a nice restaurant……”

“No, thank you.”

“……”

Shot down flat, Oh Jongyeop wobbled. Rejected, huh. Tsk tsk.

Jung Dahyun, having casually trampled a man’s pure heart, looked at me and spoke.

“Junho, there’s something I need to review regarding the Foreign Cooperation Management Bureau. Could you prepare the documents?”

“I’ll get them ready.”

“Meet me in the meeting room in ten minutes.”

“Okay.”

I looked at Oh Jongyeop, crumpled beside me, and clicked my tongue.

“Are you a lifelong bachelor? That’s not how you sweet-talk a woman.”

“……”

Oh Jongyeop collapsed all over again.

*

Oh Jongyeop’s younger brother, Oh Jongsu, had turned twenty this year, but he was so small that just looking at him made him seem like a middle schooler. When he mentioned how he used to wake at dawn and suffer alone so his brother wouldn’t worry, Oh Jongyeop’s voice grew thick.

But after being admitted to Shinsung Hospital, he said his condition had improved noticeably, and his expression brightened.

“Jongsu, say hello.”

“Hello, mister. I’ve heard a lot about you from my brother. Thank you so much for getting me treatment. I’ll definitely repay this kindness.”

“You’re just repaying the debt owed to your uncle, so there’s no need to repay anything.”

“Uncle? My brother said you were our mother.”

“That’s right, mother.”

Oh Jongsu looked puzzled at my agreement, but he didn’t press further.

“How’s your body?”

“It doesn’t hurt anymore.”

“Shinsung Hospital has plenty of new drugs and renowned doctors, so you’ll get better.”

“Yes, I’m hopeful too. I’ve only ever been a burden to my brother. I want to get better quickly so I won’t be a weight on him.”

“Weight? Family takes care of each other. That’s just how it is.”

“They say no filial child survives a long illness. I’m alive thanks to my brother. Ah! Thanks to you too, Junho. Thank you again.”

“Sure.”

“Jongsu, well done. He’s secretly petty, so if you hadn’t mentioned it, he would’ve held it against you.”

A deep smile hung at the corner of Oh Jongyeop’s mouth as he said that.

In my past life, even after Oh Jongyeop joined Bigteng, Oh Jongsu ended up losing his life in the end. Blaming his own indecision for it, Oh Jongyeop turned his rage on the world and became a villain.

In this life, Oh Jongsu will recover in good health, so there’s no reason for Oh Jongyeop to go astray.

Using a former villain to catch villains—what a brilliant method.

“Do you know how much my brother praised you, Junho?”

“Hey, what are you saying?”

“Come on, don’t be shy. When you helped him, he cried and said he’d repay you for life.”

“Hey, hey.”

“My brother’s clumsy at expressing his feelings because he puts on a tough front to protect me. Even when he snaps at you, that’s not what he really means, so please look at him fondly.”

I looked at Oh Jongyeop. The guy let out a sigh as if he wanted to crawl into a mouse hole and hide, avoiding my gaze.

Hmm, the Oh Jongyeop I’d seen—put nicely, he’d grown up rough; put badly, he looked menacing. His confidence and smooth talk were first-rate, which balanced it out, though.

In reality, he was still a lifelong bachelor.

“…But he’s not cute.”

“Right? Honestly, I find him gross too.”

“Wow, you really lay into a guy who’s just sitting here. Stop hitting me. I’ll die if I take any more.”

“Should I stop?”

“You can keep going. He can take a beating.”

Oh Jongsu burst into bright laughter at whatever he found funny in my words.

“Whatever, I’m going to the bathroom.”

As Oh Jongyeop fled the hospital room, Oh Jongsu stared at me intently.

“If, hypothetically, I get fully better, I want to be like you, mister.”

“Me?”

“Yes, you, Junho. My brother told me. That you’re a Hunter so strong it’s hard to even imagine. And that you protect the world from villains and monsters. I want to get healthy and become an Awakened too. And I’ll become a Hunter who protects the world from villains and monsters, just like you.”

“Hmm.”

“Is it possible?”

“I may not look it, but I’m a pretty excellent Hunter. The villains I’ve caught number in the hundreds.”

“Whoa!”

And every one of those villains ended up crippled.

“You can do it too. Let’s make sure you get better.”

“Yes, mister!”

“That’s right, be like me.”

Being the object of someone’s respect—it wasn’t a bad feeling.

A short while later, Oh Jongyeop returned, and we decided to head back.

“I’ll come by often.”

“Yes, mister! Goodbye!”

We received Oh Jongsu’s send-off—hands gathered in a deep bow—and stepped outside.

“Your little brother’s kind, unlike you.”

“Hey, I’m kind too.”

At that ridiculous claim, I snorted.

“Right. Bigteng scouting candidate.”

“Hey, hey! Don’t say that anywhere else! Huh? You really can’t say it. Please spare me! I really like it at the National Guard Bureau!”

“I won’t say it.”

“Really? Huh?”

The guy, pale as a sheet, trailed after me.

*

“It’s delicious!”

Jung Dahyun’s eyes went wide as she tasted the soybean paste hot pot. From a cook’s perspective, there’s nothing more satisfying than that kind of reaction.

Yunhee, who’d been inhaling beef beside her, gave Jung Dahyun’s reaction a doubtful look, tasted the broth, and her eyes went wide too.

My survival cooking, making its world debut, was finally getting its due.

“How did you make this?”

“The secret is Owl Boar.”

The Owl Boar, a Tier 4 Hazard monster, is a top-tier ingredient boasting deep flavor.

The catch was that it’s harder to hunt than its rank suggests, so it isn’t a favored game—making the ingredient extremely rare.

Actually, to draw out the flavor properly, you have to put the Owl Boar’s head in whole, but everyone who ate it with me freaked out.

Because the Owl Boar’s eyes react to Force, they move while you’re eating, so you end up making eye contact.

“Owl Boar? That’s a monster.”

Unlike the appalled Yunhee, Jung Dahyun nodded as if to say, “Of course……”

“The meat and byproducts of a monster with its toxicity removed are excellent gourmet ingredients and a great source of nutrition.”

“I had no idea. I never knew Owl Boar tasted like this.”

“I’m glad.”

As the pleasant meal went on, Jung Dahyun congratulated Yunhee on passing into the Shinseong Guild and advised her on how to adapt.

There was plenty of new information for me too. The Jung Dahyun I’d seen until now had been a Grade 5 official, but now I was seeing her as someone from the Shinseong Guild.

Yunhee thanked her for the invaluable advice and asked for more.

“What’s the most important thing to watch out for in a raid?”

“Villains.”

“Huh? Not letting your guard down or surprise attacks?”

Jung Dahyun shook her head.

“Monster hunting is a life-or-death struggle, but if a group responds organically, you can minimize the danger and maximize your power. The Shinseong Guild is world-class at that. But villains strike at the worst possible moment you never anticipated.”

It’s common as dirt for a raid team out hunting monsters to be ambushed by villains and go missing.

Especially for small guilds short on manpower, even guarding byproducts after a hunt meant risking their lives, and even renowned large-guild raid teams were frequently ambushed by villains, stripped of their gear, killed, or captured and held for ransom.

“Then I guess I need to learn how to deal with villains too.”

“Monsters and villains follow different rules, so it’s good to learn them.”

I, who’d been listening quietly, stepped in.

“I think I can help with that.”

Two pairs of eyes turned to me.

“Uh, Junho……”

“Oppa?”

“It’s my area of expertise.”

Being a villain—no need to overthink it. In a raid, anyone who looks suspicious is 99.9% a villain. So if you see an unfamiliar face, attack first and seize the initiative, and you can prevent it with 99.9% certainty. Especially if you break their legs first to take away their mobility, you can retreat safely even if a variable pops up.

And the surest answer is always to kill them.

Yunhee looked intrigued.

“Now that I think about it, that’s true? You’ve arrested over 200 villains. I had an expert right next to me? I should just learn from you……”

“Wait!”

Jung Dahyun cut in with an urgent look. She must have eaten a lot of the soybean paste hot pot.

“What’s wrong, unnie?”

“Of course Junho’s an expert, but there are differences between men and women, and you’ve just joined a guild, so you’re busy adjusting, aren’t you?”

“That’s true?”

“So for now, focus on adjusting, and I’ll help if you need it.”

“Really? You, unnie?”

“Yes, me.”

“Dahyun, I appreciate the offer, but it’d be a bother for you.”

“It’s fine. I should do it. I absolutely should.”

Her resolute look made it hard to say anything more.

“Please take care of me, unnie!”

“Yes, trust me. Yunhee, I’ll make sure to raise you well.”

And with that, Jung Dahyun kept glancing at me.

*

After the meal, Choi Junho stepped out of the house for a bit. Once the two were alone, Jung Dahyun spoke to Yunhee carefully.

“Was I overstepping?”

“Huh? No! I’m totally happy with it.”

“That’s a relief.”

“But is there a reason you stopped oppa?”

Jung Dahyun flinched. She’d thought she’d cut in as naturally as possible.

“You noticed?”

“Yes, you were pretty blatant about it.”

“Well……”

Jung Dahyun trailed off, glanced at the door Choi Junho had gone out through, and spoke cautiously.

“Junho’s methods are a bit rough.”

“Ah! Are they, really? A lot? There are tons of articles about it, actually.”

“Hmm?”

Had she poked a hornet’s nest?

Jung Dahyun wondered if she might have brought up an uncomfortable truth.

“Tell me.”

“He’s a bit… rougher than you’d think.”

“Still, that’s a relief.”

“What is?”

“Because you’re by his side. I know oppa has no middle ground. But what lets me relax is that you’re there. Please watch over him from close by. I’m asking you.”

“……”

Was it because it was Choi Junho’s little sister saying it? The meaning made her heart pound.

She’d never known that being trusted by someone could be this sweet.

This was the whole reason she’d transferred to become a public service Hunter. Somewhere along the way, she must have forgotten her original resolve and grown jaded by the work.

“I believe you.”

“Yes! So how should I handle villains?”

Jung Dahyun smiled at Yunhee’s spirited answer.

“The Shinseong Guild has Force-emission daggers. They’re called the Shot Series.”

“Ah! I know those.”

“Get one, and when you see a villain, cut off their legs first.”

“Huh?”

Did she really not know why you aim for the legs?

It was puzzling, but Jung Dahyun explained a bit more.

“If their legs are cut off, they lose mobility. That’s the most important point.”

“Ahh, I see.”

“And 99% of people who approach during a hunt are villains. If someone approaches without a word, assume they’re a villain and cut them down first. If legs are hard, arms are fine too. It throws off their balance and makes it hard to handle weapons.”

“What if they’re not a villain?”

“It’s the fault of the person who approached without a word, but you should still apologize. And you can use Emergency Transport. That way the severed part can be reattached. Ah! The neck can be reattached too, but they’ll be dead, so keep that in mind.”

Choi Junho would probably say to ambush and kill them first, or take their head off.

Compared to that, how gentle a response was this?

“Unnie, a four-character idiom just came to mind. ‘Birds of a feather flock together.’”

“Why ‘birds of a feather’ all of a sudden?”

“I didn’t want to tell oppa that you’re cruel in a fight. From what I’ve seen, you two are pretty much neck and neck…”

“M-Me?”

Jung Dahyun was deeply shaken.

*

After Jung Dahyun left, the look in Yunhee’s eyes as she watched me was far from ordinary.

“What did you do to Dahyun unnie? It’s all your fault, oppa. Take responsibility.”

“For what?”

“For everything, from A to Z! Dahyun unnie is such an upright person, and because you stuck one wrong assistant partner with her, she’s now… hah.”

“Say whatever you want. I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“And what would you do even if you did?”

“I could at least try.”

Yunhee’s expression scrunched up at my answer. I felt wronged—what exactly had I done to deserve this? Surely she wasn’t upset that I’d brought Jung Dahyun over and nudged her into eating soybean paste hot pot?

Or was it because I hadn’t added the Owl Boar’s head? Maybe I’d underestimated both Jung Dahyun’s and Yunhee’s palates.

“Next time, I’ll get a twin Owl Boar head and…”

“Forget it. It’s worse when you try to fix things. Anyway, Dahyun unnie ended up like that because of you, so take responsibility. Ah, but I do like Sehee unnie too.”

So it hadn’t been about the Owl Boar head after all.

“I’m already taking responsibility, so don’t worry. But why is Lee Sehee part of this?”

“Ah, I don’t know. There are just things you don’t get, oppa.”

“Setting that aside, when did you two get so close?”

“I saw her during the final interview, and we just clicked? It’s true that she knew you—she was really careful when she brought up your name. You didn’t do anything rude to her, did you?”

More precisely, I’d nearly done something rude. She’d been trying to pull something too, so we were even.

“I didn’t.”

“Then that’s a relief. At first I thought she was some untouchable chaebol, but she’s surprisingly down-to-earth and generous. She does feel a bit calculating, but honestly that’s a strength. And she’s pretty! Really, with Dahyun unnie and Sehee unnie around, it’s a total feast for the eyes!”

“……”

“What?”

Instead of answering, I reached out and touched Yunhee’s head. It was clean. My suspicion that Lee Sehee might have used a gift on her vanished.

“Ah, what the heck! Don’t touch my head!”

“I don’t mind you being friendly with Lee Sehee, but be careful. She has a mental-type gift.”

I said it to plant a bit of caution in Yunhee.

“She told me it’s a gift that lets her get close to people? She said she’s been holding back ever since she met her person a while ago. Anyway, she said she can win people over with her own charm. Normally that kind of talk would sound obnoxious, but when Sehee unnie says it, it just sounds natural. How can someone brag so confidently and still seem cool? Oh, but that person she mentioned—it’s not you, is it, oppa?”

“Just be careful, anyway.”

“No, seriously, I don’t like women! I like men, okay?”

“Sure. I believe you.”

“Hmph! Why do I even have to explain this?”

“I said I believe you.”

I’d gotten an earful, but if it planted some caution in her, that was enough. I’d also confirmed her tastes were normal, so I moved on to that.

“Just in case—if you ever get a boyfriend, introduce him to me.”

“Why, you want to see if he’s good enough?”

“Obviously.”

It wasn’t that I doubted Yunhee’s judgment, but among villains there are occasionally guys who are masters at seducing women. Or there are playboys who latch onto successful female Hunters to leech off them.

The world is wide and full of bastards worth killing, but I’d never killed a playboy before.

If it was my little sister’s problem, though, that was a different story.

If the guy was off, I’d quietly set him straight, and if that didn’t work, I’d deal with him.

Still, I was her oppa, so I’d rather she met someone decent if she could.

Should I set some criteria for what counts as decent? First, he’d need to be able to protect his woman, so maybe someone who could block about three of my attacks would be fine?

Hmm.

Thinking about it, I wasn’t sure many would survive that. The average age of Yunhee’s potential groom candidates would probably jump to fifty. I should look at mindset rather than skill. With my current self, I could tell whether someone was in their right mind or not.

Times like this, I missed Brainwashing. If I could use it more precisely, I could extract information without turning them into an idiot.

It’s like when you go to your in-laws to ask for permission and ply them with drinks. Isn’t it the same thing—drawing out their true feelings?

“Character matters more than skill. Character. Bring me someone with a sound head on his shoulders.”

No matter how skilled someone was, it meant nothing if they were insane—I knew that well.

“…For now, could you at least ask around if there are any decent guys near you?”

“So there’s no chance? Then again, your personality is a bit nasty.”

“Who’s the one making me lose my temper here?”

Yunhee’s face scrunched up.

*

A few days later.

The National Guard Bureau was as peaceful as ever.

At least until Jung Juho, who had come in earlier than usual, summoned everyone.

“We’ve obtained information on Erasure. From this moment, we begin the Erasure Arrest Operation.”