episode_0020

Healers and buffers are basically rare creatures. Although she had sufficient abilities, it was natural for her to become famous as she did not belong to any clan.

Participating in gate expeditions for minimal compensation, helping injured people without expecting anything in return, etc. In addition to being famous, there were many reasons for her to be respected.

The acquaintance Chae Seo-ah mentioned was someone who Park Jeong-woo also knew well. However, it is due to the influence of bad rumors rather than good rumors.

However, the rumor was not that threatening. There was another reason why Park Jeong-woo remained frozen the whole time after arriving at her house.

“Mr. Park Jeong-woo, you seem very nervous. Are you okay?”

“Ma, that’s right, it’s Jeongwoo. My complexion looks really bad. Oh, do you want to just go back today?”

It was the first time for Park Jeong-woo to know that there was such a large house even in the middle of Seoul.

Clean leather sofa, neat glass table. Even a big TV. He felt as if he had been forced into a space where he shouldn’t be.

“Hey, Jeongwoo… ?”

Moon Ha-yeon is careful. I climb onto his lap and caress the back of his hand, which is clenched into a fist. A look of concern appeared on his face.

“Oh, it’s okay. I’m just not used to it… .”

It was a smile that showed effort.

When the short wait was over and footsteps were heard on the stairs, Park Jeong-woo adjusted his clothes, straightened his back, and sat down.

A woman coming down the stairs. Yang Ji-hee was someone who looked exactly like the one I saw on the news or in articles.

Long light beige hair. Even though her black headband had been pulled back and fixed once, her silky long hair was flowing in abundance.

The not-so-flashy jewelry worn here and there and the natural, light makeup are noticeable. She was wearing a white neck t-shirt made of slightly tight material and a red knit layered over it. It didn’t quite match the season, but it was definitely beautiful.

Even though he knew it was rude, Park Jeong-woo’s eyes were on Yang Ji-hee’s chest. Has the past few days of life had any influence on your sense of ethics? Even if I tried to look at his face, I would quickly glance at him and my gaze would go down to his chest.

As if she had noticed his gaze, her blue eyes widened beautifully. Yang Ji-hee’s steps head toward the small couch placed next to the long sofa.

After slightly adjusting the skirt that touched her hips, she sat down, gently brought her knees together, and placed her hands on top of them.

“Nice to meet you. My name is Jihee Yang.”

Place one hand gently on your chest and bow slightly to greet you. She was a person who knew how to give a soft smile that made those who saw it feel at ease.

“Hello. This is Park Jeong-woo.”

A stiff greeting comes out of Park Jeong-woo’s mouth. Ha-yeon Moon, who was sitting next to her, bowed her head briefly.

“I told you on the phone too… I came to see you because I wanted you to do this.”

Chae Seo-ah’s hand grabs Park Jeong-woo’s jacket without hesitation. I tried to lift it up as I was used to at home, but then it lifted slightly. He lifted it up just enough to see the tattoo on his lower abdomen.

town. Park Jeong-woo’s face gradually turned red as he took a quick breath.

“Oh my… . This is the first tattoo I’ve seen in a while.”

Her eyes, which were smiling comfortably, widen slightly. I bent down slightly and looked at Park Jeong-woo’s stomach, or more precisely, at the tattoo engraved there.

As his body began to twitch due to the cold air hitting his stomach, Chae Seo-ah belatedly let go of his clothes.

“Um… . Still, it’s not my first time seeing it, and I think I can do something with my strength. It may take some time, but… .”

“Well, really… ?”

It was as if he had his regrets written on his forehead. Ha-yeon Moon’s shoulders lowered by an inch.

“Of course. By the way, this… . The effect must have been quite strong. I guess Seo-ah helped me a lot?”

“Yes? ah… . Yes, for now… .”

“Hehe, really? Looking at her condition, it seems like several days have passed since Seo-ah has been through a lot. Oh, by any chance, was it harder for you, Jeongwoo?”

“Um… haha… .”

Unlike Yang Ji-hee, who covered her mouth and smiled happily, Chae Seo-ah’s response was very awkward.

“Well, I helped too… .”

Ha-yeon Moon speaks with a mysterious sense of competition burning. Yang Ji-hee still covered her mouth with her fingertips and lightly turned her gaze to look at her.

“Oh my, is that so? Mr. Jeongwoo is blessed. Aren’t you sad that it’s gone?”

Park Jeong-woo’s face turned red at the mischievous joke. Yang Ji-hee glanced at the clock and slowly stood up.

“You don’t know how long it will take, so it’s better to start quickly, right?”

When everyone in the group stood up, Yang Ji-hee held out one palm.

“Oh, no. Just follow Jeongwoo. I have a hard time concentrating when other people are around… .”

You can’t spit on a smiling face. This was even more so if the smile was mixed with a hint of regret.

After arguing for a while, Chae Seo-ah and Moon Ha-yeon finally sat down. Park Jeong-woo said he would be back soon and followed Yang Ji-hee, who was walking carefully ahead of her.

*

“Are we really not close friends? Or is your original personality like that? .”

“No. You weren’t the type of person to make jokes like that. I heard you’ve become darker recently… but. Since you haven’t been out much since then, it might have been just a rumor.”

“Yeah, really? Umm… Jeongwoo, Gwae, it will be okay… ?”

“It’s probably okay. Not even a month has passed yet.”

“Ha, a month?”

“… Didn’t you know?”

“What do I need to know… ?”

“Um, so, Jihee Yang a month ago… .”

*

I followed Jihee Yang’s guidance and came down to the basement. When I tried to enter the door with the sign saying “treatment room,” she said, “Ah.” and grabs my wrist.

“That… This is a general treatment room. Mr. Park Jeong-woo is here.”

Are there separate treatment rooms from general treatment rooms? I had no way of knowing. That’s right, there was no need to receive treatment from Hunter.

I eventually followed her directions and entered a deeper room. The thick door was much stiffer than I expected, so I had to struggle to close it.

‘sponge… ?’

Like closing the gap between the door and the door frame. Gray sponges hung tightly on the door. Where did you see something like this? I think the school music room door was like this. There must be some reason, so I looked around the room thinking nothing of it for now.

“I’m sorry, I haven’t had much time to receive customers these days. It’s a bit dirty, isn’t it?”

Contrary to what Yang Ji-hee said, the room was clean. Soft brown lighting, a large bed in the center of the room and a small nightstand next to it.

If you take apart the furniture one by one, it looks like the living room. It may have looked much more luxurious, but it was a room that seemed to focus on a comfortable atmosphere rather than showing off booties. Even though it was a closed room with no curtains, it somehow felt cozy.

There were several picture frames on top of a drawer in the corner of the room. The carpet on the floor was soft and smooth, as if the room had been hastily cleaned some time ago.

“Could you please wait a moment? There are some things I need to prepare… .”

While she was rummaging through the nightstand next to the bed, I glanced at the photo on the drawer. Since it was called a treatment room, I was concerned about what kind of photos there would be.

‘Ah, this person… ?’

Inside the frame was a picture of Yang Ji-hee wearing a wedding dress. So, this was about a month ago? Suddenly, I remembered the rumor related to her.

Hunter marriages were rare. Since it is a job that basically involves risking one’s life, it is also possible to build such a deep relationship of trust. It was difficult to maintain.

Something even rarer than that would be a broken engagement. Once married, most hunters cannot break up. Work, relationships, etc. This is because Hunter’s marriage was an event in which many events were intertwined like a complex spider web.

In that context.

The news of Yang Ji-hee’s breakup, who originally had quite a reputation, spread all over the place, and her absence from the public was frequently featured in news articles. It wasn’t that surprising.

The cliché explanation of personality differences was added, but no one believed it. Among all the rumors that were spreading around, there were often ones that made people frown.

I heard you haven’t received many visitors since then. I was just curious as to why they accepted my treatment.

As I looked at the raised picture frames one by one, something caught my eye. All of the framed photos were folded.

Thoroughly, as if denying the existence of the person taking the photo next to you. Not a single hair was exposed.

Curiosity slowly raises its head. Hunters’ gossip was a valuable companion that helped me get through my painful high school life. Even now, when I look through the news section, the habit of raising my head again is about to pop up again.

There was a natural hesitation in my voice when I spoke to Yang Ji-hee.

“Is it okay if I look closely at the photos here?”

“Oh my, it’s not much to look at… Hehehe. Yes, you can.”

Obviously, most of the pictures up here are just pictures of her. I turned my back on her, who responded with a strangely happy tone.

Pick up a picture frame. I opened it slightly, being careful not to make any noise, and carefully pulled out the picture inside.

“… Huh?”

There was one man in the photo. Brown hair, innocent look. He was Yang Ji-hee’s ex-husband, who had never appeared in the media except for the information that they were the same hunter.

I felt a strange sense of déjà vu looking at that photo. Aside from the fact that hair color is a very common color, that is. Because this man is about this tall. Compared to my height… .

‘You’re the same height as me?’

An ominous feeling of unknown origin went up my spine. A warning from instinct. Is this what the emergency bell waved by our ancestors feels like? I hastily folded the photo and placed it back in the frame.

“Hey, over there. As expected, can other people join us?”

“Is that not possible? Then I can’t concentrate well.”

Although he spoke softly, there was a strange thorn in his tone. I don’t think so. I don’t think this is real. A chill that couldn’t be clearly explained in words continued to tickle the back of my head.

Secretly. I am careful not to make any sound. He looked towards Yang Ji-hee and moved towards the door at a crab pace.

A door with a soundproof structure. bed. Nightstand. divorce. My husband shares several physical characteristics with me. The ominous puzzle was gradually coming together.

It may have been a groundless misunderstanding, but it felt too bad for that to be the case. I quickly turned around and pulled open the thick door.

Crash.

… The door didn’t open. Before I knew it, it was locked and not moving at all. I quickly pulled the door open several times. Only the loud clanking sound is repeated. Nothing happened.

“… Are you that anxious?”

Yang Ji-hee’s voice came right from my ear. I couldn’t help but scream in surprise. The strength in my legs suddenly disappeared. I looked up at her with my hands half hanging on the doorknob.

Her expression was the same as before. Lightly curved eye corners and lips with a benevolent smile. That smile that exudes maturity and maternal love at the same time. For some reason, I was very, very scared.

“… Am I a very busy person? What if I took the time to do it? If Jungwoo runs away like this… Seo-ah and Hayeon, you might be very disappointed, right?”

It was a soft and sweet voice, but its tone was close to threatening. She slowly bows down. A thin and beautiful hand rests on my head. He speaks quietly with an infinitely soft smile.

“It’s okay. I will definitely lift the curse. During the process of breaking the curse, the symptoms may appear a bit more severe… .”

The hand stroking the head, the voice, the facial expression. Each one was just soft. And yet, looking at her with her back turned to the soft orange light of this room. It seemed like my instincts kept sounding a warning.

That warning was like my own voice saying, “Are you fooled again, idiot?”

Blue eyes shine softly beneath the gently curved eyelids. Those eyes. Only those eyes burning with desire that resembled what I had seen time and time again over the past three days. This situation filled my field of vision, as if telling me something was wrong.

“Mr. Jeongwoo… Can you hold it in well?”

“… Hiccup.”

This was the moment when I finally became convinced that this treatment would not go smoothly.

—

Below is an illustration by Jihee Yang.