Chapter 100
Nora also seemed curious and nodded. Seo Won shook his head at the three people staring intently at him and said:
“I don’t know either, except that Sol was attacked.”
He was just as curious about why this had happened. Since everyone seemed unaware of why the fire had started, it didn’t seem like any special device had been installed, so why had the fire broken out?
“You don’t know? Then how is Yu Sol alive?”
“That’s because I…”
“You saved her?”
Haru looked even more confused. Seo Won hurriedly shook his head, worried the misunderstanding would deepen.
“It’s not like that. I just held Sol as she collapsed and ran away.”
Only then did Haru’s expression soften. But his eyes still showed he didn’t understand. Haru looked back and forth between the guy writhing on the ground and Seo Won, then tilted his head and said:
“This guy is the most vicious among cannibals.”
When Seo Won looked confused, Haru scratched his head frustratedly.
“Didn’t you have guys like this where you lived?”
“……”
“Really strange… Don’t they exist in other regions?”
Unable to answer, Seoul had unintentionally become the only strange region. Seo Won smiled awkwardly and nodded.
“Anyway, that bastard is closer to a beast than human. No, he’s more agile and stronger than beasts. It’s impossible to deal with them unless you’re a physical enhancement hunter. You can barely communicate with them, and like creatures, humans are their staple food.”
“Communication… doesn’t work?”
“Simple communication is possible, but you need time for that. You saw how he rushed at Yu Sol, right?”
It really was an instant. The guy rushing at Yu Sol. He had definitely come from outside the barrier, but they couldn’t sense any presence at all. It was a perfect ambush. How could you communicate with such a guy when he bares his teeth to bite?
When Seo Won nodded, Haru continued:
“That’s why it’s strange. No matter how I look at it, this guy seems to have been hit by a flame-type attack. But we don’t have that kind of hunter in our shelter…”
Haru trailed off and shook his head repeatedly. Then he glanced at the place still burning with fire and turned his gaze back to Seo Won.
“Before considering this and that, it’s physically impossible. Unless you were really close, even a flame-type hunter couldn’t have hit this guy. There’s travel time for the fireball too.”
At Haru’s explanation, Seo Won recalled the incident at Gangnam Station. Specifically, Jody’s figure throwing fireballs to save a colleague being chased by a creature.
It was indeed a powerful attack, but it was slow enough that even he could track the fireball’s trajectory. So for such an agile cannibal to be hit without any defense meant…
‘A flame-type hunter was nearby.’
And the person closest to Yu Sol was himself.
“……”
“……”
Only then did Seo Won feel something was strange. At the same time, he remembered the feeling of something suddenly rushing out from inside his body when Yu Sol was in danger. And when he ran while holding Yu Sol too.
Most importantly, was it possible for him to reach this place in a single leap? He had tried to escape from the attacker, but he definitely hadn’t run. The distance between the burning place and here was well over 100 meters.
While recalling what had happened to him one by one while meeting Haru’s gaze, a familiar voice came from behind.
It was Baek Rak.
“What’s going on?”
“Baek Rak, leader.”
Behind Baek Rak who appeared first, Han Seong Hyeon approached with a serious expression. Yu Sol and Nora, who had been quietly watching, greeted with eye gestures, and Haru immediately opened his mouth as if he had been waiting.
“A cannibal appeared where Yu Sol and Yoon Seo Won were working.”
“What? A cannibal?”
So shocked that Han Seong Hyeon’s face turned pale, he first checked Yoon Seo Won’s condition. Not expecting such a sensitive reaction, Haru hesitated and stepped back.
‘But… why is he checking on Yoon Seo Won first instead of Yu Sol?’
Haru was confused by Han Seong Hyeon’s incomprehensible behavior.
“Neither I nor Sol was hurt, it’s okay.”
Seo Won waved his hands frantically. He knew why Han Seong Hyeon was showing such an excessive reaction, but he couldn’t hide his embarrassment. It was worse because the person who was attacked was Yu Sol, not him.
Only after looking around and confirming that Seo Won had no problems did Han Seong Hyeon sigh in relief.
“Haa… Thank goodness.”
“…Yeah.”
“Sol and Poong are okay too, right?”
He belatedly patted the heads of Sol and Poong who were hugging each other.
“…Mmhm.”
Sol seemed just as confused. Seeing Yu Sol looking at him blankly, Han Seong Hyeon smiled bitterly.
“I was complacent. I thought it would be safe for a while since the creatures had just left. It would be better for Yu Sol and Yoon Seo Won to stay inside the shelter. Don’t come near the barrier unless absolutely necessary.”
There was no need to have the two work on barrier restoration while taking risks. It was urgent, but safety came first.
“Yu Sol I understand, but why Yoon Seo Won?”
Then Haru stepped forward with a question.
Han Seong Hyeon checking Yoon Seo Won’s injuries first, and treating him like someone who needed protection along with Yu Sol despite being a civilian – it was all incomprehensible.
“Well, I’m still worried about leaving Yu Sol alone…”
“Poong is always next to her. And if you’re really worried, wouldn’t it be better for me or Nora to be nearby? We’re hunters, so being around us is safest. Is there a reason to attach Yoon Seo Won?”
Han Seong Hyeon couldn’t say anything to Haru’s words.
The existence of guardians was the most top secret in the shelter. It was natural for Haru to have questions since he didn’t know this. But he couldn’t explain it either, so while he was pondering what to do, Haru suddenly pointed at Yoon Seo Won and said:
“Yoon Seo Won, you’re a hunter, right?”
“…What?”
“No matter how I look at it, you seem like a hunter who just awakened.”
What is he talking about?
Han Seong Hyeon flinched at Haru’s confident voice. Whether he knew this or not, Haru continued speaking.
“There have been signs all along, but we didn’t know when you’d awaken, so Baek Rak has been taking you around. Flame-type is strong, so controlling it is most important. There’s no one better suited to teach than Baek Rak.”
“Wait. Haru, you…”
Han Seong Hyeon’s mind became jumbled because of Haru’s incomprehensible words. A flame-type hunter? Yoon Seo Won?
“Now that you’ve awakened, there’s no need to hide it from us anymore. I wondered why he was so concerned, and this was why! Wow, we finally have a powerful long-range hunter too!”
“…No wonder. I was so surprised earlier that I couldn’t even speak.”
Unlike Haru who was excitedly shrugging his shoulders, Yu Sol let out a long sigh.
Since she knew that Seo Won was a special type on the boundary between hunter and civilian, she was confused at first. But if this was a precursor to awakening as a hunter, it made sense. Taking Baek Rak’s energy and awakening in a form that suited him.
Though not typical, looking at the results, it was a welcome change.
While she was feeling relieved, she saw Haru grinning. Somehow it felt ominous.
“Yeah, Yu Sol, you looked stupid standing there blankly.”
“What? Stupid?”
“Check if there’s drool around your mouth. You were going ‘heh’ earlier.”
Yu Sol jumped up from her seat. She could tolerate anyone else, but she couldn’t stand being teased by Haru.
“Haru, come here!”
“Why should I?”
Yu Sol and Poong ran after Haru who was teasing and running away.
“……”
Han Seong Hyeon stared blankly at the two people running around, then turned his head like a broken machine.
Meeting that gaze, Seo Won gulped down dry saliva. Unlike Haru and Yu Sol who had easily accepted it, Han Seong Hyeon and he were confused.
Had he really shot that fireball?
Thinking about what had happened to him so far, he honestly couldn’t help but be suspicious. Moreover, wasn’t he the only person who had been closest to Yu Sol?
Seo Won looked down at his two hands. He thought he had reached out to Yu Sol at the end, and maybe that’s when it happened.
He had been so disappointed about not being able to use abilities until now, but to think it would actually become possible.
Feeling strange, he stared blankly at his palms and tried moving energy just in case. Then, unlike before, he could feel energy moving naturally inside his body. It was completely different from when he struggled to open doors.
He tried concentrating energy in his palm while imagining a small flame. Thinking he might be able to do it, when he concentrated a bit more, he felt energy leaving his body. Then red aura began rising from his palm.
That energy bumped into itself a few times, then sparked into flame.
“Wow!”
He was so amazed that he exclaimed without realizing it, when suddenly a large hand appeared and covered it. Startled, he quickly looked up to see Baek Rak staring at him with an unreadable expression.
“…Follow me.”
Then he grabbed his hand and headed somewhere.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
