#206
“What…?”
The urgent news Minister Byeon delivered was certainly surprising. Yet it was ambiguous whether it was bad news.
Finding this situation somewhat strange—having to receive someone’s death as good news—Yoon Pa-ran’s expression subtly hardened.
❖ ❖ ❖
The next day.
Dan Joo-hyuk waited for Yoon Pa-ran with furrowed brows. Soon, he would arrive at the underground facility of the Special Administrative Security Department with his security team.
Normally, Dan Joo-hyuk would have wanted to escort him, but investigating Kim Sang-deok’s death was urgent. He wanted to eliminate any potential risks before showing Yoon Pa-ran, so there was no choice.
Yesterday, while exchanging a few more words with Heo Sang-yeon at the safe zone, Minister Byeon had contacted him. Kim Sang-deok, whom they had been tracking, had been found dead.
Dan Joo-hyuk immediately came here. Only after completing the autopsy overnight did he request Yoon Pa-ran to come.
“…Where was he found?”
Heo Sang-yeon, standing beside him, asked with a dark expression. Upon hearing about Kim Sang-deok, he had immediately gone to check on Kim Min-ji.
He must have had mixed feelings. Half worried that Kim Min-ji might have met the same fate as Kim Sang-deok, and half concerned that she might be involved in his death.
Either way, Heo Sang-yeon, after confirming Kim Min-ji’s well-being, had belatedly come here. His expression as he looked down at Kim Sang-deok lying on the autopsy table wasn’t particularly good. After all, among S-ranks, Heo Sang-yeon was relatively sociable.
“On Mount Bukhan.”
“What…? He was that close?”
Kim Sang-deok had been discovered after a passing hiker reported him.
No one had expected Kim Sang-deok to hide somewhere as close as Mount Bukhan. With his abilities, it wouldn’t have been strange if he had already left the Korean Peninsula for abroad.
Therefore, the Seoul area wasn’t a primary search zone. Moreover, no one had anticipated finding him in such a state.
“He was reportedly collapsed among the underbrush, which is strange. It doesn’t seem like he was attacked by a bear.”
“Hmm…”
Even Heo Sang-yeon appeared puzzled, seemingly at a loss. He then carefully lifted the cloth that had been covering Kim Sang-deok completely.
Kim Sang-deok had a large wound in his abdomen, and his body still bore the equipment used when entering gates.
“Based on the wound, it seems like he was attacked by a monster. There’s also no sign that his body was damaged by wild animals.”
“Was he holed up in some gate?”
“I’m not sure about that. Anyway, I’m speculating that he was hiding in the mountains with a fatal injury, and only revealed himself just before dying.”
“…That’s absurd.”
Until now, they had been formulating strategies assuming Kim Sang-deok was ‘fleeing’ in good health.
But if he had chosen to ‘hide,’ the situation changed. Though foolish, he was still an S-rank, so ordinary hunters wouldn’t have been able to find him if he was determined to stay hidden.
Still, it was strange.
“Have you been to the scene?”
“Yes. Didn’t find anything significant.”
The scene was clean. Kim Sang-deok appeared to have died while crawling out of a cave found nearby.
There were traces of a gate having opened in the vicinity. Some monster corpse fragments were also discovered, and there were energy reaction traces indicating a high-rank gate had appeared and disappeared.
Circumstantially, as Heo Sang-yeon suggested, it seemed correct to judge that Kim Sang-deok had fled into a gate, been injured, managed to escape the gate, but then hid in the mountain.
Yet something kept nagging at the back of Dan Joo-hyuk’s mind. The thought that this was an excessively foolish choice wouldn’t leave his head.
“Should I check it out too?”
Heo Sang-yeon, who had been observing Kim Sang-deok from the side, cautiously asked. While he appreciated his willingness to help with the investigation, there was a quicker way for him.
“Since you’re here, why not see that guy?”
“…”
Dan Joo-hyuk brought up Lee Tae-jung, who was detained on the same underground floor. Heo Sang-yeon frowned deeply, perhaps reluctantly avoiding the issue.
Various facilities were together on this underground floor. Due to the Special Administrative Security Department’s nature of having hunters regularly stationed in the building, gathering confidential facilities made management easier.
Therefore, the place where Lee Tae-jung was confined could be reached by going a bit further inside. Heo Sang-yeon knew this but seemed to be deliberately ignoring the issue.
“About that… I’d appreciate some time. Anyway, isn’t there nothing more to interrogate him about?”
It seemed he was deeply hurt by the betrayal from the subordinate he trusted most. Moreover, the man had essentially made a mockery of what Heo Sang-yeon had devoted his lifetime to.
“Do as you please.”
Finding it bothersome to think about further, Dan Joo-hyuk just wrapped up the matter.
“What will happen to Hunter Kim now?”
“Well, there’s nothing more to see now. He’s a corpse.”
“True. …Now that he’s dead, I guess he won’t cause any more problems…”
They had already thoroughly verified if this was indeed Kim Sang-deok. Despite having confirmed the corpse’s face with an S-rank hunter’s discerning eye, the government wanted to be absolutely certain given the gravity of the situation.
Multiple DNA tests were conducted, along with death certificates from different doctors. Unless Kim Sang-deok had an S-rank hunter twin somewhere, there was no chance this corpse wasn’t him.
“He was a slick fellow, but to go like this.”
“…”
Beside him, Heo Sang-yeon muttered dejectedly. Due to consecutive nights without sleep, Dan Joo-hyuk had a mild headache and casually brushed his hand near his brow bone.
Where else should he look to understand more about this suspicious death?
“Hmm?”
While pondering this, Heo Sang-yeon turned around. Dan Joo-hyuk also slowly raised his gaze.
He sensed Yoon Pa-ran approaching.
“Dan Joo-hyuk?”
Feeling his headache vanish in an instant, Dan Joo-hyuk abruptly opened the door. Perhaps having come down alone due to security reasons, Yoon Pa-ran was standing awkwardly in the corridor.
“…”
Facing that pale face, he suddenly felt extremely tense. Ignoring the dry swallow that was trying to happen again, Dan Joo-hyuk consciously put on a gentle smile.
“You’re here?”
“Oh? Hunter Yoon Pa-ran, you’re here?”
“Ah. Hello.”
Yoon Pa-ran, who had seemed hesitant about something, noticed Heo Sang-yeon and resumed his usual reserved expression. For some reason, Dan Joo-hyuk felt a pang of disappointment at that change and touched the corner of his mouth.
Seeing Yoon Pa-ran, he had so much he wanted to say. How would he think about the results Dan Joo-hyuk and Heo Sang-yeon had obtained at the safe zone? What had he done yesterday?
…Had he thought about me, even a little?
“Please come in.”
Swallowing all those thoughts, Dan Joo-hyuk quietly stepped back.
Yoon Pa-ran looked around the cold morgue once, then entered without hesitation.
“I didn’t know there was something like this in the basement of the Special Administrative Security Department.”
“There are several confidential facilities in the basement. Besides this, there are quite a few dangerous facilities, so whenever you go somewhere, make sure to take me with you.”
Leading Yoon Pa-ran to one side, Dan Joo-hyuk quickly provided the necessary explanations. However, Yoon Pa-ran’s reaction seemed somewhat strange.
“Oh? …Okay.”
Giving a lukewarm response, Yoon Pa-ran rubbed his white nape with his hand. This was one of his habits when he felt uncomfortable.
“…”
His expression was also similar. Looking down at Yoon Pa-ran, who had been avoiding eye contact since earlier, Dan Joo-hyuk deliberately concealed his darkening feelings.
“They say Hunter Dan overprotects Hunter Yoon. Quite passionately.”
“…”
“…”
At that moment, Heo Sang-yeon, who was inside, made a cheerful jest.
Feeling preemptively guilty, Dan Joo-hyuk glared fiercely at Heo Sang-yeon. Though his thoughts were unclear, Yoon Pa-ran also just stared at Heo Sang-yeon in silence.
Seeing their reactions, Heo Sang-yeon awkwardly smiled and added quietly that it was just a joke.
Still uncomfortable with the persistent silence, Heo Sang-yeon quickly greeted them as he left the morgue.
“Well, I’ll be going for now? I’ll contact you, Hunter Dan. Hunter Yoon, take care.”
As he did so, he signaled with his eyes for Dan Joo-hyuk to ask about the safe zone.
“…”
“…”
With Heo Sang-yeon gone, leaving just the two of them, a heavy silence chillingly filled the morgue.
Eventually, Dan Joo-hyuk had to secretly swallow a dry gulp. The more he looked at Yoon Pa-ran, the more his heart raced, and he forcibly reined in his feelings.
Let’s first calm down and act composed.
“First, there’s something we need to check from Kim Sang-deok’s body.”
“…Is it really Hunter Kim Sang-deok?”
“Yes. It’s definitely him.”
“No, why did he die?”
Dan Joo-hyuk repeated the explanation he had given to Heo Sang-yeon earlier. With a more detailed and friendly tone.
Yoon Pa-ran’s expression began to crease subtly. Perhaps even he found this incident absurd.
“What do I need to check?”
“I’d like you to use your skill on the body.”
“That skill?”
On the opposite side of all these machinations was Yoon Pa-ran’s [Sacred Energy] skill. If there was any issue with this corpse, the skill might be able to purify it.
With this in mind, Dan Joo-hyuk carefully brought his lips close to Yoon Pa-ran’s ear. Though it was a government facility, he was still wary of potential eavesdropping.
“First, I feel like I can sense something.”
“Uh, yeah.”
However, as soon as he whispered, Yoon Pa-ran hastily stepped back.
“…”
That distance made Dan Joo-hyuk insanely anxious.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
