The Hunter's Gonna Lay Low-Chapter 168

Sa-young looked for Uijae first. His wandering gaze finally settled downward, and he frowned.

Cha Uijae was reclining halfway on a soft beanbag, looking at Sa-young. A low table in front of him was piled with various snacks. His black mask gleamed under the light of the screen.

‘What the...?’

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Wasn’t he supposed to be disciplining the Mackerels?

Sa-young stopped in his tracks. Uijae pulled another beanbag over with his arm, placing it beside him, and patted it lightly.

“Come sit.”

Why does he look so relaxed?

“Hyuuuung~nim~!”

At that moment, one of the Mackerels, now with his hair down, came flying in, holding a steaming bag of popcorn. He grinned and kneeled on one knee, offering the popcorn like a bouquet of roses. Sa-young’s frown deepened.

“Hyung-nim, I’ve brought freshly made popcorn. Oh? The Guild Master is here. Nice to meet you?”

The younger Mackerel waved casually in greeting, but Sa-young barely registered it. His mind was too preoccupied with the ridiculous title he’d just heard.

‘Hyung-nim?’

This is ridiculous. Sa-young’s lips twisted into a wry smile. Judging by the younger Mackerel's attitude, it seemed the disciplining was already over. Did Uijae really enjoy being called ‘Hyung’? Sa-young folded his arms, watching Uijae shake his head.

“No, I told you I’m not eating.”

“Don’t worry about it. I’ll step aside while you eat.”

“What makes you think I’d take off my mask?”

“Should I draft a contract for you, with you as the boss?”

“No, thanks.”

“Uh, excuse me....”

Now the gloomier Mackerel appeared, thrusting forward a tray with a cup of ice-cold sikhye on it. Great, he’s met both of them now. Sa-young tilted his head slightly.

He knew the Mackerels would try to curry favor with J, but he didn’t expect both to show up. That must mean J is really important to them....

“H-how about this...?”

“Why the sudden offer of sikhye?”

“It’s, uh, something crafted by an artisan.”

“And why is something he made here?”

“I, uh, received it in a trade.”

“Hey, come on! Popcorn goes with soda, not sikhye!”

“Oh.... Should I bring some cola?”

Their absurd conversation continued, dragging on. Cha Uijae, still in a suit, was lounging like some kind of debauched emperor. Throw a red blanket over him, and he’d practically be royalty. The two Mackerels groveling beside him were like palace officials or something. Sa-young crossed his arms, watching the scene unfold. He was curious to see how far it would go.

He tapped his arm with his fingers. But more than anything....

‘This is irritating....’

Of course, it’s good to see Cha Uijae happy. Really, it is.

As Sa-young quietly observed him, he called out to Uijae in a robotic tone.

“J Hunter.”

Uijae, who had been engaged in boring conversation with the Mackerels, jerked his head up the moment he heard the name. Pointing at himself, he asked, with a look of disbelief.

“...M-me? Are you talking to me?”

Leaning against the doorframe, Sa-young looked at him and smiled faintly. This time, he pronounced the words with even more emphasis.

“Yes, J Hunter.”

“...Huh?”

Uijae put down the remote he was holding. He looked tense, his shoulders and arms visibly stiffening. The younger Mackerel whispered into the elder’s ear.

“I don’t think we’re supposed to be here.”

“Should we... leave?”

“Let’s get out of here.”

“Y-yeah.”

Maybe it was their long experience as information brokers, but the younger Mackerel winked at Sa-young before leading his brother out.

Now alone in the dim room, Sa-young closed the door behind him with a heavy thud. Click. He didn’t forget to lock it. Although he couldn’t completely escape the Mackerels’ gaze, as long as they had some sense, they wouldn’t dare peek for a while.

Sa-young slid his hands into his coat pockets and slowly approached. Cha Uijae, still half-reclining awkwardly, looked up at him.

He could imagine the expression hidden behind the black mask. A bewildered look, as if wondering, ‘Why is he acting like this? Did I do something wrong?’ That thought finally satisfied Sa-young. Uijae’s tense appearance was oddly cute.

‘Really... He’s not great at socializing.’

Why do so many strange people flock to him?

Whenever he lets his guard down even a little, he ends up getting close to some weirdo. Is he even wary of others at all? He had acted all tough, saying he’d keep his guard up, yet here he was, following people into this secluded place. Is he just lonely and seeking human connection? Even so, does he really need to be this reckless?

Sa-young, having conveniently forgotten that he was once one of those strange people himself, started analyzing Uijae’s inner thoughts without realizing the irony.

Meanwhile, Uijae was having a tough time himself.

‘Why the hell is he acting like this?’

J Hunter. Sure, it was a title he’d heard from others countless times. At some point, people had dropped the ‘Hunter’ and just called him ‘J.’ But from the beginning of their relationship until now, Lee Sa-young had *never* called him that. Damn it.

Cha Uijae reflected on his actions. Did I do something wrong again? I followed the Mackerels just like Miss Rose instructed. Did he call me that because of the Mackerels? But why call me that in such a cold way? A vague sense of hurt welled up, but it was soon buried under a wave of annoyance.

Like a slasher from a horror movie, Sa-young walked over and simply watched Uijae. Eventually, Uijae spoke first.

“...Why did you call me that?”

“Hm? What do you mean?”

“No, I mean, you called me ‘J Hunter.’”

“Oh.”

Sa-young let out a small sigh and chuckled softly.

“You seemed to be getting along so well with the Mackerels. Already acting like brothers, huh?”

Was *that* the issue? Uijae could never keep up with Sa-young’s train of thought. He clutched his head in frustration.

“I didn’t ask them to call me that. They just did it on their own.”

“I’m sure they did. So, why are you here and not at Rose Fisheries? Where’s your gas mask?”

“I *was* at Rose Fisheries. But they already know I’m J.”

“Didn’t you say you’d rough them up?”

“Well, once we talked, I realized they weren’t so bad.”

Uijae recalled the events earlier.

At Rose Fisheries, Uijae had smashed a lightbulb with his chopsticks and charged at the Mackerels in the dark. They had flailed like actual fish trying to escape, but Uijae was quicker. He had them in a headlock when the younger Mackerel wheezed out:

‘Why are you doing this?!’

‘You bastards! Who told you to publish that garbage article?!’

‘But... without that article, J, you wouldn’t have noticed us at all!’

What is this, some kind of comic book dialogue? Uijae had been dumbfounded, but he loosened his grip to hear the rest. The younger Mackerel flailed, catching his breath.

‘Other Hunters schedule appointments just to meet us, but even after you came back, J, you never looked for us!’

Well, Minggijeok does all my info gathering anyway. Why would I need to meet with the Mackerels? In the back of his mind, he could see a deadpan Minggijeok flashing a peace sign. The younger Mackerel pretended to cry, covering his face with his hands.

‘We’ve stored up so much valuable information just for you! How could you not know? You’re a fool.’

‘Information? What information?’

‘Would you like to see our media room?’

‘Media room?’

‘Yes! Come and see it for yourself. We’ll retract the article right away. By tomorrow morning, it’ll be dealt with. You can trust us!’

‘You think you can bury this?’

‘Don’t worry, we’ll drop a scandal involving other Hunters too. You know Lee Wonho and Kang Duchi, right?’

Those names sound familiar. Were they customers at the hangover soup restaurant? In any case, the Mackerels had the mind of seasoned leakers, something Uijae could never quite match. So, he had agreed to wait in the media room for Sa-young.

‘If you pull anything, I’ll destroy this place.’

‘Understood, Hyung-nim!’

If necessary, he could just flip the fish market upside down. That had been his plan.

“....”

Behind his gas mask, Sa-young’s expression was hard to read. He seemed unsure of how to react. Uijae patted the beanbag beside him again. Sa-young quietly sat down and looked at the screen. The projector flickered to life. Uijae dusted off the remote and clicked play.

“Look, they showed me some interesting stuff. It was... informative.”

“...What kind of stuff?”

“The

last thing I watched was a breakdown of the power shifts among top-ranked Hunters and guilds since the Rift. But right now, we’re watching....”

Uijae pressed play, and the screen flickered, displaying:

—You've become number one as soon as you Awakened. Do you plan to join a guild?

Click, click, click. Camera flashes went off. The young man standing at the podium looked barely out of his teens.

His black hair was neatly combed, and his long lashes fluttered as he blinked. Despite the crowd of reporters and flashing cameras, he didn’t look nervous at all. Instead, he appeared bored, even languid. His plump lips moved.

—I have no intention of joining any guild.

“That’s your first interview after becoming a Hunter.”

“....”

“Wow, you were so young. How old were you? Eighteen?”

Thwack! Sa-young’s hand shot out, ready to smash the projector, but Uijae quickly grabbed it with surprising force.

“Hey, why are you trying to break it?”

“....”

Sa-young clenched his fist. His knuckles cracked, tension building in his hand as if he was about to hit Uijae. But instead of pulling away, Uijae leaned in closer, reaching out with his other hand. With practiced ease, he undid the strap of Sa-young’s gas mask, slipping his fingers into the space between the mask and the straps. Slowly, the mask came off.

Beneath his messy black hair, Sa-young’s pale face was flushed red.