Summons

Lee Sa-young's first priority was to find Cha Eui-jae. His gaze, which had been wandering aimlessly, finally shifted downward. Then, he frowned.

Cha Eui-jae was half-lying on a plush bean bag, staring at Lee Sa-young. The low table next to him was piled high with all sorts of snacks. The black mask he wore gleamed under the light from the screen.

'What the…'

He thought Cha Eui-jae would be keeping those Mackerels in line.

Lee Sa-young stopped in his tracks. Eui-jae pulled another bean bag close to him and patted the seat next to him.

"Come sit."

Why does he look so comfortable?

"Hyung~nim~"

At that moment, the younger Mackerel with his head down swooped in, holding a bag of freshly popped popcorn that was still steaming. Mackerel grinned and knelt on one knee, offering the popcorn like a bouquet of roses. Lee Sa-young's expression soured even more.

"Hyung-nim, I brought some popcorn. Oh? The guild leader is here too. Nice to meet you!"

The younger Mackerel waved his hand in greeting, but the gesture was lost on Lee Sa-young. His mind was overwhelmed by the shocking term of address.

'Hyung-nim?'

Unbelievable. His lips twisted into a smirk. Judging by the younger Mackerel's attitude, it seemed that Cha Eui-jae had already established his authority. Did he really want to be called "hyung" that badly? Lee Sa-young crossed his arms. Cha Eui-jae, meanwhile, glanced away from Lee Sa-young and shook his head.

"I told you, I'm not eating."

"Don't worry, hyung-nim. I'll leave once you start eating."

"What makes you think I'll take off my mask?"

"Should I draw up a contract? You can be the principal."

"No thanks."

"Uh, um…"

This time, a gloomy Mackerel appeared, nervously extending a tray. On the tray was a cup of iced sikhye. Oh, great, I've run into both mackerels. Lee Sa-young tilted his head slightly.

He knew they would reach out to Cha Eui-jae, but he didn't expect both of them to show up. It just goes to show how important Cha Eui-jae is to them…

"W-what do you think of this…"

"Why sikhye all of a sudden?"

"I-it's made by the master artisan."

"Why is that guy's stuff here?"

"I-it's something we got through a deal."

"For crying out loud. Hyung, you need soda with popcorn."

"Ah… should I go get some c-cola?"

The absurd conversation continued to spiral into nonsense. Now that he was paying attention, Cha Eui-jae, dressed in a suit, looked like some kind of decadent emperor. Throw a red blanket over him, and he'd be no different from a king. The two Mackerels bowing and scraping beside him could be his eunuchs or bureaucrats. Lee Sa-young watched the scene unfold with his arms crossed, curious to see how far they would go.

He tapped his arm with his finger. More than anything…

'It's annoying…'

Of course, he wanted Cha Eui-jae to be happy. But still.

As Lee Sa-young quietly observed him, he called out to Cha Eui-jae in a mechanical tone.

"Hunter J."

Cha Eui-jae, who had been chatting with the Mackerels, immediately snapped his head up at the mention of his hunter name. He pointed to himself, asking with a bit of hesitation.

"…M-me? Are you talking to me?"

Leaning against the doorframe, Lee Sa-young looked at him intently before smiling. This time, he called out more deliberately, emphasizing each syllable.

"Yes, Hunter J."

"…Huh?"

Cha Eui-jae put down the remote control he was holding. Tension was visible as his shoulders and arms stiffened. The younger Mackerel whispered into the older Mackerel's ear.

"I don't think we should be here."

"Should we… should we leave?"

"Let's get out of here."

"Y-yeah."

Perhaps it was due to their experience as information brokers, but the younger Mackerel winked at Lee Sa-young before leading the older one away.

With only the two of them left in the dimly lit room, Lee Sa-young closed the door behind him. Thud. Click. He made sure to lock it. Although he was still under the influence of the mackerels, and couldn't completely escape their watchful eyes…

'If they have any sense, they won't peek in for a while.'

Lee Sa-young put his hands in his coat pockets and slowly approached. Cha Eui-jae, half-crouching, looked up at him.

He could already guess the expression behind that black mask. That bewildered look of wondering, "Why is he acting like this? What did I do wrong?" Only then did he feel a bit more satisfied. The nervousness on Cha Eui-jae's face was kind of cute, too.

'This guy… He's not very good with people.'

So why does he attract so many weirdos?

If you take your eyes off him for just a moment, he's already made friends with some oddball. Does he have a sense of caution or not? He was all fired up about keeping them in line, but he's already dropped his guard and followed them to this remote place. Is it because he's lonely and craves interaction? Even so, how can he be so careless?

Lee Sa-young started analyzing Cha Eui-jae's thoughts, oblivious to the fact that he himself had been considered a "weirdo" in the past. Unaware that he was driving his Hyung to the brink of despair.

Meanwhile, Cha Eui-jae was on the verge of losing it.

'What the hell is with him?'

Hunter J. It was a title he'd heard from plenty of others. At some point, people stopped using the "Hunter" part and just called him "J." But from the past until now, even after they reunited, this was the first time Lee Sa-young had called him that. Damn it.

Cha Eui-jae began to replay his actions in his mind. Did I do something wrong again? I was just following Jang Mi-sook here like I was told. Is it because the Mackerels were around that he called me that? But does he have to call me that so coldly? The inexplicable sense of hurt quickly gave way to annoyance.

Lee Sa-young, walking towards him like a slasher villain in a horror movie, just stood there, silently observing Cha Eui-jae. Eventually, it was Cha Eui-jae who broke the silence.

"…Why did you call me that?"

"Hmm? Call you what?"

"You know, Hunter J."

"Oh."

Lee Sa-young let out a small sound of realization, then chuckled lowly.

"You seem to be getting along well with the Mackerels. You're already calling each other hyung and everything…"

Is that really the biggest issue here? There was no way to keep up with Lee Sa-young's thought process. Cha Eui-jae grabbed his head in frustration.

"I didn't ask them to call me that. They just did it on their own."

"Sure, whatever. Why aren't you at Jangmi Fisheries? And without the gas mask?"

"I was there at first. But then they… found out I was J?"

"Didn't you say you'd beat them up?"

"No, well, after talking to them, I realized they weren't so bad."

Cha Eui-jae recalled what had happened earlier.

At Jangmi Fisheries, after smashing a light with his chopsticks, Cha Eui-jae had used the darkness to his advantage, charging at the Mackerels. They flapped around like fish, trying to escape, but Cha Eui-jae was faster. He had one of them in a headlock when the younger Mackerel, choking, shouted out.

"What's your problem?!"

"You little punks, who told you to post that ridiculous article?!"

"But… if we don't post stuff like that, J-ssi won't even notice us!"

What kind of comic book line is this? Cha Eui-jae was dumbfounded. He loosened his grip slightly, curious about what the Mackerel had to say next. The younger one flopped around.

"Other hunters make reservations just to meet us, but even though you're active again, J-ssi, you never come to see us!"

Well… Seo Min-gi collects all my intel anyway, so I've never had a reason to visit. In his mind, a stoic image of Seo Min-gi flashed by, flashing a V sign. The younger Mackerel covered his face with his hands, pretending to cry.

"We have so much information for J-ssi. We've been saving it for the day you'd finally visit! How could you not understand how we feel? You dummy."

"Information? What kind of information?"

"W-would you like to come to the video room?"

"The video room?"

"Yes. Come and see for yourself before deciding. We'll make sure the article is retracted and corrected as a fake. By tomorrow morning, it'll all be cleared up."

"You think you can cover it up?"

"Don't worry. We'll drop a few other hunters' scandalous stories at the same time. I'm sure you've heard of Lee Won-ho and Kang Du-chil?"

It was names he thought he had heard somewhere before. A customer at the hangover soup restaurant, perhaps? Anyway, the seasoned tactics of these "brokers" were something no criminal could hope to follow. Cha Eui-jae ended up sitting in the video room, waiting for Lee Sa-young to arrive.

"If you pull any funny business, I'll flip this place over."

"I wouldn't dare, sir!"

Knowing he had the strength to back it up, he had made that decision.

"…"

Lee Sa-young's expression behind the gas mask was ambiguous, as if he wasn't quite sure what to make of this situation. Cha Eui-jae patted the empty bean bag next to him once more. Lee Sa-young quietly sat down on the edge of the bean bag and looked at the screen. The beam projector flashed from his right side. Cha Eui-jae picked up the remote and dusted it off.

"Look, these guys showed me a bunch of stuff. It was interesting, even useful."

"…What did they show you?"

"The last thing was an overview of the shifting power dynamics among rankers and guilds after the West Sea rift, and now this…"

Cha Eui-jae pressed the play button. The black screen shifted to reveal:

—You've just awakened and immediately claimed the top rank. Which guild do you plan to join?

Click, click, click. Camera flashes went off. A young man, still with traces of boyishness, stood alone on the stage in a suit. His black hair was neatly combed back, and his long eyelashes fluttered with each blink. Despite standing in front of countless reporters and cameras, he showed no signs of nervousness. In fact, he seemed bored, his face reflecting a clear sense of weariness. His plump lips moved slightly.

—I don't plan to join any guild.

"This is the first interview you did after becoming a hunter."

"…"

"Wow, you were so young, so young. How old were you then? Eighteen?"

Thud! Lee Sa-young's hand, about to strike the beam projector without hesitation, was caught in a strong grip.

"Hey, why are you trying to break it?"

"…"

Lee Sa-young clenched his fist, the joints cracking audibly. He felt the tension in the wrist and arm he was holding. He looked ready to strike Cha Eui-jae at any moment.

Cha Eui-jae, sensing the increased pressure, moved a little closer and reached out with his other hand. He had used it a few times before, and by now was quite adept at loosening the fasteners of Lee Sa-young's gas mask. Slipping his fingers between the straps, he removed the mask that had been covering Lee Sa-young's face.

Beneath the disheveled black hair, his pale face was flushed red.