LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 22
PR: Gleshie
“…A date?”
He looked at me as if he wanted to say something. Kang Soo Hyun looked very serious. Of course, he didn’t look stiff because his overall appearance was very gentle, plus his smile was clearly visible.
Anyhow, do we normally use the term ‘dating’ for the same gender? Or is this some kind of joke from teenagers in this world? I don’t know, so I just frowned and asked.
“Why should I go on a date with you?”
Then Kang Soo-hyun opened his eyes wide and said something I couldn’t understand.
“I’m not going to school today.”
“So?”
“I have plenty of time.”
“…?”Then what does that have to do with me…
When I looked at him with such eyes, Kang Soo-hyun said, “Ah!” and opened his mouth again.
“Ah, right! I was awakened.”
“Uh? Oh… Congratulations?”
Was it time for Kang Soo Hyun to be awakened?
I looked at him with a bewilderment. Kang Soo Hyun, who had a bashful smile on his face, blushed as if he was embarrassed.
“Thank you.”
“…”
But isn’t it a bit early? Was he originally awakened at this time? I think after graduating, his ability manifested and joined the guild. He was now a senior in high school who had not yet graduated.
It increasingly flows to a different time from the novel I read. Surprisingly, my mouth was dry and I gulped.
“So you didn’t go to school today because you became an Awakener and registered as a Hunter first?”
“Yes.”
That was why he wandered around at this early hour without going to school.
For a moment, I glanced up and down at Kang Soo-hyun in ordinary clothes. In our first meeting, he looked younger because he was wearing a school uniform, but now he looks a bit older. Don’t people usually wear jeans and T-shirts around his age? Maybe because he was wearing beige trousers and brown knitwear, he looked a lot more mature.
Anyway, he really didn’t look like Kang Yoo-hyun. How could the brothers not look alike? As I pondered this, his big brown eyes stared at me in front of me.
“So what’s your answer?”
“What?”
Kang Soo-hyun turned to me. Avoiding Kang Soo-hyun’s burdensome face, I frowned and backed away.
“What answer?”
“The date.”
Ah, that.
He brought back the topic I had put away from my mind when he said he was awakened.
Q. Kang Soo-hyun wants to go on a date with you. What’s your answer?
1) Alright, let’s go.
2) Sorry, I’m quite busy…
…No, it’s not like a dating sim game.
While thinking, I looked at Kang Soo-hyun, and waved my hand at the speech bubbles in my imagination.
“I’m not going.”
“Why?”
“I’m not going. Your hyung has something to do.”
You’re so bad to set your hyung in a trap. I couldn’t say that and just smiled. Then, Kang Soo-hyun’s face, which was fluttering like the wind in the spring, became a little gloomy. He looked like a big dog with a baby-like face, so I almost reached out to him without realising it.
“Am I bothering you?”
“No, it’s not like that…”
He asked with a gloomy face, but I couldn’t shake him off after saying yes. Considering that Han Yi-jin was originally a rude person but his body remained still, Kang Soo-hyun’s pitiful face was truly effective.
“Anyway, if you want to play, just—”
I froze and wasn’t able to finish my sentence so I turned my head, since it was difficult to talk while facing Kang Soo Hyun, but then my eyes landed on a suspicious man.
However, as soon as I closed and opened my eyes, the man’s figure disappeared in an instant. He’s quite far away, but I’m sure. His unnatural gaze was on me and Kang Soo-hyun.
If he was Jang Tae-san’s watchdog, he would most likely tell him that I met Kang Yoo-hyun’s younger brother, Kang Soo-hyun. Then I will be in trouble. I bit my lip and turned to Kang Soo-hyun again.
“You said you’ve awakened your ability, right?”
“What? Yes.”
I remember Kang Soo-hyun’s ability in the novel. Kang Soo-hyun was an S-class hunter who had a detection ability. This was similar to the Ranger’s abilities in fantasy novels and games. A profession that finds directions and traps in dungeons.
Of course, the indomitable Kang Yoo Hyun could find and detect the path alone, but there were more hunters who were unable to do so.
In addition, Kang Soo-hyun was a prominent character among the main characters because he was an S-class and had good skills. There were many readers, including me, who praised him as the younger brother of the overpowered protagonist.
I looked up and stared at Kang Soo-hyun.
“If you listen to me, the date… I’ll go with you.”
“Really?”
I had to grit my teeth for a while at the word “dating”, but it seems that somehow it worked out. It doesn’t mean that we’re going on a date or anything, but just hanging out together.
However, after hearing my words, his face immediately brightened again, and I felt a little strange seeing him wagging his invisible tail. Does he really have no friends? He’s so loyal to his role because of what I said?
“What should I do?”
“Ah.”
When I came to my senses at Kang Soo-hyun’s words, I was flabbergasted. I had to find the watchdog before he escapes or hides in earnest. It’s hard to leave it to the teenager to clean up the mess afterwards, so I’ll just ask him to track the watchdog with his ability.
“So, actually, someone put a watchdog on me.”
“Oh, is that bastard at 11 o’clock?”
“Huh?”
It was the opposite direction of the man I had just met. Subconsciously, I turned in that direction, but there was no one.
What’s that? I was horrified and cold sweat ran down my back, but Kang Soo-hyun opened his mouth again.
“I think he’s going to run away. Should I catch him?”
“…Can you do that?”
“Of course.”
Kang Soo-hyun’s smiling face disappeared in an instant. Then I heard a scream from a completely unexpected direction.
“No, I…!”
“Shut up.”
Unlike his friendly tone, Kang Soo-hyun grabbed the watchdog’s neck and pressed it hard with his hand. The watchdog choked and couldn’t budge. This time it was an unexpected 6 o’clock direction. I approached him with a dumbfounded look.
“Hey.”
“…”
As expected, Eden wasn’t the watchdog this time. Well, he helped me secretly, so the guildmaster wouldn’t let me see him anymore. I had a bitter taste in my mouth and looked at the watchdog’s face.
“You were sent by Jang Tae-san, right?”
“…”
I’ve never seen him before. If Han Yi-jin knew him, his body would pretend to know him, but his body didn’t.
We went into a secluded alley. I was wondering if I could interrogate the watchdog in front of a minor for a while, but I changed my mind because I thought it would be difficult to beat him myself.
Kang Soo-hyun smiled again with an innocent face when our eyes met.
“…Han Yi-jin! You ungrateful bastard!”
“Me? You mean me?”
With only the three of us left, the unidentified watchdog started cursing as soon as he opened his mouth. When I looked confused, the watchdog raised his voice angrily.
“A low-ranking bastard like you makes a grand talk about your skill. If it was me, I’d have listened to the guildmaster well. But because of you, Eden…!”
“…”
“Damn it.”
Well, as a fellow watchdog, it is understandable to empathise with Eden.
It’s also very human to be jealous of Han Yi-jin. However, the more I listened to the story, the more indifferent I became.
I did ask Eden for help, but I didn’t cry and clung to it. It was Eden’s choice. It was his will to help me even though he knew it could go wrong if the guildmaster found out. Therefore, it is not something to be argued by an irrelevant third party.
“So? Is that all you want to say?”
“What?”
When he saw my face, which was completely unaffected, the watchdog wrinkled his face. Then he glanced at Kang Soo-hyun who was standing still and bit his lip.
“Han Yi-jin! You fucker! Why did you meet Kang Yoo-hyun’s brother? Are you going to betray the guildmaster?”
“Oh, yes, I will.”
“…What?”
“Are you going to tell Jang Tae-san when you go back?”
“O-of course.”
“Hmm.”
Then it can’t be helped.
The watchdog’s complexion turned pale as I muttered in a small voice.
“Hey, you fucking traitor!”
“Yeah, no more bullshit.”
To be honest, it doesn’t matter to me how many guild members of the Loki Guild, whom I will soon leave, look down on Han Yi-jin.
From their point of view, Han Yi-jin seems to be betraying the guildmaster by taking only the good things.1
And I don’t want to talk too much about Han Yi Jin’s situation.
Instead of answering, I took a gun from my inventory. It was the gun that Eden gave me in the dungeon. I kept it for personal reasons, but I had no idea it would be used at times like this.
“What, what…!”
“I don’t want to do this, but I can’t help it.”
I spoke calmly and pointed the gun at the watchdog. It felt different from when I faced monsters. Can I shoot people? For a moment, I thought about it, but Han Yi-jin’s body remained undisturbed. As expected, he was ready to do anything for his brother. Well, otherwise, how could he act as a villain that didn’t match his aptitude? I, as an avid reader, was also deceived.
As the gun was loaded, the pale-faced watchdog shuddered and shouted.
“H-help me! I’ll do whatever you say!”
“How can I believe that?”
“W-we can sign a contract. I have a contract!”
“What rating is this contract?”
“…B, B-grade.”
“Are you kidding me?”
How dare he try to fool me? The watchdog’s face dropped as I glared at him.
“…”
The problem was Kang Soo-hyun, who was watching this. Is it okay for a growing teenager to see such a scene?
No, absolutely not. If Kang Yoo-hyun finds out, he will kill me.
“Um.”
I opened my mouth to tell him to stay away for a while, but Kang Soo-hyun, whose eyes met mine, smiled and asked.
“Should I settle it?”
“What?”
“Or should I shut this bastard’s mouth if he’s too noisy?”
“…”
What on earth happened to him in the meantime, the growing teenager?
- Actually this expression is used as a criticism, so I’ll explain it like this; HYJ only takes the advantage of the guild after using it then he throws it away (betraying).