Chapter 146: A Speech That Shook the World

No—this had gone past baffling and straight into absurd.

Do people hand out wedding invitations like this these days?

Sung Jiwoo turned the invitation this way and that, even reading it vertically in case there was some hidden message he was missing. But no matter how he looked at it, there was nothing concealed between the lines.

It was—no matter who looked at it, no matter how—

A wedding invitation. Plain and simple.

“…Have the tactics gotten more elaborate now?”

He had heard rumors that these days it was hard to gather wedding guests, so people resorted to all sorts of methods to deliver invitations. Still, he’d never imagined receiving a wedding invitation disguised as a formal invite—from a complete stranger, no less.

“Do you not know him?”

Seeing Sung Jiwoo’s reaction, Yoo Heero tilted his head and asked.

“I didn’t before… but now I do.”

They had exchanged names earlier, so calling him a total stranger felt inaccurate. And unintentionally, Sung Jiwoo had even learned rather personal details—like the fact that he was from Chicago and had spoken Korean fluently since childhood.

Was that the point…?

Suddenly, the whole thing felt deeply unsettling. Sung Jiwoo muttered in an uneasy tone,

“I just met him out of nowhere.”

“…What does that even mean?”

“I don’t really know what I’m saying either.”

“So he sent this to you and me?”

“Huh? Uh… yeah.”

“I don’t know him at all though…”

“Well… that figures, I guess.”

Of course Yoo Heero wouldn’t know him. He was an employee of the International Hunter Association based in the U.S.

At Sung Jiwoo’s answer, Yoo Heero raised one eyebrow skeptically.

“So, anyway… are we going?”

“Do we… have to?”

Jason had said Morgan really wanted to see him. And Morgan was the president of the International Hunter Association.

There was no way he could refuse an invitation from someone like that.

…He planned this, didn’t he? Didn’t seem like it, but he’s more meticulous than I thought.

“Let’s go back in.”

Stuffing the invitation roughly into the inner pocket of his jacket, Sung Jiwoo turned Yoo Heero around and pushed him forward.

They quietly returned to the ceremony hall, where the second part of the awards was in full swing, doing their best not to draw attention. While applauding the hunter whose name had just been called, Chae Minjung mouthed, Why are you so late?

Not knowing—or caring—who had won which award, Sung Jiwoo clapped along reflexively.

“A staff member came earlier and asked me to tell you both not to leave your seats once you got back.”

“…Really?”

“Yes. Especially you, Guild Leader. They practically begged—said you absolutely must stay seated during Part 3.”

Chae Minjung perfectly mimicked the staff member’s desperate tone. And the reason for their plea was revealed at the very end of Part 3.

“And now, the most anticipated award—the Hunter Merit Award, Grand Prize category! This year’s recipient is a remarkable rookie who showed the greatest achievements of the year. Living up to the hunter name HERO, the man who became a hero to the world—Hunter Yoo Heero! Congratulations!”

It was exactly what everyone had expected, so there wasn’t much surprise. Even Yoo Heero himself looked completely unfazed.

Some people might pretend to be shocked for show, but Yoo Heero didn’t even bother with that. If anything, he looked mildly annoyed, his expression filling the big screen—so much so that Sung Jiwoo, who was caught in the same frame, felt more embarrassed than he did.

“Congrats. Get up. Hurry.”

A montage of Yoo Heero’s exploits played as the presenter began speaking.

But Yoo Heero still dragged his feet, and Sung Jiwoo leaned in to whisper sharply,

“I’m tired. I want to go home. Just go, say something quick, and come back.”

The intense look in his eyes clearly meant Don’t say anything unnecessary. Keep it short. Yoo Heero stepped onto the stage, looking only half-convinced.

“I’ve got a bad feeling about this.”

“Why?”

Chae Minjung leaned closer, having caught Sung Jiwoo’s mutter.

“Feels like he’s going to say something insane again.”

“…Yeah. That’s honestly very possible.”

“This is live, right?”

“Yes. And the Guild Leader already has a history of causing incidents on live broadcast. …You don’t remember?”

Maybe it was because too much had happened recently, but his memories before that felt hazy. As Sung Jiwoo struggled to recall, Chae Minjung let out a deep sigh.

“How do you forget that? I knew you marched to your own beat, but Vice Guild Leader, your nerves are seriously thick. Is that why you match so well with the Guild Leader?”

“Match—match well?”

“Yes. Birds of a feather.”

“Ah…”

“Huh? Don’t tell me you took that another way? Well, I guess you do match in that sense too. I mean, your faces together—”

Sung Jiwoo hurriedly denied it, insisting that wasn’t what he meant at all, but Chae Minjung just smiled knowingly.

“Anyway, what I was going to say—”

Just then, Yoo Heero, having received the trophy and bouquet, tapped the microphone with his finger. Everyone’s attention snapped toward him.

“I’m Yoo Heero.”

A brief introduction—barely even a greeting—and a short nod. Thunderous applause followed.

“That proposal you made at the return ceremony…”

As the applause faded, Chae Minjung spoke again. Sung Jiwoo’s eyes widened as the memory resurfaced.

No way. He wouldn’t. He wouldn’t pull that kind of madness here again… right?

Anxiously, Sung Jiwoo watched Yoo Heero.

Yoo Heero swept his indifferent gaze across the audience.

“I don’t really have anything I want to say. People keep asking me for interviews, but regarding the X-Gate, I have nothing to tell you. A lot of you are curious about the final floor—but I have no intention of talking about it.”

The hall fell so silent that someone’s dry cough echoed emptily.

“I know people think I did something extraordinary, but I didn’t do it with any grand intentions. And the reason I resolved to take down the X-Gate—and succeeded—was entirely because of my hyung.”

At that, Sung Jiwoo visibly flinched.

“Since I’ve already said this much, I’ll dedicate all this honor to him. No—he should’ve received this award in the first place. Not me.”

What are you talking about?

Sung Jiwoo frowned as if he were hearing complete nonsense. The internet was plastered with headlines about Yoo Heero single-handedly conquering the X-Gate—why on earth was he trying to pass that credit onto him?

“Oh, and since I get asked this a lot, I’ll clarify it here. When I say ‘hyung,’ I mean Hunter Sung Jiwoo, who’s sitting right up front. Since you’re all here, feel free to write plenty of articles about it. And make sure to put his name next to mine.”

Gasp—sharp intakes of breath rippled through the crowd. Dizzy, Sung Jiwoo squeezed his eyes shut, then opened them again.

Yoo Heero was still staring straight at him.

“Now that hyung is a hunter too, I’m glad I can say his name openly. I don’t have to hide it anymore.”

Despite the sharp, blunt way he’d spoken earlier, every word, expression, and gesture directed at Sung Jiwoo was unbearably gentle.

Sung Jiwoo couldn’t bring himself to nod or shake his head—he could only sigh deeply. No matter what he did or said, it was obvious this would cause a massive stir. Camera shutters clicked wildly, filling the air.

“Oh, and they’re asking me to talk more up here, but I’ve got nothing else to say. Plus, before I came up, my hyung whispered that he was tired and wanted to go home. So we’ll be heading out now. Thank you.”

After saying all that, you think ending with ‘thank you’ makes it okay?

From his face down to his neck, Sung Jiwoo flushed bright red. The host’s flustered voice tried desperately to smooth things over.

He didn’t remember how the ceremony ended. Not just Sung Jiwoo, but most of the attendees left in a daze.

And as if the awards ceremony hadn’t lasted a full two hours and forty minutes, the internet buzzed nonstop with only one topic—Yoo Heero’s acceptance speech.

Just as Yoo Heero had wished, Sung Jiwoo’s name began following his like a fixed pair. The moment Sung Jiwoo saw the internet plastered with his own face, he grabbed his head.

When he spotted a post titled “Most boring Hunter Awards ever—absolute legendary disaster lol”, he didn’t even bother clicking it. It was obvious what it would be about.

People had always loitered around his general store hoping to catch a glimpse of Yoo Heero—but never like this.

After the ceremony, crowds flooded in so badly that even guild members struggled to get in or out.

“…At this rate, I might have to shut down the shop.”

He’d started it not for profit, but for peace and rest. He wasn’t attached to it anymore—if anything, closing it would bring him closer to what he truly wanted.

“You like this? You happy?”

Beside him, Yoo Heero grinned endlessly, clearly delighted. Normally indifferent to articles or news about himself, he now stared at his phone nonstop, saving all sorts of useless posts.

They were things like “Hunter Yoo Heero and Gwangmyeong Vice Guild Leader Sung Jiwoo share a special relationship” or “The mysterious ‘hyung’ of Hunter HERO revealed to be Sung Jiwoo” or “Who is Sung Jiwoo, Yoo Heero’s ‘someone’?”

Utterly pointless articles.

“Why are you even reading that?”

“Hyung, were you class president in elementary school?”

“What?”

“It says so here. Someone who went to elementary school with you got interviewed. Says you were class president. Is it true?”

On the screen Yoo Heero held up was an interview with someone labeled ‘Mr. A,’ filled with anecdotes from Sung Jiwoo’s childhood.

“No, why would they—”

Sung Jiwoo hastily snatched the phone.

“It says you got scolded for being a picky eater because you hated carrots.”

“……”

“Man, why didn’t I go to the same elementary school as you?”

“……”

“Just knowing this person saw all that makes me so jealous it’s making me mad.”

“……”

“Elementary school Sung Jiwoo…”

Muttering to himself, Yoo Heero suddenly started laughing—heh heh—then looked at Sung Jiwoo’s stiff face before burying his face in his hands, laughing so hard he was almost sobbing.

“Ha… I really want to go back to then.”

“What are you talking about? How would we go back? Say something that makes sense.”

Grumpily, Sung Jiwoo pressed the Report button next to the article. When prompted for a reason, he hesitated, selected Violation of another person’s rights, then sighed and canceled.

“It’s not impossible.”

At those words, Sung Jiwoo’s head turned naturally toward Yoo Heero. The laughter was gone now—Yoo Heero looked at him quietly.

The tenderness in his gaze was unbearable. Sung Jiwoo bit down hard on his lower lip as Yoo Heero’s hand gently brushed through his hair.

But the words that followed froze him solid.

“Hyung—you were like that too.”

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