Chapter 93: The Chill of Lerajie’s Hunter

#93

The moment Kang Taesan added another remark, Byeon Yeongchan visibly flinched. Dokyeom watched the scene unfold, his gaze unwavering.

After a brief pause, Dokyeom shifted his gaze, his eyes locking with Kang Taesan’s, who offered an awkward, apologetic smile.

Kang Taesan.

This was the Hunter Kang Taesan, whose Guardian was Lerajie, the 14th demon of the ‘Lemegeton.’ Originally, he should have joined the team with Geon Ita and Ju Uiryeong, not this particular group.

There was only one reason why he hadn’t.

Kang Taesan had not yet joined the ‘Uwha Guild.’ This was the ‘changed’ fate that had befallen him when he was registered in .

For some reason, Kang Taesan had refused to join the ‘Uwha Guild’ and was still operating as an independent Hunter, accompanied by his friends.

As Dokyeom stared intently, Kang Taesan, sensing his gaze, offered a greeting.

“We meet again, Hunter-nim. To be honest, I felt rather uneasy after we parted ways that day…”

Even his awkward smile was gentle and amiable. Dokyeom, looking into his eyes, returned the greeting without much thought.

“Yes, it’s been a while.”

“Ah, right. I heard you’re staying with Yeonhu. You’re here today because of Yeonhu, aren’t you? Of course, it’s good to see you, but… this is a very dangerous place, and I’m worried something might happen to you, Hunter-nim. You look quite cold even now.”

“Thank you for your concern, but I’m fine. Am I the only one who’s cold? Everyone else is in the same situation, after all.”

‘No, you’re not~’

If Dokyeom could peer into the minds of the Sahyeon Guild Hunters passing by, they would likely all be thinking the same thing.

It was because no one there was as bundled up as Dokyeom.

‘If you roll them, they’d really roll.’

‘Oh dear, our E-rank is really showing off their E-rank status. Looks like I’ll have to offer up my clothes too.’

‘Hey, don’t make eye contact. There’s a deep-sea fish next to them.’

‘Deep-sea fish’ was the epithet given by the Sahyeon Guild Hunters to Agon, whom they had encountered in the water. While less striking out of water, encountering them underwater was truly monstrous, like facing some never-before-seen abyssal creature.

“Ah… please don’t misunderstand. I’m not saying I don’t trust you, Hunter-nim, or anything like that. I’m just saying it out of concern, so please don’t take it to heart.”

Kang Taesan scratched his cheek lightly, his eyes curving into a smile. His eyes were pale. Though naturally light, being in a snow-covered landscape made their white seem even more stark and chilling.

“But Hunter-nim. There’s snow on your eyelashes…”

Suddenly, Kang Taesan reached out a hand. His rounded fingertips slowly approached Dokyeom’s brow bone. Before Dokyeom could even utter a refusal or pull back, it happened.

An object rapidly approaching flashed in Dokyeom’s pupils. It was someone’s hand. Simultaneously, a snarling sound brushed past his ears, and an arm wrapped around Dokyeom’s neck, pulling him forcefully backward.

In that shaking vision, Dokyeom witnessed a shadowy form, like something he had only seen from Agon. And it was within Beom Yeonhu’s golden pupils.

*Snap*

It was none other than Beom Yeonhu who roughly seized Kang Taesan’s wrist, suspended in mid-air.

“…Don’t touch them.”

“What…?”

Kang Taesan asked unconsciously, his mind blank. His pale eyes drifted to his wrist, now caught and shaking in Beom Yeonhu’s grip. A powerful, unyielding strength held his wrist captive. What in the…

The soft words came again.

“I said, don’t lay a hand on them, Taesan.”

‘You’ll die if you do.’

His confused eyes twitched and darted forward. For a moment, Kang Taesan had to flinch in alarm. It felt as though beast-like eyes, lowered over Dokyeom’s shoulder, were tearing into him.

Silence instantly descended. However, just as someone swallowed dryly, a loud shout echoed from a distance.

“Food! It’s food, it’s food!”

‘Food?’

Hunters nearby blinked their eyes wide and stared ahead. In an instant, a monster as large as a house came into their view. To be precise, it was a sentinel guarding against intruders – a monster, yet to the Hunters, meat ultimately meant food.

The Hunters immediately grabbed their weapons and dashed forward. Their agility was more impressive than ever.

“Catch it, damn it! If we don’t catch that today, we’ll starve! Catch it!”

Amidst the commotion, only Dokyeom’s party remained in place. Dali alone twitched slightly, as if eager to eat.

As the silence lifted, Kang Taesan roughly shook off Beom Yeonhu’s now slackened grip. He then rubbed his wrist and looked at Dokyeom.

“I’ll see you again, Hunter-nim.”

“Yes, well.”

‘Is there even a next time?’

Kang Taesan maintained his smile throughout his departure. His gentle eyes remained unchanged. Yet, he could not conceal the underlying chill.

It was a coldness that hid its claws, a chill that felt even more biting, like the snow itself.

His gaze briefly brushed past Beom Yeonhu before disappearing.

****

Eventually, that day, thanks to the meat-crazed Hunters, by the time night fell, everyone was able to gather around a bonfire in a clearing and tear into the meat.

The flesh of three house-sized monsters vanished into the stomachs of forty Hunters in a flash. However, it was tough, gamey, and nauseating, evoking a longing for home. To that extent, monster meat was hardly fit to be called food.

Dokyeom, in fact, couldn’t bring himself to eat it and had to sit further away, unwrapping and eating the chocolate bars he had brought in his well-stocked pocket. The ones Taeseongyeon had given him were a bonus. Beside him, Dali, wearing a large backpack, ate a rice ball with his face buried in it.

“It’s a good thing you brought a backpack, Dali.”

*Chirp*

However, Dali’s gaze remained fixed on the meat the Hunters were eating with disgusted expressions, unable to tear away. Occasionally, he would blink slowly at Dokyeom. Dokyeom wondered if he felt sorry for the monster, or if he simply wanted to eat it himself.

“Dokyeom, this one’s grilled well, so it should be alright. Just try a little.”

At that moment, Beom Yeonhu suddenly offered a piece of meat skewered like a kabob. Dokyeom glanced at it and then looked at Agon, who was sitting in front of him. Agon, who seemed to be sniffing the air, frowned deeply.

“No thanks, Hyung. If Agon reacts like that, it won’t suit me. It’ll probably be too gamey.”

Han Dokyeom’s body was particularly sensitive to smells, rarely able to stomach food with strong odors. This had made him wonder if his survival skill, , had developed because of it, but even that was mostly ineffective. He often felt a pang of despair, wondering how he had ever survived before.

“If you can eat it, Hyung, then go ahead. Don’t forget to fill your stomach and get some sleep.”

Beom Yeonhu, who had been looking at the skewer with a hint of regret, soon offered a faint smile, as if to say not to worry. Ultimately, the food he had brought became his own portion.

Dokyeom scanned the Hunters spitting out meat. Most were A-rank, but none seemed like candidates for . After all, most were Hunters he had seen in guilds; it was unlikely any new ones would appear now.

Of course, he couldn’t be certain, given cases like Han Yuseong, who had been applied to the skill later.

With a sigh, Dokyeom leaned against a large tree, holding his breath and waiting for the right moment, until the Hunters had assigned watch duty and settled down to sleep.

And as a profound silence settled, he slowly opened his eyes, having pretended to be curled up and asleep.

“……”

A quiet night, where even the sound of falling snow was swallowed by the wind. The surrounding Hunters were asleep, and those on watch duty patrolled with torches, monitoring the surroundings.

Dokyeom quietly rose and shook Dali and Agon. Beom Yeonhu, who had also prepared, opened his eyes beside them. Their gazes briefly met. Dokyeom placed a finger to his lips once, then pointed towards the dark, empty forest where people were not.

In the direction his fingertip indicated stood the lowest snow-capped mountain.

‘Quietly and quickly.’

When Dokyeom mouthed those words and put his arm around Agon’s neck, the four figures were swallowed by the darkness. By the time the distant torchlight flickered and pushed back the gloom, only the faint traces of someone having been curled up remained.

However, despite their clandestine actions, there were those who had witnessed their departure.

****

After trekking through the darkness for a long time, having ventured so deep into the forest that they no longer knew how far they had come, Agon finally halted his swift steps.

Beom Yeonhu and Dali, who had been following, also stopped, their feet sinking into the snow. It was a desolate clearing, untouched by anyone’s footsteps.

Even with the fierce blizzard, the area, densely surrounded by leafless trees, was bright enough for them to distinguish each other, perhaps because the moon shone so brightly.

“Wait a moment.”

As Dokyeom separated from Agon and surveyed his surroundings, a faint noise reached him from somewhere. He pierced the silent darkness with his gaze. Listening intently, the sound took shape. The faint noise was the roar of a waterfall.

It was astonishing that water wasn’t frozen in such cold weather, yet Dokyeom smiled, his eyes showing he had found his way.

It was there. They had to ascend that waterfall to reach the ‘third’ snow-capped mountain. However, with no discernible climbing points in the surrounding terrain, it seemed they would have to climb the waterfall itself to scale the cliff-faced mountain.

“Hyung, how many meters did you say can reach now?”

“If I raise it to its highest, it can probably reach about six meters.”

Six meters. That would be enough for them to stack and climb. Once the decision was made, their actions quickened. Dokyeom shifted his foot, heading towards the waterfall. But with just one step,

Suddenly, Agon and Dali bared their teeth, glaring into the dark forest.

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