The Hunter’s Gonna Lay Low

Chapter 181

With just the strength of his thighs, Uijae’s body was lifted off the ground. His firmly planted feet hovered in the air. While he was used to looking down on others, this was a first. Startled, Uijae slapped his hand over Sayoung's face, pushing him away.

"Confession? What confession? Hey, are you out of your mind? Let go already!"

But.

As if waiting for it, something wet licked between Uijae’s palm and fingers. Through the gaps between his splayed fingers, he glimpsed a pair of purple eyes. Narrowed, curved, and glinting with amusement, like they were having the time of their life. Uijae's fingers curled involuntarily. An odd, ticklish feeling crept up around his heart.

"Hey, don't just say 'hey.'"

"Get your tongue off!"

"You’re the one who touched my face first."

"You stuck your face in first! Let me go, now."

"If you don't move your hand like this…"

Sayoung tilted his head slightly and began to bite down on the tip of Uijae's thumb. Damn it. Uijae squeezed his eyes shut and yanked his hand back. A low chuckle escaped Sayoung, each sound sending shivers through Uijae’s body. He was grateful for the mask, for it hid his face. He didn’t even want to imagine what his expression looked like without it.

Uijae snapped sharply in an attempt to deflect.

"You're really putting on this whole act just to hear one little thing—"

But before he could finish, he swallowed the rest of his words. Even if the tears pooling in Sayoung’s eyes were just an act, the sight struck Uijae’s heart like an arrow.

‘There’s a limit to predicting things. Just how long am I supposed to wait?’

He hadn’t meant to, but it was true—he had kept Sayoung waiting. The sharp edge in his voice quickly dulled, and a much softer reply followed.

“…Why would you say something like that?”

"Because it's the only way you’ll open your mouth."

Sayoung’s response was smooth, as if he had expected Uijae to retreat. Holding Uijae up with ease, he took a few steps forward. Uijae’s hips bumped against a cold railing, causing him to instinctively lean back. Beneath him, the ground seemed far away, and a chilly breeze brushed against his face, ruffling his gray hair.

"It’s hard to get you to answer, hard to hear what you’re really thinking."

If it weren’t for Sayoung’s arm, Uijae felt like he might fall any moment.

"You’ve gotten so used to holding out to your limit for no reason…"

Sayoung’s hand, which was gripping Uijae’s waist, lightly tickled his side.

"To get someone this tight-lipped to talk, sometimes tears are necessary."

"…I don’t need that."

Uijae barely managed to get the words out. Sayoung leaned in closer, their bodies pressing together. Sayoung rested his cheek against Uijae’s chest, looking up at him. The wind tousled Sayoung's black hair.

"Did it make you happy?"

"……."

Instead of answering, Uijae squeezed his eyes shut, silently wishing his heart would stop. The thundering beat was loud enough for Sayoung to hear, he was sure of it.

"Why don't you answer me?"

"……."

"Wouldn't it be worth the wait if you did?"

Sayoung must have noticed the small rise and fall of Uijae’s chest with every breath he took. It was unfair, collecting all this undeniable evidence.

After hesitating for a long time, Uijae finally forced the words out.

"…I was happy."

Those three words were surprisingly hard to say.

Heat rose to his face, and the inside of the mask felt unbearably warm. The sound of his heart pounding was so loud it nearly drove him crazy.

He didn’t want Sayoung to notice, but at the same time, a part of him wished Sayoung would. He hoped this warmth would fade, yet also wanted it to stay. Uijae didn’t even fully understand his own feelings.

What a mess.

Uijae raised his hand to cover his masked eyes. Sayoung, with his cheek still pressed to Uijae’s chest, let out a small laugh. He lifted his head, lightly pressing a hand to Uijae’s sternum. His voice, tinged with amusement, asked,

"Why are you so loud? You’d wake someone from their sleep."

Damn it, he never lets a thing go. Uijae gritted his teeth and shot back.

"Shut up…."

"Should I pretend I don't know? But it’s impossible."

"Just act like you don’t."

"You know your neck’s completely red, right?"

"I don’t know, so shut up!"

"Okay, fine."

Sayoung’s response was surprisingly agreeable. The warmth that had been heating Uijae’s body faded as Sayoung drew back a little. A cold breeze took its place. Uijae had expected him to push further. What was this? What game was Sayoung playing? Slowly, Uijae lowered his hand from his eyes. Sayoung was smiling.

"I waited eight years. What’s a few more moments?"

"……."

"But."

At that moment, Sayoung’s fingers slipped under Uijae’s mask. With a click, the mask was lifted and removed. The cold wind rushed across his flushed face, but only for a second.

"Mph!"

A thousand words died on Uijae’s lips. Sayoung’s tongue invaded his mouth, rubbing against his own tongue. It felt like he was being devoured. Out of all the kisses they’d shared, this one was the roughest. As their lips moved, the metallic taste of blood mixed with the sweetness in his mouth—he must’ve bitten his lip at some point, but he couldn’t even tell when.

Every sound Uijae made was swallowed by the wet, slurping noise of the kiss. He tried to push Sayoung away by grabbing his shoulders, but slowly, his hands lost their strength. Sayoung's tongue dragged over Uijae’s tender skin like it was praising him, making his body shudder. His eyes were wet with heat. Their lips only parted when Uijae was gasping for air.

Sayoung finally let Uijae’s legs down, and his feet touched the ground again. Uijae leaned over the railing, coughing hard. He glared at Sayoung.

But.

"Hey, you…."

"Hmm. Wasn’t that a bit rough?"

Sayoung casually wiped his lips with his thumb. His swollen lips dripped with dark blood. Wait, it wasn’t his lips that were bleeding—Uijae had bitten Sayoung’s lip. When had that happened? Uijae didn’t even realize. Sayoung flicked out his tongue, licking away the blood.

"Even if you liked it, wasn’t that a bit much?"

"There you go, twisting things again. Like it? Please…"

"Then, did you hate it?"

"……."

"You’re a terrible liar."

Uijae steadied himself by gripping the railing as Sayoung let out a soft laugh. Though the heat still lingered, the sight of the blood brought him back to his senses a little. Uijae cleared his throat to regain some composure.

"Don’t you have a potion? Heal yourself, quickly."

"Hmm? Seems like a waste."

"What? A potion? You’ve got plenty of money—you throw mana stones at all sorts of weird gadgets…"

"Why would I waste a potion on this?"

Sayoung raised an eyebrow, then pressed his thumb down on the wound, causing more blood to flow. Uijae was horrified. Was this guy insane? He hadn’t even recovered from the nightmare of Sayoung begging him to choke him harder! Uijae hurriedly grabbed Sayoung’s wrist.

"Are you crazy? What are you doing?"

"Hmm? It would be a shame for it to heal too quickly."

"What do you mean ‘shame’—you're out of your mind! If you’re injured, you should treat it right away!"

Frustrated, Uijae dug through his inventory. His fingers brushed past his spear, the Basilisk’s Fang, and then—ah, there it was. He pulled out a vial triumphantly.

What he pulled out was:

**[Basic Health Recovery Potion (C)**  
*Recovers 10% of health upon use.*]

"……."

"Huh?"

What was this? Uijae stared at the tiny potion in disbelief before letting out a soft "ah." He remembered now. It was a gift from a customer back when he was working at the soup restaurant, after people found out he was an Awakener. It must’ve been part of that ‘New Awakener Gift Box?’ from a Hunter built like a Russian bear.

Hope he’s doing well.

"……."

Uijae alternated between the small red potion and the towering figure of Sayoung. A C-grade potion for an S-grade injury. Sayoung, watching him, couldn’t help but chuckle.

"That’s cute."

Damn it. Uijae scowled. Sayoung let out another quiet laugh.

"Is that really a potion? Or is it a miniature decoration? You’re really carrying that around?"

Irritated, Uijae’s memories of the nightmare at the soup restaurant came rushing back. The times when Sayoung would sit in the middle of the shop, gas mask on, disrupting business. Sayoung. Always Sayoung. Uijae’s shoulders trembled.

"It was a gift."

"Oh?

 From who?"

"A customer at the soup restaurant."

"Such a thoughtful gift. So… you're going to use it on me?"

"……."

Silently, Uijae opened the potion’s cap. With a soft pop, he poured the red liquid into his palm. And then he…

Splat!

"Ugh!"

He splashed it right across Sayoung’s face and rubbed it in. The rough handling made Sayoung grimace as he tried to turn his head away, but Uijae’s hands swiftly followed him.

"Stay still. This is all part of the healing."

"Who uses a potion like this, seriously—mmph!"

"Back in my day, this was how we did it!"

"Oh, is that right? Go on then, let’s see if it works!"

After rubbing Sayoung’s face vigorously with his jacket sleeve, Uijae frowned. The bite mark still hadn’t healed. Sayoung simply turned his head away, unimpressed.

"That potion was never going to work."

"Then how do you heal an injury like that?"

"A specially made medicine…"

Suddenly, both their heads snapped toward the distance. They faintly heard a scream, followed by the clashing of sharp objects. Uijae immediately extended his hand, and with a click of his tongue, Sayoung tossed him his mask. Uijae’s flushed face disappeared behind the black mask. He tapped the floor with the toe of his boot and glanced at Sayoung.

"Can you keep up?"

"Wherever you go, I’ll follow you—even to hell."

Always with the last word. Uijae reached into his inventory again and pulled out his spear. Gripping it in one hand, he leaped into the air with ease.

Boom!

He launched himself off the ground, cutting through the wind as he soared high.

**<Eye of the Tracker!>**

For a brief moment, his eyes behind the mask glowed bright blue.

The source of the noise was to the north. Uijae held his breath as he lightly landed on the roof of a nearby building. He leaped again, and the sounds of the screams grew louder. Finally, something came into view. Uijae took a deep breath and twisted his upper body mid-air.

Screeeech—

Boom! Crack!

He landed, driving his spear through the target’s neck.

A cloud of dust billowed into the air.

As Uijae yanked out the spear, the creature’s ragged neck rolled off its body and dropped to the ground. Spikes jutted from its head, causing it to roll unevenly and come to a stop. Uijae picked up the severed head and examined it.

His hands began to tremble.

"Why…."

Even though the face was mutated and covered in spikes, he could still recognize it. After all…

‘You’ve awakened, part-timer. Here’s a gift for you.’

It was the Russian bear-like Hunter, once a regular customer at his hangover soup restaurant.