The Hunter’s Gonna Lay Low

Chapter 224

Yoon Ga-eul sat in a desolate room. The space was dark and narrow, with only a metal desk and chair, resembling an interrogation room. The man who brought her here had only told her to wait before leaving. It felt almost identical to the interrogation rooms of the Awakener Management Bureau. 

‘Did they design it like this on purpose?’

That could be the case. The interrogation rooms at the Bureau were known to be the most disliked spaces by Awakeners. Maybe it was meant to suppress their energy. Ga-eul stretched her legs out. She should’ve brought her English vocabulary book.

How much time had passed? She didn’t have a clock, but it felt like several tens of minutes. She had hummed over ten songs in her head by now. She glanced around. Was there a two-way mirror here, like in the Bureau's interrogation rooms? Were they observing her from outside? She knew she shouldn’t be flustered, but her body wouldn’t cooperate.

‘If only I had more experience…’

The last time she saw J, he had been kicked to the ground, rolling across the floor. Did he suffer because of me, enduring hardships he shouldn’t have had to face? Ga-eul rubbed her cold, clammy hands together. If she kept overthinking, there’d be no end to it. She forced herself to think of something else.

‘They called him “Brother,” didn’t they?’

Ga-eul bit her lip hard.

‘How do they know about me?’

Her personal information was a top-secret within the Awakener Management Bureau. She was a third-year high school student, a minor, and an S-class mental Awakener with no combat abilities. She was the perfect target for all kinds of shady people. The public only knew that a new S-class Awakener would start activities after coming of age.

‘Where did the information leak from…’

Ga-eul nervously bit her thumb. She felt anxious. Though she had a sense of duty to stop the apocalypse, she felt utterly powerless. When she was pulled into the destroyed world, she relied on J’s help. While others were risking their lives in battle, she had been kidnapped and dragged to a place like this. She constantly talked about stopping the apocalypse, but when the time came, she felt completely useless.

‘Am I really that useless…’

Maybe she had been given abilities far beyond what she deserved. Heavy thoughts weighed on her. Her body felt heavy too, crushed under the weight of helplessness and guilt. In front of dying people, she hadn’t been able to do anything—just run away. Even the ceiling light seemed to accuse her. Ga-eul buried her face in her hands.

At that moment.

“Ah, have you been waiting long?”

A voice came from the speaker in the corner. It was a gentle male voice. Ga-eul’s shoulders trembled. She lifted her head to look at the speaker. The man on the other side spoke.

“I’m sorry. We made an important guest wait too long…. The situation has been a bit chaotic. I truly apologize.”

“……”

“I heard our brothers were a bit rough in bringing you here? Please allow me to apologize on their behalf. I instructed them to treat you with respect since you are a valued guest….”

The man’s voice carried a regretful tone. Ga-eul kept her guard up, glaring at the speaker. The voice continued smoothly.

“Now, since you’ve been waiting, shall we get to the point? Miss Yoon Ga-eul, you can read fragments of the destroyed world, can’t you?”

“……”

“And you were the first to foresee the apocalypse.”

He knew everything about Ga-eul.

Everything.

Ga-eul swallowed hard. These people were supposedly a group that despised Awakeners. She clenched her fists and kept her eyes on the speaker. Would he call her pathetic? Say her powers were wasted on her? Maybe, but even if he did, she couldn’t deny it.

However.

“You’re truly remarkable.”

The response was completely unexpected. Ga-eul’s eyes widened. Applause followed the voice from the speaker. After the clapping subsided, the man’s voice softened, filled with sympathy.

“You’ve had a hard time, haven’t you…? Witnessing the devastation of the apocalypse every night, even though you didn’t want to.”

“……”

“You’ve endured that fear alone as a young student. Truly incredible.”

‘…What?’

The kind tone and the words brought tears to her eyes. Ga-eul quickly lowered her head and bit her lip, blinking rapidly to hold back the tears. The man’s voice didn’t stop.

“I understand the sacrifice you’ve made, Miss Yoon Ga-eul. You must have struggled in silence, amidst people who didn’t believe in the apocalypse, among those who believed this twisted peace would last forever.”

“……”

“But.”

The man’s voice grew firm.

“The apocalypse has arrived.”

“……”

“And of course, this isn’t your fault. Also…”

The gentle voice whispered softly.

“You are not alone, Miss Ga-eul.”

“……”

“I, too, remember the destroyed world. Not as vividly as you, but still.”

Ga-eul’s head snapped up. There was a hint of laughter in the warm voice.

“That’s why I started gathering people. To stop the apocalypse. We couldn’t let the world be destroyed again.”

“……”

“Miss Ga-eul.”

The soft voice whispered again.

“We need your power. More than anyone.”

Ga-eul clenched her fists tightly, her nails digging into her palms.

---

Uijae crouched down and tightened the gloves on the unconscious man lying in front of him, who was foaming at the mouth. The man’s back was rising and falling, so he seemed to be alive.

‘What a pain.’

Uijae had to rush, so he didn’t even have time to fully change clothes. He had intended to steal the guy’s gown and gear completely. With a sigh, Uijae stood up. Through the unzipped hazmat suit, his gray hoodie was clearly visible. Slinging the unconscious man over his shoulder, Yi-jae picked up the tablet that had fallen to the floor.

‘I’m sure this will be useful somehow.’

He couldn’t afford to waste too much time. People would start getting suspicious. Uijae headed back to the room where he had been held. The room was still filled with the white gas, and in the center were shattered handcuffs, a broken collar, and a man who had passed out, eyes rolled back in his head.

Uijae placed the man he was carrying next to the already unconscious one and tied their ankles together with the broken chain. If they wanted to escape, they’d have to work hard at a three-legged race.

‘Not sure what kind of gas this is…’

He tore some fabric from one of the men’s coats and made a makeshift mask, then used the other’s finger to unlock the tablet. Bowing slightly in thanks, Uijae stepped out of the cell. After zipping up the hazmat suit properly, he glanced around. Would it be safe to walk around like this?

He had seized the opportunity to escape, but now that he had to actually move, his feet felt heavy. If Sa-yeong had been here…

‘Does my brother ever think things through?’

‘When will you stop acting before thinking…’

‘Is your brain just for decoration?’

He would’ve been bombarded with all sorts of harsh comments. Uijae rubbed his arms together as if trying to ward off the cold and clicked his tongue. But who knows when another chance like this will come?

‘First things first.’

Uijae glanced through the bars. The researchers, now bound by their ankles, were leaning awkwardly against each other. The setup was such that they could easily be seen from outside the room. Uijae scrolled quickly through the tablet. The screen was filled with data—unknown numbers and graphs in red and blue. No Korean text anywhere.

‘Damn it.’

He frowned and held the tablet farther from his face. At that moment, something round and black popped out of the shadow at his feet. The round head looked around cautiously. Then, its gaze turned upward. Their eyes met.

“Hmm?”

Through the dark sunglasses, Uijae could see a faint squint.

“…Hmm?”

It was Ajogeum Miracle Mingjeok, looking a bit dusty but otherwise fine. Uijae felt a sense of relief. Mingjeok tilted his head, scrutinizing Yi-jae from top to bottom. Yi-jae pulled his mask down slightly.

“It’s me, Mingjeok.”

“Oh, it really is you, customer! I thought I had the wrong place. I almost attacked. What are you doing here? And where is this place?”

“Uh, I was captured and escaped. I think this is the Prometheus base.”

“……”

“……”

Mingjeok flopped onto the ground, wailing.

“Seriously, customer!!”

“Hey, don’t shout! You’ll get us caught!”

“What are you doing here?! And how did you even find this place? I couldn’t even track down Prometheus’s base!”

‘That’s really the main point, isn’t it?’

That was the crux of it. Mingjeok was less concerned about Uijae being captured and more upset about Uijae finding Prometheus’s base when he couldn’t. Still half-emerged from the shadows, Mingjeok pounded the ground in frustration. It made Uijae want to tease him even more. He held up a victory sign.

“I was kidnapped. Pretty impressive, right?”

“Damn it, using underhanded tricks I could never pull off…”

“Hey, it’s not underhanded! I got this far with my acting skills.”

“Ugh…”

Mingjeok

 groaned, then suddenly lifted his head.

“By the way, where’s your phone?”

“Oh, it broke earlier.”

“That’s why you weren’t getting my calls…”

Mingjeok scanned the surroundings before speaking in a serious tone.

“This is just between us.”

“Yeah?”

“The Guild Leader is seriously pissed off.”