The Hunter's Gonna Lay Low-Chapter 213

A moment ago.

Sayoung opened his eyes. The familiar landscape unfolded before him. A black-and-white seashore. Another version of himself, with lavender eyes, stood before him.

The unwelcome guest with lavender eyes tilted his head in greeting instead of speaking. *Shhh...* The gray ocean moved slowly, the waves breaking before they could reach his feet. Sayoung didn’t hide his displeasure. He crossed his arms and tilted his head.

“I thought you said you wouldn’t show up anymore.”

The unwelcome guest slowly shook his head.

“I didn’t summon you. You were pulled in.”

Behind the guest, the image of the waves rolling in appeared, and his body had become somewhat transparent. Recently, Sayoung had begun experiencing thoughts that weren’t his own. It was clear now: Sayoung and the other Sayoung were slowly becoming one. It was both unsettling and comforting. Sayoung asked again.

“Pulled in?”

“Yes. And... you have a watch now.”

The guest motioned toward Sayoung’s wrist. Sayoung raised his right hand. Sure enough, there was a broken watch on his wrist. The same watch his brother always wore. The fact that it was now on his wrist meant...

“...Damn it.”

Whatever was going on, it wasn’t good news. A menacing aura began to seep from Sayoung. The guest shrugged. Sayoung tried to remove the watch, but it wouldn’t budge. It was like a shackle. He gritted his teeth and asked.

“Tell me how to get out.”

“Time has to pass. Until our consciousness recovers.”

Sayoung twisted his lips.

“Hah... So I have to wait months again? Like last time?”

“It won’t take that long... but still.”

At that moment, his body felt unbearably heavy. It was just like when he was bound by Jung Bin’s chains. The pain was suffocating, making it hard to even breathe. Sayoung grunted softly as he bent over. *Thud,* his knees sank into the white sand. He dropped onto all fours, clutching the sand beneath him. His power was spiraling out of control. Black poison began to ooze from various parts of his body, and sticky black droplets fell from the corner of his mouth.

The guest continued to stare at him with an emotionless gaze.

“You’ll have to wait until your soul overcomes the fear of the apocalypse.”

Overcome the fear? Liquid—whether it was tears or poison—ran down his cheeks. Despite the pain, Sayoung glared at the guest. His trembling lips spat out a cold voice.

“There’s no... time for that.”

“True, the apocalypse is coming.”

“Think... of a way.”

“Then let’s try this.”

*Crunch.* The guest stepped closer, leaving faint footprints in the white sand. He knelt down in front of Sayoung, their eyes locking. His transparent fingers touched Sayoung’s forehead.

“Let’s delve into your unconscious.”

“Hah...”

This 𝓬ontent is taken from freeweɓnovel.cѳm.

How was that supposed to help? The white sand beneath them was dissolving into black poison. Sayoung, still on all fours, lifted his head. Beneath his tangled hair, his lavender eyes glinted with malice. The guest smiled—it was the same smile Sayoung wore.

“Isn’t there a gap in your memory?”

“......”

“Just as you’ve seen my memories, I’ve seen yours. There’s a strange black stain covering parts of them... Did you erase those memories intentionally?”

“...No.”

“Then how about we peel that layer off... It’ll help you forget the pain and learn more about yourself.”

Ah, what a nuisance. Unsurprisingly, the guest’s judgments mirrored Sayoung’s exactly. If he had to endure this, he might as well gather information while he could. Even if ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) it meant facing greater pain. Sayoung closed his eyes. The guest’s transparent fingers pierced sharply into his mind.

Meanwhile, Uijae was fiddling with his phone. A text from Sayoung asking where he was. It seemed like Sayoung had regained consciousness. Uijae let out a small sigh of relief. Should he text him back? Call him? Hearing his voice would probably be more reassuring. Just as Uijae pressed the call button and brought the phone to his ear—

“Unbelievable! Is that really you, J?”

“......”

A strangely familiar voice. Uijae’s head snapped up. In the midst of the fleeing crowd, a woman was walking toward him. She was the only one looking directly at J.

She wore a white coat, her long hair tied up in a bun secured with a large clip. Round glasses framed her large eyes, and she wore slightly heeled shoes. Her white coat sleeves were rolled up to her elbows, and she wore slacks, with a researcher’s ID badge dangling from her neck. Despite the chaos around her, her white coat was spotless, with not a speck of dirt or blood. The soles of her shoes stepped confidently into the blood-soaked ground. Uijae stared at her face. He knew her.

‘Where have I seen her before?’

The woman slowly lifted her head. Her round glasses reflected a smile in her large eyes, a smile that seemed both fox-like and snake-like.

Where have I...

“...Ah.”

A woman with her hands in her coat pockets, full of confidence. Yes, it was clear now. She looked older than she did in his memory, but...

‘That girl is improving. The antidote we developed seems to be working. It’s all thanks to you, J!’

‘I thought maybe you’d like to visit her room in person starting today. You’ve always just watched her through the glass.’

‘Oh, I’m not trying to be pushy, I swear! You can stay as long as you like.’

‘By the way, are you always going to call her “that girl”?’

She was one of the researchers assigned to treat Sayoung, a potion-making Awakener, introduced by the hospital director. She was the first to approach him kindly when others couldn’t. Uijae carefully spoke the name buried deep in his memory.

“...Gayeong?”

“Oh my, you remember me!”

It was Gayeong, the researcher who had treated Sayoung during his stay in the hospital. She clapped her hands and smiled brightly.

“I thought for sure you wouldn’t remember. What an honor.”

“How could I forget?”

“Really, after you went into the West Sea Rift, we were all so worried about you. Are you okay? I mean, you’re walking around, so I guess you’re okay, right?”

“...Yes.”

“Thank goodness~ Truly. I’m so grateful.”

Gayeong beamed. Uijae had a lot he wanted to ask her. What happened to Sayoung after he entered the West Sea Rift? Where did all the researchers who were taking care of Sayoung go? Why were the hospital records deleted? Where had she been all this time? Could she be the one...

*Ring, ring.* The phone rang on and on.

An odd sense of dread was building inside Uijae, making it hard to speak. In the end, he shook the blood off his spear and spoke.

“...It’s dangerous for you to stay here.”

“Oh, no need to worry about me. Everyone’s being evacuated, after all~”

Gayeong stood there, her hands still in her coat pockets. Uijae’s eyes fell on the square card around her neck. Her ID. It read: Ga Yeong, Samra Guild.

“......”

Her brown eyes scanned Uijae up and down, as if assessing him. In the distance, the sound of monstrous roars echoed faintly. Another one of those monsters, the kind that devoured humans, must have appeared elsewhere. Despite the loud noise, loud enough for civilians to hear, Gayeong showed no signs of fear.

‘How can a non-combat Awakener be this calm?’

Even if she trusted J, it was strange that she displayed no fear at all. The ominous feeling inside Uijae grew larger. Nonetheless, he asked again, hoping his fears were unfounded.

“...Why are you here? Did the Awakener Management Bureau give you orders?”

“Awakener? Ah....”

Her lively voice dipped a little, a hint of mockery creeping in. Her smiling eyes narrowed further. She covered her mouth with her hand and replied.

“Of course not.”

“......”

“By the way, who are you calling? The director?”

“......”

The phone kept ringing with no answer. He had just texted Sayoung a little while ago. Uijae didn’t respond. Gayeong tilted her head slightly, then her lips curled up again.

“Oh, are you calling Guild Leader Lee Sayoung? He won’t be able to answer right now.”

“......”

“You have a lot of questions for me, don’t you? J.”

A robotic voice from the phone announced, “The person you are trying to reach is unavailable...” Uijae hung up and looked at Gayeong. She was standing confidently on the blood-stained ground. She sighed theatrically.

“Are you pretending not to know? Or do you really not know? If it’s the latter, I might be a little disappointed. You’ve figured it out by now, haven’t you? Or do you need more time to process reality?”

Uijae tried to keep his emotions in check as he answered.

“I hope I’m wrong.”

Gayeong sighed and rested her chin on her hand.

“Honestly, I thought this back then too... You’re such a fool. I like fools, I really do. It’s just a shame you’re an Awakener.”

“......”

“But, oh well. We do have some history together...”

The distant wail of a dying monster echoed faintly. Gayeong,

who had been humming a soft tune, whistled. Then, something heavy jumped down behind her. *Thud.* A squelching sound accompanied it, as something viscous dripped onto the ground.

“I do owe you a lot, after all. Let me introduce you to someone.”

Uijae turned around. A massive figure, at least two heads taller than Uijae, lumbered toward him. It had limbs like a human, except for its grotesquely long arms. Beneath a black cloak, patches of mismatched flesh stitched together were visible. And on its head...

‘A gas mask...’

It was wearing a gas mask. No eyes were visible behind the lenses.

As it moved, thick black liquid dripped from its body, sizzling as it hit the asphalt and dissolved it. Uijae had seen that poison before. The creature glanced at Uijae briefly, then turned away, heading toward Gayeong. It knelt down before her with a heavy thud. Gayeong beamed.

“Good boy, did you finish your task?”

“Yes.......”

It nodded slowly. At some point, Gayeong had put on black leather gloves—ones very similar to the ones Sayoung always wore. She smiled and looked at Uijae.

“Doesn’t it look familiar to you?”