* * *

“I must be out of my mind.”

Yeah, maybe I was.

Even I didn’t feel quite right today.

My head hurt, and despite moments of clarity, I kept losing myself in strange hallucinations, wasting chunks of time.

It was frustrating—because of how messed up I felt, because Baek Gunho kept pointing it out, but mostly because Yeon was dying right in front of me.

Suddenly, resentment surged towards Baek Gunho.

He was the one who put Yeon in this state.

Sure, he was probably just doing what he thought was necessary, but still, I hated him for it.

“Seo Heewon.”

“…”

“Stop crying.”

As usual, Baek Gunho’s words came out as a command.

Like stopping tears was as easy as flipping a switch.

What a useless thing to say.

“I won’t kill him.”

Did I hear that right?

I stared at Baek Gunho, dumbfounded.

That didn’t sound like something he would say. He met my gaze, as if he too was seeing something unfamiliar.

“Yeah, no. You wouldn’t do that. I was mistaken.”

“What the hell are you mumbling?”

Baek Gunho muttered something only he could understand, then fell silent.

He turned his attention to Yeon.

I quickly moved to shield Yeon with my body.

“I won’t kill him.”

“…”

I knew Baek Gunho wouldn’t lie to me, but I couldn’t bring myself to trust him.

After all, he was the one who did this to Yeon.

Seeing my hesitation, Baek Gunho took out a small potion bottle from his inventory and handed it to me.

“Take this. Use it to heal him.”

Without hesitation, I poured the potion over Yeon’s wounds.

As I did, Baek Gunho muttered under his breath.

“Not even a hint of doubt.”

Well, Yeon was going to die anyway if I did nothing.

It wasn’t like using an item would make things worse.

Yeon twitched slightly.

Foam bubbled over his wounds, and then, miraculously, new flesh began to grow.

It was a recovery beyond belief.

I checked the empty potion bottle Baek Gunho had given me.

The system identified it as an S-rank potion.

The kind even S-rank alchemists struggle to craft, rarely seen on the market.

Even for someone like Baek Gunho, there couldn’t be many of these lying around.

And yet, he’d used such a rare item on a monster he supposedly hated?

I glanced between the empty bottle and Baek Gunho, unsettled.

But he remained calm, observing Yeon as if nothing unusual had happened.

I turned back to Yeon.

Thanks to the potion, his wounds were nearly closed.

I had thought for sure he was a goner, but now, it felt like a miracle.

Slowly, Yeon opened his eyes.

-Heewon…

“…”

• Don’t cry…

“Is that what matters right now? Why did you come out? I told you not to.”

-But… Heewon was in danger…

“I wasn’t in danger.”

“Cut the crap,” Baek Gunho interjected gruffly.

Despite his tone, the rare potion he’d just handed over made him less irritating.

I stroked Yeon’s head gently.

“You’re okay now, right?”

-Yeah… I’m okay…

Even with a full bottle of potion poured over him, it was hard to believe he was truly fine.

But at least for now, Yeon didn’t look like he was on the brink of death.

Not wanting to risk Baek Gunho changing his mind, I quickly placed Yeon on the shadow.

“Go back in.”

-Okay… Sorry…

As long as he knew to be sorry.

I’d have to give him a firm scolding later to make sure he never disobeyed me again.

“Ugh, damn it…”

Baek Gunho cursed under his breath as he stared at the shadow where the three monsters now rested.

His timing seemed random, though maybe it wasn’t in this situation.

“What’s with the sudden cursing?”

I almost asked if he’d lost it, but his sharp glare made me bite my tongue.

Baek Gunho glared at my shadow as if he could kill it with a look.

“This is the first time in my life I’ve ever let a monster go.”

“…”

It’s also probably the first time you’ve healed one, I thought, but kept the comment to myself.

There wasn’t much I could say in this situation.

I felt like a criminal standing trial, avoiding his gaze.

Baek Gunho stared at me for a while, then suddenly bent down, cupping my face in his hands and pulling me closer.

“Done crying?”

“…I wasn’t crying.”

“You were bawling. Look, your face is still wet.”

He rubbed his thumb over my eyes, wiping away tears clinging to my lashes.

It was a little embarrassing—but also relieving.

Whatever had prompted this change in him, it seemed like he was willing to spare the monsters for now.

After letting go of me, Baek Gunho straightened up and began inspecting the surroundings.

“What are you doing?”

“Checking.”

Of course, his response was as curt as ever.

With his usual detached attitude, he moved briskly, surveying the area.

After checking on the researchers I had tied up, he used a sleeping incense far more effective than mine.

It seemed likely they’d stay knocked out for a while.

He continued his inspection before finally returning to me.

“There’s no CCTV inside, so we won’t need to clean up much. Just erase the data from the camera at the entrance.”

“I wore this when I came in,” I said, pointing to the helmet.

“Good. Use it again when you leave.”

“Okay.”

“By the way, how did you get here?”

“I drove your car…”

My voice trailed off as I noticed his expression growing more incredulous.

“My car? How?”

“By driving it…”

“You?”

“Yeah, me…”

“Unbelievable.”

Baek Gunho looked more shocked now than when he called me out earlier.

I quickly tried to justify myself.

“I didn’t crash it or anything.”

“Scratches don’t matter. It’s a miracle you didn’t cause an accident.”

I had no comeback. He’d told me to take driving lessons before, but I’d ignored him.

“Wait in the other car parked out front, not the one you drove. I’ll report to the Hunter Bureau and come right after.”

“Okay.”

Baek Gunho handed me the keys, and as he called the Bureau, I headed outside.

When we first arrived, it hadn’t been past eleven, yet now, the sun was rising.

Though dealing with the researchers and fighting Baek Gunho hadn’t taken long, I must’ve lost a lot of time in my hallucinations.

The unease gnawed at me. Was I really losing my mind, or was it something else?

Before figuring that out, I had something else to do.

I got into the car and whispered to the shadow.

“Noeul, Yeon, come out.”

Although I called for two, three emerged.

Dust nudged me insistently, as if offended for not being summoned.

I patted its head and checked on the other two.

“Are you both okay?”

-Yeah…

• I’m fine!

“…Good.”

They seemed fine, thankfully.

Monsters sure were tough.

“But you’re both S-rank. Why were you so weak?”

• There are restrictions…

• Can’t use full power!

• We paid…

• A price!

Their words flowed together like a single explanation.

I didn’t know the details, but I got the gist.

They were once stronger but now held back.

I’d have to be careful with them—not something I could recklessly overuse.

“Anyway, you did well.”

• I did great, right?

“Yeah, you did.”

• Me too…

“You didn’t listen, though.”

Let’s draw a clear line, I told him, and Yeon deflated like a wilted flower.

While I left him like that, Dust quickly claimed my lap.

Seeing this, Yeon and Noeul huddled close to Dust, curling up beside it.

I froze, unable to move.

It was uncomfortable, but not entirely unpleasant—warm, even.

Maybe it was the tension leaving my body or the relief, but I felt oddly languid.

It could’ve been the strange hallucinations, or maybe it was Baek Gunho.

I still couldn’t believe Baek Gunho let this slide.

After being so furious, his attitude flipped like turning a page.

Why the sudden change of heart?

I was curious but too scared to ask, worried he might rethink things and decide I wasn’t worth it after all.

If Yeon had actually died, I probably would’ve blamed Baek Gunho.

We might not have completely severed ties, but things would’ve been awkward for a while.

I was just relieved Yeon and Noeul were safe, and that I hadn’t lost Baek Gunho.

Before I knew it, I’d dozed off.

A sudden sound of the door opening jolted me awake.

“Hah…”

Baek Gunho’s sigh reached my ears as I hastily shoved the three creatures back into the shadows.

They disappeared quickly, leaving nothing behind.

Baek Gunho looked at me like I was pitiful—more pitiful than when I almost got scammed as a clueless kid.

“Is that it? Just three monsters?”

“Yeah… three,” I muttered.

“…”

His hand twitched.

It seemed like he was itching to cut something down.

“When the hell did you lure in three?”

Lure?

That didn’t sound right.

“They just… crawled into my shadow on their own. Acted all friendly.”

“Friendly?”

“Yeah. They didn’t seem too dangerous, so…”

Baek Gunho’s eyes widened.

Even I knew it sounded careless, so I had no defense.

“Seriously… I could kill you right now.”

“…”

“But I won’t, so stop looking like you’re about to cry.”

“I’m not crying.”

My sharp retort made him chuckle, like I was amusingly pathetic.

“You’re too old to whine like that.”

“Shut up.”

“It’s fine. You were cute.”

…Did not see that coming. Of all times, why now?

“Promise me one thing,” he said suddenly, his tone serious.

It felt like something I couldn’t refuse, so I nodded.

“I won’t kill them for now. You seem to be managing them well.”

“…Okay.”

“But if they harm anyone—no exceptions—you kill them.”

Well, technically, they’d already threatened someone before I tamed them.

But that was in the past. I could make an exception for that… right?

Feeling a pang of guilt, I agreed.

Only then did Baek Gunho seem satisfied, turning to grip the steering wheel.

* * *