Seo Jihoon also frowned as he looked at the article.
“The timing is strange. It’s been two weeks since the incident happened, but this is coming out now? The Association would have kept people’s mouths shut, but if the information leaked, it means someone deliberately spread it. To screw you over. Or the Association might have been in on it from the start.”
A face flashed through Lee Kanghyun’s mind.
Yellow hair.
That crazy bastard’s first gift had been that intruder. Was this a ploy to bury him socially using that corpse? He might be thinking of this as the third gift.
“He’s really being annoying.”
This wasn’t something that would just end with getting some hate. With the keyword ‘murder’ attached, the Association couldn’t just sit still, and all sorts of annoying things like police investigations and whatnot would obviously come flooding in.
Phew… Lee Kanghyun leaned back in his chair. Honestly, he had been prepared for this. Someone died in his house, and regardless of the circumstances, not receiving any investigation for two weeks was basically S-rank privilege. He was aware of that too. He’d hoped it would pass quietly like this, but it seemed that wouldn’t be the case after all.
Bzzzz—. Bzzzz—.
Just then, the phone in his pocket started ringing like it was having a seizure. The name ‘Kang Yujun’ appeared on the screen. Lee Kanghyun tried hard to ignore it.
“Aren’t you going to answer?”
Seo Jihoon pointed at the phone with his chin.
Lee Kanghyun stared down at the phone quietly. He didn’t want to answer. Even if he did answer, he didn’t know what to say.
But if he didn’t answer?
That crazy bastard Kang Yujun might pay a Hunter with tracking skills to chase him all the way here. No, he was certain he would do that. That would be even worse. If this place got exposed, he didn’t even know what excuse he’d make. Lee Kanghyun eventually pressed the accept call button.
—Where are you? Why aren’t you home?
Kang Yujun’s voice was lower and colder than he’d ever heard it before.
“Me? Just… taking a walk.”
—Did you see the article?
“Yeah. Just now.”
—Tell me your location. I’ll come pick you up.
“It’s fine. I’ll come.”
—Lee Kanghyun. Don’t be stubborn and tell me your location. Reporters are camped out in front of the apartment complex right now.
A long sigh escaped involuntarily. Reporters were camped out. When he lived in his old studio apartment, he could count the people who knew him on one hand, but because he’d made such a big entrance during that Red Gate incident, it seemed his address had been completely exposed.
Come to think of it, wasn’t this Kang Yujun’s fault? Well… it seemed like he was trying to take responsibility for it though.
“Come near Exit 8 of XX Station. I’ll be hiding.”
—I’ll be right there.
When the call abruptly ended, he shoved the phone into his pocket. Seo Jihoon, who had been watching, seemed to want to lighten the strangely sunken atmosphere as he teased in an exaggerated tone.
“Are you two dating? Even so, the way he takes care of you is excessive, excessive.”
“Don’t talk crazy.”
Lee Kanghyun waved his hand as if it wasn’t worth responding to.
“I’m leaving. Contact me when you find him.”
He left the lab and went outside. As he loitered in a gloomy alley near the station, Kang Yujun’s car soon arrived and stopped in front of him. The car door swung open and Kang Yujun got out. As soon as he saw Lee Kanghyun, he strode over and grabbed his shoulders to examine him.
“Nothing happened, right?”
“Why are you overreacting? Let go.”
Lee Kanghyun grimaced and pushed Kang Yujun away before climbing into the passenger seat. As soon as Kang Yujun got in the driver’s seat, he started the car. Veins bulged on the back of his hand gripping the steering wheel.
“The guild demanded the media take down the article, but they won’t listen. There’s someone behind this. They’re really going after you deliberately.”
Kang Yujun said through gritted teeth.
“From the apartment entrance to the parking lot, reporters and streamers are camped out. They’re waiting with eggs and flour. Those crazy bastards don’t even know anything…”
Unlike the angry Kang Yujun, Lee Kanghyun himself was calm. Oh. Eggs… how cliché. Isn’t there anything more creative? That’s what he was thinking.
“Public opinion is really bad. If you go out now, you’ll get hit with stones before you even get a chance to explain. Let’s hide for now.”
The air in the car was heavy. Kang Yujun was angry at this situation and at the same time sensitive from worrying about Lee Kanghyun. But Lee Kanghyun, the person actually involved, reclined the passenger seat and yawned.
“So where are we going?”
“Somewhere safe. A place no one knows about.”
“A hotel?”
“No. My second house. It’s not under my name or the guild’s name, so reporters can never find it.”
Lee Kanghyun nodded. Well, as long as he could lie down and sleep anywhere, it didn’t matter. Though he didn’t know why there was a hidden second house in the first place.
He glanced at Kang Yujun. He looked completely on edge. Honestly, he didn’t understand. This wasn’t even his business, it was someone else’s, so why go this far? Come to think of it, they couldn’t even be considered that close. From Lee Kanghyun’s perspective, his behavior was excessive.
Lee Kanghyun rested his chin on his hand while looking out the window, then suddenly asked.
“Hey, Kang Yujun. What makes you trust me enough to go this far? You saw the article. Everyone’s saying I killed him.”
Lee Kanghyun continued speaking calmly as if talking about someone else’s business.
“What if I really did it? How can you be certain whether I killed someone or not?”
Kang Yujun’s brow furrowed. He seemed angry at Lee Kanghyun’s words.
“Don’t say such ridiculous things.”
“You don’t know. I’m S-rank, and snapping one ordinary person’s neck is nothing. I could have gone crazy at the fact that bastard broke into my house and killed him.”
Lee Kanghyun deliberately acted more twisted. He was both burdened by Kang Yujun’s blind faith and curious about where exactly it came from.
“You know my way of dealing with monsters. I tear them apart needlessly, splatter all the blood. You think it’d be different with a person?”
Screech.
The car stopped at a traffic light. Kang Yujun took his hands off the steering wheel and turned to look straight at Lee Kanghyun. His gaze was unwavering and firm.
“No. You didn’t do it.”
“How do you know that? It’s not like we’re stuck together 24 hours a day.”
“I know.”
Kang Yujun answered decisively.
“You hate bothersome things the most. Do you know how annoying it is to deal with the aftermath of killing someone? You have to be investigated by police, dispose of the body, go on the run. You’d never kill a person if only because it’s too bothersome.”
“……”
Lee Kanghyun was dumbfounded. He’d expected a cliché answer like ‘I trust your morality’ or ‘I trust you as a person’… but this was an answer he never imagined.
Kang Yujun’s words didn’t end there.
“And.”
His hand reached out and carefully straightened Lee Kanghyun’s disheveled bangs.
“You’re a pushover.”
“…What?”
“You only talk about killing this and that. But you can’t even properly hit me when I pester you every day right next to you, let alone kill me. You always go easy on me.”
“No, you and that bastard are different. You’re still a Hunter, and he was a criminal.”
“So, can you kill him?”
Lee Kanghyun closed his mouth. He couldn’t answer.
He couldn’t kill. He knew that himself.
“See?”
Kang Yujun smiled as if he knew it. There wasn’t a shred of doubt in his eyes. He was showing strong trust in Lee Kanghyun as a person. Lee Kanghyun didn’t have the confidence to face that directly and turned his gaze back out the window.
Come to think of it, this bastard was directly admitting right now that he tormented him because he seemed like a pushover. Is this really the national hero? He nitpicked inwardly for no reason.
Kang Yujun smiled slightly and grabbed the steering wheel again. The light had changed.
How could someone who gets embarrassed by just these words and trembles unable to breathe in front of a corpse possibly kill a person? Seeing Lee Kanghyun pretending to be tough made him laugh.
“Don’t laugh. Just drive.”
A scolding immediately flew at him. Kang Yujun straightened his posture while adjusting his grip on the wheel.
“Yes, understood. Young master.”
“This guy, really…”
After driving for a while, the car left the city center and entered a quiet forest road. A modern house that looked like a fortress surrounded by high walls appeared.
“Wow…”
Lee Kanghyun got out of the car and looked around the house in admiration.
Kang Yujun, you’re really loaded.
The wide garden had beautiful landscaping, and the three-story building was made of floor-to-ceiling glass windows receiving warm sunlight. Best of all, it was quiet with nothing around. It was the most perfect house Lee Kanghyun could dream of.
When he heard ‘second house,’ he’d imagined something like a gloomy old mansion, but it was a villa with great scenery and atmosphere.
The murder accusation, bad public opinion… there was nothing he could resolve by worrying about it right now.
So for now, he should mooch off this nice house!
Lee Kanghyun passed Kang Yujun and headed for the entrance. His steps were light as a feather.
