CHAPTER 224: MIDNIGHT RENDEZVOUS (3)

[A few minutes earlier before Yool and Hamin were attacked...]

Soobin looked up at the cave that Hamin created to protect Gong Yool.

The entrance was blocked, and the walls were thick.

But even if the enemies somehow reached the cave, it would be fine.

[Gong Yool is with Hamin, after all. Hamin has a hard time picking up on social cues. But, as a Hunter, he knows it’s his job to keep Gong Yool— a Civilian— safe.]

"Soobin-ah, don’t get distracted."

"I’m not distracted, Noona," Soobin said to Semi while shooting the square-headed villains running towards them. "I’m just making sure that Gong Yool is safe with Hamin."

Semi threw a transparent ball filled with toxic liquid at the enemies. "Color me surprised. I thought you were worried about our Hee-ya."

"I am," Soobin said. "But our Hee-ya is with Hwang Yejun. I hate to say this, but I know our baby sister is safe with that prick."

Semi nodded in agreement. "Right. So, we should do a good job protecting our baby sister’s best friend."

SIZZLE.

Oh.

Both Soobin and Semi stopped when several burnt corpses plummeted to the ground.

Then the burned corpses immediately turned into ashes upon hitting the floor.

[Graham’s flame is that deadly.]

Square-headed villains kept coming, but only a few actually reached Soobin and Semi who were standing near the cave.

After all, Graham just burned everyone attacking them.

Soobin clicked his tongue. "Han Graham, don’t kill them right away! We need to interrogate them, so let a few live!"

"I’m already holding back, Hyung!" Graham complained lightly while flying around and burning villains. "It’s not my fault these bastards die easily!"

"This brat..."

"Then at least break their masks instead of burning them to ashes!" Semi yelled. "We have to know who these people are!"

"I’ll try, Noona!"

And then Graham flew around again as the room got filled with square-headed villains again.

[Just where are those pests coming from?]

"They sent a lot of square-headed villains to us, but those people are weak," Semi said in a suspicious voice. "It’s as if they only sent those annoying pests to distract us."

"That’s why we need to stay near Hamin and Gong Yool," Soobin said, putting a hand on the wall of the cave next to them. "Those people need our Hee-ya or Gong Yool— and we won’t let them have either."

Semi nodded in agreement.

"Can we help?"

Oh.

Soobin was a bit surprised when Hwang Minho appeared out of thin air.

Hwang Minho was with Hwang Junsang— Hwang Yejun’s father, an A-Class Hunter.

[Minho is also an A-Class Hunter known for his physical strength.]

The Hwangs would surely be of help, however...

"We appreciate your help, but look," Soobin said, opening his arms to gesture around them. "Graham isn’t even giving us the chance to help him."

Hwang Minho raised an eyebrow. "This is an insult to us. Why did they send us weaklings?"

"It’s probably a distraction, so don’t bother with them, Minho-ya," Hwang Junsang said, eyeing the cave. "Yejun asked us to protect Gong Yool, so let’s focus on that. Let Hunter Graham deal with the distraction."

Hwang Minho gave Hwang Junsang a salute. "Gotcha, Uncle."

Soobin was relieved to hear that.

[Noona and I can fight, but our mains skills aren’t really suited for fighting. So, the Hwangs being here put me at ease.]

But as soon as Soobin thought of that, Semi suddenly flinched.

"What’s wrong, Noona?"

"I feel a strong presence nearby," Semi said worriedly while looking around. "Keep your guards up!"

Only then did Soobin and the Hwangs feel the strong presence that Semi mentioned.

Even Graham stopped flying around, staying suspended in the air as new burned corpses fell to the floor.

"You can really be ruthless sometimes, kid."

Ah.

It was Song Moonho.

The bastard appeared out of nowhere, using the teleportation skill that the System granted him for cooperating with Wonhee before.

[And that bastard dared to turn his back on us.]

Graham looked up and glared at Song Moonho. "Song Moonho, you traitor."

"I have no business with you," Song Moonho said. "I’m here to pick up my baby."

Of course, Song Moonho was here for Gong Yool.

[I thought he’d be after our Hee-ya.]

"It wasn’t Song Moonho’s presence," Semi said coldly while eyeing the cave. "The sinister presence we felt earlier didn’t come from Song Moonho."

"Pfft."

It was Song Moonho who let out a chuckle.

"Noona, your senses may not be as sharp as Hwang Yejun’s, but you’re still spot on," Song Moonho said, glancing at the cave. "Good luck dealing with that."

Soobin’s eyes widened in shock when he felt the vibration of the floor.

Everyone felt that.

And only then did he realize the cave’s weakness.

[Hamin didn’t cover the floor with his ability...!]

The explosion happened soon after that thought crossed Soobin’s mind.

[Dammit!]

***

DEBRIS.

Yool almost lost his hearing due to the loud explosion.

He was a bit disoriented, and he felt like throwing up while he was draped over Hamin’s shoulder.

Fortunately, Hamin had a shield around them.

Hence, the debris from the cave that collapsed just bounced off the barrier instead of hitting them.

However, Yool could feel Hamin tensing up.

"What is she doing here?"

Hmm?

Yool looked over his shoulder to see who Hamin was talking about.

And there she saw a tall woman suspended in the air.

Long blonde hair, glowing red eyes, pale skin.

The Caucasian-looking woman was dressed in a black wedding dress short enough to show that she was barefoot. She was holding a bouquet of black roses, and there was a severed arm wrapped around her shoulders.

It was kind of disturbing that the severed arm was covered with the bloody sleeves of what seemed like a black tuxedo.

Blergh.

Yool felt like throwing up again.

[But that weird woman looks familiar.]

"Han Graham, one of the Top 50 in the World Ranking."

The weird woman spoke in Korean fluently while the choker around her neck blinked. It must be a device that allowed the woman to speak the language she wasn’t familiar with. To be honest, it wasn’t surprising since most Hunters would often use a translator device when visiting another country.

"It will be a shame to kill you because you’re useful as a Culinary Hunter," the weird woman said in an eerily calm voice. "If you hand over that Civilian to me, I won’t lay a finger on you."

"Thank you for the offer, but I must decline," Hamin said bluntly. "I need this Civilian for my own benefit, Bride-ssi."

’Bride-ssi.’

’Bride.’

Was that the woman’s Hunter name... oh, shit.

Yool’s eyes widened in shock when he remembered that name.

[Bride is the #10 Hunter in the World Ranking! She may be the last in the Top 10, but she’s also known to be one of the most cruel!]

Yool got goosebumps.

[What is a high-ranking World Ranker doing in our small country?!]

Bride, the World Ranker, looked over her shoulder. "Ahjussi, can I kill them? The Commander told me to ask for your opinion before I move."

Hmm?

Only then did Yool finally look around to assess the situation.

Song Moonho was there, and the (almost) traitor was being held back by Graham and Jang Semi.

He also noticed that there were dead monsters (controlled by the Necromancer) there.

Yeon Soobin was dealing with the monsters with the help of Hwang Minho (or was it Hwang Minki?) and Hwang Junsang.

[He’s Hwang Yejun’s father, if I remember clearly.]

"Miss Bride, you can’t kill Hamin-ssi because the world still needs his skills as the best Culinary Hunter," Song Moonho said, smiling. "As long as he’s alive, you may do whatever you have to do in order to capture Gong Yool."

Wow.

Yool almost cursed Song Moonho, but he abruptly stopped when he saw Bride’s expression.

The smile that Bride gave Hamin was so creepy and scary.

[That weird woman will definitely kill Hamin-ssi despite Song Moonho’s instructions!]

"Hamin-ssi, run," Yool whispered in Hamin’s ear. "The only way to survive is to reunite with Wony and Hwang Yejun!"

***

HMM?

Wonhee noticed when Yejun suddenly froze on the spot.

It didn’t matter since he was already done freezing all the square-headed villains who attacked them to death.

However, it looked like something else happened.

"Yejun-ah?" Wonhee called him carefully. "What’s wrong?"

Yejun slowly turned to Wonhee, his face pale.

It was rare to see him with that expression.

But it made sense after she heard what he had to say.

"A World Ranker is here," Yejun said calmly, but his eyes were dead serious. "A World Ranker from the Top 10, that is."

Wonhee covered her mouth with her hands when she gasped.

Any World Ranker from the Top 50 was already a problem.

But a World Ranker from the Top 10?

[I heard some of the World Rankers who replaced the Big 4 from the list are known for being cruel...]

"Yool," Wonhee whispered when she gathered herself. "Yejun-ah, bring me to Yool."

***

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