The stars that had once lit up the sky now poured down from above.
Ryu Sunghyun's skill was particularly effective at blinding enemies and breaking their formation. As the light that had gathered overhead slammed into the ground, the earth cracked violently, and thick smoke surged like a wave.
"Hold on tight."
Ryu Sunghyun whispered low, wrapped an arm around Cha Seohu's waist, and leapt high into the air.
At the same time, one of the lingering stars crashed into the spot they had just vacated. The fae that had been chasing after Cha Seohu outside the exit flinched under the attack.
"Ryu Sunghyun Hunter!"
Kwon Taehyuk rushed over to the two who had just escaped.
"Did everyone make it out?"
"Yes. Cha Seohu Hunter was the last. All ten of us are out."
Kwon Taehyuk's brow furrowed slightly at the fact that Cha Seohu had been the last one out.
He looked at Seohu, who subtly averted his gaze, with an expression that said he had a lot to say—then let out a quiet sigh.
"I'll cover you. Keep moving straight."
Seeing the fae still in pursuit, Kwon Taehyuk slashed forward with a blade. His sword cut through the wind while Ryu Sunghyun's light tore through the ground.
Neither of them was aiming to kill the monsters—they were merely buying time.
Even with the buffs they'd provided the S-ranks, there was only one reason they would choose escape over combat.
"Don't tell me... the damage dealers didn't all come?"
Even with buffs, it would've been hard for just six S-ranks to break this deep into the enemy zone.
They absolutely needed the dealers' cooperation. But if they were only rescuing the kidnapped victims and immediately retreating like this—
Cha Seohu's guess was spot on. Ryu Sunghyun, his face slightly stiff, spoke.
"Yes. All the supporters agreed to help, but half of the dealers refused. So we had no choice..."
"Haah..."
It was ridiculous—but not unexpected.
From the beginning, the strike team had been divided between those who wanted to go rescue them and those who wanted to leave them behind. Most of the dealers had voted for the latter.
Cha Seohu's involvement had made the rescue plan possible, but it was only thanks to the S-ranks and a few others who were willing to follow his lead.
Since he couldn't convince everyone, it was only natural that some had refused to help until the very end.
"Don't stop—keep running!"
Looking around, Seohu saw that the other kidnapped supporters were also fleeing, carried in the arms of dealers just like he had been.
"This way!"
Park Minhyuk weaved tree trunks like vines to erect a massive wall. The dealers holding supporters used the moment to increase their pace.
Luckily, the place where the captives had been held wasn't far from the log cabin.
When they'd seen the familiar wood texture earlier, it had seemed possible the strike team wasn't far off—and it turned out to be true.
—How dare you steal what's ours!
—Kill them! Kill them and take it back!
The enraged fae spewed killing intent that chased them to the very edge. Glancing over Ryu Sunghyun's shoulder, Cha Seohu saw their twisted faces, contorted like demons.
"Don't look back!"
"Shit, just run!"
The dealers waiting in front of the log cabin flung open the doors in alarm. Everyone launched themselves inside without hesitation, straight into the barren desert.
Still held in Ryu Sunghyun's arms, Cha Seohu could hear the voices of the fae fading behind the light and blades swirling around them.
—No... no—!
BOOM!
The sound of the door slamming shut echoed through the sky and earth.
As soon as Kwon Taehyuk, the last to come through, crossed into the desert, the log cabin door shut itself and vanished.
"Haaah... hahh..."
Only once they confirmed the fae weren't following did the strike team let out a collective sigh of relief and sink to the ground.
"We'll rest here for the night before moving on."
Seeing how exhausted they were, Park Minhyuk chose rest over immediate departure.
Though they were in a desert, the sand was sparse, and the sky burned with a red sunset. Just like outside, night would fall soon enough.
The ones who welcomed the break the most were the kidnapped supporters.
They were desperate to take off the humiliating clothes the fae had forced on them. Now that they had time to rest and change properly, they were immensely relieved.
A base camp was quickly assembled.
The victims changed their clothes and shared their experiences with each other.
Naturally, the one name that kept coming up was Cha Seohu—the man who'd first suggested the rescue plan and volunteered to be kidnapped.
"If it weren't for Cha Seohu Hunter, no one would've come to save us."
"Right. Even after Team Leader Park Minhyuk and Yesung's Guildmaster agreed to help, a lot of dealers still refused."
"I heard Cha Seohu Hunter was the one who convinced those two to begin with."
"They say he already had connections with them. You've heard the rumors, right? That there's a B-rank supporter who's close with the S-ranks."
"Oh, that was Cha Seohu Hunter?"
"He was super protective. I saw it a few times in here—any time something happened, everyone ran straight to him first..."
"Lucky for us. We're only alive now because someone with real authority insisted we had to be rescued."
Dan Yeoun, who had just exited the tent after changing, silently listened to their conversation.
"Ah, speaking of—Dan Yeoun."
One of the supporters spotted him and seemed to recall something.
"Are you close with Cha Seohu Hunter?"
The question felt a bit out of nowhere. Dan Yeoun smiled instead of answering directly.
"Hm? Why do you ask?"
"Well, I, um..."
The supporter glanced around to make sure no one else was listening, then continued.
"I overheard something earlier when I was nearby. Before Cha Seohu Hunter got swapped, he mentioned your name."
"My name?"
"Yes. He asked to switch with you. The monster didn't know your name, so it took someone else instead."
Dan Yeoun blinked slowly.
His gaze dropped to his arm—still draped in the coat Cha Seohu had lent him.
Lost in thought for a moment, Dan Yeoun eventually opened his mouth and spoke slowly.
"Cha Seohu Hunter helped us escape even while we were in captivity. If he hadn't stepped forward to lead us, we wouldn't have gotten away so easily."
At his words, the other kidnapped victims gave ambiguous, complex expressions.
'Is that... really how it happened...?'
It felt a bit too tidy to fully agree with, but no one had the nerve to openly contradict Dan Yeoun, especially with the smile still on his face.
"Really?"
"Then he really did volunteer on purpose. He got himself swapped for the plan."
"But... he saw an A-rank dealer die, right? How can you still do that knowing one wrong move means instant death?"
"To be honest, even just the fact that he's close with the S-ranks is already way outside the norm."
As the tense atmosphere lingered, Cha Seohu's name spread rapidly throughout the group.
Listening to the murmurs, Dan Yeoun turned to glance toward a nearby camping van—where {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} Cha Seohu was resting.
With an unreadable expression, Dan Yeoun ran a hand down the sleeve of the coat draped over his arm.
He had every excuse to return it now, but for some reason... he couldn't bring himself to move.
"Explain."
Meanwhile, Cha Seohu, now a hot topic of the hour, was facing the biggest crisis of his life.
"I did everything you asked. I kept my aura hidden, didn't act out, and even when you went off to rescue those humans, I stayed put."
Cha Sahyeon, arms crossed and leaning against the wall, muttered in a low voice.
"Not that I'm complaining. I agreed to do things your way in exchange for keeping the choker. I didn't want to go out of my way to disobey you either."
He tilted his head slightly, eyes fixed on Seohu.
"But the fact that you're keeping something from me... that's a whole different issue, isn't it?"
Cha Seohu, meeting those green eyes beneath the long lashes, quietly broke into a cold sweat.
'...I'm fucked.'
It was clear Cha Sahyeon had picked up on the side effects of the buff.
Of course, Seohu had never expected to keep it secret forever.
The moment he started tossing buffs around to every Hunter in sight, he'd prepared for the possibility of being exposed. But he hadn't expected Sahyeon to come confront him the moment he got back—no chance to breathe.
"If I don't ask, you never explain."
"Um..."
Everything he said was true. Seohu, hit dead-on, forced a casual smile.
"No way. You're misunderstanding."
"Am I?"
Cha Sahyeon mirrored his smile, lips curling up.
"Then explain."
"...Explain what?"
"All of it. Don't try to dodge. Just tell me everything you've been hiding."
"No, seriously, it's just a misunderstanding. There's really nothing—urk!"
A sharp jolt of pain hit his wrist. Startled, Seohu looked down to see black shadows rising from the floor, coiling around his limbs.
Like snakes, the shadows crawled up his legs and bound both arms tightly. In the blink of an eye, he was standing there completely restrained.
Seohu twisted his torso in a panic, but he couldn't budge an inch.
"Wait—what the hell is this...?!"
A chill pressed against his jaw. Flinching, Seohu looked up.
Cha Sahyeon had closed the distance in an instant and now had his hand gripping Seohu's chin, forcing eye contact.
"You have two choices."
"...What?"
"First. Give me a buff. The same one you gave all those humans."
"..."
"I don't know what will happen to my body if I get it—maybe the drug from the administrator will wear off, maybe I'll lose control of my power. But I don't care."
"...Hey. Cha Sahyeon—"
"Second. Kiss me. Right here, right now."
"..."
"Then I'll let this go without pushing further. I still want an explanation, but I won't press."
Cha Seohu's eyes widened in panic, visibly shaking.
He had never expected Sahyeon to demand a kiss in this situation. As he stood there frozen, Sahyeon asked again:
"Which one will you choose?"
"..."
His mouth went completely dry. The hands trapped in shadow trembled violently.

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