Hunters Keep Coming To My House - Chapter 144

Chapter 144

It’s said there’s not a single person to trust in this world……

I looked back and forth between Arvani and Jung Tae-il with an expression of disbelief. Jung Tae-il always looked at me with an indifferent expression, but Arvani was different.

Kyuwoo…..

He seemed to be pretending to be cute, fully aware of the weight of his sins.

His blue eyes twinkled, his tail drooped, and his gloomy expression seemed to be filled with regret, which pained my heart deeply.

However… it wasn’t enough to just pass it off as that.

…This is betrayal! How could you hide such a thing from me?

Pathetic. It seems like an old saying that raising a child only results in looking at the parents when someone they like appears, was true after all, more so than for me.

Arvani also found a suitable contractor, completely ignoring me as the owner, and happily played with Jung Tae-il…

‘…Even having intimate conversations with each other!’

That was Arvani’s voice that I had only heard once!

Damn it, if I hadn’t been trapped in the trick of the Black Dragon, I wouldn’t have even heard that.

Should I be thankful to her for this, or was my misfortune a stroke of luck?

The voice of Arvani I heard at that time was that of a very cute boy. Thinking that he must have been chirping and chatting with Jung Tae-il in that voice… I felt betrayed.

‘…Miss, I don’t want to be jealous of this.’

Do I have to be jealous of Jung Tae-il? Is this for real……

Oh, God, why do you test me like this?

I can’t see my face, but it must be a sight to behold. It would be a mixture of a pitiful believer and the expression of an angry savage.

And I couldn’t hide it for a long time. In other words, while I was wearing a fierce look, they didn’t say a word.

Well, who knows? Maybe Arvani is gossiping in his head right now.

“…Huh!”

Thinking like that, I was shocked and finally burst out in anger. Then I stared at Arvani intently.

Arvani seemed startled by my piercing gaze and covered his eyes with his front paws. And if that wasn’t enough, he tried to hide behind Jung Tae-il.

Of course, he ended up being held in my arms.

“…Haha, our Arvani. Were you trying to go to another man’s arms instead of your mom’s? Huh?”

Kuwooo…..

“It’s no use trying to be cute now, Arvani, how could you keep it a secret from me?”

Kuwoooong…..

Arvani murmured apologetically, rubbing his head against my hand. With tightly closed lips, he looked quite pitiful as he glanced around nervously.

However… Arvani’s efforts were shattered by a single word from Jung Tae-il.

“Right now, he’s whining so much that it hurts my ears, that dragon.”

“…What?”

“Your Arvani is saying that he’s a dragon with a difference between the outside and the inside.”

“.…..”

I stared at Jung Tae-il with a fierce gaze that said, ‘If what comes out of your mouth isn’t true, I’ll throw you into the teacher’s den.’ 

Then, Jung Tae-il responded with a brief smile and a look that said, ‘Why would I lie?’ 

Thanks to that, Arvani, who was caught in the middle, began to tremble sweetly. That trembling was transmitted to me as well.

‘…Our Arvani.’

Kyuah, Kuwoo! Kyaang!

Arvani chirped earnestly. But I couldn’t understand what he was saying. What a… ridiculous situation this was.

It was so frustrating that I couldn’t even interpret Arvani’s words, but a total stranger like Jung Tae-il could.

It was beyond words. I felt like I hadn’t eaten or drunk water after eating five thousand sweet potatoes.

‘…I understand why pet owners across the country want devices to interpret their pets’ words.’

This is frustrating enough to make me turn around.

Whether Arvani knew my inner thoughts or not, he spoke even more earnestly and then quickly turned his head to look at Jung Tae-il, as if asking him to convey the message to me.

“Please interpret.”

“…I’m sorry for deceiving you. But it was necessary nonetheless.”

“Is that so? It doesn’t seem like Arvani said it that briefly.”

“…Hah. Seo Yeon-oh, I’ll be useful to you, so use me well.”

“…Excuse me?”

“You’re Arvani’s owner, and I’m Arvani’s contractor… He’s telling me to serve you. That damn dragon.”

“Why are you speaking like that?”

I ended up getting the strongest S-level.

No, no, that’s not it. Flustered by the sudden development, I stared at Arvani with sweat trickling down my face.

Kyu!

He nodded as if it were obvious. Could it be… that serving and whatnot were the final words after the discussion with Jung Tae-il?

What a disgraceful event in this sacred 21st century.

The betrayal and frustration that had surged up to the tip of my head disappeared as if washed away by water. And in their place, only confusion remained.

“…Surely Tae-il didn’t agree to this?”

“……”

“Ah, surely not? Tae-il, what’s lacking is that you’d make a slave contract with Arvani. Even without this condition, it was already enough of a slave contract.”

“There’s no change in adding one more clause to an already sufficient slave contract.”

Jung Tae-il’s resolute words were astonishingly casual.

So… that means… Jung Tae-il also tacitly agreed to that statement….

Was the real purpose of the contract condition Jung Tae-il mentioned ‘to help Seo Yeon-oh grow’…?

I looked like I was foaming at the mouth and about to faint.

‘…Yeah, it’s not like Arvani and Jung Tae-il having a conversation, or signing a contract is no big deal.’

What happened next was the real problem.

“No, it’s not a problem, it’s a big problem, Mr. Tae-il.”

“.…..”

“Look, Mr. Jung Tae-il and I are just acquaintances, we have no relationship whatsoever, right? Honestly, what Arvani said… Oh, it’s too embarrassing to say, even to family. But why would a stranger like me…”

“It’s because you’re not a stranger.”

“…That’s what you say. What is there between Mr. Tae-il and me? This isn’t something even lovers who promise a future would do. It’s not the romantic 18th century.”

Capitalism, educational elitism, what else? Many terrifying things are staring us in the face.

I held Arvani tightly and looked at Jung Tae-il. I couldn’t read his thoughts because he always had an indifferent expression.

I could only tell that Jung Tae-il was looking at me seriously. Without a hint of mischief.

If he had a more affable or playful personality like Han Seung-hoo or Kang Yoon-soo… I might have taken it a bit more lightly…

‘…So serious for no reason.’

So I tried to restrain him more to make him even more restless. Because I knew he had no reason to do that for me.

I pursed my lips and tried to think of words to persuade Jung Tae-il again. But the jumbled words tied around my neck made it hard for me to speak.

Taking advantage of this gap, Jung Tae-il spoke first.

“…You seem to think I accepted Arvani’s contract under duress.”

“…It’s not coercion.”

“Yeah, anyway. I did it because I wanted to. If I hadn’t wanted to, there wouldn’t have been a contract with Arvani. So don’t worry.”

“…No, how can I not worry? Suddenly, Tae-il’s life is like collateral to me.”

“…So don’t worry.”

That’s something I shouldn’t worry about.

Jung Tae-il was firm. He cut off my unnecessary talk as if I were talking nonsense.

Somehow, there was a strange sense of disappointment in my throat. He said I’m not a complete stranger to him, so why… I don’t understand why I’m feeling disappointed.

Maybe it’s because I’ve been seeing his face frequently for a while. If not that, then…

‘…No, no, that can’t be it.’

The situation I’m facing now is practically a disaster, so why would such feelings arise? 

As my expression became more serious, Jung Tae-il sighed and uttered even harsher words.

“The day you overpower me by force will never come.”

“…Ah.”

“And besides, this contract isn’t eternal anyway. If Arvani becomes useless to me, I’ll terminate the contract.”

“……”

“Isn’t that right, Arvani?”

Kuung.

Arvani glanced sharply at Jung Tae-il before swiftly turning his head as if expressing his displeasure. 

Seeing that, it was clear that Arvani was very fond of Jung Tae-il. His stern expression seemed like a vow to never let go of Jung Tae-il.

Feeling relieved by Arvani’s reaction, I sighed and turned to look at Jung Tae-il. Though his expression remained indifferent, there was a subtle sense of amusement hidden within.

“…Alright, let’s stop this conversation here. We never know how things might change. Besides, is Tae-il’s ability really that remarkable? Enough for our Arvani to be so enamored?”

“If we’re talking about remarkable abilities, you’re the more remarkable one. I can only mimic, but you can use others’ mana without penalties. Just look at how Cha Jae-joon, despite being assimilated into dark mana, is still being consumed.”

“That’s true.” 

I nodded in agreement, pondering Jung Tae-il’s words. It wasn’t to praise my abilities again but rather because I felt like I had forgotten something.

And before 10 seconds had passed, I sprang up from my seat.

Oh, Cha Jae-joon!