Hunters Keep Coming To My House - Chapter 151

Chapter 151

“…Huh!”

I blurted out a strange sound in a rush of confusion, swallowing hastily. Whoever had paralyzed me with a skill, I couldn’t even flinch.

Thanks to that, I ended up meekly nestled in Jung Tae-il’s embrace. Though one arm was awkwardly out of his embrace.

‘…Wh-what’s going on?!’

My body was frozen, but my insides were in turmoil. It felt like someone had installed a high-performance speaker in my mind, pounding to the point of resonance.

And no wonder…

‘…He’s too close!’

Truly, too close. His breath was brushing against my neck so intimately, that it didn’t need any embellishment, not even a lie.

And the sturdy muscles Jung Tae-il had been subtly boasting about… I could feel them through his clothes. At the same time, his large hand was supporting the back of my head.

…I was genuinely relieved my nose wasn’t pressed against his chest.

‘…This is insane!’

Who wouldn’t be flustered in this situation? Honestly, this contact could make even an inanimate object’s heart race.

It was futile to push him away with just one hand. Jung Tae-il was so firm, that it was as if there were ancestral statues embedded in his lineage, unmoving.

Even pushing with all my might with the hand trapped in his embrace yielded no change. And that’s when I realized something anew.

‘But isn’t this person running a fever?’

Why do I feel so warm?

Initially, I thought it might have been due to Arvani’s cool, blue mana; he used to have a lower body temperature than me. But now, when did that change? It felt warm.

He wasn’t particularly prone to a fever before, nor was he someone who could withstand the cold well. As I desperately tried to distract myself from thinking too deeply about this embrace, Jung Tae-il slowly spoke up, still holding me tightly.

“…I was worried. Worried that something might happen to you.”

“…Uh… Well, there were plenty of dangerous situations when you were even weaker. Looking back now, I don’t know what courage I had back then, haha.”

“…Yeah, back then, I wished for you to become stronger. People tend to show their strongest power when their lives are in danger. Especially you, you always got stronger in those situations.”

He murmured as if reminiscing, with a laughter laced with nostalgia. His whispering breath against my neck was incredibly ticklish.

“…So, I purposely provoked you at times. Because it was an environment where you and Han Seung-hoo could use your abilities.”

“…Is this… something I should apologize to Mr. Tae-il about?”

“I don’t regret it. You didn’t even trust yourself back then.”

“…Y-yes, that’s right. But I had my reasons. Even now, despite gaining various abilities… I was originally an FFF-level. It’s natural not to believe in oneself.”

Jung Tae-il seemed to understand and hugged me tighter. His nonchalant posture became even more peculiar.

It was a relief there were no eyes around to witness this, as I glanced around rolling my eyes before Jung Tae-il spoke again.

“…I don’t know why I feel less anxious now than I did back then.”

“…Haha, why is that? I’m not sure… Compared to what’s happening lately, what happened just now was nothing.”

“That’s because…! Ugh… it’s desensitization. Yeah, that’s it.”

“…Isn’t that a chronic disease most people have?”

“……”

“Alright, I’ll shut up.”

I could easily imagine Jung Tae-il looking down at me with contemptuous eyes.

He must be looking at me with a look that says, ‘Are you crazy?’ while twitching his eyebrows.

I was familiar with that expression from time to time. I had memorized it because it was a different gaze from the one I used to get from Han Seung-hoo.

Thanks to recalling lively expressions and facial expressions, I could find some tranquility in the increasingly strange atmosphere.

But the calm I tried to find was gone as soon as Jung Tae-il’s hand lightly caressed my head.

‘But if Jung Tae-il, who never expresses his true feelings, is saying this, then maybe this situation isn’t too bad…’

Even if my temperature seemed to rise along with his, and my mouth felt parched, with heat flooding my face.

‘Ugh! Stop these distractions…’

Jung Tae-il must have been so worried about me that his concern burst out first. Let’s not think about it.

Isn’t this kind of thing normal among friends? … No, not at all.

‘…I should ask him to let go before the atmosphere gets even weirder here.’

Before I start having even stranger thoughts!

I tapped Jung Tae-il’s shoulder with the hand not trapped in his embrace. His shoulder twitched subtly.

“Mr. Tae-il, you worry more than I expected. But don’t worry. While I may not be on your level, I’ve gained some experience by now. I can handle situations calmly instead of panicking like before, and… I’ve become stronger in my own way.”

“…I know. I’ve been watching over you.”

“Then could you stop worrying now and let me go? Mr. Tae-il is hugging me so tightly that my waist feels like it’s going to break.”

“…Ah.”

Frighteningly quickly after I finished speaking, Jung Tae-il released me with a hint of embarrassment. Seeing this cute side of Jung Tae-il, who always seemed rough and indifferent, felt different.

Whether his face was red from embarrassment or from continuously holding me, I couldn’t tell. His lips were chewing something thoughtfully.

And despite wanting to conceal it all, I couldn’t help but notice his hand hovering near his face.

…It was incredibly cute.

It was different from anything else. It wasn’t the same cuteness as Han Seung-hoo’s.

As I stared at Jung Tae-il, he tried to nonchalantly stiffen his expression, but he quickly failed.

It seemed like his red face wouldn’t easily fade away.

“…When we get home, I should give you an ice pack. Your face looks like it’s about to catch fire.”

Just to tease him, I poked Jung Tae-il’s arm playfully. Then his brow furrowed slightly.

For a moment, Jung Tae-il smiled and lightly tapped my cheek.

“Who asked for your opinion.”

“…No! Honestly, this is Mr. Tae-il’s fault. Who wouldn’t blush when someone hugs them like that?”

“Okay, I’ll admit to that.”

“Huh? You’re blaming me like this?”

“I’ve never blamed you, Seo Yeon-oh. I just want you to know that you’re the reason I turned red.”

Ah…?

Am I digging my own grave right now?

I shook my head, not understanding Jung Tae-il’s words. He smiled again and nodded kindly as if trying to make me understand.

If I had something in my hand, I would have thrown it away in frustration.

‘I must be crazy. To think Jung Tae-il is the reason I find this cute!’

What’s wrong with me? And all because Jung Tae-il hugged me like that…!

Feeling unfairly treated, I glared at Jung Tae-il. He glanced at Evan, who was lying on the floor, ignoring my heated gaze.

“What’s this?”

“He’s the patient I brought.”

“…Seo Yeon-oh, are you planning to turn the house into a clinic?”

“Why do you ask?”

“You keep bringing injured people and taking care of them.”

Jung Tae-il genuinely seemed to ask out of concern. It seemed like he was almost asking why I was giving shelter even to people who had nothing to do with us.

When I didn’t respond, Jung Tae-il added another comment.

“It was a word of concern. Don’t misunderstand.”

“…I wouldn’t misunderstand even if you didn’t say that. You were the one who turned our house into a clinic in the first place.”

“……. “

“Don’t you remember? When you collapsed because of Arvani, I nursed you back to health.”

“…I was the problem, huh.”

Jung Tae-il sighed deeply, rubbing his forehead. Then he glanced somewhere into the bushes.

Wondering why he suddenly looked at the bushes, I followed his gaze.

And there…

“Oh, Arvani?”

Arvani, who had been momentarily forgotten, was staring at Jung Tae-il with his eyes wide open.

Although Arvani seemed to have an unpleasant expression, he was holding it back from showing, as if trying not to express it.

Of course, his tail was thumping the ground in discontent.

‘…Did he see everything?’

…He probably did. Since Jung Tae-il came with Arvani… they must have been together from the beginning…

Having been ignored by the owner for so long, Arvani must have been quite annoyed. I smiled as kindly as possible and reached out my arms to Arvani.

Arvani immediately rushed towards me.

Even as he hugged me tightly, he grumbled and showed his displeasure. Jung Tae-il, looking at Arvani with disgust, didn’t pay much attention.

After comforting Arvani for a while, he finally smiled at me.

Feeling like an old man with a ten-year-old sentiment, I sighed and said what I had wanted to say since earlier.

“Now let’s go home. All of us.”