Hunters Keep Coming To My House - Chapter 59

Chapter 59

Quang!

Surely while swinging a sword at a tree, a fierce clash of metal against metal resounded.

Once again, Cha Jae-joon wielded his Ego Sword, its black blade fully imbued with darkness.

Any other object should have yielded to the clash, shattering into pieces and disappearing, but this darn tree remained intact, seemingly unaffected by whatever Cha Jae-joon was doing.

Thanks to witnessing the threatening battle between vegetation and humans, Ellie Kim sighed from behind.

The spectacle of blue and black mana intermingling was breathtaking, but now the protective barrier he had created was showing signs of strain.

“It’s been 30 minutes since Yeon-oh disappeared, hasn’t it?”

In other words, for the past 30 minutes, Cha Jae-joon had been wielding his sword towards the tree almost like a madman, abandoning reason.

When Ellie first encountered Cha Jae-joon in the dungeon…

“Go your way, don’t die in vain.”

It was a 180-degree difference from his current playful demeanor equipped with a passive sense of humor.

It was a day when Ellie indirectly realized that humans could become so dark.

Of course, after understanding that they were not enemies and that Ellie Kim could help him, Cha Jae-joon showed a brighter side, abandoning the previously somber atmosphere.

Well… as long as he held the sword, that dark and somber atmosphere returned.

“…But you seem to be doing well now.”

Honestly, it was a real surprise.

It was because Cha Jae-joon, who usually kept a certain distance, was the one who first playfully teased someone else.

No matter how much she tried to get closer, he was a person with a subtly high wall.

Cha Jae-joon was clear about the line inside him.

Even if she entered that line, she had to be anxiously waiting for the moment she would be chased away.

However, Cha Jae-joon did not draw a line against Yeon-oh.

But that didn’t feel like rational affection at all.

It seemed more like Cha Jae-joon saw Yeon-oh, felt a sense of camaraderie, and enjoyed it.

Why on earth did he feel that camaraderie?

“I heard she died once and came back to life, but what did she go through with the system during that time?”

If they make such an assumption, is Cha Jae-joon sympathizing with Yeon-oh?

Because it’s pitiful to see someone other than oneself being manipulated by the system?

“No, this can’t be the answer. We need to go back to hypothesis setting.”

Because simply saying that Cha Jae-joon helps Yeon-oh out of pity is too emotional for him right now.

Although Cha Jae-joon appears subtly emotional, he is also the most rational person. So even against the Ego Sword of the Black Dragon, he wouldn’t be swallowed but would instead use that power properly.

“Ah, this is too difficult… I’m not majoring in psychology.”

Her head throbbed, and the hand maintaining the shield was starting to feel numb.

“Oh… I hope Yeon-oh shows up quickly…”

Certainly, it was confirmed that something was inside that tree, but Cha Jae-joon and Ellie couldn’t enter. Then it would make sense for Yeon-oh to come out on her own.

Even though she had seen her for a short time, the Yeon-oh she knew seemed like someone who could overcome hardships on her own, but Cha Jae-joon was being overly dramatic.

Ugh, at this rate, she might get a headache for no reason.

That was the moment.

Thunk!

Thunk!!

The gold of the shield began to rise severely.

Although it was called a shield it was just ice that was made extremely hard with mana. It was said that if continuous shocks were applied, it would break.

As a result.

Thud!

Ellie Kim’s ice shield was completely shattered. This wasn’t a big problem. Shields could be remade.

But the problem was separate.

Kaboom!

The black blade of the Ego Sword, rebounding off the tree, was flying toward the defenseless Ellie Kim at a rapid speed.

“…OMG!”

If that hits, she’ll suffer for a month!

Ellie Kim screamed, hastily gathering water from the surroundings, and managed to create a makeshift shield, even though it was far from perfect. However, the imperfect shield fell short of blocking the black blade of the Ego Sword.

At that moment, when it seemed inevitable that she would take the hit without any resistance!

“…Huaaargh!”

Her body suddenly floated in the air.

To be more precise… her torso was grabbed by a monster and rapidly lifted towards the sky.

What on earth is happening…!

Ellie Kim, who had never experienced such a thing since awakening, felt like she was about to faint. What spurred her on was a voice from above.

“Ellie, are you okay?”

* * *

That’s how the incident came to a close.

…How nice it would be if it ended there.

Currently, we are back at home. I mean, a real home, not the vinyl house. The house I bought with my own money.

“Please explain quickly. What exactly happened? And why is Ms. Yeon-oh involved in all of this?”

“…Ahaha, can you see this?”

“…My eyes don’t deceive me. You didn’t do something weird, did you?”

…Haha, I didn’t want to hear such words from Cha Jae-joon…

But I had the guilt of making him worry, so I bit my tongue. I wondered if I would be scolded for doing something crazy by the world’s fool.

I had to go back to when I regained consciousness.

After receiving a quest from the Blue Dragon and losing consciousness briefly, I woke up right there on top of the tree.

When I opened my eyes, it was a dizzying experience, almost falling to my death.

Fortunately, Arvani was next to me, so I quickly climbed onto his back to reduce the probability of a tragic accident.

As I descended from the tree, an enormous situation unfolded before me. Just when I thought I had barely resolved it and took a breath, Cha Jae-joon demanded an explanation with a fiery look in his eyes.

But because Ellie Kim fainted while being held by Arvani, I convinced him to quickly return home.

…How intimidating Cha Jae-joon was at that moment.

‘…It felt like standing in front of Arvani’s mother again for a moment.’

I’m not sure if it’s because it was right after he used the Ego Sword of the Black Dragon, but anyway.

“Well, I met Arvani’s mother. And I got a quest. Oh, and I’m sorry, Mr. Jae-joon, but can I have the Blue Ego Sword? No matter what happens, I have to complete that quest.”

I turned the words around, saying that if I fail, I die.

Understanding it perfectly, Cha Jae-joon looked at me with a colder gaze than ever.

“You’re reckless. Why did you accept such a quest? What if you die, Ms. Yeon-oh?”

“…I didn’t expect to feel like I was in the same guild as Jung Tae-il.”

“What?”

“The way you scold is similar to him.”

“…That’s unpleasant.”

Clearly in a bad mood, Cha Jae-joon pursed his lips and glared at me. I quickly apologized, expressing my regret.

“So, I think I need to focus on completing quests for a while.”

“Can you tell me what the quest is about? If there’s anything I can help with….”

“No, she didn’t give me a quest that involves getting help from others. And if I do get help, there’s a chance the successful quest might turn into a failure.”

“…I see. I brought you into this mess for no reason, Ms. Yeon-oh.”

Whether he thought that I got involved in this mess because he brought me along or for some other reason, Cha Jae-joon seemed a bit dejected. He was the person who had scolded me like Jung Tae-il until a moment ago.

“It’s okay. Even if it weren’t Mr. Cha Jae-joon, I would have met Arvani’s mother at least once.”

“…I’m sorry.”

“If you’re sorry, how about cooking a delicious meal? Facing unexpected situations like this made me hungry.”

I was truly, genuinely hungry. Whether it was because I had used up all my mental strength just facing the Blue Dragon or because my body had become weak due to repeatedly losing consciousness, I wasn’t sure.

‘…My mana circulation doesn’t seem to be working well.’

Well…

After contemplating for a while, I figured out the reason.

‘Ah, darn maintenance fees.’

Due to the passage of a day, the maintenance fee I had to pay today had been depleted by mana. Since a significant amount of mana had already been consumed when the mana level was increased once, I couldn’t help but feel it.

Now, my task was clear.

“Mr. Jae-joon, I’m sorry, but I’m really hungry right now.”

“Oh, I’ll prepare a meal for you.”

“Then I’ll do some cleaning.”

I had to prevent my stamina from dropping here.

Absolutely.