CH 44

Of course, that didn’t mean he was going to throw his resignation in Jung Yiheon face and disappear.

‘The fact that he mentioned psychological counselling means that if I do anything wrong, I could be readmitted to the hospital again.’

Perhaps because he had suffered so many injuries in a row, Jung Yiheon seemed to think that he might not be in his right mind.

For the time being, he needed to focus on hi recovery and wait and see.

[Current constraints (2) : watch my language / get enough sleep]

Even with these constraints.

Han Cha-soo frowned at the flickering system window in the corner.

‘Why the hell doesn’t that thing switch off?’

At first, he wondered if he had turned off the system window. But he quickly realized that wasn’t the case. The system window had appeared on the edge of his vision in a frighteningly subtle way.

As if to warn him not to forget its existence.

‘Oh, my.’

With a sigh, he leaned back against the headboard of his bed.

He soon realised that Ki Tae-yeon hadn’t returned yet.

“…….”

“…….”

I wonder if he’s doing this because he didn’t ask him to go back. Han Cha-soo swallowed a sigh as his gaze fell on his cheeks.

Last time he was so desperate because he couldn’t argue, now you’re doing this.

<Thank you yesterday and today>

Still, this is a man who will eventually become the head of the company. Han Cha-soo scribbled his thanks on a post-it note.

“Hmm.”

Taking the post-it, Ki Tae-yeon’s eyebrows rose. He didn’t look pleased.

“Han Chasoo-ssi.”

“?”

“Are you sure you remember what you did before you went into the bathroom and collapsed?”

Han Cha-soo nodded slowly. He drank the poison and collapsed, but the hand holding the pen spat out something else entirely.

<I was in the shower, washing my hair as usual>

Then he became dizzy and doesn’t remember the rest, Han Cha-soo added. He half-listened to the medics.

“Hmm.”

Ki Tae-yeon looked at the tiny post-it note with a serious face. He seemed deep in thought, and Han Cha-soo became curious.

‘Is he thinking about something here?’

It was obvious that he was just feeling unwell and had collapsed for a moment.

‘You’re actually noticing something.’

Han Cha-soo’s head was spinning at this point. Someone rushed in and called for Ki Tae-yeon.

“So I guess you should go right away….”

The voice whispering in this direction was ominous.

‘Something’s happened again, and this world never sleeps a wink.’

At least the building didn’t explode in front of them like last time. Han Cha-soo clicked his tongue silently, and Ki Tae-yeon stood up.

“Is there anything else you want to ask me, Hunter Han Cha-soo?”

Han Cha-soo shooked his head. Although he did not reach the coma state, the attributed item was lifted, and the story was already over at the time when the opponent did not know it.

The odds were stacked in his favour. There was no point in complicating things here.

Therefore, it was right to let him go. He didn’t want him to get curious about the item if he held onto it.

As he bowed his head once more in farewell, he heard a sigh from overhead.

“……?”

“I’m sure you’d like a bath, but you’re on your own for now.”

Ki Tae-yeon sounded worried. No, he said with pathetic eyes.

“And don’t drink a lot of water even if you’re thirsty, and if you want to go out near the courtyard, be sure to take someone with you, okay?”

Why was this guy suddenly doing his best Jung Yiheon impression? A nagging suspicion sprouted in his heart, but Han Cha-soo didn’t show it.

Instead, he just nodded in agreement.

‘It’s hard to keep doing this.’

He just hoped that the restrictions on his speech would be lifted soon.

‘I’m not going to cut myself with a piece of glass anymore, and I’m not going to drink poison, so can you cut me some slack?’

He asked out loud, thinking the skill was somewhat responding to his thoughts.

Then he heard a cheerful beeping sound.

[Constraints currently in effect (2) : Watch your language/Get enough sleep!!]

A system window popped up in the corner of his vision.

“…….”

Shut up and recover. Han Cha-soo remained alone in the hospital room and lonely pulled the covers over his head.

The sound of the second hand ticking calmly rattled the bedside.

After leaving the hospital room, Ki Tae-yeon walked slowly down the corridor. The medical center, built in the early days of the cataclysm, had a complex structure unlike the headquarters building. This was because there were many additions here and there as it was expanded and extended.

As he walked down the corridor, which was so white it hurt his eyes, he turned to his subordinate.

“Hunter Han Cha-soo was originally on the first floor, right?”

“Yes. His condition was so urgent, they set up a room on the first floor and treated him there.”

What a waste.

The old room was definitely better for keeping an eye on him. A room with one-way glass is exactly what he need right now.

‘I think it’s a side effect.’

He thought he was lucky he wasn’t facing a fish head, but he had a stomach bug. In other words, it seems that mental side effects have appeared through the rare probability.

And the trickiest side effect of all: water ghosts

‘I’ve told the guys at the centre to keep an eye out for it…’

It would be a big deal if he drowned in the bathtub while no one was around. He needed to keep a close eye on him. At least until the side effects wore off.

“I’m going to have to clear my schedule, damn it.”

“What?”

The subordinate who’d been following his monologue asked, sticking close.

“What did you just say?”

“Don’t ask me that when it’s obvious I was talking to myself.”

Pushing his subordinate’s hair out of his face, Ki Tae-yeon changed the subject, the subject that had brought him out of the hospital room.

“So, what did the guys in the development office say?”

“Oh, they said that the current training system is for training against monsters, not for humans, so they’re asking for more time.”

“They’re working on it.”

As he walked down the stairs, he giggled. It was a cute thing to do.

If they had to have a monster, they could just make it a weak one that could take down an F-rank Hunter. The development office probably doesn’t know that.

‘If they don’t know, they should resign.’

They have the best brains in the Awakening Management Bureau. If they’re asking for more time, it probably means they want something else.

For example, the Demon Spirit Stone that they’ve been dying to get.

“I know that there were some spirit stones or elemental stones in the gate we captured on Jeju Island with Heavenly Spirit Guild last time. Are they still in dispute?”

The eyes of the subordinate behind him widened, then sized me up. He realized what Ki Tae-yeon meant.

“If you’re referring to the crystals, they just ended a while ago. There were two small ones and one large one, hmm. But they’re all C-rank, so I don’t know if they’ll help much.”

“That’s also good for those who were caught selling machines to buy magic eggs. Ask for one of the smaller ones for us and slip it to the dev shop. They’ll love it.”

“Do you want me to fill out a request for use in advance?”

As they left the centre’s building, Ki Tae-yeon nodded. Baek-dam had tried to tear off his arm for attacking him and his brother. He’s probably still hanging by now.

“Call Baek-dam as soon as you get permission.”

If he gave the impression that he was delaying for even a moment, he would storm into the detention centre and tear off his arm.

“Then I’ll request a party of four for now.”

“Sure. One Baek-dam is enough for three….”

Wait, come to think of it, hadn’t Baek-dam said he wanted to participate in the torture with his siblings back then?

“Chief?”

“I’ll fill out the request form, leave him alone. And I’m off duty for the rest of the week. Any tactics that come my way will be sent back to the security office.”

“What? Wait a minute, boss! Are you sick? You’re not going to quit, are you? Then we’ll all die!”

The distraught employee hurriedly ran after Ki Tae-yeon as he disappeared into the headquarters building.

The food at the Awakeners Administration Medical Centre was excellent. It tasted like tax money and was impeccable from the main meal to the dessert.

“You cleaned up!”

But the applause was a bit modest. At my age, he can’t believe he’s being praised for eating well. Scratching his cheek, Han Cha-soo got up from his seat after a quick check-up, as he was told that lying down for too long was not good for him.

“If it’s not too hard, do you want to take a short walk down to the courtyard?”

As he looked out the window, the medical staff asked coyly. Han Cha-soo shook his head, tearing his gaze away from the lake-like pond.

“Well, the sun’s a bit strong today, but you can come out whenever you like.”

It wasn’t the sunlight he was worried about, it was the system window that had somehow managed to stick itself in front of the door… but he didn’t have the voice to explain it.

If he tried, he’d be treated like a madman.

Instead of trying to clear up the medical staff’s misunderstanding, Han Cha-soo took out a post-it note. As he picked up the pen, the other man’s eyes lit up and he straightened up. The pressure was intense, but Han Cha-soo put on his best face and handed the note over.

The man’s head tilted to one side as he read the note.

“Are you sure you want me to give it to you?”

After a moment’s hesitation, Han Cha-soo added something. The employee smiled broadly.

“Okay, I’ll put in a call to Exilis.”

Later that evening, Geum Myeong-yeol woke up, as usual, in a panic.

“What the hell, did you die?”

Confusion filled his golden eyes.