These Lunatics are Obsessed With Me-Chapter 181

“What do you mean?”

But the moment I asked, I vaguely realized what Do-gyul had meant. Do-gyul was an S-class hunter with a mental skill. Since mental skills didn’t manifest outwardly, he hadn’t even realized he was a hunter when he first awakened. Oversensitive to others’ emotions and negative energy, he had tormented himself and endured years of suffering.

Now, however, Do-gyul could control his ability almost perfectly. With his mental skill, he could even make other hunters act according to his will. As that realization struck me, Do-gyul spoke with a calm expression.

“I’ll use my skill to stop them.”

“But that’s…!”

The hunters consumed by darkness were all high-rankers with formidable strength. Even if they weren’t in their right minds, controlling multiple hunters at once with a mental skill was no simple task. In the end, it would be Do-gyul who collapsed under the strain—just as he had when facing Max Bryan alone.

“I know. I might not be able to pull it off.”

“Then why are you trying to do it?”

“That’s why—I need your help, hyung.”

“…!”

Only then did I realize what Do-gyul wanted from me: he wanted my auxiliary skill to amplify his ability. But that was… I bit my lip.

The truth was, I’d been avoiding using my Catnip skill on Do-gyul until now. Partly because skin contact between brothers felt awkward, but also for another reason.

So far, Kang Yoo-hyun was the only one who had suffered side effects after receiving my skill, but there was no guarantee. With Do-gyul already being so sensitive, he might suffer side effects too.

And this wasn’t just any skill—it was a mental skill I’d be amplifying. There was no way to promise it would leave no side effects. No, there would definitely be side effects. Mental skills were that harmful, even to the hunters who wielded them.

Boom! Crash!

“Ugh…!”

But the situation escalated faster than I expected. Yong-sik wasn’t just attacking the hunters who had come at me; he was starting to show signs of going berserk. When I saw Kang Yoo-hyun and Sung Yoo-bin rushing toward him, I bit my lip.

“…Alright.”

“…”

“Still… don’t push yourself too hard, okay?”

“Okay.”

With mixed feelings, I reached out my hand to Do-gyul. Even knowing there was no other choice, using my skill on him was agonizing. I clasped his small hand and focused. Despite my worries, the Catnip skill activated normally, and warm energy spread through our joined hands.

“…”

Unlike the other hunters who had received my auxiliary skill, Do-gyul appeared calm on the surface. In fact, he looked exactly the same, which only made me worry as I watched him.

At last, Do-gyul opened his eyes and turned his head. Fixing an indifferent gaze in Yong-sik’s direction, he spoke.

【It’s okay now.】

“Kyaaaak!”

【Hyung is okay now, Yong-sik-ah. So stop.】

Do-gyul’s voice echoed in my head as he used his skill. Even though I wasn’t the target, my energy was still being drained. His ability, amplified by my auxiliary skill, had become even stronger than before.

“Grrrr…”

“…”

Now, the only one still moving was Yong-sik. The other hunters, who had been rampaging, were struck by Yong-sik’s Breath and rendered unconscious by Do-gyul’s skill. Yet Yong-sik remained consumed by rage.

“Ugh.”

“Do-gyul-ah!”

I pulled Do-gyul’s unsteady body into my arms. His body was drenched in cold sweat, completely soaked through. It was clear that continuing like this wouldn’t be good for him. I spoke as I watched his face twist in pain.

“Do-gyul-ah, stop now…”

But my words didn’t reach him, because a hand suddenly grabbed Do-gyul’s shoulder from behind.

“…!”

“Focus!”

It was Kang Soo-hyun. The rampaging hunters had left him battered, yet he gritted his teeth and stared at Do-gyul. Startled, Do-gyul turned his head, and their eyes met.

“Keep going. You can do it.”

“Ugh…”

“Hurry!”

Do-gyul furrowed his brows and nodded, then looked back toward Yong-sik. A strange energy also radiated from Kang Soo-hyun, whose hand still rested on Do-gyul’s shoulder.

I released Do-gyul’s hand and stepped back, watching the two of them. Now that I thought about it, Kang Soo-hyun also possessed an S-class mental skill. While his main strength lay in detection, his mental skill was not to be underestimated.

Not long after Kang Soo-hyun had awakened as S-class and entered the Sæ Dungeon, Hae Song-ha had helped him because he hadn’t yet mastered his skills. Now, the situation was reversed: Kang Soo-hyun was the one helping Do-gyul. A strange sense of déjà vu washed over me, accompanied by a feeling of relief.

“Grr… grrrr…”

【It’s okay now. Stop. Yong-sik-ah, please…】 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

Gritting his teeth, Do-gyul didn’t stop. He continued using his skill relentlessly until Yong-sik finally calmed down. Sweat streamed down Kang Soo-hyun’s forehead as he helped Do-gyul. With a heavy thud, Yong-sik’s massive body collapsed to the ground. Startled, I rushed over to him.

“Yong-sik-ah!”

“Hyung, wait—”

“It’s still dangerous!”

I could hear Do-gyul and Kang Soo-hyun panting as they tried to stop me, but I couldn’t hold myself back. Worried about Yong-sik, I hurried over to check on him.

“Grrr…”

“Yong-sik-ah, are you okay?”

“…”

His huge purple eyes stared at me. When Yong-sik slowly blinked, the fierceness in them had faded. Seeing that I was safe, he closed his eyes, as if relieved.

“Phew…”

I let out a long breath of relief. Raising my hand, I gently stroked Yong-sik’s head. The rough, reptilian texture of his skin brushed against my palm.

“Han Yi-jin, step back quickly.”

“No, Yong-sik’s fine now.”

I answered calmly as Kang Yoo-hyun approached. Once he wakes up, Yong-sik will return to how he was before. It also seemed that the dark energy which had engulfed him and the other hunters had faded.

“How are the other hunters?”

“…All the ominous energy is gone. But just in case, we should stay alert while getting the raid team back in order.”

“Yes.”

I let out a sigh and looked around. Thankfully, because we managed to stop Yong-sik and the hunters consumed by darkness before it was too late, the raid team didn’t suffer any major damage. If we had been even a little later in stopping them, the whole raid team might have been wiped out like in the original story.

Fortunately, I had Lee Chae-jin’s potion, which allowed me to treat the hunters struck by Yong-sik’s poisonous breath. Many were injured, but with healing and potions, we somehow managed to get everyone back on their feet.

“Phew.”

It felt like the worst of the crisis was over. In the original story, more than half of the high-ranking hunters had died from this incident, so compared to that, we were extremely fortunate. If Yong-sik had kept rampaging… Just thinking about it was horrifying.

Then a sudden question crossed my mind. When I was about to leave Yong-sik behind at the accommodation, the god insisted I take him along. Now that I think about it, if I hadn’t brought him, there wouldn’t have been any risk of him going berserk—so why did the god insist on bringing him and letting this whole disaster happen in the first place?

“…Ah."

But if Yong-sik hadn’t been here, the berserk hunters would have caused even more chaos.

Even while consumed by darkness, Yong-sik had only used his Breath on the hunters who attacked me. Looking back, it was no exaggeration to say he had played a part in stopping the incident.

Could it be that the god had foreseen all of this when he insisted I take Yong-sik along? Did he anticipate that Yong-sik wouldn’t lose control like he had when Kang Yoo-hyun was his master? Or was it simply that he already knew this future would unfold?

The question lingered unresolved, but given the situation, I couldn’t dwell on it for long. Around the time the raid team was getting back in order, someone approached me.

“Um, Hunter Han Yi-jin.”

“Oh? Hunter Guseul?”

Guseul came up to me and spoke. She didn’t seem to have any injuries, likely because the hunters in the support team with defensive skills had protected her. However, she looked visibly exhausted, probably from continuously healing the injured while also helping manage the situation. Then, in a gentle tone, Guseul asked me—

“Are you hurt anywhere? You’ve been at the front lines the whole time.”

“I’m fine. I'm perfectly unharmed.”

I was safe thanks to Yong-sun and Eden constantly watching over me. I had gotten a small cut on my shoulder when Yong-sik dug his nails into me, but it healed quickly after I drank a potion.

Fortunately, Eden—who had been injured as well—hadn’t sustained any serious wounds, so he also recovered quickly with a potion. Lost in thought, I suddenly remembered something and looked at Guseul.

“Ah, then can you take a look at my younger brother?”

"Your younger brother?"

"Yes."

Do-gyul still hadn’t regained consciousness. According to Kang Soo-hyun, he had simply passed out from mental exhaustion, but I was still worried. Since Guseul had once helped me by casting a heal when I was exhausted, I thought Do-gyul might recover faster if he received a heal as well.

“He’s Han Do-gyul. He overused his mental skill and collapsed. Would a heal help him?”

“Ah, so he’s Hunter Han Yi-jin’s younger brother!”

Guseul’s eyes widened in surprise, then she nodded immediately.

“Yes, mental strength is also a stat. It will definitely help.”

“Ha, that’s good.”

Guseul approached Do-gyul and cast a healing spell on him. A soft white light seeped into his body. Soon, Do-gyul’s eyebrows twitched.

“Do-gyul-ah, are you awake?”

“…Hyung-ah.”

Hyung-ah? Is he still not fully conscious?

Hearing Do-gyul use the term he had only said when he was very young made him look utterly adorable.

“How are you? Does anything hurt? Are you okay?”

“I’m okay.”

I gently stroked Do-gyul’s cheek as he spoke slowly, then turned my head.

“Thank you so much, Hunter Guseul.”

“No, it’s nothing. I was just doing my job.”

“…”

I was watching Guseul smile shyly with a pleased expression when Do-gyul suddenly reached out and grabbed my sleeve. Puzzled, I lowered my head.

“What’s wrong? Are you hurt anywhere?”

“Mm, hyung-ah. My head hurts.”

“…?”

Hadn’t he said he was fine earlier?

Surprised, I leaned in to examine Do-gyul’s face more carefully.