Chapter 174. The Choi Sisters (3)

Tuk!

Soon, white fangs made small holes in the skin. Hunter Choi Jinhee buries her face in Giryeo's arm, her throat bobbing with a large gulp. At first, he thought she would just lick up the blood that flowed from the wound.

'Oh.'

It was as if her fangs had their own suction mechanism. Choi Jinhee drank the fluid without losing a single drop, like a syringe drawing blood. The way she hastily quenched her thirst was almost ravenous.

"Fuaah!"

How long had it been since she had such a windfall! She looked up with a very satisfied expression, but soon, Giryeo, who had been stopping the bleeding from the wound, continued the conversation.

"Does my blood really taste good? Wasn't there anything strange?"

He had been careful about maintaining his body, but strictly speaking, he was someone who had died and come back to life. There was bound to be some difference from an ordinary Earthling.

"It's sweet!"

"Aha."

"It's a bit cold?"

He paused.

Giryeo adjusted his sleeve as he looked down at her clear eyes. But he didn't add anything further. There was no need to wrap things up—the conversation had already moved on naturally.

"Oppa, by the way, don't tell my sister that I drank your blood later, okay?"

"You're asking me to keep it a secret, right?"

"Yes, yes."

Shhh.

The B-rank hunter pressed her finger to her lips, signaling for silence. Giryeo nodded in response. It wasn't a large amount—just 150,000 won—but still, it wasn't the best look to take money from a friend's relative. There was also the possibility that he might get scolded for not offering it for free.

"Promise me. When my sister gets here, make sure you don't say a word!"

Giryeo responded briefly to her words.

"It's not later, she just arrived now."

"Heuk."

As mentioned, Hunter Choi Jin soon appeared in the lounge, and Ahn Yoonseung returned from the parking lot at nearly the same time.

Now that everyone had gathered, Giryeo proceeded with a serious conversation with the Choi sisters...

***

Kim Giryeo, What the S-rank Hunter wanted to hear was none other than Choi Jin's personal experiences.

Red Dragon, Green Dragon, Black Dragon. The dragons that appeared on Earth were largely divided into these three types, but the only one I knew about was the Black Dragon, a new breed that uses poison.

Attack methods, weaknesses, and effective attributes. Giryeo wanted to learn how to deal with the other two types of dragons. In return, he was willing to honestly answer her questions as well.

"If it's about dungeon items, I can probably give you a satisfying answer. Personally, I've studied that field for a long time."

Plus, he can exchange information on the Black Dragon. There are plenty of ways to repay his debt.

"It's okay."

"Ah... is that so?"

However, Hunter Choi Jin flatly rejected the offer. She didn't add any further words, but just by the look in her eyes, it was obvious that she was displeased with the situation.

After the exchange of information was completed, Choi Jin, Choi Jinhee, and Ahn Yoonseung left the S-rank behind in the lounge and went up to the rooftop of the building.

Cik.

As soon as Choi Jin opened the rooftop door, she lit a cigarette.

But when her cousin just stood there blankly beside her, she spoke in a puzzled voice.

"Don't you smoke too?"

In response, Yoonseung replied that he had quit smoking a while ago. At that, Choi Jin tilted her head in confusion.

"What? An Awakened quitting smoking...?"

"Because Hyungnim told me to quit."

When someone not present was mentioned, the woman's expression darkened with clear displeasure. What followed was an irritated scolding.

"Yeah. Anyway, Ahn Yoonseung, how could you make such plans when you know we're busy? You're putting us in a tough spot."

It was indeed a relatively last-minute plan, considering it was only two days ago that they contacted each other.

"That's why I asked if you had time..."

There were many things that were unfair from Ahn Yoonseung's perspective. When he had contacted Choi Jin last week, he hadn't been this cold-hearted.

"You told me it was too bothersome to summarize it in an email, so just come and hear it in person, right?"

"I just thought we'd catch up and see each other since we're relatives. Who knew you would come with such a tantrum?"

Whoo.

As Choi Jin let out a deep sigh, Yoonseung clearly showed his bewilderment and tried to defend himself.

"What do you mean? I just wanted to introduce an S-rank to you with good intentions. What's the problem? And honestly, what's wrong with knowing high-level hunters? Isn't it a good thing for people in the same industry?"

"What?"

"No, it's an S-rank, you know. So, honestly, I thought you'd be happy to meet him."

But all he got in return was a hunter's angry voice.

"Ugh!"

Choi Jin struck her cousin's back. As expected of a hunter who had gained A-class magic power with the item [Dragon's Heart], her power was enough to make Yoonseung gasp.

"What do you mean 'happy'? You really don't understand why I'm so angry?"

"Unnie, don't fight..."

Choi Jin raised her voice, leaving her younger sister, who was trying to stop her, behind.

"Hey, Ahn Yoonseung. What are you trying to do with such poor judgment? Now that I think about it, you even temporarily teamed up with Hunter Kim Giryeo in January, right?"

"Mermaid's Pass?"

"That's right! So you must know who that guy usually works with!"

At this point, the reason why Choi Jin had been hostile toward Giryeo all along was revealed. She was someone who viewed the connection between Kim Giryeo and a certain hunter very negatively.

"If he's hanging around with that bastard Kang Changho, it's obvious what kind of person he is. So please, from now on, don't associate with those types!"

When the name Changho came up, even the younger sibling who had been quietly standing behind showed signs of disgust. The events of the past were truly something they didn't want to be reminded of. They had both endured the unfortunate incident of being assaulted by the same person, the hunter named Changho.

"Just a quick search would show news articles about him! Seriously, how could you even team up with someone like that..."

Usually, when an assault incident happens, people on the internet often jump to conclusions, assuming that there must have been some reason for it, thinking that no fight would happen without some cause, and making irresponsible speculations. But for Choi Jin, she was truly an innocent victim with no backstory behind it.

She had simply gone to work at the gate as usual.

"Ah, are you the ace of the Faith Guild?"

The only thing that happened was getting beaten by a certain freelance hunter she met inside. That was all.

"Yeah, it was strange from the moment he suddenly agreed to help out a small guild like ours."

Kang Changho had a history of attacking Choi Jin while pretending it was an accident. Due to his S-class transcendent physical abilities, there were no clear witnesses, but at the very least, the victim herself recognized it as intentional.

"It was precisely aimed at me."

The attack that pierced through the monster and reached Choi Jin caused a severe injury that could hardly be considered inflicted with bare hands.

The news had merely summed it up with the word "serious injury." But in reality, it was a chilling incident where she bled profusely and was on the verge of having her organs exposed.

"I'm stressed."

Moreover, at the time, she had been too shaken to realize it, but later she learned that it had actually been an attempt to steal someone else's power.

Not long after that, another [Dragon's Heart] owner was murdered in a foreign country. The perpetrator said that he did it because he thought the heart would return to its original pure item form. However, the verification results showed that the reality was completely different.

"Whoo..."

Kang Changho's persistent interest abruptly vanished following that foreign news report. How terrifying an experience was that? He had dared to evaluate another person as mere prey.

And at this moment, what was more terrifying than anything else was that a certain hunter was giving off a vibe similar to Kang Changho's.

"Disgusting."

Eyes that seemed to treat a person as if they were something other than human.

Choi Jin instinctively realized that Giryeo looked down on them—even to a degree incomparable to that third S-rank Hunter. However, Ahn Yoonseung stubbornly denied it.

"Look, Hyung-nim isn't that kind of person. I think you're misunderstanding because he has a tough expression, but he's actually keeping Kang Changho around to punish him?"

Keeping Kang Changho around to punish him? Has he been drinking instead of smoking?

"I saw it clearly. Kang Changho is just Hyung-nim's lackey inside the dungeon!"

Yoonseung continued to argue passionately, but every word he spilled was something hard to believe.

He claimed that Kang Changho had cleared out minor monsters flying toward others, that he had praised some blond S-rank Hunter as being far superior to himself, and that, in his opinion, Kang Changho must have already been crushed by Kim Giryeo at some point—because otherwise, there was no way he would be that obedient.

"Did you hear that directly from Kim Giryeo?"

"No, but I'm almost certain. When I asked Hyung-nim what kind of relationship he had with Hunter Kang Changho, he just said, 'It's a bit complicated, but we're definitely not close.'"

Yoonseung clenched his fist and spoke proudly.

"So don't worry!"

Choi Jin, who was standing across from him, had a subtle expression in contrast to this.

"I'm the fool for taking it seriously..."

She then placed the cigarette in her mouth and took a deep breath until the flame reached the filter.

Honestly, it was hard to believe that the fourth had crushed Kang Changho purely with skill. Kang Changho was an awakened being with pride and arrogance. She could feel that he instinctively dislikes anyone challenging his position. So, if the fight that Ahn Yoonseung mentioned really happened, one of them should've been completely defeated.

"Tsk."

Seeing that his cousin was still in a bad mood, Ahn Yoonseung wisely decided to leave, saying he'd head down first. Now, only the sisters were left on the rooftop.

"Jinhee-ya, are you cold? Should we go down too?"

After finishing her cigarette, Choi Jin spoke in a tone completely different from before, soft and gentle. Her younger sister, staring at her sister's face, hesitated before speaking.

"Unnie, do you not like that oppa?"

The younger sibling, who still hasn't memorized the man's name, was obviously referring to the fourth S-rank Hunter when she said 'Oppa.'

"Yeah. I don't like him. So, Jinhee, don't get too close to him from now on, okay?"

"_ _"

"It's dangerous. Do you remember when I got hurt by an S-rank before? That guy is just like Kang Changho. He's an incredibly strong and scary Hunter. If you mess with him, you'll get hurt again."

"_ _"

"Unnie will always protect you in other situations, but... S-rank Hunters are really dangerous, Jinhee."

Choi Jin advised calmly. Of course, her younger sister didn't seem to listen to her.

"I hope you don't dislike that Oppa, Unnie."

Right. In reality, she didn't want to be this tense either. But there are circumstances. If she doesn't stay on edge like this, she won't be able to fully protect what is important to her.

"...Do you wish that Unnie did?"

She responded with her voice.

"Mhm!"

"Is that so?"

Her smile was always like an angel's.

"That guy is delicious and kind!"

"What?"

"Ah."

In some ways, her honesty could be considered angelic.