I Got Kidnapped (4)
And so, after all those twists and turns, we finally finished dinner.
I was just about to head home, patting my stuffed belly, when—
"You've already eaten, but have some fruit for dessert before you go."
"W-what? Uh..."
My stomach was already so full.
I'd kept accepting everything she offered, and Auntie had kept feeding me, so I'd ended up eating far more than usual. But looking at the smile on her face as she watched me, I just couldn't bring myself to refuse.
"Eunseo, peel some fruit for Eunha, would you?"
"Sure, got it."
At Hunter Yu Eunseo's reply, I sat right back down.
There was no way I could turn down fruit peeled by my favorite.
I somehow carved out empty space in my packed stomach. Watching that room magically appear, I figured dessert really must live in a separate stomach after all.
"I brought the fruit. I'll peel it for you."
"Um, by the way... you can speak casually with me, you know."
Hunter Yu Eunseo used informal speech with Auntie and Uncle, yet stuck to polite language with me. That felt a little awkward, so I carefully brought it up.
At that, Hunter Yu Eunseo's head tilted to one side.
"But Unni uses polite speech with me too."
"H-huh?"
"So I'm going to keep using polite speech as well."
"...Then if I switch to casual speech, will you do the same, Hunter Yu Eunseo?"
"Yes, I will. And please call me Eunseo, not Hunter Yu Eunseo."
"..."
Whoa. The pace was so fast I couldn't keep up.
She was even calling me Unni.
I think I got goosebumps on the inside of my forearm. In my entire life up to this point, I had never once been called Unni by anyone.
"Come on, try saying it once. Eunseo-ya."
"E-e-e... Eun, Eunseo... ya..."
"Mm, good job."
Fast!
The speed of dropping formal speech was insane!
"Here, eat this."
"Th-thanks..."
In that short time she'd already finished peeling, and a slice of pear was skewered on a fork.
She peeled that ridiculously cleanly.
People who handle swords really are built different. How was she that good with a fruit knife too? Looking at the peels set aside, they'd been cut into one continuous, paper-thin strip.
"Come to think of it, there's something I wanted to ask you, Unni."
"Mmph-nom... What is it...?"
Speaking casually still felt a little awkward, but I answered as naturally as I could. The sweetness spreading through my mouth was lovely.
Ah, this pear is delicious.
"Do you happen to know someone named Kim Ye-eun?"
"Mph?! Cough, cough cough...!"
That was way too sudden of a question...?!
I choked on the spot and a coughing fit exploded out of me. Thankfully I managed to cover my mouth before anything flew out.
"W-w-why are you asking that all of a sudden?"
"Well, I tried contacting Ye-eun, and it seemed like she knew you."
"...Ugh."
How on earth did she find out and get in touch?
Don't tell me she stuck a tracker on me or something? Or maybe she planted a bug in Hunter Yu Eunseo's house?
If it's Kim Ye-eun, that actually seems entirely possible, which is terrifying...
I casually scanned the surroundings for any listening devices. Fortunately, nothing registered as a signal.
"Well, about that..."
I hemmed and hawed.
I wasn't sure I should just say it straight.
I got sued after posting on a community that Kim Ye-eun had been writing sexual posts about you on her personal account, and we met to settle it.
That was all I needed to say, but my lips just wouldn't move. There was the promise I'd made with Kim Ye-eun not to press charges, and also the fact that I really did not want to be the one announcing something that grotesque out loud.
"We just... kind of ran into each other..."
"Well, Ye-eun is super famous, after all."
I didn't think fame had much to do with it, but still.
When Hunter Yu Eunseo—no, Eunseo—didn't press further, I breathed a quiet sigh of relief.
That said, though...
"E-Eunseo. Can I ask you one thing too?"
"Sure, anything. If it's for Unni, I'll tell you everything I know."
It was something I'd been curious about for a while. I just never expected I'd get to ask it face-to-face like this.
"Hunter Kim Ye-eun is twenty-seven, right?"
"Yeah?"
"And you're twenty-one."
"Yep, that's right."
"So why do you call her by just her name?"
When she was calling me Unni, of all people.
Eunseo tilted her head at my question, wearing an expression that suggested she hadn't quite understood what I was asking.
"Because we're friends?"
"Even though Hunter Kim Ye-eun is six years older?"
"Age doesn't matter between friends."
Ah. That kind of vibe.
Maybe I was just a young fogey, but it didn't quite land for me. Still, I managed a nod.
I guess that can happen. Yeah, they're in their twenties, so maybe. Probably.
"If you're okay with it, want to be my friend too, Unni?"
"I feel like the age gap might be a little too big for us to be friends..."
If I became friends with Eunseo, then becoming friends with Uncle Haseong wouldn't be a problem either. And then the whole family tree would get hopelessly tangled.
Yeah, friends should really only be people the same age.
"If you're interested, just hit me up. I'd welcome a friend like Unni any day."
"Th-thanks."
For some reason, her trust in me seemed enormous. Looking closely, her eyes almost seemed to be sparkling.
"Oh, right—Unni, do you play any games?"
"Games? Yeah, I do."
Being a shut-in, games were pretty much the only thing I had to do. Everything from ordinary online games to single-player titles. Having landed on a topic I was confident about, my voice rose on its own.
"Do you play this one too?"
As she said that, Eunseo held out her phone. On the screen was some unidentified terminal device, along with the words "virtual reality."
A game where you defeat the monsters on each floor and clear it by reaching the top of the tower. So the name was... Trial of the Tower?
I think I've seen ads for it on OnTube.
I hadn't been particularly interested in virtual reality, so I'd never bought it. I already didn't move my body much in real life—I wasn't exactly eager to go move it around in VR too. Using a keyboard where you only had to twitch your fingers seemed better. Did you really need to go that far just to play a game?
"Mm, no. I'm not really into virtual reality games."
"Aw, too bad. We could've played together."
"W-well, if you put it like that, I might consider it once...?"
But the words "a game with my favorite" were something I just couldn't resist. It was a hassle—a real hassle—but I'd at least think about it! That kind of feeling.
For someone who never, ever touched anything in the "dislike" category, this was a pretty big decision.
"If it's because the terminal is expensive, just say the word. I've got money. For Unni, I can buy as many as you want."
"Ahaha, it's not that, so I'll just take the thought."
Money? I was practically rotting in money. Honestly, I wondered if I'd ever have to worry about money for the rest of my life. It was still growing in real time even now, so I'd never run short until the day I died.
"I should tell Ye-eun. Let's play Trial of the Tower with Unni Eunha."
"Th-that won't work!"
"Why not?"
"If I say no, then no!"
If word of this reached Kim Ye-eun, there was no telling what would happen. I might actually get murdered.
Apparently Eunseo had absolutely no idea how Kim Ye-eun felt about her.
"P-please don't tell Hunter Kim Ye-eun."
"If it's Unni's request, okay."
Thank goodness.
I breathed a quiet sigh of relief. Of all the things I could get tangled up in, getting further involved with Kim Ye-eun was something I could do without.
"Anyway, if you're done eating, we should get going."
"Going? Where?"
"To Dad's room."
Apparently after feeding me dessert, he'd told me to come to his room. Being called over separately like this, he clearly had something to say.
I didn't know what it would be, but—
He's not going to ask me to return to active duty, is he?
I'd already turned that down once. Uncle Haseong knew how I really felt, so he wouldn't keep pushing. Persistent urging about something someone hated wasn't a request—it was coercion.
Knock knock—
"Dad, I brought Unni."
Having said that, Eunseo gave me a little wave. I waved back, then stepped into the room.
"You said you had something to discuss?"
"I do. It might be a more serious conversation than you're expecting, so brace yourself."
"I-I'm absolutely not going back to active duty!"
Faced with his serious expression, I blurted it out in a panic.
Like I'd go looking for that kind of suffering! I could eat and play for the rest of my life now—why on earth would I go do labor?
"It's not that... Well. Maybe it's a little similar."
"Similar how?"
"You know. That thing you're good at. Information gathering and such."
"...Ugh."
Information gathering.
Those four words sent a full-body shudder through me.
Uncle just didn't know what kind of abyss lurked on the internet. It had been even worse back then. People talking about the end of the world and whatnot—no brakes whatsoever. Just the screenshots I'd seen back then were enough to make me want to throw up every meal I'd ever eaten in my life.
Anyway. It had been horrific.
"Those Black Dragon faction guys you tipped me off about this time—it looks like they have ties to the ones I've been chasing."
"Th-the ones with full-body prosthetics whose brains were replaced with data?"
"That's right. Until now I've only been finding severed tails, but I finally got a real lead."
A criminal organization scattered like a cell network. There was a place that issued orders to those groups—more precisely, an internet site.
"Our people can't access it, so it's hard to tell if it's the real thing. But you, Eunha—you should be more than capable."
"...Haa."
A sigh slipped out on its own.
Even if I refused here, it wouldn't create any real problems for me. I'd never been a hunter to begin with, and my name had never been known to the public.
But.
"All right. I'll help."
I nodded.
I never wanted to see Uncle Haseong suffering like that ever again.
That was all there was to it.