A Passionate Detour

As we walked together down the alley, the thought crossed my mind: Still, Han Eulmin isn't someone we can completely write off. And of course it had to be No Hayun—the adamantium spoon herself—who caught wind of it. Tsk tsk.

"Oh, I remember now. It's this guy, right? The one from earlier." Baek A-rin lifted her phone, the Hunter Association site glowing on the screen.

"Yep. Guardian Guild… His dad’s the vice guild leader? Guess he had enough pull to act like a big shot."

"Still, he went way overboard. I think I’ve heard about him before. Some lunatic in the Guardian Guild who throws tantrums because Daddy’s the vice leader."

"…Just looking at his hunter profile says it all. He’s been spiraling even harder since he lost his arm. What a train wreck."

"How’d he lose the arm anyway?"

"From what I dug up… looks like it happened during a dungeon break. There’s even an interview."

The article Baek A-rin found claimed Han Eulmin had bravely fought against the ‘Teeth’ and lost an arm in the process. The story was laughably absurd.

"This is obviously a paid piece."

"Ugh… why does he even live like that?"

My companions clicked their tongues in open disdain and reached for their drinks again. The kind of terrifying experience that would traumatize an ordinary person was, to them, nothing more than a fleeting event.

The gathering wrapped up soon after. Helen declared that luck had finally smiled on her today and began shutting the store off from the outside world.

"Hey, this is my place—who said you could close it?"

Helen’s younger brother protested, staring at his sister in disbelief. No Hayun watched the exchange quietly for a moment, then spoke.

"I’ll rent the whole place for today. Ten million won sound fair? I’ll pay for the drinks separately, of course."

Her brother instantly locked the front door with a refreshed smile.

"Sis! I’ll handle everything. Come join the table!"

"R-right."

Thanks to that, Helen settled fully into her seat and the atmosphere heated up once more. With Han Eulmin now serving as fresh gossip, the conversation showed no signs of slowing down. But since even as drinking snacks he was pathetic, he quickly faded from our interest.

Of course, that was only true for the others. From the rooftop of a distant building, I kept a close eye on Han Eulmin as he screamed at the top of his lungs at a group of men.

His stats were only slightly above average, but he was a unique-class mage with considerable backing and a rotten personality. Under normal circumstances I wouldn’t want anything to do with him, but the biggest problem was how obsessive he could be.

Even now he was glaring at No Hayun’s escort team from the rooftop, hurling every insult imaginable. The bodyguards simply looked exasperated and didn’t bother engaging further. They seemed to be waiting for something.

Sure enough, a few moments later Han Eulmin received a phone call. His attitude flipped instantly; he dropped to his knees and began begging the men for forgiveness. It was probably the result of the Bijeon Guild contacting the Guardian Guild, prompting a call from his father.

When it’s time to beg, he really goes ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠all out. What a strange bastard.

I had no desire to watch any more of his pathetic display, so I withdrew the wave of my senses.

Hmm… It would be nice if there was a function like that.

It would be convenient to have the ability to mark annoying people like him so that an alarm would sound if they came near.

While I was lost in thought, Yeonhee was asking Helen to gather information. This was the request I had made to her on the way here.

"Investigate Heo Min-sol’s connections. Got it."

Of course I would pay her. Helen wasn’t running a charity. I’d need to cover her activity expenses.

"But it’s such a shame we can’t talk about the hidden dungeon because of that oath!"

"Right~? There were so many fun things that happened."

Helen, who had been listening to the younger hunters more quietly than usual, expressed her regret. A-rin chimed in enthusiastically, then suddenly shot a glare in my direction.

…Is she remembering the tent incident?

I could see the fur on her rabbit ears puffing up slightly.

"I’m taking the promotion test first thing tomorrow," No Hayun said, smoothly changing the subject.

Bae Jua poked at the snacks with a bored expression. "Sure, sure. You’ll pass with flying colors anyway."

"That lukewarm reaction hurts a little, Jua. Obviously I’ll pass, though."

No Hayun would be the first to rise to C-grade. She hadn’t taken the test yet, but the promotion was already a foregone conclusion. Her current combat strength would place her in the upper-middle tier of C-grade hunters—at least while she continued wearing that ring.

The early-starting dinner party ended faster than expected. As we stepped outside and exchanged goodbyes, Helen spoke up.

"Come by often! I won’t be busy until the wedding."

She scratched her cheek, looking a little embarrassed.

"Isn’t the period before a wedding the busiest time?"

"Not really. We’re already living ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠together, so there’s nothing much to prepare. The ceremony itself will be small and simple."

"Whoa—cohabitation."

Yeonhee nodded, watching Helen with open interest. Come to think of it, she had asked Helen quite a few questions about the wedding preparation process.

She seems to have some fantasies about married life… Hmm…

For some reason, a sharp pang stabbed at my chest.

After the short but intense drinking session, we headed home. We had taken a taxi, but Yeonhee suddenly asked to get out, so we ended up walking down a quiet alley.

She opened and closed her lips a few times before finally speaking.

"Mimicry… you can use it right now, can’t you?"

"Clack clack."

"Then… can’t you just do it now?"

Now…? Well… that means I won’t be able to run the test I planned for tonight.

Still, if it was what Yeonhee wanted, I couldn’t refuse. After confirming no one was around, I transformed into my human form. Yeonhee’s face lit up with a bright smile as she tightly grasped my hand and started walking again.

"Did you catch any bad people? If so, let’s go there right now!"

"No. None."

"Really? Hehe~"

I had only said there were none because she seemed to want to walk with me, but the system was currently displaying more than a hundred sinister markers.

This neighborhood is actually worse than ours. What the hell?

It was the next district over, a place I’d never visited before, yet the situation was serious.

…It’s a shame, but there’s nothing I can do.

I couldn’t risk exposing a drunk Yeonhee to danger. I neatly set my regrets aside and committed the locations of every marker firmly to memory.

Step. Step.

This really does feel like a date.

I doubted I was the only one thinking it. Yeonhee’s face was flushed bright red, and to any onlooker we would appear to be a handsome couple on a date, the man escorting the woman home.

She lifted my hand, turning it this way and that, before boldly linking her arm with mine.

Whoa… this is…

I felt a soft, yielding pressure against my arm, and a strange heat began rising within me.

"It’s about twenty minutes to the house, so let’s walk slowly."

"Okay."

"How’s your speech? Your pronunciation sounds a lot better now."

"Still… a little… off."

"Hehe~ You’ve improved so much, though."

It was still somewhat awkward, but my pronunciation had become fairly clear. At this level, even if I spoke with others they would probably just assume I was naturally a bit stiff.

Step. Step.

The alley was empty, the time approaching eleven at night. As if she had made up her mind, Yeonhee pulled my arm tighter, pressing it firmly against her chest.

Oh man… this is dangerous.

"Mmm~ ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Mmm~"

While I grew increasingly troubled, Yeonhee looked positively delighted.

But this intense arm-linking… is she sending some kind of signal? Damn… I can’t tell.

It could just be that the alcohol had loosened her control and she was squeezing too hard.

We walked a little farther before a thought occurred to me.

I don’t necessarily have to wait until we get home…

The reward I had received after helping Yeonhee grow in the tent. There was no reason to limit testing that reward to a specific location, was there?

The shadowy presence I had felt yesterday was gone, and perhaps because of the recent incidents at night, the only sounds in the alley were the occasional cries of cats.

The sinister markers were all more than a kilometer away, so there was no need to worry about them.

Hmm…

Yeonhee kept stealing glances at me, her eyes filled with clear longing.

Ha… how am I supposed to hold back…

I gradually slowed our pace. We could have gone straight to reach the house, but when a narrow side alley branched off from the main one, I pulled Yeonhee along and changed direction.

"Eh? Um… we were supposed to keep going straight—"

I knew the route better than anyone. The small alley we entered was less than two meters wide, lit only by the soft glow of streetlamps.

The atmosphere isn’t bad at all.

The city had recently done street maintenance here, so the alley was nicely decorated. It was the result of some bureaucratic attempt to rename it something cute and attract visitors. People probably wouldn’t come just because of that, but for us tonight, it was perfect.

Given the time and the nature of alleyways, one would expect a sinister mood, yet there was none. Instead, the setting felt like it had been made specifically for lovers to do exactly what we were about to do.

"Ah… um, that, over there—"

Yeonhee looked up at me, her face suddenly sober, and tried to say something.

"You’re so cute…" The words slipped out naturally. My gaze drifted of its own accord to her alluring, tempting neck.

Chu—

"Mmm… ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠W-wait, here?! N-no, this is really—"

"It’s fine…"

"What’s fine? What if someone sees us—"

Yeonhee was clearly flustered; her eyebrows had curved into a gentle arch. Yet there was no strength in the hands pushing against me. If anything, she was gripping my collar tightly. Maybe it was my imagination, but her posture looked almost perfectly arranged for the moment.

Cheeky girl.

Performing an act while maintaining awareness through my senses was still difficult, but Yeonhee’s skin, faintly scented with alcohol, offered a different kind of flavor.

I want to devour her…

I scolded myself for how the concept of “taste” had changed since obtaining Essence Devour, then consciously began the act with careful restraint.

"Haa— N-no, we can’t…"

Yeonhee kept turning her head left and right in panic, worried someone might see. Yet the moans escaping her grew steadily louder.

I ignored her troubled reactions and slowly moved my lips toward her chest. My left hand wrapped around her slender waist as I savored her sweet taste. The trembling vibrations running through her body intensely stimulated me down below.

It’s getting…

Feeling myself swell, I realized things were about to get serious. It hadn’t reached the rigidity of a steel rod yet, but the growing pressure against my pants was unmistakable. Though still incomplete, I could sense a body that would soon be fully capable, and a strange sense of accomplishment washed over me.

Yeonhee felt my kisses traveling along her collarbone and gently wrapped her arms around my neck, letting out heated moans.

"Haa…! Ngh… Mm, Ilwol—"

Chu— Chuu—

She shyly pressed her lips to my neck as well, expressing her affection in return.

I wanted our first kiss to be somewhere scenic… looking at a beautiful view…

That had been my plan just days ago. But Yeonhee’s sudden whim when she asked to get out of the taxi, and the way she had linked arms with me, had pushed me past the point of restraint.

No matter how much the trait activated, the continuous intimate contact was diluting its effect considerably. I moved back up along her neck, and soon my eyes met Yeonhee’s, which burned with intense heat.

"Haa— Haa—"

"Huu…"

The ragged breaths bursting from her and the powerful gaze that seemed to crave something more made any other action impossible.

I can’t hold back anymore…

I still couldn’t enter her, but if I could at least take her lips, I might be able to calm this feeling that threatened to explode inside me.