An Unexpected Encounter on the Train
The morning after their reunion, Kang Hyuk boarded a train bound for Busan. His primary reason for heading to Busan was to fulfill Gwang-ui's request. However, unwilling to waste a single second of his time, he had already scouted out a few local villains worth hunting down in the city. Once he arrived, he planned to eliminate those targets first before retrieving the corpse for the Mad Doctor.
'Whew... Let's just hope nothing goes wrong this time,' Kang Hyuk thought, leaning back against his seat.
Since he had booked both seats in his row, he had the window to his left and an empty seat to his right. With no need to worry about a stranger sitting next to him, he could at least look forward to a peaceful trip to Busan.
'...Oh, shit.'
But his peace was short-lived. As he waited for the train to depart, Kang Hyuk suddenly ducked his head. What the hell were those bastards doing here?
Outside the window, three men dressed in sharp suits were boarding the train one after another. Every single one of them had a black dragon tattoo etched onto their right wrist. If his guess was correct, they were undoubtedly members of the Black Dragon Society.
'Why the hell are gangsters taking a train?! Just drive your own damn cars!' Kang Hyuk scowled.
After escaping the Black Dragon Society, he had immediately established a new identity as a bounty hunter. Given that they hadn't actively hunted him down yet, they likely assumed he was dead. However, if they discovered his identity here, they wouldn't let him off easily. Whether they tried to execute him as a traitor or force him back into the syndicate, they were bound to become a massive pain in the ass.
'Still, it doesn't look like they're boarding because of me... Whew, let's just make sure I don't get caught before we reach Busan.'
Kang Hyuk resolved to stay completely out of their sight. There was a chance one of them might recognize his face. He wasn't strong enough to take on the entire Black Dragon Society by himself yet. For now, caution was his best ally.
"The train is now departing."
With a low hum, the train slowly began to gain speed. Fortunately, the gangsters had boarded a different car. As long as he was careful when going to the restroom, he wouldn't have to cross paths with them.
'...Or so I thought.'
About thirty minutes into the journey, the sliding door to his car hissed open. For some godforsaken reason, the three Black Dragon Society thugs walked right in. Why did bad luck always find him? They began scanning the rows, looking around as if searching for someone.
"Hey, are you sure she's really on this train?"
"I'm telling you, that's what I heard."
"That fucking Witch of Seduction bitch...! Just wait till I get my hands on her...!"
Hearing their conversation, Kang Hyuk froze. Why the hell was the Witch of Seduction suddenly being brought up here? His mind raced, but he didn't freeze for long. He knew exactly what he had to do.
Kang Hyuk peeked over his headrest and quickly scanned the train car. A moment later, his eyes locked onto the woman he was looking for. He stealthily slipped out of his seat and approached her row. Fortunately, the seat next to her was empty, just like his had been.
"Hey, Witch of Seduction."
"W-who...? Gasp! You!"
Aila's eyes widened in sheer shock. Kang Hyuk immediately clamped his hand over her mouth and whispered urgently.
"Shh, quiet. The Black Dragon Society is looking for you."
"...?"
"I can't explain right now, but I can't let them see me either. So..."
Before he could finish, the heavy footsteps of the three thugs drew dangerously close. There was no time for explanations. Left with no choice, Kang Hyuk leaned down and pressed his lips hard against hers.
"Mmph!"
*Smooch, slurp!*
"Geez, since when did train cars turn into motels?"
"Fucking hell, tell me about it."
A moment later, the gangsters grumbled as they walked right past the locked-lipped couple.
Once he was sure they were far enough away, Kang Hyuk pulled back. He glanced down at Aila, who was staring up at him with a completely dazed expression.
"Y-you...!"
"Quiet. It's not like I wanted to do that either," he said coldly.
When Kang Hyuk spoke so coldly, Aila finally seemed to snap out of it, her expression hardening into a frosty glare. However, her cheeks were still burning red. No matter how icy her expression was, a blush wasn't something she could erase in an instant.
"First, start talking."
"A-about what?"
"Why the Black Dragon Society is chasing you. Don't tell me you absorbed the essence of one of their executives?"
When Kang Hyuk asked the question on a whim, Aila flinched. Seeing her reaction, Kang Hyuk let out a low sigh.
He had hoped he was wrong, but she had actually messed with the Black Dragon Society. No matter how much of a joke they might seem to high-tier players, they weren't an organization an F-class villain could just mess with on a whim. The Black Dragon Society had the financial power to hire A-class villains and the influence to mobilize over five hundred subordinates at once.
"Sigh, you really are an idiot."
"W-what?! An idiot?!"
"Yeah, you idiot. Are you suicidal? Why the hell would you mess with the Black Dragon Society?"
Kang Hyuk felt a sudden surge of irritation. Putting the pieces together, the only reason those gangsters had boarded the train was to catch the Witch of Seduction. Which meant that because of her, he had been dragged into a potentially disastrous situation. Unless he was a saint, there was no way he wouldn't be pissed off.
"S-shut up! What does it matter to you whether I mess with them or not?"
"It matters because you've put me in a tight spot too."
"Ha! Like I care!"
"..."
As Aila snorted in derision, Kang Hyuk's hand instinctively twitched toward his revolver. Barely suppressing the urge to shoot her, he spoke in a low, dangerous tone.
"Whew... Look, just cooperate with me until we reach Busan."
"And why should I?"
"You stupid... What do you think will happen to you if the Black Dragon Society finds out you're here? You won't get an easy death, that's for sure."
Kang Hyuk warned her sternly. He knew exactly what her combat capabilities were. Aside from absorbing men's essence, she had no real combat skills to speak of. It wasn't like she had some powerful backer to protect her, either.
"Your absorption ability. You can only use it after maintaining physical contact with a man for at least one minute. Am I wrong?"
"H-how do you...?"
"And there's another condition. If you fail to maintain that initial contact for a full minute, you can never use your absorption ability on that target again."
"...!"
The Witch of Seduction, Aila, was utterly horrified. What Kang Hyuk had just detailed was a secret that absolutely no one else in the world knew. Who in their right mind would go around sharing their own weaknesses?
'W-who is this man? Is he... not just a crazy villain, but a crazy stalker villain? Did he stalk me all this time to figure out my ability...?'
Aila swallowed hard. A creeping sense of dread began to wash over her as she stared at the man in front of her.
"Just who are you—mmph!"
But right then, he suddenly smashed his lips against hers again. Aila's eyes went wide. She tried to push him away, but she couldn't budge. He had wrapped his arms around her, locking her in a tight embrace.
"Mmph! Mmph!"
"Look at these two, still at it."
"Fuck's sake. Here we are busting our asses looking for someone, and they're..."
About three seconds into the kiss, the Black Dragon Society thugs grumbled as they passed by again. It seemed they had gone all the way to the end of the train and were now heading back.
"Anyway, where the hell is that Witch of Seduction bitch?"
"Hey, you said your intel was solid."
"Tsk, this doesn't make sense..."
The gangsters bickered as their voices faded into the distance. Only after they had moved on to the next car did Aila manage to break free from the man's embrace.
"Pah... Haa! Haa! You... you!"
"Quiet down. I told you, it's not like I wanted to do it either."
As Kang Hyuk irritably wiped his lips, Aila bit her lower lip hard. She had absolutely no idea why her heart was pounding so furiously against her ribs.