Chapter 23
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 23
Chapter Title: The Most Famous Divorcee in Korea (4)
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To cut to the chase, the catfight... well, it was kinda like what I thought a few days ago. Anyway, it didn't happen.
However, the atmosphere was markedly different from before.
It was as if someone had seized the air in the living room and was crushing it. The mood was so heavy it made breathing uncomfortable.
I occasionally couldn't bear the pressure and let out a loud, awkward cough. Every time I did, Moon Hayeon's sullen, sunken gaze turned toward me.
...Honestly, it was freaking terrifying. It was the same blank expression, but the weight behind it was worlds apart from Chae Seoah's.
Her rigidly set lips, eyes that showed no emotion as if looking at a stranger. And the way she'd snap her head away the moment our eyes met.
The other two were quietly sipping their tea without a word. So, it was safe to say this heavy atmosphere in the living room was entirely Moon Hayeon's doing.
"Um..."
"Haa..."
Chae Seoah, who had been silent, let out a deep sigh. The words she'd been about to say slipped right back down her throat.
...I was starting to feel wronged. I hadn't done anything wrong. If anything, I was the one who'd been wronged. And on top of that, she and I weren't even really connected, right?
I had no idea why I felt like a husband caught red-handed in an affair scene.
Of course, Moon Hayeon's expression was too scary to voice any of that discontent. So I just kept my head bowed like a guilty man, staring at the glass table.
Clink. The sound of Yang Jihee setting down her teacup echoed unusually loudly.
"Well... I'll be honest. I saw it on the news and got interested, so I accepted Seoah's invitation."
News? What news? Had there been some report about me?
Those cursed four letters spelling out "small dick" spun around in my head, but I forced myself to ignore it.
"I thought I'd call you once just to get familiar with your face, but the situation turned out to be so... perfect."
Hehe. She covered her mouth with her fingertips and let out a clear laugh.
Her tone made it sound like she was saying she'd just broken a cup while doing dishes. The gap between her words and the content sent a chill down my spine.
That confirmed it. This woman wasn't normal either.
As I inwardly chewed over my hopeless luck with people, Chae Seoah and Moon Hayeon said nothing. They just nodded in agreement.
Moon Hayeon let out a short "Ha." She shook her head as if to say there was no helping it.
...What exactly were they empathizing with, and how had they come to accept it? But I didn't want to know. It was surely some vicious line of thinking I couldn't even imagine.
"Jungwoo has some interesting skills, doesn't he?"
She said, tracing her fingertips along her lips. Moon Hayeon fiddled with her own hand, Chae Seoah with her thigh. Watching them toy with themselves as if by prior agreement made me feel oddly unsettled.
"Since you haven't revealed them yet... you probably don't plan to, and you'd like to keep them hidden going forward, right?"
Watching her speak so calmly, it was clear she was a seasoned hunter. I gave a small nod in response.
"So, are you all... thinking of forming a clan?"
"Pardon?"
Chae Seoah and Moon Hayeon both looked puzzled for a moment. Instead, Yang Jihee blinked her blue eyes wide in surprise.
"Wasn't that it? You all seemed to be living together, so I assumed."
She'd figured that much out? I glanced at Chae Seoah with a confused expression, but she looked just as flustered.
Yang Jihee, who had been smiling faintly while surveying our faces, tapped the tip of her nose.
"You all smelled like the same soap. And you arrived together in one car."
"Ah... no wonder Jungwoo's scent..."
Moon Hayeon lifted her arm and sniffed her sleeve. Fair enough. We'd been showering in the same bathroom a lot lately, so that made sense.
I averted my gaze from Moon Hayeon, who was still sniffing her sleeve, and looked back at Yang Jihee. She was smiling softly, hand over her mouth.
Hehe, I thought it was just a business relationship and casually made a move, but if that's not the case... I guess I've done something a bit rude.
Casually? As if that could end with "casually." But I kept my mouth shut.
Ahem. Clearing her throat briefly, she continued.
"Anyway, if you want to keep living like this, I recommend considering forming a clan. And if possible..."
Her body leaned slightly toward me from across the table. With a relaxed smile and a voice laced with amusement, she said,
"I'd like you to let me join too."
Clan. I'd thought that someday, if I kept hunter-ing, I might end up in one. But forming my own?
My heart raced strangely. After all, the hunters I knew and admired were almost all leaders of their own clans.
Suddenly realizing all three were looking at me, I hurriedly stiffened my expression.
"Y-Yeah, Jungwoo's still bad at controlling his face..."
Heh, heh. With her usual creepy smile—though I had no idea why she was still burying her face in her sleeve—Moon Hayeon spoke, covering her mouth.
"But... forming a clan comes with a lot of practical issues, and there's not much in it for us."
This time, it was Chae Seoah who spoke. With her usual straightforward expression and tone, looking not at Yang Jihee, but at me.
"Money's one thing, but clan rivalries are fiercer than you'd think. Even for us, if interests clash, we might not be able to keep things as they are now."
As they are now? What was so great about now? If she meant this life of being wrung dry morning and night, I'd rather put some distance between us.
The response to her words came not from me, but from Yang Jihee.
"The only immediate expense is the clan registration fee, which isn't that expensive, so no need to worry. As for rivalries, we won't be able to expand much anyway. We can avoid them to some extent. That's how small clans work, right?"
"Is clan expansion that tough?"
The question slipped out before I knew it. Yang Jihee smiled softly as if I were cute and continued in a gentle tone.
"The hunter industry is more of a red ocean than you'd think. Recruiting talent isn't easy. And above all, to gather people, a clan needs its own unique appeal. Our clan's 'appeal' has its limits, doesn't it?"
Appeal. She said it as if it were already a done deal. My curiosity didn't last long this time. Her gaze had landed between my legs.
"Seeding..."
"There's Jungwoo's stamina issue too, but it depends on the person receiving it. Plenty would rather live weakly than do that."
I had no choice but to agree. Yeah. A clan where you had to apply semen to your skin once a week? I'd pass too.
"But..."
Not fully on board with the proposal, Chae Seoah let out a dissatisfied voice. Yang Jihee glanced at her slyly.
"Oh? I heard you stormed out of the Vigilante Corps clan, so I assumed that's why you were approaching it that way."
"I didn't storm out. I was kicked out."
Chae Seoah's lightning-fast correction followed.
"Hmm...? From what I heard, they only issued a self-reflection warning, and you left..."
"I was kicked out. Clan... doesn't sound bad."
Her equally lightning-fast pivot silenced the living room once more. Even Moon Hayeon was eyeing her with a "no way" look.
I had no clue why she was still nuzzling her sleeve. But anyway, that's how it was.
"So, about me... Acting alone without a group is getting tough lately. With this clan—Jungwoo's skill—it shouldn't fall apart easily. So, I'd like to join. What do you think?"
The ones pondering were Chae Seoah and Moon Hayeon, not me. Watching them stay silent, Yang Jihee spoke in a calm voice.
"I'm a healer. A buffer too. Meaning I have recovery skills. And skills that activate bodily metabolism. Even with that, is it no good?"
The hesitation vanished from the faces of the two across from her. They nodded readily. That's a veteran hunter for you. I inwardly admired her a little.
Of course, I wasn't so oblivious that I didn't get what she meant.
'From now on, when it feels like we're gonna die, she'll heal us and then wring us dry...'
I barely swallowed the sigh trying to escape.
"What do you think, Jungwoo?"
Before I knew it, I was deeply hooked on her proposal.
A mage, a former Vigilante Corps executive, a famous healer-cum-buffer. The circumstances of our meetings weren't great, but their skills were undeniably top-notch.
I felt that childish dream swelling up again. This past week had been nothing but bad luck. Maybe today was the day my life finally got some sunshine.
I spoke a bit hastily.
"I want to do it!"
The air turned weird.
"...The clan. I want to do it."
A faint disappointment flickered across Chae Seoah's face. I didn't check the others, but I had a feeling it was the same.
Clap. Yang Jihee broke the mood with short applause and spoke.
"Great. We'll hash out the details later, then. For now..."
"Ah, um, can I use the bathroom real quick?"
I'd reflexively raised my hand like in school. Yang Jihee smiled faintly and nodded briefly.
I wanted to focus with a clear head, so I hurried to the bathroom with quick steps. The tension and shock had long since flown away.
*
After Park Jungwoo left the room, Yang Jihee took another sip of tea and spoke.
"...He is a bit odd, isn't he."
"Definitely..."
"Yeah, uh, he is..."
Chae Seoah and Moon Hayeon—who had now pulled down her sleeve and was sniffing her wrist directly—responded.
Even without specifying what, they were all thinking of the same thing.
There had been hints all along. Some picked up on it instantly from experience, some from the situation at hand. Some from the growing time spent together, noticing the bizarre disconnect.
"I'd had a vague feeling, but..."
Chae Seoah spoke with uncharacteristic seriousness. She lifted her teacup to wet her parched throat with the now-cold tea. Her gaze was fixed on the bathroom door Park Jungwoo had entered.
"Park Jungwoo really isn't normal."