The Otherworldly Magic Swordsman Who Disciplines the Hunter World Chapter 53

Julian fiddled with his phone, wondering if he could find out anything. However, other than calls and texts, every app displayed only the phrase “Time Limit.”

It was a harsh treatment for Julian, who knew nothing of Screen Time or parental locks.

In the end, he laid the phone down without any significant results.

“Hmm…”

Gong Siyoung wasn’t a minor. It wasn’t wrong for him to date someone while doing his job. He wasn’t obligated to tell Julian, and if he wasn’t the type to show it off, it was entirely possible.

That was certainly true… but why did he feel a sense of betrayal?

They were technically living together, after all. Hadn’t the ladies said so? That if you live together, you’ve seen all there is to see.

It was hard to say that the saying applied perfectly here, but still, did he really need to hide the existence of a lover even from his housemate?

And what about in the dungeon? Hadn’t they crossed between life and death and even saved each other’s lives? Technically, they were each other’s life-savers…

Julian crossed his arms and leaned deep into the sofa.

After agonizing for a moment, Julian quickly snatched up the phone he had left on the sofa. His fingertips were busy as he scrolled past Gong Siyoung’s name to look through the few contacts he had.

“Here, take this. I heard you said you needed this?”

Gong Sijin smiled brightly as he handed over a shopping bag. A clinking sound echoed from inside.

“I got a message from Siyoung on my way here. He told me to be sure to buy this and deliver it if I was heading to the hospital.”

The shopping bag was heavier than expected. Upon checking the inside, four glass bottles were visible. He pulled out just one and checked the label.

“Olive?”

Beneath the numbers mentioning 100% something-or-other, the words “Pressed Olive Oil” were written.

Why on earth did he buy so much of this? Julian scratched his chin and put the bottle back.

“Uh-huh… thanks.”

“But what are you planning to do with this?”

He had bought it because he was told to, but he seemed curious. Why would he need olive oil when he wasn’t going to be cooking in the hospital?

To that pure question, Julian simply glossed it over with a laugh. He had mentioned olive oil on impulse, but he didn’t expect it to be bought and brought so immediately, and in such a large quantity at that.

He had just said it offhandedly to Gong Siyoung; he didn’t realize he would tell Gong Sijin as well.

He felt slightly embarrassed, but what could he do? In times like these, one had to act brazenly to move on naturally.

He subtly set the shopping bag down on the floor. Once the olive oil vanished from sight, Gong Sijin stopped asking questions.

“Thanks for coming when you must be busy.”

“It’s nothing. If it’s a request from Hunter Yuri, I should make time to come, even if I have to manufacture it.”

“That’s… a bit burdensome. There’s a need to go as far as manufacturing time?”

“I’m joking. A meeting just ended, so I was on my way back to the guild anyway. Hmm, if I leave within 15 minutes, I won’t be late. I spent a lot of time buying the olive oil.”

He pointed to his wristwatch. At the metaphorical expression telling him to get to the point, Julian quickly spat out the main topic.

“Actually, I saw the news earlier. Some strange talk about Gong Siyoung was coming up… so I was curious if that was actually true.”

“The news? Which news?”

There were so many news stories related to Gong Siyoung that they were overflowing. There had always been many, but after Inferno appeared, there were even more.

Since very few people had actually gone inside, everyone was curious. They wanted to know what kind of feats the S-class hunter had performed inside, or how miserably he had been defeated.

Because of that, ridiculous rumors were being generated without rest.

“Still, all the articles badmouthing Siyoung should have been taken down by now? I requested the deletion of uncomfortable expressions or over-the-top speculative articles as the top priority.”

“It’s not that… it was something a bit more personal.”

“Personal?”

The conversation continued like a game of twenty questions. Gong Sijin tilted his head repeatedly. Because he didn’t have a clue, Julian became even more flustered.

“Just, well… I was curious. Gong Siyoung and I are living together right now. When I joined the guild, I said I wanted to stay with him, but thinking about it again now, I wonder if I was being too selfish…”

Public and private matters should be kept distinct. If Gong Siyoung really had a lover, how flustered would that lover be in the current situation?

Committing an impertinence while knowing was different from doing so while being ignorant. Julian decided to interpret the fluster and sense of betrayal he felt in that way for now.

“Ah, if it’s that, don’t worry. I was going to tell you anyway, so I can talk about it now. Since Hunter Yuri’s rank has been confirmed and there are rumors surrounding Siyoung, I think it would be better for you to move your residence once you are discharged.”

“Move my residence? To where?”

It was a proposal he had never considered. When he asked back in a daze, Gong Sijin continued as if he had been waiting.

“I thought security would be important, so I’ve thought of about two options. The house where Hunter Woo Yujin stays is our guild dormitory. They say there’s one empty room there. If not there, then the house where Hunter Park Ildo lives. He’s a bit reluctant, but if I ask, he’ll listen, so don’t worry.”

It was an explanation that he had deliberately persuaded those two because he thought people he was acquainted with would be more comfortable. Julian sank into thought for a moment.

Living with Woo Yujin? With that chatterbox?

‘I really… hate that.’

It wasn’t that he hated the person himself, but he definitely hated that frivolous attitude and the voice that talked without ceasing.

He wanted to rest comfortably at home. For that, the Woo Yujin he had seen so far… talked way too much.

Without hesitation, he quickly erased the option of Woo Yujin. Then only one was left.

“But who is Park Ildo?”

“Our Vice Guild Master.”

“Vice Guild Master?”

At the reaction of complete ignorance, Gong Sijin added an explanation.

“You saw him before. Big, muscular. Fair-skinned.”

A fair-skinned, muscular, big man? The more he heard the explanation, the deeper his doubt became.

Only after listening to Gong Sijin’s long-winded story for a while did he finally realize.

“Ah, that Mister who was giving me such a hard time? The one who smokes?”

Had they met twice? The first impression was on the bad side, and when they met a second time, he had been severely scolded by Gong Siyoung for trying to borrow a cigarette.

His face brightened slightly at the thought that if he lived with that Mister, at least he could smoke to his heart’s content.

“Ildo is currently quitting smoking. He has to think of his health.”

Gong Sijin smiled broadly. At the attitude of drawing a line so decisively, Julian smacked his lips—tch.

Judging by that reaction, it seemed he wouldn’t be able to smoke there either. Now that the side benefit had vanished, there was no reason to live with some Mister named Park Ildo. Why bother?

He didn’t know how much the man’s attitude might have changed by now, but he had no desire to live while walking on eggshells around someone who disliked him.

Gong Siyoung’s grumbling was at least cute; an old Mister wouldn’t even be eye candy.

“Are those the only two? Are there no other choices at all?”

“What can we do. For now, it’s just those two.”

Julian could not hide his disappointed expression. The guild building was large and there were many people; could the manpower pool really be this small?

He felt certain that no matter which of the two he chose, they wouldn’t be as good as Gong Siyoung.

“In that case, it would be better to just persuade Gong Siyoung’s lover so the three of us can live together.”

Now was not the time to be considerate of others’ circumstances. If it wasn’t Gong Siyoung, his fate was to live with either the talkative Woo Yujin or the old man Park Ildo.

Just thinking of their faces was unpleasant. Gong Siyoung was definitely a hundred times better than them.

“Siyoung’s lover? Siyoung has a lover?!”

“What. Why are you asking me that?”

“Pardon? But you just said he had a lover…”

“No, that’s… they said so on the television? That the guild was going to release a statement regarding a dating rumor.”

Gong Sijin, who had been blinking his eyes, let out an “Ah,” and nodded belatedly.

“Oh, that… You startled me. I thought you meant he actually had a lover.”

At those words, a question mark appeared in Julian’s mind. What was with that reaction when he said the guild would be making an announcement?

“You’re not going to release a statement? They were talking very specifically, saying the lover was from the same guild?”

“The announcement is just a formality. Things seemed to have quieted down, but after Inferno broke out, people started talking again. I intended to take this opportunity to clear things up definitely. As for being from the same guild, that’s probably because of that incident…”

Having spoken that far, Gong Sijin subtly shut his mouth. Because Julian was the party involved in ‘that incident,’ the words didn’t come out easily.

Judging by that reaction, Julian seemed to have no idea that the ‘lover from the same guild’ referred to himself… If he mentioned it and Julian caused some strange commotion like the last comment incident, it would be a disaster.

He was even more cautious because he had already heard the full story of the poop-throwing incident from Gong Siyoung. If the gossip grew any larger, it would be difficult for the guild to cover it up.

“Why did you stop talking? Then Gong Siyoung doesn’t have a lover, right? Then there’s no problem with him living with me like we do now, right?”

No, there were many problems. If it was revealed that he was living with Julian, who was presumed to be his lover, people would pick it apart from all sides, and then it would be a matter of time before groundless rumors became accepted as truth.

Furthermore, because Julian had been active in various fields, the matter had grown larger. There were too many things to attack, such as the idea that he had been given special treatment in some way.

Once the Inferno raid resumed, attention would shift back that way anyway. Then Gong Siyoung’s dating rumor would naturally be buried.

Gong Sijin had intended to separate the two of them with that goal from the beginning. Once the guild firmly denied it and Julian’s residence was moved, they would naturally grow apart. How could rumors spread when they weren’t seeing each other’s faces?