The Otherworldly Magic Swordsman Who Disciplines the Hunter World Chapter 61

It wasn’t rough, yet it wasn’t slow either. He was calm and serene, like someone doing exactly what ought to be done. A lukewarm body heat transferred through the palm of the hand.

Gong Siyoung’s mind instantly went white as if bleached. Every time Julian blinked, he could feel even the trembling of the eyelids vividly. The sensation of the lips pressing down and the breathtakingly close face were both stimulating enough to be overwhelming to handle.

A moment that felt like an eternity passed, and Julian slowly pulled his lips away. The hand that had been blocking the lips slowly moved downward.

From somewhere, a sea breeze carrying saltiness blew. Toward Julian’s red lips, which contrasted with the sea blurred by sea fog, Gong Siyoung’s gaze moved as if possessed.

Along with a sweet breath, his voice tickled the ear.

“Are you… a bit conscious of me now?”

∞ ∞ ∞

His body tilted along with the swaying boat. Julian quickly grabbed the railing for fear of falling.

The bridge made of plywood made a creaking sound every time it was stepped on. Everything was so precarious that it wouldn’t be strange if it collapsed at any moment.

Julian hesitated and looked back. The captain was coming down right behind him. Every time the wind blew, the hem of the raincoat he wore fluttered about.

“Be careful. If you fall in here, they won’t even be able to recover your corpse.”

The captain warned without even looking at Julian. His hands, wearing cotton gloves, were gripping the railing tightly. It seemed the captain didn’t trust the plywood bridge at all either.

A bit of a cold sweat broke out, but he still couldn’t turn back here. Julian kept his eyes fixed forward and somehow crossed the plywood bridge safely to step onto the ground. Only when the tension was released did his legs begin to tremble.

The captain and Gong Siyoung disembarked following him. Even while tying the boat to the temporary pier, Park Ildo did not show his face until the very end. Beyond the glass window of the captain’s cabin, a side profile wearing sunglasses was briefly reflected.

“His frame is big, but his liver must be the size of a bean.”

The captain, who was tidying up the plywood, muttered. He adjusted his hat and clicked his tongue.

“What use is a guy called a Hunter when he has that much fear?”

It seemed the resentment from overturning the hwatu tiles last night had not yet been resolved. A chilly gaze rebuked Park Ildo, who was tucked away in the captain’s cabin.

“Anyway, don’t get possessed and be careful on your way. This isn’t a place to stay for long.”

The island, thinly covered in sea fog, was quiet and eerie. Following the captain, Julian also swept a look around the island.

“I heard it was an uninhabited island, but I guess people do live here?”

Even if it was temporary, there was a pier, and everywhere he looked was full of traces of people.

First of all, the fact that a path was paved said so. If the path was maintained that cleanly, it meant people went back and forth frequently.

“There are no people here.”

The plywood emitted a screeching scream as it was dragged along the ground. The captain took off his cotton gloves, tucked them into his raincoat pocket, and waved his hand as if telling him not to say anything more.

“Go and come back quickly. Know that if you’re late, I’m leaving you behind.”

Julian nodded. Following that movement, the water droplets clinging to the ends of his hair went plop-plop as they fell. Perhaps because of the sea fog or because they were wet from the sea breeze, they were damper than expected.

Patting his hair dry, he looked down at his hands without much thought.

Moisture still remained in his hands. He rubbed his thumb and index finger where water droplets had formed. Seeing his hands, the incident from earlier naturally came to mind.

‘Since I was doing it anyway, should I have left my hand out?’

Since Gong Siyoung wouldn’t even remember it anyway, he should have just ignored it and rubbed them together properly.

Now that it had passed, it was slightly regrettable. One should do it properly when doing it so that the same thing doesn’t happen next time, right? Gong Siyoung needs to be dealt a proper blow once so he doesn’t say things that provoke people a second time.

Julian rarely got angry. It was more accurate to say he lacked anger. He let most things slide in a good-natured way even if he suffered a loss. It was the same even if he heard unpleasant things.

However, for things that were not “most things,” he tried not to leave any lingering consequences if possible. If it were a matter that could be solved by getting angry, he would just get angry, but usually, getting angry mostly just drained his energy.

That’s why the event just a moment ago was a fairly unfamiliar experience even for Julian. Every time Gong Siyoung made an excuse, his mood became increasingly foul. It had been a very long time since he felt such an emotion.

Saying he rubs lips with just anyone, or telling him not to misunderstand because it means nothing? He had nothing to say to the situation where he suddenly became “anyone.”

To be honest, it felt damn bad. Gong Siyoung said it with his own mouth. That he does that to anyone without any meaning. Rubbing lips with anyone, hugging…

Is that something to say after he was the one who made the first move? He doesn’t even remember grabbing someone who said no and forcing his lips against them, and now what? Don’t be conscious of it because of that?

It wasn’t even funny. His anger flared at the attitude of drawing a line.

Half of it was a desire for revenge, and the other half was because he was angry. If you suffer the same thing, you won’t be able to say things like that either. It was from the thought that he wanted to pay him back at least halfway.

When he rubbed their lips together like that, the expression Gong Siyoung made was…

‘I really should have left my hand out.’

Julian smacked his lips. It felt like pouring salt water down his throat while it was parched. He couldn’t yet know what the reason for that unquenchable thirst was.

Still, one thing was certain. Gong Siyoung’s attitude had changed due to that incident just now. Far from being conscious, he couldn’t even meet Julian’s eyes at all. In a sense, the goal was definitely achieved.

Now he won’t even be able to bring up things that ruin the mood anymore. So, who told him to say such things?

“Let’s leave quickly.”

Gong Siyoung, who was standing a distance away, flinched and his shoulders trembled. Still unable to meet Julian’s eyes, he strode ahead. Julian also smiled and quickly followed behind.

While walking along the flat dirt path, the sea fog gradually vanished. Because of the trees thick here and there, the sea was hardly visible. So, rather than an island, it felt like a forest. Was it like the feeling of taking a stroll in a forest neighborhood where people had moderately ceased to visit?

“Huh?”

Julian stopped walking. He grabbed and pulled Gong Siyoung’s sleeve. Gong Siyoung, who stumbled backward, hesitated and glanced back.

“…What, why.”

Even while asking the question, his gaze stubbornly missed the mark by a long shot. Julian held back the laughter that was about to burst out unconsciously. Julian cleared his throat, hmph, hmph, and gestured forward with his chin.

“I thought you said there are no people here.”

Through the gaps in the thick thickets, the sound of giggling laughter flowed out. Unless he heard wrong, that was definitely a human voice.

“There are no people.”

Gong Siyoung slowly pulled his captured collar away. His earlobes were flushed bright red. His attitude of being blatantly conscious was quite satisfying.

Julian grabbed his arm again, pretending not to know anything.

“Then what is that. Is there a ghost here or something?”

He wasn’t particularly afraid of ghosts. Rather, he was more wary of the side where problems arise later because they weren’t checked in time. It’s not like this is a Dungeon, so what could possibly happen, but still, there was no harm in being careful.

“Let’s check it out.”

There must be a reason why there are human sounds when there are no people, and why Park Ildo was so blatantly uncomfortable.

Since there was no one to explain it properly, he had to check for himself. He pushed through the bushes before even hearing an answer.

“Ah, no! This place is…! Ple, please let go of my hand!”

Gong Siyoung chattered something in a panic. Even so, the fact that he couldn’t even pull his captured hand away was very cute.

‘If the chance comes later, should I push in one more time?’

The more conscious Gong Siyoung became, the more a smile spread across Julian’s lips.

Meanwhile, because there was no path leading ahead of them, they literally had to push through the forest to pass.

Soon, they reached the source of the voice. Having cleared away the nameless vines and trees, he stood with his mouth agape. After rubbing his eyes, he swung his head around and called for Gong Siyoung.

“Am I… seeing things right now?”

Slides, seesaws, equipment children could climb up and down, and even a sand playground. The giggling sounds were the laughter of children.

Unexpectedly, in the middle of an island, there was a playground. Julian scratched his head at the sight of young children running around here and there.

“No, I thought you said there are no people here.”

But what are all of them. They ranged from as young as five or six to children who looked over ten years old.

Their cheeks were flushed and their hair was damp with sweat, showing how much fun they were having playing. They seemed not to even know someone had come because they were busy playing among themselves.

Just as he was about to go further inside while clearing the bushes, Gong Siyoung urgently grabbed his shoulder.

“Don’t waste your energy on useless things and let’s go find Hunter Kim Myungja. There’s no time.”

“No, but still, wouldn’t it be okay to ask these kids?”

“There’s no need to ask. I know the way too.”

His voice was firm. At the reprimand not to stray elsewhere, Julian reluctantly nodded.

Even while returning to the original path, the laughter of the children played like background music. It wasn’t bad to hear, but he was still curious.

What are those kids if this is an uninhabited island with no people? If there are that many kids, it means there are adults too. Just who are they that they are playing in this forest?

No matter how much he chewed it over, it didn’t add up at all. Both the captain and Park Ildo definitely had something they weren’t saying.

Despite the sudden appearance of the children, Gong Siyoung didn’t seem particularly surprised. He also let the nagging not to go just anywhere go in one ear and out the other.

As soon as they emerged from the dense thickets, the view opened up wide. The sea came into view all at once. The sea, where the fog had lifted, was so blue that the boundary with the sky was unclear.

At the end of a hill surrounded by the sea, a two-story house with a red roof was visible. Gong Siyoung’s finger pointed toward the roof.

“That is the place where Hunter Kim Myungja is.”