S-Rank Healer Gets Kidnapped First Chapter 45

“Let’s go to where the Baekyang snipers are?”

Han Seongwoo repeated my words.

“Yeah.”

“Are you sure there hasn’t been a personnel replacement?”

“There may have been reinforcements, but there won’t be any replacements. This is the Association President’s personal matter, after all. Considering how often the First Team gets called out for official business, replacing them wouldn’t be easy.”

“I suppose you’re right….”

Because I spoke with such confidence, Han Seongwoo readily accepted my reasoning.

“So you’re saying we need to find a place where we won’t be noticed and where we can get the widest possible field of vision.”

“Ah, there are actually two snipers over there.”

At Cha Seohae’s words, Han Seongwoo pointed in one direction.

It was a tall building that was still outside the immediate danger zone.

I frowned as I looked toward the building Han Seongwoo had pointed out.

The firing range….

There was quite a distance between our current building and the one Han Seongwoo had indicated.

But snipers were normally positioned somewhat away from the battlefield.

Theoretically, it was a textbook position, so I couldn’t completely rule it out.

Even so, something felt off.

One mistake was all it took to lose an ally.

Was that why I was hesitating like this?

I bit my lip.

“Then, let’s go over there—”

“Wait.”

Cha Seohae stopped Han Seongwoo, who was about to move quickly.

“Why?”

“We haven’t received an order yet.”

“Oh?”

“How many times do I have to tell you to stay calm, listen, and then move? You’re fast enough that you won’t be late even if you don’t rush.”

Cha Seohae clicked his tongue as he looked at Han Seongwoo.

“My bad. I got carried away.”

“It’s fine.”

I was just a little surprised.

Normally, Han Seongwoo was closer to calm than impatient.

Aside from teasing Na Ye-ri, he was good at noticing things others overlooked when making strategies and at understanding and mediating other people’s feelings.

He was like that even when I said I wanted to reveal that I was an S-rank.

He was the one who came up with the compromise of revealing it through an event that everyone could witness.

It must be because of his class.

I knew there were Hunters whose personalities changed between normal situations and combat.

So I simply nodded and let it go.

More than anything, Cha Seohae telling Han Seongwoo to wait for my order made me feel reassured.

The way he kept everyone focused on their roles and maintained the center of the team was exactly what a leader should do.

“Actually, I’ve thought about it, and I don’t think they’ll be that far away.”

“Why?”

“I’m the one they’re after. They need to avoid being noticed by people, but they also need to take advantage of the chaos to abduct me. If they’re outside the firing range like that, it’ll be difficult for them to move immediately.”

“That makes sense. Then we should hurry and find where the other snipers are positioned….”

Han Seongwoo raised his hand, seemingly about to contact headquarters.

He was probably going to ask them to display the allied deployment map.

I stopped him.

“There’s no need to contact them. I memorized the entire allied formation before coming here.”

“…What?”

“You memorized it?”

Even Cha Seohae looked surprised this time.

I became flustered because both of them were staring at me as though I had said something strange.

“Isn’t that obvious…?”

Although we had left late, this was simply how things worked at the Association.

“Yeonhee, we’re risking our lives in battle. You have to issue orders quickly when you arrive, don’t you? When your life is in danger, where would you find the time to look at an allied deployment map? You can memorize it, right?”

Although it was called an allied deployment map, it was different from simply knowing who was standing where.

You had to know the terrain, what structures were around, how many there were, where each ally had moved from and to within a few seconds, and even the movements the allies had agreed upon before deployment.

Memorizing every little detail before every battle certainly took quite a bit of time.

But because Jang Jeongin had pressured me into doing it under the guise of “safety” and protection, I had thought it was simply my responsibility.

I thought it was normal because I got used to it the more I did it. I guess it wasn’t after all.

The three of us came to the same realization and gave a hollow laugh.

“We need to finish this even faster.”

At Cha Seohae’s words, I quickly pointed toward one location.

It was opposite the place Han Seongwoo had pointed out.

“They’ll be over there. The building partially collapsed, but they could have destroyed it themselves as a smokescreen.”

It was about eight stories tall.

It was roughly the same height as the monster and was positioned toward the front, with no other buildings blocking its view.

“Isn’t that too exposed? Even if people can’t see the rooftop because of all the confusion, there were several civilians calling for help from helicopters. Surely at least one of them could see the rooftop….”

“There’s also Kang Sihyeon’s weakness.”

“Weakness?”

“The illusions he controls have a range limit. It’s difficult for him to use them from far away.”

“Hah.”

Cha Seohae scoffed.

“Looks like his S-rank privilege luck really didn’t favor him.”

“Exactly. Usually, the upgrades come with something that compensates for their weaknesses.”

Even Han Seongwoo added a comment.

I listened to them while thinking, my gaze falling toward the ground.

“The order is finished, right?”

“Hmm? Yeah. There’s a high chance they’ve already taken our snipers hostage, so we need to hurry.”

In my words, the two of them shifted their gazes as if they had reached the same conclusion.

“Let’s go.”

 

***

 

“Who would’ve thought the Association members would use a Gate as a fake-out?”

“…….”

“And all this just to take back the Healer they kicked out.”

“They kidnapped her themselves.”

“Even so, you’re the pathetic ones.”

Cha Seohae simply laughed off Jang Jeongin’s taunt.

Then he turned his gaze.

Toward Do Joo-yeon, who stood casually but whose eyes were sharper than anyone else’s.

“It’s been a while, Joo-yeon.”

“…….”

“You’re the one who left without saying goodbye. When someone who stayed behind greets you, shouldn’t you at least pretend to return the greeting?”

Do Joo-yeon remained silent.

Even Jang Jeongin couldn’t easily join the conversation this time and instead cautiously watched the situation.

“You came alone?”

“Hm?”

“You must have known there wasn’t only one person here. You’re awfully confident.”

Do Joo-yeon muttered ominously.

“Without even realizing how disgusting that confidence of yours is.”

Sensing the danger, Cha Seohae pulled out his gun.

But Do Joo-yeon hadn’t neglected his training either.

He was holding the exact same gun as Cha Seohae.

His Copy Transformation has gotten faster.

Cha Seohae finished his assessment and quickly fired.

Even with his fast reflexes, he didn’t waste bullets recklessly.

He poured all his concentration into each shot and aimed at Do Joo-yeon.

Bang! Bang!

Ever since Moon Yeonhee had given him the automatic-reload buff, shooting had become less burdensome.

Of course, having less of a burden didn’t mean his judgment became careless.

Cha Seohae precisely aimed only at Do Joo-yeon’s gun-wielding hand.

When fighting a damage dealer, it was better to disable the hand holding the weapon than to target the legs.

He knew that was the more effective way to prevent them from moving freely.

Pfft.

Cha Seohae’s attack landed.

The bullet grazed Do Joo-yeon’s right hand, leaving a small cut before blood began to flow.

“You’re still trapped in that day.”

“What?”

Cha Seohae changed the position of his gun as if telling him to stop talking nonsense.

The muzzle that had been aimed at his hand was now pointed at his nose.

“You know what I’m shooting for, so you can read the bullet’s trajectory.”

“The guy who says he can read it still got hit?”

“The shot I just took was merely the spark to seize the initiative.”

“Looks like you picked up a few fancy phrases somewhere.”

Cha Seohae laughed as he looked at the gun identical to his own.

“Even though you can’t shoot nearly as well as I can.”

Bang!

The gunshot from Do Joo-yeon echoed loudly through the sky.

Cha Seohae easily dodged it, as if he had expected Do Joo-yeon to take the bait.

“Why? I’m right, aren’t I?”

“Shut up.”

“Considering how much you’ve copied me over the years, your aim has always stayed exactly where it was.”

Bang bang bang bang bang bang!

Do Joo-yeon began firing wildly, as if he couldn’t bear to listen any longer.

The bullets ricocheted in every direction, creating a cacophony of sharp impacts.

Cha Seohae frowned at the sight.

They hadn’t detected that Moon Yeonhee and Han Seongwoo were here.

The hostages would probably be moved soon, but if a stray bullet hit something—

Moon Yeonhee’s position could be exposed.

That had to be prevented.

Cha Seohae restrained his instinctive movements.

Instead of focusing on the bullets flying toward him, he concentrated on Do Joo-yeon’s hands before each shot.

As if determined to dodge every one of his attacks.

In reality, it was a disguise meant to conceal Moon Yeonhee, but there was no way Do Joo-yeon could notice that.

Even while reloading with mana, Do Joo-yeon continued to point the muzzle at Cha Seohae.

He watched Cha Seohae’s slow movements.

Cha Seohae’s steps were cautious.

The way he moved only after dodging the barrage made it seem as though he were hiding something.

He’s still terrible at protecting something.

Do Joo-yeon smiled faintly despite his serious expression.

Seeing that, Cha Seohae spoke.

“Why are you smiling? Surely you’re not happy with your shooting skills.”

“You think I went through all this trouble just to trade insults with you?”

“You didn’t?”

Do Joo-yeon tilted his head slightly.

“It was strange from the moment you came here alone. You’re facing three S-rank enemies, and we even have hostages. What are you so confident about?”

“I can handle people like you by myself.”

“That—!”

Kang Sihyeon tried to interrupt, but Do Joo-yeon stopped him.

Do Joo-yeon’s face turned frighteningly cold.

“It’s not a question of whether I can defeat you or not.”

“…….”

“I’m saying this because I know you well. If you consider someone an ally, you can’t abandon even a single person.”

Do Joo-yeon finished speaking.

Then the gun barrel that had been following Cha Seohae as he moved to the left—

slowly turned toward the right side of the road.

“Are they over here?”

Do Joo-yeon finished reloading and smiled leisurely.

“…….”

Cha Seohae stared at Do Joo-yeon without a trace of emotion on his face.