“Hunter Chae Dong Hwa, why did you come so early? No… When did you arrive?”

“I came yesterday. Are you uninjured?”

His gaze returned to me again.

“Yes, of course. I was just about to capture that monster and complete the quest―”

“I know. I heard.”

But why does he look so angry? More importantly, why am I making excuses?

His expression wasn’t particularly pleasant to begin with, but now that it had hardened, I couldn’t help but feel uneasy.

Did I do something wrong?

“Can you relax your expression? It’s been a while, hasn’t it?”

As I was stammering, Hunter Ju Cheong Yeon approached Hunter Chae Dong Hwa first, extending his hand in greeting. Hunter Chae Dong Hwa stared at that hand indifferently.

That gaze lasted quite a while.

“Aren’t you tired?”

Then he wrapped his arm around my back and pushed me forward. As if he couldn’t hear Hunter Ju Cheong Yeon’s voice at all.

It was a clear dismissal.

Behind me, I heard a scoff of disbelief.

“No, I’m fine. But aren’t you two acquainted?”

“Hey, Dong Hwa! You should have said something when Bom arrived!”

As I was being ushered into the campsite, caught between the two of them, Mo Gyeon came running over from the distance, leaving the meat he was grilling.

“It would be better to go that way.”

Hunter Chae Dong Hwa ignored even Mo Gyeon, hurrying in the opposite direction from where Mo Gyeon was coming.

Now his expression was visibly upset for anyone to see. I couldn’t understand at all why he was in such a bad mood.

As soon as I arrived at the campsite, I quickly checked if Teddy was alright and then headed to the shower room. I felt grimy after not having a proper wash for two days.

Soaking in the warm water melted away my fatigue. The soft, fluffy feeling naturally made my body relax.

“Ah, Hunter Ju Cheong Yeon.”

As I came out of the shower room, Hunter Ju Cheong Yeon emerged from the men’s shower room.

His hair was still damp and wet. It seemed he had also just finished showering after arriving.

“I’m sorry about earlier. Hunter Chae Dong Hwa isn’t usually like that, but he seems off today.”

“It’s fine. Why are you apologizing, Bom?”

“You two know each other, right?”

“I suppose so?”

“Are you on bad terms?”

“Neither good nor bad.”

“But why then…”

I had always thought Hunter Chae Dong Hwa was polite despite being usually blunt. I couldn’t understand why he acted that way if they weren’t on bad terms.

“Don’t worry about it. I think I know why.”

“Why is that?”

He brushed his damp hair back from his forehead. A faint smile played on his smooth face. Thankfully, he didn’t seem upset about what happened earlier.

“Does Bom know that Hunter Chae Dong Hwa is Tae Rim’s younger brother?”

“Ah, right. No, I don’t. I’d appreciate it if you could keep it a secret from Hunter Chae Dong Hwa too. Elder sister Ga Young introduced me as her real sister.”

“I see.”

On the first day, I had told Hunter Ju Cheong Yeon about how I met elder sister Ga Young and Hunter Chae Dong Hwa. But I realized I hadn’t mentioned the lie about family relationships, so I added it belatedly.

“Things are getting interesting…”

“Pardon?”

“It’s nothing. You must be tired too, Bom. Get some rest. I should take a nap as well.”

He muttered something incomprehensible, then covered his mouth and yawned lightly. His bloodshot eyes looked tired.

“Yes. Rest well. Thank you so much for your help, Hunter.”

“It’s nothing. I had fun too. Let’s go fishing again when we have time.”

“Sure.”

He walked slowly into his tent.

‘I wish he’d tell me what’s so interesting…’

Although it was midday, he must be very sleepy after fishing all night.

Thinking I should ask him when he’s in better condition next time, I also turned to enter my tent.

“Hunter Chae Dong Hwa!”

But then I saw Hunter Chae Dong Hwa in the distance. He stood motionless as if he had been watching this direction from the start.

‘Right, I might as well ask him directly. And why he came back so early too.’

As I waved, he immediately strode over. With his tall stature, he approached in no time.

“Did you call for me?”

“Why did you act that way towards Hunter Ju Cheong Yeon earlier?”

“What do you mean?”

“You ignored him when he tried to shake hands with you.”

His expression soured again. It seemed like something was bothering him.

“Did I? I didn’t notice.”

He clearly seemed to remember… There’s no way he couldn’t have heard when someone spoke right in front of him.

Is he just unwilling to talk about it?

“But really, why did you come back so early? What about elder sister Ga Young?”

Although it was a bit strange, he didn’t seem to want to talk about it, so I moved on from the topic. If there was something uncomfortable between them, I didn’t want to pry.

“Hunter Moon Ga Young said it would take some time. She mentioned it would take a while to craft the items she wants to bring for you.”

Ah, right.

Elder sister had said she would bring me a phone I could use in the dungeon, in addition to kimchi.

She’d probably ask her uncle. That is, the president of the Korean Awakened Association. The S-rank production hunter.

‘I don’t need anything so good that it needs to be entrusted to uncle…’

It seemed excessive, but I felt happy thinking about the items elder sister would bring.

“And the reason I came back early…”

His expression turned serious again. It wasn’t the angry look from when I first saw him, but he seemed to have something on his mind.

“I was worried about you, Bom.”

“About me?”

“Dungeons are dangerous, aren’t they?”

“Well… yes, I suppose dungeons are… dangerous?”

I answered somewhat dubiously. His words seemed oddly out of place.

It had been a while since I fell into the S-rank dungeon, and the dungeon was dangerous even before Hunter Chae Dong Hwa left the campsite.

That’s why I used the Invincible Backpacker skill to leave the campsite, and even brought Hunter Ju Cheong Yeon who could teleport, just in case.

Hunter Chae Dong Hwa must have known this, yet he stated something so obvious.

“It’s especially dangerous at night.”

“Yes. But if I go with Hunter Ju Cheong Yeon―”

“I’d prefer if you didn’t stay with him.”

“Pardon?”

“Seeing you two together makes me feel…”

“Feel…?”

I was about to say it’s not dangerous if I go with Hunter Ju Cheong Yeon. But Hunter Chae Dong Hwa’s next words threw the conversation off track.

‘Does he mean he doesn’t feel good about it?’

Is he saying not to go out, not because it’s dangerous, but because he doesn’t like seeing us together?

“Are you on bad terms with Hunter Ju Cheong Yeon?”

“That’s not it.”

Then why? Why does it make him feel bad?

It was a somewhat incomprehensible statement, as if a middle part of the conversation was missing.

As I stared at him, unable to understand his intentions, Hunter Chae Dong Hwa’s lips moved.

“By the way, why is Hunter Seol Mo Gyeon here?”

He completely changed the subject instead of answering my question.

“Ah, Mo Gyeon. Well, there are circumstances…”

He glanced at Mo Gyeon, who was attending to guests.

Mo Gyeon seemed to have fully assimilated into his role as a campsite employee.

Now even the guests aren’t afraid of him. Rather, isn’t he participating in drinking sessions, clinking glasses with the guests?

“What circumstances?”

For someone who rarely shows curiosity, he’s asking a lot of questions today.

Since I didn’t mind his curious demeanor, I explained Mo Gyeon’s situation vaguely, just as I had told Hunter Ju Cheong Yeon.

“What kind of skill is that… Are you sure you’re not lying? He looks so healthy.”

“Does he?”

I looked at Mo Gyeon again. Come to think of it, he looked lively and healthy, unlike someone suffering from all sorts of penalties like anxiety, loss of appetite, lethargy, and sleep disorders.

‘Was he always like that?’

I think when he first arrived, his fur looked dull when he was in dog form. But after he became human, I couldn’t remember clearly.

I only watched from afar and didn’t pay much attention.

“It seems true from what I’ve seen. If it wasn’t for that skill, there’s no reason for Mo Gyeon to cling to me like that.”

“Why not?”

“If it wasn’t because of the skill, his attitude would only be possible if he fell in love at first sight, but I’m not that pretty, and there’s nothing special about me.”

He raised an eyebrow before I could finish speaking. His gaze remained fixed on my face as if nailed there.

“Bom, you are pretty.”

“…?”

For a moment, I doubted my ears.

“You are pretty and special.”

Even though he repeated the same words so I could confirm what I heard, his tone was so nonchalant that I couldn’t help but tilt my head in confusion.

‘He’s been acting strange since earlier. Was he always the type to say such things so casually?’

The fact that he said he felt bad seeing me and Hunter Ju Cheong Yeon together, and now this…

‘I said you were cute.’

‘…?’

‘I thought you’d both like it because you’re cute.’

Suddenly, I remembered a conversation I had forgotten. It was the last conversation before Hunter Chae Dong Hwa left the campsite.

‘Right, he said something like that back then too…’

As I recalled how flustered I was then, I started feeling strange. My mouth went dry, and I found myself rubbing my fingers together.

Like someone who’s nervous and doesn’t know what to do.

‘I decided to treat him casually like a friend, didn’t I?’

He’s the type who can call cute people cute. If someone looks pretty, he might say they’re pretty too.

Special… what part of me is he looking at? The campsite? Does he like the campsite?

“Come to think of it, something seems to have changed.”

My mind was already in chaos, and then he suddenly bent down. He looked closely at my face from the front.

I was so flustered that even my heart was racing now. My face was faintly reflected in his sharp features, thick eyebrows, and even darker pupils.

My heart accelerated even more, and I could feel my face turning red.

“Wh-what… No, why are you doing this, Hunter…”

My neck curled inward like a turtle’s. The more I pulled my head back, the more he tilted his head and leaned in.

His persistent gaze searched every corner of me. As if looking for some trace.