“He was angry at me going through all that when I went to your house alone recently. Why did he leave me here all of a sudden?”
He went after leaving the chick to a Sesung guild member. I watched the chick move around the table and turned my gaze to Hyunjae Sung, whose face I could not see well because I was not wearing my lenses yet.
“Trust is the most important thing in transactions.”
Hyunjae Sung spoke as he held out a mirror in front of me. I was told that the lenses could be lightly pushed in, but my eyes closed instinctively, and I flinched even when I used my other hand to keep the eye open.
“Since Yoohyun and I have dealt with each other for a long time, we at least trust that the other will uphold what is written down in a contract.”
My intestines churned at Hyunjae Sung saying the word trust. Yoohyun had not trusted me to that extent and instead worried, probably because of my low stats.
“Also, I had helped out Yoohyun in various ways.”
“You had helped him?”
“He was at the age where being independent would cause problems, and I thought he would be more interesting if I helped him grow faster.”
Hyunjae Sung mentioned that he had removed some weeds for Yoohyun.
“Of course, Yoohyun was annoyed and tried to pay back whenever he noticed, and he succeeded in that. He is cute.”
“You’re saying that there’s still some leftover which Yoohyun didn’t catch. I’ll pay the debt back for him.”
Since Hyunjae Sung would exploit such favors, I should not leave them ignored.
“Yoohyun would not like it.”
“He would have been a minor at that time, and I was his guardian. So, it’s right for me to pay you back. Don’t think about bringing up the past to Yoohyun.”
I blinked as I put in a lens and felt upset that I had not done anything despite being an older brother and a guardian.
“You haven’t led him down the wrong path, right?”
Hyunjae Sung’s answer irritated me, and he held out two books. They were A Guide for Parents for Raising Kids in the Right Way and How to Escape from the Empty Nest Syndrome. What was this?
“Reading is good for calming one’s mind.”
“What’s with the choices?”
Can he not give me self-development books, novels, or poetry? I picked the guide and thought about when I could leave. What was Yoohyun trying to do? Take me home. I want to escape.
‘I could get out of here if I used a stealth skill.”
Of course, the skill would not work for an S class hunter like Hyunjae Sung. I could get out if only he would leave, and I looked up at him while turning the pages of the book.
“Are you going to stay there all day? You’re too idle for a guild leader.”
“That guild leader is officially conquering a dungeon right now. What would you have for lunch? Say anything you want to eat.”
“I want to eat the rice cakes on a skewer that was sold at a snack bar in front of my elementary school. It closed ten years ago.”
“I’m sorry to say that time is too short to prepare it for lunch, but it will be ready for dinner.”
“It’s alright. Don’t think about bothering innocents.”
He really did say anything, so maybe I should have requested raw fish caught by the Sesung Guild Leader. While I did not like raw fish much, I could escape while he went fishing. Of course, Hyunjae Sung would deny such an obvious request saying things about dungeon conquests.
Since the Sesung Guild Leader was much too idle, he took me here and there, and I saw how many convenient facilities the Sesung Building had as a result. What would I do with such knowledge?
High-class hunters found using outside facilities inconvenient, as they could not even cut their hair easily due to the difference in physical durability. While their hair was not hard as metal wires, it took more force to cut, so there was a specialized hair salon since they could not dye or curl their hair in the normal way.
I had heard that Yoohyun could not take care of his hair until he could control his fire resistance skills. Since his body was fireproof, he could not even straighten his slightly curly hair.
“Is it all right to go around ?”
“I can control what goes out of this building, so don’t worry.”
I thought that over since many eyes watched us, but I did not need to worry about that. There was already a breeding area for Comet in preparation for its growth. It was wide enough for a fully grown female Thorn-Winged dragon to reside comfortably, and one entire side of it consisted of a window that could be opened for Comet to fly out.
Hyunjae Sung told me that moderate exercise was a must for health, and he found me a trainer and made me receive a simple physical check-up. I refused with all my heart at his offer of a specific examination, but they took my blood sample.
“I’m all right. You know I’m not that old.”
I had no health troubles until I was thirty, except for some physical injuries. To my surprise, the skewered rice cakes came out with other dishes for dinner.
“...You didn’t actually search the owner of that snack bar to make this, right?”
“Fortunately, the couple was still in good health.”
Hyunjae Sung spoke after taking a picture as evidence of me eating well, which he, then, sent to Yoohyun as promised. It was good to know that they were healthy, but...
“Why do all this when you know that I had not meant it literally.”
“There’s no reason not to do something I can. It wasn’t that difficult. Brighten up. He might renounce my contract.”
I did not care whether that happened, but I could not let Yoohyun worry. I fed the chick magic stones as I tried to compose my face. Could the chick not transport me with it? I hoped it might try.
“Is there any news regarding my brother?”
“I decided not to say a word regarding work.”
“I will have an upset stomach from curiosity and worry.”
“I’ll prepare some digestive medicine.”
“Let me at least phone him.”
I had my phone taken away from me when I tried to call Noah and Myeongwoo. I felt like I was in prison, and barely managed to get my phone back after complaining about being suffocated in here. Yoohyun took my call.
“Yoohyun, can’t you send me home if I promise to stay still? I’ll rest and postpone Noah’s affair as much as possible.”
[No. Stay there for a little while more.]
“Hey! You’re not trying to pull a dangerous stunt, right?”
My brother laughed softly at my question.
[Don’t worry, nothing endangers me outside a dungeon.]
That was true, as Yoohyun could not be harmed unless hunters at the level of Hyunjae Sung and Riette tried. While two others were born S class, they will not pop up without prior notice, and even if they did, Yoohyun would be able to protect himself.
“Don’t do anything foolish and eat well. Go home early. Are you outside?”
[Yes, I’ll go home soon.]
“All right. Get me out of here as fast as you can.”
[If you manage to behave yourself.]
Is that how you speak to your older brother? However, his voice comforted me, and Hyunjae Sung took my phone away after our conversation ended.
“Today’s schedule ends after a light walk, washing up, and making sure you sleep. He asked me that you should sleep before eleven, do you need a lullaby?”
That was something that would keep me awake, and an uninvited visitor came that night.