The Hunter’s Gonna Lay Low

The cleanup was over quickly. A few passes with a mop took care of the blood on the floor, and the scraped-up, broken walls were covered with white cloth. The gathered S-rank Hunters were dragged off to the infirmary, except for Jeong Bin—he alone received treatment. A large bruise had formed on the back of his neck where Uijae had grabbed him. Uijae mumbled awkwardly.

"…Sorry. That bruise might stick around for a while."

“Haha, not at all. Better a bruise than getting bitten or punched in the face, right?”

Jeong Bin tried to keep things light, but no one laughed. Not even a smirk. Even if it hadn’t been intentional, Uijae—who had struck him—lowered his head. Honeybee, spraying pain relief on her wrist, asked dryly.

"You weren’t trying to be funny just now, right?"

"Excuse me? Why do you ask?"

“Well, if it was a joke, I was gonna laugh along…”

"Ah… no, no. You don’t need to worry about that. I’m fine."

A heavy silence settled in the room. Even the most self-centered S-ranks, who usually didn’t give a damn what anyone thought, found themselves glancing at Jeong Bin. After all, they’d just watched a comrade, someone they worked with, turn into a monster and die in front of them.

Jeong Bin rubbed the back of his neck and gave a soft smile.

"Really, I’m okay."

His gentle gaze turned to Uijae. Feeling more than a little guilty, Uijae angled his head to the side, avoiding eye contact.

"Thanks for coming. Um, from what I heard… Miss Honeybee, you said you’d take responsibility?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah, I did. I figured it’d be safer to bring this guy along than to go alone."

Honeybee tucked her hair behind her ear, watching his reaction.

"…Is there a problem?"

"Haha… no, I was planning to let Mr. J go with just a written report anyway. I’ll handle it appropriately, so don’t worry. All three of you are free to leave."

Jeong Bin picked up his crumpled suit jacket and stood. Honeybee blinked, clearly taken aback.