Chapter 148 (1/2)

Episode 148

Ali’s voice boomed over the crowd’s laughter.

“Danny!”

Soon, another large man – though younger, about twenty years old – walked out of the crowd. Like Ali, he had a very well-balanced body of the kind that was unique to hunters. However, Yoo-seong felt weak Aura within him, typical of rookie hunters with only a small amount of CE.

The other thing that stood out to Yoo-seong was that Danny looked Asian.

“The captain says he will speak through me,” Danny said in Korean. “He said we know you and your recent achievements. We respect you as a hunter,” the young man added.

“Thank you for that,” Yoo-seong acknowledged.

“But we’re not sure why you are here.”

“Why I’m here?” Yoo-seong’s eyes narrowed. His actual reason would be quite embarrassing to admit to the young man.

“Well, aren’t you here to hunt?”

“Not really” Yoo-seong lowered his voice, despite knowing that the people around him didn’t understand their language. “I only stopped here for a break,” he said.

When Danny conveyed the words to Ali, the CEO of the Kowala company scowled at Yoo-seong.

“Why the hell would you stop by Hawaii on your flight to the US?!” the big man exclaimed. It was obvious to him that Yoo-seong was lying.

“I was crossing the Pacific Ocean with my Tech,” Yoo-seong answered truthfully.

Danny’s eyes opened wide with shock. Then he delivered the message to his boss.

Ali looked as if Yoo-seong were insulting his intelligence.

“Are you mocking us? Do you think we’re such fools we would believe that?”

Instead of listening to Ali’s words, which he couldn’t understand, Yoo-seong paid attention to the crowd’s reaction. Several of them had stepped back a few steps after feeling the hostility. Others had stepped forward with determined looks on their faces.

‘Hunters,’ Yoo-seong recognized.

There were roughly thirty of them, and they all seemed to be with Ali. Even without feeling their CE, he knew it because of their tattoos.

“I don’t care who asked you to come here or how great a hunter you are,” Ali continued. His big hand took Yoo-seong’s fork and crumpled it into a metal ball. “Leave,” he seethed. “We don’t need outside help. If you try to intervene with our operations, even a man who can walk on air can be put in jail.”

All the hunters in the area felt it. Ali was raising his CE. He intended no real harm but wanted to show his feelings clearly, even beyond Danny interpreting his words.

Until that point, Yoo-seong had only been listening silently. Now, he spoke.

“Did you say your name is Danny?” He turned to the young man who had delivered Ali’s frustrations to him.

Danny nodded meekly.

“I’ll give you a choice,” Yoo-seong said in a quiet tone.

“What? If you have anything to say, please tell him instead, and I’ll…”

“No. You can choose one of these two responses. Choose which one to tell your boss.”

Danny felt intense pressure as Yoo-seong’s eyes bore into him.

“This is the first option.” Yoo-seong held eye contact with the young man. “I don’t know what the hell you are talking about, and I don’t have any intention of trying to convince you I have no particular reason for stopping by.”

Danny’s eyes widened.

It wasn’t simply because of Yoo-seong’s harsh words. It was because Yoo-seong was now channeling Aura, like Ali. The difference between the two was significant.

This time, even ordinary people quickly felt the change in the atmosphere.

“What?”

“The wind…”

A cool breeze blew against everyone on the left side of the store.

Only the hunters who recognized it felt astonishment as it passed behind their backs. It wasn’t a natural wind.

Yoo-seong was sitting still in his chair. Aura was flowing constantly from his whole body, causing a Corona invisible to the crowd’s eyes.

One second.

Two.

Three seconds. Four. Five seconds, ten seconds.

The wind continued to blow without showing any sign of stopping. It was also spreading more widely across the stall now, even causing a few bills and tissues to scatter.

‘How much CE does one need to make such a sustained Corona possible?’ the hunters wondered.

“So,” Yoo-seong continued, “if you have any dissatisfaction about my presence, now is the right time to show it. But I promise you that no matter how many of you there are and no matter how hard you try, you won’t be able to make me leave against my will.”

The very next moment…

Huwook-!

The wind suddenly stopped.

The hunters looked at each other before turning their gazes back to Yoo-seong.

“The second choice is a bit simpler.”

Yoo-seong looked at Danny with a still-unchanged expression.

“I understand your meaning well, and I have no intention of intervening, so I will quietly eat here and rest for a while before leaving. That’s it.”

Yoo-seong flexed his neck muscles.

“Choose one and tell him.”

Danny bit his lip. Did he really have a choice when the answer seemed so clear?

‘Is there a hunter here who doesn’t understand how strong Yoo-seong is based simply on the wind he just caused?’

If he told Ali the first response, the Kowala Group wouldn’t have a choice. They would have to protect their pride. However, it would be a battle they would surely lose.

Finally, he decided.

“Boss.” Danny turned to Ali. “He says he has no intention of causing problems, and after he’s finished his meal and rested for a while, he’s leaving.”

Ali seemed satisfied with the response.

“Good. Tell him to leave as soon as possible and that if we sense that he’s trying to overstay his welcome, we won’t hesitate to act.”

“Yes,” Danny nodded energetically.

Then Ali stood, and taking the group of hunters with him, he turned around and left.

Yoo-seong also stood from his seat, taking his meal and drink and walking toward the beach.

After hesitating for a few moments, Danny followed Yoo-seong.

“Hey, Oh Yoo-seong!” Danny called out.

“What?” Yoo-seong turned, and Danny felt dumbstruck as he stood in front of him again.

“Did your boss ask you to tell me something? Don’t hesitate to say it. I don’t care.”

Danny looked around for a moment.

They were already at a distance from the store. There were no people around to hear the conversation.

He suddenly bowed to Yoo-seong.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry!”

Yoo-seong raised his eyebrows.

“You’re sorry? For what?”

“Well… I heard from my girlfriend that you were here. She works at that store you were in. I’m the reason Ali learned you were on the island.”

Yoo-seong pursed his lips and nodded. At least that was clear. He’d thought it was pure coincidence that Ali and his team had arrived at the kiosk.