It happened in the blink of an eye. The moment Hye-mi blinked, Jong-sik vanished from her sight.
“Guess it was nothing.”
Hye-mi let out a despondent sigh. After all, why would the Dok Jong-sik Food Hunter be here?
He’s different from her. Not just some random person to be kidnapped. And certainly not the police.
“Yeah. He has no reason to be here.”
With a hint of disappointment, Hye-mi dismissed any hope she had. At the same time, another thought crossed her mind.
“Why did it have to be the Hunter Dok Jong-sik? If it was just a false alarm, I wish I had seen my mom instead.”
Right now, in this moment, she missed her mom.
Her mom, who raised her alone without her father. With no family but herself. What kind of unfilial daughter am I being? How hard must she be searching for me right now?
“I hope she’s not too sad.”
Even in this life-threatening situation, Hye-mi could only worry about her mother’s well-being.
And then.
The leader roughly grabbed Hye-mi’s hair, pulling her head back. Drawing out a sharp knife, he smirked menacingly.
“I told you, you won’t die easily. Let’s see, should I tear your mouth shut? Or your ear? Maybe your nose? Take your pick. It’s the best I can offer. Hehe.”
“Ouch….”
Hye-mi tightly shut her eyes. She didn’t want to be toyed with. She didn’t want to die like the others she saw earlier.
As a result, she decided she must end her own life. It wasn’t an impulsive decision. She had contemplated and contemplated again before making up her mind.
She wanted to maintain her dignity. She had already thought about which method to use.
With no rope to hang herself and no sharp object to cause injuries, she decided to use her own body. You’ve heard of it before, right? Wanting to bite your tongue and die.
In other words, if you bite your tongue, you can die, right? She had seen it in historical dramas several times.
That’s how she decided to end her life. With her decision made, Hye-mi murmured her last words.
“…Mom, I’m sorry.”
“What the hell are you saying? Just pick one, either the eyes, nose, mouth, or ears.”
Now all that was left was to act. It was the moment Hye-mi bit down hard on her tongue. A painful scream echoed.
“Aaaah!”
But the scream wasn’t hers. It was the leader’s, so loud it made his ears ring.
Without any explanation, the pain she felt in her head suddenly disappeared.
For some unknown reason, the leader released his grip on Hye-mi’s hair.
Following the law of inertia, Hye-mi staggered back. What on earth was happening?
As she touched the ground, she quickly turned her head. Behind her stood the leader, spouting blood like a fountain, screaming.
“Aaaah, damn it.”
Facing the man before her.
‘…What’s going on?’
In that moment, Hye-mi’s thought process halted. It was understandable, as the sight before her was hardly believable.
Even more surreal was the fact that the leader’s left arm, which had been holding her head, was now lying on the ground.
And seeing Hunter Dok Jong-sik, whom she had dismissed as an illusion, was equally surreal.
Moreover, no one had noticed his entrance.
“Aaa….”
So this time too, she was seeing an illusion. That’s what she almost thought. If only she hadn’t made eye contact with the others.
“P-please spare me.”
The expressions of the remaining people were no different from hers. There were even those who begged for mercy towards the Dok Jong-sik Food Hunter.
That meant the scene before them wasn’t an illusion.
As if to drive her conviction home, a low voice flowed from the Dok Jong-sik Food Hunter’s lips.
“There are ten in total.”
He was looking at the gruesome remains of the ten bodies scattered on the ground.
To call it gruesome would be an understatement. They looked like nothing more than mangled pieces of meat.
“Ugh. Who sent you here?”
“There must be families waiting for them….”
“I’m going to kill you.”
“You’ve made sure they’ll never see again.”
Jong-sik muttered as he looked at them.
Meanwhile, the leader moved. He didn’t miss the opportunity while Jong-sik was off guard. He rushed towards Jong-sik.
“Shut up and die-!”
Despite losing one arm, his momentum seemed unbroken. Indeed, one would have to reach that level to be the leader of a human trafficking organization.
“And that leader is an awakened one. Moreover, this is his home ground. He might be in danger when people start gathering soon.”
Watching the leader charging fiercely, unsettling thoughts kept coming to mind.
Hope had turned into fear in no time. Hye-mi’s eyes were trembling.
The leader, who closed the distance in an instant, finally unleashed his skill.
[Rampage]
His imposing figure began to swell.
His clothes tore apart, veins bulging over enlarged muscles.
As the vessel (body) containing mana expanded, so did his destructive power.
The leader felt the adrenaline surging. The pain in his empty left arm faded away.
However, he couldn’t maintain this state indefinitely. He had roughly about 10 minutes.
But it was fine. With this strike, the man before him would die instantly.
Or so the leader thought.
“Die!”
“That man died with both arms torn off, and that one….”
‘However, an unexpected situation unfolded. Dok Jong-sik caught the fist flying towards me.’
‘Not only that, he effortlessly blocked the leader’s fist with just one hand, like stopping a soccer ball, without any visible movement.’
“…Ugh.”
The leader let out a painful groan from the impact.
“It must have been quite painful. Surely it was.”
“Damn youuuuu-!”
He tried to pull his caught hand with all his strength, but it was in vain. He attempted to kick Jong-sik with his free legs, but it was futile.
“Surely, he must have begged for his life.”
That, too, was a futile endeavor. Though it was clearly Jong-sik who kicked him, he acted as if he had been hit.
“Aargh!”
At least, that’s how it appeared to Hye-mi.
The leader screamed in agony, his face contorted, while at the same time, life seemed to return to Jong-sik’s face.
“Yet, it’s with this arm and this leg that he made them like that. Unable to see their families ever again.”
“Sto-op, sto-op! Let go, let go. Let me go, damn it-!”
“Why does it hurt? Just this much? You don’t even know this much?”
The moment he sensed something was amiss.
But by then, it was already too late.
The leader let out a scream as Jong-sik pulled out his remaining arm. Being proficient in dark magic, Jong-sik could feel the spirits of those filled with resentment. Therefore, he decided to fulfill their desires.
“An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.”
“Aaargh!”
“Aah….”
“W-what is this?”
But people were surprised. Hye-mi was no exception.
Jong-sik seemed to realize it too as he looked at them and spoke.
“It might feel uncomfortable. So, please stay like that for a moment.”
‘What could be uncomfortable?’
‘And why should they stay like that?’
It didn’t take long to understand the meaning of those words.
“M-my eyes….”
In front of Hye-mi and the others, darkness enveloped them. It was only then that they could understand Jong-sik’s intention.
He probably didn’t want to show them the cruel scene. But if that’s the case, they should’ve blocked their ears at least.
*Woosh!*
*Thunk!*
“Aaargh! P-please, save me.”
*Thud!*
*Crunch!*
“P-please, spare me!”
Along with the leader’s screams, unsettling sounds could be heard.
It’s quite clear what Jong-sik is doing.
Hye-mi tightly closed her eyes, recalling the past.
Begging for mercy, pleading to be sent home.
Days spent pleading until their hands became feet.
‘How did they respond every time?’
Chuckling, raising their fists.
Now, the one who did that is begging.
Just like their past selves, like us.
“Now do you understand our feelings?”
“Don’t die so comfortably.”
“For the sake of those who died first, endure all the pain you can.”
Hye-mi and the others shared the same thought. How much time had passed like this?
The loud noises subsided, leaving only silence in the surroundings.
“Now it’s okay. Rest assured.”
With the job finished, Jong-sik called out once again.
For a moment, everyone’s eyes wandered. Immediately after, Jong-sik locked eyes with the survivors.
Every single one of them. His gaze carried reassurance.
Acknowledging their hardship. Now, everything is truly okay.
The people began to cry with relief. It seemed as if they were finally realizing that they were alive. Hye-mi was among them.
She burst into tears, calling out, “Mom.” And at that moment…
“Boss Dok. We’ve completed the rescue of the people in the production room. Here, too…”
“We couldn’t save everyone.”
“…Thank you for your hard work.”
Someone entered the room. It was Hunter Kang Chang-soo. Like Jong-sik, he had brought someone rescued.
Of course, it wasn’t just Hunter Kang Chang-soo.
There were members of the Sangwon-dong Self-Defense Patrol, as well as members of the Poison Toad Faction. Oh, and belatedly, there were police officers and paramedics who came to support.
The once desolate drug factory was now bustling with people.
Jong-sik stood up with Hunter Kang Chang-soo and helped the people to their feet.
“Thank you for saving us. Sniff.”
“…Thank you so much.”
“What’s your name? We’ll definitely repay the favor.”
Even as they shed tears resembling sobs, they didn’t forget to express their gratitude.
“Let’s express our thanks later. For now, let’s take care of our bodies first. There are medical staff waiting outside, so go there and get treated. Hunter Kang Chang-soo, I’ll leave them to you.”
“Aren’t you coming with us, Boss Dok?”
“I still have things to do. I’ll finish up quickly and follow along.”
The people followed Kang Chang-soo out of the room. Jong-sik stopped the woman at the end.
“Miss Hye-mi. Can I have a moment?”
“H-how do you know my name?”
She was Hye-mi, the daughter of a middle-aged woman who had visited Dok’s restaurant.
“We know each other through your mother.”
“Know each other through my mother? That can’t be.”
“…If it’s true, please tell me about my mother. Nothing happened, right? Did she get upset because I was gone…?”
“No, I’m looking for Miss Hye-mi. And she’s very worried about you. Let me call her quickly. We’re going home now.”
“…But I don’t have a phone.”
“It’s right here.”
Jong-sik handed her his phone. Hye-mi took the phone as if possessed by a ghost. However, it showed a signal loss.
“Oh, it seems like there’s no signal inside the building. We’ll have to go outside to make the call.”
“I’m sorry for the trouble…”
“It’s okay. Take your time. I’ll come back to find you in a bit.”
“Thank you. I’ll definitely return it!”
Hye-mi bowed her head quickly. Then she hurriedly left the room.
Now Jong-sik was alone in the room. He murmured the incantation for dark magic. A dark and eerie energy enveloped the room.
A moment later.
The mangled bodies of the nine victims regained their original forms.
“…I need to make arrangements for their funerals.”
It was the result of Jong-sik’s efforts to somehow return them to their families’ embrace.
