The Hunter's Gonna Lay Low-Chapter 225

Ming-jeok tilted his head and corrected himself.

“That was not an expression approved by the National Institute of the Korean Language. Let me rephrase it. He’s as mad as hell.”

Uijae rolled his eyes.

‘Of course, he would be....’

This was nothing new—it happened almost every day, so he wasn’t even surprised anymore. Unless Jeong-bin suddenly got angry or Hong Ye-seong came to his senses, Uijae wouldn’t feel alarmed. Instead, he nodded indifferently. In a way, it was reassuring.

‘He’s mad enough, which means he’s fine.’

Honestly, who would want to leave anyone behind? Since he was the only one who could move, it was natural for him to act. As Yi-jae confirmed Sa-yeong’s safety, his thoughts wandered elsewhere.

‘That guy’s always grumpy. But whenever I say anything, he complains about being hurt.’

The worry, sympathy, and longing he felt for Sa-yeong dissipated instantly. Instead, irritation filled the space. Uijae squatted in front of Ming-jeok.

“What’s he doing?”

“He’s returned to the guild. According to Hunter Jeong-bin, he was the last to regain consciousness, and even after waking up, his condition wasn’t great.”

Damn it. Uijae’s face twisted in frustration. Just when he felt ready to be annoyed, Sa-yeong made him feel sorry for him again. Sa-yeong would always be like that—frustrating, pitiful, and someone Uijae always worried about. He’d forever remain Uijae’s painful weakness. Ming-jeok adjusted his sunglasses.

“Don’t worry. He’s perfectly fine now. He’s likely already received the situation report and will take action soon.”

Had he fought with another version of Sa-yeong? They had thought things were settled. Uijae sighed, rubbing his forehead.

‘Then again, I disappeared suddenly.’

Sa-yeong, who couldn’t go more than a week without finding him, was always calm only when he was by Uijae’s side. Staring at Ming-jeok’s sunglasses, Uijae asked, “Isn’t he worried?”

“Worried? About who?”

“About me. I vanished all of a sudden.”

“Uh, why would he worry about you?”

Ming-jeok dramatically grabbed both of Uijae’s arms and then let go.

“You’re perfectly fine.”

Yi-jae grimaced, realizing he had asked the wrong question.

“What’s the situation outside? Are monsters still appearing?”

“Monsters are still showing up in various places, but things have calmed down ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) compared to earlier. Hunters are dealing with them.”

“What about the big-mouthed monster?”

“Yes. It devours everything—people, rubble, you name it.”

“......”

A massive monster that opened its jaws wide and tore through people. Had he seen a monster like that before? The more Uijae thought about it, the more unsettling the sense of déjà vu became. He rubbed his chin, though Ming-jeok seemed to interpret it differently.

“I told you, even the Guild Leader has a hunch.”

Ming-jeok pulled out his phone from the shadows and showed Yi-jae a group chat in a messaging app. The chat room had dozens of participants, and its name read:

[Hangover Soup Restaurant Waitstaff Updates]

‘Oh, for f—’

The chat was filled with celebratory emojis, crying emojis, and shocked emojis. Ming-jeok scrolled up to show a specific message.

“!!Breaking News!! Hangover soup waiter spotted in Seoul! Appeared exactly as they did three months ago. Looks very healthy!”

“Thanks to Hunter Yang Hye-jin spreading the news about the waiter.”

---

**Earlier, on a busy street.**

‘Life really isn’t easy.’

Seo Min-gi, aka Very Small Miracle Ming-jeok, a specialist in infiltration and information manipulation, sat on a broken sidewalk block with a grim expression, sipping from a tumbler. Civil servants in fluorescent vests gave him odd looks as they passed by.

Drinking coffee helped clear his mind a little. Yeah, running away wouldn’t solve anything. He had to confront this head-on, even if it meant facing his superior’s wrath.

‘This really sucks.’

He never expected mediating between two bosses would become part of his job. Ming-jeok sighed and hit the call button on his phone. The person on the other end picked up quickly. A cold voice spoke.

―Speak.

“Yes, Guild Leader. According to what Hunter Yang Hye-jin said...”

Ming-jeok gulped.

“He... infiltrated Prometheus’ base. On his own. Voluntarily. Pretending to be a civilian.”

―...What?

The voice on the other end turned noticeably colder. Ming-jeok immediately switched into AI voice mode, reading out the information without emotion.

“He said he didn’t look like a hunter, so it would be fine. He’s still inside and hasn’t come out yet.”

―And Yang Hye-jin allowed this?

“At the time, she figured it was okay since he didn’t look like a hunter. She also mentioned the Rift Control Bureau could storm in if needed.”

―You let someone who can’t lie for shit infiltrate?

“......”

―Damn it, this is so stupid...

If the second master of the house had heard that, he would have scolded him for badmouthing all hunters as the most idiotic person. Ming-jeok ignored the muttered curse and continued.

“I did a brief infiltration myself but didn’t find him. It seems he’s been moved somewhere else.”

―Where to?

“We’re about to find out. I’ll try to find his shadow and follow it.”

―.......

The other line went silent. Sa-yeong was probably suppressing his frustration. Ming-jeok shook his tumbler, the ice inside clattering loudly.

Where had J disappeared to after infiltrating Prometheus’ base? Had he been caught and taken somewhere else? Or had he already secured the information and escaped safely?

It was hard to believe the latter, considering there hadn’t been any sightings of the waiter. Cha Uijae tended to underestimate his presence and impact, never bothering to conceal himself.

Ming-jeok removed his sunglasses, blowing dust off the lenses.

“Do you think he’s been kidnapped?”

―...J?

Sa-yeong scoffed over the phone.

―If he was, it’s because he let it happen.

His voice turned ice-cold.

―That’s what pisses me off even more.

Ming-jeok quickly nodded in agreement.

This content is taken from freeweɓnovel.cѳm.

---

Ming-jeok craned his neck and looked around. His eyes narrowed as he stared at the iron bars.

“...He was probably taken somewhere or moved to an isolated place, but... I didn’t expect him to be here at the base.”

“If Sa-yeong finds out, he’ll be even angrier, won’t he?”

“Are you asking the obvious?”

Of course. Uijae scratched his head. Ming-jeok, who had been deep in thought with his chin in hand, murmured to himself.

“But we can’t pass up such a sweet opportunity. We might as well take everything while we’re at it. That’s why you got kidnapped, isn’t it?”

“......”

Well, he hadn’t exactly planned to take everything. He was just focused on rescuing Ga-eul and getting out. But before Yi-jae could say anything, it seemed Ming-jeok had already made up his mind.

Based on the three months he’d spent working with Ming-jeok, Uijae knew better than to argue once the specialist had a plan. If something went wrong with the plan, Ming-jeok would short-circuit. Uijae sighed and looked down at the shadows.

‘This is going to be a hassle...’

“Don’t worry. I’m an infiltration specialist. Infiltration must be subtle and quiet...”

Ming-jeok proudly gave a thumbs-up, clearly ready to go on a long-winded rant about infiltration. Uijae quickly handed him the tablet.

“If you’re going to stay in the shadows, could you check what’s on this tablet? A researcher had it, but it’s filled with numbers and technical jargon I can’t understand.”

“Oh, sure. I’ll check... Hmm, this might take a while.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

“But don’t worry, I’ll get it done soon enough...”

Ming-jeok muttered as he melted back into the shadows. Just as only the top of Ming-jeok’s head was visible, Uijae added one more thing.

“Oh, before you leave, we need to rescue someone.”

“Excuse me?”

“Yoon Ga-eul was captured along with me. We need to find her while you’re gathering intel and get her out too.”

“What?! Hold on, you never mentioned that before!”

“I’m mentioning it now.”

“Wait, that changes the plan—introduces new variables—”

“Shh.”

Yi-jae stomped on the shadow, and the muttering stopped abruptly. At the end of the corridor, a figure appeared—a soldier with a gun and a military vest. He had spotted Uijae and came to a halt, shouting.

“Hey! What are you doing there?”