I Picked Up the Greatest Villain in the Story

26.

Murderous intent welled up. Even though Jian had been abused by his aunt since childhood, he had never harbored thoughts of revenge.

To think that someone who had conducted unspeakable experiments on a child who needed nothing but love was still alive. Moreover, they were still after Sehun.

It was something Jian couldn’t understand or even want to understand within his common sense.

“Where is that person?”

Jian asked, clenching his fists. His heart was racing so fast that he wanted to use an attack skill on that person right away.

“You’re not thinking of dealing with this yourself, are you? Stay put, it’s dangerous. This person has incredible connections. They have ties in both political and business circles. They come from a good family too.”

“So you’re saying we should just do nothing? What if that bastard hurts Sehun?”

The child had already become family. Hadn’t he decided to be Sehun’s guardian until the child grew up and no longer needed his care?

“I’m not saying do nothing, but if we move rashly, we could end up in trouble ourselves. Let’s move carefully. I’ll set a trap. Until we deal with him, keep Sehun inside the house as much as possible. If he has to go out, it’s best to cover his face. We’re scrambling the information on our side, so it will take the guy quite some time to find Sehun.”

Jian silently looked at Hyunwoo. His searching gaze continued for a while.

How far could he trust this person? Why was he trying to help Sehun? Reasonable doubt blossomed in his mind.

“Why are you going this far, hyung?”

“Isn’t it natural for a human being? How can I watch those bastards who used kids barely out of diapers as test subjects walking around freely? I have a young sibling too.”

Hyunwoo’s eyes sank deeply. The words he had just spoken were sincere without a grain of falsehood. And it was a golden opportunity to get back at the director who owed him. This was something he couldn’t tell Jian.

There seemed to be a connection between Jian and the director of the Hunter Management Bureau that he didn’t know about. The reason Jian could live quietly despite being an S-rank hunter was because the director was watching his back.

For some reason, the director was hiding information about Jian. Jian’s hunter rank registered in the database was C-rank.

C-rank was the highest rank that didn’t require regular hunter activities without facing sanctions from the state. From B-rank, hunters had to periodically report their activities to the Hunter Management Bureau.

From what Hyunwoo had observed, seeing how much Jian cared for Sehun, he had completely removed all rumors and information about the cafe and Jian circulating in the community.

Sehun was important human evidence for Hyunwoo. Evidence that the director and those connected to him had committed numerous illegal experiments.

However, due to lack of evidence, he was planning to reveal everything when the time was right, but researcher Heather was trying to overturn everything he had carefully set up.

If that guy took Sehun away, everything would be ruined. Besides, it would be inhuman to stand by and watch a child who had escaped hell with all his might be dragged back to that terrible place.

Although Jian’s hunter rank was S, Hyunwoo had a strange feeling that he wasn’t combat-oriented. Combat hunters had a unique aura, but he couldn’t feel anything like that from Jian.

Given his connection with the director, he might be living while hiding his true nature well, but as the head of an information guild, Hyunwoo had met countless people.

His instincts were telling him that Jian was far from having a sinister personality.

That’s why Hyunwoo had combat hunters from the guild on standby near the cafe. Just in case of any unforeseen situations.

Although he trusted Jian, his own nature was to prepare for as many possibilities as possible, so he decided to keep this part to himself after some deliberation.

“I’ll trust you. But when you catch that bastard, let me meet him too. There are some things I want to repay on Sehun’s behalf.”

Jian grabbed Hyunwoo’s arm and met his gaze. His round eyes shone strangely in the car. His fingertips were trembling slightly due to unrefined emotions.

“Alright. I’ll let you know as soon as we find him.”

Only after getting a firm answer from Hyunwoo did Jian lean back in the passenger seat. In that brief moment, all strength had left his body.

As he wiped the cold sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand, a familiar figure appeared on the stairs. Sehun, who should have been in the middle of a class, came down to the first floor and headed straight for the cafe without hesitation.

Standing in front of the door, after confirming that Jian wasn’t inside the cafe, the small head moved busily. Then, through the heavily tinted car window, Sehun’s and Jian’s gazes met.

Although only a blurry figure would be visible from Sehun’s side, while the inside was clearly visible from Jian’s side, the black eyes were looking directly at Jian.

As if certain that Jian was in the car, the small figure approached gradually, and Jian opened the door and went out. Then Sehun increased his speed, running over and clinging to Jian’s thigh.

“Hyung…”

The eyes looking up at him sparkled with moisture. Facing that blind gaze, a lump of emotion caught in his throat.

“…Yeah.”

The response came a little late as he tried to suppress his emotions. He should ask why Sehun suddenly came down to the first floor, why there were teardrops hanging in his eyes, but he only bit his trembling lips.

Jian slowly bent his knees to match the child’s eye level. Then he gently stroked the soft cheeks. He was reminded of the moment when he first met the child.

The child, who was being beaten black and blue by a man much larger than himself, was curled up as if used to it.

Jian knew from his own experience of being beaten many times. Curling up like a shrimp and wrapping both arms around the head was an instinct for survival. Getting hit on the back or limbs was painful, but hits to the stomach especially had long-lasting effects.

He had learned from an early age that internal bruising was much more painful than external bruising. The reason Jian readily reached out to the child was because he saw his past self in Sehun.

He thought they had a lot in common. But it was a misconception. The child had gone through much more horrific experiences than he had.

They said dozens of remains were found in the pit. They all died unable to endure the experiments. What on earth did Sehun go through in that place?

His trembling hand touched the child’s head. As if sensing something, the small hand grasped his wrist, sharing body heat.

He remembered how the child had a seizure when he first touched his head. Could it be that those bastards did something to his head?

“Why are you crying…?”

Only after hearing the child’s words did he realize. His eyes were finally shedding tears.

“Come here.”

Instead of wiping away the tears, Jian hugged the child tightly. The small breath brushed over his nape. He felt proud and sorry for the child who had endured hell.

He was still at an age where he should be cuddling in his parents’ arms and throwing tantrums. His own life had been difficult, but it was nothing compared to the pain the child had experienced.

He understood why the child had grown up so ruthlessly. The character he had only read about in text in a novel was vividly alive and in his arms.

“Thank you so much for appearing before me, Sehun.”

His voice was thick with emotion. He was glad he hadn’t ignored the faint sound he heard that day.

The warmth carefully embracing his neck was precious. As much as the child had suffered, he hoped only happy things would fill the child’s life from now on.

He had to do his best to make good memories overflow enough to cover the painful ones. He had to give love generously so that the wounds hidden in invisible places could heal.

He had thought that God had given him another chance out of pity for dying after only suffering at a young age. But perhaps he had come to this world to meet this child.

“Don’t cry…”

Although he could have been flustered by the sudden turn of events, the child spread his arms wide, trying his best to hug Jian.

The unchildlike husky voice was full of tears. Jian sniffled, trying to gather his emotions.

As he leaned his upper body back, he saw the child’s face covered in tears. His own face was probably no better than Sehun’s.

Ahem, Jian cleared his throat softly and stroked the child’s face with his hand. His palm quickly became moist with tears.

After preciously gazing at the tearful face that seemed to reflect his own emotions, he pressed his forehead against Sehun’s.

“What happened?”

He should have asked as soon as he saw him, but he was a bit late due to the burst of tears.

“Just… I missed you so much, hyung.”

The voice that came out like a whisper made his heart ache. How could they use such a lovable child as a test subject? They must have hearts made of hard wood.

Jian stood up while holding the child in his arms. As if on cue, the passenger side window rolled down.