NOVEL ONLINE FREE chapter 177
Eun Woojeong furrowed his brows. He didn’t like the answer he’d gotten.
Until I leave? That meant—eventually, the person would leave this place.
As the meaning sank in, even the man’s smile and the hand stroking his head began to irritate him. Scowling, Eun Woojeong swatted the hand away.
“Get off.”
“Are you sulking?”
The teasing voice was full of mischief. When Eun Woojeong glared in frustration at the insincere tone, the man outright laughed.
“You are sulking. Sorry, but it’s not like I want to leave either.”
For a second, Eun Woojeong thought he might finally hear why the man had to leave. He focused.
But disappointingly, the man said no more. He just stared out the window.
His face, turned toward the falling snow, looked full of longing. As if he might disappear at any moment. The sight made Eun Woojeong’s heart sink.
“T-Tomorrow…”
The question escaped him like a desperate cry.
“Can I come back tomorrow?”
The man blinked wide for a moment before giving a faint smile.
“Yeah. I’ll definitely be here tomorrow. So don’t worry. Come by.”
“I… wasn’t worried.”
“Sure.”
Trying to hide the fact that his real feelings had been exposed, Eun Woojeong forced a cold response.
His ears burned. As he lowered his head in embarrassment, the man reached out again and stroked his hair. It felt nice, so this time he didn’t push it away and quietly let him.
***
“…Don’t use your skill.”
His body was swaying gently. Voices filtered in as consciousness slowly returned.
“Got it? If you step in, it’ll only make things more complicated.”
“No.”
“No?”
“I’m the strongest one here. How am I not supposed to get involved? You think I don’t notice how you try to jump into danger just because I’m staying quiet?”
“That’s not—”
Cover suddenly fell silent, as if at a loss for words.
Right around then, Eun Woojeong opened his eyes. His body was still bouncing slightly with movement. Curious about the conversation and who the unfamiliar voice belonged to, he looked around.
The first thing he saw was swaying blond hair. From under a cap, strands curled down the back of the man’s neck, and his delicately shaped ear caught the eye.
It took him a moment to realize: he was being carried on Cover’s back. He had never been carried by anyone before, so it took a second to register the situation.
As Eun Woojeong blinked blankly, Cover spoke again.
“So what, should I just give you permission to go wild? Who’s gonna clean up the mess? Use your weapon, but hold back on skills.”
Eun Woojeong shifted his gaze sideways behind the mask.
Next to Cover—who was running at full speed while carrying him—was a tall man completely cloaked in a black robe and mask, holding a long black sword.
Even with his face hidden, his aura gave him away instantly.
This was the so-called “guardian angel” that Cover had joked about.
Now that he thought about it, he remembered Cover protecting him before he lost consciousness.
“So it was true—he really shows up when someone attacks.”
Could that guy have a warp skill too? But back in the building, the man’s abilities had clearly been combat-based.
“Are you not going to answer me?”
Cover pressed him again. The reply was blunt and sulky.
“I don’t know.”
“Don’t know what?”
“It’s annoying.”
Even without seeing his face, it was obvious he was upset. Just as Eun Woojeong was about to speak up, he hesitated—maybe it’d be more fun to keep watching.
“Are you sulking?”
The gently coaxing tone made Eun Woojeong freeze.
It was exactly the same as what he’d heard in his dream.
Because of that dream, the voice even sounded similar now—even though he had no idea what the real one had sounded like.
“You’re still a kid, huh? Sulking over this?”
“I’m not sulking…”
“You’re being all cranky and uncooperative.”
“I said I’d carry him, but you wouldn’t let me… I can carry people too…”
“Yeah? And what, you think you could carry this guy properly? You’d probably just drop him on his head.”
“He’s healed now! Make him walk on his own!”
“Sorry, but it’s better for my mental health if this asshole stays quiet and asleep.”
“Huh? Wait—hyung.”
The man running next to Cover pointed at Eun Woojeong.
“He’s awake.”
He’d seen Eun Woojeong lifting his head. Cover, hearing that, immediately let go of the hand supporting his thigh.
Thud!
“Urgh…!”
Eun ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) Woojeong, who had just been comparing voices in his mind, suddenly found himself tumbling unceremoniously to the ground.
The fact that he was an S-rank and still failed to react in time was laughable—but Cover dumping him like luggage was ridiculous.
When he looked up in disbelief, Cover tapped him on the leg with the tip of his boot.
“Hey. If you’re awake, speak up. You got no shame?”
“I just woke up.”
“Great. Get moving. We’re in a hurry.”
“….”
Eun Woojeong sighed quietly.
Of course. It had been a stupid thought.
There was no way Cover was that person. Their personalities were way too different.
And besides, Eun Woojeong knew what Cover’s face looked like under that mask. Mid-twenties, at most.
But the man from his childhood dream—judging from their conversation—had been an adult. Probably over 40 now.
He’d gotten confused because the voices were similar. Running his hand over his mask, Eun Woojeong sat up and checked his condition.
“My wounds…”
Through the slashed-up clothes, his skin was perfectly smooth—no blood, no pain. No wonder he felt light.
He covered himself with his robe and glanced at Cover, who shrugged.
“Good. Since we’re off to deal with the big guy now, why don’t you take point and fight since you’re all healed.”
“Who did it?”
“Think I’m gonna tell you?”
Cover, using his denim jacket to shield his injured side, started moving ahead.
“You know I saved your life, right? So just for today, quit poking around and do what I say. Let’s go.”
Normally, Eun Woojeong would’ve ignored that and asked questions until he got an answer—but this time, he just nodded.
It was true: that man had saved him.
For the same reason, he didn’t bother picking a fight with the “guardian angel” he’d once sworn to beat up if they ever crossed paths again.
That guy was stuck to Cover’s side and didn’t even spare Eun Woojeong a glance.
***
After Eun Woojeong woke up, they made it through the forest without any delays and arrived at the spot where Kwon Taehyuk and Ryu Sunghyun were waiting.
The distance was less than ten minutes away, but the ambush by the unexpected monster—and the process of saving Eun Woojeong—had eaten up time.
“Guildmaster!”
Cover raised his voice toward the distant figure of Kwon Taehyuk.
Thankfully, the massive monster was still standing in the same place, unmoving. No disasters had occurred yet.
“Why are you so late?”
“You think I was off playing around? I just went through some seriously rough shit, okay?”
Kwon Taehyuk clicked his tongue at the cheeky retort. Typical.
“Hunter Cover! Oh…”
Ryu Sunghyun, who had run up to Cover following Kwon Taehyuk, suddenly stopped short when he saw the man standing next to her.
The tall figure in the mask—he immediately recognized it was Cha Sahyeon.
Ryu Sunghyun wasn’t an idiot. Of course he’d notice.
This was exactly why Cover had avoided bringing Cha Sahyeon along in the first place.
Kwon Taehyuk had only met the young version of Sahyeon, so he wasn’t as suspicious—but Ryu Sunghyun had seen him on the snowy mountain. There was no fooling him.
As expected, Ryu’s face twitched with unease as he glanced back and forth, then carefully spoke.
“Hunter Cover… um…”
“Yes?”
“…Has Hunter Cha Seohu… by any chance, been here?”
At those words, Kwon Taehyuk and Eun Woojeong both looked at Cover.
What the hell?
As attention focused on her, Cover opened her mouth to reply—only to be interrupted.
“Ah, so that’s why the wound…”
Eun Woojeong muttered under his breath.
Damn it. Two of them had already misunderstood before she could clarify anything.
Ryu Sunghyun clearly assumed that Cha Sahyeon—who always stuck to Cha Seohu—had come to help at Seohu’s request.
And Eun Woojeong must’ve concluded that the healer who saved him was Cha Seohu.
Annoyed, Cover decided to just roll with it.
Not bad, actually.
No one could demand proof or ask to see Seohu now. And trying to cook up another excuse would only make things messier with Eun Woojeong.
“Yes. He came by briefly, then evacuated to a safe location. This guy is helping on his behalf.”
She gestured at Cha Sahyeon. Kwon Taehyuk squinted, visibly uncomfortable with the explanation.
Typical of that uptight bastard. What didn’t he have a problem with?
As long as he didn’t outright tell Sahyeon to fuck off, Cover didn’t care. But the guide window next to her was annoying.
[Main Character Status Guide]
Just hearing that Cha Seohu had come by threw all three of them into confusion.
Why are they all so obsessed with me?
Cover scoffed silently and opened her mouth firmly to snap them back to reality.
“Anyway, now’s not the time for this. Who knows when those monsters will spill out of the dungeon? We need to take down that big one first, then head to the entrance. Also, we learned something new in the forest—”
“Wait. Did Hunter Cha Seohu come to the stadium too?”
“….”
The question abruptly cut off her briefing. From behind her, Eun Woojeong looked at her with wide-eyed innocence.
“Is that how you got here so fast? Were you already here to watch the match?”
“Why the hell does that matter?”
“I’m just curious. You’re always following him around. And he had to have known about the dungeon break.”
“Haa…”
“Even if you’re dating, isn’t that going a little too far?”
This little fucker…
Cover rubbed her forehead. It hadn’t even been twenty minutes since she explicitly told him to keep his curiosity in check.
Of course. She should’ve known better than to expect restraint from Eun Woojeong.
Just as she decided to ignore him—
“…What?”
A quiet voice trembled.
“Who’s… dating who…?”
Cha Sahyeon, who had been standing silently nearby, now stared at Cover and Eun Woojeong, eyes darting between them.
“…What is that supposed to mean?”
Ding! An alert sounded as the guide window updated again.
[Main Character Status Guide]
“……”
Cover shut her eyes tightly.