Chapter 90 – Hypocrite

[Time remaining: 7 seconds]

Seeing the little time left, Min Do-jun exited the house.

*Swoosh*

Invisibility wore off in a safe spot without CCTV.

What he saw inside was honestly shocking.

Especially seeing Lee Se-yun shouting like that.

‘To think his relationship with his family was this bad.’

Strictly speaking, they couldn’t even be called family.

From the conversation, it seemed they weren’t blood-related but stepfamily instead.

‘Most likely, Lee Se-yun is only blood-related to his father.’

It seemed probable that his father remarried, giving him a stepmother and half-siblings.

Such situations were more common than one might think.

‘But to treat the mother who raised him like that…’

Why would someone who disliked his family so much invite him to their house?

At first, he couldn’t figure out the reason, but now he had a good idea.

‘It must have been for image management.’

It became clear that he wanted to present himself positively by showcasing a harmonious family image.

‘Hypocritical b*st*rd.’

Still, the fact that he got angry at his family suggested he genuinely wanted to reconcile with Min Do-jun.

‘He wanted to reconcile after pulling that stunt with the skill book?’

Of course, Min Do-jun had no intention of reconciling.

If anything, his desire to kill him soon only grew stronger.

‘That should work.’

A simple yet effective way to kill Lee Se-yun came to mind.

‘Accepting the invitation turned out to be the right choice.’

Smiling slyly, Min Do-jun memorized the house’s location before leisurely leaving.

* * *

A week had passed since Min Do-jun had dinner with Lee Se-yun.

Sitting behind the wheel and waiting at a traffic signal, anxiety flickered across Se-yun’s face.

‘I just don’t get it.’

The atmosphere at the dinner table had been good.

He thought he’d softened Min Do-jun’s heart somewhat, but since then, Min Do-jun continued treating him coldly.

‘He won’t even answer my calls.’

He even called Min Do-jun more than his own father in an attempt to reconcile, but it was futile.

There was no sign of removing the grudge against him.

‘Why doesn’t he understand my efforts to make amends?’

Even if he’d tried dirty and petty methods to recruit him, hadn’t he shown enough effort for forgiveness?

“This is so frustrating.”

*Vroooom*

He slammed on the accelerator in frustration.

Though he wanted to drive wildly, in Seoul’s city center, you couldn’t go far without hitting a red light.

‘Min Do-jun and my family are all so annoying.’

Why did his father marry that woman and have two kids without consulting him?

‘No matter what, shouldn’t he have asked for my approval for someone who’d become my mother?’

His father who remarried without permission, the woman who suddenly appeared claiming to be his mother, and those rude siblings who dared talk back—all of them were irritating people.

‘I should’ve just hit that brat last time.’

The defiant glare of his half-brother lingered in his mind.

Rolling down the window and resting one hand outside, he waited at the signal.

“Huh? Isn’t that Lee Se-yun?”

“Where? Where?”

Hearing voices from the roadside, Se-yun turned his head.

Though he’d looked serious moments ago, he now smiled brightly and waved as if nothing happened.

“Kyaa! He waved at me!”

“No way! He waved at me!”

“Wow, he’s really handsome.”

Smirking slightly, Se-yun grabbed the steering wheel again.

‘Right. I have my fans. Who needs family?’

Money, fame, power.

With everything he had, what more could he possibly need?

Just then, his phone vibrated.

*Buzz*

Checking the message absentmindedly, Lee Se-yun thought he was seeing things.

[You b*st*rd. Someone like you being my brother is disgusting.]

It was a text from his half-brother.

While driving, Se-yun typed a reply with one hand.

[What? Are you drunk?]

[Yeah, I am, you b*st*rd.]

‘Has he lost his mind?’

Se-yun’s eyes burned with rage.

He wanted to hurl insults immediately but held back.

There was a chance his brother might screenshot the messages and spread them online.

[High schoolers shouldn’t be drinking.]

[Cut the fake nice act. It’s disgusting.]

[Hey. I’m driving, so stop texting.]

[I’m going to release all the videos of what you’ve done to our family.]

‘Videos?’

More texts from his brother kept coming.

[I secretly recorded plenty of videos of you. I’ve been saving them to release later.]

[You have no idea how much I’ve endured until now.]

[You threatened to kill us all if the videos got out, right? I don’t care anymore. I’ll show you how crazy I can be.]

[Just ruining someone like you in society will be enough for me.]

‘This… this brat has really lost it…!’

Se-yun’s eyes twitched uncontrollably.

Though he’d threatened to kill them if the videos were released, it was just a bluff.

Like they say, those with much to lose are cautious—Se-yun had no intention of destroying the reputation he’d built up.

But if his brother was willing to go down with him, it was a problem for Se-yun instead.

‘Pick up, damn it!’

He called immediately but got no answer.

Desperately typing, he sent more messages.

[Where are you? Let’s talk in person.]

[Hahaha. You scared I’ll actually release them?]

[You seem really drunk. I’ll come get you.]

[Then come to Yangja Mountain.]

‘Yangja Mountain?’

Checking the location on his GPS, it showed an hour’s drive away.

‘Why is he at a mountain instead of school?’

It seemed odd but made some sense if he went somewhere remote to drink.

‘Either way, you’re dead.’

Whatever confidence made him reveal his location didn’t matter—Se-yun planned to hit him as soon as they met.

Fueled by anger, Se-yun stomped on the accelerator.

* * *

‘Where is that brat?’

Arriving at Yangja Mountain, Se-yun parked in the lot and started up the trail.

Looking around as he walked, he spotted someone in the distance.

A wide grin spread across his face.

‘Found you.’

Seeing the face confirmed it was him.

As Se-yun ran to close the distance, his brother bolted into the forest.

But outrunning a hunter with an ordinary person’s speed was impossible.

The gap between them closed rapidly.

“Hey! Where do you think you’re going?”

Se-yun blocked his brother’s path.

Seeing his brother’s startled expression made Se-yun smirk mockingly.

“Did you really think you could outrun me? Do you think hunters are that easy?”

“…”

His brother looked around nervously.

Seeing this behavior made Se-yun chuckle softly.

“What? Thinking of calling for help? If that was your plan, you should’ve picked a crowded city instead of some random mountain.”

“…”

“What’s with inviting me here and then running away? Did you not think I’d actually come?”

“…”

“Judging by your face, I guess that’s exactly what happened.”

Though his brother said nothing, his frozen expression answered for him.

“Why did you call me here? And to such a secluded mountain.”

“…”

“Why aren’t you saying anything? Scared now that I’m here? Where’s all that bravado you had in your texts?”

As Lee Se-yun stepped closer, his younger brother’s tense expression hardened further as he stepped back.

“You said you’d release the videos. Go ahead, let’s see it. You’re not secretly recording this moment too, are you?”

Just in case, Se-yun glanced around, but there was no sign of a camera.

Nor was there anyone passing by.

“This secluded spot is perfect for killing someone.”

With a sly grin, he stepped closer.

His brother stopped retreating.

The distance between them was now close enough to touch if they leaned forward.

‘But… when did this guy get so tall?’

Up close, his younger brother seemed taller than he remembered.

‘I thought he was shorter than me…’

His younger brother, still in high school, was supposed to be shorter than 24-year-old Lee Se-yun.

But now their eye levels were almost the same.

In fact, his brother seemed slightly taller than his own 180 cm frame.

And another thing…

‘He doesn’t smell like alcohol.’

Despite claiming to have been drinking, there was no trace of alcohol on him.

‘Was he lying?’

Why?

Though he quickly tried to think of a reason, he couldn’t find one for his brother to lie.

If anything came to mind…

‘Was it to lure me here?’

But why?

What was his plan after luring him to such a secluded place?

Only one possibility came to mind immediately.

‘The videos don’t exist, and he called me here to secure them instead?’

There was a high chance something was being recorded somewhere nearby.

‘It might even be live-streaming right now…!’

Se-yun scanned his surroundings again, this time more carefully.

‘Found it!’

Earlier, he’d only glanced around, but now he spotted a phone hidden among some rocks.

‘If that’s live-streaming…’

Then his earlier mocking words and threats about it being a good place to kill someone might have already been broadcasted.

‘That can’t happen!’

With a silent scream of desperation, Se-yun dashed toward the pile of rocks faster than ever before.

‘Please don’t let it be live…!’

Grabbing the phone and checking it immediately, Se-yun tilted his head in confusion.

‘It’s… powered off?’

*Step*

The sound of footsteps behind him sent a chill down Se-yun’s spine.

Even without turning around, he knew.

His younger brother was standing right behind him.

Still, it wasn’t necessarily a dangerous situation.

Even if his brother tried to attack him with a knife, an A-rank hunter like him wouldn’t get hurt.

Yet an indescribable fear gripped Se-yun.

Goosebumps spread across his body as the thought of turning around filled him with dread.

‘I’m scared… of an ordinary person?’

It made no sense.

Unless someone was also a hunter, there shouldn’t be any reason for him to feel so uneasy about showing his back.

‘Come to think of it…’

He’d felt this way recently too—his back prickling with discomfort and unease.

Slowly, Se-yun turned around.

And then he saw it—

His younger brother swinging a sword down toward him.