/
[——–!!!]
Afterwards, Moon Isaak began to walk confidently towards some unknown location.
What was surprising, though, was that after the room became pitch black, there was no sign of Bae Jaemin anywhere.
Obviously, the Priest must have noticed the change in the environment. But, besides a strange humming vibration in the air, I could see neither hide nor hair of the Priest.
I looked up at Moon Issak–he must have done something. But, I could only vaguely make out the outlines of his face in this dim light, so I couldn’t exactly see the man’s expressions.
“
Ugh,” I groaned.
Meanwhile, perhaps he felt my gaze, Moon Issak looked down and me and squeezed my shoulder.
“
..!”
The problem, though, was that my hand was in tatters. When Moon Issak heard my small groan, he stopped and raised my damaged hand.
“
 [Healing] .”
“
Ngh.” At that moment, I recalled the pain that Bae Jaemin had inflicted on me with his healing skills and immediately recoiled, but Moon Issak’s skill didn’t cause me pain. However,  even after the blue light radiating from his hands disappeared, my wound did not heal and remained the same.
I was flustered because this was the first time that had ever happened. Moon Issak simply stared me in the eyes for a moment before raising his free hand. He took a potion out of the inventory and poured it over my wound.
As the cold liquid absorbed into my broken hand, the throbbing pain gradually began to subside.
When I moved my fingers slowly, testing them out, Moon Issak gently gripped my hand to block those movements. “Bones take some time to stick together, so don’t move.”
“
Thank you
 so much.”
“

”
I awkwardly lowered my head, but then I felt a stabbing gaze. When I hesitated and raised my head again, Moon Issak had already turned his back and was walking forward.
However

‘
Why isn’t he letting go of my hand?’
I was unexpectedly dragged away by his warm hand. Discomfited, I tried a couple of times to wriggle out of his grip, but after the investigator fixed his hold each time, I eventually gave up.
To be frank, Moon Issak probably appeared at this fortuitous timing for his own plans. If he was holding onto me, then I probably had no way of making him release his grip.
When I had resigned myself and released the strength from my hand, Moon Issak also slightly loosened his strong grip. “Is Koo Hui-seo starving you?”
“
What?”
“It’s been less than a few months since we last met–You’ve lost all your cheek fat.”
Something completely absurd tumbled out of his mouth.
I frowned and closed my mouth, but I felt an eerie chill inside when he pressed slowly on my knuckles, as if he were weighing them.
“What are you
” I asked.
“You’re skin and bones. You were at least somewhat decent looking before.”
“

” I closed my mouth because I had no response. Moon Issak laughed unpleasantly.
I decided to ignore him and instead looked at the silver-haired woman who was carrying a drooping Kim Sangyoon on her back while walking next to us.
Her long hair and expressionless face were reminiscent of Kim Olim. However, her physique was significantly smaller; the line of her eyes was higher than the Paladin as well. It was admirable to see her carry Kim Sangyoon–who was at least two meters tall–without breathing heavily despite the disadvantages brought about by her physique.
At that moment, she turned her head unexpectedly and looked at me–perhaps she had sensed my stare.
Embarrassed, I thought to quickly turn away, but, before I did so, she smiled slightly. Despite her ice cold appearance, she had a surprisingly good personality

“Stop saying such vulgar things and guide us properly.” However, before I could finish my thoughts, she looked at Moon Issak and spoke coldly. The smile disappeared, and I wondered if I had hallucinated.
I was worried that with Moon Issak’s personality this might lead to a fight, but to my surprise, the man shrugged his shoulders and responded quite softly (compared to his usual character). “Your imagination is quite active.”
“It’s just disgusting.”
“Choi Lee-kyung didn’t say anything, though?”
“It seems like he doesn’t even want to engage?”
Of course, that didn’t mean there was no tension between them.
Still, the two seemed quite close even though they quarreled. I kept my mouth closed and didn’t intervene, just watching their war of words.
I was so tired from Bae Jaemin today that I couldn’t be bothered to care about their conversation or what may happen in the future.
However, my body had also reached its limit; while taking a step, my feet became tangled from the strength of Moon Issak’s pull, and I almost fell forward if not for the man’s catch.
As Moon Issak hugged me, he said something completely nonsensical to his silver-haired acquaintance. “Look at that. I’m standing still, and Choi Lee-kyung is seducing me with his body again.”
“When did I
!” However, strangely, as soon as I leaned into the investigator’s arms, my body gradually relaxed.
I tried to right myself, but, somehow, the more strength I placed in my arms the more my knees buckled. Moreover, as I got closer to Moon Issak, his scent, which seemed to penetrate deep into my nostrils, felt nauseatingly strong.
In the end, I vomited iron-tasting blood that surged up while still in Moon Issak’s embrace.
“Tsk, oh my
”
""
Our party paused at that moment. The silver-haired woman’s brows furrowed, worry etched all over her face. Moon Issak seemed a bit annoyed, perhaps because I dirtied his jacket and shirt.
However, instead of cleaning his jacket, he scooped up both my legs with his arms and lifted me up. This hold–his gesture–was just too explicit.
“P-Put me down, please!” In my struggles, I grabbed Moon Issak by the collar (?) because I had no other hold. However, the man merely adjusted his neck and stance a few times before he settled into a comfortable position.
Moon Issak looked down at my wide-eyed expression and continued walking, “Choi Lee-kyung-ssi. It seems that your body is no longer responding to the potion.”
“W
What?”
“You’ve vomited it all out.”
As I lowered my head following Moon Issak’s gaze, I noticed my hand had swelled again, turning dark from the spreading bruises. There was also a pungent, fishy smell in my nose followed by a trickle of blood.
Moon Issak looked at my mouth, wide open from shock, and clicked his tongue, “Did Seo Dawon not tell you about this?”
“
What?”
“Don’t mess with a High Priest.”
Although it sounded like a joke, his words didn’t seem like mere jest. After all, a name that Moon Issak shouldn’t have mentioned had tumbled out of his lips.
Moon Issak looked at me; I turned pale instantly. Despite my consternation, he offered a faint smile.
“H-How
”
“However, the consequences were surprisingly light compared to your actions.”
“

”
“Wasn’t Ryu Hyerin’s disappearance also your doing?”
Moon Issak’s confident tone, which seemed to suggest he had evidence, wiped my mind blank.
I tried to say something, but I was starting to get out of breath and nothing would come out of my mouth. Moon Issak did not care about my reaction and continued to walk.
But, that silence suffocated me. I wondered what exactly the investigator knew and what his inner thoughts were.
To be frank, I was so anxious that I couldn’t even express an ounce of my curiosity. Though he was pretending to be friendly, once we arrived at our destination–a place hidden from the public eye–perhaps at that point, I’d
 I’d be dragged into his infamous underground cellar.
Before I knew it, I had gathered my trembling hands to my chest. I could feel Moon Issak’s stare, but it was still hard to hide my body’s tremors. The bones on the back of my re-shattered hand caused acute pain, but I couldn’t calm myself. Panic overwhelmed me.
His eyes like snakes, Moon Issak glanced at me before placing a finger on my swollen hand. He then drew a simple figure–a star? The back of my hand sparkled blue, and the pain began to subside.
After blocking my pain, the investigator walked to the end of the illuminated path. The silver-haired woman quietly followed.
Then, as he embraced me, Moon Issak softly whispered, “Don’t rack your brains and stay still, because it’ll be beyond more than whatever you’re imagining.”