Haran looked at the boy quietly.
"It was about a year ago, wasn't it? We met in front of the kindergarten. You remember me, don't you?"
"Y-Yes?"
It wasn't only his eyes that had changed.
His way of speaking.
His attitude.
The atmosphere around him.
Everything about Haran was different from the man Seo Munhyeok knew.
"I remember your face too, Gyumin. But Sua told me something. She said there are children in your class who say awful things to her and bully her."
"U-Uh..."
"Can you pass a message along to those children for me?"
"..."
"Tell them they'd better keep their hands off our Sua from now on."
"..."
"If I hear even one more time from our Sua that someone has been mocking or bullying her..."
Haran suddenly staggered.
Startled, Seo Munhyeok reached out to steady him.
The instant he caught him, focus returned to Haran's eyes.
"...No matter what I have to do, I will make them pay for it. Understood?"
His manner of speaking changed again.
So did the atmosphere surrounding him.
'Something happened.'
Seo Munhyeok instinctively knew something inside Haran had shifted.
He simply had no idea what.
While silently observing him, Haran glared coldly at Gyumin before turning his gaze toward the boy's guardian.
"You've spent years gossiping behind our backs about me and my child. Did you really think I wouldn't know?"
"W-What? Wh-What are you talking about...?!"
"Watch your tongue. If you wish to live out your natural lifespan, you'd be wise to stop behaving so disgracefully."
The woman's face instantly flushed red.
Just as she was about to raise her voice, the kindergarten director, having finally heard the commotion, hurried outside and stepped between them.
"W-Wait a moment. What's going on here?"
"This man just threatened my son and me...!"
Gyumin's guardian clung to the director, trembling with rage.
I'd already warned you to mind that vulgar mouth of yours.
"Tsk."
Haran looked down at her with utter contempt before turning away.
"You're no longer worth speaking to. We'll never see each other again anyway."
"W-Wait. Let's go."
Still carrying Sua, Seo Munhyeok gave the director and the homeroom teacher a polite nod before following after Haran.
Behind them, the remaining parents quietly whispered among themselves while watching Gyumin's guardian angrily complain to the director.
"What happened?"
"I heard that mother had been spreading nasty rumors about another child. Then it turned out that child's guardian knows Hunter Seo Munhyeok."
"Oh my. Isn't that Gyumin's mother?"
"Tsk, tsk. I knew something like this would happen sooner or later. She's been talking behind people's backs for ages."
"Which child was she talking about? Layeong? Or Suchan?"
"Wasn't it Jiyoon? She was always gossiping about Jiyoon whenever she talked to me."
"The little girl Hunter Seo Munhyeok was carrying was Sua."
Their whispers reached Gyumin's guardian's ears.
This time, her face turned scarlet for an entirely different reason.
Meanwhile, Sua's group climbed into the car and drove away.
After glaring bitterly at the empty parking spot while finishing her complaints to the director, Gyumin's guardian took her son and left.
Tap. Tap-tap-tap.
From beginning to end, several people had quietly recorded everything on their phones before immediately sending messages to friends and acquaintances.
News that Seo Munhyeok had appeared at a kindergarten—and that Haran had been recruited into Eclipse—spread across the internet at astonishing speed.
* * *
"Uncle, are you okay? Does something hurt?"
"Here, wet wipes. Let's stop by a hospital first. Please fasten your seat belt."
Inside the car, things were considerably more chaotic.
Sitting in her child seat, Sua nervously stared at the blood on the back of Haran's hand.
Seo Munhyeok repeatedly checked Haran's complexion through the rearview mirror as he drove.
"It's fine. The bleeding stopped ages ago."
The only calm person in the car was Haran himself.
After casually wiping the blood from his face and hand with a wet wipe, he leaned back against the seat.
"Stop making such a fuss. It's noisy."
"But Uncle..."
"You should at least let the hospital examine..."
"Tsk. Enough. Both of you."
He waved a hand dismissively.
"Talk about something else."
Sua and Seo Munhyeok exchanged uneasy glances before falling silent.
Once the car finally quieted down, Haran let out a long yawn.
This was already the fourth time today he'd glimpsed the body's memories.
Yet no matter how many times it happened, he still couldn't get used to losing control.
'Damn it...'
Since becoming the great archmage, he'd never experienced such helplessness.
Ignoring the worried eyes fixed on him, Haran simply closed his own.
For a while, neither Sua nor Seo Munhyeok knew what to say.
Then—
Bzzz. Bzzz.
The sudden vibration shattered the silence.
Startled, Seo Munhyeok glanced at the phone mounted beside the dashboard.
Geumyi
Incoming Call
He frowned slightly.
'What happened?'
He'd already told everyone he was taking personal leave through today.
'Could it be something urgent?'
While he hesitated, the call ended.
Only for the same person to call again immediately.
Unable to ignore it a second time, Seo Munhyeok put on an earbud and answered.
"Yeah? What's wrong?"
Haran, whose eyes had remained closed until now, slowly opened one of them at the sound of Seo Munhyeok's voice.
Sua blinked curiously at the back of his head.
"...Huh? What did you say?"
At that exact moment, the traffic light turned red.
Seo Munhyeok hit the brakes a beat too late.
Everyone lurched forward.
The sudden jolt knocked the earbud out of his ear, and the caller's voice came blasting through the car speakers.
"So Eclipse recruited a new Hunter, and I have to learn about it from a news article?"
"..."
"I want a full explanation. Every last detail!"
The sharp voice pierced Haran's ears.
Seo Munhyeok glanced at him through the rearview mirror before sighing.
"...I'm on my way. We'll talk when I get there."
The light turned green.
The sedan smoothly changed lanes and sped away.
* * *
"What did the Guild Master say? Is this article actually real?"
"I don't know! Sounds like he's coming here."
Inside Eclipse Guild's lounge, three guild members sat sprawled across the sofas, each clutching a phone.
Breaking News — Eclipse Ends Two Years of Silence, Recruits Mystery Hunter
Reports have emerged that Eclipse, the elite guild led by S-class Hunter and national hero Seo Munhyeok, has recruited its first new guild member in approximately two years.
Since its founding four years ago, Eclipse has maintained an extremely small roster through rigorous selection standards. Recruitment has been completely suspended for the past two years, making this decision one that is expected to send shockwaves throughout the Hunter industry.
Eclipse currently operates with only three guild members: A-class Defense Hunter Gi Taebeom, A-class Fire Mage Ma Geumyi, and B-class Healer Eom Jihan.
Comments (42)
-ip23.41: Wait, Eclipse is recruiting?? When was the application posted? Why didn't I see it? T_T
└ip57.93: There wasn't one. Nobody in the industry heard anything. Probably just a rumor.
└└ip95.38: Not a rumor. Witness accounts and photos are already popping up everywhere.
-ip49.16: Eclipse doesn't take just anybody. Who the hell did they recruit without even announcing it? Another S-class? lol
-ip27.75: Heard the rookie's already a parent. Photos from witnesses kinda back it up (link)
└ip85.33: Is this real?? Seo Munhyeok at a kindergarten looks so wrong lol. Looks photoshopped.
└└ip53.55: My acquaintance works at that kindergarten. It's real. Hunter Seo Munhyeok personally went there because he wanted to make a good impression on the Hunter he recruited. He even carried the new Hunter's kid and drove them around like a chauffeur.
└└└ip33.52: "My acquaintance works at the kindergarten" lmaoooo what, is your acquaintance five years old? lol
└└└└ip53.55: My acquaintance is one of the teachers.
└└└└└ip33.52: Ah... my bad lol.
The internet had exploded.
The first rumors began spreading through parenting forums.
Screenshots of private conversations, supposedly sent by acquaintances, along with photos allegedly taken firsthand, quickly drew attention.
"I think our Guild Master has actually lost his mind. He seriously went to a kindergarten? Without even hiding his face?"
Geumyi grabbed the back of her neck while staring at the circulating photos.
Beside her, Jihan frowned and waved a dismissive hand.
"Isn't that just someone who looks like him? None of the pictures are even clear. They're all blurry. Our Guild Master is way too careful to do something like this."
"I don't know."
Until then, Taebeom had remained silent.
Now he finally spoke.
"If he told us he'd explain everything in person... then the rumors probably aren't entirely wrong."
His voice was noticeably lower than usual.
His expression revealed nothing.
But the irritation beneath his calm tone was impossible to hide.
'He's angry. He's really angry.'
'What do we do? Is the Guild Master going to get punched when he gets here?'
Geumyi and Jihan exchanged nervous looks.
They had known Taebeom for three or four years already.
Neither had ever seen him this shaken.
"A-Ahem! Anyway... maybe things will finally get a little easier if we're getting another guild member? Haha..."
"Y-Yeah! The Guild Master is always careful, so I'm sure he picked someone worthwhile."
Trying to rescue the increasingly awkward atmosphere, Geumyi and Jihan shifted the conversation toward the mysterious newcomer.
In truth, neither of them opposed recruiting a new guild member.
The reason everyone was upset was simply because they had learned about it through a news article before hearing it from their Guild Master.
"I'm still annoyed at the Guild Master, but if he brings back someone good, I'm all for it. Jihan, what position are you hoping for?"
"Hmm... another healer, I think. I'm still not good enough on my own. Even a C-class healer would be great. Most guilds have at least one support healer these days."
"Ooh, a healer. That's not bad."
"What about you, Noona?"
"Hmm... I'd like a buffer. We don't have one yet. A B-class buffer who can increase mana would be amazing."
The two continued chatting before once again turning their attention toward Taebeom.
Still sitting unnaturally stiff in his seat, he slowly opened his mouth.