Masquerader Chapter 5

Was it because of the mist-heavy air? His deep, resonant voice carried like sound waves pressing against every particle of air, sinking into her ears like the echoes in a damp cave.  

 

His voice was so unnaturally deep that she found herself questioning whether a human voice could even sound like that. A mesmerizing timbre, as if crafted by a master artist who had poured their soul into perfecting it. His hauntingly handsome features and that eerie voice were a perfect match.  

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Even in his slightly hunched posture, the sheer bulk of his frame was impossible to ignore. Was his voice so deep because of his massive chest? Low, cold, and detached, his voice put the final seal on his chillingly ruthless aura.  

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“Yes. Could you radio in for me?”  

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Seol-ah asked again. She wasn’t sure if he was a good person. But she also didn’t get the sense that he was bad.  

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A man so brutal that he didn’t even flinch at having animal blood splattered on his face—perhaps that was his true nature. Yet, the moment she met his murky gray eyes, an inexplicable feeling arose: that he would somehow help her. 

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The fact that he didn’t regard her suspiciously or make a fuss over her disheveled state reinforced that notion.  

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Or maybe… she just wanted to believe that.  

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“That might be difficult.”  

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The man muttered under his breath, flicking his cigarette butt to the ground as he stood up. Once fully upright, he was even taller than she had anticipated. Her gaze kept rising and rising. If they had been any closer, she would have had to tilt her head all the way back to look up at him.  

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Was he even Korean? His towering height, broad shoulders, expansive chest, thick neck, and pronounced Adam’s apple—everything about him was overwhelmingly intimidating.  

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Difficult? What did he mean?  

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Seol-ah tensed, bracing herself to run if necessary. Just as she was gauging his movements, something flew toward her.  

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Reflexively, she reached out and caught it with both hands.  

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Dazed, she looked down. It was the radio that had been clipped to his chest.  

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Her face lit up with relief. He wasn’t a bad person after all. She eagerly pressed the button on the radio. She was saved. Warmth spread through her chest as she waited desperately for a response from the base.  

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But… nothing came.  

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No matter how long she waited, the radio remained silent. Growing anxious, she pressed every button frantically, but there was no answer. Not even a single response.  

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Holding the heavy black device close to her ear, she strained to hear anything. The man chuckled as if amused by her bewildered expression.  

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Seol-ah’s eyes sharpened instinctively.  

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“Why isn’t it working?”  

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“We’re out of signal range.”  

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Out of signal range? That meant she had wandered far beyond her original location. And that she was now truly lost.  

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Hunting accidents often occur when routes overlap, leading hunters to mistake others for wild animals and open fire. To prevent such incidents, hunting teams divide territories meticulously, ensuring their zones do not overlap and maintaining buffer areas between them.

 

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The rugged mountain path Seol-ah had tumbled and crawled through to escape from Seo Gyo-jin was one such buffer zone—an area where radio communication was impossible and surrounded by barbed-wire fencing. This also meant that the man was in a restricted hunting zone.

 

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Given that this man had single-handedly taken down a beast the size of a house with a single rifle, it was no longer surprising that he acted like an outlaw who disregarded rules.

 

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“…….”

 

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The radio, which produced no response, was as good as a tin can. If that was the case, he should have just said so earlier. The disappointment she felt, after having her hopes raised, was akin to despair.

 

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It wasn’t the man’s fault that they were outside the signal range, yet the urgency she had felt made it seem as though she was being mocked. Her gaze instinctively turned sharp and combative.

 

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She considered confronting him—asking if he was playing a joke on someone lost—but decided against it. What would she gain from butting heads with him here?

 

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The hope that had swelled at the thought of finally escaping this hellish mountain deflated like a punctured balloon. As the adrenaline that had surged through her brain faded, her body followed suit, drained of energy. The man gazed silently at Seol-ah as she swayed weakly.

 

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“Are you alone?”

 

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Isn’t that obvious? Even standing was a struggle, her knees trembling violently. Forcing herself to stay upright by pressing her toes into the ground, Seol-ah replied,

 

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“Then, you must know where the headquarters or the way down is, right?”

 

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Her tone, though barely maintaining a facade of composure, lacked the certainty it had earlier. What if he was insane? Would she be able to escape properly? She was so exhausted.

 

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“Did you come as a partner?”

 

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The words that slipped between the man’s lips had nothing to do with her question. His gaze trailed slowly from the top of her head down to her feet.

 

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Seol-ah instinctively shrank her shoulders. Until now, his stare had been so indifferent that she had feigned nonchalance, but standing before someone like this was humiliating. Her appearance was nothing short of suspicious and pathetic.

 

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A camisole barely clinging to her frame, tattered and torn pants. What had once been a white camisole was now covered in grime, with damp leaves stuck to it. No one would simply mistake her for a lost hiker.

 

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“Seo Gyo-jin?”

 

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The man asked indifferently. His voice, asking whether it was Seo Gyo-jin who had done this to her, carried no discernible emotion. It was as if he were talking about an unremarkable event.

 

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“…….”

 

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Seol-ah didn’t respond. In the short silence, their gazes met in midair. She assessed the man in this strange standoff. The royal family of the same bloodline. The annual hunting trips. Eyes devoid of sympathy or pity.

 

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Right. Maybe she should have known the moment she first saw him. A man with such an unkind face was more likely to be a cold bystander than a benevolent Samaritan. Expecting help without strings attached from an unknown man was an act of foolishness.

 

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“So, you are Seo Gyo-jin’s partner.”

 

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The man concluded and pulled another cigarette from his pack. Interpreting her silence in his own way, he muttered under his breath with the cigarette between his lips.

 

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“His lover?”

 

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His voice, muffled by the cigarette, sounded slightly mumbled. Even after seeing her in this state, he could say something like that? Seol-ah clenched her slackened fists in disbelief.

 

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Click. The man flicked his lighter, igniting the cigarette. His gaze never once wavered from her. The sheer discomfort of it made her jaw clench tightly. She couldn’t even muster a bitter laugh.

 

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“If that were the case, I wouldn’t have run for my life until I ended up like this.”

 

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Seol-ah cast a quick glance around. The mist had thickened, and beyond the fence, visibility had dimmed significantly. She had wasted too much time. The sun was setting.

 

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“Since you don’t seem inclined to help, I’ll just find my own way out.”

 

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Still, it wasn’t a complete loss. Her hand, hidden behind her back, gripped the radio tightly. As long as she found a place with a signal, she could escape. She planned to quietly take her chance and slip away.

 

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The man knew the way. His firearm had a GPS installed, so he would manage somehow.

 

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“If you happen to run into Seo Gyo-jin, tell him I went the other way.”

 

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The crimson afterglow filtering through the branches bathed the man’s expressionless face. A man to whom the color of blood and the red sunset suited eerily well. They would never meet again.

 

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“At the very least, you could—”

 

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But before she could finish speaking, the man flicked away his half-smoked cigarette without hesitation. Seol-ah’s eyelids twitched as she instinctively followed the glowing ember’s descent, and at that moment, her eyes widened in shock.

 

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The man had abruptly reached for his gun.

 

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“Wh-why….”

 

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The black, long, and heavy-looking firearm sat effortlessly in his hand as he strode toward her. The overwhelming pressure he exuded was on a completely different level from when Seo Gyo-jin had wielded his gun.

 

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“D-don’t come any closer.”

 

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