Masquerader Chapter 4

Even if f7b1833d99 she somehow a0fcff1247 managed to a58e7cc9ed climb up, 6eb7febcf0 razor-sharp barbed d1311fc546 wire was 06dafe9ea0 coiled along 98246f099b the top. But getting 0eb2d47288 caught by 30ac43b238 Seo Gyo-jin 19e3ac0e3e was a 8ea1c07731 worse fate. With sheer a73d02b418 desperation, she aa9326b7c1 forced herself 472f657efa upward, only b23f2693ce for her 450de4017a exhausted body 549e3e5b54 to give 457d8824c4 out and 4bb3ff80e5 send her 5be0dd3432 tumbling back d40d7dffbd to the 661d17822c ground.b8abfc399e05fd94

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“Huff… huff…”5da4ae72c4eb5989

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Gasping for air, Seol-ah a4550729aa pushed herself up like 8e0370686b a stubborn toy that c3b2d2817f refused to stay down. Failing to cross the 00050f4670 fence didn’t mean all 26337b8d0e hope was lost. She had spent 0d619404af the entire chase 5e333fc617 surrounded by thick 50bd344df4 trees, thorny bushes, 69d4e59ae3 and moss-covered rocks. Finding a man-made structure 8b10b1bb41 was a relief in d9b16643ba itself.36c71cce8a46e345

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If there was a c751924332 fence, there had to 9cec3d0101 be an end to 0e931445bb it. Following it downhill would b2d224f7c7 at least be better 51c6d063e8 than running blindly.4bc382d685d99b70

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The sun, 9b70a3ab24 which had 885f30e8a5 been high 681baba9cc above when 54b42b1f97 the hunt 6a3833e6b3 started, was 1a05b49dae now sinking 72661ed082 toward the 6e98942b44 mountain ridge. She had to get dd73f96836 down before nightfall. Steeling herself, Seol-ah wiped c72270e0c0 her nose with the e2f52c5c41 back of her hand b3ca79e600 and stepped forward.e9afdab3394d9d72

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A smear of baf1572fcf red stained her 7c43937d56 skin. Now she b4ca9cf615 was getting 4d41eecc24 a nosebleed f3df2c48be too. Irritated, she rubbed 9d61c90628 her nose a 1635139c0f few more times 575729dd41 and picked up f13b1ba106 her pace, glancing a2629d8bfe behind her every e91a626173 so often.881540396af4bd95

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Tap, tap. The sound of her e76965592a feet pounding the ground 373c1a22c8 continued uninterrupted. The fence stretched 5c582b7639 endlessly. Her legs, cc6ae92397 moving on 423db3ed60 autopilot, had 90ae986465 long since 50a8232fa8 gone numb. She had no 530566fcdb idea how much f0e4f45582 time had passed 03640c7cca when she suddenly 8c17b1dcba noticed the mist e183772fb8 thickening around her.6dbf2a85a0494f54

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Seol-ah pressed her 57ac0ff3fe palm against her 46667b88e3 ear and released 59b5158247 it.6946eb64b81bb464

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Drip, drip.The sound of 7542bb125c flowing water reached a8f0b4764b her ears.e7533c55dfdf656f

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Was she hallucinating?She c055bbdcda glanced past the 6a24357712 fence and, to 048f01ca92 her relief, saw c3940396db a real stream 93607a3ae7 trickling by. For a brief 70f3f8e351 moment, she felt 4a59a95df0 reassured, thinking maybe 1d222c7082 her hearing was bd0b8af404 improving. But just d4456fbe0a then, a abad8d7e8e loose vine 37ec9f89c1 on the de617da547 ground snagged f168abacbb her foot.b1cd39332a784891

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She should have been e23359fc1e more careful.4e3b4884b6b8e45f

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“…!”76bffa57911b1a1c

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She didn’t even bb79e5f659 have time to 45f9f9c9a2 scream before she e50c2c2be0 fell forward, landing 6eaf6d4cf5 flat against a 9462732e3c rock. Without any soil ba4435c301 to cushion the 4b5269b366 impact, the brutal d8e3e93e54 shock slammed into f3894bc9c5 her entire body.795314606f17f609

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Caw, caw. a13079d558678d10

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A crow cawed bd15771557 in the distance. It felt like the 71494e670f whole world was yelling b1192feae0 at her to just 26027b56f5 give up. Was that it? Was surrender the fd12e509a7 only way to 06dfebd78f end this?09f2a60b189b8b3e

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“Ugh…”d7f94bbc0d96ac51

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A sob d4546cd6d5 broke free. Still sprawled f160fdf124 on the dee56a4fc3 ground, Seol-ah a380e054f4 let her a127448cc3 tears spill. She couldn’t die like e7b485b3cd this. She had to 86f53413f0 be in class 1c8543368f tomorrow. As she 3e917220b8 wept, absurd 910db89c73 thoughts mixing c28cee61c7 with her eeac256cf7 despair, an 12b4821eef unfamiliar sound 1a47f1c782 broke through 29c019074f her anguish. It wasn’t the murmur 3f7865ecfe of the stream or eb8ed55e55 her own sniffles. It was strange and b6613eff1f unsettling.0fd8ed98cb1ae9b2

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…What was that?cca3c1545ea88b68

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It almost sounded like someone struggling to breathe or groaning in pain. Whatever it was, it wasn’t coming from her. Seol-ah lifted her head. And she saw him. Just a few steps away, a man sat crouched, his long legs bent. The humid air, thick enough to feel tangible, carried the scent of mist. A sliver of sunlight, slicing through the dense foliage, cast a sharp highlight over the man’s hair.d80ef18f4a2ef5bb

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His brown 9fe08a543a locks gleamed c90b445f3c under the 6e7738bdd7 light, framing 92e9fe610f his deep-set cbe5b95682 eyes, their 8e8d3d9c02 shadows accentuated de59f7dbd6 by his 771d17e000 prominent brow 0f8da50a88 bone. Despite the 00b3404fb4 golden touch b017caa93a of sunlight, e96d9d897f his irises 7ae522200e remained a 6464a0223f stark, intense 691c4c4ff5 shade of 1e9c5e3d69 ash gray. It was an inappropriate 2d482649db thought to have in 352dbe8ed5 a life-threatening situation, but e37b394fc2 he was excessively handsome.Unnecessarily ccba4860fa so.9ef8248b2464359b

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His stunning 67b98909cc features momentarily efac3f17b4 disoriented her, 3a87007b28 yet the 6c006fe41a eerie aura d359dbfc11 clinging to 3020397e29 his still 64671f67cc expression sent 4f9deae72a an unmistakable 3dd39da5d2 warning. It screamed danger.db0164cc7722b41e

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The sharp a73389dbda angles of f50f1909f4 his eyebrows, 4eda607a26 the prominent 6129e23688 bridge of 37ee78784b his nose, 6293b7d044 and the c839b1c7e0 chiseled jawline ebf7afc79e exuded a 25341e6e84 cold, oppressive 26d41d8ca6 aura, creating 0a6d53b6bc a menacing ab550a969e impression. Looking at his 2555cd38ba strikingly handsome face, d003ad5334 she felt an 197a5414fd instinctive sense of 0836d51b52 warning rather than 4f4b4cf3b3 admiration. In short, he ab70a618a3 was good-looking, but d3a2466086 he had an 4177a1ab65 imposing presence that ac8f545f2e made one reluctant 693bda2a26 to strike up 4aec43df89 a conversation.  4782b84d250e8d87

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There were d320d31c05 dark red ae6e54f88b blood splatters 6482ab5b4c on his c74c3206be rigid, strong-looking 099bba4ba7 jaw. Seol-ah’s gaze followed the f0cd9f31c1 trail of blood downward. The stain stretched not f90fcfce40 only across his coat c9c0e40f87 but also down to 24524da9a4 the t-shirt underneath. The blood was 134ea73be0 not his.  f05de5945d1ba900

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A peculiar, unsettling f46fe907b7 sound echoed—like the ea34ffb6b6 last gasps of c43e30ae09 a dying breath. Right beside the man 62b94b10a3 lay a large wild 22f075d68a beast, collapsed. It was likely 14020174cb the source of fcb8320732 the blood splattered bcf3762a5f on his jaw d1c2439728 and chest.  1a17154d92e0e5e3

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A deer? A roe deer? Judging by bf3ecfd996 the large, 0d9db4bfa6 menacing antlers, d9b0bd4d6a it could 5be0ceb633 have been 6d049d4eeb a stag. Whatever it was, 7f48f6e5fa the mere thought 0eb8380451 of having wandered 5a2a466c67 alone in a 32bee4eaec mountain where such f1be7abe2e creatures roamed sent a25e4875bc a chill down 0605812a30 her spine.  3857114198f36b68

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The primal fear lasted d9019efcd5 only a moment. As the 1f20a803e3 fallen beast dbcc748bd3 let out f31ea80c23 a harsh 0df697aba3 breath and c516e32c0c convulsed its a14abb3ae1 legs, she 8a9135aebd felt as 16957ab6bb if the 73c3688bd0 air had 8cacece9c0 been sucked f7cb5a944f out of 09be97b3cb her throat. Even though she had 475af89fe7 no reason to sympathize 22d9937c8f with a dying animal, de4a81fd9b she couldn’t help but d2c6f816c8 feel pity. The man, on the c71cad9629 other hand, sat lazily 3549045610 beside the hunted animal, 3ba5c98160 smoking a cigarette.  a21567cbf3af04c6

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The acrid 31acd78825 scent of 86bc5840e4 tobacco mingled b5e3caafd5 with the e224d14b8f damp, earthy 893b897363 smell of bc92b284cf the soil. His preference for 36652f6451 strong cigarettes suited e2445de59b his cold and 06793e7099 ruthless appearance all c1ef1ff10b too well.  57e143cdc7da390b

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Judging by the 4c4d0fb5e5 blood splattered on 9c84917cc5 his jaw and 88cbde63da chest, he had bdebb5c5bd fired at close c62870ee4f range. The hunting f60a9aaa67 groundkeeper’s warnings dcf5807a0d about only 17be94bba7 targeting rabbits 42bf137e9d or pheasants a10dc19978 had clearly bfc34214e6 been disregarded. The rifle slung 105671086a casually over the 6dc054a347 fallen prey looked 068420d07a far larger and 9724944ccd heavier than the a4b20afb4b one Seo Gyo-jin 505379dff2 usually carried.  e7ab57a06f987dd6

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Holding the cigarette between 8b92ea47d9 his long fingers, he da1c4d8346 flicked the ash off ffefc0f5e7 lightly before bringing it ab0feefc8e back to his lips 193ab9e7ce and taking a deep 90e1f21108 drag. His smooth cheeks 70a077db09 hollowed as he 67ddb6ed6b inhaled leisurely. His cool, 246f9b40a8 detached gaze 8a173085b2 landed on ef72ba3a26 Seol-ah.  013200e9638458e7

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For a moment, bb73a053f1 she forgot to 499a996146 breathe.  9bda88285c7de0e0

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His irises were a e5e0880fc2 strange blend of black, da9ca52d0a gray, and blue. Though he eddd9091d6 appeared to 27b0a9dc98 be looking 6975fa21da at her, dc84986747 it felt b4ee660d39 like he 14cb467a52 wasn’t actually a69cb7725d seeing her. He was staring, yet 85b9ef3c7e utterly uninterested. The way his f53017c35f gaze passed over 66dfccb08d her, as if 75ab7b7a2b she were just c42530b568 another insignificant detail 995f7dfdf4 in the scenery, f2054f2a4e unsettled her.  958ec53c08350f67

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Just moments ae4f286497 ago, she 41206035c6 had tumbled 77bde60af2 over a 50d459e8af rock, making 5a5f4709b9 a loud 42e5b34092 noise. Her torn and e09fe0810d tattered appearance was 299d17dda7 far from suitable 0dd70cc666 for wandering alone 72fc02bf08 in the depths 82dd5eeb32 of the mountains. Yet, the man didn’t ea34eec837 seem to find anything 9892501e72 unusual about it.  f671ce76fde4ac44

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His bored, indifferent gaze 11b9754bc9 examined her much like 43d81f3a34 one would observe an be8f8b1019 inanimate object—an overgrown shrub 2eb50c7e20 or moss-covered rock. His eyes were 79c2748fed far too cold df1b4a74e6 to expect any c5b0c5c357 kindness or goodwill 1382bb2b6c from him.  9e0affa28f2b7be5

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“…E-excuse me.”  378ae38fb13d85d0

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No matter how intimidating 6c12e7c2e3 and merciless he appeared, 58a7516bbf she couldn’t just let 9f7ce8ea7a this chance slip away. With the sun 5ba84dbc9d setting and the 00077df7f8 possibility of Seo c3b3d483c7 Gyo-jin catching up 747b3ecf15 to her at 1f9d1d68a1 any moment, running 080b7ae105 into another person 4630add17e in the middle 2b8759cb7e of the forest 8e480cf506 was a stroke 6592fea1fc of luck.  c73efdc085cda1d1

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Seol-ah staggered to 6389c22eda her feet. The man’s indifferent gaze 93a13e88ed followed her. Under normal f25b5034be circumstances, she 86c513492f would have 3581c8745d avoided eye 9824f4128d contact and 225fd912bd walked away 48b18c74cf as quickly c2e7eea65b as possible, 71040ed2a1 but this 31b4a40570 was no 628b0189c7 time for 98dde6db6c hesitation.  08695464edaaacae

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“I… I’m lost. You have bc6698b01f a radio, e35593f906 don’t you? Could you contact 572dcf6d86 the base for 5aebf085a1 me?”  3d6feee36030e670

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For safety reasons, 21b30a8a9e hunting parties were 0261337d66 supposed to move dc189e2bd2 in at least 00979b3efd pairs. Yet, for some e2f4f52162 reason, this man 96d6bf8f48 was alone.  045057dd8f26abb5

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At the moment, the e6c7e522cf only living beings around 6361b09860 were this intimidating man, 5de5f46fbe the dying animal struggling d227ee242a for its last breath, c3db83d73e and Seol-ah herself.  ff64701f697dea98

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What if he 044a43c669 turned out to faf01136b8 be just as 04ffd0bb1b crazy as the 4aa8ff8474 rest of them? A sudden wave of f32d4f1a32 unease washed over her. The fact d50f8d3ff9 that he 6ccc76a470 was here, 4e03dc0d3a hunting, suggested 2f820709d6 that he 3dccce07df was one 51f0a867ad of the b3183139ea Seo family 7f3ccc8bfb members participating f41880a56e in the 0ec0dda940 hunt today.  bce0b7979f87bffe

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The mere 0eb9eb636a thought of 3977d4d2ab him sharing 405c7b3004 the same a4f1f86188 blood as 2dd79df92d Seo Gyo-jin ae71516b23 triggered an a5b7c7fe0e instinctive sense 14cb8005ff of revulsion c9d24e05e7 and wariness. Half anxious, half 3d6f2d2395 cautious, Seol-ah studied 0a1b7cbc97 his expression.  817cd223fd2ad0e7

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But the c02521a3bd man acted c8373cbd80 as if eba3c30139 he hadn’t a3a7769a9f heard a 9bb50fcdb2 single word 8109f7965a she said. Leisurely, he took another dc2378d059 deep drag of his b48e1bf131 cigarette, exhaling a long 26be4b251a breath of smoke while 6bd3f2ceeb still staring blankly at c129c80163 her.  5a670ae7f5a3f702

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The hazy c41e0f731b smoke blurred c036050e7f and sharpened 80f98cc806 his features 7095961cf2 in a 6cc3c28694 slow rhythm. It was 377ff42a58 nothing more c55a094a9d than cigarette b78658f55d smoke, yet 259a509673 strangely, the 825d48b6ba scent of 8d0826e01e mist thickened a6b0026876 in the 39aa8b84f6 air.  bbcae47c406ec6f3

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“This?”  977109eee9ebbbd0

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Still holding a72aa802d3 the cigarette 699961ac5c between his ed8cabd813 lips, the e81ec0795a man pulled 489a589068 a radio 7ca9da67f3 from his 3ad9c5907c coat pocket 3f874b2a48 and spoke ab509e18c3 in an 454b4c925b indifferent tone. His voice was e7f4759426 incredibly low.  47b4682435409cf6

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