33. Do Junhyuk Seems Suspicious
The return journey was led by Se-ah, who took the lead.
Junhyuk insisted on guarding the rear and moved ahead of her to take her place.
As Se-ah walked along the marked path they had left earlier, she felt a persistent gaze on the back of her head and kept looking back several times.
Each time, she noticed Do Junhyuk quickly averting his eyes.
What’s going on? Does he have some kind of secret he can’t talk about? Or is there something on me?
After taking a few steps, Se-ah stopped out of curiosity and turned toward Junhyuk.
"Hey...!"
She had just started speaking when her eyes widened in shock as she noticed a large beast charging at them from the forest behind him.
Junhyuk, hearing the animal's footsteps, swiftly turned around.
The beast, kicking up dust clouds as it ran, appeared to be a wild boar from the Philippine island guidebook they had read before.
With strange fur on its face and small horns, it was clearly a male.
Junhyuk, without hesitation, grabbed Se-ah by her waist, lifted her effortlessly, and placed her on the side of the path.
"Don’t move, and stay still,"
He said sternly, like a parent warning a child. After stepping a few paces away from her, he drew the bow from his back and aimed straight ahead.
His tightly pressed lips and firm jawline showed his intense concentration.
Se-ah, worried that Junhyuk might get hurt, watched him nervously, her palms sweating.
As the bowstring, stretched to its limit, was released without hesitation, the arrow pierced straight through the beast's neck as it got close.
“Snort, groan.”
Just as Se-ah was about to cheer, the boar let out a fierce roar and charged at him, causing her to freeze in place.
Even with an arrow embedded in its neck, the beast seemed angrier and more ferocious.
"Captain!"
Se-ah's face turned pale as she watched the wild boar stamp its feet and charge at Junhyuk.
What if he gets hurt…? The mere thought made her legs tremble uncontrollably.
“I’ll be fine. Stay still.”
Junhyuk quickly loaded another arrow, yet his voice remained calm as he reassured her.
His hand gripping the bow was steady and unwavering.
Whether it was due to the beast’s thick hide or its layer of fat, it kept moving forward even with an arrow lodged in its neck.
It wasn’t until Junhyuk fired several arrows in succession that the beast finally collapsed to the ground with a thud.
Junhyuk only approached the fallen animal once it had stopped moving entirely, his caution resembling that of a seasoned hunter.
Se-ah stared at him in awe, overwhelmed by a mix of emotions—relief from her earlier anxiety, admiration for his strength, and an unexpected attraction to the man before her.
What exactly is it that Do Junhyuk can’t do?
She watched Junhyuk pull the arrow out of the boar's body and tie it up with the rope he had brought. It was hard for her to believe that she was once married to such an extraordinary man.
Was I really the wife of someone so remarkable?
The words he once said—that he didn't like marriage—now seemed to mean that he didn't need it.
The phrase 'easy man' that he used seemed to imply that he was someone who found it easy to live alone.
Do Junhyuk looked like someone who could survive perfectly fine even if left alone on Earth.
It made sense why he wouldn’t be interested in something as trivial as marriage.
She hadn’t had the chance to ask him before, but she resolved to ask him why they got married if his memory ever returned.
Junhyuk refused Se-ah's offer to help lift the boar's hind legs and instead dragged it out of the forest himself.
The beach they had left for several hours remained untouched. While Junhyuk removed the traps he had set around their home, Se-ah busied herself by lighting a fire.
Why on earth did he set so many traps?
There were at least ten traps. Someone might think he was hiding treasure inside the treehouse, but all they had were their belongings.
Still, she felt both a chill and reassurance from how diligently he handled their affairs.
Using a torch, Junhyuk burned off the boar's fur, carved a large wooden skewer, and began preparing the roasted boar.
Once the fire was lit under the boar, it didn’t take long before the rich smell of meat filled the beach.
“Wild animals are full of parasites, so they need to be cooked thoroughly. It's also good to dry the meat with smoke afterward.”
Hearing this, Se-ah, who had been eagerly waiting to eat as soon as the surface was cooked, discreetly hid her chopsticks behind her back.
Junhyuk chuckled, skinned the fat from the meat, and skewered the tender flesh on a long wooden stick. He roasted it directly over the fire before handing it to her.
The savory aroma of the well-roasted meat reached her nose.
“This is cooked enough. Try it.”
“You should eat first, Captain.”
Despite her mouth watering, Se-ah tried to let him have the first bite. However, Junhyuk quickly pushed the skewer in front of her nose.
“It’s not because I’m being nice. I just want to see if it’s safe to eat.”
“What? Am I your guinea pig?”*
“You could say that. So go ahead and eat.”
Realizing his intention, Se-ah stopped hesitating and took a big bite.
“It’s so...delicious,”
“Chew and swallow before you talk.”
The meat, eaten for the first time in a long while, melted in her mouth. Seeing her devour it quickly, Junhyuk handed her another skewer.
Knowing he hadn’t eaten any yet, she firmly declined.
“Unless your plan is to fatten me up to eat me later, you should eat too, Captain.”
“What?”
Her joke seemed to spark an idea in Junhyuk’s eyes, making her suspicious.
“What’s with that sly look?”
“Sly? Don’t be ridiculous. If you’re not going to eat it, forget it.”
Junhyuk, unusually flustered, took a quick bite of the meat himself.
“Isn’t it really tasty?”
Se-ah asked, her eyes sparkling. Junhyuk gave her a brief nod.
After eating until they were full, Junhyuk sliced the remaining meat thinly and left it to dry over smoke, making jerky.
Watching the meat dry, Se-ah turned her gaze to the calm sea.
The stillness of the sea, with nothing floating on it, reminded her of a protagonist in a movie isolated for decades.
“Captain.”
“Yes?”
“What if we’re stuck here forever?”
“That’s unlikely, but even if it happens, what can we do? We just have to live as best as we can. We have water, and it doesn’t seem like we’ll run out of food either.”
His straightforward response made Se-ah chuckle.
“Why are you laughing?”
“It’s just that when you say things like that, it makes me feel like it’s not such a big deal. Like we don’t have to desperately struggle to survive.”
“We have to survive. That’s why I’m feeding you.”
When Junhyuk smiled contentedly while glancing at her full stomach, Se-ah quickly covered it, startled.
“There are people worrying about you. We have to get back.”
“Who would that be?”
“Your family must be looking for you.”
At Junhyuk’s question, Se-ah scratched her head awkwardly.
“They won’t even know I’m missing since I was planning to return in three months.”
“Return where?”
“To Korea. I’ve been in the Philippines for three years. My work visa was about to expire, so I planned to go back.”
“You’ve been here for three years?”
Junhyuk’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Yes.”
“Why?”
Junhyuk, now acting like an inquisitive teenager, bombarded her with questions.
“I had work to do.”
“Then, have I also been here that long?”
“No, you arrived recently. We ended up on the same boat because of work.”
“Then when did we become close? You said we’re close.”
“Uh…”
Junhyuk’s sudden question left Se-ah speechless. She couldn’t possibly say, We were actually married once. She doubted he would believe her.
After thinking for a moment, she decided to give a vague response.
“We got close about three years ago. Then I came to the Philippines afterward.”
“So we must’ve met socially. Were we in the same company?”
“No, we met through work, but we weren’t in the same company.”
“I see.”
“Yes. You helped me a lot, and we became close.”
Since she had received help through their marriage, her words weren’t entirely untrue.
“So that’s why you said I was a good person?”
“Yes. You’ve helped me in many ways.”
“Is everyone who helps you a good person?”
For some reason, Junhyuk seemed a bit skeptical.
“Well, not everyone, but you’re definitely a good person to me.”
“Of course. I must be special.”
“What? Uh… yes, that’s right.”
Se-ah, about to deny it, ended up nodding reluctantly when Junhyuk raised an eyebrow.
Being 'special' didn’t carry much weight in their current situation, and she didn’t want to upset him unnecessarily.
Satisfied with her answer, Junhyuk nodded in approval but suddenly hesitated as if he wanted to say something.
“By any chance… never mind.”
Curious about what he was going to say, Se-ah’s thoughts shifted to the likelihood that many people must be looking for him instead.
“Well, they don’t even know I’m missing, so it’s fine. But Junhyuk, you must have a lot of people looking for you.”
“Maybe not.”
Junhyuk, recalling how indifferent his father had been even after his months-long absences, responded calmly.
đŒ; *Someone being used for testing or experimentation. In the story, Junhyuk jokingly suggests that Se-ah should try the food first to see if it's safe to eat, likening her to a guinea pig being used for a trial.
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