The Hunter’s Gonna Lay Low - Chap 145 Part 2 - day of change
Multiple screams intertwined in chaos, but there was no room to hear them properly. His feet pounded the ground relentlessly. His breath grew ragged. His heart, pushed to its limits, pounded as if it would burst. Even as nausea surged, he couldn’t stop.
Boom—!!
The ground rumbled as if an earthquake had struck. He staggered, unable to keep his balance. A massive explosion sounded right behind him. Sharp screams continued to echo beneath it all. Even though he knew he shouldn’t look back, curiosity overpowered his fear.
And then,
“Aaagh!”
A massive fist came flying straight at him. The man screamed and quickly rolled to the side. Dust and ash covered him, but that wasn’t important. Thud! The fist, missing its target, slammed into the center of the pavement.
Creaking, the giant golem’s head slowly turned toward him. A colossal shadow loomed over the man’s head.
The man squeezed his eyes shut, tears streaming down his face.
‘I shouldn’t have looked back, I should’ve taken a different route, no, I shouldn’t have left the house today at all.’
The thought didn’t continue further. The man curled up, praying that the coming pain would be brief.
At that moment,
Fwip! Thud!
Instead of the pain he expected, there was the sound of something being pierced. The man’s head jerked up. The golem was frozen mid-punch, something protruding from the center of its chest. The tip was blunt, covered in black plastic…
‘…An umbrella?’
Amazingly, what had pierced the golem’s heart seemed to be a plain black umbrella, the kind sold at convenience stores.
The man gaped as he watched the umbrella leave a circular hole in the golem before vanishing. Perched on the golem’s shoulder, which had stopped moving, was a figure shrouded in black. Even at a glance, it was clear the figure was a tall young man.
The figure in black raised the stick he was holding—
Whack!
And struck the golem’s head.
Slowly, the golem’s body, which had been teetering, collapsed, sending up a cloud of dust. Coughs echoed here and there. After what seemed like a while, when the air finally cleared, the man craned his neck to look around, but the black figure was already gone. It felt like he’d seen a ghost.
Soon, the sound of footsteps approached. Hunters in fluorescent vests appeared. One of them walked up to the man, who was still sitting on the ground.
“We’re from the Rift Management Bureau. Are you okay?”
“…It was J.”
“Sorry?”
The hunter, puzzled by the muttered reply, asked again, and the man responded louder.
“It was J!”
“He was wearing a mask, so I couldn’t see his face, but I’m sure it was J. He disappeared too fast to get a good look, but I’m certain it was J. He was all in black, so I couldn’t see clearly, but it had to be J… Why do all these testimonies sound like this?”
The hunter, reading through the statements, shrugged and turned off the tablet screen. The fluorescent ‘Safety’ armband on his arm shifted with the movement.
“All the witness statements are like this. He disappeared so quickly that they couldn’t get a good look. But at least they’re consistent.”
Another hunter, crouched in front of the golem, rested his chin on his hand and replied.
“Judging by the clean way the core was pierced, it probably was J. Did he use a spear?”
“According to the testimony… He pierced it with an umbrella.”
“What, is this some sort of praise song? Did he also teleport?”
“It was a life-or-death situation, so… it could be that the witness was mistaken.”
Clap, a sharp sound of applause drew everyone’s attention. The source was a woman in a fluorescent vest over a white shirt. She was Yang Hye-jin, an A-grade hunter from the Rift Management Bureau.
“Enough chit-chat. What about the witnesses?”
“Yes! Due to the risk of additional monster appearances, they were escorted to a nearby shelter.”
“Good job. Now, control the area and clean up the golem. It caused quite a ruckus appearing in the middle of the sidewalk.”
Clicking her tongue, she shoved her hands into her pockets and hopped onto the collapsed golem.
A breeze mixed with white ash blew. The fluorescent safety vest fluttered behind her. The fallen golem had a square head with a large dent in the middle. Somehow, the shape felt…
“…What is this?”
A strange sense of déjà vu hit her. Why does this seem familiar? It looks like something she’s seen before. Yang Hye-jin furrowed her brow and stared intently at the dented head, even inserting her hand into the crevice. A hunter, controlling the scene, leaned in.
“Senior, they’re transferring the golem to the Seowon Guild. They’ve requested it for research purposes.”
“Perfect timing. Rookie, why does this seem familiar to me?”
“What seems familiar?”
“This head.”
Recently, both the Awakened Management Bureau and the Rift Management Bureau had been struggling with a manpower shortage. As a result, the rookie, who still hadn’t escaped his position as the youngest, tiptoed to inspect the head. Yang Hye-jin muttered seriously.
“I’m sure I’ve seen it somewhere.”
“…Is that so? I don’t see it.”
“Really? Ah, what is it?”
Yang Hye-jin ruffled her hair in frustration. At that moment, a beep sounded from the walkie-talkie on her waist. A hunter repairing the damage called out.
“Senior! Team 2 is requesting support!”
“Dammit…”
“Ah, Team 1 is on their way.”
“Nice. Hunter Jung Bin is the best.”
Yang Hye-jin responded absentmindedly and brought the walkie-talkie to her ear. Come to think of it, the surroundings looked familiar. If you went down that alley, there was a hangover soup place she really liked. It had suddenly closed, though…
The thought made her even more depressed. She missed the spicy broth, tender meat, and the fragrant perilla powder. Not only was the food good, but the part-time worker was also so polite and efficient. His neat face floated in her mind. After just three months of not seeing him, his features had become a bit blurry.
Regulars had cooperated to confirm the safety of the shop’s owner and her granddaughter. However, the part-timer seemed to have vanished into thin air, leaving no trace behind.
‘He’d better be okay.’
It was hard not to worry since the shop had closed right after ‘that day.’ Yang Hye-jin murmured weakly.
“Ah, I really want some soju and hangover soup right now…”
“Uh, Senior, the walkie-talkie is still on.”
“What? Ah, crap!”
***
Three months ago, after the Day of the Rift, the black hole that had settled in the sky turned white, and through that gap, a massive whale appeared. The media named the day the whale appeared in the sky as;
The Day of Change.
It was quite a grand name. Some, with a hint of humor, referred to it as the “Day of Bleaching.”
Fortunately, the Day of Change didn’t cause as much damage as the Day of the Rift.
The falling debris from the hole gradually decreased in frequency, and after J dealt with the whale, no monster of that size appeared again. Of course, compared to the past, unobserved rifts and monsters started appearing more frequently, but people had already experienced this once and were quick to adapt to the changes.
With that, the seasons changed, winter passed, and the thaw of spring arrived. However, people didn’t feel the arrival of spring as much as they used to. Not because of yellow dust or fine dust…
“I can’t wear black clothes anymore.”
It was because of the white ash falling like snow from the sky.
People started calling the massive hole in the sky a “White Hole.”
A news video was playing on a screen installed atop a building.
—Guild Leader Mok Tae-oh of the HB Guild has stated that he will prioritize the safety of the public, while Guild Leader Song Jo-heon of the Samra Guild has announced that he will cooperate with the HB Guild to overcome this crisis…
—Meanwhile, Guild Leader Lee Sa-young of the Pado Guild remains missing. The Pado Guild continues to maintain its previous stance that Guild Leader Lee is unable to appear in public due to health issues. However, with the frequency of unobserved rifts increasing, the public is growing more anxious about the absence of Hunter Ranking No. 2, Lee Sa-young…
Amid the anchor’s composed voice, a beep and a mechanical sound cut through.
—A rift has been observed in Shinwol 5-dong, Yangcheon-gu. Any available teams, please respond.
—Response Team 1 is en route.
—Confirmed.
“Ugh.”
On a rooftop covered with thick green waterproof paint, there was a large black umbrella fully open. Under the shade created by the umbrella, a small figure named Seo Min-gi was crouching and listening to the radio. He let out a sigh of admiration as he adjusted the radio channels with a delicate touch.
“You don’t need to worry about this area. Let’s check somewhere else.”
The radio beeped again.
—Ah, I really want some soju and hangover soup right now…
—Uh, Senior…
Hangover soup. Behind the dark sunglasses, black eyes briefly glanced towards the edge of the rooftop. A tall man in a black jacket was leaning over the railing, his head slightly bowed. His face was hidden, completely obscured by a black mask that lacked even eye holes.
As the wind blew, his ashen hair lightly fluttered. It was almost the same color as the cloudy sky. Seo Min-gi suddenly asked,
“Aren’t you going to dye your hair again?”
“Is there a need to…”
A half-hearted response returned. It seemed the topic wasn’t particularly welcome. Seo Min-gi pretended to focus on the radio, diverting the conversation.
“By the way… it’s getting harder to stop the rumors. Recently, there’s been a lot of pressure from the Samra Guild and the HB Guild. The Vice-Guild Leader is pretending to be oblivious and stalling them, but I wonder how long they can hold out…”
“Pretending? Maybe he really is oblivious.”
“Well, that’s true.”
Between his firm fingers, a half-burned cigarette rested. From beneath his feet, a shadow rose up, forming a round bowl shape. He flicked the ashes into the shadow bowl.
“It looks like they’re trying to secure their position as the top guild once and for all.”
“Good grief…”
A voice, modified to be unrecognizable, murmured.
“You’ve got to know where to extend your reach before you do.”
At the end of the dry voice, there was a tinge of displeasure. Seo Min-gi didn’t respond immediately, instead casting a glance up at the sky. The falling ash was gradually subsiding.
“Shall we call it a day and head back?”
The ashen head slowly nodded. Seo Min-gi got up, holding the umbrella.
“Do you really have to use that umbrella?”
“I don’t like getting ash on my suit. And didn’t the umbrella play a big role today?”
“…That’s true.”
The shadow slowly engulfed his shoes.
“Then, I’ll escort you to the door, sir. Please send my regards.”
The man in the mask pinched the burning end of the cigarette between his thumb and forefinger and pressed it firmly. He didn’t seem to feel the heat as he did so without hesitation. There wasn’t a single mark left on his fingers once the ember was extinguished.
“Will do.”
Only a bit of ash remained.
***
Before he knew it, the man was standing in the entrance of a bleak and dark house. After removing his dusty shoes, he opened the inner door and gazed down the long hallway stretching ahead. The place was dim and silent. His altered voice broke the stillness as he spoke calmly.
“I’m home.”
No reply came. But he was used to this silence following his greetings. Thankfully.
His feet moved soundlessly as he headed to the deepest part of the house. He opened a firmly closed door. The darkness welcomed him. Along with the sound of soft breathing.
Click. He pressed a button, and a gentle amber nightlight flickered on. The bed was already occupied by someone. Black, curly hair was scattered across the pillow.
A strong hand reached up to grasp the black mask and removed it. A neat face but sharp as a well-honed blade was revealed. J— Cha Eui-jae, leaned over, gripping the headboard, and quietly gazed at the person lying in the bed. Despite his best efforts, a tender voice escaped his dry lips.
“I’m back.”
Three months had passed since the Day of Change, and much had changed.
But Lee Sa-young remained asleep, unchanged.
Since that day, and still now.
