001 – Nymph Inoi # 1
It was an exceptionally cold day.
Hearing that a D Rank Rift had opened in the city center, I simply gathered my gear and stepped outside, shivering from the unexpectedly frigid weather.
“Is winter really this cold even with layers of clothing?”
The temperature was below -10 degrees.
Of all days, the unplanned “Anomalous Rift” had to open on such a dreary day.
“If I hit the lottery, I should quit this job.”
My small lament, unheard by anyone, dissipated as a misty breath on one of December’s cold days.
The Rift was opened in a bustling area where people frequently passed.
“Look at that person. They’re carrying a huge case.”
“I guess they’re an Awakened. There must be weapons inside.”
The December city was all flashing lights and noise. Perhaps because it was a Saturday evening, most of the people casting glances at me were couples.
What a great time, I thought, clicking my tongue as I soon arrived at the scene.
It had become quite familiar to see the police and tactical unit surrounded by a shimmering haze in the middle of the road, armed with guns.
“I’m D Rank Awakened Haildo. I came in response to a call.”
As I showed my identification, I stepped into the police’s encirclement. They casually checked my ID, looking as if they wanted to say something.
“If you’re D Rank Awakened Haildo, then you might have been─.”
“……”
I felt a trickle of sweat running down my back.
What if they recognized me?
At least six years ago, I had been quite the celebrity.
That fact tightened around my neck like a leash, making me want to shut my eyes tightly.
But soon a massive cheer erased my worries.
“That’s S Rank Seo Ye-rim!”
“Is it real? I’m glad I waited in front of the gate in this cold weather!”
“This is the first time I’ve seen a celebrity!”
With the crowd’s cheers, someone crossed the police’s barricade. A woman in black stockings and a black coat, with long hair as black as the night sky, approached.
Her small, delicate face was truly beautiful like a celebrity. The term beauty can only be described as overwhelming, turning the other women on the street into backdrops.
Her name was Seo Ye-rim.
Not just in Korea, but worldwide, she was one of the few S Rank Awakened and a famous celebrity.
And I couldn’t help but be astonished.
An S Rank Hunter had come to a mere D Rank “Anomalous Rift”? While I tried to turn my head away, the police approached Seo Ye-rim and asked.
“Ms. Seo Ye-rim, S Rank Hunter? Your name wasn’t on the dispatched personnel list we received. How did this happen…?”
“Ah? I was supposed to meet a friend nearby, but after seeing the Rift, I stopped by. It seems like an unexpected Anomalous Rift opened, can I participate? If there’s a report needed, I’ll submit it later.”
“Would you really do that? That would be great! With a Rift in a bustling area, even if it’s just D Rank, the safety of the citizens could be at risk.”
The expressions of the police brightened instantly.
It seemed they didn’t want to spend a cold weekend with Christmas around the corner due to an unplanned Rift.
The people welcomed her.
“If an S Rank Hunter joins, the Rift will be dealt with in no time, right?”
“I wonder how much they earn? It must be a basic hundred million a month, right?”
“It was so awkward being stuck in a blocked road, but this is great!”
An enthusiastic welcome.
An S Rank Hunter is respected and admired wherever they go.
Even when you turn on the TV or check your phone, their face pops up in various advertisements.
“…You, are you Haildo?”
At that moment, I heard someone calling my name.
Sigh.
I was deliberately pretending not to recognize them.
“Hey, Haildo. Long time no see?”
Clack, clack.
The sound of high heels drew closer to me.
Reluctantly turning my head, I faced a rather sharp gaze.
“I see you’re still working in this field? D Rank?”
“Well, yes.”
I tried to respond as calmly as possible, feeling as if I’d prefer to vanish if there were a mouse hole nearby. Seo Ye-rim was a girl who had been an F Rank junior when I had just risen to D Rank.
A senior and a junior.
The difference in our statuses had changed to something like the heavens and dust, so feeling embarrassed was only natural. Just when I thought this situation was a nightmare, Seo Ye-rim turned her gaze away from me.
Had she now lost interest in a common D Rank?
“Well then, I’ll be commanding the ‘N-52’ site from now on. All participating members get ready to enter. Let’s move─.”
Whoosh.
S Rank Hunter Seo Ye-rim inserted herself into the trembling Rift.
One by one, people followed her in, and I too lastly stepped into the Rift.
# # #
“Oh my, even an S Rank can clear a D Rank Rift in under 5 minutes…”
“Did those huge Bascicle bees turn to charcoal with just a wave of their hands?”
“…I’m not sure if we can get paid today. We haven’t done anything.”
The “Anomalous Rift N-52” was conquered in less than 5 minutes.
If it had been just a D Rank squad, it would have taken over two hours.
Despite facing more than a hundred massive bees alone, S Rank Hunter Seo Ye-rim showed no signs of catching her breath.
She merely gazed down with her slender eyes at the “Queen Bee,” the owner of the Rift.
She spoke to me.
“Hey, Haildo. Get the core out.”
“…Why me? Isn’t that an F Rank’s job…?”
“Just get it out.”
S Rank and D Rank.
The difference was like that between a commander and a newly commissioned second lieutenant. I had no choice but to rummage through the charred corpse of the Queen Bee as Seo Ye-rim commanded, pulling out the round magic stone.
My hands were covered in sticky fluid and ash, but how could I complain? Yet deep down, I was incredibly frustrated.
Collecting trophies should be the job of the accompanying F Ranks.
What a strict person.
Why was she so eager to make me do it? It was the same back then. She had once been caught badmouthing me among fellow female F Ranks.
Thinking back on that only made me angrier.
Crack, crack.
Just as I was cutting apart the charred shell of the Queen Bee with a collecting dagger, it happened.
Splat.
Having put too much strength into it, I unexpectedly splattered the fluid onto Seo Ye-rim’s shoes, which were standing nearby. Her red shoes sparkled, enough to reflect my face, but were instantly ruined.
…This is bad.
“Hey.”
Can a single word make a person’s heart sink?
Indeed.
“Do you even know how much these are worth?”
“…How much?”
The impending feeling that I would have to pay made my head spin. Am I supposed to compensate for something while struggling to even pay rent?
These shoes belonged to an S Rank Hunter known for their lucrative earnings, so they must be expensive designer shoes. The moment Seo Ye-rim told me the price, I really thought I was going to faint.
“I can’t believe you can’t handle even one collection properly. What an idiot.”
Swish.
Seo Ye-rim waved her hand in the air. When a black shoe appeared from the void, she took off her red shoes and abruptly threw the black ones at me.
“Take these and buy the same ones. You’ll be paying for it, got it? Give me your contact info. If you disappear again or try to evade, I’m coming after you.”
Pop!
Seo Ye-rim snatched my phone from my hand with a strength I would have never attributed to a woman. After inputting my number, she threw the phone back at me as if discarding it.
I just wanted to cry.
This was the last conversation I had with Seo Ye-rim.
The waiting police expertly wrapped up the situation, and people seemed to dissolve into the sparkle of a happy Christmas.
Me?
I trudged down the cold street, holding the worn female shoe in my hand.
“This is bullshit!”
I felt terrible.
Could I possibly have this much bad luck?
Why did I have to run barefoot in such expensive shoes?
“…Damn it.”
The walk back home felt particularly heavy.
How am I going to compensate for shoes that cost upwards of ten million won?
It was the kind of money that you only get when you hit the jackpot in the lottery.
Or I might need some incredible stroke of luck…
As I headed toward my small studio apartment, I heard a rustling sound.
I spotted something rummaging through a recycling bag near the university district. It looked so tiny that I initially thought it was an old woman collecting scrap, but that was not the case.
After all, old women collecting scrap typically wear warm clothing.
This creature was in a tattered long t-shirt. Its limbs were clearly exposed, and its bare feet looked frostbitten and blue.
“Ha-choo!”
It sneezed.
I was taken aback by this odd scene and couldn’t speak. Just then, as if sensing my presence, the creature looked up at me.
It had shoulder-length hair that was a light honey color.
Its eyes were similarly colored.
Was it about 12 years old?
What was fascinating was the pointed triangular ears peeking through its hair. Anyone could tell it was not the appearance of a 21st-century Korean.
Fortunately, I wasn’t foolish and, as a ten-year veteran Awakened, had enough knowledge.
“Are you, perhaps, an A-in? An Elf?”
The pointed ears indicated it was an Elf.
I knew there were about a hundred in Korea, so I was quite familiar with them. Elves were all at least C Rank Awakened, considered able practitioners and were treated as high-quality naturalized citizens.
They even contributed to overcoming Korea’s low birthrate.
Could this girl be a young Elf?
This was my first time seeing a young Elf.
Could she be a wanderer caught up in the “N-52” Anomalous Rift?
As I thought about this, the shivering disheveled girl shook her head.
“…Mmm, Inoi is not an Elf with long ears like a fairy, but a Nymph with short and cool triangular ears! It’s much more fundamental…! But too hungry and cold….”
“Triangular eared Nymph?”
Though I had been a D Rank Awakened for a long time, it was a term I was quite unfamiliar with, even for a ten-year veteran like me. Yet, amidst the unexpected events, I began to come to terms with what to do.
I held out my red shoes to the barefoot Nymph named Inoi and said.
“How about putting these on for now?”
