024 – Meeting Old Ties Again #2
“Wow, that’s amazing. How can such a small squirrel defeat a gigantic lizard like that in one blow! How is this even possible?”
Team Leader Jo Jang Hee sliced the skin of the Nidhogg lizard with a knife, peeling off the leather. It seemed hard for her to believe the situation while collecting the corpse of the dead demon.
Seol Myeong Hun added an explanation.
“Look here. It seems the rib was broken, piercing the heart. The skin of the Nidhogg is tougher and more resilient than other parts, which makes it useful.”
When demons are taken down by blades or bullets, they usually end up in poor condition when retrieving the byproducts.
However, Kkungkkungi’s “Squirrel Dive” posed no such concerns and allowed for high-quality leather acquisition.
It was said that the suit made from processed Nidhogg leather performed quite well.
They said it could block attacks from a regular C-class demon.
While pondering on the common sense that armor performance is as important as weapons, the collection process finished without taking even 10 minutes, presumably due to their status as C-class experts.
—Kkung…!
The Squirrel Beast Kkungkkungi scampered around the valley so energetically that it was hard to believe it had just defeated a huge lizard.
It certainly looked like a squirrel, roaming the steep slopes and thickets as if it owned the place.
—Bok, bok…!
At that moment, Kkungkkungi made a strange sound from between the bushes. It was akin to the chirping of a young bird. A dog-like barking creature making such a sound?
Curious about what was happening, I pushed aside the bushes to find Kkungkkungi spinning around the base of a tree from which yellow mushrooms were growing.
Seeing this, the team leader’s face lit up.
“Wow…! These are glowing mushrooms…! Eating them increases mana consumption, but it also enhances the power of skills…! They can be processed into medicine too…!”
We briefly put aside our task of searching for the “Rift Core” to pick the mushrooms. It was a moment that brought to mind how Inoi had referred to Kkungkkungi as the guide of the forest.
The true value of Kkungkkungi lay not in being a combat agent, but in being a resident of the forest.
Thanks to this, we were able to each collect a good haul of mushrooms.
Although eating them increases mana consumption, they were the kind that boosted the power of skills.
Sssss—
Just then, the sky above the valley tipped abruptly, and night fell.
As I was slightly startled by the world turning pitch black after being bright just moments ago, the team leader kindly explained.
“Once you reach C-class rifts, there are many variables. The weather and time change constantly. Myeong Hun, Jin A, what do you want to do? Should we quickly set up a base and observe the situation?”
The night of the rift.
Night was generally a dangerous time.
First of all, you can’t see anything.
While there were some who operated expensive equipment like night vision goggles, our party didn’t have them today.
We decided to build a base nearby and rest until dawn.
As Seol Myeong Hun fiddled around with the device called the “Entropy Meter,” he adjusted his glasses and said.
“From what I can roughly measure, it seems the sun will rise in about two hours.”
What is Entropy?
Even though I had worked as an Awakened for a long time, I still found it hard to understand exactly what entropy was. Of course, I had specific tasks to focus on.
“Kkungkkungi, is there a safe place nearby where we can set up a base camp? If there is, guide me.”
I requested Kkungkkungi.
The team leader watching this asked, “Can it understand when you say that?”
Honestly, I was curious too.
Could the Squirrel Beast actually comprehend my words?
—Kkung…!
Kkungkkungi dashed somewhere.
Soon, Kkungkkungi discovered a cave beneath a cliff near the valley. It was a cave that emanated no presence, and we decided to rest inside.
While Seol Myeong Hun and Jo Jang Hee barricaded the entrance, and the delinquent girl tended to a campfire, I took some expensive peanuts out of my pocket for Kkungkkungi.
“Well done.”
—Kkung…!
Very good.
Woosh—
The flames in the cave were pleasantly warm.
People then took the time to check the weapons and equipment they had brought.
I thought this scene resembled the maintenance time that often occurs in fantasy stories. You know, like heroes or adventurers taking a break to maintain their gear around a campfire.
The current situation undeniably shared similarities with that imagery, making my heart flutter with a sense of romance even after spending so long as an Awakened.
# # #
Maintenance time for the equipment.
I carefully examined the fur, legs, and tail of the Squirrel Beast Kkungkkungi.
It was a collision strong enough to take down a huge lizard like a bear in one strike. It wouldn’t have been surprising if this little Squirrel Beast had suffered backlash from the impact.
However, Kkungkkungi was perfectly fine without a scratch.
“That’s fascinating. You said it’s a Squirrel Beast, right? Where did you get it? From within a rift? How do you take care of it? What do you feed it?”
Team Leader Jo Jang Hee was very curious about Kkungkkungi. After all, it was an animal that could serve as a guide within the rift and also a weapon that could take down demons.
I too was intrigued and felt like asking all sorts of questions.
“I just met it on the street. I give it nuts like peanuts to eat, but it’s more of a snack concept. It finds and eats things on its own from outside. It’s very independent.”
In truth, I hadn’t trained Kkungkkungi.
It was simply living with me.
Just like Emperor Ant Angangi, Kkungkkungi felt more like a housemate than my possession.
Yeah, it was more like I was temporarily fostering it, just like I felt with Inoi.
I offered Jang Hee a peanut.
“Would you like to try giving it a peanut?”
“Can I?”
Swoosh—
Jang Hee held the peanut in her hand.
Soon, Kkungkkungi climbed onto Jang Hee’s palm, skillfully snatched the peanut, and scampered back down. At that moment, the delinquent girl flinched.
When I turned my head, she quickly averted her gaze as if nothing had happened.
“Jin A, do you want to pet Kkungkkungi too?”
I asked.
Then, the delinquent girl Lee Jin A seemed to tremble slightly before finally extending her palm. Was she asking for a peanut?
I placed a peanut on her palm.
Quickly shaking the peanut left and right, Jin A drew Kkungkkungi up her knees, and it stuffed the peanut into its cheek pouch.
—Kkung…!
Kkungkkungi seemed to enjoy climbing around Jin A’s shoulder, neck, and arms.
Watching it poke its head into the pocket of her suit or slide across her back was quite unusual.
Was Kkungkkungi following someone else so willingly for the first time, aside from me?
Could it be that this delinquent girl Jin A is somehow Squirrel Beast-friendly?
She looked a bit like that neighborhood older sister who used to bully me in elementary school.
I was really scared back then.
She would put her arm around me, pretending to be friendly, then drag me into a corner and rummage through my pockets. I felt so wronged when she took my 10,000-won cultural gift certificate that I had saved up to buy a game item that I couldn’t even sleep.
I avoided that alley ever since, afraid of running into her again.
Anyway.
As we rested in that manner, light began to shine through the cave from outside.
It had been about an hour since we took our maintenance time, and morning had arrived once again.
Seol Myeong Hun, who had been examining the Entropy Meter, said.
“It seems this rift alternates between night and day in one-hour intervals. After an hour, it will be night again, so let’s quickly find the Rift Core, destroy it, or recover it and get out.”
That was a good idea.
After that, we scoured the valley.
—Swish, swerve, swish.
When another Nidhogg lizard appeared halfway up the valley, Jo Jang Hee shouted.
“Il Do, this time stay still! We need to do our part as well!”
I see.
They quickly coordinated to face the lizard.
“Jin A on the left! I’ll take the right, and Myeong Hun, provide cover from a distance!”
Whoosh—
The team leader and the delinquent girl charged toward the huge lizard with magic-infused blades. As their blades shone toward its forelegs, the suffering lizard groaned.
—Swoosh, swish! Swish…!
Soon, Seol Myeong Hun finished loading and pulled the trigger.
Boom—!
It sounded like a cannon going off beside us.
The tremendous recoil rattled the surroundings.
When my ears felt slightly muffled, the Nidhogg lizard, which had been hit in the head, collapsed to the ground.
This was probably the standard method of hunting C-class demons.
It was a good observation.
I said.
“Great job, everyone. I’ll handle the collection. Could you lend me a knife? I still haven’t acquired a proper collection knife for C-class.”
“Then feel free to use mine. It’s a monomolecular blade. Although it’s pricey, its performance is great, so in the long run, it minimizes material damage during collection, leading to financial benefits—”
Swoosh—!
I received the monomolecular dagger from Seol Myeong Hun and began to cut the skin of the Nidhogg lizard. It was my first time cutting Nidhogg leather, but it was easier than I expected.
Seeing that, Team Leader Jo Jang Hee expressed admiration.
“This is your first time collecting Nidhogg lizard leather, right? Your skills in separating the skin and flesh are impressive. Most people loathe the reverse.”
Being praised for my collection skills felt good.
How many years have I been at this?
Even for a first-time encounter with a demon, I could handle it easily.
While I basked in that feeling, someone tapped my back.
It was delinquent girl Lee Jin A.
“I guess 10 years of experience counts for something. I suppose you still have the skills you had back in the day when you were famous.”
I was startled.
Someone knew I was still a former celebrity with 10 years of experience.
Soon, Seol Myeong Hun adjusted his glasses.
“Jin A, do you know Il Do?”
“If I know, I know. He’s a celebrity. It’s odd for everyone not to know him. He appeared on TV often. They even hung up banners praising him in the neighborhood. He’s a first-generation student.”
She even knew about the banner that was hung up in our neighborhood?
That was my mom who put it up.
I felt a bit embarrassed, and my face flushed.
Then, Jang Hee, who seemed broad-minded and caring, said, “Wow, a first-generation student? You must have gone through a lot,” and looked me up and down with scrutiny.
Seol Myeong Hun, who loved to chatter, added a comment.
“I heard that most first-generation students have already retired. I watched a scientific channel video on the history of rifts not too long ago. They said back in the day, there was no mana equipment, and they went into rifts nearly bare-bodied?”
Seol Myeong Hun’s explanation was accurate.
Most of my fellow first-generation students who started activities alongside me had already retired.
The reasons varied greatly.
Soon, Jo Jang Hee examined my arm closely. When I raised an eyebrow in question, she awkwardly said, “No, I was just wondering if you have some high-tech prosthetic arm or something—” since it wasn’t unusual for first-generation students to have mechanical augmentations on their arms or legs.
Fortunately, my limbs were fine.
Anyway.
We felt that way as we searched for the Rift Core.
With Kkungkkungi’s help, we found the core quickly; it was a staff someone had left stuck in the ground. It didn’t seem like a particularly effective object, and when we pulled it out, it disintegrated into dust.
Boom—!
Before long, we heard a sound like thunder rolling inside the rift.
It meant the rift was starting to close.
We followed the path that Seol Myeong Hun had marked ahead and returned safely to the rift entrance.
Five in the afternoon.
According to Jang Hee, it had taken about four hours, making it a very quick rift operation.
We got into the car driven by Seol Myeong Hun and got off together at the station where we initially gathered.
“I really like Squirrel Beasts. I want to get one for myself too. If you find any more Squirrel Beasts later, be sure to let me know! Goodbye, Kkungkkungi!”
“Il Do, it was an honor meeting you. If you don’t mind, I would love to hear some stories about the first-generation students later. Do you have any connections with ‘Iron Arm’ Kang Cheol-Min…?”
Jang Hee and Seol Myeong Hun both greeted me.
The only one left was the delinquent girl.
The delinquent girl, with her hair dyed bright yellow, looked at me and narrowed her thin eyes.
“Are you pretending not to know me until the end, or do you really not remember? Do you not know me?”
What was she talking about?
Do I know her?
If I had known someone with such a strong impression, I definitely wouldn’t have forgotten.
While I pondered this, my phone vibrated repeatedly as messages started flooding in.
As I checked the messages due to the continuous vibration, one particularly caught my attention.
“Haildo. This is Lee Joon-Hun. I’m waiting in front of your house, so come after you’re done.”
Lee Joon-Hun.
What reason could someone as busy as him in Korea have waiting in front of my house?
I felt a pressing need to get back quickly.
As I thought about how long it would take to get home and began to feel anxious, the delinquent girl pulled a pink helmet out of her gear bag and said.
“Seems like you have an urgent appointment? I’ll give you a ride, so hop on. It’s by my motorcycle.”
Swoosh—
The delinquent girl pointed to a motorcycle parked in the public parking lot.
It was a red-and-white bike that looked much like the ones delivery people used in Chinese restaurants, and it seemed quite old.
Would it even work?
Swoosh—
The delinquent girl skillfully mounted the bike.
Then she gestured to me with a tilt of her chin.
“What are you doing? Get on. I told you to.”
As I thought about it, it struck me that this would be the first time I rode on the back of a motorcycle at my age.
No, it was actually the first time I had ever ridden a motorcycle.
“If you don’t get on, I’ll just leave on my own? Is it not urgent?”
With that, I thought, “Whatever,” and hopped onto the back seat, wrapping my arms around the delinquent girl’s waist! Since she wore a perfectly fitting suit, there was surprisingly little excess flesh; her waist was quite slender.
At that moment, a scent reminiscent of balloon gum wafted by, making me feel like something was about to resurface in my memory, as the motorcycle roared, cutting through the cold wind.
