Episode 504 – No Day Without Wind (For Real)
Hyeji is a natural disaster.
In South Korea, this has become a kind of rule.
Now it’s even a common sense applicable worldwide.
Thanks to that, people in Korea don’t really have any rejection toward Hyeji anymore.
At first, everyone responded dramatically, trembling in fear and hoping the natural disaster would end quietly.
But now, they don’t make such a fuss or cause chaos like before.
They just silently pray for it to pass without involving them as much as possible.
[They say it’s not submission but resignation.]
‘How so…?’
That must be due to their familiarity with the natural disaster called Hyeji.
Naturally, we are much more accustomed to her than others.
However, no matter how familiar the heroines and I are with Hyeji,
it doesn’t mean we are truly accustomed to natural disasters.
When I stepped out to buy some alcohol at the mart, the sky was clear without a cloud.
But as I was about to return to the guild after buying the alcohol, suddenly, the storm began to rage.
Honestly, it felt way too strange.
Of course, it’s summer, so sudden rain showers are understandable.
But this amount of rain felt a bit excessive.
“Damn it, shit.”
Just then, I received an emergency disaster text warning me to be careful of the heatwave.
Yet the text about the heatwave was covered by the rain falling from the sky.
As if mocking me, asking if I dared to feel the ‘heatwave.’
I heard that some hunters, who lost their jobs due to the disappearance of monsters these days, have been hired by the meteorological agency.
They must’ve made such a ridiculous but critical mistake, even in a normal job.
[It seems this monsoon is surprisingly due to the heatwave.]
‘Why is that?’
What’s going on? There’s nothing trustworthy in this world.
[Isn’t the sky too heated up because of the heatwave?]
“Because of you, it’s a pain to get drenched in the rain…”
With that piece of shit babbling nonsense to me.
At least it was still manageable to walk, so I decided to walk carefully.
Generally, in such cases, it would make sense to wait for the rain to stop somewhere else.
But I didn’t think that was a good idea.
Honestly, predicting the future in this situation seems a bit foolish.
After all, a typhoon that wasn’t even in the forecast is suddenly raging; it’s better to put aside optimistic thoughts.
I should rather keep in mind the worst possibility of being stranded somewhere worse than this.
Anyway, since I decided to walk, I began to make my way toward the guild with difficulty.
Naturally, the alcohol I just bought was carefully tucked against my chest.
I might get hurt a bit, but if the alcohol got damaged, that would be the end of it.
[Do you really think that’s safe?]
“So, should I hide it in my stomach safely?”
[……Just shut the hell up.]
Did anyone else think they needed to rush back like I did in this situation?
Some people were rushing through the rain like there was no tomorrow.
To be exact, it might be more accurate to say people, rather than just one person.
“Hey, wait a second…!”
“No time for that! We have to hurry!”
He was carrying someone who had bandages wrapped around their legs over his head.
Isn’t it so surprising and touching that it makes you want to cry?
These days, we’re living in a crazy age where people only care about their own safety.
The fact that there’s such a humane person considering someone else’s safety is amazing.
“Put me down!”
“No can do.”
Even though up until now, people have shown inhumane behavior,
there seemed to be a flicker of genuine concern for others in this disaster.
No matter what, this is still a world where people live.
“Damn it, put me down, you dog!”
“If I do that, I’ll get drenched in the rain.”
Sure enough, this place was just a world for hunters.
“Take me back to the hospital!”
“That’s not my home.”
“Then just grab an umbrella or something!”
“That would be theft, so no.”
But at least he seemed to be trying to uphold some minimal law.
One could say he’s a hunter with a decent personality.
It wouldn’t be strange if he got nominated for this month’s Hunter Peace Award.
[I think a hunter who doesn’t steal toilet paper from the bathroom is more likely to win.]
‘I’m just a hunter cruising along at the first lane.’
By the way, it’s not just the weather that’s gone crazy.
Even in this dangerously stormy situation,
I could see people sipping drinks nonchalantly at a bar in the distance.
It seemed like there was a drainage issue because the store was filled with water, not draining at all.
And perhaps because I forgot to bring my translator,
or because of the loud voices unique to drunk people,
despite the distance, I could overhear their conversation clearly.
“Isn’t it nice having water around?”
“I don’t need to go to the bathroom separately, great!”
“Dechyaaah!”
Correction. They weren’t people, but hunters too.
[……Now there really is a ‘charm’ in the water.]
‘Ah, shit. That charm…?’
It seemed being in the store wasn’t enough for them.
I could see several people casually drinking outside, too.
Even though the rain was replacing their side dishes and drinks right now.
“Is your soju bitter? For me, it’s just water now.”
“I guess I live too comfortably; I don’t even taste it anymore.”
Whether they were heavily drunk from the alcohol or just always crazy was hard to say.
In either case, it was difficult to say they were making a normal judgment.
Moreover, even as the water rapidly rose to their calves, their behavior remained the same.
It’s not like someone threatened them that they would die if they moved.
Honestly, it seemed so ridiculous, I was almost filled with awe.
“Where is the will of heaven!”
“It’s right here in this glass!”
“Heaven! Pour me another drink!”
Even those who casually dismissed it and robustly drank.
“Lady! I ordered pork belly; why did I get boiled pork instead!”
“Oh? I’m pretty sure it was pork belly just a moment ago?”
The bar owner, who was diligently trying to serve them.
At first, the heroines and I had said we weren’t accustomed to real natural disasters.
Unfortunately, it seems that hardly applies to the people of this world now.
They have adapted so well to their surroundings, doing what they want to do.
“17 degrees…16 degrees…15 degrees…14 degrees…13 degrees…”
“Hey, what does that mean? Is that the sound of the soju degree dropping?”
From another perspective, it seemed they had a transcendental attitude that didn’t care about the surroundings.
“It’s the sound of my body temperature dropping.”
“No wonder your face looks a bit blue.”
“Drinking will warm me up again. Have a drink!”
That attitude definitely applies to others drinking with them too.
“But where did the person I was drinking with earlier go?”
“Don’t worry. They’ll be back soon.”
“Really?”
It looked like they were having a drinking party, transcending the earthly realm.
“From the soil.”
“Ah, I see.”
The only difference was that the drinking party was happening here on earth, not in the heavens.
Anyway, maybe thanks to my effort to ignore them and focus on moving,
I finally began to faintly see the appearance of our guild building.
A rather high flood barrier completely blocked the entrance to the guild building.
[It seems the heroines set it up in advance.]
‘Well done.’
After carefully climbing over the wall beside the flood barrier, I headed straight into the building.
I got in the elevator and pressed the button for the floor where the guild is located.
And after a short wait, I finally opened the guild’s door.
“Shinwoo, everything all right?”
“Yeah. It just rained a bit.”
“Is that so?”
“You’re here!”
“Glad you made it.”
As soon as I came in, I put the alcohol in the fridge and checked my condition.
It was summer, so I was just wearing a thin white t-shirt when I went out lightly.
But now, because of the rain, my clothes were completely soaked, clinging to my body.
It was so embarrassingly stuck that I felt like I was just naked.
Feeling uncomfortable, as I was about to take off my shirt,
I suddenly felt a prickly and chilling gaze from somewhere.
Of course, it came from the heroines.
They were silently staring at my upper body with piercing looks.
It was such a blatant gaze that as I instinctively covered myself out of anxiety,
two types of sounds could be heard.
One was the sound coming from not far away from the heroines’ gazes.
It was the sound of them gulping, as they moved their throats.
– gulp…!
At the same time, their gazes deepened even more.
From mere curiosity to the eyes of a predator stalking its prey.
And the other sound was.
– thud.
– thud.
– thud.
– thud.
Even though it was indoors without rain, the sound of droplets unexpectedly echoed.
This sound, too, came from the heroines.
Only, compared to the previous sound of swallowing,
the location of this sound was quite distant from their gazes.
“Shinwoo… It’s really raining a lot…?”
“……Yeah… Thanks to that, I’m all soaked…”
To be precise, the sound came from the floor where they were standing.
“Me too.”
“……”
[We’re all soaked.]
‘……Shit…’
The heroines looked like they would explosively rush at me at any moment.
Seeing them, I trembled and unconsciously blurted out a line.
“P-Please don’t…”
– thud.
At that moment, it felt like something had snapped.
I wasn’t entirely sure, but it must’ve been the sound of their patience breaking.
It was no surprise because that was the signal for the heroines to rush at me all at once.
What happened next was truly intense.
As fierce as the storm battering outside right now.
