46
Chapter 46
Making a plan is essential when trying to get things done.
It goes without saying that as the importance of the 'work' increases, so does the importance of planning.
And while opinions might vary from person to person, saving the World could be considered a pretty important task.
"So, what do we do now?"
Here, six men and women who have to save the World, whether they like it or not, are sitting in a circle.
I suppose it's a relief that all six of them are burning with the desire to save the World.
Anyway, they were making a plan.
The plans they needed to make could be broadly divided into two categories.
First, things they were already planning to do. They just needed to set a solid schedule for these. This included the Statue subjugation and Parang's visit to the Hunter Association.
Second, things they needed to plan from scratch right now. The next Hive exploration, Dive, and the Hawaii investigation fell into this category.
Let's start with the simple tasks that just require scheduling. First up is the issue of the Statue subjugation.
"So, when are we going?"
Elvira asked nonchalantly. Parang felt a bit weird about it.
The first time they talked about subjugating this Statue was during Oceanus's Sperm Whale hunt that day.
Surprisingly, not even two weeks had passed since then. It was just that the recent days Parang had lived through were so packed that it felt like the distant past.
Plus, the Statue subjugation was essentially a backbreaking task only for Parang (not that anything was actually breaking), while it felt more like a simple homework assignment for the other members of Oceanus. So the decision was quick.
"How about the day after my interview? Next Tuesday."
"Well, that doesn't sound too bad."
Decided. Next Tuesday.
It's nice that they're so fast at things like this.
Next, they discussed their upcoming Hive exploration. A rather interesting idea came up regarding this.
"Can't all six of us just explore at the same time? Six at once."
Everyone was absolutely astonished by the suggestion.
Why hadn't they thought of this before?
Somehow, only Parang had been focused on finding the Slayers' remains, but come to think of it, exploring a Hive was a piece of cake for all of them.
If six people searched, the search speed would be six times faster!!
Besides, the numbers matched up perfectly.
Sixteen Slayers in total, including Han Siwoo.
Sixteen locations to search, including Hawaii.
Fourteen, if you exclude the Hong Kong Hive and the East Sea Hive.
Twelve, excluding Hawaii, where Hunter Han Siwoo is located, and the Mariana Hive, which even Oceanus is a bit reluctant to explore right now.
The number is just right.
Why are they reluctant about the Mariana Hive, you ask?
Simply put, it's because it's so fucking wide and so fucking deep.
To give you an idea of how vast and deep it is, Russell spent a week exploring the Mariana Hive without ever reaching the Floor.
"How far down did you go back then?"
"About twenty kilometers?"
Therefore, if they were going to search the Mariana Hive, all six of them had to go in together. Searching it alone was next to impossible.
Anyway, for those reasons, four were crossed off the list, leaving twelve.
It worked out perfectly to have the six of them explore twice.
As always, the discussion progressed without a hitch.
Diego took the Caribbean Sea Hive, Elvira the Arctic Ocean Hive, Bertea the North Sea Hive....
They agreed to explore the Hives closest to their respective residences.
Since the Hong Kong Hive had already been explored, Xiao decided to check the Bay of Bengal Hive.
Even though it was far from her home, the Bay of Bengal was still within the active range of Xiao's Skeletons.
That just left Parang.
With the East Sea and South China Sea Hives already cleared, there were no nearby Hives left for Parang to explore.
To be exact, it wasn't that there were no Hives, but rather no Hives where the Slayers were resting, but anyway.
So, what did she end up choosing?
"I'll go here."
"What?!"
"Isn't that a bit out of the blue?"
"We have to check this place eventually. Besides, out of all the locations, we absolutely need to look into this one."
It was the Drake Hive, located in the Drake Passage.
For context, the Drake Passage is the body of water between the southernmost tip of South America and Antarctica.
It was 17,000 kilometers away from Parang's home in Pohang.
With a little exaggeration, it was halfway around the Earth.
Even with Warp Stations scattered all over the globe, the location was incredibly remote.
The nearest Warp Station was on the Falkland Islands.
Even after taking the warp, she would still have to travel another 1,000 kilometers.
The reason Parang chose such a distant and foreign land as her next destination was because the Slayer sleeping there was an incredibly important figure.
The 'Steel Executioner', Marianne Lindbergh.
She was the Slayers' Mechanic, and the author's certified crazy bitch.
She had an entirely unpredictable personality and completely inconsistent behavior.
Violent tendencies and a thoroughly unhinged temperament.
Yet, she wouldn't know what to do with herself, acting like a docile puppy whenever she stood before Hunter Han Siwoo, and she met her end in the Hive of the Drake Passage.
Furthermore, she was the very last of the Slayers to die, excluding Han Siwoo.
That's right.
Marianne Lindbergh was the final escapee.
Even if we skip the others, we absolutely have to see her memories.
And unfortunately for Oceanus, since Alice Melville is....... no longer here right now.
There was no one available to explore the Drake Passage, which technically falls under the Antarctic Ocean.
So Parang decided to go.
Furthermore, the Drake Hive was second to none when it came to internal beauty. It would be a pretty good choice for the broadcast.
Thus, Oceanus's schedule was confirmed.
Finish Parang's visit to the Association and the World Government tomorrow, then an interview and an apology broadcast the following day.
The Statue subjugation the next day, a short break, and then all six of them would explore Hawaii.
After another short break, they planned to each start their own Hive exploration.
By the way, an apology broadcast.
Apology videos from Streamers and YouTubers constantly popped up in both her past and present lives.
Parang also encountered them frequently in her algorithm.
The words 'I am sorry' written in bold, white font on a pitch-black background.
Titles were always phrases like 'I am deeply reflecting on my actions' or 'I am quitting broadcasting (they don't quit).'
The channel names were ones she had never seen before in her life.
It spread almost like a trend.
And now Parang had to do it.
Since she was doing it, she should give a proper apology.
She needed a Suit, and she had to get a green Chroma Key too.
She was going to ask Cylo for help anyway.
As for compensation for damages...... she already had something in mind.
Regardless, the meeting concluded with that. They cracked open a few cans of Beer, caught up with each other, and went to sleep.
#
And the next day. Sunday, August 4th.
"Hnnng...... Ugh.........."
Yoo Parang, the early fish, awoke.
Looking at the Clock, it was eight in the morning.
Considering her usual wake-up time, she woke up really, really early.
Rubbing her sleep-filled eyes, she stepped out of the Bedroom and glanced around the Guest Bedroom, finding Russell and Elvira sprawled out, dead to the world.
Were they suffering from jet lag?
Actually, it was nonsense, considering the other three had already packed their bags neatly and gone home. Parang knew well that they were just lazy and sluggish.
Well, they'd pack up and leave on their own when they opened their eyes. It wasn't the first or second time.
Parang roughly grabbed some breakfast, packed three thick towels and a Suit into a Waterproof Bag, and jumped into the sea.
She planned to swim along the Korean peninsula all the way to Seoul.
If she left now, it seemed like she would arrive at the Association with plenty of time to spare.
As for the reason why she was swimming along the Korean peninsula to get from Pohang to Seoul.
She naturally enjoyed swimming, and taking the sea route brought the danger level down to zero percent.
Parang swam smoothly along, passing Busan and Ttangkkeut Village, cutting through Sinan to enter the Yellow Sea, crossing the long-vanished 38th Parallel, and splashing her way past Jeongdongjin into the Han River.
Like that, it was twelve thirty-six.
Parang popped her head out from under the Han River Railway Bridge.
Not her whole face, just peeking her eyes out.
Perhaps because it was a weekend afternoon, the Han River was completely packed with people.
Still, fortunately, it seemed no one had spotted Parang.
She sneakily dried herself off with a towel under the Han River Railway Bridge and put on her Suit over her Bodysuit.
Topped off with Sunglasses, a Mask, and a Hat, her perfect, suspiciously unsuspicious disguise was complete.
Of course, she had also hidden 'Departure' in a secret place out of sight.
A secret spot no one could ever notice just by looking.
She tucked it away inside her hair.
......Then she heaved herself up the Ladder onto the Han River Railway Bridge. She successfully landed in the Han River Park.
After taking a short bus ride, she arrived in front of the Hunter Association at one twenty in the afternoon.
Since her appointment was at two o'clock, she popped into a nearby Udon Restaurant, scarfed down a meal in twenty minutes, and scurried into the Hunter Association.
They definitely said the Branch Manager's Office.
Parang stared intently at the Information Board in front of the Elevator, looking for the Branch Manager's Office.
Branch Manager's Office...... Branch Manager's Office.......
'Where is it?'
Why can't I see it?
If it's an important room like the Branch Manager's Office, it should definitely be listed.
She thought about asking around, but seeing everyone rushing about with Suits, Documents, and serious expressions completely drained her courage to speak up.
Ah, she was a sad beast without water.
Parang nervously had a staring contest with the Information Board for about five minutes.
"Excuse me?"
"Ah, yes?!"
"You haven't moved an inch from here for a while. Do you need some help?"
"Ah, yes. Thank you."
'Oh....... She's pretty.'
Parang thought she had gotten used to beauties after regularly seeing Bertea, Xiao, Elvira, and recently even Hunter Shin Yuna, but the woman in front of her was a completely different type of beauty.
Red eyes and long black hair, with a smile that was undeniably kind yet icy cold.
Plus, an aggressively large bust that couldn't be hidden by a Suit.
"Well, I'm trying to get to the Branch Manager's Office. It's just not here on the Information Board."
That was the first meeting between B-Rank Hunter Yoo Parang and the Hunter Association President, Igarashi Natsuko.