6
Chapter 6
After what felt like an eternity.
"A... alive...."
Yuna could finally see the sky.
"I survived...."
The sun, half-submerged below the horizon, was setting the sky ablaze.
Yuna thought this was the most beautiful sunset she had ever seen in her entire life.
She stepped out onto the pier, and as soon as her feet touched the ground, her strength gave out and she collapsed.
"Gasp... gasp...."
The surrounding area was a chaotic mess, a mix of reporters who had rushed over after hearing the news, the Hunter Association security personnel blocking them, and an ambulance parked off to one side.
And then, the very person who had made it possible for Yuna to see this sunset stood before her. It was Parang.
"Are you feeling a bit better?"
At those words, Yuna calmly gathered her senses. She didn't want to look pathetic any longer.
'Care.'
The lowest grade self-recovery skill. It couldn't properly heal wounds, but it was enough to replenish the stamina she had exhausted in that extreme situation.
"Ah, yes.... Thanks to you, I'm okay."
Honestly, she wasn't okay. There was no way she could be after barely surviving a life-threatening crisis. It was only because she had regained some stamina and possessed a naturally strong mentality that she was holding up this well; if it had been anyone else, it wouldn't be strange if they were already deeply traumatized.
"That's a relief. It was such a terrible experience, I was worried something might go wrong."
"Ah...."
It wasn't just terrible. It was horrific.
Even now, the Nautilus was bobbing on the surface of the water, almost half-destroyed.
How did it even manage to surface in that condition?
Yuna felt her consciousness fading. The emotions she had felt in that moment were still vivid.
"Please don't go below 500 meters from now on. Technically, the Monster Fish Zone starts at 700 meters, but it's dangerous because some of them occasionally come up."
However, she couldn't stay like that forever. Yuna had an exceptionally strong mentality. She quickly recovered her composure and shook off those useless emotions.
Then, she immediately bowed at a 90-degree angle.
"Thank you so much. I don't know what would have happened if it weren't for you, Hunter... I will definitely repay this favor. Here, this is my business card. I'm S-Rank Production Hunter Shin Yuna."
When a Production Hunter, not a Combat Type, reached the S-Rank, they were someone even the World Government kept an eye on. Countless S-Rank and A-Rank Hunters owed her a debt.
She had more than enough ways to repay the favor of saving her life.
Parang received the business card and stood there blankly. Wondering why there was no reaction when she had clearly taken the card, Yuna straightened her bowed back.
Only then did Parang's appearance properly catch Yuna's eye. Until just now, she had been so out of it that she had barely looked at her face, lost in a daze and praying.
Parang was what you would call a cat-faced beauty. She had an impressive face with slightly sharp eyes. Combined with the black Bodysuit that revealed her figure, she looked like a charismatic secret agent from a movie.
"...."
Her posture and expression, as if she were pondering something, further enhanced that atmosphere.
The fascinating thing was that even though she had just come out of the water, there was no sign of wetness on her face or hair at all. This was in stark contrast to her Bodysuit, which was completely soaked.
No, actually, if she had to list the fascinating things, she could talk all day. She was only holding back because she couldn't ruthlessly bombard her savior with questions.
But still, couldn't she at least ask for her name? She would have plenty of chances to ask about the things she was curious about later.
"Um, by any chance, what is your name? You saved me like this, and I feel bad that I don't even know your name yet...."
At that, Parang also realized her rudeness and hurriedly introduced herself. No matter if she was a savior, she shouldn't act impolitely.
"Ah, I'm Hunter Yoo Parang. I live nearby, and I heard you were going into the Monster Fish Zone, so I followed you because I was worried."
Parang spoke about following her into the demon realm 700 meters underwater, swarming with monsters, as if she had just gone on a simple errand.
Well, honestly, from Parang's perspective, the difficulty was easier than an errand.
Regardless of that, Yuna was overwhelmed with emotion.
Because it meant she had followed her all the way down there with the intention of protecting her from the start.
"Thank you so much. I will never forget this favor, so please contact me whenever it's convenient for you."
She had a mountain of questions to ask. However, her Head was spinning too much today, so she decided to meet up again in a few days to talk and think of a way to repay the favor.
Just as Yuna, who had bowed her waist several times, was about to leave, Parang stopped her as if she had remembered something.
"Ah, and if it's possible, could you leave up the VOD of your broadcast today...? I want to let people know that Monster Fish are dangerous."
It could be a rather difficult request for Yuna. It was a personal trauma, and she didn't look her best. Knowing this, Parang also asked very cautiously.
Yuna thought for a moment.
'Ah, right. The broadcast.'
She had completely forgotten that she was streaming. It would be weirder for anyone to think about a broadcast in that situation, so it wasn't Yuna's fault.
And after carefully pondering what she had done, what kind of scene had unfolded, and what might have been caught on camera, Yuna,
"I understand. I'll do that."
accepted the proposal without hesitation. Honestly, she wanted to see that scene through a screen, from a third party's perspective. She was curious about how it looked when she wasn't entranced, and she was also curious about the viewers' reactions while she was coming up to the surface.
Yuna truly had amazing mental resilience. Her borderline insane thirst for knowledge was a bonus.
With that, the two parted ways and returned to their respective places.
#
Yuna returned home and immediately uploaded the full VOD of her live broadcast to T-Tube.
She also sent the video to her Editor, who had been scrambling to recycle highlights because she had taken a two-week break from streaming.
This was possible because it was being backed up in real-time on her home computer since it was a live stream, and because all the broadcasting equipment was independently set up inside the Submarine, so the broadcast alone was transmitted perfectly to the end even while the Submarine was getting crushed.
It was also thanks to the control tower—the broadcasting team in her studio—not ending the stream until the very end so they could call for help.
Right up until Parang appeared, they had been mobilizing every connection they had to find and contact Undersea Hunters.
Naturally, she watched the VOD herself after uploading it. Starting right from the moment she encountered that glowing monster. She didn't care much about what happened before that.
First, the part from the moment she initially faced the pillar of light until right before Parang appeared.
Her appearance through the camera was incredibly bizarre. It showed her slowly and naturally losing her mind to the pillar of light, to the point where she couldn't tell when she had been entranced.
And the pillar of light seen through the screen was still pretty.
Next was the part she was truly curious about. From her memory, she was unconscious, woke up to close her eyes and pray, then passed out again... Anyway, the process of coming out of the water while she wasn't in her right mind.
And after calmly watching the entire VOD of the broadcast, she,
"Hah, haha, what is this...."
couldn't help but let out a hollow laugh.
"I'm going up, so don't get startled and touch things; just stay still."
Parang, who had disappeared off-screen leaving behind Yuna who passed out immediately after,
"...I think there will be many people surprised by my sudden appearance. I am Undersea B-Rank Hunter Yoo Parang."
was captured in the footage smoothly reciting a commentary on the current situation while maneuvering the Submarine, much like a police officer arriving at a crime scene.
"The monster you just faced is a Monster Fish called Galecus. It lures prey with light and drags them into the deep sea. It was an extremely dangerous situation."
"I was watching the broadcast continuously from the beginning. I was searching the entire sea around here with the intention of intervening if a Monster Fish appeared. The unusual stone you saw near 250 meters helped me track your route."
"You might be wondering how you can hear my voice right now. It's my skill."
"Ranks are meaningless to an Undersea Hunter. Because..."
She was even speaking logically, resolving all the questions people might be curious about.
She had a talent for explaining things.
"...That's all. The deep sea is incredibly dangerous. The widely known Monster Fish Zone starts at a depth of 700 meters, but the actual danger zone is around 500 meters underwater. I recommend not going below 300 meters for your safety."
And she even gave a very clean closing remark. The broadcast ended with the final scene of Yuna, leaning back in her chair drooling, blearily opening her eyes at the sound of a thump on the hatch. The control tower probably ended it.
Having finished checking up to that point, Yuna collapsed onto her bed.
It wasn't late, but she was so tired. So many things had happened.
Before falling asleep, Yuna turned on her phone while lying in bed.
She intended to just check the communities or the news one last time before sleeping.
And, as expected, the internet was flipping out in real-time.
[ Fuck, is that what a Monster Fish is? ] [4]
[ Galecus GIF compilation ] [9]
[ Upvote if those bastards are seriously dangerous LOL ] [23]
[ Fuck, were we really doing all that diving bullshit right above things like that? ] [10]
Stories about Monster Fish.
[ I was scared shitless thinking Shin Yuna was actually going to die ] [3]
[ If it wasn't for that Undersea Hunter at the end ] [8]
[ I felt cosmic horror in real-time while watching the stream ] [17]
Stories about the dizzying situation.
[ Undersea Hunters [- they're really crazy bastards LOL ] [23]
[ Does that Yoo Parang person not stream or anything? ] [11]
[ I honestly thought a savior was descending ] [32]
[ Is being bare-bodied out there really a power allowed for humans? ] [8]
[ Isn't this Hunter Yoo Parang? Looks exactly the same ] [10]
And stories about Hunter Yoo Parang.
The entire community was still on fire because of what happened today.
Going into T-Tube for a moment, the view count of the VOD she uploaded earlier had already easily surpassed 700,000 and was rushing toward 1 million.
Even though it was a full VOD of the stream, it had that level of firepower. Yuna realized once again just how much attention she had drawn.
Thinking she would really go to sleep after reading just this, Yuna opened a few posts in the community.
[ Fuck, is that what a Monster Fish is? ]
[ Author: Runssini ]
(A GIF of an octopus sticking to a bald man's Head. Probably an auto-attached meme.)
No, fuck, weren't these Monster Fish bastards just somewhat big fish? What the hell, something the size of a building entrancing people and trying to drag them into the sea? Fuck, were we really doing all that bullshit swimming and treasure hunting right above things like that??
- The presence was fucking insane, yeah;;
- I wonder what kind of people the ones catching those things are
- FR, the size makes absolutely no sense
- Listening to the Hunter's explanation, she said it lures other Monster Fish and drags them to its nest. Fucking thought it was some ghost story;;
[ Galecus GIF compilation ]
[ Author: Heungoksin ]
(A GIF of Galecus seen from afar when it first came into view.)
(A GIF of Galecus getting closer as Yuna approaches)
(A GIF of Galecus seemingly clipped when it was closest)
It is fucking pretty, though...
- Did you really think to make GIFs out of this in the middle of all that
└ But it's fucking pretty
└ True, but doing that after all that chaos is a bit
└ Everyone lived, so it's fine, you're so fucking easily offended
- Looking at it like this, its size is just a bully. A whole apartment building glowing in the ocean, of course it draws aggro
└ Is it really the size of an apartment? How many meters is that?
└ It's a 70m one
└ How do you know that?
└ If you watch the VOD, that Undersea Hunter named Yoo Parang explains it, yeah
[ I think this is that Hunter Yoo Parang? ]
[ Author: Life Cube ]
(Photos of the Pohang City Sack Girl. Photos of Parang confidently heading to the Hunter Association carrying a sack bigger than her body.)
(A photo of Yoo Parang caught on the broadcast screen. It's dark so it's hard to see clearly, but she definitely resembles the person in the photos above.)
Looks exactly the same? Blue hair and blue eyes aren't exactly common in the first place
- Not just not common, it wouldn't be strange if there was only one in South Korea
- Wow, but she is fucking pretty though, I didn't realize when watching the broadcast screen
- What are those photos above? When were they taken?
└ Don't you know the Pohang City Sack Girl?
└ What is that?
└ It's a meme that's been going around for a few years about someone lugging a sack bigger than their body around the Pohang City Hunter Association.
└ Fuck, so was it Monster Fish inside that thing?
└ Probably LOL
- Her expression holding that sack looks so fucking happy LOL
└ How could she not be happy when she's going to get paid LOL
- Looking at it now, isn't that person the Gyeongju Fishbowl Girl?
└ What the hell is that one?
└ (Hyperlink. Clicking it leads to a photo of Yoo Parang exploring the Cave of the Dead Dungeon in Gyeongju while inside a fish tank.)
└ ??????????
└ Huh???????
"Eh?"
It was the moment Yuna's image of Parang shattered a little.
And when she checked the clock, oh my, it was 3 AM.
She had spent a solid four hours just reading the community forums in that physical state.
Communities were scary like that.
[ You have (327) unread emails. ]
She ignored all of them. It was obviously interview requests or something like that.
Yuna closed her eyes and tried to sleep.
It was truly a day where way too many things had happened.
#
Meanwhile, Yoo Parang.
"Hmm...."
She was also watching the VOD that Yuna had uploaded.
However, she was interested in the chat, not the screen.
She was paying attention to the chat messages that popped up while she was salvaging the Submarine.
Because among them, she found a message that really stood out.
- The deep sea was actually fucking dangerous;;
'Maybe....'
Perhaps the way to stop people from going into the deep sea is right here.
Since Parang had also been enjoying internet broadcasts lately, she had at least a basic eye for it.
Even to her, her hosting skills shown during the Submarine salvage process were pretty decent.
In her own mind, she had only given a rough explanation of the situation because she felt the confusion would spiral out of control if she just dragged the Submarine away without saying anything, but in the end, it turned into a logical explanation of the current situation.
If she turned on a broadcast herself and showed people just how dangerous the deep sea was.
Having reached that thought, Parang took her eyes off the screen.
Then she went to her gallery and slowly looked through the drawings of Monster Fish she had drawn so far.
Her eyes stopped on the drawing of Galecus she had drawn last time.
"Then, maybe...."
Parang closed her eyes and quietly fell deep into thought.
And the next day.
[Hello. This is Hunter Yoo Parang, who helped you yesterday. The reason I am messaging you is that I am very concerned about the current diving craze sweeping the world and the accompanying dangers...
...therefore, I was wondering if you could promote the deep-sea exploration broadcast I plan to host.]
Yuna received a lengthy text message.