Wave Pool Mayhem!
The time in the sauna flew by faster than expected. Before I knew it, a full hour had passed while messing around with the staff. When I saw the sauna crowd suddenly thinning out en masse, I realized it was 11 a.m. and the water park had just opened.
Ah, what a hassle.
It was an indoor water park attached to the hot springs, but seeing everyone rush out like that made me reluctant to join them.
"Let's go!"
"L-Let's go."
The two of them grabbed my arms and started dragging me. I planted my feet and resisted.
"Nah, I'd rather stay here a bit longer. It'll be packed right now."
I'd come to unwind, not to squeeze into crowded pools.
"C-Come on. L-Let's go."
"Boss! That's exactly why you're getting old! Live young like this lady does!"
"……."
But my feeble resistance crumbled pathetically as they forcibly hauled me away.
"F-Fine, go wash up."
"We'll wait just a sec!"
Kim Yang and Renea headed into the women's locker room. I half-expected Raichen to be in there somehow, but no sign of him. Probably already at the water park having fun.
I quickly rinsed off the sauna sweat in the shower and threw on my swimwear—which was just black swim trunks and a long-sleeve rash guard. Places like this didn't care if it was "proper" swimwear; normal clothes worked fine.
As I stepped out of the locker room and waited at the entrance, my phone buzzed.
"Hello?"
"Can you talk now?"
"Yeah, sure."
I plopped down on a nearby bench. Crowds were gathering for the first wave pool session of the day.
"Things are getting sorted out with this incident. It'll hit the news, but your name won't come up."
That was a given. She wouldn't call just for that.
"And... about the Law."
Her voice dropped. I swallowed hard and listened intently.
"Yeah? Any reactions?"
"No, nothing. Same as before."
"Really?"
"Yeah."
Her reply lingered faintly, like she was holding something back. But Yu Ye-na didn't elaborate, and I didn't press. We had our positions—Hunter Association vice president and matchmaking agency owner. And this was probably the answer she wanted most from me.
"So don't worry too much, Juseon. Just keep living like normal."
"Got it. Thanks."
"I'll send your fee for this separately."
"If you're offering, I'll take it."
I never turned down money.
Kyaaaaah!
Waaaaaah!
The waves hit right then, and the screams carried through the phone. Yu Ye-na startled.
"Where are you right now?"
"Water park."
"Why there?"
"Company workshop. Staff wanted to relax, so here we are."
"……."
"What."
"Nothing. Have fun."
Click. The call ended abruptly after that curt farewell. Feeling oddly unsettled, an old memory flashed by.
Back when we were dating, after she graduated hunter training school, we'd talked about hitting up a water park.
"Ah……."
We'd naturally drifted apart after graduation, so it never happened. Still, it left a bitter aftertaste.
As the call hung awkwardly in my mind, Renea burst out of the women's locker room and dashed toward me. Her swimwear was similar to mine—simple short-sleeve shirt and shorts. She flailed her arms like an excited elementary schooler.
"B-Boss! Boss!"
"What."
"She's amazing! So amazing!"
"What is."
"Kim Yang! Sh-She's like, that big—!"
Renea gestured with her arms, mimicking something round and massive.
"Seeing it up close is on another level—."
"Okay, drop it."
Did her 1,902 years mean she had no concept of sexual harassment? I knew damn well how impressive Kim Yang was. 75E. I'd overheard it accidentally when getting her Allomang suit tailored last time.
"This lady will grow big someday too, right?"
"Pardon? You planning to reincarnate?"
"……."
She glared, realizing her own words were ridiculous. But what could I do? For a 1,902-year-old, "someday" meant reincarnation.
Kim Yang emerged next, her body covered by a thin windbreaker—but the zipper was only halfway up, revealing the black bikini underneath. Below were short denim cutoffs instead of swim bottoms. From the front, it was tantalizingly revealing inside; from the sides, the windbreaker hid just enough for that perfect tease.
SNS influencer vibes, dressing to kill.
Anyway, with Kim Yang out, I pointed straight to the wave pool.
"Wave pool. Waves are going strong right now."
Miss this, and you'd wait ten minutes for the next set. I'd dragged my feet coming, but now that we were here, skipping felt like wasting money.
"Renea, you can swim?"
"This lady's time playing in streams and lakes exceeds your entire lifespan!"
Damn, that sounded badass. Sticking out my tongue in admiration, I urged us onward—
Grab!
Kim Yang snatched my wrist, shooting me a sideways glare.
"Wh-What. N-Nothing?"
"What. Let's hit the wave pool."
"……."
She stared for a moment, then let go. As I moved to follow Renea—who'd already bounded into the pool happily—Kim Yang called out again.
"T-Take my picture."
"What picture."
"SNS."
"Ah...? So that's why the swimsuit?"
"Yeah."
Her reply was curt, almost chilly. She shoved her phone at me.
Thanks to her SNS, Meracle got free promo, and we'd scored free Allomang suits. This was the least I could do.
Kim Yang posed against the wave pool backdrop. Nothing fancy—just casual everyday vibes. Wonder if that even trended anymore.
"Ready?"
Nod.
Click click!
"Good?"
"Y-You only took two."
"Two's plenty."
"T-Take more."
Why was I working even here? I snapped a bunch more as she directed, then handed the phone back.
"There, done?"
They looked pretty good; time to play. But Kim Yang, dissatisfied with god-knows-what, grabbed my wrist and dragged me elsewhere.
"Why again."
"A-Again."
"Seriously, should've just bought the suits myself."
"L-Liar. Ch-Cheapskate."
"……Yeah, liar. Can't buy custom suits on my dime."
Those things cost a fortune. A little labor was a fair trade.
Next: locker room exit concept shot.
Click click! Click click!
"Hey, I'm not great at photos. This okay?"
"J-Just shoot."
"Quantity over quality, huh. Figures, it's you."
"N-No fun. Old fogey. F-Fossil."
"Quick wit."
I grumbled but took more, then passed the phone for inspection.
"These came out great this time."
"……."
But still dissatisfied. Without even checking, she petulantly dragged me off again.
This time, she sprawled on a public sunbed, striking a pose—
"Take that off?"
"Yeah."
She ditched the windbreaker and lay back. The pose was... excessive.
"……You post stuff like this?"
"S-Sexual harassment. S-Sue. W-Win."
"Sorry, my bad."
I felt passersby glancing at Kim Yang, so I hurried to snap away.
Click click! Click click!
"This one's perfect. You look gorgeous."
I offered the phone. She sat up slowly.
"Pretty?"
"Yeah, really pretty. Now we're good?"
Without checking, she pocketed the phone in her aqua bag and nodded.
"Y-Yeah. Good."
"What. No need to check?"
"C-Can't post this."
"You little—!"
I started to snap about the pointless ordeal, but she grabbed my wrist and pulled me to the wave pool.
"L-Let's go, boss."
"Ugh, fine. Where's Renea?"
"D-Dunno. J-Just play."
Finding pink hair should've been easy, but with all the mixed races clumped together, it was tricky.
The waves were still pounding hard. Up front, dwarves stood out—they were too short for the deep end, so they splashed around in the shallows.
"Hehe! Dad, look at this!"
"Hahaha! Swimming like your old man!"
We passed the dwarf family enjoying knee-deep waves and headed to the center. Kim Yang naturally rested her hands on my shoulders from behind. Standard wave pool protocol to stick with your group.
"L-Launch."
"Whoa, these waves are intense."
"W-Weakling."
Ridiculous. Then an orca beastkin safety worker yelled urgently.
"Elf over there! No stripping swimsuits! Put it back on!"
Elves probably swam nude in streams and lakes back home. Key point: we had an elf in our group.
"No way, right?"
"……."
Dread confirmed, but luckily, Renea surfaced nearby after diving.
"Puhah! So fun! Waves make swimming a thrill!"
"Phew, good. Swimsuit's on properly."
"Ex-Excellent."
"……Why praise such basics? This lady can't fathom it."
Renea looked miffed despite the compliment. But honestly, first time I'd sincerely praised her after all our time together.
Bam! Boooom!
Ominous rumbling from the front. A massive wave began rolling in.
"Whoa……."
As I marveled, a sensation pressed against my back. Kim Yang wrapped her arms around my neck and legs around my waist, clinging tight.
"Hey, hold on—!"
"Baa~."
"Damn it—!"
No time to complain before the wave crashed over us. The sheer force hurling us backward was surprisingly fun. A few martial artists holding steady mid-wave like training irked me a bit, but whatever.
We washed up to the shallow end, me flat on my back with Kim Yang still koala-clung to me.
"Getting cramped. Let go."
"O-One more. F-Fun."