What Did You Just Say to Me?!
The moment the hangar doors opened, Senior A-rang hurled her axe and charged straight into the stunned ranks of the sahagin. She wrenched the weapon free from the skull of the one she’d just killed, yanking it out with raw force.
True to the name A-rang, it felt exactly like watching a wolf dive into a flock of sheep.
-Krrrkk?
-K-kiiik?
“Wow, you really are ugly up close. Looks like a damn seafood market in here. What’re you staring at, you piece of shit?!”
THWACK-!!
The sahagin froze solid. Not only had this woman just shattered one of their own with an axe, she had then brazenly leapt into their midst and, for the simple crime of meeting her eyes, turned another comrade’s head into a sunken crater. Terror locked them in place.
As sea creatures, they had never seen a wolf before—much less one wearing a human face.
Right behind that fearless Senior A-rang, Bok-soon and I stepped into the hangar, shields up, ready to follow Senior Seo-rin as she prepared to flatten the sahagin into dried fish snacks.
“They’re completely frozen. Senior A-rang really stuck the initiation.”
“We move in now! They’re still gripped by fear of Cheon A-rang, but if we drag this out she’ll be isolated in the middle of the pack!”
“Then we charge! I’ll cover your pussy and asshole!”
“D-do you not realize that your master’s cock is the single greatest threat to my pussy and asshole right this second?!”
“What a shameless human!”
“Here we gooo-!!”
THUD-THUD-THUD-!!
Bok-soon put bullet holes through the backs of the sahagin still staring at Senior A-rang. That was the signal. Senior Seo-rin surged forward like a living battering ram, charging the entire swarm head-on.
The sahagin that had been late to react to A-rang finally noticed us and spun around—only to meet Senior Seo-rin transformed into a human tank, massive shield leading the way.
CRUNCH, SPLAT-!!
-Kiiiiik?!
-Keeeaaak?!
-Kyaaaak?!
In a single rush she turned four or five of them into fish-cake paste, then let out a satisfied “Mm!” and shouted back at me.
“I can feel the power overflowing more than yesterday—I’ve definitely gotten stronger! As expected of Master!”
“See? I told you our Seung-yong is talented!”
SLASH-!!
That was all the encouragement Senior A-rang needed. She stopped posturing and switched to full slaughter mode, axe in one hand, greatsword in the other, and plowed straight into the pack.
“Come on, closer, closer, closer! Get over here! Hey, where do you think you’re running?! You’re monsters! Get back here so I can look cool in front of Seung-yong for once!!”
“Even so, don’t get too far ahead, Cheon A-rang!”
“Don’t tell me what to do! You catch up if you want!”
“Ugh, this is exactly why I hate working with you!!”
CRACK-CRACK-CRACK-!!
While Senior A-rang carved out space and made a complete mess a short distance from our main line, Senior Seo-rin stayed at the front, swinging sword and shield to keep pace and maintain formation.
“You bastard! You bitch! Head! Chest! Belly!”
“What the hell is that battle-cry even supposed to be?!”
THWACK, BANG-BANG-!!
Bok-soon and I refused to fall behind. We followed right after Seo-rin, crushing sahagin skulls with greatsword and revolver.
A proper sahagin slaughterhouse was now running at full capacity—two B-class hunters plus two more who could match them on paper.
And of course the star butcher was still Senior A-rang.
I watched the whirlwind of flying flesh and blood fountains centered on her and said to Bok-soon,
“Senior A-rang is seriously insane. Every swing just shreds six or seven fish-heads!”
“The chaos started five seconds ago and you’re already trying to slack off? Work, human! Do you even know how many I’ve already killed?!”
“Aigoo, you kkanf.”
I stomped hard on the foot of a fish-head that tried to spear my side, then jammed the trident I’d just stolen into the back of its head while it was still hopping around like a one-legged chicken.
“All you have to do is click the trigger! You realize I’m covering for you like crazy right now?!”
“Hmph. Even so, you’re still my meat shield. You can play master in bed all you want, but in a dungeon you’re just my tool—my meat shield. A tool bragging about supporting the main DPS? How pathetic.”
“Aigoo, you bitch.”
“What did you just say?!”
We’ve been using each other as meat shields almost every day since last year, so the coordination is solid. The problem is that mouth of hers. She never bothers fixing the way she talks just to piss me off.
Of course I know it’s her masochist instincts unconsciously baiting me into rough treatment again. That doesn’t make the kkanf-style remarks any sweeter.
“Say that again?! What did you just call me?! B-bitch?! This meat shield has finally lost its mind! Aigoo, stop interfering from the side already! These fucking fish-heads!!”
BANG, BANG-BANG-!!
Bok-soon sprayed magic bullets while spitting low-class curses that would make any proper young lady faint. I clicked my tongue and went back to whack-a-mole with the greatsword on the fresh wave of sahagin charging us. That was when the singing started.
SLASH-SLASH-SLASH-!!
The source was the very center of the bloodiest, most screaming whirlwind of slaughter.
Senior A-rang had gotten so carried away she started singing. The lyrics were something else.
“Cutting through the coccyx and the sacrum! Follow my axe handle straight to Noryangjin Fish Market!”
With every line she swung the greatsword and axe like golf clubs, splitting sahagin in half and sending them spraying blood. The song matched the reality a little too perfectly.
“Senior! Shouldn’t that be Hwagaetjangter, not Noryangjin?!”
“They say Hwagaetjangter has everything, but all I see here is fish-heads!”
“Aha!”
“Aha my ass! Stop playing around and help already?!”
“Do I look like I’m playing to you?!”
In the middle of this free-for-all I was already covered in blood from head to toe just like the two seniors. How exactly was I supposed to look like I was goofing off?
I was enjoying the satisfying feel of crushing sahagin and half-planning what punishment I’d give Bok-soon later when a new sound cut through everything.
-~SSIYAAAAAA!!
“Hm?”
“Ugh, my e-ears…!!”
A bizarre shriek rose from the center of the hangar we were pushing toward. I kicked a fish-head like a soccer ball and turned to Bok-soon, who was clutching her ears.
“Was that you yelling, Bok-soon?”
“It was not! This human just saw a chance to frame me! Huh? What are these things doing?”
“What now, omana?”
-K-kiiik!
-Kiyaak!
After that brief breather of jokes, we were about to resume the mole-whacking when the sahagin suddenly changed behavior.
Until now they had simply been getting steamrolled wherever we charged. All at once they formed ranks, leveled their tridents at us, and began a slow, orderly retreat toward the source of that shriek in the heart of the hangar.
I called out to the two seniors still fighting at the front.
“Seo-rin! Senior A-rang!”
“I see it, Master! These things are retreating in formation! Sahagin of all creatures, retreating in formation!”
“There must be a higher specimen! Heh, I knew it! That whale didn’t hire us as cleaners for nothing!”
Different species, same pattern. Land goblins take orders from hobgoblins or shamans. Sea goblins—sahagin—have their own higher ranks too.
“A Sahagin General?”
“I’ve never heard of a General making a noise like that! It’s more like… like a soprano who just stubbed her pinky toe on a doorframe!”
“That’s an extremely specific description. More importantly, don’t rush in alone! We’re going together!”
“Hey! Let go of me already?!”
If it wasn’t a Sahagin General, then what the hell was commanding them?
We reorganized just as the sahagin had. Or rather, we spent most of our energy stopping Senior A-rang from charging in alone to smash everything. Then, in good order, we followed the retreating swarm toward the center of the hangar where the shriek had come from.
