The Witch
This can't be. This absolutely cannot happen. I'd rather capture the Apocalypse alive than deal with this.
"...Unni, are all your muscles melted away or something?"
"I'm... weaker... than an octopus... Yeonhwa..."
I'd tried every trick I could think of to get her to at least walk around a little since swimming was fine, but nothing worked.
"It'd be nice if someone could help..."
"If you can't manage it with your own strength, it won't make much difference if I step in. Besides, isn't it a bit awkward to touch her?"
He was right. Yeonhwa was wearing a monokini right now. If Maru laid a hand on her, he'd be touching bare skin, and things would get uncomfortable between them.
"Haah... Yeah. There's no point forcing ourselves to do something we don't want to do while we're supposed to be on vacation."
"Thanks... for understanding..."
Yeonhwa unni, who had been baking under the warm sunlight, retreated back under the parasol. Maru's mother saw this and chuckled, then pointed at the cooler.
"Everyone, grab a drink from there."
"Ah. Thank you."
"Thanks."
When I started to get up, Maru rose first and opened the cooler.
"Um... Arang. This is the only thing here that you might be able to drink."
"Huh? Aren't there lots of drinks in there?"
"They're all carbonated. You said you don't handle carbonation well."
"Oh... Did I mention that before?"
"Last time you said you hated carbonated drinks and drank juice instead. I remember that much."
"People usually don't remember offhand comments like that."
What should I call this? Considerate? Anyway, the fact that he remembered and took care of it made me feel good. I drank the sports drink he handed me, soothing my throat.
"What about the other two?"
"They're probably still playing. Their stamina is off the charts."
Even if their bodies were fine, their minds could get exhausted. Considering that, those two really had incredible physical and mental endurance.
"Haah... I feel alive again. But what's this?"
"That's Nuri's sword. She carries it everywhere she goes."
"...I see."
It must be a habit she picked up from the Haeundae incident.
"Oh, right. There was something I wanted to tell you."
"Yeah?"
"It's not like I only run one lodging business. There's a pension house nearby, and it turns out a room opened up. A reservation was canceled."
"Huh? So are we staying there tonight?"
"Since it's a rare chance, I thought it might be better. We can have barbecue too."
Oh. That sounds fun.
"Then if possible, tonight we can go there with my friends—"
"Uwaaa!! Arang!!"
"Stop right there!!"
Suddenly Chae-eun and Nuri came running from afar. The way they were sprinting while shouting made them look like reckless kids.
"Uwa! Arang's shield!"
"Unni! That's cowardly!"
"...Can you at least explain before using me as a shield?"
They were facing off with me in the middle. It was like a scene straight out of a children's cartoon brought to life.
"Unni threw the first punch!"
"I told you it was really an accident?!"
"If you accidentally kill someone, does that make it innocent?!"
She had a point. But what exactly would lead to accidentally punching someone?
"I really meant to hit the ball! My feet just got tangled because we were in the water!"
"...Then why are you hitting the ball with your fist?"
"Because she did the same thing!"
"I aimed properly, you know?! What kind of archer can't aim straight?!"
"Haah... Just separate for now. You're making me sweat."
I pulled them apart and naturally handed Chae-eun over to Nuri.
"Arang?!"
"No matter how you look at it, punching someone is wrong. Accept it humbly."
"No way!! After how nice I've been— Kyaa!!"
"Get over here!!"
Nuri's tickle attack engulfed Chae-eun. How did she know Chae-eun was weak to tickling? That aside, this scene looked a bit strange.
"Hahahaha!! Wait!!"
"What do you mean, wait! Mercy is not an option!"
Two beautiful girls in swimsuits tickling each other and laughing... it was a bit...
"That's enough, Nuri. People are starting to stare."
"Huh? Ah..."
I wasn't trying to brag, but every woman in our group was strikingly beautiful in her own way. The sight of two of them pressing their bodies together while tickling each other...
"..."
"..."
It was inevitable that all the men around us would focus their gazes on them.
"Sob sob. Nuri has violated my chastity."
"Unni! You shouldn't say things like that..."
"Let's stop there. My head hurts."
The fact that my friend and my friend's younger sister were filming a yuri scene in the middle of the beach gave me a headache. Chae-eun might be fine, but Nuri was a known broadcaster. Would this really be okay?
"Anyway, what are we doing for lunch?"
"Let's eat something light for lunch. We'll have proper grilled meat for dinner. I'll go get... Are there any good places to eat around here?"
"Come with me. I've been here a few times as a kid, so I know the area roughly."
"Really? Then let's go together."
"Mom! I'm going with Arang to buy some lunch."
"Don't buy too much. We'll eat a lot tonight."
"What?! Why does only my brother get to go!"
"Then you come along too."
"Yes!! Unni, just a moment!"
Maru threw on a light outer shirt while Nuri put on a rash guard. I was already ready to go as I was. My swimsuit had almost no exposure anyway, so walking around in it wasn't a problem.
"..."
"Hm? What's wrong?"
"...It's nothing."
But suddenly I felt uneasy. It wasn't that anything unpleasant had happened. How should I describe this...
"...Nuri. I'm sorry, but could you stay here?"
"Huh? Oh... Okay."
"Thank you."
She had every right to question me, yet Nuri simply followed my request. I was grateful, but I didn't express it right then. A familiar, ominous feeling had come over me.
"Maru. Can you go alone? No. You stay here too."
"...Is something wrong?"
"Not yet. Not right now."
Nothing had happened yet. But my instincts were screaming. It felt like something was about to occur. Ignoring this feeling would lead to regret.
I trust my instincts. The senses honed through my life as a hunter rarely miss the mark.
But instinct isn't foresight. Something would happen, but I couldn't know what or when. All I could do was prepare as best as I could.
"I'll go check something quickly. Stay here."
"...Alright. Be careful."
My friends and my friend's family were here. I would never let any trouble reach them.
I pulled a token from my bag. It was an item that temporarily transformed my clothes into my personal hanbok-style combat uniform. It was single-use and only changed the appearance, but it was enough to hide my identity.
"Yes, Baek Wol Hunter-nim. This is the Association President's direct—"
"I'm sorry, but I'll get straight to the point. Connect me to the Busan branch of the Association immediately."
The line switched without another word. As expected from professionals.
"This is the Branch Chief of the Busan Branch, Korean Hunter Association."
"I'm sorry for the sudden call. Are there any gates or villains near Gwangalli right now—"
"Damn it! Who the hell is that guy!"
"Ha. Today is seriously cursed."
The two punks who had failed to hit on Baek Arang wandered the beach again, searching for new targets.
But they weren't having any luck. These two mediocre punks—with average looks, average speech, but unreasonably high standards for women—had struck out all day long.
"Ha... That girl was such a waste."
"Let it go. That guy with her was an awakened too. If he was high-rank, we'd be the ones in trouble."
They had no intention of putting in real effort, yet lacked the guts to commit to anything big. These two E-rank awakeners were nothing more than petty thugs who wandered the shore, pressuring and sweet-talking women who looked weak. Completely unable to gauge an opponent's mana capacity, they had approached Baek Arang without realizing their place and gotten thoroughly rejected.
"Let's just call it a day... Huh?"
"What? Where... Oh. Jackpot."
Just as they were about to give up and leave, someone caught their eyes. A woman in a red bikini. She was biting her nails nervously, which made her look perfect to toy with. She seemed a bit older, but with that appearance, she'd be a solid success.
"Haha. Miss, is something wrong?"
"Tell us about it. We'll listen to anything."
The punks approached slowly. However, the woman acted as if they didn't exist, simply muttering to herself.
"Then... I can be forgiven... Definitely... that bitch..."
"Sorry? Could you say that again?"
"Never mind. Just come with us. You can talk slowly."
The two punks, unable to sense the woman's mana, had no idea what kind of being stood before them. They only thought she had a slightly ominous aura.
"Isn't this... a bit dangerous?"
"It's fine. We're not looking for marriage material, are we? We'll just have some fun and run."
Then the woman, who had suddenly stopped muttering, looked at the two punks.
"..."
"Ah. Have you changed your mind about coming with us? Then—huh?"
"What is this? Why did it suddenly get cold?"
"...Move according to my will. The master of all that is mine is me."
"Follow my will and move."
"The master of all that is mine is me."
⟨ Domination ⟩
"Uwaaack!! What the hell is this!!"
"Hey?! Help— Uwaaaack!!!"
"Now... if you want to live, obey me... Understand...?"
In the original story, Cheon Ma-ru's personality shattered and twisted because of an incident during summer vacation.
The original work had already been twisted countless times. Yet there was one witch who remained unaffected by that distortion.
"I'll take him back... He was originally mine...!"
She began to move. To steal back what she had lost.