The Visitor in Rain Boots
Three days had passed since the intensive examination at the treatment center. Finally, I was allowed to leave the Association.
“Ugh… Being cooped up indoors really doesn’t suit me.”
“That’s why I told you all those stories. It was exhausting digging through my memories, you know.”
“Hehe. It was fun, though.”
As expected, Chae-eun, the ultimate outdoor enthusiast, seemed to have struggled quite a bit.
“Aaaah… All my collab streams are probably ruined now.”
“If you just say you got caught up in a villain terror attack and had to receive emergency treatment, they won’t curse you out.”
“Even if they don’t curse me, my popularity will drop. There are so many new streamers climbing the ranks these days. If stuff like this keeps happening, it’ll get tough.”
Nuri was already worrying about her broadcasts. It was a relief to see her looking healthy.
“There’ll be a lot to do once we get home.”
“Are you going to tell Dad and Sis about what happened this time?”
“I probably should, right? They might feel hurt if they find out later.”
The most surprising thing was Maru’s mother’s mental state. According to the experts, there were no major issues. She was well enough to resume daily life right away. What an incredibly strong person.
“Still, you’ll need to visit the Association regularly. Understood?”
“Of course. I’m getting all the worry I couldn’t receive from my own son and daughter from my son’s friend instead.”
“Hey, we were worried too, obviously.”
“It would be nice if you actually said those words out loud sometimes.”
Thankfully, Maru’s family quickly regained their harmony. It was a relief that no one felt awkward or overly cautious around each other.
“So what are you going to do now? We’ll probably have to head back tomorrow.”
“Kwaaaah!!”
Chae-eun let out a cry of despair. Most of our trip had been spent trapped at the Association, so it made sense that she was upset. Besides, it was already past six, which made doing anything feel awkward.
“If there’s nothing on the schedule, why don’t you all gather for a barbecue before you go? There are empty spots at the pension.”
“Huh? Is that okay?”
“Sure. A reservation got canceled.”
Come to think of it, that was what we had been discussing when Nuri and Chae-eun came running over. I had completely forgotten.
“Then I’ll buy the meat on the way.”
“No, you should rest, Sis. Hey, come with me.”
“It’s only natural for A-rang to rest… but why do I have to go with you?”
“Just come. Meat shield.”
“Do you even know what to buy?”
“Don’t worry, Sis. I’m pretty good at cooking, you know.”
Now that she mentioned it, she did occasionally upload cooking videos on NewTube. And she really was skilled.
“I’m counting on you, Nuri.”
“Just trust me, Sis.”
“…If that’s the case, why are you dragging me along?”
“Shut up. Meat carrier.”
After sending Maru and Nuri off, the rest of us headed to the pension.
“Whoa. This place is nice.”
“It’s a fairly expensive pension. Plenty of rooms and great facilities.”
It really was clean and well-maintained. Though it seemed the manager didn’t stay on-site.
“Alright, let’s finish preparing before the kids get back with the meat.”
“Yes ma’am! Sis! It’s time to put in some effort!”
“…Me?”
“Sis, could you please wash the utensils we took out? Chae-eun, let’s go.”
“…Me?”
“Yep. You.”
She was clearly trying to push all the chores onto her sister.
Nuri truly had an eye for cooking—she only bought exactly what was needed. And during the meal, I discovered a new side of Maru.
“Ooh. The grilling is perfect.”
“Yeah, the texture and juiciness are spot on. Nothing’s burnt either.”
He grilled the meat flawlessly. He seemed to have a natural affinity for fire.
“Meat uncle~! More samgyeopsal over here, please.”
“Yessir. Coming right up.”
“Maru’s already an uncle?”
“At twenty-one, you’re basically ancient.”
“Then what does that make me, son?”
“Mother, you are forever in your twenties.”
He sure knew how to sweet-talk when it counted. He should call home more often.
“But Sis, you were seriously so cool this time! You instantly figured out the type of curse, helped open the space when we needed support—”
“Ah, so that was thanks to you, Sis? No wonder the Association shaman said the barrier suddenly loosened.”
“Uh… um…”
“You had so much charisma back then! Honestly, I was completely overwhelmed.”
“Oh. I would’ve loved to see that.”
“Uhh… ugh…”
“Sis is breaking down.”
It hadn’t been that long, but bringing up the incident already seemed fine. Bottling it up alone would only make things worse, so I didn’t stop them. Everyone had their own way of overcoming trauma.
“Here, Maru. Open wide.”
“Huh? I’m fine—mmph.”
“When someone wraps a ssam for you, you say ‘thank you’ and eat it nicely.”
I wrapped a ssam and shoved it straight into the mouth of Maru, who had been focused solely on grilling.
“…A-rang?”
“Yeah? What?”
“Uh… never mind.”
Chae-eun looked momentarily flustered, as if she wanted to say something, but she quickly shut her mouth. Why did she have to act so mysteriously and make people curious?
“What is it? Just say it.”
“It’s… a bit weird to ask, but… do you do that for other guys too?”
“Do what?”
“You know, wrapping ssams and feeding them by hand.”
Something about her tone felt off. I couldn’t tell what she was getting at.
“Well, it’s because Maru’s only grilling the meat, so I’m helping out.”
“No, I mean—if another guy was grilling, would you do the same thing?”
“Of course not. Why would I? There’s no guy I’d wrap ssams for and feed. Well… actually, there is one.”
“There is? Who?”
“My dad.”
At our house, Dad handled almost all the cooking. Mom always said it was polite to do at least this much for the person grilling the meat.
“Then why are you doing it for Maru oppa?”
“Maru isn’t just any guy, is he? For someone like Maru, it’s fine.”
“…What exactly is your relationship?”
“Friends. We’re also next-door neighbors.”
For some reason, everyone was staring at me, each with a different emotion in their eyes.
Chae-eun looked dumbfounded, Yeon-hwa unnie had the expression of someone watching something adorable, Nuri’s eyes were filled with shock, and Maru’s mother… what on earth was that look?
“What is it… Maru, do you like shrimp?”
“Huh? Yeah.”
“Then just a moment.”
Giving up on deciphering that gaze, I decided to simply feed Maru more. This time, I peeled a shrimp and brought it to his mouth.
“Here, ah~.”
This time, Maru obediently opened his mouth. Seeing him eat so well made me feel good. Even though I hadn’t grilled this one myself.
“…Maru oppa. You’ve got it rough.”
“Grilling meat is pretty tiring. Especially in the summer like this.”
Chae-eun wore an expression that said she was done talking and simply picked up some meat to eat. What exactly was the problem here?
“Mmm.”
I also grabbed some meat to eat in between. He really did grill it perfectly.
Once plenty of meat was grilled, we started drinking the alcohol we had bought.
“Nuri. You can drink when you’re an adult. There’s no rush.”
“Hiiing…”
I stopped Nuri as she secretly reached for a glass and slowly sipped my own drink.
“Now that I think about it, it’s been a long time since I drank with my son.”
“You don’t drink that often anyway, Mom.”
“What did I say? I’m just saying it’s been a while.”
The atmosphere grew warmer, and more sincere conversations began to flow—honest feelings that were usually hard to express.
“So this was my first real battle. My head really froze up. If it weren’t for unnie, I wouldn’t have been able to do anything.”
“No… I was only able to move because of you…”
“Don’t blame yourself too much. That’s how it is for almost everyone. If you stayed completely calm the first time your life was in danger, that would actually be strange.”
“But unnie was calm.”
“…Unnie is special, so it’s fine.”
It seemed she was still bothered by not being able to contribute much back then. But that was completely normal.
Most hunter deaths occurred during their first real battle or within the next five. Their bodies froze in fear, they panicked and acted recklessly, or they grew overconfident and let their guard down—only to die instantly without even a chance to receive healing magic.
Considering that, Chae-eun had actually done quite well. At the very least, she had followed Yeon-hwa unnie’s orders properly.
“By the way, A-rang. You’re used to fights like this, aren’t you?”
“Well… honestly, I’ve been through much worse.”
I had faced countless monsters and villains. If we were only talking about danger level, this incident wasn’t even particularly memorable.
After the X-grade gate raid, many countries saw their hunter forces plummet, and I had filled that gap in Korea. As a result, I had confronted all kinds of enemies and been exposed to every kind of dangerous situation.
Of course, none of it had been a big problem. I could have died, but my power was enough to handle it.
The only reason I had panicked and felt such rage this time was because my people had been dragged into it. Otherwise, I would have stayed cold and rational until the end. I would have simply ripped that witch’s throat out immediately.
“It must have been hard. Getting used to things like this…”
“Well… a little.”
A few days ago I had said I was fine, but this time I simply admitted it had been a bit difficult. Even if I was okay now, it had been incredibly hard back then.
“Now that I think about it, Nuri, you said you modified a skill for the first time this time, right?”
“Yes. Since it was my first try, I used mana very inefficiently.”
“Everyone’s like that at first. Instead of focusing on the form, try to grasp the intention and core. I’ll teach you a few useful skills later.”
“Haaah?! Really?!”
“Yeah. I’ll show you some that are useful in real combat. The KTX reservation is for the evening, so we’ll have some time.”
“Um… but shouldn’t you be spending time with the unnies? It’s a rare trip and all.”
“It won’t take too long. Chae-eun, is that—?”
“What?! Teach me too! X-grade private tutoring!”
“…I’ll teach you some body reinforcement and vision enhancement techniques.”
“Nice!!”
Well, the desire to improve was a good thing.
“Unnie… I’m sorry, but I’m not very good with magic or shamanism…”
“It’s fine…”
“Then would you like to learn some simple self-defense from me?”
“It’s fine.”
“Okay.”
She was incredibly firm. She would probably cut me down if I pushed.
“Oh, that reminds me, Maru. I’ll be busy with work soon. You might have to meet Andre alone.”
“That’s fine, but can you tell me what it’s about?”
“It looks like the Hunter General Assembly is going to be convened.”
The Hunter General Assembly was the only external activity that Baekwol, who otherwise avoided almost everything unrelated to hunting, attended without fail. Strictly speaking, it was still part of hunter duties.
“The General Assembly? Does that mean all three major guild leaders will be there too?”
“Yes. They were the ones who suggested gathering in the first place. We were going to meet soon anyway.”
Come to think of it, it hadn’t been long since the cleanup in North Korea had finished. It was a situation that required constant management. That might be the main topic. They would probably handle the Red Witch matter at the same time.
“What kind of people are those three? Isn’t there only one who actively participates in external activities?”
“Yeah. The others don’t really enjoy being in the public eye. As for what kind of people they are…”
At that moment, I felt an enormous wave of magical power. It wasn’t a gate—it was the magical signature of a hunter.
“!!”
The wave suddenly appeared near the pension. And it was steadily getting closer.
“Huh? What’s going on?!”
When I openly tensed up, everyone else began to grow nervous as well. It was only natural after what we had just been through.
“None of you move. Nuri, lend me your sword.”
Nuri quietly handed over her beloved blade. I didn’t like handling someone else’s cherished weapon, but this was an emergency. The person approaching was someone I wasn’t confident I could defeat even at full strength. Without my own sword, Baekwol, it would be quite difficult.
The sound of boots echoed slowly. While everyone remained tense, I walked forward to meet him.
There stood a middle-aged man. Even though it wasn’t raining, he wore a raincoat and boots. In one hand, he held a fishing rod. In the other was a magic translator. I took the device and activated it.
“I didn’t expect someone like you to come all the way here.”
“I know I’m an uninvited guest, so I understand your wariness, but there’s no need for that. I simply have a message to deliver.”
On his back was a massive backpack filled with various fishing tools—a white harpoon, a net, and more.
“Someone of your caliber volunteering as a mere messenger?”
“There’s nothing wrong with that. I’m just an eccentric who wanders the seas.”
The people watching quickly realized the middle-aged man’s true identity. There was only one person in the world who looked exactly like a fisherman and could make Baek A-rang genuinely tense.
“The Pope has a message. So he suggested we all gather. This concerns every X-grade hunter, including you.”
The Deep Sea Fisherman. The hunter of the seas had come looking for Baek A-rang.
