Bunny Girl Heading for the Summit (5)

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The tiger from the classic fairy tale The Sun and the Moon.

Now an anomaly that had switched careers to become Hoewolsan's Mogihyang, it was performing at an outstanding level.

In my Max Level Rabbit state, I could see everything crystal clear even on a mountain in the dead of night.

Every time I said to the tiger, "Give me a rice cake and I won't eat you," a few anomalies heard the sound. From among the fallen leaves. From behind the foliage. They peeked out slyly, watching for their chance.

Those creatures all showed similar reactions.

"Uh... what the hell is going on over there?"

"Lord Tiger? Why are you like that?"

"Looks like I shouldn't go that way. I'll just go back to sleep..."

"Is that a choo-choo train? Looks fun. Let me join!"

There was one that was a bit different mixed in among them.

I cleaned those ones up neatly.

By now they were probably experiencing the laws of nature firsthand as food for ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠other anomalies. In the wild, if you charged in without even assessing the situation, even ten lives wouldn't be enough. With the ones who blindly bared their fangs first getting naturally selected, Hoewolsan had become a slightly more livable place.

Anyway, all opposing opinions had vanished. The anomalies reached a unanimous consensus to steer clear of us.

Which meant I could at least manage a simple conversation with the rescue target, Han Yeseo.

"Um... the person behind there is a Hunter, right?"

"Yes. I'm a regular patrol officer from the Anomaly Management Bureau. Codename is... hmm. Just call me Rabbit for now."

I couldn't bring myself to say something like "Please call me Bunny Girl!" out of my own mouth. No matter how I thought about it, that was a hard no. The moment I started referring to myself as a bunny girl out loud, something irreversible would happen. I had a gut feeling that things like the walls around my heart, or my dignity, would start getting chipped away.

No. It's plenty shameful. I was grateful enough that we were on a dark mountain.

This bunny girl costume. Fundamentally, it emphasized the shape of my body — the curves — way too much. The exposure was considerable, so a lot ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠of bare skin was showing. On top of that, a neck choker resembling a suit collar sat around my throat. A bunny tail was attached to my rear, drawing people's eyes whether I liked it or not.

I never really understood what the point of it was, but wearing it myself, I could see exactly where people were looking. There was a reason bunny girls were the quintessential sexy women's costume. I was definitely wearing clothes, so why did I feel naked?

"Thank you so much for coming. I really thought it was all over for me..."

"Don't let your guard down too much. I'll help you as much as I can, but you're not safe until we escape."

"Ah, yes. So we just keep going this way?"

"Watch your step. I've got the surroundings covered."

Anyway, no matter how well the tiger performed as a high-quality anomaly repellent, there were limits. Han Yeseo was an ordinary civilian. And this Hoewolsan was a harsh place for the powerless.

"K-kyaaaah... huh?"

No matter how terrifying the tiger was, trees wouldn't step aside for it. Han Yeseo's foot briefly brushed a root, and it happened to be an especially sensitive one. I was glad I'd kept a yeopjeon coin in my hand just in case. I managed to throw the coin and sever the root before she was dragged too high.

Yeseo, who had fallen with a thud, looked around dazedly and got back on her feet. I pulled out another yeopjeon and gripped it in my hand. That left thirty-nine rounds. Plenty of ammo.

"Are you hurt?"

"No. Just scraped my knee a little. Thank you."

"Let's keep going. I'll check your wounds once we're out."

"That's so freaking cool..."

It wasn't just plant-type anomalies that ignored the tiger and came after us. Giant mosquitoes like the one I'd first encountered, and insect-type anomalies like centipedes, were constantly eyeing Yeseo. Unfortunately, our dear Mogihyang had little effect against mosquitoes. Instead of filing a warranty claim, I had to fire yeopjeon like bullets.

By the way, I seemed to have a talent for throwing things. Or was this also an effect of the physical enhancement? I should check on that separately later.

"Rabbit Hunter? When did you get all the way over there...? I'll catch up right away. Don't leave me behiiind..."

After the insects came the type of anomaly that bewitched people. The kind that lured prey without needing to approach directly had set their sights on us. These ones couldn't be stopped by the tiger's power alone. Fortunately, the constellation's support was on point for this.

Seduction-type anomalies weren't much of a threat once you found the main body's location. The lower their rank, the more that tendency held true. Another yeopjeon shot drove off the Jangsanbeom.

"Tch. I was aiming to kill."

I'd meant to blow its head off. Whether it was highly cautious or an unexpectedly high-level anomaly, it fled immediately, so I couldn't eliminate it. There were an unusual number of lost footprints in this area. That thing had definitely eaten a few people. I wanted to chase after it, but right now I had someone I needed to protect.

"Snap out of it. I'm still behind you."

"Huh? Was I just under a spell?"

"Yes. But you couldn't help it. Even Awakened struggle with those."

"...But Hunter, your voice is seriously killer. I'm a girl and I almost fell for you."

"?"

Was this that suspension bridge effect? In dangerous situations your heart rate goes up, and you mistake that elevated heartbeat for attraction. ...I never got that when I was a rescue worker.

Past and present, I'd been pulling people out of danger. Of course I'd rescued plenty of young women too. But I'd never heard anything like that. Huh. Suddenly my heart hurts too much.

I started to see the summit when I had three yeopjeon left. At this point, I decided to wrap things up with the tiger.

"Tiger. I've been thinking carefully about this."

"...?"

"The truth is, I don't really like rice cakes. I hate that sticky texture. So you don't have to give me any more rice cakes."

I unilaterally broke the rules of the ghost story. I'd destroyed the channel I'd been exploiting this creature ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠through. Unfortunately, all that remained between me and the tiger was a fight to the death.

But this creature seemed to have grown quite attached to me. It wore an expression like it was asking what the hell I was talking about. There was even a hint of reality-denial, as if it was going to pretend it hadn't heard. I didn't know what to call this feeling. It was uncomfortable, like I'd betrayed it.

But I had no intention of taking back my words. I'm human, and you're an anomaly. We were a connection that could never work out from the start. Romance that transcends situation and status only exists in fiction.

"KREEEOOOOOONGH!"

"Ugh, so loud."

Sticky relationships needed to be settled with a single, decisive slap. It was time to recreate a classic cutscene from a long-running trashy melodrama. Variations included throwing water in the face or a kimchi slap, but I didn't care for overly dramatic behavior. I simply finished off the tiger's life with a few classic open-palm strikes.

To be honest, I mixed in a few punches. Palm strikes alone weren't quite enough for the finishing blow.

With that, the talisman that had been keeping the lesser spirits at bay was gone, but it wasn't a big problem. As we got closer to the summit, the number of anomalies had noticeably decreased. So the real problem was something else entirely.

Until now, the tiger had been standing between me and Han Yeseo. With the obstacle gone, there was no need to keep our distance.

"Rabbit Hunter. Looking at it now, your outfit is really... provocative."

"..."

"I-I meant it suits you well!"

"..."

"No, seriously. How is your figure this pretty? Can I touch it just once?"

"No, you may not..."

Suddenly a thought occurred to me. Was it women, not men, that I really needed to be careful of? Not a single man had treated me like this so far. At most, they couldn't control their glances, peeking here and there. Most of them were uncomfortable even entering within a five-meter radius of me. They acted like if they so much as brushed my clothes, they'd instantly become criminals.

But Han Yeseo was different.

"Hehe. You're embarrassed. Why? You're cute and pretty."

"Kyaa, why are your fingers so soft?"

"Unnie, you must be super popular outside. Even your voice just oozes prettiness. Ahaha, what am I saying."

Because she thought we were both girls, the sexual harassment came out completely uninhibited. The close personal distance unique to social butterflies was also hard for me to handle. As a result, my mental state was being worn down far faster than when dealing with anomalies.

Ironically, this time an anomaly saved me. A wolf even larger than the tiger I'd faced earlier. Just as I was about to enter combat stance, the constellation reassured me.

The final gate of Hoewolsan. If that wolf granted our request, we'd receive a wine cup, and placing that wine cup on the summit stele would mean escaping the ghost story. According to the constellation, it wouldn't make any particularly difficult demands.

The wolf lightly bounded over and stood before me. Amazingly, this creature's howl was conveyed as pure meaning.

"Uh, do I answer in words? Does that work?"

"It matters not."

...Did wolves distinguish between formal and casual speech? I wasn't sure, so I used formal speech for now. It was a sacred beast, after all.

"...I, I have no idea what I'm supposed to catch."

"When the time comes, you will naturally know."

"Will you make this promise to me?"

"As long as it doesn't harm people."

"Sufficient."

Was that it? The wolf turned its head as if its business with me was concluded. Before me, a wine cup had appeared at some point. And the wolf said this to Han Yeseo.