What Kind of Stage Will Today Be?
Waikiki Beach—the place that rose in anyone's mind at the mere word Hawaii. A vast white shore and the sea lay together in harmony, pouring out a freshness and a vigor beyond words.
"Oh. Quite beautiful."
Hong Yumin breathed her admiration. In a red swimsuit that matched her red hair, she put her charm on display without a shred of reserve. Her figure was a work of art. A life lived in the immortal arts had left her skin as smooth as a baby's, and whenever sunlight grazed it she shone like a jewel polished to a high gleam. The lines of her body boasted a golden ratio, as if a god had shaped them, and the gaze with which she looked slowly about her carried a quiet dignity.
And her chest? The red bikini was filled to the point of strain, and even from a distance one could feel the spring of it. And her thighs? The flesh that swelled, fitted tight beneath the swimsuit, stirred a man's lust.
"Mmm. The sea, after so long."
Mi Soryeong came out beside Hong Yumin, and her beauty did not yield an inch. An Eastern beauty had torn her way out of a painting. Black hair that did not clump, but flowed like a wave; eyes parted just so; a tall frame; a body honed by training, laid bare. In a swimsuit built on white and shot through with bright color, Mi Soryeong did not look like a woman who had borne a child. Not a single ungainly ounce showed, and not one wrinkle marked her face. She fell short of Hong Yumin, yet skin so firm it seemed to have stepped past age was more than enough to draw the envy of other women, and the thigh that pressed just past the swimsuit was maddeningly tempting.
And then one wicked thing that brushed all the rest aside. It was large. In ordinary clothes it had gone unnoticed, but now it could not be missed—grandeur growing grander still. The cloth could not hide it. Flesh had pushed up through the swimsuit and come to rest on top. Was such a thing even possible?
"Have I... put on weight?"
The woman herself wore a face of despair. Everyone else was another matter. A hero on patrol let his eyes wander, and a man lifting a hot dog to his mouth froze just like that. The hot dog slid free and dropped onto the sand.
"Hngh. Do I need to go on a diet..."
"What talk is a diet? One simply lives."
"Yumin, you only say that because you don't know. Once you get older, it just piles on by itself."
"By that reckoning, do you mean I am a pig rolling about?"
"You're a cheat..."
Hong Yumin and Mi Soryeong walked side by side. Hong Yumin was a beauty that meant purity itself, unstained by so much as a speck. Mi Soryeong was a beauty that held a married woman's ripeness. Merely appearing on this beach was enough to seize everything around them.
Already a pack was closing in, as if their blood had heated—not blond, tanned punks, but young white men, twenty or so. Expensive sunglasses on their faces, they swallowed hard, again and again, and spoke to the two.
"Hey, want to come with us..."
"Mom, what are you doing?"
They had been speaking English, and they stopped dead because Dan Chuyeon had appeared at her side. Mi Soryeong glanced at the men staring as if to ask what this kid was supposed to be, and smiled, bright and sharp.
"Son, what's the matter?"
She answered a Korean question in English. Anyone could tell it was meant to be overheard.
"...A son? For real?"
"As if. How does someone who looks like that have a son?"
"East Asians have a lot of baby faces, you know."
"There's a limit. Anyone can see she's trying to brush us off."
"Damn it. If this worked, it'd be a jackpot..."
Watching the white men mutter among themselves, Hong Yumin licked her ice cream.
"Is this what they call a pickup?"
"That's right. You're having a rare experience."
I couldn't let a show this good get away, so I cut in at once. The white men faltered the moment I appeared.
"What kind of fashion is that?"
"Aloha Phantom Thief isn't bad, is it?"
I flapped a swim aloha shirt—a look I had pondered in the mirror with great seriousness. Even the mask had been dressed Hawaiian.
"Do you take it that anything is fine so long as you stick phantom thief on the end?"
"And where else would you find a phantom thief like me?"
"If every phantom thief were like you, the earth would have perished."
If she didn't like it, she could have said so. Why drag the end of the world into it and wound a person?
"Uh... excuse us."
One look at me, and the white men withdrew without a fight.
"He seems crazy, doesn't he?"
"Those people might not be normal."
I heard the unkind muttering and ignored it.
"Did something happen?"
Dan Miryu came up with both hands full of juice and blinked.
Mi Soryeong took her share and pouted.
"...You could have come a little sooner."
"Hm? Why?"
At the sight of him asking back so innocently, Mi Soryeong pulled Dan Chuyeon into her arms.
"...As I thought, I only have our son."
"Mom, it's hot."
"What's wrong with your mom? Are you embarrassed?"
"No, it's hot."
"You shouldn't be hot over only this much."
"I said it's hot!"
"We're going over there."
Mi Soryeong went down to the sea with Dan Chuyeon.
"...What did I do wrong?"
"Let's just call it bad luck."
Dan Miryu, who had tanked Mi Soryeong's affection without the faintest idea why, stood there looking stupid.
"...Hah. Let's go, Lord San-gun."
"Krung."
Hong Yumin and San-gun shook their heads and ran off across the sand.
"...What did I even do?"
Left alone, Dan Miryu made a face on the verge of tears.
"Excuse me, are you here alone?"
"Yes?"
Suddenly the one being hit on, Dan Miryu broke into a sweat.
"No, I'm a married man."
"Don't be like that. We're just short on people..."
"You really shouldn't..."
Hm. A woman had clung to Dan Miryu's arm. If Mi Soryeong saw this, it would mean death. No—she had seen it. He was going to die later.
"Mr. Dan Miryu, what are you doing? Let's go."
"Yes! I'm sorry. Excuse me, then."
"Ah!"
I peeled the woman off, and Dan Miryu came over.
"You were about to get your wallet cleaned."
"Was I? Her hands weren't much good."
Dan Miryu tossed a floral wallet back over his shoulder. It dropped onto the woman's head.
"Why is this here...?"
We left the flustered woman behind.
"That's not the touch of someone who's only tried it once or twice."
"When the body is superhuman, this much is easy."
"Is it as easy as you make it sound?"
Had he gotten up to a few things when he was young?
"Now that I think of it, Phantom, you've never stolen anything."
"A phantom thief doesn't steal just anything."
I shrugged.
"And nothing worth stealing is in sight, either."
"Isn't there something one ought to bring back from Hawaii?"
"That has no owner, so taking it isn't theft."
"What in the world is it?"
"It's a secret."
"Teach me a little, won't you?"
Dan Miryu grumbled.
"And you know how much I've suffered."
Put that way, I had nothing to say.
"...I'll give you a hint."
"How petty. Even if you give me a hint, I won't understand it."
"That is both true and not."
"What is that supposed to mean?"
Just listen. He was going to be very surprised.
"What's the hint?"
"It concerns the Stone of Resurrection."
He stopped dead. Dan Miryu's face hardened.
"...Phantom. Your jokes go too far."
"If it weren't on that scale, why would I have dragged all of you all the way to Hawaii?"
"......"
Dan Miryu's eyes sank.
"...Does it concern the Dan clan?"
"The hint ends there."
"Phantom!"
"Mr. Dan Miryu."
I looked at him. A body covered in scars. From the packed muscle I felt a great mountain—the marks of training and fierce battle, carved by decades. But it was not enough. The age that was coming would turn even a mountain into paper.
"I said it was related to the Stone of Resurrection."
"The Stone of Resurrection..."
Dan Miryu muttered it a few times more, then seemed to grasp the meaning, and his breath caught.
"...The Stone of Resurrection itself?"
Sharp.
"I can't answer."
"...Phantom."
"A shame, but you aren't qualified."
I drew the line. The difference between him and me was about that much.
"If you want to hear it, grow stronger."
I left Dan Miryu where he stood. He did not follow. He only closed his eyes and sank into thought.
Not bad at all.
It must have been humiliating, yet he showed no anger and did not beg for the answer. He would go and find it himself.
Mr. Dan Miryu. You have to wield the greatest weapon you already hold.
Dan Miryu had none of the protagonist's favor that cushioned Dan Chuyeon. He could not call down a miracle of Heaven the way Hong Yumin could. He was no phantom thief, as I was. Judged coldly, without the Stone of Resurrection he was nothing.
Sword? He had been the final boss of Part One. Body and mind were both wrecked, and still the last blow he threw was talked over among the readers for a long time after.
He's growing skilled even now, but it can't end at merely handling the thing.
He had to make it his own and understand it. Given his talent, his strength, and his effort, he would reach that realm someday.
But the distance must look endless. Even at Hong Yumin's age, would he arrive?
"Well, anyway, maybe it doesn't matter."
The worry was his. The growth was his too.
"Enough of the heavy stuff."
We had finally come to Hawaii. Talking about work would be a waste.
"Time to play!"
I ran like a madman and dove into the sea.
"Kyaa, Phantom! What are you doing!"
"Gyak! Lord San-gun!"
"Wah! Defense!"
I walked on the water and made mischief.
"Hahaha! Try and catch me!"
"Yumin!"
"Understood! Disciple!"
"Yes!"
"Keuheong!"
I could feel it—three people and one beast coming after me.
"Kyaaa! A tiger! A tiger!!!"
"A hero! Where's a hero!"
Fweeeet!
"Stop right there!"
Perhaps I had overdone it.
"Emergency escape!"
The rest, I would leave to them!
"Hey, wait!"
"Mom, this is bad! They're coming after us with guns!"
"You wretches! How dare you, before Lord San-gun!!!"
Amid that pandemonium, a day passed.
After this and that came night, and the veranda of the room, where Dan Miryu and I sipped coffee together.
"Do you want to die?"
Correction. I was being scolded by Dan Miryu.
"...Why is that my fault?"
"Then it isn't?"
"Uh..."
I wasn't the one who had turned into a tiger and chased people with superpowers...
"Puhahaha! I know. It isn't your fault, Phantom."
"Are you teasing me?"
"If not a moment like this, when would I tease you?"
Hah. Slick.
"How long do you plan to enjoy the vacation?"
"Well..."
There was Ilshikgyo to consider, too. I had to find them. I wouldn't get to enjoy much.
"Once we go to the Big Island, I expect I'll be moving on my own."
"Is that so..."
Dan Miryu looked regretful.
"Settle it quickly and come back. We ought to enjoy ourselves, shouldn't we?"
"I'll do my best."
I took a slurp. The coffee was good.
"First I'll go do a little cleaning and come back."
"Hah. It's a vacation, and not a day of it is quiet."
"This is all part of the experience."
A group was moving, hidden in the lights of the city. I could see society's evil drawing this way.
"I'll be off."
"Don't worry about this side."
Dan Miryu saw me off. I leapt from the veranda, and dozens of stories of sky rose to meet me.
"Is it the dark of the moon tonight?"
The moon had hidden its face.
"It doesn't matter."
Darkness is a phantom thief's stage. Tonight I would run with the dark for company. After a long while I set the fedora on my head and wrapped the cape about me. A solid suit, and then the mask—a phantom thief, complete.
Watching the ground rush up to meet me, I gave my body to the dark.