A Bond Is Formed. Instantly Rejected.

Seoul Metropolitan City is divided into twenty-five autonomous districts.

In each of those districts, a "representative hunter" — one of the most seasoned veterans in all of Korea — holds the title of team leader and directs operations on the ground. The public perception was that twenty-five veteran hunters managed every supernatural phenomenon across Seoul… but the reality was a little different.

Seoul has twenty-five districts, and twenty-five veteran hunters assigned to them. But just because they all share the title of representative hunter doesn't mean their abilities are equal. Because of that, Seoul's hunter landscape is effectively split into five zones based on living spheres.

The Downtown Zone hunters, centered on Jung-gu.

The Northwest Zone hunters, centered on Mapo-gu.

The Southwest Zone hunters, centered on Guro-gu.

The Southeast Zone hunters, centered on Gangnam.

And the Northeast Zone hunters, centered on Nowon-gu.

Five zones in total.

And at the heart of each sits someone a step above the ordinary veterans — the ones commonly called "old-timer hunters" — who manage their respective zones as representatives. Team Leader Myo, the representative hunter of Nowon-gu, was one of those old-timers.

In emergencies involving supernatural phenomena, she was granted near-absolute authority — a presence that, for those brief moments, stood above the police, the military, and the law itself. It was no exaggeration to say so.

Which is why…

"Isn't Team Leader Myo a little scary…?"

"A little? Damn, you've got guts. I nearly wet myself every time our eyes meet. I wear adult diapers to work."

"Hey, I pissed myself the first few times too. Did it so often I got used ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to it. Oh — I know a decent brand of adult diapers. Want the link?"

"Hell yes. Send it over."

Among the Northeast Zone hunters, the saying "Never meet Team Leader Myo's eyes" had been passed down like a proverb. On days when they happened to share an operation, the bizarre spectacle of hunters showing up in diapers was not unheard of.

And so…

"Hey, any of you ever seen Team Leader Myo show emotion on her face?"

"I can't even look her in the eye. How am I supposed to see her expression?"

"Expression? Man, I've never even heard her voice."

"Team Leader Myo doesn't talk much outside of work-related matters."

"Does Team Leader Myo even… have human emotions?"

"…That actually makes sense!"

Rumors circulated among the hunters that Team Leader Myo had forgotten human emotion after years of hunting — or that she had traded her emotions away to reach her current position. But if any hunter who had heard those rumors witnessed the scene unfolding now, they would have realized that rumors were just that: rumors.

Because…

"Hmm… the dirt over here is a little bland. Let's head back."

A hunter wearing a name tag that read Kang Yul said this while licking dirt off his fingertip. Then he turned around and started walking in the opposite direction from where they had just been heading.

"Ah, this dirt is sweeter than before. I think this is the right way."

He scooped up a handful of soil from a thicket off the walking path, dumped it into his mouth, and then — smiling like a child who had just discovered a sweet dessert — strode forward without hesitation.

"This sweetness is like chewing a premium chewy cookie marshmallow. It's around here."

Team Leader Myo could not understand a word ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠of what that being was saying. Dirt was supposed to be dry and gritty when you chewed it. How on earth did dirt taste like a premium chewy cookie marshmallow?

"Here — this is the sweetest spot. It has to be nearby."

But before long, Team Leader Myo gave up on understanding. She herself had stepped somewhat outside the bounds of humanity in pursuit of her goals — but she had no confidence she could comprehend something that had so openly abandoned being human. So she decided to trust only what she could see with her own eyes.

She couldn't understand it. It made no sense at all. But every single action that being took was, for Team Leader Myo, a masterstroke.

She cast her mind back over the sequence of events so far.

"Somewhere in this forest, a ritual entity that spreads spores is hidden. We need to find it."

"From what I've confirmed, there's a zone in the forest concealed by an illusion barrier. I believe the ritual entity is hiding inside it."

"Hmm… come to think of it, the dirt near these mushrooms is oddly sweet… Ah, wait — what if it's making the surrounding soil delicious…? If that's the case, I might be able to find it. So just a moment… nom nom, munch munch… Mm…! That's the taste…! Ah — ahem. This way, please."

"…"

Recalling that entire sequence only made Team Leader Myo dislike the being in front of her more. It engaged in unpleasant behavior, occasionally cast lecherous glances at her chest, and possessed a suspicious density of mana far beyond what she had expected.

…But.

"I've found the illusion barrier. Looks like a fairly deep underground cavern — no wonder no one found it until now."

It was competent enough to locate the source of an erosion that the Association had failed to find for over three years — in a mere three hours. It also possessed rational judgment, enough to propose a "non-disclosure of identity contract" so it could blend into human society. So this being was useful.

For the goal Team Leader Myo was determined to achieve, this being's competence would be an asset.

"Ah… should I… grab some dirt to take with me…?"

Fumble, fumble—

Its imitation of humanity was far from perfect — it kept displaying the bizarre habit of shoveling dirt into its mouth or stuffing soil into its pockets. But managing that would be Team Leader Myo's role going forward.

"By the way, Team Leader Myo."

"Speak."

"I believe I've fulfilled my role at this point. May I take my leave? Our contract only covered finding the source of the erosion, after all."

"Yes. Hunter Kang Yul has completed his assigned mission. From here, the Association will take over and handle the rest."

"Then, regarding the secret between us…"

"I intend to assign Hunter Kang Yul as my direct subordinate. It will be on paper only, but that alone should keep the Association from harassing you going forward."

"!"

And so, on that day…

Finally — I can trade freely without watching the Association's every move! And a direct subordinate, even if it's just on paper… doesn't this mean I've got connections now…? She's got her eye on me!

I've hung a bell labeled "direct subordinate" on him. Once we're back, I'll need to find a way to put a leash on him.

A relationship between Kang Yul and Team Leader Myo began — one that was somehow fundamentally misaligned. Yet neither of them noticed the dissonance, all the way through their parting greetings.

The day after they returned from Suraksan…

Barely a day had passed, and the disappearance of the Suraksan erosion was already generating considerable buzz — drawing plenty of attention even within the gallery.

"Any post related to me gets an upvote."

Wriggle—?

"Ah, come to think of it, I never explained what happened yesterday…"

Kang Yul recalled the conversation he'd had with Team Leader Myo before they parted ways.

"This incident will be made public through the media. In the process, some information related to Hunter Kang Yul will also be disclosed."

"Is there a particular reason my information needs to be released?"

"Three years have passed since Suraksan was eroded. The public — and the higher-ups — will inevitably want to know how it was found. Reviewing my bodycam footage is standard procedure."

"So once the erosion is dealt with, my actions will be exposed one way or another."

"Correct. Which is why we plan to move first and manipulate the released material to make everything appear as coincidental as possible."

"That does seem like the best approach. Hmm… so what do I need to do…?"

"Nothing beyond keeping your mouth shut. I'll handle the rest. And this is my number — contact me if anything comes up."

"In that case, I'll trust the rest to your capabilities, Team Leader Myo."

If Kang Yul had been aiming to rise through the ranks as an Association-affiliated hunter, hogging the credit for this incident wouldn't have been a bad move. But the Kang Yul of now simply wanted a quiet little life — mining in his own private(?) gate while keeping his identity hidden.

So here he was in the ironic ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠position of having to reveal his identity in order to hide it…

…Well, looking at the gallery comments, Team Leader Myo seems to have handled things well enough.

Still, explaining all of this to Worm would be far too complicated — and Worm probably wouldn't care anyway. So Kang Yul decided to give a simplified summary of yesterday's events.

"Remember the dirt and mushrooms I ate yesterday?"

Wriggle—!

"I went to a mountain full of that dirt and those mushrooms for a bit. A new friend of mine asked me to find the bad mushroom that turned the mountain into that."

Wriggle—?

"Ah, that? I was going to sneak some out, but it looked way too dangerous, so I gave up. Apparently something really nasty was deeper inside."

Kang Yul opened his status window and checked the Gate Book entry that had been updated when he discovered the illusion barrier yesterday.

"A Guardian Entity? Just looking at that, I'd clearly lose if I tried to fight it."

Kang Yul was greedy. The kind of greedy who would charge headfirst into reckless choices others would abandon, so long as there was even a sliver of possibility — thinking, Yeah, I can pull this off. But the moment he saw that Guardian Entity entry, even he thought, Ah. This one would kill me.

For ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Kang Yul, who had zero combat ability, fighting a supernatural life-form (physical) was no different from being told to go die.

"So I turned right around, said I was heading home, and got out of there."

Wriggle—!

"I know. I did think about calling you, Worm — figured it might work out somehow. But it wasn't a situation where I could summon a gate at the time."

Wriggle—!

"Alright. Next time something like that comes up, I promise I'll call you. So don't be mad."

Wriggle…!

"Yeah, let's go. I was planning to start mining coal in bulk starting today anyway. We'll stockpile a ton and eat our fill."

Wriggle…?

"Why so much all of a sudden? Simple."

Kang Yul looked at the contact saved on his phone — the first XX chromosome he'd ever stored.

"I've got a sales route now for moving large quantities."

Kang Yul and Team Leader Myo were practically in the same boat now. Right before they parted yesterday, he had casually mentioned wanting to sell some Mana Coal of unknown origin — and she'd told him she'd need to see the quality before she could give an answer.

Wriggle…?

"What does that mean? Put simply, Worm — our lives are about to change! We can eat delicious dirt three meals a day, as much as we want!"

Wriggle…!!!

Worm stretched its body out long and began trembling, as if asking whether that was really true.

"Yeah, yeah. It's true, Worm. So… you'll help with the mining… right…?"

Wriggle—!

"Great! Look at that energy! Then today, let's dig up everything we couldn't get yesterday — and then some!"

Wriggle—!

And so, on that day, Kang Yul and Worm mined continuously for twelve hours straight.

The following afternoon, over a late lunch, Kang Yul and Team Leader Myo sat in a quiet café near the Association building to have the coal's quality appraised.

And the result…

"I'm sorry. This is something we can't handle on our end."

"Excuse me?"

Kang Yul's proposal to sell Mana Coal was rejected on the spot.

"The quality is too good."

"Excuse me???"

And for the absurd reason that the quality was simply too high.