Hwan-gol-tae-tal (4)
On the Ardenia Continent.
The vast land that had once been ravaged by the Demon King now boasted more than just fresh sprouts — lush, dense forests covered everything.
High above, floating freely and overlooking it all, stood a gigantic island.
People had long since dubbed it the Sky Island, the home of the dragons.
From that Sky Island, a woman with snow-white hair gazed down at the land below.
‘It’s grown so densely packed with trees, I hardly recognize the place.’
Ten years had passed since the Hero vanished.
The white dragon Rhea.
She had been his comrade.
They had defeated the Demon King.
Yet the countless sacrifices had cost them dearly.
Even just to restore the human world had taken an enormous amount of time.
She had beaten the fox — the demon sorceress, the warrior, the priestess — and somehow, somehow, become the Hero’s lover.
But…
“Where on earth did he disappear to?”
She spoke aloud, half-dreaming, staring at the egg nestled in her arms.
“I have to find my dad… right, Luna?”
The child born between the Hero and Rhea.
They had named her Luna.
As if answering her question, the egg gave a soft, rhythmic thump.
“Come on, I can’t wait to meet you… my Hero.”
Rhea still couldn’t forget that day.
The morning after their passionate night together.
Nothing but his scent remained on the empty pillow beside her.
For years she had searched everywhere.
Yet she never found him.
By the time she realized she was already pregnant, far too much time had already passed.
Behind her, a man with blue hair appeared.
He immediately dropped to one knee and bowed his head.
“My lord. We have a report that Romanoff’s trail has grown cold.”
“Romanoff…?”
He’s the one who was nothing but a crumpled, useless suit of armor.
Yet he had somehow become the second army commander of the Demon King’s forces.
Rhea had been secretly investigating him ever since he acquired that living armor and began hunting heroes.
‘How could he just vanish like that…? How?’
The demonic energy he exuded and the presence of his Living Armors were so powerful that even from a distance they could be sensed.
“Our kind would never lose sight of his trail.
He must have used some kind of trick.”
Avoiding the eyes of dragons?
That was impossible.
“I will verify it myself.”
“M-My lord!”
The Lord Dragon Rhea transformed into her colossal white dragon form and gently took the egg into her mouth.
With a single powerful beat of her wings, she launched skyward from the Sky Island.
The place where Romanoff had last appeared.
Rhea arrived in an instant.
The ground was already a barren wasteland, blackened and unable to support even a single blade of grass.
‘Where could he have gone?’
She landed and instantly shifted back into human form.
Sitting gently in her arms, she scanned the surroundings.
“My l-lord!! It’s dangerous for you to move alone!”
Her loyal subordinate Jason followed right behind her.
“Wait a moment… let’s try to be quiet.”
Rhea suddenly sensed something strange.
There was something here.
Something she had never felt before.
Her pupils turned completely white.
And then she saw it.
A massive portal had formed.
She reached out and gripped it, tearing it open.
A great, scorching-hot portal appeared.
“A portal…?”
“It looks like a gateway to another world.
Romanoff must have fled through it.”
“That portal…”
She caught the scent of a woman carried on the wind.
But mixed with it was the unmistakable scent of the Hero.
“Jason, from now on you will act as next lord.”
“Eh…? M-My lord?”
“I must go meet the one I lost.”
Rhea turned and looked straight at Jason.
“…!”
Jason’s eyes widened in shock.
Rhea’s face was streaming with tears.
She looked like a demon of vengeance.
‘The lord is… truly angry.’
Rhea was famous for her gentleness.
She even laughed off the antics of her young dragon.
Yet now she was burning with genuine fury.
“Y-You have my permission to go.”
Jason had no choice but to bow.
After all, the expression on Rhea’s face was enough to scare even a Demon King.
***
Thanks to Seo Young-tae, I was shown a first-floor shop a short distance from the house.
“That’s where my grandmother used to run her bungeoppang stall.”
“Your grandmother?”
“She operated it for over ten years, but she closed because her health declined.”
“Ah…”
Seo Young-tae opened the shop door and said,
“I’d love to see it bustling like it used to be again.”
“I’m going to open a restaurant.
If I don’t get too many customers, that’s fine.”
“That should work perfectly.”
I looked up at the shop.
‘It’s not too big, just right.’
Then I checked the kitchen.
It was so spotlessly clean that it was hard to believe someone had actually run a business there for ten years.
‘This is it.’
I could chase both my dreams and happiness here.
“Nothing else to see.
Let’s go with this one.
Do I sign the lease agreement with the owner?”
“Oh, my grandmother is the owner.
Then it’s between you and me.”
“Ah…”
My heart sank.
Only after signing the lease contract did I head to the Hunter Administration Bureau.
‘It’s been a while.’
Normally I would have started work at dawn, but I simply requested leave.
By the time lunch rolled around, I finally stepped into the office.
I headed straight for the hospital ward and immediately spotted familiar faces.
“You…! You’re actually alive and kicking?!”
“What do you mean? We broke our bones… but you’re perfectly fine?”
Ok Jun-woo and Baek Ji-tae grinned as they watched me walk in unharmed.
“You weaklings.
I only lost my prosthetic legs.
What’s your excuse?”
I clicked my tongue at the men lying in the beds.
“Weak, my ass.”
“There’s no excuse.”
We joked around and laughed without stopping.
The joy of being reunited after death mixed with the strange feeling of recovering our daily lives.
“Now I’m going to take some vacation time.”
“Vacation?”
“I’m going to rest and use up the accumulated leave.
Oh, right.
You guys should start getting ready.
You’re in for a treat.”
“What nonsense is this? Did something go down wrong with that guy?”
Baek Ji-tae gave a bewildered look.
Meanwhile, Ok Jun-woo shot me a strange smile.
“Yeah, it’s time we took it easy.
And your eyes look alive again.
Take care, Min-su.”
“Then I’ll be off.”
I tossed the fruit basket I’d brought for the patients and headed straight for the office.
“Yah!!”
I was about to fill out the leave form when a roar suddenly came from behind me.
I turned to see my familiar beak-like nose.
“Team Leader Yoo Jun-ho?”
“Kim Min-su!! You bastard!! Why won’t you take my calls??”
“Calls? Oh, I blocked you.”
“W-What…?”
When I said it so proudly, Yoo Jun-ho’s face twisted.
“Blocked? You BLOCKED me?! How the hell do you plan to face me later??”
“Don’t shout.
The female employees are scared.”
The mention of female employees made Yoo Jun-ho’s gaze dart around.
The poor man was absolutely terrified of women.
“Just kidding.
Thanks to you chasing them away, everyone quit.”
“You… you…!!”
“If you’re that angry, let’s go to the training hall for a proper spar.”
“You said it.
Let’s go settle this once and for all!”
I watched Yoo Jun-ho storm out, then checked my phone.
— Everything is ready.
— Min-su.
I confirmed the message from the team leader and headed to the training hall.
Yoo Jun-ho had already arrived and was shaking as he pointed inside.
“What… what exactly did you do?”
“Nothing special.
Just arranged the fight.”
The spectator seats were already packed with countless staff members.
***
“There’s something interesting happening.”
“Team Leader Jo Seung-min even put up money.
Who do you think will win?”
A long-standing tradition existed among the staff.
Most were former special forces or former hunters.
Even in retirement, their pride and competitive spirit burned hot.
They would spar at the training hall to check each other’s strength.
Placing bets was simply part of their fun.
Third-team leader Jo Seung-min looked around at the crowd and said,
“Seriously.
My boss makes me do this on my first day back from vacation.”
Jo Seung-min hadn’t done much.
He had simply posted in the manager line KaKaoTalk group chat:
— Kim Min-su vs. Yoo Jun-ho spar planned.
— I’ll bet two million won on Min-su.
Yoo Jun-ho was also in the manager line, but after his behavior, no one would ever invite him.
The rumors spread like wildfire, and by the time noon arrived, countless staff were packed into the training hall.
‘I don’t know what you’re hoping for, but I’ll give it a shot, Min-su.’
Ok Jun-woo smiled and looked at the five million won I had already won from the chat.
It was far too much money to casually refuse when self-respect was on the line.
“I have to earn money for the kids’ milk.”
For reference, Jo Seung-min’s wife had gotten pregnant with triplets.
The man was the proud father of quadruplets.
This vacation had been spent dragging his wife to the hospital, so it wasn’t really a vacation at all.
Among the staff, he was called the bureau’s patriot.
It had only recently come out that the triplets were all boys.