The Butterfly and the Storm
"But what's really going to happen to the portals?"
"I'm not entirely sure either. Five have already vanished in Seoul, and they say the numbers are steadily declining worldwide."
Ever since Yunjae cured Ileyna, Anton had completely opened his heart to him.
"Hmm."
It was only natural, considering Yunjae was the savior who had put an end to his daughter's years of hospitalization.
"At this rate, aren't we all going to end up unemployed?"
Akemi, who spent most of her days hanging around Yunjae and Mari, chimed in. Anton crossed his arms and let out a chuckle.
"That might actually be the case."
Ever since Yunjae stopped the sudden all-out offensive, the portals had stopped summoning monsters. With over ten percent of portals worldwide having vanished, it was only natural for people to think the entire portal crisis was finally drawing to a close.
"Still, at least I don't have to worry about hospital bills anymore. That's a relief."
"Eee~? I guess I'll have to start pinching pennies now."
A world without monsters! The very world they had all yearned for, yet here they were, facing unemployment.
"But I don't think you'll lose your jobs that easily! Your ability is incredibly useful, Akemi. And you have superhuman strength, Anton, so you'll be able to find work anywhere."
Ultimately, the world changes. It all came down to whether one could adapt to the changing world or not.
"But I'm really worried about myself," Suyeon said with a bitter smile, having quietly kept her place among them.
"Ah..."
Unlike the others, Suyeon's ability was purely specialized for destruction. What use was an ability that decayed and withered living organisms in a peaceful world?
"Still, you've got plenty of funds, Suyeon, so you have a lot of options. Don't worry too much," Mari comforted her with a warm smile, which seemed to put Suyeon at ease.
"Yes! Once Ariel opens her cafe, I should really try my best to learn the ropes from her!"
Hearing this, Taerin, who was snuggled comfortably in Yunjae's arms, spoke up.
"Hmph, I'm going to tell Daddy on all of you! How can you already be thinking about quitting!"
"Eee~? Even Taejun can't do anything about a lack of work."
Despite being teased every day, Akemi replied gently. Taerin huffed.
"My daddy isn't that soft. I bet he's already prepared for everything."
Anton burst out laughing at the precocious five-year-old's eloquent speech.
"Well, if it's Taejun, I suppose we don't need to worry."
"If the Blast Guild disbands, we'll have to look for new jobs too, so I really hope it stays open!"
At Yunjae's words, everyone glanced at him.
"You could do literally anything and still make a living."
"Ah! But I still haven't gotten to experience an office romance yet!"
"Oppa, you already had one with Mari at home yesterday! Don't tell me you want to do it in every single location?!"
"Ah!"
At Akemi's bold tease, Anton and Taerin stared at Yunjae and Mari with wide, shocked eyes.
"Th-That lady is trying to steal Mister!"
"Wait, you two were in that kind of relationship? What about Ileyna?!"
"Who on earth is Ileyna?!"
"Ah! Anton, why would you bring up Ileyna?!"
Amidst his flustered cries, Mari's face flushed bright red as she snapped, "Mind your own business, all of you!"
She knew that with this crowd of teasers, they wouldn't let it slide easily. As she clenched her fists and entered battle mode, Akemi suddenly tilted her head, looking slightly puzzled.
"But you know..."
"What! What are you trying to say now?!"
"No, it's just... normally, I should be incredibly jealous right now, but something feels off."
"Hmm?" Mari blinked, startled.
"Strangely, I don't feel that burning jealousy or envy. It's more like... I just feel this incredibly desperate urge to join in, to the point where it's driving me crazy?"
"It's true! It really is!"
Even Taerin, the very avatar of jealousy, looked surprised as she realized she felt the same way.
"...Huh?"
As Mari also realized she felt a similar sensation, her face filled with confusion. Akemi spoke up with a serious expression.
"Do you think that idiot goddess cast some kind of spell to secure multiple wives for Yunjae?"
"...If it's that idiot pervert goddess, she's more than capable of doing something like that."
"Spit it out, Mister!"
At Taerin's demanding tone, everyone turned their gazes toward Yunjae.
"Ah! I know nothing about this! I didn't do it!"
"Is that true?"
"Yeah, Oppa! Are you sure you don't know anything?"
"That's right, Mister! Tell us the truth!"
"What are you going to do about my daughter?"
"Ah! Anton, why are you joining in too?!"
Suyeon giggled and joined the fray. "I'm curious too."
"Ah! How could you!"
Cornered and flustered, Yunjae blushed and muttered, "To be honest, I can never really tell what Lady Lupinus is thinking either."
"Hmm?"
"Even when it's just the two of us, we don't really talk about anything special..."
Realizing that Yunjae truly knew nothing, the group backed off, their suspicion fading.
"As expected, that pervert goddess is the problem."
"But the idiot goddess is too strong! Honestly, she's so beautiful that I don't even dare to pick a fight with her! At least she's an idiot and a pervert, so it's somewhat manageable, but Rozamy is just too much!"
At Akemi's realistic assessment, Mari couldn't help but nod in agreement.
"But is that pervert goddess just staying at home?"
"I'm not sure. I feel like she'd drop by if she got bored..."
Suddenly, a voice rang out like a ghost materializing out of thin air.
"I'm right here!"
"Hieee!"
"Kyaaa!"
"Ah, ah!"
"Ugh!"
"Argh!"
Everyone screamed in unison.
"Ah! Lady Lupinus! You scared us!"
"You only got scared because you were talking behind my back! Yunjae! What was my Hero doing instead of stopping them!"
At the goddess's proud declaration, everyone shrank back.
"...She really is beautiful."
Anton, who was seeing Lupinus in person for the first time, stared with wide eyes. Lupinus smugly flipped her hair.
"See? This is the kind of reaction I deserve! This!"
"She's a top-tier attention seeker."
"Agreed!"
At the goddess's shameless display, Rozamy, who had accompanied her, let out a soft sigh.
"...Sigh."
"Ah! Rozamy, you bought new clothes!"
"Y-Yes..."
When Yunjae happily noticed her new outfit, Rozamy blushed and nodded, likely remembering the events of early that morning.
"My cutie, why are you paying attention to Rozamy before me! You should be looking at me first!"
Lupinus threw a tantrum, completely discarding her divine dignity.
"Get off him, lady!"
Taerin threw herself forward to protect Yunjae, but Lupinus was unfazed.
"Oh, but I don't want to?"
After all, a child was merely an easy target for teasing. Lupinus settled onto Yunjae's lap with a sultry expression, leaving Taerin fuming with jealousy.
"I hate you, lady!"
"Sure, sure."
Lupinus casually blew her a kiss, ignoring the glare.
"Waaah!"
"Anyway, did you two go shopping?"
"Of course! Rozamy said she needed to buy some safety shorts!"
"L-Lady Lupinus!"
Rozamy glared at her, mortified that she had blabbed about their secret. Lupinus let out a mischievous laugh.
"In fact, we only bought the most provocative lingerie!"
"Ah! Did you really buy this much underwear?"
Yunjae blushed as he looked at the mountain of shopping bags. Lupinus proudly declared her defeat.
"We bought all kinds of clothes too! The God of Shopping defeated this Goddess!"
"...Anyway, did you just come here to play after shopping? Do you think this place is a playground?"
Mari and Akemi glared, instantly on guard against the Goddess-Saintess duo.
"I didn't come to play with you guys. I came to play with my cutie!"
But their opponent was Lupinus, a shameless force of nature capable of taking on a hundred foes at once.
"Besides, you don't even have any work right now anyway. The portals aren't active."
At those words, everyone fell silent.
"But Lady Lupinus, shouldn't we be trying to find and eliminate Mamon instead of just relaxing?" Yunjae asked.
"But we have no way of reaching Mamon right now. That portal has disappeared," Rozamy answered in Lupinus's stead.
"Mamon is extremely cautious. He loves playing dirty tricks, too. For now, it's best to focus on restoring more of my power. So don't rush things too much," Lupinus said, stroking Yunjae's cheek with a smile. "Are you worried he'll interfere with your part-time job?"
"Ah! It would be a bit awkward if I had to go hunt him down right when coffee orders are piling up!"
"Are you sure it's not because you're worried he'll interrupt your romance?"
"Ah! Well, that is part of it!"
As always, Yunjae showed no fear of Mamon, treating the eventual battle as an easy victory. Rozamy couldn't help but smile at the sight.
Only Yunjae could take the terrifying Mamon so lightly. But then again, it made sense, considering he had vaporized a Great Demon King along with the surrounding space in a single strike.
"But if all the portals really disappear like this, won't everything just end?" Mari asked, unable to contain her curiosity.
Even as a C-rank hunter, she had spent more than half her life doing this. She was glad to see the portals go, but she also felt a bit of lingering regret. If it all ended, she might really just become an office assistant forever.
"He won't give up that easily. It hasn't even been a week since the portals started closing."
"But nearly ten percent of the portals worldwide have already vanished. At this rate, every single portal could be gone within a month."
Despite the stress, Mari's knack for managing information showed she actually enjoyed this line of work. She quoted a report released by a London university research institute earlier that day.
"Reopening portals takes only an instant," Rozamy answered.
"What was the scale of the portals that disappeared?"
"They were all classified as small-scale portals."
"Perhaps he's shutting down the minor portals to concentrate his forces on the large-scale ones. He must have realized that even Great Demon Kings are no match for us."
Rozamy didn't know that the Great Demon King Domian had been vaporized by Yunjae's Goddess's Wrath the moment he opened his eyes. But she knew Yunjae's power easily overwhelmed Great Demon Kings and rivaled Mamon.
"If I were Mamon, I would never take Yunjae lightly."
She added that Mamon's movements would undoubtedly be cautious.
"So we need to keep a close eye on the large-scale portals for now."
"Exactly as Rozamy said. Mamon is as cunning as a serpent. Just like how he poisoned Baol's Spring in the Divine Realm, he'll definitely pull another underhanded trick."
Baol's Spring was a sacred place where the gods rested. Mamon had poisoned it to slaughter them ruthlessly. Knowing this, Lupinus looked unusually serious and angry.
Seeing her expression, everyone fell silent. No matter how foolish and bright she usually seemed, she was still someone who had lost her family and friends to Mamon.
"Reality really isn't easy, is it?"
If this were a game, he would have defeated the villain already and been hailed as a Hero. Yunjae looked disappointed that the hunt was dragging on.
"Anyway, let's just relax and enjoy this moment for now!" Lupinus cheered up instantly.
"Instead of enjoying yourself, you should be recovering your strength!"
"Oh, please. I met plenty of people in my dreams last night!"
"And yet you still lost to the God of Shopping!"
"I'm the Goddess of Greed, so there's no way I can beat him!"
The Goddess of Greed admitting defeat to the God of Shopping was too much.
"Pfft."
Anton let out a snort.
"Ah! So you have that kind of sense of humor, Anton!"
"Don't start with those weird jokes again!"
When Anton had gone to bed after celebrating his daughter's discharge, he had suddenly thought of Yunjae's terrible puns and chuckled, feeling a strange sense of defeat. As he yelled with a red face, Yunjae pouted.
"But I prepared so hard..."
"Eee~? Oppa, why are you only sharing your jokes with Anton?"
"Yeah, Mister!"
"I do appreciate a good pretty boy and muscular middle-aged man dynamic, but if he's a rival, that's a bit much!"
As Akemi, Taerin, and Lupinus clamored to hear his joke, Yunjae beamed.
"What country is next to the United States?"
"Well, obviously Canada or Mexico."
Mari, hailing from North Carolina, shrugged as if the answer was obvious.
"Nope!"
"It's not?"
"Yes! The answer is USB!"
A heavy silence fell over the room.
"Ah..."
Mari was completely speechless, while the other three looked utterly traumatized.
"M-Mister is weird!"
"Yunjae..."
"Unbelievable..."
"...USB."
Even Rozamy looked horrified.
"Ah! Because America is USA!"
Panicking at the reaction, Yunjae committed the ultimate sin of comedy by trying to explain the joke.
"Don't explain it! Explaining it makes it even worse!" Mari quickly stopped him.
They fell back into a suffocating silence.
"Pfft! Damn it!"
Anton suddenly snorted, clutching his head in despair.
"I've been corrupted!"
"Eee~? Anton! Did you actually laugh?! Seriously?!"
"...Pfft!"
Suyeon, who had been quietly watching, also giggled.
"I actually thought it was funny..."
"What is wrong with them?! Is there something wrong with their frontal lobes?!"
Shocked by the reaction to the Hero's joke, the goddess yelled. Yunjae slumped to the floor, devastated.
"Ah! I'm sorry! I was all alone, so I couldn't master the art of comedy! All I could do there was play word games by myself!"
His dramatic despair over not maxing out his comedy level during his fifty-seven years of isolation in Mamon Saga made everyone burst into laughter.
"I've finally found his weakness."
"Right! To think there's actually something Oppa can't do!"
They weren't laughing because the joke was funny, but because they loved him.
"No, I'm telling you, it's because I started laughing here that I'm slowly getting corrupted by his humor!" Anton grumbled.