A Warm Snowfield
The day before spring, Mina could accept the fact that she'd used a person as a snowboard. What she hadn't expected was for Lee Jun to suddenly kick off the ground and launch them both into the sky. Who could possibly predict an experience like that? Still, even in the midst of her disoriented state, she was certain she'd managed to slice through the Freeze Golem's neck.
"Ugh, how did that even get resolved?"
After bringing down the golem, she lay sprawled face-first in the snow. No matter how pure white the field was, lying on the ground like this felt a little undignified even to her. But with incidents piling up before she'd even properly accepted the request, she couldn't pull herself together.
She'd heard that deep snow could be warm on the inside, but this felt far warmer and cozier than she'd imagined. I could just fall asleep like this.
Exhausted as she already was, the urge to burrow into the soft snow and drift off was overwhelming. Just as Mina unconsciously rubbed her face against it while fighting heavy eyelids—
"Um, Miss Mina?"
"Eh?"
The familiar male voice drifting down from above her head made her body freeze. The drowsiness that had been pulling her toward dreams vanished in an instant. Only then did she realize something was off.
No matter what people said about snow being warm, that was only because you could build an igloo or dig a hole to block out the cold—not by pressing your body directly against it. It was common sense that lying against ice should feel freezing. Which meant this warm, comforting sensation was...
She slowly lifted her head. Dull teal eyes met hers, gazing down with an awkward expression.
"S-S-S-Seok-jun?!"
Even in her dazed state, Mina's mind frantically pieced together the scene that had flashed through her head moments ago. Right before she'd cut the golem's neck, she'd seen someone in front of her and shouted for them to move so they wouldn't get hurt when it collapsed. After slicing through, she'd expected to separate from Lee Jun and land separately in the snow, but instead she'd crashed into the person ahead of her—Seok-jun—and fallen.
As she stiffened, unsure what to say—
"It's not bad for me, but could you please get off?"
"What?"
Only after processing Cha Seok-jun's words did she realize she was still lying directly on top of him. Despite the cold weather, her face flushed hot.
"Y-You're such a pervert!"
When Mina scrambled backward, he sat up as well. Then he picked up the leather hat that had fallen off during the tumble, brushed the snow from it with a few pats, and put it back on.
"As for me, I'm more curious about why you're even here, Miss Mina."
"T-That's..."
His words struck a chord, and she felt a guilty twinge, quickly averting her eyes. She fidgeted with her fingers, unsure how to explain. Part of her wanted to be honest, but she hated the thought of showing him how much of an outsider she still felt at the company. She wanted to show him only her better side.
Just then, she felt something covering her head and looked up in confusion.
"First, we should probably pull that guy out."
"Lee Jun?!"
She turned at his words. Somehow, the man she'd used as a human snowboard had ended up buried headfirst in the snow, with only his legs sticking out. But he wasn't alone there. A vivid splash of red stood out even against the pure white snowfield. A small girl—Choi Yeeun—was crouched nearby, making herself look even tinier as she watched over something.
"You brought her too?"
"It seemed safer to bring her along than risk her causing trouble."
True enough. No ordinary person could handle a child who appeared to be at least an A-rank awakened being. But more than that, Mina realized what the girl had been watching.
"Ah, Ppomi!"
"Whine! Whiiiine!"
At the sound of Mina's voice, a belated whimpering came from the case that had been quiet until now. Mina hurried over. She'd been carrying the case herself at first, but after realizing she had to take down the golem, she'd reluctantly handed it to Lee Jun. It looked like it had fallen with them into the snow.
"You're Yeeun, right? Would it be okay if I check on Ppomi's condition?"
Worried that the impact of the case hitting the ground might have hurt the dog, Mina shifted anxiously from foot to foot as she spoke to Yeeun. Fortunately, the girl obediently stepped aside.
"Ppomi. Whoof—?!"
The moment Mina opened the case, Ppomi shot out like a bullet and slammed straight into her face. Thanks to her resistance, the blow to her chin didn't hurt, but the sharp pain stabbing her tongue made her eyes water.
"H-Homi... why..."
Mina felt a slight sense of betrayal. Ppomi usually grumbled and wasn't particularly affectionate, but she'd never attacked her before. Yet the way the little dog was now trembling on her shoulder, the sensation clear against the back of her neck, told Mina it hadn't been intentional.
She didn't seem injured, and more than that—
"Big sis! That doggy—is that your doggy?"
"Keeeeng."
While Yeeun's red eyes sparkled as she stared at Ppomi perched on Mina's shoulder, a familiar-looking dachshund held on a leash in the girl's hand lay on its back in the snow, panting heavily. It gazed at Mina with desperate eyes.
Kill... me... please.
Just looking at those eyes made her feel like she could hear a heartfelt plea for rescue. Mina couldn't turn away from that gaze.
"Maha—um, I mean, yes. But why are you like this?"
She tried to speak clearly despite her bitten tongue. The girl, eyes still sparkling, asked again.
"Can I pet it?"
Mina glanced sideways. As expected, Ppomi was clinging desperately to her head, clearly refusing to let go. Mina already knew from past experience that Ppomi was terrified of Yeeun, but she couldn't think of a good excuse to refuse the request.
As she hesitated—
"Choi Yeeun, let's get the Ice Bear out first."
"Okay! Hup!"
Thankfully, Yeeun followed Cha Seok-jun's instruction and moved away. The sight of what looked like an elementary schooler effortlessly yanking a fully armored adult man out of the snow like a radish was bizarre, but perhaps this was the most awakened-being-like scene of all.
"By the way, Mr. Seok-jun. Is he always like that?"
Mina took the chance to ask him quietly.
"What do you mean?"
"Well..."
Unsure where to begin, she recounted everything from the moment she'd first met him as her guide until now. Especially the part where he'd become a human snowboard—how on earth had he timed his movements so perfectly and controlled them so freely?
"He just does whatever he feels like. That's all there is to it."
"All those crazy stunts are just because he feels like it?"
She was staring blankly, unable to comprehend, when Lee Jun's voice rang out.
"The final Talula is when I become the Talula!"
"What exactly are you the agent of?!"
The moment he was pulled free by Yeeun and started shouting nonsense like that, Mina felt the last of her sanity slip away.
"Se~n~paaaai!"
Mina noticed an unfamiliar woman's voice approaching. But she couldn't tell who the person was calling. When she glanced around, she saw people who'd been scattered across the area now converging on their location. She'd assumed it was just some stranger looking for someone when—
"Sen~pai!"
Before long, the woman's voice reached them, and Mina saw her clearly: a stranger rushing toward Cha Seok-jun as if to throw herself into his arms.
"W-What?!"
Mina was stunned by the bold move, but in that instant—
"Get lost."
"Puhyek!!"
"Uh..."
She was speechless at the sight of Seok-jun casually extending a hand to block the woman charging at him. She hadn't exactly wanted him to welcome the woman, but she hadn't expected him to go that far either.
"That's so mean! Sunbae! You let this person stay right there!"
The woman was grumbling, calling him sunbae and shooting a quick glance at Mina. It came off a little sneaky, but with her gentle features and small stature, she actually looked rather cute.
"Sunbae? Mr. Seok-jun, is she a hunter too?"
Hunters didn't usually call each other sunbae, so she asked. If they did, it was usually within the same guild. She didn't remember seeing a hunter like this when she'd visited his office.
The woman puffed out her chest, lifted her chin proudly, and held out what looked like a notebook.
"I'm not a hunter, I'm this kind of person!"
"Detective?"
There was a police badge she'd seen before, along with an official ID card indicating her government position.
"So I'm in charge of this area—!"
But she couldn't finish her sentence.
"Guhyek?!"
"Where did you sell your work regulations?"
Cha Seok-jun had pressed a hand to his forehead and delivered a sharp flick to her forehead with the other.