6. Let's Just Eat
I, Oh Hyeon-seong — a man, mind you — feel a little awkward saying this about myself, but there was once a time when I stood at the very top of Korea's hunters.
Still, not everything in this world runs parallel to skill.
Among the survivors of that wretched era, there wouldn't be a single soul who'd deny it.
This was a time when rookies who'd barely set foot on a single battlefield got splashed across the news as rising stars, their names bouncing up and down the headlines.
And the name Oh Hyeon-seong? Nowhere to be found.
Simply because none of my achievements, none of my fame, had ever been made public — not even a fistful's worth.
On the other hand, if you asked anyone to name the most famous hunters in South Korea, a certain few names would always come up.
One of them was Han Su-yeon.
A 13th-grade hunter said to be capable of flattening a small nation without breaking a sweat.
The real power broker at the Blue House, holding the President's complete trust, and Deputy Director of the Disaster Management Bureau — the special agency that oversaw all government hunters and gate matters.
Despite never appearing in the media like civilian-facing hunters did, she carried such recognition that no Korean alive could fail to know her name.
Her past deeds had all been brought into the light, her current position matched them perfectly — unlike a certain someone, she was, without question, a hunter who had truly made it.
In other words, a titan among titans, someone with zero reason to ever set foot in a backwater farming town like this.
And yes — that woman was my junior.
Silence hung before the gate.
Oh Hyeon-seong stared straight at the Han Su-yeon standing before him.
She had appeared without warning, yet she looked exactly the same as she always had.
The faint shadows under her eyes caught his attention, but that was all.
"I never expected you to find this place. What brings you here?"
"That stings a little, Sunbae. Of all things, you ask me why I came?"
"Well, how you came is obvious — the whole country fits in the palm of your hand. What's out of the ordinary is that you drove all the way out here without a single escort."
Oh Hyeon-seong said this with a glance toward the car parked off to the side.
Forget suits and bodyguards — there wasn't even a driver.
Meaning she had personally driven herself all the way out to this rural corner of nowhere.
As far as he could remember, Han Su-yeon was neither good at driving nor fond of it.
"It's an entirely personal schedule. Besides, if I came roaring in on a helicopter, I figured someone would throw a fit about the noise."
"Hmm..."
"And just so we're clear, this has nothing to do with the government. They're not nearly desperate enough to drag in a retiree who just got out of the hospital."
Han Su-yeon said,
"I just... came to see your face."
"Get in, then."
He couldn't very well leave her standing outside, so he let her in.
Stepping into the yard, Han Su-yeon looked around with a small gasp of admiration.
"So this is the new place? It's huge."
"Tell me about it. Things just sort of worked out this way."
"Big is good, isn't it. As long as you can keep up with the cleaning."
"You really are a city girl."
"Hm?"
Han Su-yeon blinked her large eyes.
At the sight of her, Oh Hyeon-seong let out a brief, empty laugh.
"It's been five years, but somehow you haven't changed a bit."
"I worried about you all this time. And I'm sorry. I should have visited you at the hospital more often."
"No, don't be — you must've been swamped, I understand. I used to be in that position myself, so I know exactly how it goes. On top of that, you'd have been buried up to your neck cleaning up the aftermath."
Oh Hyeon-seong had never been one for a wide social circle.
His line of work left no time for it, and as the years pile up, even maintaining friendships takes time and effort.
Han Su-yeon, moreover, was a cabinet-minister-level official in the government.
It was a post drowning in endless work by design, and ever since the Queen had fallen, they'd likely had to pour in a full year or more of manpower just to mop up the aftermath.
After all, Oh Hyeon-seong himself had refused every visitor request during his rehabilitation, so he hardly held it against her.
That said — showing up out of the blue with no word beforehand isn't like her. Is something wrong?
The Han Su-yeon he knew was an intensely methodical person.
Her habits outside of missions were no different.
Yet the woman standing before him now looked almost impulsive.
As if she'd simply found herself here before she knew it.
Neep-neep!
"Oh? You little guys...?"
At that moment, the spirits that had been hiding came crawling out from every direction.
They'd been secretly watching, and now they'd recognized a familiar face.
"Wow, it really has been ages. Sunbae's little neep-neeps."
Han Su-yeon broke into a bright smile.
The spirits, too, greeted her with wild enthusiasm, crowding in around her.
Han Su-yeon had always been beloved by the spirits, thanks to her naturally affectionate mana.
And for her part, she adored the little spirits in return and was always happy to play with them.
They got along so well that it was she who had first coined the nickname "neep-neeps" for these fellows, who were useless in actual combat.
During joint operations, whenever a stretch of downtime opened up, she would always ask for the little guys to be summoned so she could play with them.
Neep-neep!
"Still as cute as ever."
Han Su-yeon lifted the earth spirit that had scrambled up onto her shoulder, kneading and squishing her, and set it back down on the ground.
Then she brushed the thin layer of dirt dusted on her shoulder.
Seeing the earth spirit slump into a sulk, Oh Hyeon-seong plopped the little thing onto his own head.
"You really just came to see my face?"
"Word got around that you'd suddenly moved to the countryside the moment you were discharged, and I couldn't help wondering how you were living. I wanted to see it for myself, too."
"And your impression?"
"Honestly, I expected you to look completely out of place, but you pull the look off better than I thought."
"I didn't just bolt out of the city with no plan. I had someone recommend a carefully chosen spot."
"Gwon Gyeong-min, was it? From that friend of yours?"
"You ran a background check on him too?"
"No need. Sunbae's circle of friends is pretty predictable. There's barely anyone in it to begin with."
Han Su-yeon plopped herself down onto the wooden platform bench.
Then she gazed out at the sunset slowly sinking below the horizon.
"The view really is lovely here."
Han Su-yeon had always loved the sight of the sunset painting the clouds.
But with those very words, Oh Hyeon-seong finally understood the strangeness he'd been sensing in her for some time now.
So I was wrong — she hasn't stayed the same at all.
Her remark just now had been spat out mechanically, devoid of any genuine feeling.
However convincing it looked on the surface, she wasn't feeling a shred of emotion as she gazed at that sunset.
Her expression, her tone — all of it was painted on.
Of course. I wasn't the only one worn down by the battlefield.
More than that, Han Su-yeon had spent all these years fighting monsters in a warped society, rubbing shoulders with the government's highest officials day in and day out.
He'd spent five years flat on his back in a hospital bed — maybe it had been naive of him to assume everyone else had stood still.
But this was neither the time nor the place for him to stick his nose in.
Oh Hyeon-seong clicked his tongue and licked his lips.
"You haven't eaten dinner, right? Let's just eat!"
"Um... Sunbae?"
Han Su-yeon sat across from him, staring blankly at the table.
Atop the single plate set in the center, potatoes were piled high like a mountain.
Rustic-looking potatoes, each one a different size.
He'd definitely called it dinner, but the man who'd strolled in and taken a seat across from her with total composure seemed to have no other dishes in the offing.
What is this.
Han Su-yeon was visibly flustered.
She had always dined on cuisine made from the finest ingredients by first-rate chefs.
So long as the taste was superb, she'd gladly shell out several hundred per meal without blinking.
This wasn't because she had any particular gourmet streak — it was because, unless she wanted to choke down revolting cheap synthetic food, she simply had no other choice.
These days, anyone with money spent serious money on meals. No exceptions.
Even politicians who played up their humble commoner roots in front of the cameras poured staggering sums into premium synthetic meat behind closed doors.
And now, faced with this crude spread of nothing but potatoes, she could hardly be more thrown off.
"Is this how you usually eat?"
"Hm. Is it too much of a feast?"
"Sunbae... you're not short on money, are you? Did you invest your severance? Or did you get into gambling, or..."
Han Su-yeon asked with grave earnestness.
Even granting the frugal rural lifestyle, no one eating this shabby a spread wasn't struggling.
Oh Hyeon-seong, meanwhile, was quietly swelling with anticipation.
Mmm, my mouth's watering already.
She'd shown up before he'd finished his own meal, so his stomach wasn't even full yet — and this time the menu was roasted potatoes instead of boiled, made with a different method.
He was curious what flavor this batch would bring.
Still, he didn't reach out right away.
"You're the guest, so I'll yield the first bite. Go on, try it."
"I don't know if it warrants such grand ceremony... but thank you."
Han Su-yeon swallowed a short sigh inwardly.
She hadn't expected anything grand from a meal in this mountain hamlet.
But a table piled high with nothing but potatoes.
She knew the taste of naturally grown crops, so she could already predict what these would taste like.
There wasn't even a sauce to mask the flavor.
And yet she couldn't exactly show open disgust in front of the Sunbae she was seeing for the first time in five years, nor leave the food untouched.
"Where did these potatoes come from?"
"I grew them myself, in my garden."
"What? You've barely been here any time at all, and you already have potatoes you grew yourself? What did you use, some kind of illegal drug?"
"Enough talk. Just eat."
Oh Hyeon-seong slid the plate toward her.
Han Su-yeon picked up a potato of moderate size, her expression wary.
The potato, lightly dusted with salt, steamed gently and gave off a surprisingly delicious aroma.
That was unexpected.
Naturally grown potatoes, as she remembered them, never smelled like this.
Have I just forgotten, after going so long without eating real food?
Tilting her head, Han Su-yeon bit off a big mouthful.
Inside the crackling skin, the fluffy, mealy flesh filled her entire mouth.
And then Han Su-yeon's two great eyes wavered violently.
The foul odor and unpleasant texture she'd braced herself for from a naturally grown potato was nowhere to be found.
This taste is...
Han Su-yeon's expression froze solid.
Her chewing mouth stopped mid-motion.
She sat in silence, face utterly blank, and a stillness settled over the table.
What? Is it bad?
Oh Hyeon-seong was caught off guard for a moment.
He'd been certain that one taste would set off an explosive reaction from her too.
He'd assumed she'd be converted on the spot, just as he had been, after a single bite — but this response?
He wondered if something in the flavor had changed in the roasting process, instead of boiling.
But just as Oh Hyeon-seong opened his mouth to speak, her trembling voice reached him.
"Wh... what is... this...?"
From Han Su-yeon's two great eyes, tears came streaming down.