Sudden Gate Atmosphere: Two Weeks of Records (2)
On the TV screen, the bluish magical glow of the gate shimmered in the background as Botal Rabbit stood with her fist clenched tight, shouting like a seasoned politician.
She slammed her fist down on the podium with a heavy thud, then declared in a voice of unyielding strength.
A reporter rushed forward and thrust a microphone toward her.
"The government has officially announced that the gate that erupted this time is S-class in danger level…! Does this mean you still intend to enter it alone?"
Questions rained down like a storm, but Botal Rabbit merely nodded calmly in reply. Then, accompanied by a single small, frail porter dressed in shabby clothes, she leaped into the gate.
She would not reappear for another two weeks.
Gate Entry, Day One.
Gates, by nature, connected to worlds whose ecosystems were not drastically different from Earth’s. Considering that their purpose was to serve as an alien invasion tool for conquering the planet, this made perfect sense. After all, anaerobic or aquatic lifeforms would hardly find an oxygen-rich Earth appealing. Therefore, the reverse was also true: traveling from Earth through a gate posed no major problems.
There might be a few endemic diseases or allergic reactions, but such immune issues had no effect on superhumans. So the moment she stepped through the gate, Botal Rabbit took a deep, confident breath and stretched her limbs with a satisfied groan.
“Mr. Tran. How many times have you entered gates?”
“Tran Van Bao has done this seventeen times, Miss Botal Rabbit!”
“Oh, more experienced than me?”
“Tran Van Bao has much experience! Please do not worry!”
“Heh heh, good. Good. But don’t take the lead! Whatever pops out, I’ll be the one handling it!”
Unless monsters came pouring out of the gate, it was difficult to know the internal ecology or characteristics in advance. The world on the other side could be a vast grassland, a dense jungle, or a barren desert. That was why the pack on Tran Van Bao’s back was stuffed with every kind of extreme-environment survival kit imaginable. Useless for now, perhaps.
Before her eyes stretched a wide plain bathed in warm sunlight.
“In an environment like this, a simple field tent would probably be enough to live comfortably, right?”
“That is correct! If it is alright, may Tran Van Bao discard the polar survival kit, Miss Botal Rabbit?”
“No, not yet! We can if it gets too hard, but we don’t know what the nights are like. Here.”
She spoke while sharply scanning their surroundings. No matter where she looked, there was nothing but endless grassland.
“This doesn’t happen often…”
A gate was the final stage of an alien invasion. In other words, the moment it opened, she had expected to encounter the extraterrestrial forces preparing to invade Earth. Or at the very least, the gate generator. In some worlds it was a structure, in others a machine, and in still others a shaman-like alien performing strange rituals. Whatever the case, something was needed to create and maintain a gate. Destroying it and crushing the enemy’s will to invade was what they called “gate breakthrough.”
She impatiently tapped her foot a few times, then spoke.
“Mr. Tran. Do we have a compass and marker in the pack?”
“We do. That is basic for gate exploration.”
“Stick the marker in the ground and give me the compass.”
“Here it is.”
The marker was a long, flag-like object. It was just a plain wooden stake, but it was essential for wide-area searches when lost. You planted it, explored with this spot as the center, then regrouped here later. The moment it was planted, her smartphone began picking up its signal. Not a signal from Earth, but the marker’s own beacon. They could build a map from there.
This is going to take a while.
Grumbling to herself, she took the lead and started walking.
“For today, let’s search south first. If possible, we’ll find a water source too. Let’s go, Mr. Tran!”
“Yes, yes!”
The two of them strode forward with confidence.
Botal Rabbit wiped away beads of sweat and checked the time on her phone. Six hours had passed since departure by Seoul standard time. If they had seen nothing in six hours across open grassland in every direction, this path was wrong. She looked at Tran Van Bao, who was nearly collapsing, and let out a short sigh.
She had messed up. Always traveling with Iron Colossus, she had forgotten to account for an F-class’s stamina.
“Drink some water and lie down for a bit. We’ll rest thirty minutes before heading out.”
“I am sorry, Botal Rabbit.”
“It’s fine. I didn’t even notice until you ended up like this, so what can I say?”
In truth, it wasn’t just a matter of stamina. Unlike her, who carried only light emergency supplies, Tran Van Bao was lugging enough gear for the two of them to last a full week. She couldn’t possibly complain to someone who had endured a six-hour forced march without a single word of protest. Sighing, she gazed up at the sky, then passed the time doodling in the dirt.
A strange feeling made her look at the sky again.
“Why is it still noon?”
“Hm?”
“The sky. The sun’s still directly overhead.”
The shadows were short. Her hero senses told her the sun’s angle had shifted ever so slightly, yet it remained high in the sky. She shivered for a moment.
The days are long…?
Six hours on Earth would take you from morning to noon, or noon to evening. Did that mean the nights were equally long? She bit her lip.
I need to conserve battery.
A day that felt excessively long could easily rob a person of their sense of time. Since her smartphone was the only objective way to track it, she had to use power sparingly. Fortunately, they had come straight south. If they headed straight north, they should be able to return.
She let out a short sigh and buried her head between her knees.
“I am truly sorry, Botal Rabbit…”
“It’s okay. It’s not like you trained for a situation like this.”
Only three hours after they turned north to head back to the marker, Tran Van Bao collapsed and could not get up. There was a limit to how long he could last on emergency rations and water. The sun still showed no sign of setting. If the night was as long as the day, they wouldn’t be able to resume searching. Anxiety gripped her.
So she decided to carry both Tran Van Bao and the pack on her back and run. Of course she had plenty of strength left and her reserves were still ample, but fatigue was inevitable. With Tran Van Bao on her back, she began to sprint.
The distance that had taken six hours to walk while searching together took only one hour at a run. Hanging onto her back, Tran Van Bao bounced like a piece of luggage, constantly sniffing.
It smells good.
Perfume, shampoo, and probably her natural scent too. Beneath the thin layer of skin he could feel powerful muscles twitching, yet her flesh was still soft and elastic. Every time she ran—tap, tap—her breasts and rear bounced in a way that made him want to grab them right then and there. Tran Van Bao swallowed hard.
They set up camp near the marker and lit a simple fire. Since there were no traces of civilization, most wild animals feared flames. Botal Rabbit sat blankly, staring at the crackling sparks.
How long would the night be this time? She couldn’t search during the night, so how much time would be wasted? “This is boring…”
With her phone on battery-saving mode, she had no way to relieve her boredom. Grumbling, Botal Rabbit turned to Tran Van Bao, who was also watching the flames.
“What did you do when you weren’t searching gates?”
“I run a store. I am self-employed!”
“Huh? What kind of store?”
“It is a massage shop. Tran Van Bao has obtained a blind masseur qualification.”
“That’s illegal!”
“That is why I do not pay taxes. I always envied heroes. Because they do not pay taxes. But now Tran Van Bao also does not pay taxes. Illegal immigrants receive tax exemption benefits, so I am the same as a hero. The state cannot stop my tax evasion.”
She burst into giggles at his strange way of speaking. Tran Van Bao stared blankly at her smiling face for a long while, then stammered.
“And Tran Van Bao is very good at business. I am in the middle of copying regular customers.”
“Is being a blind masseur that easy…?”
“Oh, Tran Van Bao has a gift. It is gift. So strong power. You will be surprised.”
“Hehe, what is it?”
“Same power as Miss Thunderbird.”
“Ehh…? Then why are you F-class… Liar! Come on! What is it!”
“I, Tran Van Bao, am not skilled at lying. Sincerity is my strong point. Please watch. And be shocked.”
Crackle!!
Real sparks danced between his fingers. It was an astonishing sight. Botal Rabbit stared at him with her mouth wide open in shock. But the crackling current soon died down and vanished. Tran Van Bao, sweating from every pore, spoke.
“Were you surprised? This is a product of civilization.”
“What can you even do with that…? What’s the point of something so weak…?”
Superhumans could generally sense other superhumans’ power. Even if only a D-class could feel an aura, they could at least perceive the strengthening provided by magic power. Tran Van Bao’s power was… nothing more than F-class. Even if he used every ounce of strength, the current was weaker than a stun gun.
Yet Tran Van Bao clicked his tongue proudly.
“Electricity flows through people. And I can sense electricity. That is how I earn money. Very, very much money.”
“So how!”
“I send electricity into the body. Very faintly. I cannot handle strong power. But I am extremely delicate. A current so small people cannot even feel it. With that, I can do many things.”
It sounded like he was claiming to do X-rays with it… As she tilted her head, Tran Van Bao clicked his tongue again and held out his hand.
“Please place your palm against mine.”
“Huh? Oh, sure. Let’s see it.”
“And please be tense. In preparation for being surprised by my power. I recommend gripping something tightly and enduring.”
“Pfft, seriously. How were you so quiet at the company? Talk more. This is hilarious!”
“Brother Chrome Fist would kill me. If he discovers that I speak. He is Tran Van Bao’s ‘guardian.’”
“…Huh?”
“He got me the job. At TSS. My visa had expired. Legally, I do not exist. In exchange for employment, he takes a portion of my allowance.”
“How much…?”
“He leaves me ten percent. That is very big money. With that money I was able to open my shop.”
“He takes ninety percent? That swindler!! When we get out, I’ll make sure, I’ll definitely get it all back for you!”
“Thank you. Tran Van Bao gladly pays the price of kindness. That is my religious belief. Now, please tense up. My power is infinite.”
Tran Van Bao smiled innocently, gathered strength in his hand, and interlaced his fingers with hers. They were rough, calloused hands. Tempered by countless hours of labor. Completely different from her own pale, soft, flexible ones.
And then… nothing happened.
“It is finished. Were you surprised?”
“…No…? What did you do?”
“I examined Botal Rabbit’s body. Your left calf is currently swollen. It seems it will recover soon, but it must be uncomfortable right now. There is also strain on your right erector spinae. It is the imbalance caused by carrying me while running. Otherwise you would not have collapsed.”
“What?! Really? I didn’t feel anything!”
“That is the delicacy of I, Tran Van Bao. Feel free to admire. Please applaud.”
Tran Van Bao lifted his head proudly. It was irritating, but also impressive. An S-class hero’s senses were extremely sharp when it came to the flow of magic power. The fact that she hadn’t noticed an F-class pouring power directly into her body meant it was a skill honed through long, rigorous training.
“So that’s why you became a blind masseur! You can tell someone’s physical condition even with your eyes closed!”
“That is a very beginner-level guess. It is not only that.”
Tran Van Bao declared confidently.
“My technique is massage performed by touching people with my hands. However, I possess an appearance that does not receive favor from Koreans. But no one hates the blind. Therefore, I pretend to be blind while giving massages. No one feels discomfort. This is the technique for copying regular customers. It is a trade secret.”
“Ahahaha! You’re really funny!”
“If it is alright, Tran Van Bao will treat your legs.”
“Hm? Ah, no, it’s fine. It’ll heal after an hour or two of rest anyway.”
“The beasts here may be nocturnal. If combat occurs, this is likely the last rest we will have. You must maintain peak condition. And I cannot fight.”
“Uh…”
When she hesitated, Tran Van Bao made a sad face.
“But I understand. It is because my appearance does not receive favor from Koreans. If Botal Rabbit judges me by my looks, it is sad, but I will accept it. That has been my life.”
“No! No no! It’s not that! I was just a little embarrassed… Fine, whatever. Rub my legs! If you do a good job, I’ll even help boost your shop’s sales!”
“You will not regret it.”
Tran Van Bao placed his dark, firm hand on her outstretched leg and said with a smile.