Chapter 58. Bring It Back While I'm Still Being Nice
Chapter 58. Bring It Back While I'm Still Being Nice
Song Hoon's words echoed in her mind, over and over.
'Why... Could it be he's grown tired of me?'
Negative thoughts flooded her, and the tip of her nose began to sting.
Seeing Laila like that, Song Hoon waved his hands frantically.
"Laila! Just hear me out...!"
"O-okay..."
"I think a child of yours would be absolutely adorable... but..."
Song Hoon scratched his head. Then his face flushed red, and he looked away, embarrassed, as he spoke.
"I want to enjoy our sweet, romantic relationship a little longer first."
"What do you...?"
"Because once we have a child, all our focus would have to be on the baby."
"?"
"Ugh, how do I put this..."
Song Hoon scratched his head furiously, let out a deep sigh, and spilled it out.
"It's just that I feel like our time alone together would shrink once a baby arrives."
"Pfft, Hero..."
Laila, who had steeled herself for the worst, let the tension drain away and chuckled. In the end, he was just an immature boyfriend who was jealous of a child that didn't even exist yet.
"There are so many things I want to do, just the two of us. If you're really in a hurry, though..."
"Heehee, I feel better now."
A child was the crystallization of a married couple's love. Being afraid that a child would steal her attention simply meant he loved Laila that much.
"Goodness... To think you, of all people, were worried about that."
"Ahem...! We have plans tomorrow, so let's get some sleep."
Song Hoon, clearly embarrassed, pulled Laila into a tight embrace and lay down. Laila smiled softly and fell asleep in his arms.
It wasn't the always-fiery physical passion they usually shared, but she felt this platonic love was more than enough happiness.
---
Morning came, and they ate a simple breakfast. Afterward, the living room was littered with various pieces of equipment.
"Hero, are you going to use this?"
"I brought it just in case, but... of course the battery is dead."
It was the drone that always filmed their streams. He had been charging it, thinking it might come in handy.
"Laila, what about your swimsuit?"
"Mmm... Are you curious?"
"..."
Laila looked at me, stroking her lips seductively.
"I'll go put it on and show you~"
With some simple towels and drinks, we headed for the beach. Laila and I split up to change our clothes.
"I'm pretty sure they told us to rent a parasol, too..."
With belongings in one hand and a parasol in the other, I headed toward where Laila was.
"But seriously, what kind of parasol costs 250 pesos... wait, is that actually cheaper than in Korea?"
I could faintly see Laila's figure in the distance. But next to her, two strange men were loitering and hitting on her.
'...'
This was a private beach. I looked around and there was no one else nearby. I carefully set down the bags and held the parasol in one hand.
"Hup...!"
And then I hurled the parasol toward them with considerable force.
- Whooooosh!!! Bang!!!
The flying parasol barely grazed the space between the two men and embedded itself into the sand.
"Wh-what the fuck...?"
"Is this Cartel territory, too?"
The two men mumbled something to each other and fled in a hurry.
"Hero, over here~"
Without a single change in her expression, Laila looked this way and waved her hand gently.
'...'
A dizzyingly revealing black bikini. It failed to fully conceal her violent curves.
"You're beautiful..."
"Hehe, thank you."
She gave me a short peck on the cheek. Then she tried to help me set up the parasol.
"It's fine. While I set this up, could you start the stream?"
"Sure~"
[ World's Strongest Hero : Cancun's Emerald-Colored Sea! ]
[All I see from the title is Saintess lololol]
[The Hero always puts in zero effort with his titles]
[Whoa, that color is insane;;]
Soon after, she switched the camera to selfie mode.
"Hello, everyone~ Is it dawn in Korea right now?"
[...]
[Wow...]
[Wahh...]
Laila appeared on screen, waving at the viewers. Instantly, everyone fell silent.
"..."
But for some reason, the viewers started to annoy me. I smoothly slid myself between the camera and Laila.
[Ah, fuck, get out of the way]
[Move it]
[Get this smoked ham out of here, you bastard]
"Hahaha..."
It was just so fun watching the viewers get pissed off. For their sake, I even flexed my bulky muscles and posed.
[Ugh, sick]
[You son of a bitch, I said move!!!!]
[I really want to pop his muscles with a needle, this fucking prick]
[ Saintess's Foot Wiper has donated 50,000 Watts! ]
- You fucking bitch, take this money and fuck off
"Heheh... Thanks for the donation."
Chuckling to myself, I sat down next to Laila. Then, we had the snacks and beverages we had brought and talked with the viewers. We even went into the ocean at their request.
"Phew, it's nice to visit the ocean after so long."
"Heehee, it really is~"
Laila floated on a tube, zoning out and enjoying the waves. I also held onto her tube and enjoyed some photosynthesis(?).
"Should we head back soon?"
"Sure~"
---
We were fucked.
There was no better way to describe the current situation than 'we were fucked.'
"..."
Why? Because some motherfuckers had stolen our drone.
[What an idiot lolololololololololololol]
[How much was that thing worth, you dumbass lolololol]
[They really risked their lives to steal that]
[But for that price, isn't it worth risking your life? lololololol]
My head was throbbing. I sat on the edge of the bed, thinking for a while. A robbery or pickpocketing was something I could easily handle.
'Because I could just break their limbs.'
But a theft? That caught me completely off guard. And to be robbed at a hotel this expensive...
[Go to the front desk and check the CCTV]
[Don't bother calling, just go down in person and check]
I went to the hotel lobby and explained the situation. Realizing how serious it was, they immediately showed me the CCTV footage. Normally, there would be a lot of red tape, but they acted quickly, likely because the hotel's reputation was on the line.
"No, these motherfuckers..."
[Whoa, these bastards are insanely thorough, huh?]
[Didn't they do this knowing it was you in the first place?]
That probably wasn't the case. My face wasn't that famous, certainly not down in Mexico. Even for an S-rank, it's rare for people to know your face.
"Ah, I'm losing my lid."
They were meticulous. They moved around dressed like waiters, and while one kept watch, the other broke into the room with a card key they must have acquired from somewhere.
'If Kyle were here, he could have handled this with magic.'
I wasn't the only victim. The hotel staff was just as flustered; this was apparently their first time dealing with such a large-scale theft.
"We are terribly sorry. Our company will take full responsibility and compensate for the guests' belongings..."
Admitting that their security system had been breached by the intruders' access card, they bowed their heads deeply in apology. They explained they were covered by commercial insurance.
"Haah..."
Compensation wasn't important. It wasn't about the value of the object. The sheer fact that someone had dared to steal my property made me furious. Besides, to compensate for that drone, they'd probably have to sell the whole hotel building.
[Contact the embassy]
[Yeah, the embassy is there to help tourists lol]
[But is there an embassy in Cancun?]
Next to me, Laila was looking up things on the internet.
"Hero, it says it's in Mexico City."
"Let's go."
[Who steals a building in Gangnam lolololol]
[If it were me, I'd be sitting there pissing my pants and crying]
[But seriously, that's terrifying lololol]
[Looking at the other guests, they just lost laptops or stuff, but this guy lolol]
As soon as we arrived at the embassy in Mexico City, I showed them my Hunter License. The moment they saw the rank written on it, they immediately got to work. The Ambassador himself, the head of the mission, stepped in personally.
"Oh dear... Hunter..."
The Ambassador, who had been pacing outside making calls, approached with a sullen expression. He bowed his head slightly and apologized.
"I'm sorry... The response from the local police has been extremely passive..."
"Wait, the police are being passive about catching criminals?"
"There is a very high probability this is tied to the Cartels... Most likely, even the police fear getting on the Cartel's bad side..."
My head was starting to boil. What was all this mess during a vacation meant for relaxation?
"We are deeply sorry that the Embassy cannot provide you with adequate assistance..."
"No, don't apologize. It's not your fault the local police refuse to investigate."
I pondered how I was going to find these guys.
"Do you happen to know which Cartel they belong to?"
The Ambassador pointed to the neck of the man captured in the CCTV image. The area was covered with distinctive tattoos.
"It will be the Del Norte Cartel."
---
After simply learning the Cartel's name, we returned to the hotel.
— Brrrring...
The room phone rang. Hoping for a clue, I answered it.
- Hello.
"?"
It wasn't a hotel staff member's voice. It was a gruff voice belonging to a stranger.
- Heh heh... I dunno which guild you're a Hunter from, but thanks to you, our operation funds are gonna get a real boost.
I knew it by instinct. This bastard was the one who had stolen my drone. I checked the phone screen; the call was coming from an outside line, not the front desk.
"Hoo... Bring it back while I'm asking nicely."
- ...
"If you're too scared to meet in person, I'll vacate the room for a bit. Just quietly leave the stolen items here and go."
- ...
"If you just bring the item back, no one will die, and no one will get hurt."
- ...
"I'm a tourist in the end. I'll just quietly go back to Korea."
- Good luck.
The line went dead.