Before the Storm
It took several days to accept that I had returned to the past. At first, I refused to believe it. I thought it was all a dream, that the damn lizard bastard was just messing with me. But everything I saw, heard, and felt confirmed that I had truly come back. The same was true now. The scene unfolding before my eyes was identical to that day ten years ago.
— This is a breaking news report. An assault team of nine hunters is scheduled to enter the newly formed gate at Seoul's Dangsan Station. The names of the participating hunters are…
“I hope they all return safely.” Father muttered to himself as he watched the news. The broadcast showed a group of hunters heading toward the freshly spawned gate, live on air. Swish, swish. While watching, Father carefully cleaned his carbine rifle and shotgun. It had been nearly ten years since humanity was invaded by monsters. Legal firearm ownership was no longer a subject of debate in any country. Father, a former naval special forces operative, now served as a commander in the regional defense force.
“Honey, you’re going to wear the barrel down at this rate.” Mother, now a homemaker, was peeling mangoes beside him. Honey practically dripped from her gaze as she looked at Father.
“My brother is so handsome.” My younger sister was watching some idol performance on her smartphone. Wait, why is he your brother? Your brother is right here, you know? I shook my head at her childish behavior. Sitting at the kitchen table, I watched my family and couldn’t help but smile.
Dream or not, it doesn’t matter. It was fine. Father, Mother, and my little sister—the family I thought I would never see again—were all gathered in one place. That alone was enough.
Peaceful. The world had gone mad. People died every day because of the monster invasion, and news of entire cities being reduced to rubble was common. Yet people still tried to maintain some semblance of normal life. Just like my family right now.
That afternoon, I went to the shooting range with Father. Given his background, he loved shooting and often took me along. After the firearm legalization bill passed, he had even gifted me a pistol, rifle, shotgun, and full tactical gear including body armor and a helmet.
Bang! Bang-bang-bang!
The shooting session ended. I lowered the pistol and checked the target.
“Hmm.” Twenty-six rounds had struck dead center. The remaining four were only slightly off. 296 out of 300 points. Not bad for my first time shooting in eight years.
“Son.” Father approached and asked, “Wasn’t your last shooting session two weeks ago?”
“It was… right?”
“You improved this much in just two weeks?”
“Uh…” I was at a loss for words. Father’s question was reasonable. If marksmanship improved so easily, everyone would be a professional shooter or special forces operator. Pistol shooting, in particular, was harder than it looked and didn’t improve overnight. Moreover, at this point in time, my shooting skills had been nothing special, so his suspicion was understandable.
I got too excited. It wasn’t the shooting itself. I had been so thrilled to spend time with Father that I hadn’t been able to hold back.
“Did you train separately?”
“Yeah, I did.”
“Hmm.”
“I’m enlisting soon, after all. I figured I should train hard.” At this point in time, I was scheduled to enlist as an officer candidate in a few months. Just like Grandfather had done, and just like Father. After commissioning, I had planned to apply for naval special forces. In an era where humanity fought monsters, some might question the need for special forces, but non-awakened individuals still had roles to play. Conventional human weapons were effective against monsters up to 4-star rank, so the military’s importance remained significant. But I would never become a special forces operator like Grandfather or Father. I would awaken as a hunter next week, and Father would die.
“Son.”
“Yes.”
“Is something going on lately?”
“No?” I tried to put on an innocent expression at Father’s question.
“Why do you ask?”
“It’s nothing.” Father shook his head. “Still, if anything happens or if you have any worries, don’t keep it to yourself. Talk to me, alright?”
“Yes.”
A bead of cold sweat ran down my back. He noticed. Father had sensed the change in me. As a former and current special forces officer with experience at the National Intelligence Service, there was no way he wouldn’t have picked up on it. Anyone who knew me even a little would have noticed. The me of this time had been nothing more than an upright young man, but the current me was a battle-hardened veteran hunter who had survived ten years of hell. My thoughts, actions, speech, gaze, and expressions—everything would be different. Even Mother and my sister had been looking at me suspiciously these past few days.
“Father.”
“What?”
“Let’s all go camping together next week.”
“Camping?”
“It’s been over five years since we last went as a family, right?”
“Camping, huh.”
“I’m enlisting in a few months. I just want to go on a family trip.”
“Alright, let’s go.” Father nodded readily. “If my son wants to go, we’ll go.”
“Haha.”
“Let’s shoot one more round. This time with the rifle—moving target practice.”
“Yes.”
I picked up the rifle. This time, I’ll take it easy.
A week passed.
“Just in case, pack your gear. Double-check everything before we leave.”
“Yes.”
Since gates could appear anywhere without warning, it was normal for even civilians to carry weapons at all times. My family loaded camping equipment and firearms into Father’s pickup truck and headed to Yeongwol, Gangwon Province. After arriving and setting up the tent, we caught some freshwater fish in the valley and made spicy stew. We lit a campfire and grilled lamb over charcoal.
“Here, drink.”
“I’m fine, Father.”
“Why aren’t you drinking? We came all this way.”
When I refused the alcohol, Father tilted his head in confusion.
“I don’t handle it well these days.”
“Is that so? Alright, I won’t force you.”
Father looked disappointed but didn’t press further. That dawn, I left the tent under the pretense of going to the bathroom, stole Father’s truck, and drove toward Seoul.
Even in this crazy world, drunk driving is still a bit much.
Vroooom! When I floored the accelerator, the 8-cylinder engine roared like a beast. I checked the time. 3 a.m.
Seven hours left.
At 10 a.m., a 3-kilometer radius centered on our apartment complex would be consumed by a transfer phenomenon. The reason I had suddenly suggested the trip was to get my family away from it. Unfortunately, I was the exception. If I wanted to awaken as a hunter, I had to be at the scene.
As I drove home, I remembered Father’s final moments.
— I’ll hold them off here! Take Mother and Eun-ha and go!
— But…!
— Go, now!
The image of Father’s noble, courageous back flashed through my mind. But in this life, I had no intention of losing him. I never wanted to see his torn-apart corpse again—the body so mutilated that even the mortician had clicked his tongue in horror.
Dragon Lord. I don’t know what you’re thinking, but I will never repeat the past. Never.
If I ever met the Dragon Lord again, I wanted to ask him why he sent me back.
I don’t want to be a supporter again. Does it make sense for a special forces officer candidate to become a supporter? The memory of being used as a tool in my previous life, dragged around and overworked, made my teeth grind and my body tremble with rage. Since I had returned to the past, I wanted nothing more than to awaken as a dealer instead of a supporter who only supported others from behind. Whether that was possible was another matter.
First, I need to prepare.
As soon as I arrived home, I armed myself. I put on the ballistic helmet, donned the plate carrier, and loaded up on ammunition and grenades. I also took the rifle, shotgun, and pistol. In the old days, people would have thought I was heading to a warzone, but that was the era we lived in. Humanity had been at war with monsters for ten years.
One hour left.
I checked the time and launched the drone.
Whirr! Civilians needed prior approval to fly drones, but since chaos was about to erupt anyway, it wouldn’t matter. I stormed straight into the management office. Even though it was the weekend, a young armed security guard was on duty—typical for the times.
“What’s going on? There aren’t even any monsters, so if you walk around armed like that—”
Of course I would be punished. If I made the wrong move, the responding military and police might even shoot me on sight.
“Move.”
Crash! Shatter!
The moment I shoved the guard aside, I smashed the glass window on the wall and slammed the emergency button.
WEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!
— Emergency, emergency! Attention all residents. Attention all residents. A transfer phenomenon has been detected. Please evacuate immediately. I repeat, a transfer phenomenon has been—
The siren and emergency broadcast echoed throughout the entire complex. Good enough. One hour was more than enough time for those who could evacuate to do so.
“You crazy psychopath!”
The guard shouted and reached into his desk. But I was faster.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
“Agh!”
The guard collapsed with a short scream.