Korea's Crisis
The cola nearly shot back up my nose. “Ugh… cough, cough!”
Had it already come up? While I sat there wincing at the burn, my sister asked,
“Hey, slow down. Is someone chasing you?”
You’re the one chasing me. The actual culprit.
“Why are you even looking for that culprit?”
“Why? An unregistered S-class is running around loose. The President is clutching the back of his neck and the Association President straight-up fainted. We’re already short on S-class hunters and getting pushed around by China. Catch that one Libra and my performance numbers will explode. Hehe.”
Performance. Right, performance was what mattered.
I pretended to tear into the chicken leg while my brain spun. Kim Suhyun was S-class with direct Association intel access. She’d already know all the real facts, so arguing with the truth was pointless.
Fine. When facts fail, propaganda and fabrication win.
“But sis.”
“Yeah?”
“I’ve been thinking… what if it’s a retired old-timer?”
“…Huh?”
“Think about it. The gate got wiped in a single hit. None of the officially registered hunters who entered were the culprit. So maybe there was an outside intruder?”
“…Oh, that actually tracks…!”
“At minimum, it has to be a veteran from the active days, A-class or higher, who hid his identity and snuck in and out of the gate once, right?”
“Now that you say it…”
Her eyes wavered. The investigation’s direction had been successfully derailed.
It worked. Sure enough, people believe a good story more than cold facts.
“Like I always said, Starry’s sharp. I knew it from your analysis posts on the gallery.”
“…Thanks.”
“But… why do you call me ‘sis’? Shouldn’t it be ‘big sis’??”
Urk. Direct hit.
I still couldn’t bring myself to say “eonni” without feeling a visceral rejection. Because the moment I did, she’d probably squeal something like Eonni eonni~ Want to grab some tteokbokki and hit up that aesthetic café? Kyaaa~ or whatever. As a manly man, I could never accept that. That kind of talk was for girls…!
I’d been conquered…
“What was that? Want to say it again?”
She smiled brightly, clearly delighted. My sister—no, my big sis now—looked like she was hearing the word for the first time in her life.
I really hadn’t wanted to say it. And why was she leaning in so close? Even now… she was right up against me. Close enough to feel her breath. Those sky-blue eyes sparkled, and she smelled amazing. From this angle… my gaze slipped downward before I yanked it back up.
It was the kind of scene the so-called Raccoon Man would have to deal with. Anyway, this defeat was proof I was a real man. At least in Korea, I was confident no XY chromosome could endure this. And the stronger the masculinity, the more honest the desires…!
I didn’t even know anymore. But damn, she really did smell good.
“People need sunlight and fresh air!”
“It’s nighttime?”
“Then we’ll look at moonlight!”
Spouting complete nonsense, my sister dragged me outside. Her energy level was insane from the very first day she moved in next door. I was seriously worried about my future.
“Let’s hit the street stall. I know a place with killer fish cake broth.”
The stall was near the gate—an alley where hunters fresh off work and cleanup crews would grab drinks.
The owner never checks IDs, so I used to sneak in here all the time…
My sister said she had to use the bathroom and left. While I waited, a painfully familiar scene was unfolding at the alley entrance.
“Fifteen. Fifteen is plenty. Why the hell are you asking for twenty? All you did was drag out a few small-fry corpses.”
…Déjà vu?
The speaker was a foreign-looking hunter in his forties. Head to toe in luxury brands, a flashy sword strapped to his back. Two lackeys flanked him. It was obvious he’d adapted to Korea, started doing well, and let the power go to his head.
In front of him, an elderly cleanup worker was bowing desperately.
“This month’s medicine for my granddaughter… the contract clearly says twenty…”
“Contract? You old fart. We’re the ones who closed the gate. Your cleaning crew wouldn’t have earned a single penny if we hadn’t done our job. Got it? Even fifteen is me being generous.”
The lackeys snickered.
“Boss, just drop it to ten.”
“Kekeke, should I?”
The old hunter’s shoulders twitched.
Then the forty-year-old’s eyes slid toward me.
“Ooh… That girl over there looks pretty good.”
He licked his lips and sauntered over.
“Excuse me~”
“Me?”
When I answered, the whole group strode right up. They immediately flashed their hunter licenses. B-class. So what?
“We just cleared a gate and bagged an easy three hundred. Shame for a cutie like you to be hanging around a place like this. No offense, but how about grabbing a drink with oppa at that bar?”
How could someone speak so vilely? I felt acid rising in my throat. The whole “I have money, come play with me” vibe made me want to puke.
“Um… No thanks. I’m with someone, and my friend’s in the bathroom right now.”
I pointed at the women’s restroom my sister had entered.
“You’ve got company? Then we’ve got three guys and two girls. Perfect balance~”
“Whoa! As expected of the boss! Your thinking is on another level!”
They kept hyping each other up, making a whole spectacle.
“I said I’m not interested.”
They slowly closed in around me. One even put a hand on my shoulder and started stroking it. Ew. Instant goosebumps.
“Come on, just hang out with us once.”
Damn it. Anger flared for a second, but I held it in. Good job, me.
Fighting would only cause problems. Lose and I get hurt. Win and I pay damages. Dragging it to court on top of that? Avoiding the fight was the smart move.
Just as I tried to slip away, the one they called boss grabbed my wrist.
“Acting all expensive. Just come with us.”
“Don’t do that—”
The old man tried to intervene and got kicked.
Thud—
Something inside me snapped.
I grabbed the arm holding mine, stepped forward, and time seemed to slow. The guy’s panicked face played out in slow motion. I yanked his arm, spun, then snapped my bent knee straight and threw him.
BAM—
“Urk—!”
“Boss!”
Yes. This was Korea’s famous up-eo-chi-gi. They say judo is Japanese? This is Korean-style judo. Those three years of judo in middle school had finally paid off.
The guy standing with the old man stared in shock. I beckoned the two lackeys to come at me too. They approached cautiously.
During the brief standoff, the bathroom door flew open and my sister stepped out. She scanned the scene, quickly grasped the situation, and marched over, radiating power as she snarled at the lackeys.
“You two. Why aren’t you gone yet?”
Her magic surged visibly. Her face was famous. Once an S-class hunter started throwing her weight around, they had no moves left.
Like startled colts, they grabbed their boss and fled, tripping over each other and tumbling in a heap. What a mess.
I walked over to the old man who had seen everything and quietly handed him five hundred thousand won.
It reminded me of the old days, and he’s here trying to pay for his granddaughter’s medicine… I should at least give him this.
Had turning into a woman made me more sentimental? The empathy just came naturally now.
The old man nodded in understanding, looked at me, and said,
“Thank you.”
He wiped his tears and left. I hoped I’d run into him again someday.
“Phew…”
After everything calmed down, I had to sweat through a full explanation to my sister. She said she’d gone through the same thing a lot as a rookie and advised that next time I should drag them into a CCTV blind spot. The way she thumped her chest and told me to trust only her was pretty memorable.
“Ehehe…”
Slurp. I wiped away the drool with my sleeve. The fish cakes were delicious. The broth was even better. Though the owner’s thoughtful “hmm” when he looked at me was mortifying. The life of a minor really is tough.
I was back home now. It was four in the morning after we’d split up. Out of habit, I opened the gallery.
…Huh? Isn’t that me?
South Korea currently has five active S-class hunters. Counting retirees, the total reaches eight, but it’s still a painfully low number. Naturally, every single S-class hunter drew intense public attention.
While I was browsing the gallery and wondering how to handle this, new posts flooded in one after another.
I clicked on one of them.
Crash— Clatter—
All sorts of things seemed to be falling over next door, followed by the sound of the door lock opening.
I slowly raised a single star at my fingertip.