EP.5 Shin Yuna (2)

 

 

 

Yuna’s dive continued. She glanced at the submarine’s gauges and spoke.

 

“We’re already at 400 meters. Halfway there, folks.”

 

The title of S-rank crafting hunter was no mere label; her submarine boasted truly impressive performance.

 

– Thunk- Thunk-

 

A shark, about 7 meters long, tried to sink its teeth into the glass, but the durability-enhanced glass didn’t budge.

 

─Damn, that huge shark can’t even scratch the glass. S-rank crafting hunters are legendary.

 

─Those teeth are so gross.

 

─The thrill is insane.

 

Just then, a donation message popped up with a jingle.

 

─’Aryang’ donated 1,000 won! Thank you~! –

 

[ But if you go down to 800 meters, won’t you encounter monster fish? ]

 

“Monster fish? What’s that?”

 

─You don’t know about monster fish?

 

─What’s a monster fish, you nerd?

 

─Aren’t they those huge fish that appear from around 700 or 600 meters?

 

“I’m not sure… Aren’t they just big fish? Like that 5-meter shark that appeared in Hawaii last time?”

 

Or like the one right in front of her. Yuna muttered.

 

People’s understanding of monster fish was like this.

 

Unless someone had seen them with their own eyes, no one knew their appearance, size, or danger level.

 

There was no data. No photos or videos. There was no time to take them, and no equipment capable of capturing them had existed until now.

 

The only monster fish people encountered were those processed and sold at the Hunter Association’s material market.

 

Even those were in extremely limited supply.

 

So, people just thought, “They must be really big fish.”

 

─’JonnaJjangKeunJjangJjangDaePo’ donated 1,000 won! Thank you~! –

 

[ They’re supposedly huge fish that appear around 700 meters. The Bellua Maria you used to make that cannon last time is a monster fish. ]

 

─What’s Bellua?

 

─You don’t know Bellua? Are you a civilian?

 

─I don’t know either. Maybe you’re the weird nerd?

 

─Wait, you made a cannon too?

 

─There’s such a thing.

 

─I’m seriously going to find you.

 

─Bellua is a fish? I thought it was a lizard.

 

─Yeah, I thought it was a lizard too.

 

─There they go, talking about stuff only they know.

 

The mention of Bellua caused the chat to split.

 

Bellua was like the mackerel of the monster fish world. ‘Compared to other monster fish,’ it was the most commonly caught and the most publicly known.

 

The name Bellua Maria itself means ‘sea monster.’

 

Of course, this name was given when it was first discovered.

 

Anyway, Bellua was like a superstar or idol among monster fish. It was the most visible to people, albeit in the form of materials.

 

Its skin and teeth were incredibly hard yet oddly flexible, making it a popular material among enthusiasts.

 

Naturally, Yuna had a lot to say about Bellua.

 

“Oh, that’s a monster fish? I know Bellua. Its skin is really tough, and it doesn’t crack under most impacts, so it’s great for making cannon barrels…”

 

─Oh, she’s switched on again.

 

─Who mentioned monster fish?

 

─I like it though.

 

─This is definitely Shin Yuna’s alt account, I swear.

 

She chatted away for a while, seeing interesting things in the meantime.

 

“Wow, look at that, everyone! What kind of fish is that? There must be thousands of them! It must be safe to swim in such a big school.”

 

And funny things.

 

“Puhahaha!! Is this showing up well on camera? How can a fish look like that?”

 

─’ㅇㅇ’ donated 1,000 won! Thank you~! –

 

[ Just an ordinary viewer? ]

 

─I told you I’m going to find you.

 

─Take that back right now.

 

─You know you can be sued for factual defamation, right?

 

─And beautiful things.

 

“Wow, this jellyfish is so pretty. How is it glowing so brightly? Can you see it well on the screen?”

 

Let’s turn off the lights and see. It’s beautiful.

 

“That’s a great idea. I’ll turn off the lights right away.”

 

– Clunk –

 

─How does even the sound of turning off the lights sound steampunk, you crazy woman?

 

“Because it’s life… But it really is beautiful with the lights off. Whoever suggested this, come here. I want to praise you.”

 

Down, down. Yuna’s submarine had now reached 700 meters, the so-called ‘monster fish layer.’

 

“According to the gauges, we’re at 700 meters, but there’s nothing special here. It’s just dark.”

 

─All those people who said you’d die past 700 meters were full of crap LOL

 

─It’s just the beginning; it gets really dangerous if you go deeper!!

 

─But what difference does it make if a monster fish shows up? Even that huge shark couldn’t scratch the submarine LOL

 

By now, the 700-meter monster fish layer and the monster fish themselves had become a meme in the broadcast. A specific few had been making a huge fuss, claiming, “You’ll die if you go past 700 meters!!”

 

And since nothing had happened at 700 meters, it was only natural for them to be mocked.

 

The submarine’s performance had been so impressive that people had started to think of monster fish as just big fish, nothing to be scared of.

 

Surprisingly, Yuna didn’t encounter any monster fish even as she descended to 800 meters.

 

“Ta-da, we’ve reached 800 meters. Let’s take a photo of the gauge as a memento before heading back up.”

 

─Monster fish believers, sign here! Bellua is… a lizard…

 

─Why did they make such a fuss if this was going to happen?

 

─The submarine is really sturdy LOL. It went down to 800 meters.

 

─Today’s broadcast was packed LOL.

 

“How can you say it’s packed already? We still have to film the ascent.”

 

─LOL

 

─The broadcast time is duplicating LOL

 

─Are you going to disappear for a few weeks again to make something else?

 

“Hey, it’s not abandonment~ Since I made the submarine, I should use it more. But the deep sea is less interesting than I thought. Maybe I’ll just go a bit shallower next time?”

 

─That sounds better.

 

─Yeah, the deep sea is just dark and boring.

 

─???: But there are monster fish!!

 

─LOL

 

– Click –

 

Yuna took a photo of the gauge reading [800m] with her phone and started to turn the submarine back towards the surface.

 

Then, at 750 meters,

 

─’ElangVital’ donated 1,000 won! Thank you~! –

 

[ What’s that shiny thing on the right? ]

 

“Huh? A shiny thing? Wait a minute… Oh? You’re right! What is that?”

 

As the message indicated, something faintly shimmering could be seen in the corner of her right field of vision.

 

It was hard to make out in the darkness, but it appeared to be a vertical pillar of light. It was like looking at a skyscraper through a cloudy night sky.

 

“Oh… It looks really beautiful up close. I’ll go check it out.”

 

The chat was once again filled with frantic messages from the monster fish enthusiasts, but she paid them no mind. Initially, she had been a bit scared, but now they were just annoying.

 

– Bubbling –

 

As she maneuvered the submarine closer, the outline of the light pillar became clearer.

 

“Wow…”

 

The sight was so breathtaking that Yuna forgot to comment and just stared at the spectacle.

 

In the pitch-black depths, a pillar of radiant, multicolored light stood out like a festival in an underwater skyscraper.

 

Yuna wanted to see the dazzling light cluster up close.

 

As she moved closer, she realized it was a fish.

 

It was at least 70 meters long, swimming upright and emitting light from its entire body.

 

“Wow… This is the most amazing thing I’ve seen today. How can such a fish exist?”

 

─Wow, it’s really beautiful.

 

─Is this the monster fish?

 

─It’s fascinating, but definitely not worth the hype.

 

Yuna agreed with the majority opinion in the chat. This mysterious creature was undoubtedly the monster fish, but it didn’t seem threatening.

 

“It’s really beautiful. If I use this as the thumbnail for my TTube video, the views will skyrocket.”

 

Yuna maneuvered the submarine to capture the monster fish from various angles, trying to get the perfect shot.

 

She felt glad she had come down. Seeing something so beautiful and noticing that her viewer count had surpassed 50,000 was exhilarating.

 

‘I’ve got… 50,000…!’

 

With South Korea’s population at 100 million, this meant that one in every 2,000 people was watching her broadcast. Even in a world where internet broadcasting was immensely popular, this was an impressive number.

 

But something felt lacking. She felt she could capture the monster fish perfectly. The photos were slightly off from the perfect angle, frustrating her.

 

In reality, the Galecus, having detected prey, was slowly diving and changing its position, causing the slight angle shifts.

 

She gradually forgot about the broadcast, focusing entirely on photographing the monster fish.

 

And she went deeper and deeper.

 

Downward.

 

Yuna remained focused solely on taking pictures.

 

The sub cam’s gauge showed that she had already surpassed a depth of 1km. The creaking sounds of metal bending under pressure could be heard from outside the submarine, proving this fact.

 

The submarine was being crushed by the immense water pressure.

 

The chat had detected the anomaly and was in an uproar.

 

─’sheha’ donated 10,000 won! Thank you~! –

 

[ Look at the gauge, look at the gauge ]

 

Even with voice messages, Yuna was too engrossed in taking pictures to notice.

 

─’JonnaJjangKeunJjangJjangDaePo’ donated 1,000 won! Thank you~! –

 

[ You crazy woman, you’ve gone down to 1km. Get back up now! ]

 

─Why isn’t she going up? What’s happening?

 

─Maybe she thinks it’s safe? Maybe she’s still okay?

 

─Do you think those sounds are normal for a functioning submarine?

 

─Someone call 119.

 

─Are you an idiot?

 

Even those who initially thought nothing of it were now panicking. In a potentially life-threatening situation, no one could help her.

 

─’ㅇㅇ’ donated 1,000 won! Thank you~! –

 

[Voice Recording]

 

“Get back up, you’re really screwed!!!!”

 

When messages didn’t work, some resorted to shouting through voice recordings, but they couldn’t reach her, already entranced.

 

The submarine was visibly crumpling, with the walls bending enough to be seen on the sub cam.

 

The chat was in chaos. Some viewers were frantically pacing, others were still sending voice recordings, and some had given up and left the broadcast.

 

The viewer count, which had surpassed 50,000, had now dropped to 30,000.

 

Then, as the gauge showed a depth of 1.2km, all the lights inside the submarine went out, leaving only the red emergency lights on.

 

“Emergency situation. The depth is excessively deep.”

 

In the mechanical voice of the submarine’s alert system,

 

“Wow, this is really beautiful….”

 

Yuna was still taking pictures of the monster fish. The camera attached to the submarine for filming had long since been crushed and stopped working.

 

With a blank expression, she had stopped moving the submarine and was just pressing the shutter of a non-functional camera.

 

Just when everyone thought it was the end.

 

– Whoosh-! –

 

“Wow… This is really beauti…ful…?”

 

The submarine suddenly spun around, turning its back on the monster fish.

 

There was no automatic driving function, and she hadn’t turned it herself, so there was only one conclusion.

 

Something from outside had turned the submarine around.

 

But what? How? Why?

 

However, none of that mattered to Yuna.

 

“What, what is this? What’s happening… 1.2km?!”

 

Only then did she realize the state of the submarine she was sitting in.

 

“Hah, hah… Hah…!”

 

She was gripped by extreme fear. Various parts of the submarine were already crumpled.

 

Control? Engine? Of course, they were unresponsive. No matter how much she fiddled with the levers, all she saw through the window were bubbles rising, with no sign of movement.

 

“Help! Is anyone there?!”

 

She babbled incoherently, not even aware of what she was saying. Overwhelmed by extreme fear, she was on the verge of a panic attack.

 

And just before she was about to pass out, someone appeared in front of her. More precisely, in front of her submarine.

 

Yes. Someone, not something.

 

A woman with long blue hair and blue eyes, wearing a full-body suit that only revealed her face.

 

It was B-rank hunter Yu Parang, looking directly at her.

 

“Who, who are you…?”

 

“I’ll save you.”

 

A rare sight: a conversation between someone inside a submarine and someone outside in the water. But Yuna couldn’t care less about that.

 

She was going to be saved.

 

Yuna nodded frantically.

 

Parang, seeing this, thought it was fortunate that the worst outcome had been avoided.

 

‘It’s a miracle the glass didn’t break.’

 

Amazingly, despite all the chaos, the front glass remained completely intact. The claims of reinforced options were not an exaggeration.

 

“I’m going to take you up, so don’t touch anything and stay still.”

 

Parang then moved to the side of the submarine, grabbed a protruding part shaped like a ‘C,’ and began to swim towards the surface.

 

The submarine ascended very smoothly.