EP.12 Interlude (2)

 

Meanwhile, as Parang shouted, “I’m late!” and dove into the sea, the world was beginning to experience ripples of change.

 

[ Diving <- Upvote if you’re never going to look at it again lol ] [89]

 

[ Galecus GIF Collection 2 ] [31]

 

[ Isn’t the Hunter Association a bunch of idiots? ] [12]

 

[ Latex was supposed to be for women, you jerk ] [34]

 

[ Yu Parang is seriously so pretty ] [21]

 

[ Has Yu Parang’s next broadcast schedule been announced???? ] [44]

 

[ Diving <- Upvote if you’re never going to look at it again lol ]

 

[ Author: Nialla ]

 

(Captured GIFs from Parang’s broadcast. The screen suddenly brightens, revealing Galecus’s eyes.)

 

(Captured GIFs from Parang’s broadcast. Galecus is seen going berserk.)

 

This is like something between a goblin and an orc lol. The deep sea is truly amazing.

 

Upvote if you’re never going to dive again and live diligently on land lol.

 

I’ll start~

 

─Upvote

 

─Upvote~

 

─Oh, give a warning before posting GIFs.

 

─Upvote

 

─For real lol. I sold all my diving gear at home.

 

─You can just dive in the surface layer, right? Why make a fuss if you can’t even go deep-sea diving lol.

 

ㄴ No, it’s just scary knowing those things are right below me with only water in between.

 

ㄴ That is genuinely scary, yeah.

 

[ Isn’t the Hunter Association a bunch of idiots? ]

 

[ Author: Lee Yong-gyu ]

 

So these guys who claim to oversee all hunters worldwide

 

(Captured GIF of Parang hunting Galecus)

 

call someone like this ‘B-rank’ lololololol.

 

Just quit already.

 

─But how do they measure the combat power of underwater hunters?

 

ㄴ They have separate tests for production hunters to get S-rank, so why not for underwater hunters?

 

ㄴ For real lol. They could just take the test underwater.

 

ㄴ Igarashi Natsuko <- This guy is just incompetent lol.

 

ㄴ Why bash someone who hasn’t even been the president for a month? If you’re going to bash someone, bash the former president. Tsk tsk.

 

─It pisses me off that they refuse to create a rank above S. Either reduce the number of S-ranks or create higher ranks. Why lump someone who barely defeats a wyvern with someone who can take on a dragon 1v2?

 

ㄴ For real.

 

─I’m not a Hunter Association employee, but considering Yu Parang’s abilities, her combat power on land might be lacking. However, considering her combat power underwater, she far exceeds the combat capabilities of an S-rank hunter and is irreplaceable. Internally, we’re considering promoting her to S-rank.

 

ㄴ?

 

ㄴ Who is this guy?

 

ㄴ?

 

[ Has Yu Parang’s next broadcast schedule been announced???? ]

 

[ Author: Anonymous ]

 

(GIF of Parang handling Galecus’s egg. The disgusting interior is truly as expected.)

 

─Oh, damn it.

 

─Ugh.

 

─Moderator!!!!!!!

 

─Is this fun for you?

 

─These jerks can’t even be reported for spam, it’s so frustrating.

 

─I can’t be the only one seeing this, immediate upvote.

 

“Ah.”

 

Shin Yuna quickly turned off her phone after seeing that.

 

“Ugh…”

 

The disgusting image of Galecus’s egg was still vividly etched in her mind.

 

How could Hunter Yu Parang see something like that and remain unfazed?

 

Is there something wrong with her psyche?

 

The best way to forget such things is to get to work. Yuna got up from the sofa and headed to her workshop.

 

Her house was quite empty. She was almost done preparing to move.

 

To where? Pohang.

 

She had decided to set up her home in Parang’s village. It was already agreed upon with Parang.

 

However, being an S-rank, and a production hunter at that, it took several days just to move her stuff out.

 

Yuna left her house and went down one floor.

 

A four-story building located in Seoul. The fourth floor was her living space, and the first to third floors were all used as her workshop.

 

“Hmm…”

 

Yuna looked around as she entered her workshop.

 

From large items to small ones, everything was piled up like a mountain. Cars, planes, cannons, even a submarine under repair.

 

Moving all of this would cost a fortune, but she decided to do it. Money wasn’t an issue for her, but she could never give up on these projects.

 

Yuna navigated through the myriad of machines to the most prominent one. It was her current project.

 

It had four propellers, two at the front and two at the back, thick iron plates, a rugged camera, and a streamlined body.

 

An unmanned submersible.

 

She had no intention of giving up on the deep sea. While she knew it was madness to enter it herself, an unmanned submersible would be fine.

 

Yuna felt like she would go crazy from her desire to explore the deep sea. The thrill of discovering the unknown was like a drug to her.

 

She thought that this unmanned submersible could surely help Hunter Yu Parang as well.

 

It could be rigged with bombs for self-destruction or equipped with torpedoes.

 

Of course, she didn’t do the foolish thing of keeping it a secret from Parang for the sake of a surprise. She planned to complete the submersible, have Parang review it, and then send it down.

 

– Clang, clang, clang. –

 

– Creak, creak. –

 

– Clunk, clunk. –

 

Yuna picked up her tools and began working.

 

#

 

Meanwhile, in a household in Gimpo.

 

“It’s done…!”

 

A middle-aged man sitting in front of a computer exclaimed in delight.

 

“It’s done!!! It’s really done!!! Hahaha!!!”

 

Lee Hyungjin, a reporter from the major media outlet [Sub Garnet].

 

He had just received a reply from Hunter Yu Parang agreeing to an interview.

 

The fact that he mentioned the possibility of conducting the interview underwater must have played a decisive role.

 

He immediately called his daughter.

 

– Ring. –

 

– Click. –

 

“Hello? Dad?”

 

“Siah! It’s done!! I secured an interview with Hunter Yu Parang!!!”

 

“Really?!”

 

“Yes! All thanks to you, my wonderful daughter…”

 

The reason he could propose an ‘underwater interview’ to Hunter Yu Parang was thanks to his daughter, Lee Siah, who was a university student and also a C-rank underwater hunter.

 

Hearing the good news from her father, Lee Siah felt like she was dreaming.

 

The thought of meeting her idol, Hunter Yu Parang, in person made her so nervous she doubted she could sleep.

 

After expressing her love and gratitude to her father multiple times, she ended the call.

 

Of course, she would have to follow the script her father prepared for the interview, but she hoped to have a brief personal chat before or after the interview.

 

Her small apartment was filled with pictures of strange fish. Although, for now, the only fish in the photos was Galecus.

 

Siah pulled out a book from her shelf.

 

It was a collection of photos she had taken while diving. Various fish, corals, and sometimes even sharks.

 

She was a fish enthusiast, but unlike Parang, she didn’t have the ability to dive into the deep sea, so she had focused on observing surface-level fish.

 

If she could connect with Hunter Yu Parang through this opportunity, she planned to gather as much information as possible about deep-sea fish.

 

And also about the mysterious phenomena and items from the abyssal zone.

 

She hugged the album tightly, lost in a blissful dream.

 

#

 

Meanwhile, over the Pacific Ocean.

 

Above the vast, empty sea where not even an island was in sight, five transport planes appeared.

 

“We’ve reached the target point.”

 

The pilot in the front seat reported, and the man seated behind him responded.

 

“Drop it.”

 

“Understood.”

 

The belly of the transport plane opened, and something began to fall into the sea.

 

Gold coins, jewels, low-grade artifacts, equipment, and more.

 

The treasures that filled the five transport planes were being dumped into the sea with a splash.

 

These treasures would ride the currents and eventually reach the shores of various countries.

 

“Drop complete.”

 

“Return.”

 

“Yes.”

 

At that moment, the radio in the man’s pocket suddenly crackled.

 

– Crackle- Crackle- Beep. –

 

“Report.”

 

“A fisherman was bitten by a shark.”

 

“…What?”

 

“Th-that is…”

 

The atmosphere in the cabin instantly turned icy cold.

 

“Losses?”

 

“Nine.”

 

“Were there other fish near the shark?”

 

“…Yes.”

 

“Which ones?”

 

“…Still identifying.”

 

“Still identifying?”

 

“…It was a sudden ambush, so…”

 

“Hmph…”

 

No one in the cabin dared to breathe.

 

“Compile a list of everyone involved, including the one who drafted the operation plan and the one in charge. Send it to me within three hours.”

 

“…Understood.”

 

“Make up a story for the bereaved families and pay them compensation.”

 

“Yes.”

 

Beep. The radio transmission ended.

 

The man’s previously expressionless face contorted with rage.

 

– Crunch, crack!! –

 

As he clenched his fist, the radio he was holding shattered.

 

“Guh-ack-ack-”

 

The pilot, affected by the man’s murderous intent, suddenly began to choke and struggle to breathe.

 

The man then withdrew his aura.

 

“Ah, sorry. I didn’t consider your presence.”

 

“It’s nothing.”

 

“A superior who doesn’t take care of his subordinates, they’ll get stabbed in the back. Take it.”

 

With that, he handed the briefcase to the pilot.

 

It was a money bag, stuffed to the brim with cash.

 

“No, I can’t accept this.”

 

“Take it.”

 

“But…”

 

“Take it.”

 

“…I’m sorry. Thank you, I’ll accept it gratefully.”

 

The pilot realized that the money in the briefcase was meant to keep his mouth shut.

 

He understood that if he mentioned anything about the shark or the fisherman he just heard about, his life would be in danger.

 

Wondering what the shark could be, the pilot quickly erased the thought from his mind, realizing his mistake.

 

#

 

Meanwhile, in Seoul.

 

Hunter Association Asia Regional Headquarters, Director’s Office.

 

– Bzzz –

 

The phone on his desk buzzed.

 

The sharp-looking man sitting in the chair paused from processing documents and glanced at it.

 

[ Choi Janghyuk ]

 

It was Manager Choi.

 

A perennial manager from Pohang calling the Asia Regional Director’s phone was unusual.

 

“Yes, Janghyuk.”

 

“Yes, Director.”

 

“I told you to call me Sunwoo.”

 

“Alright, Sunwoo.”

 

They both knew this was an unnatural scene, so they were pretending to be high school friends.

 

“So, what’s the matter?”

 

“Thanks to you, I managed to catch a break. Thank you.”

 

He had conveyed the message to Yu Parang well.

 

“There’s no need to thank me. It’s natural to help out when a friend’s daughter is getting married.”

 

Well done.

 

“So, when’s the wedding?”

 

“Next Sunday, August 4th, at 2 PM.”

 

“Alright. I’ll be there.”

 

“Thanks. Sorry to take up your time. I’ll hang up now.”

 

“Sure. Let’s grab a drink sometime.”

 

– Click. –

 

The smile on the Director’s face vanished, replaced by a cold, steely expression.

 

Seo Sunwoo, the Asia Regional Director, stared ahead quietly.

 

#

 

And the cause of all these events happening around the world, Yu Parang.

 

“Brr, it’s cold…”

 

She popped out of the warp gate located in Wales, Alaska.

 

“Why did it have to be the Arctic, seriously…”

 

Achoo. She sneezed once and quickly ran to dive into the sea with a splash.