FTE 009

Some people became intoxicated by the heat after using their abilities and groped others’ bodies unconsciously. However, this time wasn’t such an accidental occurrence.

“Take your hand away.”

“Just a moment.”

The hand that had moved inward found what it was seeking and pulled it out—a knife. Chae Won-u pressed closer against me while snapping his wrist lightly. It was like throwing a card, but instead of a card, he threw a knife, and instead of hitting a wall, it hit a monster—the four-legged creature crawling towards us.

“I guess this is why everyone wants a partner.” Chae Won-u spoke with a very satisfied voice.

“For me, this is my first time experiencing something like this,” I sighed heavily. Soon, the alarm for the wave sounded in my ears. The loud mechanical noise would be clearly audible to Chae Won-u as well, yet he remained unmoved, his head still resting on my stomach.

Soon, the ground began to tremble. The light from the energy tower turned yellow. I pushed Chae Won-u away, my touch somewhat forceful.

“Get up.”

He looked at me with resentful eyes.

“I’ll let you do it again after the second wave. Hurry.”

With that, Chae Won-u slowly rose. Fortunately, he was easier to handle than I thought.

A rumbling noise sounded like someone’s stomach was upset. I moved my hand and placed it on the back of Chae Won-u’s neck, feeling his pulse. Hunters’ physical activity increased when entering dungeon zones, so their normal heart rate range differed from ordinary people. I lifted my wrist to check the time while counting his pulse.

“How about now? I’m in top condition right now.”

“It certainly seems that way. Stand up.”

The ground began to tremble violently as our destination neared. Chae Won-u stood up and stretched his limbs. I grabbed my goggles from underneath and flipped them back over my head, allowing water to drip out.

“Take it easy now, take it easy.”

“We won’t die if we go slow.”

“I think I’ll get killed before those things do!”

“Let’s retest your lung capacity when we return.”

With that, Chae Won-u pulled me backward, and naturally, I hid behind him. Monsters might not perish even with holes in their bodies, but one such wound would kill me instantly. Being righteous or heroic wasn’t for someone like me.

“When entering these zones, shouldn’t our physical abilities also enhance?”

Unfortunately, my grumbling was drowned out. As soon as Chae Won-u took a firm step forward, a pillar of water erupted beneath us, catapulting the tower of cars we had just climbed moments ago skyward.

“Is this how you fight well?”

The flying car crushed several monsters trying to climb up it.

“How is your body condition?”

“It isn’t difficult to create water pillars.”

“A little effort for great results.”

This time, three small water pillars emerged in an arch shape and sent each of the cars flying. It seemed like they would repeat until the effect wore off. I nodded.

“This is how we should fight.”

If this were on a street or in one of those now unpopular hero movies, I’d be worried about innocent pedestrians and distraught drivers whose property suddenly got destroyed. But this was a dungeon zone, and the Hunter’s Association of Korea had an enormous amount of money. The only thing I cared about was hoping that the pillar would turn blue before the third wave arrived – even if it was just 1 minute, no, 10 seconds earlier. I really didn’t want another blast of blood and flesh mixed with water.

***

The dungeon raid was over. Thankfully, the Espers finished it with one minute left before the third wave arrived. Exhausted, they had to be carried out on their Guides’ backs while Chae Won-u and I exited under our own power.

In the middle of guiding, our bodies molded together as one, Chae Won-u stood there, perfectly fine… and started bleeding from his nose.

“Hunter Chae Won-u… Your nose is bleeding.”

“Oh, I know.”

He nonchalantly wiped it away with his dirty gloved hand. Frowning, I couldn’t tell whether the bloodstains on his handsome face were from his nose or the monsters he’d crushed.

“Do you have any water?”

Regardless of whose blood it was, Chae Won-u didn’t seem to care, frustrating me even more. I grabbed a water bottle from the ice-filled cooler and soaked my bandana with it. It took two bottles to clean it somewhat decently. After wringing out the bandana three times, the water became clearer. I approached Chae Won-u, who had just finished shaking off excess dirt, and handed him the bandana. He looked at it quizzically.

“For your face. Clean yourself up.”

“You won’t do it for me?”

“I’m a Guide, not a babysitter.”

“I feel dizzy.”

“It’s because you’re losing too much blood.”

“If feeling dizzy from nosebleeds bothers you, maybe you shouldn’t be a hunter. Oh, and your heart seems to be beating too fast.”

“That’s probably due to running.”

“Then if running this hard makes your heart race like this, perhaps you should reconsider being a hunter?”

I knew he was feigning discomfort. After all, I guided him during the second wave as well. During that time, his body indeed felt hot, and our fingers were interlocked tightly. If it weren’t for my special gloves designed for defense, Chae Won-u’s grip might have broken my fingers due to its intensity.

I detest playing word games. Just like how impatient people end frustrating conversations, so did I. I wiped Chae Won-u’s face vigorously with a damp bandana. The area had been dusty before Won-u indiscriminately sprayed water everywhere, so there was plenty of grime to clean off. With each wipe, his face revealed itself to be unnaturally pale. Seeing this, I realized my own complexion must not look much better.

“Don’t tilt your head down.”

“Thanks to you, I won’t die from blood loss.”

Certainly, when I grabbed Chae Won-u’s neck and wiped it, I felt my energy draining slowly. It was different from using all my strength for guiding, but I still became tired. After confirming that his bleeding had stopped, I used the bandana to wipe off my face.

Soon, the military helicopter started its propellers. The incredible wind and noise swept away any remaining debris on the ground. When a dungeon closed, it contracted. As it shrank, we saw half-crushed cars and distraught pedestrians pulling their hair out.

“Shit, can’t you fight quietly?” There were grumbles heard. The talk about how many months of installments were lost was clearly meant for us to hear. Yet, despite not even receiving a thank you multiple times before, this didn’t move me one bit.

The post-processing team had gathered all those affected by the incident. They would be compensated accordingly, as promised. After all, this was a country where dungeons were more common than oil deposits.

Still, I felt slightly concerned about Chae Won-u, despite him being twenty years old. As I tossed my bandana to the ground, I sneaked a peek at him. He was unwrapping a chocolate bar from his belt and taking a bite. Although he couldn’t have missed hearing the complaints, he seemed even less bothered by them than me. Considering the hunter’s code mandates that only legally recognized adults can engage in combat, it implied that Won-u might not have much experience yet. Was he just naturally fearless?

Noticing my gaze, Chae Won-u abruptly offered me the partially bitten chocolate bar. Judging by the neat bite mark, his teeth appeared perfectly aligned… Overall, there wasn’t much one could fault him for on the surface—at least physically.

“Want some?”

“No.” I declined immediately.

Chae Won-u nodded. There was no need to reassure him or apologize; we weren’t close enough for that anyway…

“We’re moving to headquarters! We’ll transport critical patients first! Those with guiding values below twenty-eight percent and severe injuries will board first!”

“What’s your guiding value?”

Chae Won-u popped the chocolate bar into his mouth and started chewing. When he pricked his finger to check, it read at 51%. It wasn’t particularly high. Indeed, scraping one’s knuckles only seemed to have limited effects.

Despite my serious expression, Chae Won-u beamed brightly.

“Wow. This is the highest reading I’ve ever had without taking any medication.”

“Have you been enduring it with medication so far?”

“I used injections and pills.”

“Don’t they have addictive properties?”

“It couldn’t be helped. There was nobody compatible.”

“You haven’t met many people yet. How many matches have you tried until now?”

At this, Chae Won-u made a strange expression. He hummed and tilted his head, feeling uneasy. Meanwhile, the helicopter pilot called out to Chae Won-u. It seemed like Chae Won-u was included as a priority.

“Should we go first?”

“I want to take the next helicopter…”

“It doesn’t seem there are any critical patients.”

“They will still ignore me if I go.”

“That’s not true.”

There was simply nothing to say between us. Well, we weren’t friends or anything close. Chae Won-u tried to stall for time, but I wanted to quickly wash with warm water. I pushed at Chae Won-u’s shoulder.

“I want to shower quickly. Let’s go.”

“Shall we shower together?”

“No.”

Of course not, you bastard. Are you crazy?

“It is disappointing, but since hyung wants to go…”

“You can stay if you like… I’m going ahead.”

“As partners, we should always be together. That’s what partners do…”

“That isn’t being partners. It would be better if you got re-educated…”

Chae Won-u’s nonsense was truly diverse. I chuckled as my hair stood on end from his words. Then, with my walker clanking loudly, I shuffled towards the helicopter.

On the way, I sent two guidance records. They showed how unstable the percentage had been and by what percentage it stabilized after the guidance. The numbers weren’t outstanding, making me feel uncomfortable when looking at them.

Apparently, Chae Won-u held an all-rounder attack position covering both front and rear lines, which meant he would receive double hazard pay for sure. In other words, he represented a valuable source of income that shouldn’t be missed. Partnering with such a hunter three to four times could potentially afford me a comfortable two-room apartment in the green zone…