TS 046

Even if a sudden downpour were to start, the noise was too alien to be coming from the Han River. Yoon Taehwa unconsciously pressed Han Suryeon’s chest. As he checked the state of the Han River beyond the passenger seat, he immediately grasped the cause of the noise.

“Fuck…”

The river’s water level was abnormally flooding. His hand, moving quickly, went straight to the terminal that connected to the Center.

“This is Team 1.”

– Yes, Team Leader Yoon Taehwa. What is it?

“The Han River is flooding, I think it’s because of a monster.”

– Location confirmed.

The terminal had a built-in GPS to track the location of Center-affiliated ability users. It was highly likely to be an invasion of privacy, but in situations like this, it was quite useful.

“Control the entire area around the Han River and send all available personnel.”

– Understood.

Han Suryeon, who had been blankly staring at the Han River along with Yoon Taehwa, leisurely turned his head.

“How are you so sure it’s a monster?”

“It’s a river, not the sea, so it’s not normal for it to flood like that. And there was no news of a dam release.”

As if their patience with the car stopped in the middle of the road had run out, the sound of a horn came from behind. Yoon Taehwa turned on the headlights that identified him as belonging to the Center and unbuckled his seatbelt.

It was a relief that the bridge was directly connected to the Center. If nothing else happened, the ability users would arrive in 5 minutes.

“Get out. Let’s clean this up.”

He skillfully parked the car in a safety zone, then immediately got out and walked toward the railing. As if a disaster alert had sounded, the cars on the bridge all started to speed up. Some people even lowered their windows to check the Han River.

“I don’t know what’s normal, but this is definitely strange.”

Han Suryeon, who had come closer, avoiding the fleeing cars, leaned his arms on the railing and bent his waist. He and Yoon Taehwa were the only ones maintaining a relaxed attitude on the bridge.

“It’s not often that monsters escape from a Gate.”

“Have you seen it happen?”

Yoon Taehwa asked, checking the speed of the river’s flooding.

“Once.”

It was by no means a common occurrence for a monster to escape from a Gate. It was an event that even Yoon Taehwa, who had been through all sorts of things, had only experienced a few times. His first instinct was to panic, but he calmly began to assess the situation.

“Isn’t it usually something that happens because the Gate discovery was late? Did a Gate open under the river?”

Unlike Han Suryeon, who bent his waist a little more while still leaning on the railing, Yoon Taehwa only lowered his eyelids. He could see the muddy water, gradually rising.

‘It would be a relief if only the land blew up.’

If they failed to clear a dungeon in time, accidents like this sometimes happened. It was common for the entire area of land to be blown away, but in some cases, the Gate would open as is, and the monsters would escape from the dungeon. That was why the Center’s ability users, or hunters, tried so hard to clear the dungeons.

‘Well, most of them are probably in it for the spoils from the dungeon rather than some grand purpose.’

The river stopped just before it was about to overflow the bridge. Since the entire Han River had swollen, the possibility that some bridges were already submerged could not be ruled out. Yoon Taehwa scanned the ends of the bridge. Most had fled, but there were also people leaning against the railing, watching what was below.

“They’re really making this troublesome.”

Wherever you went, there were always those types who didn’t know the value of their lives and were confident in their own safety.

“Why? Those people?”

Han Suryeon just turned his head to see where Yoon Taehwa’s gaze was directed.

“They’ll die if they stay like that.”

“They’ll die if the Center doesn’t save them.”

Yoon Taehwa glanced down at the now-calm river and then walked toward the people. If his guess was right and a monster had escaped the Gate, the land was just as dangerous, but it was better than being on a bridge that could be swept away at any moment.

“What do you do with those people after you rescue them?”

Han Suryeon asked, trotting behind him.

“What about them?”

“Don’t you charge them or anything?”

“Charge them?”

“Oh, so Korea doesn’t do that.”

As if they felt his approaching presence, the people who had been watching below the river began to furtively glance at him and then started to move away awkwardly. Yoon Taehwa frowned and approached them. It was ridiculous that they were walking like sloths when they should have been running.

“When the guild steps in, after we finish the job, we claim damages from people like that.”

“Damages?”

“They’re interfering, aren’t they? It gets troublesome when civilians get involved in the field.”

Even within the Center, there were many opinions that a penalty should be imposed on people who were uncooperative with the Center’s orders. This was limited to people who did not evacuate without an unavoidable reason despite being ordered to, or who disobeyed orders out of simple curiosity.

When civilians were involved in the field, the nerves of ability users and Beastmen were bound to become sensitive. It was because the number of lives to be saved increased, on top of having to manage themselves.

Of course, the proposal to impose a penalty was repeatedly dismissed.

“It must be convenient to work.”

“Russia is more convenient for hunters to operate in… Are you starting to feel like coming with me now?”

“No.”

When he cut him off flatly, Han Suryeon’s eyes drooped as if he were upset.

“You’re too expensive, Team Leader.”

Yoon Taehwa smiled loosely, as if amused.

“I know. How much do you think I’m worth?”

“Worth? The word sounds so naughty… How much was the kiss yesterday?”

As if some thought crossed his mind, his pale cheeks flushed a faint red. This time, too, Yoon Taehwa snorted and didn’t answer.

It was when he had gotten closer to the people who were watching below the bridge. A soft sound of parting water was heard, and then a hand shot out from outside the railing and pulled one person. Being grabbed by a monster, it would have been normal to scream in terror, but the person whose cheek was caught had a dazed expression.

“Catch that thing and pull it up.”

Yoon Taehwa, with his nerves on edge, gave the order. As if the sound from a moment ago was the beginning, the flow of parting water could be felt from all over. It felt gentle and smooth, rather than aggressive.

A subtle voice mixed in with the wind.

“Both of them? Got it.”

With a light flick of his hand, Han Suryeon pulled the monster out of the water.

“Uaaah!”

The man, who was flung into the air along with it and then slammed onto the ground, recoiled as if he had just come to his senses. He let out a scream, and only after confirming the existence of the monster did he jump up and start running away.

“A m-monster!”

“Aaaack! Run!”

Behind the panicked voices, the sound of running footsteps grew rougher. Yoon Taehwa, with the people’s screams and the sound of sirens from afar as a backdrop, stared at the monster writhing on the bridge.

“It’s a mermaid.”

Han Suryeon, who had come up behind him, rested his chin on his shoulder and recited the monster’s name. Just as he said, a mermaid was crawling on the ground, gasping for breath. As if unable to breathe on land, its hand groped its pale neck in desperation.

On the back of its hand, so pale that its blue veins showed through, were iridescent scales, and its hair, curly like seaweed, covered the chest of its ambiguous gender. Its trembling tail glittered as if it held the light.

For a moment, their eyes met. The pupil in the golden iris narrowed, and the mermaid opened its mouth. The only voice that came out was a wheezing breath, but Yoon Taehwa instinctively knew.

“Fuck…”

It was a type of monster that mesmerized people. Letting out a low curse, he first covered the eyes of Han Suryeon, who was leaning on him.

“Don’t look.”

“Why? Afraid I’ll be mesmerized?”

“Do you have immunity to mental abilities?”

“I’ve trained, so I think I’ll be fine.”

As if he were blinking, a ticklish sensation touched his palm. Yoon Taehwa, while covering Han Suryeon’s eyes, scanned the front. It seemed better to first inform the Center of the type of monster.

Skillfully connecting the ear-mic with one hand, he immediately contacted Hae Na-eun.

– Team Leader, we are controlling the situation around the bridge.

“The other side too?”

– Yes. A-class and above Espers have entered the bridge and are rescuing the evacuating citizens.

“I’ve identified the type of monster. It’s a mermaid.”

– A mermaid?

“It seems a Gate opened under the Han River… I don’t know the theme yet, though.”

With the development of civilization, the appearance of dungeons had become somewhat predictable, but it wasn’t possible to grasp all dungeons. That was why they had started using the Dungeon Detection Center and CCTVs.

The number of detection centers was small, but CCTVs were installed everywhere. There was even a CCTV installed at Baengnokdam on Hallasan, the highest mountain in South Korea.

However, the underground and the sea were beyond the reach of surveillance. The influence of the ocean currents was strong, and in the case of the Han River, the water quality was so bad that almost nothing was captured on camera.

– If it’s a mermaid, it could be a sea monster theme. We will first reorganize with Espers who are immune to mental abilities. And I will be joining you at your location immediately.

“Got it.”

It was when he was observing the mermaid dying on the hard cement. A faint singing voice began to be heard from somewhere.

‘A siren… If it’s a sea monster theme like Hae Na-eun said, this is going to be troublesome.’

Seeing as there were multiple mermaids, there must be a separate monster with the core. The moment he heard the words ‘sea monster’, a certain monster came to mind, and his nerves sharpened on their own.

Thinking it would be best to deal with the mermaids first, he was contemplating a strategy when his wrist was suddenly grabbed.

Yoon Taehwa rolled his eyes toward his shoulder.

“I think you should be covering my ears, not my eyes.”

The corner of his curving lips felt as frail as the dying mermaid’s breath.

“Team Leader, are you worried about me?”