NOVEL NEXT Chapter 6
[5th Episode]
Red hasn’t been contacting me incessantly or anything like that. Usually, I receive a text around dinner time and reply to its contents.
There was no other contact worth mentioning, and since the fight had already turned into a protracted battle, waiting a bit longer wasn’t an issue. We decided to extend the period of monitoring Red by exchanging communications.
Today was the day of the confrontation. The venue for today’s confrontation was Namsan Park.
“Miss Luche.”
The back seat was filled with guys wearing identical black suits and black helmets, and even though their voices could be heard, it was impossible to identify who was speaking.
“Hmm?”
Luche, sitting in the passenger seat, turned her head, but she didn’t know which one of the guys in the back seat had spoken.
“Who called?”
“It doesn’t matter if they called or not, can we use another car? It’s too cramped here.”
Even if I leaned slightly towards the back seat, the hellish environment filled with sweat smell made Luche frown.
“There’s no choice. Our performance and statistics are in the lower ranks.”
Luche also wanted to move more comfortably with another car, but it wasn’t just our team using cars at the Seoul Branch; there weren’t enough cars for all teams, so they had to share dates.
“Today we have new weapons. Let’s all work hard.”
While I and others in the back seat were having small conversations unnoticed by Luche, who was busy fighting up front.
“Miss Luche seems down today.”
“Don’t touch her. She was scolded by the Branch Manager before we set out.”
“How unusual for someone who doesn’t usually call…”
Luche was our immediate superior, and above her in the Seoul Branch, there were several executives. For the Branch Manager, who rarely scolded subordinates, to scold Luche was quite surprising.
Since Luche had been scolded by someone who didn’t usually nag, the atmosphere felt somewhat subdued.
The conversation seemed familiar, but the internal atmosphere of Spacystro Seoul Branch was far from good.
We were only familiar with each other because we had seen each other for a long time. Fundamentally, the executives led the work, and I and other subordinates only came to work when called, so we rarely met.
“How’s the surveillance on Red?”
Unexpectedly, one of them spoke to me. Since everyone wore helmets, I couldn’t tell who it was, and the one who spoke was the person monitoring Red in the car. He said this knowing I was there.
“Nothing. I’ve been getting flak from Miss Luche about it for days.”
Our results aren’t entirely nonexistent. To be precise, there are no results, but changes have occurred. Changes in my relationship with Red. The relationship had shifted from a completely hostile state where we kept our distance to a situation where Red doesn’t know I’m the enemy and we’re slowly getting closer.
In anticipation of achieving results from this change, we were gathering strength for a heavy report.
“Back there! Did you just talk about me?!”
Though I spoke softly, somehow Luche’s loud voice could hear me from the front.
“Yes, I was talking.”
“What?!”
Since we were hidden by the crowd anyway, I just threw in whatever came to mind.
“Ay. Let’s get out and see.”
How did he know?
Engaging in trivial chatter as we parked at Namsan Parking Lot, strange-looking people in black outfits spilled out of the seemingly narrow minibus.
“It’s hot!”
When we got out of the car, despite it being a weekday morning, there were many people at Namsan, and they continued to whisper about us as usual.
A child walking hand-in-hand with his mother waved at us, and one of us waved back.
“Miss Luche, how far is it from here?”
“No, it’s over there behind that.”
Next to the parking lot, there was a spacious area, and we moved there one by one.
“Do not enter the restricted area! You’ll have to pay a fine.”
Sensitive to fines, Luche shouted at the guys standing in front of the controlled garden, and those who were momentarily admiring the garden quickly joined the group.
Why are they filling the car with people despite the risk of fines?
“It’s hot!”
The black suits and helmets we wear do not have any special functions besides defense. They look thin but are extremely sturdy, so they don’t get injured easily except for regular impacts. However, the problem is that there are no other functions besides defense. When not fighting, they’re just black suits.
The helmets don’t have separate breathing holes. They can be considered like motorcycle helmets.
Kindergarten children were watching us, and some were performing for laughs in front of the children. It might not be a bad idea to turn into a circus troupe.
Seeing a reporter with a camera in the middle of Seoul was unusual. Despite seeing only two reporters, feeling grateful for seeing them after a long time suggests I might have issues.
“Miss Luche, wrap your cloak. It’s not good for the kids to see.”
Luche was wearing a full-body suit that exposed her chest and abdomen, which was much better than ours and seemed unaffected by the heat.
Because there were kindergarten children, I wrapped myself with the cloak to cover the suggestive outfit.
“Why do you have to wear something like this?”
I muttered to myself, feeling like I was suffering unnecessarily for wearing this. Luche, who seemed to have heard my muttering from afar, shouted at me.
“Yeah, Ay. You insulted me, didn’t you?!”
Remembering that I had cursed him while in the car, Luche approached me aggressively, and I ran away from her to avoid being hit, knowing well how painful it would be.
“Don’t stand there!”
Luche’s aggressive approach was unexpectedly amusing. While running through the park, the kids, wrapped in cloaks, looked like penguins waddling awkwardly.
“Be careful. Don’t fall running like that… Oh no.”
Thinking Luche might fall, I tried to warn her, but Luche tripped over the hem of the cloak and fell to the ground.
With everyone’s attention drawn to the sound of Luche falling, groans echoed.
“Ouch, ugh…”
Although Luche often cried and we were used to it, it was always an emergency for us. It takes a lot of time to soothe her because once she starts crying, she doesn’t stop easily. Now was no exception, especially before a confrontation.
“Miss Luche! This guy is the reason!”
Two guys who noticed first approached me, grabbed my arm, and pulled me towards Luche. Realizing the situation, I didn’t resist and let them lead me.
“Oh! Ay did something wrong. That’s why you insulted Miss Luche!”
“Yeah! Ay is wrong!”
“Ay is a bad guy! Ay, you bad guy!”
“Hey! That was just me insulting you!”
Seeing our bickering, Luche wiped away tears and stood up, shaking off the cloak.
“I’m sorry! Miss Luche. I won’t gossip behind your back anymore!”
Although I will continue gossiping, I am not foolish enough to say “I will gossip behind your back” in front of everyone.
Fortunately, Luche didn’t cry, and just as the situation was being resolved, the HunterKiller team arrived.
All five arrived on motorcycles, already wearing their suits according to their codenames, and approached us.
“You’re right on time.”
“Hmph! Adhering to time is the basic rule of an organization.”
Proudly puffing out her chest, Luche was about to boast, but then she realized she was still wrapped in the cloak.
“We need to stay away from friends. It’s time for adults to work.”
HunterKiller’s Pink and Green kept the children from coming closer, and we also evacuated the excited children to prevent them from getting hurt.
“Why do you guys, who claim to be invaders, care so much about laws and safety? Do you really plan to invade?”
Red’s familiar voice came from inside the suit.
“We don’t harm the elderly and children! We compete within the opponent’s rules and ensure complete defeat. That’s the policy of Spacystro!”
To Earthlings, we are invaders and villains, so such statements seem ridiculous. But from Spacystro’s perspective, we are not villains and have no intention of becoming one. The reason we plunder is that it is a method of survival in a universe where the strong survive by the law of the jungle.
The representative of Spacystro. At the time, the person who had been dismissed continued to advocate this policy, and I witnessed the defeated opponents lose all their fighting spirit when they completely lost within the opponent’s rules.
Originally, we should have finished the invasion and moved to another place by now, but Earth. This planet is particularly stubborn.
“I hope you can adhere to those rules until the end.”
The five HunterKiller members took out their weapons, and we also drew our weapons.
Unlike usual, Luche took out a long rod instead of her large scythe, boasting about the new weapon.
“Let’s go!”
With Red’s shout, the HunterKiller team charged towards us, and we roared and charged back.
Facing Red in front of us, it feels unreal that we exchanged texts yesterday, and will continue to do so tomorrow.
But the enemy is still the enemy. My reason for communicating with Red is to gather information through her. There’s no need to dwell on the slight closeness, and I attacked her with all my strength as usual.
And with one kick from Red, I was sent flying ten meters and slammed onto the ground.
Luche attacked Red with the long rod, but Red blocked it with a sword, causing Red to be pushed back due to the shock.
“How does it feel? The power of our new weapon, given to us with nothing but a mouse’s tail for support!”
Luche confidently stated, but why does this statement feel so sad?
“Using weird weapons like this! Blue!”
Behind us, Blue, who was shooting guns at minions, aimed the gun at Luche and pulled the trigger.
The light beam shot towards Luche, but Luche’s violent swing altered the trajectory, sending the beam skyward.
“HunterKiller! Today is the day we finish you off!”
Defeated.
Without needing to say it twice, it was a perfect defeat as usual.
Luche, who was vigorously swinging the rod, ended up taking all of HunterKiller’s attacks alone as we all collapsed, and eventually, Luche’s new weapon broke under the pressure.
“Guh, ah! Uuuuung!”
Feeling bad already, the new weapon failed to provide support, resulting in the same outcome. Luche sat in the passenger seat crying, and we in the back seat remained silent as usual.
Despite Luche’s valiant efforts, we rose again and rushed forward, only to be knocked down by Red’s attack. Thanks to the armor’s excellent defensive capabilities, we weren’t killed, but we felt numbness in our faces.
“Is anyone… injured?”
“No.”
Luche, who had been crying continuously, turned her head slightly to check on our safety in the back seat. Although there were injuries, none of them were as painful as Luche’s, so we all remained silent.
After arriving at headquarters, we washed ourselves with sweat and immediately left.
On the way home, I thought about going to the market, so I turned towards the supermarket. Along the way,
“Brother?”
“Oh, hi.”
Just an hour ago, Red, who had kicked and punched my abdomen and face, was now standing before me.
“What a coincidence meeting like this on the street.”
“I went out to buy something after finishing work.”
Neither Red nor I could communicate normally due to the confrontation, and we didn’t particularly try to contact each other. There was no need to say “It looks like I won’t be able to contact you today because of work,” and it would be strange to say it anyway.
Since I never initiated contact, it was funny to suddenly hear such words.
“Are you not going to the convenience store today?”
“Why would I go without you?”
There was no point in going to the convenience store without Red. Due to the surveillance mission, I had to go to the convenience store on weekends and eat the packed lunches I bought, but I didn’t want to do it during weekdays.
I said what I thought, and Red glanced at me before looking away. Wondering if I said something strange, I reconsidered what I had just said, but found nothing peculiar.
“…If you have time, would you like to eat together?”
Since we lost the confrontation anyway, and since we happened to meet, why not take a chance to look for any results from Red?
“Yes, I’d like that.”
Not having initiated contact beforehand, Red naturally felt surprised. Her expression brightened and she smiled in response, seeming a bit flustered. Maybe she was very hungry. Fortunately, the restaurant was familiar as I often visited it nearby.
“I’ll pay. Let’s go.”
The restaurant Red brought me to was a typical Korean restaurant. As we ordered our meals, we faced each other. My cheek, which was sore from earlier, was being gently rubbed, and Red was staring at me intently.
“Did you get hurt?”
It felt a bit odd to receive sincere concern about the injury caused by me.
“Yeah. I hit my head.”
“How did you hit your head?”
Since my cheek isn’t usually a place that gets hit, Red chuckled and rummaged through her bag.
What she pulled out was an ice pack.
“Do you carry this around?”
“It’s disposable, but I brought it just in case.”
Red, who sincerely worried about me and gave me an ice pack, seemed like the only one besides me.
“? Yubin, near your eye.”
“Hmm?”
There was a small cut near her eye, and Red took out a hand mirror from her bag to check it.
“Huh? When did you get hurt?”
“Just a moment.”
The food hadn’t arrived yet, so I stood up and approached the owner at the counter.
“Owner, do you have any ointment?”
“Sure, just a moment.”
I received the ointment for the wound and returned to the table, giving it to Red.
“Apply this to the wound, and take this.”
I placed an unopened flesh-colored bandage I had taken from my pocket.
“Do you carry this around?”
“I often get hurt because I’m clumsy.”
I couldn’t say “because of you guys,” so I vaguely blamed clumsiness.
Red chuckled as she applied the ointment and took the bandage, continuing to giggle while putting it on.
“What’s so funny?”
“Just, I feel like I know why Brother often gets hurt because of clumsiness.”
“Huh? Am I perceived like that?”
I don’t remember doing anything specific, but somehow Red has formed such a perception of me.
“Because, Brother. Whenever you come to the convenience store, you always stumble and hesitate while choosing items.”
That was to create time to watch you while I was at the convenience store. It seems that such behavior made me appear clumsy to Red.
“You don’t seem like a clumsy person.”
“Yes, yes. I’m not clumsy.”
I felt like I was being teased, but it wasn’t unpleasant, so I didn’t respond.
Soon, the meal arrived, and Red and I continued chatting in a slightly brighter mood as we enjoyed dinner together.