NOVEL NEXT Chapter 4 - Meal
〈 Chapter 4 〉 3 Meal
* * *
“Ah….”
It was a hot day.
Even Kim Hyun-seok, a returning student who had endured the heat and cold of Gangwon-do for a year and a half, found it hard to withstand the summer of Seoul, with the heat seeping in from outside the platform.
The outside temperature exceeded 30 degrees, and his skin felt sticky as if he had a humidifier turned on.
If the heat in Gangwon-do was just about the scorching sun, Seoul generously added over 90% humidity to the mix.
He didn’t bother to filter his thoughts. It was a day so bad that even lifting his phone felt exhausting.
After quickly glancing around and confirming no one was nearby, he muttered as if to complain.
“The weather’s a mess, damn….”
There were about ten minutes left until the subway arrived.
He considered entering the convenience store inside the subway station, but the idea of waiting there for ten minutes even after buying something didn’t seem appealing.
The phrase ‘endure with grit’ was something he used to hear often until recently.
But did he really have to endure this weather with grit even after stepping back into society?
The only solace was,
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[General] The weather is f***ing terrible, damn it
[2025.08.XX Recommendations 0 Dislikes 0 Views 53 Comments 7]
(Insert random meme)
It’s legendary that I have to go to school to pick up my stuff in this weather, damn…is there any animal that doesn’t feel the heat? I desperately need a rain ritual
[All Comments] [By Registration Order]
– Who goes out in this weather???? Are you crazy????
ㄴ [Author] I have my reasons
– Fennec fox?
ㄴ Even a fennec fox would give up in this humid hell peninsula
ㄴ I have a friend who’s an evolved human and he dies every summer lol that idiot tiger bastard
– Just go home, turn on the AC, and lie down
– It’s really f***ing hot
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The fact that he wasn’t the only one feeling hot.
Reading the comments on his phone screen, he momentarily forgot the scorching weather and tedious wait.
Seeing the word ‘fennec fox’ briefly caught his attention, and he ran a simulation in his mind.
If a fennec fox evolved… it would still be hot. After all, foxes aren’t hairless.
Anyway, what was this about? To put it simply:
In this world, there were people with animal traits, though very rare.
Formally called Ancients, they were known in society as evolved humans, or simply beastmen.
Well, even so, their appearance was just a person with a tail or ears, or if lucky, both. They were somewhat stronger.
“Ugh, I can’t take it anymore.”
Despite wishing he could become an evolved human to endure this wretched heat, it was futile.
His body moved on its own.
Pushing the convenience store’s glass door lightly, it opened with a clattering sound. Cold air rushed in like ice.
His wallet would get a bit lighter, but who cared? It had been a long time since people started buying time with money.
Buying a drink to earn the right to stay in the convenience store briefly seemed like a fair deal.
It didn’t take long for the cold, sweet drink to go down his throat.
Feeling his body engine move again, he picked up his phone once more.
Today’s a mess.
But it was the usual fodder.
Having spent a considerable amount of time in the Evolved Humans gallery, he was a seasoned gallery user and could predict what would follow once a topic ended.
He clicked on a noticeable post.
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[General] Why do you idiots keep trying to transform your skeletons?
[2025.08.XX Recommendations 73 Dislikes 11 Views 1153 Comments 53]
Of course it’s f***ed up if you go beyond accessories, idiots
Honestly, hair color, ears, tail, fangs, horn, and eye shapes are tolerable, but beyond that, it’s a dead end
If you want more, just go to the furry gallery, damn it. There’s not a single evolved human in the world with body hair and a changed face, so stop trying to lump them in, it makes me want to smash your heads
[All Comments] [By Registration Order]
– A logically flawless post with perfect structure…a masterpiece….
ㄴ Nope, idiots~~
ㄴ Fur fan detected
– Noted all the idiots downvoting this, lol, sweet
– These guys don’t understand why they’re being cursed at lol even with those traits, looking human and being a furry are fundamentally different, but they stubbornly insist and cause a fuss
– So reptile evolved humans are a dead end?
ㄴ [Author] If your face looks like that, it’s a dead end, but tongue, fangs, eyes, and tail are totally acceptable
ㄴ [Author] But I’ve never seen one, so not sure, haha; sorry; lol!
ㄴ Acceptable?
ㄴ [Author] If they’re pretty, definitely acceptable, damn it
ㄴ I saw a picture of a reptile beastman, none of them had scales, just looked similar to us
.
.
.
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“Sigh.”
The phone screen naturally went black.
It was an arena, to say the least.
But unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately, this place was always like this.
People fought over the most trivial reasons every day, and when there were no fights, they discussed famous evolved humans on the internet, and so on.
Therefore, he didn’t spend too much time in the cyberspace beyond the screen.
However, today, a different curiosity was subtly tickling his mind.
“A snake, huh….”
A possibility he had never considered.
Even after briefly imagining it, no clear image came to mind.
People related to that topic weren’t often discussed in the gallery, and critically, in Korea, there were only tiger-related evolved humans.
I don’t know.
He took a small breath and carefully stepped out of the convenience store. Quite some time had passed.
The platform was still hot but more bearable than before.
As he watched the subway approach the platform and waited for the screen doors to open,
“Huh?”
There was someone who naturally but completely stole his gaze.
A woman crossed paths with him.
Her lively, bouncy skin was white but not pale.
Her long, black hair with a slight blue tint contrasted naturally with her skin, both full of vitality.
However, the sharp ears sticking out between her side hair were definitely unusual.
As her sharp eyes quickly scanned him from head to toe, their eyes met. Kim Hyun-seok felt an inexplicable chill.
Her blue eyes looked like they were carved out of sapphire.
But that wasn’t the important part.
“Wow….”
A long snake tail naturally extended from her lower back, curving and moving freely.
Unconsciously, he took a deep breath.
As she tucked her tail into her pocket and naturally took out her phone, she spoke softly.
“Do you need something?”
“No, no, nothing.”
Her voice was lower than expected, balancing between boyish and feminine, softly penetrating his ears.
She slowly began to disappear from his sight.
“Student, if you’re getting on, hurry up!”
“Oh!”
Phew.
Almost missed the subway because he got distracted by her.
As he hurriedly boarded, perhaps for that reason or some other, Kim Hyun-seok’s heart was racing.
He took another deep breath at the entrance where she had exited, perhaps never to meet her again.
…For some reason, there was a faint smell of gunpowder, cleaning oil, and lubricant in the air, reminiscent of his military days.
“Thank you.”
“Thank you! Enjoy your meal!”
Rustle, rustle.
Finding a suitable seat, he put the toast he just bought into his mouth and chewed.
The egg, finely chopped cabbage, ham, sweet sauce, and bread blended into one, sliding down his throat. The warmth and crispy texture felt through his fingers.
Even after eating five earlier and now more, his stomach still begged for more food.
Perhaps because he cleaned the equipment for so long, the smell of cleaning oil and lubricant still lingered on his body.
Though he washed his hands three times with soap, unfortunately, there was no shower room in the safe house.
Let’s see, it had been about three or four hours?
“Hmm.”
This is delicious.
Unfortunately, after a few bites, the toast was quickly gone.
He wiped his mouth with the tissue provided and threw the empty wrapper into the trash can.
Meanwhile, a pungent smell that even toast couldn’t cover wafted from his clothes. It would be nice if just changing clothes could remove the smell.
But he had been through too much to naively think the smell wouldn’t linger on his clothes.
From the moment the inside of the nearly disassembled machine gun and semi-automatic sniper rifle turned pitch black, he had a feeling it would turn out this way.
It usually did after mindlessly firing the .338.
In fact, it might also be because it had been a long time since he last cleaned his guns.
Since he wouldn’t have another chance to shoot, he thoroughly cleaned even the firearm accessories,
Cleared the tactical vest and other gear dusted with stone powder with an airbrush, and before he knew it, it was already three in the afternoon.
As he exited the
subway station, unfamiliar sights greeted him.
Tall buildings, apartment complexes, and shopping malls that weren’t in his memory stood tall, boasting their presence. Most had glass exteriors.
Glass, even unbroken, allowed for identifying enemy positions and shooting from within… no, that’s not it.
Not a pleasant memory.
Urban warfare in big cities always looked like that.
Recalling unpleasant past memories, he walked home under the blazing sun.
Even though today’s humidity was high, the sunlight seemed excessively scorching.
Should I wear arm sleeves or something from now on?
“The weather’s nice.”
At least it’s summer. It would’ve been tough in winter. Poor digestion and all….
Heating bills would be high in winter.
Anyway, for whatever reason, re-adapting to society was remarkably quick.
Walking on dirty asphalt with a mix of trash, corpses, snow, and mud… or a messy blend of those, resting was having his finger beside the trigger guard.
Hundreds of times, random thoughts nearly got him shot in the head.
Thinking about what to have for breakfast and lunch while walking was quite a luxury.
After a bit of walking, he saw the apartment building across from the shopping area – the one he lived in.
And below it,
[Tiger’s Pizza]
…What’s that?
Was that always there?
Given that I’d stayed indoors for the past few days, I didn’t know much about the neighborhood, but the store name piqued my curiosity.
There were more people in front of the store than expected.
I thought of getting a few pizzas to go, but it turned out to be a restaurant occupying an entire floor.
…Are the lights off?
“Oh, break time….”
So, there’s a break time.
Are those people in line waiting to get in once it reopens? There are quite a lot of them.
How much tip should I give here… or rather, do we even have a tipping culture here?
In fact, even in New York, I could count on one hand the times I went to a restaurant… I can’t even remember the last time I went to one.
But while I was pondering this, the distance to the restaurant steadily decreased.
Curiosity always gets me.
Thus, began my first neighborhood exploration since returning.