Translator: Vine
Translated At: Nyx Scans
Chapter: 123
#123. Daebyeongpungdo (Great Folding Screen Island)
2022.12.01.
「Today's weather report.」
「Due to atmospheric instability and the influence of a low-pressure system, some inland areas will experience considerable rainfall from dawn to morning. The morning low will be between 3 and 10 degrees, slightly lower than yesterday, and the daytime high will be—.」
Click.
Eunha, closing the slightly open window, sat down on the sofa with a thud.
Steam was rising from the mug on the table.
Sipping her cocoa while watching the weather forecast, she slowly began to feel the cold winter's approach.
In the unlit living room.
Her gaze fixed on the TV, Eunha was thinking about what had happened at the send-off ceremony.
'How were you able to avoid having your name taken by the boss?'
Doctor Plant Keum Roje.
For some reason, she knew that the boss of Bokgye Mountain had attempted to take Eunha's name.
Eunha had never told anyone about that fact.
Not even Clown Ahjussi, with whom she had partied throughout the qualification test.
Then how on earth had Roje come to know that fact?
As a gate researcher, had she conjectured it based on the numerous research records and data accumulated so far?
If that was the case, why had she lied, saying she 'received a report'?
No, what bothered her more was something else.
If she had known information about the said boss in advance, why had Rose, why had Roje, chosen Bokgye Mountain as the qualification test site?
"..."
Her thoughts spiraled, one leading to another.
Of course, she couldn't reach a clear answer.
Asking Roje directly would be the fastest way, but she hadn't had the chance since Roje had vanished after their conversation on the balcony.
After that, Eunha had been caught by Yoo Hwan and engaged in a drinking contest.
Eunha, who had been sitting motionless with a mug in her hand, slowly lifted her head.
Come to think of it, besides Roje, there was another being that bothered her.
[The divine beast 'Cat Wandering in Darkness' points at the remote, "Sister, not the boring news, another channel!"]
[It subtly pokes your side, suggesting the nursery rhyme channel it saw the other day would be good.]
'Cat.'
Eunha, gripping the remote, recalled the events at Bokgye Mountain.
At the time she encountered 'The One Who Lost Their Name' in the Colony of the Dead, the cat had seemed agitated, enough to be conveyed even through the message window.
[The divine beast 'Cat Wandering in Darkness' breaks out in a cold sweat like a sudden shower. It explains that not everyone who loses their name transforms into a monster like that.]
[It strongly insists that you and I made a legitimate contract, while that person was bewitched by a fairy and had their name stolen. Therefore, they cannot be put on the same level; it's a completely different situation.]
As if a thief were caught in the act.
Eunha had harbored a faint suspicion since before, no, perhaps since she first met the cat in the Unknown Gate.
Come to think of it, there was more than one strange thing.
For instance, why was a cat, not included in the generally known 12 zodiac animals, wearing the guise of a 'divine beast'?
Since when, and for what reason was it not known to the public?
Not only that.
The cat's intention in proposing a contract to Eunha that day, the reason it followed Eunha well, calling her sister, and...
'Even being so knowledgeable about Unknown Gates.'
The list of questionable points was endless.
[The divine beast 'Cat Wandering in Darkness' tilts its head and sings.]
[Twinkle, twinkle, little star, how I wonder what you are. In the western sky, and in the eastern sky...]
Though the song wasn't actually audible, the yellow message window wiggled to the rhythm.
Although its form was invisible, the cat, reciting nursery rhymes, looked utterly innocent, as if harboring no ulterior motives whatsoever.
The fact that she was able to escape the Unknown Gate, that she obtained the title 'Princess of Dark Flare' and her combat power greatly increased, that she had so many coins—whether it had ulterior motives or not, it was all thanks to the cat.
Meaning, it was an undeniable fact that Eunha was receiving 'help' in some form from the cat.
Moreover, she herself was the one who proceeded with the contract with the cat, knowing it was suspicious.
Because at that time, she was truly in a situation where she had to grasp at straws.
So, she didn't intend to corner the cat and dig out its ulterior motives.
—Until now, that is.
'However.'
'The One Who Lost Their Name' she had met at Bokgye Mountain.
Every time she recalled that monster, it bothered her.
About that 'name'.
Such thoughts kept coming to her.
If she had had her name taken by that creature, would she too have become an empty shell, a monster, like Clown Ahjussi's friend?
Or, since I have already lost my name, will I too someday become like that?
Eunha, placing the mug on the table, cast her gaze towards the message window swaying to the nursery rhyme before her.
[The divine beast 'Cat Wandering in Darkness' pokes you with its front paw, "Sister, why aren't you singing along?"]
[Alright, I'm feeling generous! 3,000 coins for one song! it makes an extraordinary offer.]
[Accept?]
Eunha didn't bring her hand to the 'Yes' button that appeared before her.
She just stared at the message window with an impassive face.
[The divine beast 'Cat Wandering in Darkness' scratches its fur, "Uh... too little?" and then grooms its whiskers as if in thought.]
[...5,000 coins? It raises the reward a little.]
[Accept?]
"...Kitty."
Eunha, who had remained silent until now, quietly parted her lips.
Still without even glancing at the 'Yes' button.
"Tell me why you took my name."
...
The cat didn't respond.
Was it shocked that Eunha suspected it?
Or was it simply trying to avoid the situation because it was cornered?
「Twinkle, twinkle, little star, how I wonder what you are—.」
The 'Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star' nursery rhyme flowing from the TV speaker didn't stop.
Eunha spoke again.
"If you keep silent, I can't help it."
Eunha, who had briefly lowered her gaze, finally, as if resolved, stared directly at the message window.
"I have no choice but to think... that you took my name with the intention of turning me into a monster."
Ding!
[The divine beast 'Cat Wandering in Darkness' jumps up and down on the spot!]
[How could you say that! Why would I turn sister into a monster! it whimpers, its eyes welling up with tears as if wronged by the absurd story.]
The cat, pleading its innocence with tears.
Normally, she would have stopped here.
Just as the cat often followed Eunha, calling her 'sister', Eunha too, at some point, had come to think of the cat as family.
A family that was always by her side, that would take her side no matter what.
However.
"If you feel wronged, then speak."
It seemed she really had to ask now.
"Why the name, of all things?"
...
Silence again.
Eunha silently waited for the yellow message window to appear.
And so, 10 seconds, 20 seconds, and more time passed.
[The divine beast 'Cat Wandering in Darkness' says that if it hadn't taken your name, it and sister couldn't have been together like this.]
"What does that mean?"
[The divine beast 'Cat Wandering in Darkness' says, ★Without a name, I can't be on this channel—.]
Beep— Beep— Beep—
[System Error = ??? Unauthorized output.]
[Pa뛟霂 System:{ }SV8??Jd웮뎻쥾㼖n䗧鑴]
[Error. Cannot load message.]
Eunha's brow furrowed slightly.
Error? Suddenly?
Eunha, rising from the sofa, reached her hand towards the message window.
"Kitty?"
Beep— Beep— Beep—
An alarm sounded again.
This time, it wasn't from the message window.
It was from the terminal placed on the corner of the table.
Eunha glanced from the error window that popped up before her to the terminal.
And it was,
<Emergency! Secured Message.>
<South Coast Regional Gate Management Bureau, Coordinates 937, 650. Confirmation of large-scale black rift occurrence.>
"..."
—An emergency gate appearance alert.
2:13 PM.
Designated coordinates 937, 650.
A place far south from Geogeumdo, Goheung-gun, Jeollanam-do.
There was a small island there called 'Daebyeongpungdo (大屛風島)'.
Daebyeongpungdo was a specific island designated by the government, an uninhabited island.
A few years ago, sea fishermen who had heard rumors of good fishing often visited Daebyeongpungdo, but by 2030, even that was prohibited by law.
"Lower that, and hurry up and take this too!"
"Has anyone seen my luggage?"
Opposite Daebyeongpungdo, on its smaller sister island, Sobyeongpungdo.
Six massive warships, marked with the insignia of the Korean Hunter Jurisdiction Association, had dropped anchor nearby.
"..."
Atop a towering, sheer cliff near the coast, Association President Ko Daeyoon gazed heavily at Daebyeongpungdo opposite him.
The massive, pitch-black rift had formed thickly over the island like a cumulonimbus cloud, looking as if it would swallow the entire surrounding area at any moment.
Perhaps sensing the unusual atmosphere.
A seagull flying overhead cried incessantly, as if anxious.
Even the waves crashing against the island cliffs were unusually rough, and amidst it all, Daeyoon thought.
'It's a relief, at least.'
If people had lived on this island, or if there had been visitors, the situation would have been much worse than now.
"President."
Roje cautiously approached Daeyoon.
"...Doctor, you were right."
Daeyoon, without taking his eyes off the black rift covering Daebyeongpungdo, muttered as if to himself.
He could tell without even going in.
That was, with a high probability, an Unknown Gate.
The premonitory phenomenon of a general gate, that is, a rift, even if massive, was usually about the size of a single building.
A size that could completely cover an entire island like this was one of two things: a large-scale gate called a disaster-class, or an Unknown Gate.
Either way, it was a gate that was bound to be troublesome for hunters.
However, seeing that the color of the rift was black, it was likely an Unknown Gate with a high probability.
Just as Roje had predicted.
"If only I had listened to you sooner..."
Daeyoon trailed off.
Humans were truly foolish.
Because they only realized their past mistakes and regretted them after facing a crisis.
If only he had heeded Roje's words as much as he had listened to GIA's holy word, could he have prepared better countermeasures than now?
Looking at that threatening black rift, he couldn't help but think so.
"Don't blame yourself. This is no one's fault. If it were me, I wouldn't have been able to invest much in uncertain research results either."
Roje gently approached Daeyoon, who was gazing at the black rift with a complicated expression.
"I know well that it's a position where one can't help but be cautious, and must be so."
And she smiled, her eyes curving slightly.
"Isn't what's important from now on?"
Booooo—
Over the blue sea, the sound of a ship's horn began to spread low.
Roje's white gown flutters in the sea breeze.
Visible beyond that white wave, a large army of hundreds.
And at the very forefront, the master of the army, looking up at this place.
Monkey King Yoo Hwan.
Trickster Song Minju.
Phantom Thief Kang Ayeon.
Baekrang Shin Siwoo.
Princess of Dark Flare, Lee Yura.
And...
"Please give the signal to depart, President."
Doctor Plant Keum Roje whispered.
Daeyoon slowly lowered his gaze.
He could see a black shadow descending the gangplank and heading towards the island.
Maestro Baek Yijun.
Booooo—
The very moment Yijun joined the ranks, the ship's horn roared once more as if in a roar.
There was no other signal.
Nevertheless, everyone there, as if by agreement, looked up at the black rift covering Daebyeongpungdo all at once.
The sea breeze, mixed with the cry of seagulls, raged fiercely.
And at that moment, the black rift covered the entire island as if to swallow it.
—It was finally beginning.
