Chapter 26: The Model Hunter 2
Two days later Jaehwang went back to his closet at noon since he forgot to bring some clothes with him before he went into the wormhole. Realizing that there were things that he might have forgotten, he went back understanding that he needed to be more careful and plan everything ahead. Going on a hunt alone was not simply just about packing dozens of camping equipment.
“Hmm...”
Jaehwang then got on the bus and watched a foreign vlog titled ‘There’s 100 days left in the world’ in his phone.
The spirit then asked.
-What are you watching?
-A video for surviving in Alousu.
-Oh... The Alousu looks like a fun place.
Jaehwang and the spirit both watched the person in the video make a trap by tying around a tree branch.
-Fun? Hah... Does that really look like fun to you?
The day about the mash-up being a fun experience made sarcastically Jaehwang laugh and shake his head.
It was an awful time. It was a tragedy that cost the lives of many every single day. So many things happened as he said before, some have thought that it was the last day for humanity...
It was not just hundreds or thousands, millions of people died during that time however, the current state of the Alousu was okay. The issues with monsters there have gotten fixed and the only trouble left was the ones made by the Dakosu. A lot of them were still crawling out of their dimension and would brutally destroy the humans that had come to fight them. They were not just simple predators.
The world was then overrun by them the moment hunters had stopped fighting. They didn’t have the need to eat, starvation was not their problem. They all moved for the sake of slaughtering those who would come to stop them. Because of that, so many countries collapsed. A lot of things were given up on and the force of change had to be sought.
-Why are you laughing?
The spirit complained but Jaehwang ignored her and continued to pay attention to the video.
-Be quiet and just watch it.
-Fine...
The vlog’s owner was a hunter BJ with a specialty in investigation. He was a high-ranked hunter from England. He would travel around Alousu to vlog about his experiences and upload them online.
-This is a thirty-day Alousu lifestyle and today was another tiring day. Before we came to this place there were enough vaccinations on the earth but it was always used for careless people so there’s none for us. Can you see it? A week ago we became isolated alone and got wounded in a raid... We still have to recover and pay the price. Our meat turned out not to be good for us. You can’t tell by this video but, it’s like we’re having diarrhea every day.
-If you have ran into a situation like this, then stems and plant roots would serve as a good alternative. The plant is called ‘Alou Mercy’ and in this neighborhood it is used to cure all diseases. Boiling the roots in water could surely be used as a good water purifier. Our earth almost works just the same but the background of this place’s water regions are more diverse.
They looked like they were 50 generations away from the present. There was a thin man whose name was unknown warming water on a small burner. After a little while, the cold water was boiled and the man’s face scowled after he drank it.
-Ugh... It tastes awful.
He drank all of the boiled water and then he gathered giant leaves and hammered them down to make a bed.
-The hunters that came to the raid prepared the latest tent and gloves as required for today’s camping. A special smell comes out of this big leaf and that scent would keep the monsters away. Before, my sensing skills were able to detect when something dangerous would be coming so there was no problem, but it’s always good to add an extra layer of security. Haha... if possible, I hope this video’s viewers are the ones acting dangerously instead.
“This is the final stop.”
Jaehwang placed his phone in his pocket and got off the bus. He went by to the closest town in the village. He strolled along the end of the town all until he reached a red bricked post office after walking for about 15 minutes. He saw two people as he walked inside. The atmosphere was perfectly calm.
“How may I help you?”
Jaehwang was welcomed by a young employee who stood up from her seat and he greeted him as he pulled the hat over his face so she couldn’t see.
“I would like to get a delivery.”
“What’s your name?”
“Jeon Jaehwang.”
The female employee nodded her head at his answer and reached for an old folder. She then typed on the computer for a second and nodded her head again.
“All of your things arrived here yesterday during the afternoon. Do you want all those items today... Follow me?
“Okay.”
Jaehwang followed the employee towards the back of the post office. There were a lot of deliveries that haven’t gone to houses in the town since the original destination was set up in the mountains. There were a lot of packed items inside and there were the receipts of the items that had already been delivered on the outside.
“Do you have an ID?”
“Here you go.”
He took his wallet out of his pocket and handed her the ID as she went to the other side to ask a question through the terminal. After a little while, she returned with a big box on a roller in front of him and asked him a question.
“Do you have a car?”
“No. I’ll look at the items first and then take it with me.”
“Oh. Okay.”
The female employee shook her head and walked away. Jaehwang then looked at the items in the box on the roller one by one.
He needed something to use the internet with before he went back to Alousu and this town didn’t have anything except for mail orders.
“We need a water purifying set... and a set of seasonings...”
-And chocolate?
“We need a wide range defense set and twenty shooting star Series D rank replacement arrow strings...That might be the most expensive thing.”
-And Chocolate?!
“Alousu equipment type B, emergency food and 100 arrows to shoot for medium sized monsters...”
-And my chocolate!
He kept hearing her mention chocolate in his head. He finished checking the items and took a light breath.
-But I have no money.
The spirit then started to yell.
-Can’t you look at that phone and find a way to get a lot of money?! You promised to buy chocolate too!
He then started to think about what the handsome hunter said that night. He had about 120 dollars, the details about the monster’s calculated description were sent separately. Being a hunter meant that his occupational category would take so much out of his money. He wondered why was there such a burdensome share of cost in that situation but in any case, all of what was left was used in his online shopping.
-I used up all of the arrowheads and I needed to buy more.
-Buy it!
-It’s just as I thought.
-You’re breaking your promise!
-I didn’t promise anything.
-Ugh!
The spirit continued to beg for chocolate. Jaehwang actually felt sorry about it but he didn’t even get a chance to buy arrowheads. There were arrows in the house that could possibly left in a good condition.
The problem was the cover suit’s arrow strings. There was an eighty percent discount sale on the website so he bought the mid-ranked monster equipment and the older version of the arrowhead.
Of course Jaehwang mentioned that but it was rare for hunters to use old bows. Compared to fighting monsters with small firearms, using fighting weapons such as blades was a much better choice. But the problem was that the arrows he already had were limited and were continuously going low. The arrows that he got from the tattooed girl helped a lot with his expenses.
He scrolled through every hunter site there was but there were almost no results related to arrow sales.
-If you buy something delicious later than I’ll be a little quieter.
-Hm... Something delicious?
-Yes.
-Okay.
The spirit dialed down and Jaehwang then took the items and left the post office.
-Where are you going?
-The bakery...
There was a bakery within a walking distance from the post office. It was a small town but there were lots of places one could go. The bakery in the neighborhood had only been around for a little over ten years. Jaehwang got to their destination within a few minutes and the spirit pointed her fingers towards everything.
-That one! And that! That one too! Ahh! There’s too many! Should I just come out and choose?”
Jaehwang shook his head at the spirit’s suggestion. He thought that was a bad idea. The spirit would never get tired of pointing at everything. He asked himself about how he could send her in there by herself but he later trashed the idea since it would be useless in his situation. He didn’t want to risk having any rumor going around the neighborhood.
The spirit was not an idiot, he already knew that she couldn’t be trusted to buy chocolate on her own. Jaehwang decided that it was not a good idea. She got a few snacks and others off of the display trays including bread and chocolate.
“That would be $7 dollars please.”
Dding...
Said the store clerk as he bagged their items. The clerk gave a gentle greeting and asked for his card. Jaehwang gave him his card with his trembling hand, knowing that there were only about 60 cents left on it.
“Hah...”
He quickly took the paper bag and the clerk was yet to notice anything going on. He then started to stagger towards the exit.
-Quick run!
Jaehwang quickly ran out of the bakery and headed into the department store.
He brought a water purifier but he didn’t have any water so he also went to buy bottled water. He then heard a familiar voice coming from somewhere.
“Oh! Really? Okay.”
It was a very familiar voice. He looked over to see if it was who he thought it was... It was a tall man wearing a colorful parka coat and looked to be in their early thirties. There was a floral pattern on the inside of the coat and on the bottom he was wearing reddish brown suit pants... It was his uncle.
He was the one who ran away with Jaehwang’s parent’s insurance money and suddenly disappeared from his disabled and now orphaned niece who was in the hospital...
-What’s going on?
The spirit asked as it felt a sudden change in his atmosphere.But Jaehwang didn’t answer and just continued to stand there like a mannequin. He eventually left before his uncle could see him by walking in the opposite direction.
“I’m going to kill him...”
-Kill?
Asked the spirit after Jaehwang thought aloud that murder wouldn’t be that much of bad of a choice. It was a bit of a joke but at that moment his eyes were filled with anger.
-Yes. He’s an idiot that wants to die.
Seriously.
-Oh...
Once he reached enough distance between him and his uncle, he started to slowly follow behind him. He wasn’t worried about being noticed because his hat was still pulled down and covering his face. If he couldn’t control his urge to murder him on the spot, he decided that he would just run and crush him somewhere else.
-Wait, let’s talk for a minute.
Jaehwang then began to answer the spirit’s question.
The Model Hunter 2, The end.