Chick 297
by Cristae297
“KRRAAAAH!”
As her sword struck its head, one of the Remnants of the Snowfield dissolved into frost and vanished.
“Haa!”
Panting harshly, Kwon Riyeong gripped her sword tightly again, keeping a close eye on the monsters’ movements.
‘Three left…’
Perhaps because one had already fallen, the Remnants were reluctant to approach her too rashly.
Casting a glance behind, she was relieved to see that Gru had managed to escape and was gone.
‘Whew.’
She breathed a sigh of relief, but her own predicament remained dire.
Just then, the three remaining monsters sprang at her all at once.
Gritting her teeth, Kwon Riyeong moved to swing her sword at the snapping jaws of the monsters—
Squelch!
Something soft and yielding blocked her sword’s path.
‘Soap bubbles?’
The monsters lunging at her were caught inside bubbles.
But it didn’t seem they would hold for long.
As the Remnants struggled, the bubbles encasing them burst all at once.
Pop! Pop! Pop!
Seeing the monsters sprawled by the force of the bursting bubbles, Kwon Riyeong hesitated.
If she turned away now and got caught from behind, she’d surely be torn to shreds.
But if she had to run, this was her only chance.
“Mara! Run!”
First, she sent the black retriever fleeing, then gripped her sword even tighter.
She had only to endure a little longer before the Hunters arrived. She’d hold out at least until Mara escaped.
Just as she resolved this—
Creak-rattle, creak-rattle—
Suddenly, she heard the sound of an old bicycle wheel turning.
“…?”
What she saw was almost unbelievable.
A teddy bear, riding a tricycle, was rattling toward her.
— Ms. Kwon Riyeong, do you need help?
A distorted, gravelly voice rang in her ears.
She knew well the reputation of this bear.
Never revealing his identity, yet commanding a teddy bear—thus, the moniker ‘Fakeclaw’.
Currently, the most talked-about craftsman Hunter in the world.
But…
‘Why is Fakeclaw here?!’
Seeing him in person, the bear was smaller than she’d imagined, but the madness was all the more intense.
“…?”
Robbed of words, Kwon Riyeong watched as Fakeclaw pedaled slowly toward her.
— Get on. I’ll help you escape this crisis.
He pointed to the seat of the tricycle.
Staring at the minuscule space, Kwon Riyeong groaned.
“There’s no way I could ever fit…”
— Incompetent.
How is it my incompetence if it’s impossible to ride?!
Kwon Riyeong felt aggrieved.
But Fakeclaw only sighed mockingly and stepped off the bike with absurd, maniacal cuteness that seemed completely out of place in such an emergency.
While she stood dumbstruck, the monsters rose with a rumbling growl.
Snapping out of it, Kwon Riyeong readied her sword again.
So this was the ally she’d finally encountered—a self-absorbed artisan? And a craftsman at that?
“Are you alone? When are the other Hunters coming?”
— Alone.
“Why?! What’s the situation outside? Isn’t there any backup?”
As she peppered him with anxious questions, the teddy bear’s lips crooked ever so slightly.
— Do you not trust me?
“Of course I don’t!”
The words came out louder than she meant; the bear’s insouciant tone, so out of place with his tiny appearance, had gotten under her skin.
There were three A-class monsters before her.
Weary as she was, she now had to watch out for this new player as well.
“Call for backup immediately!”
Fending off the monsters’ attacks, Kwon Riyeong shouted.
But Fakeclaw only wiggled his eyebrows and said calmly,
— If there’s no other choice. Ms. Kwon, I’ll show you—just this once.
“What?”
At that instant, snow began piling up at the little stuffed bear’s feet.
— …my cradle.
Ssssshhhhh—
In an instant, pure white snow blanketed the theater.
“What is this…!”
Kwon Riyeong, shielding herself against the biting wind, looked around in astonishment.
Her exhaled breath blossomed into puffs of white vapor.
‘…A snowfield?’
The theater had already transformed into a bitterly cold tundra.
How? Baffled by the inexplicable change, Kwon Riyeong wrapped her arms tightly around her upper body.
The body of an A-class mercenary could endure most cold, but this chill made even her muscles contract.
How had a snowfield appeared so suddenly?
Amid her confusion, something caught Kwon Riyeong’s eye.
At the heart of the glacial chill, the teddy bear stood poised—utterly unaffected.
‘…!’
And it didn’t end there.
The monsters approached the little bear, dropped to their knees, and bowed with their heads to the ground as if in fealty to a monarch.
Unbelievable.
Kwon Riyeong’s eyes trembled with confusion.
Meanwhile, the bear placed a paw atop one monster’s head and muttered,
— A failed prototype…
Suddenly Fakeclaw turned toward Kwon Riyeong.
— What, exactly, is the failure here?
Kwon Riyeong shook her hands and face side to side.
“I-I don’t know.”
She found herself speaking in unexpectedly formal language.
— Is that so.
The teddy’s head tilted to the side, as if pondering.
He seemed to mull something over for a moment, then patted the Remnants’ heads with his tiny paw.
Immediately, the monsters’ bodies began to shift, shrinking and swelling until their forms grew small.
‘…!’
What was he doing?
Even as she wondered, the three huge dinosaurs before her were suddenly transformed into three fluffy white puppies, wagging their tails.
Kwon Riyeong’s mouth dropped open.
To create a snowfield, to have monsters not only obey, but transform the very form of living beings so easily—was the craftsman class truly capable of this?
Even seeing it with her own eyes, she found it impossible to believe.
“How—how did you do that? Just what are you?”
Fakeclaw looked up.
On the snowy plain, the bear’s previously annoying face now seemed chillingly eerie.
She couldn’t tell if the shivers running down her spine were from cold or from this being’s awe-inspiring power.
Then, crunch, crunch, the little teddy bear stepped across the snow toward her.
Terrified, Kwon Riyeong backed away, but the bear closed the distance and twitched his eyebrows.
— I assumed you knew who I was.
She did. Of course she did.
But he was even more extraordinary than the rumors suggested.
She swallowed dryly as he spoke again.
— People call me ‘Fakeclaw’.
“……That isn’t what I wanted to know…”
— Gru is waiting outside. You’d better go to her quickly.
With what seemed only a gentle push, Fakeclaw sent her sliding effortlessly out of the snowfield.
Yes, Gru. Her mission was Gru—she had to go find her straight away.
Kwon Riyeong turned and trudged away with heavy steps.
At that very moment, Fakeclaw’s final words echoed from behind.
— Let’s keep today’s events between us.
Nod.
Glancing back, Kwon Riyeong gave a quick nod, then dashed out in a hurry.
As she ran, the snowfield quickly shrank, and the little white puppies disappeared into it.
— Hm…
Gru, leaving the failures in the snowfield behind, paused in thought, then remembered this wasn’t the time and picked up her transformation wand.
Click!
‘Transformation complete!’
Instantly back in her school uniform, Gru trotted out of the theater.
And behind her, a woman with long hair crept after her, unseen.
“Please let them be safe… If only they hadn’t chosen to stay behind…”
Feigning anxious worry, Kwon Honggyun glanced sideways at Joorim, concealing his own inner thoughts.
Since Cheon Gyuri went inside the museum, Joorim had stood silent and expressionless, arms crossed.
The incident had become larger than planned, but the narrative being shaped was just what he’d hoped for.
The chief secretary’s daughter, risking her life to save On Joorim’s child. You couldn’t ask for a better photo op.
All that remained was for Kwon Riyeong to emerge carrying Gru, a veritable hero.
The girl who saved the child in a dangerous accident—the chief secretary’s daughter was certain to make the front page.
That would ensure a favorable shift in public opinion and lock in the S+ contract.
He only hoped the spotlight wouldn’t fall on Cheon Gyuri, and that Samantha would be the one carrying out the child.
While Kwon Honggyun was wishing just that, Cheon Gyuri’s team soon exited the museum, barely any time after entering.
Could it have failed? Was there a problem?
The murmur of journalists speculating on what had happened was soon drowned out by applause as Cheon Gyuri emerged, supporting a woman at her side.
It was Kwon Riyeong.
With a blanket draped over her shoulders, holding Gru, Kwon Riyeong drew a deep breath of relief.
Click! Click! Click!
Cameras flashed, capturing the ‘reassured father, Kwon Honggyun’ and ‘his daughter, Kwon Riyeong, who brought the child out safely.’
Even thinking about how the headlines would read made him want to laugh for joy. Kwon Honggyun had to strain to keep his lips from twitching with delight.
‘We did it!’