Retire 422
by Cristae422 Ashes’ Vermin (2)
Let’s imagine for a moment.
One day, as I was living my life with diligence, a stranger came to see me.
Strictly speaking, he wasn’t a complete stranger. There was something oddly familiar about his face, his voice. So, as I stared at him, wondering if he might be a long-lost sibling, he said this:
“I am you, from the future.”
How would I react to that?
I’d call the police, obviously. Report that there’s some lunatic hanging around.
Honestly, if you’re in your right mind, could you possibly believe someone who claims to have come from the future? The wisest, most peaceful way to resolve such a situation is to report it. That’s what law enforcement exists for.
The only reason I’d rely on the authorities is because I’m me. What did Hong Seok-young say again?
He said if someone like that showed up, he’d kill them on the spot.
If you’re someone like Hong Seok-young, you can clean up the aftermath however you like. That’s how reliable the authorities are. Even if that weren’t the case, if someone said there was a monster imitating a human, people would just laugh it off—“To think a monster would dare imitate Hunter Hong! That takes guts, even for a monster.”
There was a time when this topic came up in conversation with others. It was after Gamble and Hope found out I was from the future.
“But how did you even think to raise yourself?”
“Well… I couldn’t just leave myself in an orphanage forever.”
“If it were me, I’d have just pretended not to know.”
“In America, it’s not as hard to establish an identity as it is in Korea. If I’d been in the States, I might have considered that option.”
“…Are you insulting America right now?”
“I’m just saying, that’s all.”
“Say more! Go on!”
Americans, honestly…
Kim Chaemin joined in the conversation.
“That actually sounds kind of fun.”
“…Insulting America?”
“What? No, not that. I mean, if it was twenty years ago… that’s the perfect age to learn magic, isn’t it? Not three generations, but four.”
“Not even sisters, but four generations? What kind of family tree is that?”
“You see that kind of thing all the time in Korean dramas! I know! Secret birth!”
“At this point, it’s less of a secret and more of a scandal waiting to happen…”
While Kim Chaemin was getting lost in impossible worries about her family’s honor, Hope just beamed and said,
“Sounds fun to me!”
That, too, was an answer I’d expected.
“After all, she’s me, right?”
Even if it wasn’t Hope, there would be people who’d just enjoy it without thinking too deeply. The kind of childhood fantasy—wouldn’t it be great if there were more than one of me!—coming true.
Han Taekyung, who once fled a meeting just because he hated complicated discussions, was that kind of person. If it were Han Taekyung, he’d probably be delighted at the thought of having more labor to copyright Chasie’s work.
“There’s no way I’d ever like Noah unless I’d completely lost my mind. If there were two of me, one would set up an alibi and the other would go torment Noah. That’s it, right? The perfect crime!”
At the time, I just thought it was the usual joke and didn’t pay Hope’s words much mind. Hope herself hadn’t said it out of any deep consideration.
It was Gamble who later pointed out a certain possibility.
“I don’t really like time travel stories, you know?”
“Ah, okay…”
“If they’re done well, there’s nothing like them, but most of the time, they’re not just bad—they’re disasters.”
“Well, even those can be fun in their own way…”
“But that’s just my personal preference. It doesn’t mean I’m going to ignore reality.”
“Yes…”
“If someone suddenly showed up in front of me, babbling about coming from the future, I’d think, ‘What the hell is wrong with this lunatic?’ too.”
“Well…”
Gamble, undeterred by my lukewarm response, continued.
“But if I found out there really was a way to time travel… It’s even less likely than winning the lottery, but if I knew I could do it…”
Gamble lowered his voice to a whisper, as if someone might be eavesdropping.
“Shanshan is like a fairy… intelligent? Residents of that far-off world? Those kinds of beings, they know about that item, right?”
“Yes.”
“She said she used it to torment Noah Michel, but that goes for monsters too, doesn’t it? Their power would be doubled. You’re raising your past self because she’s still a child. But in a sense, a monster could do the same. Make their past self stronger…”
“Double the power, huh.”
“Exactly.”
Gamble was right.
In more ways than one, this could become a huge headache.
So I checked with Hong Seok-young as well.
“Have you ever had to fight two of the exact same thing at once?”
And it wasn’t helpful.
“I never really paid attention to that… If anything attacked, I just killed it.”
Still, he did try to recall and answer.
“I think it’s happened. I can’t say for sure if they looked exactly the same… but there were some that went around in pairs, a big one and a small one.”
That was enough.
Thinking about it, we’d been lucky in the Bangi-dong dungeon. But it’s hard to believe we’ll always be that lucky.
So, if I ever see a creature in a dungeon—or anywhere—that reeks of having come from the future, I should assume there’s another one just like it.
Yes.
Look.
There are two butterflies.
A creature that resembled a human, yet could never be mistaken for one.
One head. Two arms. Two legs.
Long, white eyelashes. Gold eyes gleaming like an insect’s.
A soft, pliant outer skin covering its body. A shell. Downy hair.
A beauty that no human could possess.
A revulsion that no human could evoke.
That repulsive beauty itself declared it a monster.
And to face such a monster, a human must also become a beast.
“……!”
The sound of butterfly wings, the trembling of the earth, the faintest breath forced out in the grip of extreme tension.
Every sense sharpened. Mana stirred. The stench of burning, which even the rune of purification could not fully filter, numbed my mind.
I controlled every movement from head to toe. Hundreds of butterflies swarmed around me; to evade their sharp, venomous fangs, not a single misstep could be allowed.
It felt like dancing on a stage where every detail had been calculated to perfection.
Hundreds—no, thousands—of butterflies flowed like a river, and the mere twenty-some hunters drifted atop them like leaves caught in a typhoon.
A river cannot drown a leaf. But a leaf cannot stop a river, either.
The moment someone made a mistake, that balance would shatter.
No single butterfly was strong. Their speed and venomous fangs were troublesome, but let’s not forget—even our duckling, Eva Robinson, managed to catch a butterfly.
But creatures that are nothing alone can become a formidable obstacle when they move as a swarm.
The butterflies moved as if they were a single body. I scattered fire wherever I could, trying to thin their numbers. The core was still nowhere to be seen. It had to be past the fairies.
I didn’t know who shouted it, but the two fairies looked as if they’d split in two—identical in every way. They were the same creature, no doubt. If monsters had genes, theirs would be identical.
Yet, they moved so perfectly in sync that it was hard to believe they were merely two individuals separated by time—past and future.
And one more thing.
Unlike when they guarded the gate, the fairies themselves barely moved. Only the butterflies flew about in a frenzy.
At the gate, the butterflies hadn’t moved like this. Sure, they attacked us with clear intent, but not with this flawless, mechanical precision.
“The command structure must be very solid,” Han Taekyung had said.
He was right.
“They’re butterflies, but I think they’re closer to bees. They seem to communicate, but more than that… it’s like they’re controlling the butterflies.”
The two fairies stood still, only their heads shifting slightly from side to side. Their butterfly cloaks fluttered. Even that fluttering was identical between them.
“But they can’t do two things at once. Controlling the butterflies is more complicated than it looks. If I’d noticed that earlier, maybe I could have…”
I edged closer to Kim Chaemin. Her magic was ill-suited to these flying insects; vines couldn’t catch butterflies.
Instead, she focused on protecting herself and supporting the hunters. I scattered flames around her.
Our eyes met. I nodded. She blinked in response. With the signal given, I checked the hunters who, like me, had quietly gathered around her.
Charlie Team, assigned to destroy the dungeon core.
Naturally, we’d planned for this kind of situation. The mother duck was thorough.
I ducked low, dodging the butterflies passing overhead. I loosened my grip on the sword in my right hand, spun, and switched it to my left. At the same time, I drew a spear from my coat and charged at the fairies, swinging as I ran.
Focused on controlling the butterflies, the fairies reacted slowly, just as Han Taekyung had said. I could see the moment they lost sight of me. Their cloaks fluttered out of sync, and the fairies hurriedly retreated.
That was enough. My goal wasn’t to attack the fairies.
Kim Chaemin, pretending to aid the hunters, had already spread vines across the ground. As the fairies retreated, the vines twisted and tangled, forming a net in an instant. It wasn’t dense, but it was enough to block butterflies the size of a fist.
A wall of roses divided the fairies from the hunters. The butterfly swarm, too, was split in half.
<%(%#&=#!)_#>
The fairies’ voices rang out. Their voices overlapped—identical words, spoken in perfect unison. Their voices echoed like a chorus.
Even if they were the same being, to this degree…
No, the core comes first. With me at the lead, all the hunters charged toward the core.
“Which direction?”
“Eleven o’clock!”
Kim Chaemin confirmed the location.
The butterflies followed. Though the wall wasn’t a complete enclosure, with the sides open, the fairies hesitated for a moment, then realized we were moving and hurriedly fluttered their cloaks to pursue.
That’s when Robinson made her move.
Running from the rear, Robinson suddenly slowed. If not for the vines, her actions would have been plain to see. But even with gaps, with thousands of uncontrolled butterflies swirling in chaos, it was impossible to see through the wall of vines.
Robinson seized one of the fairies from behind. She didn’t aim to take both at once—one at a time. Even if she couldn’t finish it, as long as she could deal a blow, that was enough.
<!!!!!!>
Robinson’s sword pierced the fairy’s neck. The butterflies that formed its cloak froze, then spun around. Robinson abandoned her sword and fled, drawing a new one from her coat.
One fairy collapsed to the ground, splattering jelly-like fluid. The remaining one glared, eyes wide. Following Robinson, Alpha Team turned and attacked the fairy.
With that final sight, I picked up speed.
The destination, of course, was the dungeon core.v