I Want to Eat Ramen

It seems the old sayings left by our ancestors are never wrong.

Upon hearing the unexpected news, I stared blankly at Officer Kim.

“Whoa, don’t look at me with those puppy eyes. …I don’t have those kinds of powers!”

“The timing is definitely suspicious, though. Are you sure you’re not a high-intelligence monster pretending to be human?”

“That’s a bit much, don’t you think?!”

“If a monster like that actually exists, I should ask Kim Se-hyun to get rid of it as soon as he gets back,” the Team Leader chimed in.

“Team Leader!”

An agitated Officer Kim continued to protest his innocence. However, the situation was far too coincidental to take his words at face value. The exact scenario Officer Kim had jokingly brought up yesterday was unfolding today.

A Rank S dungeon—and an isolated one in Australia at that—was currently drawing the world’s attention. Consequently, Kim Se-hyun was nowhere to be seen, likely having been drafted for the raid.

The lack of messages, so unlike other days, felt strange. I stared intently at my phone.

“…….”

Thinking back, it hadn’t been that long since Kim Se-hyun started spending time at the Hunter Department or since we began exchanging messages—well, mostly receiving his one-sided texts.

Right, it hadn’t been long at all, yet it felt bizarre to experience this much emptiness just because he wasn’t in contact. Toying idly with my phone, I picked up the remote as the Team Leader suggested we watch TV for the first time in a while.

“In other news, dungeons of Rank A or higher are appearing worldwide. Not long ago, a Rank A dungeon surfaced in the heart of Seoul. Since then, fifteen countries, including Russia, the UK, and Canada, have reported Rank A dungeons.”

“This is the first time so many Rank A dungeons have appeared in such a short period. Because of this, the prevailing opinion among dungeon scholars is that these are precursor symptoms of a much higher-difficulty dungeon. Finally, at 1:00 AM today, as scholars warned, a disaster-level Rank S dungeon appeared in Australia. We connect now to our correspondent on the scene.”

“Listening to the anchor, it really is strange.”

“Come to think of it, the Chimera variant dungeon was reclassified as Rank A, so that makes two Rank A dungeons in our country alone within two weeks.”

“Exactly.”

“If two big ones hit back-to-back, things should quiet down for a bit.”

“It’ll be calm for a while, so don’t worry too much. There’s a reason the Laws of Dungeon Generation exist,” the Team Leader said.

Everyone nodded at the mention of the ‘Laws.’ I also recalled the contents of the laws and tilted my head.

“We might need to keep in mind that the laws could be breaking down.”

It seemed the Deputy Team Leader was worried about the same thing. I watched the Team Leader, who was stroking his chin in deep thought.

“We’ll have to watch the trends. Anything from the higher-ups?”

“No, sir. Nothing specific.”

“Hmm.”

“Shouldn’t we mention the law-related concerns to the superiors?”

“They’re people who only care about ‘safety’—would they even listen? For now, we have no choice but to wait and see.”

It was true that the recent frequency of dungeons in Seoul was a problem that needed addressing. Agreeing with the Team Leader, I turned my attention back to the TV.

“Australia is currently in a state of shock! That black pillar behind me is the site of the Rank S dungeon. Australian hunters are currently holding the line, but reports say they are overwhelmed. Since Australia only possesses one Rank S hunter, the impact is massive. Consequently, S-Rank hunters from neighboring countries have been drafted to help! From Korea, Hunter Kim Se-hyun is currently on his way—”

“…This looks serious.”

Indeed, I wondered if it could get any more serious than this.

Against the backdrop of the dungeon, a black pillar rose behind the reporter. Its majesty, soaring toward an unknown height in the sky, was overwhelming. My mouth clamped shut instinctively.

Since they were filming from a safety zone, the distance from the dungeon must have been considerable. Nevertheless, the black pillar occupying more than half the screen was terrifying. While news of Kim Se-hyun’s arrival was being shared, a siren suddenly blared across the Australian site. I gripped the armrest of my chair.

Wooooo— Wooooo—

The reporter, startled by the sirens, looked around in confusion. Amidst the noisy background, someone approached the reporter and whispered something. As the reporter turned back to look at the dungeon, I also scanned the pitch-black void through the screen. My palms grew damp at the urgent news delivered in a voice far more desperate than before.

“This just in! The scale of the dungeon is reportedly expanding! We will evacuate to the safety zone immediately and continue the broadcast!”

“Gasp!”

“It can get even bigger than that?”

“When is Kim Se-hyun arriving? No, if S-Rank hunters from neighboring countries departed, shouldn’t some have arrived by now?”

The office of the Hunter Department became chaotic at the rapidly escalating situation in Australia. While watching the Team Leader, who couldn’t hide his agitation while mentioning the S-Rank hunters, I quickly checked the internet news.

After a few minutes of frantic searching and refreshing, a new article appeared. I immediately shared the news.

“Se-hyun has arrived!”

“Already?”

“It looks like an urgent bulletin! There’s no content, just the headline that he’s arrived!”

While S-Rank hunters from other countries were reliable, there was no one as trustworthy as Kim Se-hyun. With a slightly lighter heart, I searched for more news and flipped through channels. I stopped when the magnificent black pillar caught the screen again.

“The scene here is pure chaos! Australia’s S-Rank hunter has retreated with serious injuries, and the dungeon’s scale is growing rapidly. Sirens are constantly blaring for the surrounding area to evacuate!”

“…Will that slacker be okay?”

“We have to hope so. He’s one of the few S-Rank hunters in our country.”

The news of the Australian S-Rank hunter’s serious injury made my heart drop. The thumping in my chest, more violent than anything I’d felt before, seemed to swallow my entire body. Moistening my dry lips with my tongue, I focused on the TV.

“…….”

The roar, the black pillar piercing the sky, and the sight of people fleeing in a panic were all captured by the shaking camera. As the camera swung back toward the dungeon while the crew evacuated, I widened my eyes at a strange sight on the screen.

“Eh?”

“Did you see something weird?”

“…Gasp! What is that?”

I wondered if I had misseen it, but Officer Park seemed to have seen the same thing.

Something white appeared to pass horizontally across the black pillar, and then the pillar began to split into top and bottom halves. The speed of the event was bewildering. But that was just the tip of the iceberg. I gaped at the following scene.

The upper part of the severed pillar began to fade, starting from the left edge. Like a drop of ink falling into water, the transformation spread rapidly, and soon the bottom half began to fade as well.

“…….”

The fading of a black-tinted dungeon meant that someone was currently clearing it. To think a dungeon that had sent an S-Rank hunter back with serious injuries could be cleared this fast.

Staring at the TV in a daze, I balled my fists at Officer Kim’s words.

“…That looks like the kind of thing our neighborhood crazy guy would do, doesn’t it?”

“He’s the only one who would do something like that.”

“He really is something else.”

I knew how great Kim Se-hyun was, but I didn’t realize he was powerful enough to handle an Rank S dungeon so effortlessly.

Even as we spoke, the dungeon continued to fade. The graying structure eventually lost all color.

The screen was soon filled with a clear blue sky and a red desert below, as if the black dungeon had never existed. I was swept up in an unidentifiable surge of emotion.

“This just in!”

It was then. The quieted voice of the correspondent returned. I steadied my mind and focused on the words.

“As you can see, the dungeon has been completely cleared! And, and the hunter who cleared it is the S-Rank hunter who just arrived in Australia, Korea’s very own Hunter Kim Se-hyun!”

“…That guy is really something, isn’t he?”

“Damn, do you know what’s welling up inside me right now? Patriotism! It’s welling up right now!”

“Throw it away, quickly!”

“I want to! But it won’t go away!”

Officer Park, who had stood up at some point, paced back and forth, expressing his emotions. Watching him, my own heart fluttered. But if I started moving restlessly too, the office would become too chaotic. I did my best to endure it.

“Oh, wait! Isn’t that Kim Se-hyun?”

“Where!”

At the Deputy Team Leader’s pointing, the Team Leader also approached the TV. Squeezed between the team members who had gathered, I marveled once more as a dot on the screen grew closer and took the shape of a person.

“…He doesn’t even need a car.”

“Isn’t that the same for you, Team Leader?”

“If I’m a compact car, that guy is a sports car.”

“…But wait, why is he coming this way?”

“How should I know?”

Come to think of it, I didn’t know why he was heading toward the camera. Since he had appeared from the right side of the screen earlier, he should have gone back the way he came to return to Korea.

Kim Se-hyun, arriving in an instant, stopped next to the reporter who had been broadcasting and stared directly into the camera. His appearance, so different from other days, was both strange and familiar. His dashing figure filled the screen. I swallowed hard.

“…He doesn’t look disheveled at all.”

“Now that you mention it, you’re right.”

“He must have put a ton of pomade in his hair!”

“And why isn’t he covering his face?!”

His hair was slicked back, but his clothes were also incredibly neat. Not a speck of dust could be seen; he looked as pristine as if he had just gotten dressed. I watched him closely and focused as he ran a hand through his hair and called out to the reporter.

“I have something to say.”

“…Are you perhaps Hunter Kim Se-hyun?”

“That’s right.”

“It’s an honor, Hunter Kim Se-hyun! Would a short interview be possible?”

“Of course. But before that, there’s something I want to say. Can I?”

It was Kim Se-hyun, stating he wanted to say something as if he had a message to deliver. I wondered what he wanted to say that made him change direction to stand before the camera…. The camera?

“Hey, hey.”

“Isn’t there anyone who can gag him?”

“…….”

The image of Kim Se-hyun trying to convey something through a CCTV camera overlapped with the Kim Se-hyun on screen. It had to be a hallucination. No, I wanted it to be a hallucination.

Having gained the chance to speak, Kim Se-hyun cleared his throat a few times, then reached out and overlapped his thumb and index finger. My vision blurred at the sight of what anyone could see was a finger heart. But that was nothing. At his following words, I eventually closed my eyes.

“Hyung, when I get back to Korea, let’s go eat ramen!”