I looked.
The remains of overturned and collapsed buildings, and barricades surrounded by scrapped cars and iron bars······ Inside, smoke and flames billowed.
"Yo, Myeongjong. Been keeping watch?"
"You know it, mister. But those people······"
"Hehe."
The middle-aged man greeted the young man guarding the entrance warmly. The young man glanced at the group and gave a very bright smile.
The middle-aged man turned to the group and spoke.
"What're you doing, not coming in?"
"······Um, first. Where is this?"
At Gim Suho's cautious question, the middle-aged man grinned.
"The only safe place around these parts. It's Gwangmyeong City Hall."
Gwangmyeong City Hall.
They had definitely passed it while driving. But the Gwangmyeong City Hall outside the window hadn't looked like this ruin.
Only then did Gim Suho finally think he could understand something.
The man's clothing.
The mana explosion.
And······
"Excuse me, may I ask what today's date is?"
"Date?"
Gim Suho asked in a strained voice. At the sudden question, the man stroked his chin in thought, then shook his head.
"Don't know. Where would I have the energy to count that? I reckon it's around '72."
At those words, the group once again felt their minds go blank.
Deung—
As if their heads were ringing.
"If it's '72······ 1972?"
"Well yeah. You think it's 1872?"
This time, the young man guarding the entrance trudged over.
It wasn't just him. From atop the barricades, several men revealed themselves. They looked down at the group with reddened, gleaming eyes.
"Come in. It's dangerous to be outside on a night like this."
"Huh. W-what's with this one?"
The young man said that and grabbed Chae Nayun's wrist. Gim Suho quickly knocked his hand away and took out a branch he had brought just in case.
"······What's this? A branch?"
"Hey. Put that down. We ain't bad people."
"······"
Gim Suho tried to infuse mana into the branch, Mistilteinn, as a simple threat.
No, he tried to.
But mana could not be invoked.
"Wh-what. Hey, Gim Suho. I can't use mana?"
It seemed Chae Nayun beside him was the same, her flustered voice carrying over. In that time, the men atop the barricades jumped down one by one and surrounded them.
Their numbers easily reached several dozen.
Moreover, they had even enveloped their blades in mana.
"······But seriously. Where did these mutts······."
The enraged Sin Jonghak muttered a curse under his breath then.
Beyond the horizon steeped in darkness, a pale neon light brightly revealed itself.
In an instant, all eyes in the area focused there.
······A sleek modern-style motorcycle stretched out gracefully, and a person wearing a helmet sat astride it.
"Th-that bastard. Hey! Hurry and come in!"
The middle-aged man urgently ushered the group.
"Hurry! That thing is a man-eating monster! Boys, what are you doing! Quickly tell Lord Asu— Argh!"
In an instant, a white flash flickered. The soaring flash pierced the man's shoulder in the blink of an eye.
But the attack didn't end there.
Multiple flashes sharply surged. The white rays of light shone clearly in the dense darkness.
It wasn't hard to figure out what those clusters of light were—grazing past them and piercing through the opponent.
"Bullets······?"
"Aaack······."
The encirclement broke under the continuous barrage of gunfire, and the group hurriedly retreated.
They stopped at a certain point and looked at the man on the motorcycle.
At that moment when it was still hard to tell friend from foe.
The unidentified man placed a hand on his helmet······ and slowly took it off.
Soon, the face inside was revealed.
"······Huh?"
His long hair was neatly twisted and braided up, and from his philtrum to the very tip of his chin, a thick beard grew bushy.
Thanks to movie-esque styling, his impression was incomparably different from before, but the face itself was unmistakable.
Gim Suho muttered blankly.
"······Gim Hajin?"
* * *
I was mistaken.
I had made a grave mistake.
The mistake of thinking that just because I walked the same space at the same time, I could arrive at the exact same point as them.
Perhaps I had been too stupid and complacent.
In other words, about 40 days ago from now, but a past that had been only mere minutes ago for Gim Suho and the kids.
As I was climbing Baramsan with all my focus, in a moment of the slightest carelessness, I was caught by the past.
And I was alone, at that.
Even to a time two months before the group would arrive.
In the original story, only five people moved to the same time period, so this was a much more natural situation, if anything.
I was slightly frustrated at first. However, it didn't take long to realize that my situation wasn't so bad. As I expected, the Mane trying to dominate this place was much stronger than in the original.
From the first day, I moved busily.
First, I found a place to stay.
Since Gwangmyeong City Hall was under the Mane's control, I set up a hideout as far away from there as possible while still being able to observe it.
Next, I searched for the Mane dominating this place and hindered its growth.
Eating alone, shooting guns alone, running away alone—for 40 days.
Finally, we met.
"So this place is really······."
On the way to the hideout with Gim Suho's group, whom I hadn't seen in so long.
Gim Suho, who had been listening to my story quietly, suddenly stopped and looked at me.
"Yeah. 1972, Gwangmyeong, Seoul. Only a year and three months have passed since the Outcall outbreak. It's a living hell."
For a moment, the group froze like stone statues. Even Sin Jonghak wore a grave expression.
"Then, how long have you been here?"
Yu Yeonha suddenly asked.
"Well······."
For someone who had stayed only 40 days, my hair and beard had grown incredibly long, but that happened simply because the mana concentration here was too high. Besides, perhaps because of Vitality Conversion, my beard had gotten quite dark too.
"A year?"
I said that as just a joke.
However, a solemn silence passed in that moment. The movement of the moonlight reached me. In the dark bushes, the lone ray of light shone on me.
The group simply watched me with indecipherable faces.
That was enough teasing. I cackled and corrected myself.
"It's a lie. It's only been about 5 weeks? or so."
"······"
But the group still said nothing.
"I-It's true. And it was a decent experience, in its own way."
To be honest, rather than decent, it was a 'necessary' experience. Because for two months, I had fought against people.
Somehow the atmosphere had grown awkward, when Sin Jonghak, who didn't care about such things, spoke to me.
"So, did you figure out what's causing this phenomenon?"
"Yeah. Roughly."
"Really?"
Yu Yeonha's eyes went wide.
"But I'll tell you later. Let's save the rest of the talk for when we get to the hideout."
* * *
I arrived at my hideout with the group. The hideout I'd settled in was an abandoned building buried in the nearby forest, with its rear completely blocked off, making it a fairly decent fortress.
"Our horses couldn't even live here."
"······Hajin. Have you been here for a year? In this place with nothing?"
Sin Jonghak shook his head, and Gim Suho asked with teary eyes.
"It's not a year, I told you. Why don't you believe me?"
I had no choice but to put on a stern face. I cracked a joke for nothing and now I'm getting this useless sympathy.
"But really······ there is nothing here."
"Right. I respect you. How did you manage here?"
Yu Yeonha and Chae Nayun had particularly disgusted expressions. Well, it was a sleeping place unimaginable to them, with only rolling stones and cockroaches around.
But having nothing is only for now.
"Hold on. There's about to be a lot."
I brought the magic bag I'd stored on the motorcycle. Rummaging inside, I first pulled out two one-touch mana tents. If you infuse a Stigma's mana into a frisbee-sized tent······ Ta-da!
They instantly inflate and spring up.
"Wow? What is this."
Now two proper sleeping places had appeared.
Chae Nayun approached the tent with gleaming eyes.
"Ah, right. Before I explain in earnest, aren't you guys hungry?"
At my words, all five of them looked at me with sparkling eyes.
I took out various cooking tools including a grill, and an icebox.
"But, we need to butcher it first."
The food and supplies I had brought in advance were already eaten by me. Except for emergency rations like a can of ham and three packs of ramen.
So now we have to catch beasts ourselves, butcher them ourselves, and eat them.
"Butcher?"
"Yeah."
I opened the icebox. Inside was a pig carcass folded in half, split lengthwise.
I caught this about two days ago. I cut off the neck, legs, and tail, and divided the body into two halves.
I remember throwing up about three times while doing this.
"We need to butcher this······."
I looked at Gim Suho. Gim Suho grinned and raised his hand.
"I'll do it. I'm good at this stuff."
"Then I Yeonghan helps Gim Suho."
"Okeydokey~"
"Butcher······ It suits you well. Gim the Butcher, Gim Suho."
Sin Jonghak snorted mockingly beside me.
I held out four empty water jugs to Sin Jonghak.
"Ah. And you, go fetch some water. If you walk a bit to the right from here, there's a stream."
"······What?"
Sin Jonghak's brow furrowed fiercely. It was my first time seeing someone this angry. Probably thinking, how dare someone like you...
But I already knew the magic words to move Sin Jonghak.
"Hey, Chae Nayun. You go too."
"What, me~?"
Chae Nayun, who had been looking inside the tent, trotted over.
"······Hmph."
Sin Jonghak silently took the jugs. And clearing his throat with ahem, he held out two jugs to Chae Nayun.
"Let's go."
"What, we're going to get water?"
"Yeah."
"Great. I was just thirsty."
Chae Nayun and Sin Jonghak trudged toward the stream.
"Damn. Why Chae Nayun?"
This grumbling came from Yu Yeonha, who had been quietly watching those two. When I glanced over, Yu Yeonha pouted and turned her head away.
I muttered as if to myself.
"Should I boil some ramen when they bring back water?"
"······Ramen?"
Then her sullen face subtly smoothed out. I took out a few packs of ramen from the duffel bag and said.
"Yeah. Why? You unhappy with the menu? In this situation?"
Yu Yeonha smacked her lips and shook her head.
"No. Well. Sip. It can't be helped. Sip. Better than starving to death. Sip."
······She must be very hungry, judging by the loud sound of her swallowing saliva.
Fin
* * *
Chae Nayun and Sin Jonghak went to get water, while Gim Suho and I Yeonghan would be busy butchering.
Yu Yeonha asked me if I had a broom.
Since there happened to be one in the camping tool set, I gave it to her. Yu Yeonha swept and wiped the surroundings with it.
Thanks to that, the resting place that had been full of spiderwebs, dust, and rolling stones transformed into a fairly decent campsite.
"Much better."
Yu Yeonha looked around with a rather proud expression.
I took out a burner and grill, then roughly sat in a camping chair.
"Hwaaah~~ Ah, right. I have one question. Why isn't mana coming out? If it were mana, I would have finished in 3 minutes, but it took 30 minutes."
Yu Yeonha stretched and asked.
"The mana you brought from the present can't be used in the past. It'll build up in about two days, but it'll take at least a week to adapt."
It was the same in the original story.
The mana right after the Outcall in the past, and the much more stabilized mana of the present, are simply put, as different as wolves and dogs. In other words, mana in the past is far more abundant and dense than the present, but it's quite aggressive and difficult to control.
It'll probably hurt and be agonizing here and there for about a week.
However, today's experience will be a great help later.
"Ah~ So that's why it didn't work."
This voice wasn't Yu Yeonha's but Gim Suho's.
Gim Suho and I Yeonghan, who had finished butchering before I knew it, came near me and plopped down.
"You done butchering?"
"Yeah. I sorted out the pork belly, pork neck, and the skin."
"Hey. We're here too."
Chae Nayun and Shin Jonghak appeared at the entrance. They set the water bottles they had filled to the brim down on the ground.
Yoo Yeonha glanced at them, cleared her throat, and said,
"Ahem. Shall we eat now~?"
Perhaps because she could legally eat ramyeon now, the end of Yoo Yeonha's sentence stretched out pleasantly.
This time, it was my turn to step up.
I lit the grill and placed a pot filled with water on the burner.
Today's menu was pork belly and ramyeon.
I put the pork belly on the heated grill first.
Sizzle—
The appetizing sound of it cooking.
Just then, the water in the pot began to bubble, so I added the ramyeon too.
"Waaah......"
Yoo Yeonha looked back and forth between the ramyeon and the pork belly with the happiest face in the world.
And four minutes later.
We sat gathered around the food in a cozy circle.
Pork belly and ramyeon.
To Kim Suho and Lee Yeonghan, they were extremely familiar foods, but not to the other three, who had been raised preciously. Shin Jonghak and Chae Nayun were hungry, but they only stared at the food and stayed still. Yoo Yeonha looked like she wanted to eat but couldn't, because she was watching their reactions.
"If you eat, your mana will recover faster. Even the beasts here contain a lot of mana."
Only after I said that did Shin Jonghak lift his chopsticks and chew on a piece of pork belly. Yoo Yeonha, who had been watching the others, also let out an unnecessary deep sigh and put some ramyeon into her small plate.
Slurp. She demurely chewed and swallowed a few strands of noodles.
I also served myself some ramyeon, then wrapped it with a fully cooked piece of pork belly and ate it together.
"......Hmm."
Yoo Yeonha, who had been watching me, quietly picked up a piece of pork belly and placed it on top of her ramyeon. Then, just like I had done, she wrapped it up and put it in her mouth.
Munch, munch.
Yoo Yeonha, who had been busily moving her small lips, suddenly lowered her head. Her tightly clenched fists trembled.
Is it that good? She's making such a fuss while stuffing her face.
"Ah, I feel like this is going to upset my stomach......"
Now that Shin Jonghak and Yoo Yeonha had eaten, Chae Nayun had no choice but to slowly challenge the pork belly as well.
The greasy lump of meat entered her mouth.
"......Huh? What the. Why is this good?"
But the moment she chewed the meat a few times, she quickly looked surprised and muttered.
I smiled faintly and explained.
"It's a pig that grew up eating mana."
"What?"
"This pig grew up in a past with a higher mana concentration than Mount Baekdu."
Livestock raised in places with a high concentration of mana tasted far better than ordinary livestock. However, most places with high concentrations were private property, so such meat was extremely rare and expensive. In other words, the pigs here were "premium pigs" that suited even Chae Nayun's palate.
"Wow. Seriously? A-mazing."
Chae Nayun's chopsticks began to move in earnest.
Feeling threatened by that, Yoo Yeonha also accelerated the speed of her chopsticks.
And so, thirty minutes passed without conversation.
Just as the meal was coming to an end, Chae Nayun suddenly pointed at me with her chopsticks.
"Hey. But that actually suits you, you know?"
"Hm? What does?"
"That hair and beard. You kind of look like someone from a historical drama. You know, the warriors that show up in those dramas."
Kim Suho, who had been listening from beside us, chimed in.
"That's true. Kim Hajin, your beard grows like a Westerner's."
"......A Western model?"
"No, not a model."
A Western model, huh. I shrugged silently. To be honest, I hadn't styled it at all.
But at that very moment, Yoo Yeonha's voice reached my ears.
"......Well, it is a face that's better off covered even a little."
"What? Hey. What did you just say?"
"W-Where's the water~?"
Perhaps she had muttered it unconsciously, because Yoo Yeonha subtly avoided my gaze.
"Hey, but did you even wash? You look crazy dirty."
"I washed every day. Every day. In the nearby stream."
"What?! Hey. Then the water we just drank......"
"It's different water. And you drank it after boiling it."
"......I guess that's true."
Even so, Chae Nayun smacked her lips, looking deeply displeased.
"A beard, huh......"
And