By Zephyria Something pricking at his skin. It was a distinct malice. Mackerel sighed as if for everyone to hear, then stuck his glasses in the chest pocket of his tank top. And he took out a cigarette and put it in his mouth.
“Why…. Did the Seowon Guild collapse too? Or did Jung-bin die? I don’t think there’s any other reason to come looking for me.”
“Sadly, both are still fine.”
Sa-young answered instead. Mackerel glanced at Sa-young once, then at Eui-jae, and laughed.
“Then, what….”
“…….”
“J is about to die, isn’t he? Seeing Lee Sa-young tagging along too.”
Eui-jae’s eyes widened. What, did this bastard know too? Mackerel flicked the hand holding the cigarette and turned his body.
“Anyway, I have nothing more to say. Thanks for going through the trouble of coming to this remote place, and have a safe trip back.”
“Your Hyung.”
Sa-young’s voice stopped the feet dusted with white ash.
“If there’s a way to save him… what about it.”
Ah, so it was the younger brother. It was confusing because of the glasses and hair.
‘So the glasses are Hyung’s….’
Mackerel slowly turned his head. Through the hair that had fallen back down, bloodshot eyes glared at Lee Sa-young.
“That follow-up.”
A bright blue energy rippled behind the young man’s back. He gritted his teeth and continued.
“You should think carefully before you speak.”
Sa-young unfolded his crossed legs and stood up. And he slowly walked over and looked down at Mackerel.
“Even if it’s not in this world, if there’s a way to save him in another world.”
“…….”
“Then will you tell me?”
A wind mixed with white ash blew. Mackerel stared silently at Lee Sa-young.
“That’s strange….”
He narrowed his eyes.
“You’re not the Lee Sa-young I know. Why are you so mild-mannered?”
This was bad. Eui-jae hurriedly got up and stepped between the two.
“He’s got some memory problems.”
“Problems? What kind of problems.”
“He’s acting a little strange. Isn’t he unusually nice today?”
“He does seem that way.”
Mackerel said sarcastically and looked up at the sky for a moment. White ash was scattering little by little. Meanwhile, Sa-young looked down at Eui-jae with a look that said he had a lot to say, but he didn’t bother to argue. Mackerel nodded as if to tell them to follow.
“Let’s hear what you have to say.”
The seaside village was quiet. White ash was sparsely piled on the roads, and even the common weeds were nowhere to be seen. There were few people, little sign of life, and more empty houses than occupied ones. The house where Mackerel stayed was said to be one of those houses.
“What about the original owner?”
Mackerel didn’t answer. He was probably dead. Or… he had become a Monster.
Mackerel, who was trudging along the road, asked.
“How’s the situation over there? Is it livable?”
“Not really.”
“I guess not. You probably don’t have a grumpy Director either.”
He was curious. About the death of the Director in this world, and the death of his aunt. But on the other hand, he was afraid. Could he ask? Would he be gagged again for asking something strange? Could he reconfirm their deaths? At that moment, Sa-young, who was following behind with his hands in his coat pockets, opened his mouth.
“How did the Director die?”
“…What, did you lose your memory and become an idiot?”
Mackerel looked at Eui-jae as if he was dumbfounded. Eui-jae shrugged instead of answering. And he tapped Sa-young on the back. With a thank you. Mackerel scratched his head and replied.
“He died trying to defend the Management Bureau during the Monster Wave. You could call it a defensive battle….”
“…….”
“A lot of Hunters belonging to the Awakened Management Bureau died then. The civil servant team was lucky enough to survive because they were blocking off other areas at the time.”
“Did your Hyung die then too?”
“…….”
Mackerel didn’t answer. Instead, he headed towards the white sandy beach that appeared at the end of the road. Eui-jae and Sa-young followed him. Rustle, rustle, the sandy beach mixed with sand and white ash felt strange every time they stepped on it. Mackerel, who had approached near the quietly crashing waves, asked.
“Did Jung-bin tell you about this place?”
“Yeah.”
“He said he’d keep it a secret for life. You can’t trust anyone.”
The sea was covered in white ash. No blue could be seen. The boats docked at the pier were all tied up, covered in white ash. It seemed they hadn’t been out to sea for a long time. The nets were also tangled messily.
Eui-jae bent down and dipped his hand into the white sea. White ash was covered instead of moisture. No life could be felt in the cold water. It was just there.
Mackerel said.
“Be careful. You might get caught.”
“Caught?”
“Haven’t you seen a Whitening sea? Well, J, you said you faint often too. I guess you wouldn’t be sent on long-distance missions.”
Mackerel blew out cigarette smoke and pointed to the white waves.
“Places where Whitening has progressed become wastelands. So what if Whitening progresses in the sea?”
“…….”
“No fish are caught, and the sea loses its vitality. It becomes stagnant water instead of a sea of life. Not even fish, just strange Monsters come out.”
“How do you eat? Aren’t you people in the fishing industry?”
“Sometimes rations come. It’s irregular, so we don’t know when they’ll come or when they’ll stop.”
“…….”
“So I go out and get food. I’m the only Awakened here.”
Mackerel crossed his arms. There was no particular emotion visible on his expressionless face.
“My mother’s hometown is here, so I came down… I didn’t know it would be like this.”
Was he talking about Jang Mi-sook-ssi? Splash…. White ash washed in instead of waves. Eui-jae quietly looked down at the silent sea. Strangely, he felt a presence. From the sea. No, was ‘presence’ the right word? In… this sea?
Eui-jae looked closely at the sea. As Mackerel said, there wasn’t even a trace of fish in the sea. Instead.
Something white rippled in the deep shadows. It was….
Very huge….
“…….”
Eui-jae’s lips moved. And he slowly turned his head to look at Mackerel. Mackerel’s profile was strangely white and pale. He turned his head as if he felt the gaze. He smiled.
“J. Have you ever eaten a Monster?”
“…….”
“Haha, if there’s nothing to eat, you end up eating that.”
“…….”
“It’s better than eating people, or so they say…. Well, it’s a Monster in the sea, so it’s probably similar to fish.”
A large shadow swam leisurely under the white ash. Mackerel began to walk into the sea without hesitation. His pants got wet, and he went deeper and deeper, until it was up to his waist. Sa-young firmly grabbed Eui-jae’s arm as he tried to follow.
“Where are you going?”
“Don’t you know? In there….”
“I know.”
“…….”
“That guy probably knows too.”
A slender white something wrapped around Mackerel’s body standing tall in the sea. Mackerel stroked the things that were wrapping around his body with a gentle touch. He said.
“You asked how it collapsed.”
“…….”
“The seafood market was a Shield maintained by Hyung’s power. And the Whitening’s evil hand reached Noryangjin too.”
“…….”
“How can human power stop a natural disaster? The seafood market collapsed, and Hyung, who was the Master of that Shield, was hit by Whitening…. He became something that wasn’t human. That’s all. There’s nothing more to say, and nothing less.”
Mackerel laughed.
“Now this is our home. We can’t go anywhere else.”
The huge shadow danced under the white ash. The already stopped sea was surging with the movement of that shadow. Mackerel’s clothes got wet, and the skin underneath was briefly revealed. Only then did Eui-jae realize. On the skin under his clothes, faint scales were rising. White scales.
“You….”
Eui-jae lost his words and just stared blankly at him. He was already a part of the sea. Mackerel chuckled and spread his arms.
“Sorry, I can’t be of help.”
“But you’re still human, aren’t you? Isn’t there a cure? You haven’t… completely Mutated yet.”
Right, Nam Woo-jin in this world was researching something, wasn’t he? As Eui-jae asked accusingly, Mackerel shrugged.
“Well, I don’t know. Actually, even if there was a cure, I wouldn’t want to be cured with it.”
“…….”
“I think you’d understand, if it’s you.”
Mackerel stared silently at Lee Sa-young, then took a step. And soon he began to move into the deeper sea. Eui-jae urgently looked at Sa-young.
“Hey, are you going to leave him like that?”
“…….”
“Are you going to let him go like that!”
Sa-young didn’t answer. But he didn’t loosen the hand holding Eui-jae’s arm either. Eui-jae gritted his teeth. And,
He shook off his hand strongly. And, he grabbed Sa-young’s arm and whispered.
“I can’t just let him go.”
With those words, Eui-jae jumped into the sea without hesitation.