Side Story 14
Great Dungeon Clear Anniversary – 13th Year
The event that Kwon Jihan and Seo Chaeyoon will attend is none other than the Great Dungeon, specifically the ceremony commemorating the clear of the old Great Dungeon.
Following the protocol team's guidance, they first stood at the photo line.
Since it was a two-shot of Kwon Jihan and Seo Chaeyoon, all the cameras rushed in. Yoon Seo tapped the mask covering his face with his fingers and gave a thumbs up. It was a mask gifted by his fans.
"Please make a heart!"
"Look to the left and do a cheek heart!"
"Just one cheek heart, please!"
The heart trend continued even into the age of space exploration. At this rate, the day will come when alien species learn the K-heart.
As Kwon Jihan and Yoon Seo formed heart shapes with their hands, more requests came in.
"Please do a heart together!"
"Get a little closer!"
"I love you, Hunter Seo Chaeyoon!"
"Touch your hands to make a heart!"
Although there were a few reporters looking to fulfill their own desires, the requests weren't too difficult, so Kwon Jihan and Yoon Seo obliged them all.
After spending the most time of anyone at the photo line, they entered the hall.
"Hunter Seo Chaeyoon!"
"Jihan hyung,Chaeyoon hyung!"
Park Soobin and Soo Jaehee approached with cheerful faces. Some executives from Seokyoung, including Do Deungsoo, also came to greet them. Unfortunately, the guild leader of Seokyoung couldn't attend today due to some pressing matters.
Peeeep!
"I missed our Riceball so much. It seems to have gotten rounder?"
Peep, peep.
"Yeah, I really missed that peep sound. So adorable!"
While Riceball enjoyed being petted skillfully in Soo Jaehee's hands, Park Soobin smiled at Yoon Seo.
"Did you have a good trip?"
"Yes, thanks to you. I'm sorry for being away for so long."
"Oh, don't apologize. We're the ones who should feel sorry for not being able to give you more vacation time."
As Kwon Jihan glanced around, he asked.
"Where's Hong Euiyoon? He's not the type to miss an event like this."
"Oh… I guess you haven't checked the group chat."
Yoon Seo had seen that both the Seokyoung and Leaves group chats had over 999+ unread messages and had given up on trying to catch up.
As Park Soobin's expression darkened noticeably, Yoon Seo began to feel a little uneasy. He waited for an explanation, but Do Deungsoo interrupted.
"Hunter Hong Euiyoon went to an S-rank Yellow Dungeon not too long ago and, well…"
Seeing that he couldn't finish his sentence, Yoon Seo's heart sank for a moment.
"It's not something serious, just an injury. He's hospitalized. Haha."
Do Deungsoo finished with a playful tone. The result of this thoughtless joke was far from good.
"Shit, don't joke about stuff like that."
"Vice Guild Leader hyung, are you out of your mind?"
"You need to know when a joke's appropriate. Apologize."
Do Deungsoo's face turned pale as the three scolded him harshly.
He bowed repeatedly, apologizing sincerely, when the protocol team approached with an uncomfortable expression.
"We're sorry, but your seats are arranged in the front row. If you continue to chat here… it might confuse the people coming to watch…."
With that, they parted ways, and Kwon Jihan and Yoon Seo sat in their designated front-row seats.
Yoon Seo immediately pulled out his phone and searched for Hong Euiyoon.
There was an article stating that Hellfire Hong Euiyoon had suffered a major injury three days ago and would require about five weeks of hospitalization for treatment.
Hong Euiyoon was an A-rank Awakened. For an A-rank hunter to be hospitalized for a month…
"He really almost died, didn't he?"
"Almost, but he didn't, right?"
"...."
"Hyung."
"Yeah, I'm fine."
But in truth, he wasn't fine at all.
Why had he grown attached again?
No matter how many deaths he faced, it never got easier.
With how worried he was, leaving Earth for long space trips seemed impossible.
Peep…
As Yoon Seo's mood sank, Riceball showed concern. Yoon Seo pulled out a pill bottle. At the same time, Kwon Jihan also pulled out a water bottle, but didn't hand it over.
"Hyung. When it's time to take medicine, you should take it. But first, check a little more. Look at Hong Euiyoon's social media too. If you still want to take the medicine after that, then do it."
Though puzzled, Yoon Seo followed his boyfriend's advice and logged into social media for the first time in a while, using the Seo Chaeyoon account he had made recently.
HELLHONG
A little kid said to me, "Hyung, did it hurt a lot? I'll blow on it to make it better."
This is what it's like to be a hunter. Even a child I've never met runs up to me with worried eyes, wishing for my quick recovery.
But I'm not moved by your wishes. If a rabbit worries about an elephant, can the elephant be touched by that worry?
The fact that I got injured in the dungeon was clearly my own mistake.
The thing you should be wishing for is your own health.
Like the child said, if blowing on it will make it better, I want to blow a breath of healing into your wounds.
– wrutten by HH
(A black-and-white photo of a child blowing on Hong Euiyoon's cast, with Hong Euiyoon gazing down at him with a gentle expression)
└Ahㅠ this is such a nice post, I recommend it! But you misspelled something (whispers) it's supposed to be writtenㅠㅠㅠ
└└HELLHONG Sorry, my fingers are in a cast, so I mistyped
HELLHONG
It's my fourth day in the hospital. I'm watching the Great Dungeon clearing ceremony on the TV in my room. For the first time, I understand how you all must feel as spectators. My heart pounded like a volcano spewing molten lava and felt solemn like the quiet depths of the deep sea as I watched the hunters standing in line. Thinking that you might have felt these same emotions when you watched us, watched me, makes me place my hand on my heart again. It fills me with awe, realizing that we're living in a fleeting moment within the vastness of cosmic time.
-ps. It's been a while, #KwonJihan #SeoChaeyoon. They don't know I'm in the hospital yet, so keep it quiet, everyone.
└ Hyung, can you please go back to your old SNS style? I'm begging you.
"..."
"Well? Still feel like taking your meds?"
"No. I'm good."
"Nice."
Yoon Seo put away the bottle of pills, and Kwon Jihan did the same with his water bottle. They huddled closer, continuing to browse through Hong Euiyoon's SNS.
Though Hong Euiyoon's writing style had changed over the past three years, in a way, it had stayed the same.
└ Look at the comments, everyone's losing their minds, turning into grilled squid. This is the true Hellfire.
└ Where's Instagram's headquarters? Let's burn it down.
└ Honestly, the early posts were better. Back then, even his arrogance was cute. Now, this long-winded arrogance is just too much. Please come back.
It's the same in the sense that everyone is writhing in agony.
└ So, KwonSeo will visit hellhong, right?
└└ Of course, they're close friends.
└└ Are they really though? Hong says they are, but I don't know… lol
└└ Kwon Jihan might, but I doubt Seo Chaeyoon will go. Think about it: he has healing resistance but lives just fine. Why would he visit someone who's whining over a minor injury?
└ He claimed to be seriously injured, but judging by the string of SNS posts, he seems fine now. Why did he make such a fuss in the first place? Trying to scare the public?
└└ No, I heard he really was badly hurt. There was talk of him being unconscious.
└└ Yeah, he was in a coma.
└└ But think about it—would someone who just woke up from a coma post ten things on SNS in two days? They probably exaggerated to scare the non-Awakened. Hunters do that all the time, lol.
└ Is the 'H' in Hellhong for hodolgap (making a fuss)?
└ Seo Chaeyoon has healing resistance, but he never makes a fuss and quietly recuperates. This guy, on the other hand, is really loud.
└└ Exactly, lol. Seo Chaeyoon wouldn't care about this kind of arrogance and would just ignore it.
"I'll visit him tomorrow."
"Okay."
Why do you come to private SNS accounts to insult people when there are communities made for you to vent your frustrations freely?
'Hong Euiyoon will read every single one of these comments.'
Yoon Seo decided that tomorrow, while wearing the Seo Chaeyoon mask, he would take a two-shot photo with Hong Euiyoon.
"Leave a comment at least. I'm going tomorrow."
"Okay."
seochaeyoon I'll visit tomorrow afternoon with Kwon Jihan. What fruit do you like?
As soon as the comment was posted, hearts piled up and replies started flooding in.
HELLHONG You don't have to come, but banana.
Seeing such replies come in under ten seconds, it seemed that his arrogance hadn't fully ripened yet.
The two continued to browse through other hunters' SNS while waiting for the event.
Soo Jaehee had many selfies and animal photos, while Park Soobin mostly posted about his daily life.
The Yeomcheon couple's posts were mostly of their child, and surprisingly, Alec Switch had a lot of selfies where he appeared healthier and had lost some weight.
Recently, La Bijina had created her SNS, primarily posting photos of nature. Occasionally, pictures of Grace were also shared.
Hwashim didn't have any SNS, Park Kang shared family photos, and Lee Jungin had more live videos than pictures. Kim Jinhae and Namgung Simhae mostly posted sponsored content.
And then there was Kwon Jihan…
JIHAN_S
(photo of Riceball)
♥
JIHAN_S
(photo of Riceball)
So cute.
JIHAN_S
(photo of Riceball)
Spicy pride.
Peep!
Riceball noticed itself in the phone and hopped down. In the comments, people were eagerly pointing out someone's sleeve, hair, or fingers that were slightly caught in the corner of the Riceball photo.
"I'm really protecting your portrait rights, hyung."
"What's with this spicy pride?"
"When we had spicy pork ribs."
"Who was the one bragging about the spiciness back then?"
"Who else could it be? I can't handle spice."
"I wouldn't say I lack spicy pride, but that pork rib stew wasn't even that spicy."
"Your face was completely red back then."
"It was from the heat, not the spiciness."
"You were fanning yourself with your hands."
"Because it was hot. I was sweating."
"...."
"...."
In that moment, lunch for tomorrow was officially decided to be spicy pork ribs.