"So what did you answer...?"

At Yu Seongun's trembling question, Jio answered calmly even while being grabbed by both shoulders.

"I refused, of course."

"I am so glad you have enough common sense to say 'of course'..."

"What exactly did you think of me as?"

"A portrait that goes ahead and does things first if it finds them interesting."

"That is not entirely wrong, but I feel wronged."

Jio did have that much ordinary preference.

"Where in the world would there be a person who likes being kidnapped?"

"There might be, because this world has far too many crazy bastards."

"If you put it that way, I have nothing to say, but I do not think I am that kind of crazy bastard."

"I cannot tell you how relieved I am to hear you say that."

Only then did Yu Seongun let out a deep breath and take his hands off Jio's shoulders.

"Those mermaid friends are pretty unique too. Do people usually ask the person involved before kidnapping them?"

"They are not friends with whom I have an ordinary relationship to begin with."

"Why did they say they were going to kidnap you in the first place?"

"They did not tell me that part in detail."

"Do you have any guess of your own?"

"It seems they do not want me to get directly involved in this fight."

Though he had platinum-blond hair and blue eyes, Jio continued speaking with his usual blunt expression.

"Because this is not my fight."

"It isn't your fight?"

"I was never connected to the mermaids' incident."

"Don't you think quite a lot of people would find that absurd if you put it that way?"

"Strictly speaking, my connection with my mermaid students ended on the planet of the sea."

It was a relationship that had ended with the death of "Giovanni."

"To put it simply, the current me is like a side story to a certain tale. The mermaids came to despise humans because of Giovanni's death, and so they have destroyed several planets up to now, and Earth was not especially different."

It was only that they had run into "Jio's Portrait" here, so the story had been briefly altered.

"It seems they intend to take responsibility by doing the same thing they have always done."

"So that is why they are trying to exclude you from this fight? Because if you get involved, their responsibility becomes blurred?"

"Or perhaps they simply wanted to try kidnapping me once."

"What am I supposed to do when you say that so refreshingly...?"

"I do not think my tone was especially refreshing. Your voice is shaking, Yu Seongun."

"You think it wouldn't be?"

The precious Root he treasured so dearly had nearly been kidnapped by ruffians from under the sea. Even knowing such an act would not harm Jio, he could not help feeling uneasy.

"I was already on edge because the sea has been in chaos lately."

"Is the sea that noisy?"

"It looks like those mermaids really are capable of affecting the sea. We sensed all kinds of tremors, large and small, in the deep sea, so we looked into it and confirmed that a huge dormant native monster has started moving."

"Oh dear, should we be worried about a tsunami?"

"We'll have to prepare for that too. Good grief, I'm not very close with the sea..."

"I understand you were often dispatched to the sea for someone who says that."

"It is true that cold-type Hunters have an advantage at sea."

At the very least, he could preserve his own life.

"The east coast has been incredibly loud lately."

"That was where the entrance to the 'country of the deep sea' was, I believe."

"I delivered the mermaids' declaration of war to the Guild Master, so other guilds are probably making rough preparations too. In particular, seeing how noisy the Association and Justitia are, it looks like they're preparing for casualties."

"Have they declared they will not attack separately?"

"Rather than a declaration... it is closer to watching the situation until it becomes the worst case."

They would surely be keeping a close eye on this side.

"The sea level has risen a lot. There weren't many inhabited zones along the coast anyway, so preparing shouldn't be difficult, but the question is what exactly the mermaids are going to do to the sea."

Yu Seongun glanced at Jio.

"Do you have anything to say as their former teacher?"

"Well, my students back then were still inexperienced..."

They had not been able to move while completely assimilated with the sea like they did now.

"But mermaids are known as children of the sea. More precisely, they are called descendants of the deep sea, and as such, they possess many kinds of authority related to the sea."

"What kind of authority?"

"Becoming one with the sea, for example."

"My head already hurts."

"Or changing the ocean currents..."

"Are they insane?"

If either one of those came true, Earth's lifeline would be cut. The planet called Earth could be destroyed in any number of ways by a change in ocean currents alone.

Jio touched his chin.

"You said the deep sea was noisy, so the possibility of them causing a tsunami is not small either. Fundamentally, the sea contains natural disasters. It is very well suited to sweeping away many people."

"Is that something they can do as easily as breathing?"

"No. Because Earth's sea is not their family. No matter how hard mermaids who have not yet held divinity try, they cannot manhandle the sea of an unfamiliar dimension."

"Then?"

"It will take time. But given the authority they have accumulated, I do not think it will take very long. It seems they have already finished steeling themselves."

"To sum it up, this is a race against time."

They had to make the first move before Earth became like the planets the mermaids had passed through.

"We'll have to gather an attack team quickly."

"Will Hunters gather like they did in the last Four-Legged Rainforest?"

"It's a sudden situation with a huge risk burden, and the reward is unclear, so I don't know how many guilds will participate, but, well, they won't be completely uncooperative."

Koreans had a certain national trait.

"This country's characteristic is that even if we fight like hell on ordinary days, when a national disaster comes, we join forces..."

Just as Yu Seongun said, quite a few guilds expressed their intent to participate.

Basically, high-profile guilds had no choice but to participate, if only because of how the citizens would see them. The Sun Cult and Moon Cult of Seoul had already expressed their intent to participate, and Justitia also declared that it would lend a hand in rescuing people.

"We have already sent evacuation notices to the coastal zones."

"I heard Justitia will stand by on that side."

"I hope this uproar can somehow be settled in the coastal region..."

"What about backlash from the residents?"

"They say there are no issues aside from anxiety, perhaps thanks to separate support from the Association."

"Tell them to bring out important belongings or people they left behind in advance. If this progresses any further, it will become difficult to enter at all. Make sure they don't say anything different later."

"We have also obtained development consent forms. Now I think we can demolish the houses and put up defensive walls. Are you sure we have secured proper cooperation from the nearby regions?"

It had not been that long since the chaos of The Great Catastrophe had passed them by in the first place. Even guilds with their own notable reputations and long histories had not yet erased their fear of dungeons, and they had kept their minds sharp and prepared accordingly.

That was why they could respond quickly even when a sudden disaster like this occurred. They were almost grateful that the monster had issued a declaration of war directly.

"No, but why on earth did that monster come and talk first?"

"I heard it spoke to the Collector employees who had gone to Jeju Island on vacation..."

"I heard that news too. When I looked into it, Hunter Seo Jio and Hunter Yu Seongun had once been dispatched as part of the rescue team to the previous 'country of the deep sea.'"

"Did it make their acquaintance then and declare it in advance? We really can't understand what monsters are thinking..."

"Did it judge them to be humans worth giving that much warning to?"

Around that point, talk of "Hunter Seo Jio" came up as well.

"Is that Hunter named Seo Jio going to participate this time too?"

"The Collector has not given a clear answer yet, but surely he won't sit out?"

"I heard he's a Hunter who really likes helping people, so it would be strange if he didn't come."

"He'll participate unless the Guild Master detains him."

"No, why would the Guild Master detain a guild member...?"

"Haven't you heard the rumors? People are saying he's Bi Sabeol's bloodline, raised locked away by the Collector."

"Let's not say useless things. Do you really have to make statements that could cause trouble at a time like this? Are you going to make an enemy of the Collector?"

"I'm just saying, that's all. It is strange."

And the Collector also clearly expressed its intent to participate.

"Is Hunter Seo Jio participating too?"

"I heard he'll be in the rear."

"Well, he's a trainer, so it can't be helped."

"No, from what I heard, he's pretty good in a fight..."

"You. Are you planning to put a trainer at the front? Are you a demon?"

"That's not what I mean, he really..."

"They say his position is healer too, so unless you're truly insane, are you going to put a trainer and a healer at the front?"

In this era, trainers and healers basically played rear support roles. That was because both were strongly perceived as squishy.

People who did not yet know the exact information about "Hunter Seo Jio" thought it was only natural that he was placed in the rear. Those who knew the truth could not strongly refute it either.

"True, he is a trainer."

"You'd have to be crazy to put a healer at the front."

That was simply how the world perceived it. Whether someone fought well or not, they could not accept a rear-position Hunter being placed at the front. Thanks to that, Jio was safely assigned to the safe zone without incident.

Arjio was a little dissatisfied.

"..."

"Mr. Jio, this isn't your battlefield."

Ju-hyeon, who had briefly stopped by to check Jio's condition before he withdrew to the safe zone, patted him. At his friend's words, Jio nodded.

"I know."

"Then why are you grumbling so much?"

"I have not even opened my mouth, so what grumbling are you talking about?"

"I can feel it all in your eyes."

"It seems you know me too well. That is uncomfortable."

"I know you don't mean that."

Perhaps because Arjio was the personality of a twenty-four-year-old, he tended to complain more than the other "Jios." For a personality used to rampaging however he wanted, being tied to the rear must have been pure torment.

And then happy news arrived for this Jio.

"A-Attack...!! It's an attack! All Hunters capable of combat, please come to your positions!!"

"What are you talking about?! We haven't even received word of an attack from the coastal front yet!!"

"Monsters are appearing from the hail falling from the sky! What on earth is happening...!!"

The Hunters keeping watch around them hurriedly gathered all available Hunters. The Hunters gathered in the rear area each came out carrying their weapons and gear, and they soon understood what it meant that "monsters are appearing from the hail."

"What on earth is this...!!"

The moment they came out of the tent, what they felt was an icy, freezing wind, and large and small hailstones fell to the ground through the rough gale. The hailstones fell with a loud CRUNCH! and soon melted, transforming into grotesque monsters.

"S-Slimes...?!"

"Slimes don't look like that!!"

"What is that...! It's horrible!!"

The monsters, seeming to be made of melted flesh, flopped and swayed as they attacked people.

"Request support from the front!!"

"Communications have been cut off. We urgently sent Hunters capable of teleporting!"

"No monsters even came out of the sea, so why from the sky...!"

Apart from the confused Hunters, the battle proceeded.

"Whoops."

CRUNCH...!!

Yu Seongun, who had driven an ice spear into a monster, smiled awkwardly.

"This is rather troublesome."

"Is it a surprise attack?"

"If it's a surprise attack, then it is a surprise attack. This is embarrassing. To think we lost sight of the sky because we were paying attention to the sea..."

"I did not know the mermaids would attack like this either."

"Jio, how far can you hold out?"

SHLICK!

Yu Seongun pulled out the spear and asked next.

"I mean, where is the limit of your current body?"

"It is not as strong as when I am at home."

He was talking about when he was inside the portrait. Yu Seongun understood.

"There would be restrictions. Don't overdo it. If you get hurt, my heart will truly tear apart."

"It is not even that it seems likely to tear, but that it is already scheduled?"

"That's how Curators are. If even a faint scratch is left on something of theirs, they resent the world and weep tears of blood. Will you understand?"

"That is excessive."

"It is excessive."

But it was better than creating an irreversible situation.

"So I would like you to be careful, all right?"

"I will keep it in mind."

And perhaps he really only kept it in mind, because several days later, news came that Jio had gone missing.

The sound of Yu Seongun cursing the world rang brilliantly across the battlefield.