"Thank you for purchasing, please come again!"
The sliding doors automatically close behind Yeon Yujun as he carries a plastic bag of frozen meat he picked up from the butchery.
He stops by the side of the store, looking up in the sky as he breathes in the breeze of the cold morning.
It has been a few weeks ever since his encounter with Seo Hwigeon and surprisingly, that man hasn't returned to the café.
Instead, Seo Hwigeon joined the hunters, making him a registered hunter.
Yeon Yujun's eyes land on the distant billboard displayed next to the building with Seo Hwigeon's poster in it. Not only that man is registered, he's been in a few advertisements and interviews.
After just a few weeks, that man is already climbing the leaderboard as one of the strongest hunters of South Korea. It is sudden and baffling. Does Seo Hwigeon have the ability to make himself famous overnight? And how is everyone so willing to forget the museum incident so quickly?
Or is this an attempt to frustrate Yeon Yujun even more? Yeon Yujun scoffs and he ruffles his hair out of annoyance — that man is really getting onto him and he's not liking it one bit.
'Still no information about him or his face...' Yeon Yujun thought.
He pulls out his phone and he gets a notification from Lee Seolji.
[ @lee_seoljjj: hey dont forget the meat... granny is cooking her special bulgogi! come home rn! ]
'Geez, do young people type like this nowadays?' Yeon Yujun still wasn't used to the change lately as he shrugs it off.
[ @Yeon Yu-jun: I'm on my way. ]
[ @lee_seoljjj: hurry up old man!!! ]
"H-hey...! Thirty-one years old is not old! Is... it?" Yeon Yujun mumbles under his breath before annoyingly shoves the phone back to his pocket.
Now that he thinks about it, he should get his hair dyed — white pale strands were starting to appear on his black hair... Yeon Yujun unconsciously reaches up to touch his hair while he continues walking on the sidewalk.
"Back away, everyone!" A man with a vest and megaphone yells at the incoming and curious crowd.
Yeon Yujun's grey eyes dart at the commotion and he walks towards the barrier where the crowd were forming. Not only that, news reporters are everywhere. In the very middle of the blocked road, there is a swirling portal ahead.
He immediately recognizes the color of the portal — another A-ranked vortex.
Vortexes had been appearing around the city frequently and good thing, none of them are S-ranked or greater than that.
But still, something isn't quite right.
Before Yeon Yujun could finish his thought, a woman emerges from the portal along with a few expert hunters behind her. She holds her sword and grins at the crowd confidently.
Yeon Yujun's eyes widen in recognition, of course who wouldn't recognize her?
"Han Ruby!!" The crowd shouted her name while Yeon Yujun stands at his place, frozen in his own thoughts.
Who knew a name could pull him back to the depths of memories he refused to return to?
***
"Hey, are you listening?"
"Huh?"
"You've been spacing out lately, at this point – we won't get out of the dungeon alive!" Han Yerin's voice filled the air at the alien-like forest at the Great Vortex, the bonfire cackling along with the crickets of the insects at night.
"... Don't joke like that." Yeon Yujun muttered as he gripped the scarf around his neck, almost covering his entire face.
Han Yerin just smiled, "You aren't listening so, I have no choice but to scare you!"
Yeon Yujun just shook his head and kept his gaze at the fire. Han Yerin's expression became... solemn as she gripped the bracelet on her right arm.
"I just... miss my sister."
He turned his head slowly at her direction as he listened quietly, not quite showing it but he was.
"I haven't mentioned her to you, right? My half-sister?"
Yeon Yujun shook his head, "No, not yet. All I know is that your parents passed away,"
"I was so sure I already told you about it... Unless you aren't listening!"
"You know... that could be possible," Yeon Yujun rubbed his chin and nodded along playfully.
Han Yerin pulls out a wrinkled photo from her pocket, showing her and her sister together — same brown hair but their looks and eyes were different.
"Her name is Han Ruby, she's older than me but she awakened later than me! If she awakened earlier... she could've joined the raid with us," Han Yerin chuckled softly, tracing the ruined texture of the picture.
"I'll be sure to introduce you to her once we get out of here. If I dream of another future, I'm sure you two would be good friends!" she playfully nudged Yeon Yujun's shoulder and he just nodded slowly.
"Yeah... sure, why not?" Yeon Yujun smiled slightly to himself.
He planned on revealing his identity to the world once he got out of the great vortex.
But that never happened.
***
Yeon Yujun finds himself in the alleyway, throwing up before he can even register moving there. He's crouching down while pouring his insides out. His throat burns from the acid and his eyes water from the pain, not just physical.
How many years has it been again? Right, four years. Four damn years and here he is, still suffering from the guilt and memories.
"Why me?" Yeon Yujun rasps quietly, he wipes his mouth with the back of his hand after vomiting, hands trembling.
He has forgotten to drink his pills again.
Yeon Yujun connects his fist to the wall, causing it to break from the impact. No one would notice anyway, they're all busy looking at the victorious hunter who had just emerged from the portal.
He unconsciously reaches to grip his left wrist where the bracelet used to adorn around it. Now, he has lost it a long time ago when the vortex exploded. He could've at least protected it so he could've kept something precious from his companions.
But that won't numb the pain now, will it?
Suddenly, something wiggles out of his pocket, no other than Pouch itself. The small fluffy creature crawls up all the way to his shoulder, perhaps his only companion left.
"Pupu!" Pouch nuzzles against Yeon Yujun's cheek, its fur prodding his skin causing him to chuckle hoarsely.
"Pouch... I'm fine," he whispers in the cold air as he reaches up to pet the small creature gently against his cheek.
'Pull yourself together, Yeon.'
He rubs his temples before standing up and Pouch remains on his shoulder. "We should head home,"
Yeon Yujun sniffed the back of his hand and it smells like vomit, his face scrunches in disgust.
"God, this is why I hate vomiting."
"Bubu!!!" Pouch squirmed from the smell of his mouth.
"Okay! Okay! I'll brush my teeth once we get home alright?" he sighs.
When Yeon Yujun emerged from the dark alleyway, people were still surrounding the area and Han Ruby was standing there with a grin on her face. A triumphant smile that seemed so familiar.
'She has Han Yerin's smile too,' Yeon Yujun thought to himself as he clenches his fists quietly before moving from the crowd.
"Han Ruby, we love you!!" the crowd yells as they hold up signs, relieved to see their idol hunters got out alive from the vortex.
If they all got out of the vortex alive, would Yeon Yujun and his companions receive such warm cheers and welcomes from the civilians too?
That unwanted thought suddenly crosses his mind, but it wasn't enough to stop him from walking back to the house.
Though, enough to make him eavesdrop at the commotion.
"Miss Han Ruby! Is it true that vortexes have been appearing a lot recently?" the reporter asked as she pointed the handheld microphone towards Han Ruby's direction.
"Yes, but please do not worry, us hunters will fix whatever it is and continue our job to ensure everyone's safety." Han Ruby's red eyes observe the crowd as she smiles at everyone.
"Miss Han Ruby, what do you think of the new hunter of Seoul? Seo Hwigeon!"
Yeon Yujun stops in his tracks, his gaze lands back in Han Ruby's direction in the distance as she processes the reporter's question.
"Seo Hwigeon-ssi?" Han Ruby said, as if testing the words on her lips before it curls up to a friendly smile again.
"He's strong, perhaps stronger than me and Song Dohyun."
"It's been a while since we had such a very strong hunter in the department, we have our full trust in him." she adds before making her way from the crowd of reporters, already dismissing them as if she's done with the interview already while her teammates trailed behind her.
Eventually, Yeon Yujun arrives back home and took off his shoes before entering the threshold. "I'm home,"
Yeon Yujun steps further inside and sees Lee Seolji by the couch, playing games on her phone. Her eyes shifted upwards, "Finally!" She stood up and snatched the plastic in Yeon Yujun's grip before he could react.
"Hey!" Yeon Yujun didn't chase her, instead, he just sighed and shook his head before heading towards the kitchen where Lee Seolji had handed the frozen meat to Kim Misook.
"Are you really making bulgogi, granny?"
"Of course, it's your favorite and Seolji's." Kim Misook chuckles as she turns around to look at Yeon Yujun with that same fond smile.
Kim Misook sniffs something from him as her face wrinkled slightly, "Are you alright, dear? You smell like…"
"I'm fine, I just vomited. I'm going to shower though,"
"Take care of yourself!" Kim Misook scolds him with the ladle as he just chuckles and nods at her words.
"I will, granny."