Side Story 5. A Midsummer Night's Letter (2) Main Text: The Island of Runaway Lovers  (11)

"Well, I guess it doesn't matter."

The rift grade wasn't at a serious level, and although it was dark and unfamiliar, he was with someone who made him forget about that. Soram quickly erased the 'efficient and quick escape method' he had briefly considered.

Stepping back a little and looking alternately at the left and right paths, Soram stretched out his hand and pointed to one side.

"Let's go right. I think I can feel the rift's energy better from that side."

"Alright."

Tae-un answered immediately without hesitation. Soram, forcing down the corners of his mouth that had inexplicably started to tingle, stepped on the bumpy rocks and leapt to the right.

'This could also be considered a unique overseas date in its own way...!'

At that moment, Tae-un's upper body suddenly popped out in front of him, and his nose was squashed against the hard collarbone.

Thud!

"Ow!"

His nose stung. It was the biggest injury he had sustained all day while breaking rifts.

"Soram-ah, are you okay?"

Tae-un must have been startled too, as the yellow circle of the headlamp reflected on the pitch-black cave wall bobbed up and down.

"Hey, I said right."

"I went right. Why did you suddenly jump at me? Is your nose hurt?"

"What are you talking about? You suddenly popped out to the left."

"No, isn't that the right side?"

"Yeah, the right side from my perspective..."

The two were looking at the same place, but the direction their fingertips were pointing was subtly different. A look of sudden realization crossed their eyes as they met each other's gaze.

"...Let's go right at the same time. Right from the perspective of facing the two-way path."

"Okay."

"One, two, three."

They both stepped towards the right of the fork at the same time. But before they could take two steps, their shoulders collided again.

"Soram-ah, back, step back."

"I am stepping back! But I keep going towards you...!"

"Don't think about going backwards, think about going in a different direction!"

As Tae-un suggested, when they thought about walking forward in the opposite direction, their bodies moved sideways like crabs. The shoulder wrestling somehow ended, but bewildered expressions settled on both their faces.

"Wow, haha... This looks like a mimicry dungeon for sure, right?"

"...It seems to be using the dark cave environment to cause confusion."

"Then is this all there is without mutants?"

Flap–

As if waiting for those words, the sound of wings flapping was heard. Soram and Tae-un reflexively swung the swords in their hands.

Clang–!!!!!

The harsh sound of metal colliding echoed off the cave walls. The swords of the two people thrust upwards towards the mutant faced each other. A strong impact hit their wrists. The gazes across the touching blades were full of bewilderment.

Screech, eech...

"Han Tae-un, put your sword down first."

"You do it first. If I carelessly move it in any direction, it might end up stabbing you."

"That's why it's better for you with the dagger to move!"

"Again, you're only thinking about how easy it would be for you to get hurt...!"

Kyaaaak–!!

The bat that had returned in a distant arc bared its blood-red eyes and bit Tae-un's arm.

"Ugh."

"Han Tae-un!"

Sharp teeth dug into his muscle. At that moment, Tae-un sharply bent his arm inward.

Crunch.

The body caught between his forearms flattened and burst, and the bat-like mutant turned into black smoke.

"...Oh my god."

The swollen muscle of his shoulder was almost as big as Soram's head. The volume that had looked somewhat smaller under the black jacket was now fully revealed without anything to hide it in the T-shirt.

Tae-un frowned and examined the hole in his clothes.

"What? Are you hurt?"

"No. It's just a bit red. No bleeding."

Soram, who had been craning his neck this way and that trying to look at the opposite side of their touching swords, let out a short sigh. Tae-un slightly moved his arms and legs, using the sensation from when he had dealt with the mutant, and said,

"It seems we can move somewhat in the desired direction when in contact. Slowly, try to push the sword away."

Screech. Screech.

They barely lowered their weapons while rubbing each other's sword blades. In that short moment, all their energy seemed to have drained away.

"Ha..., what do we do now? Should we hold hands and walk?"

"That seems to have the least possibility of us charging at each other. Right now, thinking about directions like right, left, front, back in this way is the most fatal. If necessary, it might be better to grab and pull each other."

The problem was that they didn't know which of the four directions their movements would go. A sword thrust to the left might go backwards, or a jump upwards might result in charging into a wall. Above all, the worst-case scenario was their attacks being directed at each other.

The two fumbled for each other's hands, just as they had when separating their swords. It was a somewhat ungraceful sight.

"Han Tae-un, this is the first time touching your body has been so unsexy."

"Now is not the time for such comments..."

After firmly grasping each other's hands, they each held their weapons in the opposite hand. As they found a somewhat stable posture, belated laughter of disbelief burst out. They had seen all sorts of dungeons in their lives.

"Hey, this reminds me of the three-legged race at the field day."

"...Let's try not to make it like that."

They carefully stepped forward, pushing off with their toes. After a few tries, it seemed like they might get the hang of it, but...

"Aaack!"

"Ugh."

If they had been alone, even if the direction was slightly off, they could have made up for it in the next step, but the problem was that the two of them immediately collided. In contrast to their hands affectionately clasped together, their legs below tangled and collided like the fierce struggle in front of a soccer goal.

In the end, before taking five steps, the two acutely realized that this wasn't a very good strategy.

"Let's combine!"

"...Okay."

No matter how they looked at it, it would be better if only one of them moved their legs. The wound where Tae-un had been bitten by the bat mutant was no longer visible, but below his knees were dark bruises. The 1st-grade colleague next to him was more threatening than the rift in this situation.

It would be much freer to move if Tae-un just carried Soram on his back instead of this. The decision was made without much difficulty.

"I'll bend down, so climb onto my back."

"Okay."

Soram was able to feel his way up Tae-un's arms and put both hands on his back. As hunters with excellent physical abilities, the situation of not being able to control their movements felt very unfamiliar.

Soram jumped onto Tae-un's back, and Tae-un lowered his body further towards the ground for Soram. Soram's fingertips momentarily separated from Tae-un's back.

The dungeon specialized in blurring the sense of direction judged only by vision without physical contact.

Tae-un felt an inexplicable sense of floating and was puzzled.

'Is it because Soram jumped on so forcefully as if he was going to crush my spine?'

He mistook the sudden forward bending of his body for a floating sensation. ...Or so he tried to convince himself, but for that, there was neither pain nor a sense of weight. Rather, his body felt very light. It even felt like his legs weren't touching the ground...

"..."

He quickly assessed the situation. He was the one being carried on the back. Soram's deeply bent upper body was almost buried under Tae-un's body.

"..."

"..."

"Hey, Han Tae-un..., is this what you meant by carrying? It's a bit different from what I thought..."

"No!"

"Hmm... well, I can carry you too. If you're getting revenge for me holding you up in the bathroom yesterday, that's a bit petty..."

But Soram's voice had turned sour.

"That's not it, I definitely bent down, but I think the direction..."

Tae-un's arm, hastily waved in explanation, thwacked Soram's head that he was carrying.

"Well... I know it wasn't intentional, but it's still annoying..."

"I'll get down, I'm going to get down. I'll get down right now."

Tae-un spoke in a desperate voice that he probably wouldn't use even once a year. His hands gripping Soram's body were also very urgent.

But the dungeon, having sensed that this was its chance, wasn't so lenient. The attempt to crawl down resulted in climbing up over the head instead.

"Oof!"

Soram became like a thin bamboo with a fat panda hanging from it, his waist bending forward.

"Ack! Ack ack! Get away!"

"J-just a moment. Try to stay still."

"Save Soram! I've never shouted this so desperately! Waaah!"

"I'll get down, I'll get down...!"

"I can't see in front!"

After a commotion that echoed throughout the cave, one of the two hunters ended up with hair as messy as a bird's nest and completely crumpled clothes. And the other suffered such severe mental damage that he might have preferred being beaten up. Tae-un, who had fallen off Soram as they tumbled down, barely raised his deeply bowed head.

"...Let's try again."

"Han Tae-un, if it goes the opposite way again this time, do you want to just ride on my back?"

"Please, please let me carry you."

Soram finally saw Tae-un begging with his voice trembling.