Chapter : 10
My Uncle is a Calamity-Grade Returnee
The Abandoned Vegetable Garden
Kim Kang-baek ran like crazy.
It felt as if his lungs were going to burst. Out of breath to his very limit, a rush of dizziness washed over him. Turning his head, he saw the pale face of the haunted house streamer, Park Do-jin.
“Can you keep running?!”
“Yes! O-Of course! I can’t get eaten by a centipede, bro!”
Neither of them was moving very fast.
“Haah! Haaah! Is it just me, or is my body getting heavier the further down we go?”
It was true every time they descended another flight of steps. By the time they cleared two more steps, it became undeniable.
“Fuck… something’s weird.”
“Ugh! It’s not weird; this is actually how it’s supposed to be.”
“Huh?”
“That centipede is probably an Avici Centipede. If so, this infinite staircase makes sense…”
“Avici Centipede? What on earth is that?”
When Kang-baek asked in confusion, Park Do-jin offered an explanation.
The Avici Centipede (Mugan Ohgong).
An anomaly that first appeared in Hangzhou, China. Its defining trait was creating a domain consisting of an endless downward staircase. It was a monster that continuously forced its prey to the lower floors, crushing them to death under the sheer pressure generated by the stairs before devouring them.
“So it’s not that we’ve been escaping well—it’s just been letting us run?”
“Pretty much.”
Kang-baek let out an absurd chuckle. So the bottom line was that they were going to die anyway?
“B-Bro? Why are you stopping?”
“I don’t know, just take this.”
Stopping his retreat, Kang-baek ducked into an empty room near the staircase and salvaged some improvised weapons—two halved, broken baseball bats.
“…We fight!”
“A-Are you serious?! No, that thing is at least a Grade 5 monster! It won’t take damage unless hit by an upper-rank Hunter!”
“Didn’t you say we’re going to die anyway?”
Dying while being chased was not Kim Kang-baek’s style. Whether it worked or not, he was going to take a swing at it first. That was how he had lived his life so far—both on construction sites and when he had to walk away when trouble flared up.
“Phew. I promised we’d eat pork belly tonight.”
“Your appetite, bro… is truly out of this world. Unbelievable.”
“I made a promise. If we somehow survive this, come along too. My hyungnim won’t mind. Still, I’m worried about Na-hyun… Maybe I shouldn’t have promised to share my secret sauce.”
He was worried about Na-hyun waiting for him. Do Min-hyuk would handle the future just fine, but he couldn’t help but worry. Even when a distant stranger passes away, people feel a shock. How much worse would it be for a child that age to hear that someone she made dinner plans with had died? He couldn’t even fathom the scar it would leave.
‘I shouldn’t have made a promise I couldn’t keep. Tsk.’
Tsking to himself, Kang-baek hid beside the stairs.
“I’ll strike first.”
“Bro, are you really doing this?”
“If we go down any further, we won’t even be able to move. What choice do we have? We hit it, look for an opening, and head back up. If we somehow make it up… Oh. Damn it. It’s coming.”
Kwadddd-!
The handrails of the staircase trembled as if hit by an earthquake. Something massive was coming down. The roaring sound of hard, metallic legs smashing the stairs echoed through the space, accompanied by a horrifying sensation that pricked their skin.
Kim Kang-baek steeled his faltering courage and gripped the baseball bat tighter.
Moments later—
Kwa-rrrrung-!
With a deafening roar, a black centipede revealed itself along the stairs.
Its size was overwhelming. The thickness of its body alone was absurd, equivalent to two or three massive trees combined. The centipede raised its gigantic head, green venom dripping continuously from its mouth.
Just looking at it felt like both soul and body were being overpowered. No, in fact, his body had actually frozen the instant their eyes met.
“…W-What is this?”
“Looks like a Mystic Eye?”
“What’s a Mystic Eye?”
“I-It’s an eye imbued with authority!”
He couldn’t move a single finger. It felt as though all muscles and nerves throughout his body had lost control.
Slither-
The giant centipede looked down with dissatisfaction at Kim Kang-baek and Park Do-jin, who had ceased running. The monster’s dilemma was palpable: should it eat them now, or make them struggle a bit more before finishing them off?
Reaching its conclusion, the centipede—
– Kiiii-eeek!
It thrusted its snout forward, snapping teeth as large as an adult man’s forearm. A sharp, dizzying white vapor spread out.
“Ugh…”
Kang-baek desperately held onto his fading consciousness. Curses spilled from his mouth automatically. He had never imagined in his wildest dreams that he would die so pointlessly with so much left undone.
Right at that moment—
Skrrr-
An odd sound echoed.
“Huh?”
“Uh, bro?”
It wasn’t an illusion. It was coming from above—the ceiling of the building.
Kwaduk- Kwaddduk-
The noise grew louder. Sensing the sound as well, the Avici Centipede raised its head toward the ceiling.
Kwadddd-!
Up above the ceiling, things far higher up than they could pinpoint were being pulverized. The sound drew closer and closer until—
KWAAANG-!
The entire building shook as if it were collapsing.
By this point, even the Avici Centipede, which had been cornering its prey, squirming in confusion.
– Kiiii-eeek…?
“W-What is it this time? Damn it! Hey, self-proclaimed haunted house streamer… what is that?”
“I-I don’t know!”
“Weren’t you a know-it-all? Didn’t you know everything?”
“I only know what I know!”
At that instant—
BANG-!
With a deafening noise that numbed their ears, the ceiling collapsed to reveal something amidst the billowing white dust of the building’s wreckage.
From within the dust—
– Kyyu!
There stood a small, black creature using its tiny mouth to blow away the dust stuck to its body. It was an adorable lizard covered entirely in black skin with gleaming ruby-red eyes.
“So… so cute!”
“Get a grip, you crazy bastard! A monster that crashed through the ceiling can’t possibly be cute! Are you completely insane?!”
Even as he spewed curses, Kim Kang-baek examined the small black lizard. He had a strange feeling—something oddly familiar, as if he had encountered this black lizard somewhere before.
Just then—
– Kiiieeek?
Upon spotting the lizard, the giant centipede began to tremble violently in sheer panic, fidgeting anxiously as it watched the lizard’s every move.
– Kyyu!
– Kiii…
Tap, tap-
The black lizard tapped the floor with its small front paw. Though it was a harmless and cute gesture, the Avici Centipede instantly prostrated itself on the ground. It even flipped its body over, exposing its vulnerable underbelly rather than its back, which was protected by a metallic black shell.
It looked just like a pet doing tricks for its master.
Kim Kang-baek and Park Do-jin stared at the scene with blank expressions. A Grade 5 monster, large enough to swallow an adult male in one bite, was suddenly acting submissive to a lizard no larger than a palm.
Pitter-patter, pitter-patter-
Taking tiny steps, the black lizard walked forward without hesitation and climbed right onto the Avici Centipede’s head.
And then—
– KYYUUU!
It let out a triumphant roar.
Watching this unfold with a stunned expression, Kim Kang-baek turned his head.
“Hey. Haunted house streamer.”
“Yes, bro.”
“The appearance of a monster far worse than the centipede monster… means we’re fucked, right?”
“Still… wouldn’t it be better to be killed by a cute monster?” Park Do-jin replied hollowly.
At this point, baseball bats or not, dying had become their set outcome.
Yet right at that moment—
– Kyyu?
The black lizard, which had been basking in victory, turned its head.
Sniff, sniff-
After catching a scent, the lizard turned around and stared intently at Kim Kang-baek.
Then—
– Kyyu!
Gesture, gesture-
As if asking what they were doing down here, it tapped its small front paw toward the upper part of the staircase, motioning for them to hurry out of the abandoned building and go eat dinner.
Park Do-jin was a famous haunted house streamer. His background was rather unique: a graduate of the elite Korea University School of Law.
He possessed enough talent to make a fortune in the legal field, but because it didn’t suit his disposition, he had quit and was traveling across the country.
Sizzle-sizzle-
Park Do-jin watched the pork belly grilling over the charcoal fire. The pleasant aroma of meat wafted past the tip of his nose.
Kim Kang-baek, a heavily muscled man with a rough face, was grilling the meat. Beside him, a pretty female student was assisting.
“…Min-hyuk hyungnim! This piece is cooked so well it could be called the masterpiece of my life. Please have a taste.”
Cutting up the pork belly, Kang-baek handed a piece to someone—a black-haired man sitting at the table, checking his smartphone.
He was handsome. Even from another man’s perspective, his appearance was striking enough to evoke admiration, yet he was looking at his phone with a completely expressionless face. He looked young, too.
‘ …Early twenties? Or mid-twenties? Considering Kang-baek calls him hyungnim, there’s no way he’s actually that young. Come to think of it, didn’t they say he used to be a low-rank Hunter?’
He had heard the man was retired now. His name was Do Min-hyuk.
After being unexpectedly rescued by the black lizard and dragged along by Kim Kang-baek to this place, they had exchanged introductions before joining the barbecue party.
“Wow! Kang-baek ahjussi, how did you make this sauce? You could totally open a restaurant… Wow, seriously!”
“Fuhu! Has our Na-hyun finally tasted this ahjussi’s secret sauce? Maybe I really should open a restaurant!”
The atmosphere was cheerful and peaceful, and Kang-baek’s grilling skills were no joke.
Just then, Do-jin caught a glimpse of Do Min-hyuk’s smartphone screen.
[Good jobs to have when you want to be a reliable uncle to your niece.]
[Jobs for someone in their mid-forties that their niece won’t be ashamed of.]
[Types of jobs that would make a niece proud.]
Every single search query contained the keyword “niece.” Even as he chewed on the pork belly Kang-baek had grilled for him, his eyes remained glued to the screen.
“Are you looking for a job?”
“Yes. Well, for now.”
“…Uh, I heard you used to be a Hunter. How about working for the Bureau?”
“The Bureau?”
Do Min-hyuk pulled his eyes away from the screen. His reaction wasn’t bad.
At this, Park Do-jin chimed in enthusiastically. There was something about this man that made him want to get closer.
“A Bureau official is a respectable profession. The competition is fierce, but it’s pretty solid. Being a low-rank Hunter might even give you extra points.”
“Hmm.”
Do Min-hyuk narrowed his eyes as old memories resurfaced—faded, distant memories from long ago.
It was something Na-hyun’s father—a man who had been like a real brother to him, but was now missing—had once said.
「Heh heh. What do I want to do if I quit being a Hunter? A government official, of course. An official at the Bureau. I heard the Intelligence Division has hazard pay and decent perks. Considering the pension, wouldn’t that be better?」
The Intelligence Division was a branch with high social respect. His brother had wanted to become a father Na-hyun wouldn’t be ashamed of—not a low-rank porter who merely cleaned up after real Hunters.
「But do you think I can make it? Ha. If I were just a bit smarter, I would’ve taken the exam long ago.」
Times had changed, but a government position—especially within the Bureau’s Intelligence Division—still carried great prestige and an elite reputation.
“…The Intelligence Division, huh?”
“Huh? Ah, I didn’t mean specifically the Intelligence Division… I just meant a general Bureau official.”
“I’ll keep that in mind for now. Thanks anyway. Did you say your name was Park Do-jin?”
“Haha! Don’t mention it! Aren’t Kang-baek’s hyungnim’s friends my hyungnims too?”
Do-jin wasn’t entirely without ulterior motives. With an appearance like Do Min-hyuk’s, viewers would welcome him as a guest stream partner. Building a good relationship would benefit him in many ways, but beyond business, he genuinely wanted to become friends with him.
“If it’s alright with you, how about joining me for a haunted house exploration sometime later? It’s actually quite a thrill…”
However, as Park Do-jin was speaking, his face suddenly froze.
Pitter-patter-
In Do-jin’s line of sight, a small black creature crawled up the table and onto Do Min-hyuk’s shoulder.
“…Uh?”
It was the black lizard with red eyes—the very monster they had seen just a short while ago in the anomalous abandoned building where the Avici Centipede resided.
And yet, that very monster—
Rub, rub-
It was affectionate, rubbing its head against Do Min-hyuk’s shoulder with a relaxed, pleasant expression.
Park Do-jin looked back and forth between Do Min-hyuk and the black lizard, his eyes trembling.
At this, Min-hyuk spoke.
“This is my pet. Well… an animal? Let’s just call it an animal for now.”
Although it didn’t look like an animal by any stretch of the imagination, Park Do-jin nodded feverishly. He could feel the lizard staring at him intently as if asking if he had a problem with that.
Right. It was an animal. If the man himself felt that way, then an animal it was!
The only remaining question was:
‘Setting aside that monstrous lizard… keeping a creature like that as a pet… H-Was the low-rank Hunter part a lie?’
Regardless of everything else, Do-jin even began to question if Do Min-hyuk was human. While there were “Contractors” among Hunters, their relationship didn’t look like a contract at all. It felt much closer to a master-servant dynamic.
‘D-Did I make a mistake recommending the Bureau?’
Park Do-jin’s head grew chaotic. A small black lizard that subdued a Grade 5 monster like the giant Avici Centipede with just a look… and an unidentified man named Do Min-hyuk, whom the lizard showered with loving affection.
‘Is this really happening?’
By Do-jin’s standards, the black lizard was a monster whose rank couldn’t even be estimated. For a man who held a master-servant relationship with such a monster to seek employment at the Bureau…
“…”
He felt that for the Bureau, this man would either be a total calamity or an absolute blessing.
Well, it wasn’t something Park Do-jin needed to worry about.
“Ah, right. I brought up the haunted house exploration earlier, but I think I spoke out of turn. You must be busy, so for me to bring up such nonsense…”
“No, let’s go sometime. Sounds like it could be interesting.”
“A-Ah, you really don’t have to… but thank you!”
In that moment, Park Do-jin found himself facing a brand-new dilemma: whether he should quit streaming haunted houses altogether.
Late at night.
Pitter-patter, pitter-patter-
A tiny black lizard and a slightly larger centipede walked side by side across the yard.
Before long, the two stopped near a wall—at a small vegetable garden that Kim Kang-baek had built to grow vegetables, only to leave it abandoned.
– Kyyu.
– Kiiik. Kiiieee-k.
Receiving instructions from Aldebaran, the Avici Centipede used its shrunken front paws to diligently dig into the dirt.
When the freshly dug earth formed a small hole about a span deep—
Plop-
A single seed dropped into the soil.
