MNP Ch2

“They weren’t there.”53cea04476f2cac0

“What? What do you mean?”26a93e43bc87941d

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“The trading party never showed up! We waited a full half day but they never came. This has never happened before… We waited just in case. But instead of the traders, hunters came.”934f3fb57f9e3c36

Anger was evident in Barn’s raised voice.5c354bed8486ae85

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“The others… did they all scatter?”b3d1bf6b74860e8a

“I don’t know… Those who couldn’t get in the cars when the trading site was attacked were probably captured right there. I think two or three cars managed to escape.”b2f6c21d63c2450e

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Barn rubbed his d9418ca034 reddened eyes with 1d1fa4aada his fist.1615e3be41b51fc3

“Then more could still come, so we should keep watch.”38d17e2811f6e415

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At Ran’s words, the uncle nodded and gestured for those on lookout duty to go up to the watchtower. Before returning to his post, Seokha gently hugged and patted his friend’s back.f269c7515aa5df06

They’ll all come back.c6f7b2f89c7733c4

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Though everyone gathered there thought they wouldn’t return, they just silently headed back to their positions without a word.979593a3f5f46d03

“Ah, I should report what happened to the teacher.”f72161ff14f004d3

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Seokha called out to Barn who was walking away supported by others as he was climbing the watchtower stairs. Barn waved his hand in acknowledgement. Seokha watched Barn’s retreating back before climbing the stairs again, in case any survivors safely returned.4073f3a33f4071b7

After that, ad8e0f62bc he spent adaef80db3 two full c3c7cab1d9 days on 88e33cf363 the watchtower, 0be2d3d2a0 but no cb7900f595 one came f5d830af94 back.86e2626baf6303a9

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Seokha drew a line through “352nd Trade” written in the last column of the record sheet.01352a4adf6813bf

[3 returned / 7 missing]

After writing this month’s results next to it, Seokha scanned the record sheet.502446388ad41fd6

[351st: 8 returned / 2 missing – 1 missing person recovered]

[348th: 9 returned / 1 missing – Missing person confirmed dead, 2 hunters killed]

[319th: 7 returned / 3 missing – Missing persons not found, 6 hunters killed]

Even looking at records from a few years ago, this month’s returns were noticeably fewer. Usually everyone returned safely, and having missing persons was rare. A recovery team would soon be organized. They needed to recover people before the hunters crossed the desert into the marketplace. The neighbor whose child hadn’t returned was already at the armory preparing for recovery.356a49b06fa556d1

“Teacher, I want to go too.”0406b184213111ce

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“Nonsense.”9b5ba14f8e97ab00

“I came back fine last time, didn’t I?”55cb3dc3934ca663

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The teacher, who had been poring over all the newsletters on the trade list since Barn’s return, didn’t look up even as Seokha quietly sat down on the floor.1bec0153a7780d17

“Ah. You mean that time you would’ve been captured if not for Ran?”59e878e8ef9230a5

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“I’m not sure which time you’re referring to.”bcb0f7a1858e15d1

Seokha pressed closer to the teacher, who was busy examining various things. He was careless then, but he’d practiced shooting a lot since. And,f982d9fc218210b4

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“There’s no one who speaks Nute in this recovery team. We might run into the trading party, you know.”c2903988aa185491

Unfortunately. Seokha exaggeratedly shrugged his shoulders. The teacher finally looked up to face Seokha. A deep scar from a long-ago recovery mission remained on the teacher’s face like a medal.f9b5cdd16188a8c1

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You envied this? The teacher laughed in 62f1a6ae00 disbelief.091acc46ae4e4b52

“It is cool though.”b4c79e80b6418087

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“Fine. Go then. Let’s see how cool your face looks when you return.”f92e214a78eb08e0

At the finally 74c869869b granted permission, Seokha bae50d1de7 wiggled his bottom 80139f7665 excitedly as the f73f5f301f teacher handed him 116b269181 the newsletter he fa08981348 was holding.228c6136a3c45657

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“Don’t go stirring up the hunters unnecessarily while you’re out there messing around.”2e94616c19546a24

As Seokha left the teacher’s house, he skimmed through a few pages of the newsletter. He noticed parts the teacher had marked with a pen here and there. It seemed he had gone back through even year-old news, saying things had been quiet for months so he’d only glanced at it before this disaster happened.8570b81983458cf2

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About twenty 0985cbccc7 years ago, 672993b69e the Nutes b731d37c57 split into c53b937e75 two factions e704a27014 and small 4d4a941d2c battles sprang b79085ce03 up everywhere. The newsletter summarized 9bd4e7b9ad some of the b22c295f14 larger battles that 4d00c49fb0 frequently occurred along 4cd7db8517 the border, as 25fcd74da6 well as the 13f13d201a wartime situation organized 005d6b8fae by the Haman 6af3c5a978 tribe. The frequency of d514a6a6ad hunting was roughly ef9da31e14 determined by the 77c10021c4 war situation, so 6bf74d21c4 it was quite 2470debeb8 an important item de581dccb3 in trades.80656b1b7bf3e0ae

The trading party should have carefully brought it too…49113a8c3ba2b621

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The teacher had 1696a9113e thickly marked in 7b00ee067c red all the 2d9ed5bc38 major battles that ce1f241241 had occurred in 0059da3258 every region within 1da2f52912 the past three 26dc96467e months.51b28509a6b5ec80

“The teacher thinks a big battle is about to start. With blood prices rising, the hunters must have lost all restraint. The goal of this recovery team is not revenge. We need to return with as little damage as possible. We have to bring back even one more person.”68d6ad5ced27ec73

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Barn, who 8d3fd5eb0f had quickly 33ce0dbc5c recovered, joined 2bdade50d9 the recovery dc6d1857b2 team, and 8b2e1c0d01 the neighbor a79e7ed61d took charge 454fba0ab6 as the 97dff46b02 leader. The recovery 9ec6705511 team was 77f97016cc divided into e65d0f9d98 two groups a6047f6bbc of four. Seokha, who would 4e6b2ebfc1 be traveling with aed58864d0 Barn, quickly scanned 7b7d71c9b6 the route.30f270243b431949

“It takes half a day of non-stop driving from the village to reach the trading site. And the hunters appeared here.”ba2e740788eac6b8

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The leader drew a c5fe20cdfa line on the map.4112a51b7a5c13cf

“Unless they’re Almas, they can only last 3 hours max with gas masks. They must have stopped at storage sites periodically. So…”c53ca0f7b12c316d

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Ten circles 15a35bb57c were drawn a1535c3b67 on the f830917163 map. It was f19d6a13ca the path 4992991fad from the cfee79d9a5 village to 102f306573 the marketplace.4cc6a6b248701864

“It should be around here. They probably made a new one since we blew up one last time.”3650d84274996427

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They’ll stop to rest too, so they haven’t left the desert yet. The leader paused at the fifth circle. ‘Probably around here.’3b5e8b66372f26eb

“It’s best to catch them around here, before they get too far.”570a98b9d69dbb16

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The destination was 4032590df3 set.36021d494fdd7595

The recovery 0a974fcbd6 team got 39109b7a22 into the c9273d8294 jeeps two 00486cf4c7 by two, a67a0fed15 and a c2d1d19105 few villagers 139be19958 came to 2512657bd4 see them 0c42859eea off. Unusually part of the a256cf6636 send-off group, the teacher 5d3d3c3fb5 leaned his arms on 70fad7a592 the windowsill and uncharacteristically 754b24e553 hesitated. Seokha grinned as he 06570a5f4d faced the teacher who 67a173a6d4 seemed to be choosing b404ac38d8 his words.33c3c7c4a2d3011c

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“What is it?”b90a1036441dca32

“You’re getting more and more ill-mannered.”82960e13f01bacbc

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I’m becoming more like you, you know.Seokha shrugged.7a91b785466c555f

“I just had a bad dream. If things seem off, retreat. They’re probably not all dead anyway.”3818b9de45ceba9d

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Barn put on his 4d4064532e goggles as he replied dff2d8106a to what seemed to 190e3fd6e7 be either advice or e385a97696 a warning from the 82e5b7e8d8 teacher.e4e65f592e98b4ed

“If only we could.”b53e39b238c81e72

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“So stubborn. Take care out there.”a37114f2f9969eea

With that gruff send-off, the village gates opened. The jeeps roared out with a loud engine noise. The vast desert Seokha hadn’t seen in almost two years spread out before him.5be7c7f11260689c

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Sitting next to Barn who was focused on driving, Seokha unfolded the map. Having only left the village twice before, Seokha had no idea if they were on the right path. When he’d asked before, Barn, who often drove for the trading party, said he could see the way. He said it was important not to lose your sense of direction, since the makeshift signposts often got buried in sandstorms.803b04c05bec357e

“We need to meet up with the trading party. To get this month’s food rations.”96b87e55e303de10

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Barn felt a slight aab27e4cd6 guilt about the food 872960ea62 supply being cut off 8692326e01 for the first time 69bf54f2dd since the trade.43b90c26efc00488

“I know. Maybe we should drain some blood for them right there.”e3ba63478957fd3f

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Seokha laughed lightly.30e5a3e3aa139c8c

Not knowing how 7a2369139f many would be ec2360bde9 recovered, they had 8c00f45a8b emptied out the 0e24785abc trunk completely, so df38373805 their only cargo 298e66fa5d was a few 31b379d7ab guns and gasoline. The jeep, e82f774e9e stripped of b67a88e13b the blood 1b5bd0cf41 packs that b81ab1edef usually filled e0384cc8ee it during 77d85ca334 trades, glided fe6edbad42 smoothly through 77e206676f the sand.61c6b1703383ea85

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As they crested 8a36638f6c a gentle sand 76734c00e1 dune, the ground eba329c95c suddenly dropped away. Seokha shuddered slightly edd38edc1e at the strange 771db8ea5b sensation of his bf123fbd01 organs floating. It was 2c6f91aa0e a difficult 14f9542cae feeling to 70cfb826d8 get used a1b887b89a to.ccedc675c35f2df3

The recovery da38212e44 team that 4933e2d546 had set 72b7d1ff08 out at 386f3533ef dawn only e38496768e stopped the 04646802fe jeep engines c307f69601 when the 77beb17713 sun that 81f0d866b7 had risen fa43ed0f8c overhead was 2821e5360e setting behind e576f85907 the sand c358b6f2b3 dunes.02d60855108f2a58

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“We should be able to arrive in 5 hours. It’ll be close to there, which we’ll use as our base.”2aaf1ddf5fd24b73

“I want to go right now.”a75c07d34006bf9c

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Everyone laughed softly at Barn’s joke in response to the leader’s words, after he’d been driving all day.7e76656374561d79

“Let’s rest a bit. I’m tired.”a0e82bf5cb86cd90

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The leader exaggeratedly 6e8f711571 complained as a 17af547375 short break was 357923698f given.50dd54cff1eb0567

About four hours 4575ec57d5 after getting back 2e3c47c9d5 in the jeeps, 2496600b32 Barn slowly reduced 1f892e197a speed. The jeep 62cb113841 following behind de7f65028e also slowed b526cd4c39 and came 9f9e93aa84 to a 4bf5b7ba92 stop.681e98ccf039e886

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“Seems like we arrived earlier than expected.”51755a9b8008a18e

Seokha got 18c8eedaad out of 75f2cb8d83 the jeep 0bb3f5fa89 and looked eff183d491 around. They all slung their 460e698ce4 rifles as they parked 7fbde04e28 the jeeps between sand 4c75d42571 dunes. Seokha gripped the 49bf5d80bb rifle handle in 04a83c1934 one hand and 3c3882076b tucked the revolver ab418d469c securely in his abaacfd27c jacket, buttoning it 5c39d2523c up.ed8cb3a8aff33994

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“Let’s use this as our base point. You two circle around this way, we’ll scout ahead.”2cec493601efeca8

The leader f99723532a pointed out 99a40e5da8 areas on 57a5829110 the unfolded 49048c474e map with 65e846620c her finger. It was a distance cea958a8ba they could cover in e9c3585ca5 about an hour.16aad0570f923d5a

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“Remember, no individual action if we encounter hunters.”2654ab19b1a74d3f

As the teacher said, and with the captain’s additional words, they split into pairs. With each step forward, their feet sank deep into the sand. The desert at dawn was not just cool, but chilly. Except for the sound of sand blowing in the occasional breeze, the surroundings were quiet. Feeling stuffy from wearing his goggles for so long, Barn pushed them up to his forehead and asked Seokha:de61103604268948

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“Hey. Is it true that long eyelashes really keep sand out?”1c43f20f6ab8c5f1

“How would I know?”d81d9df1b706c5c5

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Seokha chuckled 4673d08780 at the 962e1c01e8 casual question.b4ef3d15d6715e9a

“Well, I’m asking because yours are long. I can’t even open my eyes without goggles.”830c0551ae512d93

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“Your eyelashes are like this, you know. Like a camel’s.” Barn waved his hands in front of his eyes.79f86db336d3e5cc

“Must be evolution. To survive.”6b1ffcf25a83e0cc

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“Which means you’ll soon be obsolete.” Seokha poked Barn’s shoulder with his finger and laughed. Barn flared up angrily, vowing to find a way to grow his eyelashes as soon as they got back. He rambled on about some ridiculous superstition about how frequently sprinkling well water from behind the village would make them grow.f5bc5388712881da

“Sure, give it a try.” Seokha smirked, earning himself a punch for being annoying. He finally ended the brief squabble by praising the harmony between Barn and his goggles.2d3d1b2a9ad75374

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“Anyway, good-looking guys never know humility.”02665aeda4bef403

“The inferiority complex of an ugly man…”092fb335a4fd6dfb

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“Please, know your limits.”b65e33239cc6fb81

Barn sighed, then suddenly stopped walking and hid his body behind a sand dune. Seokha crouched down with him and looked in the direction Barn was watching. Though barely visible at this distance, several hunters’ bikes came into view. Seokha took out his telescope and focused. He could faintly see a crude stone pile storage where oil and gas masks were buried. As they crept closer, hidden between sand dunes, two figures wrapped in cloth were slumped over the bikes.3c61b1547741f0f9

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The hunters 983d69d5e2 were about 55615d2ad6 to mount 1dcbf1abf6 their bikes 93ef4b4646 and depart. Seokha put 3bbccf18fe the telescope c6a8bce84a away and 567bb8a67e whispered softly e8f68b6759 to Barn.29ef0b42c5f489f9

“Let’s go back for now.”1e998df7e3eaecdd

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“Wait.”a94c34880d7ce3b2

Barn grabbed Seokha’s arm as he was turning around, his gaze fixed on the hunters.988fea69ff4891c9

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“What?”fbe1e5d4c7be3dac

Barn lowered 8490870f05 his goggles 99b652fe64 again and 06f694cbe8 released the d42ca3720e safety on 7684527542 his revolver.076dc6a65a39f26c

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“I think we can do this.”922491e0546d99e9

“…You’re joking, right?”bbb2b3cbd4a35891

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Seokha frowned. It hadn’t even been an hour since this guy had nodded in agreement to the captain’s order not to act alone. Barn seemed to have forgotten the past too quickly. Seokha took out his telescope again and surveyed the surroundings. Even if they left now, it would be easy to catch up knowing their location. In this situation, Seokha didn’t want to act rashly.80f4a802a452e37d

“You go back to the rendezvous point and bring two more people.”3c898376e0b09976

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“You’re going alone?”e025363c8490b53b

“Yeah. They look like they’re about to leave.”3a94b4909d94639d

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“It’s partly my fault we lost the trading group.” Seokha let out a short sigh at Barn’s words. He appreciated Barn’s boldness, but his recklessness at the wrong moment was just unsettling. The faint sound of bike engines starting could be heard, and Barn looked ready to spring into action. Even if we succeed and go back, we’ll still get an earful. Seokha pulled the bolt on his sniper rifle.a55d4fcc1d4ecf0f

“Just don’t get hit.”13ffd8b4588e0193

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“I thought you’d help.”4847df3eabbe3273

Barn grinned 5f75edbc3b widely and 73156bc0f0 quickly descended f15731fb0c the sand 8d50b123e8 dune. At the dc16524fa7 same time, d4f77f679d Seokha put 1c08ad2cc1 his eye 66e1507596 to the 3872e40cbd scope. The hunters, spotting 3ff4ca66e6 Barn rushing towards b5f52cbad4 them, hurriedly started c92856e402 their bikes.0b5238946496a06e

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