chapter_0512

512 – Mole Catching

512 – Mole Catching

“Let’s go down!”

As Bomi shouted, Hanyeoreum hugged us and went down.

The hole in the ground that Levinas had dug was large enough for all of us to descend together.

“Wow!”

“Nyaa!”

The underground slide was surprisingly thrilling with its speed.

By the way, I wonder if Levinas’s magic is what kept us from getting poked by sharp stones while going down?

As deep as the tunnel was, my thoughts wandered far.

Eventually, we reached the bottom of the earth.

“Hey! You!”

As soon as we arrived, an angry Jeong Yuna greeted us.

Since I was in Hanyeoreum’s arms, I found myself face to face with Jeong Yuna’s furious expression.

“Uh…”

Surprised, Jeong Yuna reached out her hand towards me.

She lifted me and set me down beside her, then did the same with Bomi.

Once Hanyeoreum was left alone, Jeong Yuna threw a punch at her shoulder.

Smack!

With a punch that seemed appropriate for friends, Levinas wore a serious expression.

“Everyone, please don’t fight. This is an underground shelter.”

“Oh my, we weren’t fighting!”

“That’s right. You’re the one getting hit unilaterally.”

After a brief scuffle, the two began to look around the underground.

Hanyeoreum expressed ordinary admiration, while Jeong Yuna displayed her magician’s curiosity.

“Wow, this is interesting! I need to take a closer look.”

Snap.

As Jeong Yuna snapped her fingers, bright light blossomed in the underground.

All I could see in every direction was dirt and stone.

“The soil is really hard. With this, there shouldn’t be any worries about it collapsing…”

Jeong Yuna infused Mana into the earthen wall.

The already solid wall began to harden even more.

“For drainage, we just need to make the outer wall neat… Can I join in, guys?”

“Yeah! We’re all doing it together!”

With Jeong Yuna’s participation, the construction of the underground shelter began to accelerate.

As we expanded the ground on one side, Jeong Yuna magically applied some unknown white liquid to the wall.

As time passed, the liquid hardened, completing the wall.

“Wanga, we should put chairs and dolls here!”

“Gaeul, that’s a great idea.”

“Yeah! We should also place Gaeul’s puppy shelter here! Then it will become a super shelter!”

“Wow!”

The underground shelter of the Ggaemmi Guild, created together with everyone.

It turned out quite impressive, but there was one last thing to do.

“Guys, but what if there’s only one entrance? What if we bump into each other while going up and down?”

“Levinas has thought of something!”

Levinas pulled out a seed from his pocket.

It was a seed of the underground flower that could be used as a means of transportation.

“Oh, the underground flower.”

So we slide down quickly and use the underground flower to go back up.

Levinas is really committed to the underground shelter.

Thanks to that, we were able to create a wonderful refuge.

**

When we came back to the surface, we made a lid for the air raid shelter as a final touch.

It was in case someone might accidentally fall in.

“Wanga, why is magician Yuna still inside?”

“She said she was going to add furniture and decorate it more.”

I was surprised to find that Jeong Yuna was so interested in this kind of thing.

I started to look forward to how the shelter would change when we came back later.

“Gyeoul.”

Bomi, covered in dirt all over her body, approached me.

She looked like she was expecting something.

“Yeah.”

“I want to go to an arcade. Can you come with me?”

“Sure. But let’s wash up first since we’re dirty.”

“Okay.”

We quickly showered and changed into new clothes.

When we came out to the first-floor lobby, we ran into Kwon Arin.

“Oh, where are you little ones going?”

“We’re going to the arcade.”

“The arcade? Are you going to the one that just opened nearby?”

“Nearby?”

“Yeah. I heard they opened a nostalgic arcade as a special event.”

A nostalgic arcade.

Could we enjoy old games from this world?

Since it wasn’t the arcade I used to go to often, I started to feel excited.

“Yes, I want to go there. Can you tell me the way?”

“The way is…”

We moved to the arcade following Kwon Arin’s directions.

Since it was called a nostalgic arcade, I imagined an old-fashioned feel, but surprisingly, the inside of the arcade was clean.

“Wow, there are so many interesting things. Gyeoul, what’s this?”

“This is… Whack-a-Mole.”

“Whack-a-Mole?”

“Yeah. When a mole pops out of the hole, you hit it. Want to try?”

“Yes! I want to try!”

Bomi was bursting with excitement.

I put a coin into the Whack-a-Mole machine for her.

“Bomi, do you have to catch a lot of moles?”

“Yes! I’ll catch them all!”

With Bomi’s shout, a plastic mole popped its head out of the hole.

Seeing this, Bomi quickly reached out and grabbed the mole.

“Look! I caught one!”

“Uh…”

It wasn’t about grabbing the mole with her hands; she was supposed to hit it with a hammer.

Watching Bomi play Whack-a-Mole in her own way, another mole popped up from the hole right next to her.

“Whoa! A mole!”

Bomi reached out with her other hand to grab the mole.

The problem started with the third mole.

“Another one popped up! I don’t have any hands left!”

“Gaeul!”

Gaeul quickly grabbed the mole.

Levinas and Saebyeok also helped catch the moles.

All eight moles that popped out of the holes were caught.

“I caught them all!”

“Hehe, moles are weaker than Horned Rabbits!”

The kids were delighted, each holding two moles.

I let the kids enjoy their time and picked up the hammer nearby.

“You did well catching the moles, but actually, you’re supposed to hit them with this.”

Bang! Bang! Bang!

I tapped the heads of the moles the kids were holding with the hammer.

With a light impact, the moles went back into their holes.

“Ugh?”

The kids let go of the moles and watched me.

When a mole poked its head out, I hit it with the hammer.

It seemed more fun than catching it with hands, as the kids jumped up from their spots.

“Levinas too! I want to do it too!”

“Okay. Here.”

The kids took turns playing Whack-a-Mole.

“Moles can’t beat Horned Rabbits!”

Levinas was hitting the mole’s head with the hammer, but soon, immersed in the game, he started to punch the mole’s head with his fist.

“…”

Was the plastic mole too hard?

With Rabbit eyes wide open, Levinas set down the hammer and rubbed his hand.

“Levinas, are you okay?”

“Yeah… it hurts a little, but I’m fine…”

Even while Levinas was rubbing his hand, the moles kept popping out.

They came out and went back in, came out and went back in.

Watching the moles pop out in real-time, Gaeul burst into laughter.

It seemed like Gaeul just found it fun to see the moles coming out of the holes.

**

After playing at the arcade, we returned home.

With nothing else to do, we wandered around the Ggaemmi Guild, chatting briefly with the Divine Beasts and the blacksmiths.

“Haah, Haneul learns better than I do.”

“No, Betty is better.”

I couldn’t help but smile at the affectionate conversation between the two.

I’m glad they both seem brighter than before.

Just then, as I was wagging my tail,

“Wanga! Wanga!”

Levinas called from outside the building.

I walked out with everyone.

“Wanga, look at this! It’s Levinas Whack-a-Mole!”

A new hole had been dug in front of the guild.

There were six holes, and from one of them, Levinas was poking his head out.

‘This is…’

Is it a Levinas version of Whack-a-Mole?

As I approached Levinas, Saebyeok handed me a mallet.

“You can hit it with this.”

“Wow, this looks serious.”

I struck Levinas’s head that popped out of the hole with the mallet.

Bang!

“Kyah!”

With a scream, Levinas retreated into the hole, only to pop his head out from another one.

I hit Levinas again with the mallet.

Bang! Bang!

“Kyah! Kyah!”

The impact felt better than the arcade’s Whack-a-Mole.

After hitting his head a few times, Levinas’s speed began to increase.

“Wow.”

Swish, swish, swish—

Levinas was moving in and out of the holes at quite a speed.

Gaeul’s head was turning this way and that.

“Game over! Wanga scores ten points!”

“Eh? Ten points?”

“Yep! Full marks!”

Wow.

So that’s a perfect score.

As I smiled while holding the mallet, Gaeul approached me with a skip and pointed at the mallet.

“I want to try too.”

“Gaeul wants to try?”

“Yeah.”

Just as I was about to hand the mallet to Gaeul, she slipped into the hole beside her.

She seemed to enjoy watching the moles moving in and out, wanting to play the role of a mole instead of hitting them.

“Are you going to be a mole, Gaeul?”

“Yeah. I’m Gaeul.”

“So then I’ll do this?”

“Ugh…!”

Gaeul poked her head out from the hole.

Just as I was about to hit her head with the mallet, Bomi approached Gaeul with a mischievous smile.

It was the kind of smile she wore just before playing a prank.

“Gaeul, you should take this Wooden Caliber.”

“Huh?”

Bomi placed the Wooden Caliber under Gaeul’s chin as she poked her head out of the hole.

Then, with another mallet, she hit Gaeul’s head.

“…”

Gaeul, hit by the mallet, tried to hide back into the hole but got stuck.

The Wooden Caliber lying flat under her chin prevented her from going back into the hole.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

Bomi hit Gaeul’s head with the mallet, preventing her from entering the hole.

As the unique sound of the mallet echoed, Gaeul’s eyes widened.

“Gaeul can’t escape as a mole.”

“…”

“Take that!”

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

“Chwiin! Chwiin!”

Gaeul’s desperate screams and the sound of the mallet rang out.

Bomi, playing a prank, was wicked in many ways.

A word from the author (Author’s note)

Thank you so much for reading today, PIA1747014585384!

Thanks for the comments and recommendations too! They always give me strength!

Did you know you can catch moles with your hands in the Whack-a-Mole game?!

Back in the day, I used to play by catching the moles with my hands as they popped up…!

───

Thank you for the 10 coins, AABABBA!