Chapter 89

In Ian’s Legacy, which was titled [Advanced Magic Compendium Vol. 3] but should have been called How to Raid Demons, the part I paid the most attention to was the section related to the seven Demon Kings.

It’s presumed that Ian had actually fought against the Demon Kings from Entesto, ranked 7th, to Kaldrak, ranked 4th.

It made sense, given how detailed the raid methods were.

How their attack patterns were structured, what their barriers were like, and even what kind of magic they found troublesome.

It was so detailed that just by looking at the text and illustrations, I could picture the battles with them in my head.

However, despite how detailed it was written, it seemed Ian had failed to kill them.

The coming future was proof of that.

“……”

I closed my eyes.

The easiest one would obviously be the one at the bottom of the ranks.

As if drawn by gravity, I felt myself get sucked in, and then I opened my eyes again.

I could see a Monster that reminded me of Godzilla. It was the size of a building.

It took forever just to look up at it.

That thing is Entesto.

The Entesto of my imagination looks down at me.

It felt as if…

My heart dropped with a thud.

The creature reached out with its massive hand. I couldn’t even think of dodging.

It felt like a typhoon was raging toward me.

The intense pressure came first.

A wave of fear washed over me that my body would be crushed to death if I stayed like this.

It was like that even though I knew it wasn’t real.

Fwoosh!

I hurriedly escaped from my Mental World.

My back was damp.

I wiped my face.

To face that thing, how much stronger do I have to become?

At the very least, I’d have to reach SS-Rank.

As a result of the generous support from large corporations, Jeju Island had become no different from a prosperous paradise, unlike before.

The fact that we had switched from rotten sleeping bags to high-end bedding was thanks to Ilseong’s support, and the fact that we received high-end Elixirs worth over 300 million won per person was thanks to Chairman Lee Jeong-hwan of JW stepping up.

“Whoa, damn, is this a buffet? We’re leaving soon, but isn’t this a bit too fancy?”

The agents who entered the mess hall had sparkling eyes.

“It’s not because we’re leaving soon, it’s because we’re getting support from the big corporations that we can eat this well. Eat with gratitude.”

“Shouldn’t we be thanking Choi Gi-woong? This all happened because Choi Gi-woong came to Jeju Island, right?”

Suddenly, my eyes met with the agents’. They gave me a slight nod.

As if to say they would enjoy the meal.

I didn’t bother refusing. Those people too will become precious, one by one, later on. It’s good to be on their good side in advance.

“Oppa! Oppa!”

I looked to my side. It was Choi Soo-jung, happily cutting into a steak, saying she never thought she’d eat beef on Jeju Island.

“You’re not going to become a real politician at this rate, are you?”

“What are you talking about?”

“Suddenly giving a toast, which is so unlike you, and telling people to eat a lot like some congressman managing public opinion during election season.”

“He was so slick, I almost shook his hand.”

Kim Soo-gyeom snickered from the side.

“Can I be your aide later, too?”

“A lot of people would vote for you if you ran.”

Even Im Han-na, who had been looking at me strangely for the past few days, chimed in.

“Look at that.”

She pointed to the TV hanging in front of the mess hall.

My face was on the TV screen.

It was a scene of me holding the Holy Sword Durandal and taking care of Monsters crawling out of the forest.

“I think the Association released it to manage public opinion, and the reaction is insane.”

The caption below read: Public Opinion Poll for the Next Seoul Mayoral Candidate, Choi Gi-woong, 6.7%.

“…Why the mayor of Seoul?”

“A Gate opened in Seoul. Over three thousand people died there, but not a single person died on Jeju Island. That’s what all the fuss is about.”

Indeed, the next scene showed the middle of a destroyed Myeongdong.

The marks where a giant Monster had clawed were clear all over the buildings.

I had a rough idea of the situation, but I didn’t know it was this bad. Our situation here wasn’t that great either.

The expressions of the agents getting their food hardened as well.

“It’s the expectation that if Choi Gi-woong becomes mayor, something will be different. Well, for now, it’s probably just a happening.”

Hong Gyeong-pyo added with an eager face.

“Look at this.”

He handed me his phone. I’d heard the communication network was fixed just a few hours ago, but Hong Gyeong-pyo’s phone was already warm.

News articles popped up one after another. Of course, at the very top was the S-Rank Gate that had opened in Myeongdong. But it was strange.

My name was plastered on it.

[If Choi Gi-woong Had Been in Seoul, Could He Have Prevented the Myeongdong Disaster?]

-Is this reporter a Choi Gi-woong anti? How could one more Choi Gi-woong stop an S-Rank Gate that even Yeo Ju-kyung couldn’t?

-You never know. It’s Choi Gi-woong. Did you not see the video? Choi Gi-woong defended Jeju Island by himself like Zhang Fei at the Battle of Changban.

-You think Choi Gi-woong did that alone? It’s just for show, a marketing tactic. You pigs and dogs are all the same;;

-Who are you calling pigs and dogs. If the Jeju Island barrier had been breached, do you think you’d be casually browsing the internet right now?

-I don’t know about anything else, but if the Monsters inside Jeju Island had gotten out, it’s no joke, the Republic of Korea would have been finished.

-Anyway, fans create the antis.

After reading that far, I looked up.

“My name is on here?”

“It’s not just on here, it’s everywhere. Your name is all over the place, Choi Gi-woong-ssi. Probably the most after the Association President.”

“…Is that so?”

“A new S-Rank has been born.”

It was so obvious to me that I hadn’t even thought about it.

Right. I had become the tenth S-Rank Awakener in the Republic of Korea.

[Choi Gi-woong, an S-Rank Awakener?! Has the Republic of Korea’s Tenth S-Rank Been Born?]

I could see the clickbait articles that followed the first one.

-Is it official that Choi Gi-woong is S-Rank? Isn’t this just hype?

-It’s not official, but it’s certain. If you have eyes, you can see it. If that’s not S-Rank, then what is?

-LOL But does he use a bug? How is he already S-Rank?

-It’s not a bug, he used illegal drugs. Like Daehu Choi Jaegeun.

-Look at you spreading false information. Took a PDF. Bye-bye.

Meanwhile, the article that actually caught my eye was a different one.

[Gates Have Surged, Rank-Ups During Dungeon Clears Also Becoming Frequent. Many Cases of Death as Escape Stones Fail to Work… Hunter Death Rate Skyrockets. Global Crisis Theory on the Rise.]

Whether they were pretending not to know, or just weren’t interested.

There were no comments on the article.

No one cared, but to my eyes, it looked like an ominous sign.

“Are you going to run for mayor of Seoul?”

I turned my head. Im Han-na was looking at me with a peculiar gaze.

“Until just a few days ago, you were just going around solving problems as they came, like water mixed with alcohol. But your eyes are different now.”

“…Is that so?”

“If you run, I’ll vote for you too.”

“No. I have no intention of running.”

Just the mayor of Seoul.

It’s not even a stepping stone.

I have to climb faster, and higher.

At that, I stood up from my seat.

There was no time to sit around.

“This should be enough for the handover.”

Jeong Gi-hwan glanced at Seong Yo-han, who was sitting in the seat of honor, then looked back at me.

In three days, the existing personnel, including Jeong Gi-hwan, would be leaving.

Today was the final handover meeting arranged for that purpose.

“Do you have any questions?”

Jeong Gi-hwan, who had brought it up, looked embarrassed himself.

“I doubt you would. You know Jeju Island better than I do. In fact, I’m the one with more questions.”

It seemed so.

“The geographical changes suddenly stopped, and the Monsters that used to pop out three times a day aren’t appearing anymore.”

“Monsters? We haven’t seen a single rat.”

Oh Jeong-hun nodded his head vehemently.

They didn’t say it directly, but their eyes did.

You did this, didn’t you, Choi Gi-woong-ssi? Right? But how?

All sorts of questions were pouring in. If I answered them one by one, I’d run out of time.

Instead, I smiled with satisfaction and took out the materials I had prepared.

Thud. A thick stack of paper landed on the table.

Everyone’s gaze immediately shot toward it.

“…What is this?”

“Please submit this to the Association when you return.”

“All of this?”

“Yes.”

Jeong Gi-hwan nodded his head reluctantly. Meanwhile, Hwang Mu-yeol, who was next to him, licked his lips.

“I rushed over because they said you were going to die, but what do you mean, die?”

He scanned me up and down with a dreadful gaze.

The old monks from the Oracle were the same.

Mahinda and Murata asked with meaningful expressions.

“…What is the secret?”

One of them leaned his upper body far forward, showing his interest in me.

He was just holding back from openly asking me to teach him magic because we were in front of people, but his eyes were nothing short of desperate.

I glanced at Seong Yo-han. He was watching this whole situation with his arms crossed, looking extremely uncomfortable.

I need to properly wrap things up with this guy, too.

It won’t be difficult. The difference in our power is stark.

As I was thinking, Hwang Mu-yeol spoke.

“So, can we just go home with this guy? It doesn’t look like there’s much to do.”

I nodded. At the same time, I said.

“Before that, you have something to do with me.”

“Something to do? What is there to do here? What is this unsettling business?”

“You don’t have to go if you don’t want to.”

Though you’ll regret it if you don’t.

“Why do you say something so disappointing? Who said I don’t want to? It’s just that it feels fishy, that’s all. I’m going, I’m going. I don’t know what it is, but let’s go and see.”

As Oh Jeong-hun said, Jeju Island had become safe.

Not a single rat could sneak out, and the Monsters and Demons were completely separated by zone.

A-Ranks with A-Ranks. B-Ranks with B-Ranks. Grunts with grunts. So that they could never cross the line.

In other words. It meant it was our turn to hunt them.

[Teleport]

As soon as the magic was cast, my body was moved.

The forest that made up this area was already destroyed.

It seemed to be the work of that creature.

Soon, I was able to find it.

“Uwaaaaaaah!”

The Demon with long, flowing hair was screaming its head off and rampaging.

It was one of the High Priests. The one I ran into when I went to save Jung Hye-in.

Suddenly, my eyes met with the creature’s.

It was different from before. The creature’s expression, which had looked at me like prey, was now filled with bewilderment.

It had to be.

I had scattered the five High Priests on Jeju Island.

One by one.

I had even created a separate Barrier for them.

The very thing that creature had been struggling to break until just a moment ago.

Meanwhile, the creature’s bewildered eyes suddenly turned hostile.

Its red eyes shone brilliantly.

The creature glared at me. I did the same.

We both felt it. The creature and I were of the same kind.

Neither of us could guarantee victory.

And yet, the creature’s face brightened.

I think I know what it’s thinking.

-If I just kill you, I’ll be free.

The creature’s telepathic message pierced my brain.

At the same time, the thing took a step forward.

Following that, a black haze rose from its body.

“I don’t know what you’re mistaken about. But I have no intention of having a righteous fight.”

Maybe if I could get some Experience Points.

The creature flinched.

It wasn’t because of my words.

“Is that the one? The one that ganged up on you?”

“Yes.”

Hwang Mu-yeol appeared from behind. The next moment, the monks from the Oracle also appeared one by one.

“You can rest assured. That thing is alone.”

At my words, the four S-Rank Awakeners’ eyes flashed.

They had to.

The System is more generous to Demons than to Monsters.

Meaning, they give more Experience Points.

The next moment, the creature faltered and stepped back.

But as I already said. No matter what it does, it cannot escape this domain.

One S-Rank versus five S-Ranks.

The outcome of the fight is obvious without even trying.

As I said before.

It was our turn to start the hunt.