Chapter 17 – The Chaebol Demon King and the Returned Hero (3)

The mission I was given when summoned to another world was to defeat the Demon King.

They said the Demon King’s presence had thickened the demonic barrier, making it impossible to open a gate.

It was a tired cliché, but only someone from another dimension could wield the Holy Sword.

My body was too weak to handle the Holy Sword, so I endured training that nearly killed me, over and over again.

I trained to forge hard muscles, tireless stamina, and of course, an inexhaustible well of mana.

A year later.

The Demon King’s army began to move, intent on bringing the Seven Kingdoms to their knees.

The kingdoms united, banding together to prevent their own destruction.

The Demon King remained unfazed by the allied assault of the Seven Kingdoms. In fact, he seemed pleased, taking the opportunity to flaunt the overwhelming might of his army.

Death Knights, bound only to the Demon King’s will. Wraiths inhabited by the spirits of the dead rose again at their master’s command, weapons in hand. They unleashed lance charges more powerful than they ever could in life, striking terror into the hearts of the Seven Kingdoms.

On the first day, the king who fought most bravely met his end.

The next day was no different. A fierce battle raged, but each time, the Demon King would unveil a new unit of his royal guard, mocking the humans.

Those who remembered the death of the bravest king on the first day began to fight more cautiously. And that was precisely the picture the Demon King had wanted to paint.

Just like that, the Seven Kingdoms were overwhelmed by the Demon King. The one thing that rekindled their fading hope was the knight order I led myself.

* * *

“If it weren’t for that knight order, I would have become the master of the Seven Kingdoms.”

“Only amateurs regret past decisions. It’s pointless to wish you’d treated your ex-girlfriend better, isn’t it?”

“How much for the signing bonus?”

“According to my calculations as a math major, a signing bonus of 20 million won seems appropriate for the Hero.”

“So I get to beat you for 20 million won’s worth?”

“As a physical education major, I won’t be a pushover. I have a black belt, you know.”

That Olivier must have created a bunch of useless clones to attend all those different universities.

She must want to sound like some kind of elite, but I know her true nature. She’s surprisingly clumsy, and there’s always a flaw in whatever she does.

Thanks to that, she tried to ambush me once, only to get her soul thrashed out of her before she fled.

Let’s see.

Tushin offered me 3.5 billion.

“10 billion.”

“Billion….”

“Let’s go with 10 billion.”

Olivier actually gasped.

Currently, only S-ranks receive signing bonuses of 10 billion won or more.

And that’s just in Korea. If they go overseas, that salary skyrockets several times over.

Thanks to that, several of our country’s S-rank Awakeners have changed their citizenship.

“That’s a hefty sum for a Hero who claims to perform righteous deeds and help those in need.”

Why are you so obsessed with money?

That’s what he meant.

Come on, let’s not play games.

“Does a Hero not eat or shit? Do you think selling something worth a million won for ten thousand is a good investment, just to be generous?”

Let’s be honest.

“Is 10 billion too much for me?”

I don’t think so.

A piece of paper resume isn’t worth 10 billion. But if you ask the people who know me what I’m worth…

“It’s cheap. Ridiculously so.”

That’s the answer you’d get.

Even the Demon King, Im Jae-joon, quirks his lips in agreement.

“I’ve only just become the guild master. Signing someone with no experience to such an unconventional contract will make the cleanup difficult.”

“The great Demon King is afraid of getting chewed out by a bunch of old geezers?”

“You think a Demon King hears nagging as classical music?”

Honestly, I get it.

There’s skepticism within the global conglomerate Hanul Group about the guild business.

That’s because the former master—the Hanul Group chairman’s eldest son—put on all sorts of ridiculous shows.

Hunters causing trouble due to rampant corruption and mismanagement.

The hunter business, a golden goose for other corporations, has been nothing but a money pit for Hanul.

Given the situation, Hanul’s pockets weren’t exactly deep.

“Make a bold move and capture the public’s attention. That’s what you’re good at.”

You know I’ll be worth that money in no time, right?

“Treat your talent well. Then the pearls still hidden in the mud, who have yet to reveal their worth, will come to you on their own.”

When King Zhao of Yan was searching for talent, his retainer Guo Wei told the king to start by cherishing him.

Seeing the favored Guo Wei, talented people flocked to the king like clouds.

Of course, it’s not like there’s any talent greater than me.

“You never coveted a single gold coin in the other world.”

“I have a lot of uses for it in this one.”

Money’s good.

And there’s something I’ve personally wanted to invest in if I got the money.

It won’t be a loss for me or for Im Jae-joon.

“10 billion is too much. 4 billion.”

Im Jae-joon made a counteroffer.

That’s more than Tushin’s 3.5 billion.

“9.5 billion.”

“4.5 billion.”

The basics of negotiation are to meet in the middle.

“9 billion.”

“5 billion.”

“On top of that, I’ll give you full support with all the equipment developed by the guild’s research lab.”

“Don’t you provide that anyway?”

“That’s under normal circumstances.”

The Demon King said, raising a hand to Olivier.

She immediately pulled a sword from her inventory.

At a glance, its brilliant luster, clearly made from the finest materials, dazzled my eyes.

The primary weapon of hunters. An Ether Blade.

“An MAA-RX07 Longsword, Blue Label-class weapon. Made by Graham.”

Touching it, I could tell the blade was different.

In an age where wars were ended by missiles, cold weapons had grown weak. But with the advent of the hunter era, a new age dawned, one where cold weapons and science merged.

The weapon’s properties vary by its label. The Blue series generally prioritizes durability.

“Wait, you said Graham?”

“Yes, *that* Graham.”

The legendary dwarf mister who was called the greatest blacksmith on the continent.

That old guy is here?

“You know Graham’s value as well as anyone. It seems you have another reason you must join our guild.”

“Sorry, but there’s no friends-and-family discount, and we weren’t even friends to begin with. Not a chance. 8.5 billion.”

“5.5 billion. And I’ll give you a stake in the guild.”

“A stake?”

“Yours. Yes.”

He rests his clasped hands on his crossed knee.

“Interested in raising a knight order again?”

In other words, he’s offering to support me in creating my own team.

Of course, I can live just fine on my own. But dungeons are ultimately about team play.

And for the future, it would be advantageous to have a group of companions who can act as my hands and feet.

“I’ll help you build a team to your liking.”

I was definitely right to come here.

Because we were once enemies, we can better acknowledge each other’s worth.

“8 billion.”

“6 billion.”

“And I’ll take care of all the issues regarding your housemate.”

Im Jae-joon had sealed the deal.

“Done.”

The deal was struck.

* * *

To be honest, I’d been worried about Katrinne for a while.

Katrinne has no resident registration number. More importantly, there’s no data on her in the modern era.

I plan to send her back to her original world, but I have no idea when that will be.

And until that day comes, I wanted her to be able to live a normal life.

I signed with Hanul for 6 billion won.

Signing a newly awakened hunter, a mere supporter at that, for 6 billion is an incredibly bold move.

Im Jae-joon will probably be called crazy.

Well, not my problem.

I returned home and told Katrinne that the Demon King was here.

Hearing this, Katrinne’s pupils trembled.

It’s no wonder.

She’s from another world. To them, the Demon King is a symbol of terror.

Katrinne, in particular, was like a saintess of the church, so her compatibility with the Demon King was especially poor.

“I can get you your own card now.”

Until now, she’d been using a card under my name.

The gaming account she used, even her portal site account, were all created under my name.

“Happy?”

“So, if I get an ID card, I can get my own credit card and engage in economic activities?”

“Uh, probably?”

“Does that mean I can trade real estate now?”

She starts with the scary stuff.

She has no idea how terrifying housing prices are. An ordinary office worker might have to toil like an ant their entire life just to afford a single home.

Or else drown in mortgage debt.

“I saw there are things called schools here. Is that possible too?”

She’s still a teenager, so she might want to go to school. It’s a place where kids her age gather, so it’s natural to be curious.

“Do you want to go to school?”

“No, a main quest popped up.”

What is she talking about now?

“I have to, if I want to raise my synchronization rate.”

She loved games so much, her life has literally become one.

Wanting to go to school just to complete a quest…

“Heheh. The rewards are pretty sweet.”

Katrinne was mimicking a shady old man counting his money.

She looks perfectly normal, but the things she does….

A week later, Katrinne’s resident registration card arrived.

Lee Seo-yeon.

That became Katrinne’s Korean name.

* * *

“Jae-joon.”

Im Jae-joon turned his head at the sound of his name.

How many people at the company would call him by his first name? As expected, an unpleasant face was there.

“Heard you laid off a bunch of people?”

It was his eldest brother, Im Jae-ho.

“They were my people, though. If you fire them all like that, what does that do to my reputation?”

“Employees who only know how to suck up. Aides who only think about how to flirt their way up. How am I supposed to work with people like that?”

At Im Jae-joon’s words, his brother let out a sly grin.

“This punk is always so prickly with his big brother. If you just get rid of them like that, it’ll look too obvious. Like you have a problem with me. You need to be mindful of how things look. Play with some class.”

“Don’t worry. I only let go of the corrupt employees. If they object, I’ll have to take disciplinary action for how they’ve handled their duties and embezzled company resources, won’t I? Money or discipline. They made their choice.”

His little brother, always challenging him. Come to think of it, he’d always been a stiff-necked brat, even as a kid. A constant thorn in his side, and their relationship had never been good.

“Things have been noisy lately, haven’t they? I heard you paid a 6-billion-won signing bonus to recruit a single porter?”

This was the reason he’d come to see his brother today.

Im Jae-ho openly sneered at his younger brother.

It was laughable that their father trusted him.

“If you don’t know what you’re doing, you should have hired a professional manager. Do you not know the market rate? 6 billion for a mere porter. And you’re making a guy with zero experience the raid leader? Everyone’s talking. Wondering what kind of expensive luggage he’s carrying to be worth 6 billion won. Father will be disappointed when he finds out.”

“Thanks to you disappointing him so much, I doubt he’ll be disappointed by something like this.”

After all, some people had even started calling the Hanul Guild the “Delinquent Guild.”

Hanul was the only guild that caused all sorts of incidents and accidents.

Thanks to that, there were even shareholders within Hanul Group calling for the guild to be disbanded.

“Yang Cheon-soo and Kim Chang-yeon won’t go down without a fight. They may have caused trouble, but they’re old-timers who’ve been with the guild since its inception. Their individual rankings are pretty high, too.”

“The tail is wagging the dog.”

“A dog can’t bite its master. But maybe they can tear apart the new dog you brought in?”

They were two mad dogs that even Im Jae-ho had trouble handling. If they were told to leave the guild, Yang Cheon-soo and Kim Chang-yeon wouldn’t just say ‘Yes, sir’ and walk away quietly.

It was nothing to be proud of, but the Hanul Guild was already basically run by the factions of those two men.

“I know.”

“You know? So, do you have a plan?”

“Nope.”

At his brother’s words, Im Jae-ho’s lips curled into a smile. In a way, having the guild business taken from him could actually be a blessing in disguise.

Running a guild is no easy task.

The more he ran it into the ground, the more his successful little brother’s reputation would plummet.

Fortunately, thanks to his prior experience in that field, he still had a fair bit of influence.

“You don’t need to worry. If anything, 6 billion is a bargain.”

If he were someone who could be swayed by money, I would have paid him even more in the other world.

Keeping him from becoming an enemy for a mere 6 billion is a huge profit.

“That friend. He’s going to become our guild’s franchise player.”

Im Jae-joon said, a smile playing on his lips.

The goose that lays the golden eggs, which no one else knows about.

He was so unsettling as an enemy, but as an ally, he couldn’t be more reassuring.