Chapter 225 – Downfall (2)

He was the kind of man you’d want to tear to pieces.

To satisfy their greed, they had come to their world, spraying bullets everywhere.

Wielding the power to traverse dimensions, they reveled in wanton slaughter.

They didn’t just kill beings from other dimensions; they mercilessly slaughtered people from their own world as well.

The more one heard about the secret research conducted in his basement, the more one doubted that a human being could do such things to another.

“Guh, ugh…!”

Seeing Director Shin Chae-ho, still breathing, Seol Ji-hoon felt a murderous intent prickle him like thorns.

The man deserved to die.

But Seol Ji-hoon didn’t kill him.

“You didn’t kill him?”

Just then, a relaxed and sly voice spoke from behind.

Hyunbin had approached without him noticing.

“Didn’t you tell me not to kill him?”

“Ah. Such a good boy, our Seol Ji-hoon.”

“Address me with respect.”

“Oh, right. My apologies, *Master* Seol Ji-hoon.”

Hyunbin said, patting Seol Ji-hoon on the shoulder.

“You did well to hold back.”

“…”

His tone made it sound like he knew exactly what Seol Ji-hoon was thinking.

He was always like this.

“I didn’t do it for your praise.”

“Right, right.”

Lee Hyunbin said as he crouched down to meet the director’s eyes.

“It would be a problem if you died. Not before we tell everyone what our dear director has been up to.”

“Guh, you’ll regret…”

“Regret? If this was something I’d regret, I never would have started.”

The fastest way to end a war is to eliminate the reason for the war first.

In other words, eliminate the enemy’s leader with a surprise attack.

“You’ve got a long prison sentence ahead of you.”

As Hyunbin said this, he was about to store the director in his inventory.

-Hero!

Olivier’s urgent voice came through.

“…”

Hyunbin saw special forces being deployed around the building.

The situation was already resolved. Yet, a special ops team, armed with magic-infused bullets, was surrounding the area.

“Hunter Lee Hyunbin!”

The voice of the special ops commander boomed through a megaphone.

“As of this moment, you are under arrest for suspicion of murder! I repeat! Resistance is futile. As of this…”

Hyunbin saw the muzzles of the guns pointed at him.

Hearing the Miranda rights being read through the megaphone felt bizarre.

Seeing this, the director let out a low, rasping laugh.

“A mere hunter… daring to defy the authorities…?”

It was like a line from a batter who hit a walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth.

Hyunbin couldn’t understand the situation. Why had the Hunter special ops team suddenly appeared?

He had started this with a set plan.

He had investigated the Disaster Agency’s corruption, and he had witnesses and evidence to prove it.

Of course, he hadn’t done it alone. He had teamed up with the Hunter Management Bureau, who were supposed to have his back.

“Betrayal.”

Hyunbin muttered calmly.

-Hero, get out of there!

No matter what anti-Hunter weapons the special ops team had, they were no match for Hyunbin.

Knowing that, Olivier was still warning him.

-The Demon King….

She continued.

-The Demon King… he betrayed you, Hero…!

* * *

The Hero drew his sword.

The director of an agency that had hired a Villain who’d massacred people in the streets.

More importantly, he wasn’t acting on his own.

He was someone’s puppet.

He was lost in grandiose delusions, chasing a fantasy.

The Hero couldn’t possibly leave such a man be.

“I need some support.”

“Hmph. What do you take me for, your servant? Do you have any idea how valuable I am? Always ordering me around for nothing.”

She sniped at him, just like always.

She grumbled, but she didn’t mind.

They were once enemies, but now they were allies.

She could help him, and he could protect her.

A hero dragged into a desperate struggle in another world, forced to sacrifice not just his own life but everything to protect others.

He was worshipped by everyone, but he was lonely and alone.

People always expected things of him, never knowing the weight of that burden.

Perhaps it was a touch of cosmic irony that he came to this world and awakened as a mere porter.

Even the Demon King Dantalian, whom she deeply admired, had said it.

If the Hero had been summoned to their side instead of the kingdom’s, things would have turned out very differently.

The great Demon King had lamented this. And now, just as he’d wished, they were on the same side as the Hero.

The two of them were so different, yet so alike.

Kim Min-ah was overjoyed to be on the Hero’s side. It meant she no longer had to tremble before his overwhelming power.

That should have been the only reason, yet she felt something strange stirring in her heart.

After she was reincarnated in the modern era, through middle school and high school, memories of the Hero had remained lodged in her heart.

Now that she was in the Hero’s world, she thought she might meet him someday.

It wasn’t a bad feeling.

The haggard face of the Hero pouring liquor on the graves of his fallen comrades. He wouldn’t have to be lonely anymore.

At least she would be there for him.

That’s how it should have been.

“What…?”

Kim Min-ah questioned the words of Im Jae-joon, the Demon King and CEO of the group.

Something about what she had just heard felt wrong.

“You didn’t mishear. There’s no need to support the Hero anymore.”

Im Jae-joon muttered while savoring the tea Kim Min-ah had made.

In the end, Kim Min-ah realized she hadn’t misheard.

No more support for the Hero. Right now, the Hero was launching a surprise attack on the enemy’s base to take down the Disaster Agency.

The Disaster Agency’s cronies would use every means possible to rescue their director. The Demon King’s group was on standby to stop them. And yet, he was cutting off support.

“Why?”

Kim Min-ah asked, unable to understand.

Had this been discussed with the Hero beforehand? No, that was impossible.

“We were originally enemies with the Hero, weren’t we?”

“But we formed an alliance. No, we became a family.”

At Kim Min-ah’s words, Im Jae-joon crossed his legs and interlaced his fingers, staring intently at her.

The corners of his mouth twisted into a cold line.

“It was an alliance, just as you said. Alliances are formed when both sides share a common goal. And alliances are always meant to be broken.”

“But…”

Allies don’t betray each other.

Allies don’t stab each other in the back.

Such notions were utterly naive.

She knew that.

But Kim Min-ah thought the Demon King and the Hero had become close friends.

They were striving for the same supremacy, shared the same ideals. Besides, when she had asked the Demon King if he resented the Hero, he had spoken of him with favor.

“Ah, I get it. This is a surprise, right? You have a wicked sense of humor, Demon King.”

Kim Min-ah scoffed and crossed her arms. Seeing her laugh, Im Jae-joon’s expression remained stern.

His reaction was cold.

“Why…?”

“We exist for ourselves, not for the Hero.”

At Im Jae-joon’s words, Kim Min-ah couldn’t say anything.

The way he said ‘we’ bothered her.

“Sir, when you say ‘we’…”

“I’m talking about the East.”

The Demon King of the East. The domain ruled by Agares, the second-ranked Demon King.

“Yes, I’ve decided to join hands with Agares.”

The ruler of the East, a grand duke of demons.

The immortal Agares.

He is the strongest Demon King in existence.

Olivier’s shoulders trembled in shock.

“You know the Hero would never betray you. And he even… your mother…”

“Olivier.”

A voice so cold and heavy it was hard to bear.

This was Dantalian, whose charisma was great enough to unite the unruly demon race. He was now asserting his authority as a monarch over his subordinate.

She knew exactly what that meant.

“Is your master the Hero, or me?”

“That’s…”

“We are the Demon King’s army. Not the human army.”

Olivier couldn’t answer that.

“I knew you had a soft side. But I didn’t know you were this soft-hearted.”

The Demon King considered her his right-hand woman.

In terms of raw power, she wouldn’t even make the list. But what she lacked in strength, she made up for with outstanding skills in management and reconnaissance.

She had a keen eye for the bigger picture and always made wise judgments. That was why the Demon King valued her so highly.

“I’m sorry.”

“What do you mean by that?”

Im Jae-joon asked with a cold face.

“It means I will follow my heart.”

Kim Min-ah said with her hands clasped. Her eyes were unwavering.

“I’m disappointed.”

Disappointment laced his voice.

As a member of the Demon King’s army, she had never once defied her lord’s will. She had believed only he could revive their forces, only he could achieve their grand ambition.

But now her gaze had strayed from that grand cause.

Her gaze was now fixed on the hero who shone with more brilliant achievements than anyone, yet was a man tormented by the darkest of traumas.

“Thank you for the immense kindness you have shown me.”

At Kim Min-ah’s decisive words, Im Jae-joon fell silent for a moment before speaking.

“Alright, I will respect your wishes.”

The Demon King’s permission was granted. No, even without permission, she had intended to leave.

She bowed politely to him. Then, without any lingering attachment, she turned her back and walked away.

As Kim Min-ah left the office, Im Jae-joon was left alone.

-I, Olivier, will serve by the Demon King’s side until he becomes the supreme ruler.

Remembering the young succubus whose eyes shone with firm resolve, Im Jae-joon gave a bitter smile.

Somehow, it felt like raising a daughter only to have her stolen by another man.

He had known from the beginning.

That Olivier would go to the Hero.

He had noticed something was different about her a long time ago.

Her surveillance reports on the kingdom were always filled with details about the Hero—curses directed at him, followed by long, detailed accounts of his circumstances.

The ironic tale of a man-seducing succubus being seduced herself.

It wasn’t surprising.

After all, he himself was still agonizing over his own ‘choice’.

The Supreme Ruler, the path of conquest.

A sweet-sounding tale for a Demon King.

Im Jae-joon let out a low sigh. Then he leaned back on the luxurious sofa, tilted his head back, and muttered bitterly.

“Take care of the Hero, Olivier.”

* * *

Olivier quickly got rid of her clone, Kim Min-ah.

Awakening in her true form, she shot out of bed, quickly shedding her pajamas for a sweatsuit.

“I’m crazy.”

This is crazy. She had betrayed the Demon King.

She had openly defied the absolute pillar of all demonkind and walked out.

Logically, it was insane. But right now, she was ruled by an emotion far stronger than logic.

She stared at her bare face in the mirror.

Unlike her clones, who walked around with confidence and arrogance in their flashy clothes and makeup, her features were simple and clean.

She put on a hat and pulled the hood of her hoodie over her head.

The Demon King was meticulous. He probably wouldn’t let a traitor like her go free.

She had to get out of here, fast. And she needed to secure an escape route for the Hero and get the information to him. He was surrounded.

This couldn’t have been planned in just a day or two. It seemed like it had been in the works for a long time.

‘He even kept it a secret from me.’

Olivier bit her lip, realizing the Demon King had kept it a secret even from her.

She had already contacted the Hero. The special ops team had him surrounded.

But the Hero was calm. Naturally. No one in this world could possibly capture him.

There’s no way the Demon King didn’t know that.

Not when he was the one who had been defeated by the Hero in the first place.

But she felt an ominous presence.

The immortal Agares. The eternal ruler of the East is coming.

She rushed out of the house, pulling out her phone. There were people she needed to contact to help the Hero.

At that moment, a news alert appeared on her phone.

“This is…”

She instinctively frowned.

The news media was already full of articles about Lee Hyunbin. As if they had all prepared the articles in advance.

This was not the time to be looking at news articles.

Olivier called Kim In-ho, but he didn’t pick up. Of all the times for this to happen.

The moment she was about to call Kim Tae-yang next, she saw a man blocking her path.

“Olivier.”

Vice Demon King Dalton was standing in front of her house.

“I warned you, didn’t I?”

He bared his teeth and smiled.