Chapter 105
Chapter 105
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 105
Chapter Title: Sources of Demonic Energy
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#105
"Which one are you among them?"
At that question, Seo Woo-jin drew in a sharp breath.
Even though he'd known for a while that Briana was aware of demonic energy, it still startled him.
"...I'm..."
"I'm just teasing. Didn't I tell you before? I'll let it slide. So don't worry too much."
Briana reached out and ruffled Seo Woo-jin's hair.
"Anyway, from what I know, these are all the cases. I only found out about this stuff because I looked into it for you."
Come to think of it, Briana had said she had no idea how Seo Woo-jin had come to possess demonic energy.
'You idiot.'
If he'd recalled that sooner, he wouldn't have come all the way to Mernotain.
But in the end, it had worked out for the best.
After that, Briana had done some investigating and uncovered a few possibilities.
"So, how do you reverse it for heroes who gained demonic energy that way?"
Now that he knew the potential causes, it was time to find solutions.
Even if it meant beating them half to death, he was willing to do it.
But Briana's response wasn't what Seo Woo-jin had hoped for.
"I don't know."
She shook her head.
"I haven't found a way yet. I looked into it pretty thoroughly, though..."
Briana said with a dejected expression.
But Seo Woo-jin was a little touched.
The fact that she'd researched ways to remove demonic energy was clearly for his sake.
"It's fine. This was helpful enough."
He'd be lying if he said he wasn't disappointed, but this was plenty.
She'd found the causes for him; now he just had to figure out the rest himself.
"Sorry. You came all this way for nothing."
Seo Woo-jin smiled.
"Just getting to see the Grand Duke like this is satisfying enough. And it's been a nice, relaxing day for once."
Briana let out a small snort at Seo Woo-jin's words.
"Can't believe how sappy you've gotten in the short time we haven't seen each other."
"Yeah, right? Oh, by the way, the city's improved a lot."
To change the subject, Seo Woo-jin mentioned what he'd seen.
"The Sky Tower sent a ton of support. We've poured every bit of our funds into the reconstruction too. Of course it's coming along quickly."
"But why is the Grand Duke's Castle still the same?"
That part struck him as odd.
By his thinking, they'd have repaired the castle first.
"The main keep is last."
"Huh?"
"My children's homes come first. This castle can be rebuilt later. Plenty of rooms anyway, so no worries about rain or wind."
"Ah..."
He felt a bit embarrassed.
He'd assumed they'd fix the Grand Duke's castle—the seat of the city's lord—first.
But the lord herself was prioritizing her people.
Seo Woo-jin's face grew hot.
"I'm sorry."
Knowing his question had demeaned her stature, he bowed his head in apology.
"No need for that. Even Maygers and Lumas are nagging me to repair the castle first. I explain it to them, but they won't listen. Why don't you go talk those two out of it?"
She spoke teasingly on purpose, so Seo Woo-jin wouldn't feel awkward anymore.
Thanks to that, Seo Woo-jin chuckled.
"Oh, but what do we do about this?"
"What happened?"
"I'm swamped with city reconstruction issues. Can't make any more time today."
She looked genuinely sorry.
"You didn't even contact her first—you just showed up. It's fine."
"Sorry. I'll make it up to you tomorrow and have some fun."
"S-sure."
Seo Woo-jin nodded awkwardly at her childlike tone.
"I'll let them know, so rest up. If you're bored, go out and sightsee."
Briana must have truly been busy, because with that, she folded space itself and vanished.
Left alone, Seo Woo-jin scratched his head.
"What now?"
If even Briana didn't know how to remove demonic energy, he'd have to look elsewhere.
"But how the hell did that guy get demonic energy?"
Baek Si-woo surely hadn't sworn loyalty to become a servant of the Demon King.
He was far too upright for that.
'The textbook hero.'
Maybe demonic possession?
It was possible.
It was a trope from wuxia novels sometimes.
A master who reached a high realm slips up, gets possessed by inner demons, and goes mad.
Given Baek Si-woo's level, it fit.
"If he directly absorbed demonic energy, it'd be similar to when I took in that ruby gem from Loji Ruby, right?"
His class played a bigger role, but thinking back, this hypothesis held water too.
After all, he'd taken in the demonic energy and let it settle in his body.
"That's a possibility."
There was no zero chance Baek Si-woo had eaten something he shouldn't have.
"...Or maybe he fell from grace on his own."
Who knew.
He didn't even know how to raise one's realm—how would he know how to lower it?
So he couldn't rule it out.
"Probably one of these two."
Demonic possession, or ate something bad.
Now that he had leads, he'd subtly check at the academy or Sky Tower.
"What to do now..."
With Briana gone, there wasn't much to do alone in the Grand Duke's Castle.
"...Maybe go sightseeing?"
Last time he'd been here, he hadn't properly explored Mernotain.
Too busy dying and coming back to life for tours or whatever.
The city wasn't fully rebuilt yet, but a quick walk around should be fine.
Seo Woo-jin left the drawing room and headed into the city.
"It really feels like a resort."
Different vibe from the capital.
The architecture was distinct, and so were the people's expressions.
He could've believed it was a whole other country.
"Hard to believe it's just a four-hour train ride and everything's so different."
The streets bustled with people.
As if that horrific event had never happened, their faces brimmed with energy.
Seo Woo-jin wandered the city like a tourist.
Ate some street food, bought a heap of souvenirs for his team.
After walking around for a good while, Eileen suddenly crossed his mind.
"Should've brought her along?"
It was a sensitive topic, so he'd come alone on purpose...
Knowing this, coming together would've been better.
But regretting it now was pointless.
He couldn't just go fetch her.
Feeling oddly lonely, Seo Woo-jin scratched his head and turned toward the Grand Duke's Castle.
Better to head back, rest, and leave early tomorrow morning.
That's when he turned.
But he couldn't take a step.
"Fancy seeing you here again?"
Reina stood right in front of him.
Thump-
Seo Woo-jin felt his heart pound.
'What?'
Looking at her face stirred something strange.
But it wasn't like when he'd first seen her at the capital's train station.
Not a pleasant flutter.
If anything...
'The exact opposite.'
Tension surged.
At the same time, alarm bells rang in his head.
He didn't know why.
She was the same person as before, so why were his feelings so different?
Unconsciously, his hand reached for Rune Dear.
But it stopped halfway, thwarted.
Swish-
Reina's hand effortlessly grabbed his wrist.
It made no sense.
Even at full alert, he hadn't dodged such a simple move.
Reina's lips parted.
White teeth gleamed.
"Good instincts."
"What...!"
He snapped to his senses too late and tried to pull his arm free.
It wouldn't budge.
Strength far beyond Seo Woo-jin's.
"You should sleep a bit and wake up."
In that instant, red energy burst from Reina's eyes.
'...Demonic energy.'
The warm, familiar aura swallowed Seo Woo-jin's body.
He tried to resist, but couldn't.
Seo Woo-jin felt his eyelids grow heavy, then blacked out completely.
* * *
The Grand Duke's Castle erupted in chaos.
At first, they thought he'd just been out too long.
Briana felt a bit slighted, but figured he'd return soon and waited.
He didn't.
Not after a day, nor two.
Just in case, she contacted the academy.
They said Seo Woo-jin hadn't returned either.
Only then did Briana realize something had gone wrong.
She immediately began scouring all of Mernotain.
Still no trace of him.
There were signs he'd toured various spots in the city.
But at some point, he'd vanished like smoke.
Her knights and soldiers weren't enough, so Briana took to the streets herself.
And...
Right in the middle of the main boulevard, she found traces of demonic energy.
"Witnesses?"
"Sorry. No one remembers the situation clearly."
Briana's face was stiffer than ever before.
Even when facing Gerald, it hadn't been this bad.
"Request support from the Sky Tower."
"Lord Sword Sage has already promised to visit."
"Tell them to hurry. It's a very bad feeling."
"Understood."
Maygers gave a crisp salute and left the room.
"Haa-"
Left alone, Briana sighed.
Seo Woo-jin had clearly been abducted right in the middle of the boulevard.
Dozens, hundreds of people there, yet no one saw it.
Briana knew who could pull that off.
"Those fanatic mongrel cultists have come crawling back to my city."
Followers of the Demon King.
One as exceptional as Gerald, no doubt.
'Not ordinary demonic energy.'
The lingering scent was too faint to learn much.
But its owner was at least Gerald's level.
Maybe higher.
"Who could it be?"
A few names flashed through her mind.
But none among them could cause an incident this traceless.
"Someone we don't know."
That made it worse.
If even the Empire's Intelligence Agency Crusiel hadn't identified them, tracking would be hell.
Suddenly, she recalled Seo Woo-jin asking about demonic energy.
"Is it related?"
No way to know.
But the timing was too coincidental to call it chance.
The day he asked about demonic energy, he was kidnapped by someone reeking of it.
"Lumas."
Briana called her butler.
The door opened, and Lumas entered.
"Find out everything about Woo-jin's recent activities. Everything from the academy, down to the smallest detail."
"Understood."
As Lumas left, her face filled with worry again.
'Please be safe.'
She still owed him her life.
Until she could fully repay that debt, she prayed nothing happened to him.