Chapter 26
Chapter 26
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 26
Chapter Title: Harmony
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A half-horn engulfed in blue flames.
Ghostfire flickering in his pupils.
Anyone could see it was unmistakably not human.
Especially with the eerie presence still lingering in the surroundings.
"……."
Mina stared at Bihyeong like that.
Bihyeong inwardly pondered what to say to her, what words to offer first.
It hadn't been long since he'd regained his senses,
but her unexpected words left him with a blank expression.
"You okay?"
He touched his cheek, scanning his entire body.
Her gaze trembled as it searched for wounds, filled with worry for him.
It wasn't a pretense to escape danger—just pure, genuine concern.
The sincerity in her eyes was so palpable that
Bihyeong offered no excuses or explanations, simply pulling her into a tight embrace.
"...Who's worrying who here? You were almost eaten just a minute ago."
"Ah... Eheh. Yeah, you're right?"
He felt her awkwardly scratching her cheek.
Only then could Bihyeong finally relax.
'This is the usual Mina. Nothing... nothing's changed at all.'
Thank goodness.
Really... thank goodness.
Perhaps from the relief, the strength in his arms around her increased just a bit.
Mina felt a rush of heat to her head from the pressure of his tight embrace.
Now she realized her own appearance and the situation they were in.
'B-Bihyeong... h-hugging...!'
Her face burned so hot it felt like steam might rise from her head, her eyes spinning.
The world seemed to whirl around her.
Even after confessing her feelings outright, she had no resistance to something like this, so she floundered for words.
"B-Bihyeong! What happened to that yokai? It was super strong..."
"That fox? Over there."
Only then did Bihyeong realize his own impropriety and quickly released her.
Ahem. I must've lost it a bit from the relief...
"It won't revive again."
He'd sliced it clean through.
The Demon Blade could damage even those unable to be struck.
And he'd amplified its power by enveloping it in Eoduk.
'Through the Spirit Realm, I severed its soul for sure.'
No longer could it lurk in Mina's blood and scheme to take her body.
"...I see."
Mina crouched for a moment, gazing at the fox yokai with its throat slit, then clasped her hands in prayer.
"May you be born less wretched in your next life."
"...What are you doing?"
"I didn't like it, but it claimed to be my ancestor. Figured I owed it the bare minimum."
Hehe.
She dusted herself off with a smile and stood, but staggered for a second.
"Wha—Huh?"
Whoa—!
Her wobbling body bounced a few times before she steadied herself.
She looked around her body in surprise.
"Just now... I tried to stand lightly and almost jumped."
"...Really?"
"Yeah. Is it because the yokai blood in me awakened?"
Mina went "Ah!" and smacked her fist into her palm.
"Is that why your body was always in such great shape, Bihyeong?"
"...Pretty much."
She already knew he was a half-demon.
He hadn't planned to hide it in a situation like this anyway, but... why did it feel so anticlimactic?
'If she accepts it this easily, all my efforts to hide it so far feel wasted.'
Bihyeong shook off his vague emotions and looked at Mina.
More precisely, at her lower abdomen.
'...It's faint, but I can sense it clearly now—a Demon Core has formed.'
She was the same as him now.
Half yokai, that is.
'Living in exorcist society might be tough.'
So what was she supposed to do?
For her ailing mother alone, she couldn't abandon the advantage of attending the academy.
'Not even sure if the panacea would work anymore.'
Now that he knew the secret in her blood,
her mother's collapse might stem from the yokai blood too.
If it was illness or poison, the panacea could cover it, but if the latter...
'I'd have no way to fix it.'
So hospitalization was essential.
The academy's hospital boasted Korea's top medical facilities, after all.
'...My fault?'
He had changed her life, that was true.
Originally, she wouldn't have even made it to the test—she was slated to become a villain.
But paying her that much attention and sticking close was purely Bihyeong's greed.
Her dazzling talent had tempted him: if nurtured well, wouldn't she be useful to him?
That desire had taken priority.
'If my yokai presence influenced her, knowingly or not...'
How should I take responsibility?
'I need to find a way to take responsibility for Mina's mother and her.'
As Bihyeong's eyes began to tremble slightly,
"Bihyeong."
Mina approached and gripped his cheeks with both hands.
"Feels kinda mystical. I think I know what you're thinking right now."
He could see her faint smile.
"You're blaming yourself, right? Thinking it's your fault."
But,
"No. That fox ancestor told me earlier. It was just waiting for me to grow."
Even without meeting Bihyeong, it was her fate eventually.
"So don't worry about it too much."
Despite knowing her own plight well, she smiled calmly and worried for him first—that bitter expression crossed Bihyeong's face.
"Elder, Elder."
Eoduk's voice called out, no longer hiding now that Mina knew she was a half-demon.
"Huh? What's this..."
The Eoduk wrapped around his body reverted to its original form.
A small fluff ball.
Mina's eyes sparkled at the sight.
"Kyaa! So cute!"
Mina gently stroked Eoduk with her finger.
"What's this little guy?"
"Eoduk. One of my Night Parade members. A goblin from an Ancient Relic—we just kinda ran into each other."
But why was Eoduk suddenly speaking up like this?
As curiosity drew his gaze to Eoduk, the creature hopped and spoke.
"Elder! Accept this young lady into your Night Parade!"
"...Invite Mina into the Night Parade?"
He'd asked her to join his party, sure, but...
Party and Night Parade were different frameworks entirely.
'A party is equal partners, but the Night Parade means subordinates under me.'
It meant taking her as a follower.
Of course, he didn't have to think of it that way,
but the connotation wasn't great.
"Why bring it up all of a sudden?"
"It'll solve your dilemma, Elder!"
Eoduk knew exactly the crossroads Bihyeong faced,
and what advice to give for his elder.
"Night Parade members are the boss's followers. They follow the elder and carry out orders."
But they didn't follow without recompense.
"The boss has a duty to care for their subordinates!"
Night Parade members tied soul knots with the boss over shared sake.
"Then the young lady and Elder would connect, and through your Goblin Cap, you could mask her Demon Core's presence!"
Bihyeong's eyes widened at that.
'True. When I first bonded Eoduk as a Night Parade member, a connection formed between us.'
As a low-grade goblin, Eoduk's yokai power was so weak he'd never bothered with the cap.
No exorcists detected him anyway.
'But if it works like Eoduk says?'
As Bihyeong's eyes sparkled toward Mina,
she looked hesitant.
"Th-that... wouldn't that burden you too much, Bihyeong?"
If so, she'd refuse.
Bihyeong could read her heart clearly and shook his head.
"No. It's not a one-sided loss for me."
He'd told her before.
To join his party.
"This is an investment. When your talents fully bloom, use them for me in the future—that kind of investment."
In truth, his inner thoughts differed from his words.
'...I can't just leave her like this.'
Her plight, so like his own, was too pitiable to ignore.
"So, Mina. Will you become one of my Night Parade?"
Bihyeong extended his hand as he spoke.
"……."
Mina stared at his hand for a moment, then a single clear tear trailed down her cheek.
"...Huh? Why's this happening? It's happy news, but..."
She hurriedly wiped her eyes in confusion,
but once started, the tears wouldn't stop easily.
From gratitude,
for all he'd given her—so much, and more—the heartfelt thanks overwhelmed her.
Tears from Mina, who knew him so well.
'…….'
Bihyeong silently waited until her tears subsided,
and soon Mina composed herself with a bright smile.
"...Yeah. Then, shamelessly, I'll owe you again this time."
"Don't worry. I'll collect it all in the future."
"Yeah. Make sure you do."
As Mina smiled brightly and took his hand,
just like with Eoduk before, poof! smoke billowed in the air, and a sake jug and cups appeared.
The two plopped down and filled each other's cups.
Mina gazed at her cup and grinned widely.
"Hey, this is my first time drinking alcohol?"
"Huh?"
"I was planning to try it sometime when we went out to have fun, and now here we are."
Ehehehe.
Her cheeks flushed red as if already tipsy, though she hadn't drunk yet.
"Cheers?"
Bihyeong smiled faintly at her shy offer and clinked his cup against hers.
Clink!
With that sound, they emptied their cups.
In that instant, translucent red threads seemed to flow from their chests.
They soon intertwined in the air, knotting together.
He felt the connection.
Between Mina and himself.
Thus, she was incorporated into his Night Parade.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Accepting a new subordinate under your command.] [Hwang Mina, Race: Half-Human Half-Yokai (Yokai Fox).] [Progress on Unique Story, 'Night Parade of One Hundred Demons' increases.] The rewards for those messages followed immediately.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Unlocking ability of Unique Story, 'Night Parade of One Hundred Demons.'] ⚔ STATUS ⚔ 【Night Parade of One Hundred Demons】 │Boss. │ Harmony. Bihyeong tapped on the Harmony ability.
⚔ STATUS ⚔ 【Harmony】 │The Night Parade of One Hundred Demons is like one organization, or family. │To promote harmony among members, each other's traits are treated as 'assets' and can be 'shared' from the organization's vault. 'Share? Each other's traits?'
Bihyeong immediately examined the potential of this ability and couldn't help but widen his eyes.
'I can register my Demon Core's special trait, Impenetrable Seal, as an asset.'
Then Mina could share and use it.
Sharing others' abilities, talents, and even Bloodline Abilities among Night Parade members.
How cheat-like was this power?
As Bihyeong remained stunned by the newly acquired ability,
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ [Your actions have greatly influenced the 'Main Story'!] [Clearing Act 1 Chapter 2, 【True Calling】.] [Settling rewards.]