A Certain Conviction
Clank!
An ether gun, specifically designed to suppress the Awakened.
It was a powerful weapon that fired high-purity mana bullets extracted from an equipped magic stone battery.
Once hit by these mana bullets, the flow of mana in the target's body would instantly paralyze, reducing even the strongest Awakened to the level of an ordinary human.
Most nations used them to suppress hunters who went berserk after returning from the tower, and France was no exception.
Whirrrrr!
Dozens of ether guns aimed directly at Lee Taepyeong.
"Surrender immediately!"
"..."
"If you do not surrender, we will fire!"
Lee Taepyeong didn't even flinch at the suppression team leader's warning.
His golden eyes quietly watched the movements of the insects before him.
"Marianne! The target is holding La Conclusion. What is the meaning of this?"
"T-the magic sword...?!"
Indeed.
In Lee Taepyeong's hand was the magic sword that should have been in Lucien's possession.
La Conclusion.
The relic of the national hero Julien, and a national treasure of France!
Why was it in his hands?
No, in the first place...
How on earth did Lee Taepyeong return?
There's no way he could have survived Lucien...!
The plan had been perfect.
Cannibalism.
The trait of the 'Devourer' Lucien Moreau, which the French government had uncovered through various experiments.
Through Cannibalism, Lucien could consume the hearts of the Awakened and absorb their traits.
Of course, he couldn't utilize those abilities at one hundred percent.
Sixty to seventy percent was the absolute limit.
But even that was more than enough.
Since the maximum number of abilities Lucien could absorb through Cannibalism was three.
Magic Swordsmanship, obtained by consuming Julien's heart recovered from the tower.
Amelie's Noir Papillon, which was useless on its own.
And even Superalloy Body Transformation, obtained from Germany's Kraus.
Then why...!
Why did Lee Taepyeong return instead of Lucien Moreau?
And alone, at that.
Thump...
The heart thrown in front of Marianne's high heels was still twitching.
Don't tell me this is...
If this is Lucien Moreau's heart...
France is finished.
If the fact that they had hidden the Devourer's existence all this time, and had actually been feeding him the hearts of foreign hunters, was revealed?
The word "finished" wouldn't even begin to describe it.
"...Subdue him," Marianne shrieked in a trembling voice.
"I don't care if you kill him, just do it now!!!"
Whirrrr!
Mana energy gathered at the muzzles of the ether guns.
Pfft-pfft-pfft...!
The moment the energy waves surged toward Lee Taepyeong,
Shring.
A shadow leaped forward.
Boom!
Clash!
Boom!
Clang!
Boom!
Slash!
The exploding light, and the shadow deflecting every single beam.
Shring.
Five swords flashed in the air.
"Any further than this..."
The one blocking the French suppression team was,
"I will not tolerate."
None other than Choi Muryeong.
"Step aside!" Marianne screamed.
"Hunter Lee Taepyeong is armed and threatening us! In accordance with French Hunter Law, we will immediately proceed with his detention—"
"Try it," Choi Muryeong's cold voice echoed.
"If you can."
Shring.
Choi Muryeong leveled his sword.
The four swords floating in the air also turned to point at Marianne and the suppression agents.
"...!!!"
Marianne stared at Choi Muryeong, her face pale with dread.
Her opponent was the world's number three.
It was obvious what would happen if they dared to attack him.
So this is why they sent Choi Muryeong as well...!
Flinch.
Marianne faltered backward.
The suppression agents, too, seemed unable to move in front of Choi Muryeong.
They stood frozen, staring blankly at the back of Marianne's head.
...There is still a chance.
Marianne grit her teeth and glared at Choi Muryeong.
"Look at the sword he is holding!" She pointed at La Conclusion.
"How could he possibly be in possession of France's national treasure!"
"..."
"Furthermore, look at this heart!"
"..."
"Hunter Lee Taepyeong wanted La Conclusion from the very beginning. If he targeted and killed our hunters at the final moment to steal it!"
"..."
"Detaining him is only natural—!!!"
"It seems you cannot feel it."
Choi Muryeong's cold gaze, which had been fixed on the heart on the floor, shifted to Marianne.
"There are four distinct types of mana emanating from that heart."
"...!!!"
"It is a mana signature that could not be felt from the three French hunters."
"W-what do you mean by that..."
"It means the owner of that heart is not the person we thought it was."
Gulp.
Marianne swallowed hard.
"It is likely..."
Just as Choi Muryeong was about to continue,
Click!
Marianne snatched an ether gun from the agent next to her.
Whirrr!
She aimed it at the heart lying on the floor.
I have to destroy the evidence...!!!
Boom!
The moment the high-output mana bullet was fired,
Slash!
A movement even faster sliced the bullet in half.
C-Choi Muryeong...?!
She couldn't allow any more interference.
Marianne reflexively spun around to shoot Choi Muryeong.
However, contrary to her expectations, Choi Muryeong was standing perfectly still, just watching her.
If so,
Then who on earth...!!!!
Crackle!
Crackle!
Meanwhile, the split mana bullet blew apart the wall behind them.
Kaboom!
Sssss...
Thick smoke billowed up.
"...You don't know who the owner of this heart is?"
A man revealed himself amidst the haze.
"Because I know exactly who it belongs to."
"S-shut up!!!!"
Marianne aimed the ether gun toward the source of the voice once more.
But before she could pull the trigger,
Slash!
The flashing magic sword sliced the ether gun clean in half.
Thud!
"Kyaaa!"
Marianne collapsed from the impact.
Step.
Step.
Step.
Standing right in front of Marianne,
"N-no!!"
the man who picked up the still-beating heart was...
"Lucien Moreau."
Lee Taepyeong.
"Whew..."
Thank goodness the sleeping effect wore off just in time.
Otherwise, who knows what would have happened.
I might have ended up in the news for massacring the French Hunter Bureau.
If it weren't for Choi Muryeong, Alteon would have slaughtered those suppression agents long ago.
I'm glad he bought enough time for me to wake up.
Although I was hit by Noir Papillon, I knew exactly what had transpired.
The moment I fell asleep, Alteon, thinking it was 'training time,' popped out and killed Lucien Moreau.
The memories weren't perfectly clear, but they lingered like a dream.
"Hunter Lee!!"
Kang Mina came running from the end of the hallway.
"The private jet is ready! You can return to Korea immediately!"
As soon as the incident occurred, Kang Mina had sent a direct distress call to the Director of the Hunter Administration Office.
The Director immediately requested assistance from the World Hunter Association.
Agents from the World Hunter Association's European branch, who were in Paris to manage Demonic Outbreak risks, arrived at the French Hunter Bureau.
The French Hunter Bureau's attempts at forced detention and cover-ups were caught red-handed.
On top of that, the existence of the 'Devourer' Lucien Moreau was exposed.
The situation escalated rapidly, and the entire world learned of France's atrocities.
France Covers Up 'Cannibal Hunter' for 8 Years
The 'Devourer' Was Alive... Government Led the Protection
Were They 'Prey'?... Nations Launch Re-investigations into Missing Persons
The situation spiraled out of control at breakneck speed.
As nations around the world demanded explanations,
"Since the appearance of the Babel Tower, we have faced countless dangers."
"Even in such circumstances, we had to make a choice."
"To us, who had lost our hero, Lucien Moreau was a necessary evil."
"We did it to protect France..."
France chose to self-destruct.
Thanks to this, European nations scrambled to cut ties with France.
And the result...
Well, it was obvious without even looking.
Anyway.
Since Kang Mina and the Hunter Administration Office promised to handle the aftermath, I boarded the private jet back to Korea without hesitation.
I'm never setting foot in this shitty country again.
I don't care if they rot from a Demonic Outbreak.
It's all karma, karma.
The only silver lining was that I obtained the potion recipe as originally contracted.
Ah.
And on top of that, La Conclusion.
My sword collection is really growing.
At this rate, am I going to end up wielding five swords like Choi Muryeong?
Heh.
Of course, France strongly demanded the return of their national treasure.
However, when they handed La Conclusion over to Lucien Moreau, it had been registered under his ownership in the system.
And since I killed Lucien Moreau and 'acquired' it, the system now recognized it as my property.
Therefore, under the International Hunter Law, which strictly followed the system's database, La Conclusion was officially mine.
Honestly, considering those absolute scumbags tried to feed me to Lucien Moreau, stripping them of their national treasure felt like a slap on the wrist.
But whatever...
France was bound to fall anyway.
Now that the truth was out, the only thing left for France was complete isolation from the international community.
Compensation for the hunters who had gone missing over the years.
Claims for damages from neighboring countries.
Total suspension of international cooperation... and so on.
The few remaining hunters would naturally flee the country.
And then?
France's future held nothing but ruin.
They might even disappear from the map entirely before long.
A fitting end for trash.
By the way...
I glanced at Choi Muryeong, who was sitting in the seat opposite me.
"Hey, about back then."
"...Yes?"
"What made you decide to save me?"
"..."
"You must have known you could have been detained as well if things went south."
"..."
"Am I wrong?"
"You are correct."
Before I could even ask why, Choi Muryeong spoke.
"It was an acceptable risk."
"..."
"Because South Korea needs you."
"Where is this coming from all of a sudden..."
"It is the truth."
As always, Choi Muryeong was dead serious.
"I do not have conviction."
"Conviction?"
"Conviction as to how long, and how far, I can climb the tower."
"..."
"But you are different."
"How?"
"In every way."
What is he even talking about?
"The conviction that I lacked..."
"..."
"You possess it, Hunter Lee."
There was no hesitation in Choi Muryeong's voice.
"If there is anyone who can climb to the very top of the tower, it is..."
"..."
"Without a doubt, you."