Chapter 341: Devil Slayer
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 341: Devil Slayer
“Aaaaaaaahhhhhh!!!!!!!!!”
A sharp scream echoed through the cave, where sunlight poured in through the collapsed ceiling.
Gremory collapsed to the floor, clutching her head with both hands, and began to tremble uncontrollably.
I stared blankly at the sight.
...What the hell?
I was bewildered by her sudden seizure.
For a moment, the suspicion that she was trying to trick me crossed my mind, but I quickly shook my head.
Logically, there was no reason for Gremory, who held the overwhelming advantage, to bluff me.
What was stranger was that she hadn't done anything when her hand touched me just a moment ago.
Even though it had been the perfect opportunity to use her authority.
After a moment's thought, I decided to approach Gremory cautiously, pushing all my senses to their absolute limit so I could swing my sword at any moment.
But no matter how close I got, she showed no reaction.
She just kept trembling faintly, her head pressed against the floor.
Seeing that, I naturally lowered my guard.
Was it thanks to all the real combat I'd experienced?
I could tell at a glance that she was no longer capable of fighting.
Grip—
I grabbed a handful of Gremory's hair and yanked her head up.
Naturally, I wasn't generous enough to treat a demon who tried to turn Seoul into a chaotic mess with any kindness.
“?!”
In that instant, I was horrified.
Gremory's eyes, her pupils bleached completely white, were flickering precariously as if filled with static.
Anyone could see she wasn't in her right mind.
“H-Hey! Snap out of i—”
“I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry…”
The moment I spoke, Gremory began repeating the same word like a parrot.
The sight sent an unidentifiable chill down my spine.
She wasn't just out of her mind.
It was as if a broken mind was endlessly replaying its final words like a cassette tape.
“What in the world…”
A demon, not even a human, having a mental breakdown?
I was speechless at the situation before me. It was difficult to comprehend with my common sense.
Everything in the world is connected by cause and effect.
But no matter how hard I thought, I couldn't come up with any reason why the demon Gremory's mind would have shattered in that brief moment.
“...Because she touched me.”
Roughly 3.64 seconds.
That was how long Gremory's palm had been in contact with my body.
But that alone didn't explain it. Not a single one of the women I'd had sex with had ever developed mental problems.
From there, I decided to form another hypothesis.
What if Gremory had activated her authority?
...What if Gremory, who possesses the power of free will—the ability to control others' minds—used an even stronger authority through physical contact with me, and that caused some kind of problem?
It was a plausible theory, but there was a harsh truth hidden within it.
Because no matter what, the bottom line was that Gremory had ended up in this state because she had come into contact with my mind.
I cautiously turned my head to look at Gremory.
Her pure white eyes, which I doubted could even see, looked as if she'd gone blind from witnessing something she should never have seen.
Shudder—
A shiver ran down my spine.
...What in the world did she see to end up like this?
I looked down at my solar plexus, where Gremory's hand had touched me.
There was definitely nothing there, yet it felt like something was.
Just as an emotion I couldn't possibly describe in words began to creep up on me.
Smack!
I punched myself in the face with all my might.
Blood trickled from my lips, but thanks to the pain, I was able to stop thinking.
I didn't know the details, but I was certain of one thing.
That whatever lay beyond this was not yet permitted to me.
Whatever it was.
“Hoo…”
I sighed, rubbing my face with my hands as I looked around.
Dozens of people, including Han Seoah and Lumina, were unconscious on the floor.
Of course, I planned to get them all out. That's why I came here in the first place.
But the problem was what came after—how to handle the spotlight that would be on me.
We hadn't formed a standard party, nor had we done any thorough reconnaissance.
In such a poor situation, a party of just three had cleared an A-rank Gate and rescued dozens of people.
It would probably cause an even bigger stir than my last verification ceremony.
Just thinking about it made me break out in a cold sweat.
...Should I just hide it?
As it happened, there were only four witnesses: Han Seoah, Lumina, Shin Minha, and Riyal.
If I could get them to align their stories, hiding my identity would be entirely possible.
After a moment of deliberation, I came to a decision.
Alright, let's hide it.
It was definitely more advantageous to keep this incident under wraps.
Being the center of national attention once was enough, and if I got caught by the Papal State—those crazy fanatics—again, I could really become the victim of a modern-day witch hunt.
“Does that solve one problem, more or less?”
But there was still another problem I had no idea how to solve.
My gaze naturally turned back to Gremory.
...The chances of her returning to normal from this state are probably slim.
After a moment's hesitation, I finally gripped the hilt of my sword.
I didn't have a personal grudge against demons, but I had learned one thing from our conversation.
That this was a creature that should not exist in this world.
I couldn't even begin to fathom how many people this monster had killed while wearing a human guise.
Whoosh!
Black flames erupted, engulfing the Heaven-Shattering Demonic Sword.
Black flames imbued with divine power should be able to kill a demon.
Without a shred of hesitation, I swung my sword.
Ding—
[You have eliminated the demon.]
[You have achieved the 'Devil Slayer' accomplishment.]
[You have acquired the title 'Devil Slayer'.]
[Devil Slayer
Grade: Unique
You can now distinguish demons.
You can now check information on demons.
The blessing of a demon hunter will be with you when facing demons.]
[Would you like to change your title?]
[Y/N]
[Y]
Ding—
[The 'Demon's Pendant' resonates with demonic energy.]
[Would you like to absorb the residual demonic energy of Gremory, Duke of Gehenna and Conveyor of Treasures and Knowledge?]
[Y/N]
[Y]
[The 'Demon's Pendant' is absorbing demonic energy.]
[Absorbing…29%]
[44%]
[67%]
[83%]
[98%…]
[Absorption complete.]
[The first seal has been unlocked.]
[The 'Demon's Pendant' has transformed into the 'Seal of Gehenna'.]
[Seal of Gehenna
Grade: Unique
A seal given to the master of Gehenna.
Can only be used after being acknowledged by the seal.
??? (Not Unlocked)]
*
After that, I took the people and returned to base camp.
Fortunately, the monster attacks had subsided, so it didn't take long.
“Master!”
“Hyun-woo!”
Noel and Jeon Seoha, spotting me from a distance, rushed over and threw themselves into my arms.
The warm welcome was brief. Seeing my battered state, both of their expressions soured.
“...Hyun-woo, you remember what you promised me, right?”
A strange light gleamed in Jeon Seoha's eyes.
She reminded me of a wolf encountered on a snow-covered mountain under a full moon.
A very angry wolf whose territory had been invaded.
“That if you came back hurt, I wouldn't let you leave the house for a week.”
I remained silent.
I was exercising my right to do so.
“You made a promise like that with Seoha?”
“...Yeah.”
“Hmm…”
Judging by Noel's reaction, she had no intention of mediating. In fact, she even looked pleased.
...I feel bad for some reason.
I felt sorry for them, but while two or three days might be manageable, a week was too much.
I had a lot to do before going to the UK.
“Let's talk about this late—?!”
Just then, I felt an intense killing intent from behind me.
I whipped my head around and met the eyes of Riyal, who was glaring at me with her arms crossed.
“...Hmph!”
Without another word, Riyal turned and went into the tent.
I had a good idea what she was upset about, but I didn't have the time to deal with it right now.
Instead, I waved at Shin Minha, who was walking out of the tent.
“I'm glad to see you're looking well, Professor.”
“Hyun-woo. What is all this…”
Shin Minha was clearly flustered as she looked at the people lying on the ground.
“I'll explain the details later. For now, could you listen to what I have to say?”
I woke up the unconscious Han Seoah and Lumina, then asked a favor of the three of them.
I wanted to avoid being witch-hunted by those fanatics at all costs.
*
[Good news, citizens. Thanks to the efforts of hunters from the nation's major guilds, the last A-rank Gate was successfully cleared just a short while ago. Furthermore, since no Gate Break occurred, casualties and property damage are expected to be minimal. For more details, we are joined by a professor of economics from Hankuk University…]
[This is Moon Daesung, Commissioner of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency. Effective immediately, all roads connected to Seoul will be temporarily closed. This is a measure for the safety of our citizens, so we ask for your full cooperation with police control, despite any inconvenience…]
[We have news that 37 first-year Magic Tower students, 9 faculty members, and 20 Association hunters have been safely rescued from the Mt. Gwanak Gate, which was our greatest concern. However, all rescued individuals are reportedly showing symptoms of memory confusion. The Association has stated that further investigation is necessary…]
[…With this, the national state of emergency is officially lifted as of this time. I repeat, the state of emergency has been lifted.]
Click.
I turned off the TV and walked to the window.
The view of Seoul beyond the window looked much the same as usual.
Even after all that chaos, everyone looks busy heading to work.
Such diligent people.
I sipped the misutgaru Noel had prepared for me and gazed up at the clear sky.
A full day had passed since the unprecedented incident where some of the low-rank Gates across Seoul had escalated to A-rank.
Well, to get straight to the point, it was resolved successfully.
Han Lael, who returned in half a day on a private jet, along with the heads of the other three great families and the Hunter Association's branch manager, personally stepped in, and the remaining Gates were cleared at an astonishing speed.
And late at dawn, the government declared an end to the state of emergency.
“The international news is going crazy.”
South Korea was dominating portal sites all over the world.
The entire world had begun to pay attention to the unprecedented event that had occurred on the small peninsula in the Far East.
It was due to the anxiety that something similar could happen in their own countries.
As proof, the number of offers I received recommending naturalization had increased nearly fivefold.
The calls came mostly from Europe, with Denmark, Romania, and Greece being the main ones.
Of course, I refused them all.
“Is this China? I think I already rejected them before. They're annoyingly persistent.”
I just blocked the number from China.
Just thinking about Jeon Seoha's domestic abuse made me want nothing to do with those Chinese bastards.
After sorting through the messages, I sat on the sofa and brought up the screen I had put off looking at.
Ding—
[Loading the list of partners currently registered on the Another World Dating App.]
[1. Iris Remeria Baiart Peledeia
2. Cheon Yeo-hwa
3. Choi Hyena
4. Noel Ronnidella
5. Yoo Sowol
6. Melissa Malefis
7. Lucifer
8. Jeon Seoha
9. Jegal Hyang
10. Riyal Everhart]
[The Another World Dating App staff highly commends Kang Hyun-woo's achievements and will provide a suitable reward.]
[Please choose one of the following three options.]
[1. Crystal Ball of Parqueris]
[2. Heart of the Fire Dragon]
[3. Unknown Grimoire #2]