Hermes, You Wanna Die?
“So, everything’s sorted?”
After laying Armin down in the room, Sunghyun headed with Nakamoto to the chamber where the lawyers had gathered to hear the report.
On the way, Nakamoto held out a sheet of paper.
“Yes, sir. I’ve brought a copy.”
The Book of Thoth possessed a temporary-use function. Using it, Sunghyun had granted the lawyers temporary access rights.
He quietly read the paper Nakamoto handed him.
“Not bad.”
The Sense felt solid enough. But it still wasn’t enough.
“I don’t plan on holding capital long-term. Not full scalping, but restructure the portfolio so we can liquidate everything within a week.”
“Understood.”
“Still, the section listing the planets I need to visit was good. Who handled that?”
“That was Saika.”
Sunghyun pulled a can of beer and a box of fried chicken out of thin air right there in the hallway. Nakamoto froze mid-step, staring at Sunghyun’s hands as if hypnotized.
“Th-that is…”
“You’ve worked hard. Take it and share it with the kids. Rest for today. We’ll pick it up again tomorrow.”
“Yes! Understood. Thank you!”
They probably skipped meals just to finish that report.
This much counted as basic employee welfare.
Sunghyun stared blankly at the report still in his hand.
BMS, though…
BMS—Bizarre Monster Story. The so-called “Bizarre Monster Story.” A setting-heavy worldview that had once been popular on Earth. All or nothing.
Sense had flagged that he could farm a mountain of coins there, but also that it could be dangerous. Dangerous even with his current power?
He had read BMS novels before. Vast lore, plenty of weird monsters.
“Interesting, sure.”
But the idea that he couldn’t handle those things and that it would actually be dangerous still didn’t sit right.
“There’s got to be some kind of penalty.”
Otherwise it made no sense. Until he knew exactly what that penalty was, charging in felt too murky.
“Let’s head back to the room for now.”
He’d originally thought about gathering the lawyers for a meeting, but they were people too. They needed rest.
For now—
“Summon Book of Thoth.”
A golden ring materialized on Sunghyun’s finger. The Book of Thoth normally took the form of a book, but it could shift into any shape its owner desired.
“Unfortunately it doesn’t seem to work as a weapon.”
Even if it could, he had no intention of turning it into one. What if it broke?
“Armin, I’m back.”
While he was gone, Armin had spread novels across the bed and was reading.
“Bored? Hungry? You moved around pretty hard earlier. Anything you want to eat?”
Armin seemed to think for a moment, then pointed at a page of a web novel.
“I want to eat this.”
Kimchi stew?
It was a story about a demon god who went so crazy for kimchi stew that he returned to Earth.
This has to be fiction, right?
It had to be.
“Alright. Give me a second.”
Sunghyun quickly ordered two servings of kimchi stew. He set the containers on the table and opened the plastic lids. Hot steam and the rich aroma of kimchi stew flooded the room.
Reminds me of when I first got here.
The first meal Sunghyun had eaten after arriving in this world had also been kimchi stew.
Looking at it that way, my ability really is broken.
The temporary rest space in particular was absurdly overpowered.
Armin scooped up a spoonful, and her eyes lit up.
“Wow, this is insanely good! No wonder that demon god wanted to go back to Earth.”
Probably not for that reason.
Sunghyun took a spoonful himself. Sour, spicy, and sweet blended into a perfect harmony of flavor.
“This is actually amazing.”
Apparently the shop system sold the single most delicious food from every corner of Earth. That explained the weird “Woohoo! Woohoo!” cheers he’d been hearing from the lawyers’ room earlier.
So that was it. Tomorrow it would have to be chicken.
Sunghyun gently stroked Armin’s head as she ate the stew with rice.
“Eat lots.”
They said once you found the way someone ate cute, you were done for.
He was pretty sure he was done for.
Footsteps echoed through a castle thick with a dark, sticky atmosphere.
Thud-thud-thud-thud—!
“This is bad! This is really bad!”
It was the same creature that had watched Sunghyun and Armin’s battle. A knight guarding the Demon King’s audience chamber looked down at him.
“What is it? Aren’t you a kingdom spy? Why are you here now?”
The gatekeeper fixed the doppelgänger with cold eyes.
“That’s not the issue! I have to report what I saw to the Demon King immediately! Open the door!”
At the doppelgänger’s frantic voice, the gatekeeper knocked three times on the door to the Demon King’s chamber.
“My lord, the doppelgänger says he has an urgent report.”
Creeeeak—
The moment the words ended, the door to the Demon King’s space swung open on its own. The instant the doppelgänger stepped inside, he felt how cold the air was.
—So. Why did you abandon your mission and come here?
The Demon King spoke through pure mana. The voice seemed to resonate directly inside the skull.
The doppelgänger lifted his head. The Demon King stood before an open window. Wind poured through, making his black hair whip around him. Those crimson eyes looked as if they regarded nothing in existence as a living being—arrogant to the core.
“Speak. Do you intend to make me ask twice?”
When the doppelgänger only stared blankly, the Demon King crushed him under raw mana pressure.
“D-Demon King… An existence far beyond any Hero has appeared in the kingdom.”
—What? Are you talking about a dragon?
“No. Even the princess born from the union of the Gold and Red Dragon leaders couldn’t stand against him.”
At that, the Demon King tapped the desk with one finger.
“That princess couldn’t match him? I received reports she had reached Naturalization. Was that report wrong?”
“No. Under his guidance she achieved an even more perfect Naturalization. And she still couldn’t touch him…”
“Then this must be reported to the Demon God.”
Originally the Demon King had planned to abduct Armin from the Forest of Demonic Beasts, remodel her, and destroy the Rom Kingdom from within. Sunghyun’s existence had completely ruined that plan.
The Demon King lifted the doppelgänger’s face with mana.
“Do you know this being’s name?”
“Kim Sunghyun. He’s known as one of those summoned alongside the Hero.”
“Kim Sunghyun… Kim Sunghyun… Very well. Withdraw. Return to the kingdom before they notice you’re gone. I grant you permission to use a warp.”
“Thank you.”
The doppelgänger bowed deeply and backed out of the room. Once he was gone, the Demon King gazed at the two moons hanging high in the sky with a distant look.
“Kim Sunghyun… I feel like I’ve heard that name somewhere.”
The memory wouldn’t surface. For now, he needed to contact the Demon God.
He drew a purple orb from his robes—a two-way communication tool the Demon God had given him for emergencies. When he crushed it, static began to crackle before his eyes.
Zzzt— zzzzt—
—Hmm? What is it?
A middle-aged man’s figure appeared. The Demon King dropped to one knee.
“Lord Baal, I offer my deepest apologies for contacting you like this.”
—If you contacted me, you must have a reason. Speak.
Without raising his head, the Demon King opened his mouth.
“There is someone who easily defeated Princess Armin after she completed Naturalization.”
—Hmm? Princess Armin—the Gold and Red hybrid the Dragon Lord tried to kill?
“Yes. In the future the Lord foresaw, we successfully abducted Armin and destroyed the Rom Kingdom. But something has changed. We have our own prophets, and the future we always monitored has suddenly gone dark.”
Baal stroked his chin for a moment.
—Who defeated that princess?
“A man named Kim Sunghyun, summoned alongside the Hero.”
—What? Kim Sunghyun? Magunus, wait a moment.
“Yes, my lord.”
Magunus covered his eyes and ears as instructed. Baal’s head heated up at the familiar name.
Kim Sunghyun—isn’t that the guy everyone’s talking about in Olympus? The Heracles candidate?
Has Hermes lost his mind? Why the hell is that guy showing up here?
Baal forced down his rage and made a call somewhere.
“Yeah, it’s me. Is Hermes in Olympus right now? Yeah. Yeah, put him on right now.”
“L-Lord Baal? What seems to be the matter?”
Hermes’s trembling voice reached Baal’s ears. That alone told him everything.
This bastard already knew.
“Hermes. You trying to pick a fight with me? I went big and dropped five million coins on you, and what? Kim Sunghyun? You wanna die that badly, Hermes?”
“Ahaha… Aigoo, Lord Baal, I was going to tell you, but my father called me urgently and I couldn’t get to it. I’m so sorry.”
The mention of Zeus made Baal clear his throat.
“Ah… right. If Lord Zeus summoned you, then fine. So what are you going to do? With Kim Sunghyun on the Hero’s side, the outcome’s already decided. This is ridiculous. Refund me.”
“Ah, Lord Baal, please wait just a moment! I’ll somehow fix this no matter what. Would it be acceptable if Kim Sunghyun simply doesn’t participate in the fighting?”
“Fine. If the condition is that he absolutely never joins the battle, then proceed as planned. But the second he interferes even once—Zeus or no Zeus—you’re coughing up every last one of those five million coins. Got it? Swear it on the River Styx.”
“Hahaha…”
“Answer.”
“I swear.”
Click—
After the call with Hermes ended, Baal looked at Magunus.
—Magunus, raise your head. That Kim Sunghyun will not join the fighting. That leaves only a contest of strength between you and the Hero. Can you handle it?
“Yes! Leave it to me!”
The confident reply brought a satisfied expression to Baal’s face.
—Still, just in case, I will bestow a sword upon you.
A black pool formed in front of Magunus. A pitch-black blade slowly rose from the darkness.
—This is the sword Cain once used. It grants the ability to briefly foresee the future. Use it well.
Magunus seized the sword and answered in a voice full of rapture.
“Yes! I will absolutely live up to Lord Baal’s expectations!”
—Good. Work hard.
Magunus shouted toward the gatekeeper outside the door.
“Summon every legion commander! We hold a war council for the coming battle!”
At that same moment, Hermes was sprinting with his hat flapping wildly behind him.
“I’m screwed. Screwed. This is really, really bad!”