Chapter 263
Chapter 263
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 264
Chapter Title: Revelations from the Past
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Choi Il-hyeon narrowed his eyes at my proposal. He stared into my eyes for a long moment before letting out a small sigh.
“……Fine. Let’s do it. Share the info.”
I chuckled.
It was the reaction I’d expected.
In the original story, Choi Il-hyeon had chased after traces of Jin Cheon-woo just as relentlessly as Lee Seo-jun.
He wouldn’t be able to resist asking about information on Jin Cheon-woo that he didn’t know.
“But you go first with the info. It’ll make it easier for me to explain.”
“You’re not just gonna listen and then clam up, right?”
“……What kind of disciple sees their master that way? Want me to swear on it or something?”
Choi Il-hyeon glared at me sharply. I shook my head with an awkward smile.
“No. I’ll just trust you. You’re not the type to lie about something like this.”
“Alright, then spill it. What did that Kim Chang-hyeon guy do to make you suspicious?”
I took a deep breath before opening my mouth.
“Around the time of last semester’s final exams in the second term, I happened to see him using S-Rank magic.”
“S-Rank magic? At his age?”
Choi Il-hyeon’s face showed a flicker of surprise.
“Yeah, and he handled it quite skillfully.”
“Hmm.”
Choi Il-hyeon stroked his scruffy beard, lost in thought.
“That is suspicious. It’s almost impossible for someone his age to wield S-Rank magic. And it means he’s been hiding his power.”
“Exactly.”
“So, you investigated Kim Chang-hyeon just for that, and even dug into the Seonhyeon family?”
“That was the trigger. I can’t stand not knowing something once I get curious.”
“……You investigated the Seonhyeon family just out of curiosity?”
Choi Il-hyeon muttered in disbelief before chuckling.
“No, seeing you and Lee Seo-jun reminds me of the old days.”
“……Pardon?”
“I was like that at your age. So was Jin Cheon-woo. If we got curious about even the smallest thing, we didn’t hold back on any means to uncover the secret. Though Jin Cheon-woo ended up crossing the line at some point.”
Choi Il-hyeon murmured quietly, as if reminiscing about the past.
“Anyway, tell me what you found out while investigating the Seonhyeon family.”
I nodded and began recounting how Yoo Ah-yeon and I had discovered the Seonhyeon family’s lab.
The secret underground space.
The monster afflicted with mystic fever.
I couldn’t skip the talk of the “Laws of the World” to advance the story, so I told him everything I’d seen there.
When I finished, Choi Il-hyeon leaned back against the wall with a grave expression.
“……So that happened.”
“You already knew about the ‘Laws of the World’?”
“Anyone who delves deep into mystics learns about it naturally. Of course, I don’t talk about it anywhere because of the potential backlash.”
Choi Il-hyeon murmured with a face deep in thought, then looked at me.
“Alright. I’ve heard your story, so I’ll share mine. You wanted to know about Jin Cheon-woo’s fourth journal, right?”
“Yes.”
“Like I said earlier, I don’t know the contents or location of the fourth journal well. But I do have info related to it.”
“What is it?”
“First, let me tell you a story from the past.”
A story from the past?
“Jin Cheon-woo and I learned of the existence of the ‘Laws of the World’ 27 years ago. The year we turned twenty.”
Choi Il-hyeon continued, gazing at the floor as if tracing back through his memories.
“The one who told us about the ‘Laws of the World’ was the ‘Demon King.’”
……The Demon King?
A completely unexpected name came up. As I made a surprised face, Choi Il-hyeon chuckled.
“What’s so shocking? Like I said earlier, when we were young, Jin Cheon-woo and I had to uncover anything we were curious about. We had all sorts of experiences and went everywhere. Heh.”
“How did you end up meeting the King?”
“The story of how we met the King…… It’s long, but to sum it up, we chased immortality, which led us to chase ‘mystics.’ Chasing mystics naturally led us to chase ‘prophecies.’”
“……Prophecies?”
“Yeah. In pursuing prophecies, we learned that someone with the power of prophecy existed.”
Someone with the power of prophecy.
Having read the original story, I knew who that was.
The previous Demon King, the “Prophet Demon King.”
“That was the Demon King.”
“Right. Though he’s gone now, the previous Demon King had the power of prophecy. So we started scouring the world to find the Prophet Demon King.”
Relationships between characters I’d never heard of in the original story……
Actually, from the conversation between Natasha and Ha-ryeong at the stadium last winter, I already knew that Jin Cheon-woo had met the Prophet Demon King.
But I hadn’t imagined their first meeting was 27 years ago.
Before Ja-un was even formed.
“After months of investigation, we found his hideout. But as if he’d been expecting us, he didn’t show any hostility and welcomed us instead.”
Choi Il-hyeon caught his breath for a moment before continuing.
“After that, we heard many stories from him. About mystics, prophecies, and even the Laws of the World. It was pretty shocking back then. All fates are predetermined, and we have to live according to them…… Ridiculous, right?”
“Anyway, that’s when Jin Cheon-woo started changing bit by bit. He became obsessed with mystics, and his secrets piled up. I found out later, but he even met the Prophet Demon King a few more times behind my back.”
Choi Il-hyeon trailed off, falling silent for a moment.
“I got sidetracked with all this while trying to talk about the fourth journal.”
“It’s fine.”
“Well, skipping the details. Jin Cheon-woo started new research with the Prophet King. Part of the results from that research is probably in the fourth journal.”
“And this is just my guess, but the contents of the fourth journal are likely about a ‘prophecy.’”
“……A prophecy?”
The first, second, and third journals revealed in the original story were all related to ‘mystics.’
I’d thought the fourth, unrevealed one might contain some special mystic, but this was unexpected.
“Yeah, one that he hid away tightly, worried about the backlash from the Laws of the World.”
“And that prophecy scroll is probably something that, as Ja-un said, can only be checked when a massive change happens to the ‘world.’”
Hearing that snapped me alert.
Ja-un, who checked the prophecy at the Holy Martial Emperor Tournament, said no future was visible.
And right after that, he started talking about needing to find the fourth journal.
That meant the fourth journal likely contained a prophecy of the “invisible future.”
“You seem to have some suspicions too.”
“……Yes.”
“Don’t take my word as gospel. This is just my guess from watching Jin Cheon-woo up close.”
I nodded.
“If you want solid info, you could track down the Prophet Demon King’s closest aide.”
“……Closest aide?”
“Yeah. Back then, there was one loyal demon always by the Prophet Demon King’s side.”
A demon loyal to the Prophet Demon King……
As far as I knew from the original story, there was only one.
“The King called that guy ‘Ha-ryeong.’”
Ha-ryeong.
An S-Rank demon and the owner of the underground events.
The only one in the Ten Demons Council who harbored ill will toward the Second Demon King.
“It might be a bit dangerous, but if you’re really curious, go find the demon Ha-ryeong. He might know the contents of the fourth journal or its hidden location.”
After my conversation with Choi Il-hyeon, many questions were resolved.
The connection between Jin Cheon-woo and the Prophet Demon King. And the contents of the fourth journal.
Of course, the fourth journal’s contents were mostly Choi Il-hyeon’s guess, but I thought it likely contained the future of the changing world, as he said.
Of course, how could a changing future be prophesied? It was a bit questionable, but I’d have to resolve that by meeting Ha-ryeong later.
But meeting Ha-ryeong right now was impossible.
No matter how much ill will he bore toward the Second Demon King, he was still a demon.
He’d definitely be wary if I approached.
……And so, the question-filled Friday passed, and Saturday—the next day—arrived.
In the form of Kim Jin-woo, I headed to the appointed place at Hanseong Medical Center for my meeting with Han Se-yeon and Chairman Han Dae-hyeon.
My appointment with Han Se-yeon was at 8 p.m., but since I had separate business with Han Dae-hyeon, I arrived a bit early.
As I reached the VIP ward and was about to knock, I heard voices.
—I haven’t thought it through properly yet.
—Shouldn’t you, Chairman, make a decision too?
Han Dae-hyeon was talking with someone. The voice sounded like a man in his thirties……
Who was it?
It wasn’t Han Se-jin’s voice.
Should I wait for the conversation to end? As I hesitated, a voice came from inside the door.
—Looks like someone’s outside. Don’t just stand there—come in.
He’d heard my footsteps?
I opened the door and stepped inside.
Creak.
As the door opened, I saw Han Dae-hyeon half-reclining in bed and the back of a man in a suit sitting in the chair in front.
The back looked unfamiliar yet somehow familiar.
“You’re here? Sorry. I had another guest.”
“No, don’t mind me. Please continue your conversation.”
That was when it happened.
“No, it’s fine. I should get going anyway.”
The man in the chair spoke as he slowly turned around.
The moment our eyes met, it felt like time stopped.
Cold sweat broke out at the same time as my heart pounded wildly.
All sorts of anxious thoughts flooded my mind.
……Why is this guy here?
The man stood from the chair and gave a light smile.
I stared at his face in panic before finally regaining my composure.
According to the original story, the man before me had the same “emotion detection” ability as Lee Seo-jun.
If I felt “fear” or “terror,” he’d notice immediately.
I had to avoid that situation at all costs.
Stay calm. Don’t tense up.
As I hypnotized myself with “I don’t know the guy in front of me.”
[Latent Trait, ‘Overimmersion’ activates!]
……Huh?
Overimmersion suddenly activated.
My mind calmed instantly, and it felt like I’d truly forgotten the man’s identity.
……Could this be ‘Overimmersion’ enhancing my immersion in “I don’t know this person”?
It seemed so. I was inwardly startled by this completely unexpected use of ‘Overimmersion.’
I hadn’t known it could work this way.
The man seemed to sense the sudden shift in my emotions with ‘emotion detection,’ furrowing his brow slightly. Then he chuckled softly and extended his hand.
“Hm. Your face looks familiar…… Ah! Could you be Wizard Kim Jin-woo?”
The man spoke as if surprised, putting on an act.
It should’ve made me tense that he knew me, but thanks to ‘Overimmersion,’ I accepted the situation without any emotional shift.
I casually shook his hand.
“You know me, huh. Nice to meet you. I’m Kim Jin-woo.”
“Indeed, it’s Wizard Kim Jin-woo. I’ve heard a lot about you in the news. They say you’ve subjugated many demons.”
Instead of answering, I gave a small smile.
I knew there was a thorn in his last words.
The man stared intently at my face while holding my hand, then opened his mouth.
“Ah, oops. I forgot to introduce myself.”
The man muttered as if he’d just remembered.
“Nice to meet you. I’m Jeong Tae-won of PL Group.”
I received his greeting with calm eyes.
Jeong Tae-won of PL Group.
He was the Demon King in hiding.