The Awakener Alliance's Demon Summoning Plot
Two suspicious awakeners lurking in the alley behind the barbecue joint.
Both possessed the power of B-rank hunters. But they were no match for Lucifer.
Crack!
“Guhh...”
“Kuh, let go! Do you even know who we...”
Lucifer, having subdued them with black mana extending from his hand, narrowed his eyes.
'Mumyeong – those two characters came from these guys.'
From their conversation, it seemed these two had been waiting here for his master.
'And pretty precisely, too.'
They even knew the location down to the area near the barbecue place.
This wasn't something he could just let slide.
Lucifer murmured lowly toward the struggling awakeners, his voice laced with thick mana.
“Don't turn around. If you see my face, I'll kill you.”
“H-Huh...”
“Grrk.”
Lucifer's black mana mercilessly gripped their throats. Cold sweat poured down the paling foreheads of the two awakeners like mad.
They strained with all their might, but far from escaping, the pressure only intensified.
An overwhelming gap in power.
“Wh-Why are you doing this, sir?”
Finally, the one who seemed to be the leader begged obsequiously first. Lucifer replied coldly.
“No long talk. How do you know about Mumyeong?”
“Th-That's something we can't...”
Crunch!
“Gaaak!”
With a gruesome sound, the subordinate next to the leader slumped lifelessly.
“I-I'll tell you everything! Please, just spare my life...”
Only then did the leader beg for his life.
Lucifer impassively checked the slumped man.
'Tch, humans.'
Humans were mortals destined to face death someday. Few could remain composed before the terror of it.
'If I had my way, I'd erase them right now...'
He hadn't killed the other one yet, either. Just knocked him out.
He needed to hear the full story first.
“W-We are the Awakener Alliance. Someone of your strength must have heard of our organization...”
The terrified leader revealed his affiliation.
Lucifer's eyebrow twitched subtly.
'Awakener Alliance? First time hearing it.'
Apostles gained general knowledge of the mortal world upon descending.
That included culture, history, and society at large, naturally acquired.
Yet he'd never heard of the Awakener Alliance.
'An unknown group.'
Lucifer furrowed his brow.
“I don't care about your alliance or whatever. How did you know about Mumyeong?”
“Th-The branch leader told us. I believe it's his ability. I-I don't know the details.”
Lucifer scowled.
'...Prophecy ability, perhaps?'
Prophets were a hassle across eras and worlds.
They could foresee the future and uncover desired truths.
For someone who needed to keep Mumyeong's identity hidden, they were nothing but trouble.
The leader continued in a trembling voice.
“W-We were here to meet Mumyeong the hunter and invite him to the Awakener Alliance. We meant no harm.”
“No harm, you say.”
Lucifer smirked sardonically.
Who knew about that.
They'd been radiating killing intent just moments ago.
The leader, sweating profusely, asked cautiously.
“J-Just to be sure, are you Mumyeong the hunter, sir?”
Lucifer chuckled icily in response.
“Who knows.”
No need to continue the conversation. As Lucifer's black mana thickened...
Crunch!
The leader slumped as well.
He hadn't killed him either. Lucifer shoved the two thoroughly unconscious men into the alley corner.
This wasn't urgent enough to report to his master immediately.
But potential threats needed to be uprooted in advance.
For his master's safety, at least.
Lucifer walked back into the barbecue joint. Joo Kanghyeok, who had been eating meat at the table, beckoned him.
“You're back? Eat more. Order extra if it's not enough.”
Looking at his master, Lucifer shook his head firmly.
“Master, you forgot something important.”
“What?”
“The supermarket sale is on.”
“Huh? You even tracked that?”
“Of course. Saving where we can is best. As for the meat...”
Chomp chomp.
Lucifer stood, picked up chopsticks, and devoured the meat from the grill.
He wiped his mouth and turned to leave, then paused.
Whoosh.
He pulled a single black feather from his pocket and handed it to Joo Kanghyeok.
“If anything happens while I'm shopping, use this.”
“What's this?”
“A feather that summons me instantly. Hold it and call my name.”
Such a convenient thing existed.
Lucifer handed the feather to his admiring master.
“Then I'll head out first.”
With a bow, Lucifer finally exited the barbecue joint.
Watching him go, Joo Kanghyeok nodded.
“...That guy's serious about housework. Worth learning from.”
How sloppily had he been living as a bachelor.
Things had changed since Lucifer arrived.
He handled combat, but doing chores too was honestly appreciated.
As Joo Kanghyeok marveled...
Outside, Lucifer scanned the surroundings thoroughly from atop a building.
'No threatening presences nearby. Just these guys.'
He descended to the alley and bound the two unconscious men with mana ropes.
“Shall we head out, then.”
Boom!
Lucifer kicked off the ground and leaped into the sky.
“Ah, wha—?! Aaaah!”
“S-Save me!”
The two awakeners, regaining consciousness, screamed, but they were already high in the air. Their cries reached no one.
Lucifer said coldly to them.
“Guide us if you don't want to die. To where your boss is.”
“L-Listen, sir! You're an awakener too, so why not join the Awakener Alliance now...”
“The branch leader will give you a great position!”
The two chattered even as they were dragged along.
Thanks to that, Lucifer learned what the Awakener Alliance was.
Awakener Alliance.
They believed awakeners should rule humanity. A delusional group dreaming of world domination.
'Rule by awakeners.'
Nothing new.
'These types exist in every world.'
He'd seen plenty in other dimensions he'd glimpsed.
Awakeners with system powers always sought to become the world's core.
Such revolutions or rebellions sometimes succeeded.
But it meant nothing.
This world was just the tutorial.
'Unless Master rules it.'
Right now, only his master's safety mattered to Lucifer.
He was even considering dismantling the alliance entirely, depending.
Whoosh!
Gliding with black wings spread, Lucifer spotted an abandoned building.
A dilapidated structure alone in the woods.
It looked abandoned to anyone, but...
“Th-The basement of that building is the Awakener Alliance headquarters.”
A secret facility underground, apparently.
Lucifer descended slowly toward it.
The two bound by mana ropes sighed inwardly in relief. They exchanged glances.
Their thoughts aligned.
'He says he's not, but anyone can see he's Mumyeong.'
'HQ is full of A-rankers. Swarm him and it's over.'
Their original goal had been to recruit Mumyeong.
But Mumyeong(?) had come to HQ himself – mission accomplished.
If persuadable, a great ally gained.
If not, just eliminate him.
As they smirked smugly...
Vrrr! Flash!
Black light gathered in Lucifer's right hand. The compressed light in midair fired as a laser into the building.
Boom! Rumble rumble!
Dust billowed as the abandoned building began collapsing.
“Wh-What?”
“Uh...”
The leader and subordinate, dangling in midair, blinked in confusion.
They couldn't process what they'd just seen.
They knew he wouldn't be friendly, but...
Bombarding and demolishing the building from the sky?
Boom! Boom!
Lucifer fired two more lasers into the building before landing.
Then he pulled a brown bread bag from his pocket.
Was there a bakery next to the alley?
Tap tap. Whoosh.
He roughly poked holes where eyes should be and donned the bag over his head. Wings hidden, he looked like an ordinary human.
'Perfect.'
Lucifer was satisfied with the disguise.
“Human. Where's the entrance?”
“O-Over there, but...”
The leader pointed at the rubble. His hand trembled faintly.
This was a declaration of war on the entire Awakener Alliance.
Even for Mumyeong,
Did he have the confidence to fight the whole group?
Then.
Boom!
The rubble shifted, and with a roar, debris flew everywhere. Hunters poured out from within.
“Cough, cough.”
“Kehk. Damn dust.”
“What the hell? Is that bastard Mumyeong?”
“Wearing some kinda bag on his head...”
The furious hunters raised their weapons with savage expressions.
About twenty of them.
They seemed ready to charge, but no one moved rashly.
Because the opponent was Mumyeong (presumed).
The overwhelming powerhouse who'd soloed a world boss.
Not to mention, he'd collapsed the entire building in an instant.
Breaking the silence, someone from the alliance stepped forward.
Step step.
A man with a sly smile emerged from the awakeners.
“Mumyeong hunter. Making an enemy of us isn't a good idea. Every hunter here is A-rank. Can you handle that?”
“...Who are you?”
“I'm Oh Seongyeon, vice leader of the Awakener Alliance – or 'Gakyeon' for short.”
He faced Lucifer with a relaxed smile even in this situation.
“Where did you get info on Mumyeong?”
“Join the Awakener Alliance, and I'll tell you. Otherwise...”
The hunters behind raised their weapons. Mana-clad cold arms began to glow.
“We can't let you live. A powerhouse like you as an enemy would disrupt our plans greatly. What's your choice?”
Ally or die here.
One or the other.
Lucifer's answer was set.
“If you won't answer my questions, then...”
Tat!
Lucifer lightly kicked off and leaped. Before the hunters could react, his kick slammed into vice leader Oh Seongyeon's gut.
“Guhaak?!”
Boom!
The kicked Oh Seongyeon flew through the air, crashing into the hunters behind.
“Next.”
Naturally, Lucifer's one-sided destruction followed.
Boom! Boom!
They knew Mumyeong was strong.
But numbers beat skill, right?
Twenty A-rank hunters could take down an S-rank. Plus, vice leader Oh Seongyeon was low S-rank.
So they thought they had a chance, even against Mumyeong.
“Kaaak!”
“Aak!”
“M-Monster...!”
Boom!
All the alliance hunters were rolling on the ground.
Boom! Boom!
One punch sent three or four flying. One-sided beating. The hunters couldn't even think of counterattacking.
“Guh...”
Vice leader Oh Seongyeon, flung by the shockwave, trembled uncontrollably.
'Th-This guy's toying with us.'
The Mumyeong in the videos had been far more brutal.
The world boss had exploded on the spot.
Yet now, he was subduing them with fists alone.
'Saying we're not worth his real power...'
He was beating the alliance hunters with just punches. At that cruelty(?), Oh Seongyeon shuddered.
Crack!
Having floored all twenty A-rankers outside, Lucifer grabbed Oh Seongyeon's collar.
“You said the basement is HQ.”
Lucifer plunged straight into the interior without hesitation.
“Guh, why drag me?!”
Oh Seongyeon pleaded desperately, but Lucifer ignored him.
“...”
Lucifer personally scoured the underground facility, checking documents everywhere.
The alliance's goal was world domination, as expected.
But something didn't add up.
'These guys are weak. Ridiculously so. For dreamers of ruling humanity, they're pathetically underpowered.'
Weapons didn't work on awakeners.
Still, controlling all humanity with this scale was absurd.
'Not just crazy fanatics, either. The organization is quite sophisticated.'
Lucifer searched every corner.
'Tch...'
One room was piled with what looked like human corpses.
“Wh-What is this...”
“Explain.”
Oh Seongyeon trembled under Lucifer's gaze and began explaining.
Apparently, the alliance treated non-awakeners worse than objects.
In the coming awakener world, normals were slaves.
No survivors, by the way.
“Any secret vaults? Better tell me now.”
“I-I'll guide you.”
Following Oh Seongyeon's lead, Lucifer ransacked the interior thoroughly.
He smashed and looted every file cabinet, safe, fridge in sight.
Then he found a stack of notable documents.
'Hmm?'
Hidden in a safe in the deepest room. Flipping the confidential-labeled cover revealed the contents.
Solomon's 72 Demons: 'Belial' Descent Plan
'Ho, look at these guys.'
A smile crept onto Lucifer's lips as he read.
'Yes, for world domination, you need ambitions like this.'
Summarizing the confidential doc:
Demon descent for world conquest.
Unseal a sleeping demon in Korea to sow chaos, then seize power via control over it.
'Certainly. One of the 72 demons could pull that off.'
A far-fetched tale of a demon sealed somewhere on Earth, but Lucifer didn't doubt it.
The system's arrival hadn't just changed awakeners.
Earth itself now flowed with mana, alive with legends and myths.
Not just demon gods – legendary beings slumbered somewhere on the planet.
'Execution date...'
Today.
'That's why the leader isn't at HQ.'
Info on Mumyeong and the sealed demon both came from this leader.
“Hmm.”
After reviewing all docs, Lucifer turned his head. The cold gaze from the bread bag fixed on vice leader Oh Seongyeon.
“A demon, huh. If its seal breaks, that'd be a real disaster. Korea collapsing would be quick.”
“I-It's already...”
Oh Seongyeon, who had been holding his breath, shouted in fury.
“Too late! Our leader's headed to the seal site! You'll regret it later, but the demon's descent can't be stopped now!”
“Not stopping it.”
“Pardon?”
Oh Seongyeon glitched at Lucifer's words. Lucifer replied curtly.
“Not stopping it.”
A faint smile played on Lucifer's lips as he spoke.
Upper demon Belial.
A demon god-class beast.
Not quite at that level yet, perhaps.
Anyway.
Why leave such fine prey buried underground?
“Not block it – capture it.”
No matter how strong, no one was under his master's power.
'I'll make Master the absolute strongest, by any means.'
Even demons as nourishment for Master.
Lucifer intended to give his all.