Chapter 26
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 26
Chapter Title: A Bizarre Shopping Trip with Chae Seol-ah (1)
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Word that Kim Hyun had appeared at Daeyeon Department Store quickly reached the upper echelons of the Daeyeon Group.
By now, pretty much every major chaebol family had at least a rough idea of who Kim Hyun was. They knew she was a returnee with considerable power, and even had a sense of her personality.
Of course, in such a situation, there was no way they'd treat her like any other customer.
Judging that she required care beyond VIP—straight into VVIP territory—the Daeyeon Group's top brass immediately dispatched personnel.
And this was the result.
"K-Kim Hyun."
"Yeah? What's up?"
"People keep staring at us from all around."
Chae Seol-ah glanced around with a troubled expression.
Right now, Kim Hyun and Chae Seol-ah were surrounded by over a dozen bodyguards. It was a human wall meant to prevent any trouble with regular customers.
Of course, this setup drew massive aggro. Whispers came from every direction.
"What? Who are they?"
"Whoa, must be chaebol heirs or something..."
With her sharp ears, Chae Seol-ah's face turned beet red as she stuck close to Kim Hyun and bowed her head.
"This is embarrassing..."
"Why feel burdened? Just enjoy it."
But Kim Hyun's words didn't make the discomfort vanish.
"I said it's uncomfortable—tell them all to leave."
There was no reason to torment her further when she was already burdened, so Kim Hyun dismissed all the bodyguards.
What remained were two VVIP dedicated managers assigned by the department store. They'd insisted they couldn't leave their VVIP unattended, so she'd let them stay.
'Well, they might be helpful for shopping anyway.'
How many floors had they covered, from the first to the sixth?
Spotting something in the home appliances section, Kim Hyun's eyes lit up.
"Oh, massage chairs."
"Massage chairs?"
Sure enough, a corner was filled with massage chairs. It seemed like a store selling the devices themselves.
"Can I try one?"
"Of course, ma'am."
With that, Kim Hyun flopped right into a chair, sprawling out shamelessly. At the same time, flames flickered by her head, conjuring a pair of sunglasses.
Slipping them on, Kim Hyun waved her hand lazily.
"Wanna try?"
"N-No, I'm good."
Not particularly interested in massage chairs, Chae Seol-ah waved her off.
"Then I'll chill here for a bit?"
"Y-Yes."
"Yell if something comes up."
With that, Kim Hyun surrendered to the chair. In an instant, she was snoring softly, fast asleep.
'Is it okay to sleep there...?'
Scratching her neck, Chae Seol-ah pondered.
Since Kim Hyun had said she was just taking a quick rest, Chae Seol-ah decided to hit the bathroom.
After washing her hands in the nearest restroom, she let out a sigh.
She'd brought Kim Hyun here to shop as per the manual's instructions, but for some reason, no further tips had appeared since.
'Is it because she doesn't really want anything?'
Then why agree so readily to go shopping?
She had no clue. It didn't make sense.
Without the manual's help, dealing with Kim Hyun was way too hard.
"Please, give me something—anything."
The moment Chae Seol-ah grumbled at the innocent manual...
Destroy the cores of the 27 monsters inside the barrier, gather the powder, and form a stake. Slay the barrier caster with that stake to escape.
"Huh?"
Why had the manual popped up?
Before Chae Seol-ah could question it...
The manual provided a method.
Chae Seol-ah's face stiffened.
Something was wrong.
"Ugh..."
Emerging slowly from the bathroom, Hwang Yu-hyun rubbed his stomach. A sudden stomachache had forced him to duck in there.
Jeong Jin-woo pinched his nose in mock disgust, fanning the air with his hand.
"Eek, that's brutal."
"What? You calling me an elementary kid?"
Hwang Yu-hyun glared at him.
"But seriously, what was with the sudden emergency dump?"
"I dunno. My stomach just cramped up out of nowhere."
Hwang Yu-hyun muttered with a queasy look. No way could he admit it was from tensing up at the sight of Kim Hyun's face.
"Anyway, let's go. How many hours have we wasted because of you? Stuck in the bathroom forever."
"You'd get it if you were in my shoes."
The two bantered as they headed toward the department store entrance. But the entrance was in chaos.
"Kyaaah!"
"Knife! He's got a knife!"
"Call the cops, quick!"
Something had gone down.
"What the? What's happening?"
Jeong Jin-woo tilted his head.
"Sounds like someone's stabbing people."
"Damn it. Bad omen. Stock's gonna tank again."
Jeong Jin-woo clicked his tongue, frowning.
"Hey, let's use another exit."
But Hwang Yu-hyun grabbed his shoulder, holding him back.
"Hold up. Let's watch for a sec."
"What? What if it's dangerous?"
"With all these guards? It'll be fine."
Grinning, Hwang Yu-hyun pushed forward. Jeong Jin-woo followed with a wary expression.
Arriving near the entrance, they hung back a bit for safety and peered in, gasping.
"Whoa, kitchen knives?"
"Two of 'em. Thinks he's Liu Bei or something."
Then...
"Hey, what's that guy doing?"
"Uh, uh?"
The man at the entrance, waving kitchen knives in both hands and ranting wildly, suddenly let his arms droop. Then he jammed both blades into his own neck.
Not stopping there, he shoved them deeper, decapitating himself. Blood sprayed everywhere in an instant, turning the entrance into a slaughterhouse.
Not expecting suicide, Hwang Yu-hyun panicked.
"F-Freaking psycho!"
"Shit, we're screwed."
Jeong Jin-woo's face paled as he fumbled for his smartwatch to check the stock market.
Right then.
Black energy began surging from the man's corpse. It spread rapidly, engulfing the department store.
The black energy formed a hemispherical dome over the store, severing it from the outside world like a barrier.
"Wh-What the hell?"
"Dude, this feels really bad..."
Suddenly, black beasts leaped out from beyond the barrier. Shattering glass, they poured inside and began hunting the scattered customers.
"Gaaah!"
"M-Monsters! Run!"
"H-Help!"
Jeong Jin-woo's face hardened as he backed away.
"Shit, this is..."
Terror he'd only heard about. Monster attack. Whatever it was...
Death was closing in.
As Jeong Jin-woo's body froze and he stammered...
Hwang Yu-hyun grabbed his arm and bolted toward the escalator. Dragged along, Jeong Jin-woo yelped in confusion.
"Hey, where are we going?!"
"Shut up and find that woman we saw earlier!"
"What? Why her?"
"Why do you think!"
Because her side was the safest place, obviously.
Chae Seol-ah grasped the situation immediately.
She didn't even need to try.
Panicked customers were swarming up the escalator like ants.
'M-Monsters?'
She bit her lip.
'No, not just that.'
This wasn't some minor irregular gate spawn. Low-rank hunters hired as security would've handled a couple monsters already.
'Then... terrorism?'
Terror attacks by black magicians happened all too often.
Korea filtered them out at the border thanks to its police-state history, but Europe—with its emphasis on personal freedom and connected landmasses—saw two or three incidents a month.
Chae Seol-ah shoved through the crowd and peered down the escalator. Below, black beasts tore into people.
Horrific screams, blood, chunks of flesh.
For a moment, her pupils trembled.
Her vision flashed white.
Her brain felt bleached and empty.
Filling that void was pure survival instinct.
Her limbs shook as she staggered back.
'I-I can't. I can't stop this alone.'
Of course not.
She was just someone lucky enough to contract the Akashic Manual. Even after years of training, she couldn't wield a single spell properly. Despite massive investments as a "promising talent," she was worthless trash, barely a fraction of her cost.
No way she could stop a black magician's terror attack. Protecting her own life would be a struggle.
'Run now...'
If she fled and hid immediately, could she survive? Would this blow over quietly, like all the other times?
'No... if I go to Kim Hyun...'
Kim Hyun?
In that instant, focus returned to Chae Seol-ah's vacant eyes.
'Sh-She'll definitely handle this too.'
Like a comic book protagonist, in one shot.
So no need to worry about resolving the incident.
It'd be over soon.
In that case...
'Just... protect these people for a little while.'
Everyone could survive.
Chae Seol-ah bit her lip hard.
Then she took a step forward.