Shadow on the Mantelpiece
Baldr.
He was the one who pulled me out of the Black Sheep Cult and made me the true commander of the demon army.
In past regressions, Baldr and I always met fifteen years later. The fact that he was already looking for me now had to be connected to me becoming the Hero.
With so many things different in this regression, it felt like the flow of time and events were all shifting.
"Baldr said he was the only one who could recognize the Black Sheep. That's why he asked us to find candidates separately, which is how we ended up moving independently from the main temple."
"So Baldr said that, huh..."
I stroked my chin with a thoughtful expression.
Did he really have the ability to recognize me? That's news to me.
Maybe because this was the first regression without mental corruption, I was learning all sorts of minor facts I never knew before.
"Th-then, you'll let me live now...?"
"As if."
The moment I turned and reached out to drill a holy hole into the back of the guy trying to flee, a hurried voice rang out.
"Stop! Hero!"
Jeong Hyeon-seop's figure darted in, blocking the space between me and the head priest.
He blocked my punch—still radiating holy power—with his aura-infused knight's shield.
Boom!
The clash of holy power and aura triggered a fierce chain reaction, exploding around us.
Thanks to that, the corpses of the fallen Black Sheep Cultists nearby turned into puffs of white smoke and crumbled to ash.
Jeong Hyeon-seop was a devout holy knight, neither a villain nor part of the Black Sheep Cult. I had no intention of laying a finger on someone like that, so I stepped back, raising both arms high.
As expected of the First Knight Order Captain, he had impressive skills.
"We need to extract information about the Black Sheep from this one. May I take him for interrogation from here?"
"Go ahead."
After bowing his head to me, Jeong Hyeon-seop glanced around and let out a small sigh.
"It's all just ashes now."
He seemed relieved to have saved at least one, but unfortunately, even that last one had turned to ash.
Sizzle...
"......"
The Black Sheep Cult black priest's body apparently couldn't withstand our clash.
I kept my hands raised, signaling it wasn't intentional, but Jeong Hyeon-seop's face grew sterner.
Shin Yu-ra felt her face drain of color at the horrific scene.
Lately, she had the nagging feeling she was seeing sights like this far too often—was it just her imagination?
Jeong Hyeon-seop, who had approached unnoticed, lit another cigarette—the one he'd said he'd quit—and spoke.
"First time seeing something like this?"
"Yes... though I've witnessed similar scenes a few times recently."
"I see. Once the all-out war with the Black Sheep Cult begins, an entire city might end up like this."
"Hngh..."
Shin Yu-ra let out a pained groan, just imagining it.
"I never imagined Kwon Mu-hyuk's power had grown this strong. He really is the Hero."
"...You said you'd sparred with him before?"
"Yes. But even that was just a few days ago. I've never seen anyone grow this fast."
"We ordinary folk can't comprehend someone chosen by the gods."
"You're right..."
Back during the awakening test in the gym, she'd only thought of him as a talented fighter with great combat sense. That's why she'd recommended the Hunter Rescue Team to him, wanting to give the newbie opportunities.
I tried to stuff a dragon into a rabbit hole.
She felt ashamed and embarrassed for failing to recognize the one chosen by the gods for the holy path of the Hero—constantly suspecting him of using dark energy and trying to persuade him.
As Shin Yu-ra swept away the last remnants of doubt in her heart,
Jeong Hyeon-seop gripped his knight's shield in his left hand—then dropped it.
"Vice Captain?"
"Heh, getting old, I guess."
Forcing a wry smile, he picked up the shield again and glanced at his left hand, still tingling.
A single block had rocked his entire body, the aftershocks churning relentlessly inside him.
So this is the power of a Hero chosen by the gods.
The attack hadn't even connected. Just the overflowing holy power had melted the cultist's body white as snow.
It explained why Kang Dae-jin, the head knight captain so obsessed with the Hero title, hadn't been chosen.
Reality had to be accepted.
His former superior had dug his own grave, charging at a freshly awakened Hero and now hovering on the brink of death. The fact that he'd survived wasn't because the Hero was weak—it was mercy. Jeong Hyeon-seop knew that for certain now.
Twelve years ago, on the day of the Great Cataclysm when monsters first appeared, amid the dazzling rise of newly awakened hunters, he'd poured everything into his own leveling and growth.
That's why he could tell Kwon Mu-hyuk's growth wasn't humanly possible.
The Hero's emergence wasn't just Korea's problem. Branches of Gaon of Light worldwide would soon invite him or request his aid against the Black Sheep Cult.
But...
Who could force such a powerful Hero into battles beyond the Demon King?
More importantly, the Hero's temperament differed from typical holy knights.
If anyone tries to proceed without hearing the man's own opinion, stopping them might be the only way to preserve world peace.
Jeong Hyeon-seop resolved anew to support the Hero with utmost care.
In the vast ocean's midst, shrouded in fog that blurred its presence, lay an island.
At its center stood the grand headquarters of the Black Sheep Salvation Church—the main temple building, the cult's global hub.
The Black Sheep Cult's main temple was a natural fortress; no uninvited soul could enter or leave.
Its airtight secrecy and defenses allowed key figures to plot freely.
Within this structure, in a massive black-gray square corridor shielded from prying eyes, lived Choi Ju-bong, the Prophecy Bureau seer.
His office, adorned with a majestic saber-tooth tiger pelt on the backrest and luxurious mahogany interiors, rivaled a superpower president's in opulence and high-tech gadgets.
As Choi Ju-bong leaned back in his plush leather chair, weary from reading documents, he suddenly noticed an uninvited man standing before him.
"If you're here, just state your business, Baldr."
The massive figure, half-hidden in shadow, gradually revealed itself in the flickering mantel firelight.
"I had no intention of interrupting a human's office hours."
"Demon realm must be pretty idle these days to send you to the human world so often."
"If we're talking idle, you humans take the cake. Short-lived pests wasting your brief lives on dead ends."
Choi Ju-bong's lip twitched at Baldr's taunt.
"If you wanted to show off, why not find the Black Sheep yourself? Word is you failed."
"Heh... You humans are so foolish. Do you think I didn't tell you because I couldn't find the Black Sheep?"
Choi Ju-bong's eyes widened; he shot to his feet.
"Wh-what? You found him?! Where is he?!"
In stark contrast to Choi Ju-bong's frantic urge to grab Baldr by the collar, Baldr slowly shook his head.
"I can say neither that I found him nor that I didn't."
"What bullshit is that?!"
"Shut that noisy mouth."
Baldr slashed his hand horizontally toward Choi Ju-bong, sealing his lips.
It resembled the Silence Out skill.
"!!"
"Now we can talk."
Baldr leaned his massive upper body forward, casting a huge black shadow over Choi Ju-bong.
"Listen well. To reclaim the Black Sheep, intimidate the one who became the Hero this time—by any means. Make him obey you. Fail, and you, this filthy cult—it's all over."
"Mmph...?"
"Got it? Then I'll assume you understand and be off."
With his piece said, Baldr melted into the shadows. Choi Ju-bong's mouth reopened instantly.
"Mmph... Pah! Cough cough... Damn demon scum!"
Choi Ju-bong wiped his mouth roughly, feeling soiled. Then he mulled over Baldr's words.
"A Hero? Even Gaon of Light has one already?"
After a moment's thought, he interlaced his fingers, rested his chin, and grinned wickedly.
"Intimidation? Nothing works better than family. Heh heh..."
The shadow from the mantelpiece high on the wall rippled ominously.
My grand dream of whipping up a fake Demon King and living it up from cradle to grave shattered with Baldr's appearance.
He looked human but was a demon realm errand boy.
Far from weak or laughable—he was around a Rank 2 demon army commander.
For such a being to hunt me already meant the previous Demon King had vacated early, desperately needing an unripe Black Sheep.
With the demon realm's mad herald refusing to back down, I couldn't just lounge in my cradle.
To confront him, I needed to squeeze Choi Ju-bong from the Prophecy Bureau, who was in contact. But his lair wasn't in Korea.
Not America or Russia—smack in the Pacific, an impenetrable fortress. To nab him, I'd have to cross the ocean.
Of course, with his right-hand men in Korea hunting me, I could play captured and let them take me. But as the so-called Hero, getting nabbed would hit Gaon of Light hard.
And it'd disappoint hyung.
So hunting them down looked better.
For various reasons, holing up in the cradle would be delayed. Tonight, I'd visit hyung, reveal my reawakened Hero class, and celebrate together.
I hailed a taxi home, grinning at thoughts of chatting about the Hero awakening and cradle with him.
Then my phone rang.
Jeong Hyeon-seop, Vice Captain?
Just ten minutes ago, we'd discussed the upcoming op with the Gaon of Light Association and special forces team, then headed home to prep.
What could warrant a call so soon?
"Yes, Vice Captain? What's up?"
"Well... It seems the Hero's family has been attacked by the Black Sheep Cult."
Blood surged; dark energy exploded outward.
Boom!!
Crash—Boom!
My taxi got caught in the blast, flipping one-and-a-half times in the air before slamming down.
I pulled the driver from the seat, laid him safely aside, and grabbed my phone again.
"Hello? Hero! Hero!"
"Hoo... Yes, could you explain in detail again?"
My trembling hand gripped the phone like it might shatter.
"What... happened to my brother?"