Once a member of the Seong family of Radiance, he had abandoned his humanity and fallen into a fiend—Fallen Heaven, Seong Ubin.
At the mention of his name, the family heads all sank into silence.
No one looked surprised, as if they had suspected as much.
But on the faces of those who shared all manner of ill-fated ties with Fallen Heaven, worry settled in.
“Seeing as you gathered us all here, I assume you have evidence to prove that claim?”
“…”
The head of the Min family of the Demonic Path, Min Huiseong, drew smoke through his pipe.
Then, representing the other family heads, he questioned O Jinhyeok, head of the O family of Black Magic.
Instead of answering, O Jinhyeok took out a metal plaque from his breast.
It was a device.
“This is the staff my grandson was said to have used at the time of the incident. I asked Sword for their cooperation and borrowed it for a while. They said they needed our judgment as well.”
Just then, staff members who had entered after asking permission set the table for the meal.
They were people who had been strictly trained in confidentiality and were bound by relevant magical restrictions.
They were also people employed by the Yu family.
In the first place, it was not such a grave secret that they needed to worry about information leaking.
So, whether they watched or not, O Jinhyeok gripped the metal plaque and murmured the activation word.
The metal plaque, activated by the mana within his body, regained its original form.
Before long, in his hand was a staff adorned with a crystal skull.
“If my memory serves me… the staff Fallen Heaven used looked exactly like this. I checked just in case, and mana similar to Fallen Heaven’s was detected from it.”
“I had my suspicions when I heard the news, but to think that bastard really has returned alive…”
Do Yeik, who had received the staff and was examining it carefully, furrowed his brow and sighed.
The other family heads each inspected the staff as well, showing similar reactions.
When it was finally passed to Seong Uhyang, the head of the Seong family of Radiance, they had no choice but to acknowledge it.
“…It is indeed our family treasure. As you said, it is the staff my elder brother wielded.”
Unlike the other family heads, she was a woman who maintained a youthful appearance as if denying the passage of time.
With black hair falling over her white clothes, she spoke in a firm tone.
As Fallen Heaven’s younger sister, her words held a certain credibility.
The family heads’ faces hardened.
“I thought we had finished him off back then… He has a long life.”
Eun Homin of the Eun family of Snow Spear clicked his tongue.
The family heads expressed their agreement in silence.
“…”
It had been roughly thirty years ago.
It was the time when Fallen Heaven, who had founded the Fiend Association, had begun expanding his forces in earnest and was on the verge of becoming a great calamity.
The heads of the Ten Families, who had felt threatened at the time, along with Fighting Ghost Seo Jeongjin and hunters willing to devote themselves to justice, had waged all-out war against the Fiend Association.
As a result, the Fiend Association was torn apart and lost the status and influence it once held.
Fallen Heaven had not escaped unscathed either.
After the all-out war, he vanished without a trace, leaving his life or death unknown.
Now that time had passed, some even speculated that he had already died in that all-out war.
The family heads had inwardly agreed.
Because…
“If Fallen Heaven is alive, that means he cleared a black Gate. Alone, without anyone’s help.”
The family heads, having judged that dealing with Fallen Heaven after he had become a fiend would cause enormous casualties, had used a clever move to trap him inside a black Gate.
That was why they had assumed he was dead—or at the very least, that he would never return alive.
Nam Sieon, head of the Nam family of Alchemy, pointed out precisely that this assumption had been shattered.
“Even if it was an artificial Gate, it was still undeniably black. Clearing it alone should have been impossible… How did he get out? What an absolute madman.”
“…”
Ham Seokgyo, head of the Ham family of Ballistic Bow, put the prepared food into his mouth and laughed as if dumbfounded.
But the family heads could not simply laugh along with him.
The meaning of Fallen Heaven clearing a black Gate and coming back out was…
‘He has grown even stronger than he was back then.’
That was the correct assumption to make.
Conversely, they themselves had exhausted their strength in the all-out war and were growing old as humans. If anything, they had become weaker, not stronger.
“…”
They were family heads who represented the collective will of their respective lineages.
In order to maintain their dignity, they refrained from making unnecessary remarks to one another.
At the same time, their thoughts turned elsewhere.
To Fallen Heaven’s intention in causing this incident.
“He must be bearing a grudge against us. That would explain why he touched the O family’s child.”
“At the same time, it must also be a declaration of war. A notice that he has returned alive…”
“Are we going to have another all-out war?”
“…”
Their worries could only deepen.
Except for the Ham family of Ballistic Bow and the Yong family of Chivalry, the family heads did not reach for the food as it cooled.
They merely drank cup after cup of liquor.
In any case, now that Fallen Heaven’s return was all but certain, they needed to establish countermeasures.
Fiends and villains would rise again, and the world would be covered in chaos.
That was the very reason they had gathered.
“I wanted to withdraw from the front lines and spend the rest of my life in comfort, but unfortunately, it seems I cannot.”
The heads of the Ten Families were beings who wielded immense influence not only in the world of hunters, but also in this country.
They resolved to take the measures necessary to prepare for Fallen Heaven’s resurgence.
It was at that very moment that an anomaly occurred.
“Then, if you need anything, please press the bell at any tiiiiiimeuuuurgh…! Kieeeek!”
A staff member who had brought in more liquor suddenly went into convulsions as he was leaving and collapsed.
At the abrupt situation, the family heads’ eyes widened, and they all rose from their seats at once.
Seong Uhyang, who was well-versed in healing magic, quickly tried to examine the staff member.
“Wait.”
“Yes?”
Just then, Cha Taein, head of the Cha family of Circulation, stretched out an arm and blocked Seong Uhyang’s path.
The other family heads also did not approach the staff member. Instead, each drew their weapons and raised their aura.
Only then did she realize it.
‘This is…’
It was an aura familiar to her.
That was why she had been late in distinguishing it.
Seong Uhyang spoke to the staff member, who was staggering up from the floor as if the seizure had been a lie.
“It was you, Elder Brother.”
“It has been a long time, Uhyang. From the looks of it, you seem to have become the head of the Seong family. Well, since our father passed away, it would only be natural that you were chosen as the next head.”
“You speak shamelessly, pretending not to know who made Father that way.”
“It could not be helped. Father tried to kill me back then, so in order to live, I had no choice but to kill him.”
“What happened to the soul that was in that body? Surely you did not annihilate it.”
“Do not worry. I have merely borrowed his body for a moment. Once my business is done, I will return it. In any case, it has been a long time for you all as well. Have you been well?”
The staff member chuckled like an old man.
Fallen Heaven had taken over the staff member’s flesh and was moving his body.
The family heads, who knew this, took stances so that they could engage in battle at any moment.
Even surrounded by them, Fallen Heaven showed no sign of tension.
Rather, he shrugged his shoulders.
“Do not glare at me so much. I only stopped by to say hello. I have no intention of fighting you.”
At least, not today…
The family heads could guess the unspoken end of Fallen Heaven’s words.
They frowned.
Whether they did or not, he looked around at the family heads with a calm gaze.
“First, Golden Crow. Touching your grandson was not a planned action. Though I do bear a personal grudge against you all and that Fighting Ghost bastard for trapping me in a Gate, I did not approach that child with intent. That child happened to catch my eye, and I merely gave him power out of curiosity. What happened after that… has nothing to do with me.”
“Do you think I will simply let it slide if you put it that way? Seong Ubin, regardless of the reason, you touched my family. The O family of Black Magic will never overlook you.”
“How frightening. But Golden Crow, do not try to slip away so subtly like that.”
“Slip away? What am I…”
“Then shall I say it with my own mouth?”
“…”
“Out of consideration for you, who were once my friend… Yes, I will shoulder it for you. Be grateful.”
O Jinhyeok, filled with anger, prepared his magic as if he might attack at any moment.
But rationally, he knew there was no point in attacking Fallen Heaven while he possessed the staff member.
He had to suppress his emotions.
Fallen Heaven, having seen through his state of mind, was relaxed for that very reason.
“As you can see, I have returned safely. Stronger, thanks to all of you. By comparison, it seems you have failed to overcome the passage of time. What do you say? Why not take this opportunity to follow me and convert into fiends? For the sake of our old ties, I will personally serve as your protector so that you may transform into fiends.”
“Shut your mouth, Seong Ubin. Are you telling us to abandon righteousness and humanity like you and live faithfully to our desires? Do not insult us.”
“I merely spoke out of goodwill, but Beast King, you are narrow-minded. It seems the rest of you have the same reaction… Ah, Ouroboros, what about you? I know you, too, pursue eternal life.”
“I want to pursue eternal life as a human, not as a fiend. And fiends do not live forever either. In the end, you cannot avoid death. You merely have one more life than we do, are more ageless, and are more undying.”
“Even so, the only way to draw closer to immortality is to become a fiend. Well, fine. Even so, I shall respect your ideal. But if you change your mind, come find me anytime. Not just you, Ouroboros, but all of you. Seeing you again after so long, I understand now. You have stagnated. Perhaps because you reign as heads of the Ten Families and can no longer look back on yourselves due to that authority, or perhaps because you have grown soft from peace. In any case…”
Stagnant water is bound to rot.
Fallen Heaven cackled and stretched his mouth into a grin.
“Then I shall take my leave. I wonder if you will be able to stop me this time as well. I—no… we welcome war at any time. As a piece of advice, you would do well not to catch me off guard and throw me into a black Gate as you did back then. If you pull the same trick again…”
“…”
“The number of black Gate Keys that fall into my hands will increase from one to two. If you want me to use those Gate Keys to launch a terror attack in the heart of Seoul, then by all means, try it. Ah, and make sure to inform Fighting Ghost that I am alive and well. Also tell him that if the opportunity comes, I will go reclaim what was taken from me. Surely he has not disposed of it in the meantime?”
At that moment.
The aura emanating from the staff member possessed by Fallen Heaven began to fade.
He was withdrawing.
Even so, the family heads did not lower their guard.
Finally, Fallen Heaven continued.
“Thanks to you all, I have stepped a little closer to the truth, so I shall make one prophecy. The world will perish. No matter how much you struggle, it is a fate you absolutely cannot change. Even if I do not act, this world will inevitably perish for some reason or another. That is how unstable and weak this world is—so weak that it can be destroyed by the most trivial trigger.”
So do not waste what remains of your lives meaninglessly trying to stop me.
I hope you can live as long as possible, and spend the rest of your lives in that stagnant state.
This is advice from one who once tried to walk the same path as you.
“Even so, if you intend to stop me, then by all means, try.”
Leaving those words behind,
Fallen Heaven’s aura vanished completely, and the staff member collapsed to the floor like a puppet with its strings cut.
Thus, dark clouds announcing the resurgence of the Fiend Association cast their shadow over the world.
* * *
The end of the semester was drawing near.
The afternoon classes scheduled for the semester had also come to a complete end with the final exams.
Thanks to that, we were able to loosen up somewhat and spend peaceful days attending only morning classes.
Lately, we often chatted while looking forward to the summer vacation that was not far off.
“Is everyone going back home during break? Since we all live in different places, it’ll be kind of hard to meet during vacation. Still, if you ever have any reason to come to Seongbuk-gu, contact me! There’s a lot to see in my neighborhood! Not long ago, Luminous Department Store U-Plex opened there, you know? They say there are tons of places to have fun there!”
“Telling me to come from Songpa-gu to Seongbuk-gu means telling me to cross the Han River. If that’s the case, why don’t you come to Songpa-gu, where Haneul and I are? There are plenty of busy areas around here too.”
“Do Gyeonu! Why are you leaving us out!”
“Hear, hear! We’re Songpa-gu residents too, so aren’t you treating us like leftovers!?”
“But I kind of want to go north of the river, too. We’ve only hung out in Gangnam; we’ve never hung out in Gangbuk, have we?”
This was an academy where students had gathered from every corner of the country, and even from all over the world.
Just as Go Eunbi said, once vacation began, most of them would go home, making it hard to meet one another.
It was a shame, but there was nothing to be done.
Those who lived nearby could meet, and those who didn’t would have no choice but to see each other after vacation ended.
‘Eunbi doesn’t live far away, so if I think of it, I should go see her with Haneul. Sagun lives in Busan, so it’d be better to give up on that… I guess I’ll see the others after school starts again.’
Yong Haerang, Nam Yuri, Cha Eunsol, and Min Arin also lived in regions outside Seoul.
Unless I had reason to travel to those places, it didn’t seem likely I’d see them over break.
Min Arin, however, was the exception.
—Here.
—What’s this?
—An invitation from my family. For you and Yeon Haneul.
—From the Magecraft Min Family, to me and Haneul? What kind of invitation is it…?
—They said the family’s going to invite people we have connections with during the break and hold an exchange gathering. The family head said he’d like the two of you to attend as well. As… thanks for saving me last time, he wants to at least treat you to a meal.
—Haneul and I weren’t the only ones who jumped in to save you then, so why are we the only ones being invited?
—How would I know that? A-Anyway! …Do you have time during vacation?
—….
—I don’t know about Yeon Haneul, but… if you’re okay with it, you could come visit our family. We’re a prestigious house known as the foremost in magic, at least in name, so there’ll be a lot of interesting things. You could also form connections with people in this field… I-I’ll stay by your side and properly show you what our family has to offer.
This had happened not long ago.
One morning, Min Arin handed me an invitation from the Magecraft Min Family.
I felt sorry to her, but since I didn’t particularly like family events, I intended to refuse.
It was also because Yeon Haneul found events like this burdensome.
So I was about to politely decline, but….
—Mm, sorry, but I’m a bit uncomfor—
—Oh, right. You remember that, don’t you?
—Remember what?
—During the midterms, when I got in trouble protecting Yeon Haneul after she was poisoned.
—Ah.
—Back then, you promised me, didn’t you? That you’d do me one favor.
—…Fine, fine. I’ll go. I just need to bring Haneul with me too, right?
—Yeon Haneul doesn’t have to come, but… Hmph, do whatever you want.
Looking back, unfortunately, I still hadn’t repaid the debt I owed Min Arin from the midterms.
In the end, to repay that debt belatedly, I had no choice but to accept her proposal.
As a result, this summer vacation, I would be visiting not only the Divine Sword Do Family but also the Magecraft Min Family.
Meanwhile, I didn’t even include Lisa, who would return to the Grace Empire, among the people I might meet during vacation.
Kang Hanbyeol had also decided to remain in Academy City.
With the whereabouts of the Fighting Demon Seo Jeongjin still unknown, he didn’t really have anything that could be called a hometown.
Yong Haerang, being considerate of him, offered his kindness.
“You’ll be bored if you stay in Academy City alone. If you want, come visit our family. Let’s train like hell together during vacation.”
“The Chivalrous Yong Family, huh… If I go there, would I be able to fight your family head? Still, thanks for the offer, but I’ll pass this time. I want to look around Academy City on my own, and my noona said she’d come visit.”
“By noona, you mean the person you mentioned before? The noona who’s like your childhood friend.”
“That’s right. She said she really wanted to see Academy City. So I’ll gratefully accept just your sentiment. If there’s a chance next time, invite me to your family.”
“If that’s the case, then it can’t be helped. Got it.”
Fortunately, it didn’t seem like Kang Hanbyeol would spend his time in Academy City lonely without us.
After hearing his plans, Yong Haerang, and of course all of us, felt relieved.
Above all, I knew.
‘Hanbyeol, hang in there.’
According to the game’s progression, Kang Hanbyeol was about to spend a summer vacation so eventful it would make his head spin.
After getting swept up in all kinds of incidents and accidents, he would end up greeting the new semester.
Knowing his future, I silently wished him luck.
Lastly….
“Haneul, what are you going to do during vacation?”
“Me? Hmm… I’m not sure….”
I asked Yeon Haneul about her summer vacation plans.
As she drank the handmade strawberry milk from Brilliant Café, she seemed to sink into thought.
Then, as if no suitable plan came to mind, she gently shook her head.
“I’m not sure. I don’t think anything will really change just because it’s vacation… I’ll probably go to the mountains with the director, take care of the kids at the orphanage, or train in magic. Ah, I should watch the dramas I’m behind on, too. And also… in my remaining time, I’ll probably go out and have fun with you?”
“You said it like you had no plans, but you seem to have a surprising amount to do.”
“Hehe, I guess so. What about you? Have you thought about what you’ll do during vacation?”
“I’ll probably be similar to you. Just, um….”
“Just what?”
“Since we didn’t have much breathing room during the semester, I want to be with you comfortably during vacation. For as long as possible.”
“…Me too.”
“Ugh, there they go again…. Guys, do you know why I only drink iced Americanos these days? Because thanks to you two, if I drink an iced vanilla latte, it’s way too sweet!”
“Luminous Uplex opened in Seongbuk-gu? Should we go see it? Leaving Eunbi behind.”
“Yeah! Should we?”
No matter what Go Eunbi or the others chattered about.
Yeon Haneul and I looked at each other and couldn’t stop giggling.
And so, peaceful days passed for the first time in a while.
But the environment surrounding us was not simply peaceful.
The academy handed down punishments to the students involved in O Junsu’s Demon King Advent incident.
The students who had conspired to kidnap Lisa were treated as having only attempted it, and especially because she showed them leniency, it ended with suspension and on-campus service.
The students who fought us at the Black Demon O Family’s villa narrowly avoided expulsion, in consideration of the fact that they had been brainwashed by O Junsu.
Of course, unlike the students who had received relatively light punishments earlier, they could not avoid severe disciplinary action.
And recently, with the meeting of the heads of the Ten Families as a starting point, certain news was beginning to spread quietly through hunter society.
That news was….
‘Academy City’s security will be strengthened from now on. Not that it’ll matter; the places that get breached will still get breached.’
The Fallen Seong Ubin and the revival of the Demonkin Association.
After roughly thirty years, the winds of war were beginning to stir in this country once more.
I Became the Childhood Friend of the Mid-Boss