The world grew noisy.
"Whoa, is this real? Is that actually Igeon?"
"Crazy, it really was him in person?"
"No way lololol If it's a forgery skill, you can forge handwriting too lololol"
"Are you insane? Just because it’s possible, you think forgery’s easy??"
The world was filled with news of Igeon.
And amidst this chaos, one person clutched the back of his neck.
"Lord of the Divine Palace Seat! Come out and say something!"
"Do you really not know where Igeon is?!"
"Is he truly alive?!"
"Has the hero the world longed for really returned...?!"
Hugo nearly flung away the convenience store lunchbox he was eating.
He had no choice. Outside was already packed with reporters. Not just government officials, but even foreign press had swarmed in. And every TV program was nothing but coverage of the incident.
"My lord!"
In the end, Hugo, who'd been plugging one ear, snatched up his chopsticks and hurled them.
"He goes and causes a mess in the meantime!"
The chopsticks flew like an arrow toward the guest sofa—where Igeon sat.
"What on earth were you thinking, sending that photo and message to the broadcast station! Because of you, I can't set foot outside yesterday or today!"
But Igeon, who had leisurely caught the chopsticks, whistled.
"What do I mean? A declaration of war, obviously. Those bastards watch the news, don't they? So I told them to clean their necks and wait."
This damn attention seeker!
Well, it didn't matter anyway. Even if Igeon hadn't stepped up, this storm would have erupted soon enough. Right from the moment he caught the Spider Queen.
But that wasn't all.
Not satisfied with breaking news, Igeon contacted the government directly—using his original voice.
'I'll give you one week. All my items sold off to other countries before I leave—find every last one.'
That distinctive, fierce baritone.
The Blue House was thrown into chaos.
For now, only the voice was relayed, but it was exactly the same voice from the past. Coupled with this situation...
"Geon, please. I'm begging you, can't you take things a little easier? I'm scared to even watch TV..."
But Igeon, who was playing a mobile game, just scratched his butt.
"Ah, lost a heart. Gotta charge."
When Igeon, as if it were the most natural thing, started paying for in-game purchases, Hugo erupted.
And he had every right to—because the phone Igeon was using was his own. Naturally, the payment method was Hugo's phone bill!
"Hey! How can you even think of doing microtransactions on my phone...!"
At that, Igeon looked at his friend with utter disgust.
"Even I wouldn't rip off a poverty-stricken seat."
Hugo shot him a look that said, Who's a poverty-stricken seat? But Igeon used his toes to pick up a credit card from the table.
A gold card.
Then he deftly entered the card number. There was no need to ask whose it was.
[Card approved: Yang Wei, 8/27 17:47 lump sum $1,000, Kakao Games]
[Cumulative total $50,000]
Hugo lost all words, staring at Yang Wei's phone buzzing on the table.
'He's bleeding him dry to the marrow.'
Not content with locking him in a fish tank and wringing information out of him, he was now treating him as a gaming wallet.
'Honestly, it's a miracle the card hasn't been blocked yet.'
That left him only one thought.
'With looks like that, and now this—he's like some immature son I've picked up.'
And that wasn't all.
"Keeek!"
[Divine Seat experience increased]
"Kyeck!"
[Divine Seat experience increased]
"Kee-e-eek!"
[Divine Seat experience increased]
...
[Level up! (Lv.3)]
[Points generated]
"Sweet, level up."
"......"
Hugo grimaced at the mounting mosquito corpses.
'I'm half-tempted to fry those mosquitoes and feed them to him for a month.'
But honestly, it didn't really matter.
Just the fact that Igeon had returned alive was a joyous, thankful thing for him. However, the reporters outside were another matter.
"Anyway, the reporters have swarmed here, so what are you going to do...!"
But that's when it happened.
At Hugo's words, Igeon, as if annoyed, threw something.
'!'
It was a short sword.
"Why not toss them that as a bone to chew on?"
But Hugo, who caught the blade, looked unimpressed.
What Igeon threw was nothing more than a dagger the size of a small silver knife—a crude object with no skills or anything infused.
So he asked.
"And what's this toy supposed to be?"
"The principal malefactor who dropped me into a trap."
"!"
Hugo was so startled he nearly dropped the blade.
For a mere blade—not even a holy relic—to have driven Igeon to death was absolutely absurd.
'This is no ordinary sword.'
Even the unfamiliar crest was strange. Who on earth could have made something like this?
Igeon laughed murderously.
"I'm planning to crush every bastard who stole my achievements, but the one who used this—just crushing them isn't enough."
It has to be more than an eye for an eye. And above all, this sword.
'It's no ordinary blade.'
The way it numbed my instincts in an instant that day, and especially the never-before-seen pattern engraved on it—it bothers me. Call it instinct.
But Hugo sighed.
"Still, if someone actually managed to stab you with this, it couldn't have been Yang Wei, at least."
"Huh. If I'd fallen after getting stabbed by him, I'd die of shame."
Yang Wei was the weakest of the thirteen, the furthest removed from combat.
"So what now? If you try finding the culprit, they'll all just deny it. And those bastards are holed up in their holy realms—forget catching them, it's hard to even see their faces."
Hugo furrowed his brow, as if just thinking about them disgusted him.
"You probably want to snuff out the rumors first, but holding a press conference puts you at too much of a disadvantage. No one else can hear Yang Wei's voice, and the other side already holds power—they'll just play dumb, and there's no arguing."
Perhaps from experience, he looked at Igeon seriously.
"I'll tell you now: after you died, I severed all ties with that side, so I have no information that could help you."
"No money either."
"Hey!"
But Igeon's eyes glinted.
Hugo hadn't said much, but clearly something had happened with those bastards during the years Igeon was gone.
That's why Igeon's lips curled as he thought of them.
"Don't worry. I never intended to make you the target of their fury anyway. I've got something more certain in mind."
"!"
Igeon knew.
How skillfully they manipulated the media.
"They'll try to play their tricks right in front of me again, as expected."
"!"
"Naturally, you start by kidnapping at least one witness before crushing them for good, right?"
"!"
At that murderous glare, Hugo's mouth fell open as if he'd caught on something.
You bastard—so that's why you didn't reveal your face?!
And sure enough, Igeon grinned wickedly.
"If they know my face, won't those bastards just uselessly run away? Why would I give them the chance?"
And then.
"Once I reveal my face, it'll be hell with everyone hunting only me. You think I'd sign up for a solo beatdown when I'm insane?"
"......"
This... this brat?
But as if joking, Igeon flashed a bloodthirsty smile.
"Two birds with one stone. I can grab a witness nearby.
I happen to know a little mage from the Gemini Seat, anyway.
'Still, if I can, I'd prefer one with a bigger splash.'
"Anyway, you look into the owner or traces of that blade. I'm going to find the bastard who stabbed me, no matter what it takes."
At those words, Hugo felt a sense of foreboding, but Igeon was already about to leave.
But his departure was brief.
As if suddenly remembering something, Igeon pulled something out from under the sofa.
"Oh, right. I'm taking one of these bromides."
"What?"
"You guys got a package at the temple, right? Your subordinates must have sent it."
Hugo sighed. If his subordinates had sent it, it had to be posters of himself.
He wasn't fond of photos, but with promotional and funding needs forcing him to take them, the quantity was considerable. They'd taken more photos recently, so this was probably the printed batch.
But Hugo secretly felt pleased. Still, he's grabbing one of my bromides—that's almost touching.
"Even as a friend, that's considera—"
But the moment Igeon unfolded the bromide, Hugo's expression twisted.
"Wow, this girl really is pretty."
"?!"
The bromide Igeon unfolded wasn't of Hugo, but of some woman.
"I saw her fighting on TV. She's super popular worldwide, right? Her fandom's massive."
But for some reason, Hugo lunged at Igeon.
"Hey! Hand that over right now!"
"What? Oh, why! You're a fan of her too. Your room is full of her stuff! Let's fangirl together. I think she's pretty cool..."
Hugo fumed, veins bulging in his neck.
"Don't you dare show any interest in that child! Don't even think about meeting her!"
"What? Who is she? Is she a bad person?"
"That's..."
Hugo hesitated, about to say she was his daughter. It was because of the situation that might unfold in the future.
His daughter was Igeon's biggest fan.
So he had no intention of introducing them. Especially after seeing Igeon's current face.
"...Anyway, no!"
"???"
The doting father was desperate.
* * *
┕ ? Of course, it's the Gemini Seat's temple that's there. They're Korea's number one.
┕ LOL LOL, merchants who even lend out virility magic, calling them monsters? There's a wild rumor that the returned Igeon is actually...
┕ Huh?? Don't lie
┕ Link to Igeon sighting evidence: Shocking, Igeon mask taking down a centipede with frozen meat at a mart.jpg
┕ Which temple on earth is it, this is interesting pic.twitter.com/PdjYjd
┕ Whoa, so did Igeon catch something that even the Aries and Gemini Seats couldn't?
…
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Meanwhile, around that time.
Near the Aries Seat's holy realm in Korea.
"Saintess, as expected, the Aries Seat's saint isn't here either. I don't sense any holy god's presence."
— Is that so?
A woman was on a video call, looking at a tablet screen.
And her call partner was none other than
The very healing Divine Seat ranked number one in sacred power, revered by the world as the great Saintess.
Countless nations and powers clung to her. The holy water from the chalice she distributed held that much value. And that very relic was what made her a saintess, granting her supreme authority.
The subordinate who had been sent to investigate frowned.
"Judging by the loss of contact, I think he might have taken the payment and run. The fact that even the holy god is hiding suggests there's something fishy going on."
Since he wasn't a combat Divine Seat, they didn't pay much attention—but it's troublesome when a trading partner acts like this.
Especially when the trader who possessed the essential materials for creating the chalice relic cuts all contact?
"Shall we trample the Aries Seat's holy realm?"
— Let's not. Killing isn't good. Think of how many places our faithful can use.
"!"
— Still, this is troubling. If Yang Wei has joined hands with another Divine Seat, it'll be a headache.
The Saintess was deeply anxious.
More than anything, Yang Wei's vault contained items of theirs.
'That vault holds the important belongings of eleven people.'
If someone managed to open Yang Wei's infinite storehouse, it would be a disaster.
Moreover.
'Yang Wei has a hidden ability.'
A power Yang Wei himself didn't know about, an extraordinarily useful one that only she had noticed.
And yet, Yang Wei had vanished like this.
'No one else must learn of that ability. The entire situation could flip.'
There shouldn't be any easy way to discover it, but if whoever took him has Igeon's demonic level of insight, then it's a problem.
Just then, the attentive subordinate asked.
"Um, Saintess."
— Yes.
"The Tower of the Demon collapsed a while back, didn't it? And they say Igeon's message was sent to the broadcast station..."
— Yes, what of it?
"The Korean government is in an uproar, as if they received some kind of contact. Is there a possibility... that Igeon really has returned and kidnapped Yang Wei?"
At once, a clear, bell-like laugh rang out.
— Sister, what an unfunny joke.
In an instant, the laughter cut off abruptly. Her voice held a strange blend of anger and trembling—a tone that found the mere thought utterly horrifying.
— In the first place, Igeon never had that kind of ability.
"Well, he was an incompetent man whose combat power only reached the level of the Twelve Saints thanks to your power, Saintess."
At that sneer, the Saintess flinched noticeably for some reason but quickly laughed it off.
— Exactly. How could a dead man kidnap the Aries Seat? This incident and the message side are just the usual fabrications by fanatics. Don't pay it any mind.
"My apologies. I spoke thoughtlessly."
— Don't worry too much. The Aries Seat is probably just laying low to avoid the media spotlight over the Spider Queen matter. If Igeon had truly appeared, do you think the Gemini Seat—whose personal turf Korea is—would be staying this quiet?
The Saintess spoke.
— In any case, prepare for a visit to the Holy Relic Exchange.
"The Holy Relic Exchange? Why there..."
The Holy Relic Exchange was a special place managed by Capricorn (the Goat Seat), a master artisan Divine Seat, combining a massive workshop, auction house, and department store.
— I need to buy materials. If this shipment falls through, our temple is in huge trouble.
"But that's something I could handle..."
— No.
The Saintess never left her holy realm to make the chalice. But this time was different.
And above all.
— There's word that an item of Igeon's is coming to the Holy Relic Exchange. One of the legendary relics that absolutely must be obtained.
"What? Is that true? Good heavens, that legend whose whereabouts were unknown...!"
— Rumors say a reclusive magnate has put the item up. So...
But that's when it happened. A subordinate rushed in while the Saintess was still on the call.
"Saintess, we have a major problem!"
"What is it?"
"Other saints are heading to the Holy Relic Exchange, aiming for Igeon's relic."
The Saintess urgently rose.
(To be continued in the next chapter)