At Li Geon's words, the faces of the boy and Mr. Hwang were a sight to behold.
This bastard, did he seriously offer to take us home just to pull this?
"Hey, you!"
"Mm, you don't have to say thanks. I already know."
At Li Geon's mischievous grin, Mr. Hwang pressed a hand to his forehead.
No wonder a guy who didn't seem the type had been so nice about seeing us off.
*So there was an ulterior motive!*
Thanks to that, Mr. Hwang had no choice but to urgently whisper to the boy.
"Hey. You gonna be okay? That guy seemed kinda dangerous."
What he did against the wolves, for one thing. The way he handled that couple, too.
And on top of that, he'd seen some kind of article and practically tried to storm the Blue House – they barely managed to talk him down.
"Didn't he even say his name like that at the karaoke place? Don't you remember?"
"Ah."
"He's one of those famously infuriating Lee Gun fanatics. They're famous. The media tells you to be careful of people like that."
"But..."
The boy looked at Li Geon. In the meantime, Li Geon had taken an interest in a machine at the villa entrance.
A vending machine.
And watching him, the boy looked troubled.
"Just taking him there is fine, actually, but my roommate..."
"Ah! That's right!"
Mr. Hwang looked relieved instead.
"Your roommate's that famous high-level Ability User, right?"
"Ah, yes."
"Maybe he'll get kicked out right away. Your roommate's the kind of person who won't even give you the time of day unless you're Lee Gun."
Mr. Hwang clapped the boy on the back.
"Anyway, everyone's riled up all over the place today because of Lee Gun and the Devil's Tower, so be careful. Call me right away if anything happens. I'll report it to the police."
The boy looked appalled.
"Geez, the police? Still, I don't think he's that bad of a person..."
KWAANG!
"AHH!"
Another thunderous roar made them both flinch.
Snack bags were rolling around on the ground. And Li Geon, having already kicked the machine, was wearing a mischievous grin.
What he'd wrecked this time was the Sagittarius Constellation snack vending machine.
"Score. Late-night snack acquired."
The boy and Mr. Hwang fell silent.
"Not a bad person? That guy?"
"......"
Maybe I really should report this.
* * *
"Who did this!"
A hospital room at a university hospital in Seoul.
A furious roar erupted from within. And at the sound, the nearby nurses shut their eyes tight.
Lying on the bed in the private room was some mummy.
And he was none other than the third-generation chaebol who had thrown a cigarette butt at Li Geon and gotten beaten to a pulp in return.
At the same time, an angry, deep frown carved its way across the old man watching him.
"What kind of bastard did this to my boy!"
At that voice, one man finally sighed and stepped forward.
"Chairman. Do not worry about your grandson. Our Order will take responsibility and see to him."
He was none other than Min Seonghun, an S-rank executive of the Gemini Order, the number one Order in Korea.
Actually, Min Seonghun had doubted his own ears when he got the call.
No, I mean, of all places, the directly-managed Order of Gemini. And at that, the Holy City of Korea's number one Order was assaulted in broad daylight.
But that wasn't the important thing right now.
"Chairman. I'm sure you've already heard, but among the items stolen from your grandson was an important artifact."
"So?"
"It appears to be A-rank, but in reality, it's an S-rank artifact – a valuable item cherished by the Holy Seat of Japan."
"So what?"
Min Seonghun's face twitched subtly.
*So what?*
Right now, I'm telling you that your grandson lost something more precious than a national treasure!
*It was a mistake to entrust the courier job to this guy in order to avoid the eyes of Aries.*
But perhaps reading that look in his eyes, the sturdy old man's lips twisted.
"So. You were given a sketch, but finding the culprit is on the back burner, and finding your own artifact comes first, is that it?"
Min Seonghun almost let out a scoff.
No, of course, we can assume we'll look for the culprit. We had to find him anyway.
But.
"Are you telling me to believe that he got flicked on the forehead and beaten up by some regular civilian?"
"No! I told you to check the CCTV!"
Ultimately, at the grandson's words, Min Seonghun gave a hollow laugh.
Even if they checked, the place this guy was attacked was the jurisdiction area of Capricorn, China's constellation. There were no proper witnesses, no CCTV evidence.
*Well, that part's probably their rival Order getting cocky and pulling some stunt since they're on the receiving end.*
So let's say we take the grandson's testimony as fact. But why, of all people, did he have to get beaten up by a *fake* Lee Gun?
*Especially on a day when Lee Gun made our Order's news get buried again!*
Just as the words, *That's why you got your ass kicked by a fake Lee Gun or whatever?* were rising to his throat, the mummy let out a derisive laugh.
"So much for being the number one Order. Hey. You don't see my face and leg? Even the protective artifacts you gave me were all useless."
"Are you sure you actually used the artifacts? You wouldn't be skilled at handling them since you joined through donation."
"What are you talking about, I was using them properly! You frauds!"
Min Seonghun let out an incredulous laugh.
Whoever the culprit is, how dare they break the Holy Gods' artifacts?
"Those are protective charms that even the Twelve Saints dare not destroy. And you're telling me this fake ignored the artifacts and crushed your bones with just a flick? If that's the case, he's already at the level of a Holy God who created the artifacts!"
"What?"
"And you said you didn't feel the spiritual presence of a Holy God from him either! How could some mere commoner break an artifact's effect? You're taking this novel way too far."
"So that's what I'm saying! You guys gave me fakes!"
"What kind of nonsense...!"
"Both of you, stop it!"
At the Chairman's roar, both fell silent.
"Especially not now, in this crucial time when we don't even know if Lee Gun is alive or dead!"
"!"
The Chairman was burning with frustration.
Orders and nations around the world. Even the heads of major corporations were on edge over news of Lee Gun.
And with good reason. It was a dangerous era, threatened by monsters and calamities without the protection of the Twelve Holy Gods. In an era like this, Lee Gun, their comrade, could become any kind of key figure.
That was the level of Lee Gun's existence right now.
And every country is probably thinking the same thing.
*If he's alive, we must bring him over first by any means necessary. If there's no hope...*
"Enough. Tell the Order to deploy Order Masters and deal with the bastard who did this to my grandson immediately."
"What? Order Masters? Are you in your right mind?"
Min Seonghun was genuinely shocked.
Order Masters were the most powerful Ability Users, excluding the Twelve Saints.
To compare, their position was like that of cardinals assisting the Pope-level Twelve Saints.
Of course, he himself was in the same S-rank tier, but Order Masters were those who were particularly favored by the Holy Gods and Saints.
But still, what?
"No matter what, those people are...!"
"Looks like you want all the donations you've received up to this point returned immediately?"
Min Seonghun's face contorted oddly.
*In this day and age, chaebols are nothing special.*
All they do is ride high by buying the favor of the Holy Gods with money.
*Well, still, we can't ignore major donors and guests of the Saints.*
That was the reason an S-rank like himself had come, but it didn't really matter either way.
"Understood. We will take responsibility for the culprit and deal with him."
*We have to retrieve the stolen S-rank artifact anyway.*
From the start, once he heard the opponent was a fake Lee Gun, he had intended to make an example of him.
The Gemini Order had never had good feelings toward Lee Gun in the first place.
*You're just an old relic who got deified.*
One way or another, this matter had to be resolved quickly, before their boss – the Saint of Japan – found out.
So thinking, Min Seonghun left the hospital.
*Well, how long could it take to deal with one little Lee Gun fake?*
Harboring an absolutely colossal misconception.
* * *
"Alright. Escaped the Jesus hair."
Meanwhile, half a day had passed since the Devil's Tower was destroyed and the world was turned upside down.
The man who was currently the biggest topic on earth was cutting his hair in a small bathroom.
Snip! Whirr!
Although it was a small villa, the bathroom was clean and even had a bathtub, fitting Li Geon's tastes perfectly.
No, actually, anywhere outside that hellish tower would be paradise, really.
And once his haircut was done, he pulled at his own hair with a satisfied look.
That was only natural.
*To think my hair is this thick and full.*
He had actually sacrificed many things (?) due to the body's risks.
One of them was hair loss.
The world may not know, but how much blood, sweat, and tears he'd shed watching his hair fall out in clumps every time he used his ability.
But now it was different.
[Due to the effect of Ultra Regeneration, alopecia areata and M-shaped baldness have been cured.]
[Strong, healthy hair has sprouted rapidly.]
"I don't know what it is, but Ultra Regeneration skill is the best."
At the same time, he watched a cell phone video he'd put on earlier to gather information.
It was a very old YouTube video.
Probably from after his death. The video playing showed his sworn enemies, but Li Geon, watching it, had been chuckling away as if delighted.
The reason was simple.
[Do you know? It's been three years since Lee Gun disappeared, and you're suffering consecutive crushing defeats!]
[It's even said that recently, the Leo Saint retreated without even getting to swing his sword!]
[People are asking if you're really the heroes who captured the Crimson Eye. The public opinion is calling for donation refunds. A word, please!]
[Why did you lose to monsters that Lee Gun caught all by himself? Please answer…]
[…Well, I said I'm not taking questions!]
Li Geon snickered and pressed the button again.
*Rewind, rewind.*
The Leo Saint's expression was so hilarious he'd probably already boosted the view count by 50.
The fact that they'd run away with their tails between their legs from enemies he'd already beaten before was especially ludicrous.
So what he had to say was this.
*Morons.*
Did they think that Crimson Eye was their only enemy?
But because of that, Li Geon was actually enjoying it.
Why?
Because just as they had sold him out to climb to the very top, the satisfaction of smashing it all down would be immense.
He wondered if they themselves could handle the aftermath.
*Can't wait to see the looks on their faces when they see me.*
Of course, it's been 20 years, so they've probably changed, too.
And since they'd have the Holy Gods with them, it would be nice to develop some special power for both offense and defense.
*My magic power isn't filled yet, either.*
Maybe it was because he was using new powers, but his magic power was filling up too slowly.
*It's not even at 10% yet.*
Sleeping and eating were the only recovery methods, but the efficiency was extremely low.
Even the Sagittarius Constellation crystal he got from the vending machine was no help, its lifespan probably over.
*I need at least half full to comfortably storm in there.*
So he was looking for some way, even shaving his beard, when it happened.
Bang!
"Whoa!"
"!"
The boy who threw open the bathroom door let out a cry of admiration.
"You cut your hair, hyung? Wow, insane. You're seriously handsome."
The boy, who had brought a change of clothes, looked at Li Geon in admiration. Now that the grimy appearance was gone, his refreshing features made him look like a top celebrity.
"I didn't realize before, but you really are good-looking."
Li Geon smiled.
Well, he certainly didn't look like the same person as that monster anymore.
So he was playing dumb and trying to recover his magic power when the boy suddenly turned pale as a sheet.
"Hy-hyung! Dodge, now!"
"Huh?"
And then he saw what was happening. A sinister smoke was billowing up from behind Li Geon.
At the same time, a loud, fire-alarm-like sound rang out.
Beep beep—
The smoke had grown massive, clearly looking dangerous at just a glance.
Then the boy urgently tried to pull Li Geon out, shouting.
"What are you just standing there for! It's a monster! We have to run out of the building! Just yesterday, someone on the floor above us got killed by that…!"
However, Li Geon snatched something right in front of the boy's nose.
PANG!
"AHH!"
A sound like compressed air exploding came as a bonus. And when Li Geon opened his clenched fist, the boy was horrified.
"!"
An insect monster the size of a fly had crumbled to dust in his hand.
Its appearance was roughly like a mosquito.
"Now you don't have to run away because of this thing."
"......!"
When the boy turned his head, astonishingly, the black smoke was disappearing.
The boy was bewildered.
Judging by the smoke disappearing, that thing seemed to be the root of this incident, but.
*He... he took that out with one hand?*
He hadn't even used a Holy God's skill. It was purely reflex.
*Professional exterminators came and went, saying they couldn't get rid of it.*
And he even caught something you couldn't see!
"How on earth...!"
But it was then.
"Anyway, you."
With an irritated look, Li Geon reached out his hand to the boy.
The boy flinched at Li Geon's expression. It looked like he was about to get hit.
"AHH! I'm sorry! I don't know what it is, but please don't hit…!"
But unexpectedly, Li Geon snatched an object from above the boy's head.
"This thing."
"Ah...!"
It was the angel figurine hanging on the wall. But seeing it, the boy looked extremely troubled for some reason.
That was only natural.
"I told you to throw all this stuff away, didn't I?"
Indeed.
Li Geon had already nitpicked objects all over the house earlier.
*Hey. What's this.*
*Huh? Ah! So you recognize it! That's a limited edition holy artifact of the Twelve Saints, and I got it at a home shopping special price for 39,900 won...*
*Toss it.*
CRASH!
"AAAH!"
Li Geon had mercilessly smashed (?) items all around the house.
They were clearly a hodgepodge of all sorts of superstition and shamanism junk.
And it was the same now.
Still, maybe he felt a little bad about earlier, because this time he didn't break the object.
"Just hurry up and throw it away. It's actually the reason the monster appeared."
"Wh-what?! But that's a high-level protective charm from the Holy Seats! And that one was even personally blessed by the famously beautiful Magic Saint...!"
"Urgh. Gross."
CRASH!
"AAAHH!"
The boy cried out as the figurine was thrown down mercilessly. Li Geon clicked his tongue, looking for disinfectant.
"Trust me and throw them all away. They're pure scams."
In truth, there were specific ways to exterminate invading monsters.
And they're peddling this shamanistic-level junk as protective charms?
"Listen up. This mask is a holy artifact that monitors the buyer's condition."
"Pa-pardon?"
"And this music box is a holy artifact with a skill to extract the buyer's personal information."
"WHAT?! "
"And this watch is a holy artifact that actually *summons* monsters!"
"R-really?! Then what about this Twelve Saints doll?"
"The hell should I know? But the model is ugly, so toss it!"
"?! "
CRASH!
Finally, when Li Geon had destroyed all their malicious artifacts.
[Magic power has been partially restored.]
[The trait of 'The One Who Strikes All Things' has been activated.]
[Would you like to check the trait?]
"!"
Something appeared before his eyes.
(To be continued in the next chapter)