◈ Episode 73. You’re Getting on My Nerves (2)
As if he had activated a detector.
His body’s senses sharpened to a razor’s edge.
“……!”
The presence of a demon he could feel. The moment
[Natural Enemy Relationship]
activated.
The bastard’s location painted itself in his mind.
A demon had set foot in Frost.
It was something he felt anew, but regardless, it was remarkable. I Hoyeol. ‘If this isn’t great progress, what is? Really.’ His first encounter with a demon suddenly came to mind.
He was someone who hadn’t noticed the imp possessing Nam Cheol-min right away.
Comparing then and now, it made him wonder if he was even the same demon hunter. ‘The biggest factor must be my level.’ Yes, back then he was a mere Level 55.
Now he was Level 295.
His level had risen by a whopping 240.
On top of that, he was someone who had improved by raising Strength and Agility stats through class quests. So it had all been worth it. His moonlit workouts hadn’t been for nothing.
“He doesn’t know his place.”
In that sense, he wondered just what the bastard was thinking.
In Frost……. No, it wasn’t just Frost.
Maximum relationship and influence.
The Frost where he had activated the [Authority] feature.
Not some petty peddler, but a demon daring to set foooot?!
Who is a demon?
To Grandfell, they were beings more unsightly than helicopter banners.
“That’s why they are an inferior race.”
That verdict meant burning them like banners wasn’t even enough.
He immediately manifested a portal.
A portal—a high-rank skill that even ranker players found burdensome to use.
Naturally, he possessed no such extravagant skill.
If one were to ask how he had manifested a portal.
What, making a fuss over nothing?
It was magic—strictly distinct from a skill. ‘The demon’s location.’ Where the presence was felt.
Those coordinates were in front of Frost’s main gate.
The distance wasn’t far, and
[Natural Enemy Relationship]
was active too.
He had manifested the portal with great momentum, but. ‘……
A mana-devouring hippo, this thing?’ His mana visibly drained away.
He realized anew. ‘How do they even maintain a portal like this?’ Not to mention the Magic Tower.
Even the dwarves, measured against that Magic Tower, were nothing to scoff at.
However, he didn’t let such consternation show.
Clomp.
“……
Wh-what?!”
An unflappable disposition.
All the more so in the current situation, with a demon right before him.
A portal tore open in midair.
He revealed himself from within.
At that sight, a middle-aged man was visibly shaken.
“L-Listen. I don’t know what misunderstanding there may be, but yes! I am such a man. Maeda Kenji. One who has served consistently in the political world for over a decade…….”
No, that was merely his outward appearance.
Of course.
He was not Grandfell, one to play along with such excuses.
How many times had he said it?
You don’t exchange words with prey.
A silence stretched—The bastard was now speaking as if pleading.
“……
Yes! I made a grave mistake. The protesters, and of course, sending up the helicopter was my oversight as well. I will not show my face near Frost ever again!”
He had served in the political world.
He had surmised as much from those words.
As expected, it was this bastard’s doing. ‘It’s worse than expected.’ He had felt the same during Baek Iseol’s time as well.
Demons were growing more cunning by the day.
The succubus that had possessed Baek Iseol.
Just as the succubus had actively exploited Baek Iseol’s position as the master of a Myth-grade guild and a chaebol second-generation heir. This bastard was the same.
In that sense, was it a blessing? ‘That my sense for demonic presence has developed.’ The more cunningly demons hid.
The more his keen senses would shine.
Lost in thought.
Suddenly, he overheard players conversing.
“Damn, it’s Lord Hoyeol!”
“……
But what’s going on?”
“Dunno. Looks like the Japanese politician is apologizing? Saying sorry for protesting and sending up the helicopter. He even bowed his head just now.”
“For real? It was so noisy it was driving me crazy.”……
But, wait. Everything’s fine, but.
What, Lord Hoyeol? Was “kyeong” not enough, so now it’s “niiiim”?
Just what was that extremely burdensome form of address supposed to be.
Of course, contrary to his own feelings.
Nevertheless, that form of address was fitting.
His body had accepted it with its usual calm. ‘Yes, it wasn’t difficult to understand.’ Those players had production classes.
From the reconstruction of the Yusra Kingdom to the restoration of Frost. He was someone who had created jobs for production classes, albeit unintentionally. Of course, he hadn’t intended to.
“If he was gonna apologize like that, why did he even do it?”
“He tucked tail the moment Lord Hoyeol showed up.”
“Serves him right. He was a nuisance anyway.”
Countless gazes poured down.
Because many eyes were watching.
As if relieved.
He could see the demon relax. ‘What a delusion. Not even a hollow laugh comes out of that one.’ He didn’t know, but Grandfell would never have tolerated it.
Without regard for watching eyes or anything else.
He would have burned the demon possessing that man to ash.
However.
“Ouch! You hit my face!”
“Serves you right. I told you not to mess with your sister!”
“Damn it. I won’t let you off just because you’re my sister anymore!”
Pride was telling him.
The residents of Frost, struggling to rise again by trampling over their wounds.
To brazenly burn a demon before them?
To tear open wounds that were healing?
That was not pride, but mere stubbornness.
Snowballs flying back and forth.
He turned his head away from the children absorbed in their snowball fight.
And spoke to the bastard.
“Say it again.”
“Again? Ah, I apologize! Not only the protesters…….”
“No, again.”
“Yes? Y-yes, I apologize aga…….”
“Again.”
“?”
He continued coldly.
“Look properly at who you are apologizing to.”
It wasn’t him, but the residents of Frost.
Who should receive the demon’s apology. The bastard, realizing his meaning, exclaimed and bowed his head.
“I’m terribly sorry. Kids.”
The brother and sister flinched simultaneously.
Soon, the sister hid her brother behind her back.
Watching that sight, he manifested magic.
Yes, an apology was an apology, but a demon must be hunted.
How many spells could he manifest?
A mere demon like that, he could hunt quietly and still have plenty to spare.
Just like with the succubus back then.
And yet, was that meant to help me?
“Get lost!!”
Swish—the younger sibling threw a snowball at the man’s face.
Thwack—a strike right in the center of his face.
At the same time, magic manifested.
[You have leveled up.]
Somehow, the timing matched perfectly—what was this?
*Maeda Kenji.
“Ugh.”
He woke up in a hospital room.
The moment Maeda opened his eyes, the men beside him spoke.
“Maeda-sama, are you awake?”
“I feel like I’ve slept for an incredibly long time.”
“……Surely not!”
“?”
At Maeda’s words, they made subtle expressions.
Maeda was puzzled.
Because he truly felt as though he had been asleep for a very long time.
If he had to compare it—yes, it was as if he had been sleeping deep within his unconscious mind and had just awakened.
Maeda scoffed.
“To think I was working even in such a deep dream. Goodness me.”
Fragmentary afterimages of the dream surfaced.
Being at the scene with protesters.
Sending up a helicopter.
Giving interviews with reporters.……
At the end, did he meet some high-ranking figure?
At Maeda’s words, the men couldn’t hide their bewilderment. ‘Has something truly gone wrong with his head?’ Their tension was short-lived.
Maeda frowned and spoke.
“Turn on the TV.”
“……Yes?”
“Are you going to explain everything that happened while I was asleep, from start to finish? All of you. Don’t be arrogant just because you’re players—keep your eyes and ears open. You need to watch the news to know how the world turns.”
Maeda picked up the remote irritably.
“Keep that in mind if you want to work with me.”
Yes, all the men were players.
To be exact, one could call them government dogs to replace Inazuma.
Maeda clicked his tongue. ‘How am I supposed to use them when they can’t even understand a single word?’ Compared to Inazuma, their level fell far short.
However, that was Maeda’s misunderstanding.
The men hadn’t failed to understand; they had pretended not to.
For none other than Maeda’s own sake.
Beep—Then, the anchor’s voice flowed from the TV.
—This is footage obtained from the internet.
Frost appeared on the screen.
A middle-aged man bowing and scraping disgustingly.
Maeda clicked his tongue even harder than before.
“Whoever that is, for a man to grovel like that……?!”
Then he realized.
Maeda’s eyes went wide.
Wasn’t that himself?
“Th-that is……?”
“Please calm down. You must maintain absolute rest.”
“I’m asking what happened!!”
Could it be that it hadn’t been a dream?
The protesters, the helicopter, and even the high-ranking figure.
All of that had been reality?
No, no matter how he thought about it, that was strange.
There’s no way his memory could be this hazy.
While he was agonizing.
Subtitles appeared in succession.
—Maeda Kenji. The greatest humiliation in Japanese political history!
“M-me. This body is the humiliation of the political world?”
Beep—Yes, that broadcaster had been biased from the start.
He had known it since they praised the Korean Wave.
Enraged, Maeda changed the channel.
On another channel, surely there would be proper…….
“!”
Footage that rose at the perfect timing.
Thwack—There he was, taking a snowball squarely.
To be exact, the one who threw it was young enough to be his grandson.
Himself, knocked unconscious by a snowball thrown by a boy!
Maeda was left speechless.
Unable to watch anymore, the men opened their mouths.
“They said there’s nothing wrong with your brain, but amnesia is suspected…….”
“That’s why you must maintain absolute rest.”
“Maeda-sama, nothing good will come from watching more……!”
Beep—bzzt—It was true.
No matter how much he changed channels, what came out was his own humiliation and disgrace.
Or praises for I Hoyeol.
—The scene of receiving an apology for the residents of Frost was truly not a sight one could see often. Shouldn’t Japanese politicians learn from player I Hoyeol’s bearing…….
“Uaaaaaaargh!!”
Maeda let out a shriek.
Could it really be amnesia?
His mind couldn’t keep up.
Maeda’s eyes flashed as he screamed.
“So what were you all doing while I was making a fool of myself?”
“We were on standby as you ordered…….”
“Standby? Was your mission truly to standby until I was socially dead?! Do you think I brought worthless bastards like you here for this?! Think for yourselves!!”
It was a stray spark.
The disgrace flickering before his eyes.
Maeda couldn’t calm his anger easily.
“You foolish bastards! I was the fool for trying to raise you up!”
That was why he failed to notice.
Creak—
“You should be quiet in a hospital. That’s manners and decorum.”
“……?”
“Don’t move. Turning all of you into skewers won’t take even a few seconds.”
“Hisagi! Wh-why are you here……?”
Hisagi Kazuma.
Even in the instant he opened the hospital room door and entered.
Hisagi flicked his tongue like a serpent.
“Are you asking because you don’t know? You know.”
The players on Maeda’s side waiting in the hospital room numbered six in total.
In contrast, Hisagi was alone.
Nevertheless, the six players couldn’t budge an inch. ‘……An overwhelming force of pressure!’ Was this the killing intent a viper exuded?
They were viscerally realizing that Hisagi’s words were no bluff.
Thud—Hisagi sat down beside Maeda’s bed.
“I came to ask. To the higher-ups, that is. Ah, I’ll drop the honorifics now. You know too, right? That I’ve cut ties with the government.”
“……Do as you please.”
“By the way, are you crazy?”
“Wh-what do you mean?”
“That you pulled this off alone.”
In an instant, Hisagi’s killing intent flared.
Hisagi continued.
“I told you clearly. If you don’t want to die by my hand, don’t touch Frost or I Hoyeol. You knew that too.”
“I don’t even know what happened this time. My memory is……!!”
“Ah, you don’t remember? What a convenient excuse.”
Casual words.
Yet there wasn’t a hint of a smile on Hisagi’s face.
“Cut the crap that might work on a bribed judge. I heard from the doctor. About this head. They said no abnormalities appear on the scans. So why can’t you remember?”
“I-It’s true. I can’t remember. Please believe me!”
“Well. I’m trying to think proactively, just as you advised.”
“……!”
The frozen players flinched.
Only for a moment.
Hisagi continued.
“But I don’t think that’ll work after all.”
“U-uuuugh. I’m frustrated too. I really don’t remember……! No, even if I don’t remember, I’ll apologize. I’ll go to Frost again and apologize……!”
“That’s not it. This time, it’s not the target that’s wrong. You were wrong from the very beginning.”
Hisagi explained it kindly.
“You should just stay away and quietly hole up in a corner. That’s what reflection looks like for a perpetrator, Maeda. Not being seen at all is the best apology.”
“I’ll do that! So please, at least spare my life……!”
“Well. I’ll think about it proactively one more time.”
“Keuk!”
Maeda sobbed.
Was that enough?
Hisagi rose from his seat.
He whispered to the players swallowing dryly.
“You’d better stop clinging to a severed rope.”
“……!”
“You’ve completely fallen out of favor. In other words, it’s over.”
Hisagi added.
“As advice from a senior, the more you hang from a rope, the more likely it is to snap.”
“……
I’ll keep that in mind.”
“Good.”
Hisagi spoke one last time.
“I’ll keep thinking proactively, so you’d better not stand out, Maeda. I’m not as merciful as Mr. Lee Hoyeol. In that sense, you should be grateful to Mr. Hoyeol.”
Maeda was so terrified he couldn’t even answer properly.
He would go on living the rest of his life gripped by the fear that Hisagi was always watching him.
Naturally, he wouldn’t be able to try anything foolish.
Rattle—
The hospital room after Hisagi left.
Only then did the men, their tension easing, let out sighs. ‘So that’s Hisagi Kazuma.’ Was that the oppressive aura of a top-ranked player?
Truly, it was beyond anything they had imagined.
Which was why their minds could only go blank. ‘And even more than that Hisagi-san…….’ Not only the feats he had shown so far.
But even the expressions of respect for him revealed in Hisagi’s words.
The players barely managed to swallow.
Gulp—
……Just how strong was Lee Hoyeol?
*
I checked my status window.
[Name: Granfell Claudi Arpheus Romeo]
[Class: Demon Hunter]
[Level: 296]
[Stats]
Strength: 45 / Agility: 46 / Magic Power: 243 / Luck: 5 / Aesthetic: Low
[Available Points: 1]
Only level 296.
A meager level that made the word “growth” feel meaningless.
But if there was one thing I was good at, it was knowing my place.
“Phew.”
Training this frail body.
Devoting myself to the class quest.
I had no choice but to be sincere about both.
Still, there was one piece of good news today, so I felt a little less lonely.
I wiped away my sweat and checked the message.