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“Do you think the Clock Tower won’t function just because the Tower Master is gone? That’s such a dismissive comment! Don’t worry, the next Tower Master is quite capable. That’s why we can trust and rely on the Tower Master. Even the Clock Tower acknowledges the atmosphere.”

Has the next Tower Master of the Clock Tower already been decided?

If so, there hasn’t been any news coverage or industry rumors about it.

It must be classified information within the Clock Tower.

Since I’m practically a member of the Clock Tower, they seem to share this level of secret with me.

“Who’s the next Tower Master?”

“Of course, it’s me.”

Lin Hazel acknowledged it, Heinz Hazel acknowledged it, and the proud mages of the Clock Tower acknowledged it. I couldn’t help but ask who the next Tower Master was, but the answer I got was ridiculous.

‘…’

She’s not just painting her face with gold; she’s practically bathing in it.

When did Lin Hazel become so shameless?

It’s definitely not because of my influence.

Anyway, that’s how it is.

At this moment, after hearing Grand Mage Heinz Hazel’s intention to join the expedition team.

As the expedition leader, I had no choice but to make a bold decision.

“Impossible.”

“Whaaat?! Are you disrespecting my grandfather now?”

“No, that’s not it…”

If it were any other mage from the Clock Tower, maybe, but with his granddaughter directly calling, I couldn’t think of a way to refuse without hurting her feelings.

A dilemma, checkmate, a dead end.

I was truly stuck in a dilemma.

If I accept, the expedition team will be in trouble.

If I refuse, I’ll hurt Lin Hazel.

This might be the first time in my life that I’ve fully activated my brain.

But even with my 14-year-old soft brain, I couldn’t come to a conclusion.

As silence flowed through the phone.

“Then, should I go instead of Grandpa?”

“Yes! That’s a great idea! It’s much better for you to come than for Grandpa Heinz to go through the trouble of coming and going.”

“Okay, then I’ll go. Contact me before you leave.”

And just like that, the call ended.

This…

I think I’ve been had.

When you throw an absurd option at someone, the next option, even if it’s a bit excessive, seems acceptable.

She even applied the double bind technique.

I’ve never allowed the Clock Tower to join an expedition before.

By throwing the options of “Grandpa or me?” she made joining the expedition seem like a given.

It’s a technique I’ve used a lot in relationships, but I didn’t expect to fall for it myself.

Anyway, with this, the next Tower Master of the Clock Tower, A-Class Lin Hazel, has joined the expedition team list.

If Jeong Ho-min complains about being rejected while being A-Class, I’ll counter by saying it’s his fault for leaking information to the Clock Tower.

After the call with Lin Hazel.

I entered the Monster Restaurant group chat.

Me: I’m going far away soon.

Winter: What? Where are you going all of a sudden!

The reply from Winter, a member of SOL, the most popular 4th-gen girl group (though not quite at the top), came in 3 seconds.

I thought she had no schedule, but then I remembered I forced her into a break.

Han Seo-jin: Are you going on a trip abroad?

Kim Guk-min: Saying you’re going far away sounds a bit… Is something wrong?

Kim Cheol-soo: ….

Han Seo-jin replied casually, but Kim Guk-min started to worry.

Is he thinking I’m preparing to leave this world?

After Kim Guk-min’s misunderstanding, everyone seemed to think the same.

Winter: Gyeoul, where are you now? Should we meet up?

Yuna: Yeah, Gyeoul, if you’re having a hard time, talk to us.

Han Seo-jin: I’m in Japan right now, but if you need me, I’ll come back immediately.

Kim Guk-min: Instead of that, should we all go to Gyeoul’s place?

Kim Cheol-soo: ….

What are these delusional people talking about?

Kim Cheol-soo seemed to have heard something from the Association or Hwarang… but he just stood by, not helping.

After calming down the Monster Restaurant team, who had started a strange misunderstanding, I explained that I was contacting them because I was going far away for hero work.

In the end, I even invited Association President Jeong Ho-min to finally settle things.

For a moment, I thought it would have been better to just leave without saying anything.

After all, Jeong Ho-min and a few others know where we’re going, so they’ll make excuses and explanations.

Just like the official letter sent to the broadcasting station.

But… this might be something that spans years, or even decades.

It’s better to tell them before I go.

After that, I contacted all my acquaintances, including Lee Chae-rin, Yena teacher, and the Queen.

It took less than an hour to contact everyone, which made me a bit sad…

‘Quality over quantity!’

The caliber of my connections lifted my spirits.

***

D-1 to the Demon Realm Expedition

Inside Jeong Ha-yul’s Demon King House.

Jeong Ha-yul and Jeong Gyeoul were packing for the Demon Realm with Eun-chae’s help.

“I went twice, and both times I went empty-handed and thought I’d die.”

“…Now that I think about it, I couldn’t even change clothes or wash.”

“I solved everything with magic… I washed and dried my clothes while wearing them. When I entered the castle, the servants prepared clothes and underwear, but they were too rough to wear.”

Dantalion’s castle, Satan’s Demon King Castle, Asmodeus’s Demon King Castle.

Jeong Gyeoul was treated well every time she arrived at each castle.

Of course, before that, wandering the desolate desert with Heukgu and Heukrang, she was practically a homeless person.

When she used magic to clean herself and wash and dry her clothes, Heukgu and Heukrang’s eyes almost popped out.

“It must have been tough. It’s a pity there’s no spatial magic. It would be great to carry years’ worth of supplies and use them when needed.”

There’s Serena, who awakened the ability of prophecy, Park Seol-hwa, who awakened alchemy, and Loki the cat, who awakened teleportation. I hope a mage with spatial magic awakens someday as I finished packing.

The luggage capacity was about one suitcase, like going on an overseas trip.

“If individuals carry more than this, the portal becomes unstable. You could get stuck and die.”

“…You guys have a knack for casually talking about scary things.”

“If we don’t carry more than this, it’s not scary.”

Anyway, for that reason, each person could only carry a set amount.

Jeong Gyeoul was thinking of something more special.

‘When we return, we’ll dump all the luggage and bring back Heukgu and Heukrang’s wealth.’

Whether Satan sends it, another Demon King sends it, or we learn magic and return ourselves.

We plan to bring back as many Demon Realm treasures and artifacts as the portal allows.

No one knows Jeong Gyeoul’s plan yet, but even if they find out, there’s no reason to oppose it.

Lin Hazel had a laughable mishap of booking the wrong flight and ended up taking a private jet, but she arrived safely and is staying at the Grand Hyatt.

Lee Ha-yoon, Park Seol-hwa, and Kim Yu-shin (President) were also busy packing and double-checking before departure.

Thus, D-day for the Demon Realm Expedition.

Not Incheon Airport, but the Association’s private training ground.

The Cult Leader, already prepared, was sitting leisurely, drinking coffee.

“…I want to hit him. Is it okay to hit him now?”

“You used to nag about violence being bad, but now that it’s useful, your attitude changes?”

I thought it would be okay to hit him a couple of times since we’re not taking him anyway, but considering his efforts, I decided to let it go and approached the portal.

“Where’s the destination?”

“I don’t know.”

“…Why are you so shameless?”

Not knowing the destination means we’ll randomly land somewhere, just like when Jeong Gyeoul first went to the Demon Realm.

Jeong Gyeoul has only wandered the desolate desert, Satan’s territory, and Asmodeus’s territory, so she hasn’t even seen 15% of the Demon Realm.

“If we land somewhere I don’t know, I can’t guide…”

“You can’t guide anyway, whether you know the place or not.”

“….”

Jeong Gyeoul is bad with directions, so even if we land somewhere she’s been, it’s like her first time.

Lee Ha-yoon, who still seems to be in a dark state, poked Jeong Gyeoul’s chest and patted her back with a smile.

“It’s okay, Gyeoul is a baby, so it’s fine if she doesn’t know the way.”

“Have you been watching Inban lately?”

“Yes, baby Lee Ha-yoon?”

The expedition members gathered in front of the portal, exchanging half-joking, half-serious conversations.

“Everyone ready? If anyone forgot something, you can’t go back.”

“I packed everything, I even brought my passport.”

“…?”

There’s no immigration office in the Demon Realm, and we’re not doing any immigration.

Why the passport?

Everyone looked at Kim Yu-shin.

Even the Cult Leader looked at him incredulously.

“Why, why are you all looking at me like that… You never know when it might be needed. Better safe than sorry, right?”

“I don’t know about that, but your brain seems pretty sturdy.”

“…Is that an insult?”

“Yes. Secretary Kim, come here for a second.”

Hwarang looked deeply hurt, but Park Seol-hwa casually insulted him and called Secretary Kim.

“Yes, Guild Master.”

“We might need to use up all the potion reserves this time. For now, run the guild conservatively and hold out until I return.”

“Don’t worry. And… you’ve already said this four times. Once in the meeting room, once over the phone last night, once before departure, and now again.”

“…I must be turning into my mom. Anyway, take care.”

As Park Seol-hwa bid farewell to Secretary Kim, everyone else also said their goodbyes to those who came with them.

“Then… shall we depart?”

At the command of Expedition Leader Jeong Gyeoul, everyone gathered in front of the portal.

The Cult Leader was no exception.

“Cult Leader, open the portal.”

“Pour your magic power into the magic circle in the center. Two people should be enough.”

“What are you talking about? You do it.”

“….”

 

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