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The Daehyun Guild Headquarters was in complete chaos.

“Before we even scout promising talents, there isn’t a single student in the academy affiliated with Daehyun. There’s no need for us to intervene…”

“Fire that bastard.”

As soon as the guild-affiliated hero started speaking, Park Seol-hwa, who had been frowning, cut him off before he could finish.

She cut off his words and, at the same time, cut him off from the guild.

“…What?”

The hero, who seemed unable to comprehend what he had just heard, looked bewildered. Park Seol-hwa’s forehead began to twitch with irritation.

“Who hired that guy? A hero saying there’s no need to intervene in such a terror incident? You’re not qualified to be a hero. You’re out of the industry for life. Get that guy out of here.”

“Please leave now.”

“This is wrongful termination! I’ll sue!”

“Go ahead.”

Park Seol-hwa waved her hand dismissively, and the surrounding employees immediately escorted the fired employee out.

“We don’t need such incompetence in our guild. Frankly, I’m baffled that this meeting even happened. Whatever Daehyun Group says, I’ll take full responsibility. Everyone here, get ready to move out immediately.”

“The Association has already mobilized, and so has the military. We need to take a broader perspective…”

“Since he likes a broad perspective, send him to Cheorwon. Let him monitor North Korea from the frontlines with his broad perspective.”

What was supposed to be a meeting about support turned into a purge session.

Park Seol-hwa, who had elevated the Daehyun Guild from just another corporate guild to one of the top four guilds, was practically a dictator within the guild.

Even sanctions from the parent company, Daehyun Group, had no effect on her.

“Are we done here? Shut up and follow me, we’re heading to the academy now…”

Bam—

“Guild Master!”

“What now?!”

“You need to come down. Hero Jeong Ha-yul is in the lobby…”

Thud—

“…She’s here, standing right next to me.”

“Gyeoul! What’s going on? Why is she like this?!”

“…The last seal broke. Do something, please… hurry…”

“Lay her down here!”

Whoosh—

Park Seol-hwa, channeling her magic power, swept everything off the meeting room table—laptops, documents, pens, tumblers, everything.

“Ah! My laptop!”

Amidst the chaos, the employee who cried out about their laptop was noted by the secretary.

Daring to complain about a laptop in front of the guild master, who doted on Jeong Gyeoul? That employee was definitely getting fired.

“Her magic power is out of control. If we leave it like this, her circuits might explode.”

“So what do we do? You’re the most knowledgeable about this in Korea!”

“Shut up, I’m thinking!”

What felt like 10 hours passed in 10 minutes.

Blood began to drip from Jeong Ha-yul’s tightly clenched fists.

“Hero Jeong Ha-yul, your hand is bleeding.”

“It’s fine…”

The secretary, alarmed by the amount of blood, spoke up, but Jeong Ha-yul was only thinking about Jeong Gyeoul.

“Park Seol-hwa… is it done yet?”

“I just remembered! We need at least a Clock Tower A-rank level magic-type Awakened One…”

“Can’t you do it?”

“Controlling the larger of the two energies is already overwhelming. I need someone to help control the other one.”

“…How are we supposed to find someone like that in Korea on such short notice? Can’t I do it?”

“The rampaging magic power is following a pattern only seen in magic-type Awakened Ones. If it comes into contact with external physical-type magic power, it might explode.”

At that moment, Jang Gil-yong’s face flashed in Jeong Ha-yul’s mind.

The experiment that created a body for Satan, capable of using physical, psychic, and magic-type powers.

When magic-type energy erupted from Jeong Gyeoul’s seal, the unthinkable became a certainty.

In any case, they needed a magic-type Awakened One on par with Park Seol-hwa.

But this wasn’t England, and finding someone like that wasn’t easy.

Jeong Ha-yul racked her brain but couldn’t think of anyone.

“There’s no one… If only Hayan were here…”

“I’m here! I’ll do it!”

A small girl came running through the door Jeong Ha-yul had burst through.

“Hayan? How did you get here…?”

“All the Apostles fled, so I could follow right after. I knew you’d head straight to the Daehyun Guild.”

In her haste, Jeong Ha-yul hadn’t even noticed Lee Ha-yoon following her.

“Definitely… I’ve never seen her use magic power, but an S-rank magic-type should be able to handle it. Come here.”

“Okay!”

Park Seol-hwa nodded and directed Lee Ha-yoon to her spot.

“Hold her hand and slowly channel your magic power. Use your energy to help stabilize Gyeoul’s magic power.”

“Understood.”

“Remember, if you lose control and your mana mixes with hers, you could be in danger too.”

“It’s fine. Let’s hurry.”

“Good, I’ll match your rhythm once you start. Everyone except Jeong Ha-yul and Lee Ha-yoon, get out.”

“Yes, Guild Master.”

As soon as Park Seol-hwa finished speaking, Lee Ha-yoon began channeling her magic power.

The employees were still filing out of the meeting room.

With intense focus, she slowly and carefully channeled her magic power into Jeong Gyeoul’s hand.

Despite the foreign mana entering, Jeong Gyeoul’s magic power didn’t react.

Normally, her body would have expelled the invading energy, but now, with two factions of energy battling inside her, it was possible.

At the same time, Park Seol-hwa also channeled her magic power.

The energy from both women’s hands traveled to the chest area, where the biggest battle was raging.

“Like calming a baby, imagine holding an egg. You need to separate the clashing energies. Merging comes later.”

“…Okay!”

Controlling the rampaging energy with just a trickle of magic power was no easy task.

Even Park Seol-hwa was feeling the strain.

Naturally, Lee Ha-yoon, with less control than Park Seol-hwa, was struggling even more.

As cold sweat dripped and her body temperature began to drop…

A slight change began to occur in the rampaging energy.

“It’s separating!”

“Don’t get too excited, stay calm. It’s not over until it’s over.”

“Okay!”

After what felt like an eternity, they finally succeeded in merging the two clashing energies inside Jeong Gyeoul’s body.

Thud—

Lee Ha-yoon and Park Seol-hwa collapsed to the floor simultaneously.

“There was more magic power than I thought, and it was more violent… This is exhausting…”

“…”

“Good job. We couldn’t have done it without you.”

Park Seol-hwa praised Lee Ha-yoon, but Lee Ha-yoon was too exhausted to respond.

“Is it… done? Is it over? But why is she still unconscious?”

“We’ve merged them, but it’ll take some time to settle. She should wake up in a couple of days.”

“That’s a relief… Thank you.”

“I don’t need your thanks. Let’s get her to the hospital. The secretary should have already contacted the Daehyun Hospital director.”

“…Okay.”

By the time Jeong Gyeoul’s treatment was over, the Apostles had gathered at the Satan Church’s headquarters.

“That was ST-156, right? Damn, it was scarier than when the Cult Leader got angry.”

“F***… Can we even retrieve ST-156? I don’t think I can do it.”

Even Eruogens, who had shown confidence against the Demon King Jeong Ha-yul, was trembling uncharacteristically.

“Everyone, calm down. That attack nearly shut her down. Right now, the three types of magic power are swirling inside her body.”

Fury, suppressing her own rage, stepped forward to calm the other Apostles.

As long as they couldn’t retrieve ST-156, the Apostles were still necessary resources.

The state of Jeong Gyeoul’s body that Fury mentioned…

That was the final research they had been conducting in the lab.

Ultimately, the research succeeded, but the lab was destroyed by Jang Gil-yong and the Vatican.

Stabilizing the three types of magic power.

“Our researchers spent nearly half a year figuring it out. Even if Park Seol-hwa is a genius, it’ll take her days.”

“Then… we need to do something before she solves it.”

“But how? After the rampage in the auditorium, everyone knows she has immense power. All the S-ranks might be guarding her.”

As Gula said, that was the problem.

Korea’s seventh S-rank, or perhaps a new rank beyond S-rank.

The Korean government wouldn’t just let such an Awakened One be.

The Association would act, and the guilds would follow.

In this situation, there was no way to retrieve ST-156.

“Then what about… Jeong Ha-yul?”

“Jeong Ha-yul?”

“The hero presumed to be the strongest in the world, right? Being a physical-type, she’s sturdy, and even if she’s slightly lacking for Satan’s descent, wouldn’t Jeong Ha-yul be a good alternative?”

“…We’ll need to discuss that with the Cult Leader.”

“Ugh… I can’t do it. You handle it, 1st Apostle.”

“Only calling me 1st Apostle now, huh?”

“Please, 1st Apostle!”

Normally, they would have fought to meet the Cult Leader themselves.

But they had failed the Cult Leader’s mission and ruined his plans.

None of them had the courage to face the Cult Leader one-on-one in his current state of rage.

“I was going to step forward anyway. You all prepare for combat and stand by.”

Within a few hours, Fury returned with the Cult Leader’s permission.

The body to be offered to Satan had changed.

Given the situation, they had no choice but to abandon ST-156, Jeong Gyeoul.

“But… Jeong Ha-yul will be guarding Jeong Gyeoul, so capturing Jeong Ha-yul is the same as retrieving ST-156, right? If we mess up, we could end up captured instead.”

“There’s a way, don’t worry. More importantly, are you all ready?”

“Of course, anytime, anywhere.”

“Then Gula and Rage, head to Infinite Cheongdam.”

“Infinite Cheongdam? Where the Demon King lives? Why there all of a sudden?”

“…Rage, are you serious? Jeong Ha-yul’s manager and stylist are there, right? We’re taking hostages.”

As soon as Fury mentioned Infinite Cheongdam, Gula, realizing the plan, glared at Rage in disbelief.

“…Kidnapping a manager and a stylist is the plan? If it were me, I’d just kill them and be done with it.”

“Jeong Ha-yul wouldn’t let you.”

“…I’ll kill you, Gula.”

“Go ahead, try it. You think a muscle-brained idiot like you can catch me?”

“Enough! Gula, you’re coming with me. Eruogens, you go with Rage.”

“Tch, kidnapping civilians? What a boring task.”

“I’ve been given full authority by the Cult Leader, so shut up and do as you’re told.”

“…Fine.”

The Apostles, each with their own temper, finally complied when the Cult Leader’s name was invoked.

“Then… let’s begin. We’ll kidnap them before sunrise. Bring them here afterward.”

“Here?”

“Yes. The Cult Leader said we’ll start the ritual immediately after capturing Jeong Ha-yul.”

“Got it. We’ll be back.”

As Fury nodded, Rage and Eruogens took off simultaneously.

Their destination: Infinite Cheongdam.

Their targets: Yoo Eun-chae and Baek Kang-woo.

 

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