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Chapter 340

It was easy to predict that Toyo’s Demon King would avoid a full-scale confrontation with a Hero like himself.

It had been that way even before his regression. Toyo’s Demon King had dodged any swords aimed at him because he’d survived a battle against the Demon King of Fire.

The Demon King of Fire was renowned for being the strongest among all Demon Kings. Humanity held a mix of awe and terror for the man who had returned alive after facing such a powerhouse.

And that heavy atmosphere must have infected the Demon Kings as well.

Still, among those who avoided full-frontal battles out of fear, only Saturday could be counted. Nephren-Ka could be deemed particularly pathetic.

Considering all that history, Yeonwoo expected Toyo’s Demon King would almost certainly avoid a direct confrontation with him.

After all, wasn’t he the same Hero who had killed Shuyo’s Demon King? Even if he cursed and hurled insults, he couldn’t hide his deep-seated fear.

Knowing this, Yeonwoo quietly set Lucrecia and the Ice Palace into motion.

Of course, it was only a matter of time before they would be caught plotting something while trying to stay hidden from the war, but sometimes, remaining concealed could be more threatening.

And that’s exactly what the current situation was. The Ice Palace spread out to find and eliminate the Cult of Oblivion’s Sanctums.

They could do this thanks to their experience completely uprooting the cult in the North Sea. By demolishing the Sanctum-level sites of the cult, they were inevitably reducing the escape routes available to the Demon King.

Ultimately, Yeonwoo’s goal was to corner the Demon King into the Demon King’s Gate. With the location of the main base—the Gate—found out by Lucrecia, it was perfect to trap him like a rat before finishing him off.

To accomplish that plan, Yeonwoo needed to chase down the fleeing Saturday, but…

“If I don’t do it, who will?”

That’s how the world works. There are times when only you can do something. In those moments, you have to steel your resolve. Life has often been like that.

Honestly, even though it was tiring, just thinking about how much Saturday would be fed up made him feel energized.

He hoped he would be in a bad mood. It would be great if he accidentally got so frustrated that he slammed his fist against a wall. And if in that state, he could miraculously kill a necromancer or two, that would be even better.

“Well, I guess I need to tidy up here first.”

While he was lost in his happy imaginings, Yeonwoo suddenly bent his head down. Dozens of spear-thrusts pierced the space where his upper body had just been.

The undead, who had frozen like a video losing its internet connection, instantly snapped back into reality and unleashed a simultaneous attack on Yeonwoo.

This was the closest proximity to the Demon King. Even if it were a battle he would be escaping from, that narcissistic Demon King would surely have deployed formidable undead around here.

Yet even so, it was slow. The connection cut by the Demon King’s escape meant the undead could not harness their true potential.

It felt like needing 220 volts but running on 110 volts without a transformer.

Judging this, Yeonwoo swung his sword in a quick circle. It was a lightning-fast slicing motion that was so swift, it was hard to tell when he had even swung it.

Bringing the reverse grip of his sword to the waist of the doppleganger, he slashed, and its surrounding space was viciously torn apart.

It was a signature move developed alongside his clone. The technique borrowed a certain feel, but it wasn’t completely identical.

Sprinkling a light purifying potion over the skeletal bones that had been sliced into dozens of pieces, Yeonwoo noted that Hunters were pushing their way in, so he figured he could just fight appropriately while joining up with them.

“…Ugh, uwaaaah!!”

With a roaring bang, a massive cloud of dust billowed up as the ground where Yeonwoo had stood trembled.

The cause was simple: a gigantic snake had come barreling down towards the ground next to Yeonwoo.

Seeing a snake as big as a building coming at him, Yeonwoo screamed and dove out of the way, successfully avoiding the humiliation of being crushed by none other than Apophis.

“Right, this guy was still around.”

While he was engaging in psychological warfare with the Demon King, Apophis continued to roll around in a state that wasn’t much different from before, pelted by the cooperative attacks of Shar and Nea.

One could even commend the mental fortitude to remain passionate in battle after getting beaten up like that.

Of course, it wasn’t praise in the true sense. It likely could not even comprehend praise. There was no point in giving compliments that it wouldn’t feel happy about anyway.

He understood that Apophis was trying to roll over undead like a lint roller, yet he never expected it would end up being thrown his way, grumbling as Apophis reared up its tail and slammed it down toward Yeonwoo.

“Why are you targeting me!?”

Boom!! The impact was so strong it created a crater in the ground.

If you look at it this way, size is indeed a universal asset. Thankfully, Nea could somewhat match Apophis’s size, which was why this plan had been devised; if not, they would have had to start thinking about how to deal with Apophis before even considering the main base of the Demon King.

“So how the heck do I kill this thing?”

With Nea and Shar around, it seemed certain that Apophis, being merely a clone, would meet its end without a chance to fight back. The real problem lay in the absurd regenerative ability that allowed Apophis to elongate its demise.

[It’s regenerating too quickly for me to tear out its heart! What do I do!?]

[It sounds simple, but I guess it’s something we can’t manage.]

If even cutting the heart or organs in half wouldn’t lead to its demise due to rapid regeneration, it was worth attempting an alternative approach.

The value of life lies in experimentation and challenge. It would be determined to slice and pull out the heart before the new wounds healed over.

In Egypt, the heart is an incredibly important organ. Did I mention that it’s not considered essential for humans? That’s a fair point.

It’s a well-known concept to weigh a feather for entry into the afterlife.

So, what would happen if they took the heart without creating a trigger for regeneration and just bolted away with it?

No idea. So, let’s give it a shot.

*

“I, I won…”

Thud, the Hunters plopped down, weary and surprised. It was to be expected. The numerical disparity between the two forces was staggering. Especially for the Americans, who had to spread their military forces over a vast land.

In such a battle, not only had they not lost, but achieved a resounding victory in the current situation. In just half a day since Yeonwoo arrived, he had devoured the Demon King and prevented the crucial front from collapsing; it was no wonder they felt dazed.

Watching the happy expressions of the people felt good in itself, but Yeonwoo didn’t have the strength to smile at the sight. Slackening his guard only to have the Demon King appear elsewhere and wreak havoc was a real concern.

Still, it seemed like there might be a moment of rest. Above all, he had the Gate Generation ability possessed by Relin’s Warehouse. It would be better to rest while waiting for Riley’s report.

Cleanup took about half a day. They started around bright noon, and now it was dark night. Beating down skeletons and zombies and purifying them took time, as one could imagine.

A party decked out with meat and drinks, all manner of delightful food was happening, but Yeonwoo stood off at a distance, watching. It was clear that if he inserted himself too boldly, he would lose far too much time.

Of course, he couldn’t expect Nea or Shar to take up such a stance, so he let them mingle with the children instead. Despite this, a massive crowd had gathered in the center of the party.

“Well, I hope there aren’t any weirdos around…”

Under normal circumstances, he would have felt uneasy, but not now. After the show of chewing, tasting, and enjoying Apophis right in front of him, who would dare act out? Even if someone did, Shar would take care of it.

“I asked for you to do less work, but I didn’t expect you to reduce it this much.”

“What are you doing here all lonely-like?”

“Am I to be on guard against any weirdos? Was it me after all?”

As Yeonwoo muttered his doubts, Dang Sa-ryeon and Yang Mi-ryeo smiled. The liquid in the glass they were holding swayed gently. Despite looking undeniably like alcohol, Yeonwoo chose not to stress over it.

After all, Baek In-hwa had been downing vodka since childhood; what was the big deal if the kids wanted to have a drink now?

“So what’s up with the person sulking alone? I’m feeling a bit worn out.”

“Should I put down some saliva that helps with fatigue?”

“No thanks. I’ll be fine after I get some sleep.”

Yeonwoo’s cutting refusal made Dang Sa-ryeon cluck her tongue in disappointment. She knew he would say that. Dang Sa-ryeon’s goal was to poke into his body with her saliva and explore how the hybrid differed from humans, not to actually relieve his fatigue.

They may have exchanged some saliva the first time they met, but that was back when Yeonwoo didn’t know he was one of the hybrids. He would have let it slide under the assumption it was just a bodily difference.

“Hehe, you two get along well. It’s nice to see.”

“Yeah, I’d say we’d be friends by now. We’ve seen all sorts of sights with each other.”

At Yeonwoo’s comment, Yang Mi-ryeo gasped in surprise.

In this case, the “sights” meant not the kind of perverted things she was thinking of, but rather the circumstances regarding the Dang family and the commotion that had happened in retrieving Nea. No need to clarify any misunderstandings.

“Hmm, right…”

And it seemed as if Dang Sa-ryeon hadn’t caught on to Yang Mi-ryeo’s thoughts as she nodded, murmuring absentmindedly. There was a sound of deeper misunderstandings forming, but correcting them would be left up to Dang Sa-ryeon.

As they shared trivial conversations, new footsteps approached. While footfalls alone couldn’t reveal identities, when he looked up, he recognized familiar faces.

“Officer Cassie Kanari.”

“Oh my, you know my name?”

Cassie Kanari and her two disciples. Given that she held both the 1st and 2nd places of Freedom Academy as her disciples, her influence and strength were clear.

Yeonwoo felt he knew more about her than anyone else, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration. He decided to limit words concerning the methods through which he obtained such information.

“Greetings, Ms. Cassie Kanari.”

“Yep, nice to see you too, Ms. Dang!”

She greeted warmly with a casual smile. While glancing awkwardly between Yang Mi-ryeo and Cassie, Dang Sa-ryeon quietly slipped away to the back.

She may have been a free-spirited one, but surprisingly introverted in aspects. Such brusqueness shown before strangers would be attributed to that.

“Um, is there a reason for your visit?”

“Want to step away for a bit?”

At those words, the faces of her two disciples contorted with dread. Yeonwoo’s eyes were just as wide. It felt terribly awkward. Cassie broke the silence with a cheerful laugh.

“My disciples wanted to speak with you. Personally, I wanted to introduce myself as well. You see, because of you, my kids have become quite the wallflowers.”

“I’m sorry…?”

How was that my fault?? But, judging by Cassie saying it so, it must have some truth. After all, Yeonwoo wouldn’t have the courage to argue with her, an idol to countless male Hunters.

Sure, he could find joy in conversations with Bailey and Liza. Even now, they were skilled Hunters but were destined to grow into something even greater in the future. Expanding connections could never be a bad thing.

As Yeonwoo sorted out his thoughts, he heard a telepathic message from Cassie.

[Don’t try to rush ahead too much. It can be really tough for you, okay?]

[…Thank you for worrying.]

It was a response he couldn’t help but give to that voice.

(To be continued in the next chapter)

 

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