Returnee's S-Rank Management Guide

Chapter 108 : Creeping Shadow (4)

Creeping Shadow (4)

Until now, there have only been a few opportunities for me to sense demonic energy.

But even among those times, the immense magic power I felt now was especially exceptional.

Not just in this world, but even including the 'other world'.

"Do you think there won't be a fight?"

At Hwang Yeon-ji's anxious question, I shrugged my shoulders.

Who knows.

Honestly, I wasn't sure.

Judging by how someone had recklessly leaked demonic energy targeting us, it probably wasn't simply with the intention of fighting.

There hadn't even been a hint of killing intent to begin with.

"We'll find out when we get there."

We conversed as we followed the lingering trace of demonic energy.

True to its reputation as the host city of the Challengers, denver had a diverse array of Awakener.

Not just Awakener with the "Hunter" profession, but also many who had received rank assessments and pursued other occupations.

Or rather, wasn't the number of Hunters low compared to the total number of Awakener?

In Korea, nine out of ten Awakener became Hunters.

But in America, it was generous to say sixty percent did.

A noticeably lower percentage compared to Korea.

"This is it."

The place where I stopped was a small café.

At the sight of this ordinary café where people might stop by in the morning for a coffee, Yeon-ji frowned.

"At first, I thought I was mistaken, but it's real. How could such massive demonic energy be here...?"

"We'll know once we go in."

Preparing ourselves for any situation, we tensed our bodies and slowly opened the café's door.

Inside, as seen from outside, the café was thoroughly ordinary and tranquil.

Only one staff member; there weren't even ten tables, and a few customers sat chatting.

And among them, he was there.

Ash-gray hair, a man with a cold impression dressed in a neat suit.

He calmly read a book while sipping coffee.

"A demon, right?"

"Yes."

"From the outside, you really can't tell the difference from a human. And now... I can't even feel the demonic energy."

I had already explained the demons to Yeon-ji multiple times.

She herself is a half-demon, so it was only natural.

But meeting one directly was the first time, and on top of that, to face a being with such powerful demonic energy—her nervousness was plain to see.

"First, I should express my gratitude."

At that moment, the gray-haired man closed the book he was reading and opened his mouth.

"For not ignoring this sudden invitation."

There was no killing intent.

His demeanor was only calm.

As I quietly observed him, he gestured slightly towards the seat across from him.

"Our conversation may go on for a while—why not have a seat?"

"I don't really intend to talk for that long, you know."

"Hmm, I won't force you. It's just, with all the eyes around us, I thought it'd be better."

As he said, I could feel the gazes of people in the café looking at us strangely.

There weren't many, but it was never good to stand out in a crowd.

"So that's why he picked a place like this."

So I couldn't just start a fight.

Really, he's an arrogant fellow from start to finish.

"... Fine. Then I'll sit without further ceremony."

"What?"

"He doesn't seem like he intends to do anything to us right now, anyway."

Yeon-ji tried to sound calm, but her face was stiff with tension.

She must not have wanted to show her nervousness to the opponent.

"Right."

I let out a light sigh, glanced at the gray-haired man again, and then sat down beside Yeon-ji.

"First, allow me to introduce myself."

He gazed at me with gray eyes while gently tilting his head.

"I am Damian Hertha, son of the Demon King."

The son of the one who had once been the Demon King.

There was something subtly ambiguous in his words.

"So, what's the reason for calling us here in such a rough way?"

"It's nothing significant. I just happened to drop by this city and wanted to see someone I have a connection with from 300 years ago. Also, I wanted to apologize."

"Apologize?"

Three hundred years ago—repeating the words in my head, I felt puzzled at his mention of "apology."

"The incident in your country, the incident on that small island, was never our intention."

"What?"

"That was something a man named Shim Chun-hoo did on his own."

The unexpected explanation caught me off guard for a moment.

"You're saying the Jeju Island incident was his doing? Not something your group orchestrated?"

"At least with that incident, that's correct. It happened after I left; that's why my reaction was delayed."

"So you're trying to say you punished Shim Chun-hoo for what he did...?"

"Correct. We weren't ready at that time, so it was quite a troublesome matter. Fortunately, it seems Sebin handled it well."

He answered so willingly that it was hard to tell if he was being sincere.

And yet, he called me here just to apologize?

"The son of the Demon King, of all people?"

I couldn't clearly figure out what this demon, damian, was really after.

I had never met a demon like this even on the other side.

"Hm, if you say you 'weren't ready' back then, does that mean it's different now? Am I right?"

At Yeon-ji's sharp question, damian's gaze shifted.

He looked at Yeon-ji with a very intrigued expression.

"A half-demon, and not like any ordinary half-demon either."

"Instead of admiring me, why don't you answer my question?"

Yeon-ji's fierce tone secretly amazed me.

Yeon-ji was clearly extremely nervous.

Yet to ask a brazen question like that—

I couldn't help but respect her guts.

"Yes, it's true that the situation is a little different now. Not perfect, but at least to the extent that I can introduce myself like this."

With that, he took a sip of coffee.

"I'm also interested in the Saintess of this world—and I even tried to say hello to her father, but it seemed I was too late. I didn't expect the Saintess to already be found and kept by his side."

"You met James Walker?"

"No need to glare at me. I simply talked with him. I only asked for a little help with some research we're doing."

"'A little research'?"

When I glared at him as if to say 'what do you mean?', he just shrugged.

"Sorry, but I can't answer that."

"How cautious. Unusual for your kind."

The demons I met three hundred years ago were arrogant.

They boasted of their accomplishments and had nothing approaching caution.

"That's precisely why we lost so miserably."

Clack.

He put down his coffee cup and continued.

"The current us are like you all were three hundred years ago."

"What do you mean?"

"It means we're in the challenger's position now."

The man put his book away into a spatial pocket and donned his coat that was hanging nearby.

"Desperate—just the way you once were when you tried to bring down our era."

That statement answered a longstanding question I'd had.

I'd never quite understood why the demons were acting so covertly recently.

The demons I knew were exceedingly arrogant and liked to cause a stir.

It's as if they never considered the possibility of defeat.

"To commemorate this meeting, I prepared a small gift."

"... A gift?"

"You'll see in time. I hope it pleases you."

With that, he slowly stood up.

He looked at me and Yeon-ji one last time, then exited the café.

"Do demons always talk that confusingly?"

"..."

I hesitated over how to answer Yeon-ji's grumbling.

There were far too many things that bothered me.

"Why look for James Walker? And why try to meet Alencia?"

Judging by our conversation, damian's original location had been Korea.

It didn't make sense to believe he'd come to America just to contact those two.

If that were true, he wouldn't have retreated so easily, and he would have met Alencia before James.

But Los Angeles is far from here...

"No way."

Suddenly, a suspicion came to mind.

A country bordering the US, recently devastated after a Demonic Zone appeared—

"Mexico."

Only then did I realize what Damian's "gift" might be.

***

Alencia was in a terrible mood.

She'd tried so hard to meet Leon and hear more about her identity, only for him to mercilessly kick her out.

"There's no reason for you to know who you are."

"What?"

"Go back, Alencia. I need to find out who's been egging you on."

"Leon!!"

He could've put it a bit nicer.

Alencia glared at the ground with a sulky face.

It wasn't just that she'd been kicked out—his strange attitude got stuck in her mind.

"Tomorrow is match day, you know that, right? Why aren't you asleep at this hour?"

At the voice from behind, Alencia flinched and slowly turned around.

It was Jung-woo, someone she'd gotten used to seeing.

Alencia was about to make up an excuse that she simply couldn't sleep when Leon's words from earlier flashed through her mind.

"Someone's been egging you on."

"There's someone trying to use your ability."

She could still picture Leon's stern face scolding her.

It was the first time she'd seen him look so scary.

"Did I... make a mistake?"

Sweat dripped down her back.

If only she'd just stayed put—now she felt like she'd become a walking disaster for nothing.

No, she'd always been a bother.

She never made good use of what she was taught, and hadn't she caused trouble during the last test, too?

Really, there was nothing she did properly.

"Does the bed at the dorm not suit you?"

"N-no, that's not it—I just wanted to look at the stars..."

She instinctively covered for herself.

"Um... My mom used to hold me and look at the stars like that."

It wasn't a lie.

When she was little, her mother often watched the stars with her in her arms.

Jung-woo glanced at the star at Alencia's fingertip and murmured,

"Polaris."

"Hmm?"

"That's the name of that star."

At Jung-woo's words, Alencia looked up at the star she'd just pointed to.

She didn't know much about stars, but at least she could tell that one was exceptionally bright.

"Well, considering you've got your first real match coming up tomorrow, it's understandable that you'd be nervous."

"That's... not really it."

Even though she was tense, she'd completely forgotten about the Challengers, vaguely expecting "maybe Yeon-ji will take care of things?" and relying on her.

She couldn't even imagine she'd do anything herself at the competition.

"If you can't sleep, want to review with me one last time?"

She was about to refuse Jung-woo's suggestion.

What difference would last-minute cramming make the night before the test?

But she couldn't bring herself to say no.

"Leon didn't even properly explain my abilities..."

It seemed more like she was trying to deny it.

Suddenly, Alencia realized that the uneasy feeling she had now was actually disappointment at Leon.

But from the beginning, Jung-woo had been different.

He never explained her abilities in detail, but he'd never denied the power Alencia had either.

"Okay, I'll do it."

At last, Alencia slowly nodded.

Jung-woo, a bit surprised by such a change, wondered what had caused it—for Alencia, who usually shied away from using her abilities, to now readily agree to train.

He was curious about a lot, but chose not to ask. Instead, he decided to go along with Alencia's wishes.

"In that case, let's make sure you can confidently use the key skill for tomorrow's Challengers."

"The key skill?"

"Out of all the things you can do right now, it's the most versatile technique you'll need."

Jung-woo smiled.

That's when Alencia realized she'd made a mistake.

Looks like she wouldn't be getting much sleep tonight after all.

-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=

【ദ്ദി(⩌ᴗ⩌)】