Returnee's S-Rank Management Guide

Chapter 185 : Blooming Moonlight (1)

Blooming Moonlight (1)

'Why.'

Sol Mayer bit his lower lip.

The girl before his eyes was certainly not a genius.

She did not possess any spark like his own younger sibling.

And yet.

How.

"How were you able to become S-rank in such a short period of time!!"

Chester's true feelings burst out, wearing the mask of Sol Mayer.

Unlike the calm air Sol Mayer displayed until now, his true self was far more emotional.

Drdrdrk, drdrdrk!!

It was not only Yeon-ji who no longer needed to care about the stares around her, now that she was engulfed in a storm of ice.

Clear changes began to appear in Sol Mayer's body as well.

Unlike Yeon-ji, a single horn had sprouted from the center of his forehead.

Black spots, spreading like burns, emerged all over his body.

Because he was not a half-demon, his body writhed and cried out in pain.

This was proof that the 'something' forced into his body was incomplete.

The only reason he was able to endure was thanks to the light of divine art radiating from his entire body.

"If it was that easy to become S-rank, then I...!"

Chester's eyes turned red as he glared at Yeon-ji on the ground.

Becoming S-rank was not something that could be done so easily.

Only the chosen few could reach that realm.

Even though he had obtained a Conceptualization Technique, the very symbol of S-rank, and had come infinitely close to S-rank himself, he still could never reach it.

Just what made that woman different from himself?

"Why, why did I, Sol..."

From the very first moment he had met her, she had particularly gotten on his nerves.

That girl strangely resembled himself.

She had clearly reached such a level at her age, so it was obvious she was a genius, and yet that's what he thought.

When they met again, he noticed that the girl was wearing some sort of mask.

As a half-demon, perhaps it was easy enough for her to conceal her age.

So, he had thought that, unlike before, now he could easily overpower her.

Because now he was not the incompetent Chester, but the genius Sol.

"I won't allow it, not you."

Chester's reddened eyes turned to Yeon-ji.

'That gaze doesn't feel too pleasant.'

To Yeon-ji, those eyes were familiar.

Back on Mount Seorak, when she had run wild, she had seen her own eyes reflected just so in the eyes of Ju Ji-sang.

When demonic energy reached the head, the person's reason would gradually be lost.

The only difference was, unlike Yeon-ji, who had been wholly controlled by demonic energy, Chester was completely controlling it.

He only became a bit more short-minded and violent.

"Never, to you...!!"

With Chester's shout, filled with madness, magic arrays filled the area around them.

It was impossible to gauge how many spells were being cast simultaneously.

Dududududu!!!

Black fireballs and ice spears shot like a machine gun, and black shafts of light ripped through the air toward Yeon-ji.

They were all dark magic spells Yeon-ji herself had once used.

Being able to use them so quickly and more skillfully than herself was not only Chester Mayer's power, but also due to Sol Mayer's talent.

A shining talent—a thing she could never possess.

'Indeed, you and I are very much alike.'

Yeon-ji charged straight at the magic cast toward her.

To be precise, she ran toward Sol Mayer, the one casting the magic.

Anyone who saw it would call her crazy.

She was neither dodging nor blocking the magic, but charging ahead into it head-on.

'Hidden in the shadow of a brilliant light, and struggling desperately to escape that light.'

There was only one difference.

'There was no one to stop me when I crossed that line.'

Just as the fierce magic was about to reach the dashing Yeon-ji.

The mirror behind her back moved.

"...!!"

Probably no mage could block the magic Chester was casting.

No matter how great a mage one was, there was no way to block such a barrage.

Yet, the spells—powerful enough to swallow the entire area—vanished like a mirage the moment they touched Yeon-ji's mirror.

As if they were sucked into something.

'What is that?'

Conceptualization Techniques were typically influenced by a person's own image.

That was why there could be skills, not simply offensive, but, as with Chester, those that mimicked others.

But even so, Yeon-ji's Conceptualization Technique was clearly alien.

Not just blocking an opponent's attack, but completely nullifying it—how could such a thing exist?

「It's not a simple Conceptualization Technique. It's combined with Yuria's power.」

Henate whispered into Chester's ear as he faltered in confusion.

Half-demon, right.

Chester's eyes looked at Yeon-ji, who was charging toward him.

As she reached out her hand, chains of ice flew toward him.

Previously, it was an attack he could have easily warded off.

But now, it was different.

The ice that tore through Chester's barriers wrapped around his right arm.

As if to say, you can't escape anymore.

"Ugh!!"

If caught in those chains, Chester, whose physical abilities were overwhelmingly lacking, had no way to escape Yeon-ji.

In an instant, he was pulled and flung toward Yeon-ji, who clenched her fist.

Yeon-ji's fist, dropping like a lightning bolt, struck Chester square in the face, driving his body into the crushed ground.

'I...'

Chester staggered mentally.

It wasn't simply the physical shock of being hit.

'If I lose here...'

It was a possibility he had never considered.

Losing to an A-rank.

No, perhaps now she was S-rank, but even so, it was unacceptable.

Was becoming S-rank really that easy?

"Chester, nothing changes just because you do this."

Sol Mayer told him so before being killed by him.

"If you don't discard that rotten mindset, you'll never, never become S-rank."

No matter how tremendous the talent you're born with, you'll never become S-rank.

"Oh foolish elder brother of mine."

When he came to, there was nothing left before his eyes.

Only he remained in a dark room.

At that moment, Sol Mayer had become one with him.

So, he had to be a genius.

'Is it because she's a half-demon?'

Such thoughts came to mind, but he, too, possessed the power of the demons.

With power incomparably superior—a top-rank demon's power.

Was it really as Sol Mayer said, that he was the same despite that talent?

"That... can't be."

The demonic energy coursing through his heart grew stronger.

Sebin had warned him.

Not to use top-rank demon's power beyond a certain extent.

He had not long since inherited his blood, his body would not be able to withstand it.

Even so, even then, he absolutely could not lose.

He must not lose.

Then why, for what, had he killed his younger sibling?

To be defeated here?

He didn't want to once again end up as a supporting character.

Crack.

He felt as if something was breaking.

When he opened his eyes, he saw a faint rift forming on his hand.

"You...!"

Yeon-ji, who had been watching Chester fall, saw it too.

The unstable, rampaging demonic energy swirling in his body.

"Why are you going this far!"

"Why do I go this far, you ask?"

Chester slowly forced himself to his feet in response to Yeon-ji's question.

A fierce light spilled from his red pupils; cracks began to form all over his body.

His body, reinforced by divine art, couldn't fully withstand Henate's power.

"You know, don't you?"

As he spread his arms to both sides, black wings unfurled.

The ground trembled as his body slowly lifted into the air.

"I just... don't want to go back to that time again."

To the extent that dying would be better than letting it happen.

KWAANG!!

Chester's new form soared into the sky.

The shock was so intense that the surrounding storm of ice temporarily dispersed.

"Huh? What's that?"

Thanks to that, the audience could clearly see the changed forms of the two.

Yeon-ji, whose horns had grown, and Sol Mayer, who could no longer be seen as human.

"That's... doesn't look human, does it?"

A monster, that's all he looked like.

Yeon-ji's transformation was merely having grown horns, but Sol Mayer looked utterly inhuman.

Huge black wings that seemed to dye the sky black, a body corroded and crumbling from demonic energy, a single horn—he was the very image of a demon out of a fairy tale.

"......"

Chester sensed this as well and closed his eyes.

He might not be able to live as Sol Mayer any longer.

He couldn't even use the title great mage anymore, probably.

But even so, this was better.

Better than losing meaninglessly.

At least, the world wouldn't forget him.

KWAaAaANG!!

As dark magic power gathered around the black wings, the magic barriers surrounding the stands began to creak.

As an S-rank mage and one who possessed the highest demon power, Chester's strength was too much for the barrier.

Up until now, he had used magic only to the extent that it did not threaten the audience, but even that consideration was gone now.

'You know.'

Yeon-ji bit her lower lip as she looked at Chester, who had said those words.

Yes, she understood.

How frightening it was to be hidden in the shadow of a strong light and be forgotten.

She knew, too.

That was why she struggled so desperately not to become that way.

Just like Chester now.

So she didn't want to watch any longer.

A mirror—as if she were looking at her own reflection.

"Nothing changes."

Chester murmured, looking down at Yeon-ji on the ground.

It was something his younger sibling had said to him before dying.

Vrooooom!

The dark magic gathered on his wings rose, forming the shape of a black sun behind his back.

Anyone who knew even a little about Sol Mayer would know what that was.

Sol Mayer's Conceptualization Technique, solar Flare.

Ordinarily, the flames would have burned gold, but now they burned black.

But their power had not diminished in the slightest.

Just their mere presence caused the atmosphere to evaporate and magic barriers to collapse.

"Solar, Flare."

As Chester activated the Conceptualization Technique, the black sun fell toward the earth.

The average spectator could only stare blankly, but hunters with knowledge of magic understood the power of that spell.

If that fell, it would not simply end with incinerating the arena.

It would burn not just the stadium, but the stands, and turn dozens of kilometers around it into ashes.

Facing it, Yeon-ji slowly bent her knees.

The searing heat stung her skin.

But, because it was a black sun, it was not dazzling.

'I can do it.'

Yeon-ji whispered to herself.

It was just an inexplicable conviction.

Above all, Park Jung-woo had not intervened—proof in itself.

If he truly thought she could not handle it, he would have already stepped in to stop it.

He believed in her.

He was certain she could block that black sun.

'Really, what a reckless man.'

With a slight smile, Yeon-ji ran toward the falling sun.

If anyone saw, they might cry out how reckless it was.

Who could dare to rush toward the sun?

But she believed.

She knew.

The flames of the sun would never reach her.

Vroooom!!

The mirror behind her back turned to face forward.

Compared to the gigantic sun, the mirror was endlessly small.

It was proof that, unlike others, she could never become a shining star.

A mirror—it looked so, but in truth, it was not the mere form of a mirror.

'The moon.'

Yeon-ji understood.

This transparent mirror made of ice resembled the moon.

She could not become a shining star.

Nor could she ever become someone like the sun that brightens the world.

Shin Ah-yeon, Lee Soo-ah, people like Alencia—they were fundamentally different.

'I—'

Yeon-ji—no, Yeon-hwa reached out her hand toward the black sun.

'I always thought of you as the sun.'

Shin Ah-yeon, the one who always outshone her with light brighter than anyone.

And she herself was the moon in the day, hidden by such light.

A moon, wanting to become like the sun.

"Do you know why the moon is beautiful?"

Park Jung-woo had once said that while gazing alone at the moon in America.

It was just after he told her not to forget Ji Yeon-hwa.

After tutoring Alencia late into the night before the Challengers, he said so as he looked at the moon.

"Because it's in the darkness."

The moon isn't visible in daylight, but on a dark night, it shines beautifully.

Back then, she had just dismissed it as sentimental nonsense.

But thinking back, she realized it might have been words meant for her.

Because it was in darkness—

Because she knew the darkness, there was beauty to be found.

She was not the sun.

Nor a star.

But perhaps, she could at least be the moon.

Even if she could not shine during the day, even if she could not shine on her own—

—she could brighten the dark night.

She could be such a moon.

Tak.

Yeon-ji tapped the transparent mirror in front of her with a fingertip.

The mirror facing the sun.

"Moonlight Bloom (月光開花)."

Moonlight bloomed like a flower, and as silver petals scattered within the mirror, they spread outward.

They wrapped around the falling sun and began to draw it into the mirror.

Both the spreading heat and the intense demonic energies.

"...!!"

As the silver petals scattered, Chester's bewildered face was revealed, staring blankly at her.

Looking at him, Yeon-ji tapped the mirror with her fingertip again.

Chwarururuk!!

Then the petals, which had scattered in all directions, spread through the area, manifesting countless round discs.

Glowing, they simultaneously poured out the very sunlight they had just absorbed at Chester.

All the power the mirror had absorbed so far.

"Ah."

In the midst of Chester's dazed cry—

Countless silver rays shot from the discs and struck his body.

Kwakwakwakwa!!

The barrage of silver light tore apart the black wings.

He tried desperately to block them, but it was futile.

His battered body could not possibly withstand them.

At last, unable to endure any longer, his body fell to the ground.

「As expected, just an experimental product, was it?」

Henate's voice echoed in his ear.

At the same time, Chester felt the immense demonic energy flooding his body vanish as if it were a lie.

Not just the demonic energy—everything he had absorbed through Henate disappeared.

A tormented laugh escaped.

Right from the start, they had simply wanted his and Sol Mayer's power.

That they never fully fused was only so they could abandon him and leave so easily.

"... Is it over?"

He realized his body was broken and his life was finished.

A body shattered by excessive demonic energy.

Perhaps it was the influence of divine art, too.

"Chester!!"

At that moment, he saw Yeon-ji reaching her hand toward his falling self.

Come to think of it, even at the end, she could have finished him off but did not.

She had only torn his wings, neutralized his power.

Yeon-ji's hand reached out for him.

Seeing that, Chester laughed with hollow amusement.

His first offer of salvation came from a woman so much like himself.

Wasn't that ridiculous?

"I don't need it."

He said, closing his eyes.

That was the last thing he remembered.

***

"Good work."

After coming out of the collapsed arena, he greeted her with a smile as if he had been waiting.

He looked just as usual.

But Yeon-ji sensed that he had been unusually tense.

"You thought I'd lose, didn't you?"

"What are you talking about?"

She could feel a trace of sweat as his hand patted her shoulder.

How tightly had he been clenching his fists?

He might have wanted to jump in and finish the opponent at any moment.

"I missed him."

"You couldn't have caught him in the first place. That was only a part of him."

A part, yes, but a considerable amount.

They must have implanted a significant portion into Chester for their experiment.

"Don't worry about it."

"I'm not worried. That idiot."

Chester, who resembled her but met a different ending.

Yeon-ji sighed.

She just wanted to go home right away and rest. The moment she closed her eyes, she felt like she would fall asleep from the overwhelming exhaustion.

But, there were people waiting for her, so she couldn't.

"Ardan is waiting outside, let's go."

He turned and said so.

As she watched his retreating back striding ahead, Yeon-ji reflexively reached out and grabbed his sleeve.

"Why?"

Park Jung-woo looked back at her in puzzlement, and Yeon-ji saw that she was holding onto his sleeve.

'Why?'

The same question came to her mind as his.

Why had she grabbed his sleeve?

"... You don't use honorifics anymore."

She spoke before she meant to.

It was probably an unconscious remark.

"That's surprising. Do you prefer honorifics?"

"No, not really."

If anything, she preferred casual speech.

But oddly, there was something unsatisfying.

As she wondered what it was, Yeon-ji spoke before she realized it.

"My name."

"Hm?"

"When it's just the two of us, call me Yeon-hwa."

She wasn't sure what she was saying, but didn't care.

She was a bothersome woman—if she thought too long, she would surely say something not her true feelings.

She was just a little tired.

Yes, that's all.

"You were the one who told me not to forget Ji Yeon-hwa, right?"

So—

"Call me that, so I don't forget."

There really was no other reason.

... Probably.

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

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