Returnee's S-Rank Management Guide

Chapter 200 : He Who Opens the Way (3)

He Who Opens the Way (3)

「I'm sure everyone is well aware of the mysterious S-rank Hunter, 'No Name', who never appeared even once in this Odyssey.」

「There were a lot of speculations that he was the mysterious Hunter who closed the gate in Jeju Island.」

「Since there was no definite information, some said he was just a fake entry, put there simply for the numbers, but the Odyssey isn't that easy, is it?」

「Yes, that's right. Of course, there was little chance he was fake, but his true identity has always been shrouded in secrecy.」

The TV host continued to speak in an extremely animated voice.

「But information regarding that identity has recently arrived.」

「Wasn't it from the interview with France's Hunter Hugo?」

「Yes, it's from a recent interview on France's national broadcasting station, RHI. Let's all watch.」

As soon as he finished speaking, the screen changed, showing Hunter Hugo speaking before a crowd of reporters.

It was a question about the finals of this Odyssey and the abnormal event that took place in America. There, hunter Hugo said this:

「An abnormal phenomenon, you say? Actually, it wasn't just a simple abnormality.」

「Excuse me? Then, is the US side hiding something?」

「No. To be precise, it's because it's an issue tangled up with the existence known as 'demons', so they're hesitant to make any announcement.」

At the word 'demons', the reporters stirred loudly.

No one had expected that the most sensational topic on the internet during this Odyssey would be mentioned here.

Sol Mayer, and the unidentified demon who corrupted him.

On the internet, some said such an existence was fabricated by someone, but the strangely numerous eyewitness accounts were causing controversy.

「This abnormal event was a crisis brought about by those demons. The rift at the Grand Canyon nearly reopened. To prevent that, I and several other S-rank Hunters went there.」

The reporters' mouths hung open in shock at the unexpected revelation.

The rift incident was shocking enough, but the fact that it had been stopped was even more surprising.

「At that place, I saw a demon for myself. Yes, it wasn't a fabricated existence.」

「Did the demon trigger the rift? And was it strong enough to go up against S-rank Hunters?」

「I'm not sure if they were among the strongest of the demons, but from what I saw, there were very few at the scene who could deal with the demons alone.」

As he spoke, he listed America's Trinity, britain's Kian Rogers, and Soo-ah first.

It seemed Yeon-ji was omitted since she had already shown her prowess in the fight against Sol Mayer.

「Most of us only managed to hold them back. But there was someone among us who completely overpowered the demons.」

「Someone who overpowered demons that even S-rank Hunters struggled against...」

「Yes, that person is No Name.」

「No Name? Do you mean Korea's S-rank Hunter who was scheduled to appear in the finals against the US this year?」

Hugo slowly nodded.

「I'm sure everyone knows who it is. We've already seen him several times in this Odyssey.」

「Seen him? But up to now, no Name hasn't appeared in a single match.」

「You know Park Jung-woo-ssi, the manager of the Korean team, right?」

「Ah, yes.」

The reporters, puzzled by why Park Jung-woo's name was suddenly brought up, watched as Hugo gave a slight smile.

「He is No Name.」

Beep.

I, who had watched the video up to that point, paused it and let out a deep sigh.

"... At least it's a relief that they didn't mention I was the one who closed the rift."

I muttered, still wearing shabby clothes.

They were the clothes once worn by the demon, lonbill, who had stayed very briefly at Shin Ah-yeon's mansion in the past.

I'm living in another house with Ardan now, but if that guy hadn't left these clothes behind, I would be covering myself with a bath towel right now.

'I should have just gone slower and more carefully.'

It was a rather expensive suit, but it had all been burned.

Alencia, feeling sorry, had hurried off to buy some clothes, but I couldn't care less about that.

'What now.'

Hugo's revelation was quite troublesome for me.

I hadn't controlled the information, but even the Americans likely hadn't expected Hugo would blow everything open like this.

"Oh my, isn't it better that he mentioned the demons?"

When did she arrive? Yeon-ji spoke, sitting next to me watching the video.

There was plenty of space since I was watching with a laptop on the large sofa.

"That's certainly not a bad thing. Since Hugo is France's representative S-rank Hunter, the weight of his words is different."

Although, up to now, Enoch had been slowly spreading information about the demons on the internet, a single statement from Hugo was more impactful.

"The problem is that he mentioned me..."

I had turned my phone off a long time ago.

I even considered just changing my phone entirely.

There'd always been suspicions that I might be an Awakener thanks to things like the incident with SuHunK, but no one would have suspected I was S-rank or above.

Maybe those who knew I was a returnee, or guessed as much.

"If you think about it positively, won't people be more receptive when you talk about matters concerning the demons from now on?"

"They've always been receptive, so that won't really change anything. I guess if I need to make a special announcement to the other Hunters, that might be different."

There was a bit of a stir, but so long as I didn't register as an S-rank Hunter, it wouldn't be a problem.

It wasn't a law that S-rank awakeners had to work as Hunters.

As long as I didn't register as a Hunter, I didn't have to fulfill the obligations of an S-rank Hunter.

"Hmmm, what a waste. Still, if you become an S-rank Hunter, there are all sorts of benefits. You get thirty percent tax exemption even when shopping."

"That's a thing?"

"There's no interest on loans either. That's why so many S-rank Hunters own multiple buildings."

"What about you? You earned a lot during the Ji Yeon-hwa days."

At that, Yeon-ji let out a faint sigh.

"If I carelessly spend the money I made back in my Ji Yeon-hwa days, I will get caught, you know?"

Thinking about it, that made sense.

Seeing my reaction, Yeon-ji narrowed her eyes slyly.

"And technically, I'm still in the Ji Yeon-hwa period. Don't tell me you're going to start calling me Yeon-ji?"

"I get it, okay."

"Then that's fine."

After saying that, Yeon-ji glanced around.

Alencia and Soo-ah had gone out to buy me clothes, so only Yeon-ji and Shin Ah-yeon were left at the mansion.

But Shin Ah-yeon hadn't made an appearance for a while.

"By the way, did something happen to her in America? She's been strange ever since the rift incident."

"Strange how?"

"She barely plays games, keeps scribbling something, and it looks like she's practicing magic..."

Maybe that was normal for a mage, but considering Shin Ah-yeon's usual behavior, it was indeed odd.

'Is it the aftermath of using Estella's power?'

Still, her personality or behavior hadn't changed drastically.

"Not really. She just seemed a little down, that's all."

"Really? She seemed down..."

Yeon-ji looked like she was deep in thought.

'I should talk to Ah-yeon about it later.'

I had already tried a few times but was rejected each time for being 'busy.'

I thought she probably just had a lot on her mind, but seeing Yeon-ji's reaction, maybe not.

'And about the demons.'

What I gained from this incident in America was being able to pinpoint some of the places demons used as bases.

The demonic zones.

Of the four great demonic zones, one was already conquered, so three remained.

The demons' base could be one of the three, or all three.

'Since I was planning to visit the association anyway, I'll mention it then.'

I'd hoped to move only after things quieted down, but that probably wouldn't be possible.

***

'Estella's power.'

Shin Ah-yeon recalled what happened in America while jotting down magical formulas on a sheet of paper.

'And divine art.'

On top of that, she copied Benadic's divine art technique she saw on Gwehyeoldo.

Circle magic techniques and divine art techniques—perhaps she could make use of both.

"The Authority of Wishes... that's what it's called."

If Alencia was electricity, Estella was miracle.

The Saintess' authority was said to represent the most valuable power or the deepest desire of her era.

The people of Estella's era dreamed only of vague miracles, so Estella must have been born with such power. A strength greater than any other Saintess. That's why Shin Ah-yeon could never fully control it.

"What's the use if I can't use it when I want?"

Whenever the aftereffects of Estella's memories set in, or when she lost consciousness.

There was no point in something that only triggered in such unusual situations.

She'd been lucky so far, but there was no guarantee her luck would last.

'I have to be able to control it.'

Shin Ah-yeon sought that control in magic.

And she got a hint from her own Conceptualization Technique, which she had been unable to use so far.

If the Conceptualization Technique was disrupted as a consequence of awakening Estella's power, maybe fixing it and manifesting it again as a Conceptualization Technique would work.

As a new form of magic.

"Especially..."

It would never happen, but if she were to be compared to Estella, she would be furious.

If people said Estella could and she could not... She ground her teeth just at the thought.

And honestly, what happened at the Grand Canyon didn't sit well with Shin Ah-yeon either.

She didn't feel like she had accomplished anything herself.

"Three years ago... it felt different."

Back when she closed the rift then, it felt more like she had done it with her own strength.

There must be a hint somewhere in that incident.

To find the answer, Shin Ah-yeon scribbled various magical formulas in her room.

To find the answer to the Authority.

***

"Oh my, welcome. We've been waiting for you."

As soon as I reached the association, a staff member came out and bowed respectfully.

"The association president is upstairs, right?"

"Of course. President Park has been anxiously awaiting your arrival."

Up until now, they'd merely been polite, but now their attitude was practically that of serving a noble.

'Is this what it means to be an S-rank awakener?'

Before, they treated me like a manager lucky enough to work with S-rank Hunters, but now it was something else entirely.

"Isn't that Manager Park Jung-woo? What's he doing at the association?"

"Probably because of what happened recently. Maybe for a license?"

"What happened?"

"You didn't hear? It was revealed that Manager Park Jung-woo is actually an S-rank awakener."

The sound of people whispering continued to reach my ears.

The good news was, unlike the crowds of reporters outside, hunters themselves didn't easily approach me.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Gong Do-yung, the head of the Korean Hunter Association."

As soon as I entered the reception room prepared by the association, the president got up to shake my hand, as if he'd been waiting.

"My son caused you a lot of trouble this time."

"Not at all. He helped me a great deal too, actually."

Was the president's son Gong Je-hun? Now that I thought about it, they did share the same family name.

That would make things a little smoother.

Gong Je-hun was someone who'd experienced the incident first-hand in America.

"Then, I assume you know why I came today."

"It's about the demons, right?"

"Yes."

The demons were in the demonic zone.

To investigate, you needed the permission of the country where the demonic zone was located.

Unlike a normal dungeon, a demonic zone was a place with its own ecosystem.

If it was disturbed recklessly, you never knew what catastrophe might occur.

"We'll look into that for you. And..."

Gong Do-yung agreed to my request without hesitation.

But he seemed to have more to say, hesitating for a moment.

"It's all right. Since I came to you for a favor first, I'm happy to help with anything else within reason."

"Phew, thank you. I'll speak frankly, then."

Since Gong Do-yung looked extremely troubled, clearly it wasn't good news.

He opened his mouth several times before finally speaking:

"Recently, the association has been investigating Hunters related to the demons."

"Yes, I heard about that. It's something that all the world's Hunter associations are doing right now."

"That's right. But the situation isn't good. It seems more Hunters are involved than we thought. And... it's likely that UnderStellar is involved as well."

UnderStellar.

A criminal organization made up of the world's worst S-rank awakeners.

If those guys joined hands with the demons, things could get extremely dangerous.

'If they implant the top-rank demons into those guys' bodies...'

Several incidents similar to the Grand Canyon crisis could occur all over again.

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

200 Chapters!!!

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