novelraw Chapter 217 : Encounter (1)
Chapter 217 : Encounter (1)
Encounter (1)
You wake up from sleep and find yourself a star.
It's probably a saying that anyone has heard at least once.
To be honest, I think I let my guard down a bit.
Since I'd already experienced several similar things, I thought this time would be the same.
Just a crowd of people gathering, and unknown numbers constantly calling my phone.
I only thought it would be like that, but this time exceeded my expectations by far.
"You might as well have revealed that you were a returnee too."
Chairman Song Hyun-seong of Tae-yeong Group said with a smirk.
Of course, I couldn't laugh.
Up to this point, people's attention toward me was curiosity or interest, but now most of the gazes contained longing or expectation.
Honestly, these were not the kinds of gazes I liked.
If those kinds of stares came at me every time I walked down the street, it would be nothing but burdensome.
'This didn't happen over there.'
Even though I was called a hero in the other world, I had never received this kind of attention.
In the first place, since I moved secretly to kill the Demon King, I hardly ever met anyone.
That was why, the longing gazes I first received here were an enormous burden on me.
"You know, S-rank has always been that way."
"Ahem, I do know."
"As I said before, maybe this is the chance to reveal you're a returnee too."
"Everyone who needs to know already knows by now, don't you think?"
Just revealing that I was the S-rank awakener 'No Name' created this much uproar—imagine what would happen if I announced that I was a returnee.
'I probably wouldn't be able to go to the company or home.'
Actually, I couldn't go now, either.
There were simply too many people swarming at the company and home.
If before most of them were reporters, this time there were plenty of regular citizens mixed in.
"And besides, there's no merit at all to revealing I'm a returnee."
"True, I suppose. Hm, well, if you want to be on TV when you're older, maybe you can tell all your stories then."
Song Hyun-seong said that with a dry laugh.
He looked to be in a very good mood.
It was probably because my fame had hugely boosted Tae-yeong Group's value.
Tae-yeong Group had been steadily investing in me, and it was publicly known that I was closely tied to them.
Most of the commercials filmed by Unique's S-rank hunters were also products belonging to Tae-yeong Group.
'On top of that...'
It was also because the rival Song Hyun-seong most kept in check was now missing.
"When exactly did Jin Su-hyuk go missing?"
"I can't say for sure. It's right around when Odyssey started that his whereabouts turned unclear."
"So he seemed to have chosen that timing—when everyone's attention was on Odyssey."
"Most likely. Like you said, if he was going to make contact with the demons, that timing would have been perfect."
Given the circumstances, it was clear that Grand Nova was connected to the demons.
So while I was in America for Odyssey, did Jin Su-hyuk undergo that procedure at Alcatraz?
'Judging by the state described there, it was pretty much a failed procedure.'
The odds are, he was dead.
But somehow, I didn't believe he was dead.
He was the reason I started as a manager, and a legendary man in the industry.
Someone like Jin Su-hyuk wouldn't just die so easily.
"Don't worry too much. Even if Jin Su-hyuk is alive, everyone is on the hunt for him, so he'll be found soon enough. He must know that, which is why he hasn't shown himself easily."
The best intelligence organizations around the world were after Jin Su-hyuk and the demon's whereabouts.
That's why Song Hyun-seong thought they would lay even lower than before.
But I thought differently.
If it was Jin Su-hyuk, or Damian, then perhaps now was—
"Chairman!"
At that moment, Song's secretary knocked on the drawing room door and shouted.
Song Hyun-seong's face twisted at the urgent voice.
"I said I have important business today, didn't I?"
"S-sorry. But this really is too important..."
The secretary entered, bowing repeatedly to the chairman.
At that, Song Hyun-seong raised his eyebrow as if to say, let's hear it.
"Jin Su-hyuk has shown up."
"... What?"
"Jin Su-hyuk has appeared in public, at an official event."
Hearing that Jin Su-hyuk, who should have been hiding, had appeared openly, Song Hyun-seong's eyes widened.
But I wasn't all that surprised.
'As expected.'
If it was Jin Su-hyuk, or Damian, he would have believed now was the perfect time to play his trump card.
***
"Jin Su-hyuk-nim, what are your thoughts on this year's Korean Guardian Award?"
"We heard you had an accident!"
"Wasn't it an illness, not an accident?"
"Please, sir! Just a word!!"
Countless reporters shoved their microphones at Jin Su-hyuk.
Recently, Unique had been growing rapidly, but even so, could not rival Grand Nova's might.
'... You couldn't tell just from the outside.'
The location we were in was Grand Nova's headquarters.
Jin Su-hyuk had gathered people here, saying he had something important to announce.
"What do you think he's going to say, calling all these reporters?"
Ah-yeon also spoke as she watched Jin Su-hyuk being bombarded with questions.
Present at this gathering were me and Shin Ah-yeon, representing Unique's hunters.
"I don't know. But it definitely won't be anything ordinary."
It was yesterday afternoon when Jin Su-hyuk first reappeared.
Reporters swarmed at his sudden arrival, and he said:
"There will be an announcement tomorrow at Grand Nova. I'll take all questions there."
That alone caused a huge commotion.
Rumors immediately spread online—from talk of Grand Nova announcing some new policy to match Unique's rapid growth, to all sorts of theories.
"What would you have done in his shoes?"
"If it were me..."
If I were in Jin Su-hyuk's position, what would I have done?
Why go out of his way to gather everyone like this? I pondered a moment, then organized my thoughts to tell Ah-yeon.
At my response, Ah-yeon just let out a hollow laugh.
"I don't think anyone in their right mind would do that. If things go wrong..."
She had just started to say that when—
Jin Su-hyuk, silent until now, picked up the microphone.
"Hello. I'm Jin Su-hyuk, president of Grand Nova."
He gazed at the reporters and numerous guests gathered there.
Among them was me.
"Some of you may be surprised. I disappeared for a while and suddenly appeared, calling the press together. Some of you might be wondering if I even committed a crime."
Some laughed at his joking tone.
Of course, many did not take those words as a joke.
Especially among the observers from the US and the Hunter Association.
They were watching Jin Su-hyuk closely as he was highly suspected of contact with the demons.
He was mostly giving formal, lengthy statements to the reporters.
But I realized this was the set-up before the main announcement.
"The reason I gathered you here today is to announce the start of a new era."
And then.
"Do you remember the incident involving Sol Mayer during Odyssey?"
It was then that emotion began to creep into Jin Su-hyuk's voice.
"Some of you may already know. Back then, Sol Mayer was granted a special power by the demons."
With his mention of Sol Mayer and the demons, a great stir ran through the reporters.
"Demons—a race utterly different from humans. Beings from another world. There have been countless rumors, but no one has actually witnessed them directly."
Indeed, the term "demon" was well-known on the internet.
This was partly due to the Hunter Association and Enoch manipulating public opinion.
It was necessary to widely publicize the danger posed by the demons.
"So what is the purpose of the demons? I thought about it. And... I wanted to meet and hear from them myself."
The moment he said that, Ah-yeon's gaze turned toward me.
Jin Su-hyuk's words were nearly identical to what I had just said to Ah-yeon.
"And eventually, I managed to meet them—yes, the demons themselves."
The once-noisy room instantly fell silent.
Most people wore expressions wondering if he was joking.
But if those words came from Grand Nova's President, that changed matters.
"He told me this: there are demons who wish to coexist with humans, and others who simply want to use us. Sol Mayer had contact with the latter. As for me, I was fortunate enough to meet the former."
"Is that really true?"
"Yes, it is. As proof, I received a small gift from the demons."
Frankly, claims about there being different factions among the demons were hard to believe.
It was perfectly possible that Jin Su-hyuk was making everything up.
"As you all know, I was an ordinary human, not an awakener. But now, that's no longer true."
Any such speculation was wiped away by Jin Su-hyuk's next action.
A tremendous magic power began to flow from his body.
"Magic power? How?"
"Jin Su-hyuk was just a normal person!"
The hunters present could sense the strength radiating from Jin Su-hyuk more clearly than anyone.
There was simply no way an ordinary human like him could use magic power.
Yet now, Jin Su-hyuk was wielding it.
As proof, the platform he stood on was starting to crack under the force of his magic power.
Even reporters who couldn't sense magic power stared in open-mouthed shock at the bizarre spectacle.
"With help from the demons, even people like me can become awakeners. They possess technology we do not."
His voice, filled with magic power, echoed in everyone's ears.
"This means that the greatest problem of our era—the conflict between awakeners and non-awakeners—can finally be resolved."
Everyone stared at him as if mesmerized.
Especially in this hall full of ordinary people, there was almost a yearning visible in their eyes.
"Hasn't everyone imagined it at least once? Haven't you all longed for it? To wield the power of an awakener yourself."
Whether demons were enemies or not—
Whether those empowered by them once attempted massacres—none of it mattered anymore.
"Now, we have a way to seize that opportunity."
Truly, if Jin Su-hyuk's words were true, this was an event that could change the world.
"Now, allow me to introduce someone."
Looking at the multitude of gazes focused on him, Jin Su-hyuk raised his hand high.
Then a man slowly ascended the platform.
A man with ashen hair and eyes.
"Damian Hertha."
The Demon King's son.
His appearance was like a bomb going off in the Republic of Korea.
***
==
Post: Is it true that Jin Su-hyuk says even normal people can become awakeners now?
He says you just need demon technology?
Reply
ㅇㅇ: Isn't it way too sketchy when you think about what happened with Sol Mayer?
ssff: Says there are those who want to coexist and those who don't.
Aspiring Awakener: Let's be real, who cares, if you can become an awakener, that's 100% revolutionary
ㅇㅇ: Kinda worried the people at the top will try to monopolize or sabotage it though
==
Jin Su-hyuk's return, and the appearance of Damian Hertha, who openly declared himself a demon.
Those who had been secretly tracking the demons were thrown into great confusion, unable to predict that they would step forward so boldly.
This could be used as an excuse to arrest Jin Su-hyuk or the demons.
But...
'That would only spark massive public outrage among regular people.'
I skimmed through public opinion online and closed my eyes.
No matter how much I tried to warn of the dangers of the demons, it wouldn't matter now.
There hadn't yet been any disaster obvious enough for ordinary people to notice.
On the contrary, the government would look like it was monopolizing and controlling the power of awakeners for itself.
No matter how this situation was handled, it would leave the world in turmoil.
But even if it came to being hunted by the authorities, Jin Su-hyuk wouldn't care.
He already had public resentment on him, and had been living in hiding anyway.
'I would have done the same.'
I hadn't expected things to unfold exactly as I'd said to Ah-yeon.
But this was bound to happen eventually.
Ever since I saw the research files found in Alcatraz, I'd had a vague sense this would be coming.
So—is there no solution?
Absolutely not.
On our side, we have a returnee who knows the true nature of the demons.
'Alright, let's see who comes out on top.'
But for now, public sentiment was all with Jin Su-hyuk.
First, I would need to turn that tide.
Only then could any word reach the public's ear.
-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=
Oh fuck. They plan to make use of humans to worship demons, like a cult and those worshippers will create the Demon God!!!
【(；☉_☉)】