novelraw Chapter 226 : The Butcher (2)
Chapter 226 : The Butcher (2)
The Butcher (2)
The blood mist that had filled the surroundings dissipated.
In the darkness of the blackout city, Henate, with his chest pierced through, breathed his last.
He was a demon who was as close to immortality as one could be, but he was not an undying god.
If it was anywhere but his core, he could recover no matter how severe the wound, but if his core was destroyed, even Henate could not survive.
"...... Sometimes."
Henate—or rather Dune—opened his mouth.
Even though his core, and his heart, had been destroyed, he was still alive.
'He's used shadow to connect his destroyed heart.'
He could feel magic power concentrating in his heart.
But that was only a temporary measure.
The magic power kept leaking out, and, in the end, Dune would die in a few seconds.
"...... There are things that can only be completed through death."
Dune said this with a twisted smile.
"This isn't bad either. I got to experience the demon's power... in my own way."
It was a strange reaction.
Even though all of his plans had failed, Dune didn't show a hint of regret.
"I haven't failed at anything."
Not the Pandemonium raid.
Not reaching the broadcasting station; even though he hadn't accomplished a single thing, Dune said this.
"From the moment I came to this city, failure wasn't an option."
Dune looked around.
The lights in the city, which had been dark due to the blackout, were gradually turning back on.
Looking at the city as it brightened, he smiled.
"Modern humans are truly frightening. Even in dangerous situations, some risk their lives just for a little attention."
The battle between Jung-woo, the demons, and Dune.
Though it hadn't escalated to a disaster, there were those who had filmed the fight.
Some with cameras, others with their ever-present smartphones.
"The ember will flare up one way or another."
Dune was the leader of UnderStellar.
His notoriety had spread across the world, and there were many who admired him.
Even if they weren't necessarily villains.
That's why Dune knew.
That even his death could become an ember.
***
"Lord Damian."
Sebin spoke to the man who was quietly reading a book.
"Henate is dead."
"I know."
Damian let out a sigh.
"Sooner or later, it was bound to happen, whether quickly or slowly."
"Henate's death... is a huge loss to us. He was one of the top-rank demons, specialized in combat."
Sebin tried to speak as calmly as possible, but Damian could sense the anger contained within.
"But he was also a relic of the past era."
"That's...!"
"He was strong but old-fashioned, unable to accept change."
Henate was strong.
Damian acknowledged that as well.
There were certainly few demons stronger than him among the top-rank ones.
"Soon we'll be able to summon all of the top-rank demons into this world."
The gate to the demon realm created with divine art.
At first, it was incomplete, but it was gradually nearing completion.
And the model built at Alcatraz, too.
In the demonic zone, a more perfect form was taking shape.
The Demon King's Castle.
What once fell would soon be resurrected in this world.
"War is not decided by individual fights."
Damian said.
"You know this, too, Sebin. Park Jung-woo, who has the Demon King's power, can't be easily defeated."
Among the top-rank demons above the rank of Count, only about twenty existed.
However, even they had been defeated by Park Jung-woo, who had not yet absorbed the Demon King.
"To kill the Demon King, a god must be completed."
For now, only Jin Su-hyuk was complete.
An ordinary human had become the closest thing to a god.
And the man named Kang Min-gi, whom he had with him, might soon be completed as well.
"Like saints among humans."
Existences that represent the value of the age,
Called 'saints', but they were in truth 'gods' in human form.
So far, only the Demon King among the demons had ever been able to kill one.
"Five."
That was the minimum number needed.
Only then could they kill Park Jung-woo, defeat this world's saintesses,
And kill all the heroes he led.
And on the day the Demon King's Castle reemerged,
This world would become a new demon realm.
***
After the large-scale terrorist attack in America, various awakener communities were in turmoil.
Already there were concerns that additional laws regarding the awakened might be introduced, but who would have thought someone would actually blow up an entire city in a terrorist attack?
==
【Post】: By the way, why is no one talking about Pandemonium?
Guild members died there and there was a lot of damage, but the news isn't covering it.
【Comment】
ㅇㅇ: Maybe it's not being reported because the victims were awakened.
ㄴaqe: Awakener aren't even human now? lol
ㅇㅇ: These days, 'not human' = bald people, awakened
ㄴㅇㅇ: Where are you from?
ㄴㅂㄷㅂㄷ: Wait, are you bald?
==
Thanks to the deliberate restraint of awakened-related news coverage, awakener communities were like volcanoes on the verge of erupting.
Anger had piled up, and it seemed ready to blow at any moment.
"This isn't looking good."
Sung-hwan looked at me and sighed.
"Maybe because of the current conflict between the awakeners and regular people, even the hunter broadcasting industry is playing it safe."
There was a trend of avoiding hiring awakener for advertisements.
No matter how popular a hunter was, shooting an ad now was sure to create controversy.
Unique was also taking quite a hit.
Especially since Unique had appearances scheduled not just for their hunter content but for regular variety shows, including Shin Ah-yeon, Soo-ah, and Alencia.
Naturally, even more caution was needed.
"Do you think that's the only problem?"
Sung-hwan, as if reading my mind, spoke with an exasperated expression.
"You idiot, you. You're also a problem right now. Didn't you go to America and take out another demon?"
"Has word about that already spread?"
"Do you know what era we live in?"
Thanks to Enoch's intervention, the battle between me and Henate didn't make it to mainstream TV.
But on the internet, information was leaking out in bits and pieces.
"There was even a journalist present, apparently."
The video shot by the journalist was much clearer.
You could clearly see my face.
"... Well, thanks to that, your fame seems to have risen even higher."
Henate's power to slice through concrete buildings in one stroke was nothing short of astonishing.
No S-rank awakener had that kind of power.
As a result, my opponent in that fight stood out even more.
"The journalist must have wanted to raise awareness about the danger of demons."
"But it doesn't seem to have caused that much of a stir."
"That's because Jin Su-hyuk already said it, didn't he? That there are good demons and bad demons? What a convenient excuse."
It seemed the demon in the video was being treated as one of those 'bad demons.'
"Today, some guy named Damian even gave an interview denying any connection to it. And since there are a lot of people who favor him, I bet the incident will just die down quietly."
It looked like even human rights groups took the side of the demons.
Their argument was that since there are humans who commit murder, not all demons are evil.
Which is true.
It's true, but...
'There's just no way to prove the two sides are connected.'
The link between UnderStellar and the demons.
Or if there was just some evidence tying them to Grand Nova, the situation could change, but unfortunately, that lead was hard to grab.
Maybe that's why Jin Su-hyuk had started holding back.
'Too many variables.'
Honestly, I wanted to just stir up Grand Nova, but that would backfire.
And more than anything, it was hard to estimate the full power the demons possessed.
Same for Jin Su-hyuk's strength.
'Dune's death has provoked the underworld criminals.'
That was information Enoch had given me yesterday.
Apparently, in the wake of Dune's death, those who became criminals following him were in a frenzy.
Especially the ones who'd been in Alcatraz, they were ready to burst out and cause incidents at any time.
The Italian government and American hunters had managed to suppress them for now, but there was always a high chance the flames could ignite anywhere.
The spark had already become a blaze.
It was an unstoppable fire.
'If that's the case.'
Then I just needed to find a way to direct those flames.
Bzzzz!
At that moment, my smartphone vibrated in my pocket.
When I checked the caller on the screen, I smiled subtly.
Given the situation, they couldn't help but bite the bait too.
"What is it? Why are you smiling all of a sudden?"
"Oh, it's nothing."
I simply thought that brute strength alone wasn't enough to get through this situation.
So, I decided to borrow a bit of the media's power.
Just as Dune had done.
'PD Jung Jun-su.'
This guy was holding the key to direct the flames.
***
"It's been a while! Manager Park, how have you been?"
It had been quite some time since I'd come to the meeting room at HSN Broadcasting Station.
Because I'd been traveling overseas for things like the Odyssey, I'd had no reason to visit a domestic station lately.
"Well, I've been doing well, if you can call it that. I've been busy."
"Haha, well, you're the hottest topic right now. You must be busier than anyone else."
PD Jung said this as he sat in the seat opposite mine.
Normally, if it was a meeting related to a broadcast, there'd be several people present, but today it was only PD Jung Jun-su, myself,
and one other person.
"I was surprised you called so suddenly... and to think there'd be one more person present."
PD Jung Jun-su glanced at the other person with a slightly awkward smile.
"President Gong Do-yung of the Association."
President Gong Do-yung of the Seoul Central Hunter Association.
For some reason, he was here.
"Ahem, I suppose it hasn't been that long for us, actually."
He cracked a joke and sighed.
He was probably recalling the last conversation we'd had recently.
About the awakened and regular people,
And the discussion about Jin Su-hyuk and the demons.
That had been my last conversation with Gong Do-yung.
"I assume you've had a lot on your mind lately. I mean, the future of the world could depend on this."
At these words, the gazes of Gong Do-yung and PD Jung turned to me.
Rather than exchanging a bunch of pleasantries, I decided to get straight to the point.
"The factions have already split into two."
If the Awakener Act was proposed and conflict intensified between awakened and regular people, there was no telling what would happen.
Even the continued existence of the Hunter Association was uncertain, and broadcasters might no longer feature the awakened.
"In this situation... I think there's only one way to resolve things."
"Only one?"
"A public enemy."
At my words, both Gong Do-yung and PD Jung Jun-su became serious.
It seemed they understood what I meant.
"An enemy that can never be defeated by individuals alone. Only something of that scale can unite people who've been split in two."
"Indeed... and as it happens, there's one existence that fits that role perfectly."
Demons—outsiders in this world.
"But as you know, manager Park, they avoided taking that role by coming out in the open alongside Jin Su-hyuk. The demons themselves split into factions and cut off their tails, so to speak."
At PD Jung's words, I chuckled softly.
"That's why I contacted you. As far as I know, you're the one best suited for this job, PD Jung Jun-su."
Currently, the general mood was to refrain from broadcasting the awakened.
For PD Jung, who mainly produced hunter variety shows, this situation could not be pleasant.
"That's right."
I began to speak quietly.
"You know well, PD Jung. In the end, broadcast runs on image. And a station can shape that image however it wants."
Even if the demons were truly good and righteous, broadcasting could easily turn them into evil incarnate.
That's the power of the media.
"Of course, to do that you need material you can shape however you want."
That's why I called PD Jung Jun-su here today.
Anyone working in broadcasting would prepare their own bait for viewers to bite.
"How about airing the demonic zone raid as a show?"
Not just on HSN—but on all three major networks.
At my words, a smile appeared on PD Jung Jun-su's lips.
-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=
【ദ്ദി(⩌ᴗ⩌)】