Returnee's S-Rank Management Guide

Chapter 241 : Publicity War (2)

Publicity War (2)

As the full-scale publicity war continued, Grand Nova did not remain idle.

The more attention people focused on the demonic zone raid broadcast, the more unfavorable it became for them as well.

The disturbances and disasters they tried to stir up through Najan ended up as failures.

Even if they tried to attack using other means going forward, the defensive network had become so tightly woven that it was nearly impossible.

"The problem is the powers of the Saintess."

Damian muttered indifferently.

"Alencia's powers, and those of Estella inherited by Shin Ah-yeon. Either way, in this world, they're close to omnipotence."

Alencia's power allowed her to send an unblinking gaze of surveillance through all kinds of electronic devices.

It was virtually impossible to avoid her, and the moment you were noticed, lightning would strike from the sky.

In this world electrified from top to bottom, she was the closest thing to a god.

The only way to kill her would ultimately be for an existence like the Demon King to make a move.

"And Park Jung-woo..."

The problem was, neither Alencia nor Shin Ah-yeon could be tampered with lightly.

Because Park Jung-woo would never stand by and watch.

"In that case, there's only one answer."

Jin Su-hyuk spoke.

"We have to reveal a trump card to the public as well."

It's possible to turn ordinary people into Awakener.

A considerable amount of time had passed since they first brought up that possibility.

It was about time even those who had supported the demons began to have doubts.

"I intended to do that anyway. Preparations are already mostly complete."

"If we openly recruit people and turn them into Awakener, we could create an issue several times bigger than the demonic zone."

If things turned out that way, countless people would come flocking to Jin Su-hyuk.

Broadcasts that had invested time in the demonic zone raid would have no choice but to turn their attention back.

"But isn't that too dangerous?"

At that moment, Sebin, who had been quietly listening to their conversation, spoke up cautiously.

"Currently, turning humans into Awakener is unstable. Unless it's a special case, most would end up failures."

"It doesn't have to be perfect, Sebin."

"Huh?"

Damian's gaze moved to the book in his hand.

At his relaxed demeanor, Sebin couldn't hide his puzzlement.

"This is just a simple delaying tactic. It's a bait to attract public attention."

Only then did Sebin understand what Damian meant.

A stalling maneuver.

It was possible to make humans into Awakener.

If, as Damian said, they were made 'imperfectly'.

'Temporarily, we can make them "appear" to be Awakener.'

Since it utilized the principle of divine art, it was inevitable.

By burning life away, the principle of divine art could temporarily grant power similar to an Awakener.

The problem with creating true Awakener or demon fusion was that you had to balance consumption and output to generate power beyond that.

If it merely consumed life force, mass-producing Awakeners was entirely feasible.

"Their lifespan will be, at best, no more than three months."

"You know three months is more than enough, Sebin."

"Well, that's true..."

Sebin didn't really feel pity towards humans.

His reaction was due to Jin Su-hyuk, who supported this plan.

No—in fact, he was the one who mentioned this idea first.

'I may be a demon, but that guy is human.'

Jin Su-hyuk didn't hesitate for a second about sacrificing them.

He seemed to think it was only natural.

'Well, if he wasn't like that, he wouldn't have joined hands with us in the first place.'

If this world was demonized, seventy percent of humanity would die.

He was working with them fully aware of that.

Currently, many Awakener had sided with the demons, but only a few knew that seventy percent would perish.

But when those few heard the truth, their response was shock and silence.

No one accepted it as "obvious" the way Jin Su-hyuk did.

'If he were just an emotionless human, I could understand...'

So-called psychopaths, or sociopaths.

The kind of emotionally deficient people humans in this world talked about.

If he were like that, Sebin could have understood.

But Jin Su-hyuk wasn't such a person.

He could feel emotions and understand them perfectly well.

That's why Sebin increasingly felt fear towards Jin Su-hyuk.

At some point he'd realized it.

Jin Su-hyuk was human, but not human.

A demon god—he was more fitting of that title than anyone.

***

About a week remained before the demonic zone raid would begin.

An ad popped up on the internet.

【Do you want to become Awakener too?】

An ad accompanied by that kind of catchy phrase.

As the slogan suggested, the content of the ad was as follows:

"From now, Grand Nova would like to introduce an entirely new program."

It did not belong to the category of entertainment shows.

It was a kind of social program.

If anything, it was closer to a documentary.

They said they would accept applicants and turn them into Awakener.

Then their changed lives would be broadcast—the aim of the show.

"We will only accept 100 applicants. For those who always dreamed of becoming Awakener but gave up! For anyone who dreamed of being a hunter and a hero, we want to give you this chance."

The person who appeared in the short clip was Kang Min-gi.

The man dubbed South Korea's greatest hunter made the announcement with a bright, carefree laugh.

That you too could become Awakener right now.

It was just a one-minute commercial, but the effect was as explosive as when the demonic zone raid had first been announced.

No, the response from ordinary people was even greater this time.

"They're really going to make ordinary people Awakener?"

"No way, isn't that a little too much..."

On the other hand, the response from Awakener was complicated.

If it was true, the 'specialness' they'd enjoyed would be diluted, and the number of competitors would rise.

Of course, there were plenty who simply didn't care.

For those who were already Awakener, it was irrelevant news.

"Ah~ They're finally pulling out their sword as well."

Ah-yeon, looking fatigued, said that and took a long swig of her drink.

"Turning ordinary people into Awakener—isn't that impossible?"

"They can't possibly do what you can't do."

"Yeah, that's true..."

The demon's research was based on the principles of divine art, after all.

So anything Ah-yeon couldn't do was impossible from the start.

In the end, it was a lower-level substitute for Estella's power.

"They're taking things all the way, Jin Su-hyuk..."

At best, those people would last three months.

Some might even die within a month.

Awakeners made that way could never live long.

Most would end up dead.

In short, he intended to kill close to a hundred people—just to divert public attention.

'So it's fine, since they'd have died anyway?'

To reduce the issues that would arise from the demonic zone raid broadcast.

And perhaps, to suppress Estella's power as well.

In the end, Ah-yeon's power was drawn from being watched by many people.

"... Before that, I'll have to settle things for sure."

The demonic zone raid would start in a week.

By then, they had to uncover whatever Grand Nova was hiding.

'Does that mean we have to clear the demonic zone within two weeks at most...?'

Whether it was possible was in question, but now there was no choice.

They had to end this before then, to minimize casualties.

If Grand Nova kept up these stunts, it would be more than 100 people who would get hurt.

"Yes, that's the only way."

Ah-yeon replied, tossing her empty drink can in the trash.

She looked over at those gathered here today.

The 10 S-rank Awakener who would participate in the raid soon.

'Two are on the side of the demons, though.'

Either way, it was time for their side to make final preparations as well.

'This really feels just like back then.'

The night before the challenge on the Demon King's lair.

Just before their final battle with the demons—he felt almost the same way now.

A decisive battle that would decide the world's future.

Now the signal fire was just starting to rise.

***

The Demonic Zone Raid.

The demonic zone we aimed for was Sichelmond, a zone that had already been raided once before.

A crescent-shaped demonic zone straddling the border between Germany and Austria.

Naturally, Germany was opposed to another raid.

They couldn't see the point in raiding a demonic zone that had already been cleared.

But once they were told about the recent abnormal activity within the zone, they had no choice but to accept.

"Alright, then as I mentioned before, let's begin full-scale preparations for the demonic zone raid."

One week left.

All the S-rank Awakener gathered here knew each other.

There were powerhouses here that couldn't be seen even in Odyssey.

Chief among them was the master of the Magic Tower, the man known as Odin.

Iden Void.

"It's certain that the demons' headquarters are likely in Sichelmond, right?"

"Of course."

Everyone here was aware of the demons.

They also knew the true purpose that followed the raid.

"There's a high probability there are more monsters with power on par with Mimos inside."

At the mention of Mimos, several of them cleared their throats awkwardly.

If it was something like that, even these people here would have to fight with cold sweat running down their backs.

"... Let's hope that's not the case."

Eugene Garland sighed as he spoke.

He sincerely hoped Jung-woo was joking.

A monster immune to physical attacks was like poison to a swordsman like him.

"Mister Eugene, but Ryan Knox is still in the US, right?"

"Most likely. Unless something major happens, Ryan Knox won't leave that place."

Ryan Knox.

Currently the greatest swordsman in America.

He wasn't participating in the demonic zone raid, and as far as Jung-woo could tell, he wasn't an evil man.

At least, that's what he seemed like in Odyssey.

"Let's hope that's true."

Jung-woo said that while glancing at Dmitri.

That glance made Dmitri flinch for no reason.

'Why is he looking at me?'

Dmitri couldn't imagine why he'd been included.

He'd joined the raid as a demon spy.

He'd been sure he'd fail, but to think he actually passed...

【They probably included you on purpose.】

'But why!'

【To keep an eye on us through you, of course.】

So that's it—Dmitri swallowed hard.

【Still, at least the other one doesn't seem to be under suspicion, so it's best if you draw the attention to yourself.】

That might be true, but...

'Then what about me?'

The demon seemed perfectly fine with him dying under suspicion.

That was the last thing Dmitri wanted.

And if he tried to run away now, the demons might do who knows what to him.

There was no way the one nestled in his heart would leave him be.

In the end, Dmitri was caught in an impossible situation.

'All I wanted was a little more power...'

He just wanted to become stronger—he never thought things would turn out like this.

All Dmitri could do now was sit in his seat with a dignified expression.

"Then, let's check over what I promised you last time."

As promised, Jung-woo gave each successful S-rank hunter from the audition what they desired.

For those who wanted new skills or magic, he gave knowledge related to that.

For those who wanted weapons or artifacts from other worlds, Jung-woo handed out various artifacts he owned.

"Let's go outside."

Afterward, they needed to confirm how well each person could wield it, or how much they had improved.

If there was anything wrong, this would be the last chance to correct it.

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

It's time to eliminate the spies.

【ദ്ദി(⩌ᴗ⩌)】