Chapter 29

There had been a brief, minor(?) incident, but after that, the cleanup proceeded without a hitch.

Once the Association hunters realized Suho wasn't a demon, they immediately followed him to the factory.

“... But where are all the demons?”

When they arrived, they found the place full of signs of battle, but not a single demon in sight. As the hunters turned their puzzled gazes on him, Suho looked awkward.

“Haha. Good question. Did they all run away while I was gone?”

[BURP.]

Beru was openly belching beside him, but no one suspected a thing. They simply thought his summoned creature was the size of a stuffed toy.

“Hmm. Looks like they noticed us coming well in advance and all cleared out.”

“Well, we did get here awfully fast. We headed out as soon as we got the report.”

[BURP.]

Beru was openly picking his teeth beside them, but no one suspected a thing. His belly was bulging, but they assumed he was naturally potbellied.

“Still, at least we've secured the scene.”

In fact, even this much was a tremendous achievement. They had discovered a Stardust factory for the first time—and, more importantly, uncovered the shocking fact that human lives were sacrificed in its production.

“Thank you so much.”

A little later, after leaving the field, the Association hunters gathered all the hunters who had been at the scene, including Suho and Teaching Assistant Im, to express their gratitude.

“Thanks to your report, we'll be able to prevent many future crimes. From here on, the Association and police hunters will do everything we can to investigate.”

They added one more thing.

“You will also receive a reward for your part in this case.”

As it turned out, people who reported crimes were entitled to a modest reward.

'Perfect. I'll use that money to buy some meat for those blood-starved freeloaders.'

Suho nodded, thinking of the otherworldly beings he'd left in the Shadow Dungeon. Whether they were the last descendant of the Fang Clan or the sole surviving demon noble, to Suho they were nothing more than hungry refugees.

* * *

... When he opened his eyes, he saw an unfamiliar ceiling.

“Ugh.”

“Feeling more awake now, Team Leader?”

Team Leader Han Jaehyuk sat up in bed, his body stiff and aching. White walls and the smell of disinfectant. He was in a hospital.

He looked at his subordinate in bewilderment.

“Why am I here?”

“Don't you remember? You got knocked out.”

“Knocked out?”

“Yes. With one punch.”

“Oh.”

Only then did a memory flash through his mind.

'That Crow Mask!'

Han Jaehyuk leaped up and shouted urgently.

“That demon! What happened to the demon?!”

“He wasn't a demon, though.”

“Huh? H-he wasn't?”

“No. He was the hunter we went in to find.”

“...?”

Looking at his bewildered superior, the subordinate let out a deep sigh.

“I'm saying it was all a misunderstanding on our part.”

The subordinate told him everything that had happened while he was unconscious. Then, all of a sudden, Han Jaehyuk's expression froze.

“... What? What did you just say?”

“About what?”

“A summoner? Who's a summoner?”

“Who else? The hunter who knocked you out with one punch, of course.”

“What?”

Apparently, he hadn't misheard. A look of utter disbelief spread across his face.

“A summoner hit me and knocked me out? Me, Han Jaehyuk?”

“Yes. So please stop letting your guard down and use your skills before charging in from now on.”

“I-I did, though?”

“Pardon? Did what?”

“I used my skill!”

Now it was the subordinate's turn to look bewildered.

“Then why did you get knocked out? You're a C-rank tank.”

“That's what I'm saying!”

“Then you really got knocked out with one punch even after using your skill? How does that make sense? He was an E-rank hunter.”

“E-rank? Are you screwing with me?”

Han Jaehyuk glared fiercely at his subordinate, who merely shrugged without a care.

“Why would I waste my time making that up? I even checked his hunter license. He really was E-rank. What was his name again? Sung Suho?”

“Sung Suho?”

At that name, a face suddenly flashed through Han Jaehyuk's mind. Coincidentally, the rookie E-rank hunter whose mana he'd personally measured not long ago had also been named Sung Suho.

'No way. It couldn't be him.'

“Yes, him.”

“...!”

“I'm not reading your mind. I was there with you, remember? The person who knocked you out was indeed Sung Suho, the E-rank hero of the Hankuk University dungeon whose mana we measured ourselves.”

“R-really? That college student? How in the world?”

Han Jaehyuk looked incredulous, but his subordinate replied indifferently.

“It must have been a measurement error. What else could it be? He beat the crap out of you barehanded even after you used your skill. How could a hunter like that be a mere E-rank? I'd put him at C-rank at least.”

“Do you have to put it like that? Who got the crap beaten out of...”

“Anyway, I apologized on your behalf. I also told him to come back to the Association for another measurement. And that concludes the briefing on everything that happened while you were unconscious.”

“...”

“I'll be heading home now.”

“...”

Once lost, his dignity wasn't coming back. Having dumped all the work on his subordinates while he slept soundly, Han Jaehyuk watched his subordinate leave promptly after finishing the job and muttered dejectedly.

“Young people these days...”

Then he thought back to the moment he'd been knocked out.

'His E-rank assessment was a measurement error?'

Well, that he could accept. It wasn't common, but such mistakes did happen occasionally. Yet one question remained.

'But he was definitely a summoner...'

Given the large, hyena-like summoned creature right beside him, he was certainly a summoner. But how?

'How was he that monstrously strong? Could that strength be some variation of a summoning skill?'

Hmm. Stroking his chin, Han Jaehyuk recalled what Sung Suho had looked like when he'd seen him at the hospital.

An ordinary, fairly handsome college student. Tall, with a moderately muscular build. But that was all. Judging by his appearance, he certainly didn't look like a hunter with monstrous strength.

'... Well, I suppose I'll find out someday.'

Then another memory came to him: the customary farewell he'd offered Sung Suho on the day he'd measured his mana.

[“Well then, Mr. Sung Suho, I'll look forward to seeing what you accomplish.”]

A warm smile rose to Han Jaehyuk's lips, just as it had then.

“... Now I'm really looking forward to it.”

He was eager to see what kind of hunter Suho would become and what he would accomplish.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the Reaper Guild, Vice President Lee Minsung was absolutely furious.

“What?! What do you mean the factory suddenly vanished when it was running just fine?!”

“W-well... some hunters reported it, and the Association...”

THUD!

“Gah!”

Lee Minsung kicked the man stammering excuses before him in the stomach. Then, stomping mercilessly on him after he'd flown into the wall, Lee screamed at the top of his lungs.

“So what? What about the Association?! Do you bastards take me for a fucking sucker?! If you've taken my money, you should deliver the goods no matter what!”

“Please, Vice President! We're victims too! The demons in the factory really did disappear overnight without a trace!”

The enraged A-rank hunter's kicks were too horrific to call mere venting. Had the man being ground beneath his feet not been a hunter himself, the very first blow would have stopped his heart.

Lee Minsung vented his rage for some time. When the man finally passed out, he slapped him awake and hauled him up by the collar.

“Hah. So what happened to all the demons?”

“Cough. W-well...”

The man hurriedly spilled everything he knew. After hearing it all, Lee Minsung furrowed his brow.

“Some hunters happened to be passing by and discovered the factory?”

“Yes. From what I heard, they fought the demons and rescued the survivors.”

“Do you think that makes any sense?”

“W-well...”

“Unbelievable.”

Still holding the man up by his collar, Lee Minsung felt his anger begin to boil again.

“Ten demons were defeated by a raid party led by a mere C-rank healer, not even a major guild? And only the leader was C-rank, while the other nine were D-rank, along with some E-rank collectors? Those low-rank hunters?”

“I-I also...”

“You also what?”

“I also think it doesn't make sense!”

Faced with Lee Minsung's murderous intent, the man squeezed his eyes shut and shouted. Only then did Lee release his collar.

Then, as though he'd never been angry at all, he straightened the man's collar with a few light pats and asked gently.

“Then what do you think happened? You'd better come up with a more useful opinion this time. If you want to live.”

“... I suspect the Association was playing some kind of trick.”

“Hmm?”

“As you know, Vice President, those Association bastards have been tracking the source of Stardust all this time. Somehow, they must have located the factory.”

“And?”

“But openly investigating Stardust when it isn't even illegal yet would draw opposition from guilds dealing in it, like ours. So...”

“So they put some small-timers up as a front and pretended they only acted after receiving a tip?”

“Yes! Exactly!”

“Right. Now that makes some sense.”

Lee Minsung nodded, apparently convinced.

“Right. I've seen those demons myself, you know. They weren't opponents a bunch of low-rank hunters could ever handle.”

“Th-that's right.”

“So?”

“Pardon?”

“You have a plan, of course?”

Once again, terrifying murderous intent poured from Lee Minsung, constricting the man.

“O-of course! There's more than one factory. Seoul Station Field just made deliveries convenient because of the subway lines. If we look around, I'm sure we'll find demons hiding all over the place with Stardust factories of their own.”

“All over the place? This country's a hellhole, all right. Why are there so many demons?”

Only then did Lee Minsung chuckle in satisfaction. But his eyes as he looked at the man weren't smiling at all.

“Let me say this again. You know the only reason I took you bastards in was Stardust, don't you?”

“Of course... We're always grateful to you, Vice President.”

“Then do your job. If I save a drowning dog, it ought to repay the favor, shouldn't it?”

“Grrr!”

As he answered, fur gradually sprouted from the man's face, and he transformed into a werewolf. He was none other than one of the Hyena Guild remnants being hunted by the Association.

With nowhere else to go, he had become a faithful dog to Vice President Lee Minsung, his former business partner. But that was only on the surface. His true thoughts were another matter.

'Damn it, this is bad. In a few more days, the power of the blood will disappear completely.'

The Hyena Guild members' ability to transform into werewolves by drinking the Fang Clan's blood lasted only ten days. Unless they drank blood regularly, once every ten days, they would not merely lose their Beast Transformation skill—they would revert to ordinary people.

If Vice President Lee Minsung found out, he would undoubtedly cast them aside without mercy.

'I have to find a way before then. Either find that wolf cub that disappeared from Gwanaksan, or... find traces of another Monarch like it.'

Together, yet dreaming different dreams. Facing one another, Director Lee Minsung and the werewolf were each scheming toward their own ends.

* * *

Around that time, Suho... walked into a butcher shop with his reward money.

“Hello, welcome!”

The butcher, who had been trimming some meat, greeted Suho with a friendly smile.

“What kind of meat can I get you?”

“One pig... Do you sell them whole?”

“...?!”

“Actually, make that two.”

“...!”