The Precious Demon King - Chapter 17

WeTried Translations

Translator: Yasi

◈ The Precious Demon King

Chapter 17: Kim Junyong, Seoul Citizen

Demon Realm Forum.

This community could be accessed by anyone with the Demon Realm Subjugation app. Built on a super-connected network, the forum was a mysterious site that didn't require an internet connection and could be accessed inside dungeons.

The entire world was in an uproar over one topic.

– What's with this update?

– Seriously, what is this base thing?

– Has any guild figured it out? You can't click on anything, and even when you log in, there's nothing there.

– The shortened dungeon times lately are unsettling too.

– It feels like something big is coming.

– "Owned Base" menu? What the hell is this?

– Maybe G7 knows something?

– Completely random update...

While the Dungeon Forum blew up, Kim Junyong, the world's only base owner, summoned Remi for cleaning.

"Remi."

Whoosh, flash–

The moment Remi was summoned, she disappeared.

"Wow, this punk."

She was quick to read the room.

"She actually crawled back inside just to avoid cleaning."

Familiars enter the space linked to the black mage's consciousness when reverse-summoned.

They had always stayed in the void pouch, a prison for souls, but now there was also a "dungeon." It was basically a rest area for familiars.

In any case, if he was turning this place into a dungeon, someone would have to manage and clean it.

"Let's see..."

The soul of the Demon King's chef that he had collected before coming to Earth...

"Here it is."

Luckily, the spirit had no real combat strength, so summoning it wouldn't cost much mana.

Fwoosh.

The soul of an uncontracted demon floated up.

[ ...! ]

It seemed astonished at the sight of Kim Junyong.

"You. Become my familiar."

The soul trembled. How could it refuse?

[ ...It would be an honor. ]

The ghost of the Demon King's chef looked around anxiously. It had to be contracted quickly. However, since it wasn't a doppelgänger, it couldn't model itself after its summoner...

"Ah, right. Modeling. Go outside and copy someone."

The ghost hurried outside. Since its master had summoned it with minimal mana, there wasn't much time. If it didn't materialize soon, the mana would evaporate and its spiritual "rank" would drop.

The ghost climbed over the wall into the street and froze in surprise.

Damn, not a single lifeform!

The once bustling restaurant street was now half abandoned. On top of that, most of the places were eateries that only opened for dinner. Unfortunately, there wasn't a single passerby.

Ah, there's not much time left!

There was just a sliver of mana remaining. There was no time to go any farther.

That'll have to do.

It darted toward the earth creature sleeping on the wall and head-butted it.

"Nyaa?!"

The startled stray cat ran off, and the ghost materialized as it was summoned to Earth for the first time. It had gained another chance at life.

Success! It let out a roar of joy.

"Nyaa!"

He could feel his master's gaze on him from the second-floor railing.

"Hah, seriously."

The ghost had been summoned to do chores yet it turned into a cat?

"Hey."

"Nyaa?"

The white cat trembled under its master's disapproving gaze.

"Are you rebelling?"

"Nyaa! N-No. Time was just too short..."

"Oh? And yet you can speak just fine."

"Only the form is feline. I modified myself."

The cat suddenly stood upright on two legs. Kim Junyong sighed at the bipedal cat.

Even this one–no doubt he was a demon. He just had to make it obvious.

"Are you proud of that?"

"Nyaa, thank you for the praise."

"..."

Was this guy trying to get on his nerves?

"Can you even be a dungeon keeper with a body like that?"

"Nyaa! Leave it to me!"

"Not convinced. Maybe I should just erase you."

"Nyaa! I-I can do it!"

Kim Junyong flicked his chin.

"Make it spotless."

"Nyaa!"

The cat darted up to the second floor and confidently marched inside. Kim Junyong wondered how such a small body could get anything done.

Whoosh, whoosh!

"Oh, you're using telekinesis?"

"Nyaa! Cooking is a profession that requires many hands."

Kim Junyong chuckled. Come to think of it, the Demon King's kitchen only had one chef. He had wondered how he managed, but it turned out he could easily handle the work of ten.

At this rate, appointing him dungeon keeper wouldn't be a stretch.

"What's your name?"

"Nyaa! I am Edmond de la Fleur."

"All right. Ed. You'll be my dungeon keeper."

"Nyaaa!"

He was acknowledged by his master. He let out a roar of joy.

"There's a basement too, so clean that up nicely."

"Nyaa! Leave it to me!"

Kim Junyong left Edmond behind and exited the dungeon.

"Should I at least fill up some mana?"

Normally, a black mage would raid a village. They would kill a few people and cause a ruckus. Then, people would offer up their fear.

But that wouldn't suit cultured Seoul citizen Kim Junyong.

"Let's check out the neighborhood."

He wandered out, taking a slow stroll. Once he reached the main road, he saw more people.

He bought an ice cream and ate it as he walked. He was drawn toward a place where negative energy was seeping out.

* * *

Special Advisor Support Division.

It was a new team created under the deputy bureau director's full backing and existing solely for one person.

Kim Junyong.

Their mission was to help him adapt to modern society. Enormous budgets and manpower were allocated to this mission.

Their top priority: Don't make him angry. Second: Build rapport, carefully.

Cheon Yubeom glanced at Lee Mina, who was still sulking.

"Deputy Director Lee."

"What."

"Are you still mad?"

"..."

"You got promoted, didn't you?"

"No, hahh. Never mind."

The personnel shift had already been finalized. Who could she blame? She could quit, but that wouldn't be easy.

The first thing the fifty people reassigned to the Special Advisor Support Division did was sign a confidentiality agreement.

Now, the office was mostly set up, and the roles had been divided among the teams.

Ten agents were currently in the field. A report came in from them.

"Team Leader! The Special Advisor is on the move."

"Got it. Tell them to tail him discreetly. Don't cause any inconvenience."

"Understood."

"Also, tell them to avoid phone reports and use the group chat if possible."

"Got it, I'll pass that along."

There was no need to track his every step. The field agents' mission was to prepare for any unforeseen incidents and prevent citizens from provoking Kim Junyong.

Distant surveillance and remote protection were sufficient.

[ Special Advisor Support Division Group Chat ]

Pigeon: (Photo)

Pigeon: He's going alone.

Pigeon: No sign of Kim Remi.

Pigeon: The Special Advisor has completely left the area.

Pigeon: I'm lifting the crowd control in the area.

Team Leader Cheon: OK.

After messaging for a bit, one of the agents watching the monitor shouted.

"Team Leader! The Special Advisor just made a purchase with the expense card."

That was precisely why they had issued Kim Junyong the expense card. It provided an invaluable advantage for observation and tracking movement.

"Where at?"

"GU Convenience Store, 1,200 won. Should I check the item?"

"No, wait."

[ Special Advisor Support Division Group Chat ]

Pigeon2: (Photo)

Pigeon2: It's a Choco Jjoo-jjoobah.

"Good."

As expected of Pigeon2. It was fitting for an elite agent who used to be a celebrity gossip paparazzi reporter.

With fifty capable staff members and the deputy bureau director's full support, the workload felt lighter than ever.

"Should we update his ice cream preferences?"

"Just log it in the activity record."

"Yes."

The records kept by the Special Advisor Support Division were classified documents. Only the deputy bureau director had access to them.

"Let's head out too."

"Okay."

Cheon Yubeom and Lee Mina got ready to leave. As Cheon Yubeom drove their newly assigned van, he chuckled.

"Deputy Director Lee, this isn't as bad as you thought, is it?"

"...What do you mean?"

"Well, we have fifty staff members, unlimited expenses, minimal reporting...and if something happens, we can act first and report later. How great is that?"

All reports were uploaded to the Hunter Management Bureau's intranet. In urgent or emergency cases when permissions needed to be sought, they even had a direct line to the deputy bureau director.

"That just shows how dangerous this is."

"Honestly, I'm not even sure it is dangerous anymore."

Lee Mina frowned sharply at Cheon Yubeom's remark.

"Didn't you hear? It's about the Special Advisor's identity."

"I know, I heard."

Cheon Yubeom smiled. If a nuclear warhead detonated, whether you were near or far, you were dead either way. Although he was the one handling it directly, he thought it was actually a pretty sweet deal in its own way.

The workload had decreased, and the hazard pay had increased. Either way, death was death.

"Ugh, whatever."

Lee Mina shook her head.

"What happened with Daesan?"

"No idea. The bureau director is handling it."

"Good grief. Since when did you become so carefree?"

"Heh, I don't know. Maybe I'm just following the Special Advisor's lead."

Special Advisor Support Division. While the team leader and deputy team leader headed out to the field together, Deputy Bureau Director Choi Hyunju browsed the intranet.

"...Two hundred years."

The report had a comment that fact-checking was needed, but...

"It's probably true."

The Day of Beginning. Then came a hundred years of Belhaim's history.

The only ones who directly experienced, resolved, and returned from that ending were the G7. That was why they were so respected.

"But he stayed another hundred years after that..."

What was he doing all that time? What happened to Belhaim afterward?

To Earthlings, Belhaim's history ended after a hundred years. It was a story with a clear beginning and end. But someone who knew what came next was now in Seoul, South Korea.

A shiver ran down her spine.

Knock, knock–

[ The bureau director is here. ]

She closed the intranet.

"Come in."

"Deputy Bureau Director! We have a problem!"

Her face darkened at the sight of the flustered bureau director.

"Don't tell me, did Daesan cause trouble?"

"No! The president is handling that well. The problem isn't that! Ryu Jai canceled her visit!"

"Ryu Jai?!"

Choi Hyunju's expression hardened.

Ryu Jai. One of the G7. Taiwan's representative hunter.

Her presence alone made Taiwan a global power. Now, not even China could touch them.

Ryu Jai mainly operated in East Asia.

Like the other G7s, her missions mostly involved conquering A-rank dungeons.

It wasn't cheap. Massive funds were needed to invite her. However, that was the cost of preventing a dungeon erupting.

Without a G7, conquering an A-rank dungeon would be far too dangerous.

"Uh, what should we do?"

"Evacuating the citizens...that would be difficult."

"The dungeon is in the middle of Daejeon. How are we supposed to evacuate?"

"What about the other G7?"

"The whole world is in chaos. There's no time to spare!"

Damn these anomalies. Why were dungeon times shortening?

A-rank dungeons were rare worldwide. While lower-level ones were like winning the lottery and highly sought after by guilds, A-rank dungeons were ticking time bombs.

Only guilds or countries with G7 members could handle them.

"What's her reason for canceling?"

"She said she would first devote her best effort to conquering the A-22 dungeon in Taiwan."

"Didn't that one still have eight days left?"

"It's been reduced by two days and is now six."

"..."

It wasn't hard to understand. The global time shortening had thrown everyone's schedule off.

"Is there no other way?"

"...Another way?"

Choi Hyunju bit her lip. Why did that person come to mind at that moment? Would he even agree to help?

"For now, put as much pressure on Taiwan as possible."

"I've already tried. They would rather just pay the penalty."