The Precious Demon King - Chapter 35

WeTried Translations

Translator: Yasi

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ The Precious Demon King

Chapter 35: Crisis of War

[ Special Advisor Support Division Group Chat ]

Team Leader Cheon: The Special Advisor has returned home.

Team Leader Cheon: Confirmed teleportation ability.

Team Leader Cheon: His base is now set to his residence as well...

Reading the reports coming up in the group chat, Choi Hyunju let out a sigh of relief.

"Phew. Good work, everyone!"

"Thank you for your hard work!"

The Special Advisor Support Division. The SNS monitoring team, who had been tense while keeping watch, cheered and encouraged one another.

"All right, everyone, relax now. The emergency status has been lifted. Return to normal operations."

"Yes, thank you for your hard work!"

Ring–

Just then, an urgent new message popped up in the group chat.

Deputy Director Lee: Emergncy! Spcial advisr murdr warnng!

The message was riddled with typos, as if it had been typed in extreme haste. But there was no problem understanding the meaning.

"Huh?"

A chill ran down Choi Hyunju's spine. A murder warning?! Kim Junyong had seemed to be adjusting well to modern society, so why?

Team Leader Cheon: Target is G-rank. Said it was at someone's request.

Team Leader Cheon: Already aware of Ryu Jai's visit to Korea.

"Ah!"

Her breath caught in her throat! What on earth was this supposed to mean!

"Uh? Deputy Bureau Director! Breathe! Breathe!"

Someone hurriedly laid the pale-faced Choi Hyunju down. Her breathing quickened from the surge of stress.

Ring–

Team Leader Cheon: Doesn't seem like he'll go right away.

Team Leader Cheon: Need to come up with countermeasures.

As Choi Hyunju stared at the phone, bloodshot streaks formed in her eyes. It felt as if her blocked breathing had eased a little.

"Hahh..."

"A-Are you all right?"

"Phew. I'm fine."

She got up, but she still staggered from dizziness.

"Whoa!"

"It's fine."

"Please, have a seat!"

Seated in the chair, Choi Hyunju looked at the group chat again. It was still a pitch-dark situation.

The stress was so intense that it could cause an SR-rank superhuman to lose physical control!

If those two meet, it'll be a catastrophe.

Kim Junyong was not the type to spout nonsense. One of them would definitely die. And in all likelihood, that would be Ryu Jai.

This is unmanageable.

It could spark a war. No–in the worst case, South Korea could be condemned internationally as an axis of evil.

The return of the Mad Monarch could not be re-enacted on Earth. It had to be stopped.

How?

What was Ryu Jai's purpose in coming to South Korea? She was clearly aiming for the Special Advisor.

Of course she would be curious about the mysterious returnee who suddenly appeared and attained national-level hunter status.

Damn it.

Both Ryu Jai's objective and Kim Junyong's were directed at each other. Could this meeting even be prevented?

"..."

Her stomach churned. It felt like her insides were twisting and being wrung out. She was on the verge of retching.

Should we just plan for the aftermath instead?

Maybe that was more realistic? The stress...

"Deputy Bureau Director, w-what should we do?"

All the members of the Special Advisor Support Division were looking at her.

"Phew...First, thoroughly track Ryu Jai's movements. Don't miss a single detail. Update in real time."

"Yes, Deputy Bureau Director!"

Biting her lip hard, Choi Hyunju spoke again.

"Assume a scenario in which the Special Advisor and Ryu Jai clash, and Ryu Jai dies. Prepare possible outcome scenarios."

"Yes, understood!"

"From this moment on, the Special Advisor Support Division is under emergency status!"

"Yes!"

The Special Advisor Support Division. A red light lit up once again among this team of elite Hunter Management Bureau agents.

* * *

Incheon Airport. Civilians pulling large suitcases frowned at the swarm of reporters crowding the place.

"Damn it, another celebrity departure?"

"For crying out loud, making a scene and blocking the way again!"

Using the airport as a runway to promote sponsors was nothing new, whether it was "airport fashion" or another stunt.

"No, no, I heard it's that Taiwanese hunter."

"Huh? Who?"

"Ryu Jai."

"Oh, well, that's fair."

Even travelers could understand why the reporters were so worked up. The G7. Among them, Ryu Jai had been responsible for handling every A-rank dungeon in Northeast Asia and was famous in South Korea as well.

While the Demon Realm Subjugation app could only be used by hunters, the Dungeon Forum was accessible online to anyone.

On the main page of the homepage was the global ranking list. Among them, ranks 1 to 7 were unchanging.

Ryu Jai was ranked 5th. The arrival of the world's fifth most powerful hunter had drawn reporters to Incheon Airport like clouds.

They passed the time with idle chatter while waiting for her arrival.

"Damn, when is she getting here?"

"They said evening, but it's already 9."

"It doesn't seem like it's this incoming flight either."

"Do you think she would take that? She'll be on a private jet."

They couldn't pinpoint her exact arrival time. The wall of reporters endured bathroom breaks in shifts until they finally got to see G-rank, 5th ranked hunter Ryu Jai in person.

"Waaah!"

Click, click, click!

Unbidden gasps turned into cheers. Flashes erupted from the waiting cameras as a woman wearing sunglasses emerged from the arrivals gate and casually waved.

"It's Lin Hongwei!"

"Wu Feilong is here too!"

The trio often called Taiwan's blessing.

Ryu Jai (G-rank, 5th)

Lin Hongwei (SR-rank, 49th)

Wu Feilong (SR-rank, 89th)

While South Korea's SR-rank hunters all belonged to different groups, these three stuck together.

The Ryu Jai Crew. It was a small-scale hunter group, even smaller than a guild, which itself functioned as a coalition-like company of hunters.

Their standing was absolute not only in Taiwan but throughout Northeast Asia. They were even called the pillars and guardians of Taiwan.

"Wow, the core crew members all came."

"What do you think they're here for?"

"Why are you curious about something so obvious?"

"They'll make it official!"

The reporters buzzed with anticipation. Ryu Jai was the type who enjoyed attention. With this many reporters gathered, she would almost certainly give at least a brief interview.

Escorted by over twenty bodyguards, she stepped forward and, as expected, stopped before the reporters. Pushing her sunglasses up on the bridge of her nose, she held up two fingers.

"Just two. I'll take only two questions."

Before she could finish, the reporters began shouting over each other. Ryu Jai, accustomed to the commotion, pressed a finger to her lips.

"I'll pick. You there, the handsome gentleman."

Her colorful dating history was well-known gossip. The young male reporter she pointed to flushed, but he carried out his professional duty.

"HBS News, Seo Mingi. What's the purpose of your visit to Korea?"

"I was invited by the Daesan Guild."

Click, click, click–

Shutters clicked as the reporters murmured. Daesan? Out of nowhere?

"What kind of request did the Daesan Guild make?"

"Are you planning to meet with Hunter Lim Dongsu of Daesan?"

"Daesan..."

Ryu Jai shook her head at the reporters' barrage of questions.

The disorder in South Korea had already made her miss Taiwan's polite gentlemen and ladies.

She gestured for silence and pointed to a reporter in the back.

"You there, the fine gentleman with glasses. Go ahead."

"Yes, Kim Baksu from Jeongjin News. A new returnee has appeared in Korea. He has conquered an A-rank dungeon and slayed an A-rank demon. What are your thoughts on him?"

Ryu Jai's lips parted and she gave a slight smile. But her eyes behind the sunglasses were indifferent.

"I think it's commendable. Those missions were always the domain of the Guardians. Now that there's another hunter capable of them, it's good for me as the one responsible for Northeast Asia on the world stage. The burden is lighter. Very commendable."

"Do you plan to meet him during your visit?"

Still smiling, she answered the follow-up question.

"Why not? If he wants to, I'm willing. I'm curious to know who he is. We G7 always welcome newbies. As for the cheeky lies, well, I can forgive them as cute."

She raised a hand in greeting, as if to signal the interview was over.

"Ah, wait!"

"What lies..."

"Your official schedule..."

The reporters clamored after her, but her massive bodyguards blocked them.

Click, click, click–

They snapped some last photos, but that was it. While the reporters chattered, Ryu Jai and her two crew members got into a waiting limousine.

"Welcome to Korea."

The hunter in the front passenger seat bowed politely.

"Good to see you, Lim."

"The honor's mine."

Lim Dongsu, SR-ranker of South Korea and the Daesan Guild's representative hunter, had come to the airport to personally greet Ryu Jai and her crew.

"I'll take you to the Daesan Hotel. The president is waiting."

"All right."

Ryu Jai nodded as if it were only natural.

National-level hunter. The term was no exaggeration.

Daesan was South Korea's top conglomerate. In this world, it was only natural for the president of Daesan to wait for her.

Vrooom.

The vehicle headed for the Daesan Hotel.

* * *

Hunter Management Bureau, South Korea.

Bang!

Choi Hyunju slammed the desk.

"Those snake-like bastards!"

"Now, now, calm yourself, Deputy Bureau Director."

"How can I possibly be calm right now?"

Park Taejun looked at her with concern.

The deputy bureau director's condition hasn't been good lately.

Choi Hyunju had always been cool-headed and rarely swayed by emotion. In a crisis, she was the kind of born leader who would find a solution and guide others.

Put bluntly, the bureau director position–appointed by the president–changed with each term, but the deputy bureau director had been Choi Hyunju ever since the Hunter Management Bureau was founded.

In truth, she was the real power in the bureau. The bureau director's role was more like a bridge between the president, the head of the executive branch, and the bureau.

In that sense, Park Taejun understood his role well and performed it admirably.

For example, convincing the president to bring the Mad Monarch Kim Junyong into their fold and alienate the Daesan Guild.

"Come now, calm down."

"Calm down? Korea's so-called top guild has no spine!"

"They must have their reasons."

"Reasons, my ass! They're just picking a fight!"

"Mm..."

She wasn't wrong.

There had been trouble between the Daesan Guild and Kim Junyong.

The South Korean government had sided with Kim Junyong and placated the Daesan Guild with some business advantages.

That should have been enough, but they had brought in Taiwan's Ryu Jai.

"Phew...All right, fine. I'll calm down."

"Yes, you were getting too worked up."

"Why do you think Daesan called Ryu Jai?"

"Wasn't Daesan always the Korean guild with the closest ties to her?"

When A-rank dungeons erupted in Northeast Asia, it was Ryu Jai who handled them, and whenever she came to South Korea, it was always in partnership with the Daesan Guild.

"With the Korean hunter scene seems to be revolving around the Special Advisor, Daesan must have been thinking about its own survival strategy."

Due to Kim Junyong's arrival, South Korea's hunter society was being reorganized into a new order.

Since the Daesan Guild already had a poor relationship with him, they were showing signs of strengthening their alliance with Ryu Jai, with whom they already had a close relationship, rather than follow the flow of the new order.

At least, that was Park Taejun's thought.

"If relations are bad, they should bow their heads and apologize!"

"P-Please, calm down."

"Fine. Anyway, Daesan's making mistake after mistake."

"Oh?"

"The Special Advisor Support Division will soon send us simulation results."

"What kind of simulation?"

"You'll take the results to the president and get approval for implementation."

"Huh? What are you talking about?"

Choi Hyunju's tone was so serious that Park Taejun found himself matching it.

"A scenario of what the Taiwanese government would do if Ryu Jai, Lin Hongwei, and Wu Feilong died in a clash with the Special Advisor."

"...?"