WeTried Translations

Translator: Yasi

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ The Precious Demon King

Chapter 43: Spirit of Sacrifice

Guardian Club. The secret chat room of heroes fighting for world peace was noisy.

– What? They say Ryu Jai is dead?

– What did you hear? She's still alive.

– But she disappeared from the rankings.

– She's way down there.

– What? 833? What happened?

– Don't tell me she got beaten by the master of the demon sword?

– Shouldn't we all drop what we're doing and go to South Korea?

Ryu Jai's trip to South Korea. At the event meant to determine the authenticity of the demon sword, she was unexpectedly crushed by a mysterious hunter.

– More info. The culprit was the one accompanying the master of the demon sword.

– Kim Junyong? France has been keeping an eye on him too.

– Who the hell is this guy? Did he really get blessed a second time like us?

This chat room gathered seven world-power-level hunters. Each of them had built close ties with their respective nations, giving them access to highly sensitive and classified information.

Although intelligence agencies provided highly reliable data, obtaining information immediately in situations like this was difficult.

The Guardians were scanning the Demon Realm Forum, where posts were flooding in nonstop, to gather information. At present, it was the fastest source of information.

"Damn, what the hell is going on?"

Logan Hayes, the head of the Guardian Club and the number-one ranked hunter, cursed in frustration.

"Elise!"

"Yes, Logan."

"Do you have any updated data on Kim Junyong?"

"Nothing since yesterday."

"Fuck!"

Logan Hayes was irritated. The data from the United States intelligence agencies was certainly reliable and detailed, but it wasn't actually helpful.

They only gathered information from a purely "Earthling" perspective. What Logan Hayes truly wanted to know about was the demon sword.

Specifically, he wanted information about Kim Remi, the girl holding it.

Kim Remi.

The existence of a nineteen-year-old high school girl swordsman who seemingly dropped from the sky bewildered him.

Was she a returnee like Kim Junyong? Why was she holding the demon sword?

Logan Hayes's hands trembled. His reaction was more akin to fear than irritation.

"Damn it!"

Ping–

At last, the long-awaited update arrived in the Guardian group chat.

– The apostle of the Goddess has descended.

– We must atone. She will punish us.

– ???? What? Is that Ryu Jai? Did she lose her phone?

What? Was that Ryu Jai?

– The demon sword? Did you confirm it?

– Logan, something like the demon sword isn't important.

"...?"

Logan Hayes frowned.

"What the hell is she saying?"

Right now, what could be more important than the existence of the demon sword?

– The Goddess has sent her apostle. You too must quickly beg her for forgiveness. That's the only path to atonement.

"Fucking! Crazy!"

Has she gone mad? What could she have done to end up so broken? Just what the hell happened?

Crash! Crash!

As Logan Hayes raged, unable to contain his fury, the surrounding furniture shattered with a crash.

"Whoo, whoo."

Struggling to regain his composure, he picked up his hunter phone again.

– Ryu Jai seems insane.

– She's lost it. Is it the demon sword's influence?

– According to intel, the sword's master didn't even appear at the event.

The other Guardians were talking noisily. Logan Hayes calmed his pounding heart and typed.

– Everyone get ready to go to South Korea.

– Hmm.

– Impossible right now. Too many commitments.

"What the...!"

The same guys who had hesitated over the demon sword's authenticity were passive again.

– This can't be postponed.

– I can't drop my schedule either.

– Sophie! It's the demon sword!

– It could also be a fake.

"Fucking!"

Shouldn't they be confirming it?

– Then why don't you go?

– Right. After all, it was Logan who killed the demon king, wasn't it?

– I still can't understand why the dead demon king's sword is on Earth.

– Honestly, even if the demon sword is real, what does it matter? The demon king is dead, isn't he?

"..."

Gripping his hunter phone, Logan Hayes trembled uncontrollably.

"Damn it!"

They didn't care if the demon sword was real.

"Stupid bastards!"

In his fury, he kicked the desk in front of him.

Bang!

The desk flew and shattered upon hitting the wall.

"You fuckers!"

Bang! Bang!

Even then, unable to cool his rage, Logan Hayes, who had turned the office into a wreck, huffed in anger.

"They don't understand anything!"

Did they not realize how serious the situation was?

He suppressed his anger and picked up his phone again. Not all G-rank hunters were devoted.

It was difficult to expect the same devotion from the other comrades as Ryu Jai, who had acted immediately at the mere fact of the demon sword's existence.

Sophie of France had the influence of a head of state and went on overseas tours more often than dungeon dives.

Jabari, who had established himself in Africa, lived a life hardly different from that of a king.

Not Vikram.

He was another G-rank hunter in the United States.

Due to a contract with the United States government, either Logan Hayes or Vikram had to remain in North America at all times. This secret contract was known only to Logan Hayes, Vikram, and the United States government officials.

The other two G-rank hunters were India's Arjun and South America's Jose. Arjun was devout and needed a righteous cause. Jose had built a palace for himself and was living a debauched life. He could be swayed as long as he was given money.

"Damn it."

If he had known it would come to this, he would have gone with Ryu Jai to South Korea. Once again, he keenly felt the absence of the most devoted and diligent person to humanity.

– Even now, it's not too late for everyone. If you repent and seek forgiveness, at least your life can be preserved.

"She's completely gone mad."

Ryu Jai had gone crazy. At this point, her religiosity made even Arjun seem normal. There was no other way.

Jabari, Arjun, Jose.

He had to take two of the three. Only then might he be able to recover the demon sword.

"Hahh, damn it. They've all become too self-important."

Whatever happened to the spirit that once united them in pursuit of peace? Now, not even the G-ranks moved without considering their own interests.

Ten years since their return. Those who had banded together with the vow to protect Earth had ended up becoming powers rivaling nations.

* * *

Hunter Management Bureau, South Korea. Special Advisor Support Division.

"Deputy Bureau Director! The media is going crazy!"

"Leave them."

"Ah, but shouldn't we at least try to lessen the public's attention?"

Choi Hyunju shook her head.

"They'll just bring the news in from overseas anyway."

The incident was too big to contain by blocking the domestic media alone. News of the Asian Hunter Alliance incident, originating from the Demon Realm Forum, had already spread worldwide.

This kind of attention couldn't be stopped. It was like a typhoon. They could only wait for it to pass. At this point, any words would only serve as kindling, further fueling the attention.

Choi Hyunju's focus wasn't on the news of Ryu Jai's rank drop.

There are no articles about the Daesan Hotel explosion.

Only the incident with Ryu Jai and the mysterious Korean hunter was covered. There was nothing about the blast at the hotel or Kang Hyunsik's death.

Currently, it appears that Daesan is backing down.

That was a relief. The death of a third-generation chaebol heir.

She had worried that they might go after Kim Junyong through public opinion or other means. For now, however, they seem intent on proceeding cautiously.

Daesan survived.

With that, she could breathe a little easier.

The Mad Monarch Kim Junyong. He was a merciful man who, for the time being at least, left alone the dogs that didn't bark.

"Deputy Bureau Director! What about the restaurant? Shouldn't we shut it down?"

"...That..."

She wanted to shut it down. She wanted to eliminate the Special Advisor's points of contact with outsiders altogether. If she could, she would build him a mansion with guards and completely block outsiders from him.

"...For now, just leave it alone."

It was part of the Special Advisor's hobby. And now, Choi Hyunju also knew the secret of Kim Junyong's house.

As it stands, it's a one-of-a-kind base.

The successive updates to the Demon Realm Subjugation app were clearly tied to Special Advisor Kim Junyong.

"Jun Dragon Kitchen has four available tables. Let's prepare customers on our side and send them in."

"That's a good idea!"

In any case, Cheon Yubeom and Lee Mina were handling all the guests. Rather than letting people with suspicious motives approach, the plan was to send in their own people disguised as customers.

"All right, form a separate restaurant response team. How is Taiwan reacting?"

The overseas monitoring team showed discomfort at Choi Hyunju's question.

"Harsh criticism is boiling over."

"It feels like they're ready to start a war right now."

"..."

It was understandable. To them, Ryu Jai was the embodiment of national pride. Thanks to her presence, Taiwan had virtually taken the lead in East Asia's international affairs.

Ryu Jai had been invited to an event in South Korea, only to return broken...

"The media's provocations are going too far."

"The Taiwanese government expressed regret, but public sentiment is far too belligerent."

It was natural to want to strike back after being hit, but they needed to cool their anger. Taiwan had lost its sharpest sword. What could they use to retaliate? South Korea held the advantage not only in hunters but also in military strength.

"All right, for now, make sure the situation in Taiwan doesn't reach the Special Advisor's ears. This is extremely important."

The Mad Monarch would never leave alone dogs that barked and tried to bite him.

"Come on, let's do our best to try to save Taiwan!"

"Yes, Deputy Bureau Director!"

This absolutely must not reach the Special Advisor's ears. There had to be some incentive to quiet Taiwan's public opinion...

This would have to be discussed with the South Korean government. As always, it was best to hand such matters over to Park Taejun.

Team Leader Cheon and Deputy Director Lee. Please endure a bit more.

She prayed that Kim Junyong would stay in the Demon Realm as long as possible.

* * *

The metaverse world created by God Earth.

In this place that Earthlings were convinced was the Demon Realm, a man and a woman were rolling on the ground.

Cheon Yubeom, Rank 3 paladin.

Lee Mina, Rank 5 ranger.

"Wow, you're really pathetic."

At Kim Junyong's evaluation, the pair didn't even have the strength to be sad. Since entering the Demon Realm, they had already slain dozens of monsters.

I understand the mechanism now.

Kim Junyong let them hunt while he observed the mana flow. Hunters absorbed the residual energy left behind by slain monsters and turned it into experience.

The same type decreases with every kill.

Servants of evil were different from demons. They were monsters that had been created.

It was clear that the more of the same type they hunted consecutively, the less experience they gained. Even after dozens, it didn't converge to zero, but the drop in efficiency was inevitable.

They need to hunt a variety of monsters.

Alternatively, they could hunt demons because each one was an individual entity. However, one would need to be a high-rank hunter to do so.

Since low-rank hunters couldn't recklessly challenge demons, it was only natural that their growth would be slow.

The standard path was to hunt diligently, endure inefficiency, and rise in rank before taking on demons.

Thud!

"All...all done."

"Huff, huff."

"Jeez. Just seven, and already..."

Kim Junyong looked at the exhausted pair.

"Let's stop here and go."

"...!"

"We can't!"

Cheon Yubeom was startled, and Lee Mina shouted instinctively.

"Oh? Can you keep going?"

"Of course!"

"I can too!"

"Look at these two."

Kim Junyong grinned. So they had some grit after all.

"All right. Remi, lure more over."

"Yes."

As if accustomed to it, Remi went over the hill and brought back servants of evil.

"Kieeek!"

"...!"

Cheon Yubeom and Lee Mina teared up as the servants of evil rushed at them. They wanted to give up right away, but the message from the deputy bureau director stopped them.

[ Keep the Special Advisor in the Demon Realm as long as possible. The lives of 23 million Taiwanese citizens depend on you two. When Taiwan's public sentiment calms down, I'll send another message. ]

"Deputy Director Lee, hang in there."

"You too, Team Leader."

Their bodies felt like lead, but they gave it their all. For world peace, they couldn't allow this hellish training to end so readily.

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