WeTried Translations

Translator: Yasi

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ The Precious Demon King

Chapter 47: Nationalist High

Hardbank Guild. The office desk split clean in two.

Boom!

"Damn it! Does this make any sense right now?"

Kenchi Takahashi's fist did not stop.

Whoosh, boom!

The only thing blocking his wild swings was the palm of Ryota Nozawa.

Thud.

Their fist and palm collided, canceling each other's energy in a shockwave that wrecked the office.

Fwoosh.

Furniture that had been flying around fell to the floor. Employees hid under desks as if in an earthquake drill, trembling as they focused on the two men's conversation.

"Stop it, Kenchi. Calm down."

"How can I not be worked up right now? They're calling me a liar! Does that make any sense? Why do people believe her words and not mine?"

"Some agree with you."

"Damn it! They're in the minority! Their voices are getting drowned out!"

"There are people like you who recognize the Mad Monarch."

"Who? Even if they do, what difference does it make? They're all cowards!"

"Not everyone's a coward."

"Look at this bastard!"

Kenchi Takahashi shoved his phone forward and shouted.

@Star GX

He definitely looks similar. Even so, it's better not to mess with him. So what if he's the Mad Monarch, so what if he isn't?

This was an era when people could easily express their opinions on SNS without going through the press. Moreover, rankers had at least tens of thousands of followers.

Right now, there were dozens, even hundreds, of such hunters.

"Look at this ID! This bastard is Zhang Sun! He definitely knows the Mad Monarch's face!"

The cause of death in Belhaim for Chinese SR-rank Zhang Sun, who used the @Star GX account, was the Mad Monarch.

"They're ignoring the truth! The world is painting me as a liar!"

"What can you do? Ryu Jai's the one who said it."

"Damn bitch!"

That was it.

Kenchi Takahashi, like someone putting a bell on a cat, revived the Mad Monarch theory about Kim Junyong, but Ryu Jai denied it.

It was only natural that their influence differed. No matter how much rankers made a fuss, Ryu Jai was still G-rank.

The influence she had built up until now was absolute. In East Asia, she was nothing short of a hero.

Her statement changed the stance of all media outlets in East Asia. Even the Japanese media was the same.

[ Ryu Jai vouched. That Korean hunter is not the Mad Monarch. ]

[ Three reasons the Mad Monarch theory is absurd. ]

[ A returnee should at least know the difference between demons and humans. ]

[ Correlation between PTSD and memory distortion. ]

[ Public figures who could jeopardize national security should refrain from reckless remarks... ]

It felt like the world had abandoned him.

"Does this make sense? I'm starting to think this is a hidden camera prank."

Kenchi Takahashi was dumbfounded. Just because Ryu Jai said a single word, even his own country's press was branding him a liar?

"Kenchi. For now, it would be best to restrain yourself."

"Restrain? Now?! Idiot! If we don't act now, it'll be impossible later! The Mad Monarch has already regained power reaching G-rank! What about a little later? When he regains the strength to wipe out Japan with just a flick of his finger?"

Driven by maddening frustration, he poured out his fury. Such was Kenchi Takahashi's reasoning.

"If not now, there will be no chance! You know it, too! All returnees start from zero! It hasn't even been fifteen days since he returned! Only fifteen days! And yet he's already recovered power rivaling G-rank!"

He was anxious. It was only right that humanity unite to eliminate the Mad Monarch, who was bound to become a threat...

"Kenchi, what if he isn't the Mad Monarch?"

"What?"

Kenchi Takahashi looked at Ryota Nozawa with scorn.

"You...You don't believe me?"

"What if it's just a similar face...Kenchi! Where are you going?"

Ryota Nozawa grabbed Kenchi Takahashi, who was about to stride away, but flinched when he saw the expression on his face as he turned back.

"Let go."

"Ah!"

Kenchi Takahashi roughly shook off Ryota Nozawa's hand and left the guild office.

Hopeless.

If even Ryota Nozawa, the comrade who should have understood him best, reacted this way, it was obvious how the others would.

They're all fools.

The situation was like a ticking time bomb, yet no one was trying to defuse it.

If he regains the power he had in Belhaim, humanity is finished.

The Mad Monarch and the demons who followed him possessed planetary-level combat strength, surpassing nations. He had to be dealt with before he fully regained his power.

Kenchi Takahashi felt as if he bore an era-defining duty.

Only I can do this.

There had to be guardians of humanity in the world who thought like him. He must find them.

His comrade, Ryota Nozawa, was a lost cause. Even after hearing that the Mad Monarch had descended to Earth, not a trace of fighting spirit could be read in his eyes.

Drunk on money and power, he had seemingly forgotten his duty as a hunter to protect humanity. Now was not the time to worry about trivial matters like Japan-South Korea relations.

This is no time to worry about individuals or nations. Humanity will vanish. Humanity...

After Kenchi Takahashi left, Ryota Nozawa, left alone, clicked his tongue.

"Hahh, how did it come to this..."

Kenchi Takahashi and Ryota Nozawa. The Hardbank Guild revolved around those two SR-rankers.

Now, the guild looked on the verge of falling apart. In fact, it was as good as having already lost half its strength.

Ring–

"Yes, Guild Leader."

[ Where's Kenchi? ]

"He left."

[ ...So it has come to this. ]

"What will you do?"

[ What can I do? We can't hold onto those who leave. We must save the guild first. ]

"Hahh, got it."

Ryota Nozawa slumped heavily into the wrecked office. The employees, who had been watching him nervously, soon got up quietly and awkwardly tidied their surroundings while glancing at him.

After a long silence, he suddenly shouted.

"Someone turn on the TV!"

"Y-Yes!"

As soon as someone swiftly turned on the TV, the news appeared on the large, wall-mounted screen.

[ ...The press conference by Kenchi Takahashi was a personal deviation. The Hardbank Guild neither guarantees nor takes responsibility for the remarks he made. For the careless announcement of unverified facts, the Hardbank Guild apologizes on his behalf. In addition, we will strengthen support and treatment for vulnerable hunters who are still suffering from severe trauma... ]

"Damn it."

The guild leader had it rough. The pressure from the Japanese government was no joke.

"Hahh, what on earth is Ryu Jai plotting?"

Ryota Nozawa. He, too, was killed by the Mad Monarch.

He was hit by ranged magic and hadn't seen the man's face or remembered any details about his features. Compared to Kenchi Takahashi, who was tortured to death, it was only natural that Ryota Nozawa's resentment, anger, and desire for revenge were relatively weaker.

Even so, his intuition and sense told him that the Korean hunter was indeed the Mad Monarch. As Kenchi Takahashi said, unless he was at the Mad Monarch's level, there was no way he could perform such feats just a few days after returning.

What puzzled him was that Ryu Jai, who had lost to the Mad Monarch, was prostrating herself so completely. What hidden motive did she have for helping the Mad Monarch and South Korea?

What secret pact did they make?

Why was she willing to go so far as to protect him, even at the cost of sacrificing herself?

* * *

Government of South Korea. Kim Seungtae furrowed his brow at the troubling situation.

"Bureau Director Park Taejun."

"Yes, President."

"Hah, goodness. Isn't the situation unfolding rather oddly?"

"That's right."

Park Taejun broke into a cold sweat. Kim Seungtae's expression did not look good.

"Why is Ryu Jai siding with us?"

"I-I don't know."

"Wasn't a bureau employee present at the time?"

Yes. Lee Mina had witnessed the entire duel between Ryu Jai and Kim Junyong from right beside them. Actually, calling it a duel would be misleading.

"She just suddenly dropped to her knees."

"Huh."

Kim Seungtae tapped his fingers on the table.

"Well now. Was she crushed by spiritual pressure?"

"Pardon?"

"Anyway, Ryu Jai has been completely taken in and is siding with us–even being called a traitor back in Taiwan."

"That's right."

Taiwanese public opinion had shifted. The sentiment that they must even go to war with South Korea to avenge the wounded Ryu Jai had flipped completely.

Traitor. A warrior without pride. A fallen hero after defeat.

Taiwan's media began to criticize her.

She was Taiwan's hero, and to the people, she was pride itself.

But she had fallen. Defeated, and even humiliating in her choice of words, she praised her opponent. Acting as if she were Kim Junyong's bodyguard, she went after Japan's Kenchi Takahashi like a hunting dog.

The public was bewildered by her unfamiliar demeanor.

The wayward behavior of the hero they had supported and cheered for left them with a sense of betrayal.

Even when idols committed crimes, it was the fans who left in disappointment. How much more so when it was Taiwan's hero?

Taiwan had now turned against Ryu Jai. It was Ryu Jai the individual who had fallen, not Taiwan itself.

Their ruthless disavowal was understandable, but the situation was bewildering for South Korea.

"So war is off the table."

"That's a good thing, isn't it?"

"..."

Kim Seungtae's expression was far from good.

"President, has there been any word from Japan?"

"Hah, well, the prime minister called."

"They reached out first? Did he ask about the facts?"

Park Taejun grew tense. Was it to confirm whether Kim Junyong was truly the Mad Monarch?

"No such thing. The prime minister personally clarified that he hoped there was no misunderstanding."

"Pardon?"

"Good grief."

Kim Seungtae chuckled dryly at the memory of the call.

"Live long enough and you see everything. The Japanese prime minister practically groveled. Well, well."

"..."

Kim Seungtae seemed to be in a better mood again.

"From the way things look, it seems Japan knows about our Special Advisor's past."

"All signs point that way."

"Since he's certainly the Mad Monarch, they have to be cautious–but they absolutely cannot say it outright."

Kim Seungtae's lips curved into a smile.

"It's like having Thanos on our side."

Japan was gritting its teeth and feigning ignorance.

"Anyway, China is staying quiet, and Japan quickly tucked its tail."

The whole world had realized it. South Korea's Special Advisor Kim Junyong was the Mad Monarch.

But declaring it as fact was another matter.

To acknowledge it meant becoming his enemy. This was why the Japanese government, shocked by Kenchi Takahashi's press conference, scrambled to contain the situation.

It was a dilemma where no one could admit nor deny the Mad Monarch. Ryu Jai presented the clear alternative.

The Guardian who had fought for world peace. A returnee who endured one hundred years in Belhaim. Ultimately, one of the Final Seven Heroes who slew the Demon King. G-rank hunter Ryu Jai declared:

– Kim Junyong is not the Mad Monarch.

– He is an apostle of the Goddess, a messiah who will save the world.

The world took in Ryu Jai's message.

Those in the know understood the truth, but they clenched their teeth and feigned ignorance.

"Doesn't it feel like the world is cheering us on? Just as long as Thanos doesn't snap his fingers."

"...We'll devote every effort to helping the Special Advisor adapt to society."

"Hehe, do that. Thanks to the Special Advisor, diplomacy is so easy–really easy. Hehehe."

Kim Seungtae was in a good mood. The war he had quietly anticipated never broke out, yet the superiority of power had been made clear all the same.

Taiwan was shocked, Japan was groveling, and China was watching warily...all before South Korea.

Now this is a damn country.

Nuclear powers? Not envious.

G7? Heh. They had the Mad Monarch.

If things blew up, South Korea would be the first to suffer. But the neighboring countries would certainly not escape unscathed.

"Hehehe."

Exhilarating.

Kim Seungtae's sly laughter sent a shudder through Park Taejun.

He won't cause trouble, will he?

Park Taejun feared Kim Seungtae's blind faith in the Special Advisor might lead him to do something reckless.

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