Shinhwa Group.
To Baek Yiseol, Shinhwa was a huge mountain that had to be demolished one day.
If she couldn't knock it down from below.
It was a mountain that needed to be taken down even if she had to climb up to the top.
"Persistent bitch."
Baek Yiseol's mother was called that.
Because Baek Yiseol was her father's no, Chairman Baek's bastard kid.
It was unfair.
It was Chairman Baek's fault, but it was his mother who got pointed fingers.
It was absurd.
Her mother, who was suffering from depression, eventually passed away.
– Please live quietly. Seol.
At a funeral home where no one was looking.
Chairman Baek said so.
But she couldn't.
Baek Yiseol couldn't stand the absurdity.
He said her mother was a persistent bitch.
Then she was a person who inherited the blood of that persistent bitch.
With poison running through this vein.
She thought this grudge would be resolved only if she poisoned Shinhwa and killed it.
In that sense, Cataclysm was an opportunity.
No, it was fate.
In the past, she used Arcana to escape reality.
That Arcana had become the reality.
Baek Yiseol didn't miss that fate.
She stepped into a tiger den called Shinhwa.
Soon after, she was recognized by Chairman Baek.
──────
[Exclusive] Shinhwa Group Chairman Baek Joosung, "Baek Yiseol is my daughter."
──────
She became the master of the Shinhwa Guild.
The Shinhwa Guild became an official affiliate of the Shinhwa Group.
So was she happy?
Unfortunately, it was just the beginning of her revenge.
…Yes, she was sure it was.
'What am I doing now?'
She felt like she had sunk into her unconsciousness.
When someone came to talk.
Only then her mind returned.
"What do you think? Do you think you're getting closer to the goal, our lady?"
A panoramic view of a hotel.
She could see her face reflected in the window.
…It was definitely her.
However, she couldn't move anything at will.
Including the fingers stroking her face reflected in the glass.
She couldn't even spit out a single word.
The voice continued as if laughing at Baek Yiseol.
"Of course, it may be different from the way you thought. So what if you regret it? It's something that can't be undone now."
…She remembered those words.
Yeah, a demon had taken over her body.
The succubus she encountered in the rupture.
The memory of that day came back to her.
The rupture raid was a failure.
A demon-type monster.
No one expected that kind of variable.
Tremble–
Baek Yiseol looked at the guild member who pointed a sword at her.
Everyone was affected by the succubus' status abnormality.
Was this how she was going to die?
Baek Yiseol clenched her teeth.
…She couldn't die like this.
Her revenge has just begun.
Baek Yiseol clenched her fist.
'Even if I have to sell my soul to demons…!'
The demon whispered to Baek Yiseol.
"It's an enchanting look. I liked it."
[An intermediate demon, a succubus, is watching you.]
[Your mental strength is too low.]
[Status abnormality: Possession occurs.]
However, Baek Yiseol was mistaken.
What kind of race was the demon?
Did she say she would sell her soul?
Regardless of the deal.
To demons, all humans were just the same.
An insignificant creature who was merely played with deceit.
Therefore, even if she regretted it, it would be useless.
Only then Baek Yiseol realized.
'…It wasn't just once or twice.'
Yeah, the realization that the demon had taken over her body.
The process of being discouraged and falling asleep again to her unciousniness.
She had been repeating that over and over again.
That put Baek Yiseol in a deeper sense of helplessness.
Next time, she wouldn't even be able to hear the demon's voice…
"As expected of an insignificant demon."
'…?'
But what is this voice?
Not an insignificant human being, but an insignificant demon…?
It was a man's voice, not the succubus'.
Even the succubus was flustered.
Due to her agitation, Baek Yiseol, who had fallen asleep to her unconsciousness, awoke.
And Baek Yiseol also saw it.
An unshakable upright posture.
"…W-What are you talking about?"
As if he couldn't hear the demon's temptations.
"T-This is ridiculous!"
Hoyeol hunted the demon.
"Argh!"
Baek Yiseol's feeling was indescribable.
…Delighted?
No, she was far from feeling that way.
After all, wasn't she in a state where she would stop breathing along with the demon?
So she felt a complex emotion that was hard to express in words.
But one thing was certain.
'…First of all, thank you.'
She had to say thank you to Hoyeol.
She recalled the brutality of the succubus.
It was truly sickening.
Just not having to act like that anymore.
It was worth dying for.
Yeah, she really thought so…
"…?"
Sksk–
She heard a certain sound.
She had heard this sound when signing…
Yes, the sound of a sharp pen nib slicing through paper.
'…What?'
She didn't understand.
It was strange that this was the first sound she heard after falling into hell.
Soon, Baek Yiseol slowly opened her eyelids.
What came into her field of vision was, of course, Hoyeol.
As if nothing had happened.
In the same posture as before.
At the scene of Hoyeol writing something down.
Baek Yiseol blinked a few times and realized the reality.
She didn't know what happened, but she was alive.
Knowing that, she was able to realize her situation.
'…This.'
And the fact that she had been possessed by a succubus.
Even if it was because of the succubus, what she had done was ugly.
Hoyeol knew everything about it.
Naturally, she felt ashamed rather than grateful.
'I have to get up.'
The moment Baek Yiseol fidgeted with her toes and looked around.
"You're awake?"
"…!"
Hoyeol spoke up.
Startled, Baek Yiseol looked at Hoyeol reflexively.
"…Yes. Thank you."
However, his posture hadn't changed.
…She wondered if he had eyes on the side of his side.
In that posture, Hoyeol continued.
"We'll talk about the details later."
…What did he mean by the details?
Quickly assessing the situation.
Baek Yiseol thought hard.
Fortunately, she was used to this kind of negotiation.
So, she was quick to sort out her position.
'…I'm in a position where I have no choice but to be dragged around.'
Hoyeol knew her private parts.
Wasn't he basically a benefactor who saved her life?
Let's think of it as the price of her life.
Baek Yiseol was ready to accept any deal.
She opened her mouth calmly.
"Now, whatever it is, you can say it."
However, her thought was meaningless.
What came back was an unexpected question.
"Isn't it you who should present something?"
"…?"
He was truly A [1] .
"I haven't heard of your offer yet. The investment and risk Shinhwa Guild can take in order to participate in the rebuilding of the Yusra Kingdom. Make sure to present it at the next meeting."
"…!"
Not hiding in the back.
And not using funny tricks.
It was purely an aristocratic attitude.
Baek Yiseol nodded at Hoyeol's words.
"I understand."
How could she misunderstand such a person?
With gratitude and apologies.
Baek Yiseol continued.
"In that case, I will come back with a sincere proposal."
*
When the Natural Enemy Relationship wasn't activating.
I basically missed some screws.
In addition to that, I even had an unfamiliar fighting method called aura swordplay.
I could beat a level 350 monster at most.
I had to struggle to knock down only one of them.
Of course, considering my level, that was great too.
But considering the level of the demon-type monsters I'd defeated so far, it was definitely a low level.
Because of that, my level stayed at 230.
Compared to other players, it wasn't a slow pace.
'I already know the taste of meat [2] .'
But perhaps because I knew the taste.
I couldn't help but feel sorry for myself.
However.
[Name: Grandfel Claudie Arpheus Romeo]
[Class: Demon hunter]
[Level: 238]
[Stat]
Strength: 38 / Agility: 42 / Mana: 180 / Luck: 3
[Point: 8]
I knocked down the demon possessing Baek Yiseol.
Then, my level rose by 8 at once…!
It felt like a loot so I couldn't help but feel glad.
As expected, I had to hunt demons.
There wasn't anyone else who had a calling to the demon hunter beside me.
'In any case, rather than self-praise.'
The demons.
Once again, I realized their viciousness.
Demons were certainly different from your regular monster.
Even if a rupture collapsed and they ran out of it.
There was no way to find that out depending on the situation.
'Because they could just possess a human.'
Well, even the weakest, low-class demon Imp.
They could easily possess a player.
Just like how Nam Cheolmin had suffered.
'Not only that, the stronger the demon becomes, the more despicable they get.'
The imp had even shown it off enough that the others had noticed.
In the case of Baek Yiseol, no one noticed it even though she got possessed by a demon for a long time.
Sk–
Suddenly, I stopped taking notes and opened my mouth.
"It really bothers me."
Perhaps Baek Yiseol was not an unusual case.
Even now, in reality, there might be demons hiding in every corner of society.
"They will pay the price for interfering with my research."
…Yes, right.
There was no way Grandfel could stand it.
Well, actually, it wasn't a bad business for me either.
Basically, demon-type monsters were high-level.
And I was the natural enemy of those demon-type monsters.
…Should I rather be pleased with this reality?
Seriously, it had been a while since I thought about that kind of worry.
Bzz–
Suddenly, the smartphone vibrated.
"The passage of time is fleeting."
Yeah, I'd be sad if I missed even one day.
These cringe lines too.
I checked the notification.
Well, this was pretty important.
I finally put down my feather pen and opened the internet window.
I accessed Arcana's official website.
To check out new updates that had emerged.
.
.
.
The community was filled with players' excitement.
– Work, Raymond. Work, Raymond. You're finally starting to workㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
– ㄹㅇㅋㅋ Have you finally come to your senses?
– -Yeah, you have to update this much to get the balance rightㅋㅋㅋ
Even if big and small ruptures were constantly being created without any updates.
The recent balance adjustment of the new update content was a complete failure.
Count Ascura was too much for them.
And they didn't see the great evil wearing the mask of Treasure Island.
The atmosphere at that time was truly terrible, even now.
– ㄹㅇI thought the world was going to endㅋㅋ
– If it weren't for Lee Ho Yeol, it would have been a failureㅋㅋㅋ
– It's just Homen
So it was natural for players to cheer for this new update.
Because this update was like rain during the drought.
『A new area will come to you.
A new area, 'Northern City, Frost' will be added.』
Frost.
It was a big city in the northern part of the Arcana continent.
Yeah, it wasn't just a small town, it was a big city.
There was a good reason why the players reacted enthusiastically.
It was because there were various contents in big cities, including stores and blacksmiths.
– Although Yusra Kingdom is growing rapidly.
– No matter how great it is, the Yusra Kingdom alone isn't enoughㅋㅋ
The more cities, the better
The influence of Frost, a metropolitan city, was significant even when Arcana was a game.
Thanks to this, rankers and large guilds had built up considerable relationships and influence in Frost.
"You have to restore the ranking that has been pushed back by Gaon!"
"…But Gaon must have made quite a name in Frost, too?"
"I don't want to hear it. You have to do it. Even if you have to make a sacrifice!"
Not just the players.
Government figures from each country also paid close attention.
"We need to figure out the spawn location quickly."
Frost.
A big city of Arcana with tremendous value appeared on the territory of their country?
Even if it didn't reach the effect of the Mage Tower in Korea, it was worth expecting a rise in national competitiveness.
The thoughts of Arcana's top experts.
The thoughts of AAU were not much different.
In the past, they were Cosmo's development team leaders.
Currently, they were the heads of the AAU branch.
They gathered similar opinions in the video conference.
"After the Yusra Kingdom, Frost appeared. Maybe humanity will strike back from now on."
"Well, in fact, maybe the counterattack has already begun, right? Lee Hoyeol is at the front line. By the way, head of the Korean branch. Do you really not know anything about Lee Hoyeol?"
"Don't ask, seriously. I'm dying of curiosity, too!"
The atmosphere was amicable.
Enough to make them burst into laughter.
.
.
.
Yes, checking the new update history.
I didn't even budge.
Only one person.
I was probably the only one.
With the arrival of Frost.
Am I afraid that the Yusra kingdom's influence will fade?
No, it wasn't for that reason.
If that wasn't the case.
The quest window was flickering.
Frost was not a big city full of dreams and hopes.
Is it because I noticed that fact before other players?
No, it wasn't even for that reason.
This was just Grandfel's lofty pride.
『The first thing Grandfel learned as the next head of the family was to be indifferent about trivial matters.』
I opened my mouth as confidently as usual.
『No demon's temptation, deceit, or trial can damage Grandfel's lofty pride.』
"Appear when called, you're no different a servant."
[Class quest: Demon King Subjugation]
"Demon king."
1. I am confused about this one. I might be entirely wrong in this but I think this one is referring to industry slang where A is used to referring the employer and B is used to referring the employee. It's kinda like when you tell a story and can't reveal the names of the people in the story so you use the letter A and B. Of course, in the Korean novel, the original letter is not A and B. It's 갑(甲)/Gap and 을(乙)/Eul. Anyway, Baek Yiseol was saying Hoyeol is truly playing the role of an employer. Probably.
2. Hoyeol is referring to the idiom 'People who have eaten meat eat better than those who haven't'. It means that people who have done it will do it better than those who haven't done it.