Demon King

[I’m sorry I couldn’t stop them.]

I ignored Cain and said goodbye to L, walking down the stairs of the spire. I found A standing in the shade of the hallway. Since I had evolved into a Belkena Predator, my sensing ability had expanded immensely. Still, I was only able to catch him when I drew close.

“A.”

“I thought you wouldn’t notice.”

“Is that a compliment?”

“Hm.” He turned away from me.

“You’re still far away. The castle you had before wasn’t this small.”

“I know. If that’s all you have to say, I’ll be on my way.” I continued down, thinking he was a sleazy guy, but he called out to my back.

“…Thank you.”

“For what?”

“You don’t need to know.” He left with those blunt words, without any trace nor pretense. I felt like I could understand his brief show of gratitude, but I decided not to think too deeply about it. I still needed to collect Mireina and Lee Chan-yu before I headed back above ground.

The world had fallen into chaos with the emergence of the dwarves. There had been the elves’ claims, the battles, and deaths, and yet at the end of it, the dwarves had disappeared. But that hadn’t been the only change. The difficulty of the dungeons had soared. They were incomparable to what they had been like before, and now the large guild’s battles over them felt foolish. Dungeons had the ability to call out to monsters nearby. Thus, as time passed, they would naturally expand and threaten humanity’s settlements.

The dungeons that had appeared were at least level 120, and considering safety, you wouldn’t want to deal with one until you had reached level 150. Certainly, it wouldn’t be a problem if you collected everyone and removed them one by one. There were some who had such idealistic thoughts, and many considered them foolish. As the situation quickly worsened, such ideas began to gain ground.

Now, however, there were the Chaos Souls and ‘demons’ to contend with, forming a solid stumbling block. If the dungeon were the only thing the capable focused on, those monsters would attack the powerless. In this new world, it was no different. A lot of manpower was required. The skilled couldn’t be confident in their safety and had to hire troops to prepare for the Chaos Souls.

Mankind had fallen into a vicious cycle, irreversible through their normal methods. Some claimed it to be God’s punishment, while others claimed it was a moment of transition as humanity became monsters. Both points, however, agreed that humans now faced the worst crisis since the Great Fusion.

“It’s underground.” Cain and Lee Chan-yu looked momentarily taken aback by my spoken aloud thoughts.

[Every one of the fallen among the human society will realize it.]

“Thanks to the damn elves, the number of fallen survivors in human society is near zero.” Lee Chan-yu’s voice was poignant, evidence of his past.

“Anyway, it’s clear that underground monsters are popping out from the dungeons…which means that following the Devil’s Night, the dungeons will only increase.”

“It’s like it’s trying to attack the humans.” Lee Chan-yu muttered, and I could tell that he was neither discouraged nor delighted. I was beginning to understand his heart better.

“Regardless, I’m going to fix it. And, in the process…” I tapped on Mireina’s shoulder, who had been quiet so far.

“Have this one grow as fast as possible. Lee Chan-yu too, of course.”

“Huh?!”

“I have a lot of work to do in the future. At this point, you’re the only one who can spy on the Elakatra in their home territory.”

“…I’ll do anything!” A sense of purpose burned in Mireina’s eyes. Maybe this would be too simple. She was the type to be easily used by bad men. Lee Chan-yu looked at us with an expression of, “Why couldn’t I have met her?” but I ignored it.

“We’ll continue as planned. Rescuing the fallen and the dwarves. Erkindra will assist us with the fallen.”

“Captain, the artifacts used to rescue the dwarves were destroyed, right? What are you going to do now?”

“We still have time until the next attack on the castle. Using my own power, I will strengthen my abilities as much as possible, then…” I spoke firmly.

“I will collect enough gold to buy a record that won’t be broken.”

“You plan to resolve it with the power of gold?”

“Yeah, so you cooperate too.” A strange silence overtook those in the fortress of stone. Mireina sniffed her nose.

“It’s that same human smell from before.”

“Is it Han Jia?”

“I believe so. With one other person.” Were her abilities strengthened by the forest? I expanded my senses after hearing her report. I could feel two humans, Han Jia, and my sister, approaching from the edge of the forest. Lee Chan-yu smiled at me as I let them know.

“Should I defend the fortress?”

“Please increase the number of aerial monsters. Information from the sky is invaluable.”

“Yeah.” From now on, we were going to destroy a dungeon, but we didn’t want to be disturbed. We waited as I anticipated my sister’s purpose would overlap with ours. It didn’t take them long to reach the fort. As soon as they arrived, my sister was focused on Cain, who was leaning against the wall. She raised her hand to greet him but hesitated.

“Long time no see…didn’t he grow bigger?”

[I evolved.]

“You got stronger…?” She was stunned and fell in thought for a moment. Han Jia, who didn’t know he evolved either, was similarly quieted.

“He really was right…”

[I’m doing fine here.]

“No, not that! I was thinking about how other humans would accept it…I’m glad you’re looking healthy.”

[Thanks to you and the captain.]

“I haven’t done anything…give all your thanks to Fate.”

“Ah, hello.” As the conversation between my sister and Cain ended, Han Jia bowed her head timidly. I climbed up on the wall at the moment, Mireina behind me. I was completely ready for battle.

“What is it?”

“Wow, she looks cute too.”

“Actually, the dwarves three days ago…who is that woman?”

“A colleague.” When I responded, my sister’s eyebrows wriggled.

“I haven’t heard of them.”

“Wasn’t she there before?”

“…It doesn’t matter.” I could understand that, since our guild was composed of a small number of elites, it was natural to be sensitive to increases or decreases in our membership.

“She’s not a fallen. She’s a colleague.”

“Oh? Then that means…”

“Why did you come here?” My sister wanted to say something else, but I cut her off in the middle. She puffed her cheeks and stared at me, but I shook my head. Finally, grumbling, she spoke up again.

“Do you know anything about the dwarves? I’m trying to find out where they disappeared.”

“…” I was silent for a moment, hardening my mind as I noticed my sister watching me. She would have found out soon, so I didn’t have to hide it.

“I heard from Cain that once the fallen reach a certain level, they would go to an underground battlefield to fight monsters alongside the dwarves.”

“So it was related to the fallen…”

“I don’t know more than that.” My ability to lie had also improved. I could speak calmly without batting an eye, leaving my sister no choice but to accept it.

“Okay…if you know something, please let us know…and…” Her eyes shone brightly.

“Let’s clear the dungeon together.”

“I refuse.”

Only

“Why? Our guild members aren’t of the level to solve the dungeon that appeared, but they are strong. Jia and I both have enough skills to keep up with you guys. It’ll be good for both sides.”

“Captain, are you sure? They are our allies.” Lee Chan-yu, who favored the two young women, gave me a thumbs up. Did he not realize he wouldn’t be able to transform back into a wolf with them around? He was a strong colleague, but I sometimes worried about his head. Surprisingly, it was not only him who was thinking about it.

[I’m inclined to agree. I’m unable to accompany you into most dungeons, but with power like theirs, it would be easier to protect Lee Chan-yu and Mireina. You can trust them.]

“You’re just weak to her charms.” It was none other than my sister and I who had been protecting him, after all, which was why Cain came up with a plausible reason to agree with her proposal. He let out a laugh as he noticed me seeing right through him. The final vote of favor came in at the same time from Mireina.

“I agree! They’re so cute, I want to talk to them!” I covered her mouth and pondered. If they joined, the amount of experience and our speed in exploring the dungeon would increase.

“We also have information about the dungeons in Seoul.” After hearing that final incentive, I made my decision. We didn’t have their information, and it would be useful in avoiding the large guilds in the future. I also, admittedly, wanted to help my sister grow under my protection. I wasn’t human by any means, but she was still my younger sister. With a deep sigh, I opened my mouth.

“You can accompany us.”

It was the start of our dungeon hunt.