The Modern Founding Chronicles of the Returned Demon King

The Modern Founding Chronicles of the Returned Demon King

Episode 17: Twilight (3)

“…What?”

Kim Eun-ha blinked her widened eyes.

I closed mine, uninterested.

‘If only I was a bit faster…’

Memories surged through my mind like a film reel. The image of a child in her arms flickered before me.

So, you too, huh.

When I opened my eyes, the flowing memories and emotions scattered.

I wiped the blood from my lips and stood up.

“Hmm, not the most pleasant experience.”

“What?”

Kim Eun-ha wore a somewhat hurt expression.

I turned away.

Crash! Crash! Crash!

The demon approached for close combat, fighting fiercely with Hyude.

Although it seemed evenly matched, Hyude wasn’t using his full strength. I had only told him to ‘engage’ with the demon, not to kill it.

“Hyude, fall back.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Whoosh!

Hyude whipped his lash, sending the demon flying backward. The demon crashed into the debris.

When Hyude moved to my side, I gave an order.

“I’ll take care of that one. You go save the civilians around here. I’ll handle these two later.”

“Understood.”

Hyude bowed gracefully and vanished in an instant.

I shifted my gaze forward.

The demon flinched at my unsettling aura.

“Listen up.”

I walked towards it, drawing ‘Demon King’ from [Demon King’s Gluttony].

“You have exactly 30 seconds.”

I swung the sword I had taken from the golden snake, laying it across in a diagonal slash.

The brilliant blade glowed, reflecting a cluster of red light.

“Use those 30 seconds to etch my dance into both of your eyes.”

A deeper shade of red shimmered from the jewel formed by my blood.

“Acceleration.”

Rumble…

The dormant magical energy erupted like a fountain. My dark magical energy scattered in all directions, causing my cloak to flutter wildly.

[Acceleration] is an ability that explosively increases physical abilities by amplifying magic power.

I don’t possess magic power, but instead, I have abundant Magi.

The indestructible fuel met with a high-performance machine, transcending limitations.

Screech!

Sensing something, the demon charged at me.

In response, I lowered my stance, moving as smoothly as if I were lubricated.

However, contained within that fluidity was a bullet that could pierce between the eyes.

Crash!

Kicking the ground created a crater. A black bullet was fired with a deafening sound that seemed to tear through the ears. All of a sudden, the surrounding noise ceased. Sound, the earth’s scream, couldn’t catch up to my speed. It was only after reaching the demon that the sound waves could reach my ears.

“Endure for just 30 seconds.”

I swung my sword, consumed by darkness.

1 second.

In that moment, I drew two lines with my sword.

The first line repelled the demon’s attack, and the second severed one of its wrist tendons.

2 seconds.

Next was a large horizontal slash.

A sharp trajectory cutting through the hot air.

I cut off both demon’s horns that were soaring high into the sky.

3 seconds.

The demon furiously threw a punch.

My sword was resting on my right shoulder.

Wrapping the wind around me, I twisted my body clockwise.

Naturally, I swung the sword in my left hand towards the incoming fist.

With a squelching sound, the demon’s forearm showed a clean cross-section.

4 seconds.

The demon, now unable to use both arms, created distance.

Being a count-level creature, it would regenerate quickly.

I leapt through space, closing the gap instantly.

The demon’s eyes widened.

Fear filled its eyes that lost focus.

I could have cut it in two, but I chose to slash its chest instead.

5 seconds.

Blood splattered between me and the demon.

This was not a struggle for me.

It was merely training to get used to the sword.

6 seconds.

The demon’s tendons regrew and fired sparks.

I swung my sword diagonally, slicing through the formless material.

7 seconds.

I left the afterglow as it was.

The wrist would soon regenerate, but I let it be.

8 seconds.

Both the demon and the camera were focused on me.

This was both training and publicity.

No matter how strong the opponent, they couldn’t beat me.

It was a brief demonstration to show just that.

9 seconds.

‘Demon King’, the king of all demons.

I am the director controlling this situation.

If I want to save them, I can. If I want to kill them, I can.

Everyone here is my puppet.

Their lives and deaths ultimately depend on me.

The outcome, my victory, won’t change.

10 seconds.

The antagonist in my scenario regenerated.

‘A minor detail, that an S-class boss can regenerate its arms,’ was enough.

The ‘exposition’ was over.

It was time to show the ‘turn.’

11 seconds.

I lowered my stance and gripped my sword.

Before 11 seconds fully passed, I charged at the demon, swinging my sword.

12 seconds, 13 seconds, 14 seconds, 15 seconds,

A demon’s second was short, and my second was long.

The only thing that followed my time was the demon’s blood scattered at the end of my sword.

16 seconds, 17 seconds, 18 seconds…

Time flowed.

The shorter the Demon King’s blade, the longer the demon’s agony.

Regeneration, which should have helped, only obstructed the demon.

Its increasingly shallow breaths kept connecting.

20 seconds, 21 seconds…

As time passed, the demon’s flesh was shredded.

Its body, soaked in blood, had turned darker, lacking a specific target amid the flurry of sword energy.

25 seconds.

The lengthy ‘turn’ had ended.

Within the limited 30 seconds, there were still 5 seconds left.

And those 5 seconds were enough to conclude with the ‘resolution’.

26 seconds.

Around the time the ‘resolution’ began, I lowered my stance.

Looking at the distant demon, I gripped my sword with both hands.

The deep magi lingering in my body flowed into the sword.

Sssss–

The seven-colored fog that burst from my hands wrapped around the sword.

At the same time, energy exploded. The surrounding air dispersed, and my cloak fluttered wildly.

The darkened sword started vibrating silently, as if it would explode at any moment.

Sword Energy.

An illusory technique of shooting magic through the sword.

For hunters wielding swords, Sword Energy was a dream state.

However, for me, it was not a dream but reality.

Szzak——!

Lines are drawn. Those lines turn into lines of death, advancing forward.

The dark energy that mercilessly tore through the air caused the atmosphere to scream sharply.

Whooosh——!

Confused, the demon unleashed flames. However, the flames that collided with my aura split in vain.

Like the miracle of Moses, the red sun was divided at the tip of my sword.

Yet, the lethal lines that remained did not lose their power and distinctly separated life from death.

And so, that demon found itself in the realm of death.

Kieeeeeeek——!

As the lines of death were drawn on its body, the demon let out its last cry. Even the mighty demon’s energy, which had been burning continuously, waned.

The demon, now split in two, let out its last breath and fell powerlessly.

30 seconds.

That was enough time for me to show the beginning and the end.

[Adoniya Demon] (Complete)

Description: Behold, the demons of Adoniya have begun to stir. However, this is just the beginning. Soon, these interconnected disasters will summon calamities. Please stop the unstoppable flow of calamity.

Reward: Acquire ‘Demon Arts’. An invitation from ‘someone’. Gain 20 Worldview Causality Points.

***

[Your Magi Increases by 71]

I used [Absorption] on the fallen demon. A fine yield, befitting an S-rank boss.

For a moment, I wielded the ‘Demon King’. A sword without a single flaw.

“Truly magnificent.”

Indeed, with ‘Adamantine Oil’, this sword could withstand even my strength.

I then looked at the ability I obtained from the quest.

[Demon Arts]

It explodes the accumulated magi to create a space. It connects to the place that fits best with the word you think of, or the place where your memory is the strongest.

In other words, I can teleport through portals.

With this, I should be able to immediately transport the injured civilians, including the team leaders, to the hospital.

Of course, the nearby emergency rooms would be full, so I should connect to a hospital that has room.

Without hesitation, I gathered magi in my hand.

‘Yongsan General Hospital…’

After thinking of it, I swung my arm as if tearing the space.

Zzzzzap-!

A darkness emerged from where my fingertips passed.

Soon, the crack drawn in lines spiraled from the center.

Apart from its black color, it resembled a commonly known gate.

“Is this how it’s done?”

I picked up the unconscious Kim Eun-ha and entered the gate.

Suddenly, the smell of disinfectant filled the air, and I found myself in an entirely different space.

A white ceiling and floor. Blue curtains here and there.

It was a scene typical of an emergency room.

“……”

The doctors and nurses who had been moving about promptly stared at me.

The emergency room was silent. A bandage the nurse had been holding fell to the floor.

Their expressions were blank. Of course, because I had appeared out of nowhere, along with the gate.

Just when I was about to say something.

“Kyaaak!! A monster!!”

“Quickly contact the guild!!”

Chaos erupted in the emergency room.

A nurse making a phone call, a doctor carrying a patient with an injured leg, a woman running away holding a baby.

I cleared my throat and opened my mouth.

“Everyone, calm down.”

“Kyaaak!!! The monster is speaking!!”

Far from calming down, they became even more frightened.

***

Fortunately, some people recognized my face, and the chaos quickly subsided.

I left Kim Eun-ha and Jo Geun-woo in the hospital and, along with Hyude, entered the portal I created to bring in the civilians.

If that emergency room filled up, I connected to another general hospital.

Since I had already informed them that I would be coming, the initial situation did not occur again.

“…Is it already over?”

Just as I was rescuing civilians, S-class Hunters who had heard the news during their meeting rushed to the scene. They had awkward expressions, as the collapse of the S-class gate in the city center had ended before they arrived.

I calmly spoke to them.

“What are you waiting for? Don’t just stand there, help out.”

“Ah, yes.”

The situation quickly got under control.

With the main threat gone, fire trucks entered, and hunters cleared the debris. I expanded my senses to search for survivors.

“Ah, Mr. Lee Seo-jun!”

As I was dealing with the aftermath, a reporter approached me.

Around the same time, in a household.

Hwang Su-jae was sitting on the sofa watching a live broadcast with his wife.

“This time no S-class Hunters died.”

“That’s right.”

A wistful yet joyful voice rang out.

Five years ago, they had sent their son, who was an S-class Hunter and a Twilight Guild Master, into an S-class gate. Hwang Ki-bum had returned as a corpse. However, this Twilight Guild Master returned without a scratch.

Somehow, it reminded him of that day five years ago.

[Mr. Lee Seo-jun! Thank you so much for containing this situation! Could we possibly get a quick interview?]

[…Sure.]

The broadcast was in the midst of Lee Seo-jun’s interview.

[Thank you! With this action, people who doubted Mr. Lee Seo-jun will completely disappear. Were you bothered by the negative comments before?]

[Not really. People who are indifferent usually have a lot of interest in others.]

[Wow! You have an exceptional mentality as an S-class Hunter!]

The couple quietly watched.

[If there are no more questions, may I leave now?]

[Ah! Before you go, could you say a word to the citizens?]

Just as Lee Seo-jun was about to leave, the reporter stopped him.

[…Just one sentence.]

Lee Seo-jun hesitated, pondering over what to say.

Then, a streak of light fell from the sky.

He turned his head toward it. The camera followed his gaze.

As the thick haze lifted, the scenery beyond began to appear.

The sun casting its final light before disappearing, painting the sky in shades of amethyst, gently setting behind the buildings.

Even the fallen buildings glowed beautifully in the radiant crimson light.

In this surreal and empty scene, a voice seeped in.

[My twilight will not fade.]

The camera quickly panned to catch that scene.

By the time the blurry screen refocused, he had already vanished completely…

“Ah…”

A heart-wrenching sense of sorrow.

Emptiness. Futility. Despair. Void.

Alongside these emotions, their son who had become a handful of stars.

But in that one sentence from the new Twilight Guild Master, a meteor seemed to gently flow down through the eyes of the couple…

(To be continued in the next episode)