The Modern Founding Chronicles of the Returned Demon King

The Modern Founding Chronicles of the Returned Demon King

Episode 28: The Demon King of Greed (4)

I looked around.

It seemed like ants coming out in droves, there were about 150 people gathered. From what I could sense, there were about 130 believers, 17 priests, and the rest seemed to be faction leaders.

“Is that you, Lee Seo-Jun?”

Not just the faction leaders, but everyone seemed puzzled at my appearance.

I rolled my eyes once more and asked them,

“Wasn’t there a human fighting with you guys earlier?”

“…What?”

“Someone was releasing Magic Power around here.”

The Eastern faction leader scoffed after a moment of blank stare.

“Ah, yes, there was. Now that I think about it, he was also Korean like you. Well, you can guess what happened to him since we’re still here, right?”

I guess I was a step late after all, even though I rushed here as fast as I could.

“Where is his body now?”

“Why do you care? You’re going to die here anyway.”

“Answer before you die.”

At my assertive tone, the faction leader blinked his eyes and then tapped his forehead as if he couldn’t believe it.

“Ha, ha… To think we were having a serious discussion because of a stupid kid like this…”

The faction leader looked up and stared at me.

“Fine, I admit you’re much stronger than other hunters. You single-handedly defeated a demon of Marquis-class and wiped out our believers in an instant, even if it was a surprise attack.”

The faction leader gestured toward the believers who were wiped out by my lightning.

“But don’t you think this is incredibly arrogant? We have 150 people here. And you know these aren’t just ordinary people.”

The faction leader spread his arms wide, signaling me to take a good look at everyone present.

“So, you should’ve at least brought those self-proclaimed demon with you, no matter how rushed you were. You’ve been engrossed in your own power after achieving a few things. So arrogant, so foolish. Even divine advice can sometimes be wrong.”

I showed doubt at his last statement.

“…Divine advice? What did this ‘god’ of yours tell you about me?”

“Yes, it was a single sentence warning us to be wary of you. Now that I think about it, that’s about right for you. Strong, but foolish enough to be warned off by a single sentence.”

The surrounding people chuckled at me.

…This is annoying, like being ostracized.

I replied quietly,

“I wish you guys had taken that advice seriously. It could be very useful.”

“It was useful. We assessed your level of thought through that warning. We concluded that your thinking is worse than that of a toddler.”

Laughter echoed once more at the faction leader’s affirmation.

“…Hmm.”

I couldn’t listen any longer, so I used [Demon King’s Gluttony] and summoned ‘Demon King’.

I can find the body with my own hands. It shouldn’t be far from here.

Noticing that I was about to take action, people who seemed to be priests approached the faction leader.

“Faction leader, please leave him to us. We will take care of it and follow you.”

“Then I leave it to you.”

The faction leaders confidently left me to them and walked away.

***

“Everyone step back! Believers, you’ll only get in the way! We priests will handle this!”

The priests transformed into demons. Some grew into five-meter-tall demons, and others only had eyes that took on the form of demons.

“Then let’s go.”

“Yes, let’s.”

The faction leaders turned their backs on the spectacle. With that many people, they should be able to handle Lee Seo-Jun.

“The only possible threats now are those demon, right?”

“Probably. Well, I personally think it doesn’t make sense that they are demon. demons serving humans…”

“Surely, if a human like us follows demons, it’s one thing, but if that’s true, isn’t Lee Seo-jun basically the same as the Demon King?”

“Watch your mouth. Even if you’re joking, if you call someone else the Demon King, Lord Beelzebub might get angry.”

“Ah, I see. I’ll be careful in the future.”

They had already moved on from Lee Seo-jun and were talking about something else.

Bang bang bang!!

Explosive sounds were heard from behind. The real battle had begun.

Priests Magi swallowed Lee Seo-jun. Even without looking back, the difference in power was clear.

But then…

“Acceleration.”

Wooooosh!

With that one word, a vast surge of Magi soared like a dragon.

It devoured all the surrounding energy and scattered a killing aura in all directions.

“…!!”

The priests felt their skin prickle with the Magi that engulfed them. Cold sweat streamed down their backs like a waterfall, and their hands were clammy with tension.

Right behind them.

An overwhelming presence seemed to hang heavily in the air.

“What, what is this energy…”

They couldn’t bring themselves to turn around, feeling a horror akin to being chased by a ghost.

However, they managed to swallow their fear and turned their stiff necks.

“Ah…”

They gasped at the brutal spectacle unfolding before them.

Swish swish swish swish!

Priests and followers alike were being swept away, regardless of rank.

That ‘something’ was invisible, like a ghost. Only a deep darkness was left in its wake.

“…'”

They all swallowed hard.

Chunks of bodies floated in the red lake formed on the ground, and the followers that filled their vision were torn apart by the storm.

“Aaaargh!!”

A follower, who had been watching the carnage, ran to escape impending death.

He passed by the priests with a lifeless expression on his face.

Shhhh!

At the same time, a dark shadow pursued him.

The wind at its swift pace ruffled the priests’ hair.

“Aaaaargh!!!”

A gut-wrenching scream from behind.

…Clearly, the only ‘person’ ahead of them was that follower. Did he commit suicide out of an inability to conquer his fear?

No…

“I told you so.”

A cold voice drilled into their ears. They turned around, trying to ignore the unsettling future playing out in their heads.

Standing tall was a man, looking back at them.

“That advice will be quite useful, you know.”

It was Lee Seo-jun, covered in blood.

With a flick of his hand, all the disgraceful beings disappeared.

Struggling, the Leaders asked him,

“…What exactly are you?”

“Are you talking about me?”

“Yes, what the hell are you to possess such power… Are you really human?”

They had already verified that Lee Seo-jun was human through his date of birth, blood relations, and education.

But one thing.

An unimaginable force that couldn’t possibly belong to a human.

“That’s…”

Lee Seo-jun pondered for a moment.

Soon, he looked back at them, and his lips curled into a slight smirk.

“Your god.”

The arrogance in the room made the cult leaders’ eyebrows twitch.

“…You’re amusing.”

“Why do you think that’s not the case? In fact, your lives are in my hands right now. Isn’t that enough for me to become your god?”

“…….”

They didn’t respond.

Soon, Lee Seo-jun spread his arms wide, just like the cult leader had done before.

“Now, what do you think? Do you still think I’m arrogant?”

“……”

“Arrogance is a term that only applies to the weak. It doesn’t apply to an overwhelmingly strong person like me.”

Lee Seo-jun looked at them with piercing eyes.

“Rather, you are the arrogant ones. You misjudged the situation, being obsessed with numbers and not recognizing the real gap in power. If you had attacked all at once, there might have been a chance.”

“Shut up….”

One of the cult leaders muttered.

Lee Seo-jun continued to hammer his point.

“Even at your age, to be certain that the majority will always defeat the minority. Isn’t this intelligence at the level of a child? It’s stupid and foolish.”

“Tsk….”

“I, as your god, will pass down a fitting divine judgment.”

Lee Seo-jun subtly gripped his sword.

“Die by my hand.”

A wicked smile appeared at the corners of the Demon King’s mouth.

***

[Your Magi increases by 211]

“Hmm.”

After annihilating the cult, I even used [Absorption].

To be honest, I had more than enough magic power, but I will continue to use it whenever I can. You never know when you’ll need it.

“…Who was the owner of that magic power?”

Afterward, I looked for the person who had sent up the flare. They couldn’t be far. I did feel a surge of magic power nearby,

In fact, I found something not too far away.

“…Hmm?”

Buried under the bodies of demons, a human’s cold corpse.

The body was full of wounds, and the fatal injury was a pierced heart. It all testified to how intense his battle had been.

“Yes, you’re dead.”

A rather bitter smile appeared on my face.

The man was Jang Min-tae of the Mass Faction, someone I had never even talked to, and whose face I had only seen today. Yet, I felt pity.

“You were unlucky.”

His main cause was luck.

If he hadn’t encountered them or had been closer to me, he might have survived.

I gently placed him against a tree and then reached out towards the cult bodies.

“Let’s take revenge.”

Whoosh!

Black flames erupted, consuming the corpses completely.

They all turned to ashes and were scattered into the air.

As I watched, I asked myself a question.

“Do you feel relieved now?”

Naturally, there was no reply.

Only the crackling sound of something burning.

Soon, the flames diminished, and my gaze shifted back to Jang Min-tae.

“…..”

I opened the pendant that had hung around his neck.

As expected, there were photos of a woman, presumably his wife, and a man, presumably his son.

“A cliché element.”

Therefore, the rising emotions were also cliché.

I put it into [Demon King’s Gluttony].

“I will make sure to pass it on.”

To me, this situation didn’t bring any tension, but for them, it was a great disaster unlike any other.

Humans on this Earth are so fragile and weak.

“……”

I embraced Jang Min-tae.

I intend to bury him on Earth. Like I did, he may also want to rest in the soil of his homeland.

Maybe this is also a message for me.

“You’ve worked hard.”

I walked.

“Rest peacefully.”

I held Jang Min-tae and returned to where Quel was.

“Ah, Your Majesty, you have arrived.”

“Indeed, you’ve guarded well.”

“Yes, I may be humble, but I always strive to meet your expectations, Your Majesty.”

Quel bowed his head and I answered with a faint smile.

I looked around. Ha Seong-woo, who had taken my cure, seemed to have regained his vitality.

“Seo-jun, who is this man…?”

Jeong Dae-jin blankly looked at the man in my arms.

“Yes, he’s Jang Min-tae, the head of the Mass faction. He was already dead when I arrived.”

“I see… Certainly… it wouldn’t be strange if someone died in this situation…”

They are different from me.

I don’t tremble in fear, but they do. I won’t die, but they can.

That is the difference between how they and I handle this situation.

Though we are close in distance, there is a huge gap between us. A gap that can never be bridged, no matter how much time passes.

I set Jang Min-tae down and said to them,

“Don’t go any further into the central area from now on. You’ll die in no time.”

“……”

After seeing the result called Jang Min-tae, they kept their mouths tightly shut.

“No, honestly, you’re not helping but rather hindering. So, you all stay here.”

“…It’s been a long time since I’ve felt this powerless.”

“That’s right…”

It’s not that they’re weak. It’s just that the Adoniya guys are that strong.

“Then from now on, only Quel and I will go ahead. Quel, follow me.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

I left them behind and proceeded with Quel.

We hadn’t walked for long.

Ku-gu-gu

The ‘black curtain’ that had been blocking the central area began to disappear along with a quiet, yet majestic vibration.

Beyond it was an overwhelming landscape.

In the dazzling rays of the descending sunlight, a splendid planet fitting for the word ‘Greed’ appeared, and disgusting Magi flowed from it.

The ‘Human vs. Human’ framework is now over.

From now on, it was ‘Demon vs. Demon’.

(To be continued in the next episode)