n

n

nHellcard went extinct.

nAnd not even a trace remained where he once was.

nAll that proved that he was once there was the ground of the Demonic Realm as well as what remained on site.

nWhoosh!

nA hot gust of air blew above the Demonic Realm.

nWhile letting the unpleasant air hit his face, Min Sung remained silent while standing on the quiet land of the Demonic Realm.

nEverything came to an end.

nHe killed Veld and became the devil king, and he even put an end to the former devil king, Hellcard, which the Dionysus Gods unleashed.

nMin Sung scanned the dry land of the Demonic Realm.

nNo living organism existed on the Demonic Realm.

nNow that everything came to an end, Min Sung didn’t particularly feel anything.

nJust a feeling of sadness and emptiness pierced through his heart.

nIt was possible that the reason why he was able to exist until now was thanks to the Demonic Realm.

nIf it wasn’t for the Demonic Realm, he could’ve died a lot sooner.

nThe nervousness and motivation to live allowed him to keep on living.

nBut even so… the memories were too dreadful.

nThe memories were so painful that he could erase them if he could.

nIt wasn’t something that faded over time.

nThe shadows fo the Demonic Realm continued to linger behind his back like a disease.

nAnd when it came to diseases, just because you found the cause didn’t mean it wasn’t there anymore… because it was probably a mental problem.

nMin Sung closed his eyes and sighed.

nIt was over.

nAnd once he opened his eyes again, Min Sung saw something.

nWhat looked like a worm wriggled on top of the cracked ground.

nWhen Min Sung saw that, he realized it.

n‘Yeah.’

n‘I forgot.’

n‘It’s not over yet.’

nIn order for everything to end for good, he had to get rid of the Demonic Realm.

nHe had to destroy this star and go back to the human world.

nOnce he made up his mind, Min Sung slowly raised his hand.

nAs a result, a white light gathered in his hands and created what looked like a sword.

nWith cold eyes, Min Sung lowered the sword of light he created with his hand in order to put an end to the worm as well as the Demonic Realm.

nAt the end of Min Sung’s fingertips, the great god’s power in the form of magic energy exploded.

nAnd just as his sword of light reached the ground.

n“…?”

nMin Sung looked down at his hands with blank eyes.

nThe sword of light disappeared.

nAt the end of his fingertips, which was just full of power, had nothing.

nMin Sung lifted his head with confusion and stared up at the dark skies of the Demonic Realm.

nHe had lost the great god’s power.

nHe didn’t hear a voice, but he knew exactly what the great god was saying.

nThe great god didn’t want the Demonic Realm to go extinct.

n‘But why?’

nMin Sung wondered why for a long time, but he was unable to find the answer.

n‘Isn’t the Demonic Realm just hell that isn’t really needed?’

n‘Does the great god still have hope for this evil place?’

n‘Is that even possible?’

nRage began to spread throughout his heart, and it was so intense that he couldn’t remember when he last felt this way.

nBut the great god was something who was unreachable.

nMin Sung scanned the Demonic Realm with anger.

nIt was a sterile land where only demons could live.

n‘Why is this needed?’

n‘Would the extinction of the Demonic Realm influence the human world?’

n‘Does the existence of the Demonic Realm establish a balance?’

n‘If that’s not it, does the great god see the Demonic Realm differently?’

nHe didn’t know.

nWithout meeting the great god in person, there was no way of knowing.

nMin Sung lowered his eyes and sighed deeply.

n***

nEarly morning.

nHo Sung Lee prepared toast and coffee and sat down on the sofa.

nWhen he woke up, he saw the rain falling.

nHe watched the rain patter against the windows as he ate his toast with coffee.

nIt was a peaceful afternoon.

nThe dungeons were gone and so were the monsters.

nWhat would happen to the human world if Min Sung Kang never returned?

nWould it go extinct?

nMin Sung Kang.

nWithout him, the human world would come to an end.

nThat was the simple yet chilling reality, but he didn’t think that was possible.

nHo Sung Lee was certain that Min Sung would return.

nHe had lived a long time with Min Sung.

nAs a fellow hunter, Min Sung Kang was someone who had already lived through Hell.

nHe would come back.

nAnd when he did, what would happen to the profession known as hunters?

nWould it disappear?

nWhat would he do then?

nThe answer to that question was simple.

nCooking.

nHo Sung Lee put the toast in his mouth and smirked.

nCooking.

nHe never thought that profession was even a possibility in his life, but once he stopped being a hunter, he wanted to become a chef.

nWhile Ho Sung Lee thought seriously about his future, the bell rang.

n‘Who could it be?’

nHe wasn’t expecting anyone.

nHe didn’t make any plans either.

nHo Sung Lee jolted his eyes wide open.

n‘Is Min Sung back?’

nHo Sung Lee quickly put down his toast and coffee and ran toward the front door.

nAs soon as he opened the door, a man stood while wearing a raincoat.

nIt was the American hunter leader, Ethan.

n“Can we talk?”

nEthan, whose face was bloated, stared at him with wolf-like eyes.

nHo Sung Lee was so taken aback that he stared at him blankly.

n“This isn’t my house, so I can’t just invite anyone inside…”

nBut Ho Sung Lee looked outside at the rain and knitted his brows.

n“Come in.”

nEthan took off his shoes and raincoat and entered the house.

n“Would you like something to drink?”

nHo Sung Lee asked, and Ethan shook his head.

n“I was in the middle of breakfast. I’ll listen while eating. What brings you all the way here?”

nHo Sung Lee asked his question and proceeded to eat his toast with coffee.

nThere was no way Ethan would’ve looked at Ho Sung Lee favorably.

n“Just so you know, I didn’t come to ask for any favors.”

n“Then what is it?”

nHo Sung Lee looked at him with sharp eyes as a way of urging him to get to the point.

n“I have a question.”

nEthan lifted his eyes and looked at Ho Sung Lee in the face.

n“Do you really think you can control the hunters from all around the world?”

nHo Sung Lee knitted his brows.

n“What are you trying to say?”

n“The dungeons and the monsters are gone, but the hunters still exist all over the world.”

n“So?”

n“What do they do now?”

n“…”

n“Catching monsters to make a living was their job. But now that the monsters are gone, the world will become much more corrupt.”

n“Are you saying they’ll start committing crimes?”

n“Of course, they’ll enter the drug ring.”

n“Wouldn’t it be the jobs of the hunter leaders to set them straight?”

nEthan laughed.

nHe laughed out of absurdity.

n“That’s not reality. In order to make money, the hunters will become corrupt.”

n“The country could provide hunters with support…”

n“Don’t you know that the world isn’t so rational that such a thing could happen?”

nEthan asked Ho Sung Lee with serious and heavy eyes.

nWhen Ho Sung Lee remained silent, Ethan continued, “Let’s say we set all of the criminal hunters straight. Then the hunters will all disappear leading to no more hunters existing.”

n“Then what do you want to do?”

n“That’s what I came to ask. Are you threatening us because you have a way?”

nHo Sung Lee’s head felt heavy.

nHe hadn’t expected this part.

nHe thought controlling them would be all, but the world was never that simple.

nEstablishing a balance was harder than he thought.

nHo Sung Lee pressed his temples due to his headache.

nHis coffee had gone cold, and he no longer had an appetite.

nHe didn’t even want to look at his toast.

nWhen he thought about it, even when monsters and dungeons existed, some of the hunters were criminals.

nJust like how he was a part of the Diamond Clan.

nBut now that the dungeons and monsters were gone, what would the hunters do now?

nIt was certain that they would commit crimes, so what Ethan was telling him wasn’t something he could pass lightly.

nHe really hadn’t thought that far.

nDue to the pressure and responsibility of his current position, all he could think about was the hunter leaders.

nHo Sung Lee suddenly felt the urge to smoke a cigarette.

nStress overwhelmed his brain.

n“I’ll speak with the hunter leader of Central Institute and get back to you.”

nEthan nodded and got up.

n“I apologize for showing up unannounced.”

nEthan paid his respects and left.

nOnce he left, Ho Sung Lee dropped his head back against the sofa and sighed.

n“I need to stay positive,” mumbled Ho Sung Lee.

n***

nThe next day, Ho Sung Lee paid a visit to Central Insitute.

nHe talked to Ji Yoo Kim about Ethan’s visit.

nJi Yoo Kim expressed that she had been contemplating that issue for quite some time.

nBut in order to resolve that issue, she couldn’t make an easy decision, and she thought it was important to approach it in a thoughtful manner.

nAs soon as Ho Sung Lee heard that, he felt a little better.

nSince he had no experience in this field, he felt the pressure to resolve it right away, but once Ji Yoo Kim told him that they needed to be thoughtful before acting, he felt relieved.

nOnce he came back to the house, he smoked his cigarette and sighed with a face that appeared to have aged by 10 years.

nAll he had done was do some work on the streets before following Min Sung Kang around, so it pained him to be sitting in such an important seat.

nAnd the fact that he couldn’t resolve issues with power alone harassed him greatly.

n“Sigh… I just want to run away,” said Ho Sung Lee as he looked up at the cloudy sky.

nBut a moment later, the clouds cleared.

nAnd surprisingly, the sun suddenly shined onto him.

nJust as he sighed and put away his umbrella.

n“Let’s eat.”

nHe heard a familiar voice.

nHo Sung Lee, who was sighing at the ground, slowly lifted his head and looked beside him.

nMin Sung Kang passed Ho Sung Lee and entered the house.

nHe saw his backside.

n“Gasp, Sir.”

nMin Sung stopped walking and looked back at Ho Sung Lee… with the straight face that he was known for.

n“I said, let’s eat,” repeated Min Sung.

n