Returnee's S-Rank Management Guide

Center of Attention (1)

The incident that had occurred in Gangnam was packaged as a show for an upcoming variety program.

This was possible thanks to the fact that some of the Hunters who had caught the dolls would be participating in the demonic zone raid.

Above all, it was because of the Hunters of Unique who were moving around the most actively.

In other words, it was also because Alencia and Soo-ah were the most outstanding.

'Their abilities made them stand out the most, too.'

Who could miss the blue flames that filled all of Gangnam or the lightning flying through the sky?

Besides, that day, the Gangnam billboards were monopolized by Shin Ah-yeon, to the extent some people commented that it was over-advertised.

"Still, killing Najan was a major achievement."

In the Unique office, advertisements for the upcoming demonic zone raid were visible on buildings outside the window.

"If he had acted after becoming demonized, things could have been much more troublesome."

Ardan said this to me as he looked at the scene.

As a former Great Duke of the demon realm, he knew Najan well.

A monster made up of countless demons clustered together.

Most top-rank demons inherited their formidable power through bloodlines.

So, among current top-rank demons, most used strength passed down from previous generations.

Ardan was no exception.

He was strong because he possessed the bloodline of the demons who ruled the north.

But Najan was different; a mere monster, compounded and compounded, turned into a top-rank demon.

That meant he was a first-generation top-rank demon, which almost didn't exist. If he had been left alone, even greater trouble could have arisen.

"Letting a guy like that loose now means their side must be quite desperate, doesn't it?"

"They must have hidden something in the demonic zone, for sure."

"Among the cards demons have left, are there any more that could threaten us?"

Honestly, we were lucky with Najan.

If Shin Ah-yeon hadn't been able to implement Estella's authority with magic to some extent, Seoul would have experienced a catastrophe by now.

Monsters popping up randomly in the city center—even for us, they wouldn't have been easy to handle.

Even if we and the Hunters wouldn't be threatened, countless civilians would have died.

"Well... to be honest, I'm not sure about that. As far as I know, demonization is the only option left."

"That's surprisingly good news."

"They never really had a lot of cards to use in the first place. At least in this situation."

It was a rather meaningful statement.

As if to say there was no solution now, but that could change later.

"As you know, demons in this world are severely restricted in utilizing their strength. Top-rank demons need to cross the gate, and even regular demons barely have means to replenish demonic energy compared to the demon realm."

But it was a different story in the demonic zone.

The situation for top-rank demons didn't change, but other demons could wield much greater power there.

"So their strategy could be to lure you into the demonic zone. But..."

"True, something about this is bothering me."

It was clever to want to fight in advantageous terrain.

But would that be the only thing Damian was thinking about?

'What's hidden in the demonic zone is probably their one-shot reversal, the very core of their plans.'

It was clear that everything Damian and Jin Su-hyuk had prepared so far was for that moment.

'Are Ardan's words true—that they have no cards left? Or are they just holding back?'

They had gathered S-rank Hunters and fused them with demons through the use of divine art.

They must still have agents hiding all over the world.

Just biding their time.

'As if promising something for the future.'

What that was—I would find out in this demonic zone raid.

Namely, their final gambit.

***

"We're about to embark on the second demonic zone raid in history. Jae-kyung, what do you think about this upcoming raid?"

"Of course I'm looking forward to it~. And this time, they're even going to broadcast the inside of the demonic zone, right?"

"Yes, that's right. The world's very first! This is big."

Talk about the demonic zone raid was beginning to surface on TV variety shows and various online broadcasts.

The large-scale event that took place in Gangnam recently had also helped attract a lot of attention.

The marketing budget was enormous, but more and more broadcasts were jumping on the story out of their own self-interest.

At the center of attention, indeed—it was now a fitting description.

"This is going to broadcast worldwide, right?"

Soo-ah spoke in a rare, tense tone.

Today, some of Unique's Hunters who would participate in the demonic zone raid gathered for a light talk show.

"This is just a simple talk show, so originally, that wouldn't be the case."

"Wouldn't be?"

"But since it's related to the demonic zone raid, there's a good chance it will be aired overseas as well."

Even if I didn't request it, I was sure Enoch would take care of it arbitrarily.

After all, Unique had Alencia, didn't it?

At the very least, American broadcasts would definitely cover this talk show.

The manner, though, was hard to predict.

"Overseas..."

Hwang Yeon-ji's eyes sparkled with curiosity when she heard 'overseas.'

Truthfully, Hwang Yeon-ji was more popular internationally than domestically.

After all, her achievements had been greater abroad.

'It's not like she isn't popular here, though.'

Hwang Yeon-ji's domestic fame was tremendous—some even called her the post–Shin Ah-yeon.

But even so, her overseas popularity was on another level.

The buzz started with Challengers, where she and Alencia were entangled together on the same team, but it exploded in Odyssey. Though many in the UK disliked her because of the Sol Mayer incident, the fact that she saved even more people made her a frequent appearance on various international broadcasts for a while.

Ironically, Koreans tended to downplay her global popularity: "Hmph, is it really that much?"

"Ahem. How do I look today? Decent, right?"

The mention of being broadcast overseas prompted Hwang Yeon-ji to spin around in front of me.

In the past, she would have looked like a cute little girl, but now, having matured, she wore her clothes with poise.

"You look great. That's more than enough."

When I offered a light compliment, Hwang Yeon-ji's face brightened.

She also puffed her chest out, her face now oddly triumphant.

"Seriously, so shameless."

"...!"

Whether annoyed by Yeon-ji's behavior or not, Shin Ah-yeon spoke with a sharp tone.

Thanks to that, as Yeon-ji's mood was at its peak, her eyes narrowed dangerously as she shot a glare at Shin Ah-yeon.

"What?"

"Nothing, I just thought you're living so youthfully."

"T-That's not much different from you, you know?"

Wasn't the age gap between them almost ten years, though?

I thought so but stayed silent.

"In demon years, Yeon-ji is still a child."

Perhaps wanting to back up Yeon-ji, Ardan chimed in.

"She's a half-demon, so you should only count half."

"Still, she's..."

Hesitating, Yeon-ji shot a sly look.

"Seriously, are you two going to keep this up? You're just acting like this because she complimented me, aren't you?"

"... No?"

"Liar! Yes, you are!"

Thanks to Shin Ah-yeon's ambiguous reaction, the mood shifted toward Yeon-ji.

Yeon-ji must have noticed this herself, as her expression returned to one of triumph.

"Manager, just a thought—"

Soo-ah, watching this, quietly spoke.

"Don't they look just like sisters?"

"Well, when you put it that way... That's true."

Certainly, Shin Ah-yeon and Yeon-ji had a rare sense of familiarity with each other.

Whether it was because they were deeply connected or because there was a bond between mages, I didn't know.

Meow~.

Just then, bored, Mimos let out a cry that caught my attention.

Snuggled quietly in Alencia's arms, the creature looked as if it had no idea why it was there.

"By the way, why did you bring that here?"

Shin Ah-yeon, still bickering with Yeon-ji, looked at Mimos with a startled expression.

Come to think of it, she'd seen Mimos transform before.

"Isn't it more dangerous to leave that thing alone?"

"Doesn't Ronbil stay at home anyway?"

Ronbil was a demon who, half as Yeon-ji's retainer, stayed at her mansion.

He didn't have much presence, but handled most household chores.

"He might disappear, though."

"..."

Ronbil was an intermediate-rank demon and not weak, but one cat punch from Mimos could easily turn him into ground meat.

"What's wrong? Our Mimos is so sweet. Right?"

Alencia hugged Mimos tightly, as if she still found the creature adorable.

Before, Mimos would scratch or punch with claws, but now, apparently realizing it was useless, Mimos simply lay quietly in Alencia's arms.

Even Mimos' power didn't work on the Saintess, so nothing could be done.

"So, is everyone ready?"

As we continued chatting, the filming staff came in.

He looked us over, gesturing that it was time to head out.

"We'll start filming soon, so please get ready. And today, will Manager Park be leading the talk?"

Since I'd been making media appearances to promote the show lately, he must have assumed I'd speak today, too.

"Oh, no. I'm just here as the manager. Hunter Shin Ah-yeon-nim will be leading today's talk."

"Ah, hunter Shin Ah-yeon-nim?"

Shin Ah-yeon, too, was experienced with these variety shows.

Probably more than anyone else here, even including me.

Yeon-ji looked slightly dissatisfied, but seeing how she obeyed without question, I realized experience truly paid off.

"Well, then, I'll leave the publicity to her..."

The show's promotion was already moving steadily forward, so I didn't need to appear on more broadcasts.

I could leave the rest to the other Unique members.

'Now, I'll attend to other business.'

Before the demonic zone raid, I had a separate appointment lined up.

A meeting with Grand Nova.

A simple meeting, arranged in my capacity as Unique's manager.

At least, that was the official reason.

***

Recently, Grand Nova had been quiet.

Of course, quiet didn't mean completely silent.

Its affiliated Hunters still appeared regularly on broadcasts, and Jin Su-hyuk was dealing with everything he'd postponed, moving more actively than ever.

It was like how things were before the demons appeared.

Damian sometimes showed up, but that was rare.

Most of the time, he remained within Grand Nova.

"I never imagined Grand Nova would accept a meeting."

Agent Oliver of the Bureau of Paranormal Phenomena said this, following behind me.

Officially, his position was as a Unique-affiliated Hunter, but today his role was to observe the meeting with Jin Su-hyuk.

And he would report today's events to Enoch.

"Just as we can't easily pressure Grand Nova, they can't refuse our proposals, either."

Many were watching us.

If we acted to suppress them, public opinion would rage that we were either monopolizing or blocking demonic technology.

Their supporters already filled the upper echelons.

We couldn't easily accuse them of anything, but similarly, they couldn't simply ignore us.

If they kept refusing such meetings, it'd generate rumors of a guilty conscience.

"I know how skilled you are, agent Oliver, but you must be careful."

"Of course. I haven't forgotten this is the lion's den."

With that exchange, we entered the Grand Nova building.

As expected of Grand Nova, the industry leader, the facilities were indeed impressive.

'As always, not much has changed.'

For me, once a worker here, it was a familiar place.

From the entrance, I could see eager Hunters, and there were regular employees seemingly unrelated to recent events.

But not everything had stayed the same.

"What an honor! I never dreamed you'd visit Grand Nova like this."

A lightly dressed man with sunglasses.

His half-dyed blond hair shook flippantly.

He looked carefree, but his strength was anything but light.

I smiled and held out my hand to him.

"I met you briefly before, but I wonder if you remember."

"Oh, did you? Why don't I remember?"

"Back then I was just a junior employee."

Three years ago, I'd caught a glimpse of him here; it was similar, but different.

The man who was always considered Korea's strongest Hunter.

A man I once looked up to with admiration.

"Nice to meet you, hunter Kang Min-gi."

Within his heart there was a darkness more intense than anything I'd ever seen.

-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=

【ദ്ദി(⩌ᴗ⩌)】