The Returnee Wants to Live Comfortably

The Reason for Despair (2)

The house was restored to its original state, and all those thugs who had just gotten out of prison were eliminated.

However, even so, the issue wasn't truly resolved yet.

There was no telling when or where that Sura guild might send another assassin.

One thing was certain: those guys were after my family.

But why were they targeting my family, who had absolutely nothing to do with them?

'Those Mewzealand bastards are always like that.'

If it's for their objective, they don't care about methods or means.

Because they naturally operate that way, I wasn't surprised at civilian killings.

But even with that in mind, I still wondered—what was the goal they were trying to achieve by doing all this?

'There's no way they've figured out my identity... at least, it doesn't seem like it.'

They had only sent out the just-released thugs as mercenaries—a very passive approach.

If their goal had been to catch the Demon King, they'd need to send out the highest-level forces among all hunters, not some petty thugs.

They knew what level of threat I posed.

In fact, even summoning every guild member wouldn't be enough.

In other words, for them to have figured out who I really am, they were acting far too quietly.

'Even those police officers seemed genuinely clueless about my situation.'

Those so-called police officers were hunters from the Sura guild in disguise.

They too seemed to regard me as nothing more than an ordinary student.

Seeing how deep-rooted the Sura guild was, even within the Korean police, I could get a sense of just how widespread their influence was.

Not just the National Forensic Service, but maybe even the National Intelligence Service had been infiltrated.

"Hm?"

While I was briefly heading out to the convenience store, I happened to spot Ah-rin.

I approached her as she sat quietly on a swing in the playground and asked,

"What are you doing here?"

"Just..."

Ah-rin was just sitting there, doing nothing at all.

My parents were currently considering whether to move elsewhere for safety, and Sang-ah was playing with the now-depressed Yunhee.

So I found it odd that only Ah-rin was sitting alone and still.

She wasn't the type of person to calmly sit around in situations like this.

More than anything, she wasn't the kind of person to stay passive in circumstances like these.

"Hey, Seongjin. I have something to say."

"Hm?"

At Ah-rin's request, I sat in the swing next to her.

It wasn't like I had any pressing business at the convenience store anyway, so I decided to just listen to whatever Ah-rin wanted to say.

More than that, just earlier, I thought I saw a suspicious black aura leaking from Ah-rin's body.

"Don't you think something about this whole thing is a little off?"

"About what?"

"The ones who attacked your family were the Sura guild. And do you know who the person above all the others in the Sura guild is?"

That was obvious—the guildmaster, of course.

But in the Sura guild, there was one person above even the guildmaster.

And that person was none other than the one currently sitting on the swing next to me.

"Yeah, under normal circumstances, at just one word from me, everything would stop. More than that, those behind this whole mess should have all been purged by now."

Ah-rin was currently worshipped like a god by the Sura guild.

Her life was so intertwined with the survival of the Sura guild that she was critically important to them.

That's why, at least within the Sura guild, Ah-rin wielded absolute power.

"Aren't you curious, Seongjin, about why someone like me is sitting here doing nothing?"

The Sura guild was behind all of this.

And the first person who should have acted was Ah-rin herself.

Normally, she would've already rushed back to China to create a huge fuss in the Sura guild.

They'd messed with the family of her dearest friend.

"Of course, it's possible that those involved in this incident belong to the Heaven and Earth Society, so they wouldn't listen even to me. But even if it's not them, those guys will keep putting your family in danger."

—Do you know why?

The Sura guild itself was targeting me, Ma Seongjin.

Because of that, my family was now involved too.

It wasn't because they'd found out I was the Demon King.

The cause lay elsewhere—and not too far away.

"It's all because of me."

Ah-rin said, her voice haggard.

As I looked at her questioningly, single drops of tears began to fall down her cheeks.

Ah-rin wiped away her tears with her hand as I looked at her curiously.

"Seongjin, do you know why I joined the Sura guild?"

"I do."

"How?"

"I asked Vern to look into it."

"..."

Thanks to the intelligence-gathering capabilities of the international organization 'The World', I was able to find out everything.

The day Ah-rin stepped onto Chinese soil with her grandparents—what she got tangled up in.

What later happened to her grandparents.

I couldn't know exactly what happened after, but one thing was certain: she'd been dragged into the Sura guild.

"Ah... haha... I guess there's no need to drag this out, then."

"..."

"Yeah, you're right. Just as you expected, my grandfather and grandmother... both of them died. Do you know who did it?"

It was none other than the Sura guild.

After that, Ah-rin, taken by the Sura guild, endured a harsh life.

"My grandfather brought this on himself, but I don't blame him. He only did what he thought best to give me a good environment."

Her grandfather tried to return to China for Ah-rin's sake.

He believed in the childhood friend's proposal they'd received.

That's why he went back—to provide a good background for his granddaughter.

That was all.

No one—including himself—expected that his friend would betray him.

"Because a so-called friend stabbed him in the back, both my grandparents died and I was taken captive by the Sura guild."

She didn't describe what sort of life that was.

It was apparent from the way she said it that it wasn't anything normal.

I wanted to know more, but not even Vern's intel shed light on it.

"It really was hell. My mom and dad, my grandfather and grandmother—they all already knew what despair tasted like, so there was nothing left to lose. But... I was able to endure because I kept thinking of just one person."

The boy who'd been the only one to take care of her in 1st grade.

Ah-rin endured those days solely by thinking of that boy.

Knowing that, I involuntarily swallowed hard.

"But even those guys... never expected I'd awaken as the Sura."

Even for the Sura guild, it was the worst possible variable.

A girl who considered them her mortal enemy had become their literal object of worship.

It made sense why Ah-rin would sometimes force her own guild members to commit suicide.

Apparently, all those Sura guild members who once harassed Ah-rin had already run away.

"Of course, they aren't stupid. Just because I say 'die' doesn't mean they'll all kill themselves on command."

If they were all that obedient, the Sura guild would have been wiped out long ago.

To them, the Sura itself isn't what's important.

The Sura is just a vessel to summon the god they worship.

"They must realize it too. If I stay as the Sura, it'll be a huge problem for them."

In their eyes, Ah-rin was a ticking time bomb.

To them, she was like a dictator suddenly descending upon them.

In fact, the lack of resistance was more suspicious.

"Even so, they can't harm me. Unless it's the Heaven and Earth Society, the worship of Sura has to continue. But..."

—Anyone connected with me, they can get hurt.

Ah-rin was a mad dog in the truest sense, with nothing left to lose. There was no way to tame someone like that.

But they found a way to leash her.

"They finally figured it out recently—what I'm obsessed with."

"..."

"Yeah, that's right. Someone precious to me right now."

The object of Ah-rin's obsession.

She'd said it herself moments ago.

That she'd survived her harsh life by thinking of one boy.

"I actually talked to the guildmaster a little while ago about all this. When I asked, it was clear this was all part of his plan."

"..."

"And from him, I learned one critical fact."

As soon as she called, Ah-rin told him to stop everything at once.

She even threatened to cut the guild's numbers in half if he didn't.

But the guildmaster just responded with a smug attitude.

—The more you despair, the better.

—You probably didn't know, but 'Sura' as an entity loses its qualification the deeper the subject despairs.

—When that happens, we simply welcome a new Sura.

If one reaches the depths of despair, the qualification as Sura is automatically revoked.

Ah-rin hadn't known that, and was shocked to the core.

And then, the guildmaster made an offer.

—I'll give you a choice. Will you despair over the deaths of that boy, Ma Seongjin, and his family, or will you obediently do as we say in exchange for saving them?

—I'll give you one week to decide.

With that, the call ended.

Having sunk deep into contemplation, Ah-rin sat limply on the swing.

But I couldn't understand it.

Because at no point did any of this seem like Ah-rin's fault.

"The real villains are those bastards holding my family hostage, not you. Why are you crying?"

Ah-rin had said just a moment ago that it was all because of her.

Of course, considering how deeply Ah-rin obsessed over me, it wasn't entirely unreasonable.

Those guys were just targeting the source of their opponent's attachment.

"Well, how could I not cry? It was my carelessness... that let them figure out what I cared about."

That day, the day she set foot in Korea again for the Golden Gate event.

Naturally, the person Ah-rin wanted to meet in Korea was me.

Back then, Ah-rin had her bodyguard—who was also a hunter—find out my identity.

"Do you know what I said to that guy then?"

—I have someone I want to meet.

He would've understood right there and then.

That there was a close friend of Sura in Korea.

"On top of that, that bodyguard... He's a top executive! He not only knows my face, but can talk freely with the guildmaster too!"

Most of the Sura guild members Ah-rin had met so far were just the usual fanatics worshipping her.

None would have minded Sura having friends.

But Ah-rin hadn't known—the fact that her 'Sura' qualification could be revoked.

"And lately, I've aggravated the guildmaster. Because he's seriously angry with me, they're pulling this kind of stunt."

"But you didn't know. That your status as Sura would be revoked in despair."

"So what if I didn't know? Because of me, I've become a burden to your mom, dad... and Yunhee!"

Ah-rin cried out even more as she sobbed.

No matter how much I tried to comfort her, strictly speaking, it was true that this happened because of Ah-rin.

Replacing the Sura? That wasn't their only method.

Having discovered her object of obsession, they'd found a way to leash her.

'If my family and I are ever taken hostage...'

That would completely immobilize Ah-rin.

Of course, I'd never let it come to that, not even if it killed me.

In any case, she wasn't wrong in saying this happened because of her carelessness.

The same went for making the guildmaster angry.

"Seongjin, you're precious to me. When my family disappeared, you were the only one I could rely on. That's why, when all I thought about was meeting you, I didn't consider anything else."

As Ah-rin, defeated, mumbled to herself, I started to see something around her.

A black mist, rising as if flowing out of her body.

Despair, manifesting as smoke the deeper it grew.

That was undoubtedly the source of Ah-rin being called the Sura.

"If Yunhee were really kidnapped... because of me..."

The black smoke thickened even further.

The more ominous the thoughts in her mind became, the greater her despair.

She was starting to wonder whether the boy would abandon her because of it.

"...?"

At that moment, Ah-rin stopped mid-sentence.

"That will never happen, so don't worry."

"...."

I got off the swing and hugged Ah-rin.

Her tears soaked into my shirt.

"Of course, Ah-rin, you're the Sura, so you always have to be careful. There are people out to get you, and even some in the Sura guild who don't like you."

The Holy Church, which opposes the Sura guild.

And the Heaven and Earth Society, aiming for Ah-rin's life for their own purposes.

Even within the Sura guild—her supposed allies—she couldn't afford to reveal any weakness.

"When it comes to that, yes, you made a mistake. But the more you cry now, the more trouble you cause me."

There was no exaggeration in that.

If she despaired and lost her status as Sura, it would be disastrous.

One day, Ah-rin could become the very control center restraining the guild's atrocities.

Since it's unknown how big the Holy Church is, every possible tool could be useful.

"Even if you lose your Sura qualification in this miserable state... do you think they'll quit pulling stunts like today?"

"...."

Even if the Sura changes, they won't leave us alone.

Once they target someone, they make sure to eliminate them.

Their methods never change, now or before.

"So there's no benefit to crying any longer."

"...."

"And don't get the wrong idea. You're not 'the Sura'—you're just a normal kid. You should be carrying textbooks, like any normal student."

Does being chosen as the Sura and worshipped make you any smarter?

If that were the case, Ah-rin would never have come looking for me in the first place.

She's not some sage who sees through everything—Ah-rin is just Ah-rin.

It's not reasonable to expect some genius-level intellect from a kid who isn't even eighteen yet.

"You don't need to burden yourself with all that."

****

Just before sunrise, at dawn.

A woman in the driver's seat of a vehicle was on the phone with someone.

"Hello? Oppa, it's me. I'm at Ma Seongjin's apartment right now, you know, that kid?"

-....

"Yeah. I thought it over. As long as we make our Sura-nim despair, anything goes, right?"

-....

The woman, Kang Juhee, fluttered the devil's wings on her back.

And the tail behind her swayed seductively, drawing a heart in the air.

"Was his name Seongjin?"

Kang Juhee licked her lips as she spoke.

"This nuna will show you a wonderful new world. Hehe."

With the energy radiating from the succubus, the inside of the car was now filled with a pink glow.

But her clothing was completely different from that of a seductress.

She wore the uniform of 'Qiongqi', a national special task force.