Chapter 284.

Yoo Yeonha and I arrived in North Pyeongan Province . Back when I was still in Cube, North Pyeongan Province was still an abandoned land due to the number of monsters in the area and its arid land . Another reason was that it was close to Manchuria, which was filled with barbaric Djinns .

“…A lot has changed, huh . ”

But now, North Pyeongan Province was completely different from before . It was as if I was on a completely different part of Earth . Although buildings weren’t built tall due to potential monster attacks, magic engineering techniques had turned the place into a high-tech city .

AI machines ran around the streets, and I could see soldiers carrying ‘magic lasers’ rather than guns .

“You told me to invest in abandoned land, so that’s what I did . Immigrants will flock here soon . ”

Yoo Yeonha spoke curtly .

“Oh, yeah… I did say that, huh . ”

I scratched my cheek awkwardly . I did text her about a few business ideas, but I never expected the proud Yoo Yeonha to go through with it . Maybe this was thanks to my luck too .

“I guess there are a lot of foreigners . ”

Most of the people walking about were foreigners . People from all over the world had gathered here, perhaps because their home country was too dangerous or because they simply admired Korea .

“100% of the land here belongs to me . It’s not just North Pyeongan Province . North Hamgyeong Province, Chagang Province, and Yanggang Province, which were all abandoned during Outcall, were reclaimed by Essence of the Strait . ”

“Oh? Good job . ”

“North Hamgyeong Province and North Pyeongan Province went through the biggest change . In addition to residential buildings, they now even have schools, academies, Hunter’s associations, among others . They still can’t be compared to Seoul, but about 2 million immigrants live there now . As you can see, we’re doing our best to contribute to society . ”

“…Yeah, that’s great . ”

I walked as I listened to Yoo Yeonha’s self-praise . Walking past immigrants who were speaking Korean, we arrived in front of a hospital surrounded by a magic barrier .

A nurse was waiting for us led us inside . We followed her past an empty hallway into an elevator .

Yoo Yeonha pressed basement 6F .

With a ding, the elevator door opened .

“…Are we in the 70s?”

The 6th basement floor of the hospital was built like a residential area . It almost looked like we traveled back in time through the elevator, as houses were built in traditional style with old TVs and even rotary phones .

Seeing that I was confused, Yoo Yeonha explained .

“They built it like this on purpose so that Nine Stars Oh Jaejin-nim doesn’t go berserk . He was living in hiding in an old village on Jeju Island . This floor is a replica of the village . ”

“…I see . ”

I imagined the damage a 10-star magician could cause . It was undoubtedly best to eliminate anything that could provoke him .

“Follow me . ”

We entered a large house . Yoo Yeonha took off her shoes and stood in front of the sliding door of the house’s main room . I followed after her .

Tok, tok—

Yoo Yeonha knocked, and a reply immediately sounded .

—Come in .

The aged voice was that of a woman’s .

“Excuse us . ”

I walked into the room with Yoo Yeonha .

The warm, rural look of the room reminded me of my grandparents’ house . Inside, a husband and wife pair were looking at us .

“…Hello, I’m Yoo Yeonha . This person is Kim Hajin . ”

“Hello . ”

We both bowed . The old couple greeted us with smiles .

“Nice to meet you both . My name is Yi Yoon-Ok . Dear, you should say hi too . ”

“…I’m Oh Jaejin . ”

Oh Jaejin replied briefly .

He seemed cold and sharp and was exactly what I imagined a magician would look like with his long beard and long hair .

“Nice to meet you . ”

“Since I don’t have much time, let’s cut to the chase . I hear you have a way of curing my side-effect?”

Oh Jaejin went straight to the point .

“Yes, it’s possible . ”

Hearing my confident reply, Yi Yoon-Ok’s face brightened . But Oh Jaejin didn’t say anything . He stared at me and blinked a few times . Then, he turned to his wife .

He spoke, “…Mom, I’m hungry~”

“Ah… there he goes again . Don’t worry, just tell me and I’ll relay the information to him later . ”

“I’m hungry~ I’m hungry~ I’m hungry~!”

The old Gandalf began to throw a tantrum .

“I’m hungreeeeeey~!”

I was a bit caught off guard, but I didn’t panic and took out the ingredients I brought along with a mortar .

“Shamrock plant, Otoren, pure light plant, essence of emerald, and Minotaur’s horn . They’re all medicinal ingredients from the Tower of Wish . ”

“I’ll eat them!”

Oh Jaejin quickly tried to snatch the ingredients away, but I put them in a mortar before he could get his hands on them .

With my astonishing dexterity and Stigma’s magic power, I crushed the ingredients and forged them into a pill . Yi Yoon-Ok, Yoo Yeonha, and Oh Jaejin all observed my godly pill-making skills in a daze .

Soon, a total of five pills came out .

[Miracle Pill]

The pills came with various effects, but I erased most of them with ‘Setting Intervention’ and added ‘Dementia Side-effect Reversal’ as their only effect .

Each pill took 70SP to make, and the ingredients cost 100,000TP altogether .

350SP and 100,000TP were not cheap, but it wasn’t expensive if I could win over Oh Jaejin .

“These pills with cure Nine Stars Oh Jaejin-nim’s side-effect . ”

Yi Yoon-Ok looked at the pills in my hand with a shocked look .

“But I would like you to promise me something . ”

One pill every two weeks .

“Once he is cured, he has to help humanity . ”

When I handed the pills to Yi Yoon-Ok, she nodded firmly .

“Of course, even if I stop him, he will want to do so more than anyone else . My husband is the most heroic Hero I know . ”

Unsurprisingly, Yi Yoon-Ok had great trust in her husband .

**

Yoo Yeonha spoke as soon as we left the hospital .

“…That went better than I expected . ”

“Yeah . ”

We didn’t need to convince them much .

In a way, it was to be expected . The Nine Stars were Heroes chosen by the people based on their strength and character .

The only thing stopping them from helping humanity was the side-effect of their abilities . As long as that problem was settled, most of the Nine Stars should be happy to help .

“…By the way, do you know about this?”

It seemed Yoo Yeonha still had more to say .

“This is top-secret info, but I hear Black Lotus helped the Hero Association with their Orden Mission . ”

Black Lotus . The words made me flinch every time I heard it, but I nodded leisurely .

“That’s interesting . ”

“Right, so… are you not going to participate?”

“Me? I care about my life . What if Black Lotus kills me?”

“Pft… Right, you did kill Black Lotus in the Tower . I guess you brought it upon yourself then . ”

Oblivious to the truth, Yoo Yeonha giggled .

“Now that I think about it, you really are amazing . ”

“…Thanks . And by the way…”

Thinking that the conversation would become harder to navigate, I quickly changed the topic .

“What are you up to these days?”

“Busy as always . Even busier, actually . ”

“Why?”

“You know, with the demon towns and demon merchants that suddenly appeared… I have to think of ways to get DP . ”

“What are you going to do with DP?”

This was an important question . I wasn’t sure how to use the 1 . 8 million DP I got through the lottery . I was sure Yoo Yeonha would give me a good idea .

“A lot . Buying artifacts from other dimensions are one, but what’s even more important is DP being an instant currency . If you want a building, you can buy it . If you want gold, you can buy it . If you want a weapon, you can buy it . You can build an entire city in 3 seconds if you have enough DP . ”

“Mm, I see . ”

“DP can become anything, making it revolutionary . We will no longer have to wait for a project to finish or for research to be over . ”

“Aha… . ”

I nodded and took out the [Anything Checkbook] .

===

[Anything Checkbook] [8-star] ＊Effective Good＊

—A checkbook that can pay out anything . The receiver of this check must also carry out what he was paid for .

===

I wrote down 1 million DP and gave the check to Yoo Yeonha who was staring at me weirdly .

“…What’s this?”

“1 million DP . ”

“…Come again?”

Yoo Yeonha took the check with a bewildered look .

“You’ll have a million won when everyone else has a thousand . You should be able to control the market with this, right?”

“Um, what is this again?”

“It’s a check for DP . Just tear it, and you’ll get 1 million DP . ”

“What are you talking about… . ”

Yoo Yeonha grumbled as she tore the check in half . My DP fell into her hands immediately as I was left with only 800,000 DP .

“…?!”

Yoo Yeonha’s eyes popped out about 2 meters into the air . She looked even more surprised than when she found out that I was alive .

“W-What’s this?”

I grinned seeing the flustered Yoo Yeonha .

“1 million DP . I’m investing it, not giving it away for free, so use it to drive the market . You can do whatever you want with it, but half of what you achieve is going to be mine, okay?”

“Well, that’s obvious, but how did you make a million DP? Hunting demonic beasts shouldn’t be enough to… . ”

‘No, wait, am I dreaming?’ Yoo Yeonha shook her head and slapped her cheeks . She snapped out only after her cheeks turned red .

“Wow… hehe, hehehe . ”

Yoo Yeonha smiled brightly after realizing she wasn’t dreaming .

It was an ambitionist’s smile stemming from pure bliss of being able to get ahead of her competitors .

**

…On the other hand, a meeting was underway within the Hero Association . In truth, it was more of a debate than a meeting . Only three people were present as well .

“I hear Heynckes has returned . ”

The current chairman of the Hero Association, Yi Yookho, spoke . His bald head shined brightly under the room’s light .

“What do you think? Chae Joochul and Heynckes should be able to kill Orden if they work together . ”

The man who responded was the former president of Korea, Kim Sukho .

“It’s not impossible, but I don’t think Chae Joochul would be willing to take any loss… . ”

“With Black Lotus and Kim Suho, it should be easier . ”

Black Lotus .

Kim Sukho flinched when he heard Yi Yookho mention this name .

He had even hired Mountain Sage to assassinate him, but Black Lotus survived, while he lost contact with them . It was clear what that entailed .

As such, Kim Sukho wasn’t fond of Black Lotus .

At that moment, the third member of the meeting spoke up .

“But Black Lotus is too expensive . Accepting the price they put out would put the association in a deep hole . ” The third member brought up a financial concern . “They’re skilled, yes, but they’re also too expensive . Those dogs don’t know what they’re worth . ”

Yi Yookho retorted, “It’s better than losing to Orden . Didn’t you see the decree that arrogant fool sent? Plus, feeding your hunting dog isn’t a waste . The tougher it is, the more you have to feed . ”

This week, Orden had threatened the Hero Association and various countries with an official decree . He said he would declare war if his decree was not released to the public .

The third member nodded in response to Yi Yookho, “…Then I guess we have no choice . ”

Kim Sukho stared at the third member with a look of expectation .

If each of them had 33% of authority over the Association, the final 1% likely belonged to the third member as not only did he possess authority but also ‘strength’ .

“We’ll just have to put down the dog after the hunt is over . ”

Kim Sukho liked what he was hearing .

**

Next day .

I returned to Pandemonium and put on my Black Lotus Uniform . It was confirmed that the Chameleon Troupe would participate in the Orden Assassination Mission .

“Are you ready?” Boss asked .

“Yes, I am . ”

“Oh~ Black really does look good on you . ” Cheok Jungyeong commented from the side .

I shrugged and asked, “What happened to the assassins? Did you find out who was behind them?”

“No, they wouldn’t spit it out no matter what we did . ”

“Mm… well, that’s to be expected from Mountain Sage . What about Jin Sahyuk?”

“She’s still imprisoned . She’s a tough one too . We sent Droon to her expecting her to get a bit scared, but she got even feistier . ”

Droon’s Mimyo had multiple abilities . One of them was an illusion spell called ‘Illusory Death’, which was specialized for torture . But it probably didn’t work on Jin Sahyuk .

“She even withstood the Banshee’s Curse, so it’ll be hard to crack her . ”

If anything, her endurance was top-notch . Anything less than the Banshee’s Curse probably wouldn’t leave a dent in her mental strength .

“Mm, I see… Oi, you guys, get over here!” Cheok Jungyeong suddenly shouted .

Then, the slow-moving members of the Chameleon Troupe quickly arrived .

“Geez, stop being so loud . It’s unsightly . ” Setryn muttered . “You don’t need to roar for us to hear you either . ”

Following her, Khalifa, Jin Yohan, Droon, Jain, and Kaita (who managed to not die) arrived . Eight of us, including me and Boss, would participate in today’s mission .

“Quiet . Now that everyone’s here, open the portal, Khalifa . ”

Khalifa opened the portal at Boss’ command .

An oval portal appeared in the air, and burning heat blew out from inside .

The moment we all stepped into the portal, an emergency sound rang out from my smartwatch .

—Emergency news . The Monster King, Orden, sent a video to news agencies all over the world along with a decree . He has threatened to declare war if the decree is not released to the public . As such, after careful consideration, the government has decided to release the decree…

**

Same time, immediately after members of the Chameleon Troupe left for Africa .

“…Huu, huu . ”

Click—!

Jin Sahyuk barely managed to remove the magic power suppressors on her wrists . Her body was drenched in sweat as she breathed a sigh of relief .

“Ehew… . ”

It was thanks to the two stats, Nonobservance and Distortion, she gained after the recent incident .

[Nonobservance] allowed her to ignore some of the magic power suppressors power, and [Distortion] strengthened the power of her Reality Manipulation .

“Bastards, just you wait… . ”

Jin Sahyuk staggered up . Although she was trapped in the Chameleon Troupe’s jail cell for a long time, she had still heard about the changes that happened outside .

Demon Realm Transformation and demon merchants .

Things had progressed as Bell foretold, so the next situation would be the descent of Baal .

In other words, it wouldn’t be long until she could return to Akatrina .

“Huu, huu…”

After collecting her breath and recharging her magic power, Jin Sahyuk closed her eyes and transmitted her will .

—Bell, you son of a bitch, where are you?

Although she wasn’t too familiar with using Mental Transmission, her sheer talent gave her more than enough edge .

—Oh? You got released, Sahyuk~?

—Shut it . Where are you?

—I’m with Rumi in an underground fortress .

—Underground fortress?

Jin Sahyuk frowned . ‘What the hell happened while I was imprisoned here?’

—It’s an advance base built in subterranean Africa . It’s to kill Orden . Kim Suho’s here too .

“What?”

‘I missed out on so much fun!’ Jin Sahyuk frowned .

—I’m heading over too .

—Mm? No, you can’t . Kim Suho will find out if you do . Plus, something urgent just happened .

—What .

—Orden wants to talk to the public .

‘Talk to the public? The hell does that mean?’ Jin Sahyuk wanted to ask, but she wasn’t familiar with the Mental Transmission technique and got a headache . As such, she made a portal . Her first goal was to escape from this damned prison .

“…No . ”

But thinking about it a second time, leaving this place seemed like a bad idea . Her relationship with the Chameleon Troupe would end if she left . Perhaps it was better to stay here for Kim Hajin…

At that moment, a lightbulb lit up in her head .

“Oh right . ”

Jin Sahyuk materialized the ‘inventory’ she made with Reality Manipulation and took out a card from it .

===

[Body Double] [6-star] ＊Effective Good＊

—Creates a puppet that looks and acts like you . (Ignition Keyword – ‘Actualize’)

—The puppet will last for 150 days, and you can switch places with the puppet at any time .

===

“Actualize . ”

The moment she muttered the ignition keyword, a puppet identical to Jin Sahyuk popped out . Jin Sahyuk put the magic power suppressors on the puppet and gave it a command .

“Act like me as much as possible . Go crazy . ”

The puppet stared at Jin Sahyuk blankly before nodding .

“…Okay . ”

“Good . ”

With a satisfied smile, Jin Sahyuk went through the portal .

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