Story: I'm a Daemon, so what?
Disclaimer: I do not own the original setting.
Chapter 143: Hunters Association
As always, a bunch of chapters ahead at [email protected]/theogbasilisk
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- Sung Jin-Woo -
He stared at the new Ant that became a Shadow with furrowed brows. He had already written off the Ant he fought at Jeju Island as a lost cause. As much as he wanted to make it one of his Shadows, sometimes things just don't work out.
No one had expected the Demon named Felix to just appear out of nowhere and throw the world into chaos, not to mention the Monarchs and their minions wanted to use their planet as their playground, destroying it in the process.
He wasn't too disappointed with the loss of the Ant at first since he still reached level 100 from Jeju Island and was about to unlock the true secrets of his System. He still gained a lot from the raid. Sometimes it wasn't good to be too greedy.
Chairman Go Gunhee had asked to speak with him when he was escorting Felix out, and today was the day he chose to come in. Thankfully, the Chairman was able to meet with him despite the American diplomat.
The Chairman told him to be careful when unlocking his true power, and that it was okay to take baby steps. He was confused at that, but it seems the Chairman knew far more than Jin-Woo originally believed. He could only guess that was due to the Ruler who also seemed to know more about his power than Jin-Woo himself did.
Unfortunately, the Chairman refused to elaborate, merely stating that it would be detrimental to his growth if he learned everything from him and that he just wanted him to know that he would be there for him, which was heartwarming.
He hadn't thought the Chairman thought so highly of him.
In the end, he had resolved himself to visit the place it all started for him, the place he got his power, the Cartenon Temple, as his quest was telling him to do.
He wouldn't lie and say he wasn't worried about it despite being an S Rank. As he recently discovered, S Rank was far from the ceiling of power, and that statue he saw back then… even now it creeped him out for some reason.
At least the Chairman seemed to be in better health than ever before. Jin-Woo could feel the sheer power the Chairman now emanated, and it was greater than before.
Even his System now registered the Chairman as a threat which was insane as Jin-Woo was confident that he was the strongest Korean S Rank Hunter once he reached level 100, only for the Chairman to possibly be stronger.
It seems that being used as a vessel for one of those Rulers helped the Chairman out.
Of course, he challenged the Chairman to a spar to test himself. The Chairman managed to hold off every single one of his attacks, both stealth and up front attacks.
He didn't use his Shadows, but that was still a surprising feat for the Chairman to accomplish in Jin-Woo's eyes. And he still felt like the Chairman was holding back against him.
He really had been overestimating himself if he thought that after becoming an S Rank he would have no worries.
But this was no time to think about that. Clearly the Chairman wasn't going to tell him anything else until he went to the Cartenon Temple. He just wanted to make sure he was ready, which was why he agreed to all the spars he had taken part in today.
The S Rank Hunters he faced today didn't give him much of a challenge, but they were still helpful in showing him different ways to fight different opponents. He had already realized that, unfortunately, they couldn't push him, even if they all came at him together.
But maybe now he got a new training partner. He stared at the prompt in front of him in curiosity.
[?? LV.1]
Rank: General
He hadn't ever seen that rank before, and going by the amount of mana his new Shadow was emanating, he was at least at the S Rank level even though he was only just born.
Going by how strong the Ant was in life, perhaps the Ant could serve as a good training partner.
"My… King." The Ant said with a bow.
His eyes shot up in shock. "You can talk?"
The others in the room were also staring in shock. He would have preferred to keep this all hidden, it was just in his nature to keep his cards close to his chest, but everyone here he felt he could trust.
Most of them already saw how his Shadows worked when he briefly made Min Byung-Gu his Shadow anyway.
"Please… give me a name." The Ant said with absolute loyalty in his tone.
At least he knew the unconditional loyalty that all his Shadows felt towards him applied to his new Shadow as well.
"How are you capable of speaking?"
The Ant blinked slowly. "I always… could."
Did that mean it could speak because it was able to talk prior to becoming a Shadow?
However, that theory couldn't be right. Iron used to be a Human being, and yet he couldn't speak at all. The same goes for Tusk and even Min Byung-Gu when he revived him as a Shadow temporarily.
The only difference between them was their rank. Perhaps as his Shadows rank up, they would learn to speak as well.
That was good for him as it was clear, no matter their intelligence, they would always be loyal to him. It was only a good thing, in that case, if they grew more intelligent as they could assist him in fights better.
"I was the one who killed you. Will you still follow my lead?"
"I… was not killed by you… not truly. Through your powers… I was reborn, master. For that… I am… happy. I will serve you for eternity."
Jin-Woo paused to take in that declaration. It was something to know his Shadows were loyal, but it was another thing to hear them proclaim their loyalty.
"Please my king… give me a name."
"Very well."
As for the name, it couldn't be something dumb like 'Ant' or 'Bug'. This was his strongest Shadow; he needed a sufficient name.
"Beru. Your name will be Beru."
He got the name from the author who wrote a book he read a long time ago called "The Ants".
"Thank you, Master." Beru said far more smoothly than he was speaking before. He felt some of his essence flowing into Beru, just like how he felt whenever he granted his other Shadows names. Though Beru required far more than the others.
"So you named the bug, eh?" He jumped as he heard a voice from behind him.
He quickly turned to face the woman that had surprised him. Beru immediately stood in front of them, as if to protect him from the overpowering Demon. She wasn't releasing any of her Aura, and yet he could still feel the familiar feeling of fear sprout within him.
He ruthlessly crushed that feeling. He would have to deal with threats like this woman in the future. He had far too much to fight for to allow fear to take over.
He tried to read her threat level with his System, but just like what happened with Felix he could not tell.
"Trying to analyze me? Tough luck."
He frowned at her words. Just how many people were there that could deal with his System? He had never come across anyone that was aware of his System before. That was until Felix arrived at his world.
Ever since then, it was almost like his System was proving to be less useful than it once was. Though of course he was still reliant on it and was grateful for having it.
"Stand back Beru." He ordered his new Shadow that was standing in front of him protectively.
He didn't want his Shadow to get spawn killed right off the bat for pissing off an extremely strong being.
"As you wish, my king." Beru said with a bow.
"Good move." She said with a smirk. "It would have been a shame to have to kill the bug just after my Lord gave him to you as a gift. Since he can be revived, I wouldn't have hesitated." She said with the same cocky smile that had been on her face their entire interaction.
Something about that smirk annoyed him. As if he was so weak that he wasn't even in her eyes. That she was just amusing herself with him, that he should be glad that she was gracing him with her presence.
His System gave him many skills, and the ability to read someone was one of them.
She raised a brow. "Heh, angry huh? Well, let's see what you got then." She said as she leaped backwards, her hands in her pockets. Once she put some space between them, she allowed some of her Aura to begin leaking around her.
He held back a gasp as he felt the suffocating Aura around them.
Before the Aura could spread throughout the training room, a barrier was placed around them.
"Now I don't need to hold back too much. Don't worry, Master said not to kill you."
He took a deep breath and summoned his pair of Demon Lord's Daggers. As he felt them comfortably settle in his grip, he heard the woman. "Oh? Unique Grade daggers, huh? That's pretty good."
Unique Grade? He shook his head. He didn't care about that right now. Right now, he just wanted to test his limits, to see if he had more room to grow before the Cartenon Temple. And most importantly, to show this Demon that he wasn't as weak as she thought.
"What is your name?" He asked.
She raised a brow. "The name that has been bestowed upon me is Megumin."
Bestowed upon her? She did say that he "named" Beru when she first showed up. Was there something special about giving someone a name?
"Get outta your head. I'm gonna come at you." He heard Megumin say.
He nodded. Though it seems while he was in his own head, Megumin summoned a katana and a gun, one in each hand.
That was an odd fighting style, one he hadn't ever heard of before. But he wasn't going to underestimate her just because of that.
"Don't worry, I'll go easy."
Those were the last words he heard before he felt his instincts blare to life, warning him about the incoming danger. Before he could even process, he automatically raised his daggers in a cross in front of him.
– CLANG!
The sound of their two weapons meeting rang out like a thunderclap as he was sent skidding backward, his feet carving deep lines into the reinforced floor that was made for fights just like theirs.
Except it wasn't supposed to be damaged at all.
He looked into Meugmin's eyes who was standing there with a grin on her face. "You didn't die from that, so that's great!" She said as she twirled her pistol in her hand.
He grit his teeth. The force behind her strike was nothing short of monstrous. Her raw physical power was absurd, and he didn't even sense any sort of mana reinforcement. That was all raw strength alone.
His arms were still burning from the impact, and she didn't even seem like she had tried with that attack.
Were these the kinds of people he would have to face? Were the Monarchs this strong?
From what he saw on the Jeju Island raid stream, they were at least on this level, in which case it seems he still had to level up.
She came at him again in a blur of motion. This time her gun fired in tandem with a slash of her katana. Jin-Woo couldn't help but notice how odd the bullets she fired were. It felt like they were made entirely of mana.
He moved on instinct to avoid them. Ducking low, he used his powers over shadows to appear behind her.
He slashed with both of his daggers targeting the joints, which was non-lethal, but it would slow her down.
His eyes widened as she twisted at an impossibly fast speed. She blocked his slashes with the back of her katana whilst simultaneously aiming the gun point-blank at his face.
His heart rate spiked as he felt the all too familiar feeling of death.
"Shi–"
BANG!
The world almost turned white for a moment. His head snapped back from the force of the bullet, but he was just happy that he was alive. Thankfully, he instinctively forced a shadow shield between the gun and his face at the last second.
Ever since finishing the Jeju Island raid, he had gained far more control of shadows, which allowed him to make things like shields, and even weapons out of pure shadows.
Even with his new power, that was the closest he had felt to death, and he knew in his heart that Megumin just needed to put more mana into her shot and he'd be dead.
He tumbled backward, rolling to his feet.
"Not bad." She said, spinning the gun on her finger before holstering it. Her cocky grin was still on her face much to his annoyance. "I guess I'll try a little bit more."
Before he could question her, she shot forward again. Faster than before. He didn't even see the katana this time, he only felt it.
Pain bloomed across his shoulder as he felt blood spill from the shallow cut she delivered. The dagger in that hand slipped slightly from his grip, and Beru roared from behind the barrier, clawing at it uselessly.
He closed his eyes and dismissed Beru, summoning him back into his shadow. He hadn't done it beforehand due to being too in his head.
In the past, his System activated and gave him a quest to kill whoever had hostile intent towards him, but he instinctively knew that it would not do so now. Though Megumin didn't even have hostile intent towards him in the first place; it was as if this fight with him was nothing more than entertainment for her.
- Felix -
I munched on some of the popcorn Jinchul had someone bring as I watched the fight.
"Mmm, she's really bullying him." Lalatina said from the seat beside me, as she similarly munched on some popcorn.
"To call it bullying would mean she had anything more than a minor level of interest." Sukuna said from his position behind me. "This all seemed to be mere entertainment for Lady Megumin."
"Mmm, it's probably a mix. She sees potential in Jin-Woo, but she also wants to fight someone who's supposed to be strong from this world."
Hearing me, Jinchul looked at me uneasily. I waved him off. "Don't worry, she knows not to do anything permanent."
I looked to the side as I sensed Go Gunhee and what must have been his guest. Gunhee immediately spotted me and approached with a smile.
"Mr. Felix." He said as he held his hand out. I stood up and shook his hand.
"Chairman." I said with a nod.
He looked down through the reinforced glass and watched as Megumin continued to toy with Jin-Woo. Though she was actually giving him advice, correcting his stances, and giving him new ideas.
I hadn't seen her in teacher mode very often, but Agera had told me about it. This was how she personally trained those in my military that she thought had potential, and I couldn't deny the results.
Jin-Woo's handle over his daggers was already a bit better from just some small tips from Megumin.
"It seems they are enjoying themselves." The Chairman said with a smile. He then turned to look back at me. "This is a diplomat from the Federal Bureau of Hunters who was here to see me. He expressed interest in meeting you."
I nodded. I did tell him not to hide any attempts from other nations to reach out to me. I wanted to explore this version of Earth, and having a bunch of countries coming to me for help would make that a lot easier.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Felix. My name is Adam White." He said in fluent Korean as he held his hand out.
I shook his hand. "Nice to meet you." I said in fluent English.
He smiled. "I was not aware that English was an interdimensional language."
I smiled. I liked him. "It's not, but I know quite a bit."
"I won't disturb you further, but I would like to meet with you sometime if you were open to that." He said humbly. From what I recall, he did deal with Thomas Andre quite a bit, so he was rather used to dealing with people with overwhelming amounts of power and knew how to act in front of them.
"I don't mind."
With that, Adam gave a brief greeting to Lalatina and Sukuna as I took my seat again. I did notice him giving Sukuna extra attention. Lalatina was controlling her Aura perfectly and Sukuna's control was almost perfect, so I suppose Adam thought Sukuna was the stronger one between them, doubly so because of the news broadcast that he may have seen.
"Why is Miss Megumin fighting with Hunter Sung?" Gunhee asked with curiosity.
"She was bored and seems to have acquired a new hobby for training people."
He nodded. "I can tell. I had sparred with Jin-Woo and many of the flaws present have already been corrected." He dipped his head towards me. "I thank you."
I waved him off. "Give Megumin your thanks. I didn't tell her to do any of this."
Gunhee nodded. "I will."
I noticed Adam staring intently at the fight. I'm sure he would be logging down everything he was observing and reporting it to his country; it was only logical.
It worked in my favor as well. The better his country understood the difference between us, the more eager they'd be to satisfy my whims, which would make my vacation more enjoyable.
I was curious about what the United States of America would have to offer. They were still considered one of the most powerful nations in the world, so they likely had far more interesting things than most other nations.
I was also a bit curious about how strong a proper Ruler vessel like Thomas Andre was, though that was only a mild curiosity.
We continued to watch the fight occurring. I leaned forwards slightly as I felt Jin-Woo's power increase as time went on.
It seems Ashborn was giving more and more of his power to Jin-Woo as the fight went on for some reason.
He was pushing through his limits as Middray would like to say. The shadows around him were now beginning to work in tandem with him as he was making use of them to temporarily blind Megumin as well as other small tricks, no matter how useless that was.
He quickly realized that he was completely out of his league and so he stayed on the defense as he just tried his best to adapt to Megumin, which he was doing admirably.
"He seems decent." Lalatina chimed in. "He's not a genius, but he's sharp. He's learning through being pressured to do better. Most Daemons are like that."
Across from us, Adam White sat back, one leg over the other, his eyes never leaving the battle. I could almost hear the thoughts going through his head, and I wasn't even using any Skills to do that.
He was a smart, curious, and observant man. He didn't manage to thrive in this world due to his strength; he didn't have much of that, but through his mind. It was people like that that I always enjoyed interacting with.
He spoke without taking his eyes off the arena. "Is she evaluating him for recruitment?" He asked me directly.
"Nah, she's just playing around."
He nodded as he shot me a look of concern. "I see." He understood the implications, if this was her "playing" around, then he didn't know how strong she'd be when actually trying, which was more information he'd be giving to his superiors.
Perhaps giving information to a foreign government entity wasn't the best move, but I was more than strong enough to not have to worry about anything stupid his country may do.
But from what I recall, those who truly held the reins in that country were somewhat intelligent. They knew better than to piss me off, but this world could also be different from the world I read about, so I'd take my assumptions with a grain of salt.
Adam went back to observing Jin-Woo. From what I recall, Adam wanted to recruit Jin-Woo, probably now more than ever since he's getting an up front view of him fighting.
Jin-Woo forced Megumin back a step with a well-timed feint, followed by a blast of shadow spikes from below. She smiled, twirled her pistol, and fired two shots into the air, both curved midair and collided with the spikes, dispersing them.
She had gotten rather proficient at using her gun strategically in a fight, though even for someone of Megumin's talent, it still took her quite some time to adapt gunslinging into her combat style. It was definitely an unorthodox style, but it worked for her.
Earlier I asked if she wanted to go on a date, and she agreed, but she wanted to end it off on a spar. I rolled my eyes at the blatant desires I could feel coming off her when she requested that. Why were all the Primordials degenerates in their own ways?
At least I'd be in for a good time. In the end, we planned for it in a few days.
Gunhee stroked his chin, eyes narrowed. "She is correcting his bad habits. He used to favor that step-back dodge too often I noticed, but she punished it immediately and now he is not being as straightforward.
I took another handful of popcorn.
Megumin slid under a dagger swipe and kicked Jin-Woo in the chest, sending him tumbling back. She didn't follow up, instead raising her hand with a casual wave.
"Hey! Stop thinking and start reacting! You're too smart to fight like an idiot, and too dumb to fight like a genius!"
I smiled at her words. It was blunt, insulting, and straight to the point, which was her style.
She was right, too. Jin-Woo may have seemed like a genius, but he was not. He just never went into things half baked and had so many cards he could use, so he was almost always prepared.
When it came to direct combat, as of right now, he was mediocre. That would likely change once he inherited the mantle of the Shadow Monarch and likely gained all of Ashborn's essence in the process.
Jin-Woo coughed and dragged himself to his feet and then charged again.
All of a sudden we all felt a pressure descend onto us. Lalatina, Sukuna, and I were able to ignore it, but the same couldn't be said for the rest. Demon Lord's Haki was a bit different than most things, so it couldn't be easily contained by a barrier, allowing Megumin's to leak out.
I extended my own Aura around the training ground, not enough to pressure anyone, but enough to neutralize Megumin's Demon Lord's Haki from spreading beyond the training ground and affecting the entire city.
I also went out of my way to make sure Adam didn't get killed by her Haki, since hers was potent enough to do that to a weak Human. Even the S Rank Hunters needed my protection or else they'd fall unconscious, though for them I only nullified the unconscious effect, they could still feel the pressure whereas Adam couldn't even feel that.
The reinforced windows cracked, the floor cratered, and the very air began to almost hum under Megumin's Haki.
Sparks of reddish-black lightning arced off Megumin's form, writhing around her almost like living beings. They licked at the ceiling and walls, leaving deep scorch marks where they touched, even through the magical reinforcements that this training ground possessed.
Gunhee crushed the armrest of his seat. "What is that!?" He asked in shock as he fought through the effects of her Haki, which was rather impressive.
"Her Haki." Lalatina responded half-heartedly.
"Haki?" Adam asked in curiosity. "Are you all feeling something?" He asked as he looked around the room and towards the S Rank Hunters who were on their knees.
"You can't feel it?" Gunhee asked in shock.
"I'm protecting him from it. He'd likely die from her Haki alone."
Gunhee let out a sigh of relief. "I see."
Adam's eyes shot wide open. "I could die from this alone?" He took a deep breath, quickly regaining control of himself. "Thank you for protecting me then."
I waved him off. "It's my responsibility as it's one of my people who's responsible for it."
I then looked to Gunhee. "I can cover the costs for the training room as well. I'm sure this wasn't cheap."
"There is no need for that." He responded stiffly.
I waved him off. "It's fine, I'm richer than you could possibly imagine, though whether you want the payment in gold or magical weapons is up to you. The amount of gold shouldn't mess with the gold market much at all, but it's up to you."
He relented and shot me a grateful look.
We focused back on the fight. I smiled as I saw Megumin standing in place, showboating almost as she looked down at Jin-Woo who was frozen in place.
"What is that?" Adam asked.
"Demon Lord's Haki." I answered. I didn't care much about giving this information to someone like Adam. All it would do is tell his country that I was very strong and not much else. "It's like her presence made manifest, fueled by her willpower and dreams. If you aren't strong enough or if your will is too weak you'll go crazy from her Haki alone."
"It feels tyrannical." Gunhee said grimly.
I shrugged. "She has ruled legions of Daemons for eons, so that much is expected."
At my words both Adam and Gunhee stiffened up further.
Eh, they'd get over it. Probably.
Jin-Woo, for his part, was gritting his teeth, eyes wide, sweat dripping down his face as he fought just to stay standing, but he was doing far better than the other S Ranks, and Gunhee was a bit of a special case.
"You're still conscious?" She asked, clearly pleased. "That's good. I wanted to try this out a bit. I saw Milord do this on those pesky Monarchs." She said as she raised her katana slightly.
I raised a brow as in front of us she controlled her Demon Lord's Haki and imbued it into the katana with a half-hearted effort.
The edges of the katana grew dark as her Demon Lord's Haki surrounded the katana as the pressure in the area faded. She strengthened it far beyond what I created the katana to be capable of.
The floor beneath Megumin's feet cracked again, not from her own strength but from the sheer intensity of her Haki being funneled into her weapon.
Demon Lord's Haki was usually spread out like a fog, and even then it was an extremely powerful ability. So when it's condensed to a needlepoint, it becomes extremely potent.
I wouldn't be surprised if Haki was a large factor that allowed Guy to tie against Velzard in the past; back when he was far, far weaker than her in raw power. Guy told me a bit about his fight with Velzard back then, and to say I was shocked was an understatement.
Back then, in his own words, he had 1/10 the total energy of Velzard… that meant he faced an 80,000,000 EP Velzard with only 8,000,000 EP himself.
He was still a Devil Lord and a True Demon Lord, but he didn't even have an Ultimate Skill back then, yet he managed to fight her to a draw. Though he did develop Lucifer, Lord of Pride mid battle.
Despite already knowing Guy could fight at an incredibly high level, it was still incredibly shocking. Only a Skill like Raphael or Odin could manage to replicate something like that with sheer skill alone.
I was self-aware enough to know that I wasn't that good at combat without Othinus, even if I was far above the norm and my own abilities in combat unassisted were also steadily growing. I'd eventually reach that level on my own merits, of that I was sure.
I noticed Lalatina pouting. I rolled my eyes as I understood her thoughts almost immediately. She didn't want to be shown up by Megumin.
She looked at me with a smirk before getting up off her seat. She walked towards me with a sway on her hips before plopping herself down on my lap.
The Chairman seemed unimpressed while Adam just seemed used to it.
Of course, I ignored both of them. They didn't have a hot babe on their lap!
I almost laughed as I sensed Megumin's lapse in concentration as she grew more angry.
Jin-Woo also realized this as he quickly fought through her Demon Lord's Haki and leaped backwards.
"That bitch!" Megumin ground out.
Megumin did have her senses spread throughout the area, so she sensed Lalatina's… maneuvers.
Lalatina just ignored her and continued to look up at me with doe eyes, though I could see a bit of smugness in her eyes.
I rolled my eyes and placed my hands on her hips and pulled her into me, much to her delight.
Jin-Woo just seemed confused, and slightly fearful. I could only feel bad for him now. He'd have to deal with Megumin taking her anger out on him.
All of a sudden, the pressure of Megumin's Demon Lord's Haki increased as she began to focus it into her weapon again. Though this time I could feel the anger in her Haki, whereas before her Haki emanated the feeling of indifference.
Lalatina simply purred contentedly on my lap, eyes never leaving Megumin as she held her smile. "She's cute when she's angry."
Megumin's eyes locked onto Jin-Woo again, but they were no longer playfully teasing, her smile was gone and her lips were twitching.
As crackles of Demon Lord's Haki arced around her katana, Megumin disappeared. Jin-Woo barely managed to throw himself into a defensive roll as her katana slashed through the space where his head had been. The sheer pressure behind it ripped through his Shadow Barrier like wet paper as Space itself quaked under the force of her Haki imbued katana.
Though he was manipulating shadows more proficiently than I would have thought possible, at least not until he became the Shadow Monarch.
I don't recall him having any umbramancy until he became the Shadow Monarch. I'm guessing that Ashborn likely rewarded him with umbramancy for whatever reason. Yet another change I likely caused with my presence.
A massive current of wind grew in the training room below us, all from Megumin's swing. Some of her haki arced in the hurricane that was quickly forming, making for a deadly AoE attack as well.
Jin-Woo landed on one knee, already casting several layers of shadows around himself, trying to predict where she'd strike next.
Megumin obviously wasn't exerting her entire Haki, it would be overkill if she did, but it was still impressive that Jin-Woo had survived thus far.
But Megumin didn't give him the chance to recover as she appeared floating above him.
She pointed her katana downwards, channeling her Haki towards the tip of her katana.
"Try to dodge!" She yelled as she descended.
"Chairman!" Jinchul yelled in alarm.
The Chairman merely shook his head. "I believe in Jin-Woo." Was all he said.
Yeah… Gunhee was Jin-Woo's biggest hype man for sure.
Jin-Woo seemed to react on instinct alone as he flooded the area with shadow spikes and even summoned Beru between himself and Megumin to help tank the blow. Beru roared in defiance as he took the blow directly.
The impact alone was deafening, causing the entire grounds to shake. The barrier I had placed rippled, and I had to reassert my Aura to keep the training grounds from collapsing altogether.
When the smoke cleared Beru was nowhere in sight, likely disintegrated by Megumin. He wasn't dead, though; that wasn't how Jin-Woo's Shadows worked. He could just spend more mana to recreate them at any time, something Megumin likely figured out.
Jin-Woo panted heavily. His arm was broken, possibly two ribs fractured from the backlash, but he was still conscious. Thanks to Beru's sacrifice, he had gotten himself an extra second to dodge.
Even if he got hit directly, he would have been fine. Megumin knows not to go overboard.
"Not bad." Megumin said, nodding once. "You didn't die."
Jin-Woo coughed as he shakily stood up. "I can still continue." He said with determination.
Megumin grinned. "I think I'll like you."
______________________________________________________________________
I took my seat in the private room Gunhee led me to. The fight between Megumin and Jin-Woo didn't take that much longer at all. Jin-Woo clearly began seeing the benefits of fighting Megumin, as he himself had wanted to continue, but he physically couldn't.
Even after using his one free health restore that his System granted him due to completing his daily quest, he still couldn't continue since Megumin just beat him into the ground again.
Jin-Woo bowed and thanked her as he had actually improved quite a bit thanks to his spar with Megumin, but of course being the tsundere she was, Megumin brushed him off.
Now Jinchul was with Sukuna, Lalatina, and Megumin who were still at the training ground with the other S Ranks who were probably also going to ask for fights. Fights they'd of course be losing horribly.
"So what did you want to speak about? We just spoke yesterday." I said as I reached over to the glass of wine he gave me.
"I will not hold you up long as Adam also wishes to speak with you. He will be arriving shortly." Gunhee began.
I gestured for him to continue. "You've met Mr. Adam White. I am sure you've realized just why a diplomat from the United States Hunters Association arrived here on such short notice."
"I can connect the dots."
"As you suspect, it is involving you. He came here to warn me that something entirely new is in the works, an International Guild Conference. He was here to invite me."
Ah, so that's happening now, huh?
"It is a conference involving all the Hunters Associations in the world, all gathering to tackle large issues of Humanity. Originally, from the reports I received, it was already planned and in the works. Another figure has been causing trouble all around the world and has already beat an S Rank Hunter with contemptuous ease. But you've changed that; you have shown to have the potential to be one of the largest threats that Humanity has faced, but even then you are not the main topic to be discussed. No, that honor goes to the Monarchs." Gunhee said grimly.
"I was wondering how long it would take for the world to take action after everything they've learned. Most countries have done an excellent job at curbing any chaos."
Gunhee gave me a grim smile. "Unfortunately, most of us are used to manipulating the masses to prevent a mass outbreak of panic. Otherwise there would be far too much chaos even from a simple Gate break for Hunters to do their jobs."
I nodded. "Fair."
"The purpose of this conference is to tackle the issue of the Monarchs and come up with a plan of action against them. Most countries are taking the threat seriously, and so almost all Hunters Associations wish to be proactive about this threat."
"Plan of action? Most Humans aren't going to be of much help in the fight. In fact, the best thing they can do is stay out of the way."
Gunhee nodded. "I agree. However, the Rulers did bestow mana upon Humanity for a reason. They can be used to help take down the armies at the very least so that our heavy hitters can focus on the stronger enemies."
I nodded. "Good luck with that then."
Gunhee's lips twitched but he said nothing. I would help if they needed it. In fact, I was already planning to have Lalatina fight the Plague Monarch at the very least since their skillsets were rather similar.
Maybe Lalatina could learn a thing or two. I had no doubt Lalatina would win, but that didn't mean Queresha didn't have any interesting techniques up her sleeve.
"The reason I am speaking to you about this is because Adam came with another request. Korea has been allowed to send a representative to the conference, but word about your stay here has already spread. He will likely ask you himself, but he came to me originally as he did not know how to contact you. You are being invited to the conference as well."
"Any particular reason?" I asked.
Gunhee shook his head. "As far as I understand, they merely wish to get your opinion on certain matters. You have already shown to be on the side of Humanity, and so most Associations are content with leaving you be."
That was rather surprising. Humans tended to be really reckless when it came to things unknown or things they couldn't control, so I was expecting a bit more. Though this society was vastly different from the one from the Earth I grew up in.
This Earth and my original one may have seemed similar on the surface, but the way it worked was different. Those in power had almost absolute authority when it came to matters in their countries. No matter how much a country may deny it, when someone like Thomas Andre told you to do something, you did it.
I imagine something similar happened in this case. Many Hunters likely came forward to tell their countries to leave me be for whatever reason, and those countries agreed because they had no other choice.
"Thanks for the warning then."
Gunhee nodded. "It was no issue." He paused before continuing. "Many nations are taking this seriously, however they are still incredibly relaxed about this threat. They believed that the National Hunters would be able to handle it, just as they did Kamish ignoring the massive losses incurred along the way. I am hoping that perhaps you could give them another push, to show them what we are truly facing." He bowed his head. "Please, this is my request of you. I do not wish to see innocent lives lost because of others' arrogance."
"If you're going to ask me so genuinely, I can't say no to something minor like that."
Gunhee raised his head. "Thank you." He said with a small smile. "And thank you for giving Hunter Sung that learning experience. He has not faced many setbacks ever since becoming his successor, and I believe that this was a good learning experience."
I waved him off. "As I said, thank Megumin."
Gunhee nodded. "I already planned to do so in private."
With that, the conversation devolved into more simple things. Like if Jinchul's tour around the city satisfied me, if I'd like to go anywhere else, etc.
Gunhee was keeping me entertained while we waited for Adam to arrive.
Eventually, there was a soft knock on the door. Go Gunhee stood and opened it without hesitation. On the other side stood Adam White, now without his jacket, sleeves rolled up, and carrying a folder under one arm.
He offered a polite nod. "Mr. Felix, may I?"
"It's not my office." I said with a grin.
Adam politely nodded once again and stepped inside. I had a feeling he didn't quite know how to act around me.
Adam stepped inside in a calm and composed manner, though I could tell by his heartbeat that he was nervous. He sat down across from me, placing the folder neatly on the table.
"I hope I did not interrupt."
I waved him off. "Nah, Gunhee and I have already finished speaking."
"I will give the two of you some privacy." Gunhee said as he left the room. Unsurprisingly, Gunhee's act of leaving made Adam's heart beat quicken even more. I suppose with the established S Rank Hunter gone, it was just me and him in the room, making him nervous.
"I believed that Chairman Gunhee already spoke to you about the International Guild Conference, did he not?" Adam asked as he flipped the folder open.
"He did."
Adam nodded. "Very well, then I will get straight to the point. I would officially like to give you Thomas Andre's personal invitation to the International Guild Conference." He said as he took out a sealed envelope for me.
I raised a brow. "Thomas Andre?"
Adam nodded. "He has expressed interest in meeting you."
I wonder if his Ruler informed him about everything, or if that was just Thomas's battle hungry nature talking.
"I will be honest, while Thomas likely just wishes to understand you, many of the other Hunters Associations will want more." He paused as if scanning for my reaction. Seeing nothing on my face he continued. "I do not believe any of the Hunters Associations are foolish enough to believe that they can control you, but I did wish to warn you, and express that you have the backing of the United States of America should you stay on the side of Humanity."
Wow. Dealing with reasonable, intelligent Humans in power was a new one. I think the Cardinal World has ruined me when it comes to the Humans in power. By default, I just think of them all as idiots thanks to the idiots back home.
The idiots back home had an inflated sense of self-worth, and since Guy and Rudra made sure not many knew the truth of the world, they stayed that way, believing that they were the center of the world. The flaws of the high humans carried onto the offshoot of humanity, mostly because Guy and Rudra willed it so.
Here it was different since the Humans knew their precarious situation. Even with the National Hunters, they still weren't being dumb. Maybe that would change in some generations once Hunters' society got more engrained.
I finished my wine and set the glass down. "I'll come to your little conference. I've been wanting to explore this world, so this is another good opportunity."
Plus I was curious about a few people. I did tell Gunhee to keep an eye on the other Ruler vessels, so maybe some of them will actually manage to survive.
Adam nodded. "I will arrange a tour for you upon arrival." He told me the details of the conference and said that he would return to Korea to pick me and the Korean Hunters Association's representative.
I had already confirmed that I could bring a few people with me if I wanted. That wasn't supposed to be allowed, but the American Hunters Association was hosting this event, so they had some leeway when it came to the rules.
Interestingly enough, he asked nothing about my otherworldly origin. I guess he knew that sometimes ignorance was bliss. He just came here, did his job, and that was that.
He didn't try to recruit me or anything like he did to Jin-Woo either. The United States was really playing it safe when it came to me.
"I thank you for your time." Adam said as he stood up.
I nodded. "I'll see you then."
Adam nodded and left.
Now I had some time to kill, and I had a few ideas on what I wanted to do.
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Author's Note:
Sup everyone, back with another chapter of Daemon. In this chapter Beru is finally born, we get to see Megumin be a prodigy and master Haki imbuement with ease.
Then Felix gets invited to the conference, this time he's responsible for the reason it was called.
Thanks for reading, peace.
Thanks to @Salante and @Flowerman for beta'ing this chapter.
Last bit of editing -Omnax
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