Ch.644Chapter 24. Real Estate Never Die (22)

At that moment, in an underground correctional facility near Mount Geumgang.

“Oh, ohhh…!!”

A white-haired young man cried out in ecstasy, his eyes gleaming.

“The magical power, the magical power is returning!! Kuhaha! Is this the second awakening? Is this my true power?”

“Ah, how boring.”

The white-haired girl looking at the young man, Yoo Yeol-chung, shook her head and stretched out her hand.

“Retrieval.”

“……Huh?”

Whoosh.

The mana that had been deeply embedded in the young man’s body—the ghost’s body—flowed back out.

“Wh-what is this…?”

“An S-class esper who was Zenros’d but somehow regained his power—the ghost’s counterattack. Hmm, this isn’t going to be fun at all.”

“W-wait…! My, my magical power!! Give me back my magical power!! Who gives something only to take it back!”

The ghost fell but crawled forward to grab Yoo Yeol-chung’s ankle.

“P-please! Give me back my power…! If you want me to become a demon, I’ll become a demon! I’ll do anything!!”

“What’s your wish?”

“To Zenros the Goblin!!”

“Ah, right. I’ll grant your wish.”

Clap.

“Not you. Someone else.”

“Kuhuk…!”

When Yoo Yeol-chung clapped her hands, the ghost slammed his head to the floor.

“You’re useless to me.”

“Ah, ahhh…!”

Splurt!

Blood fountained from the ghost’s neck.

Yoo Yeol-chung flicked the red blood from her fingers, then leisurely walked out of the building and looked up at the night sky.

“Urrrgh. Isn’t there something fun…. Some wish that would really shock the Goblin.”

Yoo Yeol-chung turned her head toward the Geumgang Mountain Hotel.

Quite a bit of magical power was gathered there, and among them were some she had already had fun with.

“Should I just turn them all into demons and throw a massive demon party?”

It would be possible to turn both A-class and B-class into demons, but—

“No, no. Why should I freely give power just for their benefit? If they want to get stronger, they should wooooork hard, work hard.”

That didn’t align with Yoo Yeol-chung’s beliefs.

“Someone interesting…. Hmm?”

Screech.

A new car arrived at the hotel lobby.

Three women who looked like sisters got out of the car, and as soon as they did, the man in the driver’s seat also got out.

“Oh….”

The man had a large build that didn’t match his innocent face.

“Those people…something…. Oho. ‘They’re blocked?'”

Yoo Yeol-chung licked her lips as she examined the three women.

Then she made her hands into a camera shape and aimed it at each of the three women—

“Doubt. Click.”

Making a camera sound herself, she closed the rectangle made by her fingers.

“Hmm….”

As if savoring something, she pondered for a moment.

“…Tch, what’s this? They’re already females.”

She exhaled air from her mouth as if spitting out tasteless gum.

“Their wish is to get pregnant and have children as quickly as possible, all three of them? Determining hierarchy based on who gives birth first? Is this some Korean respect for seniority thing? Geez… Involving children would be dangerous even for me.”

Yoo Yeol-chung fidgeted with her thumb on her lips and scanned the hotel again.

“Ah, really. Isn’t there someone like that? Someone appropriately selfish, self-centered, who would lead themselves to ruin even if stopped…”

As Yoo Yeol-chung was lost in thought.

“It’s the end of days, truly. A World Cup player committing adultery.”

Yoo Yeol-chung heard the voices of hotel staff talking at the edge of the forest, paper cups in hand.

“Would someone want to become that strong?”

“Who knows. Isn’t the grass always greener on the other side?”

“But to abandon her husband?”

“Who knows? Maybe Fairenze will suddenly declare she’s naturalizing to Korea right after the World Cup ends.”

“…….”

Yoo Yeol-chung perked up her ears.

“She became an S-class by leaving her husband. Would that desire end there? Sigh, I wonder what she plans to do later.”

“What do you mean?”

“She left her husband and went to Do Ji-hwan, but what if Do Ji-hwan dumps her? Wouldn’t that be pathetic? If it were me, I’d become a demon. To avoid being dumped, I’d do whatever it takes….”

“Oh.”

In front of the employees.

“Could you tell me more about that?”

Yoo Yeol-chung appeared.

* * *

Baiting Yoo Yeol-chung with NTR.

In many ways, someone might cough up blood and collapse, but at least I’ve succeeded in drawing Yoo Yeol-chung into this ‘stage.’

“How is it? Can you sense it?”

“Hmm…. It feels similar to when you become ethereal? Almost tangible but not quite.”

“It seems similar to when I digitize myself. It seems to be hiding in a form that only the individual can sense.”

I recognized the demon.

I could magically sense the demon’s distinctive ‘malice,’ especially the malice possessed by Yoo Yeol’s demon.

“Humans might not understand because there’s no one like that among them. But try to sense it carefully. Yoo Yeol-chung is an entity that grants others’ wishes, but always grants wishes that go wrong.”

“If that’s the case, why not just refuse to grant—ugh.”

“If you think like that, you won’t be able to detect the demon.”

And I trained Baek Seol-hee and Kim Yoon-ji to recognize this sensation by making them practice magical sensing.

“Understand the demon’s emotions. Why this demon does such things. Think of it like promising candy to a child, then not keeping the promise and enjoying watching the child cry. It’s like giving candy and then taking it away.”

“Urrrgh….”

“I guess it’s too much to ask heroes to understand and empathize with this.”

Only villains can understand a demon’s sensibility.

“How did you feel when you heard what I said?”

“…How could a human do such a trashy thing?”

“No matter what, taking candy from a crying child is a bit…”

S-class heroes cannot understand a villain’s mindset.

That’s why, paradoxically, they can’t detect a demon that’s deliberately hiding.

‘Yet I can sense it so clearly.’

I can feel it.

The sensation of granting wishes to people.

-I, I want to capture it! A scoop! The patriotic hero taking an Italian married woman!

-Is that your wish?

-Y-yes! That’s my wish!

-Granted. Well, goodbye.

-What? Hey, hey…!!

Like the malice of just “granting” a reporter’s wish to capture Do Ji-hwan and Fairenze in a patriotic act, then leaving.

-I want to become S-class too! If I come here, can I do it with the patriotic hero…?

-Is your wish to become S-class, or to do it with the patriotic hero?

-B-both!

-Then, I’ll make it come true.

-G-great! Oh, I’m getting sleepy….

Or making someone who wants to become stronger through patriotic acts with Do Ji-hwan dream of enjoying ecstasy with him in their sleep.

-Please make me win the lottery jackpot!! Please!!

-Your wish has been granted.

-How is it granted when they’re all losers?

-You didn’t specify which lottery. If you bought an annuity lottery, it would be first place. Too bad.

-What? Hey, hey!! Again!! Just one more time!!

Or simply making those who come near Geumgang Hotel despair in small ways.

Only those who feel ‘pleasure’ watching such things can understand Yoo Yeol-chung, but heroes currently lack that.

“Ji-hwan. Are you that type too? From what you’re saying, it sounds like you know what Yeol is and empathize with it.”

“It’s not that I’m that type, but that I understand it.”

Taking pleasure in watching humans fall into ruin by deliberately distorting their wishes.

I deeply understand that in my mind, which is why I can recognize what Yoo Yeol-chung is.

“And to be honest, I do understand that kind of thing quite well.”

“What…?”

“I’m a teabagging specialist, after all.”

Though it can’t be called similar, teabagging is also a form of Yeol.

“When the opponent thinks they have the advantage, countering them and winning. There’s nothing more enjoyable than seeing someone who thought they were winning despair in defeat…. Don’t look at me with that expression. It’s not always like that.”

Honorably.

It seems impossible to convince heroes who believe in cleanly dispatching opponents rather than repeatedly sitting on and standing up from the defeated.

I realized it might be easier to explain harem or NTR to someone who only likes 1:1 pure love.

“Excuse me. If we can’t recognize it, how about using us as bait?”

Eventually, Kim Yoon-ji made a counter-proposal.

“Senior Seol-hee is pregnant so if it’s dangerous, I’ll be the bait.”

“Tell me your wish. I’ll grant it.”

“…Is this a simulation? Hmm.”

When I spoke like a demon, Kim Yoon-ji adjusted her posture and crossed her arms.

“My wish is…. hmm…. urrrgh…!”

After frowning deeply in thought, Kim Yoon-ji’s answer was:

“……Peace?”

An extremely plain and ordinary answer.

“I thought so. Yoo Yeol-chung will never come to you. Do you know why? Because it’s not fun.”

“F-fun…? Are you saying I’m too serious?”

“No, it’s that there’s not much fun after granting your wish. Thinking about the future.”

For example.

“If everyone becomes peaceful, it’s one of two things. Either this world perishes, or everyone desires peace with no conflict and only harmony—a world where everyone is satisfied.”

“You’re talking about when Yoo Yeol-chung grants the wish?”

“That’s right.”

Baek Seol-hee seemed to understand somewhat.

“But what about after that? It doesn’t end with granting your wish. She needs to hear other people’s wishes too. That’s how she has fun.”

“For fun….”

“It’s similar to watching extremely wealthy people play with the hopes of the poor. Though strictly speaking, it’s different….”

I finally eased the tension by patting both of their shoulders.

“Heroes really won’t work. You’re too kind, there’s no gap for a demon to slip through.”

“…Aren’t demons beings that enjoy watching good people fall into ruin?”

“Ordinary demons are like that, but Yeol demons are different. Beyond good or evil, they enjoy watching people perish when their granted wishes go wrong.”

Therefore.

“So I prepared another bait.”

I brought new bait to Geumgang Hotel that I thought Yoo Yeol-chung might like.

But whether she’ll take it is uncertain.

“I have plenty of bait. It’s fine if she doesn’t take it, but….”

I’ve cast many lines, both the original bait and other bait.

For now.

“If she just takes the bait, that’s enough.”

If caught, Yoo Yeol-chung dies.

And,

They say speak of the tiger and it appears.

Now it seems that saying should be changed to apply to demons.

Yoo Yeol-chung has taken the bait.