Episode 385. Heart-Pounding Home Visit!

Kung- Kung-

“… Fast.”

I swallowed, looking at the interior of the wrecked hideout.

The place that had looked like a typical company lobby just a little while ago was completely destroyed.

What on earth did the three of them do?

Numerous demons were tied up in the lobby; judging by the atmosphere, it seemed they had selectively captured the important ones alive.

I approached Rebecca, who was examining the demons’ faces among them.

“Rebecca-ssi. Is it all over?”

“Baby Daddy? Yeah. It’s all done. Why are you so late?”

“… Something came up. I met someone stronger than an executive-level demon.”

“Really? Gasp. What’s with your clothes? You weren’t hurt?”

“Yes. Fortunately, the opponent ran away.”

Rebecca opened her mouth, approached me, and brushed off the dust.

Seeing her surprised reaction to my torn clothes made me feel grateful for no reason, but… why didn’t she come to help?

I almost died.

“But wasn’t the plan to deal with the executive-level demons first? I thought support would arrive soon, so why were you dealing with the other demons?”

“Scarlet-yang said you, Baby Daddy, could handle it alone without us worrying… so we were dealing with the stragglers.”

“Hmm…”

“Who was there instead of an executive where you went, Baby Daddy? Was it a strong one? Was Baby Daddy’s girlfriend’s information wrong?”

“No. It was someone who infiltrated here before us. Come to think of it, I didn’t mention it. There’s a demon hunting demons recently. That guy was already here before me, and we just happened to run into each other, which started the fight.”

“Ah… I’ve heard about it. You mean that murderer, right?”

“Yes. But it turns out we know each other.”

It’s better to mention it beforehand since I’ll find out eventually.

I continued explaining about Moon Sungmin to Rebecca.

And after waiting a moment, Nam Daeun’s voice was heard; she had gone to pick up Scarlet.

“Scarlet-ssi. This way.”

“… Hoyeon-nim?”

“Scarlet. You’re here. You weren’t hurt.”

“Yes, are you okay, Hoyeon-nim?”

Scarlet, who ran up to me, blinked her eyes as she looked at me.

My appearance really wasn’t great.

My clothes were torn here and there, and I had used a tremendous amount of mana.

“Scarlet. Wasn’t the plan to support the others first as soon as you killed the executive-level demon? Why did the plan change?”

“I’m sorry. I thought you would do well, Hoyeon-nim. That executive was the weakest demon…”

“No, you shouldn’t have done that. I almost really died. Please be careful next time.”

“… Understood.”

Fortunately, it worked out this time, but it could have been a disaster.

Of course, I understand.

I couldn’t imagine I would meet Moon Sungmin here either.

But if it had gone according to the original plan, it would have been safe, so it was Scarlet’s mistake.

Even Scarlet, who must have done many operations like this, makes mistakes.

Maybe she trusted me too much.

There are times when receiving trust isn’t good.

I spoke to Rebecca, looking at the demons tied up in the lobby.

“Rebecca-ssi, what about these demons? Judging by their condition, they don’t seem completely useless.”

“We only captured the important ones. I’ll contact the Association and hand them over. Baby Daddy or Scarlet-yang should make the contact.”

“Me?”

“Yeah. I don’t have any official status right now.”

… Was this person an illegal immigrant?

How did they even get on the plane.

“Rebecca-ssi, are you an illegal resident then?”

“No. I have a fake identity. But it can’t be discovered, you know.”

“Ah…”

That makes sense.

They would definitely investigate the identity of someone who accomplished such a huge feat.

Besides, if it’s this many demons, the bounty would be substantial, so there’s no reason not to accept it.

I can handle the contact for this.

Or I could tell Surin noona.

If the news spreads that the Academy cleared out the demons, people will feel relieved.

And if the Academy’s image improves, Surin noona would be happy too.

“Then I’ll contact the Academy. They’ll handle it from there.”

“If you report it to the Association, you’ll get a lot of bounty money, right?”

“If I mention it, they’ll probably take care of that much.”

I sent a message to Surin noona.

• Me: Surin noona. I cleared out one of Pandemic’s hideouts this time. I’m contacting you because I want to announce that the Academy handled it. Also, I met Father while tracking, so I’ll tell you about that too.

But should I wait a moment until I get a reply?

What if someone comes looking for the hideout?

“Rebecca-ssi, by any chance, how much time do we have?”

“Probably about 30 minutes at most? As I recall, they contact the branches every hour. It’s blocked by a barrier, so no one else can enter, but we can’t keep it blocked forever.”

“Hmm…”

Since it’s Rebecca from Pandemic speaking, the information is reliable.

The problem is Surin noona isn’t answering.

Is she busy even though it’s the weekend?

This time, I tried calling.

Ttuu- ttuu-

• The number you have dialed is going to voicemail…

Ttuk.

“… Why aren’t you answering.”

I ended the call and looked at my smartwatch.

Even if I want to give her the gift, I can’t because she won’t accept it.

Do I have no choice but to report it to the Association?

“Huh?”

As I scrolled down the smartwatch without thinking, I saw the name ‘Chairman-nim’ among the saved numbers.

Come to think of it, there’s this person.

“I can just call Chairman-nim.”

I could contact him through Surin noona, but can’t I just call Chairman-nim directly?

Our relationship isn’t that bad… and seeing how he’s looked out for me recently, he’s a decent person, even if he dotes heavily on his granddaughter.

His reputation has increased a lot lately, so I’ve gained confidence.

I immediately called the Chairman.

Ttirring- Ttiriring-

• What do you want, you punk?

Beyond the smartwatch, I heard Chairman-nim’s voice, which I hadn’t heard in a while.

It was a displeased voice, but I guess this is an old man’s affection.

“Chairman-nim, have you been well? I contacted you just to ask how you are.”

• ….

“Chairman-nim?”

• Hurry up and state your business. Since you didn’t call Surin and called me instead, it seems like important business.

“Tch. Actually, I destroyed one of Pandemic’s hideouts near the Academy. I killed all the executive-level demons, but I captured many of the ones below them alive.”

“… What?”

The Chairman asked again, as if doubting his own ears.

Just then, Scarlet tapped my shoulder and whispered in my ear.

“Hoyeon-nim, one executive-level demon is alive.”

“Ah, really? I apologize. One executive-level demon and many of the remaining underlings were captured alive.”

• … What happened to make it that way?

“We provoked them first. I got angry and took them down. Anyway, I contacted you because I want to hand this over to the Academy.”

• Handing it over to the Academy… What kind of compensation do you want? Of course, they’ll treat you better than the Association, but it would be difficult if you expect too much.

“Just give me the bounty money I would receive if reported to the Association. I’ll send you the address, so please send an investigation team here.”

• Is that really all you want? You’re okay with everything being taken under the Academy’s name, right?

“Yes. It’s my gesture, Chairman-nim. Please take care of it.”

Ttuk-

I hung up the phone and sent the hideout’s address via message.

• Chairman-nim: Confirmed.

I guess I can rest assured now.

I don’t need fame anyway.

Paparazzi following me around because I’m called a genius mage is tiresome enough; what honor is there in that?

When will the day come when I can take a walk without the Rune Barrier?

I turned off my smartwatch and made eye contact with Rebecca.

“I handled everything.”

“Hoyeon-ah, didn’t you say Chairman-nim?”

“Yeah. Surin noona wasn’t answering, so I called Chairman-nim.”

“Baby Daddy. If the investigation team is coming soon, I’ll leave. I can’t get caught, you know.”

“Yes, yes. Then I’ll hand them over to the investigation team alone. Daeun and Scarlet, you two go back too.”

“Okay.”

“… Understood.”

Rebecca gathered Nam Daeun and Scarlet and went out of the hideout.

Scarlet’s expression looked bad, but why was that?

Maybe she’s still worried about the mistake.

I forgot about it long ago.

“Alright, alright, stay still.”

I checked the mana ropes binding the demons again until the investigation team arrived.

Each one of these guys is money, so my bank account will be nice and fat again.

*

“It ended relatively quickly.”

The investigation team investigated my basic details and quickly let me go.

I thought I’d be held for quite a while, so fortunately.

As expected, Chairman-nim seemed to have taken care of things.

When I returned home, I saw Nam Daeun and Nam Dahee playing in the living room.

“I’m home.”

“Oppa! Hi!”

“Yeah. Where’s Liliana?”

“Liliana-ssi is broadcasting.”

“Ah.”

I thought she was slacking off a bit lately, but she started again.

I should say hello after her broadcast ends.

“Then, shall I play with Dahee for a change?”

“Okay!”

I spent time playing with Dahee for the first time in a while.

Actually, it would be funny to say I was playing.

I just watched from the side as Daeun played.

“Hoyeon-nim.”

“Hm?”

How long had I been watching the two of them play house?

Scarlet, who appeared behind me, called me.

“Could you come over here for a moment?”

“Now?”

“Yes.”

I nodded, looking at the Nam sisters playing well.

Just looking at them, they’ll play fine even without me.

Scarlet quietly led me to her room.

“What’s this about?”

“…… I’m sorry.”

“Huh?”

Scarlet hesitated, then bowed her head to me.

What’s with this sudden behavior?

“Scarlet, what’s with the sudden behavior?”

“… Because of me, you were almost in danger. I thought you were deliberately dealing with the demons slowly.”

“Ah.”

I was wondering what was up, but it’s because of what happened at the hideout.

It was dangerous, but well… she said she wouldn’t do it again next time, so it’s okay.

“It’s okay. We just need to be careful from now on.”

“… Still, I’m sorry for what happened. This will never happen again next time.”

Seeing Scarlet sincerely apologizing made me feel good for some reason.

I had already forgotten, but she was worrying about it more than I was.

Feeling playful, I smiled slyly and held Scarlet’s hand.

“Then will you suck me off now? Maybe it’s because of the recent battle, but my libido rose.”

“Okay.”

“No, you’re supposed to curse here. Scarlet.”

“… But I’m too sorry.”

I patted Scarlet’s shoulder.

This is the first time I’ve seen her this intimidated.

“It happens. I really mean it, so don’t worry about it.”

“Thank you.”

Only then did Scarlet give a slight smile.

Seeing her worry about something like this, she’s kind of cute.

“Hoyeon-nim.”

“Hm?”

“You say that, but why are you pressing your body against me?”

“No, well… it’s okay, but if you’re going to do it, I won’t stop you.”

“… Understood.”

Scarlet let out a wry laugh and knelt down in front of me.

*

“Oof… why is this so tiring.”

I came out of Scarlet’s room and sat down at my desk in my room.

Maybe it’s because I used Blood Beat; my body felt incredibly drained.

After one release in this state, my back felt like it would break.

Actually, saying I was aroused because of the battle was just an excuse.

In times like this, it’s better if I ask for something.

That way, Scarlet can feel more at ease too.

“Now, what about this?”

I took out the pendant that was in my pocket.

A pendant containing Surin noona’s family photo.

It’s an item I didn’t even tell the Chairman about, just in case.

“Why aren’t you contacting me.”

Looking at Moon Surin, who still hadn’t contacted me, I smacked my lips.

I don’t know if this is precious to Surin noona or not, but still, it’s proof that Moon Sungmin hasn’t completely lost his reason.

Moreover, it’s an important item that allows me to track Moon Sungmin using tracking magic.

That’s why I really want to give it to her, but since there’s no contact, I’m just frustrated.

“Wait a second. I know Surin noona’s home address.”

Can’t I just go there directly?

Why didn’t I think of this?

I checked the address Surin noona had marked on my smartwatch.