Episode 512. Truce (2)

“….”

Kim Taehyun, an investigator for the Iris Guild’s Korean branch, rubbed his eyes, unable to believe what he was seeing.

It lasted only a moment.

Before the Iris Guild members could even react, the demons that had attacked Victoria Park deployed an unknown barrier.

Inside the barrier, magic power couldn’t be used. The attackers, including an S-class demon, overwhelmed them without any chance for a proper resistance.

That was about an hour ago.

Waiting for torture, death, or, if lucky, capture, Kim Taehyun had lost consciousness after being beaten by the demons.

And now, having just woken up, he was watching the demons fly through the sky.

‘What the hell is that cadet’s deal?’

Thwack. Thwack.

Every time Lee Hoyeon swung his hand, dark mana swirled around the demons, sending the powerful beings flying backward one by one, crashing headfirst into the ground.

“Th-the target is breaking through the magic nullification barrier!”

The demons were completely helpless.

Lee Hoyeon’s mana seemed to have a mind of its own, executing perfect attacks and defenses while pressuring the demons.

“What the f*ck… Do something!”

Kerses’ eyes widened as he saw Lee Hoyeon approaching him.

He had been flustered when Lee Hoyeon powered up his mana, but the subsequent barrage of magic was impossible to counter.

Even though dozens of demons had charged at him, Lee Hoyeon unleashed the magic power of dozens of people single-handedly.

Eventually, the demons he relied on fell like autumn leaves, leaving only himself and his aide.

“Alright. I need to blow off some steam sometimes. You worked hard.”

Lee Hoyeon, walking slowly, punched Kerses’ aide standing beside him with a mana-infused fist.

The aide collapsed onto the ground without even thinking of protecting Kerses.

“Guh…”

“Y-you son of a b*tch…”

“Quiet. I’m busy right now.”

“Aaargh!”

Lee Hoyeon, after kicking Kerses aside, looked around.

Behind the area where the demons had gathered, the Iris Guild members were huddled together.

Thankfully, just as Lucifer had said, they were all alive.

Lee Hoyeon approached them to check their condition.

“Is everyone okay?”

“Y-yes… we’re okay.”

“I’ll release you soon, so please wait a moment.”

Lee Hoyeon glanced at the mana ropes binding them and nodded.

The control must lie with that executive. It seemed they had been kept alive as ordered by Lucifer.

‘But I showed them I could use mana inside the barrier.’

He had assumed the prisoners would be unconscious, but a few of them were awake and watching him.

‘Should have been more careful.’

Lee Hoyeon left the Iris Guild members for a moment and walked towards Kerses.

“What’s your name? I haven’t seen you before.”

“I’m Kerses. Kill me, Lee Hoyeon.”

“So you know my name. Kerses, let’s make this easy. Why were you and Lucifer here? If you tell me that, I’ll let you go peacefully.”

“I have no reason to tell you anything if I’m going to die anyway.”

Lee Hoyeon frowned.

He had a point. If he was going to die, there was no need to help the enemy.

But the fact that the guy who was spewing curses moments ago was now acting so serene, like a Buddha on the verge of death, bothered him.

Lee Hoyeon stared intently at Kerses, then cast a thin barrier.

If the Iris Guild members weren’t watching, he would have kicked him straight away, but there were eyes on him from behind.

He could perhaps excuse breaking the magic nullification barrier, but it would be better to hide his lack of manners.

Thump.

Lee Hoyeon, having erected the barrier, immediately struck Kerses’ temple.

“Aargh!”

“Repeat after me. Two Arma Maestro.”

“What are you doing?!”

“You’ll want to talk after getting beaten half to death.”

It didn’t take even 30 minutes to get from Irene’s house to Victoria Park.

Considering the time spent fighting, it was less than 5 minutes.

About 3 minutes later.

Surprisingly, the torture ended quickly.

“L-Lord Lucifer said he had something to check at Victoria Park…”

“Is there anything else you know?”

“Y-yes… Y-yes… Guh…”

Lee Hoyeon let out a hollow laugh watching Kerses flinch every time he raised his fist.

Having spoken the trigger words, Kerses looked up at Lee Hoyeon cautiously, as if he were a different person.

‘To think such a weak-minded demon could become that crazy bastard after being brainwashed. Maestro is quite something.’

“If you had resolved it without the demons’ help, Cadet Hoyeon could have resolved it from the start…”

“Yes? What did you say?”

“Ah, nothing…”

After the interrogation, Lee Hoyeon, having released the Iris Guild members, looked towards the entrance of the plaza with the black pillar.

Sweat-soaked, disheveled blonde hair and a shirt with a few buttons undone were visible.

He must have rushed here in a hurry.

“Irene-ssi. You’re here?”

“Mhm. Haa… Are you okay? I requested backup from the Korean branch just in case… but it looks like it’s already over.”

Irene surveyed the fallen demons and the Iris Guild members supporting each other.

Thankfully, there seemed to be no serious injuries.

“You came alone? Everyone was together.”

Lee Hoyeon looked around as he spoke.

He had dealt with things faster, expecting a group of women, but Irene had appeared alone.

“Uh… yeah.”

Irene had considered bringing everyone too.

They had agreed to use the emergency signal only in truly dire situations, so bringing strong forces was the right call.

However, at that moment, Alice was having an important conversation between Scarlet and Rebecca.

• “A week-long homestay at the house…? The father of the baby approved?”

• “Yes. It wouldn’t make sense to ask us to get along now after saying we should, would it? You’ve lived together for longer than a week already.”

• “…Alice, you’re smart.”

A week was a long time.

If Lee Hoyeon came home, the time they could spend sleeping together would increase.

And that meant time for Alice and Irene to sleep together would also come.

‘I couldn’t stop that.’

After a moment of intense deliberation, Irene decided that coming alone was the right choice rather than interrupting Alice’s conversation.

She had to share love with her beloved dongsaeng.

A week was a great opportunity for Irene too.

“They were having such a serious conversation that I couldn’t interrupt. So I came alone.”

“Was it that serious? I’m curious.”

“Yeah… it was.”

Lee Hoyeon might find it absurd, but for Irene, it was an important conversation.

She wanted to share love with Alice, and she wanted to feel Lee Hoyeon’s d*ck too.

Both were things Irene needed.

Ahem.

Irene quickly glanced at the Iris Guild members, intending to change the subject.

“So, what happened? Thankfully, everyone seems unharmed. Was it an attack, seeing the demons lying there?”

“Yes. It was a demon attack. We’ve rescued the Iris Guild members over there… Lucifer escaped.”

“Lucifer was here? In this place?”

“Yes. He said he had business at Victoria Park, but he disappeared quickly.”

“…That’s a serious matter. There might be something hidden in Victoria Park. We need to investigate again.”

“…”

Hearing Irene’s serious tone, Lee Hoyeon’s heart skipped a beat.

‘The fake dungeon magic circle?’

Something hidden in Victoria Park?

There was.

Something he knew all too well.

He had hidden it so perfectly that he felt safe, but his opponent was Lucifer.

Lee Hoyeon could evade Lucifer’s demonic eyes.

But could his magic circle evade Lucifer’s demonic eyes too?

“…Irene-ssi. Please take care of the Iris Guild members. I have something to check.”

“Huh? Now?”

“Yes. Just for a moment.”

Lee Hoyeon left Irene tilting her head and ran towards the location of the fake dungeon magic circle.

Just in case, he didn’t forget the rune barrier, considering the possibility of encountering Lucifer.

“This really can’t be happening…”

An unfounded anxiety gripped him.

Arriving at the place where the fake dungeon magic circle was hidden, Lee Hoyeon inspected it.

Thankfully, the result was normal.

“…If it wasn’t this, then why would he have stopped by the park?”

The black pillar?

The pillar in Victoria Park was summoned by Lee Hoyeon himself, but would Lucifer pay special attention to it?

“This is giving me a headache… but it’s not the worst-case scenario.”

Lee Hoyeon meticulously scanned the magic circle once more.

There were no signs of anyone having touched it.

Relieved, Lee Hoyeon returned to the plaza with the black pillar.

He saw Irene tending to the guild members in the plaza.

“Kim Taehyun-ssi. Are you okay?”

“Y-yes. I’m okay. Team Leader 1.”

“The Korean branch chief will be here soon, so give your detailed report to them. Understood?”

“Ah, yes… understood…”

The Korean branch members seemed strangely afraid of their branch chief.

Of course, it wasn’t his business, so Irene selected members for the medical team while checking the guild members’ conditions.

Just then, she saw Lee Hoyeon approaching.

“Oh? You’re already back. What were you doing?”

He chuckled sheepishly at Irene’s words.

“I had something nagging at me, so I went to check. It’s nothing major, so don’t worry about it.”

“Hmmmm. Really? Then shall we head back?”

She didn’t realize that telling someone not to worry often made them worry more.

Irene filed Lee Hoyeon’s words away in her memory.

“Yes. Everyone’s still gathered at Alice’s place, right? I think their talk should be over by now.”

“Ah… wait a moment.”

Irene clearly remembered the conversation the women were having when she left the house.

If she brought Lee Hoyeon home now, the week-long homestay plan might fall apart.

“You go back home.”

“Huh? Why?”

“They’re having an important discussion. I’ll wrap it up, so come later.”

“But isn’t it related to me? If I go in with Irene-ssi, we could naturally join the conversation by talking about Lucifer.”

“It’s fine. I’ll handle it. You go back home.”

“…”

Lee Hoyeon wanted to hear their conversation, but Irene’s attitude was unwavering.

‘She’ll handle it, right?’

Although he was worried about the other women, Irene wasn’t a child.

She must have judged that the conversation would go better without him present.

“Alright. I’ll head home then. Tell me briefly what you talked about later.”

“Sure. I’ll let you know.”

Only then did Lee Hoyeon feel relieved and head home.

Watching his retreating back, Irene let out a sigh only after he disappeared.

“This is so exhausting…”

Irene didn’t hate Lee Hoyeon that much anymore.

She was trying her best to forgive his past misdeeds towards her, seeing Alice.

‘But I wish he’d sort out that complicated relationship with women.’

If it weren’t for that, he would have been a truly wonderful man.

Irene turned away with a sense of regret.

“Irene-nim! I’m sorry. I’ve just arrived!”

“Mhm. It’s okay. Branch Chief. Please take over here. It was a demon attack.”

“Understood. You people! What happened to all of you?! Explain yourselves immediately!”

Leaving the cleanup to Dr. Kang Hyorin, Irene exited the park and headed home.

She had to hurry back home and cheer Alice on.

That way, she would get her chance too.

Irene practically ran towards her house.