< Demon Realm (1) >
The office of the Head of the Buncheon Society, now a chaotic mess.
“Ugh.”
Hubert, sprawled out on the top-tier chair within, let out a low groan.
As his head lifted from the floor, his eyes slowly opened.
He blinked several times, scanning the surroundings, before standing up casually and stretching his body.
“Ugh, feeling a bit stiff. Even if I was sitting in a wrong position, it hasn’t been that long…”
It was likely the doing of a wicked magical force that penetrated in an attempt to manipulate his mind.
While he successfully blocked the attempt itself, the aftershocks caused by the high-density energy’s infiltration could not just be ignored.
Let alone, Hubert wasn’t particularly trained in any special mysticism, so he was somewhat vulnerable in this regard.
‘For an ordinary opponent, this should have been enough.’
Assassination attempts came as a daily occurrence for someone like him, who operated on a continental scale.
Strict security over his operational territory, including the headquarters building, strong bodyguards capable of repelling military forces or special units, and personal capabilities that surpassed mere self-defense.
Yet even those means were an exception in this instance.
“Tsk, considering the opponent I was up against, I can’t help it.”
Hubert clicked his tongue and slowly scanned his surroundings.
Diana, who had fainted, lay placidly on the sofa where the reception table was set, and her breathing was even—it appeared she was merely asleep without any other issues.
His gaze then moved to the place where the highest seat at the table was located.
doubtful whether those gathered were the ones who had caused such a ruckus just moments ago.
A young man with an ordinary appearance, black hair, and black eyes—Count-level Demon, Miyamoto Ken.
An elderly gentleman clad in pure white robes holding an antique cane—Baron-level Demon, Frances.
And—
Sitting alone with her legs crossed on the sofa, leading the others with a polite demeanor, the Demon Lord of high rank—a Demon Lord named Hela.
This Demon Lord who had just descended onto this land rested her chin on her arms propped up over her crossed legs, gently nodding while listening to the talks of two demons behind her.
‘…This atmosphere is no joke.’
Amidst her long black hair tied carelessly, her magnificent features were only accentuated with the towering horns and black wings behind her, hiding an extraordinary beauty even with the bizarre black and red irises.
Moreover, even the shabby clothing she carelessly draped over her figure looked like a work of art, exuding an overwhelming charisma that made it impossible to dare approach her for a conversation.
Hubert found himself admiring her secretly as he gazed intently at his new avatar.
Since it was his first time handling a female avatar, it was only natural that even he, who had dealt with numerous entities thus far, would feel unfamiliar.
[Entity Information]
-Entity Name: Hela
-Race: Demon Lord
-Common Traits: 「Mind Hub」、「Persona」、「Xenoglossy」、「Spatial Dimension Storage」、「Limit Break」、「Imitation」
-Entity Traits: 「Demon Lord」、「Destroyer」、「Demonic World」、「Magic Domination」、「Eye of Domination」、「Peerless Beauty」、「Lord of Bewilderment」
-Special Notes: Seong-hyun Han’s twelfth avatar. The essence of the 14th Demon Lord, Rereia, is contained in the horn, right arm, and eye used as a medium. The influence of the medium is so strong that some traits from her lifetime have been inherited. She possesses an immense amount of energy and strong resistance to Holy Power.
She was born already transcending, with no less than seven innate traits.
Each of those traits was a superior trait formed through the combination of various skills and overlapping effects, essentially making her a being that was complete from the start—Demon Lord Hela.
The race trait that serves as the base for all abilities, 「Demon Lord」, the trait involved with aggression and combat as a whole, 「Destroyer」、the trait that summons her unique domain into the world, 「Demonic World」.
‘“Magic Domination” is something Hans has too. And the remaining three…’
「Eye of Domination」、「Peerless Beauty」、and 「Lord of Bewilderment」。
These abilities, centered around captivating and dominating others, were closely tied to the bloodline of the 14th Demon Lord, Rereia.
‘To think a Demon Lord could be a hybrid of a Succubus. I must’ve overlooked that while solely judging the performance of the materials.’
That fact likely had a significant impact on why it couldn’t change the entity’s gender.
For them to have such power as mediums, it would indeed be strange if it resulted in a male form.
‘Well, it’s pointless to ponder now. Since it’s a type that hasn’t existed before, there should be some utility in it.’
Having thought it over, Hubert looked at Hela with a complex expression.
Her beauty was different from all the lovely women he’d seen until now.
Yet, despite her beauty, his gaze held nothing but a feeling of awkwardness.
…No matter how pretty she was, she was still him.
Since it was fundamentally the same existence with a unified soul and self, he couldn’t perceive it differently.
It felt like looking at a perfectly crossdressed version of himself in the mirror.
Unless he were a narcissist, it felt incredibly unsettling for someone who prided themselves on having a quite average taste in preferences.
‘In terms of artistic merit, I can give her a high score, though.’
Objectively speaking, there wouldn’t be many who could be compared to Hela.
To even be a contender in his mind, one would need to at least be on the level of Saint Liesta, Jin So-Ran, and Briki among vampires, or the Crown Princess Riley or elf Shapiron, Great Mage Misty, Je Gal Hye-mi or Namgoong So-ran, the dragons of Gonmudo, and the genuine Succubus, Siana.
‘…Oh? There are more than I thought?’
Just as he was thinking this, he suddenly stopped.
He realized an astonishing fact that he had been unconsciously unaware of.
‘Were there this many women around me?’
And all of them were uniquely charming beauties.
The realization led to a natural train of thought.
‘…Could it be that I was the legendary Alpha Male?’
A fact that no one knew… not even the subject himself!
But that groundless confidence quickly fizzled away like bubbles.
Having never even gone on a date, how could he call himself an Alpha Male?
‘Tsk, that makes sense.’
Some inexplicable disappointment welled up.
So he decided to put those thoughts aside and proceed with the story.
“Hubert? If you’ve roughly gauged the situation, come over here. Don’t worry about these guys; I’ve already taught them a lesson.”
As he approached the spot where the seductive voice of Diana echoed, which made his ears tingle just by hearing it, Hubert headed towards the demons.
He sat on the sofa opposite where Diana was sleeping, stealing a glance at Hela seated at the top.
‘Facing her up close, the pressure is even more overwhelming. Even though I’m trying to hide my energy as much as possible.’
The two demons standing beside the chair glared at Hubert with sinister eyes.
Ready to snap his neck the moment he showed any disrespect.
Hubert, avoiding their fiery loyalty with a sidelong glance, couldn’t help but chuckle quietly.
‘Looks like there’s no problem with her domination.’
Originally, even a high-ranking Succubus would find it nearly impossible to brainwash someone of his caliber. Yet this situation was different.
They were demons originating from the Demon Realm, and Hela was undeniably the new ruler of the Demon Realm—a Demon Lord.
“I’ve briefly explained things to these kids, so they won’t cause you any trouble going forward. Now, you guys should apologize properly too?”
“Ahem, had you revealed before that you were Hela’s servant, this wouldn’t have happened.”
“Hohoho, I almost made a big mistake too. As someone who serves a master like you, I’ll forget the past and do my best from now on.”
True to their demon nature, their apologies were vague and half-hearted.
Yet Hela wouldn’t let such tricks slide.
“Hmm.”
“…I’m sorry, please forgive me.”
“Ahum, I too, sincerely apologize. I shall make sure to repay this debt.”
The Demon Lord Hela had laid down her pawns across the continent.
That became a new setup assigned to Hubert.
This would explain why she was protecting him.
And one other major undertaking was intricately connected to this arrangement…
‘Must I call it a merchant’s bond if there’s just one?’
It was about using the Demon Lord’s backdrop to expand his business territory into the Demon Realm.
Of course, this wouldn’t be easy due to the dimensional barriers that couldn’t be crossed lightly, but he had just gained competent underlings—uh, no, slaves to utilize in various ways, hadn’t he?
‘Hehehe, if Hubert Association could dominate even the markets of the Demon Realm…’
It didn’t matter if that land didn’t follow conventional market economics.
After all, what he truly desired was the enormous karma generated from exerting influence.
“Anyway, given that we’re in the same boat, there’s no point in talking about forgiveness. Let’s do our best moving forward.”
“Oh! You really are magnanimous. I noticed that from the beginning…”
“That’s not what I meant to say.”
Suddenly, a fantasy of karma pouring down from the skies filled his vision.
Licking his lips and swallowing hard, his eyes sparkled as he continued speaking.
“…I have a business plan in mind, but it won’t be easy to proceed. Would you mind lending me your assistance with it?”
At that moment, the dark merchant, whose eyes opened to the reality that he could sell items even to demons for money (karma), began to stir.
*
“Ugh.”
Hela, fully equipped with the Demon Realm’s armaments extracted from Horus’s “Golden Report,” slowly repeated the motion of clenching and unclenching her fists, nodding in satisfaction.
Her initially awkward body had grown accustomed.
Wasn’t she someone who had dealt with not just undead reduced to bone, stout dwarves, but even the bodies of dragons that had lost all human form?
It was indeed absurd to be flustered over the body of a woman at this point.
Though, having lived as a man all his life, the residual discomfort remained.
However, the Persona helped regulate the emotions and tendencies embedded within the avatar, allowing her to operate ‘Hela’ naturally, regardless of the main body’s sentiments.
Just like with the other avatars thus far.
Despite that, it couldn’t be helped that the entity’s tendencies still concerned him…
While rough around the edges, Hela’s demeanour viewed from any angle couldn’t be considered male.
‘Could it be that this is some latent femininity hidden deep inside me?’
A manly man like himself having femininity?
Once he realized that, a strange unease swelled within.
‘Ugh! I need Harley…! The raw meat-chewing Harley!’
He felt an internal injury from recalling the early Hans’s teenage delusions that came with acquiring “Persona.”
However, he tried to think positively while forcefully picturing Harley savagely devouring meat.
After all, he had thoroughly scraped together the minute femininity lingering within him, so if he could just control this, his main body could become a true avatar of manhood!
‘Yes, considering it that way doesn’t seem bad.’
As he calmed his mind, the raucous roars from Harley as he exhibited his wildness led some of the Drakal citizens to complain about the noise, but it was something he couldn’t control.
‘…Well, I could hold a meat festival out of compassion or something. But right now, figuring out the situation in the Demon Realm is my priority.’
Staying true to the role of a merchant, Hubert promptly began preparing for pursuing the demon realm, though what truly felt pressing was the issue that had arisen in the Demon Realm.
The reason he had started to take interest in it in the first place was due to this sense of insecurity.
Information gathering was naturally the most crucial aspect for resolving the problem, and in that sense, the two demons who had just come from the Demon Realm served as excellent sources of intel.
…That’s how it ought to have been.
“Ugh, actually, I’m not very knowledgeable about the current situation, so the only thing I told Hubert is what I know. If that’s fine with you…”
“Hoho, I apologize. It’s been over five years since I left the Demon Realm, so I’m a bit out of touch with the latest info… But I’ll share what I do know.”
They were somewhat untrustworthy, but as Hubert quickly summarized the stories he heard, it came down to “factional disputes over the next Demon Lord’s seat.”
A situation that had persisted for hundreds of years, becoming a routine event by now.
It was explained that the reason the Demon Realm fell silent during the time the Undead King was rampaging was also due to that.
‘…Come to think of it, there was also a Succubus Queen’s essence in the “Golden Report” associated with the Demon Lord’s remains.’
He had excluded it out of concern for adding materials that might lower the quality compared to the Demon Lord’s remains…
‘A hybrid Succubus Demon Lord and a Succubus Queen executive. Now that I think about it, their relationship might not have been as simple as mere monarch and vassal.’
Nevertheless, what truly mattered now was that, besides these two demons, he had one more connecting point to the Demon Realm.
That connection was likely somewhat significant given its close ties to the former Demon Lord.
‘Siana.’
The Succubus serving under Hans from the army of the Undead.
Given that demons tended to have long lifespans, it was possible that she could know about them who had died a thousand years ago.
If not, producing former Demon Lords and high-ranking executives meant that the factions remaining in the Demon Realm wouldn’t be small either.
‘If I could absorb that…’
It would surely make proceeding with affairs in the Demon Realm easier.
Slowly nodding, Demon Lord Hela wasted no time in initiating action.
And the Undead King Hans began to move in sync with her.
Should the world learn of it, it would be a horrific collaboration provoking blood-curdling screams from all.
Yet, no one knew this fact yet.
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