The Returner Chapter 205

– "I’m truly sorry about the matters last time." (Christopher McLaren)
"Last time?" (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
– "Yes. Didn’t our people act quite rudely to you?" (Christopher McLaren)
"Ahh, you meant that?" (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
Yi Ji-Hyuk sucked in the juice with the straw, took a gulp, and replied.
"It’s all good. Well, I’m having a nice little break right now all thanks to them, actually." (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
– "In that case…. I’m relieved to hear that. But, still. I’ll make sure that no such problem arises in the future, so I beg of you to graciously forgive them and let bygones be bygones." (Christopher McLaren)
"Nah, it’s fine if something similar happens again." (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
– "What do you mean?" (Christopher McLaren)
"If it happens again, I can just send them back home. I mean, there’s no reason to force someone into doing something they don’t want to in the first place, right? I’m not a lecturer who gets paid bonuses depending on the test results of my students, anyway." (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
– "….You’re right." (Christopher McLaren)
There was a clear sign of fluster in Christopher McLaren’s voice. Yi Ji-Hyuk grinned and continued on.
"Only those who want to get stronger should get stronger. That’s all. It’s only a matter of time, anyway." (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
– "I don’t understand." (Christopher McLaren)
"Well, you don’t really have to understand it. Anyway, was that everything you wanted to talk to me about?" (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
– "Oh, wait. We’re currently selecting our next batch…." (Christopher McLaren)
"There’s no rush, so take your time. You can discuss the date with Mister Choi Jung-Hoon." (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
– "Thank you very much, Mister Yi." (Christopher McLaren)
"Not at all." (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
Yi Ji-Hyuk ended the call and put the phone down.
"Isn’t it getting a bit warmer?" (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
*SFX for a soft breeze blowing in*
The moment his words came to an end, he felt a gentle breeze blowing in from somewhere near his head. He raised his head to look, and found Kim Dah-Som waving around a fan by his side.
"Heol?! What are you doing??" (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
"I thought you were feeling hot." (Kim Dah-Som)
Sure, I’m hot.
Here’s the thing, though. I’m not King Euija from Baekjae or something, you know? You doing this makes me feel a wee bit uncomfortable. (Yi Ji-Hyuk’s inner monologue) (TL note at the end)
‘No, hang on. It was the same story back in Berafe too, wasn’t it?’
Right, although the method was a bit different back then.
‘Ice Widows’ simply froze up the surrounding air and lowered the temperature that way, didn’t they?
Now that I look back on those days, yeah, that was a whole lot more efficient than this one, but hell, where’s the romance in that, man?!
What an aircon-like creatures they were.
Besides all that, though. This kid is getting even more uncomfortable to be around with…. (Yi Ji-Hyuk’s inner monologue)
It was nice to see the girl lose some of her gloomy nature, but the thing was, she came across a bit more terrifying now that she had become a lot more hands-on than before.
"Groan…."
Yi Ji-Hyuk stared at Kim Dah-Som with an uncomfortable expression on his face before spitting out a low groan.
She wasn’t someone who’d listen just because he told her to stop, anyway. The best thing to do right now was to switch his attention off of her. Unfortunately, not everyone seemed to agree with his train of thought.
"Aren’t you feeling hot yourself?" (Jeong Hae-Min)
Jeong Hae-Min’s voice came out a wee bit high-pitched than her usual self.
"No, I’m okay." (Kim Dah-Som)
On the other hand, Kim Dah-Som’s reply was delivered in a lower octave.
"You’re supposed to be sick so why did you even come here? Might as well rest at home, you know?" (Jeong Hae-Min)
"I’m injured, so shouldn’t I be resting in a warmer climate like this place?" (Kim Dah-Som)
"Oh, my goodness. I think this must be my first time hearing about an injured person travelling to a beach, you know? Wait, maybe you’re faking it a bit?" (Jeong Hae-Min)
"Well, the doctor said I’m injured. But if you think I’m faking it, then maybe I should get into acting, wouldn’t you agree? Ah, that’s right. Unni, you’ve never acted before, have you? Or, was that more like you ‘can’t’?" (Kim Dah-Som)
"What was that?!" (Jeong Hae-Min)
Yi Ji-Hyuk shook his head.
Since the time immemorial, one should not intervene in a catfight. If you do, your only reward would be your busted back.
Ignoring the two females and their extended claws, Yi Ji-Hyuk shifted his gaze over to the distant horizon where the ocean seemed to stretch on forever.
‘Still, this is so weird.’ (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
Why was he feeling this unsettled, worried?
Now typically, if he did find himself some down time, he'd stay cooped up in the house or the office to play video games. If he was really bored, then he’d probably go out to the city and go on a tour of famous eateries and waste time that way.
But then, just what’s gotten into him to make him come all this way? Even Yi Ji-Hyuk himself couldn’t quite figure this one out.
I’m getting more and more anxious.
But, why? (Yi Ji-Hyuk’s inner monologue)
He tilted his head.
Something like this had never happened before. He just felt weirded out right now. It was as if someone was busy chasing him down. A normal person would definitely feel worried and anxious with such a weird feeling.
No, hang on - it’d be rather normal for a regular person to get worried sometimes for no reason whatsoever. But then, the person feeling worried this time round wasn’t someone normal. It was none other than Yi Ji-Hyuk.
See, the thing was, Yi Ji-Hyuk’s balls were not just made out of any steel, but they were grade A steel of the finest quality.
The last time he felt anxious/worried would be well over three hundred years ago.
No matter what the situation was, it’d only manage to annoy him to a varying degree. That was it. They never, ever made him feel this worried.
But now, he was feeling truly, utterly worried?
Yi Ji-Hyuk shuddered even more from this ominous foreboding.
"Are you feeling cold?" (Kim Dah-Som)
When he began shivering all of a sudden, Jeong Hae-Min and Kim Dah-Som duking it out with their eyes quickly shifted their gazes at him. At the same time.
"What do you mean, cold? In this weather?" (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
"Are you not feeling well somewhere?" (Kim Dah-Som)
Yi Ji-Hyuk shook his head.
"No, well, it’s not that…." (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
How should he explain himself here?
"Nah, never mind. I’m fine." (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
For the time being, he mumbled something and glossed over the whole thing. He saw no solid reason to tell them about this bad feeling of his.
Shuruk…
It was right around then - Doh Gah-Yun peeked her head out from the shadow below the deck chair Yi Ji-Hyuk was laying on, and put a blanket on top of him all of a sudden.
"….Huh?"
H-hey, it’s hot in here, you know….
And I haven’t come down with a flu or anything…. (Yi Ji-Hyuk’s inner monologue)
"Y-you know, I’m fi…." (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
"Keep it on." (Jeong Hae-Min)
"Yes, you should cover yourself." (Kim Dah-Som)
"….Yep." (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
Jeong Hae-Min and Kim Dah-Som’s joint attack instantly disintegrated Yi Ji-Hyuk’s resistance.
‘Yep, just take it as being in a sauna. A sauna…..’ (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
Meanwhile, Choi Jung-Hoon watching silently from the sidelines threw out a probing little question.
"By the way, Mister Yi Ji-Hyuk?" (Choi Jung-Hoon)
"Yeah?"
"According to what you told us, you have lived for a…. fairly long time on the other side. Didn’t you?" (Choi Jung-Hoon)
‘Long time’ not as in grandpa level of long time, but more like a sage type of long time.
"Sure, I did." (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
"So, I was curious…." (Choi Jung-Hoon)
"Yes?" (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
"Haven’t you, you know, had chances to ‘meet’ other women on that side?" (Choi Jung-Hoon)
"………."
Suddenly, Yi Ji-Hyuk felt this cold wind blowing against him.
‘A good thing that I’ve got a blanket now….’ (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
Without it, he’d definitely come down with flu. Yi Ji-Hyuk shivered and took a look around him.
‘….Why are they all looking at me like that?’ (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
They might even start killing people with their razor-sharp glares at this rate.
…Mm? I’ll be the one dying?
"Women, is it…." (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
Yi Ji-Hyuk stared into the distance with contemplative eyes.
"Didn’t have any." (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
"Liar!" (Seo Ah-Young)
Seo Ah-Young sharply and brutally interjected.
"We aren’t talking about one, two years here! So, how does you not having a single girlfriend during all that time make any sort of sense?" (Seo Ah-Young)
"Nope, never had one. I definitely did not have anyone like that. Never." (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
"….Why do you sound so unconvincing?" (Seo Ah-Young)
Yi Ji-Hyuk formed a slightly fed-up expression and shuddered grandly once more.
"You guys have no idea." (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
"Eh?"
"You don’t know how terrifying that was." (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
Everyone stared at Yi Ji-Hyuk with puzzled faces after hearing that declaration. Just what on earth was he talking about?
"What are you even saying?" (Seo Ah-Young)
"….Well, there is this thing. But, don’t worry about it." (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
Yi Ji-Hyuk was way too busy trying to wipe the face of a certain person off his mind at the moment.
‘I’m not related to you anymore! Shoo! Shoo!!’ (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
Unfortunately, his spine was still tingling from that creeping chill for a while now. How could Yi Ji-Hyuk not feel anxious in this case?
‘Maybe I should take some traditional medicine after I get back home.’ (Yi Ji-Hyuk)
….I must be injured or sick somewhere.
Yeah, that has to be it. (Yi Ji-Hyuk’s inner monologue)
Yi Ji-Hyuk did his very best to push away and ignore his sixth sense, which had never failed him once until now.
Of course, the price for doing that would be huge.
***
"So, is it finally opening up?" (Alpha)
Alpha stared at the Gate, his eyes gleaming brightly. A pretty similar phenomenon as the last time was happening before his eyes. If there was one thing different this time, then it’d have to be the size of the Gates; this one was far, far bigger than before.
"Correct. It’s opening up." (Argolas)
Argolas agreed with Alpha’s assessment.
It had taken some time, but the operation to open up a Gate was a success. Not only that, this particular Gate was not imperfect like the previous one, either.
Built upon the foundation of the negative energy Alpha managed to gather, Argolas was able to create a perfect portal that linked this world to the demon world.
"If only the Gate I opened the last time was as perfect as this one. Lord Beltreche wouldn’t have died in such an empty manner even if the thirteenth demon king intervened." (Argolas)
However, the story was different this time. Perhaps most importantly, the personage arriving through this Gate was on another level compared to Beltreche.
It wasn’t as simple as the packing order, either.
Beltreche was a being that climbed up to the position of a demon king through its clever schemes and the powers of the demonic creatures it controlled. However, the being about to enter this world reached its current position as a demon king simply through nothing but its own incredible magical power.
Of course, this didn’t mean that Beltreche was weak. In the demon world, it’d be hard to tell who was superior existence between the lizard-like demon king and this incoming being.
Because, even though the latter boasted superiority in magical power, the former would boast superiority in its ability to command monsters as well as its tactical way of thinking.
However, things would be different in this world.
In this world, one couldn’t rely on the method of using one’s countless subordinates. No, one had to rely on one’s own powers to solve their issues in this place.
Which meant that Delkaran would definitely be in superior position than Beltreche was. And, if the demon king got here with its magical power fully intact….
Guwoooo!!
Suddenly, the Gate began distorting out of shape.
"Is there a problem?" (Alpha)
"This Gate can’t handle the incoming lord’s magical power." (Argolas)
"Does that mean this is another failure?" (Alpha)
"I can’t say for sure yet." (Argolas)
They didn’t need to wait for a long time before finding out whether it was a success or a failure. Because, only a short while later, they could spot a shadow within the Gate’s boundary.
"Ohhh."
Argolas watched on, before hurriedly kneeling down to the ground.
This was the glorious occasion of a demon king descending to this realm. The demon quickly shot Alpha a glare, but the human simply stood upright and stared at the Gate with intrigued eyes.
"Keuk."
This insolent human not displaying any hint of respect towards a demon king really got on Argolas’s nerves, but unfortunately, that man was nominally the ‘contractor’.
He was not someone Argolas could use his power to bully.
"It’s coming out." (Alpha)
Along with Alpha’s observation, a somewhat pale figure slowly began materialising outside the Gate.
"I welcome your arrival, oh great demon king." (Argolas)
Shuwuwu….
The figure emerging from the distorting and twisting Gate, was a mysterious-looking humanoid wrapped up tightly in a black cloak seemingly made out of unidentifiable material.
‘It’s a humanoid this time, is it?’ (Alpha)
Beltreche possessed a pretty terrible imitation of a human-like shape, and anyone could tell it was a monster through and through. However, this new guy looked somewhat human, at least from the outside.
Two legs and two arms, plus one head - when considering the creature being a demon, it sure was commendably humanoid, indeed.
Shuwuwu….
Sounds akin to leaking air escaped from Delkaran’s mouth.
"Argolas." (Delkaran)
"Yes, oh great demon king!" (Argolas)
"Our lord demands the head of the 99th demon king." (Delkaran)
"Our lord… do you mean….?" (Argolas)
"Your master, as well as my master. The true perfect being of the demon world. Yes, I refer to him." (Delkaran)
Argolas trembled greatly.
Up until now, the order this demon carried out had been to find a way to turn this world into a new demon world. Argolas had figured that clashing against Yi Ji-Hyuk was a necessity since he’d prove to be a hindrance to this process.
However, the story had changed now.
If that great being demanded the execution of Yi Ji-Hyuk, then this order now became the supreme task Argolas had to fulfil, even if that meant sacrificing everything to do so.
"It shall be done according to the great one’s wishes." (Argolas)
Shuwuwu….
Delkaran nodded its head and emitted that sound of leaking air again.
"Hurry." (Delkaran)
"….."
"The 13th demon king has already arrived in this world." (Delkaran)
"Euh…."
Argolas’s expression crumpled the moment it heard about the 13th demon king. It was unimaginable what might happen once that maverick of the demon world joined forces with Yi Ji-Hyuk.
"I shall endeavour to prevent that from happening. However, this small one’s just a lowly weakling. I do not possess the strength necessary to stop the 13th demon king." (Argolas)
"It’ll be quite simple." (Delkaran)
Delkaran’s eyes glowed ominously in deep crimson hue from within the darkness of the cape.
"I shall go to the 99th demon king before she finds him." (Delkaran)
"As you wish." (Argolas)
"I shall repay the debt of blood in the exact same manner as that man had raped and pillaged the demon world. If he desires to protect this world, then I shall completely destroy it as the just compensation." (Delkaran)
Delkaran’s voice eerily resounded out as if it was coming straight from the deepest pit of hell.
Another demon king had descended to this world.
Fin.
(TL: King Euija was the last ruler of Baekjae, one of the ancient Korean kingdoms, which perished some time in the 7th century A.D. As for the Ice Widow thing, I don’t know what the author is trying to say so I just TLed it straight. I don’t think he’s talking about a particular strand of cannabis, though. Probably some kind of a monster/creature MC used to lord over….)