Chapter 12
Meanwhile, in the pitch-black space where nothing existed but the mirror.
I watched Lee Minjeong take down the UFO-like devil and couldn't help but be amazed.
How was she using her unique ability so well when this was her first time using it?
Even though she had never used wings before, she deftly dodged the missiles flying toward her.
……So this was Lee Minjeong's potential.
Then, beyond the mirror, Lee Minjeong spoke excitedly, panting hard.
“Little Devil, I did it! I protected the city! Hehe!”
“……”
“……Huh? Little Devil?”
[‘Lee Minjeong’s’ soul erosion rate has increased from 4% to 5%.]
“I knew it. You’re not just an F-Ranker. You’ve just been so intimidated from working with your team all this time.”
“Huh? Why are you saying that all of a sudden? I guess I was intimidated, but……”
“For the time being, avoid working with your team and operate on your own. Like Featherman did in his early days.”
“……All right. If that’s what you want, Lord Devil.”
Lee Minjeong scratched the back of her head, looking flustered by what I’d said, but I was quite serious.
To think her soul erosion rate had only gone up by 1% even after awakening a unique ability……
I didn’t know how soul erosion worked, but there was something special about her, at any rate.
[Notification: Your contractors have defeated devils!]
[Recovering the souls of the defeated devils.]
[Souls in Possession]
[Low-Rank Souls: 272]
[Mid-Rank Souls: 37]
*
The next morning.
After returning home, she got out of bed, still looking disheveled.
Lee Minjeong took some rolled omelet, ham, and leftover rice from the refrigerator, warmed them in the microwave, and turned on the TV.
A news broadcast about the previous night's events came on.
“……Breaking news. A Gate appeared in midair last night, and a C-Rank devil emerged.”
“Huh? Is that……?”
“We can confirm that a Devil Hunter with an unidentified unique ability took down the C-Rank devil just twenty seconds after it appeared. The Association is currently investigating the Devil Hunter……”
“Lord Devil! I was on the news! It’s hard to see because it was dark, but I think they got a picture of me, too!”
Lee Minjeong beamed as she began taking the food out of the microwave, one dish at a time.
“This is such a great start to the day!”
As she got excited with a silly grin, I suddenly remembered what Han Seorin had said at the construction site.
-What if the other Devil Hunters realize that the power I used was a devil’s power?
“……It’s not something to be happy about, you idiot.”
“Mmph, mmph……?”
“What you used wasn’t a hero’s power. You used a devil’s power. Of course, it’s not easy for anyone to figure that out, but if the Association finds out you used a devil’s power, even by some tiny chance……”
“……Gulp.”
“They might consider you a threat and dispose of you. Whether you’re a hero or not.”
“Eeeek……!”
While I was talking, she finished her breakfast, then jolted in fright and started trembling.
I sighed, shook my head, and offered her a word of warning.
“……That’s why I told you to avoid working with a team. Since you’re using a power you can’t exactly be open about, you have to operate in secret.”
“But I’m going to protect people. Even if my power is a devil’s power, there might be someone somewhere in the world who needs it!”
“Fine. If that’s what you want, then go ahead.”
“Yay! You gave me permission……!”
She bounced up and down, genuinely delighted that I’d given her permission.
……It’s not like I was planning to say no in the first place.
A little while later.
Just as I’d told her, Lee Minjeong took a rescue request from the Devil Hunter Gallery and headed to the scene.
A house on the outskirts of central Seoul.
A devil that looked like an octopus was perched on the roof, wriggling its tentacles.
“Ppoppi……! What do we do? Ppoppi’s still inside!”
While the people who seemed to live in the house milled about in front of it,
Lee Minjeong spread Featherman’s wings and fired an arrow at the octopus devil without hesitation.
-Boom!
The moment her arrow struck one of the octopus devil’s tentacles and made it twitch,
Lee Minjeong slung her longbow over her back, hurled herself through a window, shattered the glass, and entered the room.
Inside was a small white Pomeranian.
Lee Minjeong realized this must be Ppoppi and gently scooped up the dog.
Then she flew back out the window and set Ppoppi down in front of the family.
“Oh, Ppoppi……!”
A woman who looked like a housewife hugged Ppoppi and started crying.
Then she immediately looked up to see the face of the person who had rescued her dog.
“I’m glad I made it in time! That octopus almost caught and ate Ppoppi.”
“Thank you, um, I mean……”
Lee Minjeong was wearing a Featherman helmet instead of her beret, completely hiding her face.
The woman holding Ppoppi seemed dazed for a moment, then tilted her head and asked her,
“Your name is……?”
“Featherman’s apprentice, Feather Girl.”
“……Th-that’s an unusual name.”
As Lee Minjeong put her hands on her hips and basked in her own heroics,
a voice spoke inside her head.
“There are Devil Hunters coming from the alley. Get out of here, you idiot.”
“……Gasp, this is bad! I forgot to turn off the gas! Don’t worry, everyone. Leave the rest to the other Devil Hunters!”
Leaving the bewildered family and the octopus devil swaying around inside the house behind, Lee Minjeong turned and flew high into the sky.
As she quickly left the scene, people dressed in Devil Hunter uniforms rushed over.
The person at the front of the group was none other than Han Seorin.
The moment she saw the octopus devil on the roof, she borrowed the devil’s power and leaped high into the air.
The octopus devil soon spotted her and tried to reach for her with its tentacles, but
-Whip! Whip! Whip!
Han Seorin swung her whip mercilessly, severing every one of the octopus devil’s tentacles.
At last, as soon as she landed, the octopus devil, its tentacles severed, slid down to the ground.
Han Seorin’s eyes turned red. She touched the radio in her ear and spoke in a low voice.
“C-Rank devil in Zone Nine exterminated. I’ll check on the survivors and then return. Over.”
Like the ace Devil Hunter she was, Han Seorin skillfully checked the survivors for injuries.
Without Lee Minjeong or Han Seorin realizing it, the two women who had made contracts with a devil had come together in one place.
*
After that, Lee Minjeong rescued a few more people and returned home.
The moment she stepped inside, she tossed off her suffocating helmet and spoke as she caught her breath.
“Huff, huff……. I didn’t get to exterminate any devils because I had to keep running away, but I saved a lot of people!”
“……This is a terrible deal. Are you planning to turn into a devil without giving me any souls?”
“N-no way! I’d love to hunt devils, too, but I can’t let anyone find out who I am! You said so yourself earlier, Little Devil!”
“Fine. You’re amazing.”
[‘Lee Minjeong’s’ soul erosion rate has increased from 5% to 8%.]
[‘Han Seorin’s’ soul erosion rate has increased from 18% to 24%.]
“You really are amazing. Truly.”
“Hehe, thank you.”
“I’m being sarcastic, you idiot.”
“That’s mean……”
Lee Minjeong let her body go limp and pretended to be hurt, then flopped down on the sofa.
She fiddled with the remote and started playing the Featherman movie.
……Just when it felt like the invitation had come out of nowhere,
Lee Minjeong patted the seat beside her and spoke to me.
“Come sit here too, Little Devil! Oh, right! I have some popcorn left over from the last time I went to the movies. I’ll go get it. It’s plain popcorn, not caramel, but is that okay with you?”
“……”
“……Little Devil?”
In the mirror, she had turned her head as if looking right into my eyes.
……I wanted to go.
I wanted to step through the mirror right that instant, but
I met Lee Minjeong’s gaze, ran my hand along the mirror’s frame, and sighed.
“I’m sorry, but I can’t go over there.”
“Whaaat?! Why not……?!”
“I’ve been hit with something like a seal. I can descend if I gather enough souls, but even then, it’ll only be for a little while. I can’t stay in that world forever.”
“……Little Devil.”
“Well, even if I can’t have popcorn, I can still watch the movie. So, what’s this one about?”
“Featherman fights Dark Featherman, who’s impersonating him! It’s basically a fight against himself.”
“A fight against himself, huh? I like that.”
……Hearing her talk about a fight against oneself brought back the memory of hanging myself with a rope.
Back then, I fought against myself as I turned into a devil.
I gave up my life to stop the devil I’d contracted with from taking over my body.
What if……
What if, by some tiny chance, they reached the point just before turning into devils?
Would Han Seorin and Lee Minjeong make the same choice I did?
‘……I won’t let anyone else suffer the same fate I did.’
……I made up my mind.
I had to protect their lives, of course, but I also had to stop them from turning into devils.
Even though I’d only spoken with them for a short time, these two already felt like my comrades.
That was why I wanted to protect them.
This time, I wanted to protect my comrades.
……Just as I was lost in thought without Lee Minjeong noticing,
the first scene of the Featherman movie was already playing on TV.
*
Meanwhile, in the suite bathroom.
After her shower, Han Seorin put on a bathrobe and thought as she dried her hair with a hair dryer.
‘Lord Asmode hasn’t spoken to me lately.’
She knew Asmode was a devil.
But when Asmode actually stopped talking to her, she felt lonely.
‘Could Asmode have abandoned me and made a contract with someone else……?’
She turned off the hair dryer and looked in the mirror, checking her inverted eyes.
……They were unmistakably a devil’s eyes.
So when she thought Asmode had left her, she couldn’t help feeling uneasy.
No, was it unease—or jealousy……?
‘……That’s ridiculous. Why would I be jealous?’
Han Seorin desperately tried to deny her own feelings.
But she still fidgeted nervously, breaking out in a cold sweat.
‘Maybe I should try taking on a B-Rank devil tomorrow.’
……Just as she decided to risk her life to get Asmode’s attention,
Han Seorin’s fighting spirit began to blaze.
[Notification: ‘Han Seorin’ yearns for a devil’s favor.]
[Hidden condition achieved!]
[A Special Mission has been generated.]
[Special Mission: A Fight Against Oneself]
[Mission Rewards]
- Unlock Han Seorin’s unique ability
- Obtain a High-Rank Soul