"What…?"
"I want to understand the responsibility and burden a hero feels."
Inside the Velvet Hunter Academy director's office.
Lina stood before Baek Seol-hee, her expression stern, as she abruptly posed her question about the pressures of being a hero.
"…What are you talking about? Explain yourself clearly."
"Well, you see—"
Baek Seol-hee had been with them until early in the morning, but then, spurred by a sudden thought, she abruptly left.
Sophia had interpreted Jin Yuha's subconscious, exposing fragments of his self-deprecation and the weight of his burdens.
She agreed with the notion that showing her disciple how she viewed him—how she truly thought of him—might help him. However, she didn't believe it was a fundamental solution to his problems.
The responsibility and burden of being a hero felt like emotions far removed from her experience.
She had lived her entire life working in the shadows, away from people's gaze.
That's why she sought out someone who might understand it best:
Lina.
No matter what anyone said, Lina the Mage Emperor was the most famous hero before the advent of Utopia. She had borne the expectations and burdens of many people.
"So… you're saying this Jin Yuha in the video said something like that?"
Lina, naturally, kept up with Utopia's strategy broadcasts, so the scene was familiar to her.
The battle scenes were fluid, and back then, Lina had cheered with bated breath.
But… to think there had been such clever editing that even she hadn't noticed?
Indeed, focusing on it now, she could sense subtle, awkward inconsistencies in the footage.
"Yes. Can you restore the original audio?"
At Baek Seol-hee's request, Lina shook her head.
"No. If it were live, perhaps, but with a recording? It's impossible. The mixing was done masterfully. Hmm… honestly, is this even interference caused by mana? It feels too artificial—"
"More importantly, tell me how I can help my disciple."
Before Lina could stray into another tangent, Baek Seol-hee redirected the conversation.
Lina paused briefly, organizing her thoughts.
…Jin Yuha? Feeling burdened? That didn't seem like him.
Lina still remembered that day vividly, as if it had just happened.
An unofficial meeting.
Her so-called disciples had been using her reputation and fame to pull off outrageous schemes behind her back.
Though she felt immense betrayal, she couldn't bring herself to say anything. But then—
Jin Yuha had stepped forward.
He had punished them, just enough to keep them alive.
—"Lina isn't someone who should be hurt by trash like you. You miserable pieces of garbage."
His handling afterward was even more thorough.
He placed watchful eyes on them to ensure they couldn't plot behind her back again and made them atone for their actions directly.
On the way back to the academy, Jin Yuha had said something that left an indelible mark in her memory:
—"Chairwoman, you're just like me. An ordinary person. Betrayed, stabbed in the back, hurt by people you trusted—it happens."
Ah.
For a moment, Lina's expression hardened with a realization.
Back then, Lina had been too overwhelmed by the situation to recognize something crucial:
Jin Yuha had called himself "ordinary."
In other words, he, too, was just a normal person. Someone who felt pain, bore burdens, and dealt with the weight of expectations.
How could she have forgotten?
The higher one climbs, the more inevitable loneliness becomes for a hero.
She herself had often thought about abandoning her position as chairwoman of the academy and disappearing. But she always swallowed her sighs, knowing the world would crumble without her.
Jin Yuha must have felt the same.
No, his burden might have been even greater.
Unlike her, who had no direct predecessor, Jin Yuha had inherited and was expected to surpass the legacy of the Mage Emperor:
A global hero.
The master of magic.
The greatest figure in history.
A living legend deemed impossible to surpass.
Bearing such a name, while declaring himself the hero of a new era, must have been unimaginably difficult.
He would constantly be compared to the Mage Emperor's monumental achievements and criticized no matter what he did.
It was a cruel, thorny path.
How could I have been so blind?
Lina bit her lip in frustration at her own shortsightedness.
"…This was my oversight."
She glanced at Baek Seol-hee, who was standing before her with an uneasy expression.
I should explain everything to Seol-hee too, she thought.
After all, they both shared the title of "mentor."
Even if she hadn't formally taught Jin Yuha, as her successor and a member of the academy, he was essentially her disciple, too.
Having made up her mind, Lina nodded.
"Seol-hee, let me tell you about the unofficial meeting."
"The unofficial meeting… Are you talking about the incident involving your so-called dis—"
"They're no longer disciples. Don't call them that."
"Ah… Understood."
Baek Seol-hee nodded, and Lina recounted the events of that day.
The moment Jin Yuha had exposed what her former disciples had been plotting, his intervention to prevent Lina's outrage, and his calculated punishment of those involved.
He truly acts like a disciple, she thought, a faint smile tugging at her lips.
However, as Baek Seol-hee listened, she couldn't shake an odd feeling.
Something about the way Lina spoke of Jin Yuha seemed… peculiar.
Almost as if she were describing her own "disciple."
"…So, as someone who has lived their entire life as an 'ordinary' hero, I can understand his burdens. By the way, isn't it arrogant of him to just grab me to stop my outburst?"
"…And what exactly are you suggesting I do?"
Irritated by Lina's smug tone, Baek Seol-hee's words came out sharp.
But Lina, oblivious to the tension, answered smoothly.
"Start by sharing some of his burden."
Then, Lina's gaze shifted to Baek Seol-hee.
"Seol-hee, isn't it about time you stepped out of the shadows?"
"…Out of the shadows?"
**********
[Lina Officially Acknowledge the Existence of the 'Demon Slayer Corps'! A Group Active for Over 10 Years!?]
[
[Demon Slayer Corps Eliminated 127 S-Class Demons Over 10 Years! Boasts an 82% Capture Rate for A-Class and Below Demons… Responsible for 67% of Global Demon Arrests!?]
[Shocking News! A 79% Drop in Demon-Related Incidents Last Year: The Demon Slayer Corps Was Behind It! Korea's Hunter Association: "We Knew About Them. They're Unsung Heroes of Velvet Academy." But the Reason Behind Their Sudden Disclosure Remains a Mystery.]
[Baek Seol-hee, Master of Jin Yuha and Commander of the Demon Slayer Corps, Gives Her First Official Interview! When Asked About the Group, She Described It as "A Collective That Hunts and Expels Demons Worldwide, Operating in the Shadows."]
[When Asked If He Knew About the Demon Slayer Corps, Jin Yuha Sounded Flustered: "Huh? W-What? The Demon Slayer Corps? Wait, My Master Officially Announced This? Why???"]
.
.
.
This announcement came as a sudden shock.
During the recent conquest of the Demon Realm Gate in Utopia, mysterious allies emerged.
The "Demon Slayer Corps."
Interest in this group had been bubbling under the surface.
Although their involvement was briefly touched upon when documents were handed to Lee Min-young by Se-hee Shin during the Dual Gate incident, the details were vague: a demon-hunting organization led by Baek Seol-hee, Jin Yuha's master.
Attempts to search the internet revealed nothing, and soon after, the battle between Utopia and the Spider Queen erupted, causing the intrigue to fade.
But now that Lina has officially recognized their existence and Baek Seol-hee has appeared in the media, articles and reactions have exploded.
________________________________________
["Wait, the Demon Slayer Corps actually exists?"]
And they've been around for over 10 years?
Directly under Lina?
First in demon arrests, first in eliminations, first in civilian rescues?
Operating worldwide?
And they've captured 127 S-Class demons?
Their commander taught Jin Yuha swordsmanship?
And yet, nobody knew about them until now?
Does this even make sense????
________________________________________
-"My mind is blown right now; this is insane."
-"The arrest stats are nuts. Every name on their list is calamity-level. Without them, the country would've collapsed ages ago."
-"What even is this? It's so out of nowhere, lol."
-"Is this like a special intelligence unit or the National Intelligence Service?"
ㄴ "Yeah, probably. They keep their names and faces hidden while carrying out secret operations, so it makes sense."
-"'Lina commanded the Demon Slayer Corps to support Utopia.' I still get chills replaying that scene every day, lol."
-"Holy… It's insane."
ㄴ "Volcano wet himself the moment he heard Baek Seol-hee's name, lol."
-"But is it okay for them to go public? Aren't demons going to target them now?"
ㄴ "Their members' identities are classified."
ㄴ "Yeah, even during the Dual Gate incident, they all wore masks."
ㄴ "Didn't the Master take off her mask back then?"
ㄴ "Check out this hilarious article, lol."
Link – "Baek Seol-hee: Why Don't I Wear a Mask? There's No Demon Who Doesn't Recognize My Face. Mask or no mask, they always know. And stop calling me the Slaughter Maniac."
ㄴ "Lol, when asked what she'd do if demons came after her, she said, 'Good. I welcome it. The demon prison recently got a budget increase for expansion.'"
ㄴ "She's so badass, lol. Master Jin Yuha's legacy, unmatched."
-"Wait… Does this mean Jin Yuha is part of the Demon Slayer Corps too?"
ㄴ "Nope, just a student-teacher relationship from the academy, lol."
ㄴ "Really?"
ㄴ "Yeah, apparently Lina asked her to instruct at the academy's entrance ceremony once, and that's when she met Jin Yuha. She declared, 'This child is my student' on the spot, lol."
ㄴ "What?! Lolol."
ㄴ "Another instructor confirmed it as soon as her identity was revealed, lol."
ㄴ "How does everything tie together like this, lol."
ㄴ "It's true; birds of a feather flock together, huh."
ㄴ "Wow… This is incredibly reassuring."
The emergence of a new hero is always a cause for excitement and hope.
Although Utopia currently holds the spotlight as the world's hope, this suggests that there are few other heroes to lean on.
But now, a hero has appeared!
From a completely unexpected place!
Until now, Baek Seol-hee was known as Jin Yuha's mentor but wasn't particularly famous.
Her contributions weren't as prominent as others, and searching her name online yielded little information. Most people thought of her as just an academy instructor.
But now that it's revealed she's Lina's direct subordinate, a figure so terrifying that demons tremble at the mere mention of her name, her status as Jin Yuha's mentor is being reevaluated.
.
.
.
The day after the party, in the uncleaned aftermath of the celebration, Utopia sat at a desk, flipping through a flood of articles on tablets and holograms.
"…Wow, the impact is massive."
"Even the reporters camping outside the hotel have dwindled."
"They've flocked to the Demon Slayer Corps news instead."
Staring at the articles, I couldn't help but let out a hollow laugh.
Master didn't mention anything about this.
"Was her absence from the party because she was preparing all this behind the scenes?"
Of course, I thought the existence of the Demon Slayer Corps should be made more widely known.
Just the fact that they exist could provide peace of mind to countless people.
And it would instill fear in countless demons.
Even beyond that, there will come a time when their power will no longer be needed—after all the demons have been dealt with.
Demons are beings who receive their power from the demonic races.
When such a moment of peace arrives, and the Demon Slayer Corps finally removes their masks,
people might belatedly talk about their achievements, saying, "These kinds of heroes always existed in our world." But those stories would quickly be forgotten.
"In my past life, the way veterans were treated was exactly like that."
Of course, since Lina is here, I didn't think it would spiral to such an extreme in this world.
In any case, I was in favor of the Demon Slayer Corps gradually coming into the spotlight.
'Yeah, it's not a bad thing, but… why now?'
That was the question.
Especially since I knew my master wasn't the type to seek fame or enjoy attention.
"This world can't rely on just one hero."
"?"
At Kang Do-hee's words, I tilted my head in confusion.
"There's another hero in this world, not just Utopia. The message is, 'Don't depend solely on Utopia.' Got it, Little Fool?"
Ah.
This, too, was part of that context.
My master must have thought I was being crushed under the weight of expectations.
That's why she made this bold move to reveal the Demon Slayer Corps.
'We're here too. You're not alone.'
That must have been the message she wanted to convey.
"…As expected, Master is dangerous. If this keeps up, we'll end up working together even more often…"
Sophia sighed deeply beside me.
At that moment—
"Have you all checked the news?"
Shin Se-hee stepped forward, pulling up a new hologram.
A blue, globe-shaped projection appeared, with red dots flashing here and there across it.
"The movements of the demons are unusual."
"…Is it because of my master's announcement?"
"Yes."
Manipulating the hologram, Shin Se-hee continued her explanation.
"Of course, this is just a temporary phenomenon. It's because the demons got riled up immediately after the announcement. The Demon Slayer Corps should have no trouble suppressing them."
Her fingers slid across the map, and the red dots began to vanish one by one.
"However, with just the corps' manpower, it'll take some time. Since the demons are all moving at once, there will inevitably be blind spots they can't reach."
Shin Se-hee paused for a moment, then continued.
"If that happens, the media could highlight those few blind spots and cause public opinion to turn against the corps. Criticism like, 'Why stir up the demons with such an announcement?' might arise."
At those words, I twisted the corners of my mouth into a smirk.
"…Typical demons."
When brute force doesn't work, they manipulate and incite public opinion.
That's a favorite tactic of those cockroach-like beings.
"So, what's your plan?"
Shin Se-hee already seemed to know the answer but asked anyway.
"Remember how we got help from my master and her seniors during the dual-gate incident?"
Indeed, without my master's help, we would have had to split our party in two to go in,
and the battle against the Spider Queen would have dragged on much longer,
and been much riskier.
"Of course, we'll help."
I said, staring intently at the globe.
﹌﹌﹌﹌﹌
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