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Translator: Vine
Chapter Title: The Newest Member of the Demon Extermination Squad
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097. The Newest Member of the Demon Extermination Squad
A secluded vacant lot behind the Hunter Management Bureau.
Since the instructor had personally guaranteed that no one else was around, I could speak freely.
"...Ryu Jin-ju, she's likely the woman who will replace the current Hunter Management Bureau Chief after she's demoted."
Since Instructor Baek Seol-hee had decided to lend her strength, I decided to share what I knew with her.
In the game, not long after the tutorial, a corruption scandal involving the Hunter Management Bureau Chief, Kim Ji-won, would erupt, and she would be immediately demoted. The woman who would then take over as the new Hunter Management Bureau Chief was none other than the hunter Ryu Jin-ju.
There was much talk about such an unprecedented appointment at first, but as the former chief's corruption case was reported in detail, and it became known that Ryu Jin-ju was the one who exposed it, her image actually skyrocketed.
'...She's quite strong, but her personality is equally uncompromising, leading to constant clashes with Velvet Academy.'
When it was just a game, she served as a pretext for the Academy and the Hunter Management Bureau to oppose each other, raising the tension…
But now, this wasn't a game; it was reality.
'I'm already living in hard mode, so I can't miss an opportunity like this.'
"...Is that so? She was a demon after all. Hmm, I distinctly remember, from the first time I saw her, there were no signs of physical training on her body…"
"What? She's not a demon. She's just a clueless new—um, a woman."
I was startled and immediately refuted her words. Ryu Jin-ju herself wasn't a demon. She was just hot-headed and short-sighted, always getting duped by demons.
"No, no. Just talking to myself."
Baek Seol-hee shook her head.
'Hmm?'
I tilted my head, but Baek Seol-hee changed the subject with an "Anyway."
"So that's how it is... With this information, things will be much easier."
"What are you planning to do?"
"Let's raise the stakes a bit."
"Pardon...?"
Baek Seol-hee calmly put a finger to her lips.
*Peep!*
A sharp whistle echoed from her lips.
After a short wait.
*Swish—*
*Swish—*
An eerie wind swept through the surroundings.
"Haaah~. I was sleeping so well..."
"Chief, what's going on?"
"Oh? Is this the Hunter Management Bureau?"
"!"
Suddenly, about ten black-clad individuals appeared from behind. They had such faint presences that I would have missed them if I hadn't activated my detection ability.
I couldn't help but widen my eyes as I observed their appearance.
Black clothing, covering them from head to toe without a single gap.
And cute animal masks that seemed out of place.
'These people...'
I knew them.
No, rather, I knew their attire.
'They're Ninjas!?'
Commonly known as, Ninjas.
No, I mean, they weren't actually like the Anbu that appear in Japanese media. The name simply originated from a meme in an online community.
The adage goes: if a scene isn't more interesting than suddenly having ninjas appear and slaughter all the characters, you have to rewrite it.
As you progress through the game's story, enemies would occasionally appear that were impossible to defeat with your current party, according to the lore. At such times, women wearing cute animal masks would suddenly appear out of nowhere, offering support, slicing through the enemies, and then leaving without a word.
—Ninjas appeared!
These individuals, who would pop out of nowhere to help and then leave without a sound, were called 'Ninjas' by the black-clad people, because their actions were just like the ninjas from the community meme.
'No way, was Instructor Baek Seol-hee a Ninja too...?'
I looked at Baek Seol-hee with renewed surprise.
Baek Seol-hee's eyebrows twitched, as if something displeased her.
"Total of 10 people? Half are missing. Where are the rest of them?"
"......They're all collapsed. You pushed them so hard yesterday...... saying they were worse than a first-year Academy student......"
The woman standing at the front said, removing her rabbit mask. One of her eyes was covered by her hair, and her pale complexion and dark circles under her eyes gave her an unmotivated air.
"...Hmph, I'll deal with them when I get back."
At that, the Ninjas murmured amongst themselves.
"...She trained them into that state, and now she's punishing them with more training. Will it ever end?"
"Are they just going to train to death behind the scenes and then retire without ever seeing real combat?"
"That's just hell, isn't it...?"
As the Ninjas, who had helped me countless times in the game, actually appeared before my eyes, a surge of internal familiarity welled up. I bowed my head to them and greeted them.
"Hello."
Only then did they notice me.
"Hmm?"
"Oh? Is this... isn't this *that* kid?"
"Oh, oh, that, that Jin Yuha!"
"H-huh! Is he already joining as a junior? He's only a first-year!"
"He's really handsome."
"So, with that refined face, he earned the Chief's recognition?"
They gasped in surprise when they saw me. Their reaction was as if they had encountered a mythical creature that only existed in their imagination.
A curious scene unfolded where both sides found each other fascinating.
"He's just here as a casual observer."
Baek Seol-hee cut off the Ninjas' chatter.
"...Wow, she really means to train him properly, doesn't she?"
"Isn't early training for the Extermination Squad too soon for a first-year? That's almost six years of military service, then?"
"...Poor thing."
Their voices instantly filled with pity. It was as if they were expressing heartfelt sorrow, wondering how he had gotten mixed up with such a woman.
"Quiet. Anyway, I'm only going to explain this once, so listen carefully."
.
.
.
"...You're going to attack the Hunter Management Bureau?"
The one-eyed woman asked with a surprised expression at Baek Seol-hee's words.
"We're not directly attacking it. First, we'll start by securing Ryu Jin-ju."
"...That's practically the same thing! We're still cleaning up the mess from when we overturned the Demon Surveillance Team last time. If we mess this up, it'll turn pretty bad for us. You know that, Chief?"
She spoke in a worried voice, and Baek Seol-hee chuckled.
"Since when did I ever care about such things? And all the information we've gathered about the Hunter Management Bureau, release it all. Speed is critical. No. 1 and No. 3, you handle the dissemination. The rest of you, follow me."
And so, the members of the Demon Extermination Squad and one observer (student) began to move.
* * *
*Gulp.*
"...Is, is this for real?"
Forearms as massive as boulders.
A large woman with thick reddish-brown hair.
Ryu Jin-ju, the Section Chief of the Gate Field Management Department, checked the express delivery that had been sent to her.
An extremely suspicious box delivered anonymously.
Inside were various corruption charges seemingly committed by the current Hunter Management Bureau Chief. Ledgers, as if someone had investigated and recorded them for a long time.
*Flutter—Flutter—*
Ryu Jin-ju's eyes scanned the ledgers faster and faster.
"...This woman, that woman, and even that old hag were involved? And even with Velvet Hunter Academy...!?"
The ledgers detailed connections that ran incredibly deep.
Hah. What a complete mess.
Even though she knew the Hunter Management Bureau had become corrupt recently, she hadn't realized it was this bad.
The paper crumpled in her hand with a *crunch*.
'This, this cannot stand.'
A sense of righteous indignation surged within her.
A crisis loomed, a feeling that if she just stood by, the Hunter Management Bureau might truly be doomed.
If she were a more thoughtful person, she would have first confirmed the source of the information and cross-checked it to verify its authenticity, but—
"...This must be someone who was biding their time in the shadows, waiting for an opportunity. And now, unable to bear it any longer, this is a desperate plea for me, Ryu Jin-ju, to restore the rotten Hunter Management Bureau."
Being hot-headed by nature, she had already concluded that the current Hunter Management Bureau Chief, Kim Ji-won, was an evil of the century.
"Ha, fine. I'll do it."
She sprang up from her seat.
She had to report this to the press immediately and depose Kim Ji-won. There wasn't a moment to lose.
"You all!"
Ryu Jin-ju quickly turned her head, looking around.
Huh?
For a moment, Ryu Jin-ju couldn't help but wear a bewildered expression.
"Where did everyone go?"
All the staff members of the Gate Field Management Department had vanished.
Only an eerie silence filled the office.
*Flicker flicker—*
Just then, the ceiling lights suddenly began to flicker.
A heavy atmosphere settled.
Suddenly, voices could be heard from somewhere.
—Chief, shouldn't we see our newest member's skills?
—He's not the newest member. And why did you swing your sword like that just now? Didn't I tell you to follow through once you swing?
—Th-that...!
—Instructor, I'd like to face him.
—...Hmm, is that so. Go ahead.
—H-huh! The Chief changed her order!
"...What? What's going on?"
*Click.*
Then, before Ryu Jin-ju, who wore a dumbfounded expression, a black-clad figure wearing a cute dog mask with its tongue sticking out appeared.
"A dog...?"
"Oh, um... I do have a bit of a personal grudge..."
He scratched the cheek of his mask as he spoke.
"But this has nothing to do with that."
*Shing—*
Abruptly, the black-clad figure with the dog mask drew a blue sword from his waist.
Ryu Jin-ju braced herself, but couldn't help but ask with a questioning voice.
"...A, man?"
* * *
Meanwhile, No. 1 and No. 3 had returned to the Extermination Squad's hideout and were preparing the groundwork to compile and release all the accumulated data related to the Hunter Management Bureau.
*Clack clack—*
"Ugh, this is such a waste. This isn't how this should be used."
"Just do as you're told, already..."
No. 3 grumbled, but No. 1 typed away at the keyboard with an unmotivated expression.
*Ding—*
At that moment, a new instruction was added to No. 1's communication network.
"Hmm...? The Chief gave us another personal request..."
"What is it?"
"......She wants us to find the whereabouts of a demon, a follower of Elcros......"
"Isn't that guy the one who went missing 10 years ago!? Why suddenly him, when he hasn't made any moves?"
"Oh, right... She just said to do it slowly and quickly."
"And that guy is super dangerous! He has an ability that traps people in a mental space for years!"
"Huh? She said Jin Yuha might be his victim......?"
"How is that possible? Everyone who's been affected by him has either gone crazy or lost their minds!?"
"I don't know... Anyway, if she tells us to do it, we have to do it..."
*Clack clack—*
The sound of typing once again echoed silently within the hideout.