Chapter 68 - Chapter 66: Episode 65 - To the Demon Realm
The expedition team's massive force passed through the gate.
Most of those who crossed over were gasping for air, visibly struggling with the transition.
Except for one person.
A woman in a low-pulled hat and slightly baggy clothes took a deep breath as if the air itself were refreshing, a wide grin spreading across her face.
Miel felt a surge of relief as she finally breathed in the Demon World's air again after nearly four months.
Life on Earth, where her body constantly felt heavy, had been unbearable.
Miel's outfit wasn't a choice—it was a necessity.
Since her wings were smaller than those of other succubi, she could conceal her appearance more easily.
She had wrapped her wings tightly against her body with bandages, pulled her hat low to cover her horns, and disguised herself completely.
Thanks to her efforts, she had transformed from a blonde, tanned succubus with sheep horns into a blonde, tanned delinquent.
"Haa... I finally feel refreshed."
Miel let out a deep breath and voiced her thoughts.
"Keep your voice down. Someone might hear."
Yu-rin scanned their surroundings and warned Miel.
"You said we'd leave once the 2nd Expedition Team personnel arrive, right?"
"Yeah. For now, the 1st Expedition Team's goal is to build a base camp within about a month."
Their mission as the advance force was to establish an outpost.
During the month before the 2nd Expedition Team set out, they had to construct the base camp and observe the surrounding situation.
Though she was worried about Seon-ah, the Succubus Lord's power was far too overwhelming for just Miel and Yu-rin to attempt anything reckless.
If Miel hadn't kept talking to Yu-rin, Yu-rin might have already left on her own to rescue Seon-ah.
Besides, Miel figured that if they wanted Seon-ah dead, they'd have drained him dry and killed him on the very first day.
It seemed the Succubus Lord and her daughters wanted to make Miel suffer.
Looking at the situation objectively, Miel felt that the prolonged torment they'd put her through, combined with the way they kept flooding Seon-ah's body with agonizing pleasure as if urging her to come quickly—it was all meant to provoke her.
If she went to rescue Seon-ah, she knew her mother and sisters would show her a broken, exhausted Seon-ah and mock her for fun.
Since they were a family that had always enjoyed tormenting her, that was almost certainly the case.
Irritation was already starting to brew.
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After reaching adulthood, Miel had never liked staying at home, so she often flew around the territory.
Sometimes, when the urge to travel far struck her, she'd venture quite a distance.
So she was fairly familiar with the geography around her home territory.
She started figuring out where she was by scanning the landmarks.
It was hard to pinpoint her location from the ground when she was used to seeing everything from the air, but she recognized the fortress in the distance.
That was the fortress city ruled by the Minotaur Lord.
Unlike the others, she was covered in black fur, had once been a Royal Knight, and was now retired due to a leg injury.
Considering the distance, this place was about a month's walk from her mother's territory.
They had ended up quite far away.
She wanted to go rescue Seon-ah right now, but getting him back without the expedition team's power was nearly impossible.
She resolved to wait for the 2nd Expedition Team and leave with them.
Today, as pleasure surged through her body from the Yin Mark, an image of Seon-ah being pitifully drained flashed through her mind.
Without a proper plan, Seon-ah would be wrung dry until he was nothing but a tattered rag in that place forever.
If she died, they'd only become more interested in playing with his body.
Even though her Yin Mark was carved into him, when a succubus's mate dies, someone else can overwrite the mark with a different shape.
Even if her mother, who already had a mate, couldn't modify the Yin Mark, the thought of her countless unmarried sisters obsessively touching Seon-ah—carving their own marks into him while torturing him with pleasure until he went insane to make him theirs—made her nauseous.
It was a truly horrifying thought.
Since they were already the kind of bitches willing to break the succubus code just to violate Seon-ah until he broke—all to hurt her—it was obvious what would happen to the Seon-ah left behind if she died.
It would only get worse, not better.
The thought that if she didn't pull herself together, that nightmare would become reality...
Miel gritted her teeth against the painful pleasure coursing through her body.
With a single-minded resolve to someday repay this humiliation and rescue Seon-ah.
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After Miel advised Yu-rin on their location and the best place to set up an outpost, Yu-rin relayed the facts to the expedition leader as a staff officer.
The expedition leader.
This expedition team had been assembled from talent across multiple international guilds.
Among them, Maria—with the most experience and highest rank across both the 1st and 2nd Expedition Teams—was considered the leader.
Maria, the former guild master of a large American guild, had announced her retirement to join this expedition.
An S-class super-strength ability user, she was in her sixties but looked like she was in her late thirties.
Super-strength was the most common physical-type ability, and it often hit a hard ceiling.
But her ability was on a completely different level.
Her record as an S-class hunter who had fought on the day the large gate opened was beyond imagination.
She had body-slammed a building in the city center, smashed a giant monster's head while holding a utility pole in each hand—her power defied belief.
In fact, the only reason this expedition team was viable was because of her.
The Hwaryong Guild had pushed this project, secured investment funds, supplied the troops beyond the gate, and paid contract fees and allowances to the hunters. But hunters were human too.
Faced with a suicide mission, no amount of money could motivate people.
They signed up because her involvement drastically reduced the perceived risk.
Since the expedition was originally formed to rescue Seon-ah, there shouldn't have been anyone higher-ranking than Min-ah, who would join as the 2nd Expedition Team leader.
But Yu-ra had judged that the force would be woefully inadequate otherwise.
Contrary to their worries, Maria showed tremendous curiosity upon learning that Yu-rin was the first returnee from the Demon World.
Maria trusted Yu-rin's judgment. As a staff officer who knew even a little about the Demon World, Yu-rin had shared the characteristics of this area and other knowledge using Miel's information. Maria trusted her even more actively after they arrived.
Once the 2nd Expedition Team joined, Yu-rin intended to steer this trusting expedition leader toward the Arandel family—the Succubus Lord's territory.
Her reasoning was that if they were going to occupy a place anyway, they should pick one that was 'easy' and offered the most profit. She also casually mentioned the Black Minotaur Lord's rumors in this territory. Maria trusted Yu-rin's judgment.
At first, Maria was puzzled that someone who had only spent a few months in the Demon World—and as a captured prisoner, no less—possessed such extensive knowledge. But everything Yu-rin said that could be verified turned out to be true, so Maria let all those trivial doubts slide.
Maria also judged that Yu-rin wouldn't harm the expedition, and even if she tried, Maria could 'handle' it on the spot with her own power.
Yu-rin knew she had to steer the expedition's course as much as possible so that Min-ah wouldn't waste time trying to persuade Maria when the 2nd Expedition Team arrived.
It was the fastest way to save Seon-ah.
She had to do it.
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Three days after the 1st Expedition Team departed for the Demon World.
Min-ah could no longer hold back her tears and collapsed.
A crowd of mourners in black surrounded her, offering words of comfort—coworkers, relatives, everyone.
There was only one reason for the mourning clothes.
Hyeon-tae had passed away yesterday.
His condition had been deteriorating for days.
The heart rate on the monitor had been steadily dropping.
When the doctor told her to prepare for the worst, her world crumbled.
Now... she was truly alone in this world.
But it was too soon to give up.
If she could bring Seon-ah back to this world...
At least Hyeon-tae, wherever he was, wouldn't have to grieve forever.
She had resented Yu-rin fiercely at first.
She couldn't forgive Yu-rin for what she'd done.
But Yu-rin had left with the 1st Expedition Team, determined to risk her life to save Seon-ah.
She had joined the 2nd Expedition Team to be with Hyeon-tae in his final moments, not knowing how long he had. But Seon-ah was her son.
She should have gone with the 1st Expedition Team.
Yu-rin knew better than anyone that returning to the Demon World was a death sentence, yet she still went, claiming it was to save Seon-ah. Min-ah had no choice but to forgive her.
At the very least, she couldn't let Yu-rin marry Seon-ah.
But if Seon-ah had forgiven Yu-rin for what she did...
Then she should give Yu-rin a chance.
Yu-rin truly cared for Seon-ah, and she had shown genuine remorse.
But if Seon-ah didn't want her, Min-ah would cast her aside without hesitation.
The most important thing.
Was Seon-ah—her son and her only remaining family in this world.