The Hero Has Returned-Chapter 28 : The Butterfly Effect. (6)

Chapter 28: The Butterfly Effect. (6)
Go Ju-hoon frowned at the call that had abruptly been cut off.
The other party had scalled himself Purple Devil.
According to his own words, he said he had killed everyone in the Dio Guild.
“……How dare you.”
Go Ju-hoon, who rarely showed emotion in front of others, was seized by extreme fury.
The cellphone clenched in his hand shattered into pieces.
“An insolent bastard!”
He had grown up in a wealthy family, awakened early in his teens, and rose to become an S-rank Hunter at a young age.
Inheriting the Dio Guild founded by his father, Go Ju-hoon built a kingdom of his own.
He was filled with pride in his life.
His father had always said this.
“Ju-hoon. We are special. Always remember this.”
Having grown up under a unique form of family education since childhood, Go Ju-hoon matured into an adult full of narcissistic tendencies.
In front of the mass media, he put on a show of performative humility.
But in reality, Go Ju-hoon believed himself to be superior.
Whatever he wanted, he had to obtain, and any force that interfered was dealt with by any means necessary.
Go Ju-hoon looked down at the broken cellphone.
Come to think of it, the call had come through Lee Yu-seol’s phone.
Was she dead too?
‘Well, it doesn’t matter.’
Go Ju-hoon had no concern whatsoever for Lee Yu-seol.
To someone with narcissistic personality disorder like him, the only things that mattered were higher status and success.
And the attention of those around him.
His ability to empathize with others was strikingly low, so losing subordinates did not stir much emotion in him.
‘Parts can just be replaced. More importantly…….’
Go Ju-hoon stood facing the bookshelf in the CEO’s office.
When he pressed the button hidden in the wall, a locking mechanism disengaged with a sound, and the bookshelf slid open.
Inside, a glossy suit revealed itself.
It was a special-order product from the conglomerate <Seosan> Group, a partner company of the Dio Guild.
‘It’s been a while.’
The last time Go Ju-hoon had entered a gate was half a year ago.
After ascending to the CEO position, there had been no need for him to personally hunt monsters.
He finished suiting up.
Since it was a special-order item, it fit his body perfectly without the slightest error.
“Hup!”
Go Ju-hoon focused his mind and drew up his mana.
A gust of wind erupted, throwing the office furnishings into disarray.
Goooo.
He clenched his fist and lifted the corner of his mouth.
‘Yes. This is it.’
What was a Hunter, anyway.
Someone who blocked gates and protected cities?
Someone who protected civilians from monsters?
Everyone had a different definition.
But what Go Ju-hoon defined was this.
A Hunter was—
Those born to grow stronger by hunting and killing!
Because he had been lax in training recently, his combat instincts had dulled.
Dreaming of entering politics, he had wasted time meeting useless celebrities, leaving him short on training hours.
‘This works out better.’
It was a chance to finally show his abilities after a long time.
The anger that had boiled up because of Purple Devil gradually turned into competitive zeal.
Including Go Ju-hoon, there were fewer than ten S-rank Hunters in the country.
Even they avoided sparring with other high-rankers, making excuses about injuries.
‘When was the last time I truly faced someone?’
‘When was the last time I fought a life-or-death battle!’
More than twenty people had been dispatched to the Ilsan Hunter Industrial Complex.
Among them were B-rank Hunters, as well as the Twins from the upper tier of A-rank and Lee Yu-seol.
To have annihilated them all in one go meant…….
‘At least S-rank.’
Go Ju-hoon’s heart pounded sharply at the thought of facing a worthy opponent.
Go Ju-hoon picked up the office phone and contacted his secretary.
Yes. Sir.
“I’m issuing Code X.”
The Dio Guild had various code names prepared for emergency situations.
Code X meant, ‘All forces assume combat readiness in preparation for an external attack.’
R-right now?
“Do I need to say it twice?”
Go Ju-hoon issued the order coldly, stripping away his usually gentle tone.
Understood! I will carry it out as ordered.
“Open the rooftop as well.”
Yes. Sir.
As Go Ju-hoon left the CEO’s office, he made a resolution.
‘Let’s change the plan.’
Originally, he had intended to recruit Purple Devil into the Dio Guild.
But now that he knew his strength, all plans were altered.
‘I’ll use him as prey.’
Go Ju-hoon’s talent was [Devour (Predation)].
Each time he killed a strong opponent, his stats rose dramatically.
The reason he had not been able to rise another step higher was because he had not encountered an enemy worthy of it.
Perhaps this was a golden opportunity.
A position he had been forced to give up after hitting a wall.
‘This time, I’ll rise to SS-rank.’
Go Ju-hoon headed to the top floor of the building via the emergency stairs.
The truck Lee Yu-seol was driving entered Gangnam-daero.
She skillfully turned the steering wheel and drove.
For a Hunter, this level of execution was basic.
After being kicked by me and rolling across the ground, her clothes were filthy, and one cheek was scraped, leaving a raw wound.
But she had no mental capacity to care about such trivial things.
Lee Yu-seol’s hands gripping the steering wheel trembled.
There was no need for something like a fake bomb necklace.
She glanced at me.
“You. Are you really going to meet CEO Go Ju-hoon?”
Raindrops fell outside the window.
My face was reflected in the rainwater streaming down the glass.
To conceal my identity, I had thrown a factory raincoat over my suit.
With the hood pulled up as well, I looked vaguely like a mage wearing a robe.
“……He’s much stronger than me. And he’s cold-blooded. If you don’t bend, he won’t let you go easily.”
For some reason, Lee Yu-seol tried to persuade me.
“CEO Go is someone I know well. Just bow your head deeply and beg for forgiveness. Then he’ll forgive you.”
When no answer came back, Lee Yu-seol turned her head.
“One apology. And joining the Dio Guild. Then everything ends. Why are you making things so difficult?”
Humans were not rational creatures.
They were beings who rationalized their actions.
Lee Yu-seol, just because I had attacked Seo Gwang-pal,
had threatened the entire industrial complex.
As if she had completely forgotten that fact, she was pointing out my actions instead.
Of course, I too was no different in being someone who rationalized.
Because Seo Gwang-pal was, by the standards I had set, a perfectly bad bastard.
I had no regrets about killing him.
Even if a trivial incident became a butterfly effect and threatened my life.
I would fight them head-on.
“If you don’t stop now, you’ll definitely regret it…….”
“Hey.”
“Shut up. Before I regret letting you live.”
At my growling voice, Lee Yu-seol shrank back again.
Only now did I realize it.
<Judgment of the Superhuman> was a powerful force, but it was like a double-edged sword.
Depending on what I decided.
I could turn Big Lava into a slab of meat and save people.
Or I could knead someone’s head into paste and kill them.
My talent, [Purchase (Purchase)].
The ability to buy the powers of a hero I admired.
How this fraudulent skill was used,
the system did not care.
Even if I were to stand on the side of evil, it would not interfere.
Therefore, what kind of hero I would become depended entirely…….
‘On my choice.’
The truck stopped in front of the building.
Someone who looked like a Dio Guild agent approached.
“You can’t park here. Move the car. Hurry!”
A highly overbearing tone.
When Lee Yu-seol rolled down the window and removed the hat she had pulled low, his reaction changed.
“Team Leader Lee? What brings you here? Weren’t you deployed today?”
Her gaze shifted toward the building.
All the armed members of the Dio Guild were guarding the building entrance.
By sheer number alone, there seemed to be well over fifty of them.
Lee Yu-seol spoke.
“What’s going on?”
“I’m not sure either. I heard the CEO issued Code X.”
“…….”
Lee Yu-seol opened the car door.
“Take the truck to the parking lot.”
“……Understood.”
The agent obediently followed her instructions.
I got out as well, following Lee Yu-seol as she stepped down from the truck.
Cold raindrops falling onto my face gradually grew heavier.
The building entrance was a revolving door.
Anyone passing through underwent a thorough identity check.
All the armed agents guarding the main entrance were wearing suits.
“You see? From here on, outsiders are prohibited. It’s an emergency, so security is tighter than usual.”
She glanced at me cautiously.
“I can go in, but you can’t. The CEO’s office is in the penthouse. To get there, it means you’d have to deal with everyone here. So, that’s why I said earlier it’d be better to stop.”
All the way here, I had been thinking.
No matter how strong I had become,
I couldn’t fight the entire Dio Guild.
My abilities were bound by a restriction.
A restriction called [Awakener’s Balance].
If I waged war against everyone here, I’d hit zero won in no time.
‘Therefore, I need to come up with a plan.’
The building in front of me was a Tower of Babel incarnate.
It was a super high-rise on a completely different level from a two-story gang building.
Sneaking in through a window using wires was unthinkable.
As I lifted my head to inspect the building, I noticed something.
“What’s that?”
At the very top of the building.
A red light flashed there.
Following my gaze, Lee Yu-seol’s expression changed.
“Ah……. Green means normal conditions, red means wartime status. You know the <Gangnam Sky Gate> incident from three years ago, right? This is the first time the rooftop has been opened since then.”
<Gangnam Sky Gate>.
It was an incident where a gate had opened in the sky.
Amid the appearance of countless flying-type monsters, even a dragon had emerged—an unprecedented disaster.
Since there was no Hunter in South Korea capable of flight, countless people were helplessly sacrificed.
At the time, Go Ju-hoon had also participated in the battle, slaughtered numerous pterosaur-type monsters, and risen to S-rank.
Lee Yu-seol pointed toward the tip of the spire.
“CEO Go Ju-hoon is probably up there.”
Had he prepared a battlefield to face me one-on-one? Was that it.
Was it confidence that I would fight through the troops and come up.
Or an expression of anticipation for a duel with me.
I roughly grasped Go Ju-hoon’s character.
‘Quite confident.’
Many people passed through the revolving doors.
“How many floors are there?”
“Eighty-eight floors. The rooftop is above that.”
Speeder’s <Infinite Acceleration> had a limit of 1 km per use.
‘That’s enough.’
I lowered my stance and completed the payment.
Ding.
Speeder’s <Infinite Acceleration> is activated.
“I’m going ahead.”
“Huh? Where? W-wait…….”
Lee Yu-seol hurriedly closed her eyes.
She must have activated her ability to track my whereabouts.
But it was already too late.
Thud.
The moment I pushed off with one foot, I dashed forward.
The Dio Guild members didn’t even recognize me.
I passed through the revolving door long before and headed up via the emergency stairs instead of the elevator.
Pabababak!!!
I stepped on thousands of steps, again and again.
“Ghk!”
My calves and thigh muscles screamed, and my heart pounded as if it were about to burst.
Using <Infinite Acceleration> more than twice a day put a strain on the body.
Perhaps my body still couldn’t endure hero-level abilities.
Grrrk! Thunder rumbled in my stomach.
‘……I’m hungry.’
It felt as if the skin on my back was sticking to itself.
As my metabolism accelerated, the food in my stomach was consumed in an instant.
This too was exactly as Speeder was designed.
Reeling from fatigue, I stopped moving.
There was nowhere left to go upward.
“……Huff, huff.”
At last, I reached the 88th floor.
All that remained was the steel door leading to the rooftop.
Without hesitation, I grabbed the handle and opened it.
Whoooosh.
Violent wind and rain lashed against my eyes.
Through the blurred vision, I saw the silhouette of someone standing in the middle of the helipad.
I took off the robe.
With splashing footsteps, I approached him.
The other party spoke.
“Purple Devil. We finally meet.”
Like me, Go Ju-hoon was clad in armor over his entire body.
If mine was a crude handmade suit,
his was cutting-edge.
At a glance, it was clearly not mass-produced.
‘……A custom order.’
I shook my head to shake off my professional habits.
‘Focus.’
The opponent was an S-rank Hunter.
An absolute powerhouse I had never encountered before.
Shhhaaaa.
The downpour intensified.
Mana emanating from Go Ju-hoon’s body writhed ominously.
“Before killing you, I’ll say a word out of courtesy.”
He grinned and pointed at a puddle filled with rainwater.
“Kneel. You insolent bastard.”
I found a common trait of the Dio Guild.
The moment things went south, they immediately revealed their true colors.
“We’ll see who kneels.”
Amid the torrential rain, two ferocious beasts charged at each other.