The Celestial Returned From Hell

“There must’ve been a mistake. Ah! You must’ve never heard it because you were missing in the Abyss!”

“I didn’t hear it before I went to the Abyss either.”

Gould was stumped and fell silent. Looking at Choi Yeonseung’s deadpan expression, he realized that it was better to change the topic.

‘It’s strange. South Korea is one of the most developed countries in East Asia. It doesn’t make sense for his people to not cheer for him.’

“If I had known this, I would’ve chosen you as the raid leader, not Isabella Meyer. Of course, it’s not like I don’t understand how the government feels. Isabella Meyer is an American, and you’re not. Now, you’re from South Korea, with which we almost have a blood alliance, but the government probably thought that an American leader would be better. Of course, I wouldn’t have done that, but...”

Gould pretended to side with the current regime while subtly criticizing it.

It was a strong appeal that he couldn’t have made if he was sitting in the seat of the president. He also meant it.

Why did nationality matter when it came to gaining power and promoting the great United States of America to the world?

What mattered was whether the hunter would be helpful to Gould. If they could make huge donations, clear dungeons, and defeat monsters that popped up, Gould could use anyone from any country.

“Haha, no wonder you don’t believe it, Hunter Choi Yeonseung. It’s really frustrating, but I think there’s only one way to get rid of this injustice. I will prove it when I sit in that position.”

Gould was now revealing his true colors. Choi Yeonseung stared at him without changing his expression.

During his time wandering around in the Abyss, he hadn’t only encountered enemies that just attacked him blindly. Quite a few beings had tried to use him to fulfill their own plans.

[The ‘Manipulator of Dreams and Desires’ excuses herself by saying that she will do her best to manage the nightmare demons.]

-...No, I didn’t mean you.

The manipulator constellation felt called out for some reason and hastily tried to excuse herself. Among the forces of Choi Yeonseung’s alliance with the constellations, the most troublesome ones were the nightmare demons.

It was embarrassing even thinking about it now.

[The ‘Goddess of Balance Who Walks Ahead’ comforts her by saying that household members don’t always act according to their master’s wishes.]

‘I guess she’s saying this because she doesn’t know.’

Choi Yeonseung thought it was very likely that if the goddess of balance saw the nightmare demons, she would be scared.

The nightmare demons were so greedy for Choi Yeonseung’s desires that there was no reason for him to get close to them.

“I don’t know why you’re telling me that.”

In fact, Aine had given him similar advice.

-There’s nothing to regret. You can offer him some support here and there, but there’s no need to make any actual promises.Of course, if you like him and want to support him, I won’t dissuade you. Just remember that you’re in the position of power, and they’re the ones that have to stay put.

She was right. Choi Yeonseung had many priorities that didn’t revolve around American politicians fighting over the presidency.

Gould poured the Taedong River Makgeolli into a wine glass as if he was slightly thirsty. Choi Yeonseung cast him a look of dismay, but Gould didn’t notice.

Gould slowly took a sip before saying, “There’s only one thing I want. Please don’t participate in President George’s campaign.

“Huh?”

It was obvious what the effect would be if a famous hunter allied themselves with one of the candidates. Of course, not just any hunter could do that.

Hunters who regularly did drugs and drove while drunk weren’t very effective in an election even if they were S-grade.

In that sense, Choi Yeonseung was the perfect man for elections. He was the most active A-grade hunter in recent times, his behavior was exemplary, and he was the leader of a large company...

There was nothing to not like about him. If he joined George’s camp, the opposition party would be quite disconcerted.

However, there was one problem with Gould’s request.

‘I never said I would participate. What is this guy talking about?’

Choi Yeonseung had never said he would participate in George’s campaign, and he had no intention of doing so. Of course, George had invited him to a private meeting, but that had just been to thank him and reward him for the Abyss raid.

Unless President George was out of his mind, he wouldn’t say something like “If you want a reward, join my camp and help me with the election campaign…” to the hunter who had saved the Second Realm raid.

However, it looked different to Gould and everyone else in the opposition party.

Choi Yeonseung had met the president alone, so Gould assumed that they had made some sort of secret agreement

Choi Yeonseung was now too embarrassed to say anything else, but Gould misunderstood his silence. He was an experienced and famous politician, but he was heated up due to the tense situation

“Of course, I know that the president must’ve made some enticing promises, but Hunter Choi Yeonseung, trust me. I promise to double whatever he’s offered you. Just ask me for anything.”

Gould never had the intention of bringing Choi Yeonseung to his side. He would have to pay an exorbitant price just to make him stay neutral. He couldn’t even imagine what would’ve taken to make Choi Yeonseung his ally in the upcoming election.

In any case, he had to make Choi Yeonseung neutral at all costs! If he managed to do so, Gould was confident that he could win this election.

“What the president promised me...”

“Yes? Yes, tell me!”

“...Was to properly mobilize hunters and evacuate citizens when an emergency occurs.”

“...Is that all?”

“Yes.”

“...”

“You don’t believe me?”

“That can’t be!” Gould blurted as he locked eyes with Choi Yeonseung. He just couldn’t believe what he had just heard.

The United States had a vast area of land, and there were still quite a few areas that had yet to be modernized, which meant that those places didn’t have a proper emergency system for mobilizing hunters and evacuating citizens…

Even if they tried to mobilize hunters, the hunters would question it and say things like “Oh, why is the government arbitrarily violating our rights? The dungeon hasn’t even exploded!”

Since all hunters were uncooperative like that, there were naturally many cases where nobody was doing anything despite there being an emergency.

Such situations often ended in tragedy…

Gould was well aware of that, but...

‘Why does he care about that?’

...No matter how much he thought about it, that wasn’t something that Choi Yeonseung should worry about. Choi Yeonseung wasn’t a politician or a governor. In fact, he wasn’t even American.

“If you don’t believe me, I’ll leave.”

“No! I believe you. In addition, I promise I’ll give you more support than what President George has offered.”

“Alright, not bad. Then I’ll remain neutral.”

‘...It’s that easy?!?’

Gould was in disbelief. He had assumed that he would need to give out a few bills…

“I think I’ve pretty much said everything I had to say. Do you have anything else?”

“N-no…”

Gould wanted to ask, “Are you really going to keep your promise?” but he wasn’t stupid to ask something like that at this moment.

“Then I’ll go ahead. I’m busy with work.”

Choi Yeonseung nodded and walked away, but before leaving the restaurant, he called out to the chef and whispered something to them.

“?”

Gould was curious about that, so he called the chef later on and asked, “Hey, what did he tell you before he left?”

“He told me to cook it this way... I tried it out.”

The chef pointed to the silver lobster with a look of disbelief. Gould grabbed the lobster without thinking.

‘Hunter Choi Yeonseung is really strange...’

“?!?!”

Gould was utterly shocked when he tasted the lobster.

[Your power of existence has increased thanks to the new faith.]

Choi Yeonseung saw the message window and frowned in disbelief.

‘Is this telling me that he was touched by the food?’

-Uh... That shouldn’t be the case…?

***

“Yes! Yes!”

Chu Wonseung, the team leader of the Demon clan’s power analysis team, raised his fist and cheered.

It seemed to him that only the day before, they had been ridiculed for being a clan on the verge of collapse, but now the atmosphere had changed drastically.

Everyone felt that something was really happening!

“Push, Nathan! There’s no one stopping you anyway!”

It was a practice game, not an official clan game, but they were nonetheless moved by their victory.

Chu Wonseung was shouting excitedly before he suddenly paused. The director next to him crossed his arms and had a stern expression.

“Cough cough... I’m sorry.”

“What do you mean?”

The Iron-Blooded Ice Emperor, Lee Changsik, looked at Chu Wonseung with a puzzled expression.

“Uh... I think I distracted you while you were concentrating.”

“Ah. I wasn’t even listening.”

“I-I’m glad.”

Chu Wonseung looked at Lee Changsik with eyes full of admiration and respect.

Those days, young people only knew and liked the three A-grade hunters in South Korea. However, for someone much older like Chu Wonseung, there was no one as great as the Iron-Blooded Ice Emperor.

Wasn’t he a hero among heroes who had devoted his body and mind to protect others?

Indeed, he had been cursed for taking the Korean national team’s hunters down the wrong path in his later years, but Chu Wonseung didn’t think it had been Lee Changsik’s fault.

It was those new hunter bastards… Indeed, it was the hunters’ fault. How could the Iron-Blooded Ice Emperor have made them win when they only drank and partied?

“Isn’t it really hopeful?”

“We’re not there yet,” replied Lee Changsik.

“Ah… I-I see…” Chu Wonseung answered in a soft voice, looking embarrassed. Lee Changsik’s standards were much higher than his!

‘He must still not be satisfied. I admire him!’

‘How can they still be like this after going through a low-level dungeon raid? It’s really bad.’

Lee Changsik was lost in thought as he checked the results of the recent clan battles.

Three victories and five losses.

It was better than not having won anything, but there were still many instances of the hunters not working together properly.

However, the hunters had definitely improved their individual skills. Choi Yeonseung’s advice to have them improve their skills in dungeons had been more efficient than expected. Or maybe it was because Choi Yeonseung himself was a constellation.

‘Nathan is an ace and he’ll do amazingly no matter which clan he’ll be in. That Seongu, whom Yeonseung brought in, is also surprisingly talented.’

Nathan, who had come here to learn martial arts, had always been held in high regard. It was Wi Seongu who was truly unexpected.

He didn’t have high expectations because of his evaluation in high school, but when he actually tried, he showed his true value.

He was a tank as solid as Nathan!

Both were martial artists, but in terms of defense alone, Wi Seongu seemed to be better.

‘Zhang Wei is so talented that the Chinese government wants to bring him back. Son Minji is very timid, but he’s doing his part. Kim Yeongchan isn’t flashy, but he has the basic skills. Go Junwon is working hard, considering he’s the one I was most worried about...’

Lee Changsik wondered how he could help these hunters grow further.

“Now, Iron-Blooded Ice Emperor…”

“Stop calling me the Iron-Blooded Ice Emperor... What’s going on?"

“Hunter Choi Yeonseung has arrived.”

“!”

***

“Three victories and five losses...”

“Uum… It really isn’t that bad. Clan battles are originally...”

Even though Lee Changsik had voiced his dissatisfaction with the clan results, he was now trying to make excuses for the clan in front of Choi Yeonseung.

But he was making excuses for no reason!

“No, you can do whatever you want. I trust you. I came here today to tell you that I have some work to do in the Abyss.”

“!”

Lee Changsik was surprised to hear he had business in the Abyss.

Choi Yeonseung wouldn’t stay in the Abyss for as long as he had stayed before, but Lee Changsik still couldn’t help being worried because he knew how the constellations’ territories were and how violent the Abyss could get.

“Is it because of the Chef of Endless Gluttony? There’s a lot of talk among the hunters about this new constellation.”

“Oh, you heard about him? Yeah, he’s been going crazy, so I’m going to take a look around.”

“Is that so? Then I’ll come with you.”

“Huh?”

“I want to go and help you. I won’t interfere too much, but as long as I can lend a hand…”

“That’s fine, but...”

Choi Yeonseung thought about it for a moment. Hwang Gyeongryong was also there…

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