Lirim and the Beast ☆5
If Seohyun could not accept herself as a murderous monster, then what about them? Most were drug dealers or social misfits, and among them, some had certainly committed murder. She did not like the idea that they would judge her solely because she was a Lycanthrope.
"Then are you going to live clashing with vampire hunters, or retreat into the mountains and live like a beast? If you want to enjoy the benefits of civilization, you naturally have to know how to live as a member of society."
"That's why I once aspired to be a dictator. A status and power that allow one to remain a barbarian even in civilized society."
Seohyun spoke as if recalling a distant past. Had she seized Tetra Anax's status and wealth, she wouldn't have had to care about anyone's opinion; rather, everyone would have trembled before her. Yet it was only after saying it aloud that she realized what Kim Seong-hee was doing was reasonable.
She was neither a dictator nor Tetra Anax, nor was she wealthy. In civilized society, only those who command wealth and power can remain barbarians; those who cannot must learn how to coexist.
Kim Seong-hee stepped in as Seohyun's guarantor while she learned to coexist.
"Thinking of it that way, thank you… 'Master.' I now understand that you've gone to great lengths to vouch for me."
Seohyun called Kim Seong-hee "Master." She could not fully trust her yet, but at least she could tell that Seong-hee had not taken responsibility lightly.
"But…"
Before Seohyun could continue, a heavy engine roar echoed through the air.
☆ ☆ ☆
The person who entered through Arjuna's door wore an ill-fitting mask. Of course, it was a mask so well-made that ordinary people would not even recognize it as one. Covered in ectoplasm, the mask was likely molded from a deceased person's face, replicating human skin texture more accurately than synthetic rubber or silicone.
Seohyun glanced at Kim Seong-hee. Not an ordinary customer. Could this be a guest seeking Seong-hee?
"...."
The one who entered froze like stone, briefly doubting their eyes.
"Why is Isaka Berghenev here?"
"Ha."
Seohyun recognized the masked figure and gave a wry smile. Another true-demon hunter, Han Se-geon—known by the alias "Beast."
"No wonder you were wearing something strange on your face."
"...."
Unlike Seohyun, who could cleanse her identity after ascending to Tetra Anax, Han Se-geon was still wanted. Once a challenger to the vampire leader, Tetra Anax, he had sent a bomb statement to a broadcasting station and detonated a building under construction in the heart of Seoul—a shocking act.
Though the building was teeming with vampires, to ordinary people, it was a foreign pharmaceutical and life insurance company. Detonating it in downtown Seoul caused chaos: the prestige of the Korean police plummeted, and several military, police, and political officials lost their lives. Naturally, until the day they died, they would have hunted Han Se-geon relentlessly. Even after the statute of limitations, they would extend it and relentlessly track his whereabouts.
Tetra Anax could have corrected this immediately, but intense mental manipulation would have severely damaged Serin's mental state. Moreover, granting such "services" to a vampire hunter whom the vampire king still sought to kill would not sit well with the lower-ranking vampires. While the past Tetra Anax, Gordon, ruled through violence and oppression, Seorin aimed to govern with reason and compassion. Thus, Han Se-geon must remain wanted.
"Ah, Se-geon. Welcome. Haha. This is Seohyun. You probably know I vouch for him? You haven't come by lately, so we lost touch. I wasn't trying to hide Seohyun."
Kim Seong-hee made it clear that Seohyun was under her protection. After the Tetra Anax incident, Han Se-geon had been acting independently, even keeping distance from regular vampire hunters. He probably felt disappointed that he could not stop Tetra Anax and Serin… which is why he was unaware of Seohyun, who was now a hot topic among Korean vampire hunters.
Not knowing that Seohyun only worked at Arjuna during the day, he visited then, leading to an awkward meeting.
"Well, you two aren't strangers… um…"
Even Kim Seong-hee seemed at a loss. Han Se-geon sighed, approached the counter, and glared at Seohyun. The malice emanating beyond the mask pierced Seohyun's skin. Few could exude such lethal intent. How could someone look at another like this without pure hatred?
'Two troublesome customers already today, and it's not even six hours into my shift.'
Seohyun realized just how high the hurdles were for the job Kim Seong-hee had prepared for him.
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Among vampire hunters, hunting true demons was a huge honor. Since the invention of the light and Tetra Anax's consolidation of vampire forces, ordinary vampire hunters were merely hyenas picking off stragglers. The noble cause of hunting vampires was often just an excuse to clean up corpses that Tetra Anax had sanctioned.
Han Se-geon and Silvester did not follow Tetra Anax's guidelines. They challenged true demons at the heart of vampire society—and killed them. By proving that vampire hunters were not mere hyenas, they earned respect.
Some novice hunters even came to Arjuna hoping to say a word to Han Se-geon. Of course, he had a terrible compatibility with clingy personalities and thus avoided Arjuna.
"Things were stabilizing… wait, why is that wolf kid here? Was Seorin not enough?"
Han Se-geon set down the injector that supplied his body with elixirs. Addicted to the psychedelic brews favored by vampire hunters, he had survived extreme mutations from vampirism, corruption, and overdoses. To protect himself, he had undergone major surgery to implant injectors throughout his body, but recently, his body had stabilized enough to function without them.
He came partly to announce this and partly to change his weapon's barrel—but was surprised to see the Lycanthrope prince acting as a clerk. Moreover, Han Se-geon did not want to reveal his current bodily state to anyone. It might have been better to deal with Seohyun quickly.
Seohyun also found Han Se-geon awkward. A new true-demon hunter with a grudge against Tetra Anax, yet Serin asked him to watch over her brother. Was their relationship close? Not really. Han Se-geon resented the fact that he had effectively made Serin a Tetra Anax.
To him, vampires were only good when dead. Though he had once shared a short stint with Serin, that made it all the more necessary to distance himself. Just as Seohyun found nothing inside when she gained freedom, stripping Han Se-geon of his hatred would leave only emptiness.
Serin's concern for him seemed one-sided. Unrequited love? The term flashed briefly in his mind, and he laughed at the thought, prompting Han Se-geon to glare.
Ah, that gaze was infuriating—full of hatred and irritation. Seohyun could understand why delinquents would throw punches after such glares. But as someone recognized for restraint and patience among vampire hunters and mages, Seohyun had to avoid conflict with a "beast" revered in hunter society.
"I work here for minimum wage. Does that include responding to troublesome customers like you? If so, this country truly undervalues its workers."
"…What wind blew through your mind? What about your zoo gang?"
Seohyun had loyal Lycanthropes he had personally turned. Han Se-geon questioned their relationship. "Zoo gang"?
'Good sense… if the joke wasn't at my expense, I'd laugh.'
But Han Se-geon's gaze was not playful. He was asking why Seohyun had abandoned the Lycanthrope organization he had built and was here alone.
Kim Seong-hee answered instead:
"For Seohyun, those kids are dependents. He can't carry baggage if he wants a fresh start."
...
An apt metaphor. Honestly, Seohyun was impressed. She had pinpointed desires he hadn't even surfaced consciously. Is this adult wisdom?
Seohyun indeed felt conflicted about his Lycanthrope gang. Not dislike, but the ones who had roamed battlefields as a gang from childhood were much more crude and wild than Seohyun. In civilization, they would have ripped a troublesome customer to pieces in front of everyone.
He didn't lack affection for them, but on that point, he could not cooperate. Having finally found freedom, he dispatched them with instructions to gather power and wealth for the new world order, keeping his own time.
Yet, when left alone, he had to confront his emptiness. Amid his self-destructive acts, his sister guided him to take the name Seohyun. Long, complicated stories condensed into a few words by Kim Seong-hee.
"Irresponsible,"
Han Se-geon remarked casually, as if it were someone else's problem.