The Returnee Wants to Live Comfortably

Angel in the SF World (1)

The Prosecutor's Office located in Seoul.

Two prosecutors sat in their office, drinking coffee as they worked overtime.

Among them, majunsang wore an expression full of disgust as he looked at his computer.

An awakened individual disappearance case requested by the Angel Guild.

Recently, there were signs of the guild pressuring for a faster investigation.

'Radiant (最光)' Baek Suhyeok, the head of the Angel Guild. He had come in person to speak with the chief prosecutor.

Even a chief prosecutor, who could wield the law, had no choice but to bow before the heads of Korea's four major guilds.

The Prosecutor General, the head of the law, had become stiff in front of superpowered people.

Ma Jun-sang, who had witnessed this scene, couldn't help but smirk sarcastically.

'What kind of era are we even living in?'

He couldn't hear what they discussed.

But that conversation resulted in him and his colleagues working well into the night.

Recalling the chief prosecutor, who used to care for him, apologizing while assigning overtime made him silently chuckle.

'Awakened are really treated as nobility now.'

His own son was an awakened individual.

And not just any—he was set to enroll at Hand, the prestigious institution.

Since awakened were the only ones with the strength to fight monsters that emerged from gates, their existence was invaluable.

No matter how aberrantly a Mutamit was born, they were guaranteed human rights for that reason.

But the moment they became a Murderer Hunter, those rights became worthless.

Just like the Hunter they were currently tracking.

"Senior, eat something while you work."

"Thanks."

Choi Juho, a fellow prosecutor also working overtime at the next desk, offered him a donut.

Ma Jun-sang took a bite of the donut dusted in white powdered sugar.

Thanks to the strawberry jam inside, he felt his fatigue melt away.

"Yun Jaeho, former executive of Angel Guild. He had a wife and a daughter."

He was the Hunter they currently needed to apprehend, once affiliated with Angel Guild.

Though a Hunter, he was also a father raising one daughter alone, but reportedly died a few months ago.

It was said that after the shock, he quit the Angel Guild and vanished.

"Of all things, the daughter ran into a Murderer Awakened and was found dead, right? If it were me, I'd have gone insane too."

Ma Jun-sang felt the same.

Even if it was someone else's problem, he too was a parent.

It was clear Yun had lost his senses—enough to quit a major guild and become a criminal.

"But senior, could you take a look at this?"

Choi Juho called Ma Jun-sang over to his desk, showing him his computer screen.

A video was playing—a suspicious transaction between suspicious people in a quiet area.

"What's this?"

"We found it while checking all the CCTV and dashcam footage to track their whereabouts. Doesn't this totally look like Yun Jaeho?"

"..."

The men in the video had their faces covered with thick hoodies and masks.

Then, wings suddenly sprouted from one man's back, and he took off in an instant.

In the past, it would have been dismissed as doctored footage, but the two men watched it intently.

"That's Heaven Up!"

A unique skill of Angel Guild's executives.

It allowed them to identify the man with certainty as Yun Jaeho.

They rewound the footage, closely watching the man next to him.

"This Yun Jaeho guy... Looks like he really did team up with the Murderer Guild."

"Are you sure?"

"Well, this video is from a few months ago. And the way they shake hands—Hunters use that gesture to share strength."

It was the gesture for sharing magic power.

Choi Juho, though untalented, was also an awakened person, so he recognized it.

"The leading Murderer Guild is probably Black Flame Sect."

"I've heard of them. That's the cult where Awakened stick together, right?"

"Their recruitment methods would've definitely hooked Yun Jaeho."

They approached people pushed to the brink in their lives, promising to grant their wishes and inviting them into the guild.

And those who were recruited disappeared without a trace.

"If it's Yun Jaeho, who lost his daughter, he'd..."

He would have sold his soul to a Demon King and more.

His daughter had definitely been killed by a Murderer Awakened, but ironically, he was now borrowing power from those very same people.

Just how blind had he become to end up like this?

"Then we need to investigate the Black Flame Sect."

"But that won't be easy. We don't even have any intel on their base."

Murderer Guilds would do anything not to get caught.

Most didn't have a base at all, instead operating as online circles.

"Still, there must be somewhere they gather. What's the point of making a guild otherwise?"

"Where would such a group of Awakened gather...?"

Other than Hunter Guilds or a gate itself, there were few options.

No matter their behavior, they needed an environment suitable for Awakened activity.

"They might have taken over a gate outright, without drawing attention."

"Is that even possible?"

"As long as they don't reveal themselves as Murderer Hunters, they can pass themselves off as regular Hunters."

And to lure people to their occupied gates, they'd post about them online.

How to clear the gate, or promoting it as a great hunting spot.

If anyone posted suspicions about the gate, they'd flood the replies in denial.

"But can they really take over a gate on their own? There are so many Hunters in Korea besides themselves."

"Well, of course. There's fierce competition for gate spots."

How did Black Flame Sect win out in that competition? That was the question.

But what if there were gates with no need to fight over spots?

For example...

"A newly opened gate would have vacancies."

"A newly opened gate...?"

"And if it's ranked the lowest tier, no top Hunters would pay attention."

A recently opened, low-ranked gate.

A safe zone for lowlifes, born in the shadow of predators.

With these two pieces of information, the prosecutors began combing through all the gates in Korea.

****

For the first time in my life, I had entered a gate.

The scenery, strangely different from the outside, awed me.

Below floating open space, futuristic factories had been erected in abundance.

"Is this... cyberpunk?"

I'd learned that the internal environments of gates varied.

Some took place in medieval fantasy worlds filled with goblins, others in bamboo-forested wuxia settings.

But this—this setting was unlike anything I'd ever studied.

"A SF world... this is my first time here."

I landed and looked around.

As expected from the late hour, there were no Hunters visibly hunting.

Still, in case there were night Hunters, I kept the 'Stealth' skill active.

KA-CHAK, kA-CHAK—

Factory buildings were riddled with holes, from which strange metallic sounds echoed.

Robots, their development finished, began pouring out of the holes.

Biped walkers emerged on the ground, while booster-equipped fliers shot from the smokestacks.

From afar, it looked like swarming ants and mosquitoes.

'Just like the guides said.'

How much EXP would I get for wiping them all out at once?

Excited by the thought, I gradually built up my magic power.

If I used an area skill, I could take out at least half.

But making that much noise could attract someone.

CLINK—

As soon as I lifted Stealth, they recognized me—red eyes glowing.

They surged toward me—not with emotion, but with a chilling sense of menace.

With a smile, I cloaked my hands in magic power and activated 'Rapid'.

CRASH—

WHAM—

KA-BOOM—

Dashing forward, I struck with my fists, destroying numerous robots.

The power wasn't the issue, but since it was barehanded, it stung a bit.

As I thought, this young body had its inconveniences.

[You have exterminated D-grade monsters 'Alphabot (Walker).' (10 defeated)]
[Karma increased.]
[Level up.]
[Stats increased as a bonus.]

A system window I hadn't seen for a long time.

It was just like the one I'd handled in Mewzealand.

But why was the system I owned identical to the one Hunters used?

I couldn't figure it out.

This system, the gates, and my reincarnation in Mewzealand must be all connected in some way.

[Recovering damaged system via karma. (Currently 3%)]

I also saw a window I hadn't encountered in Mewzealand.

Back then, I'd slain monsters like mad just to survive and filled my karma.

The system had never had a chance to get damaged.

'Guess I have to fill the remaining 97%, then.'

WHIRR—

The flying types fired up their boosters and charged at me.

Ten of them, with long blades for arms, went for my neck—yet before they could even get close, they were engulfed in black flames.

FWOOOOOSH—

Hell Flame could incinerate targets just by looking at them.

And with a snap—snick—I could amp up the firepower.

BOOM—!

The black fire exploded among them.

Fireworks burst in midair, and other robots got caught in the subsequent blasts.

I hunted down over 20 in an instant.

[You have exterminated D-grade monsters 'Alphabot (Flyer).' (20 defeated)]
[Karma increased.]
[Recovering damaged system via karma. (Currently 9%)]

I hadn't wanted to make noise, but ended up rushing things.

I was wondering how to hunt quietly when—

CLATTER—

Amid the shards of destroyed monsters, something dropped.

Many mana stones rolled out, but among them, a long object gleamed.

'A sword?'

It looked similar to the blade on the robot flyers' arms.

Touching it, a new window popped up.

[You have obtained E-grade equipment 'Cyber Knife'.]

〈Cyber Knife (E-grade)〉
➤ Attack +2
➤ Agility +1
Durability (100/100)
(Durability can be repaired or weapon upgraded with mana stone.)

It was the first time I'd ever seen a system pop-up for an item drop.

In Mewzealand, no matter what famed sword I held, nothing like this appeared.

There were mission notifications instead, but on Earth, I hadn't seen those.

Were there separate Earth and Mewzealand versions?

Did my system forcibly switch versions when I came to Earth?

'I really don't get it.'

At any rate, it was lucky to get a weapon.

Fighting barehanded was inconvenient. And with a sword, I had plenty of skills at my disposal.

Just then, a wave of robots surged down the street.

"Perfect time to test this out."

Activating 'Rapid', I retreated.

When that many enemies rushed at once, the guides said drawing aggro was the top priority.

Seeing their numbers, even mediocre Hunters would have a hard time, but thanks to the speed of 'Rapid', I'd never be caught.

The strategies were meant for groups, but I could handle them solo.

"This way."

Dashing deep into the factory, I drew the robots after my tracks.

Either their AI was subpar, or their pursuit was simply brainless.

When they entered the narrow corridor, their already tangled lines became even more chaotic.

CRASH, cRASH—

The sounds of machines colliding echoed behind.

I waited.

After rushing deep into the factory, I reached a wide chamber.

Standing at its center, I reversed my grip on the knife, drawing it back as if to slash upward.

WHIRRR—an intense buzz resonated from the blade.

At that instant, a blade of magic power overlaid the weapon and shot out, extending long and sharp.

[Vacuum Slash]

A formless sword strike bursting from a compact blade.

I swung this first-ranged skill I'd learned straight ahead.

SLASHHH—!

It was a sound like the air itself screaming.

The blade's cut split apart even the metallic floor, and robots clustered in the narrow corridor were swept away at once.

BOOMBOOMBOOMBOOM—!

Like a tornado, the robots were torn to shreds, and the corridor's walls were devastated.

[You have exterminated D-grade monsters 'Alphabot (Flyer).' (120 defeated)]
[Karma increased.]
[Level up.]
[Stats increased as a bonus.]
[Recovering damaged system via karma. (Currently 80%)]

It felt like I hunted a lot, but there was still 20% to go.

Still, at this rate, I could finish up quickly.

Let's move to another spot—

"...!"

Suddenly, I sensed a presence and looked up into the air.

"An angel?"

Something utterly out of place for a robot factory hovered overhead.

Anyone could see it was an angel.

Although the wings were black, the description fit.

The blindfold over its eyes just made it seem all the more suspicious.

"Isn't this supposed to be a robot factory?"

Why was something so religious popping up in an SF world?

"What kind of genre drift is this?"

I grumbled internally.

That was when the angel pointed directly at me.

-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=
【ദ്ദി(⩌ᴗ⩌)】