The Returnee Wants to Live Comfortably

The Girl Consumed by Madness (1)

Five years passed in a flash.

Now I was already in sixth grade and once again at the start of winter break.

When this vacation ended, I would be entering middle school.

[30 minutes remaining until system unlock.]

The lock would soon be released on its own.

In the meantime, I admired my body, which had matured appropriately for my age, in the mirror.

'Grew up well.'

I was satisfied that my body was neither too scrawny nor overly muscular.

But every time I looked in the mirror, many thoughts came to mind.

'But I kind of look similar to before.'

Back when I was transported to Mewzealand because of a car accident years ago, I had been possessing the body of a 13-year-old demon.

Coincidentally, I was now 13 years old again, so I looked in the mirror, and I looked exactly the same as back then.

'Except for the lack of demon horns and the different hair color.'

Even in 1st grade, I had felt something similar, but now I could clearly tell.

My current physical form perfectly recreates my self from that era.

Although my system had regressed and became weaker, I could still use the skills from my Demon King days.

In fact, since I had already fallen below the legion commander level, I had to make sure I didn't fall any further.

The place I was headed now existed for precisely that reason.

"All right, let's go."

****

The Republic of Korea's largest hunter training institution, 'Hand'.

The scale of the school truly matched its grand name; it was unimaginably vast.

I had heard it was so big it was hard to believe such a facility could exist in land-scarce Korea.

And then there was 'The World', the organization guarding global security against the gates.

I heard Hand was a city founded by this international organization, emphasizing the education of awakened individuals.

'What happened to Korea while I was gone?'

Hand was basically made up of five middle institutions and three high institutions.

The five middle schools made up the fingers, and the remaining institutions formed the center.

Between them were dormitories, movie theaters, hospitals, parks, museums, swimming pools, hotels... all sorts of amenities were provided.

It was so fully equipped that 'metropolis' was no exaggeration here.

The very existence of this kind of world-class massive institution in Korea filled me with the strongest sense of national pride.

'Stop writing novels already.'

But that was just a reaction from the old times.

In this era, with the gates open, people say Korea is the best place to live.

After the gate event began decades ago, it triggered a global emergency, and the military was mobilized to deal with it.

The weakest gates—later classified as D-rank—could be cleared by the army.

Up to that point, monsters were weak enough to be killed with modern firearms.

But beyond that, for larger gates, not even weapons could handle them.

―――――――――――――――

〈Gate Threat Levels〉

D-rank: If you can handle weapons, even civilians can escape.

C-rank: Impossible to get out alive unless armed with firearms.

B-rank: Multiple military units required just to barely contain it.

A-rank: Monsters resistant to bullets and missiles appear. Only A-rank hunters can survive.

S-rank: Calamity itself. An entire city could be wiped out in an instant.

SS-rank: Theoretical only. None have been confirmed yet.

―――――――――――――――

Thus, the danger of gates varied greatly by rank.

Especially in places where S-rank gates appeared frequently, like China or the US, many regions had been obliterated.

Lately, as the power of the gates weakened, they became great hunting grounds for hunters, but otherwise, the national losses had been severe.

Even though their strength lessened, monsters still emerged from them, posing a major threat to nations.

Fortunately, in our country, there was only one S-rank gate.

'Wow, talk about luck that shocks the whole world.'

Aside from that, there were only minor threats, so Korea earned a reputation as the safest country from gates.

Thanks to that, the educational city 'Hand' could be built securely.

—This stop is 'Hand Entrance'... 'Hand Entrance' station.

The moment I heard the name of my stop, I pressed the red bell.

As the bus climbed to the top of the hill, the view of the city emerged below.

It was shaped like a palm, with all sorts of buildings clustered together to form a city.

'I wanted to come here with my family.'

My mom and dad suddenly had urgent work, and my younger sister was busy with cram school.

Of course, I was only here to complete registration, not to enroll yet.

That's why there were so many cars nearby.

—Beep-beep─ Thank you.

I checked out my card and got off the bus, heading to my destination.

Hand's middle division. Middle School 2. That was the middle school I would be attending.

Already, many new students were walking around, searching for their respective schools.

Most were accompanied by their parents; I felt a pang of loneliness.

'I'll make sure we all come together for the actual entrance ceremony.'

After walking for dozens of minutes, I arrived at Middle School 2.

From the main gate, it looked like any other middle school.

But fitting its reputation as a hunter training school, it had large training grounds and arenas inside.

I decided to end the sightseeing there and get registered.

I waited in line under a canopy set up on the sports field for my turn.

Unlike me, most kids were waiting with their parents.

Even among the new students from other countries, there were quite a few like that.

"Next, please come in."

It was my turn.

Just as I was about to enter, another kid who just finished came out at the same time.

Thunk—

We accidentally bumped shoulders.

"Ah, sorry."

"..."

I apologized, but the kid stayed silent.

I wanted to question why, but her expression was cold and sharp.

She was a girl with crimson hair and eyes like drops of blood, and long horns on her head.

She looked lonely and cold, quickly turning her head away as she left.

'What's with her?'

I wanted to rebuke her for her rude behavior.

I wanted to call her back right then, but she had already disappeared into the crowd.

I doubted she would have listened even if I called out.

"Huh?"

Something rolled against my foot; she'd dropped something.

It was a wallet.

I picked it up and opened it, finding a single photo.

A woman and a kindergartner were photographed together.

On the kindergartner's nametag was written 'Kwon Sang-ah', and she had crimson hair and horns—

"Hey! Your wallet! You dropped your wallet!"

But she was already gone.

With so many people around, my call didn't carry far.

Still, it was absurd she dropped her wallet just from a bump.

She must have kept it in a loose pants pocket instead of a zippered jacket pocket—like I did.

'Tsk tsk tsk.'

Not wanting to hold up the people behind, I quickly went into the canopy.

Inside, a woman in white awaited me.

"Come in quickly—others are waiting."

"Sorry."

I sat at her instruction.

She handed me a paper on the table, and I began to sign it.

But I hesitated at the guardian's signature section.

"Is your guardian not here?"

"Ah, both are busy."

"Did you at least bring your parents' stamp?"

"Yes."

I had received a text before coming stating that if my parents couldn't attend, just bring both their stamps.

I finished all the signatures with my father's stamp that I'd brought.

"Your admission date and dorm assignment will be sent to your phone. Be sure to bring this bracelet for the entrance ceremony."

She handed me a bracelet resembling a wristwatch.

A small screen in the center showed the name Ma Seongjin.

"What's this?"

"It's like a student ID. You'll need it to freely use magic power here at Hand."

She answered with a smile.

With this, at least in Hand, I wouldn't risk ending up in jail for using magic power the wrong way.

"There are other features, but you can check the manual here."

With the small manual only a few pages long, registration was done.

From the moment I got my student ID, I was officially a student at Hand.

Leaving the school, I began reading the handbook I'd been given.

All the other kids were reading theirs as well.

"I've got more time left than I thought."

It seemed wasteful to just go home.

I still had some allowance left in my wallet; I could get lunch and explore the area.

Since I would be living here, it was good to familiarize myself.

I'd seen PC rooms, arcades, movie theaters, and even a department store on the way—hard to just ignore.

In terms of facilities, it was as good as Hongdae or Yongsan.

"Ah—almost forgot."

The wallet I'd picked up earlier.

I should turn it in at the police station before doing anything else.

I was sure I'd run into one somewhere while walking around.

But...

"Where the heck is it?"

The more you try to find it, the harder it is to spot.

It was as if the place was deliberately hiding from me like a ninja in hide and seek.

Entertainment and food were everywhere, yet a police station was nowhere to be found.

"Are they trying to save on taxes or something?"

If I really couldn't find it, I could just leave it on the street.

But the wallet seemed to be giving off a sinister vibe.

If I just abandoned it, it felt like some kind of calamity would unfold.

[A new mission has arrived.]

And my hunch proved correct.

──────────────────

[A mission has been issued. (Rare)]

― You have obtained an item that will trigger a butterfly effect. If you return it to its original owner, the mission will clear. The choice is yours.

Reward upon completion: Karma increase (2% physical restoration).

──────────────────

The reward was normal enough.

But since regaining my Demon King body was always good, I couldn't just pass this up.

Also, that mention of 'butterfly effect' seemed ominous.

Sensing this wasn't something to be taken lightly, I activated my magic power and created a transparent bat.

〈Observer〉

It had started as a scouting skill, but over time, it evolved to the point of tracking specific targets.

The Observer quickly detected the wallet owner's reaction.

'Should've just done this from the start.'

Following the Observer's lead, I moved out.

The place I reached was a junkyard no one would likely visit.

There, I found the girl I was looking for.

"Hey! Your wallet! You dropped your wallet!"

I approached her without hesitation to return it.

"Don't come any closer...!"

"Huh?"

"I said don't come any closer!"

Suddenly her face turned deathly pale as she screamed.

I couldn't understand what was dangerous, so I took another step forward.

"What's wrong?"

Unlike earlier, she was drenched in sweat, looking sickly enough to need a hospital right away.

Not that I intended to interfere—I just wanted to return the wallet and leave.

But then...

"It's dangerous! Run away!"

"...?"

"Hurry!!"

She screamed incomprehensibly again.

Then, the fear and anxiety in her eyes instantly turned cold.

With a chilling expression, she suddenly swung her arm at me.

Kwaaa—!

With a burst, several vehicles behind me were split apart.

She, like a predator who had spotted her prey, pointed razor-sharp claws at me and charged.

"Grrrrrr...!"

Like a beast that had lost all reason.