SSS-Class Revival Hunter-Chapter 235: The Death King (2)

Monster Legion Reincarnation was a penal colony.

The criminals who had stained the empire with blood and the sinners who had failed to obey until the end were chained to the penal colony known as Monster Legion Reincarnation. The price of these shackles was terrible.

The deceased won’t have their original abilities.

The dead couldn’t bring back the glory days of their prime. The Great Demon King, who had once destroyed the empire, was reduced to Preta, a small ghost, and the Heavenly Demon Cult that once ruled the world became nothing more than a bunch of ill-tempered thugs.

But things were about to change.

“Hahaha! It’s been so long since I last used the Demonic Heaven Arts!”

The cultists’ swords swung freely. The physical bodies that they once lost were now back, as well as the qi that they once abandoned. Since they returned to the heyday when the cult ruled murim, they couldn’t contain their excitement.

“Damn it, I never thought a day like this would come.”

“It’s time to spar! Let’s spar!”

“I couldn’t have been more grateful for giving me a chance to live again, but Lord Young Heaven has even given back our qi. I’m ashamed that my promise to engrave my gratefulness to my bones won’t be enough[1]!”

“Long live Lord Young Heaven!”

“Shouldn’t today be the Heavenly Demon Cult’s official feast day?”

“I want to start sparring right now, but the yard here is a bit cramped. Lord Young Heaven! Where are we? I’ve been wanting to ask you this since I was summoned, but you looked really stern and serious.”

I offered a bitter smile. These people had been serfs, deserters, slaves, and beggars from all across the world before they joined the cult. As expected from their old habits, their gathering became no different from a market once they started talking.

“There is more to come, so empty the yard first. The remaining five hundred soldiers are still waiting in the shadows. Come into the house or climb up the fence. Make space,” I instructed.

“Yes, Lord Young Heaven!” the cultists answered in unison.

With great skill, they climbed onto the fence, onto the shoulders of a fellow follower on the fence, or became one with the wall so they could hide or crawl under the daecheongmaru like moles digging a hole. In just thirty seconds, the yard of the hanok became empty.

“They’re very skilled,” Ja Su-Jeong stated.

From the daecheongmaru, Uburka took in the cultists’ bloodlust and qi and, above all, the level of their martial arts. He was comparing everything to his own skills so he could draw some comparisons between them and himself.

It seemed to get his blood going as a warrior. His mouth was shut, but his arm muscles kept twitching.

I tapped Uburka on the arm. “It’ll happen sooner or later. Get ready. They aren't the only strong people who will challenge you.”

I looked back at the yard. “Next.”

[The Skill is active!]

The other soldiers in the legion who had been waiting for their turn were summoned. There were a total of nine hundred and ninety-nine demonic cult soldiers from murim. Previously, I had summoned four hundred and ninety-nine of them and given them new bodies. This time, I placed the memories of five hundred more people in jet-black marbles and let them coil around my heart. With this, the immortal demonic cult army was built.

The person summoned next could be said to be somewhat of a nobody compared to the Demon King of Autumn Rain and the Heavenly Demon Cult that had commanded the world.

“Next, Goldencup.”

The maid’s shoulders shook faintly. Since she had been born into a noble family, her blond hair was always trimmed and neat. Sylva from the Family of Evanail was a socialite who had once been called the flower of society. She had also brought the empire to its knees.

“Greetings to the Sun and Moon of Ivansia.”

Goldencup bowed politely to where Raviel and I sat side by side in the daecheongmaru. She gripped the hem of her skirt tightly, her veins bulging on her hand.

I said, “Come to think of it, we never talked much.”

“I’m nothing more than your spouse’s maid. It’s natural not to exchange too many words considering our difference in status.”

“Yeah, I haven’t talked to you much,” I said regardless.

Raviel simply wrapped an arm around my shoulders. Just then, something strange happened. Until now, this place had been nothing but an old hanok with a needlessly large yard in a shabby village.

However, the moment Raviel gripped my shoulder, thrones that proved our titles as the duke and duke consort appeared where we were sitting. The air around us became solemn, as if we were in an audience room.

“I need to talk to you.”

Carefully and silently, Goldencup let out a breath she had been holding back.

There were no flashy family flags or knights in shining armor. However, the Ducal Family of Ivansia didn’t exist in their silk curtains or marble stairs. If Raviel and I, Kim Gong-Ja, were here, then this was Ivansia.

An unfamiliar bug cried somewhere in the distance. Before the crying stopped, Goldencup bowed as politely as she could. “Go ahead.”

“You were a regressor.”

“Yes.”

“I understand that you regressed using a Constellation’s power so you could take Raviel’s place and become the empress. But why? Why did you aim for the empress position? Did you want to have the most power in the empire? Why did you risk your new life to take Raviel’s place?”

Maid Goldencup—no, Sylvia Evanail pursed her lips. Since I was her master, I could order her to speak, leaving her no choice but to answer, but I didn’t.

Even though she was no longer called the Lady of Evanail, she had once been a noble of the empire. She answered, “I’m not sure.”

“What are you not sure about?”

Sylvia smiled. “Well, the past I lost. Yes, I was the crown prince’s lover and the future empress. It boosted my family’s status. Countless invitation letters were left at my feet, and idiots rushed in to flatter me. But that doesn’t matter anymore. After I lost my past, hmm, how should I say this? I’m not sure why I sought these things so desperately. I really don’t know.”

“Is it possible that you don’t want to know?”

“Haha. That sounds like a great question, one that the moon of Ivansia would ask. Can you see through human psychology and stuff? Oh, I have nothing for you to see through. If you want to show off, I, Sylvia Evanail, will be a loyal maid and play along!”

“Your butler is dead.”

Sylvia froze.

“No, technically, he disappeared.”

In The Story of Sormwin Academy, Raviel had once been ruined, and Sylvia had been corrupted. Unable to bear it, Sylvia’s butler prayed and offered his all to fix things. His prayer reached the Indoor Librarian.

“Dear Lord, please help us.”

Hamustra had gladly granted the butler’s wish. Time was turned back to before Lady Goldencup became the empress and Raviel was destroyed. In return, the butler lost who he was, which was all he had. Afterward, Raviel pierced her heart and plated it in silver in the rewinded timeline.

“I... um.” Sylvia lowered her head and clenched her jaw for a moment. “I wanted to become friends with the Lady of Ivansia. She’s beautiful, capable, and smart. I wondered if it was okay for someone like her to exist in this world among us.”

Raviel, who was leaning her head on my shoulder, narrowed her eyes. “Hmm, are you talking about the moment we first met?”

“Yes, I’m talking about the first time we met before any of the regression took place. I was very nervous about being a debutante with my friends. At that time, I saw you, Your Grace, standing afar as Lady Silver Lily.”

Sylvia talked like someone who was replaying a videotape that had already been played out many times. She accurately recited the moment of the past.

“I was young. In my eyes, you, Lady Silver Lily was... Well, a real angel. Your hair was silver, and your eyes were ruby red! Even if I were to dig up the most beautiful ruby, anyone who saw your eyes would scoff and say the jewel was just trash when compared to you. So I—”

I knew what she was trying to say. “You looked up to her.”

Just like I had looked up to a certain Hunter.

After a moment of silence, Sylvia clenched her fists. Then, she grabbed her maid headdress, throwing it on the ground.

“Yes! Fine, she was my idol! Are you satisfied now?”

Sylvia huffed and glared at Raviel, who was silent. It seemed that Sylvia was done putting up pretenses. She was now acting like a thug.

Ja Su-Jeong, our nonchalant landlord, approached us holding a tray. “It’s chilled barley tea. Would you like some?”

“Yes! I don’t know who you are, but thank you!” She downed the contents of her cup. “What is this? It’s freaking delicious! Shit!”

Sylvia glared at the barley tea. Suddenly, her shoulders slumped. She looked as if she thought her life was meaningless.

“Well, she wasn’t just my idol. We created our own social club called Silver Bell. It ran on a membership system, and only ladies recommended by the members could join. The screening process was very strict, so not everyone could join.”

“Silver Bell?

“We go when Lady Silver Lily needs us. All she has to do is ring the bell. It’s a figurative way to show our support. Can you really not figure it out by yourself? Are you an idiot?[2]”

No one spoke for a bit. The Guardian and Shiny broke the silence.

—Zombie, you didn’t create anything like Fire Sparkles when you were a shut-in, right?

[Shiny cautiously suggests that the hero might not have the social skills or the network to organize something like that.]

—Ah... Sorry, Zombie. I didn’t mean to say that.

I continued listening to Goldencup’s story.

“Since I was a founding member, passion drove me to be active.”

Raviel lowered her head, resting her chin on her palm. “This is my first time hearing about this.”

“It’s because the iron rule of our society was absolute secrecy. Just look, don’t touch. We just watched you from afar. After that, we returned to the secret hideout to chat, write poetry, or publish novels about you. That was the purpose of the secret society known as the Silver Bell.”

“What am I, a platypus?” Raviel asked with a pout. She definitely looked like a baby platypus.

“Well, we were squealing like usual. Just to kill time, I wrote Raviel Ivansia on a piece of paper and then wrote my name underneath it. Ah, I have to show you this to explain.”

Sylvia looked around and found a broom nearby, standing there in case the yard needed to be swept. She trudged over to get it.

“Here, look.”

Sylvia held the broom upside down and traced letters on the ground.

—RAVIEL IVANSIA

—SYLVIA EVANAIL

“I wrote stuff like these when I was young.”

—Zombie, when you were a shut-in...

[Shiny says that she highly doubts that the hero’s past was that stormy.]

—Yeah, you’re right. Yeah.

I continued looking at Sylvia, not paying any attention to the Guardian and Shiny. As she twirled the broom around, Sylvia said, “I was just doodling to kill time, but then a thought occurred to me. If Lady Silver Lily and I had a child—”

Raviel lost the grip on the cup she was holding. Sylvia aimed the broom at Raviel like an angry hedgehog[3].

“Try to understand. I was a teenager. Anyway, if we had a child, we wouldn’t be able to get married officially, so the child would be illegitimate. They wouldn’t be able to inherit the family name at all, but their name should have some relevance to the parents. That’s why I thought ‘Let’s secretly combine Raviel Ivansia and Sylvia Evanail.’ It’s almost inevitable that an idea like that came to me. Can you understand this outstand idea[4]?”

Ja Su-Jeong raised her hand. “Miss Sylvia, ‘outstanding’ is the correct term, not ‘outstand.’”

Sylvia angrily slicked back her hair with a sigh. “Thank you for the correction, damn it! So, um, anyway, this is how it went down. Come to think of it, would this work properly in this world’s language? It worked in the empire’s language. Oh, I don’t know. Anyway, I’ll give it a try.”

I watched Sylvia as she diligently traced letters on the ground.

—R A V I E L I V A N S I A

—S Y L V I A E V A N A I L.

“Pay attention. This is the awesome part where I realized something incredible!” Sylvia moved the broom again. “I divided the name by the letters, right? But if we divide them again into consonants and vowels—”

—R V L V N S A I E I A I A

—S L V V N L Y I A E A A I

She looked up, her cheeks rosy from all the excitement. “You see it, right? Right? It’s not perfect, but it’s evident in another language[5]! This is the fate of destiny!”

Ja Su-Jeong raised her hand again. “Miss Sylvia, fate and destiny are slightly different from one another. You may want to clarify what you actually mean.”

“Thank you very much, but please shut up now! Damn it! Focus and watch!”

Dispirited, Ja Su-Jeong looked down at the ground. Sylvia’s broom continued moving nimbly.

—V V N S L R A A A I I I E

—V V N S L L Y A A A I I E

It was impossible not to notice it when it was written like that. I looked at the letters listed on the ground. “The letters that make up your names are almost the same.”

Sylvia threw away her broom and spread her arms wide. “Yes! The names of Lady Silver Lily and I couldn’t be closer!”

As she said that, the innocence of a girl that had rusted away a long time ago was once again shining brightly.

1. The raw is 각골난망(刻骨難忘). It means that a person will never be able to forget how grateful they are. ☜

2. The raw is 은방울(Literal: Silver Bell). It’s a joke about the Korean expression 딸랑딸랑, which means buttering another person up. Some changes have been made for a smoother flow. ☜

3. The author seems to really like platypuses and hedgehogs for some reason. ☜

4. It's a joke using English. It also seems to show how much freedom Sylvia got. She's now free enough to make an error while speaking. ☜

5. In Korean, the names of Sylvia and Raviel are made using the same number of the same letters. Some changes have been made for the flow. ☜

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