The Hero Returns

Dozens of dark magicians were standing in the lobby of a luxurious mansion. Su-hyeun and Roman sat facing each other. Roman was the head of the dark magicians in this mansion. He had led many of them before. Therefore, he was considered a powerful man amongst them.

"I can't believe a person like you is a leader here. The future of the dark magicians seems pretty bleak."

Of course, Su-hyeun did not see him as a great leader.

"B-but he is pretty famous amongst us. We, his subordinates, can walk around the town confidently."

"If you were to travel to where I am from, you wouldn't get anywhere with that level of skill in your powers," Su-hyeun said.

"Where are you from, brother?" Roman asked Su-hyeun.

Bam! Su-hyeun hit Roman.

"Brother? Are you kidding me? Are you my brother?"

"Umm…"

Roman rolled his eyes. He had to answer with caution if he did not want to get hit. Su-hyeun narrowed his eyes and glared at Roman and the other dark magicians.

'Their power level is quite low. Therefore, it is weird that this place is called the city of the magicians.'

The people that Su-hyeun had met in the village earlier were considered to be less powerful than the dark magicians in this mansion. Although Roman and the other dark magicians here are supposed to be different than them, their power level is practically just as low. If the dark magicians of the lower village were D-Ranks, the people in this mansion would be C-Ranks or a little less than that.

'Perhaps this guy here is about a B-Rank,' Su-hyeun thought as he looked at Roman. 'These are not the last of the magicians, though. There are more dangerous guys probably still left.'

"Let me ask you something first," Su-hyeun said.

"Y-yes. Ask me, please."

Roman responded nervously as he worried about his survival. It seemed pathetic, but it was natural for him to be nervous after knowing Su-hyeun is the one who got rid of all of the dark magicians in the lower village.

"In about a month, I will be sacrificed to Ouroboros, right?"

"T-that is…"

"Stop beating around the bush and tell me. I found out everything before I came here, so don't try to fool me."

"Yes, you will be."

People in this city had decided to sacrifice foreigners rather than citizens. Roman shut his eyes tight.

'If he gets upset and swings his sword, I will die.'

However, he received an unexpected response.

"Good, good." Su-hyeun nodded as if he was satisfied. "Then, onto the next question. How does Ouroboros identify the sacrifice?"

"W-why do you ask that?" Roman slowly opened his eyes and expected he could survive this interrogation.

Su-hyeun had a stern look on his face and said, "I ask questions, and you just answer them."

"Y-yes!"

"Answer the question."

"The dark magicians in the center of the city have control over Ouroboros. Ouroboros eats the person they designate, satisfies its appetite, and then goes back to the sea."

"Is it the only way to get Ouroboros out of the sea?"

"Yes… it is," Roman answered with hesitation and observed Su-hyeun's mood.

He was wondering what Su-hyeun was curious about since the only questions he asked were about Ouroboros.

"Well, that is good," Su-hyeun said.

"That is?"

"Where are the exact people that have control over Ouroboros?"

Roman's face turned pale after hearing this question.

Su-hyeun grinned at Roman and said, "Guide me to them."

***

Tramp, tramp—

"That man over there, is he Roman?"

"Yes. Why is he here?"

"Who is the person beside him? He doesn't look like a dark magician…"

"I've never seen him before."

Roman lowered his head as many people watched him walk past. If word spread later about what he was doing, he would be filled with shame.

'Damn it. What the hell am I doing? I was supposed to catch him, but now I am guiding him to where he wants.'

However, the direction that he was guiding him towards was funny. Even though Su-hyeun was considered to be a fugitive, he had asked to be led to the den of the powerful dark magicians.

'When we arrive there, this bastard will die.'

This was something that Roman believed firmly. There were many skilled dark magicians at the place that they were heading towards. He was confident that they could stomp Su-hyeun to death.

'Yes. I will make him immortal so that I may torture him forever. I will use him as a slave for life,' Roman thought to himself, and a wicked grin formed on his face.

Wham—!

"Argh!"

Roman turned as he felt pain in the back of his head. Su-hyeun had hit him there.

"Wh-what is wrong, sir?"

"You thought of some plan to screw me over, didn't you?"

"What? No way!"

"Just show me the way. Don't even think about fooling me."

At Su-hyeun's word, Roman shut his mouth tight and quickened his pace. Soon, they arrived at the tall tower in the middle of the city.

"This is it."

Su-hyeun looked up at the tower. The tower had a pointed roof and was the tallest structure in this city. It looked to be at least a few hundred meters high. It was the only building that was higher than the walls surrounding the city.

'It was probably not the dark magicians' building at first,' Su-hyeun thought. 'Perhaps they only began to control the city when they gained control over Ouroboros. They probably got this tower too with that power.'

Creak—

When Roman reached his hand out, the door opened. It appeared to have some sort of mechanism that required magic to open it.

"Let's enter," Roman said.

Su-hyeun looked around in the building and noticed how quiet it was. The first floor was empty.

Roman said, "Less than a hundred dark magicians are living here. Only me and about a hundred other dark magicians are granted access into this tower."

"A hundred people in this place—"

"All of them are powerful magicians. Powerful magicians like to reside in higher places, so they are located in the upper floors of the tower."

"If they are similar to you, I will be disappointed."

At Su-hyeun's words, Roman made a dirty look but immediately forced a smile afterward.

"Y-you won't. I am a low-level dark magician compared to the other magicians who are in this tower."

"Really?"

"You will find out when you meet them."

His words were full of hidden meaning, but Su-hyeun did not care. Roman's role was to guide Su-hyeun here, and he did. Therefore, it was time to face the other high-level dark magicians.

Creak, creak—

They stepped onto a platform in the middle of the tower. The stone in the middle of the platform shined, and the platform began to rise. It seemed to function just like an elevator. Unlike other buildings in the city, Su-hyeun could tell this tower was made with a lot of effort

Creak—

The platform moved up quickly and soon came to a stop. Roman and Su-hyeun arrived at the top floor of the tower. There was a large door on the opposite side of the platform.

Creak—

They approached the huge door that seemed to be over 5 meters high. It opened by itself as if the door was asking for them to enter. Su-hyeun entered without hesitation. Unlike the other floors, this floor was just one huge room. There was a large round table in there.

"He actually came."

"He is quite bold, isn't' he?"

"Is he the one who killed everyone in the lower village?"

"He looks younger than I thought."

Dozens of dark magicians were sitting around the huge, round table. Each one of them was similar in strength or stronger than Roman. Some of them could even be considered as A-Ranks. As Roman had said, all competent dark magicians were gathered here.

"I don't care much for the dregs of society." Su-hyeun's eyes turned to an old dark magician who was resting his chin on his hand. "Shall we talk?"

Rattle—

Su-hyeun pulled one empty chair towards him and sat down. The dark magicians glared at Su-hyeun with hard eyes after being called dregs. However, when the old dark magician raised his hand, they stopped glaring.

"So, you finally found me."

"You are on a different level."

"Hahaha. I had doubts when I heard about you, but you are better than I thought."

It had been only one day since Su-hyeun slaughtered the dark magicians of the lower village. However, the news already reached the magicians in this tower. It seemed that many dark magicians had gathered here since then because of Su-hyeun.

"So, what do you want? What made you come here?" the old magician asked.

"I wonder if it because you are older, but unlike other people, you actually try to talk before taking action."

"Of course. Conversation is a process that delivers knowledge. Men are animals that can not develop without talking."

"Well, what a great animal you are."

At Su-hyeun's sarcasm, the other dark magicians stood up, unable to bear his comments anymore.

"Sir, how can you let him talk to you like this?"

"We must tear his limbs apart right here!"

"Sit down." The old magician looked at other dark magicians who jumped up. "Or I will tear you all apart first."

"S-sorry, sir!"

The dark magicians sat back down in their seats one by one as they gained control over their temper. The old magician looked around at the dark magicians and then looked at Su-hyeun again with a smile.

"Sorry about that. Hahaha."

"Your men need to show me some respect. You should control them more."

"I will give them a lesson later," the old magician said and nodded slowly. "So, what do you want? Just say it. If it is something I can help with, I will cooperate and offer my assistance."

"Ouroboros, bring it out from the sea." Upon hearing Su-hyeun's request, the old magician's eyes narrowed.

"You seem to be very interested in Ouroboros."

"Yes."

"What are you going to do? I assume you aren't asking me out of mere curiosity. If you are asking these questions just to catch Ouroboros—"

"That is exactly what I am going to do," Su-hyeun said.

The old dark magician stared into Su-hyeun's eyes. Although his response was absurd, Su-hyeun's eyes did not seem to lie.

"Catching Ouroboros…," the old magician murmured.

In Moros, Ouroboros was like a patron saint that protected the dark magicians. There were not many dark magicians in the city. Therefore, they gained most of their power only after they gained control over Ouroboros. Now, Su-hyeun was saying he intended to catch this creature. If he succeeded in doing so, the power of the dark magicians in Moros would decline.

"What if I refuse to help?" the old magician asked with his eyes closed.

Su-hyeun rose from his seat and answered, "Then, everyone will die."

Rumble—

Su-hyeun's magic began to fill the room.