DEB 51

“A hunt? …That sounds different from an assault.”

“It is different. I mean we’ll regularly conduct hunts to reduce their numbers before the demons can amass more power.”

“So we’d have to go into the demon realm periodically?”

“The demons opened a path through the gates, so there’s no reason we can’t do the same on our side. With enough power, like that of a demon lord, it should be possible.”

“…”

“Don’t look at me like that. I can’t wield that much power yet.” 

Huiyun laughed awkwardly, sweating under the intense stares of his three disciples.

In truth, if he could use Yasha’s power to open a gate to the demon realm and carry out hunts, he would push himself to do it. Delaying the war to maintain this fragile peace for as long as possible was worth it. He didn’t want to cause hardship for Huigang and his disciples.

But unfortunately, Huiyun didn’t yet have the power to interfere with the gates to that extent. To acquire such power, there was only one way…

[If you awaken now, there is a 100% chance you can secure a path to the demon realm with the system!]

I’m not buying it. I said I’m not buying.

Huiyun now saw they had returned, reading his thoughts and flashing advertisements. Ignoring the increasingly flashy windows, he turned back to his three disciples.

Unable to fully utilize Yasha’s power, there was only one alternative to gather equivalent strength.

“…We’ll have to call in the others too, won’t we?”

Juan, looking displeased, kicked the table. It felt like he was throwing a tantrum. Huiyun gave him a look. Juan, flinching, meekly put the table back in place. Only then did Huiyun affirm his suggestion.

“Yes, it seems we need to gather all the other disciples.”

They would have to call in the three other disciples, including Verita, whom they had mentioned earlier. 

Jiwook, tapping his chin thoughtfully, frowned.

“I understand, but it’s not feasible right now. Verita and the twins are overseas.”

Twins.

This was another clue about the remaining three disciples, whose memories he had not yet recovered.

Focusing on this hint, he watched as Nameless snapped his fingers, summoning two small dolls.

“We can’t summon them right away, but we should at least inform them of the situation. We have our pact to honor.”

“…Another pact?”

Learning about the power of pacts during the Celestial Demon War, Huiyun was surprised they had their own. His voice involuntarily raised, causing the three disciples to give him peculiar looks. Nameless gave a coquettish smile, Juan an interested grin, and Jiwook a blatant sneer.

“There’s a pact among Yasha’s disciples, but it doesn’t involve the seventh disciple, so there’s no need for you to worry. Besides, you don’t seem very interested in finding Yasha.”

Deliberate snub.

Damn, what a prick.

Huiyun had come to understand Jiwook’s style—using polite speech only when mocking someone, scratching at their nerves. 

“I thought you didn’t believe me anyway.”

“That’s why we can’t tell you. Who would trust someone they don’t believe with our pact?”

“We can’t tell you now for certain reasons. Understand, Yasha.”

“Right, and Yasha should have some curiosity about us to stay close.”

“You don’t need to do that; we’re already going to stay together for a month. Just tell me. And it’s Huiyun.”

No matter how many times he corrected them, they would call him whatever they liked, but he stubbornly kept correcting them. Nameless merely smiled, and Juan, remembering the incident on the mountain, looked slightly guilty before growing sullen. Jiwook, observing Juan’s reactions, touched Nameless’s doll.

“Let’s at least contact Verita, Janice, and Vita first. Moot, connect us.”

“I’m trying now.”

Nameless closed his eyes. 

Huiyun, having accidentally gathered the remaining disciples’ names, ingrained them in his memory.

Verita. Janice. Vita.

He repeated them internally but nothing came to mind, causing him to frown.

“…There’s no connection.”

Nameless, with a grim expression, lowered his voice. Juan sprang to his feet, and Jiwook’s eyes widened.

Realizing something was wrong, Huiyun held his breath. It seemed there was a problem.

“They have chips implanted near their hearts. Shouldn’t we be able to reach them even in a gate?”

“Indeed. It leaves us with two possibilities.” 

Moot, pushing aside the now-useless doll, continued.

“Either they’re dead, or they’re in a place where my powers can’t reach. Since the dolls are intact, they’re likely not dead… which leaves the latter.”

If Nameless, or Moot’s, powers couldn’t reach, where could they be? His puppetry could connect even in gates.

As Huiyun pondered, Juan gave a clear answer.

“They must be in a place as holy as it is wicked.”

“A temple or the demon realm.”

Jiwook frowned deeply behind his glasses, having quickly pieced together the clues. Huiyun and Juan had narrowly escaped from the demon realm. In such a situation, the fact that they had lost contact with the other disciples only pointed to one possibility.

“They must be in the demon realm.”

“Did they go there voluntarily, or were they pulled in like us?” 

“If it’s Verita, he might have found a way in himself.”

“No way. Verita is smart; he would have assessed the situation and shared the information with us first. But Janice, being reckless, might have gone in to avenge Yasha.”

Why do they feel guilty for things they didn’t do?

Yasha never asked his disciples to avenge him, but their long-standing anger and longing made them direct their rage towards the demons.

Jiwook seemed to find Juan’s speculation plausible and summarized the situation.

“So, the most likely scenario is that all three of them are in the demon realm. Did you sense their presence there, Ash?”

“Not at all. It was just full of unpleasant energy.”

Jiwook’s gaze shifted to Huiyun, who shook his head, agreeing with Juan. A long sigh escaped Jiwook.

“This changes our plan.”

Originally, they intended to gather all the disciples and create a path to the demon realm to exterminate some of the monsters. But this plan was now thwarted by the sudden loss of contact with the remaining disciples.

“We’ll have to find them.” 

They had to go find them themselves. If the three disciples were injured or killed in the demon realm, it would be disastrous.

With a looming war on the horizon, the loss of the disciples would be a significant blow.

“Damn it. We don’t have a way into the demon realm right now. Should we just clear gates at random until something happens?”

“Don’t be foolish. Who knows how long that would take? First, let’s visit the temples in the countries where they’re located.”

“Can’t we just wait? They’re not the type to get stuck in the demon realm forever.”

“And do nothing in the meantime? In this situation?”

“What else can we do? If we’re not clearing gates, I’d rather spend time with Yasha.”

“Maybe I should create new dolls.” 

“…”

Voices overlapped as they argued, each disciple speaking over the other. Siho, the silver fox perched on Huiyun’s shoulder, blew out a heavy sigh, clearly exasperated by the bickering.

Huiyun stroked the mystical creature’s fur and came to a realization.

They really don’t work well together unless it’s directly related to Yasha. How they became pillars of the Korean hunter community is beyond me.

“Is there any way?”

Huiyun, seeing his disciples too busy arguing, turned to the mysterious silver fox for help. Despite being a mystical and somewhat suspicious spirit beast, it was the only one that had managed to get them out of the gate.

What are you exactly…?

Thinking it might be linked to the system, Huiyun glanced at the sky as if to challenge it.

[You lack the qualifications. Fulfill the requirements, and I will reveal everything to you.]

Startled by the clear and pure voice in his head, Huiyun stared at Siho, who looked up, asking to be petted. The familiar cry of the little fox seemed normal, but Huiyun was uneasy.

This feels wrong.

Having picked up yet another strange being after the three hunters, Huiyun wondered if he could return it. Siho just wagged his tail, seemingly amused.

[You cannot dismiss the current guide until a new one is found.]

Even as a young fox, it was quite cheeky.