LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 29
Chapter 29
—–CROW—–
The story goes back about 48 hours. A single, perpetually solo Hunter happened to be the sole viewer of Jae-hee’s violin broadcast. The man was completely captivated by the performance, becoming half-insensible. Unfortunately, the man was scheduled to participate in a guild raid in about four hours, but having fallen head over heels for the Succubus Empress, how could he possibly go?
Thus, he had no choice but to declare his absence from the raid, and his father, a strict politician, immediately summoned him by phone.
“I knew it from the moment you said you wanted to be a Hunter! How long are you going to keep running away?!”
“Running away? What are you talking about…?”
“Isn’t being a Hunter like being a mercenary, living hand to mouth?! I thought you were at least earning your keep, but now you’ve skipped out on the guild raid I set up for you? If that’s the case, just quit and get a job at a factory!”
“???”
“Tsk tsk, no girlfriend, no social life, I knew this would happen. You probably did a few Hunter jobs, found it tough and dangerous, and gave up, didn’t you?! Pack up your things and come back home! I’ll talk to the guild…!”
“No, what the…”
Of course, the son was dumbfounded. They weren’t on good terms, but even though he thought he was used to his father’s blatant disregard and harsh words, he wasn’t.
‘I earn more than you, Father.’
He spent a lot on equipment and potions, but even considering that, he earned more than enough to live on his own. And the guild hadn’t even said anything significant.
ㅡAssemblyman, Jin-woo didn’t show up for the raid today. Is something the matter?
ㅡHe’s usually so diligent, so we’re worried because we can’t reach him…
Since a usually diligent and skilled Hunter had suddenly been absent, the guild was naturally worried, wondering if he was sick, and had called to check on him. However, the old man’s closed-minded ears focused not on his son’s usual diligence, but on the “unauthorized absence without a valid reason,” and that was all he could think about. Well, he was worried about his son doing dangerous Hunter work and wanted him to have a stable life, sitting in a safe office, which was a common parental desire, but how often were parental desires truly selfless?
This father was no different. He constantly nitpicked, unable to express his true feelings, and would probably whine to his wife or friends after getting drunk, saying, “I worry so much about my son, but he doesn’t understand my heart.”
“Haa, it’s not like that. I just felt a bit strange while resting, that’s all. It’s nothing for you to worry about, Father.”
“Feeling strange? Are you seeing a woman?”
“No, no, it’s not like that!”
However, the father realized that his son’s heart was elsewhere. Usually, in this case, it meant the son had a girlfriend he hadn’t told his parents about. It was natural for the father, who had just been acting like a typical old man, to become interested in his son’s new girlfriend(?).
“Who is she? What kind of woman? Tell me, I won’t be angry.”
“Huh…”
It was ridiculous how his angry voice instantly softened, but the son was long used to this, thinking, ‘Here we go again.’ The son tried to explain that it wasn’t a woman, that it wasn’t what his father was thinking, but his heart was indeed aching and burning with lovesickness, so he had no choice but to answer his father’s questions.
“What is this?”
“You’ll see…”
And so, the father watched a video.
A cheap camera with poor image quality.
Low-quality microphone recording.
A woman in a black suit playing in the center.
The father thought.
-Wait, I think I’ve seen her somewhere…?
The fleeting thought was erased by the melody.
A sweet and enchanting performance unfolded, and the father understood his son’s feelings.
Yes, if you saw this…
Anyone would feel their heart ache.
Like lovesickness.
Like their soul melting away.
Even after the music ended, both father and son remained silent for a while, unable to shake off the aftereffects.
“…I’m sorry for getting angry. I understand now.”
“It’s okay. Honestly, if you hadn’t seen it yourself… it would just look like I skipped out on the guild raid.”
After apologizing to his son, the father, still captivated by the woman’s violin performance and enchanting melody, suddenly remembered.
“Ah, that person…”
“Father, do you know who she is? You have a lot of connections!”
Finally, the father remembered who the woman in the video was. How much could higher-ups be involved in fieldwork? Moreover, it was impossible for a busy politician to remember a Specially Managed Returnee, someone who was best left unmentioned and forgotten. In fact, the father had even received memory-erasing injections to intentionally forget unnecessary information.
But she was someone he couldn’t completely forget, even with memory-erasing injections and brainwashing.
It was Lee Jae-hee, the Succubus Empress.
“…This lady… plays the violin really well.”
★
★
★
And so, after accidentally seeing the video of Jae-hee playing the violin thanks to his son, a certain politician suggested that the government agency support her broadcasts. That politician, a higher-up, was the Second Vice Minister of the Returnee Management Agency, and one of the people presiding over this meeting.
“Well, I saw the video the Vice Minister showed us… she plays well. So well that it’s a shame for only me to see it…”
“Ahem, well, Miss Jae-hee… isn’t unemployed?”
“Oh dear, saying ‘unemployed’ to young people these days… It’s better to say she’s ‘searching for her dream.’”
“….”
Ahahaha.
Jae-hee didn’t respond, but she couldn’t help but laugh inwardly at this scene. If she laughed out loud, some people might be charmed by her laughter, so she had to be careful. Especially with these fragile old men who had become her “ahjussi fans” because of a single violin video. It would be troublesome if someone died of a heart attack because of her laughter.
“Hoo, hooh… huhuhu…”
Ah, I can’t hold it in.
Jae-hee desperately covered her mouth, trying to stifle her laughter. Officer Dan, worried that Jae-hee’s charm-filled laughter might leak out and scramble the higher-ups’ brains, quietly deployed a transparent mental barrier.
“Can I ask a question?”
“Ah, yes yes! Ask away.”
“It’s interesting that you’re using government funds for the personal convenience of a Returnee, but you’re saying you’ll buy me all the broadcasting equipment, recording equipment, camera, and computer? Is that even possible?”
“Well, uh…”
“She’s a Specially Managed Returnee, and we’re managing her… but the purpose of the relevant laws and the establishment of the agency itself is to ‘support the social reintegration and independence of Returnees.’ Nominally, there’s nothing we can’t support…”
“Aha. I see.”
“But in return…”
In return?
“Could you play regularly?”
“I listened to your performance and it reminded me of my younger days.”
“It made me think of the times when this land was still peaceful… and these days, music is often contaminated with memes or mental pollution, making it difficult to listen to classic music.”
“We want to hear your performance, but looking at the public opinion on the Hunter Channel, an Awakened-only channel, it seems other people want to hear it too.”
“Ahem, so, it’s not just for us personally. This support includes not only your complete social independence as a Specially Managed Returnee but also the mental stabilization of the public. And if this sets a good precedent for Specially Managed Returnees, wouldn’t it be beneficial for the future?”
The affection, curiosity, and lust that had initially disgusted her now seemed amusing. She could feel their gazes, sparkling like those of fans looking at a top trot singer, a national hero, a champion ssireum wrestler, or an idol adored by the elderly. Finally, Jae-hee’s disgust faded, and she found the situation amusing.
Come to think of it, there was a president in the past who was a fan of a handsome actor, neglecting his duties to watch the actor’s dramas and movies, and even inviting him to the Blue House. Well, this case wasn’t that extreme, but…
‘Actually, there’s also the problem of our little troublemaker constantly screaming.’
The Ego Violin was made of children.
Not just one, but 187 souls resided within, and those children wanted to be played every day. Not just quietly in a room, but they wanted to share their performance with others.
There was nothing in it for Jae-hee if they just whined like this.
Frankly, she could just destroy the Ego Violin, or seal it away. Even Officer Dan could manipulate protective techniques and barriers to create sealing techniques.
‘But the Ego Violin is quite helpful to me.’
Jae-hee suffered from a chronic lack of essence and life force. As the Succubus Empress, she needed essence and life force just to breathe, and the amount required was far beyond what a couple of humans could provide. So, Jae-hee periodically hunted dungeons and monsters. However, unlike Hunters who sought monster byproducts and magic stones, she absorbed the monsters’ life force itself.
This process was very inefficient and cumbersome, but if she charmed and absorbed essence from humans, she could easily kill someone.
But when she played the Ego Violin, “strings” formed with an unspecified number of people. If she took 100 units of life force from one person, that person would die. But if she took 0.1 units from thousands or tens of thousands of people, they wouldn’t die and their daily lives wouldn’t be affected. However, the amount of life force and essence flowing into Jae-hee would increase exponentially.
Since essence was the foundation and lifeblood of a succubus, Jae-hee had been thinking, ‘Oh? Maybe I should play the violin more often?’
And now, these higher-ups with sparkling eyes had come to her of their own accord.
Ah, is this all happening because I’m beautiful?
“Well, if Miss Jae-hee really doesn’t want to… there’s nothing we can do.”
“This isn’t a common opportunity, you know? The agency can handle all the necessary equipment purchases and broadcasting procedures…”
“Since you’re a succubus, would you prefer to play outside? We can support that too, but then we’ll focus on video recording resources…”
“Alright.”
At that single word, the atmosphere in the hearing room brightened like a blooming rainbow. The old men’s eyes sparkled. These higher-ups, who usually didn’t even watch internet broadcasts and looked down on them, now looked like they were about to become internet broadcast addicts.
“I’ll do it. But the agency will handle all the support, equipment, and assistance…”
“Of course, of course.”
“Huhuhu, yes, yes. Anything else you need?”
“Ah, can Officer Dan be my manager?”
“…Huh?”
Officer Dan, who was pouring coffee, looked at Jae-hee with wide, surprised eyes.
“Why? Of course, Officer Dan should do it.”
“But, I…”
“Hmm, that’s right! Officer Dan Ah-yeon, who usually takes care of and manages Miss Jae-hee, is trustworthy!”
“If that’s the case, will she really do the performance… or broadcast, or whatever it is?”
“How often will she do it? Once a week? Preferably two or three times a week…”
“Well, my opinion is…”
“I don’t know much about computers, so I’ll leave it to my subordinates. I’ll send you a quote later. Miss Jae-hee… or rather, Officer Dan, please check it and make sure the specifications are optimized for music broadcasting, and report back to me by today.”
“…But…”
“Hahaha! Then it’s settled. Thank you all for your hard work. Miss Jae-hee, thank you for coming today!”
“Huhuhu, not at all~ I’m satisfied with this constructive and healthy conversation.”
“……..”
Dan Ah-yeon had to forcefully swallow the “fuck” that rose to her throat.
—–CROW—–