The Mage Who Devours Disasters - Chapter 24

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 24.
“…What?”
“I’ll follow you! Use me however you wish! I swear my loyalty!”
A resonant, diaphragmatic shout.
The semi-basement corridor reverberated with the force of it.
I furrowed my brow.
“Please take me under your wing, hyung!”
Park Ji-hoon’s eyes burned with desperation.
He clung to my pant leg as though his life depended on it.
“Otherwise, my father will beat me to death!”
“…Chairman Park would?”
“Yes! He said if I don’t call my benefactor hyung, he’ll erase me from the family register! Or rather, he said he’d bury me….”
The guy trembled violently.
Ah, the picture became clear.
I could sense what that cunning old fox, Chairman Park, was scheming.
He didn’t want to lose me.
A simple transactional relationship wasn’t enough for him.
So he was using his son as collateral—or rather, as a binding link.
‘The man’s ruthless.’
Making his son do this the moment he woke up.
But what truly complicated matters was something else entirely.
‘Is this really the Demon King Park Ji-hoon?’
I scrutinized the sniffling figure before me.
The Park Ji-hoon I knew from the future was nothing like this.
Taciturn, cold-blooded, merciless—an absolute sovereign.
A lord who ruled the Underworld with overwhelming charisma.
Yet standing before me now was unmistakably a local street thug’s lackey number one.
Why did his speech sound like that? Why did his eyes gleam so brightly?
‘Did three years of lying in bed scramble his mind?’
Or was that ruthlessness I remembered something he’d developed over time?
“Hyung! Please! I’ll do anything—errands, driving, cleaning, laundry—I’m good at it all!”
Park Ji-hoon bowed his head again.
“Uh? What’s that?”
“Looks like a gangster. Scary.”
“A debt collector?”
Murmurs began to ripple through the air.
Neighbors from adjacent units and upstairs had emerged to watch.
A man in a suit kneeling at the semi-basement entrance and shouting—of course all eyes were drawn to it.
At this rate, the police would arrive any moment.
I exhaled a deep sigh.
“…Get up.”
“Will you accept my sword?”
“Come inside first. People are watching.”
“Thank you so much, hyung!”
Park Ji-hoon sprang to his feet.
Color flooded back into his face.
We stepped into the cramped studio apartment.
Park Ji-hoon perched at the edge of the sofa, sitting with perfect posture.
Both hands rested respectfully on his knees.
I handed him a glass of water and asked, “Are you sincere?”
“Absolutely sincere. My father said so himself. He said you would become a dragon.”
I appreciated his honesty.
I rested my chin on my hand and studied him.
His utility was undeniable.
A future Demon King. A top-tier awakened one.
Though he was frail now, his potential was certain.
More importantly, being able to command Chairman Park’s Organization like my own hands and feet was a significant advantage.
He would be perfect for handling the trivial matters I wouldn’t need to deal with personally.
‘He’s too valuable to simply discard.’
Besides, his current foolish demeanor might actually make him easier to control.
“Fine.”
I nodded and spoke.
“But there are conditions.”
“Just say the word!”
“First, my word is law. Don’t argue.”
“Of course!”
“Second, don’t act without my permission. If you cause trouble, it won’t be Chairman Park who buries you—it’ll be me.”
“I’ll remember that!”
When I stared at him coldly, Park Ji-hoon swallowed hard.
He understood instinctively.
That my words were not empty threats.
I waved my hand dismissively.
“Now go. I’ll call you when I need you.”
“Huh? Already? Wouldn’t you like a massage or something?”
“….”
“I’m leaving right away!”
Park Ji-hoon shot to his feet like a fresh recruit and bowed at a ninety-degree angle.
Then he handed me a business card and said, “Go ahead and rest, hyung! I’ll be on standby twenty-four hours!”
Then he handed over a business card and spoke.
“Please go ahead, sir! I’ll be on standby 24 hours!”
“Keep it down. You’re disturbing the residents.”
“S-sorry, sir. If you call, I’ll zip my lips and come faster than light.”
The guy grinned widely and stepped out through the foyer.
Bang.
The door shut.
Silence returned to the room.
I stared at the money bag sitting on the table.
Thirty billion won in total. And as a bonus, I’d gained a subordinate.
“…Heh.”
A hollow laugh escaped me.
I’d suddenly acquired a younger brother.
The man destined to become the future king of the Underworld had rolled in on his own.
If I could reform him, that wouldn’t be a bad outcome at all.
‘Life is truly unpredictable.’
This development was beyond anything I’d imagined.
But it wasn’t bad.
The world was vast, and I had too many Deities to capture to bear everything alone.
‘Now the remaining question is….’
What to do with thirty billion won in cash.
Of course, I already had a purpose in mind.
‘Toje Yamamoto. I need to confirm whether he’s an avatar or not.’
* * *
“Why are you back already?”
Chairman Park snapped at Park Ji-hoon.
He’d sent him off to do menial work, yet the boy had returned in less than half a day.
But Park Ji-hoon stood his ground.
“My brother told me to come back.”
“Did you deliver the money properly?”
“Yes.”
Chairman Park stroked his chin.
The reason he’d sent the freshly awakened Park Ji-hoon to Kim Jung-seok was genuinely to forge a connection.
Given Park Ji-hoon’s haggard state, it would be difficult for Kim Jung-seok to refuse.
By establishing a relationship as older and younger brother, Chairman Park believed it would surely prove beneficial in the future.
‘He will become a dragon.’
After living for countless years and meeting many people, Chairman Park was certain.
Kim Jung-seok.
He was the ‘real deal’.
A talent destined to dominate the era.
Was it his exceptional ability to appraise things?
Or his outstanding talent for utilizing them?
Or perhaps for saving my son?
None of that.
It was far removed from such simple sentimentality.
On the surface, he appeared utterly ordinary.
Yet the more one understood him, the more he radiated an untouchable aura.
Those who emanated such an atmosphere would inevitably become unreachable beings.
Especially in an age like this.
‘I must establish a connection with him.’
Monsters emerging without warning.
Anomalies continuing without end.
And humanity gaining superhuman power.
In a future where one cannot see even an inch ahead, those of Kim Jung-seok’s caliber were destined to stand out.
If not now, it would become far more difficult to forge such ties.
The coming era would be a savage age ruled by force.
‘I must prepare.’
If he could bind someone like Kim Jung-seok through money, then a mere 30 billion would be pocket change.
Moreover, the artifacts he had brought were exceptional beyond measure.
He possessed discernment. He also had foresight.
With these relics, one could seize the high ground.
One could cultivate a military force and prepare for the chaos to come.
“Ji-hoon.”
“Yes, Father.”
Park Ji-hoon looked at Chairman Park with a tense expression.
Chairman Park spoke with utmost gravity.
“Serve him with all your sincerity. That is the only way for someone lacking as you to survive.”
“I will keep that in mind.”
“But you must not stagnate. You too must grow stronger.”
“…I will recover quickly.”
Park Ji-hoon felt inwardly puzzled.
He had never seen his father treat someone with such an attitude.
‘Is he truly that remarkable?’
Honestly, doubt lingered.
When he had seen him directly, he hadn’t seemed that impressive.
He had simply done his best because the man was his benefactor who had saved his life.
Yet Chairman Park, his father, did not move carelessly.
And he continued to vouch for Kim Jung-seok.
It meant Kim Jung-seok possessed tremendous value.
Park Ji-hoon cast aside his doubts.
As expected, recovering his body came first.
* * *
Yamamoto.
In Japan, there was no one left who didn’t know that name.
The one who ascended to second place in the Hall of Fame during Episode 1.
A legendary hero who had saved countless lives.
Moreover, he had proven himself by reaching second place again in Episode 2.
But.
“…No Name.”
Yamamoto tilted his head as he gazed at the Hall of Fame.
There was someone who had claimed first place with an overwhelming margin.
Without even revealing their name.
Did they truly have no interest in money or fame?
It was possible for someone to be indifferent to material things.
But Yamamoto’s thoughts diverged.
‘Can a human without desire reach first place?’
Impossible.
Desire is the driving force that moves humanity.
In fact, among those who had reached the upper ranks of the Hall of Fame, none had concealed their names.
Because it was human nature.
Everyone possessed that primal instinct to make their greatness known to all.
Yet the one who had reached first place, and with such an overwhelming score gap at that, concealed their name?
When they should be boasting about it to everyone?
Nonsense.
‘Not human.’
Such a being was not human.
And if not human, then.
‘An avatar.’
It must be an avatar of The Deity.
Just like myself.
A false vessel created by one of The Deities within the Tower.
Yet this too was peculiar.
Amusement.
The meaning of enjoyment.
Countless avatars did not hesitate to reveal themselves.
They reveled in being revered as heroes.
Despite being the true culprits behind countless disasters and the architects of world destruction.
They could not resist the pleasure that came from that contradiction.
Yet this one had concealed their name….
And that score difference.
‘It seems the avatar has been fed an enormous amount of nectar.’
Surely no ordinary Deity.
Only beings of the ‘highest tier’ among The Deities could use Nectar as casually as water.
The more Nectar fed to an avatar, the more divine power it accumulated—eventually matching the original deity’s own.
The problem was the backlash phenomenon.
When an avatar imbued with divine power was destroyed, the original body suffered catastrophic damage in return.
Moreover, it was shameful.
For a deity of such caliber to exhaust all their effort merely nurturing an avatar—it was beneath dignity.
Literally stepping beyond the bounds of ‘amusement’.
‘Did they hide their name out of embarrassment?’
It was possible.
If exposed, they would face ridicule throughout the Tower of Gods.
The deity’s reputation would plummet to ruin.
…Who could it be.
Toje Yamamoto found himself oddly preoccupied.
It was strange—surpassing first place by such an extreme margin, when this was merely amusement, gnawed at him.
And so.
‘Perhaps I should feed this avatar more Nectar.’
Feeding Yamamoto additional Nectar might prove worthwhile.
Even a fraction of the vast Nectar reserves at his disposal would allow this avatar to effortlessly surpass any number of lesser deities.
Ah.
Only then did Yamamoto understand the emotion coursing through him.
Competitive spirit.
He was unmistakably feeling rivalry toward NONAME.
Therefore.
‘I will win in the next episode.’
I will win. Without fail.
Especially since rankings matter tremendously in the next episode.
Such thoughts were, in a sense, inevitable.
Yamamoto.
His true form was a deity who brooked no competition.
A god who crushed all opposition and stood at the apex.
…One of the Twelve Chief Deities—the God of War himself.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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