Second Life of a Dragon Raising Hunter

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Chapter 381

The memorial park ceremony wrapped up in no time.

The existence of Hunters significantly transformed the social structure, which reduced excess ceremony and the high-handedness of the upper crust a little.

For example, high-ranking officials who thought their authority would plummet if they arrived early to such events.

Well, as long as they don’t show up late, Yeon-woo usually didn’t mind a bit.

In the middle of it all, Yeon-woo, who had personally participated in the war, even gave a speech at times.

But, it wasn’t her first time doing it. As long as she could say a few nice words and offer sincere condolences, there wasn’t much to worry about.

Although she did wonder if these people ever did a rehearsal for such things.

Regardless, that wasn’t the important part. It was nice that the event finished without any troublesome mishaps, but that didn’t mean future annoyances would disappear.

Especially after Yeon-woo gave her speech, sharing the fact she attended and information about her appearance to the crowd, the chance for annoying incidents only increased.

– “That concludes our event. Thank you to all our honored guests.”

With those words, everyone suddenly jumped up. Yeon-woo did the same. Everyone was trying to escape.

However, Yeon-woo’s position was right in the middle of the seating. It was a bit tricky to exit smoothly from there.

‘I might be able to go out upwards…’

Glancing at the air, Yeon-woo soon gave up. It wasn’t like she had to avoid it at all costs.

It was the sheer number of people that was bothersome; after all, opportunities to make connections didn’t come around often.

In a society where cities held power independently, rather than being controlled under a government, it was hard to say how useful those connections would be.

Thinking along those lines, Yeon-woo began to sort through the crowd. The scene resembled a large fan meeting.

*

“I didn’t expect to run into you here. It’s been a while.”

Turning her head at a familiar voice, Yeon-woo saw a man with fox-like features smiling brightly. It was a face she recognized.

Fortunately, her remarkable memory kicked in, recalling his name.

“Lee Seol?”

“Ah, I’m glad you remember! Ha ha.”

He was a Sub-Lord of the Golden Dragon Gate from the Sa-do Clan.

A bit of TMI, but she recalled the story behind his name: it was given because the current clan leader found him on a snowy day.

As Yeon-woo’s business had been expanding, meetings with the Golden Dragon Gate had become more frequent.

However, these were casual encounters, so she hadn’t seen him since the Harmony Treaty.

While Lee Seol had been active on-site, Yeon-woo had Riley, which meant she didn’t need to step out herself.

“Nice to see you.”

When Yeon-woo extended her hand, Lee Seol smiled and grasped it. Just like how she treated Leviathan, there was no need to put up any barriers.

Many feared the Sa-do Clan, but the Golden Dragon Gate didn’t only engage in illegal activities.

In the face of humanity’s crisis, the lines between good and evil blurred.

Even if someone was a villain, they could spring into action if the country was in danger; this ratio would only grow in times of crisis.

The Sapa weeded themselves out. Under the pretext of preserving humanity, they distinguished true villains from free people—a task they did successfully, albeit at the cost of halving their numbers.

While it couldn’t be said they completely refrained from inhumane acts, they had enough precautions in place to avoid being caught.

Compared to the nobles before the regression, they were practically saints.

Those nobles used to kidnap and kill anyone deemed unsuitable for mana. It was impressive they managed to keep that under wraps for so long.

The Sapa’s actions, at least, meant they obtained compensation and consent for even minimal human experimentation, so those truths only resulted in mild criticism if revealed before the regression.

“From then to now, your reputation has skyrocketed, hasn’t it? I wanted us to be on equal footing, but how disappointing.”

“Hahaha, my reputation was already significant back then!”

As Lee Seol sighed, apparently lamenting, Yeon-woo responded with a smile.

Naturally, she was the world’s first and only half-dragon—the contract holder of the Dragon Heart. Compared to the current fame, it was vastly different.

“Do you know how unsettling it is to suggest a deal to someone who has taken down two Demon Kings? No, you wouldn’t understand at all.”

“I wouldn’t mind never knowing. I’ll catch them all anyway.”

“Indeed. I should have formed a good connection back then…”

Had he been eyeing her from that time? In reality, they had managed to establish a pretty decent relationship. They’d even struck deals fairly often since then.

Regardless of Lee Seol’s regrets, since they hadn’t seen each other in a while, lingering too long in conversation would likely put her behind schedule.

Best to excuse themselves and meet again later, as he probably had his own deals to propose.

“Well then, Lee Seol, come visit us later. Let’s have a meal or something.”

“Ah, would that really be alright?”

“Of course.”

Yeon-woo didn’t utter insincere words, at least not to humans.

She understood that even if she might say something irritating to demons, she rarely spoke without meaning it to humans, which brightened Lee Seol’s expression.

Well, he’d probably come by soon. But for now, it was time to manage the line forming behind her.

An hour after the event ended, after stuffing a mountain of business cards into storage and accepting countless handshake requests, Yeon-woo finally headed home.

*

How many friends are truly necessary in life? One cherished friend? Two with a balanced friendship? Or perhaps more?

Shar knew the answer: three. The reason was simple.

So you can have the most fun in a four-player game. What an absolute truth that is.

The idea of enjoying a four-player party game? Just with friends? It sounds… impossible.

Yet, Shar only had three friends—Tae-oh, Dawn, and Momo. Coincidentally, Momo couldn’t join in the gaming fun.

While she seemed enthusiastic about the atmosphere, she would come over and pant next to them during the game.

And so, Shar was in a dilemma. While there was one more person she could call a friend, inviting them to play felt like a burden.

Still, Shar couldn’t help but worry. Today, she desperately wanted to play that game.

Her adorably cute younger siblings were looking at her with bright, sparkly eyes, as if indicating they wanted her to be the leader.

That was the sorrow of the eldest daughter. With the love she received came the responsibility to manage any mischief they caused. That was the role of the vanguard…

Calmly assessing the situation, Shar resolutely lifted her smartphone with both hands.

After tapping in Leviathan’s number she’d heard about last time, the dull tone of a ring echoed.

– “Leviathan here! What’s up?”

“Hello, um, Demon King, you know…”

With the lively shout of Leviathan’s voice, Shar’s fingers fidgeted nervously.

Seeing Tae-oh and Dawn, whose fists were clenched tight as if encouraging her, gave her the strength to speak up.

“Are you busy…?”

– “Not busy! What’s going on?!”

At that, Shar let out a sigh of relief. She’d cleared the first hurdle. All that was left was to ask if they could hang out, to see if they wanted to play.

“Well, do you want to play a game…?”

– “What? A game!?”

She screamed like it was an emergency, and the sound of something crashing to the ground echoed through the receiver.

Startled by the ruckus, Shar was panicking when Leviathan’s voice came through again.

– “Hah, I’ve been caught! Emergency escape! Just wait, Shar!! I’ll definitely come!!”

“Oh, alright.”

With the call ended, the beep made it clear they were no longer on the line, and Shar lowered her smartphone. Then her siblings rushed at her.

“What happened? Are they coming?”

“Do you think they can? That person is busy, you know.”

“Yep, they said they’d come. Did you see my awesomeness, this elder sister’s majesty!!”

Gaining confidence with each word, Shar stood tall and puffed out her chest.

Her younger siblings clapped excitedly. They just had to wait and play with Momo then.

Shortly after, the doorbell rang downstairs with a ding-dong. The three children, along with a dog, dashed down the stairs, while Nea peered curiously, wondering why there had been no announcement of guests.

“Um, um, our guest is here, Mom! We wanted to play a game, but we were short one person, so….”

“…So you called the Demon King?”

“Yes! We’ll open the door!!”

Nea looked at the three kids with a perplexed expression as they rushed to the front door.

Calling the Demon King because they needed another player for a game—what in the world was going on with her kids…? Was this even normal…?

Well, now that Leviathan’s visits had become somewhat routine, she didn’t mind it. But still, she couldn’t help but wonder how the world had shifted so dramatically.

[I have arrived!!]

As the front door swung open, Leviathan’s lively voice rang out mid-step…

Only today, unlike usual, she appeared casually dressed but formally, walking in slowly.

Then she handed over the shopping bag she had in hand, adorned with the elegant script that read “Golden Desire.”

[This is a housewarming gift. So, is this the new home?]

“Oh wow.”

Come to think of it, there was that tradition of housewarming. Nea finally remembered as she accepted the shopping bag.

Fortunately, there was no slapstick of Riley receiving the shopping bag again. She was at work, after all.

“Thank you!”

[Oh ho, don’t underestimate the boss!]

With her hands on her hips and her chest puffed out confidently, she looked like a little kid, but that was beside the point.

The first housewarming guest for the Choi family had arrived. Ironically, the homeowner, Yeon-woo, was out.

Would the remaining family members be able to handle the housewarming event without a hitch…!!

(To be continued in the next episode)