TPDGR 27

TPDGR

Posted by Zoe, Released on October 1, 2025

Chapter 27 …

Earth’s reporters tried to trace exactly who had launched this hot-air balloon, but it wasn’t easy.

Of course, all traces of the balloon’s purchase had been meticulously erased.

For someone used to operating behind the scenes without attracting the Association’s attention, it was an easy task. In other words, for someone like Hyun Jin—the protagonist of this story and an S-rank Hunter.

Han Hyun Jin pushed through the bustling crowd, his hood pulled low. The fear and excitement people felt from the Demon King’s appearance even brushed against his skin.

“Geez… what have I done?”

He worried that maybe he had needlessly frightened everyone, but he also agreed that a warning was necessary.

Hyun Jin recalled his conversation with Ana.

“Are you really going to send a message to the Association like that?”

“Yeah. I have this kind of personality—I have to repay these things. Next time they barge into my castle, one of them’s going to die. Consider it a warning.”

She said something terrifying with a clear, calm face. Hyun Jin wiped his face as he watched her.

“…Provoking the Association could be too dangerous. They’re not as easy to deal with as you think. And…”

“Hmm?”

“What if they refuse your request because I won’t enter the dungeon? Then what?”

It wasn’t a vigilante act, yet she had put up a banner in the city that would terrify everyone—right in front of the Hunter Association building. It would throw the city into panic and provoke the Association’s president at the same time.

Hyun Jin had often disagreed with the Association and even thought of them as unlucky, but he didn’t want to risk something that dangerous. He was, after all, safety-oriented.

Then Ana blinked her dark eyes at him.

“You’ll listen to me, won’t you?”

“So, how can you be sure?”

Hyun Jin found her strange certainty even more puzzling.

Ana looked at him and said,

“How? You’re interested in me.”

“…?”

“If you refuse, it’s your own hands.”

He was so flustered he couldn’t reply.

‘Well… I guess I am interested…’

He had always been curious about Ana’s identity. Yeah, he had been interested!

But…

‘Not that kind of interest, right? The nuance feels… off.’

After some thought, he said,

“I do want to get to know you.”

…He had tried to correct himself, but the nuance somehow sounded even stranger.

“That’s it! You want to know me! You said you’re curious about me! If you can’t enter here and see my face, everything will fall apart! You’d better think carefully about this!”

Hyun Jin couldn’t say anything. He wanted to argue, but the statement was true—he really did want to understand the Demon King. He was interested, curious… yes…

Yet something felt off! The nuance!

Hyun Jin couldn’t shake the feeling of being caught in something. With a troubled expression, he quietly hid among the crowd and vanished.

Thanks to the warning he had issued, Earth would likely remain quiet for a while, staying away from the Demon King’s castle.

At least, Earth would.

Bang! Boom!

Siege cannons pounded the castle walls, shaking the ground.

The soldiers on the walls ran in chaos.

Monsters climbed desperately up the walls, clinging to the siege towers and banging on the gates.

The soldiers tried to repel the monsters approaching the walls with flaming arrows, but it wasn’t enough. The number of monsters kept increasing.

Inside the palace, a general ran to the throne hall and prostrated himself.

“Your Majesty! At this rate, the walls will likely be breached within a few days! I suggest temporarily leaving the palace or negotiating a ceasefire!”

“You foolish man! You dare tell me to surrender to those hideous monsters?!”

Clang!

The king’s thrown wine cup landed right in front of the general.

King Gregor had declared war on the monsters while forming a kingdom alliance across the continent.

When the first gate appeared in the kingdom, and the hero saved the saintess while nationalizing the dungeon, his life had been perfect.

If only he could have enslaved all the monsters that entered the continent and conquered every gate that opened, how glorious it would have been!

He would have ruled the world under the title of the “Conqueror King.”

But he quickly realized something:

Monsters were stronger than humans.

The monsters, once thought cornered, had united and fought back. It was like cornered dogs baring their teeth.

Finally, they turned the tide.

The monsters that had been pushed to the edge of the continent had now reached his castle.

“Damn it!”

Gregor slammed the throne in frustration.

“If only I had the hero!”

Griffith.

That was the one thing he regretted.

The hero who had closed the demon dungeon—if he could have gotten his hands on him, he would have gained immeasurable power…

But the hero had vanished without a trace from the continent.

The saintess too.

“Your Majesty.”

A servant ran in and knelt.

“What is it?”

“We found them.”

“What?”

“We have discovered where the hero Griffith and the saintess Joanna have hidden!”

“What?!”

The king’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Is it true?!”

“Yes, it seems Griffith followed an orc through a gate while socializing at a tavern.”

“A gate?”

Gates were originally passages opened by demons.

And Griffith and the saintess had been coming and going through them?

“After entering the gate, they vanished for a few days and then reappeared. Reports say they bought meat and clothes from a merchant, paying in gold pieces.”

“Hah!”

The captain of the guard had described them as ragged, yet they had gold. Moreover, they had been shamelessly going in and out of a monster’s lair!

“And?”

“When questioned, the merchant said they would come back whenever they needed meat.”

“Ha! Excellent, good!”

The king clapped in delight.

With Griffith, a swordsman with unique abilities, and Joanna, a saintess, under his control, even a kingdom at a disadvantage could rise again.

The king leapt up and commanded the general.

“Capture Griffith and Joanna and make them kneel before me. Once we secure them, the war is ours!”

“Yes, Your Majesty!”

Gregor’s eyes gleamed with greed.

Meanwhile, another person had been eavesdropping on King Gregor and his vassals.

The woman, hidden in the shadows outside the door, quietly slipped down the hallway. Once she reached her palace, she removed her deeply hooded cloak.

“Zik.”

When she spoke softly, a man in gray armor appeared. Seeing the man move like a shadow, she spoke.

“You heard, didn’t you? Father plans to bring the hero and saintess to make them his. If they fall into his hands, it will truly be the end.”

“Yes, Princess.”

Her water-colored hair spilled over her shoulders.

The bodyguard Zik knelt.

“Your command.”

“…They said the hero and saintess are using the gates. It’s strange, but it seems they are relying on the dungeon where the monsters are.”

“Yes.”

“Find out about that dungeon.”

Zik nodded.

“We must contact Griffith before Father does. Or at least the dungeon’s master.”