The Heavenly Demon Can’t Live A Normal Life [EN]: Chapter 484

Moon Tae-joon, an investigator from the Central Government, sighed, rubbing his tired eyes. His day was already too long. He was just about finished with a case in Incheon and ready to travel to Daejeon when his phone buzzed with a call from a colleague, bringing more trouble.

“Tae-joon, you won’t believe what’s happened,” his colleague said, his voice excited.

“What is it?” Tae-joon asked, already feeling annoyed.

“Big trouble in Incheon again. Another monster attack, the second this year! I heard it was really bad, people hurt. But they say the Incheon government stopped it fast. Everyone is saying good things about them. But… there’s a rumor that it wasn’t really the government who beat the monsters.”

“……Then who stopped them?” Tae-joon asked, finally looking up from the papers on his desk. He frowned. *Monster attacks like this are not something normal people can deal with.* If the Incheon government didn’t do it, it must have been someone very powerful, a ‘master’ as they were sometimes called. It was the job of investigators like him to find these masters and get them to work with the government. Suddenly, despite his tiredness, Tae-joon felt a spark of interest. *Maybe this is a chance to make a name for myself.*

His colleague leaned closer, lowering his voice. “Get this – it wasn’t just normal monsters. They say it was Queen Ants, dozens of them, in one giant nest! And get this – only *two* people went into that nest and defeated them all. It’s massive news. All the big hunter groups in Seoul – you know, like powerful teams of monster fighters – are trying to contact these two people. The bosses in the government are going crazy trying to find out who they are. With that kind of power, they could be really high level, maybe even a new ‘S-rank’ hunter! You know how South Korea only really has the White-Clad Magician as its top fighter? If this new person is also S-rank, it will change everything.”

Tae-joon’s eyes widened. *S-rank?* The thought hit him like a jolt of electricity. A new S-rank hunter could change everything in the country. Now he understood the sudden rush of energy in the office, the hushed phone calls. Something big was happening.

“But here’s the really crazy part,” the colleague continued, lowering his voice even more. “One of these mystery heroes… they think he’s the one who destroyed Red Moon! Remember that case you were working on? Red Moon? You said Incheon did it? Well, someone saw a person who looks just like one of these heroes visiting Red Moon right before it was destroyed. If it’s true, you’re in big trouble. You might get blamed for not finding this guy sooner! You were in charge of the Red Moon case, after all.”

Tae-joon felt his blood run cold. His face tightened, his jaw clenched. *Red Moon… that was supposed to be closed.* He barely registered the rest of his colleague’s words, something about a foreign name, “Dimitri.” It was all noise now.

Rage burned in his chest. *Kim Joon-hyuk, the Mayor of Incheon.* That man had looked him in the eye and claimed Incheon was responsible for Red Moon’s destruction. But if this “Dimitri” was the real culprit, and now this same Dimitri had saved Incheon from the monster attack… The pieces clicked into place, and Tae-joon understood. “Kim Joon-hyuk, that liar!” he spat out, slamming his fist on the desk. He stood up so fast his chair scraped loudly against the floor. He had to move, now. This changed everything.

*It felt like the world had tilted on its axis.* Ordinary people wouldn’t notice, life would go on as normal for them. But for Kang Min-ho, everything had shifted since this morning. The monster attack, Roman Dimitri… nothing would ever be the same.

*Vibrate! Vibrate! Vibrate!* His phone buzzed non-stop. Message after message flashed on the screen.

**[Cheongeom Guild (Seoul): We know Roman Dimitri and Kang Min-ho defeated the monsters in the ant nest. Cheongeom Guild, one of the top 3 hunter groups in South Korea, wants to recruit you. We offer great pay and benefits. Contact us!]**

**[S Broadcasting Company: Is this Kang Min-ho? We want to do a news story about the ant nest monster fight!]**

**[Another Guild: Please call us!]**

**[Big Company: We offer millions of dollars a year if you join us. Even more if you are a high-rank hunter!]**

His phone was going crazy. It felt like it would burst into flames from all the calls and messages. The problem was the ‘Hunter Database’. It was like a public list of people who fight monsters for the government, with their contact details. Because of the ant nest fight, Roman Dimitri and Kang Min-ho’s names were suddenly everywhere. Since Roman Dimitri didn’t have a phone number listed, everyone was trying to get to Kang Min-ho. Even though his hunter rank was low, everyone wanted to meet them first, to grab these new heroes before anyone else could. It was complete madness.

He couldn’t even stay at his nice house anymore! People were showing up at his door, reporters, company people, all wanting to talk to him. He had to escape. Now, he and Roman Dimitri were hiding in a small apartment provided by the Incheon government. Kang Min-ho felt like he was losing his mind with all the attention. But Roman Dimitri? He was completely unfazed. He hadn’t even heard of any of the famous hunter groups trying to contact them. “Not worth my time,” Roman Dimitri had said simply, waving a hand dismissively. He just didn’t care. Kang Min-ho, however, was starting to panic. *I get it now. This Dimitri is incredible. He destroyed Red Moon, fought off those monsters… and he’s not even working for anyone! No wonder everyone is going nuts. Even if he *was* working for someone, they’d try to steal him.*

Then, finally, a message he recognized.

**[Kim Joon-hyuk (Mayor of Incheon): Please call me.]**

Relief washed over Kang Min-ho. *Finally.* He turned to Roman Dimitri. “We need to go to the Incheon government office,” he said. “Mayor Kim Joon-hyuk wants to see us. And… apparently, an investigator from the Central Government is there too. Because of all this.”

The Mayor’s office was large and cold, the air thick with tension. Kim Joon-hyuk, the Mayor, sat stiffly behind his large desk. Across from him, Moon Tae-joon leaned forward, his face tight with anger. Roman Dimitri sat silently beside the Mayor, watching everything with calm eyes. Lee Tae-sung and Kang Min-ho stood awkwardly behind them, feeling like they were in the middle of a storm. Moon Tae-joon’s voice was sharp as he began. “Mayor Kim Joon-hyuk,” he said, his words clipped. “To be honest, I am furious. I trusted your word about the Red Moon case. When you, the Mayor, told me Incheon was responsible, I believed you. I didn’t even question it, I reported it straight to my bosses.”

*Before leaving Seoul, Tae-joon had spoken to his superiors.* They were clear: they wanted Roman Dimitri working for the government, no matter what. They wanted to control this powerful new hunter, and if that meant making the Red Moon situation disappear, so be it. So, Tae-joon was using Kim Joon-hyuk’s lie as a weapon. It was the perfect way to pressure them.

“But what’s really happening here?” Tae-joon continued, his voice rising. “It turns out the Incheon government *didn’t* destroy Red Moon. It was Roman Dimitri, sitting right here!”

Mayor Kim Joon-hyuk spoke calmly. “We sent you the evidence. It was self-defense.”

“Yes, yes, self-defense,” Tae-joon waved his hand dismissively. “That’s not the point! If you had told me the truth from the start, we could have accepted it as self-defense. But you lied! You tried to hide the truth about Red Moon. Now, because of your lies, we can’t trust anything Incheon says. How do we know you’re not making up this ‘self-defense’ story? Maybe Roman Dimitri was the attacker, not the defender! This is a serious problem, Mayor. Even if it *was* self-defense, in South Korea, killing someone always has consequences.”

Tae-joon leaned further across the desk, his voice hard. He was in control now. “Red Moon was important. We need strong hunters for the coming disasters, the big monster attacks that are getting worse. And they are gone, dead. Even if it was self-defense, we can’t just ignore it. And Roman Dimitri, even if you are not from South Korea, you are here now. In our country, things are done our way. There will be punishment. The government will not let this go.”

Mayor Kim Joon-hyuk’s voice was calm, but there was an edge to it. “So, what do you want?”

Tae-joon smiled, a cold, unpleasant smile. “It’s simple, Mayor. Either Roman Dimitri is punished for what he did, or… you pay us enough to make the problem go away.”

*Pay a price.* That was what Tae-joon really wanted. Kim Joon-hyuk understood perfectly. Tae-joon was now making his offer clear.

“In South Korea,” Tae-joon continued smoothly, “there is a way to make mistakes disappear. Work for us. If Roman Dimitri works for the government, fighting monsters and protecting people, then we can forget about Red Moon. The government will not ask any more questions.”

*It was a classic trick.* Create a problem, then offer a solution that benefits them. It was how the South Korean government controlled powerful hunters who didn’t want to be controlled. Kim Joon-hyuk, who had expected this, calmly pushed back. “That’s not right,” he said firmly. “We gave you all the evidence, including video recordings. If this goes to court, everyone will see it was self-defense.”

“……” Tae-joon’s smile vanished. His eyes narrowed. “Mayor Kim Joon-hyuk,” he said, his voice now dangerously soft. “Let me ask you something, just to be clear. Have you… have you made some kind of deal with Roman Dimitri already?” Tae-joon’s face hardened, his patience gone. He didn’t like being challenged.

Kim Joon-hyuk met his gaze directly. “Yes,” he said, his voice strong and clear. “Incheon has decided to stand with Roman Dimitri.”

Tae-joon laughed, a short, harsh sound. “That’s… interesting,” he said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “You know, even though Incheon has some freedom to act on its own, you are still part of South Korea, under the Central Government. And you are saying you will follow… just one person? Do you realize this could be seen as going against the government? As… rebellion?” Tae-joon’s smile disappeared completely. *Words are not working with this fool.* He would have to use stronger methods. He didn’t understand why Kim Joon-hyuk was so loyal to Roman Dimitri, but he knew one thing: South Korea needed someone with Dimitri’s power.

Tae-joon turned his sharp gaze to Roman Dimitri, who had been silent until now. Then he looked back at Kim Joon-hyuk, his voice cold. “Let me explain how things really are, Mayor. If you keep refusing to work with us, the Central Government will have to… rethink its support for Incheon. You understand what that means, right? We’ve already had two monster attacks this year in South Korea, and they are happening all over the world. It’s been six years since the last ‘Great Disaster,’ the really huge monster invasion. Everyone knows another one is coming soon, probably any day now. Even if Roman Dimitri is incredibly strong, do you really think one person can stop a disaster that big?”

*This time, Tae-joon had been given full power by his bosses.* He could say whatever he needed to. “It’s impossible!” he declared. “No matter how strong Roman Dimitri is, even if he is S-rank, no one can fight these disasters alone. Everyone needs to be part of a team, part of a ‘group’. That’s how you survive! If you don’t cooperate, the South Korean government will leave Incheon out when the next Great Disaster hits. We will protect Seoul first, then the cities around it. Incheon will be last. We won’t completely ignore you, of course. But we’ll deal with the problems in cities far away like Busan and Pohang *first*, and only come to Incheon later. Do you really think Incheon can survive a Great Disaster on its own, waiting for our help to arrive last?”

It was a clear threat. This was how the South Korean government kept control. People had to obey them because their survival depended on it. Tae-joon tapped his temple with a finger. “Think about it, Mayor,” he said, his voice condescending. “Don’t be stupid and make a bad decision. Someone as smart as you must know what the right thing to do is…”

“Are you finished?”

The sudden question cut through the tense air. It was Roman Dimitri. Tae-joon stared at him, surprised. Dimitri had been silent the entire time. Now, he was looking at Tae-joon with a faint smile playing on his lips. *He’s been waiting for this,* Dimitri thought to himself. He had wanted to see how the government would react. He wanted to challenge them. He wanted chaos. Roman Dimitri stood up, his voice calm and clear. “Let’s do it then,” he said. “From now on, Incheon and the Central Government are separate. We don’t need your help. Incheon will face the Great Disaster alone.”