[Point of View: Renji Akatsuki]
The adventurer's guild hall buzzed with life—hunters reporting completed quests, new ones shouting over drinks, weapons clashing lightly in practice.
But Renji Akatsuki sat silently at a table in the corner, calmly sipping water as he examined his newly acquired status window.
[Renji Akatsuki – Level 17] Rank: D Skills: — Fireball — Shadow Step — Fast Recovery — Demon Arts: Shadow Barrage, Mana Grasp, Abyss Shard Unique Skill: Chanting Mastery (Pattern Analysis & Instant Spell Adaptation)
"…So I only have 6 skills."
He clenched his hand slightly, feeling the new mana pulses in his bloodstream. The magic arts he'd taken from the demon… they didn't just enhance his combat. They whispered knowledge. Instinct.
His unique skill, Chanting Mastery, was more than just casting fast—it decoded magic on the spot. Adapted it. Improved it.
Renji smirked faintly.
"I've become more stonger."
"But I still need a lot to beat the Demon King."
Suddenly, the guild doors burst open with a gust of wind.
A loud clang followed as the emergency quest board activated, glowing with red lines across its frame.
The entire room grew quiet.
Everyone turned toward it as the guild secretary rushed over and placed a golden scroll on the board.
The parchment bore the crest of another kingdom.
A royal nation's seal. That meant… high-level emergency.
Renji stood slowly, already walking toward the board before anyone else moved.
The scroll read:
[Emergency National Quest] Requesting Aid from All High-Ranked Adventurers Threat Level: A-Class (Evolving)
Location: Veldenar Province (Border Nation)
Confirmed: Appearance of a High-Level Demon Lord
Disguised in human form, commanding an army of lesser demons. Unknown objective. Already destroyed three scouting squads.
Urgent Assistance Required. Immediate Response Requested.
Murmurs rippled through the hall.
"A Demon Lord…? Already?!"
"A-Class Emergency? Even B-rank parties won't survive that!"
Renji narrowed his eyes, studying the parchment.
He could already feel it. A familiar cold, hostile aura beneath those words.
The same kind of presence he had just fought…
No—stronger.
"Renji."
The deep voice of the Guild Master echoed as he approached from behind.
A tall man with a grizzled beard and steel-colored eyes, he placed a firm hand on Renji's shoulder.
"This is it."
Renji glanced up at him, calm but curious.
"This?"
The Guild Master nodded, voice steady.
"This is your chance.. Renji. This one's leagues beyond. Most will be defeated by Demon."
He paused, then smirked.
"But you'll be able to handle it."
Renji turned to the board again.
He could almost feel the pressure radiating from the parchment.
The scent of war. The promise of power. Of danger.
He slowly reached up, grabbed the scroll—
—and pulled it from the board.
"Fine..I'll not miss my chance to be stronger."
"I'll take it."