The Grill-Wielding Saintess of the Dead

Chapter 129 The Emperor’s Return Report 1

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“Then, this concludes the 129th Emergency Dungeon Corrosion Countermeasure Meeting hosted by the Hunter Association. I thank all the representatives and Association officials for their participation.”

Bang, bang, bang.

Yeonhwa, attending the emergency meeting held by the Hunter Association on behalf of her grandmother Yeonseo, couldn’t hide her exhaustion.

Fighting in the dungeon as a hunter was certainly a life-risking job, but spending time here arguing endlessly with bickering politicians was an entirely different kind of draining task for her.

They circled around the same topics—no, the exact same topics—making them sound needlessly complicated.

When a particular issue or agenda came up, one side would unconditionally agree, while the other would oppose.

It would take ages for any real solution or alternative to emerge, and even then, they would just go over the same discussions and debates again without arriving at any significant conclusion.

Yeonhwa, who usually didn’t express much of an opinion on politics, found this kind of meaningless time-wasting to be mentally exhausting.

“Property damage seems to be recoverable using the allocated recovery budget.”

“After all, the moment the Erosion Dungeon was eradicated, most buildings and lands returned to their original state.”

“Oh, dear members, you’ve all worked hard. I’ve booked a nice place for dinner. Would you care to join me?”

“Well, if it’s Representative Kim’s reservation, it’s definitely something we can trust.”

“Ah! Yeonhwa, would you like to join us as well?”

Yeonhwa glanced at the familiar faces, wearing a practiced, mask-like smile.

“Thank you for the offer, but I’ll pass today, Representative. Ever since I became an S-rank Hunter, I’ve been quite busy with various matters.”

“Oh dear, are you heading to the Association as well?”

“Yes, I still have post-mission work to handle and some reports to finalize.”

As someone who had been born into the true elite of Korea, Yeonhwa had met numerous politicians and high-ranking officials through her grandmother Yeonseo, the strongest hunter, and her family connections. While she hadn’t forged deep ties, all of the people here were individuals Yeonhwa could easily use whenever she wished.

Occasionally, there would be annoying or troublesome favors exchanged for political purposes, but most of the actual hard work was handled by Yeonju, the Yeon family’s administrator, or Director Lee, who was often at the receiving end of her grandmother Yeonseo’s scolding, so it didn’t particularly concern Yeonhwa.

In fact, Yeonhwa was beyond the level of these representatives; she didn’t have to worry about them.

“By the way, I heard that another Returnee came from the dungeon this time?”

“…Yes.”

Menelapie Hailam.

The Heroine from another world, with golden hair that shone brilliantly like gold.

Someone deeply connected with Unnie Shia.

‘I heard she has an even deeper bond with Unnie Shia than I do.’

It’s a good thing.

Yeonhwa had a high regard for Shia and looked up to her as if she were her older sister.

Naturally, it was welcome news that someone close to Shia, like the Emperor, had arrived on Earth.

Though she couldn’t help but feel a bit jealous, as it felt like her place was slightly taken by the unexpected appearance of someone important, it was only rational to congratulate her.

After all, Menelapie had even saved Shia and Yeonhwa when they were in danger.

Now that she was an S-rank Hunter, she couldn’t afford to behave childishly.

“While I welcome the Returnees, it’s starting to get a bit tiring with how often they come. There are so many now, I’m beginning to wish they’d stop arriving for a while.”

“We have to check the identity of missing people, search for their families… ugh, there’s so much administrative waste, not to mention the support funds for the Returnees don’t come out of nowhere.”

“…Please don’t speak like that, Representatives.”

The air around Yeonhwa suddenly turned icy, causing the representatives to flinch.

“Although it hasn’t been officially announced yet, if it weren’t for that person, there would have been far more casualties in that Erosion Dungeon. You may not understand what happened on the field, but your words don’t sit well with me, Representatives.”

It wasn’t just because Yeonhwa was an S-rank Hunter that the representatives were intimidated.

Although she had distanced herself from political power and hadn’t created many enemies, those who knew her realized that the title of the “true elite of the Hunter era” was not just for show.

Her face remained calm, but Yeonhwa could easily replace several of the representatives here if she felt like it.

At last, the representatives were reminded that the woman in front of them, who wore the guise of courtesy and reason, could swiftly sever their positions if she desired.

“A-ah, oh dear… It seems we may have overstepped.”

“You fool! Didn’t they say that this Returnee greatly contributed to the subjugation of the Erosion Dungeon? Lady Yeonhwa, I apologize on his behalf… this friend here isn’t a bad person; he just lacks some tact…”

“Ahem, I’m sorry, Lady Yeonhwa.”

“…It’s fine. I might have been a bit sensitive as well. Though I’ll be busy for a while, let’s arrange for a meal together sometime.”

“We’d be grateful for that. Ah, by the way, Lady Yeonhwa…”

One of the representatives bowed his head slightly towards Yeonhwa and spoke in a small voice.

“It’s not a big deal… but are you aware that some of the civil servant hunters died during the Erosion Dungeon incident?”

“Yes, I’ve heard about it. It’s truly unfortunate.”

Choi Joon-il, a man who had proposed to Yeonhwa during their Academy days and was promptly rejected, and several Awakened individuals who held the position of civil servant hunters under the Seoul City Hall, had their deaths confirmed.

Though they had been somewhat of a nuisance to her, Yeonhwa didn’t bear ill will towards them, and so, she genuinely felt sorrow over the fact that they had died.

After all, feeling sadness over a person’s death was only natural.

“Is there some issue? I believe the deceased civil servant hunters will receive condolence payments and gratitude plaques, which will be given to their families.”

“It seems that one of the deceased civil servant hunters was the nephew of the current Mayor of Seoul. I doubt the mayor would dare harm you, Lady Yeonhwa, but… once that man loses control, he tends to fly into a rage without thinking, so please be careful.”

Come to think of it, there had been quite a lot of talk about the current Mayor of Seoul.

Regardless of his political stance, it was known that he didn’t have a good relationship with the Hunter Association.

Though no matter how much he raged, he wouldn’t be able to harm Yeonhwa directly… the concern was that he might target someone close to her, like Shia or someone around Shia.

‘Hmm, I shouldn’t give him any excuse.’

“I’ll keep that in mind. I’ll be going now. Please enjoy your dinner.”

“Oh, yes, yes. Goodbye.”

“See you next time, Lady Yeonhwa.”

Leaving the representatives behind, Yeonhwa called Yeonju, the administrative officer who was still wrapping up the meeting’s details.

“Yeonju Unnie. Has everything been sorted out with Unnie Shia’s side?”

[Yes, we’ve appointed Shia as the official proxy, so Menelapie Hailam is now being treated as a Returnee rather than a foreign visitor beyond the gate. By the way, since you are Shia’s current legal guardian, you’ve automatically been designated as Menelapie Hailam’s legal guardian as well.]

“We’re not even married, but I’m going to have a lot of family relations showing up on my documents.”

[Still, everything turned out well. There were a few representatives who raised concerns, saying, ‘Isn’t this an invasion from another world?’ and ‘How can we trust someone who isn’t from Earth?’]

Some of them likely had genuine concerns, but in this case, it seemed like they just wanted to oppose for the sake of opposing.

“Handle it appropriately. Make sure any remarks from those representatives are completely erased from the meeting records.”

[Understood.]

There was no need to bother Shia by telling her everything, especially not the tedious, complicated internal matters.

Unnie didn’t need to know about all the troublesome affairs happening behind the scenes.

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“Goodness, you cook so… I mean, you cook extremely well. Gulp…”

Yoon-jung, who had returned home after receiving the reward for the Erosion Dungeon subjugation in Shia’s place at the Association, couldn’t hide her awkward feelings as she ate the meal Menelapie had prepared, bit by bit.

To be honest, the food wasn’t going down easily.

But it had been made with care, and it didn’t feel right to refuse, did it?

“That’s a relief. Ah, I’m sorry. Having been an Emperor for over 60 years, it’s a bit hard to fix the way I speak.”

“Oh, no… it’s fine. Speak comfortably. You seem older than me anyway…”

“Hahaha, thank you.”

As Menelapie flashed a radiant smile, Yoon-jung thought to herself.

Who on earth is this dazzling, impressive woman…?

A friend of Shia’s?

No, she seems far too close to be just a friend.

The atmosphere, the distance

between them, it didn’t feel like an ordinary friendship.

It was probably Yoon-jung’s first time facing Menelapie properly.

On the day when the Erosion Dungeon suddenly appeared in Mapo-gu, Yoon-jung had been shocked to hear that Shia had gotten caught up in it. However, she’d finally been able to relax after seeing the news that the dungeon had been perfectly cleared thanks to the efforts of S-rank Hunter Yeonhwa and Shia, who had a temporary Hunter license.

And that day.

Shia brought home this mysterious golden-haired woman named Menelapie Hailam.

Initially, Yoon-jung wanted to ask who on earth she was, but Shia had been crying and laughing uncontrollably since returning, making any conversation impossible. So, she had delayed the questions, but before she knew it, this blonde woman had naturally settled into their home as if she were Shia’s lover or something.

“You can speak casually to me, too, Mom.”

“Oh, uh… can I?”

Shia had told her to speak casually, but Yoon-jung couldn’t just nod in agreement right away.

After all, it was her first time meeting this person.

Her appearance was so overwhelming that she made ordinary people look like squid in comparison. There was an aura around her that was hard to describe in words.

And on top of that, she was incredibly close to Shia.

“So, um… are you saying that in the other world, our Shia held the title of the Saintess of the Dead?”

“It wasn’t a position of much political power, but as time went on, I had to attend events like Thanksgiving or Victory Day to give blessings.”

I still don’t understand.

“Oh, um, and… were you, Miss, Shia’s superior or something?”

“My name is Menelapie Hailam. Please feel free to call me that, Mother-in-law.”

“W-what…? M-mother-in-law?”

What did I just hear?

Mother-in-law.

In English, it’s “wife’s mother.”

In Chinese characters, it’s 丈母.

It refers to the mother of one’s spouse.

“Pffft…!”

Yoon-jung turned her creaking neck toward Shia, silently demanding an explanation. Shia’s face showed she was doing her best to suppress her laughter.

“…Uh, doesn’t one refer to the mother of a friend as mother-in-law? Shia told me to call you that, but… it seems I’ve made a mistake.”

Menelapie tilted her head, looking unbothered, while Yoon-jung quickly delivered a sharp smack to Shia’s back.

Smack!

“Ouch!”

“Hey, you brat! There are things you can joke about and things you shouldn’t!”

Yoon-jung didn’t care about Shia’s sexual orientation or identity.

No matter what form she took, Shia was still Shia.

Though her son had become her daughter, as long as Shia was happy, Yoon-jung would support her in whatever way she could.

But hearing the word “mother-in-law” out of nowhere made Yoon-jung’s heart skip a beat.

Realizing she had been tricked by Shia, Menelapie wore an awkward smile, staying quiet.

“Oh, right. Shia.”

“Yes…”

“The compensation from the Association is so large that they said they’ll set up a separate bank account and deposit it later. But…”

“Was there anything else they mentioned?”

“Not much, really. They said that Miss Menelapie should stop by the Returnee Management Bureau soon to complete some sort of identity verification or something. I’m not entirely sure what it is, but they said you’d understand if I mentioned it… I hope that makes sense.”

At those words, Shia’s playful expression quickly turned serious.

There are typically two types of people who cross over from other worlds.

Returnees, and those who originally lived in another world and came to Earth.

Returnees are usually accepted as citizens and receive various support, but those in the latter group often face many inconveniences.

They don’t receive the same benefits, such as financial support or shelters, and in many cases, they are even denied entry permits.

‘Maybe Yeonhwa pulled some strings…?’

If Menelapie were to come to Earth, things wouldn’t simply proceed smoothly as though one more person were added to the world.

Someone who didn’t originally exist in this world suddenly appeared.

And not just an ordinary person, but the Heroine of “another world,” and, by estimation, the Emperor of an empire larger than even the United States.

However, on Earth, Menelapie had no foundation.

Being a Heroine or an Emperor meant nothing now.

For that reason, Menelapie had to start over.

In light of that, the “memory-lost Returnee” setup would be much more convenient in various ways.

And so, just past noon, as the sun tilted slightly westward, Menelapie and Shia arrived at the Returnee Management Bureau.

It was just like when Yeonhwa had brought Shia to the Returnee Management Bureau; several staff members immediately rushed forward to block their path.

“Menelapie Hailam, welcome!”

As if they had been expecting them, several provisional staff members assigned to greet them welcomed Menelapie and Shia as they arrived at the Hunter Association.

Thanks to Yeonhwa and the Yeon family’s efforts, Menelapie was not treated as an illegal immigrant from another world but rather as a Returnee with lost memories.

This made things much more convenient for her to live as a Returnee.

‘Come to think of it, excluding me, Menelapie might actually be the strongest being on Earth…?’

Zap!

Menelapie, standing still with her feet planted firmly on the ground, dodged the barrage of electrical discharges fired from the drones surrounding her with just a slight turn of her head before grabbing one drone with her bare hands and crushing it.

Back in the days when she commanded the war against the Demon King, Menelapie had been young and inexperienced, but by the time Shia was about to return to Earth, Menelapie had grown so strong that she could defeat the Demon King on her own.

As a Heroine, she possessed an immortal body that didn’t age, and with time, she had only become stronger, to an astonishing degree.

Of course, Shia didn’t know the average strength of an S-rank Hunter yet, except for some special cases like Yeonseo and Yujin, but one thing was certain: Menelapie was far stronger than the average S-rank Hunter.

Boom!

And so, Menelapie underwent a simple ability test at the Association, not as a “visitor from another world,” but as a “memory-lost Returnee.”

Zap!

Zzzzap…!

The drones used to check her physical strength and reflexes were smashed to pieces, rolling across the floor.

The device used to measure strength, which could even withstand the force of physical-type A-rank Hunters, broke with a single punch from Menelapie, leaving the staff members in charge of the equipment utterly shocked.

“Wow, holy… that thing just shattered…?”

“Am I going to have to pay for that out of my own salary…?”

“I mean, how is that even human?”

“I thought she was just messing with the punching bag, but this is just… wow.”

The staff members were in awe not only of Menelapie’s incredible physical abilities but also of her perfect reflexes and complete control over her body—her physique was practically flawless.

[The physical ability test has been completed. The test subject may return to their seat.]

Menelapie casually stretched her arms, a slight smile playing on her lips, as if she had found it all quite amusing.

“Good job, Menelapie.”

“That was no trouble at all.”

In the waiting room at the Association, where only the two of them were left for a moment, Shia and Menelapie sat quietly side by side.

In retrospect, it was an odd sight.

She had thought they would never meet again, and yet here they were, having crossed over from another world.

“But, Menelapie…”

“What is it?”

“Do you know what happened to Teresa…?”

But there was something she had to ask.

If Menelapie could come to this world, maybe Teresa could as well.

That hope had blossomed the moment she first saw Menelapie.

The hope that the three of them could be together again… it was a hope she couldn’t let go of.

“Are you talking about the Dark Witch?”

“The Dark Witch? Her name is Teresa.”

“Yes, that was her name.”

Menelapie and Teresa had a somewhat complicated relationship.

Even though it was the Demon King’s doing, Menelapie had annihilated Teresa’s family, and Teresa had become a traitor in her quest to kill the Demon King.

While the tension between them was eventually resolved, and they became comrades and allies as the Heroine and the Witch, their relationship had been complicated from the start.

During their 60 years together in the previous world, Menelapie and Teresa’s relationship had been akin to that of a cat and dog that couldn’t get along.

For the record, Menelapie was the dog.

A golden retriever.

Teresa, on the other hand, had the sharp, sassy vibe of a Siamese cat.

“She didn’t… die, did she?”

“Of course not. She adapted to the world far faster than I did.”

Menelapie’s tone was somewhat cold, but just hearing Teresa’s name again made Shia unable to contain the excitement bubbling up from within.

Yeah, come to think of it, Menelapie and Teresa never really got along.

They clashed over everything, from their tastes to almost every other aspect. It was hard

to understand how such opposites even existed.

“Teresa sought a different path than I did.”

“…A different path?”

“Though we shared the same goal, the sacrifices we made were different.”

“I don’t quite understand. But success didn’t always follow, right?”

“Indeed.”

“And so I followed your trail. I came here, tracing the path you walked.”

“Then… what do you mean by sacrifice…?”

“What was she willing to sacrifice?”

Menelapie shrugged her shoulders slightly.

“That’s the path Teresa walked, with you in her heart.”

“…With me…?”

“Shia, if you really want to know, I can tell you everything that happened, every last detail.”

However.

“But Teresa respected what she yearned for the most… for you. She asked me to wait just a little longer.”

“………”

“I don’t feel I have the right to tell you the Dark Witch’s final wish.”

So please, wait a little longer.

When the time comes, you will find out… even without me saying anything.