Chapter 245: Ares Returns to Earth

Chapter 245: Chapter 245: Ares Returns to Earth

After saying his farewells to Selene, Leon, and the others at the headquarters, Ares left the Highlands and returned to Earth.

There were still several matters he wanted to take care of in this world, and one of them was checking on Ji Won and Jung Ho.

Ares appeared in front of the apartment building where Ji Won lived and walked toward the familiar door. He raised his hand and knocked twice.

A few moments later, the door opened.

A middle-aged man stood on the other side.

The moment he recognized Ares, his expression immediately brightened.

"Oh, Tae Ho. I haven’t seen you in quite some time."

Ares smiled politely.

"Hello, Mr. Han. It’s good to see you again."

The man standing before him was Han Do Hyun, Ji Won’s father. Although Ares had not visited for some time, the man’s expression made it clear that he still remembered him quite well.

Ares glanced past him and asked,

"Is Ji Won home?"

"Ji Won? He went out a little while ago. He said he was going to buy some supplies, so he should be back later."

"I see."

Ares nodded.

"Thank you for telling me. I’ll go look for him, then. I’ll bring him back here once I find him."

Han Do Hyun smiled.

"Of course. Take your time, Tae Ho."

Ares gave him a polite nod before turning around.

As he walked away from the apartment building, he briefly considered where to go next.

’I’ll visit Hyung Jung Ho first.’

With that thought, Ares disappeared.

---

A moment later, he appeared in front of Jung Ho’s café.

Ares stopped for a moment and looked at the building.

The last time he had visited, the café had been under construction. Now, however, it had been completely renovated and expanded. The exterior looked far more polished, and several customers were sitting outside while others occupied nearly every available table inside.

Through the large windows, Ares could also see several employees working behind the counter, preparing drinks and serving customers.

’It seems his business became rather successful.’

A faint smile appeared on Ares’s face.

He walked inside and approached the counter, where a young man was busy preparing several drinks.

"Excuse me. Is Hyung Jung Ho here?"

The employee looked up.

"Yes. He’s in his office at the moment."

Ares nodded.

"Would you mind telling him that someone named Tae Ho is here to see him?"

"Of course. I’ll let him know."

The employee immediately turned around and disappeared toward the back of the café.

Ares waited near the counter.

It did not take long.

A moment later, a familiar figure emerged from the hallway.

Jung Ho froze the instant he saw Ares.

His eyes widened in surprise.

"Tae Ho!"

Before Ares could properly react, Jung Ho hurried toward him and pulled him into a hug.

"Wait, Hyung Jung Ho. What are you doing?"

Jung Ho laughed as he released him.

"Why haven’t you visited me? You told me you would come back after a few days, but then you disappeared. Do you have any idea how long I’ve been waiting?"

Ares stared at him for a moment.

"Did you really miss me that much? It hasn’t even been a month."

"Of course I missed you. You’re practically family at this point, and then you didn’t even visit from quite some time."

Ares scratched the back of his head awkwardly.

"Well... I’ve been rather busy, so I didn’t have much time to visit."

Jung Ho crossed his arms.

"Busy enough that you couldn’t spare even a little time for me?"

"I understand. I’m sorry."

Ares gave an awkward laugh before glancing around the café.

Several customers were now looking in their direction.

He lowered his voice.

"Although, before we continue, could we move somewhere else? Everyone is staring at us."

Jung Ho looked around and finally noticed the attention they were receiving.

"Oh."

He laughed.

"You’re right. Come on, let’s go upstairs."

Before turning around, Jung Ho looked toward one of the employees behind the counter.

"Hey, prepare two iced coffees, along with some sweets and cakes, and bring everything to my office."

"Yes, sir."

Jung Ho turned toward Ares.

"Come on, Tae Ho."

’Seriously, this guy hasn’t changed at all.’

Ares sighed inwardly before following him.

---

Jung Ho’s office was considerably larger than Ares remembered.

The room was long and comfortably furnished, with a low table positioned between two long sofas facing each other. Several shelves along the walls were filled with documents and business records, while a large window provided a view of the busy street outside.

The two sat across from each other.

Ares looked around the room before speaking.

"Hyung, this place has changed considerably. It seems your business became successful in a surprisingly short amount of time."

Jung Ho immediately smiled proudly.

"Of course it did. What did you expect from me?"

Ares chuckled.

"I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised."

Jung Ho leaned back against the sofa.

"Seriously, though, what have you been doing all this time? You haven’t visited once since our last meeting, and I was beginning to wonder whether something happened to you."

"I understand why you were worried. I’m sorry for disappearing without giving you an explanation."

Jung Ho waved his hand.

"Well, you’re here now, so I won’t complain too much."

He paused for a moment before suddenly remembering something.

"Oh, right. Ji Won came here last week."

Ares raised an eyebrow.

"He did?"

"Yes. He asked whether I knew when you were going to come back again."

Ares smiled faintly.

"I stopped by their apartment earlier, but Ji Won had already gone out to buy supplies. That’s why I came here instead."

"I see."

Jung Ho nodded thoughtfully.

Then his expression suddenly changed.

"Oh, I almost forgot."

"What is it?"

Jung Ho leaned forward.

"Something happened a few days ago. An Awakener tried to use his ability against me."

Ares’s expression became slightly more serious.

"You were attacked by an Awakener?"

"Yes."

Jung Ho sighed.

"You already know I’m not an Awakener. Even though we were professional assassins before, I’m still just an ordinary person compared to someone who has awakened a supernatural ability. If that guy had actually attacked me seriously, I wouldn’t have been able to do anything."

Ares remained silent, allowing him to continue.

"But something strange happened."

Jung Ho lowered his voice.

"Suddenly, a strange little creature appeared and attacked the Awakener. He were completely caught off guard. The creature drove him away before the Awakening Administration eventually arrived and arrested the one who attacked me."

Ares nodded.

"Ah. You mean that incident."

Jung Ho stared at him.

"You know about it?"

Ares smiled.

"Come out."

A faint distortion appeared beside him.

A small creature emerged from the space beside Ares and landed quietly on the floor.

Jung Ho stared.

It was a rabbit.

At first glance, there was nothing particularly threatening about it.

Its body was covered in smooth black fur that seemed to absorb the surrounding light, while its silver eyes possessed an unusual clarity that made them strangely captivating. A small crescent-shaped marking rested on its forehead, and several faint silver patterns extended across its body like delicate traces of moonlight.

Its ears were long and elegant, with the tips carrying a subtle silver sheen.

Despite its rabbit-like appearance, there was something strangely majestic about the creature.

It quietly looked at Jung Ho.

Jung Ho’s mouth fell open.

"So... this is the creature?"

Ares nodded.

"Yes."

Jung Ho slowly looked between Ares and the rabbit.

"As I expected, you already knew something about it."

He leaned closer, still unable to hide his disbelief.

"But what exactly is it? I’ve never seen anything like that before."

Ares looked down at the creature.

"This is a Black Moon Hare."

Jung Ho blinked.

"A rabbit?"

"That is what it looks like."

Ares smiled faintly.

"But its appearance is misleading. The Black Moon Hare is a rare Divine Beast known for possessing extraordinary spatial abilities. Its body may resemble that of an ordinary rabbit, but its existence is on an entirely different level."

Jung Ho stared at the small creature again.

"A Divine Beast..."

"Yes. It is considerably stronger than its appearance suggests."

Jung Ho swallowed.

"Then... why was it there?"

Ares leaned back against the sofa.

"I knew something like this might happen eventually, which is why I left it with you."

Jung Ho’s eyes widened.

"T-Tae Ho..."

His eyes seemed almost ready to turn into bubbles.

"You left this thing here to protect me?"

Ares nodded.

"That’s right."

Jung Ho’s expression softened.

"Thank you."

Ares waved his hand.

"It’s nothing. You’re important to me, which is why I wanted to make sure you were protected."

Jung Ho looked at the Black Moon Hare again.

"Seriously, just how strong is it?"

Ares smiled.

"Strong enough that you don’t need to worry about ordinary Awakeners. In fact, this creature is stronger than an S-Rank Awakener."

Jung Ho’s entire expression froze.

"What?"

"Stronger than an S-Rank Awakener?"

"Yes."

Jung Ho looked at the seemingly harmless rabbit with an entirely different expression.

"Just what kind of creature is that?"

Ares chuckled.

"I already told you. It is a Divine Beast."

Jung Ho stared at it for another few seconds before slowly shaking his head.

"I still can’t believe something that looks like that could be stronger than an S-Rank."

"Appearances can be deceiving."

Ares glanced toward the Black Moon Hare.

"It will continue protecting you wherever you go, so you don’t need to worry about your safety. Even if someone were to shoot you with a gun, it would react before the attack could reach you."

Jung Ho looked at Ares with genuine emotion.

"Tae Ho... you’re truly a blessing from heaven."

He smiled warmly. ℯℯ𝑙.

"I’m sure your family must be incredibly proud of you."

Ares was silent for a moment.

"Well... they probably are."

Jung Ho smiled.

"Of course they are."

The conversation continued for a little while longer, with Jung Ho still occasionally glancing toward the Black Moon Hare as though he could not quite accept that such a small creature possessed power beyond an S-Rank Awakener.

Eventually, Ares stood from the sofa.

"I should get going. I still need to find Ji Won."

Jung Ho immediately stood as well.

"You’re leaving already?"

"I’ve already taken up enough of your time."

Jung Ho walked with him toward the office door.

"Then at least come back again soon. Don’t disappear for another month without saying anything."

Ares smiled.

"I’ll try."

"You’d better."

Jung Ho laughed and patted Ares on the shoulder.

"Take care, Tae Ho. And make sure Ji Won doesn’t cause you too much trouble."

Ares gave him a small nod.

"I’ll see you again, Hyung."

He then left the office and walked out of the café, leaving Jung Ho behind.