KPop Demon Hunters flipped the chosen one narrative on its head with the introduction of its heroine, Rumi (Arden Cho). A demon-hunting pop star who also happens to be half-demon herself, Rumi presents a fascinating twist to the fantasy trope. KPop Demon Hunters is primarily focused on the inner conflicts that come as Rumi struggles to fulfill her duty as a demon hunter, alongside a forbidden romance with a charming immortal demon — so it understandably doesn’t have much time to focus on her backstory. All we know is that Rumi’s mother was once also a demon-hunting pop star, before falling for a demon. She also passed away when Rumi was a child — but a new book, The Art of KPop Demon Hunters, hints at a much more tragic fate.
A passage in the book reveals that Rumi’s world fell apart when her “warrior mother” was murdered. It’s not clear exactly who (or what) murdered her, but concept art from Simon Baek provides potential context. Stills shared on Baek’s social media explore Rumi’s relationship with her surrogate mother Celine — another hunter who also happened to be her mother’s close friend. Celine raised Rumi and formed HUNTR/X, the group that now protects the world against demonkind. She also might have had a hand in the demise of Rumi’s mother.
