Chapter 102
In the middle of a residential area scattered with countless civilian bodies that had been massacred, what was once a peaceful silence in this outskirt town at dawn had long turned into hell.
I stood facing Seop Baek in silence, glaring at each other without a word.
“Lord Jung Yong, I am sorry. I went against your orders.”
Suddenly, Seop Baek bowed her head deeply as she spoke.
I tried to repair my scrambled mind. Naturally, the first thing that came to mind was a question.
“… What do you mean? What are you apologizing for?”
“Lord Jung Yong told me to wait, but… I asked Mr. Zenon to bring me to where you were.”
So that’s how it was.
Got it. Now I understood how Seop Baek ended up here. A bigger issue remained.
I grabbed her shoulders. Lacking the mental space to be gentle, I must have gripped her pretty tightly. The slight wrinkle on her face was evidence enough.
“Why? Why did you come here?”
“Naturally…! I couldn’t just sit back and watch Lord Jung Yong fight alone!”
Great. Here comes the classic trope from shonen manga?
Am I supposed to rub my nose and say, “Damn it… I trusted you!”?
“No. That’s not it, Lord Jung.”
Trusting you is the farthest thing from my mind right now. That’s why I don’t understand this situation.
My thoughts were so scattered that I asked her in a trembling voice.
“I clearly told you to stay there. Is it because you misunderstood?”
“No. I understood you correctly. But how could I just sit there and do nothing?”
“Why couldn’t you? Why?”
“How could you ask that?! Look at your condition, Lord Jung Yong!!”
Seop Baek suddenly raised her voice and grabbed both of my arms, thrusting me in front of her.
“…”
My left arm dangled like Detective Gadget’s arm. It had been cut to the bone and was only hanging by a small amount of remaining muscle.
It was grotesque. I couldn’t even think of a retort.
“Are you telling me to just sit there and watch this… until you’re completely ruined?!”
Truthfully, the arm wasn’t the only issue. My neck had a deep wound that soaked my shirt red, my torso had three holes through it, and my right leg was dragging uselessly because I had lost all sensation.
Yet, despite this sorry state, I was still moving around. I once again marveled at the greatness of the Hero Support System. I was thankful I had maximized my stamina stat.
“Hmm. The more I think about it, the more she’s right.”
Yeah. She’s correct.
If a family member, friend, or acquaintance had turned into this kind of tragic state, I’d probably act the same way. It’s not that I can’t understand her actions; I just don’t understand why I’m so calm when she’s the one being reasonable.
The strangeness lies… in how astonishingly emotionless I am about this, rather than her being abnormal.
While I was lost in thought, Seop Baek suddenly grabbed me tightly.
Before I could react, she buried her face in my chest and mumbled into it.
“How could you do this? How could anyone do this?! How much more debt do you think you’re placing on me?”
“Debt?…”
“Ever since you saved me that first time, I’ve been trying to repay the debt somehow… But why… Why would you do this much for me…?”
What nonsense are you spouting about debts? I never intended any of this. This is simply my persistence born out of my own will.
I live life according to my interests. Am I really some self-professed fool for others? Frankly, I can’t calculate these human relationships.
‘Were you thinking of it in such a way?’
Wanted to repay the debt? You’ve never said anything like that before. Did you seriously think that?
… No. You didn’t. No matter how I think about it, it’s certain. If you had said something like that, there’s no way I’d have forgotten. Even if I heard it, I would’ve corrected it right then and there.
My already confused mind becomes even more jumbled. I struggle to find my voice.
“Escape immediately. Head through the central city and then to the western gate. I’ve already prepared there, so it should be safe… Here, however, is still dangerous.”
“But—”
“I already told you. I’m immortal, alright. Wounds heal with a lick of spit.”
Of course, a bone won’t mend just by licking it. Let’s not talk about the shock of bleeding. We should go to the hospital right away.
Unfortunately, it seems Seop Baek also knows this much, as she immediately places her mana on me. Vitality quickly flows back into my body, healing it. My lightened body contrasted sharply with the heavy weight in my heart.
“No. How can you fight like this alone? If you’re going to fight, allow me to fight with you.”
“No, it’s simply not an option. I can die and it’s fine, but you cannot.”
“Even if you can regenerate from death, isn’t it painful to get wounded?!”
“Even if it’s true…”
I involuntarily twitched my eyebrow, and a voice more menacing than I could control slipped out.
She immediately averted her gaze, belatedly adding, “I, I didn’t mean to say it’s a lie.”
‘No good. Time is running out.’
The Immortal Sect believers will soon infiltrate here too. It’s too late if they discover us. I need to send Seop Baek away quickly.
I grew restless and agitated, my teeth clenched tightly.
“Anyway, I’m fine. Don’t worry about me. It’s fine if I die. How many times do I have to repeat it?”
“There’s no such person who can die and be fine with it!”
“Screw that! I’m the one who exists here, damn it! Worry about yourself!”
Finally, unable to endure the frustration, I shouted.
Startled, Seop Baek shrank back. Seeing her round, astonished eyes made me realize what I had just done.
A sudden wave of fatigue weighed down on my shoulders. It was the immense exhaustion from the battle that had been pushed aside by adrenaline until now.
‘They say understanding human hearts is the hardest. Goddamn.’
There might not be anyone else in this world, or even on Earth, who worries this much about me. She’s doing a great job. Self-loathing welled up in me without bounds.
Letting out a sigh, I muttered.
“Seop Baek. I’m truly fine. So stop worrying about others and worry about yourself first. Right now, you’re the one in the most danger…!”
I covered my forehead and spoke, only to suddenly lift my head and widen my eyes.
When did it start? There was something sprouting from Seop Baek’s clothes.
“…”
It pierced through her chest roughly. It was… a spike.
A spike as thick as my forearm, drenched in blood, had pierced through Seop Baek’s chest and stuck out in front of me, asserting its presence.
“Ah… Lord Jung Yong. If you’re going to be so affectionate, at least let me fight with you.”
And behind Seop Baek, a corpse slithered out.
It was one of the normal-looking corpses lying around her until just a moment ago. But I know its true identity.
The corpse of an Immortal Sect believer… The head of Cassas giggled wildly as he ripped open his own flesh.
“Something called the Plains of Promise, hmm? If it’s that far, it would be hard for me to start the Summoning Ritual, wouldn’t it?”
Ah. Oh.
I involuntarily let out a foolish exclamation, and so did Seop Baek.
Plop! The head of Cassas pulled out the spike. Blood gushed out of the wound like crazy, as if trying to bleed her dry. A torrent of blood streamed down like a waterfall, oddly enough.
Seop Baek gazed at the entire scene unfolding like flowing water, unable to believe it.
“A… ahh… Ah! Aran…!”
Seop Baek covered the wound with her hands and called out for Aran. But Aran did not respond to her call.
In fact, it couldn’t. The head of Cassas had pierced Aran through with his warped double-edged sword.
“Lord Jung Yong did such a grand rampage, costing us many lives, but we’ve gathered enough to force an awakening… So. Let’s start here.”
That’s strange. Wasn’t Aran supposed to be immune to physical attacks?
Shattering my thoughts, Aran staggered mid-air and then crashed to the ground.
“Kiii… keeeee…”
Aran’s fading scream of death slowly disintegrated until it suddenly disappeared into thin air.
“A… Aran!!”
As Seop Baek let out a staggering scream and attempted to rush towards it, her body froze. And with a crackling sound, a crimson arm emerged from the spike hole.
Giant and grotesque… A twisted arm, neither human nor beast, slick with blood, emerged.
“Ahh… Ahh! Aaaaaaahh!!”
Seop Baek’s eyes rolled back as she screamed, tears streaming down her face. It was a cry filled with pain and fear.
Crackling, crackling! Even as this happened, strange things kept emerging from the wound in Seop Baek’s body. A grotesque arm came out, then another, followed by a crimson face resembling a mix of human and beast forcing its way out.
“Lord Jung Yong… Escape… Escape quickly!!”
Seop Baek bellowed with her last ounce of strength.
And then, the crimson face revealed itself, staring straight into Seop Baek’s eyes. Suddenly, Seop Baek widened her eyes.
I felt time pause.
“I’m… hungry.”
The crimson face emitted a deep, chilling sound that made my heart sink.
The arm that had emerged grabbed her head and tore it off. With a sickening crunch, her desperately struggling body went limp instantly.
It happened too quickly. I didn’t even have the chance to gasp.
“I’m… hungry.”
What had emerged halfway out of Seop Baek’s body swallowed the severed head whole.
Dully. The sound filled my ears. The grotesque mouth of the entity moved slowly, almost like slow motion, entering my view.
“…”
I watched the entire scene like watching a nightmare, unable to move a single finger. There was nothing I could do but watch.
This… I can’t win against this. This is not something one can fight.
Run. Now. Use your full force. Don’t look back and run.
Because the warning from Hero Sense was pounding throughout my entire body.
“Ah…”
And then, the grotesque void-like eyes turned toward me.
After wriggling to bring its remaining lower body out, the monster began to crawl toward me, slowly.
Its distorted mouth opened wide, and it spoke.
“I’m… hungry.”
I immediately activated Black Wings and shot straight up into the sky.
Desperately. I flew as fast as I possibly could, using every ounce of energy I had to distance myself from this monster.
“Ugh… Ughhh! Aaaaaaaah!!”
I screamed like crazy as I flew with all my might.
I headed toward the place where I had begun. The western gate.
The mind went blank, filled with whiteness, devoid of any thoughts. There wasn’t even a particular reason for heading toward the western gate, it was just my instinct to return to the starting point.
Almost there. Just a little bit more.
“Eat… I’ll eat… ya.”
WHOOSH!
Just a moment before the monster’s grotesque voice could reach me, a pitch-black ray swept past my body. It shot over my lower body and disappeared into the night sky, an overwhelming beam of light capturing my attention.
I shut my mouth.
Then, a split second later, the pain caught up to me, and my mouth reopened.
“Urgh…!”
The intense burning sensation. The horrific pain spread throughout my body as if it was being roasted alive.
I preferred dying quickly. The agony was too terrible.
KONG! I tumbled across the ground several times before finally stopping, colliding with the wall of a house near the western gate, barely able to stay in one place.
“Guw… Ahh!”
I let out a low groan, but promptly shut my mouth when I noticed my condition.
I thought I couldn’t feel the lower half of my body, and indeed, it wasn’t just a feeling. The lower half of my body was cut off, entirely gone. Only strands of torn intestines stretched down and hung uselessly on the ground.
The shocking sight involuntarily drew a gasp of amazement from me.
“Ah… Oh my.”
So this is what it feels like to be like a kite with its string cut. Knowledge gained. Though… the metaphor wasn’t supposed to be this brutal, was it?
With that final nonsensical thought, my consciousness quickly faded away.
Hoo. It went out like a candle.
*
[The Immortal Demon King, Rustica Asmodeus, has enforced a mandatory axis reset.]
[Immortality’s Return Point has been updated.]
[Date – Continental Calendar 1108, January 13, 02:44]
[Location – Markeuteuriseu. Upper Plains of Promise, Kern Western Gate]
In a daze, I glanced down at the panel in front of me as Ruci slowly pulled away the lips that had touched mine.
Was it just me, or did Ruci’s pale face, lacking its usual flush, now have a slight tinge of red?
“… Huh?”
And as Ruci stared at my face, she suddenly distanced herself slightly, seemingly flustered, and inquired.
“Hero. Why are you crying?”
“Hmm?”
“Is kissing me… that, so moving? I, I’m starting to feel embarrassed!”
Ruci’s baffling words as she awkwardly scratched her cheek. Tilting my head in confusion, I wiped around my eyes with my hand. To my surprise, it was damp with moisture.
I was crying. And not just a little—I was sobbing uncontrollably.
“…”
Wow. I never imagined spouting serious lines straight out of a standard fantasy novel climax.
In any case, I wiped away tears while muttering under my breath.
“Huh? I… why am I crying…?”
It just automatically came out once this situation hit me.
