A corridor appeared. After passing through a corridor that looked like a dug-out tunnel, a corner came into view, and as soon as he turned the corner, Igyeol immediately retreated back and leaned against the wall. There were Baekya’s enemies ahead.
“Intruder!”
There was the sound of them shouting. Along with that came the clack of swords being drawn from scabbards. At the gaze he suddenly felt, Igyeol raised his eyes. Sung Yohan was looking at him. Meeting those eyes, Igyeol tossed aside his scabbard as if throwing it. He turned his body and proceeded around the corner.
“……”
The scent of spreading Demonic Aura stimulated Sung Yohan’s nostrils. Sung Yohan clenched his fist tightly, then picked up the scabbard Igyeol had dropped.
Around the corner, under the dim luminescent stones, about a dozen people wearing bulletproof vests and masks came into view. He had an idea who they were. They must be Baekya’s subordinates. Igyeol raised the corners of his mouth and moved his body. As soon as they saw Igyeol, they raised weapons and guns imbued with magic power.
“Kill him!”
Someone shouted, but before that voice could even finish, Igyeol’s figure disappeared like a lie. The gun filled with magic power fired wildly into empty air. The action team member who had rushed forward made a dumbfounded sound.
Bang, bang bang!!
“Huh?”
The bullets pierced through the innocent wall. It was the moment the team member’s eyes widened.
Swooosh—!!
In an instant, the figure that had dropped from overhead spun his body and swiftly swung a long sword. Five or six bodies split apart in an instant. Blood spurted out like a fountain.
“Kugh—”
“Gack—!”
They fell in one blow to his ghostly swordsmanship. Igyeol didn’t stop. As the action team member, who had turned deathly pale, raised his gun in horror, the front of the firearm was sliced through, and Igyeol, who had dropped to the floor, spun half a turn and swung the long sword once more. Cool Demonic Aura flowed down the tip of the blade.
Thud. Thump.
There wasn’t even a scream. The upper body of the last standing team member split apart and collapsed to the floor.
When Sung Yohan came around the corner carrying the scabbard, the situation was already over. Igyeol shook off his sword, which didn’t have a single drop of blood on it. It was like a habit. A habit from when he slaughtered demons and shook off the blood that had stuck to him.
“……”
Sung Yohan swallowed his dry saliva.
All of what appeared to be easily a dozen or so people were collapsed on the ground. There were no traces of resistance. He’d heard gunfire, but Igyeol didn’t appear to have a single scratch.
However, Sung Yohan frowned as he scrutinized Igyeol carefully.
Igyeol’s hair. The white portion had increased compared to earlier. The white streaks had spread to his temples, and black veins were crawling up past his elbow over the back of the hand gripping the long sword. It was clear that something was wearing away the more he exerted his power.
…This won’t do.
Sung Yohan bit his lip in anxiety. That overwhelming military force was a flame Igyeol had kindled using his own life as fuel. Fear involuntarily rose within him at the thought that those flames would burn up everything that was Igyeol and turn him into a handful of ashes.
Igyeol once again strode forward with large steps. Sung Yohan followed behind, hiding his impatient heart.
The enemies were positioned throughout the Gate. They met and fought several times, but the fights ended rather anticlimactically. That’s how it was for Igyeol. But Hyungil still couldn’t be seen. He seemed about to appear yet didn’t, seemed within reach yet wasn’t—he was agonizingly far away.
On the way down following the stairs, he discovered a necktie lying in one corner. A Myeongil High School necktie that had lost its original color, soaked in blood. The one Hyungil always complained was bothersome and stuffed in his pocket.
…How irritating.
Igyeol gritted his teeth. He was extremely irritated. His emotions moved erratically, and his insides kept churning and rising. The thing inside was trying to run wild. The Demonic Aura surged and moved erratically.
Was this method of releasing things one by one like testing the waters also Baekya’s tactic? Igyeol twisted the corners of his mouth in a smile. If so, it was a very wrong choice. Because the more they did this, the more he wanted to kill.
He went deeper down. The stairs ended and another corridor appeared. This one was wide. A spacious area with a high ceiling and pillars lined up on both sides. It looked like an underground hangar. Red lights were flashing on the walls, and magic circles for amplifying magic power were drawn layer upon layer on the floor.
They were waiting for him.
They were on a different level from earlier. They wore bulletproof vests with magic power reinforcement gloves, and held magical tool weapons in their hands. Those with large shields were positioned in the front row, and long-range attackers in the back row. There appeared to be over twenty of them. Moving in an organized formation, they were a trained combat unit.
The man standing in the center opened his mouth upon seeing Igyeol. He was a large build who appeared to be the action captain.
“You made it all the way here. But this is the end.”
Igyeol didn’t answer. He loosened his grip on the long sword, then tightened it again. His fingers interlocked in the place worn smooth by use.
“If you surrender, we might let you live. Cooperate. We have business with Guild Leader Sung Yohan behind you, not with you. Quietly put down your weapon—”
It was before he could finish speaking. Without hesitation, Igyeol raised the long sword and struck down at the floor.
Kwoong—!
It wasn’t a simple strike. The Demonic Aura carried in the long sword spread in all directions along the magic circles on the floor. The red lines of the magic circles split black, and cracks spread across the entire floor.
“What the!”
The team members in the front row lost their balance, swaying from the shock of the ground splitting beneath their feet. That 0.5 seconds.
Igyeol’s figure crouched low. As if gliding across the floor, he slipped between the three tank team members. The end of the long sword’s handle struck the first one’s abdomen, and with the returning motion, hit the back of the second one’s knee. The third was the shoulder. All joints or vital points. He didn’t use the blade.
Thwack. Crack. Crunch.
Shields rolled to the floor, and the three collapsed in succession.
“Shoot! Just kill him!”
The action captain screamed viciously. The long-range attackers in the back row poured out fireballs and ice spears from their magical tools. Red light and blue light tangled together and rushed toward Igyeol.
At that moment, the long sword was swung. Even the sound of cutting through the air sideways came late.
Kwaang—!
It wasn’t sword energy. The pure physical force and wave of Demonic Aura carried in the long sword compressed and pushed out the air. The flying fireballs were crushed and extinguished midway, and the ice spears scattered into powder.
Wind blew. No, it was a shockwave. Following the trajectory of Igyeol’s sword swing, the air split and spread out in a fan shape. Four team members who had been in front were swept away and thrown backward like pieces of paper caught in the wind.
Igyeol didn’t stop walking. He walked past those who had fallen. Five remained ahead. Fear filled the eyes of those who had retreated until their backs touched the wall.
“Wh-what the hell is this bastard…!”
“He’s supposed to be C-rank! You said C-rank!”
The action captain ground his teeth and drew out a magical tool dagger. Magic power formed on the blade like frost. He was quite something. He was at least B-rank.
“You son of a bitch—!”
The action captain charged. A fast and accurate thrust. The trajectory aimed for a vital point.
Igyeol tilted his head just slightly, only about a hand’s width to the side. The dagger grazed past a single strand of hair beside his cheek.
And Igyeol’s left hand grabbed the action captain’s face.
“Keu—!”
Five fingers gripped the man’s face. He slammed him straight down into the floor.
Kwoong—!!
The floor cracked like a spiderweb. The action captain’s consciousness went out.
The remaining four tried to abandon their weapons and run. Igyeol didn’t chase them. Instead, he raised the long sword and struck the floor once more.
Kwaang—!
The shockwave spread in a circle. The legs of those who had been fleeing buckled, and they fell face-first to the floor.
The surroundings became quiet in an instant.
Igyeol loosely lowered the long sword, which didn’t have a single drop of blood on it. His breathing was slightly rough. Not because of stamina, but because the thing inside was running wild.
Sung Yohan followed behind. Even seeing the twenty-some people sprawled on the floor, he said nothing. Instead, he looked at Igyeol. Gray streaks had spread in Igyeol’s hair all the way behind his ears. They had definitely widened compared to earlier. The black veins on the back of his hand had now passed his elbow and were climbing toward his shoulder.
“Igyeol-ssi.”
Sung Yohan called out in a low voice. Igyeol walked while looking ahead.
“It’s fine. We’re close.”
It was as he said. At the end of the corridor, a massive iron door could be seen.
In front of the iron door, it was quiet as death. There were no guards. Because he’d swept them all away. Only one thing—there was a sound coming from beyond the iron door.
Thud. Drip.
The sound of some viscous liquid dripping to the floor. And a breath continuing thinly as if about to break.
Igyeol’s steps stopped in front of the iron door.
The hand gripping the long sword was trembling. What would he see if he opened this door? If the kid who had been singing about pork belly pork belly this morning was lying there cold… If the kid who had turned around in the alley and smiled saying “Hyung, don’t forget the pork belly!” no longer smiled…
His hand reached toward the doorknob, then stopped in midair.
A large hand overlapped Igyeol’s trembling hand. It was Sung Yohan. He didn’t say anything. Simply covering Igyeol’s hand, he grasped the doorknob together with him. Igyeol’s trembling was transmitted to Sung Yohan’s palm. Without saying a word, Sung Yohan silently gripped and turned the doorknob. Igyeol bit his lip hard.
