Translator: RaidenTL

Chapter 89: Spider

My heart pounded at the thought of meeting them in my new form; I was just as excited as they were. I’d grown more attached to them than I realized.

As I rounded a corner in the tunnel, the members of the Blood Dagger Clan came into view. They were charging toward me, holding nothing back. Amazingly, they recognized me despite my changed appearance.

“Rooaaar! Blood Dagger is alive, just as we thought!”

“And he’s a demon! Amazing! Blood Dagger is amazing!”

The first to reach me were Gark ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and Hark. I thought they weren’t very perceptive, but it seemed they’d figured it out by looking at the sword in my hand and sizing up the situation. The next to greet me was Jung Hayeon.

Her eyes were swollen as she threw her arms around me. The moment I hugged her back, she burst into tears.

“Sob… sob… Why did you take so long?”

I could have made some vague excuse about having things to do, but I said nothing. A moment like this wasn't so bad.

Hakajin, who must have been worried, had a look of welcome on his face. ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Ragia, seemingly confident that I would survive, showed little more than a sigh of relief. However, when our eyes briefly met, the smile she gave me showed immense relief.

“I knew you would all be safe. Did we lose any clan members?”

“None, Chieftain. We thought the goblins who were with you had died. For you to appear with them, safe and sound… it’s truly surprising.”

“The Chief saved us!”

“Blood Dagger helped us get out of the tunnel!”

I couldn’t help but smile at the cute sight of the goblin artist and the assassin goblins shouting in support of Hakajin’s words. One by one, they all placed a hand over their heart in a salute. As I was encouraging them, I noticed Mev was nowhere to be seen and asked the others.

“Where is Mev?”

At my words, they all ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠subtly parted, and I could see Mev being comforted by the Goblin Three Sisters.

“I… I’m sorry… I’m sorry, Chief.”

Seeing Mev’s tear-streaked, battered face as she constantly wiped away her tears, I understood why she couldn’t approach me.

She thought I had been buried in her place while saving her. Her face was flushed, and her eyes were swollen shut. It looked like she had been crying the entire time she was searching for me. She seemed utterly demoralized. Although no one else had likely blamed her, she had clearly been tormenting herself.

For me, who had just been spending a relatively happy time with Baek Ahyeon, it was a heart-wrenching sight. A pang of guilt struck me.

Of course, it wasn’t Mev’s fault. She hadn’t acted recklessly; it was simply an accident that occurred while she was carrying out her duties with passion.

“It’s not your fault.”

“Ch… Chief…”

They were short words, but they must have been enough for Mev to cast off her burden. She instantly ran over and threw herself ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠into my arms. The sight of her flying toward me, flapping her wings with tears and snot streaming down her face, was a little funny, but I held back my laughter and embraced her.

I stroked her head as she buried her face in my chest, sobbing. Mev trembled once more, and with that, our long-awaited reunion came to a close.

*

“By the way, Chief… your body changed?”

“It did.”

After our reunion, the main topic of conversation as we searched for the exit was, of course, my evolution into a demon.

“I think I liked your old face better… Heh… well, does it matter? This one is strangely charming in its own way.”

“I… I like this one better,” Jung Hayeon added, picking up where Mev left off. For Jung Hayeon, who had been human, my current appearance was naturally preferable.

We continued walking, but to be honest, it was incredibly awkward to move. Mev, having recovered her spirits somewhat, clung tightly to my arm as if she would never let go. It was the same for Baek Ahyeon and Jung Hayeon, who walked as close to me as possible.

Thanks to them, Gark and Hark looked miserable at having lost their chance to assist the chieftain, but I found it rather amusing. Contrary to their expectations of a bloody battle, I was the only one who had really gained anything from this expedition. But the shock of my return from the dead seemed to be so great that no one was clamoring for a fight.

“Chief, what’s the plan now?”

“First, we return to the settlement. Any more fighting is pointless. The enemies are all dead… and any survivors would be poor opponents. It’s a shame, but we’ll have to wait for the next opportunity.”

As soon as I finished, Gark and Hark chimed in.

“It’s a shame we couldn’t fight on this expedition, but Blood Dagger becoming even greater is a huge achievement.”

“This is Blood Dagger, who returned from hell alive.”

“He returned from hell with horns!”

That was the gist of their reactions. I certainly hadn't returned from hell, but the form I’d revealed at the end must have been quite impressive, because I had somehow become ‘Blood Dagger who returned from hell.’ My transformation into a lesser demon felt like the first page of the Blood Dagger legend, to the point that some in the clan were even saying they wanted to evolve into demons if they could.

After some boisterous conversation, we spent a good while searching for an exit. The fastest way out would have been the tunnel we had originally dug, but it was blocked in several places, slowing our progress. Eventually, we managed to escape the stuffy tunnels and emerge into the open.

“Fresh air! Kkireuk!”

“This is great! The outside is the best!”

The Goblin Three Sisters chirped repeatedly, clearly enjoying the sight of the outside world after so long. It was the same for the others; they stared at the sun for a long while, shaking off the memory of their time in the suffocating tunnels.

All that remained was to check for survivors and secretly send Baek Ahyeon on her way. With our mission nearly complete, I was about to start looking, feeling rather pleased. That was when it happened.

‘The smell of blood.’

Perhaps because my senses had sharpened after evolving into a demon, I could smell blood from far away. But what I felt even more strongly was an incredibly ominous aura.

I was the only one who sensed the unsettling air. It seemed no one else could feel it.

In an instant, goosebumps erupted all over my body. Certain that something was happening, I couldn't help but swallow hard. Cold sweat beaded on my skin. My hands, lips, and even my legs began to tremble.

Noticing my condition, Jung Hayeon spoke to me.

“Is something wrong?”

Of course, I didn't know what was happening. But one thing was certain. We had to get out of here as fast as possible.

“We’re returning to the settlement immediately. As fast as you can… this is the top priority.”

Sensing the urgency in my voice, the others began to look around nervously. They hadn't consciously noticed it, but they instinctively felt that something had gone wrong.

“R-Return to the settlement!”

“We follow Blood Dagger’s command!”

But the ominous aura continued to press in, feeling as if it were piercing right through me. I didn't know what was going on, but I swallowed the scream that threatened to erupt and stared into the empty forest.

And then.

From the silent bushes, a quiet voice. That incredibly sinister voice struck my ears with perfect clarity.

‘Human.’

“Oh? Looks like there were monsters here too… I was only planning to kill the Saint Knights… Hmm… well, I guess it doesn't matter.”

A Murderer. Hearing a voice talk about killing the Saint Knights, there was a high probability it was a Murderer.

It hadn’t shown itself yet, but at the sound of its voice, my clan members and I froze instantly. The scent wafting over was unmistakably that of a predator. It was laughable, but the Blood Dagger Clan had become herbivores standing before a predator.

I had assumed that whoever prepared a trap of this scale wouldn't be an ordinary Murderer, but I’d figured they’d be on the level of the Hunting Dog Clan at worst. I never imagined that a monster like this would be the mastermind behind the trap.

But this was completely different. This thing was no mere hunting dog.

‘Spider.’

A Murderer clan composed only of freaks of nature. A name I had heard countless times in my past life. Most of them had been beheaded by the Queen of the North, but they were definitely active even before I died.

I didn't know why someone presumed to be from ‘Spider’ was here, but one thing was certain: I absolutely could not make an enemy of them.

‘Please, just leave…’

I found myself praying inwardly. I'd never heard that the Spiders enjoyed hunting monsters. For whatever reason, their targets were almost always human.

Just as everyone was swallowing nervously, its voice was heard once more.

“There are no moles coming up… Shall we play a little?”

‘Killing intent.’

I never imagined we would run into such an exceptional monster the moment we came outside. The tunnel we dug was to the north. The ‘moles’ it mentioned were probably the Saint Knights coming up through the exit. In other words, its range was incredibly wide.

I could feel it running toward us from a distance. I couldn't understand how its voice was reaching us from so far away. There was only one thing I knew for sure…

‘We’re going to die.’

This was a situation where we could all die.

I quickly scanned my surroundings. My eyes fell on my clan members, who were frozen in place even after hearing my words.

“Mev, Gark, pull the clan members back right now. I won’t take any arguments. Retreat the troops unconditionally.”

“Huh?”

“I said, run.”

“B-But… what about you, Chief?”

“I’m not listening to anything else.”

Mev’s expression shifted rapidly. It was the face of someone who still didn't understand what was happening. But Gark seemed to sense the enemy approaching. He opened his mouth to speak.

“I will fight too! I will fight with Blood Dagger! I will not run!”

“We’ll fight with Blood Dagger!”

Hark shouted as well, but I had no time to indulge their childishness.

“Gark.”

“Grrrrr…”

“I told you to run.”

As I spoke, my eyes filled with killing intent, and Gark fell silent. He knew I was serious. To the clan, the chieftain’s command was absolute. Disobeying it was a greater dishonor than turning your back and fleeing. Seeing the look in my eyes, Gark and Hark exchanged a glance and began to back away. Hark even grabbed Baek Ahyeon, who was clinging to me, and pulled her back with him.

That’s when it came into view.

It was holding two swords—too short to be longswords, too long to be daggers. Its blurry form sharpened in an instant.

The first time I’d ever faced a powerhouse of this caliber.

I drew the Ancient Flame and faced it.