Chapter 140
Chapter 140
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 140
Chapter Title: Karaniel's Wrath
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Seo Woo-jin let out a hollow laugh, as if he couldn't believe it.
He'd had some inkling from the demonic energy wafting in the air.
But to think he'd actually brought Dark Elves into the mix...
This was practically begging to be killed outright.
No, it was even worse than that.
"If you're gonna die, die alone. Why drag your old man down with you?"
A spark of anger flared up inside him.
Seo Woo-jin had a pretty high opinion of Mohiaddin.
The man had a strong sense of responsibility, excellent character, and above all, he was a noble who commanded the respect of his people.
Sure, he'd raised a rotten kid, but that one flaw was overshadowed by his many virtues.
And yet this fool was dragging that very Mohiaddin into the jaws of death.
It was only natural for anger to rise.
Seo Woo-jin decided to crank up the punishment beyond what he'd originally planned.
'I won't kill him.'
But he'd make it so the bastard wished he had.
He'd ensure Rashid regretted this day for the rest of his life.
"You're a hero?"
As Seo Woo-jin glared at Rashid, a Dark Elf from the back spoke up.
"Wait your turn for now. Let me deal with these shadowy bastards first."
Seo Woo-jin shot Rashid a warning laced with killing intent, then turned to face the Dark Elf.
"You know who I am, right?"
"Seo Woo-jin. D-rank hero. Stronger than your rank suggests, huh?"
The Dark Elf knew more than expected.
But that was the extent of it.
He had no idea just how strong Seo Woo-jin really was, or that he'd fought Gerald, Reina, and others.
Not even that he'd clashed single-handedly with a wyrm.
Whether Rashid had deliberately withheld the info or dismissed it as nonsense, who knew.
One thing was certain.
"Then you know you're all dying here today?"
Seo Woo-jin said it with utter sincerity.
Dark Elves were unequivocal enemies.
He'd tangled with them multiple times before, and he'd have to keep fighting them.
Once the Descent War began, they'd join the Demon King's forces and play a key role.
No reason to hesitate killing them, no need to.
"Overconfidence. Arrogance."
The Dark Elf, armed only with surface-level intel on Seo Woo-jin, wore a smug expression.
He seemed convinced that he and the tribe's 71 elites could easily take down one hero.
"I wonder who here's the arrogant one."
Seo Woo-jin flashed a cold smile and drew Karaniel.
Shing-
With a soft whisper, a blade blacker than night emerged into the world.
The Dark Elf's eyes widened.
"...That sword?"
Surprisingly, he recognized Karaniel.
"You know it? Impressive."
Seo Woo-jin nodded, a bit surprised himself.
Dark Elves had helped forge this sword, after all. It made sense they'd know it.
A race that once fought to stop the Demon King, fallen this low.
Seo Woo-jin shook his head at the world's unpredictability, then pointed Karaniel at the Dark Elf.
Violet demonic energy rippled out, beginning to corrupt the surroundings.
"Damn it, scatter! It's Karaniel!"
Chaos erupted at the Dark Elf's shout.
The hero's sword.
The Demon King slayer.
The Allied Races' blade.
Why the hell was it here?
All Dark Elves except the baffled Rashid and soldiers leaped into action.
Or tried to.
But Seo Woo-jin's move was far faster.
"Too late."
'Swiftness.'
His intent to let not a single one escape manifested.
Slash-!
The head of the Dark Elf who'd ordered the retreat floated up first.
He hadn't even resisted, hadn't realized he was dead.
A true instant.
In a second sliced and diced a hundred times over, Seo Woo-jin swung dozens of times.
Severed heads fell, limbs flew, blood sprayed like fountains.
In less than five seconds.
Not a single Dark Elf stood.
Seo Woo-jin stood at the epicenter of hell, Karaniel dripping blood, and fixed his gaze on Rashid.
His eyes were coldly serene, impossible to believe they'd just claimed 72 lives.
As Rashid trembled at the unbelievable sight, Seo Woo-jin's voice reached his ears.
"You're next."
* * *
"What do we do?"
Park Jin-han asked.
"...We need to figure out why Si-woo did that first."
Kim Tae-jin replied with a headache brewing on his face.
"There must've been some misunderstanding. He wouldn't just attack someone out of nowhere unless he'd lost his mind."
He had lost his mind.
More precisely, he'd been overtaken by demonic energy, but they didn't know that.
And Seong Yu-ra, the one who'd sparked this mess, said nothing, just gnawed at her nails.
"That's what we need to find out. But the academy folks are all clammed up. Was it really a kidnapping?"
Park Jin-han sighed, utterly baffled.
They'd been there that day, too.
But no matter how they thought about it, something was off.
Baek Si-woo had been way too different from his usual self.
They couldn't even buy the kidnapping story.
The Baek Si-woo they'd seen hadn't looked remotely like a victim.
"I'm working on it, so hang tight, you musclehead."
Kim Tae-jin calmed the fidgety Park Jin-han.
"...It was kinda weird."
Then Im Tae-eun, who'd been quiet, spoke up.
"What was?"
When Park Jin-han asked, she hesitated before answering carefully.
"I felt demonic energy from Si-woo."
No one reacted.
They pretended not to notice, but they already knew.
That Baek Si-woo had been emanating demonic energy.
"We must've been mistaken."
They had no choice but to say it.
"But..."
"Drop it. Even if it was real demonic energy from Si-woo, there has to be a reason. So don't say more."
Kim Tae-jin shut Im Tae-eun down.
Whatever the full story, they'd dig into it later.
Right now, finding their friend came first.
"Okay..."
Im Tae-eun fell silent again, petting her dragon with a timid look.
"Hey, Yu-ra."
Park Jin-han called out to Seong Yu-ra next.
But she still said nothing.
Frowning at that, he approached her.
"Why aren't you saying anything? Aren't you worried about Si-woo?"
Normally, she'd be the first to lead the charge in searching for Baek Si-woo.
But now she just looked anxious, acting all hysterical.
Of course it seemed weird.
Seong Yu-ra merely shot him a sharp glare, saying nothing.
"...Forget it."
Knowing it'd just stir up trouble, Park Jin-han shook his head and backed off.
'What do I do?'
Meanwhile, Seong Yu-ra was under extreme stress.
'Is it my fault? Really my fault?'
She recalled provoking Baek Si-woo.
Of course, she didn't regret it.
She'd just meant to give him a proper stimulus to fuel his growth.
And as a bonus, teach that annoying Seo Woo-jin a lesson using her friend's power.
That was all.
But the fallout had far exceeded her expectations.
She hadn't anticipated Baek Si-woo radiating demonic energy, or him losing to Seo Woo-jin in that state, let alone some monster named Reina showing up.
And...
The others probably hadn't heard.
But Seong Yu-ra had caught it clearly.
'King of the Apocalypse.'
Reina had definitely called Baek Si-woo that after spotting the hideous demonic beast in the sky.
It could only mean one thing.
'Baek Si-woo's the Demon King?'
The academy buzzed with hushed rumors.
Words like 'Beast of the Apocalypse' and 'Demon King' floated around.
Putting it all together led to one conclusion: Baek Si-woo was the Demon King.
It was impossible to believe.
No, she refused to.
That upright-to-a-fault guy?
Something had to be wrong.
Seong Yu-ra truly believed that.
At the same time, she'd hidden her own actions from her friends.
Just in case the sparks flew their way.
She didn't think she'd done anything wrong, really.
All she'd wanted was for Seo Woo-jin to get a beating from Baek Si-woo.
She hadn't wished for things to blow up like this.
'It's not my fault.'
She bit her nails.
'It has to be Seo Woo-jin. That bastard did something. No way Si-woo would act like that otherwise.'
Self-justification.
She started shoving all the blame onto Seo Woo-jin.
"Yeah, that's right."
Seong Yu-ra muttered unconsciously.
"What'd you say?"
"What's right?"
Her friends' eyes turned to her.
Snap-
Her nail broke, and she lowered her hand, opening her mouth.
"It's Seo Woo-jin. We need to grill that bastard."
Her friends didn't get it.
Why bring up Seo Woo-jin all of a sudden?
"What do you mean? Why interrogate that guy?"
Kim Tae-jin asked, brow furrowed.
"Think about it. You know better than anyone Si-woo doesn't act without reason."
"...True."
They had great trust in Baek Si-woo.
He was their leader, and genuinely kinder and more upright than anyone.
"For Si-woo to fight means the other side was probably in the wrong. Right?"
Baek Si-woo wasn't the type to start trouble.
Hell, even if someone picked a fight, he'd just laugh it off more often than not.
"Si-woo fought Seo Woo-jin. Whether he provoked him or whatever, that jerk definitely started it."
No evidence, flimsy logic.
But with the madness in Seong Yu-ra's voice, no one opposed.
They all sensed something off about that part anyway.
"The demonic energy from Si-woo too. That bastard must've pulled some dirty trick."
"Isn't that a huge leap?"
Cool-headed Kim Tae-jin tried to rein her in, but Seong Yu-ra pressed on.
"We'll find out if we confront him. See what the hell he did to Si-woo."
It didn't matter if they uncovered nothing.
Just pin the suspicions on Seo Woo-jin, dump all the blame.
That was Seong Yu-ra's real goal.
"Hey, that's too..."
Kim Tae-jin started to shake his head, but Park Jin-han beat him to it.
"No loss if it flops."
Action over deep thought suited him, so tailing her idea once seemed fine.
It was just asking, after all.
Kim Tae-jin sighed and spoke.
"Fine. But remember, we're not picking a fight with that guy."
"Don't worry."
Park Jin-han nodded.
"But is that Seo Woo-jin dude still at the academy? Looked like he was heading out earlier."
When Kim Tae-jin asked, Seong Yu-ra stepped up.
"I'll check. You guys get ready."
As Seong Yu-ra left the room, her eyes gleamed with thick venom.