Chapter 141
Chapter 141
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 141
Chapter Title: Paying the Price
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Seo Woo-jin's expression was cold.
It was chilling enough to make Ailin, who had been watching from behind, flinch in surprise.
"Woo-jin."
She called out to Seo Woo-jin, who was radiating a piercing killing intent.
Then she approached and placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Calm down. You seem way too worked up right now."
Even for Seo Woo-jin, killing dozens of lives at once couldn't be easy.
It wasn't a matter of power.
The mental shock would be immense.
No matter how accustomed he was to it, taking the lives of beings so similar to humans in form had to be a heavy burden.
Feeling the warm body heat from Ailin's hand, Seo Woo-jin let out a sigh.
"Yeah, thanks."
Seo Woo-jin softened his expression and walked toward Rashid.
He sheathed 'Kara Niel' back into its scabbard.
He felt like if he kept holding it, he might unknowingly sever the bastard's neck.
Thanks to Ailin, he had calmed down a bit, but Seo Woo-jin was still seething with anger.
"D-don't come any closer! What are you doing? Stop him!"
Rashid grabbed a nearby soldier and shoved him forward.
"Huh? Wha?"
The soldier was forcibly pushed toward Seo Woo-jin without any chance to resist.
The sight drew a hollow laugh from him.
Even in this situation, pushing others ahead to save his own skin...
"Move."
"Yes, sir!"
At the icy voice, the soldier naturally scrambled out of the way.
As scary as Rashid might be, Seo Woo-jin was on another level.
Wasn't he the one who had just massacred dozens of Dark Elves?
No one, not even Rashid, could be more terrifying than Seo Woo-jin.
"Y-you bastard!"
Rashid belatedly tried to grab the soldier, but it was impossible.
Seo Woo-jin's figure had already slipped between Rashid and the soldier.
Flinch!
Rashid halted his outstretched hand.
Then he swallowed dryly.
The scheme he had meticulously prepared had been utterly shattered in mere seconds.
It was completely unexpected.
He never imagined the Dark Elves would be slaughtered so mercilessly.
But the bigger problem was that his dealings with the Dark Elves had been exposed.
And of all people, to a hero!
Rashid felt trapped in a dead end with no way out.
"Hey."
Seo Woo-jin called out to Rashid.
Rashid flinched again, hunching his body.
"Don't worry. I won't kill you."
At Seo Woo-jin's words, Rashid's face brightened slightly.
He had no grounds to complain if his head was chopped off right here, yet he was being spared.
But his expression twisted at the words that followed.
"Instead, I'll make you beg for death from your own mouth."
Seo Woo-jin's fist sliced through the air.
Crack!
Just like their first encounter, Rashid's nasal bone shattered.
"Aaaargh!"
A scream of excruciating pain erupted.
"This is just the beginning. You pay for what you've done."
Seo Woo-jin's violence was merciless.
Each blow crushed bones and tore skin.
The screams had long since stopped.
The pleas for mercy had vanished.
Only faint groans escaped now.
"S-stop..."
Then, a thin voice leaked from Rashid's lips.
"You can still talk? Looks like you can take more."
Seo Woo-jin had no intention of stopping.
He planned to beat him so badly that even high priests of the Holy Kingdom of Iair couldn't easily heal him.
That way, he'd spend the rest of his life drowning in regret.
But against his will, Seo Woo-jin had to halt his fist.
"Jina, Han... devil, info..."
"Huh?"
What was that?
Jina-han, devil, info?
Pondering the three words, Seo Woo-jin's face hardened.
"You know something?"
"Y-yes... I do. Blood-eating..."
Reina.
He clearly had information on her.
"Talk. Hand over solid info, and I'll stop here."
Rashid shakily pointed to one side with a trembling hand.
A terrified soldier stood there awkwardly.
"That guy's the one who kn-knows..."
Seo Woo-jin stepped away from Rashid.
Then he slowly approached the soldier Rashid had indicated.
"You know something?"
"Yes! I know!"
The soldier nodded vigorously.
He was desperate, fearing he'd end up like Rashid if he delayed even a second.
"Speak."
"W-well, it was..."
The soldier began his explanation.
"It was when those Dark Elves first appeared. They seemed to have known Young Master Rashid for quite a while."
The soldier said the Dark Elves had likely handled similar jobs for him several times before.
"But this time was different. They demanded something unusual as payment for the job..."
"Unusual?"
Seo Woo-jin tilted his head.
"Yes. Normally, it was settled with gold, but this time they wanted humans instead of money."
Seo Woo-jin's eyes narrowed at the soldier's answer.
He had a hunch.
"And?"
"Young Master asked why, and they said they needed their blood. I was horrified, of course, but Young Master..."
The soldier's gaze flicked toward Rashid.
Eyes filled with contempt.
Just from that, it was clear what the bastard had done.
"How many did you offer up?"
"...Five."
A hollow laugh escaped.
To achieve his goal, he'd traded the lives of five territory folk he was supposed to protect.
Killing intent surged wildly.
But he barely suppressed it and opened his mouth.
"Continue."
"I personally took them to a mansion. If I'd known what would happen, I never would've gone."
"What happened?"
"A devil lived there. Seemed female, but I'm not sure. All I saw was a red aura and thick silver hair."
Red aura and silver hair.
It matched Reina's features.
"And?"
"That devil chewed and swallowed the five of them. Literally chewed them up and swallowed."
The soldier's face paled.
Just recalling the memory seemed to overwhelm him with the terror from that day.
"I bolted out the moment I saw it. Told Young Master, but he didn't care much."
"Was anyone else with that devil?"
It seemed certain Reina was here.
What about Baek Si-woo?
For Seo Woo-jin, that bastard's presence mattered more than Reina.
"Oh, come to think of it, there was someone. Too scared to see clearly, but definitely one more man."
As expected, the two were together.
"I see."
Rashid was no longer an issue.
Of course, he'd pay later for abusing the territory folk for personal gain.
But that could wait.
Right now, he needed to deal with Baek Si-woo and Reina.
"Guide me there."
"...Pardon? That place?"
The soldier's face turned ashen.
He never dreamed he'd have to go back to where that devil lived.
"Or end up like him here."
Seo Woo-jin pointed at Rashid, and the soldier frantically shook his head.
Better the devil's mansion than that fate.
"I'll guide you!"
The soldier volunteered tearfully, steeling himself.
"Ailin."
Seo Woo-jin turned around.
Ailin, who had quietly watched the events unfold, shook her head.
"If you're thinking of leaving me behind, don't. Better not."
She seemed to anticipate he'd try to ditch her and shut it down from the start.
"That wasn't what I was going to say."
Seo Woo-jin gave an awkward smile.
In truth, he had planned to leave her behind.
But she'd caught him before he even tried.
"Then what?"
Ailin eyed him suspiciously.
"Could you take that damn bastard to the lord's castle?"
"...So you can go alone in the meantime?"
Her expression said she knew it.
"Can't leave him here. Needs treatment, and we have to inform Viscount Mohiaddin and Sir Roanin."
The only ones still mobile here were Seo Woo-jin, Ailin, and this nameless soldier.
Seo Woo-jin and the soldier had to go to Reina, leaving Ailin.
Stopping by the lord's castle first would waste too much time.
Who knew what could happen in the interim.
Ailin wanted to refuse.
But knowing the situation left no choice, she couldn't.
In the end, she sighed and nodded.
"Got it. But I'll follow right after."
"I'll leave a mark. Follow it, and you'll find us easy. Bring Sir Roanin and the reinforcements just in case."
"Okay."
Ailin hoisted the collapsed Rashid onto her back.
"Ugh!"
A pained groan escaped, but she ignored it.
Honestly, if Rashid weren't a noble of Zion rather than the Empire, she'd have beheaded him herself.
It was frustrating that she couldn't.
"Alright, be back soon. And..."
Before stepping out, Ailin turned to Seo Woo-jin.
"Don't get hurt this time."
"Got it."
Seo Woo-jin nodded with a smile.
Confidence that he absolutely wouldn't get hurt shone through.
But it didn't last.
Once Ailin was gone, Seo Woo-jin's expression grew heavier than ever.
"Where?"
He asked the soldier.
"J-just follow me."
He headed with Seo Woo-jin to the mansion where the devil resided.
* * *
"Haa— haa."
Rough, pained breaths burst out.
Her arm severed, half her spine snapped.
Even for Reina, it wasn't painless.
"Damn, I need more blood."
Five people's blood wasn't nearly enough.
Normally, that would fully heal her body with plenty left over...
But now, it had only bought her a brief moment.
Ma-gong and Yorn's attacks had left irreparable wounds on her flesh.
'But.'
Her gaze turned to the side.
Baek Si-woo stood there with vacant eyes, his face unchanging.
'Securing him means no real loss.'
The new Demon King.
The new ruler.
This price was cheap for receiving him.
"When will he come to his senses?"
For some reason, Baek Si-woo's current state was abnormal.
She couldn't even attempt anything in her wrecked condition.
She'd contacted the messenger, so when the time came, he'd assume the true form of a king.
"May you descend and lead us..."
Reina smiled at Baek Si-woo with eyes mixed of pain and ecstasy.