Yoo Heeyeon's Tears
The deafening roar of an explosion tore through the air the instant Yoo Heeyeon instinctively closed her eyes.
She was certain she was about to die. Yet, strangely enough, there was no pain.
What just happened?
They say that when a person suffers catastrophic damage all at once, the pain can become so overwhelming that the body simply stops registering it. Yoo Heeyeon wondered if that was what had happened to her.
Scrrrtch.
Imagining the mangled state her body must be in, she steeled herself despite the terror and slowly cracked her eyes open.
“How is this…?”
Her body was completely unharmed. Not a single scratch. Before her, a colossal surge of mana energy swirled and overflowed.
“What the hell are you staring at, you dumb bitch? You wanna die? If you don’t, then do something useful, you fucking parasite!”
Right in front of her, Lee Hyunseung stood with his arm trembling violently, desperately blocking Shin Junho’s attack.
Paralysis Bullet has struck the target. The struck opponent will be temporarily paralyzed.
A powerful demonic energy is detected from the struck target. The effectiveness of the Paralysis Bullet has been reduced.
Just before Yoo Heeyeon was about to be hit, Lee Hyunseung had sprinted forward and used his pistol to intercept Shin Junho’s attack. Fortunately, his gun hadn’t shattered or broken. It was likely thanks to one of the Legendary-grade correction effects embedded in his Gunblade Arts.
Fuck… Why the hell am I doing this for her…?
Veins bulged across Lee Hyunseung’s entire body as it shook violently. The initial clash had already inflicted massive damage, but what was far worse was that Shin Junho was still pressing down on him with that sword, trying to crush him into the ground.
Groooan.
Shin Junho pushed the barrel of Lee Hyunseung’s pistol downward with his blade and roared.
“Lee Hyunseung… Why the hell… Why the fuck are you protecting Yoo Heeyeon?! You bastard… You were looked down on by that bitch too! So why… why are you blocking me?!”
Shin Junho’s original target had been Lee Hyunseung, not her. But right now, demonic energy completely dominated his body. He was moving purely on instinct rather than reason.
Ever since the past, Shin Junho had been scorned by Yoo Heeyeon as a “one-armed half-baked mage.” All that accumulated resentment had finally exploded in a primal burst of rage, causing him to prioritize killing her over his actual target.
Cough!
Lee Hyunseung spat up blood as he gripped his pistol with both hands, pouring every ounce of strength into holding his ground. It was as if he refused to let Shin Junho take even a single step forward. He was blocking that monstrous sword head-on in an almost unnatural way.
“Lee Hyunseung! Answer me! Why the fuck are you saving a bitch like her?!”
Fuck…
Shin Junho kept screaming. Lee Hyunseung hadn’t saved Yoo Heeyeon for her sake. Not even close. He had done it to protect his own life once he left this place.
The situation inside could surely be observed from the outside. Complex spells like teleporting people would be impossible due to the chaotic interference of demonic energy, but something as simple as broadcasting video was very likely still functioning.
Think about it. Given the circumstances, Lee Hyunseung had used paralysis and impact rounds to forcibly launch Yoo Heeyeon toward the monster Shin Junho as bait.
If Shin Junho killed her in this state?
I’d be finished the moment I stepped outside.
Technically, Shin Junho would be the one who killed her, but in reality it would be no different from Lee Hyunseung having done it himself. Yoo Hanbeom and Kim Heera were almost certainly watching this live. Did he really think they would let him walk away safely after letting their daughter die right in front of them?
Absolutely not.
Yoo Hanbeom had shown a favorable attitude toward him, but even he had his limits. What father would sit idly by while some lunatic let his daughter die before his eyes? No matter how many mistakes Yoo Heeyeon had made, blood was still blood. And even if, by some miracle, Yoo Hanbeom let it slide, what about Kim Heera?
That crazy woman would never let it go.
She would kill him. She would mobilize every ounce of power she possessed, even stake her own life, to make sure he died. She wouldn’t move in half-measures like before. She would pour everything she had into erasing him completely.
The Artemis Guild was the strongest organization in the country in both military force and financial power. If they came after him with the justification that he had caused their daughter’s death, who would dare stand in their way? Justification was everything in these matters.
Killing her here would be the stupidest move possible.
There were plenty of ways to get revenge on Yoo Heeyeon. She was already headed for ruin anyway.
I’ll squeeze every last drop of value out of this opportunity.
By saving her life now, he would be able to extract far more than if he had let her die. He had already calculated every future move.
Swish.
In that brief moment of rapid thought, Lee Hyunseung ignored Shin Junho’s shouts and whistled sharply.
Fweeeeee!
Before coming here, he had already told Han Seonggil the plan. He would charge in first, and at the signal, Han Seonggil would strike from behind.
Tatata-tat!
At Lee Hyunseung’s signal, Han Seonggil came sprinting like a madman.
“Goddamn it!”
The moment Shin Junho sensed Han Seonggil’s presence rushing in from the distance and turned, raising his blade—
Bang!
With his hands now free, Lee Hyunseung immediately fired a paralysis round straight at Shin Junho’s ankle.
Paralysis Bullet has struck the target. The struck opponent will be temporarily paralyzed.
A powerful demonic energy is detected from the struck target. The effectiveness of the Paralysis Bullet has been reduced.
“Grrrrrrgh…”
While Shin Junho froze for a split second, Han Seonggil leaped into the air.
Whoosh—!
Shuk!
He carved a deep gash across Shin Junho’s chest.
“Kuaaaaaaaaaaah—!”
Shin Junho screamed like a lunatic, and a massive vortex of wind began to swirl violently around him.
Whoooooooosh—!
The gale sent Han Seonggil, who had been at the front line, flying backward.
Shin Junho scanned his surroundings and instinctively came to a conclusion.
The real threat isn’t Han Seonggil. It’s Lee Hyunseung.
He had no idea how Lee Hyunseung had done it, but a mere gunner had not only blocked his attack but also dealt meaningful damage to him despite the overwhelming demonic energy coursing through his body. The fact that his body had actually stopped moving, even if only for a moment, made his instincts scream.
Lee Hyunseung had to be dealt with first. There was no telling what other dirty tricks that bastard might pull. He needed to kill Lee Hyunseung before finishing off Han Seonggil.
Thud.
Thud.
Thuuud—!
Having made his decision, Shin Junho abandoned the idea of landing a finishing blow on the airborne Han Seonggil and charged straight at Lee Hyunseung.
“You crazy bastard—!”
Lee Hyunseung, who had expected him to chase after Han Seonggil, was caught off guard. He quickly raised his hands to protect his face, but his body had already lost balance from the wind and was slightly lifted off the ground.
Kwaaaaaaaaang—!
The instant Shin Junho’s fist connected, Lee Hyunseung was sent flying dozens of meters through the air.
Boom—!
Kwaaaaang—!
Kwaaaaaaaaaaang—!
He smashed through dozens of trees before finally crashing to a stop.
Cough!
Lee Hyunseung sat up and vomited blood.
But Shin Junho gave him no time to rest. He charged forward again, aiming to stomp down on Lee Hyunseung’s head.
Kuuuung—!
However, Han Seonggil, who had flown far away, returned just in time to block the descending foot.
“Don’t… get in my way—!”
Shin Junho swung his left hand toward Lee Hyunseung’s heart.
Claaaang—!
Han Seonggil deflected the strike with his sword.
Whirrr—!
Shin Junho spun once in mid-air, then began spewing out massive clumps of demonic energy toward Lee Hyunseung in unpredictable trajectories.
Papapa—!
The scattered masses of demonic energy shot forward like cannonballs, then curved mid-flight like guided missiles, all homing in on Lee Hyunseung.
Clang—!
Claaaaang—!
Han Seonggil moved on instinct to block the attacks, but stopping them all was impossible.
Shuk shuk shuk—!
In the end, he had no choice but to take several hits with his own body.
Spluuuuurge.
Blood began pouring wildly from his wounds.
Yet Shin Junho’s assault continued without pause.
Clang—!
Shuk—!
Claaaaang—!
Shuk—!
Han Seonggil ignored the fact that his body was being torn to shreds and blocked every single strike. Strangely, the more he fought, the stronger he seemed to become. Shin Junho roared at him.
“Why…! Why the hell are you doing this?! Fuck, why are you protecting him like this?!”
Swish.
But Han Seonggil said nothing. He simply raised his sword. Although he still had full control of his sanity, it was no easy task to face an opponent empowered by the Demonic Orb with basic weapons. Lee Hyunseung was already half-conscious, beaten to a pulp. Han Seonggil swallowed hard and scanned the surroundings.
The Spear of Longinus.
His eyes landed on the Spear of Longinus, which wasn’t too far away. If he could wield that weapon while still in his right mind, he would have a chance at victory.
The moment Han Seonggil began to sprint toward it—
Thud thud thud—!
Shin Junho seemed to realize his intention and charged toward the spear at the same time.
Tatata-tat—!
Kuuung… Kuuung… Kuuung—!
The two men sprinted madly.
Fwaaaat—!
They leaped toward the Spear of Longinus almost simultaneously.
Grab.
Han Seonggil seized the spear a hair’s breadth faster. He looked at Shin Junho with a spine-chilling grin and began twirling the Spear of Longinus in wide circles.
“Let’s have another round. You one-armed half-baked mage bastard.”
***
Cough!
Lee Hyunseung vomited blood again. His condition looked dire. He hadn’t expected the sudden change in target and had taken a direct hit from Shin Junho without being able to defend properly.
Yoo Heeyeon slowly walked toward where Lee Hyunseung lay.
When she finally stood before him, she stared down at the man bleeding profusely.
Why…?
He was bleeding. He was in pain. Even someone who had seemed so overwhelmingly powerful was, in the end, just a person who could feel pain. He must feel fear and terror too.
Why on earth…?
She had been certain she was going to die. Everyone she had tried to bribe had abandoned her. The power and authority she believed belonged to her had betrayed her.
Yet the very man she had tormented, treated like trash, and framed—destroying his life in the process—had saved her. Why?
Yoo Heeyeon shouted at him.
“You… Do you really think I’d feel even the slightest bit grateful just because you did something like that?! I would’ve survived just fine without you! You didn’t have to stupidly step in and block for me—!”
To her screaming, Lee Hyunseung muttered in a strained, exhausted voice.
“Please… shut the fuck up… My situation’s already shit, and now I have to listen to your voice too… I feel like I’m gonna puke…”
It was the truth. He had only saved her because he had no choice if he wanted to survive. The fact that she was babbling on and on made his head throb with violent irritation. If not for Yoo Hanbeom and Kim Heera, and if the situation hadn’t been so urgent that he had been forced to use her as bait, would he have saved her? After she had ruined his life? But Yoo Heeyeon, unaware of his true feelings, muttered again.
“Why… This doesn’t make any sense…? You didn’t even receive money from me…? We didn’t make any separate deal for compensation, so why…?”
It was the first time in her life she had received kindness with no strings attached. There was no way she could understand it. Everything that had ever happened around her had always been clearly divided between transaction and reward, cause and effect.
Drip.
“Huh…?”
Along with her short words, a tiny stream of water began to trickle down her cheek. When she wiped it away with her hand, she realized tears were flowing from her eyes.
Yoo Heeyeon’s first tears in years—tears of complete confusion and disbelief.
