Chapter 234
I Became the Successor of the Martial God
Chapter 234.
Thick fog blanketed the surroundings.
A group of hunters walked through it. They were hunters from the Golden Lion Guild, including Song Tae-yeon.
“…This way?”
“Yes, there are footprints here. They didn’t pass by too long ago.”
“Are you sure?”
“My tracking skill is fairly high-ranked. I’m confident in its accuracy.”
The hunter walking at the front, dressed in light attire, answered.
He was a man skilled in pathfinding and tracking.
“Any signs of battle?”
“There are many traces of fights with monsters. It seems they’ve been fighting continuously as they move…”
“Huuu.”
Song Tae-yeon exhaled slightly, visibly tense. He couldn’t help it.
“Yoon Song-ha, that bitch is an S-rank hunter. We have to fight her when she’s as weakened as possible. You all understand, right?”
“…Yes.”
“Good. We’ll kill her without fail.”
Unlike Song Tae-yeon, who was steeling his resolve, the other hunters seemed uneasy.
From the start, they didn’t understand why they had to kill Yoon Song-ha and the White wolf guild member.
They didn’t even feel the need to kill those hunters.
‘Damn it, are we just wasting our time here? What’s this about an S-rank hunter…’
‘Ugh, if you’re gonna do it, do it yourself.’
‘If only Guild Master Song Dae-san were here…’
The guild members were full of discontent.
Everyone knew the current state of the Golden Lion Guild was far from normal.
There was no way they could think favorably of Song Tae-yeon, the one who had caused this mess.
‘Ha, if I get the chance, I’m leaving this guild no matter what. The only reason I’m still here is because of what’s happened so far.’
‘We must kill Yoon Song-ha.’
While the guild master and members harbored such opposing thoughts—
“Found them. They’re in combat.”
“…Everyone, halt.”
They finally located their targets.
Yoon Song-ha and the members of White wolf guild. They were in the middle of fighting monsters.
“What’s their condition?”
“Worse than expected. Looks like they’ve fought a lot. They’re covered in wounds and seem… exhausted.”
“Oh? Is that so?”
“Yes. Yoon Song-ha seems fine, but White wolf’s members are in terrible shape…”
Song Tae-yeon grinned viciously.
“Use that item.”
“…Are you sure about this?”
Song Tae-yeon bared his teeth and growled at the concerned guild member.
“You’re asking stupid questions after coming all this way? Use it now!”
“Yes.”
The guild member took out the item.
A small incense burner. He stared at it nervously before activating it.
Smoke began to seep out.
“Ugh.”
The smoke carried a strange scent.
It was hard to describe, but it evoked a sense of discomfort. Of course, this incense wasn’t meant for humans in the first place.
—Grrr… Grooowl…
—Ooooh?
It was incense designed to attract monsters.
Made with special ingredients, it was infamous for its effectiveness in luring nearby monsters.
At the same time—
‘Using a forbidden item like this…’
It was also a prohibited item, unusable without special authorization.
Its effects were too potent, often causing unforeseen collateral damage.
“Damn, the stench is unbearable.”
“The scent is spreading.”
The fragrance spread.
Even the thick fog couldn’t stop it from permeating the area.
Monsters hidden in the mist began to pick up the scent, one by one.
—Kreeeaaah!
—Kyyaaah!
They began roaring.
The monsters, shrieking, rushed toward the source of the incense.
The guild member holding the burner handed it to his summoned creature.
“Take it to the target location.”
—Whoosh!
The bird-like summon nodded and flew off with the burner.
The monsters scattered throughout the area followed the summon—or rather, the incense.
“Master Song Tae-yeon, this way.”
“Y-Yeah. Everyone, hide.”
After luring the monsters toward the White wolf Guild with the incense burner, the Golden Lion Guild hid themselves.
Meanwhile, the roars of the monsters continued unabated.
—Kaaah!
“Ugh, aahhk!”
Soon after, the sounds of clashing weapons and human screams followed.
The monsters lured by the summon had swarmed White wolf’s guild.
“Wh-Where did all these come from?!”
“Ghhhk! Hold the line!”
Every monster in the area had descended upon White wolf’s guild.
Their numbers were staggering.
Far too many for the already exhausted White wolf Guild to handle.
But—
“As expected of an S-rank hunter.”
“She’s a monster…”
In such a dire situation, Yoon Song-ha’s combat prowess shone even brighter.
She fought like a demon in place of her exhausted guild, holding back the horde of monsters single-handedly.
“Don’t falter. Look closely—she’s losing strength too, isn’t she?”
“Definitely…”
“…You’re right.”
Yoon Song-ha’s strength was formidable.
But facing so many enemies was draining her bit by bit.
Her body was accumulating wounds one after another.
“She must think she can recover if she just keeps fighting. Heh. Stupid bitch. Doesn’t even realize she won’t get the chance.”
Song Tae-yeon gestured to his guild members.
“Good. Everything’s going as planned. Spread out and surround them. Not a single one gets away. Understood?”
“…Yes.”
They vanished into the fog.
All for one purpose.
“Huff, huff! What the hell? Why are there so many monsters?!”
And then—
Yoon Song-ha and White wolf’s guild were completely drained from fighting the monsters.
Had it not been for Yoon Song-ha, they would’ve all died.
“I’ve… huff… killed at least… wheeze… a thousand… ugh! Damn it, Song-ha. I’m dying!”
“Stop exaggerating. I’m out of magical power. We should rest a bit before moving.”
“Yeah, let’s do that.”
Resting in this fog wasn’t ideal, but they had no choice.
Just as they were about to sit down to recover—
Thud, Thud.
“…….”
A sound reached them.
Footsteps. Too blatant, as if the owner didn’t care about hiding.
“That’s…”
“Song-ha, someone’s coming.”
As they steadied their breathing, something appeared in their vision. A faint silhouette slowly approached through the fog.
They recognized that figure.
“Heh, look who it is. Never thought I’d run into you here.”
“That voice…”
Swoosh—
Song Tae-yeon emerged from the mist like a ghost.
Yoon Song-ha shot to her feet.
“Song Tae-yeon!”
“Yeah, it’s me. You… traitorous bastards.”
Song Tae-yeon’s anger was palpable.
He looked ready to tear Yoon Song-ha apart on the spot.
“So this is where you trash have been hiding. Huh?”
“You… why are you here?”
Yoon Song-ha asked, bewildered.
Song Tae-yeon, however, calmly scanned his surroundings before stepping forward.
Toward the nearest White wolf guild member—slowly.
“Why am I here?”
A smirk crept onto his lips.
“To kill you all.”
Swoosh—!
Song Tae-yeon suddenly swung his sword. The blade struck the closest White wolf member.
“Gahhk!”
The guild member collapsed with a scream.
The others shrieked in response.
“Aaaah!”
“Y-You crazy bastard! What the hell?!”
“What does it look like? I’m killing traitors with my own hands!”
“Traitors?”
Song Tae-yeon glared at Yoon Song-ha with eyes full of rage and madness.
“You fucking ingrates, daring to covet my wealth after everything the guild did for you?! Trash who don’t know your place!”
“That was given to us by Guild Master Song Dae-san. What does that have to do with you—?”
“Right, that senile old man!”
Song Tae-yeon’s fury intensified.
Every time he thought of his own father, his blood boiled.
“He must’ve lost his damn mind. Was he senile in his old age? Why the hell would he give his wealth to trash like you?”
“How dare you speak about your father like—?”
“Especially you, Yoon Song-ha.”
Crunch! Song Tae-yeon gritted his teeth.
“Why the fuck does a street rat like you deserve my inheritance? Huh? Does that make any sense to you?”
“That’s—!”
“Did you sell your body to the old man or something?”
“……!”
Yoon Song-ha was stunned by the unexpected insult. But only for a moment.
Rage flashed across her face.
“You—Guild Master Song Dae-san would never—!”
“Who knows? Maybe he acted all kind and fatherly in front of you while doing filthy things behind your back. Huh?”
“You—!”
“Shut up!”
Song Tae-yeon clearly had no intention of listening.
He tightened his grip on his sword.
“I don’t know what you did, but I’m taking back what’s rightfully mine.”
With a twisted smile, he surveyed the surroundings.
The mountain range shrouded in thick fog.
“Perfect. No one will notice if a few people die here.”
Moreover, Yoon Song-ha and White wolf’s guild were exhausted from continuous battles.
Everything was falling into place for him.
“I’ll kill you all here and feed you to the monsters. Nice and clean.”
“…Funny joke.”
Yoon Song-ha summoned her magic.
Whoosh!
Flames coiled around her sword like a fiery serpent.
But the intensity of the flames was far weaker than usual.
“You really think you can beat me?”
“A ranker-level hunter… I’ll admit, it’s intimidating. Heh. But not enough.”
Song Tae-yeon flicked his fingers.
“Think you can handle these numbers?”
At his signal, rustling sounds filled the air as countless guild members emerged.
The Golden Lion Guild.
“Wh-What… so many?!”
“You followed us all this way?”
“Yeah. We waited until you exhausted yourselves fighting monsters. And we even lured more your way.”
Song Tae-yeon pulled out the incense burner. Yoon Song-ha recognized it immediately.
“You fucking bastard…!”
“Nothing sweeter than the sound of a beaten dog barking. Surround them.”
The Golden Lion Guild encircled White wolf’s members from all sides.
They outnumbered them two to one.
And White wolf’s guild—along with Yoon Song-ha—were already on their last legs.
“Tch…”
There was no chance of winning.
Everyone felt it. Song Tae-yeon was practically tasting victory.
And then—Yoon Song-ha smiled.
“……?”
Seeing her grin, Song Tae-yeon felt a sudden unease.
Why is she smiling? What’s so funny?
Disgusted by her expression, he raised his arm to give the order.
“Kill them all.”
Just as he was about to deliver the command—
Song Tae-yeon raised his arm, grinning, ready to swing it down.
Crack—!
A sound rang out.
A sharp, piercing noise—followed by the sound of something being crushed.
‘What? What just—?’
At first, Song Tae-yeon didn’t understand what had happened.
A wet, slicing sound.
And then—his right arm wouldn’t move.
“…….”
He looked down at it.
Where his well-trained arm should’ve been—
There was nothing.
“Huh?”
Only a clean cross-section.
Blood gushed from the severed stump.
And his right arm rolled on the ground.
“Gaaaahhh!”
Realizing what had happened, Song Tae-yeon let out a bloodcurdling scream.
Excruciating pain overwhelmed him.
Along with disbelief.
“Y-You… who did this?!”
“Hey, long time no see, Song Tae-yeon.”
A familiar voice reached his ears.
One he could never forget.
“How long has it been?”
Yoo Baek-jun.
He stood there, one hand raised, smiling brightly at Song Tae-yeon.
Swoosh—!
A spear returned to his grasp.
The spearhead was drenched in Song Tae-yeon’s flesh and blood.
“By the way, where’d you leave your arm?”
Yoo Baek-jun widened his eyes, looking at Song Tae-yeon’s missing arm, then at his spear.
“Oh! Here it is.”
He flicked off the blood like it was trash, sneering.
“Y-You son of a bitch…! Gaaahhh!”
Song Tae-yeon howled in agony.