The Sword Star's Mercy
The strongest swordsman muttered to himself, 'Looks like I overdid the service. I should show some restraint.' I couldn't reveal the ending too easily. I had to tease her bit by bit, make her wait eagerly for the next time.
"Kyaaak! What do I do! Hngh... hic... hah... heehee..."
Only then did I hear Yeon-hee's belated frantic voice. Crouched in a cat-like pose, she was stomping her feet adorably. It was hard to tell if she was crying or desperately trying to hold back laughter. Either way, the reaction wasn't bad at all.
If she liked it this much, I had no idea how she'd endured two whole days. In truth, this kind of act was something I couldn't do if I stayed in human form all day. I was only holding back because it was brief—honestly, was there any man who could look at Yeon-hee and not be moved? In a way, only a skeleton with the Cold Heart trait could manage this kind of push-and-pull.
Hyeon Jung-seop, younger brother of Hyeon Jung-gil, the leader of the Ilseom Guild. As the Chief Elder, he was effectively acting as the guild's representative. His older brother, who had fallen into the curse of the early awakeners, had limited freedom of movement. As a result, Jung-seop's influence grew day by day until he held virtually absolute power over the Ilseom Guild.
And before him, a handsome young man knelt, endlessly shedding tears.
"Father...!"
"Please help me! I can't live without Min-sol... Please..."
"How desperate must she have been to do that! Please, just look the other way. At least until her treatment is finished, I beg you...!"
Hyeon Woo-seok, the youngest of Hyeon Jung-seop's three sons, was surprisingly in a romantic relationship with Heo Min-sol. I had no idea how he'd fallen for such a fox-like woman, but the usually stoic youngest son was completely and hopelessly enchanted, showing his pathetic side without restraint.
The silver lining was that they'd kept their relationship secret within the guild, so no one else knew... yet.
"Huu..."
The youngest son, whose talent with the sword was said to rival even Hyeon Il-hwan, the eldest son of Hyeon Jung-gil. Among the things Hyeon Jung-seop possessed, this boy was the only one with the potential to surpass his brother.
"Ugh...!"
Hyeon Jung-seop, with his fiery temperament, wanted nothing more than to string up his worthless son and beat some sense into him right then and there. But he held back, fearing that a son with such talent might stray from the path of the sword because of a mere woman.
"Ahem—"
With superhuman patience, Hyeon Jung-seop managed to swallow the rage that had risen all the way to his throat. This child was someone he truly needed to use. To make Ilseom completely his own.
Leaving this kind of debt unpaid wasn't a bad idea either.
"—!! R-really?! Thank you, Father! Thank you!"
Even as Hyeon Jung-seop twisted his face and clicked his tongue, Hyeon Woo-seok looked as if he'd been thrown a lifeline from heaven, overcome with pure joy. His poor lover had suffered an unexpected accident in the dungeon and lost both her hands and feet. Being able to do something for her was the only thing that mattered to him right now.
Hyeon Woo-seok bowed repeatedly in gratitude before leaving the office. Hyeon Jung-seop slowly sipped his tea and spoke.
"Young-ah—"
"...Yes."
A gloomy voice echoed from somewhere. There was another person in the room besides Hyeon Jung-seop.
"Arrange a meeting with the Management Bureau. We need to buy some time."
"Understood."
"And that girl, Heo Min-sol."
"I've assigned people as you ordered. I've also placed two detectors at her home."
"Tsk—"
"I'm sorry. I should have taken care of her sooner. It was my oversight."
"It's fine. From now on, watch over her carefully so she doesn't get hurt. We must keep her alive until Woo-seok loses interest. She's a foolish girl, so it won't take long."
"Understood."
When Hyeon Jung-seop flicked his hand, the person he was speaking with vanished from the space.
"Not a single one of them pleases me."
Slurp— The tea he drank today tasted especially bitter.
"Kwaaaaaao—!"
"Heh heh, what a loud one. Cough—"
The monster measured thirty meters in length and twenty meters at the shoulder—Venomous Behemoth. Hyeon Jung-gil, who was staring at it indifferently, simply called it a 'Spiked Hippo.'
Its face resembled an enraged hippopotamus. It had four arms and two legs. Its entire body was covered in dense spikes, and thick armor plates like a turtle's shell protected its belly and back. The spikes periodically emitted toxic mist. A massive horn grew from the center of its head, reminiscent of a rhinoceros—its size alone rivaled a 1.5-ton truck.
With specs bordering on those of a Great Calamity, even a swarm of renowned S-grade hunters would struggle to subdue it. The toxic mist constantly spewing from its spikes could be absorbed not only through breathing but also through the skin, and it was strong enough to corrode armor instantly. Because of this, getting close was extremely difficult, and even if one managed to approach, dealing with it was a massive headache.
It had appeared on Socheong Island, forty-five kilometers east of Baengnyeong Island, less than three days ago. In that short time, the island had been devastated. The resident population had been under two hundred, so casualties were low. The real problem was that the creature could move through the sea.
It was better to deal with it before it fully submerged into the deep ocean, as its legs were already halfway underwater.
"These young ones these days... tsk tsk tsk—"
Hyeon Jung-gil clicked his tongue, recalling yesterday's phone call. It had been a complaint from one of his few close friends—S-grade hunters had been reluctant to provide support, the subjugation kept getting delayed, and the matter had eventually been passed on to him.
Hyeon Jung-gil was one of the few who could still operate relatively freely despite his constraints, but even for him, activity outside his domain was no easy task. Even now, he could clearly feel the world's will desperately trying to push him away.
"How grateful one should be to be able to use their power to protect others' lives."
But it seemed that was only his own sentiment. Before he announced his participation, only five hunters had volunteered to come here. Once someone reached A-grade or higher, many simply ignored the Association's pressure and penalties.
Of course, the distance from the capital played a part, but the bigger issue was likely their lack of confidence in defeating this 'Spiked Hippo.' Compatibility was a real factor, and creatures with such high defense were one of the two types hunters feared most.
One had to pierce that solid armor in a single strike to inflict any meaningful damage, and there weren't many hunters capable of that. This Spiked Hippo was a monstrous being that required at least twenty S-grade hunters to focus their skills on one point for over thirty minutes to have any chance of subjugation.
Of course, the creature wouldn't simply allow them to do so.
— Master Jung-gil. The others can't hold on much longer.
A man was leaping toward him across the sea, holding up a large whiteboard with a message written on it. It was someone his close friend had assigned on a whim, but he wasn't particularly satisfied with the quality.
"Haa... Their level is this low?"
The world was collapsing rapidly, yet the skills of those called hunters left much to be desired. The twenty S-grade hunters and thirty A-grade hunters who had come with him were already coughing up blood and collapsing one by one.
— Fwoooooooosh—!
Once again, toxic mist erupted from the spikes covering the creature's body. The volume was so enormous that a single burst was enough to cloud one's vision completely.
"Everyone, fall back!"
Hyeon Jung-gil, who had been watching quietly from behind, finally decided to step forward himself. In truth, if he had taken action from the beginning, this would have ended long ago. However, opportunities to fight such a monster while having others to support him were rare, so he had ordered them to gain experience. But this was as far as it could go.
This was a chance for them to gain experience, not an opportunity for promising talents to suffer internal injuries and ruin their futures.
At Hyeon Jung-gil's shout, the struggling hunters brightened and quickly retreated. The hunters who had been gasping as if on the verge of death finally caught a breath of relief.
— Whew... I really thought I was gonna die. If this gets broadcasted, I'm screwed, fuck.
— Yeah, there are already over ten broadcast drones.
— Argh! Even among monsters, this one is an exception! This is exactly why I didn't want to come, damn it.
— The damage isn't landing... It's not landing at all!
— Still, it's been a while since I got this much experience. I didn't even deal any real damage.
— Same here. I'm pretty satisfied, hehe.
Their chatter no longer reached Hyeon Jung-gil's ears. He had long since entered a space where only the monster and himself existed.
Hoooooo—
A single, refined breath rose into the air like haze.
One Flash - Thunder Cleave
"?!"
The hands of the clock stopped turning. The only thing that flowed was a single streak of light drawn by Hyeon Jung-gil.
There was no sound. There was no vibration. Just one cut.
Not a single noise was allowed to interfere with the series of movements.
Silence—
The line of light that swallowed all sound sliced through the air, tore the sea apart, and pierced straight through its target, the monster.
Shaaaaaaa—
At the same time, the sea split in two, and the starting point of the land also split left and right as if a fault line had twisted. And standing atop it was the monster, precisely bisected along its midline.
"Grrrk..."
Only then did the clock hands begin to move again.
Crack— Craaaack—
The sight of a colossal body, as tall as a seven-story apartment building, splitting in half caused the broadcast drones to suddenly burst into frantic activity. They had been keeping their distance because of the toxic mist, but capturing and transmitting this footage was now far more valuable than the expensive equipment itself.
The hunters couldn't even cheer. They simply stood there with their mouths agape like goldfish.
What on earth had just happened?
Not a single one of them could step forward to explain it.
A Transcendent.
What he had just performed was a miracle that should never be attempted to understand. Even if they gained eternal life and trained for ten thousand years, could they even reach the tip of his toes?
It was a sight that made it impossible to simply nod in agreement.
Thud! Thuuud—!
As the bisected monster collapsed, a message that he had slain the monster appeared in Hyeon Jung-gil's mind. Soon after, the creature's massive magic stone, which had sunk into the shallow seawater, washed up onto the shore.
But Hyeon Jung-gil was no longer there.
The remaining people looked bewildered at first, but when they saw others rapidly flying toward the corpse, they realized what was happening.
The monster's byproducts! The monster's magic stone!
They were spoils of incredible value. And if an artifact had dropped, it would be a stroke of luck capable of changing one's life.
The broadcast drones calmly captured the sight of the greed-crazed pack of dogs swarming toward the monster's corpse.