Cruelty

It felt as if his eyeballs were burning.

Takashi writhed, clutching his face and gasping for air, overwhelmed by a level of agony he had never experienced in his entire life.

Along with the pain, a surge of resentment seeped in.

How dare he reject their goodwill and pull a stunt like this.

In his mind, all the things they had done—the threats against Drae and the trashy plans they had intended to execute afterward—had been wiped clean away.

Swoosh.

The next moment, Takashi’s eyes had returned to normal. He erupted with golden energy from his body and let out a roar.

"All members of the Gold Taeyang clan, listen— Gack!"

Just as he was using a skill-enhanced shout to call for reinforcements, his throat was slashed. Choking and spitting blood, Takashi glared at Drae as if he wanted to kill him.

"Y-you..."

"What are you saying? Your pronunciation is as pathetic as your face. You moron."

That mocking expression made his blood boil. He wanted to crush that damn face right now and watch him cry.

Swoosh.

Takashi’s throat regenerated. He flashed a mean, snide grin.

"Keep slashing away. It doesn't matter; your fate is already sealed."

"My fate?"

"Yeah."

As Takashi spoke, he glanced at the rolling head of Jang-sung and at Black Nungar, who was drooling in pain with his limbs severed.

Jang-sung was completely dead, but Black Nungar possessed a skill with regeneration just as powerful. If he bought enough time, he would crawl back up, and Rikka, in the room beyond, would surely notice the anomaly and move.

He just needed to stall for time.

Just a little longer...!

Shing!

"Gack...!"

An invisible slash blew away Takashi’s eyeball again. After letting out an unbearable groan at the pain he could never get used to, Takashi gritted his teeth and screamed in spite.

"That's right! Your fate is sealed! You rejected our goodwill and killed two of our executives! Since it’s come to this, I’ll make you a cripple, kidnap your women, and rape them right in front of your eyes."

Imagining that sweet sight made Takashi’s crotch bulge. His member, enlarged by skills, was as massive as a black man's.

"You threw away your chan— Gack!"

His words were cut off ridiculously, and he dropped to his knees, pulling his legs ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠together like a girl. Gwooo... An irrepressible scream leaked out, and he moved his hands from his eyes to his crotch.

Gushing. Blood that couldn't be stopped was leaking out.

"Ha, haaaack...!"

A pathetic scream escaped his tightly clenched lips. An unbearable sense of loss washed over his entire body.

This, could it be...

Was his son... cut off?

No, it wasn't just cut off; it had vanished entirely.

"At least you won't be able to rape anyone now, right?"

"Y-you son of ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a...! Ughhh...!"

He didn't even have time to scream. Takashi used his skill over and over again to regenerate his most precious part.

But it was strange. He could clearly feel the notification of the skill activating and the flow of mana in his crotch, but it wasn't regenerating at all. It felt as if something burning was interfering with it...

Shing!

"Gyaaaaaa!"

Takashi, his last remaining eye slashed, rolled on the ground.

"Gaaaa, ughhhhh...!"

Darkness.

The darkness that came after losing his sight! The world was so pitch-black that it stirred up fear. Faced with primal terror, Takashi prioritized survival over desire.

Swoosh.

Takashi, having restored his eyes, swallowed his dry saliva and covered his eyes with both hands. Now, his eyes were defended...

Shing!

"Gyaaaak?!"

His wrist was slashed and hung limp. To make matters worse, the two eyeballs he had tried to protect were slashed again.

"Aack!! Aaaaaaaack?!"

"Hey, Takashi. Even if I had followed your orders, you were planning to do whatever the hell you wanted with your dick anyway, so why are you blaming me?"

He heard the sound of a sword clattering on the floor as Drae mocked him. He thought about not repairing his eyes, but fearing the slashes that would fly out of the darkness, he ended up regenerating them again.

Swoosh.

"Haa. Huff...!"

"What's wrong, Takashi? That triumphant expression of yours has become quite a sight."

"Ugh...!"

As he backed away, putting distance between himself and Drae, Takashi spewed all sorts of curses internally.

'These fucking morons. When the hell is support coming? God, I'm the only useful one in this clan!'

While he cursed the incompetence of his subordinates and colleagues and prepared for Drae's attack, Drae pointed his sword straight at him.

Flinch.

Drae scoffed at him as he stiffened, wondering what kind of attack was coming.

"I was just pointing, you idiot."

"Y-you...!"

"I'm bored now, so go bring the others."

"W-what?"

"You were trying to call your friends earlier, right? Go ahead. It's easier to wipe you all out at once."

Takashi, who had been dazed, laughed with a mix of anger and mockery.

"...Ha. You're awfully confident."

"Wouldn't you be?"

Tap, tap.

Drae tapped his shoulder with his sword and sighed as if he were pathetic.

"I heard the Gold Taeyang clan was targeting me, so I wondered what kind of place it was, but it's just a group of losers imitating the pathetic bullshit from manga."

"You bastard...!"

"And you don't even know your place."

Drae, narrowing his eyes, lowered his sword from his shoulder and announced in a gloomy voice.

"Call them quickly. Unless you want to hurt more."

"......"

He wanted to call them, but due to the previous attack, the skill 'Clan Assembly' had a very long cooldown. That skill had been canceled by Drae's attack, making it unusable for the day. His communicator had also long since been broken after he was hit by Drae's attack and rolled on the ground in pain.

'Damn it. How can I... That nigger Black Nungar, he always acted like he was so strong, but he won't even think to get up... Huh?'

Takashi felt a sense of incongruity.

Only then.

That was the only way to express it.

Knowing his place, just as Drae had said, he began to grasp the situation. He could feel the mana of the skill being used in Black Nungar's limbs, but he couldn't regenerate. It was the same phenomenon as the injury Takashi had sustained in his crotch. Takashi’s severed crotch also showed no signs of regenerating. This must be the attribute of destruction he had been briefed about.

Then, a question.

...How are his eyes regenerating? And how many times?

The question didn't last long. Cold sweat poured down Takashi’s face as he reached a conclusion.

"What is it, Takashi? You look like you're struggling?"

Drae’s relaxed voice was terrifying. It had to be. Because the guy in front of him wasn't treating him like an enemy right now. He was playing with him. Even though he possessed the attribute of destruction that prevented regeneration if slashed at once, he was deliberately giving him a chance to regenerate, only to slash him again and again to inflict pain.

He felt cold sweat running down his cheeks.

His anger had cooled.

Since coming to this world, he had lived solely as a predator, taking things from others, and his self-esteem had only grown as he stood in a high position among those who took. His daily life was one where he assumed he would naturally win and take.

Takashi had been angry in this ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠situation because he naturally assumed he would win later. And now, faced with a being who treated him like a child, he recalled emotions he had forgotten.

And he felt sensations from an unknown realm he had never tasted before. Their names were fear. And death.

The thought that he could lose, that he could die, made sweat pour down his body like rain. Right now, if that guy wanted to, his head would fly off. Or, even if his head didn't fly off, that terrible pain would continue. Until his colleagues arrived. Over and over again.

Gulp.

Takashi swallowed his dry saliva and tried to force a smile.

"What's wrong?"

"What's wrong... I'm just excited thinking about beating you up soon."

He had forgotten the pain in his crotch due to fear. He couldn't decide whether to call that a blessing or a curse. And.

"You've always been the one taking, so does it scare you to be on the receiving end?"

"......"

That hit the nail on the head. And it was proof that the human named Drae understood everything about him, and certain proof that this wicked guy was deliberately torturing him.

"You son of a...!"

He tried to shout, but he made eye contact with Drae. The only thing different from before was the strange smile on his lips. He looked refreshed, as if he had been liberated.

Shiver.

A thrill ran through his entire body. Right. Extreme Evil. At first, there was a question mark next to Extreme Good, and Takashi had assumed it was because the difference between Extreme Good and Good wasn't that great.

But no.

There had never been such an extreme difference before... Drae’s original nature wasn't Extreme Good. He was Extreme Evil, and he was acting with hypocrisy. He wasn't someone who couldn't kill people; he had just been holding back.

Suddenly, Shin Jin-pae’s orders came back to him. To treat him with the utmost respect. Not to hurt his feelings... as if he had anticipated this. As if he were appealing that Drae was not a good person, but an evil one.

"I see."

"W-what do you mean by that?"

He tried to hide his trembling voice, but it didn't work well. Even so, he tried to feign bravado, but his legs were shaking uncontrollably. Just like when he trampled the men of the women he had stolen, he was trembling in fear as if his own woman were being taken and violated by that guy.

"What do I mean? You, after taking the first hit, all your means of gathering your colleagues have been blocked."

"......"

It was the correct answer, and he should have denied it immediately, but Takashi, who was nervous, couldn't. So Drae said.

"Forget it. I'll just walk around and do as ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠I please whenever I feel like it."

"Wait...!"

Whoosh!

"Gyaaaaaaack...!"

He had prepared himself, but he couldn't even flinch his body. His eyeballs felt like they were burning. He tried to clutch his eyes and twist his body, but another slash hit his eyes.

"Gaaaaaack!"

The back of his hand was severed and fell to the floor with a thud. His body trembled. His knees buckled. Takashi, who had fallen on his butt while backing away, reflexively activated regeneration. He restored his eyes and the back of his hand.

"Are you an amoeba?"

Drae laughed as if he were dumbfounded, and also somewhat pleased.

"It's good that you're sturdy."

This couldn't go on. Regeneration skills weren't unlimited, of course. Until now, the area of the damaged parts was small and the time the body had been damaged was short, so he could regenerate over and over, but in two or three more times, his mana would run out and regeneration would become impossible.

If that happened...

'I'll, die?'

Death took another step closer.

"Hic, huck..."

His breathing grew shallow. He realized he was making pathetic gasping sounds, but he couldn't control it.

"....."

"Huck?!"

He had clearly been far away, but suddenly he was right in front of his nose. Why was he so fast? He tried to create distance, but his hair was grabbed.

"A, aack...ack...!"

"Hey."

"Aack..! Let go, let go...!"

Stab.

"......G, guaaaaaack?!?!"

A sword was plunged into his thigh. It didn't stop there; it twisted. And twisted.

"Guaack?! Aaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!"

Takashi, screaming at the top of his lungs, couldn't even think of resisting and twisted his body. Drae, looking up with teary eyes, was grinning. That smile was so much like a child who had succeeded in a prank that Takashi felt goosebumps.

"Hey. I haven't even started yet."

"Ugh, ugh?! Ughhh...!"

"This is just a taste, and if you're already like this, I'm very worried."

A taste? What on earth could be more painful than this?

"What... are you... talking... about? What... are you... going to do?"

"Well. Who knows."

A meaningful smile. Immediately after.

Boom!

Projectiles flew in from all directions. Drae, as if he already knew, stood up, spun around, and swung his sword.

Kuaack!

The deflected projectiles hit someone, and there were sounds of people falling with groans of pain. But in the meantime, someone succeeded in pulling Takashi out.

"You were crying quite well while going hic, hic, hic, Takashi."

"Gack... B-Bandman..."

A guy he usually found annoying. Looking closely, it wasn't just him; his subordinates were next to Bandman too. He should have felt his face burn at the thought of showing such a pathetic sight in front of his rival and subordinates, but the pain in his thigh was still intense. Only after using regeneration to get rid of the pain did Takashi feel his anger surging. He smiled, trying to act cool, as if it were nothing to the other colleagues.

"K, kahahaha! What are you going to do now, Drae?! Our full force is gathered!"

Takashi, having regained himself, shouted triumphantly. It was just as he said.

The narrow hallway was filled with members of the Gold Taeyang clan. Gold Taeyangs. He said to the guys who were looking at Drae with mean smiles on their faces.

"You guys were losers before, so what are you going to do now that you've gathered?"

Most of them looked offended at his words, but since it was a fact, they couldn't argue. However, the fact that the Gold Taeyang clan's power was significantly lower than Drae's was a story from outside the hideout.

"Kekekeke. It'll be different from before, won't it?"

"Yes. It will be different."

Standing next to Takashi, who had declared it confidently, was Rikka. After hearing Takashi’s screams, she hadn't moved immediately but had observed the situation before scraping together all their forces and gathering them here. Takashi was suddenly angry that she hadn't saved him quickly, but whatever, that was fine. He would pay that trash back as much as he had suffered. And he would ra... that guy's woman...

......

'Fuck... my dick! It's still gone!'

Only after realizing it was gone did his crotch start to hurt. He had to hurry and crush that guy and undo the attribute of destruction.

Takashi’s anxious gaze was noticed by his colleagues. They soon opened their mouths wide.

"Takashi. You..."

"That bastard."

The executives who had been giggling turned serious and glared at Drae. From their perspective, touching that area was the ultimate taboo and their only camaraderie. Drae, who had received their anger, laughed, saying, "Oh my."

"So, you guys. What's different from when you were outside earlier?"

"You'll know if you experience it yourself."

It was certainly different. That they could deal with a Ranker wasn't Takashi’s idea.

'That person,' the chairman of the 'Headquarters,' had proven it.

She, who had dealt with a Ranker herself and even fought the #1 Makia, had certified it... 'This place' is powerful. In the Gold Taeyang clan's hideout, not only were their debuffs strengthened dozens of times, but powerful buffs were naturally granted to the members of the Gold Taeyang clan.

Not to mention, Rikka was there. Her spellcasting would be a huge help if they were pushed back. Even if a situation where they might lose arose, they could drag it to a draw. As long as the opponent was human. It had to be that way. Rikka’s spellcasting was that powerful.

Above all, 'That person.'

"Hehehehe, it would be impossible to beat us, but you could never beat 'That person'."

"What's 'That person', you otaku nerd bastard."

"Nerd...! Heh...! Hmph! Bark all you want for now. Drae. When 'That person'... the Incubus King, royalty of the succubus race, and one of the highest-ranked among the demon kings of Purgatory, Inris-nim, comes, you're finished!"

"Now that I see it, you were an exposition-dumping bastard."

Drae stepped forward without any sign of fear, and Rikka deployed a magic circle to activate the debuff she had been preparing.

"I'm using all the mana of the hideout. Fight thinking that the enemy, Drae, is a Ranker."

The Gold Taeyangs had already tasted Drae’s strength. Agreeing with the advisor’s words, they activated the magic circle, and soon a powerful debuff, incomparable to before, descended.

Kugugugugu.

"......!"

Drae opened his eyes wide. Even though it was a debuff without physical force, the quantity and quality were so great that it seemed to be putting pressure on him already.

"Hahaha! Drae! You're dead!"

"......"

Hmm...

What is this.

I felt a massive flow of mana, mixed with Ryunar, so I thought it would be a great power.

......Are you kidding me?

The amount of mana is certainly impressive, but other than making my body heavy, there's nothing special about it. It seems like a debuff that focuses on the mental aspect, but... I'm surprised because it's worse than I thought.

As I remained silent, the Gold Taeyangs slowly narrowed the distance, perhaps misunderstanding something.

I think I've been surrounded like this a few times before. Those fun days when the Dojo family suffered like that, and I moved as I pleased. I clearly went through a few crises, and what did I do then?

......

......

...Oh, I remember.

I just enjoyed myself in a trance, and somehow it worked out. That 'game' I played at school back then was really fun too.

...Alright.

Shall I play a game here too? My lips curl up on their own as I imagine something fun.

Now. Shall we start?

The things I did back then. The things I couldn't do back then. Everything.

Ah.

This will be fun.

One week later.

A report arrived for Shin Jin-pae, a director at the Headquarters.

"...Hah."

Shin Jin-pae put down the report. How on earth could a guy who hadn't even been in this world for three months... not just kill that existence, but annihilate it? How?

Shin Jin-pae clutched his face. And he thought about the fight between the Gold Taeyang clan and Drae, which he was curious about but didn't want to see with his own eyes.

What on earth happened?

Underneath the report, countless speculations were written. Inferences made after seeing the 'carnage' that had occurred at the scene.

Shin Jin-pae didn't want to see it. He didn't even want to glance at the inferences of this 'cruelty'.

Tremble, tremble.

The past came to mind. A past he never wanted to remember...