[The Cruel Reckoning]
Cruelty
A man who embodies the concept of a violent, muscular Gold Taeyang. He is often described as having a brain replaced by his genitals, committing every act typically associated with the archetype. He favors close-quarters combat, relying on a massive physique bolstered by skills that manipulate cell and muscle density, along with overwhelming regenerative powers. When he coats his fists in mana, a single punch can cause the very earth to buckle. He frequently uses his cell-manipulation skill on his own genitalia—in fact, that is his primary focus. He enjoys violence, taking pleasure in trampling men and raping women to corrupt them. He is, for all intents and purposes, the de facto leader of the Gold Taeyang Clan.
Rather than a true Gold Taeyang, he is an executive modeled after the fat villains found in hypnosis-themed adult media, merely having dyed his hair blonde. His main duty is to slowly corrupt those who resist fiercely or remain unswayed by skills. His "meat-shield" attack, where he rolls his entire body like a ball, is surprisingly powerful, but that strength is merely a distraction; his true power lies in his mastery of hypnosis-based skills. Ironically, hypnosis isn't his personal preference; he enjoys the "sweet romance" of sex after brainwashing his targets into submission.
A Gold Taeyang with a black-themed concept—muscles, gangs, and violence. When the clan desires a woman, he is tasked with crushing the "justice" of the situation by suppressing either the woman herself or her strongest protector. A master of martial arts even in his original world, he possesses the most powerful physique in the clan. With superior athletic ability and mana control, no one has ever defeated him in a simple brawl. Furthermore, true to his archetype, his genitalia are the most formidable among humans—excluding a few special races—which has solidified his high standing within the clan. Like Takashi, he engages in rape and degradation, but his tastes are even more hardcore, with a particular penchant for gang rape.
A Gold Taeyang who embodies the "creepy middle-aged man" concept—the neighbor, the acquaintance, the stranger. His primary mission is to lead targets into traps or seduce them via 'Communication' skills. He uses this to deceive the innocent and drag them to the clan. In terms of popularity, he is unrivaled within the clan, often called "Father" by the other members. He uses multiple blades and can alter his body shape to some extent. He has a preference for affairs, adultery, and cuckolding.
A Gold Taeyang styled after a popular, handsome man—the kind of superior-looking college senior everyone admires. He is in charge of PR, making the Gold Taeyang Clan appear like a normal organization. With his musician-like looks, he has secured a significant position in the clan and maintains a friendly rivalry with Takashi. His specialty is mana discharge, and his long-range attacks using special weapons are the strongest in the clan. He enjoys approaching women, corrupting them, and then being served by them. Perhaps because he was a host, he has a tendency to treat women better than the typical Gold Taeyang. He seems to prefer seducing women with his handsome face rather than using the clan's signature skills.
A Gold Taeyang of the power-broker type. He manages the organization's operating funds. He is a shrewd businessman who has built a significant trade network in Elynar, and he intervenes in politics through bribery and women he has compromised. His specialty is a skill that controls those he has subjugated like puppets, and he is no slouch in direct combat either. He has various sexual predilections; he loves to rape by crushing people with power and force, and he even enjoys homosexuality, provided the target is a child. He is the trashiest of the trash, violating anyone who fits his tastes without hesitation. He also has many other disgusting habits, but his two favorites are swapping and orgies. In the case of swapping, he loves the situation where he ends up with everything in the end. Despite his shrewdness and role in managing the clan's finances, his standing within the clan is surprisingly mediocre.
A female Gold Taeyang. She handles tasks more suited to operations than Blatar. She has tanned skin and blonde hair, paired with a face that gives off an unexpectedly innocent vibe. If Takashi is the de facto leader, Rikka is the woman who actually runs the Gold Taeyang Clan and keeps it functioning. Though she usually appears calm and collected, she hides dirty hobbies—she likes young men in general and loves breaking strong men. Thanks to her operational skills and a certain 'technique,' her standing within the clan rivals that of Takashi and Bandman.
That is all. Seven people. These are the executives of the Gold Taeyang Clan. Bold, who fought Drae briefly, is executive-class but not an official member; he is hired help, like a mercenary.
Each executive has about a thousand direct subordinates, most of whom mimic the appearance and tendencies of their respective leader. They are all sexual criminals who commit acts that should only exist in the imagination—or rather, acts so disgusting they shouldn't even be imagined. Even Rikka, the one with the least severe crimes, committed the felony of confinement and attempted brainwashing.
They have hideouts in every moderately bustling city across the world. The number of people who have shed tears of blood because of them reaches into the hundreds of thousands. Despite committing such monstrous crimes, they have managed to avoid being caught, thanks to the powerful skills unique to 'Outsiders,' the backing of a certain figure at the 'Headquarters,' and the power of the clan leader, the King of Succubi.
And now.
They have all been annihilated.
"Gaaah."
"Ugh, my arm. My aaaaarm...!"
"Aaaaaah..."
The Gold Taeyang Clan. They are all Outsiders and Users who crossed over from another world. Even the weakest among them has enough basic combat power to be considered a full-fledged fighter, yet almost all of them were rolling on the floor. Those still standing were merely those who had been too confused to act and thus avoided the initial wrath, while the executives were in a miserable state, each missing a limb.
Combat Lead Takashi. His muscles and genitals have been sliced away, blood gushing from his entire body, his chin soaked in saliva from the unbearable pain. His eyes, which usually sparkled with joy while trampling others, were now filled with terror and helplessness.
Education Lead Jang-woong. He was the first executive to die. He tried to use his signature ball-rolling technique, only to be stabbed by a sword; his internal organs were shredded, and he shrieked in indescribable agony until Drae killed him, forcing him to taste the terror of death very, very slowly.
Suppression Lead Black Nungar. His limbs were severed by a 'Severing Sword' imbued with the attribute of ruin, preventing even regeneration. He is rolling on the floor like a maggot, trembling in pain. There was no trace of the ferocious black beast that usually followed its instincts.
Booking Lead U-bai. His jaw was torn off, and his crotch was shredded by a knife; he is currently foaming at the mouth and unconscious.
Publicity Lead Bandman. Seeing Rikka's injury, he tried to rush in, but his guitar was snatched away and used to strike him, crushing his head; the guitar remained embedded in his skull. After being struck in the face multiple times, his handsome features were reduced to a horrific mess, and he is barely breathing—huff, huff.
Operations Lead Blatar. Aside from the fist-shaped bruise on his cheek where he was struck, he is surprisingly uninjured.
General Affairs Rikka. "......"
She had just woken up, surveyed the situation, and thought: 'It's completely over.'
To think that so many people could be defeated by a single person. What happened while she was unconscious that made everyone too terrified to even think of attacking, instead bowing their heads in submission?
In truth, Drae hadn't done much. He just cut, and cut, and cut again. He slashed in a trance. He cut them weakly, painfully, and as agonizingly as possible, just enough to allow them to regenerate.
Even though the Gold Taeyangs were idiots, it didn't take long for them to realize that Yeodre was holding back, playing with them, and intentionally refusing to kill them. Furthermore, the sight of their executives—their mental pillars—in such horrific states broke their spirits rapidly.
They were people accustomed to taking. They were not accustomed to being taken from, nor were they accustomed to pain. Thus, this difficult situation was entirely foreign to them, leading to swift submission. Even now, they were acting like idiots, handing over their executive files as if ordered by Yeodre.
Drae looked at the ridiculous documents they had written and snorted.
"Is this everything written here?"
"Y-yes, sir."
"Really? That's... quite something."
Drae, staring intently at the documents, chuckled.
"You've done a lot of fucked-up shit."
As Drae said, the sexual crimes of the Gold Taeyang Clan were beyond words. As a large clan with thousands of members, they had used sheer numbers to overwhelm their victims, and the number of crimes was astronomical, with hundreds of thousands of victims.
"I heard that about a thousand Outsiders come to this world every year, so I'm amazed at where you recruited all these people."
In terms of scale, they were the strongest force among the Outsiders. But compared to their size, their combat power was pathetic.
"You thought you could catch other Rankers, including Poise, with just this? It's laughable."
Tap, tap. Drae organized the documents he had been reading and handed them to the Gold Taeyang who was standing with his hands politely clasped. He then fell into deep thought.
"...Yeodre."
Rikka, checking her body to see if she had any fatal injuries, called his name softly. Drae, who had known she was awake for a while, did not react.
"Yeodre."
Rikka sat up and called his name again, her voice clear. When Rikka signaled a few members of the Gold Taeyang Clan, they stood in front of her as if to protect her. Of course, to Drae, such meat shields were useless, and Rikka knew that too. She stared at the absolute ruler of this situation, sweat dripping down her face. He spoke abruptly.
"Even for idiots, you seem to have no sense of your own place. You must have something else you're relying on, besides this debuff or whatever."
"......"
"Is it that 'technique' or whatever Takashi mentioned?"
"You could say that. But, Yeodre. What are you doing?"
When she asked, trying to divert his attention from the technique, Drae replied indifferently.
"Thinking."
"...So, what are you thinking about?"
Instead of answering, Drae groaned, "Hmm..." and asked.
"You guys. Do you think there's such a thing as divine retribution in this world?"
"...Pardon?"
"Usually, there isn't, right? Isn't that so?"
Drae, who didn't seem to be expecting an answer, gave his own and grinned.
"So, I'm going to deliver divine retribution to you. I'm just deciding how to do it right now."
"I, see."
"Indeed."
Rikka bit her lip in anxiety. 'I have to buy time.'
The technique itself could be activated immediately, but she needed time to 'spread' it to everyone. So, while secretly preparing the technique, Rikka kept talking to Drae.
"By the way, didn't you use formal language before?"
"That was the 'nice' me."
"? Pardon?"
"No, never mind. Why?"
The corners of Drae's mouth curved softly.
"Why are you trying to stall for time?"
"......"
She couldn't stop the cold sweat from flowing. Just how much does this man know?
"Well, fine. Honestly, you guys were so below expectations that I'll wait a little. Instead, to kill some time... don't you want to play a game?"
Suddenly, she remembered the report on Drae. The fact that he liked 'games.' If she played her cards right, she might be able to stall until the technique activated. That was when—
"Don't talk shit and get lost, you fucking bastard!"
One of Takashi's subordinates, known for his short temper, shouted, and Drae looked at him, blinking. To think he would resist in this situation. Was he a man of backbone? His eyes seemed to ask, but Rikka realized he was just a moron who couldn't handle the unreasonable situation he was in.
"Who?"
"What are you going to do if you know who I am, you fucker? You don't know, do you? Right now, your acquaintances are... ugh!"
Drae closed the distance in an instant, grabbing him by the throat. Before the man could even resist—
Squelch.
"Gaaah..."
His throat was sliced, his voice garbled. Drae shoved his hand into the man's open throat and dragged him away.
"Guh-uh-uh?! Gaaah-aaaah-aaaah?! Aaaaaah!!"
Everyone froze. The Gold Taeyang Clan. They loved trampling others and anything erotic, but they were generally immune to gore. Very occasionally, there were those with such tastes, but even they could never have imagined that their comrade—or they themselves—would suffer such a fate.
Since they were Outsiders, their bodies were sturdy enough to regenerate, so his neck wasn't completely torn off, but the sound—rip, rip—of flesh being torn echoed continuously. Drae, who had dragged him to the center of the hall for everyone to see, said calmly.
"I'll give you a choice. First, choice one. There's a game I was going to tell you about earlier. Want to play that?"
No one answered. So, Drae held his sword upside down and sliced the Gold Taeyang's belly. The man's eyes widened at the surreal sight of a red line appearing across his stomach.
"Then there's choice two. I just came up with a game. Let's play that."
At the end of his sentence, the Gold Taeyang's belly was completely split open. And then.
Slide.
"Uh, uh-uh. Uh-uh-uh-uh-uh!!"
The Gold Taeyang shrieked in horror at his own intestines spilling out, and Drae grabbed them and pulled them out violently.
"Feels like pulling noodles."
"Gyaaaah! Gyaaaaaaaaah!!"
CRACK!
The sword separated the screaming Gold Taeyang's upper and lower body, leaving the intestines aside. Even though his body was split in two, he didn't die. Outsiders are sturdy, after all.
Huck.
The Gold Taeyangs in the room swallowed their breath at the horrific sight. The bisected Gold Taeyang trembled. Drae, who had kicked him straight, smiled brightly.
"I'm going to strengthen this guy's body with Ryunar."
"...And then?"
Rikka was just as disgusted, but she had no choice but to pretend to be calm and answer. And Drae said:
"Let's play tug-of-war."
"Tug... of-war?"
"Of course, the rope is him. I told you about choice two earlier, right? Do you want to play the human tug-of-war game I just came up with? Or do you want to play the game I thought of first? Number one or number two. Pick whichever you like."
"......"
Rikka, with a horrific expression, gulped. No matter what, she didn't want to use a comrade... or rather, she didn't want to touch his intestines with her hands.
"W-what is the game... you were going to suggest first?"
"Ah, I haven't explained the game yet. It's a game I played once before..."
Drae stared intently at Rikka. Rikka realized that maintaining her composure was becoming increasingly difficult. And then.
"D-don't make me laugh. Why should we do something like that!"
One Gold Taeyang who still hadn't grasped the situation blurted out, and immediately, the top of his head was split about a third of the way down.
"Guh...?"
Drae, who had moved behind him, grabbed the two parts of his skull and pulled—rip, rip—to both sides.
Rip, riiiip.
"Guh, guh-ah. W-wait... wait... wait...! S-save..."
The guy's mouth was soon ripped open, preventing him from saying anything, and immediately after.
RIIIIIP!!
The Gold Taeyang was bisected, and a spray of blood scattered.
"Waaah?!"
"Aaaaaah!"
The terrified Gold Taeyangs backed away in all directions, and Drae, who had been completely covered in the spray of blood, swung his sword sideways this time. The necks of two or three Gold Taeyangs flew into the sky.
"Aaaaaah!"
"Uwaaaaaah!!"
Now, they were completely in panic... or so he thought.
"Quiet."
A broadcast using Ryunar. At the voice of an absolute predator, everyone stopped. Fear had been consumed by an even greater terror. As everyone focused on him, Drae held up a severed head of a Gold Taeyang rolling nearby and raised it to the sky. He looked at the tear-stained neck, then squeezed the head as if wringing it out, and blood gushed from the throat, soaking his face.
"Whew."
With a sigh that sounded refreshing, Drae threw the neck, which no longer bled, aside and asked in a voice as cheerful as his excited appearance.
"Don't want to play the game?"
"......"
Crazy bastard. That thought occurred to them naturally, but they had no choice but to nod.
"Reaaally~? You wanted to play the game after all, didn't you?"
Ah, fuck, the blood is disgusting.
It got in my mouth. Ptooey. Fuck.
Huh? Are you asking if I did this because I was bloodthirsty? Who do you take me for, a pleasure killer??
This is all performance. Performance.
To effectively handle beasts, one needs to show a beastly side. Do I have no guilt?
None.
At least, I will never have any toward these guys.
The criminal records written in the documents were just too spectacular. Even I, who knew what the gang of assemblyman bastards—whose names I can't even remember now—had done, was amazed, thinking, 'Wow, such a world still exists.'
I'm truly curious if they feel aggrieved in this situation, considering the things they've done themselves.
So. That's it.
Good for good, evil for evil. That's how it is.
Anyway, I got their 'consent' that they want to play a game. So, shall I do that?
That game I played in the school auditorium a long time ago.
"Truth or Dare. It'll be fun."
Ah.
It really was a decent game, wasn't it?
Students gathered in the auditorium. They were all second-years. The vice-principal, with a nervous impression and square-rimmed glasses, whispered to the principal.
"Sir. Even so, an exhortation at a time like this."
"......"
The fat, bald principal glared at the fucking beanpole in front of him. He didn't even know what kind of situation he had been through. This bastard who didn't know what would happen if he didn't carry out orders.
"......"
As a man who had risen to the position of vice-principal, he had some intuition. At the principal's expressionless face, the vice-principal shut his mouth without a word, and the principal let out a breath as if barely holding back his anger.
"He said to proceed with classes normally. You must be careful not to let any other stories leak out. Fortunately, only the female student who was watering the flower bed and we know that teacher Sang is dead..."
Would a principal want to be teaching classes in this crazy situation? Just yesterday, he had sent students home, saying a dangerous person was roaming around, and he had planned to send them home after morning classes today as well.
But Shin Jin-seung had subtly hinted that he should conduct normal classes. There was no way he could defy the will of that absolute power. Shin Jin-seung had also said he would handle everything so that rumors wouldn't spread.
'At least this won't spread.'
Among the students, the only ones who knew Sang Hyun-jin was dead were Shin Jin-pae, who had heard everything directly from Shin Jin-seung, or the female student who had witnessed the tragedy right in front of her eyes.
Fortunately, Yeodre had suppressed them both before the female student could scream, and because it was a flower bed overgrown with grass that was difficult to confirm from the window, miraculously, no one witnessed the tragedy. If someone had been determined to look down, they might have seen Sang Hyun-jin's severed head rolling around, but it was fortunate that it was during class.
The students in Sang Hyun-jin's class, whom he had worried about the most, had seen no one die. They had seen Drae beating Sang Hyun-jin without mercy, but after he jumped from the window to escape, they were too busy hiding to know what happened afterward.
They were just relieved that Yeodre had disappeared for a moment. No one even thought to check on the receding Drae.
'Morons. Dozens of you can't handle one guy?'
If he had been there, he would have crushed that guy immediately. The humiliation he had received from Shin Jin-seung came back to his mind, and anger welled up. But what could he do? The water had already been spilled.
The principal's mind and body were exhausted, and in his heart, he wanted to sleep soundly for a day.
'You might end up sleeping forever while trying to sleep soundly for a day.'
Even though there were no proper witnesses, cleaning up a corpse neatly and keeping the kids' mouths shut was the power Shin Jin-seung possessed. Doing something to one principal of a private high school would be no problem at all. He had no choice but to do as he was told.
Currently, the top priority was to pressure the kids even more by pretending to encourage them and keep them silent about this incident.
"Principal. We are ready."
"Yes."
Second-year students gathered in the auditorium. Most of them looked annoyed, grumbling about why they had to gather when other grades had already gone home. The only ones quiet were the kids in Drae's class.
No, there were more. The students who were in the student council, like President Seo Ye-rin, couldn't even lift their heads next to the principal. The principal standing in front of the podium held the microphone.
"Uh... sunny weather..."
The principal's speech, which started with cliché lines, proceeded by telling them not to say useless things, or by talking about how much the parents of Shin Jin-pae or Kang Gu-han had donated and how great they were, to give them a sense of alarm.
Before long, most of the students gathered in the auditorium understood the subtext of what the principal was blathering about. It meant not to go around blabbering about the Kang Gu-han and Shin Jin-pae gang. Everyone here was one of the hundreds of people who shared the commonality of having their weaknesses held by the Kang Gu-han and Shin Jin-pae gang. Even though they were uncomfortable and angry, they couldn't help but say anything.
Soon, the long exhortation ended, and the principal smiled brightly and said.
"Ho ho ho. Your attitude of listening is very good! Does anyone have any questions?"
It was quiet. Everyone wanted this uncomfortable time to pass quickly. ...That should have been the case.
"Teacher!! I have a question!"
Someone raised their hand, and the principal was delighted. Since he had been forced to proceed with the story due to pressure, he wanted to lighten the mood and at least gain some image.
And...
Drae's class kids stiffened. The voice didn't come from the kids' side. It came from one of the only two entrances to the auditorium. Drae, who had raised his hand there, clicked the door shut and was walking toward them, holding something against the back of a student who was shivering.
"...Uh."
Who is that?
The principal, pathetically, didn't know Drae's face. He had just been burning with anger without even knowing his face.
And.
Now he would know.
"May I ask one question?"
"Ho ho... I guess you're late. That's fine. Go ahead and ask."
"Yes. Then. Assuming an incident occurred, the perpetrators should naturally be punished, but what about the kids who were threatened by the perpetrators and aided or abetted them? Should those kids be seen as victims? Or should they be seen as perpetrators?"
"......"
It was a very uncomfortable question. The principal frowned. Doesn't it sound like they're talking about themselves?
So, when he was about to change the subject and ask for another question, it was then.
"The answer is. If it's fucked up, let's kill them. That is it."
BANG!
The student who had been walking toward Drae with a terrified expression flew away without even being able to scream. Flesh and blood splattered everywhere, and a female student who was hit in the face with it foolishly wiped it off with her hand.
"KYAAAAAAK?!"
Starting with that scream, screams erupted all at once. The principal opened his mouth wide, froze, and realized.
That's Yeodre.
Yes.
Now he would definitely know about Drae.
Even if he didn't want to, very definitely.