Chapter 483: Establishing the Pecking Order
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 483: Establishing the Pecking Order
They say a true leader must know when to bow their head.
But that is merely the exception.
Fundamentally, a leader must never back down.
Especially not when their party members are watching.
As Kang Hyun-woo unleashed his aura and stared him down, Rusleck's face twisted into a vicious scowl.
But that was all.
Judging by the murderous atmosphere flowing between the two, it wouldn't have been strange for one of them to draw their sword at any moment.
However, a few facts made him hesitate.
The first was one of the Ten Commandments he had to uphold as a man of the cloth.
-Thou shalt not kill.
Violating it within the sacred Grand Cathedral was an absolutely unforgivable act.
Of course, the Holy Knights who served as the swords of the Twilight Holy Society were forgiven even if they broke the commandments from the fifth to the tenth while on a mission.
The Sixth Commandment, which forbade killing, was one of the most frequently broken rules, especially inside the Tower, which was no different from a lawless zone.
However, that didn't mean they could break the commandments indiscriminately.
Moreover, the Holy Knights were all devout clergymen who strove to avoid breaking the Ten Commandments whenever possible.
And Rusleck was one of them.
‘…Wasn't he a low-floor player?’
But as Kang Hyun-woo revealed his aura in provocation, Rusleck knew instinctively.
It would be impossible to subdue his opponent unless he fought with the intent to kill.
For Rusleck, who often had to cooperate with outside forces, establishing the pecking order and seizing the initiative through a preemptive show of force was both a habit and a strategy.
But this time, things were different.
‘Of all things, a request from Bishop Donatian…'
He clicked his tongue inwardly.
Kang Hyun-woo's party was able to participate in this dungeon raid solely because of a request from Bishop Donatian, who was in charge of the Tower's first floor.
And Bishop Donatian was widely known as a man of integrity who never made personal requests.
For such a man to involve outsiders in a dungeon raid was as good as proof that they were the Bishop's guests.
The fact that he, the commander, had come personally instead of his adjutant was also a choice made in consideration of the Bishop's reputation.
Of course, that didn't mean he intended to stay silent and let this matter slide.
Not only was Bishop Donatian not his superior, but the very situation of bringing in outsiders to clear a dungeon was an affront to the honor of the Celis Knights.
However, if he didn't hold back against the Bishop's guests, that in itself could escalate into a major problem.
Squeeze—
‘…As long as their limbs are intact, Bishop Donatian won't be able to lodge a formal complaint.’
Still, he couldn't just back down.
If he, the commander of the Holy Knights, were to tuck his tail and run from a mere player, it would be an act that dragged the prestige and honor of the entire knight order through the mud.
Rumble—!!
The moment Rusleck reached his conclusion, a pure white holy power shimmered around him like a heat haze.
Immediately after, the entire reception room began to tremble as if from a vibration.
At the unsettling wave of energy, the complexions of the party members, excluding Kang Hyun-woo and Lucifer, grew somewhat pale.
Although he remained on the lower floors, Rusleck was one of the most skilled players on the middle floors.
If not for his devout faith, he would have advanced to the upper floors long ago.
To someone like Rusleck, a low-floor player was a being less significant than a newborn baby.
At least, that's how it should have been.
RUMBLE—!!
“?!!”
Rusleck was aghast.
He hadn't raised his holy power merely to threaten him.
He was prepared to strike at any moment and shatter his opponent's bones.
A typical low-floor player should have been breaking out in a cold sweat, unable to even meet his gaze.
But Kang Hyun-woo was not.
He was simply staring right back at him with a placid expression, as if nothing was wrong.
No, there was something strange about it.
‘…What is this?’
The longer Rusleck met his gaze, the more he felt his vision begin to spin.
His head grew dizzy, and the strength slowly drained from his limbs.
An unpleasant sensation he had never once felt since awakening his holy power through grace enveloped him.
Believing this to be some form of dark art, Rusleck immediately tried to draw his sword, but strangely, his body wouldn't obey him at all.
All he could feel was the bizarre sensation of being drawn into Kang Hyun-woo's eyes.
They were just ordinary black eyes with no special features, yet… he felt like he was being sucked into them.
As if sinking into a bottomless abyss.
Gurgle—
No matter how much he struggled, his limbs found no purchase.
In fact, the more he struggled, the deeper he seemed to be dragged down.
‘Gasp?!’
At the same time, a pressure so intense it was hard to breathe washed over him.
The moment death loomed before him, Rusleck summoned his holy power with all his might.
Fwaaa—!!!
In the pitch-black darkness, the pure white holy power that bloomed from him began to slowly push the darkness away.
But his hope at the sight was short-lived.
—!!!
‘W-What?!’
His holy power began to be devoured by the darkness.
He squeezed out his power once more at the unbelievable sight, but the result didn't change.
‘N-No!!’
When his final, desperate struggle ended in vain, Rusleck flailed his arms and legs like a drowning man.
But far from floating up, his consciousness only continued to sink slowly into the deeper abyss.
To a place where no voice or hand could reach.
Clap!!
“Hahk!!”
At that moment, with the sound of a short clap, his consciousness returned to reality.
A single palm strike from Kang Hyun-woo, imbued with demon-breaking energy, had shattered the heart demon's hold on him.
Thud—
“Hahk, hahk, hahk…!!”
Rusleck collapsed pathetically to the floor, gasping for breath.
Drenched in a cold sweat, his face was paler than anyone else's in the room.
“What are you looking for so intently? Did you drop a gold coin on the floor or something?”
“…!!”
Kang Hyun-woo looked down at him, a mocking smile on his lips.
Lucifer did the same.
Moreover, while the other women weren't outright laughing, they were looking at him with strange expressions.
Only then did Rusleck realize what a pathetic sight he must be.
“…!!”
Snap—
In that instant, the sound of something snapping echoed deep within him.
It was the sound of the thread of his reason breaking.
Shing!!
“How dare you!!”
Rusleck immediately drew his sword and charged at Kang Hyun-woo.
The thought of upholding the commandments was nowhere in his mind.
There was only one thing: the single-minded intent to take his head with one strike.
Indeed, his momentum was tremendous.
A middle-floor player from a large clan would surely have been unable to react properly and lost their head.
However.
Thunk—
“?!!”
This time, he had picked the wrong opponent.
“Did they send a back-alley thug instead of a Holy Knight?”
Rusleck's sword never left its scabbard. Kang Hyun-woo was pressing down firmly on its pommel with his foot.
Rusleck's arm trembled at the unbelievable sight.
“Kgggh…!!”
He tried to draw the sword with all his might, but Kang Hyun-woo didn't budge.
He simply looked down at Rusleck with a dry, emotionless expression.
‘Hmm, what should I do now?’
Kang Hyun-woo was lost in thought for a moment.
Killing him now would be as easy as taking candy from a baby.
His mind and body were out of balance from having been briefly consumed by his heart demon.
Needless to say, Rusleck's sudden affliction by the heart demon was Kang Hyun-woo's doing.
A few days ago, during the commotion at the restaurant on the 7th floor, Kang Hyun-woo's personality had briefly turned cruel due to the hungry Tam.
Tam had stimulated the heart demon sleeping within him.
Of course, thanks to some firm 'education,' it had quieted down since.
However, through that experience, Kang Hyun-woo had judged it to be a rather useful ability, and making Rusleck fall prey to his heart demon was the result of applying that ability.
At first, he had only intended to put him in his place, but the situation was tricky.
This was the Celis Grand Cathedral, the most sacred place in Sanctelium, the holy city ruled by the Twilight Holy Society.
Imagine throwing a punch at the commander of the Holy Knights in a place like this.
His entire party could have ended up in prison together.
Of course, he could have beaten him up quietly without leaving a scratch, but—
‘Ever since we entered the reception room, I've felt like someone is watching us.’
Even when he extended his senses and used magic, he couldn't find the source of the gaze.
In other words, he had to mess with his opponent in a way that wouldn't be obvious to any observer.
And that's when he thought of Tam.
As you could see, the effect was outstanding, but there was one minor problem.
Tiring—
`[The Constellation, 'Saintess of Uruk', wears a meaningful expression.]`
`[The Constellation, 'Dweller of the Swamp', sniffs the air, complaining of a foul stench.]`
`[The Constellation, 'Rider of the Red Cross', is staring at you.]`
It had attracted the attention of the Constellations.
Kang Hyun-woo did his best to ignore Lucifer's sharp, reproachful glare and looked at the screen that had appeared before him.
‘The Rider of the Red Cross…'
Another name for the Red Cross is 'St. George's Cross'.
And St. George's Cross is the symbol of a patron saint. Among the many patron saints, the one most famous for the red cross is—
‘…Saint George?’
He was the Christian saint who slew a dragon single-handedly, a figure too significant to simply ignore.
Kang Hyun-woo clicked his tongue inwardly.
‘Should I have just beaten him up without leaving any marks?’
He had tried to avoid a hassle, only to end up facing an even bigger one.
But it was too late to take it back now.
For now, his only option was to avoid using Tam's power as much as possible.
“Uggghhh!!!”
Kang Hyun-woo quietly watched Rusleck, who was still struggling to draw his sword.
When their eyes met, Rusleck's face contorted viciously as he glared at Kang Hyun-woo and roared.
“Who do you think you're looking down on—”
“You should refrain from speaking so informally, Commander.”
Sshaaaa—
As a cold, heavy killing intent flooded the room, Rusleck flinched and trembled reflexively.
The memory of sinking into that distant abyss rushed through his mind.
“I am here on an official request from the Twilight Holy Society. According to the terms of that request, you are not my superior, Commander, and my party is entitled to be treated as equals to the Holy Knights. I will not tolerate any further disrespect, and I will lodge a formal complaint with the Church later.”
“H-How dare you…!! How dare a mere low-floor player…!!”
Even after Kang Hyun-woo removed his foot, Rusleck's eyes still burned with hostility.
But at least he didn't charge at him like before.
He knew, instinctively, who had the upper hand.
Kang Hyun-woo watched him for a moment before slowly leaning down.
Then, in a low, heavy voice, he whispered in his ear.
“…And don't you ever dare draw your sword on me again. Next time, I don't care if it's the Twilight Holy Society or whatever else—I'll just kill you.”
The light in Kang Hyun-woo's eyes flickered black.