Chapter 90
"You fucking bastards...!"
The hunter was panicking. Everything was unfolding differently from what he had expected. Jung Su-hyeon and Ichie standing right in front of him should have been trembling in fear. Their legs should have been shaking uncontrollably, their minds unhinged, tears welling as they left openings for him to exploit. But they were acting far too normal, as if the curse had never taken hold at all.
Had the curse not landed yet? The hunter carefully pressed his mouth to the small radio in his inner pocket.
"Hurry up and use the curse already."
"I am using it."
An irritated reply came back. Hearing her answer, the hunter looked at the two of them again. Was the curse not working? His face twisted. If it were simply that the curse had failed, there would have been no real problem. But both Jung Su-hyeon and Ichie were far stronger than he had anticipated.
If he kept fighting like this, he might actually lose.
"Fuck..."
Gauging the real possibility of his own defeat, the hunter clenched his teeth. He could not lose. He must not lose. He had swaggered out of there with big talk, after all. He had declared that he would clean this up himself and pave a smooth road for Kim Ju-sung. He had already shown his face and charged in, swearing he would kill them.
He had to kill them right here and shut their mouths for good.
Kang! Kang! Kang!
All the while, Jung Su-hyeon had been slamming his spear against the shield, eyes locked on him. Each time the spear struck, it pulsed with a brighter and brighter light. The shield was visibly denting under the blows. Behind him, Ichie staggered forward. She looked drained of energy, yet her face was still filled with murderous intent.
The two of them were whispering something in low voices. The hunter frowned. Whatever scheme they were cooking up, it did not matter. He had the superior experience and skill.
Ichie adjusted her stance. The hunter hurriedly swept his hands. From both sides of Ichie and Jung Su-hyeon, earth erupted as if two palms had clapped together. The two split front and back, dodging the wave of dirt.
"Got you, you bastards!"
The hunter shouted as he yanked his hands forward. The shattered earth poured down like a landslide, burying Jung Su-hyeon. At the same moment, Ichie rode the wave of dirt like a surfer and launched herself at the hunter.
About to bury Su-hyeon completely, the hunter clicked his tongue and flicked his fingers.
Pung!
The dirt mound exploded outward in every direction, flinging Ichie into the air. Freed from the crushing weight, Jung Su-hyeon rose again and swung his spear. A pure white trail of light skimmed right past the hunter's nose.
Sharp killing intent flashed through the empty air. The hunter rolled on pure reflex. Ichie's Japanese sword spun through the space where his head had been a heartbeat earlier. The blade flew at high speed and buried itself deep in Gorbath's torso.
The hunter grinned at the sight. One of them was now unarmed—the advantage had swung back to him. He gathered earth from every direction and shouted.
"Alright, now you dog—!"
"Run!"
Jung Su-hyeon yelled and suddenly spun around, bolting. Ichie was already gone, nowhere in sight. The hunter, who had been bracing for a fight, stared at them in confusion before belatedly launching clods of earth after them.
"Stop right there! You bastards! Think you can run from me?"
His voice was urgent as he called after them. But the two ignored him completely and dove into the underbrush like they were plunging into water. The earthen bullets he had formed slammed uselessly into the thicket. His dirt mounds tore into the forest, but the dense trees and grass made his ability far harder to use.
The earth ricocheted off trunks, losing shape and accuracy. Sweeping the surrounding trees as if with a broom, the hunter suddenly remembered: if those two escaped, he was finished.
He clenched his teeth and scanned the area. He had to find them. In his spinning vision he caught Jung Su-hyeon's fleeing back. Gritting his teeth harder, he started running. He pulled earth from the ground and fired it between the trees. Su-hyeon barely dodged and glanced back.
He looked thoroughly exhausted, catching his breath. The hunter swept his hands. As he dragged the earth upward, the trees that had been rooted in that soil toppled one after another. The trees screening the space between Su-hyeon and the hunter fell like dominoes, and Su-hyeon stepped back.
"Think you can take me? Huh? Huh? Think you can take me?"
The hunter's face flushed red as he roared. Jung Su-hyeon thrust his shield forward and gripped his spear tight. The hunter gathered earth and began packing it hard. The fallen trees rolled along the slanted ground. He could not afford to let his guard down.
Su-hyeon shouted.
"Come at me, you small-fry bastard!"
The taunt made the hunter's blood rise a little, but he could not act rashly. Ichie was still nowhere to be seen. There was no telling what she might do the moment his attention locked onto Su-hyeon.
"Where'd your girlfriend go? Hiding in the grass somewhere around here?"
As he spoke, he slammed a dirt mound into a patch of underbrush where he sensed movement. Earth poured down like a waterfall, crushing the thicket flat under its weight. Su-hyeon flinched slightly at the force but pretended not to be rattled. The hunter waved more earth through the air and spoke again.
"Or maybe here?"
He fired another dirt mound toward a different direction where he felt a presence. A thick, sturdy tree could not withstand the impact; it snapped clean and went flying. Sensing that Ichie was not there either, the hunter could no longer hide his agitation.
Had she actually run? Was Su-hyeon the bait while Ichie raced outside to call for help?
If Ichie had fled, he had to kill Su-hyeon right now. There was no more time to overthink. The instant the hunter took a step forward, Su-hyeon charged as well, shouting.
"Ichie! Now!"
The hunter whirled around in shock, scanning every direction.
"Here!"
Ichie's voice came from behind him. She was out on the open grassland. At some point she had taken position atop a withered, mummy-like corpse.
"Shit...!"
The hunter spat a curse and dragged earth together. At the same moment, Ichie carved a massive red trail of light and launched it. The hunter saw Su-hyeon charging straight at him. And he saw the trajectory Ichie had fired toward him.
The two ferocious trails were destined to collide. He realized he did not need to block this attack at all.
The hunter dropped low to the ground, a triumphant smile on his face. Now he only had to enjoy the show of Su-hyeon being sliced apart by Ichie's attack. He turned along the path of the light and faced Su-hyeon, who had closed the distance right to his nose. Su-hyeon had his shield thrust forward, legs braced hard.
Kwang!
"Wh-what?"
Confusion flooded the hunter's face. Sparks began flying from the shield. The red trail of light had slammed head-on into it, and the shield was holding, spraying sparks. Su-hyeon clenched his teeth, glaring straight at the hunter.
"Uwaaaaaaah!"
Su-hyeon gritted his teeth harder and adjusted his grip on the spear. The hunter felt something go wrong. Cracks spiderwebbed across the shield; Su-hyeon flung it aside and rolled. Left alone in midair, the shield shattered into pieces. The red trail shot forward again, smashing through several more trees before the crimson flash finally dissipated.
Shield fragments rained down like snow. Sunlit grains glittered across the forest. Beautiful, yet extremely dangerous shards. The hunter ducked on reflex to avoid the shrapnel.
Then he heard the sound of someone stamping the ground. A pure white flash of light was already illuminating the space at his feet. Belatedly remembering Su-hyeon, the hunter gathered earth.
Su-hyeon was charging, both hands locked tight around the spear.
The hunter packed the earth thicker than the earlier shield and fired it toward Su-hyeon. Su-hyeon did not dodge. Through the wall of dirt he hurled the spear with every ounce of strength he had left.
There was no dodging it. The hunter realized that in his collapsed stance he could not stop this single strike. All he could do was keep pulling earth together and pray.
"N-no! No!"
One corner of the earthen barrier crumbled as if struck by rain. White light leaked through the gap. The hunter thrust out his other hand, trying to press the spear down with more dirt. But as fast as he could clench his fist, the spear punched through the barrier and drove straight for his heart.
"No—!"
His single cry became his last words. Before he could finish even that final syllable, the glowing spear pierced the man's chest and buried itself in the ground. Through the round hole in the hunter's chest, the blue sky shone through.
"Ghk...!"
The chest that had once held grand ambitions now held only sky. Kneeling as he collapsed, the hunter stared at Jung Su-hyeon in disbelief. Su-hyeon stared back, his own face drained white.
Blood gushed from the hunter's mouth. He pointed a finger at Su-hyeon, lips flapping like a goldfish. Every time he tried to speak, blood sprayed out like a fountain.
Ichie was walking up from behind. Still watching the hunter thrash, she kicked him hard in the back of the head.
The hunter never finished his last words; he had to face the dirt. Through the hole in his chest, fresh green blades of grass pushed up. Jung Su-hyeon exhaled roughly, staring blankly at the fallen hunter. Ichie shook the magic stone she had pulled from Gorbath's body and spoke.
"Su-hyeon. Snap out of it. We need to leave now. If we stay and people show up, we're murderers. Once we get out, the gate closes and the evidence is gone."