They Beheld the God

Ready.

Lee Seo-ah laughed. The atmosphere felt off. The crocodile-masked man stared blankly at the skull fragments clutched in his hand.

"Wh-what the fuck."

A skull capable of mind-controlling any living being regardless of species. A weapon that never broke no matter the attack. And it was shattered?

Lee Seo-ah grabbed her hips with both hands and tilted her nose up.

"I was gonna harvest some mana at first, but it was too gross to eat, so I just burst it."

The leopard-masked man made a snap judgment. He raised his fist.

"Kill."

His raised fist hardened, transforming into an iron mace studded with crystal spikes. Powerful mana rippled from it, warping the space around them. The leopard-masked man tensed his arm.

In that split second, he caught Lee Seo-ah's eyes. Not human. An eerie, chilling glint. Something was wrong. His fist wouldn't extend. He looked down at it. Where his fist should have been, there was only empty air.

The leopard-masked man held his breath for a moment. One arm was gone. His strength drained away, and he dropped to his knees on the floor.

Beside him, the crocodile-masked man glared at Lee Seo-ah, trembling with rage.

"Y-you monster bitch!"

A devil-shaped glass goblet burst from the crocodile-masked man's bosom. It began filling with blood. He hurled it to the ground, shattering it. From the pool of red blood on the floor, a heavily armored skeleton knight rose.

The crocodile-masked man screamed, eyes bloodshot.

"Kill her!"

The skeleton knight raised its massive sword. Lee Seo-ah looked at it.

In that instant, the skeleton knight's arm twisted grotesquely. The knight let out a horrific screech. The sword blade plunged into the crocodile-masked man's chest. Blood sprayed. The knight knelt and shattered into pieces.

"Urgh...!"

"How...?"

The two men lifted their heads from their knees. The girl curled her lips. A twisted smile. She was enjoying it. Fascinated. They beheld those eyes. Infinite darkness. No end in sight. Their breathing grew ragged. Vision flickered. Tears blurred their sight. The surroundings darkened. No, brightened. Screams echoed from all sides. They shook their heads frantically to block it out. Vision twisted every which way. Teeth sprouted from the walls, opening and closing like they were chewing something. They looked ahead. The girl. The girl was there. The girl smiled. Ah. God. I've witnessed a god.

The two men fainted.

I blinked. The two men sprawled on the ground. I squatted in front of them.

"You okay?"

I checked their status. Their mana and consciousness had been gnawed away. They were practically dead. Even if they miraculously regained awareness, they wouldn't be able to move properly.

[You handled them thoroughly.]

"Eung. Was having fun though."

They'd hidden so well I found them—should've come out and played harder with me. But they burned through their power too fast.

I blinked.

"Oh yeah, forgot to ask if they wanna be friends."

[They couldn't have answered anyway.]

"Why?"

[After their attacks bounced off, they didn't even have proper reason left, did they?]

"Still, if I asked to be friends, they might've said yes. I'm their first discoverer, right? Plus I'm a beauty... girl? With a cute face?"

[.........]

The Book stared at me like I was ridiculous. Then it glanced down at the fainted men.

[Come to think of it, that was their last shot at survival. They could've begged to be friends. If they'd been quick on the uptake.]

"Heung. Exactly. Spot on."

I levitated the two men into the air and shook them out. Artifacts and weapons infused with mana clattered free. Mostly junk performance-wise. I sorted the usable ones and absorbed their mana and materials.

This should be enough to craft a weapon now?

I blinked. Felt eyes on me ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠from outside. I opened the firmly shut office door and stepped out.

"Kyaa!"

Right in front, a woman sat collapsed, trembling. Oh yeah, the hunter who stuck by the Department Head's side.

I tilted my head.

"You know me, right? You saw me in the office."

"Y-y-yeah...."

"Whatcha doing here?"

"Uh, uh.... Th-that.... um...."

"Hunter, wanna be friends? Got an open spot."

"A-ahaha... ha...."

The woman just gaped wordlessly. I gave up on chatting and looked down. She clutched a radio with its screen lit.

Footsteps pounded closer. I turned. Uniformed hunters rushed toward us. The lead male hunter approached and quickly scanned the area.

"How is this...."

I raised a finger.

"Oh, it's that guy from before."

One of the hunters from the golem legion incident.

"Hi. Nice to see you again."

"Y-yeah. Nice."

I clapped.

"Waa, two familiar faces already!"

Feels like I'm building a huge network. At this rate, soon no one in the bureau won't know me. And someday beyond the bureau...

As I thought that, the trailing hunters dragged the collapsed masked men away somewhere. I started to follow but realized I'd been left alone. Might as well finish what I was doing. I slipped into a nearby office and opened the Book.

I transferred the mana and materials I'd just acquired to it. Mana stirred on the first page. The weapon-crafting ritual, so familiar from endless time in the Demon Realm it was starting to bore me.

Text slowly engraved itself.

I knew it was nearly done, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠but seeing it with my own eyes still felt fresh. The words "Hunger Sword" under the name flashed. My first weapon, forged by pouring in an excessive amount of my mana. True to its name, the sword devours anything within its reach. I'd need to tweak the exact range and interactions with other mana, but anyway—progress.

I closed the page, and the Book murmured.

[I can already picture Shin Chae-ah freaking out. Poor thing.]

I blinked.

"I believe Shin Chae-ah's not that weak. It's a gift for my friend—she might even be happy."

[No one stayed calm after seeing your weapons.]

I stared at the Book. Raised my fist and charged. The Book leaped aside, dodging. I faceplanted into the floor.

"Kwaang!"

[Hahaha! I dodged! Uha—]

I grabbed a small chair and hurled it at the Book. It bounced off and flew back.

[Gyaak!]

"Heung."

Nothing more to harvest here. I looked around once more, left the bureau, and headed to my one-room building.

Right after the situation wrapped up, in the office where hunters had gathered. They'd confirmed Lee Seo-ah had returned to her one-room.

The Department Head, Shin Chae-ah, and the hunters sat in their places. In front of the Department Head, a hunter trembled, mumbling his report. The Department Head rubbed her dry face and spoke.

"So, the intruders were targeting Lee Seo-ah, and just from her looking at them, they vomited blood and ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠collapsed on their own."

"Y-yes. And then... inside, I heard these creepy screams I'd never heard before... sounds of breaking and shattering... my ears were ringing... felt like puking... h-hallucinations maybe... And then, th-that... L-Lee Seo-ah came out laughing...."

"......Got it for now."

The hunter trailed off and collapsed pale-faced in his spot. Colleagues supported him and dragged him away.

"Department Head, intruder identities confirmed as Black Magic ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Cartel members. Among wanted groups, they rank highest in danger. The two infiltrators were awakeners surpassing A-grade hunters in mana and skills. From their possessions and Kim Hunter's testimony just now, they were targeting Lee Seo-ah. Unconscious—likely dead soon."

Files with the two men's faces landed on the desk. The hunters murmured.

"So she killed A-grade black mages without lifting a finger?"

"Holy...."

"What kind of monster...."

"At least she can talk. Thank god."

"Should we notify the guilds? Like Han Yeon Guild."

"They probably know already. Those guys."

"They're coming to investigate soon anyway, right?"

The Department Head examined it closely, then looked at the man in front of her.

"Internal systems?"

"Yes. Power outage and internal magic facilities fully restored. Systems normal. Outer wall partially breached—repairs underway."

The Department Head nodded. Beside her, Shin Chae-ah murmured softly.

"If we accept a kid like that as a friend... what happens...?"

"What was that?"

"N-nothing."

The Department Head went to light a cigarette, realized it was indoors, and set it down. She'd be contacting the Management Bureau Chief tomorrow, and somehow escalate this to higher-ups. But more than that...

The Department Head stood and gazed out the window. Gathered hunters, awakeners with cameras. And that familiar face from Han Yeon Guild...

Footsteps echoed from outside the office. People in crisp suits approached the broken entrance, nodded politely, and entered.

The black-haired woman at the front pulled out her ID.

"Han Yeon Guild Subjugation Team 1 Leader, Cha Do-hee, from the government-affiliated organization. You know why we're here."

Her phone screen showed a photo of the bureau's shattered outer wall, Black Magic Cartel members inside, and Lee Seo-ah smiling at them.

"This... Demon Race. Where is she now?"

At her words, the Department Head stared silently at her. The woman was Han Yeon Guild's subjugation team rep—unwavering number one in urban security and monster extermination, ruthless in immediate eliminations. For her to come personally...

The Department Head sensed things turning serious. Lee Seo-ah's existence was bound to spread eventually. But this fast? Even she, with years on the job, hadn't anticipated it.