Chapter 12
Chapter 12
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 12
Chapter Title: Ji Ye-won (6)
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A winter night with the moon full to bursting.
On the rooftop of an abandoned, crumbling building, Ahn Su-ho and Ji Ye-won stood locked in confrontation with a Dawn Corps assassin.
Ahn Su-ho clutched at his chest where the assassin had struck him. He'd taken the blow completely defenseless, and though it hurt like hell, nothing was broken, and he wasn't crippled.
With his pathetically low stats, he couldn't help but mutter in quiet admiration that he was a superhuman after all.
-Shing.
Ahn Su-ho drew the Stun Blade from his belt and quickly assessed the situation.
'Two enemies. The blond punk right in front of me and a sniper taking potshots from far off.'
But he couldn't assume that was all of them. In the worst case, a third or fourth could show up without it being strange at all.
On their side, the only fighters were him and Ji Ye-won.
Chae So-yeon's injuries were severe. Even accounting for her being a superhuman, they were potentially fatal. She couldn't be counted on as combat strength.
'But it's not a hopeless situation.'
Fortunately, thanks to his superpower, 'Black Smoke,' long-range sniping was more or less sealed off.
Which meant the only enemy present right now was the assassin in front of him.
His strength was unknown, but if he and Ji Ye-won fought him two-on-one, they had a solid chance of winning.
"How's Chae So-yeon's condition?"
"She's alive. But she won't last long."
Ji Ye-won laid the unconscious Chae So-yeon's body on the ground. Her faint, intermittent breaths were the only modest proof that she hadn't died yet.
'Chae So-yeon isn't a major character or an academy student.'
In other words, even if she died, there wouldn't be any systemic penalty for Ahn Su-ho.
But Chae So-yeon was Min Chae-ryeong's subordinate. Min Chae-ryeong probably wouldn't blame him for her death, but if he could save her, it was better to do so.
'Fortunately, the quest reward includes an Intermediate Recovery Potion.'
Ahn Su-ho gauged the potion's healing effect based on his knowledge of the original story. It wouldn't fully cure a fatal wound, but it could lighten the injury enough to keep her from dying.
'Which means I need to wrap this up quickly before Chae So-yeon dies.'
He gripped the hilt of his Stun Blade tightly. The blade itself was blunt and useless as a sword, but the lethal current running through it was enough to make even a superhuman tense up.
'A life-or-death fight right off the bat.'
His greatest combat achievement in life was getting pummeled for a full three minutes in a boxing gym sparring match against a giant. Tension crept up on him, and cold sweat soaked his palms.
"Ye-won, just so you know, I'm not that good at fighting."
"Just follow my lead. I'll handle the rest."
Ji Ye-won stepped forward, black daggers gripped in both hands.
"Oho, not running away but standing your ground? Impressive! Come to think of it, you were the one who drew their attention when that rat bitch stole the Talisman, right? They said you're from the hunter squad—guess you're no slouch in a fight."
The assassin slung his axe over his shoulder in a cocky stance. A sleazy grin spread across his face.
"Still, no need to rush. She betrayed us, sure, but until recently, we were sharing the same pot of rice. Before we kill each other, why not chat leisurely?"
"Cut the crap. You think I don't know you're just stalling until your buddies arrive?"
Ji Ye-won lowered her stance, poised to charge at any moment. Ahn Su-ho awkwardly mirrored her, and the assassin smirked slyly.
"What do you mean stalling? I mean it—let's just talk. Aren't you curious what happened to your comrade?"
Ji Ye-won's shoulders twitched at his words. Seeing her reaction, the assassin's smile deepened.
"Want me to tell you? What happened to her? Huh? Aren't you curious?"
"Shut up."
Ji Ye-won could easily guess her comrade's situation.
She'd probably cracked under brutal torture and spilled everything. The fact that this assassin was waiting for her like this was proof.
"Her name was Kim Min-ah, right? You and that rat bitch were pretty close, weren't you? From the same orphanage? Not curious at all what happened to your friend? I was right there when they tortured her, you know. I can describe it in vivid detail if you want."
"I said shut up!"
"It was a sloppy torture job all around. The guy in charge was a rookie—pretty inexperienced."
Ji Ye-won said whatever she wanted, but the assassin ignored her.
His eyes curved like crescent moons. As if he couldn't hold back his eagerness to talk, he opened his mouth in an excited tone.
"Torture's all about gradually ramping up the intensity, tightening the noose bit by bit—that's the fun of it. But this guy? He got nervous or something and went way too hard from the start."
"What was the opener? Right, standard procedure: pulling out all her fingernails and toenails first. But even that didn't make her squeal. We yanked out all twenty from her hands and feet, and her eyes still had fight in them. No matter what the torturer asked, she held firm, saying she absolutely couldn't talk."
"But like I said, the torturer was a newbie. He followed the book, but when she didn't even hint at breaking, he got antsy.
"Normally, if they don't confess on the first round, you dose them with truth serum and let it soak in before questioning again. But this idiot skipped straight to the next torture. He crushed her fingers in pliers, smashed her hands with a hammer, sliced the flesh off her forearms bit by bit with a knife. Like he was following a textbook step-by-step from fingertips upward. Gotta say, rookie or not, the kid learned well.
"That's where it all went wrong. See, physical torture can't go too far with the pain. They might go into shock and die, or worse, their mind breaks completely and it gets messy. So you pre-treat with truth serum or painkillers to dull it a bit. Irony, right? The whole point is inflicting pain.
He looked at Ji Ye-won as he rambled excitedly. She, who had been ready to lunge, now listened in pained silence.
The assassin loved that expression on her face.
'Acting like she doesn't care, but curiosity's curiosity.'
He knew exactly how close Kim Min-ah and Ji Ye-won were.
Right now, she was probably worried and dying to know about her one true friend. So it was only right to satisfy that curiosity. He licked his dry lips and continued.
"Like I said, this rookie didn't use any drugs—not even truth serum.
Ji Ye-won's face hardened. She could guess what came next.
"Guess his pride got hurt or something. The bitch was screaming and crying, but he wouldn't stop. Then he jabbed some weird needle into her spine to mess with her nerves, but... no reaction. When he checked, her mind was already gone. Body alive, but mind dead, you know? We tried emergency care, painkillers, everything, but no recovery."
"......What?"
"Made finding this place a real pain too. She could barely speak—only 'it hurts,' 'no,' 'kill me.' That's it!"
He let out a big sigh after his spiel, looking relieved to have gotten it all out.
"That's why we didn't recover the Talisman ahead of time. We figured out the location, but she was too far gone to use her superpower. That Spatial Storage? Needs her there in person or her giving the key to someone else. You think a drooling vegetable could manage that? I was pissed at the thought of stakeout duty—then you show up in one day. Thanks!"
The assassin bowed his head mockingly.
Ji Ye-won gnashed her teeth with a grinding sound. Her dagger-grip fists trembled.
"Ye-won, calm down."
"......Calm? I'm perfectly fine."
It was obvious provocation. Ji Ye-won forced herself to steady her mind. She could rage at his words, but she kept her reason ice-cold.
"Torture this, torture that— we've both steeled ourselves for this. If I didn't have that resolve, I never would've betrayed the Dawn Corps."
"Oh, resolve, huh."
She tried to hold onto it.
"After three hours, she was ready to suck my dick if we let her live. Some resolve."
"......You bastard!"
But his lewd tongue-flicking leer snapped the thin thread of her reason.
-Thud!
With a murderous glare, Ji Ye-won kicked off the ground. By the time Ahn Su-ho registered it, she was already plunging into the assassin's guard.
-Clang!
The sharp ring of metal on metal exploded immediately after.
-Clang! Clang! Clang! Claaang!
Blurry flashes of reflected light danced in the air. Blades and axe crossed from every angle. Speeds no normal human could follow. Even Ahn Su-ho could barely track the afterimages.
-Claaang!
Ji Ye-won wielded her twin daggers in a frenzy.
Her movements were like flower petals scattering in the wind.
Less a fight than a sword dance. A dazzling performance that dazzled the eye. Even in rage, not a single waver in her form.
-Cllaang!
Meanwhile, the assassin's attacks were brutally simple.
Block, swing horizontally, chop vertically.
A basic three-beat rhythm, but flawless, without gaps. His relentless axe swings were like an impregnable iron fortress.
Spear versus shield. A deadlock at first glance.
But Ji Ye-won wasn't fighting alone.
-Zzzt!
Ahn Su-ho, late to join, swung his Stun Blade.
A perfect spot: no interference with Ji Ye-won, but able to strike the assassin. Impressive positioning for a total novice.
But still a beginner's swing. Not enough to threaten a battle-hardened killer.
-Thwack!
"Guh?!"
A flying kick sent Ahn Su-ho skidding back.
Not a full-power strike—just a probing kick while handling Ji Ye-won.
But it was more than enough against Ahn Su-ho. Even a light blow from the assassin was near-fatal to his feeble body.
"Your buddies are all useless! One sniped and done, and this guy's not even fighting properly?"
"I can kill you alone just fine!"
"Big talk!"
-Cllaang!
The next instant, Ji Ye-won's dagger shattered against the assassin's axe.
A sleazy smile curled on the assassin's lips. As Ji Ye-won backpedaled to recover, he lunged fiercely.
-Clang!
But his powerful axe swing was blocked by Ahn Su-ho's Stun Blade. The strength gap buckled Ahn Su-ho's knees.
They buckled, but the brief opening he created gave Ji Ye-won time to regroup. A new dagger, forged from her superpower, was already in her hand.
-Slash!
The assassin's arm suffered a shallow cut. Minor wound, but a wound nonetheless. He leaped back over ten meters, irritation flashing on his face.
"Not bad?"
"......Thanks for the compliment."
The two reset their stances. The assassin clicked his tongue watching them.
'Ji Ye-won. Heard she's from the hunter squad—strong as expected. That Ahn Su-ho guy's slow as hell, but his instincts are annoyingly good......'
The assassin glanced behind him. Thick black smoke filled the air in the direction of his sniper ally.
'Not dispersing in the wind, so not ordinary smoke.'
Probably that Ahn Su-ho guy's power, he figured, lowering his stance.
'A bit unexpected, but not dangerous.'
The organization's other pursuers guarding spots Ji Ye-won might flee to—they were all rushing to this abandoned building now. The sniper should've relocated to a clear line of sight by now too.
He was temporarily disadvantaged, but time would flip that.
For a split second, he wondered if Ji Ye-won had other allies, but he shook it off. A criminal who'd lost even her organization—where would she find help?
Even old comrades wouldn't readily aid someone who'd turned the Dawn Corps into enemies.
'But where the hell did these two randos come from?'
He alternated glances between Chae So-yeon and Ahn Su-ho, lost in thought. Various possibilities about their identities came to mind, but none stuck.
No matter how seasoned an assassin, he'd never guess the Academy Security Force had made first contact with Ji Ye-won and offered aid.
'Whatever.'
He gave up thinking. A half-baked fighter guy and a near-dead woman sniped—no real threat.
'They don't look like they've trained together long......'
From the earlier skirmish, he'd gauged them pretty well.
Ji Ye-won was strong. Her dance-like swordplay was threatening enough. But not overwhelming.
Ahn Su-ho, on the other hand, was hopelessly amateur. Some talent, but skill lacking. Superhuman physique equally pathetic.
'Target the weaker one.'
The assassin grinned. A rough plan to take down the pair formed in his head.
-Dash!
He charged. His axe, swung with torrent force, aimed for Ahn Su-ho's neck.
-Clang!
Ji Ye-won blocked it, and Ahn Su-ho countered without missing the gap.
As he reacted, Ji Ye-won covered, then Ahn Su-ho filled her opening.
Exploiting their two-on-one advantage, small wounds gradually accumulated on the assassin.
Seemed like solid teamwork at a glance.
But up close, gaps everywhere—especially Ahn Su-ho's clumsy moves.
'I can win.'
Meanwhile, Ahn Su-ho himself couldn't hide his excitement at the unexpectedly favorable flow.
'We can win. We've got a real shot!'
His first life-or-death real combat. Tension and thrill squeezing his body. Adrenaline flooding his brain, boiling his blood.
Pre-fight anxiety gone. First-battle high and confidence in their edge clouded his judgment.
Moves growing bolder with thoughts of 'I can do this.'
Ji Ye-won matched his tempo forcibly, but cracks formed in their makeshift coordination.
And soon, those cracks became a massive rift.
"Hup!"
Ahn Su-ho swung his blade with all his might. Full of openings. But the assassin didn't exploit them—instead, he deflected it behind him.
Unable to control his momentum, Ahn Su-ho tumbled forward.
A rookie mistake. But who could blame him? Matching Ji Ye-won's moves even clumsily this long was more than enough.
But this was life-or-death combat.
Even if no one blamed him, he bore the consequences of his error fully.
Or rather, his comrade would.
-Cllaang!!
The assassin's strike. A shrill ring, and Ji Ye-won's blade shattered again.
Her daggers were superhuman-forged. Inferior in quality to the assassin's beast-material axe.
She retreated, conjuring a new one. Normally, Ahn Su-ho would've covered the gap—but he was too far ahead, lost in his swing.
Despair flickered across Ji Ye-won's face.
The assassin didn't miss it—his axe came crashing down viciously.
-Spurt!
The next moment, bright red blood sprayed.