Chapter 193
Chapter 193
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 193
Chapter Title: Dangerous (2)
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The underworld thug's demand for the promised elixir, as if it had been entrusted to them.
"Hmm, the elixir?"
"Hey, didn't you tell us to work hard earlier? If you'd given us the elixir from the start, we would've put in the effort, right?"
Both the tone and the content.
It was deeply grating to the ears of a demon head on the level of Song Gil-jun.
Yet the thug brushed off even that question with a good-natured laugh.
"Haha. True enough, that might have been the case."
But the underworld thug seemed displeased by this and raised his voice.
"Might have been? We stopped our bandit ways and joined the cult because you promised elixirs and to make us experts! But you keep putting that off and have us hauling dirt day in and day out!"
One of the black-clad men beside Song Gil-jun ground his teeth and stepped forward.
"These bastards..."
Song Gil-jun extended a hand to stop him.
But this action only gave them more reason to look down on him.
The other underworld thugs began murmuring among themselves.
"That's right! The order is all wrong!"
"Exactly!"
Song Gil-jun fixed his gaze on the first underworld thug who had spoken, then smiled faintly.
"Hmm. Haha."
It seemed affable at first glance.
But to me, who knew his true face, those crescent-shaped eyes felt chillingly eerie.
"I see. I hadn't realized you were thinking that way. If you're willing, could you step forward so we can discuss this in detail?"
The underworld thug who had raised his voice hesitated for a moment but, bolstered by the agreement from those around him, boldly stepped up before Song Gil-jun.
"Hmph. What detailed discussion? Just give us what you promised."
"There is an order to things. We will deliver as promised. It benefits our cult for all of you to become true experts."
"That's the problem—always talking about the future and later. How long do you plan to keep stringing us along with words?"
The underworld thug's words had long crossed the line.
The man before him was the cult's young lord, called the "Demon Army," not some wandering quack peddler.
Yet Song Gil-jun did not lose his smile and accepted all their words.
Until the forward thug touched his reverse scale.
"As you know, the work is nearly complete. Once it's done, we'll distribute as promised..."
"Enough of that. Don't you think this makes the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult seem like some flashy-talking nothingburger? And this isn't just my thought."
"......"
"Something about the Demon Dao ruling the world, so we believed and joined, but this is..."
The underworld thug couldn't finish his sentence and let out a scream instead.
"Kaaaaak!"
It was because Song Gil-jun had swiftly drawn a dagger from his sleeve and stabbed the thug's hand.
Blood splattered on his face, but he continued speaking with a smiling face, unruffled.
"Come to think of it, you all don't know me very well."
Of course, it wasn't just words.
With each sentence, he stabbed the seated underworld thug's hand again.
Stab.
"Kaaaaak!"
"There are a few things I dislike."
Stab.
"One is interrupting me mid-sentence."
"Kaaaa!"
Stab.
"Another is when such a person mouths off like this."
"K-Kkhuk..."
Stab.
"And the most important is speaking carelessly about our cult."
With that, Song Gil-jun shook off his hand, stood, and kicked the underworld thug away.
Thud!!
The sprawled thug writhed in pain.
But instinctively sensing that making a sound would mean death, he twisted silently.
"Hup. Hhuk..."
Song Gil-jun watched for a moment, then spoke in an utterly cold voice.
"But this one said it wasn't just his thought... which makes me wonder."
He paused briefly.
Seemingly knowing that sometimes letting the listener imagine was more terrifying than continuing.
"Perhaps the delay isn't just because the drilling team took a detour from the planned path."
The surrounding underworld thugs paled in unison.
Then Song Gil-jun's eyes curved into a smile once more.
"It seems everyone needs to step outside the tunnel with me."
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Having witnessed Song Gil-jun's true face, the underworld thugs swallowed dryly and followed him out of the tunnel.
"...But why make us follow him out?"
"How should I know? Why'd these idiots go poking at the young lord's temper?"
"Weren't you complaining this morning that it was dogshit work too?"
It was a complete reversal from their earlier rebellious murmuring.
For me, it was all working out nicely.
'Song Gil-jun's insight is no joke.'
He had grasped the tunnel's situation from a mere glance.
'He might have even sniffed out my disguise.'
With the elaborate disguise, the tunnel environment, and my acting, no tail was stepped on in that moment.
'If attention had focused on me, it could've been dangerous.'
But thanks to the underworld thugs drawing all the aggro, I slipped through.
'And now they're all heading outside in a herd—perfect.'
To slip away from the labor squad, I first needed to get out of the tunnel.
Even setting aside Song Gil-jun's sharp eyes, his appearance would have heightened security around here.
Moving out in a group like this naturally dispersed attention.
'Once I'm in the open, I'll find a way to break off.'
As I blended into the crowd of underworld thugs and walked out, how long had it been?
Clang—
Stepping from the dim tunnel into the sudden sunlight, I squinted.
Then a raspy voice tsked in my ear.
"Tch. Nangjung, you're too eager about the world. Can't us old-timers handle it? I don't get why you'd crawl into a sweaty hellhole like that."
Someone speaking so casually to Song Gil-jun?
I rolled my eyes, now adjusted to the light, toward the voice.
There lay a man nearly as burly as Uncle Socheon, using two axes as a pillow.
'That build, axes, attitude toward the Nangjung Demon Lord, and the ornate swirl emblem on his sleeve cuffs. That guy's... Black Immortal Demon Lord Man-woo?'
It was a hunch flashing through my mind, and I hoped it was wrong.
'If it is him, the situation's worse than I thought.'
But my hope was dashed.
"Looking at you, Nangjung, all that talk about your quick wits must be bullshit, huh?"
"Hahaha. Brother Man is right. I'm the dim one, so my body suffers for it. Master scolds me plenty too."
'Brother Man' from Song Gil-jun's lips.
'...So it is Man-woo. Shit, this is bad.'
I gritted my teeth at the new variable.
I had no choice.
'These two being here at this time means...'
The cult was deploying two Demon Lord-level figures for the attack.
That meant scaling up their forces at least twofold.
'And it means escaping right now just got a lot harder.'
Two Demon Lords would bring substantial troops under them.
Bolting openly now would make slipping out of the labor camp cleanly unlikely.
'If worst comes to worst, I'll chase that slim chance, but for now, stay mixed in and watch for an opening.'
As I pondered, the two demons' conversation continued.
"So, why'd you bring out such a crowd?"
"Ah, the prospective recruits seem to lack faith in our cult."
"What?"
At Song Gil-jun's last words,
Man-woo, who had been lounging comfortably swinging his legs, furrowed his brow, sat up,
"Lacking faith? You have a habit of beating around the bush, Nangjung..."
Then twisted his face into a fiendish scowl.
"...In other words, they dare to look down on our cult?!"
He kicked off the ground without question and charged this way.
"Nergy?"
"!"
He cleaved the underworld thug whose hand Song Gil-jun had stabbed earlier in two with his axe.
Splatter!!!!
At Man-woo's action,
The blood-soaked underworld thugs recoiled in horror.
But none dared flee outright.
Instinct told them showing their backs would mean dying first.
"...And here I was explaining, yet you act without listening."
Song Gil-jun shook his head as if exasperated, observing the scene.
Man-woo scratched his chin nonchalantly and retorted.
"Wasn't this guy?"
Looking ready to split another if wrong.
Yet no particular killing intent in Man-woo's eyes.
He seemed to view people like mosquitoes or flies.
"Oh? All of them, then?"
He poised to cleave everyone in sight.
Fortunately, Song Gil-jun stopped him before it happened.
"That one was correct."
"See? I had a feeling!"
"...Didn't you come along on the condition of following my lead?"
"Ah, from now on, sure. But if you're not killing them all, why drag out so many?"
"I wanted time to check their mindset toward the cult. But now Brother Man's got them all terrified."
"Ah, sorry about that?"
"Who could stop Brother Man? Anyway. Have the prospective recruits line up for now."
No one spoke, but they moved quickly.
The underworld thugs formed neat ranks.
I took a spot roughly in the middle.
Unsure what would happen or in what order, I needed front and back for minimal evasion time.
"Well then, shall we begin?"
With the underworld thugs lined up,
Song Gil-jun's questioning began.
It was anything but ordinary.
"What is your reason for joining our cult?"
Just one question.
"Ch-Choosing to learn under the Heavenly Demon! And, uh? Ah! To serve! Yes! That's why I decided to join!"
"You're just lying to save your skin."
Life or death hinged on the answer.
"Brother Man. This one will betray us someday."
"Yeah?"
Splatter!!!
Especially since the answer itself hardly mattered.
"H-Honestly, I joined because you promised to make me an expert."
"Pursuing strength is a mindset every Heavenly Demon Divine Cult follower must hold. Good. Don't lose it. Next, step forward."
Same question, same answer—some lived,
"Me too, elixir and becoming an expert—that's why I joined!"
"Brother Man."
"Yeah."
Splatter!!!!!!
Some died.
'...He looks like he has convictions, but he's just a psycho.'
By now, the lined-up underworld thugs losing their minds was natural.
They trembled at the scene, fearing the two who held their lives.
Their whispers proved it.
"...This Nangjung young lord must read minds."
"N-No real thoughts, but if I start thinking of serving the Heavenly Demon now, can I survive?"
I sneered inwardly.
'Song Gil-jun's perceptive, but mind-reading? No way.'
But to those gathered, it felt real.
'Song Gil-jun's planting fear and awe through this.'
Judging it best to make examples by killing a few.
Even now, Man-woo was splitting another beside him.
'...Problem is, my turn's approaching.'
Recalling Song Gil-jun urging haste inside, he wouldn't kill many workers.
'At most five.'
Yet by my turn, exactly four had fallen.
"Next, step forward."
"......"
My turn at last.
I shuffled forward, mimicking a terrified underworld grunt's gait.
Reviewing my sorted thoughts.
'Showing my back to flee or picking a fight—both are last resorts now.'
Fighting desperately to buy time for relief forces wasn't impossible,
But without knowing their troop numbers, grouping up was risky.
These two changed everything beyond my expectations; needed a new plan.
'Simple: Fill the number Song Gil-jun has in mind.'
His tunnel check and talk with thugs were calculated precisely.
Given his hatred of miscalculations,
If Man-woo filled the example quota, he'd likely skip questioning me.
'Whew.'
I took a short breath,
And in the blind spot passing the lined-up thugs, cast Blood Needle Technique, firing red needles.
Thwip—
The blood droplet flew to my marked underworld thug and struck.
A scum who'd bragged about captures before—ripe for death.
"Aak!"
The hit thug flinched and moved.
Man-woo on the platform lunged with axe swinging.
Splatter!!!!
I deliberately fell on my butt in feigned panic.
"Aigoo!"
Then Song Gil-jun spoke in mock anger.
"Brother Man! Now the recruits will think our cult is a band of butchers!"
"...I just thought, in a mindset check, who's screaming like that."
Song Gil-jun shook his head at Man-woo's sheepish grin, but he wasn't truly bothered.
Man-woo's kills were within his calculations.
"Enough. We'll end the event here."
As expected,
He feigned reluctance and called it off.
"That last one had seeds of betrayal too, but this way we'll kill real prospects!"
"......"
"Brother Man, follow me a bit. Squad leader, wrap up and give the recruits drinks and meat."
"...Tch."
"Understood."
Sighs of relief erupted here and there.
I was no different.
Best plan or not, failure meant risking my life on the next move.
"Phew."
But as I caught my breath,
One thought crossed my mind.
'If this is Nangjung Demon Lord's setup... maybe I can turn his clever head against him?'