Demon God's Armor (7)
After collecting the three corpses, Yeong-sik summoned the guild members via the communication orb. The guild members, upon receiving the call, quickly gathered at the location where Yeong-sik and Tiriya were.
"Th-this is…"
The faces of the 26 Salvatore Guild members hardened as they saw the three bodies sprawled on the floor. They weren't oblivious enough to miss what those corpses signified.
"Those fucking bastards!"
Yuna was the one who reacted most furiously upon seeing the bodies. She had always thought of Tiriya like an older sister, and now she was overcome with shock, as if her own family had been slaughtered.
"I'll burn them all to ash. I'll incinerate this trash of a kingdom entirely!"
Her entire body trembled as she drew the twin swords from her waist. Flames surged along the blades of the red swords.
Tiriya extended a hand toward her.
"Calm down, Yuna."
"Calm down?! These were the family Sister longed for so desperately! How can I calm down when they're all dead?!"
Yuna shouted in a voice thick with passion.
Tiriya gazed at her and spoke in a cold tone.
"Getting worked up won't change a thing."
"Urgh…! Then what do we do?! You're not thinking of just letting this slide, are you?!"
Yuna demanded, her face twisting savagely.
"No."
Tiriya replied with a voice as sharp and decisive as a blade.
"There's no way I'd let it slide."
"…Are you planning revenge, Guild Master?"
Bae Han-seong, who had been listening, asked with a stiff expression.
Revenge. That meant one thing.
Killing Hendrick von Elnot, the root of all this evil.
But it wasn't a decision to make on a whim of emotion. Killing a nation's king was far too grave for the current Salvatore Guild to bear.
"Yes. That's exactly what I intend."
Tiriya, who knew this better than anyone, spoke with a voice laced with unyielding resolve.
Her tone carried a thick murderous intent that was hard to believe came from the Tiriya they knew. The Salvatore Guild members' expressions grew grim at this unfamiliar side of her.
It was nothing like the gentle smile she always wore, no matter the circumstances.
"…We will follow the Guild Master's decision."
Han-seong bowed deeply, his voice low and resolute. Yu-jin, standing behind him, also bowed to her.
"What exactly do you plan to do?"
Yu-jin lifted his head and asked in his characteristically sharp tone.
Tiriya fell into thought at his question.
Killing the king itself wouldn't be difficult. The Elnot palace was a hollow shell now, with all its forces dispatched outward.
The problem was what came after. Slaying the king without a plan for the ensuing chaos would be folly.
"It's a temporary measure, but I have one method in mind."
Yeong-sik's voice broke the silence, drawing all eyes to him.
He opened his mouth.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
"Hah! Hah! D-damn it!"
In a dark passageway, artificially carved like the inside of a dungeon, a middle-aged man was running.
The man, dressed in clothes so ostentatiously gaudy they bordered on tacky, glanced back while gasping for breath.
"Why… why did attackers have to show up now of all times…!"
He stared down the passage he'd come from, his face pale with terror.
No sounds of pursuit reached him from behind.
The middle-aged man trembling in the passage—Hendrick von Elnot—cut a pathetic figure, utterly unworthy of a king, as he whipped his head around frantically.
"Those incompetent fools! They should have obviously left forces to protect me!"
Hendrick spat curses, thinking of his ministers.
If they heard him, they'd clutch their necks and collapse.
It was Hendrick himself who had sent even the minimal palace guard to join the Dragonian subjugation.
But Hendrick, who never concerned himself with such details, vented all his frustration at the ministers.
"Don't you think it's time to reconsider who the real incompetent is?"
A cold voice whispered into the ear of the terrified man.
"Wh-who's there!"
Startled by the sudden voice, Hendrick collapsed to the ground and shouted in a quavering tone.
A figure approached from the shadows of the passage.
It was a young man with sharp features.
"I figured you'd flee this way."
The sharp-featured youth—Yeong-sik—chuckled softly as he looked down at Hendrick cowering on the floor.
This was the secret passage connected to the Sirenchium Mountains, which they had used to infiltrate the palace.
Yeong-sik had predicted Hendrick would come here upon hearing of the attack, and his guess proved spot on.
"H-how do you know about this passage?!"
Hendrick gaped up at Yeong-sik in disbelief.
This was a top-secret passage, even within the palace. No one else should know.
"Hm. Pity. If the Royal Guard had been here, they might have figured out our entry point."
Yeong-sik smirked sardonically.
Had Hendrick known they'd used this passage, he never would have fled here.
But the emptied palace had no one left to report their infiltration route.
"Wh-what do you want!"
Hendrick screamed, his face ashen.
Yeong-sik approached with leisurely steps.
"I have a few questions."
Reaching Hendrick, Yeong-sik nudged him with his foot and spoke casually.
Hendrick's face twisted at the playful prodding.
"You scum! Do you even know who I—"
Crack!
Yeong-sik stomped on Hendrick's right ankle.
A gruesome sound of bone shattering echoed.
"Gaaahhhh!"
Hendrick clutched his ankle and wailed in agony.
"Ready to answer my questions properly now?"
"H-how dare you…!"
Crack!
His left ankle met the same fate under Yeong-sik's foot.
With both ankles pulverized, Hendrick foamed at the mouth, his body convulsing from pain he'd never known.
Pop.
Yeong-sik uncorked a potion from his inventory. It sharpened the mind and boosted concentration.
Holding the potion in one hand, he grabbed Hendrick's hair—foam dripping from his mouth—and forced it down his throat.
"Gahk! Stop!"
His mind clearing only amplified the pain's vividness, and Hendrick desperately clutched at Yeong-sik's pant leg.
"How about now? Feeling cooperative?"
"I'll answer anything!"
Hendrick nodded frantically.
A faint smile tugged at Yeong-sik's lips.
"Answer honestly, and your life is safe."
His tone was disarmingly gentle, belying the man who'd just crushed two ankles.
"I confirmed Duke Erman dead in the underground prison. Why leave your leverage against Salvatore Guild to die?"
"…You… you're with Salvatore Guild, doing this evil…"
Crunch.
Yeong-sik twisted Hendrick's left thumb. It snapped at an unnatural angle.
"Aaaargh!"
Hendrick writhed in horrific pain radiating from his hand.
Yeong-sik spoke flatly.
"Just answer the question. Why let the hostages die?"
"Guhk…! Th-they're no longer needed! No longer needed, so I let them die!"
"Oh? Why not?"
"Th-that's…"
Crunch.
His index finger twisted next. Another scream erupted.
"I-Ingrium! It's because we found an Ingrium Empire relic! With that, we can make all summoners submit!"
"Ingrium Empire relic…?"
Yeong-sik narrowed his eyes at Hendrick.
"What is it?"
Hesitation flickered across Hendrick's face at the question about the relic.
Yeong-sik seized another finger.
"W-wait! I'll tell you!"
Hendrick cried desperately.
"Demon God's Armor! That's the Ingrium Empire relic!"
"Demon God's Armor…?"
"N-not exactly Ingrium's. It was found at the site of a massive ancient battle between the Ingrium Empire and northern monsters!"
"Is this the Demon God's Armor you're talking about?"
Yeong-sik pulled the black armor from the palace report out of his inventory.
Hendrick's face filled with shock at the jet-black suit.
"H-how do you have that…!"
His reaction confirmed it—this was the "Demon God's Armor."
Yeong-sik's gaze darkened.
This is the Demon God's Armor?
He stared at the obsidian suit in incomprehension.
It contained no magic whatsoever—just a pure mechanical suit, far beyond modern Earth's science, like something from a sci-fi film.
He couldn't fathom why it was found at a battle site between Ingrium and northern monsters.
Hmm?
After pondering with eyes closed, Yeong-sik let out a thoughtful hum.
There was far too little information to uncover the black suit's true nature.
"Y-you've got what you wanted, right? Let me go!"
Hendrick pleaded piteously.
Yeong-sik crouched beside him and casually twisted his middle finger.
Crunch!
"Aaaahhh!"
Hendrick writhed and screamed anew.
"What's the rush, Hendrick?"
Yeong-sik draped an arm over his shoulder like a neighborhood uncle.
Gripping his pinky, he continued.
"We're just getting started."
Hendrick's face drowned in deep despair.