Chapter 48
Chapter 48
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 48
Chapter Title: Luring the Prey (4)
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“How could this….”
Park Chang-hyeon looked down at Park Jeong-woo’s limp corpse with a regretful expression.
A large gash across his chest and a gruesome, caved-in wound on the back of his head.
The injury to the back of his head was particularly severe, enough to send a chill down one’s spine.
“Haaah.”
An Awakener dying at the hands of a monster was an all-too-common occurrence, almost pointless to count, but seeing such a brutally murdered corpse weighed heavily on his mind.
“Where could the other Awakener who was with him be?”
“I don't know.”
Oh-jin shook his head with a complicated expression.
Of course, it wasn't that he truly didn't know.
‘They went that way.’
Through the Stigma of Sanyanggaejari, he confirmed the direction Choi Jong-cheol and the bald man had taken.
They were headed toward the city center.
It was the exact same direction the Masu had been fleeing.
“By the way, did something happen between you and him before, Mr. Oh-jin? The atmosphere earlier was a bit tense.”
“We had a brief argument at the Association registration office a while back.”
“Ah, I see.”
“Haaah. To be honest, I didn't have a good impression of him either, but… seeing him like this is weighing on me.”
He let out a deep sigh.
Did he not expect to be taken down by a Masu?
He reached out to Park Jeong-woo, who had died with his eyes wide open.
“This isn’t the right situation to recover the body.”
He closed the man's staring eyes and laid the body flat on the ground.
-Gurgle, gurgle.
A dark cloud slithered into Park Jeong-woo’s left chest.
“……”
He glanced around to see if anyone had noticed, but thanks to the effect of the ‘Mastermind’ trait, they seemed completely oblivious.
‘At this rate, I could probably use it openly and they wouldn't notice.’
He was once again reminded of just how overpowered the Mastermind trait was.
And so, as the cloud of Heukcheon reached Park Jeong-woo’s left chest.
[‘Heukcheon’ is absorbing the ‘Stigma of Jeongaljari’.]
A blue message window appeared before his eyes.
‘That’s it.’
The Stigma of Jeongaljari.
The ability to freely wield tens, even hundreds of types of poison, while simultaneously boosting one’s physical agility to explosive levels—the pinnacle for an assassin-type.
Of course, it couldn't compare to the Stigma of Geomungojari.
‘The more, the merrier.’
It was a Stigma belonging to the Hwangdo 12-gung.
There was no harm in having it.
“May he rest in peace.”
After absorbing Park Jeong-woo’s Stigma.
He bowed his head for a moment of silence.
Park Chang-hyeon followed suit, while Ha-eun turned her head away with a troubled expression.
“…Well then. Let’s get going again.”
“Yes.”
They set off again, the atmosphere somewhat heavier than before.
-Kwang!
“Karrrrrgh!!”
“Mr. Oh-jin!”
“Yes!”
The Masu attack began anew.
This time, it was a Masu with mantis-like arms and four legs.
-Vwoooom!!
On top of that, it was a flying type.
“Where do you think you’re going!”
Kuuuuung!!
Park Chang-hyeon stomped his foot hard and swung his hammer.
The Hwangsojari symbol engraved on his left chest emitted a glow.
-Kudududuk!
“Kararak?!”
A heavy shockwave struck the Masu as it tried to take flight.
The Masu was slammed headfirst into the ground.
“It’ll be a pain if it flies, so let’s finish it in one shot!”
“Okay.”
Ha-eun rushed forward and snapped her fingers.
A net of red flames formed, covering the Masu’s body.
Pzzzzzt!
A silver spear plunged down onto it.
Blue lightning scorched the Masu’s body.
“Ki, kirreuk, kireuk!”
“These bastards are damn good at running away.”
The wounded Masu staggered to its feet and began to flee, flapping its wings.
Ha-eun bared her teeth fiercely and stretched her hand toward the escaping Masu.
Red flames blazed, looking ready to explode at any moment.
“Nunna, wait a second.”
“Huh? Why?”
“Just let it run.”
Oh-jin watched the fleeing Masu intently.
‘Just as I thought.’
This time, too, the Masu was fleeing toward the city center.
“Let’s follow it.”
“What are you planning?”
Ha-eun tilted her head and followed Oh-jin.
As he chased after the fleeing Masu, he observed its movements.
And then.
“…Huh?”
Ha-eun narrowed her eyes, watching the escaping Masu.
Had she noticed it too?
“That thing… isn’t it acting a little strange?”
“Right?”
Whenever the distance grew too great, the fleeing Masu would deliberately sway from side to side, slowing down.
Yes.
As if it were ‘waiting’ for Oh-jin’s group to catch up.
‘Now I’m sure.’
Oh-jin clicked his tongue, raised his arm, and aimed at the staggering Masu.
Tang!
The wire shooter fired.
-Pzzzzzt!
“Kirrrreuk!”
The Masu that had been staggering away collapsed.
“The way they’ve been appearing one by one since earlier… Oh-jin, is this… perhaps?”
“It’s probably what you’re thinking, Nunna.”
The Masu appeared sporadically, one at a time, despite having taken over the entire city center.
They would fight for a bit, then flee toward the city center the moment things got dangerous.
This was.
‘They’re luring us.’
Leading us naturally to the city center.
‘Do Masu have this kind of intelligence?’
Oh-jin frowned, unable to comprehend it.
Masu.
In other words, these variant monsters were several times more ferocious than regular ones.
Which meant that while they were powerful, they were somewhat lacking in intelligence.
‘But they’re guiding our direction like they’re using bait?’
He had a feeling there was something more to this.
An unpleasant premonition, like sticky clothes clinging to his skin.
“Hmm. I’m not sure I see what’s strange.”
Park Chang-hyeon scratched his head, looking puzzled.
It meant the Masu were moving so meticulously and covertly that even a seasoned veteran like him couldn't notice.
Only Oh-jin, who knew more about ‘deception’ than anyone, and Ha-eun, who once fought on the front lines, were able to sense that something was amiss.
‘If they’re doing the same thing to the other Awakeners…’
…then it was highly likely the Awakeners were being led to the city center without even realizing it.
‘Is that why Choi Jong-cheol went to the city center?’
Seeing how the Masu were acting, that seemed very likely.
“Oh-jin.”
“Yeah.”
He looked back at Ha-eun, whose expression was stiff, and nodded.
Now that it was certain the Masu were luring the Awakeners to the city center…
“Mr. Chang-hyeon. Let’s head back.”
“Yes?”
Park Chang-hyeon looked at Oh-jin as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing.
“You want to go back already? We all still have plenty of stamina….”
“The Masu have been luring us toward the city center.”
“The Masu have that kind of intelligence?”
“I’m not certain. But just in case, I think it’s too dangerous to go any deeper.”
“But. The remaining Masu….”
Park Chang-hyeon’s lips twitched, his expression unconvinced.
“We’re not leaving completely. We’ll take care of the Masu on the outskirts of the city.”
“Mmm.”
“Subjugating the Masu is important, but isn’t it also important to prevent them from leaving Sokcho and attacking other cities?”
He persuaded Park Chang-hyeon with a plausible reason.
“Keung. What you say makes sense, Mr. Oh-jin. Alright. Let’s move to the outskirts then.”
Fortunately, Park Chang-hyeon accepted the suggestion without any further complaints.
“So, are we leaving right away?”
“Ah… wait, before that.”
Oh-jin turned toward the city center.
He still had something he needed to do.
‘I can’t miss out on the Stigma of Mulbyeongjari.’
Smiiirk.
A wicked smile played on his lips.
“I’ll go give the other teams a heads-up. Tell them it seems the Masu are luring Awakeners toward the city center.”
“Ah. If that’s the case, I’ll go with you.”
“I’ll go too.”
Park Chang-hyeon and Ha-eun stepped closer.
“No. I’ll go alone. If something unexpected happens, I’m the fastest at getting away.”
He had more than proven his overwhelming mobility with the wire shooter during their battles so far.
There would be no objections.
“Mmm. If you say so.”
“Keung.”
As expected.
The two of them nodded in understanding.
“…If you think something’s wrong, you get out of there immediately, you hear?”
Ha-eun approached him with a worried look.
Oh-jin chuckled and nodded.
“Don’t worry. I’m confident in my ability to take care of myself.”
“Here, promise Nunna. That you’ll come back unharmed.”
He hooked his pinky around the one Ha-eun held out.
“Alright. I’ll contact you in a bit.”
Oh-jin raised his arm and aimed at a nearby building.
Tang!
Using the wire shooter, he soared between the buildings.
After landing on a suitable rooftop.
-Wooooong!
He activated the Stigma of Sanyanggaejari.
“Sniff, sniff.”
Countless scents flooded his nostrils.
Among them, he found Choi Jong-cheol’s scent.
‘He’s over there.’
Not far.
Oh-jin’s eyes glinted sharply.
* * *
The center of the ruined city.
Surrounded by dozens of Masu, the middle-aged man wore his characteristic greasy smile.
“Hi, hihahi! I can’t believe it, no matter how many times I see it.”
He cautiously reached out to a Masu that was standing perfectly still, like a doll.
Pat, pat.
The Masu, whose ferocity was second to none, accepted his touch like docile lambs.
“To think I can actually control Masu…!”
Choi Jong-cheol trembled with excitement.
The black orb in his hand was emitting an ominous, sinister light.
‘With this power!’
Clench!
He clenched his fist and broke into a cackle.
“Hehe. The saying ‘a blessing in disguise’ really fits my life perfectly.”
Three months ago.
His life had hit rock bottom.
‘Because of that damn bastard…!’
Grit.
Just thinking of Oh-jin’s face made his stomach churn.
“Hahaha. Well, thanks to that, I was able to meet ‘him’.”
While he was wandering, having lost everything.
He visited the Pandinus Guild office, grasping at straws, and there he met a man.
A man named Ashad Khan.
Choi Jong-cheol recalled that meeting.
-You’re looking for a place that will take you in?
-Y-Yes, sir!
-Hmm.
The bronze-skinned man nodded with a wicked smile.
-Alright. But there’s one condition.
-A condition…?
-You just need to take this and follow my instructions.
What he received was a Seongyumul, said to contain the power of the Black Star.
That Seongyumul held the power to control violent Masu like obedient dogs.
‘No, that’s only a fraction of this Seongyumul’s power.’
The true power of the black Seongyumul, which emitted an ominous light, wasn’t simply controlling Masu.
This Seongyumul’s true value lay elsewhere.
“Heh. Hehehehe!!”
Choi Jong-cheol laughed, caressing the black orb as if it were precious.
-When the Black Star covers the night sky, this unjust world will meet its end.
The words Ashad Khan had uttered like a chant lingered in his mind like an echo.
They were gloomy and incredibly ominous words, but.
‘Who cares.’
Whether it’s a Black Star or whatever, it doesn’t matter.
What was important to him now was.
‘That I’ve finally gotten a chance to get revenge on that bastard.’
Choi Jong-cheol’s eyes gleamed as he clutched the black orb.
“Oh, Masu. Continue to lure the Awakeners to the city center!”
Shwick!
He struck a pose for no reason as he gave the order to the Masu.
“Krrrreuk!”
“Karak!”
The Masu, which had been as still as corpses, let out savage cries and scattered in all directions.
“Mr. Jong-cheol.”
Just then.
The bald man who had approached him asked cautiously.
Choi Jong-cheol frowned and asked irritably.
“What is it?”
“Will that guy Jeong-woo be alright?”
“This again?”
The bald man bit his lip, looking anxious.
“Do you know how much money that bastard owes me!”
“Haaah. Didn’t I explain this before?”
Tsk, tsk.
Choi Jong-cheol clicked his tongue.
“To avoid suspicion, we need a victim on our side too.”
The Pandinus Guild must not be identified as the culprit in the upcoming ‘massacre’.
They had to end this operation as victims, through and through.
To do that.
“Someone has to be sacrificed.”
“Keung.”
The bald man scratched the back of his head.
“Well, you don’t need to worry so much. I made sure to injure him just enough so he wouldn’t die.”
He might have some lasting effects, but at least he wouldn't die.
“Tch. I understand.”
“Then please scout the area until the Awakeners gather in the center.”
“Yep.”
The bald man turned and left.
About 15 minutes passed.
“Pant! Pant! M-Mr. Jong-cheol!!”
“What is it now?”
He frowned at the bald man who was approaching, breathing heavily.
“H-He’s dead!”
“Who’s dead?”
“J-Jeong-woo!! That bastard is dead!!”
“What?”
Why would he be dead?