Chapter 17. Demon Genevy
Team Ji-hyuk didn't stir until well after the sun had fully risen. With daylight breaking, the murderous aura had definitely quieted down a bit. Thankfully, Grace didn't throw a fit like she had the day before. Still, there was this precarious tension, like a cup brimming with water on the verge of spilling over at any moment.
...We had to press on. We couldn't just cower here in endless anxiety. The team finished their preparations in solemn tension. The leader locked eyes with each subordinate and comrade one by one before giving the signal to move out.
They descended the slope once more. Sure, the killing intent had eased, but it hadn't vanished entirely. The chilling energy still lingered, prickling their skin like a cold tongue. The sensitive Yael could vividly sense the demonic energy growing stronger. Ugh... Her body trembled instinctively, ever so slightly.
They marched for quite a while. The city walls came into view through the trees. Ji-hyuk halted them just before entering.
"Light the torches. Yael, light."
The team members, already briefed beforehand, obeyed silently. They lit torches and summoned glowing orbs in broad daylight.
"Let's go."
Everyone gripped their weapons tightly. They advanced toward the walls, step by careful step. Then, suddenly, the surroundings began to darken. The sun, which had been blazing down moments ago, vanished as if it were all a lie. Darkness deeper than night engulfed everything.
Ah...! It was a change so unbelievable without experiencing it firsthand.
The still air erupted into frenzy. An overwhelming wave of killing intent and demonic energy swallowed them whole, choking their throats.
Ugh. Yael clutched her chest tightly.
...Honestly, it was terrifying. The others weren't much different.
"Everyone, stay sharp. Just trust me and follow."
The leader's stern voice cut through. Those words gave them strength like nothing else. He'd pulled off near-miraculous feats so far. They firmly believed he'd dispatch this demon and get them out unscathed, just like always. They mustered their resolve and pushed forward, one step at a time.
Inside the barrier was a world apart from outside. Now they understood why this ancient city was called a labyrinth. Memories from two years ago flooded back to Grace and Grendal. This oppressive darkness hadn't changed at all.
...And they knew what lurked within it.
Hah, hah, hah. The healer gasped raggedly. The storm of emotions in her chest—fear? Hatred? It was all tangled beyond recognition.
- Aaaaaaahhh—!
Her comrades' ear-piercing screams assaulted her ears one after another. Ugh. She clamped her hands over both ears. But the screams didn't stop.
Hah, hah, hah. Her eyes bulged red with burst vessels.
"Fuck, fuck, you fucking fucks, haa, haa, fuck, you demon bastards, I'll kill you all, kill every last one..."
Grendal grabbed Grace's shoulders firmly, trying to calm her. But she slapped his hands away irritably.
"Let go—! You bastards, I'll kill you. I'll, I'll get revenge. That fucker, I'll make sure to kill it myself."
Vicious curses poured from Grace's lips nonstop. Ji-hyuk didn't bother stopping her. Better raging like a beast ready to kill than trembling uselessly in fear.
They headed slowly toward the gates, which stood wide open as if awaiting guests. Ji-hyuk's team entered the city.
Gid spat a thick glob of phlegm on the ground, steeling himself. "Yeah, come on, you fucking demons or whatever. Bring it."
The pitch-black, empty city was total ruins. Ghosts could pop out anywhere and it wouldn't surprise anyone. No telling how long it'd been abandoned.
"Fuck, gives me the creeps."
A eerie wind blew, raising goosebumps on their skin. The team braced for combat anytime, anywhere—demons could lunge from the shadows without warning.
Then, something slithered in the darkness. It hated the light, approaching only to the edge before halting. Definitely a monster. The demon was surely watching them from somewhere.
Ji-hyuk stopped dead in a wide plaza-like area and called Yael. "Yael, dial back the intensity for a bit. When I signal, max it out."
"Got it."
"Begin."
The light dimmed gradually, its reach shrinking. It felt like a noose tightening around their necks. Everyone panted, weapons ready, scanning all directions.
Soon, Ji-hyuk signaled. "Now—!"
Yael poured mana into the orb in a rush. The faded sphere blazed bright, illuminating the surroundings.
- Kyaaaaaaaahhh—!!!!
A massive horde of monsters, huddled at the light's shrinking boundary, shrieked as the sudden glare hit them.
"What the fuuuuck—!"
Gid hadn't expected this many swarming the darkness around them. He raised his thick shield, ready to defend.
"Battle stations—!!"
Ji-hyuk shouted. Everyone assumed combat formation. At the same time, something immense emerged from the shadows, radiating presence. They couldn't see it, but they knew. Demon Genevy.
- —!!!!
It let out a roar. Ignoring their burning flesh, the monsters charged.
"Hold the line—!"
Ji-hyuk screamed for them to die. The team swung at the oncoming horde. The monsters were numerous but goblin-small; one solid hit sent them flying. Everyone slashed wildly. Yael skipped low-level fire spells for a big one. Grendal loosed rapid arrows, each piercing six or seven at once with devastating force. Mahushu and Kayak stabbed and bashed relentlessly. Gid smashed them one by one with brutal shield swings.
But the star, naturally, was Hero Kang Ji-hyuk. Each swing of his cursed holy sword cleared swaths around him.
The demon Genevy, seeking its foe, approached the hero slowly. It resembled writhing black slime, covered in eyes, with a jagged maw of fangs at its center. Its two wriggling tentacles snatched anything in reach and shoved it into its mouth—even other monsters.
Aaaaaaah—.
Seeing the demon, Grace convulsed. Not just any fit—she screamed, clutched her head, and collapsed forward, trembling and pissing herself.
...Fuck—!
But Ji-hyuk had no time for her. Yael hurled a fireball into the monster pack, then supported the convulsing Grace.
"Snap out of it! Come on—! Yaaah—! Get it together—!! If you don't, people die again—!!"
Unable to hold back, Yael slapped Grace's cheeks hard. ...A bit of personal grudge mixed in. The boss had poured so much attention into her, and she was still pulling this shit.
Ah, ow—.
In her frenzy, Yael accidentally smashed Grace's nose, drawing blood. But at least the healer came to.
"Ah..., Y-Yael...."
"Pull yourself together and heal—! Wanna watch us die—?!"
Grace's body still shook, but she forced out heals. Her state was a mess, but no time to care. Monsters poured from all sides. The rest of the team, minus Grace, fought admirably. Yael returned to the fray.
Meanwhile, Ji-hyuk faced Genevy. Dozens of eyes embedded in its slime glared at him. Crushing demonic energy enveloped the area.
Ugh—. Yael botched her chant from the sudden surge. If she hadn't rushed mana into the orb, it would've gone out.
Watching it flicker then brighten, Ji-hyuk yelled, "Yael—! Focus on the orb—!"
She was already planning that. One slip and they'd all die. The demon, figuring the mage was key, sent monsters swarming her. Lizardman Kayak yelled at Mahushu to guard Yael at all costs.
Everyone heaved ragged breaths. Too many enemies. Bodies were lacerated. Grace healed, but weakly—her mental state, no doubt. Grendal slung his bow and grabbed a mace, swinging freely. It suited his orc build better anyway.
Ji-hyuk approached the demon slowly, cracking his neck side to side. Second time facing it. Last time, a genius mage had spammed spells, making it easier. Now, pure his power.
...But he could win. Twenty-plus years of loops honed him far beyond then. No magic support? Whining to some demon meant quitting the Great Demon King for a life of lazy fucking—a hundred times better. If the continent fell, regress again.
Close enough, Ji-hyuk halted. He sliced charging monsters effortlessly. The cursed holy sword hummed in his palm. His fingers rippled like waves before gripping tight. He crushed his emotions, recalling old sensations—from the Great Demon King war, carving through demons relentlessly.
Demons knew fear too. Far from death, they forgot it briefly. But true death made them as ugly as humans. Begging, flailing—like Demon Shaia.
Genevy observed the human briefly, then extruded long tentacles—one per eye, writhing like living beings. They shot at Ji-hyuk like lightning, unannounced.
Ji-hyuk dodged and severed them acrobatically, surging forward.
- —!!!
The demon faltered. Its instant-skewer failed. The human was far quicker. It pressed relentlessly, but Ji-hyuk closed in and slashed its body deeply.
- Kieeeek—!!!
Genevy shrieked in unprecedented agony. Even the frenzied team jolted. Tentacles thrashed wildly, smashing indiscriminately. Panicking, huh? A glutton demon like this couldn't compete with Ji-hyuk.
Not that Genevy was weak. Its tentacles were mighty, laced with paralyzing venom. But power meant nothing unhit. Ji-hyuk's unrivaled distance control made him a nightmare matchup. Even an A-rank hero would fall to the venom; untouched, it was useless.
...But it wouldn't end there. After repeated sword gashes, Genevy realized the threat. It writhed, tentacles flailing. Ji-hyuk retreated briefly. Then it squirmed, splitting into multiples instantly. Each morphed into shapes of past strong prey.
Four in total. One resembled the presumed hero Raig. Grace didn't notice—too far, too slimy-black.
...Good thing. She'd freak otherwise.
They moved independently, encircling Ji-hyuk slowly. Round two began.