Chapter 256
Chapter 256
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 256
Chapter Title: Lightning's Verdict
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Thwoom-!
The spear forged of lightning hurtled toward Daniel's heart.
In that instant, light flashed as if lightning had struck the ground. The undead legion charging at Soo-hyuk vanished along the spear's trajectory, like shadows wiped away.
Zzzzzzt-.
It was less penetration and more utter annihilation.
The summoned creatures couldn't serve as shields. Their bodies, offered up to block the spear, tore apart like paper.
Thwoom-!
Unhindered, without any resistance.
Ripping through the hellspawn summons, Soo-hyuk's spear struck Daniel's body.
Kaboom-!
A pillar of lightning erupted above Daniel's form. The sight resembled lightning shooting from earth to sky, drawing every gaze on the battlefield there for a moment.
Thud-.
Whoosh-.
The bone dragons soaring through the air plummeted to the ground. Their pristine white fragments corroded to a dark brown, soon crumbling into fine sand that scattered away.
All of Daniel's summons had vanished.
It was the most irrefutable proof of his death—his corpse impossible to even find.
"Huff, haa-."
Soo-hyuk, who had hurled the spear with all his might, panted heavily as he stared at the scene.
Rumble, grrr-.
It was the same thunderclap he always heard. Identical to anyone else's ears.
But to Soo-hyuk, it felt different.
A familiar, nostalgic sound.
It had been ages since he'd heard one this massive and thunderous. Every time he wielded lightning, he'd felt an unfillable void.
Soo-hyuk gazed down at his palm, clenching and unclenching it repeatedly.
The spear he'd just thrown was close to that one strike that had severed the Hydra's breath.
For a fleeting moment.
He felt like the real Lee Soo-hyuk again.
"Trying to hog all the glory again."
Soo-hyuk whipped his head toward the voice that shouldn't have reached him.
Was it the illusion of old times?
Ghosts of long-lost friends flickered at the edge of his vision.
Gyu-seong and Su-hun. Ji-young, Min-jae. They all stared at Soo-hyuk.
Gyu-seong with arms crossed like he'd expected it, Su-hun flashing a thumbs-up and beaming.
Ji-young pursing her lips as if gearing up to nag, Min-jae glancing warily at her.
They brimmed with lifelike vitality.
But only for a moment.
"What're you staring at?"
Their images faded like a mirage, and Si-woo waved from beside him.
Soo-hyuk snapped back to reality at the gesture and asked,
"Was that you just now?"
"What?"
"The 'hogging all the glory' bit."
"Did the noise deafen you? Who else would it be?"
Si-woo shot back incredulously and turned away.
The ground along the spear's path lay gouged. Where Daniel had stood was now a deep, wide crater—the terrain utterly transformed.
"But you said you'd lost all your power?"
"Recovering."
"Looks pretty much recovered to me."
It was just one strike, but the blow Soo-hyuk had unleashed bore little difference from the Lee Soo-hyuk in Si-woo's memories.
Of course, he'd still need to cover those 20 years from there, but regaining his former strength in such a short time was unbelievably swift.
"Not quite."
"You were never the humble type."
"For real. Couldn't have done this alone."
To unleash that single strike, Soo-hyuk had taken considerable time. Calling thunderclouds, ramping up output, squeezing every ounce of strength to craft it.
If Si-woo hadn't drawn attention up front. If he hadn't pinned down Daniel's movements, that strike wouldn't have even been possible.
"Doesn't matter, right? You're not alone anyway."
Soo-hyuk couldn't help but chuckle at Si-woo's matter-of-fact words.
He was right. He'd slipped into that bad habit unconsciously again.
Sometimes Soo-hyuk had this tendency to shoulder everything solo. He knew comrades were at his side in battle, yet beforehand, he'd resolve to handle it all himself.
Even when there was no need.
"Grown a lot? You're saying stuff like that now."
"Nah, you've just shrunk."
"......Damn."
"Let's go check on Ye-ryeong."
Soo-hyuk nodded at Si-woo's words. His body felt heavy with fatigue, but his mind was the lightest it'd been in ages.
She'd split off for some business, but finding her wouldn't be hard.
Where she was would be utter chaos by now.
Step-.
Soo-hyuk and Si-woo started walking.
With Daniel dead and his summons gone.
The demons didn't dare charge the two recklessly. They weren't stupid, just fearless.
Monsters that had slain a legion commander. What could they hope to accomplish rushing in? Flight was their only option.
Naturally, only Blue Zone rankers remained around.
As Soo-hyuk walked with Si-woo's support, he eyed them.
"Gonna try to stop us?"
Flinch-.
With their foe gone, the rankers glanced at each other warily.
Strictly speaking, they shouldn't let Si-woo and Soo-hyuk go like this. The fight with the demons had delayed it, but Si-woo and Soo-hyuk were the invaders who'd struck first at Blue Zone.
Yet no one there mustered the will to block their path.
Swish-.
Shuffle-.
As they began stepping back one by one, a path cleared instantly. Soo-hyuk and Si-woo glanced around briefly before resuming their steps.
In that moment, Soo-hyuk caught sight of it.
Doubt flickering in some eyes. Admiration and suspicion mingled in gazes toward Si-woo.
Leaving those stares behind, Soo-hyuk thought.
The stalled time had begun to move again.
Rumble-.
The towering pillar of electricity gradually subsided.
Its power prickled the skin even from afar. For a moment, every nerve on the battlefield focused there, halting the fight.
Whoosh-.
Fsssh-.
Daniel's summons scattered everywhere dissolved like dust. With their summoner dead, they returned to hell.
Iphrion clicked his tongue.
"......It ended like this after all."
Unlike him, Daniel hadn't retreated. Truth be told, Iphrion was the outlier; most legion commanders would have chosen as Daniel did.
Iphrion issued a firm command.
"Withdraw."
Following his order, the demons began to move. Those smashing the walls and assaulting Blue Zone rankers surged back toward the forest en masse.
"What a letdown."
Ye-ryeong snorted, glaring at Iphrion.
Having given the retreat order, Iphrion hadn't budged yet. He stood guarding the spot until the other demons escaped.
Demon legion commander. That was Iphrion's rank.
He bore responsibility befitting it. Ye-ryeong sensed something peculiar about him.
'Not like a demon at all.'
Even his decision to retreat. And this current stance, protecting his subordinates.
Iphrion exuded a vibe different from the demons Ye-ryeong knew.
Swish-.
And amid that chaos.
'Now's the only chance.'
Lee Won-jae inched forward slowly.
So slowly it was imperceptible without close scrutiny. Suppressing noise and presence as much as possible.
'Last opportunity.'
Ye-ryeong faced off against Iphrion. Lee Won-jae had been fighting moments ago, but Iphrion's focus was on Ye-ryeong.
She knew it too. She couldn't ignore a legion commander-class demon lightly.
Glance-.
Lee Won-jae's gaze shifted to Unhyang beside Ye-ryeong.
No.
To be precise, his target was Hye-min, strapped to Unhyang's back.
'If I can get my hands on that......'
Greed reignited in Lee Won-jae's eyes.
'I can make Blue Zone mine. Maybe even turn it into something bigger.'
He'd witnessed firsthand in this battle how immense a high ranker's absolute power was.
Si-woo and Ye-ryeong. Those two had overwhelmed demon legions.
If he could control that kind of strength? Use them to oust Kim Il-su and seize Blue Zone?
'Just one more step.'
A scene flashed in his mind.
Kim Il-su groveling at his feet, Ye-ryeong and Si-woo flanking him.
That power, authority, honor. Primitive desires like those had driven Lee Won-jae all this time.
From rock bottom into Blue Zone, to vice guild master. Just one step left—but how heavy it felt.
'Exactly one step.'
For that step, he was always ready to stake his life.
Lee Won-jae's pace quickened. He kept his eyes locked on Ye-ryeong.
She still hadn't noticed.
'All of it......'
Pop-.
The instant her gaze wasn't on him, Lee Won-jae lunged.
'All mine.'
As his hand, surging with speed, reached for Hye-min.
Slash-.
Something flew through the air.
No sensation in the hand stretching toward Hye-min. For a moment, Lee Won-jae watched his arm arcing through the sky, reality slipping away.
'Why is that......'
Flying?
"......!"
His eyes bulged as pain crashed in belatedly.
But greater than the agony was the shock of his wrist severed.
"Gaaaaah-!"
Stumbling back, Lee Won-jae clutched his severed hand, screaming. Blue Zone rankers, finally grasping the situation, rushed toward him.
"Vice Guild Master!"
Pierre and Luway among the high rankers approached but halted.
Ye-ryeong had wedged between them and Lee Won-jae. Her glare at him was chilling.
"Knew it."
"Guhhh......"
"What? Hurts? Losing one hand hurts that much?"
Locking eyes with Ye-ryeong, Lee Won-jae realized.
She'd never let her guard down from the start. From the moment they arrived, she'd constantly watched him.
He just hadn't known.
"K-Kill her!"
Lee Won-jae shrieked in desperation.
"Kill her now! Stop her!"
He flailed his wristless arm. Blood didn't just drip—it sprayed, making some rankers flinch.
They had eyes and knew.
Lee Won-jae had struck Ye-ryeong—the one who'd forced a legion commander to retreat—in the back.
Whatever his motives, to onlookers, it looked like self-defense.
Should they really follow his orders?
Sensing the spreading hesitation, Ye-ryeong turned to them.
"If possible, could everyone just stay put?"
Blue Zone was the enemy, but she had no intent to slaughter them all.
Unless forced, most were victims of distorted history.
"Or I'd have to kill you all."
Thus, she didn't want to kill indiscriminately.
Killing was her forte, but reserved for elsewhere.
"I......"
Ye-ryeong's gaze shifted to Lee Won-jae, quietly backing away.
"Just want to kill scum like this."