Ancestor...?
The hunters in the auditorium had mostly raised both hands or were lying flat on the ground. Any sign of movement was met with immediate suppression from the intruders. Tatatatang—!
“Kyaaah!”
“A-All right! I won’t move. Don’t shoot!”
A man who had shifted slightly raised both hands in surrender. At that moment, his eyes widened as he stared at the intruder. A woman had appeared behind him.
At the same time—
Seogeok—
The intruder’s head was severed. Thud. The headless body collapsed to the floor.
That was only the beginning.
Seogeok— Seogeok—
With every chilling snip of the scissors, another intruder fell without exception.
“W-What the hell?!”
“Shoot!”
Tatatatang—!
The terrified intruders fired wildly or swung their weapons at the woman with the scissors, but they only cut through empty air. Seogeok— Only the intruders fell. It felt like fighting a ghost with no physical form. It did not take long for their will to resist to vanish.
Thud thud thud!
“You crazy bastard! Why did you lock the door?!”
“Open it! Hurry!”
“S-She’s coming! Aaaagh!”
The intruders, gripped by terror, began fleeing the auditorium. *
The white-clad intruders poured out of the auditorium. Vanesha seemed capable of handling herself alone. In the wide, open auditorium there was nowhere to hide, but facing her in the corridors or inner rooms of the hall—where cover was plentiful—would have been suicide. By abandoning the auditorium and running, the intruders had only driven themselves toward death. They could not escape the sealed hall anyway.
‘I should get moving too.’
Setting aside my worry for Vanesha, I summoned the Twin Dragon Sword.
“Jeanne, please help those people.”
I pointed toward Marquis Cunningham, who was confronting the intruders.
“What about you, Seojun-nim?”
“I’ll be fine. I plan to stay hidden while I move.”
I had no intention of revealing myself and fighting openly. The moment I summoned Jeanne and Vanesha, I had already acted without thinking of the consequences…
‘It couldn’t be helped.’
If I hadn’t summoned them, I might have been in danger myself. To save everyone, I needed the two of them anyway.
“I’m counting on you, Jeanne.”
Leaving Marquis Cunningham’s support to Jeanne, I headed toward the firmly shut emergency stairwell door. Just then—
“Seojun-nim, wait a moment.”
Jeanne stopped me. Then, without warning, she tore the hem of her skirt. Riiip— She looked at me and said,
“Could you give me your wrist?”
“?”
Confused, I extended my wrist. Jeanne wrapped the torn fabric around it and tied a secure knot.
“There.”
“What is this?”
“This way, no matter where you go, I can still help you.”
[Jeanne d’Arc’s Garment] — It carries no special effects, but allows one to receive Jeanne d’Arc’s energy.
‘So it’s a remote buff.’
As long as I carried something of hers, I could receive her aid even from a distance. There would be some range limit, but inside the hall it would not be a problem.
‘I’ll have to buy her new clothes when this is over.’
Looking at the torn hem of Jeanne’s skirt, I found myself smiling faintly.
“Thank you, Jeanne.”
“Please return safely.”
Jeanne smiled brightly as she saw me off. Sword in hand, I made for the emergency stairs. No one stood guard at the sealed door—Vanesha’s rampage had driven every intruder from the auditorium. I brought the Twin Dragon Sword down on the padlock.
Swish—!
The lock snapped and the chain sagged. I opened the door and climbed the stairs to the fourth floor, the highest level of the hall. The fourth floor, lined with auditorium-style seating like a baseball stadium, was completely empty.
[The aura of the battlefield has been detected.]
[Napoleon’s Rifle has unlocked its trait.]
[Grapeshot General Napoleon]
[Accuracy: +65%]
I summoned Napoleon’s Rifle and approached the railing, looking down into the auditorium. Marquis Cunningham and his attendants were locked in combat with the intruders.
‘Not the easiest shot.’
The distance was just over twenty meters. Hitting a stationary target would have been simple, but striking moving people was another matter. One mistake and I might hit an ally—assuming it was an ordinary gun, that is.
I took aim at the intruders with Napoleon’s Rifle. Watching carefully, I waited until one of them broke away from the melee and pulled the trigger.
Bang—!
A magic bullet flew.
*
The moment Vanesha was summoned, she assessed the situation. The auditorium had been seized by intruders. She eliminated Nikolai first—the one who had dared raise a sword against her liege. His death as the Korean Orthodox Church’s diocesan bishop would mean dealing with new enemies from Moscow, but she did not care. Raising a blade against her liege was reason enough to die.
Following her liege’s orders, she deliberately drove the Orthodox Church’s execution priests out of the auditorium so they could not harm anyone. If someone died, her liege would grieve.
“Die!”
Seogeok—
An execution priest hiding behind a door lunged out—only for his arm to be severed.
“Huh?”
Before the priest could comprehend what had happened, his head followed. Thud, thud. Leaving the fallen priest behind, Vanesha continued walking. As she strolled down the corridor, she thrust her sword into the wall without even glancing at it.
Thud—
Red blood seeped from the wall. Thud. An execution priest who had been camouflaged against it slid down, leaving a crimson trail.
Under desks, behind doors, atop lockers, on the ceiling, in the corners of inner rooms… The execution priests had hidden throughout the hall like children playing hide-and-seek. It was a foolish decision. Hide-and-seek was Vanesha’s specialty.
She located the execution priests as easily as breathing. It inspired overwhelming terror. No matter where or how they hid, Vanesha found them like a vengeful spirit. Eventually, the priests gave up hiding and fled. Vanesha did not pursue them in haste. Instead, she slowly herded them toward the corners of the hall. Thud, thud. Like driving rabbits, unhurried and relentless.
*
‘What the hell is this?!’
Wang Wei was utterly bewildered. When he had first devised the plan, it had seemed impossible to fail. He had accepted the Orthodox Church’s proposal to steal the essence because it had seemed feasible. Even after entering the barrier, everything had gone smoothly. The auditorium contained only unarmed low-rank hunters and the small number of attendants Marquis Cunningham had brought. Though the marquis was an outstanding hunter, he could not fend off ten hands with one. When China’s professional cleaners, armed with special equipment, swarmed him, the marquis had been unable to make any meaningful impact. The theft of the essence had seemed within reach.
Everything changed when a girl carrying a flag appeared.
Flutter— Flutter—
When she waved the flag, white light spread outward and the wounds of the marquis’s attendants vanished as if washed away.
‘How can such an absurd ability exist…!’
Wang Wei was stunned to see them restored to perfect condition, as though they had never fought at all. That insane regenerative power rendered their numerical advantage meaningless. Every time the Chinese hunters grew exhausted, light would burst forth and restore them. The enemy overflowed with strength while only the Chinese side grew weary.
That was not the only problem.
Bang—! Bang—!
“Gah!”
“Agh!”
“That bastard—tear him apart!”
Wang Wei’s eyes turned bloodshot as he looked up at the fourth floor. There, a masked figure was firing a rifle with impeccable timing. The Chinese hunters, forced to stay aware of the shots, could not move properly. Thanks to that, Marquis Cunningham seized the momentum and rampaged like a mad beast. Despite his age, he showed no sign of fatigue, swinging his sword relentlessly.
Worse still, the Orthodox Church members who were supposed to help had vanished without a trace.
Sensing defeat, Wang Wei sprinted for the exit. He flung the door open—only to be met with a vast expanse of white nothingness. He shouted at his adjutant.
“S-Spatial transfer! Do it now!”
“I can’t!”
“Why not?!”
“The barrier prevents us from leaving!”
Wang Wei had known this, yet panic had made him ask anyway. Nikolai had said escaping the isolation zone would take about thirty minutes. Now even Nikolai, who possessed the means, lay with his head rolling on the floor.
Thud thud thud!
Wang Wei pounded desperately on the white wall. Perhaps the effort paid off.
“Oh! I-It’s opening!”
The void trembled and cracks began to form.
“Hit it! Hurry!”
“Yes!”
Just as Wang Wei and his adjutant, faces brightening, prepared to strike the wall with renewed vigor—
Crack—!
Fwoooosh!
The barrier shattered, and beyond it appeared a woman wielding a golden sword. Behind her stood countless hunters. Wang Wei froze, fist still raised.
*
‘It’s over.’
With the barrier broken, hunters from outside flooded into the hall.
“My liege.”
Vanesha approached me.
“Is it finished?”
“Yes. I have dealt with them all.”
She meant she had eliminated every fleeing intruder.
“Well done.”
“You as well, my liege.”
Vanesha smiled gently. Meanwhile, on the first floor of the auditorium, the remaining intruders were being subdued.
“I’m sorry, but could we meet at home later?”
“Understood.”
I dismissed Vanesha. Jeanne followed.
“What?!”
“She disappeared!”
The hunters murmured in confusion as Jeanne vanished. I descended to the first floor and tried to blend in naturally among them. Just as I reached for the emergency stairwell door on the first floor—
“Ancestor…?”
A single voice stopped me in my tracks. Turning my head, I saw a silver-haired woman with blue eyes staring at me in shock.