Chapter 473: A Single Mistake (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 473: A Single Mistake (2)
The Red Moon building.
Seated in the reception room, Kang Min-ho did his best to hide his trembling hands.
‘...We’re not making it out of here alive.’
His mouth felt bone-dry.
Every time he looked up, murderous glares pierced right through him, forcing him to keep his eyes glued to the floor.
Ten minutes ago, Kang Min-ho had arrived at the Red Moon headquarters with Roman Dmitry.
To be honest, when he declared he would follow Roman, he assumed the man had some sort of master plan to bring down Red Moon. A frontal assault was, by all measures of common sense, suicide. Yet, Roman Dmitry had simply walked through the front doors. Maintaining his translation magic, he uttered words that completely shattered that common sense.
"Call Red Moon's guild master. I wish to speak about the death of Go Sang-ho."
No excuses.
No hesitation.
Because he had so boldly confessed to the killing, the entire Red Moon guild was thrown into absolute chaos.
And that was how they ended up in this situation.
They had been guided to the reception room under the guise of a conversation, but without so much as a cup of tea offered, they were clearly not being treated as guests. Red Moon guild members swarmed the room. Dozens of them stared with eyes gleaming with murderous intent, fully prepared to strike the moment an order was given.
Among them, one man stood out in particular.
"Is there any reason to let him sit so comfortably in that chair? Let's start by cutting off one of his arms. These bastards killed my brother. I can't stand seeing them relax for even a single second."
"We need the guild master's orders."
"Yeah, I know. But didn't he already confess?"
Go Sang-min.
He was Go Sang-ho's younger brother.
His face was flushed red with rage over his brother's death, and he kept fidgeting with his weapon, his anger boiling over. In truth, it wouldn't have been strange if they had drawn their blades and severed an arm right then and there. The only reason they had escorted the pair to the reception room and bided their time was because Roman Dmitry had walked into Red Moon so boldly.
It defied common sense.
Believing there had to be a hidden reason behind such irrational behavior, they decided to wait for Cha Dong-cheol's judgment.
Kang Min-ho swallowed hard, over and over again.
This was a den of death.
Every single second spent here felt like an eternity; a monster hunting ground would have felt safer.
‘What on earth is Lord Roman Dmitry thinking? And how can he remain so calm in a situation like this?’
He couldn't understand it.
Roman Dmitry was sitting comfortably in his chair.
He calmly accepted the murderous glares directed at him, even showing the composure to leisurely inspect his surroundings. Perhaps his attitude rubbed them the wrong way. As time passed, the suffocating pressure in the room intensified, making it feel as though violence would erupt at any moment before the guild master even arrived.
It was a powder keg waiting to explode.
Right then—
"Is it you? The bastards who killed our Sang-ho."
Cha Dong-cheol.
He had arrived.
* * *
Cha Dong-cheol sat down across from them.
Scanning his opponents with fierce eyes, he leaned back in his chair.
"Why did you kill Go Sang-ho?"
The question was thrown out casually.
The atmosphere froze instantly.
Depending on the answer, this room would soon be drenched in blood.
Roman Dmitry spoke.
"There was no particular reason. He showed murderous intent toward me, so I killed him."
"...What?"
Cha Dong-cheol's face contorted.
It was a blunt, matter-of-fact answer.
If Go Sang-ho had shown murderous intent first, one could argue it was self-defense, but that was absolutely not the answer Cha Dong-cheol wanted to hear. The opponent had walked right into Red Moon's headquarters. If they wanted to preserve their lives, they shouldn't be holding their heads high with such a confident attitude; they should be making excuses and begging for mercy.
Kang Min-ho stepped in.
"To be precise, it was self-defense. Go Sang-ho trespassed on another's territory without warning, and the laws of this country clearly state that trespassing can be punished in any manner without issue. That doesn't mean we killed him immediately. When we punished him as a warning, Go Sang-ho brought up the Red Moon guild and threatened to kill us. As a result, we had no choice but to kill him."
It was the bare minimum of an excuse.
Knowing Roman Dmitry would never bow his head, Kang Min-ho felt he had to speak up himself.
At that, Cha Dong-cheol began to laugh like a madman.
"Pwahahaha! This is driving me crazy. Don't tell me you guys didn't come here to apologize? You killed a member of Red Moon, and now you're talking about what? Self-defense?"
Slam!
He struck the table.
The sturdy wooden surface shattered instantly as Cha Dong-cheol glared at them with murderous eyes.
"Sure, when you run an organization, things like this happen from time to time. Bastards who don't know their place running wild. But talking about self-defense to Red Moon is not a wise choice. Whether you were right or wrong, the mere fact that a member of Red Moon died means we have an obligation to retaliate. Yet, instead of trying to appease our anger, you dare speak of self-defense? Amusing. What absolute fools, walking right into your own graves."
Shring.
The guild members waiting around them gripped their weapons.
The situation had deteriorated.
Roman Dmitry's confident attitude had thoroughly provoked them.
"Since you're a foreigner, you might not know how things work around here, but South Korea is practically in a state of anarchy outside of Seoul. Meaning, those useless laws won't guarantee your safety here in the provinces. It's truly a pity. Since you're a Peak Hunter like me, I was planning to treat you with some respect, but I can't do that anymore. Red Moon is a fence built around me. Since you killed one of my people, I will make an example out of you. I'll show everyone in Incheon exactly what happens when you mess with Red Moon."
He stood up from his seat.
Just as he was about to give the order, Roman Dmitry reacted calmly.
"Is that your choice, then?"
The reason he had come to Red Moon was simple.
He wanted to give them a choice.
If they had acknowledged Go Sang-ho's wrongdoing, the matter would have ended there.
Red Moon would have been safe at the cost of Go Sang-ho's single life, but Cha Dong-cheol had just crossed the line himself.
In that case, there was no need to waste words explaining further.
Cha Dong-cheol's face was already contorted like a demon's.
"Arrogant bastard. You won't be dying an easy death today."
At that moment.
"Attack!"
"Kill him!"
Whoosh!
The guild members waiting around them lunged simultaneously, as if they had been waiting for this exact moment.
* * *
Dozens of them.
"Dozens" was easy to say, but seeing them all rush forward at once in the cramped space of the building was an overwhelming sight.
It was packed.
With no room to escape, the Red Moon guild members were certain they would kill Roman Dmitry in an instant.
Shring.
Roman Dmitry gripped his sword.
It was a weapon he had received from Kang Min-ho on their way to Red Moon. Kang Min-ho had apologized, saying he could only manage to find a low-grade, E-Rank weapon. Kang Min-ho stood right beside him, intending to protect Roman in his own way. Looking at the scene unfolding before his eyes, he thought that let alone escaping unharmed, mere survival was impossible.
However.
Flash.
Thwack!
The head of the guild member leading the charge flew off.
The moment that sight registered in their minds, the guild members rushing in right behind him began spraying blood.
Slash! Splat!
"...?!"
Kang Min-ho's eyes widened.
A calm voice reached his ears.
"Step back. From here on, it is my turn."
Step.
Rumble!
Roman Dmitry charged forward.
Though shocked by the horrific sight, the Red Moon guild members gritted their teeth and attempted to attack Roman Dmitry from all sides the moment they spotted him. Not a single one of their attacks landed. By the time they visually reacted, their strikes had already been deflected, and the moment they entered his attack range, excruciating pain followed.
"Aaargh!"
"Ugh!"
Blood splattered everywhere.
If they tried to swing a sword, their arms were severed.
If they tried to lunge forward, their legs were cut.
Before they could even try anything, their bodies were torn apart.
Roman Dmitry did not stop there; he dove deep into the ranks of the guild members, tearing apart everyone he encountered. He didn't even use much magic power. Using only a mere sliver of mana, Roman slaughtered them with brutal efficiency, like a wolf roaming through a flock of sheep.
Barely thirty seconds had passed.
Over a dozen guild members were already dead.
Even Go Sang-min, who had rushed forward while spewing rage, couldn't help but freeze in bewilderment at the scene unfolding before his eyes.
"What the hell..."
Thwack!
That was his last memory.
Once even Go Sang-min's head was sent flying, the remaining Red Moon guild members finally realized that something was terribly wrong.
"T-This makes no sense."
"He's too strong!"
It defied all common sense.
There was no need for a mana measurement device or any such process.
The situation they were experiencing firsthand, and the remains of those who had died in an instant, forced them to accept that Roman Dmitry was an absolute monster.
Right then, Kang Min-ho shouted.
"Lord Roman Dmitry!"
Flash.
Rumble!
A bolt of lightning struck down from above.
As Roman Dmitry deflected it, Cha Dong-cheol stared at him with a look of utter disbelief.
"...Your name is Roman Dmitry?"
* * *
A brief clash.
It was more than enough time to gauge Roman Dmitry's strength.
Faced with the martial prowess that had slaughtered over a dozen men in an instant, Cha Dong-cheol realized his subordinates alone could not handle him.
Flash.
Rumble!
It was a surprise attack.
Kang Min-ho had spotted it and shouted a warning to Roman Dmitry, but his urgent voice was rendered meaningless as Cha Dong-cheol's attack was effortlessly blocked. The lightning-like strike, a powerful explosion of mana, dispersed instantly upon making contact with Roman Dmitry's sword, completely neutralized.
It was a baffling situation.
But aside from that, there was something else that left Cha Dong-cheol utterly dumbfounded.
"...Your name is Roman Dmitry?"
For a moment, he almost burst out laughing.
"To think there's someone in this world who uses the surname Dmitry. If you're a Hunter, there's no way you don't know what that means."
"Is there something wrong with my name?"
"Don't tell me you're using it without knowing? What a pathetic bastard."
Cha Dong-cheol's words—Roman Dmitry couldn't understand them.
Cha Dong-cheol seemed to be reacting not to the full name Roman Dmitry, but specifically to "Dmitry."
Cha Dong-cheol spoke.
"There are countless dimensions in this world other than the Earth we live on. And those who achieved great feats in those dimensions exert their influence even on Earth, crossing the Boundary of Dimensions. We call those who have received the memories of other dimensions 'Inheritors.' Roman Dmitry. That is why your name is wrong. Any normal Hunter would know that Dmitry is classified as the highest tier among Inheritance Abilities."
Inheritance Abilities.
People who inherited memories from beyond dimensions.
To them, abilities originating from the 'Dmitry Empire' were classified as the absolute highest tier.
In fact, among the Inheritors active worldwide, some of the strongest individuals had inherited the memories of Dmitry.
That was why he wanted to laugh.
Using Dmitry as a surname was something worthy of ridicule.
Ever since the abilities of Inheritors were revealed, people who originally had special names like Dmitry had changed them to avoid confusion with the abilities. It was a measure to keep Dmitry as an exception. Yet, a mere B-Rank Hunter dared to use Dmitry as his surname? It was a laughingstock. In truth, Kang Min-ho had also harbored doubts when he first heard Roman Dmitry's name, but after witnessing Go Sang-ho's death, he hadn't dared to ask about it.
Cha Dong-cheol spoke.
"Roman Dmitry! I acknowledge your skill. If you have the strength to slaughter over a dozen men in such a short time, you would have been an opponent the past me couldn't handle. But you have made a grave mistake. The very power of Dmitry that you so desperately craved and dared to put in your name—the Inheritance Ability that everyone desperately wishes to obtain—is what I have acquired."
Rumble!
Crash!
He channeled his mana.
Cha Dong-cheol glared fiercely.
"My Inheritance Ability is Rodney, a soldier of the Dmitry Empire. I have inherited the power of a hero who even took part in the Conquest of the Demon Realm. As an Inheritor of Dmitry, I will show you just how absurd your actions are."
Whoosh!
Cha Dong-cheol rushed forward at high speed.
At that moment, Roman Dmitry saw it.
The power Cha Dong-cheol was manifesting...
It was none other than the Asura Mind Method and the Asura Sword Technique.