The Traitor's Visit
“Whoa, look at all those bugs.”
Baek Do-ha lounged on a beach bench, sipping a drink as he watched the large screen. He had cast an invisibility spell on a magic orb and was tracking the Blood Sect with it, filming their movements as they advanced—something that looked a lot like a drone.
“Looks like the Martial Alliance has all gathered, huh?”
Canteas, reclining on another beach bench beside him, gazed toward the border of the Eastern Continent. The Southern and Eastern Continents were connected, so the Blood Sect’s march toward the south had drawn the entire Martial Alliance to the border.
“They must have nearly shit themselves when the Blood Sect showed up with an army that size.”
“Did you tell Je-woo?”
“Yeah, I told him ages ago.”
He had not, however, told any of the other martial artists.
Can’t risk any information leaking out.
He had not even told Jegal Seo-wol, who worked for him. The jiangshi Heo Won-sa was currently carrying the real Heaven-Cleaving Blood Demon Sword. If word of that got out, it would be a genuine disaster.
“You’re controlling Heo Won-sa just fine, right?”
“Obviously.”
“When the Blood Sect bastards get close to the Dark Forest, take control of Heo Won-sa and have him attack the two slaves waiting there… no, Metatron and Baal.”
“Do those two even know… that they’re being treated like slaves?”
“You don’t know either, do you?”
“Know what?”
“That you’re a slave.”
“You little shit!”
“I’m kidding.”
Do-ha snickered and turned his eyes back to the screen. Not long ago Baal had been completely freed from his restraints, which was why he and Metatron were currently stationed in the Dark Forest.
“Make sure you control him properly later, got it? Pretend to fight Metatron and Baal while quietly killing the Blood Sect bastards on the side.”
“It’s not like this is the first or second time. I know what I’m doing.”
Canteas shrugged. Feigning a fight while slipping in stealthy attacks—he and Do-ha had been using that exact method for decades. The ones who had fallen for it were probably still convinced they had simply gotten caught up in someone else’s brawl and died by accident.
“Did you tell those two to go easy on him?”
If Metatron and Baal attacked for real, the jiangshi would die on the spot. Even with Canteas controlling it, there was no way it could stand against the two of them.
“Of course I did.”
“Good. But why the hell are these bastards moving so slowly? What’s with the perfect formation?”
Canteas tilted his head as he watched the screen. Instead of simply using light-foot techniques and racing ahead, tens of thousands of Blood Sect members were advancing in perfect ranks. What kind of pointless nonsense was that? Formations like that only mattered in actual war. Right now they were supposed to be in pursuit. Moving in formation only wasted time and manpower—and more importantly, it was dangerous. The Blood Sect almost never marched in formation. That meant if they were attacked while lined up like this, they would panic and fall into complete chaos. Half their forces would die right there.
“Do-ha, go drop a Meteor on them.”
“Idiot. We can’t touch them right now.”
Do-ha scolded him. The Blood Sect was deliberately advancing in an unfamiliar formation—all of it calculated.
They’re showing off their strength while checking whether this is a trap or not.
If anyone attacked those troops, the Blood Sect’s officers would immediately catch on.
“How many strong ones are mixed in with those troops?”
“About… fifty?”
“That’s nowhere near enough to command tens of thousands, is it?”
“You’re right. So the rest of them…”
“Have probably already gone on ahead toward the Dark Forest.”
If the main force came under attack while moving, they would conclude that the Dark Forest was a trap. They already knew the Martial Alliance would not attack—those people would only guard the Eastern Continent’s border. Touching the Blood Sect would start a war, after all.
“Attacking those marching soldiers wouldn’t be the Martial Alliance’s doing. So they’d assume someone used the demonic sword to lure the Blood Sect out.”
“And that someone is you?”
“Exactly.”
The Blood Sect already knew he had returned. Those soldiers were a trap meant for him.
Tzzzzzz.
“Do-ha. They’re here.”
The moment Canteas’s mana trembled, Do-ha rose from his seat. He had hidden undead throughout the entire underground of the Dark Forest where Heo Won-sa waited. His senses had just picked up the Blood Sect racing past at high speed.
“At that pace they’ll arrive in ten minutes. Time to start the fake fight—”
In that instant—
Whoosh.
Shhhk!
Do-ha casually waved his hand, and the screen vanished.
“Wh-what are you doing?! I need to watch that!”
“Switch him to autopilot for now.”
“You think a jiangshi is a car?!”
“We can’t look at the screen.”
“Why not?”
“Someone’s coming.”
“?”
Zzzzzzt.
As Do-ha stood up from the beach bench, sparks began crackling in empty air.
“He even used spatial teleportation to get here.”
Shwaaaah!
Thud.
Do-ha looked at the figure who had just stepped out of the spatial transfer.
“…It’s been a while, Baek Do-ha.”
It was Depnius. While the Blood Sect army was on the move, Depnius had come to see Do-ha.
“You must have sensed me transferring in… yet you didn’t stop me.”
“Eh, one little bug crawling over. No need to get all sensitive about it.”
Do-ha dug a finger in his ear as he spoke. Just as Depnius said, he had known the dragon was transferring in. How could he not, with his own magic and formations covering the entire area?
“You fucking bastard!!”
Canteas hurled a curse at Depnius.
“It’s been a while for you as well, Canteas.”
“Don’t you dare speak my name with that filthy mouth.”
Saaaaah.
Canteas unleashed a dense killing intent he had never shown before. The bastard who had killed their friend Tunrad had the gall to crawl in here?
“Canteas. Calm down.”
“You’re not even angry?! That fucking bastard killed Tunrad! Dimerof almost died too!”
“I said calm down.”
Do-ha placed a hand on Canteas’s shoulder. As if he himself were calm. He wanted nothing more than to charge forward and rip Depnius’s head clean off. He wanted to crush the skull underfoot and erase every last scrap of that body from existence. But the Depnius standing in front of them was not the real one.
“There’s no way that bastard would come here in his true body.”
Depnius possessed a unique magic that allowed him to create clones. Not ordinary illusion or clone magic—he could create another self that was fully real. Aura, behavior, magic, everything. Of course the clone was absurdly weak compared to the original, but that was only by Do-ha’s standards. Depnius was a dragon; even a weak clone could defeat most high-level experts.
“Haa… Depnius. Look forward to it. Once Do-ha kills you… it’ll be my turn after that. Your soul will never reach the Underworld.”
“….”
Hearing Canteas’s murderous words, Depnius closed his eyes. Those eyes that had always looked at him with warmth and affection had turned into eyes filled with killing intent.
“…All right. I’ll look forward to it.”
Depnius forced a bitter smile.
“So why did you come? Don’t tell me you thought this clone alone could take me on.”
“Of course not.”
Depnius shook his head at Do-ha’s question. He could not even properly face Canteas, let alone Baek Do-ha.
“I came to see you.”
“Wow… Depnius. You’ve gotten pretty shameless, haven’t you?”
Do-ha let out a hollow laugh. The bastard had betrayed them, killed their friend, and now claimed he had come just to see him? What the hell was he supposed to do with that? It was so absurd he could only laugh.
“I wanted to know if you were still alive. And if you were intact.”
“Now that you’ve seen me for yourself, how do I look? Intact enough?”
“Your power has weakened.”
Depnius’s eyes turned chilling. A dragon’s senses missed nothing.
“Even if I’ve gotten weaker, you already know I can still kill someone like you without breaking a sweat, right?”
“I suppose so.”
Baek Do-ha was an absolute being. No matter how weakened, a predator was still a predator.
“So this is your new nest.”
Depnius turned his head and looked at the building. It was quite different from the architecture of Belhart, yet somehow it suited Do-ha perfectly.
“Now that I look at you…”
Do-ha narrowed his eyes and stared at Depnius. The pointless chatter made it clear why the bastard had come.
“You came to clear the residual feelings from your heart, didn’t you?”
“….”
Friendship, longing, guilt, regret, fear, excitement, surprise. He had come here to cast off every last one of those emotions.
“You have to completely shed every feeling you built up with me before you can face me as a true enemy… so you came to clear them all out.”
In short, he had come to declare war. He had come to steel his own resolve so he could properly face Do-ha and kill him.
“As expected… you never change, Baek Do-ha.”
Depnius slowly nodded. After only a few words, Do-ha had perfectly grasped his intent. It was truly chilling. He looked carefree and lighthearted on the surface, yet Baek Do-ha’s schemes were terrifying even to him.
“If you’ve finished clearing them out, get lost.”
Do-ha waved his hand dismissively. The reason for coming was so trivial it was barely worth mentioning.
“I don’t listen to an enemy’s sob stories. So whether you vomit out your feelings or not, go do it back in your own nest.”
“If you intend to face me as well, it would be better for you to clear your heart—”
Do-ha turned his head.
“Hey. I said get lost.”
“….”
When Depnius met Do-ha’s eyes, he swallowed hard. There was no emotion left in Baek Do-ha’s gaze. No friendship toward a comrade, no rage toward a hated enemy. He was looking at him the way one looks at a bug that simply needed to be erased from the world.
“I’ll let you leave quietly, so get out. That’s the last consideration I’ll give you.”
“Later…”
“Spare me the bullshit about ‘next time we meet we’ll be enemies’ and get lost. Before I decide to head to the Northern Continent right now and hunt down your real body.”
“Do not take this lightly. Both the Demonic Cult and the Blood Sect stand with the Order. If you try to face us alone like before, it will be dangerous. This is the last concern I offer you as a former friend. You still cannot be allowed to die.”
Zzzzzzt!
Shwaak!
Having said everything he wanted to say, Depnius vanished through spatial teleportation.
“That fucking bastard. Why the hell did he even come…”
Canteas muttered as he walked closer, then flinched when he saw the chilling look in Do-ha’s eyes.
“Do… Do-ha.”
“Haha… that son of a bitch is trying to provoke me?”
What? Last concern? Still cannot be allowed to die?
“Canteas.”
“Y-yeah?”
“Teleport Heo Won-sa in front of me. Bring the Heaven-Cleaving Blood Demon Sword with him.”
“Right now???”
“Yeah. Right now. Change of plans.”
“You’re not seriously…”
Realizing what Do-ha was thinking, Canteas’s mouth fell open.