A Friend's Rage
Namgung Je-u could not believe it.
No matter how many times he turned over the report he had received from his son upon returning to the main house, the conclusion was always the same: Baek Do-ha.
Using the martial arts of the Namgung Family, the techniques of the Mount Hua Sect, and even the sword arts of the Sword Demon?
As far as he knew, only one person in existence could do all of that.
His son had even said a massive arm had erupted from the man's back.
That was Baek Do-ha's Heavenly Black Vajra.
Then word arrived that Dimerof had recovered.
So he went.
How could he sit still when he heard his friend had woken up?
And he asked.
Was it Baek Do-ha who healed you?
Dimerof said nothing.
Emilton said nothing either.
They had been friends for forty years. They knew at a glance whether a lie was being told, so they had simply shut their mouths from the start.
But how could anyone fail to understand what that meant?
Silence was consent. It was an admission that Baek Do-ha was alive.
"Baek Do-ha…"
"Hey, friend. I don't know why you're so angry, but maybe calm down a little and—"
"You son of a bitch!"
In a single breath Namgung Je-u closed the distance and drove his fist into Do-ha's face.
"Was I that inadequate? Were we that untrustworthy?!"
"…"
Namgung Je-u was furious for the same reason Dimerof had been.
No—it wasn't just the two of them. Every comrade who had stood beside Do-ha felt the same way.
The betrayal of vanishing without a word.
The hurt of leaving without a final farewell, without even taking his friends with him.
The grief of believing a precious comrade and friend was dead.
And now that same Baek Do-ha was standing there perfectly fine—so the emotions detonated.
Namgung Je-u seized Do-ha by the collar and began to pour out everything that had been festering inside him, landing blow after blow.
"Do you have any idea how many days and nights I mourned, thinking you were dead?!"
"That despair we felt even as the Demon God Cult retreated—do you have any idea what that felt like?!"
When the Demon God Cult and the demons fell back and Baek Do-ha still did not return, his friends could not celebrate. They could only call it a victory bought with Do-ha's sacrifice—and not a single one of them could bring themselves to rejoice.
"You… you selfish bastard. You were selfish right to the end."
Namgung Je-u released the collar. Do-ha crumpled, rubbing his cheek.
"Ow… that really hurts."
He hadn't even used internal energy. Why did it hurt this much?
"Tell me everything that happened. Properly. Without leaving anything out."
"Yeah. Let's go inside first."
Do-ha cast a Heal on his own cheek and walked into the house with Namgung Je-u.
Once inside, Do-ha explained everything that had happened—just as he had for Dimerof and Emilton.
Namgung Je-u clenched his fists more than once along the way, but he did not hit him again.
"So, yeah. That's how Belhart and Earth got connected, and we ran into each other again. Of course, I got punched for it."
"…Consider yourself lucky it ended there."
Namgung Je-u ground his teeth.
Truthfully, he needed to beat him more to fully clear the bitterness out—but the man had saved his son, so this much would have to do.
"You never used to fly off the handle like this… Is the Alliance Leader seat that rough? You've turned into a complete hothead."
"How did you know I became Alliance Leader?"
"This guy told me."
Do-ha pointed at Canteas, who was grinning from ear to ear.
Come to think of it—why had that one been smiling this whole time?
"Why have you been staring at me and laughing since earlier?"
"Kehehe. Because the mad emperor finally got what was coming to him. Feels fantastic. Hey, Je-u—hit him some more."
"You're not getting dinner tonight."
"Hmph! I've got money, you know? I'll go buy my own food."
"Ah. You mean this?"
Do-ha casually pulled a wallet from his pocket. Cards and a few checks were tucked inside—when he had made it was anyone's guess.
"You thief! When did you steal that?! Give it back!"
"You should've hidden it better, you dumb bag of bones."
"Give it back!"
"…Pfft."
Watching the farce between Do-ha and Canteas, Namgung Je-u finally burst out laughing.
It wasn't because their antics were funny. He had watched the two of them bicker like this for decades—there was nothing new about it.
I thought I'd never see that again…
Longing. He had missed it so desperately that the little comedy unfolding right in front of him felt like a gift.
"You damn bastard."
"Sudden cursing?"
Do-ha gave him a look of pure incredulity. Did just looking at his face make the man want to swear now?
"You damn bastard! I'm cursing you. Watch yourself when you sleep. If you suddenly get the chills, you'll know it's arrived."
"Oh-ho? You never considered that you might die first?"
Do-ha grabbed him.
"Kyaaak! Why do you fight back against me?! You just sat there when Je-u hit you!"
"Because you're weaker than me. Je-u's at the Transcendent Realm now."
"You… you… Have you always been this much of a thug?!"
"Yep. You didn't know? I've always been a pure-bred thug."
"…"
Faced with Do-ha's utterly shameless confidence, Canteas swallowed tears.
And Namgung Je-u took a casual sip of his drink.
A dark night.
Someone fled in terror, racing between buildings.
Hurry… I have to report to the Association President!
The fleeing figure frantically pulled out a phone.
For the past few months, civilian disappearances in Gangwon Province had been climbing. When the missing-person reports first came in, everyone assumed someone had snuck into a Gate and met with an accident. But then Hunters started vanishing too.
First, E-Rank.
Then D and C-Rank.
Recently, even a B-Rank Hunter had gone missing.
It wasn't only Association Hunters. Reports of missing guild members had been pouring in as well.
So the Association launched a search for the missing. There was always the chance a monster had slipped out of a Gate, after all.
But the truth they uncovered at the end of that search was shocking—and terrifying.
Something like this… this shouldn't be possible.
The fleeing figure—Association Hunter Jeong So-han—fumbled with his phone in trembling hands. The shaking was the aftereffect of an attack. Whatever had hit him, his body felt like it was steadily locking up.
Damn it… they're already on me.
A presence closed in fast. Jeong So-han clenched his teeth, shoved the phone into his pocket, and ran harder. He would contact them once he was clear of this area.
Right now, running comes first.
Jeong So-han scaled a building in a blur and launched himself into the air at tremendous speed. He was a B-Rank Hunter—one whose specialty was speed—and his flight was fast.
But—
"Why would you be stupid enough to go up on the rooftops?"
A figure pulled up alongside Jeong So-han mid-jump.
"Tch—!"
The moment he heard the voice, Jeong So-han whipped his dagger around.
Damn it. Just a second ago the presence had been far away—when had it gotten right next to him?
"Whoa, whoa. That's dangerous."
Jeong So-han's eyes went wide. They were in midair—how was a movement like that even possible? In an instant the figure's body rippled unnaturally and seized his arm.
"Unlike my other friends, you see, I happen to like the ground."
The figure twisted his arm. Jeong So-han screamed as he plummeted and slammed into the earth.
"Whew. You're incredibly fast. Made it from Seoraksan to Wonju in just a few minutes."
My shoulder's dislocated.
Jeong So-han forced the joint back into place with a pained grimace. He should have just run in a straight line. Trying to throw off pursuit by cutting toward Gangneung had only landed him in this mess.
"Time to go. We're not supposed to be out this far yet."
At those words, Jeong So-han discarded the dagger and drew the sword from his back—a long blade that mixed the forms of a longsword and a dao.
This won't work. He's faster than me if I just try to run.
Better to kill him here—or at least cripple him enough to slow him down.
"Looking for a fight? Hmm… why not just come with me? Materials have been scarce lately. If I kill you, I'll get an earful."
"Shut up!"
Jeong So-han swung. Shockwaves tore outward in every direction.
Two fingers casually caught the blade.
"Ugh, dust…"
"Wh… what…"
Jeong So-han's pupils trembled. He might be a speedster, but his attacks were not light. How had two fingers stopped the sword?
"Humans are so fascinating. Why do you all make the exact same face when your attacks get blocked?"
"What? Humans?"
Jeong So-han's brow twitched. Speaking that way meant the other party was claiming not to be human. And yet the appearance was unmistakably human.
"I don't know what you are—but that's the price for grabbing my sword and acting relaxed."
The blade flashed and detonated. The opponent's right wrist blew clean off. The sword had a bomb built into it—designed to be driven deep into a monster's body and triggered. The enemy had grabbed the blade without knowing.
"Hmm… that actually pisses me off a little."
The figure stared at the stump of his arm, a vein standing out on his forehead. He had orders to bring this one back alive—and the prey had the gall to climb above its station.
He slowly scanned the surroundings.
"What? Planning to run?"
"No. Checking whether any of our people are nearby."
"Your kind are all the same. I'll kill you and get out before your friends gather."
"I don't know what you're imagining, but the reason I checked for allies is…"
In the blink of an eye the figure was right in front of him. Jeong So-han jolted and yanked free a dagger, swinging wildly.
"…to kill you. I intend to disobey orders."
Jeong So-han desperately parried the assault. The enemy was attacking with only a left arm, and still there was no opening for a counter.
"I was going to take you back and use you as a slave… but I think I'll just eat you right here."
Eat me?
The enemy's arm shot out and seized Jeong So-han's dagger. The blade was short and awkward to grip—but not impossible.
"No capacity to learn? Grabbing the blade again?"
The dagger began to swell once more. It wasn't only the longsword that had a bomb embedded in it.
"As if."
With a cold smile, the enemy tore the explosive free entirely.
Then his right arm drove toward Jeong So-han's abdomen.
"Too bad. If I'd still had a hand, it would have reached."
Jeong So-han's other arm blocked it. Had the enemy forgotten that only a wrist remained? A stump couldn't reach his gut.
"Heh. Why do humans always jump to such hasty conclusions?"
In that instant, crimson liquid gathered at the stump and formed a hand.
It punched straight through.
"Ghk—!"
"Mmm. This warm feeling… excellent."
The figure that had skewered him seized Jeong So-han's ribs and ripped them free.
"Sorry to the others—but I'm eating you now."
He smiled and opened his mouth. Moonlight caught on a pair of gleaming, razor-sharp fangs.
"Va… vampire…"
The figure sank his teeth into Jeong So-han's throat. Within minutes, the hunter's body had withered into a mummy.