The Undying One
Shwaaaaaaah!
Crack.
"Gyaaaaah!"
As his energy drained away and his shoulder bone dislocated, Verneac screamed.
What the hell was happening right now…?
The speed at which his power was being siphoned out far exceeded anything he could absorb.
"Ghk!"
Verneac thrashed, trying to tear his hand free.
Damn it.
Why wouldn't it come off?!
If even one of his clones had still been around, he could have pulled himself free—but the clones had long since vanished.
Crunch.
"Gyaaaaah!"
As the bones throughout his body began to shatter one after another, Verneac's screams only grew louder.
At the same time, Do-ha's expression twisted ever so slightly.
Talhon-heupseong-daebup—the Soul-Seizing Star-Absorbing Great Art.
It was Do-ha's personal martial art, a modified version of the Star Absorbing Great Art.
Yet he almost never used it.
There was a simple reason: it was a flawed demonic art.
It absorbed an opponent's power and soul, but in return an overwhelming sense of revulsion flooded every inch of the user's body.
It wasn't mere discomfort. It felt like thrashing helplessly in a pool of blood.
That was why he avoided the technique whenever possible.
Shuuuuu.
Tap!
"Hah…! Hah…!"
The moment the suction stopped, Verneac scrambled backward.
But it was already too late.
His power had nearly vanished, and his life force flickered like a candle in the wind.
"Wh… why…?"
Confusion flooded Verneac's face.
If Do-ha had simply kept going, he could have killed him cleanly. Why stop?
"If I absorb everything completely, the disgust multiplies dozens of times."
As he'd said, mid-absorption it only felt like floundering in a blood pool. But once the soul itself was fully taken, the sensation became indescribably horrific.
Nothing in the world quite compared, but if he had to put it into words, it was like draping his entire body in finely chopped corpses.
"This isn't for your sake. It's for mine. So don't look so puzzled."
Shring.
Do-ha drew Un-jeop-bi-jang and walked slowly toward the Lord.
"Haha… to die like this, of all things."
Sssk.
Watching Do-ha approach, the Lord finally abandoned everything and closed his eyes.
His power was gone. His soul was guttering out. Struggling would change nothing.
"Farewell."
Ssshk.
Do-ha's blade swept in a smooth diagonal arc.
Slash!
Thud.
Pssssshhh.
The Lord's head tumbled free, and the impure-blood vampires around them simultaneously crumbled into drifting ash.
Their power and life had all originated from the Lord. With their core dead, they vanished with him.
"…You okay?"
Canteas looked at Do-ha with worried eyes.
He knew exactly what happened when the Soul-Seizing Star-Absorbing Great Art was used.
Back in Belhart, Do-ha had once absorbed an entire dragon with it. Afterward he had spent a full week vomiting and burning with fever. Even when he tried to sleep, he would thrash through nightmares, drenched in cold sweat.
"Yeah. I didn't take everything, so I'm fine."
He had enough experience to stop at the right line.
Of course, even this much was unpleasant—but not unbearable.
"A night's sleep and I'll shake it off."
"That's a relief, then…"
Canteas nodded at his words.
"The mana stones?"
"Already collected them all."
Clink.
Canteas showed him his subspace bag.
Vampires left mana stones behind in their ashes after death. So he had immediately ordered the skeletons he'd scattered in every direction to gather them.
"Then head to that mansion and grab everything worth taking. I'll go find the AS."
The Axis Stone—the core that sustained the Gate. Only by destroying it would the Gate vanish for good.
"There aren't any more vampires in other areas, right?"
"The Lord is dead, so the ones outside the Gate should have vanished with him."
They had already watched several vampires who had been fleeing beyond the Gate turn to dust. The rest outside would have met the same fate.
"Oh, and collect the corpses."
Lords and purebloods did not crumble to ash even in death. The bodies had to be recovered before the AS was destroyed if they wanted the materials.
"Heh. Already taken care of."
"You're ridiculously fast when it comes to this stuff."
Do-ha glanced back and let out a dry laugh.
How long had it been since the Lord died? Not a single drop of blood remained, let alone a corpse.
"I'll be right back. Don't smash the AS before I get out, got it?!"
"Understood."
Paht.
As Canteas headed for the ruined mansion, Do-ha launched himself into the air in search of the Axis Stone.
Ding-dong.
"?"
It had been a week since the vampire Gate was cleared. Do-ha, who had been reading the articles, rose from his seat.
Was he expecting a guest?
Creak.
"Hah… hah… Do… Do-ha-nim."
"Han Jeong-soo? What's going on?"
When he opened the door, Han Jeong-soo—manager of New Age's Korean branch—stood there gasping for breath.
The man was a Hunter himself. For him to be this winded, how hard had he run?
"I have something I need to report, so I came unannounced."
"You could've just called."
"Ah, this… isn't something I can say over the phone."
"Come in."
Creak.
Thud.
Do-ha led Han Jeong-soo to the dining table.
Thak.
"Ah, thank you."
"What's the matter?"
Do-ha handed him a glass of water. Han Jeong-soo bowed his head and drained the cold water in one go.
He had sprinted straight from the Association without rest, and his throat was parched.
"Last night, an order came down from higher up."
"What kind of order?"
"An order to trigger a Wave in Busan."
"A monster Wave??"
"Yes."
At those words, Do-ha's brows furrowed.
Trigger a Wave?
Could they intentionally cause a monster Wave?
"How do they make a Wave happen?"
Waves—where monsters poured out of a Gate—usually occurred naturally. Either mana built up excessively, or the monster population inside the Gate exploded. That was why Associations and guilds that owned Gates periodically checked them and culled the monster numbers as a safety measure.
"This is my first time as well, so I don't know the details, but someone from headquarters is coming down with an artifact."
"An artifact?"
"Yes. A strangely shaped stone engraved with odd characters. If you place it inside a Gate and activate it, the monsters go berserk and charge out of the Gate."
Ordinarily, monsters did not try to leave a Gate. It wasn't so much that they were wary of the outside as that they simply didn't care about it.
New Age, however, used an artifact to drive them into a frenzy.
"These bastards…"
Clench.
Do-ha ground his teeth in fury.
If a Wave erupted in Busan, the casualties would be catastrophic.
What if they had thrown that artifact into the Gate where the vampires had been? A true disaster would have unfolded.
"Which Gate are they targeting?"
"I wasn't told, but I have a guess."
"Where?"
"Here."
Tap tap.
Han Jeong-soo opened a map on his phone and showed it to Do-ha.
"Manri Mountain?"
"Yes."
Manri Mountain, located in Beomcheon-dong, Busanjin-gu.
It sat right next to the city center, and the mountain itself was not particularly high—perfect for monsters to pour down into the streets.
More importantly, an A-rank Gate existed on that mountain.
"If I were the one causing a Wave, this is the place I'd hit. It's the best way to maximize the damage…"
Han Jeong-soo trailed off.
He had switched sides to Baek Do-ha now, but he had originally been New Age himself. He had never personally triggered a Wave, yet the thought still made him uneasy.
"Has Korea never had an intentional Wave before?"
"No. Every Wave that has occurred in Korea so far has been natural."
"What about other countries?"
"As far as I know—America, Russia, China, Switzerland, Germany… and also…"
"No, that's enough."
Do-ha sighed and shook his head.
New Age. These vermin.
He still didn't know what benefit they gained from causing Waves, but countless people had died because of them.
"Where is the artifact right now?"
"The executive probably has it. He'll bring it when he enters Korea… but I don't know the exact date…"
Just then.
Sparkle sparkle.
Light began to flicker from the inner pocket of Han Jeong-soo's coat.
"Hea… headquarters."
"Hold on."
Illusion.
Shalalalalang.
Do-ha swept his hand, and the interior of his house began to transform into Han Jeong-soo's Association office.
"Answer it now."
"Thank you."
Sssk.
Han Jeong-soo nodded, put on his mask, and immediately set the communication artifact on the table.
Clunk.
Tap. Tap. Todok.
Zwaaang.
When he tapped the artifact, a translucent screen appeared in midair just like before.
"You're late answering."
"My apologies. Being at the Association, I…"
"I didn't ask for excuses."
"…"
Hearing the voice from the other side of the screen, Han Jeong-soo lowered his head.
"I'm crossing into Korea tomorrow. You've already received the order from headquarters, I assume?"
"Yes. I was told we are to cause a Wave."
At the word "tomorrow," Han Jeong-soo flinched.
This soon?
"Good. So all you need to do is delay the Hunter dispatch as long as possible."
Knowing that Han Jeong-soo was the dispatch team manager, the man on the other end issued a perfectly tailored order.
In fact, placing Han Jeong-soo on the dispatch team had been for precisely this kind of use.
"Which Gate will be used for the Wave?"
"…Strange. As far as I know, you never used to ask questions like that…"
Sensing something off, the man on the other side of the screen narrowed his eyes.
In the past, when given an order, Han Jeong-soo had accepted it without a single excuse. Something felt wrong.
"Take off the mask."
Tup.
Sssk.
At the command, Han Jeong-soo immediately removed his mask and bowed his head.
"My apologies. With the connection to the world of Belhart, the number of office staff has increased… I only asked in case any Association personnel might be near the Gate where the Wave will be triggered."
"Hmm… Fine. But don't worry. Even if someone is nearby, they won't be able to interfere with our operation."
"…Understood."
"I'll contact you tomorrow."
"Yes."
Shuuuu.
Paht.
"Hoo…"
Once the screen vanished, Han Jeong-soo let out a deep breath.
He had pushed a little too hard trying to dig up one more piece of information for Do-ha and nearly drawn suspicion instead.
"Good work."
"It was nothing."
"That guy just now—who was he?"
"He's the one in charge of East Asia. A man named Shurike."
"Shurike…"
"Do-ha-nim. You must be careful."
"Why?"
"Shurike has a certain nickname."
"What nickname?"
"The Undying One."
He was only S-rank, yet he was a being who refused to stay dead. Within New Age, an SS-rank Awakened had once ripped out his heart—only for Shurike to return the next day, perfectly fine.
Thok.
"Alright. Thanks for the warning."
"And… what should we do about the New Age branch here in Korea?"
"We'll deal with this Shurike—or Shucream, whatever his name is—first, then wipe out the branch."
"Yes. Then I'll head back to the Association. I'll contact you tomorrow."
"Do that."
Creak.
Thud.
After bowing at a perfect ninety degrees, Han Jeong-soo stepped outside. The moment he was gone, Canteas—who had been quietly waiting—approached.
"Do-ha, you saw it too, right?"
"Yeah."
"The Demon God Cult."
Just moments ago, on the other side of the screen, a mark symbolizing the Demon God Cult had been engraved on Shurike's wrist.
"Perfect. We can take care of New Age and the Demon God Cult in one go."
If anything, Do-ha felt a twinge of gratitude toward Shurike for belonging to both groups at once.