Hunter Association President Yoon Seo-ah (2) - Deathmatch
"Capture her alive if at all possible."
"Understood, Master."
That was Master's command before I entered. I wanted to kill her so badly, but...
Hah.
I gripped my sword, feeling the new armor Master had forged for me. Its heavy heft was different from the familiar Griffon—a wild, beastly vitality pulsed through it. This armor and sword were my new power, gifts from Master. He had told me they were made from the Minotaur I soloed during my subjugation—a creature forged from Cretor's heart, the king's horn, and its essence...
"Thank you, Master."
I murmured softly inside my helmet. Invisible heat haze rose from the Minotaur horns protruding from both shoulders.
Night Queen's special function unlocked: King's Authority
Submissive Pheromones released.
The king's horns embedded in the armor's shoulders condensed Cretor's authority: Submissive Pheromones. This colorless, odorless pheromone was an invisible poison her telekinesis could never block. Simply inhaling it would shatter the opponent's will to resist and awaken primal submission. Master said it would be especially fatal to a woman with strong pride...
I took a deep breath.
Master had given me a reason to live—to repay this grace, I could not lose. No, it wasn't just that I couldn't lose. I would sever the neck of the fool who dared threaten Master and lay it at his feet.
"Come in whenever you're ready, baby."
Trading blows at range with the telekinetic would drag on forever. I'd end it in a flash.
Fwaaah—!
I kicked off the ground first. The arena's soft sand floor cracked like a massive spiderweb under my leg strength, cratering deeply. The recoil alone scattered debris like dust.
I shot toward Yoon Seo-ah like a streak of black meteor. Only about 100 meters and a sandstorm of death separated us. For me, it was less than a second.
The distance closed in an instant: 100 meters, 50 meters, 10 meters. The blade in my hand howled with blue mana lightning, aiming straight for her heart.
My nerves, sharpened to the extreme, made time feel like it slowed. The sharp rupture of air slicing, the faint cheers from the stands, and... "What a waste of that talent of yours." My heart pounded like war drums.
"Foolish. No probing first?"
Yoon Seo-ah muttered. She didn't even think to dodge or block. The moment her red eyes fixed on me, thousands of sand bullets surrounding her launched at me in unison.
Shooooosh—!
A roar that could shred steel plates. Sand's main component is quartz. Compressed to molecular level by her telekinesis and accelerated to three times the speed of sound, each grain gleamed like the world's hardest diamond—lethal projectiles with anti-tank round destructive power. A graze would rip off one of my arms easily.
They swarmed me like a bee hive. A curtain of death filled my vision. No escape from an attack that would pulverize all life.
But I didn't stop. No need to dodge.
My path was forward only. For Master's honor, sever that woman's neck. That was my sole reason for existing.
Nothing in this world could withstand my blade.
Body-Sword Unity
Moonlight Slash
I spun like a ballerina's pirouette—graceful yet at blinding speed. The new sword in my hand traced a pitch-black arc. Crescent-shaped sword energy spread outward.
If her telekinesis crushed all, my power sliced all in this world. We'd prove which was stronger right here.
Blood surged hot.
Kakakakakakakakaka—!
Thousands of diamond bullets collided with my sword energy, slicing apart like tofu and scattering. The sharp metallic clash rang through the entire ring.
The stands buzzed.
"Amazing! That's S-rank?"
"Hey, don't just watch—run!"
Bang—! Bang—!
Sand grains embedded in the arena walls perforated the concrete like a honeycomb, leaving deep holes. If I'd taken that head-on, I'd be the one swiss-cheesed in seconds, drenched in blood and flesh.
Bursting through the sandstorm, I finally reached her—sword's reach away.
"It's over!"
The blade Master forged from the king's horn plunged toward her slender neck. But it didn't fully connect. No full sword energy loaded—capture was the goal.
Kiiiiii—!
Like hitting the world's hardest wall. My sword halted in midair.
"Blocked...! The attack...!"
Regretful sighs erupted from the stands. Her telekinesis gripped my sword. Neutralized mere centimeters from her throat. The blue lightning at my blade's tip fizzled against her intangible force.
"...That swordsmanship... as expected."
Yoon Seo-ah's red eyes narrowed. She seemed to confirm my identity. As she clenched her fist, the space around me warped. Invisible giant hands softly gripped and crushed my limbs. Then came the Buddha's Palm. Immense gravity bore down on my head.
My armor bent like taffy, screaming. Fwaaaang— But I countered with a mana explosion, resisting her telekinesis. Telekinesis was mana-born, after all. Mana repels mana.
"Kraaaah!"
Black sword energy burst from me, shattering her binding telekinesis. Kwaang—!
I broke free, righting myself midair.
"Hah... hah..."
Ragged breaths echoed in my helmet.
"Monsters... those two are real monsters..."
A mix of awe and terror burst from the stands. Invisible heat haze rose again from the Minotaur horns on my shoulders, silently spreading through the arena air.
Master's cowardly but certain victory card. Did he predict Yoon Seo-ah the Clairvoyant would come here? Master might have eyes spanning not thousands, but tens of thousands of li. As expected... Master!
Yoon Seo-ah, sensing something off, wrapped herself in telekinesis to block it.
"Dirty tricks...!"
She felt the anomaly but couldn't pinpoint it. Yet her movements dulled ever so slightly—noticeable only to superhuman senses.
"Out of breath already?"
I taunted her.
"Hah... my body..."
The pheromones were working. Cold sweat beaded on her forehead, breaths grew ragged. Her red eyes trembled faintly. Primal female instincts, uncontrollable by reason, began gnawing at her mind.
I unleashed thrusting slashes at her. Hundreds of black sword energies rained down like arrows.
For the first time, Yoon Seo-ah's face showed genuine admiration at the black sword-energy downpour. Arena sand and debris gathered around her, forming massive shields and spears—like an earth goddess descended.
Kang! Kakakang! Kwaang!
Even her layered telekinetic shields could only deflect the sword energies' paths. Each clash shattered a section of the stands. Flashes erupted, shockwaves battered the audience. Ma Do-jun deployed barrier arts to minimize damage. Master's stand was fully shielded by Yeom Hwa-rin.
Fwoooong— Like dragon claws raking past, indelible scars marred the coliseum.
Pabat! Pabatt!
Yoon Seo-ah kept widening the distance. Telekinetic hands from floor and ceiling pushed me back further.
Too dangerous up close, huh? We exchanged blows at speeds no normal eyes could follow. I seemed gradually pushed back, meter by meter.
Time was on my side anyway. Pheromones were spreading—drag it out, then strike decisively. I could end her now, but Master ordered capture, so no choice.
"This isn't a human fight anymore!"
"Run if you don't wanna die!"
The packed stands emptied as spectators instinctively sensed staying meant being bisected. This was no ordinary deathmatch.
Cataclysm vs. cataclysm. A war between two S-ranks that could level a city.
"How's this?"
Yoon Seo-ah smirked bitterly, glancing at Master.
"Watch closely, Master."
Her red eyes shifted from me to Dr. Lee Hyun-seong—my Master.
Shwaaaak—!
A spear of death launched at Master. Cowardly...! Unavoidable. The mana condensed at its tip could pierce mountains. A god-slaying spear flew.
Master. Master is in danger.
[Protocol: Prioritize Master's safety]
No time to think. Instinct took over.
Fwaaaaa—!
I kicked off, breaking the sound barrier. I enveloped him.
Pook—!
It pierced my armor like paper, through my side.
Kwaaaaaang—!!!!
"K... heuk..."
Clutching Master, I smashed through the arena's thick wall into the outer corridor. Concrete spiderwebbed and collapsed as I crashed. Kugugugu—!
Bleeding amid the rubble, I coughed blood.
"...Cough, cough..."
I barely lifted my head. Master in my arms was mercifully unscathed.
"Cough..."
Dark red blood poured from my mouth, splattering Master's face.
"Sorry... I'm so sorry, Master... Are you okay?"
"..."
"Ma... Master..!"
Did the impact knock him out? What do I do...?!
Thud—! Kugugugugu—!
My helmet's HUD blacked out briefly, filling with red warnings.
System damage detected from external impact.
Biometric signals declining.
My body's pain was nothing... Regeneration's Blessing would heal even the hole soon enough. But if Master were hurt...
That was different. I stroked Master's closed-eyed face.
"Kuh..."
I'll kill her. Kill her. Kill her without mercy, dismember her corpse completely.
Yoon Seo-ah floated slowly over the crumbled wall.
"...Foolish. You'd throw away your life to protect your master?"
Layered shields ready for any slash. Her cold voice echoed from beyond the debris.
I dragged my broken body upright, wiping bloodied lips.
"I... won't let you... touch my... Master..."
So damn cowardly. I'll kill her... really kill her.
"Cowardly..."
"Still haven't come to your senses? Didn't you use dirty tricks first?"
"..."
"Throwing your life away for a man who treats you like a toy. Unbelievable. What a waste of that talent."
Yoon Seo-ah looked down with bug-crushing contempt.
A man who treats me like a toy?
"Using... such low tricks... Don't you have any pride as a hunter?"
"Low? Heh. I have no knightly pride. Victory is justice."
Unscratched, she loomed like a god over humans, arrogant. I staggered up from the rubble.
"No... enough."
"...?!"
"You... die now."
I closed my eyes. Mana converged to a single point at my blade's tip. Even the telekinetic threads binding me unraveled...
Wooooong—!!
The blade tip blazed like a supernova, blindingly intense. Surrounding space screamed and warped under the overwhelming mana density.
"You'll shatter Seoul and turn it to an inferno!!"
Yoon Seo-ah realized what I was doing and gathered all her power. No more leisure on her face. Sweat streamed down her forehead.
"As Hunter Association President, I hereby execute Sia Seong on the spot."
Matter swirled around her, forming a massive black sphere—like a mini black hole.
"Perish."
Her black sphere and my glowing blade tip faced off at center. Destruction and creation. Void and existence.
Crack—crack—crack—!
The underground structure groaned, cracks spiderwebbing from the ceiling.
"Damn it...! Everyone down! Get behind me if you wanna live!"
Kang Jin-woo shouted from inside the coliseum.
My soul and pride... I'm just a shooting star, a meteor fulfilling Master's victory.
Meteor
The world bleached white.