Chapter 178
Chapter 178
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 178
Chapter Title: The Shattered Rune
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The unknown power connecting dimensions through contracts with demons.
Death Demon Cry had been created based on the Demon King runes that GHO had researched.
Purely to hunt Demon Cries, Death Demon Cry itself had been forged.
Its ancient history had just erupted right before their eyes.
"The rune characters..."
"Got destroyed..."
Spears and Ollie lay rolling on the ground, their faces blank with shock.
To Death Demon Cry, the Demon King runes were everything.
In hunting the hundreds of Demon Cries up to now, those runes had been their ultimate weapon of attack and their greatest shield.
Even against Demon Cries contracted to high-ranking demons, they could take them down in one fell swoop.
But just moments ago, their history—their supreme weapon—had exploded.
Clatter.
Not because of anything else, but a single sword.
"Urk..."
Polant, who had been closest to the Demon King rune explosion, clutched his head in pain as he pushed himself up.
And standing before Polant's eyes was the monster responsible for it all.
Yong-un.
"......"
He looked up at Yong-un with a dazed expression.
Yong-un, gazing down at Polant, silently extended his hand and pulled the fallen Demon-Slaying Sword to him through the air.
Not content with detonating the Demon King runes, the blade looked utterly unscathed in Yong-un's grip—even after being at the heart of the blast.
'What kind of sword is that...'
His shock was fleeting.
Polant quickly realized this was no time for gawking.
"Colli."
Seeing Yong-un's gaze shift not to himself but toward Barum and Zero One, Polant called out quietly for Colli while keeping a wary eye on Yong-un.
[Yes.]
"We'll prepare again."
[Is that possible? There's someone who just blew up the runes.]
"I'll make it possible. So when I give the signal, inform Spears according to the previous plan."
Colli nodded faintly from a distance.
The quiet exchange with Colli came to an end.
Yong-un showed no sign of noticing at all. Polant sneered inwardly.
'You think you just need to draw the full rune characters? Yeah, just stay put like that.'
Polant quietly folded back the sleeves of his black leather long coat.
He had always known a day like this might come.
And for precisely such an occasion, the long coat he wore every day concealed a special mechanism.
Namely, the patterns that emerged when the sleeves were folded back.
The very rune characters that forcibly severed contracts with demons—the same ones Spears and Ollie had been drawing moments ago—glowed brightly the instant his sleeves locked into place.
'Slowly... so he doesn't notice, very slowly...'
Polant was the leader of Death Demon Cry.
The masterpiece crafted with utmost care by the United Kingdom, inheritors of GHO's legacy.
That was Polant.
With his exceptional mana sensitivity, he could sniff out even the most hidden Demon Cries.
Pouring every ounce of his focus, he infused mana into the runes on his sleeves so subtly and faintly that no magic-series Hunter short of the elite could possibly detect it.
'Thirty seconds!'
Even as he concentrated, Polant never stopped watching Yong-un's eyes.
He had investigated everything about Yong-un before coming here to take him down.
A tactic he wouldn't dare try against a magic-series Hunter—but Yong-un was a martial arts type.
'Sorry, but this is my win.'
He was absolutely convinced that someone who poured his power into the body over mana wouldn't notice this trick even if he died and came back to life.
The moment he began silently celebrating his victory—
Tap.
Someone grabbed Polant's shoulder without a whisper of presence.
"....?!"
Polant's eyes flew wide in shock as he whipped his head toward the intruder.
"What should we do?"
Ghost Soul Annihilation's One Ghost Soul Master.
He bowed his head toward Yong-un as he asked.
The instinctive thought—what?—flashed through Polant's mind first, but when he followed the direction of the Master's bowed head, a wave of utter weakness washed over him.
Because Yong-un's icy gaze was already fixed on Polant's sleeve.
'He already... knew?'
Polant's next thought followed swiftly.
'But why?'
Why hadn't he done anything?
In the face of this unbelievable reality, curiosity overtook shock.
Then came Yong-un's voice.
"Ghost Soul Annihilation."
"Yes, Supreme One."
"I command you all. Ensure no one interferes with the battle of your comrades—your family."
The Master's eyes sharpened as he glared at Polant.
"Yes, Supreme One. We obey."
With the Master's response, every Ghost Soul concealed by their technique began revealing themselves one by one.
They emerged behind the Death Demon Cries who were just regaining their wits.
And in short order, they subdued every last one.
Thud.
The Master's hand clamped on Polant's nape and slammed him face-first into the dirt.
"Kuh..."
Polant winced from the brutal impact as the Master's dagger pressed against the back of his neck.
"Move..."
Sshhh.
"...and I'll sever it."
Thick, profound killing intent.
The unique menace of one who had truly taken lives sent a chill racing up Polant's spine.
= = =
'I'm not the type to go back on my word often.'
Yong-un despised those who couldn't own the words they spat out—so much so that he loathed reneging itself.
But to avert a greater regret, he had chosen the lesser path.
He didn't distrust Barum.
'Still, doesn't life always have its "what ifs"?'
If he lost Barum simply for not stepping in, that would lodge as an even deeper regret.
Which was why he had taken that choice he so despised.
A compromise no true martial artist should ever make with himself.
Yong-un had compromised with himself that way, channeling power into the Demon-Slaying Sword.
"Why aren't you moving? Given up?"
Yong-un's sharpened gaze turned toward the War God.
The method he had chosen for coexistence with the world—he had shattered it himself.
Ignoring the War God's warning that it would mean annihilation otherwise, Yong-un had turned his back on the world.
Yet the War God who issued the warning made no move to stop Yong-un's actions.
Arms crossed, he watched like a detached third party as Yong-un and Ghost Soul Annihilation swiftly crushed Death Demon Cry.
"Huh."
When he should have been surging with hostility, ready to defend Death Demon Cry at any moment, the War God merely smirked and snorted.
Then he uncrossed his arms and took steps toward Yong-un.
Those purely physical footfalls, devoid of hostility, killing intent, or even aura, left Yong-un puzzled.
"What's your angle?"
"As you can see, I've got no intention of attacking you."
The face that had issued such a grim warning now looked... pleased.
The natural question arose.
What was he after?
"No need to be on guard. I'm having a grand time right now."
What on earth was he thinking?
The War God approached with arms raised in a gesture of surrender. The Master shot Yong-un a look, silently requesting orders.
Unable to fathom the War God's motives, Yong-un gave a low command to Ghost Soul Annihilation.
"Hold position."
"Yes, Supreme One."
The Ghost Souls tightened their grip on their assigned Death Demon Cries and averted their eyes from the War God.
Once close to Yong-un, the War God lowered his arms and spoke.
"Asia has a saying: 'We can fathom ten fathoms deep in water, but not one fathom of the human heart.'"
Yong-un looked up at the War God.
The War God smirked back down at him.
"I'm truly grasping its meaning right now."
"What are you getting at?"
"Exactly what I said. It's why I'm acting out of character."
The usual War God wouldn't have tolerated this situation for a second.
Demon Cries—the seeds of disaster sown across the world.
Defending them as Yong-un was doing? The old War God would have instantly sided with Death Demon Cry, clashing with Ghost Soul Annihilation and Yong-un without hesitation.
But instead of joining Death Demon Cry, here he was, smiling warmly at Yong-un.
Studying the War God's uncharacteristic behavior and eyes closely, Yong-un remarked.
"Your smile looks a little forced."
A faint sadness seeped through the welcoming grin.
Pinpointing it exactly drew out the longing that had been veiled by sorrow.
"Oh ho. Impressive as ever. You're the only one who could figure out why I'm acting this way right now."
"The one behind that longing and sadness in your eyes."
"Do you remember when I coldly turned my back on you before?"
Yong-un nodded at the distant look in the War God's eyes.
"The Mercenary King?"
This time, the War God nodded.
And let out another soft chuckle.
"Because of him, I risked everything to become an S-Rank Hunter. Because of him, I thought becoming a Hunter was the right call. He taught me the thrill of blood-pumping battles. Hell, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say the name 'War God' was forged by the Mercenary King himself."
The War God's gaze drifted upward to the sky as he regarded Yong-un.
"Man, what a clear sky."
One could see his effort to shove aside the sadness.
After gazing around at the heavens, he seemed to compose himself a touch, offering an awkward smile as he continued.
"When I learned the Mercenary King was a Demon Cry, I was crushed by betrayal and despair. Do you know that feeling... when your goal vanishes?"
Yong-un didn't know it precisely, but the Mercenary King clearly wasn't just a comrade to the War God.
From the look of it now, "master and disciple" felt more fitting—the Mercenary King had been an insurmountable goal etched into his soul.
But that goal had been a lie, and the lie had vanished right before his eyes. No wonder he flew into a rage at the mere sight of Demon Cries.
"After that, I killed every Demon Cry I laid eyes on. Once I earned the War God title, even on gate support missions, if there were rumors of Demon Cries in a country, I'd carve out time to dismantle their operations and slaughter them all."
That betrayal had hardened into rage and murderous intent—the very forces that had drawn the War God to South Korea alongside Death Demon Cry.
"But here's the thing. Last night, just before heading to South Korea, the thought hit me out of nowhere. You're no Demon Cry—why volunteer to be one? Why walk such a perilous path?"
The War God's gaze shifted from the sky to the empty ground.
"At first, it baffled me. Made me furious. Why were all the strong, likable guys Demon Cries? Felt so damn unfair. But as I nursed a vodka, it started overlapping—the day the Mercenary King left me, and the moment you declared yourself a Demon Cry."
He suddenly burst into laughter mid-sentence and nodded to himself.
"Crazy, right? The only thing they had in common was being rotten bastards, so why did their images align? Just the Demon Cry link? Nah. The human heart's a mystery. I could never understand the Mercenary King's actions back then, but thinking about you and your crew... it suddenly clicks. Hilarious, isn't it?"
After listening to the War God's rambling for so long, Yong-un asked.
"What do you think my reason is for all this?"
The War God, who had been staring at the ground, looked up at Yong-un.
Then he gripped Yong-un's shoulder and said.
"You're not the type to plunge the world into danger. I'll back you. I won't see it as betrayal or abandonment. So... can we salvage our broken bond?"
An utterly offbeat response.
But Yong-un listened quietly before replying.
"Understood. Thank you."
"I... thank you too..."
The War God's hand slipped weakly from Yong-un's shoulder.
With that, he turned and trudged back the way he came, shoulders slumped.
Even with those drooping shoulders, Yong-un sensed a genuine happiness from the War God that he'd never felt before.
'You wanted to say that so badly, huh.'
His shoulders weren't sagging from weakness.
He had poured out the words he longed to tell someone from his past—through Yong-un.
Suppressing the screams in his head and body to stop them, quelling the rising aura, he was forcing it all down with happiness.
To avoid repeating that mistake.
To offer true support.
Yong-un watched the War God's receding figure and gave a firm nod.
Then, quietly sliding the Demon-Slaying Sword back into its sheath, he called out softly.
"Those words... I'll make sure to deliver them to the one you wanted to say them to so badly."
By coming all the way to South Korean soil, the War God must have harbored some "what if."
What he had witnessed today had dispelled it, though the exact reason remained a mystery.
But a few things were now crystal clear.
'No need to place Ghost Soul Annihilation on the world's chopping block anymore.'
And because of that, he wouldn't lose his family's happiness again.
Letting out a deep sigh of relief at having surmounted this major hurdle, Yong-un turned his eyes to the battle between Zero One and Barum, which was still raging, and made a vow.
"I've got a reason to grow stronger now."
Flames reignited in the cold ashes of Yong-un's complacency.
He realized his assumption that his faction's strength meant he could fully protect his family had been arrogant folly.
'I was a fool. Forgot how many precious things I have now.'
To Yong-un now, family wasn't just father, mother, sister, and brother.
It was the entire faction.
"Starting over, is it."
His once-calm heart began pounding again, just like that first moment he'd returned to reality.
And he vowed.
Not to confine himself to this small patch of land called South Korea—to expand across the world, ensuring no such crises ever arose again.
Clenching his fists tight in resolve, Yong-un turned to gaze at Barum and Zero One's fight.
'And that beginning...'
His eyes settled on Zero One—and the fallen Death Demon Cries behind him.
'Starts with those guys.'