Chapter 80
Chapter 80
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 80
Chapter Title: Demon Eye
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The old military base in Jumak-dong, once known as TOD where soldiers were stationed.
The gate that should have been firmly locked stood wide open day and night, and instead of soldiers, entirely different beings now occupied the place.
A small base meant for about seven people.
A single demon with grayish skin folded its wings and descended there.
"Sandra."
In front of the demon stood another perched precariously on the edge of a cliff.
The demon on the cliff called Sandra glanced at the approaching one and smiled.
"I know."
"Can you sense it?"
Sandra opened her closed eyes.
Unlike the pitch-black left eye shared by other demons, her right eye had a black field pierced by a small circle of blue light.
She pointed to it.
"No, I can see it."
"Incredible. Can it really see that far away?"
"Of course. It's the 'Demon Eye' Lord Vaper bestowed upon me. Its power has been proven, hasn't it? Up we go."
She rose from her seat at the cliff's edge.
Then, shifting the blue glow in her pupil, she smiled again.
"But you know... we really seem to have some luck on our side."
"What do you mean?"
"Togma, remember that kid we saw back there with Lord Vaper?"
Togma tilted his head.
Sandra spread her hands to mime a small figure.
"The little one with the same markings as us."
As she gestured, she held out her right hand, and a black pattern spread across it and up her entire arm.
"Ah... I remember. Are you saying that child came here?"
Togma mirrored Sandra's smile at her words.
His body shuddered with amusement.
"Did Lord Vaper use his Demon Eye, perhaps?"
"No, I don't think so. It's not just the kid."
"Meaning..."
"They all came. Everyone except that most pathetic bunch."
Togma's grin deepened at Sandra's words.
"No need to split up, then. We can wipe them out in one go."
Sandra nodded at Togma's smile.
"Should we praise their courage? Or curse their recklessness? Pfft, eh? Hold on."
Sandra, mid-laugh, suddenly twitched her right eye.
Togma wiped his smile away and asked,
"Did something happen?"
"Ha, haha, hahahahaha!"
Togma's curiosity was short-lived.
Sandra burst into sudden laughter.
Togma tilted his head again.
Meeting his puzzled gaze, Sandra dismissed the blue Demon Eye from her right socket and turned to him.
"If we play our cards right, we might snag some unexpected gains."
"Gains?"
"Kuhuhuhu."
Leaving Togma clueless, Sandra looked up at the sky.
Just before recalling the Demon Eye, it had captured a single figure amid the clear shapes of others—the only one blurred, with long hair. She twisted her lips at the memory.
"You're mine."
Slash! Whoosh!
Sword Tiger, Jong-hyun, and Jeong-won's blades moved without pause, spraying blood everywhere.
It was no exaggeration to call it Demon Earth.
The gates they'd cleared so far seemed like child's play compared to Jumak-dong's dire state.
"Ngh..."
Unlike gates filled with monsters and bosses,
this place, long infested by demons, brimmed with boss-level monsters and demons at every turn.
Bzzzzt! Boom!
His breath burned at his throat.
Exhausted, right on the verge of collapse after expending everything.
Demon Dragon Leader Sword Tiger unleashed his signature thunder-infused strike with full force, sweeping away the surrounding demons and monsters.
"Hoo... this ain't easy."
Grrr. Kerak.
True to their boss-level status, the monsters writhed, resisting the thunder qi.
But Sword Tiger's blow, which they'd nearly fully absorbed, proved too powerful.
Kek.
All monsters caught in the thunder froze in place.
"Haa..."
Thud.
Only then did Jeong-won and Jong-hyun slump to the ground with sighs of relief.
Sword Tiger pulled mana stones from their bodies, pocketed them, and scanned the surroundings.
"If you're gonna circulate your qi, do it over there."
He pointed to a distant pension.
It was rundown from neglect, but still far better shelter than the wide-open seaside. Jeong-won and Jong-hyun dragged their trembling legs toward it.
Upon reaching the pension, the Demon Dragon Squad immediately began recovery meditation.
While Jeong-won and Jong-hyun restored their strength, Sword Tiger patrolled the perimeter, vigilance unbroken.
True to form as leader, he still had reserves left.
"Whew, this body's taking a beating."
Even so, he'd never pushed himself this hard before. With a sigh, he set his sword aside for a moment.
He stripped off his sweat- and blood-soaked shirt.
Seeking a brief rest, he settled into a rocking chair on the pension's first floor.
"Hell's got nothing on this."
His first impression of Demon Earth: a hellhole teeming with monsters and demons, devoid of any humans.
Wrung out, the shirt poured out thick monster blood.
"Wonder how the Specter Assassins are holding up."
The exhaustion made him worry even about those he usually wouldn't.
But the worry passed quickly, replaced by a chuckle.
"Still, we're the first to make it this far."
It hit him anew just how formidable the hunters under his master Yong-un were.
No guild had achieved this.
Hell, they probably hadn't even dreamed of it.
The thought of clearing Demon Earth? Insane.
'No wonder the Minister won't approve it.'
Sword Tiger smirked, smiling wryly.
If he were the Minister, he'd never allow it either—no matter how legendary Master Yong-un was. Demon Earth was no ordinary gate; it was something else entirely.
He was feeling it firsthand right now, sword in hand.
Even a top-world S-Rank hunter couldn't solo-clear this place.
"Just made it 1km?"
Hours of nonstop slaughter, and barely a kilometer in.
If this wasn't hell, what was?
Staring at the blood-soaked ground, Sword Tiger shook his head.
As he slipped his shirt back on, he resumed his lapsed scan of the surroundings.
"Should be around here somewhere..."
It was then.
"...?!"
From the rocking chair, gazing out while on watch.
Something impossible entered Sword Tiger's sight.
A person—not a demon or monster.
'A human... living in Demon Earth?'
Absurd.
Even he had faced countless brushes with death just to crawl 1km.
How could anyone survive here?
Swish.
"...?!"
Their eyes met as the person glanced around.
Sword Tiger halted the rocker, tensing up.
He gripped the sword at his side and drew up his mana.
"Found you!"
The figure that looked human smiled upon spotting him and kicked off the ground, charging straight at Sword Tiger—to confirm if it truly was human, he'd extend his senses.
But in that instant,
'Fast!'
Sensing the blistering speed, Sword Tiger abandoned his deliberations.
No more debate on talk or duel.
One conclusion:
'Kill it.'
Blue thunder crackled along his mana-charged blade.
As he swung,
the charging figure's body twisted and warped, revealing a new form.
"Kyahaha!"
None other than...
Yong-un's likeness.
Sword Tiger's sword faltered in shock.
That hesitation sealed his mistake.
The Yong-un imposter closed in at breakneck speed and slammed a fist into Sword Tiger's gut. His body shattered the pension's entrance and crashed inside.
Not all demons were created equal.
Demons had tribes too, and skills varied in power and type by tribe.
Cough, hack.
But the Specter Assassins weathered the chaos of the demons' myriad skills for only a moment.
They'd found a way to tell them apart.
The Poison Witch, now adept at controlling her venom, unleashed inky blue poison qi to rot one demon into a corpse.
She turned to Cheon-il—the only surefire way to distinguish demons—and shouted,
"Yi-gwi-hon!"
"The one on the left in dancer form!"
Cheon-il's grayish eyes darted rapidly.
"Got it!"
At his call, the Poison Witch, Myung-su, and Mu-hee sprang into action.
Her dark blue poison qi blanketed everyone but the left-side dancer.
The lethal toxin lived up to its name, instantly decaying the dancer into a putrid heap.
The corpses that had mimicked Myung-su, Mu-hee, Cheon-il, and the Poison Witch reverted to their true demonic forms—jet-black eyes and all—before collapsing.
"Yi-gwi-hon!"
"Left one looks like me!"
Myung-su's daggers flashed at Cheon-il's voice.
"Yi-gwi-hon!"
"Front—Il-gwi-hon form!"
Mu-hee's hands moved at Cheon-il's cue, manipulating shadows on the ground.
Daggers erupted from the shadows with each gesture, piercing the jaw-upward through the skulls of demons disguised as allies.
A fitting display from the Heavenly Demon Cult's elite assassin unit.
Rebuilt as the second iteration, their prowess rivaled the original Specter Assassins without shame.
Their framework was that complete, yielding such astonishing growth.
"Kerak! Kerererak!"
With their confusion skills foiled, the shapeshifting demons broke away from the Specter Assassins.
"Haa... haa..."
"Hoo..."
True to Il-gwi-hon form, Myung-su—who'd moved most to shield the others—panted heavily.
The Poison Witch, who'd sprayed endless venom, leaned on her knees to catch her breath.
Only the relatively unscathed Mu-hee approached Cheon-il and stroked his head.
"Thanks."
Cheon-il blushed at the beautiful Mu-hee's beaming smile.
As his demonization faded, the youthful boy's face broke into a grin.
"You saved us, Cheon-il."
The Poison Witch smiled while regulating her breathing.
"Hehe."
Cheon-il's gaze fixed on Myung-su,
as if demanding praise.
Myung-su met his eyes and smirked.
A casual thumbs-up served as his reply.
"Leave it to me!"
Cheon-il thumped his chest proudly, puffing it out.
"Hahaha!"
The Specter Assassins' ghost souls erupted in laughter at the adorable display.
"Is the Demon Dragon Squad alright?"
Amid it all,
Myung-su eyed the direction they'd gone with unease.
The Specter Assassins had Cheon-il to identify foes, but the Demon Dragon Squad lacked that.
Without friend-foe distinction, these shapeshifters were their worst nightmare.
"Don't worry. They're doing fine."
Mu-hee smiled reassuringly at Myung-su's concern.
"Ah..."
Her bright smile clicked something for him.
He'd forgotten: Mu-hee had a spirit user.
Seeing her confident expression—fully aware of the Demon Dragon Squad's status—Myung-su finally sighed in relief.
"They'll manage. The Demon Dragon Squad serves Master too, after all."
Mu-hee gave an awkward smile at Myung-su's unwavering conviction.
She swallowed her next words.
'Y-yeah, doing great. Just like a Demon Dragon Squad should.'
Mu-hee's face stiffened as she watched their plight.
'Should I take it back? They are... kinda doing okay... right?'
As Mu-hee pondered, Myung-su rose after his short break.
"Let's move."
He issued the order to resume the mission per Yong-un's command.
"Kiyoooooot!"
Then, an odd screech pierced the assassins' ears.
"Sounded like Jeong-won..."
The Poison Witch glanced that way, but Mu-hee grabbed her shoulders and shoved her gaze aside.
"Ha, haha, must've been some animal. C-come on, let's go."
"Moving out."
Myung-su shrugged at Mu-hee's words.
As the group followed him, Cheon-il lagged behind, peering back curiously.
"Felt like I saw shirtless Jeong-won hyung... Nah, must be a demon skill. Hyung! Wait up!"