Chapter 184: Kergel (11)

“Uwaaaaaah!”

The Resistance members let out a roar. The chandeliers on the ceiling trembled faintly from their advance. Emboldened, they charged into the Magic Tower without a second thought.

It was pandemonium. The two members guarding the rear shut both doors of the Magic Tower. With a final screech of the hinges, the tower was cut off from the City.

“Wipe them out! The Commander-in-Chief is leading the charge!”

No sooner had Kang Hyeonseong shouted than he stomped the ground. He lunged forward, seizing the face of a stunned mage. He didn’t give them a chance to counter.

Crack!

The mage’s head burst like a melon. Kang Hyeonseong flung the limp body aside like trash. Another mage behind caught it but couldn’t withstand the force and went flying.

Thud.

Kang Hyeonseong leaped into the air like a bird of prey, then stomped down with one foot like a heron. His leg skewered the piled-up mages like kebabs. With raw strength alone, he instantly killed two of them.

Kang Hyeonseong quickly scanned the room. The moment he spotted his next target, he launched himself. Mages swept away in his path fell like leaves in the wind.

Fumito, watching from the rear, gazed at Kang Hyeonseong’s receding back. A smirk escaped his lips.

“He’s really fired up, isn’t he?”

It had been a long time since he’d seen the boss this genuinely excited. Actually, ever since Lee Taebaek joined, Kang Hyeonseong had been brooding on one hand while enjoying himself on the other.

The 9th Battalion members, including Kang Hyeonseong, had fallen into a rut. Their resolve bound by the spirit of resistance was admirable enough.

‘Compared to our main enemy, the Megacorps, the Resistance was far too weak.’

If the gap had been manageable, that would be one thing, but it was like eggs smashing against a rock. Not just the 9th Battalion, but the entire Resistance had hit rock bottom in morale.

The unusually tight-knit solidarity that stood out in the City had loosened as well. The City’s temptations were everywhere, too much for ideology alone to motivate thousands.

Affiliate companies began defecting one by one. External agents dispatched outside vanished without a trace, turning traitor. The Resistance was backed into a corner. It was a time that called for revolutionary change. Amid all that, the former Commander-in-Chief made his decision.

“Taebaek.”

Fumito’s gaze drifted far. Lee Taebaek was at the forefront, butchering mages.

His sword strokes were so fluid and lightning-fast that mages often died with eyes wide open, heads flying.

The slaughter scene inspired profound awe in the human butcher Fumito. It also stirred a strange competitive spirit.

“…Huuuuh.”

Hot breath leaked through his gritted teeth.

Fumito lowered his upper body sharply. He stepped forward with his left foot. His right foot dragged back, toes scraping the floor.

Clang.

He gripped the katana hilt. His thumb on the scabbard flicked the guard forward.

Iai stance.

Fumito opened his closed eyes.

Slash!

The upper and lower bodies of nearby mages split apart.

Fumito zigzagged forward, guiding his blade’s flash. Mages needed to snap their fingers before casting spells.

‘I’ll kill them first.’

Of course, the mages weren’t just taking it lying down. They hurled magic wildly.

Fumito couldn’t dodge everything perfectly. Fine lines of blood etched his skin. A wind spell deeply gashed his trapezius, but his innate [Faith] healed it in moments.

His specialty wasn’t speed combat to begin with. Fumito endured the wounds to follow Kang Hyeonseong and Lee Taebaek, clearing paths for the rear guard.

Whiiiish.

“Tear them apart! Death for the Divine Cult! Embrace death!”

Flames, wind, and lightning rained down inside. Indiscriminate spells that didn’t spare friend or foe. Casualties mounted on both sides without distinction.

The mages’ morale, which had dipped after the initial clash, quickly recovered. Rather, the longer the battle dragged on, the more the scales seemed to subtly tip toward the Magic Tower side.

“The Divine Cult is invincible!”

A neck fell to Fumito’s katana. Even as body and head separated, the mage kept babbling.

“Ten Thousand Demons Submit!”

Fumito snatched the hair mid-air and hurled the head far away. A mage at the impact point casually brushed it aside and snapped his fingers. No trace of camaraderie.

“Die!”

Flames gathered in the mage’s palm. The cast was instantaneous. A skilled one.

Fumito tried to evade the attack range.

Roooar!

The fireball claimed first strike, filling his vision. Fumito instinctively squeezed his eyes shut. The heatwave scorched his forehead.

“…?!”

It was cold.

‘Chill.’

Fumito cracked one eye open. Ice wall. A translucent ice wall blocked the fireball right in front of his nose.

Bubbles boiled at the contact point, but the ice wall’s chill prevailed.

“You okay?”

Lee Taebaek had appeared beside him, asking casually. Ah, it was Taebaek. Fumito blinked stupidly before smirking.

“Almost got chills.”

“…Don’t even joke about that. Gives me goosebumps.”

“With your face, Taebaek, even guys would line up.”

“Hey, cut it out, seriously?”

As they traded banter, the mage bolted. He turned and sprinted down the corridor.

“To the Tower Master, to the Tower Master…!”

“Where do you think you’re going!”

The mage’s neck snapped at a right angle. Kang Hyeonseong thrust his shoulder with full force, two inches from the target. The broken-necked mage smashed a pillar and cratered the wall.

“Let runners go, and it just gets tiring.”

Kang Hyeonseong dusted his hands and rejoined them. Lee Taebaek dispelled the ice wall.

The three stood a step apart, observing the battle. Flesh tore, blood sprayed.

The fight overheated. With blood everywhere and bodies entangled, distinguishing friend from foe grew difficult.

‘At least the Resistance is in white robes for identification.’

The Beggar Clan, allied for the greater cause with the Lilith Order, was a precarious sight.

Look at them now—one from the Lilith Order and a Beggar Clan member nearly clashed before awkwardly backing off.

It was chilling to watch. They needed a plan. As Lee Taebaek pondered, he turned his gaze.

“How’s it looking?”

Kang Hyeonseong replied. “We’re ahead 8 to 2.”

Kang Hyeonseong’s Gift was [Thousand-Mile Eyes]. He could read the battlefield broadly. Surprisingly, he had no strength-related Gifts. His superhuman power was purely from training.

“Sounds good?”

Kang Hyeonseong grinned.

“Of course. Taebaek, you took out nearly a quarter before we even started. How could we lose? Plus, we hit them at a timing they never saw coming. Even mages can’t handle being caught off-guard.”

Fumito added,

“Won’t last long. Fanatics rally fast on their own logic.”

Lee Taebaek glanced at Fumito, who grimaced.

“Bit awkward to ask now, but you seem well-versed in cults and religions, Fumito?”

“…What.”

“Had to be.”

Fumito shuddered. Kang Hyeonseong patted his back and continued.

“Time to spill, Fumito. He’s the Commander-in-Chief now. If it’s hard for you, want me to?”

“…Please.”

Fumito said no more and sprang back to the front. He mercilessly slaughtered mages.

Bathed in blood, swinging his blade—he was the epitome of a human butcher.

Kang Hyeonseong, standing beside Lee Taebaek, said,

“Fumito’s from the Blood Cult.”

“Blood Cult—the group that splintered when the Heavenly Demon Cult migrated to the City?”

“Yeah. Some rebelled against the name change and adaptations to City life. They formed the Blood Cult. Fumito’s mother was the founder.”

“Ah…”

His head spun.

To think a character he’d created had such a backstory. He’d never imagined Fumito, meant to be a mid-boss and forgotten, was a Blood Cult heir.

“…But the Blood Cult.”

“Got wiped out by the Heavenly Demon.”

Kang Hyeonseong nodded.

“Seemed like she was easing up at first, but massacred them once stabilized. As you guessed, Fumito’s the sole survivor.”

“…”

Kang Hyeonseong eyed Fumito as he spoke.

“He’s not a prodigy who survived on his own. Word is, the Heavenly Demon let him live on purpose.”

“If she meant to delete them, why not right away? Why wait?”

“…”

Kang Hyeonseong’s eyes darkened.

“Fumito said she left a cryptic line: ‘Falling from a great height improves the quality of primordial poison…’”

A riddle.

‘Falling from a great height improves the quality of primordial poison.’

It stuck in his throat like a thorn.

What was this unease?

Lee Taebaek shook his head to clear stray thoughts.

‘Not the time for nonsense.’

Lee Taebaek turned. Ignoring the battlefield, he headed for the door at the corridor’s end.

Stairs ascending into darkness faintly visible. Like a dungeon entrance. Fitting for the Demon’s Den.

“Scared? Want me to come along?”

Kang Hyeonseong nudged his shoulder.

“Scared, my ass.”

Saying that, Lee Taebaek took the lead. Kang Hyeonseong grinned and followed like a bodyguard.

* * *

After that, things unfolded similarly to the first floor. Waiting mages spotted Lee Taebaek and Kang Hyeonseong and attacked.

But they died without notable achievements against the duo’s response.

The mages were overwhelmed by Lee Taebaek alone, let alone with One-Man Thousand Kill Kang Hyeonseong.

Mages vanished futilely. Thus, they ascended smoothly: 2nd floor, 3rd, 4th… up to the 10th.

Squelch.

Kang Hyeonseong stepped first. A sticky sound accompanied a bloody footprint on the marble. Traces of fierce battle.

“…!”

Kang Hyeonseong’s hackles rose.

“Blood—sea—!”

He twisted, arms outstretched wide. As Lee Taebaek blinked in confusion, lightning slammed his back.

Crackle!

Kang Hyeonseong’s eyes rolled back. Foam bubbled from his mouth, yet his arms stayed up.

The sudden lightning halted. Kang Hyeonseong dropped his arms. Lee Taebaek caught him… but his back was charred black. Mocking laughter followed.

“One strike claims the One-Man Thousand Kill.”

A man cloaked in shadows bisecting the room approached.

“Pleased to meet you, Supreme.”

He bared his teeth.

“This is the Mad Demon Right Hand.”