The shell sailed across the flower garden and detonated with a deafening roar.

In an instant, the acrid stench of gunpowder filled the air.

The relentless barrage of gunfire and exploding shells left his ears ringing.

‘What’s going on here?’

Seo Kangrim stood momentarily bewildered by the unexpected scene before him.

The beautiful floral landscape he had anticipated was only a fraction of the reality.

Most of the flowers had been scorched to ash, and the blood-soaked earth resembled a warzone.

And the ones taking the brunt of the artillery fire were a horde of demonic beasts.

-Keuaaa!

Countless demonic beasts attempted to advance, only to be halted by barbed wire fences.

A few managed to leap over the barrier, but each time they did, they were engulfed in flames and sent tumbling backward.

As Kangrim frantically assessed the situation, a rough shout echoed from behind.

“What the? Where did this guy come from?”

“And who the hell is he?”

He turned to find people standing atop a towering barricade.

They wore modern military uniforms, yet they looked astonishingly young.

Even the oldest among them couldn’t have been more than fifteen.

‘What on earth is that building?’

Just moments ago, in the Rat Hegemon King’s Divine Domain, a classical Eastern aesthetic had permeated the air.

But the structure before Kangrim’s eyes now was distinctly modern.

Solidly constructed barricades, bazookas, and Gatling guns.

‘I can’t stay here.’

Demonic beasts were surging from behind, while the building ahead unleashed a ceaseless volley of fire.

Caught in the crossfire, he was a dead man.

Kangrim sprinted toward the structure.

At this rate, he was more likely to be killed by a stray shell than by the beasts.

“I come at the invitation of the Rat Hegemon King! Open the gate!”

“What? The Rat Hegemon King?”

The mention of the Rat Hegemon King sent a ripple of unease through the defenders.

Yet the gates remained shut.

A deafening crash echoed from behind.

-U-ji-kkeun!

He glanced back to see the barbed wire snapping.

No, collapsing entirely.

The sheer number of demonic beasts climbing the wire had exceeded its weight limit, tearing it apart.

“Damn it, fire! Kill them all!”

Judging by the frantic shouts from above, they had no time to spare for Kangrim.

As the vanguard of beasts charged forward, they were riddled with bullets, struck by crossbow bolts, and engulfed in flames.

Yet the creatures pressed on, trampling the corpses of their kin without a second thought.

-Keureureu!

The gate showed no signs of opening.

Before he knew it, the beasts had breached the center of the garden and were charging straight for him.

He tried to summon his spirit beasts, but the same notification as before appeared.

[Uninvited guests are not permitted entry!]

He was denied the aid of his spirit beasts.

Kangrim immediately drew his Seven-Blade Sword.

‘Didn’t expect to be fighting the moment I arrived.’

The number of surging beasts seemed to rival the flowers that once bloomed in this garden.

He figured he needed to thin their numbers before he could negotiate with the Western Heaven Flower Garden.

He plunged into the tidal wave of demonic beasts.

[Special Ability ‘Fighting Instinct’ is activating!]

[Special Ability ‘Frost Flames’ is activating!]

The scenic beauty of the garden vanished from Kangrim’s vision, replaced entirely by enemies.

He darted across the scorched earth, swinging his Seven-Blade Sword.

Wherever his blade grazed, flowers of blood bloomed, exposing white bones that resembled broken branches.

-Keuaaa!

Amidst the beasts’ dying wails, blue flames surged forth, incinerating the enemy.

Beautiful crystals of ice blossomed like flowers, burning and freezing their targets simultaneously.

As the ground froze and the beasts’ mobility plummeted, the defenders from the Western Heaven Flower Garden noticed the shift and intensified their bombardment.

“Fire! Pour everything you’ve got into them!”

Screams filled the earth while artillery fire roared across the sky.

Kangrim dashed through the chaos like a madman, slashing, stabbing, and tearing his way through the horde.

While driving his sword into a massive, elephant-like beast, Kangrim sensed something amiss.

‘Why aren’t they retreating?’

In just a few short minutes, dozens of beasts had fallen.

Faced with such overwhelming firepower, any normal enemy would recognize the gap in strength and retreat in terror.

But the beasts’ eyes held no fear or hesitation—only a primal urge to destroy.

‘They’re not normal.’

If that was the case, he had no choice but to cut them all down.

Kangrim plunged his blade into the heart of a beast whose legs had frozen to the ground, then immediately moved on to the next.

Blood and flesh clung to the seven branches of his sword, only to fall and form anew into crimson fruit—a cycle he repeated dozens of times…

“W-What the hell is that human?”

“How is he taking on that many alone…!”

Before long, a mountain of beast corpses began to pile up around him.

The relentless hail of shells and bullets from the Western Heaven Flower Garden gradually sputtered out before ceasing entirely.

No demonic beasts remained alive.

A boy who appeared to be the commander wore a bewildered expression as he spoke.

“S-Sweep complete…!”

“Where’s that human from earlier? Did he die?”

The defenders scrambled to locate Kangrim, belatedly realizing his absence.

Grabbing a telescope to scan the area, a young soldier shouted with relief.

“There! He’s over there!”

A single figure stood amidst the mountain of corpses.

His hair, clothes, and face were drenched in blood, leaving the young soldiers momentarily speechless.

He looked less like a human and more like a vengeful spirit or a demonic beast himself.

Unfazed by their stares, Kangrim surveyed his surroundings.

‘Is it finally over? The numbers were staggering.’

After nearly an hour of combat, he had wiped out every last beast.

The Merit Points he had accumulated during the battle were substantial.

For the first time in a while, the notification indicating an automatic stat increase chimed in.

═══════════════

[Strength] Level 54

[Stamina] Level 50

[Agility] Level 52

[Senses] Level 53

[Magic Power] Level 55

═══════════════

Not bad at all.

After wiping the blood from his face, Kangrim looked up at the barricade and spoke.

“Could you open the gate now?”

They hesitated briefly before finally opening the heavy doors.

Forged from thick steel plates, the gate looked incredibly sturdy.

However, it was riddled with dents—a testament to the countless beast raids it had withstood.

‘It must have been like this for quite some time.’

As Kangrim stepped into the Garden, the people inside stared at him with a mixture of awe and curiosity.

They were all children.

A far cry from what one would expect in a warzone, yet their eyes held the sharp gaze of professionals.

‘These must be the Western Heaven Children working at the Western Heaven Flower Garden.’

Kangrim quietly observed the Western Heaven Children.

Just then, a boy who looked about fifteen approached him.

It was the same commander who had stood atop the barricade moments ago.

“State your identity.”

“My name is Seo Kangrim.”

“Seo Kangrim, as in the winner of the Twelve Zodiac Race?”

At the mention of his name, a murmur rippled through the Western Heaven Children.

It seemed they all recognized him.

The commander, however, maintained his composure.

“Ordinary humans cannot access this place. How did you get here?”

“As I mentioned earlier, I come at the invitation of the Rat Hegemon King.”

The commander was visibly surprised by the mention of the Rat Hegemon King, yet suspicion lingered in his eyes.

He swiftly issued an order to his communications officer.

“Contact the Rat Hegemon King. Verify if this human was sent by him.”

“Yes, sir.”

After a brief wait, the communications officer returned.

Confirming that Kangrim was indeed sent by the Rat Hegemon King.

The commander’s demeanor softened slightly, though his eyes remained vigilant.

“Wait here. I need to make a report.”

He picked up a terminal and contacted someone.

A hushed whisper drifted through the room.

“Yes, Flower Inspector. A human has arrived. He claims to have been sent by the Rat Hegemon King, but as a matter of principle… Yes? Yes.”

After ending the brief call, the commander turned back to him.

“The Flower Inspector has granted you entry. Follow me.”

Kangrim nodded silently and followed in the commander’s wake.

As they ventured deeper into the building, a far more futuristic facility revealed itself, starkly contrasting with the exterior.

It felt less like a flower garden and more like a research lab.

The commander opened the door to an inner office and spoke.

“Flower Inspector. I have brought Seo Kangrim.”

At those words, a man draped in a white coat turned around.

Unlike the child soldiers stationed here, he possessed the fully grown figure of an adult man.

His face, however, was etched with an indescribable exhaustion.

“Are you Seo Kangrim? I am Sara Doryeong, the Flower Inspector of this place.”

He, too, was a god, but his presence lacked the overwhelming pressure of the Twelve Zodiac Gods.

Still, Kangrim couldn’t afford to let his guard down.

Sara Doryeong slumped onto a seat in the cluttered office and gestured for Kangrim to sit as well.

After Kangrim casually swept aside the piles of documents and files on the sofa and took a seat, Sara spoke.

“Want some coffee?”

“No, thank you. I’m fine.”

“Fair enough. Didn’t have the energy to make any anyway.”

With that, he looked Kangrim up and down.

His gaze was laced with genuine interest.

“I heard you slaughtered every last beast outside?”

“Yes.”

“Your reputation precedes you even here; I’ve heard your name bandied about quite a bit… But it seems you’re stronger than expected. I should have bet on you.”

It seemed he had wagered money on the Twelve Zodiac Race as well.

Sara Doryeong stared at Kangrim like a scientist observing a specimen before opening his mouth.

“Anyway, what exactly is your business here?”

“I came to take some flowers.”

“What kind?”

“I need a Blood Regeneration Flower, a Bone Regeneration Flower, and a Flesh Regeneration Flower.”

Among the special flowers grown in the Western Heaven Flower Garden, those three were the only ones capable of healing severe injuries.

As their names implied, the Blood Regeneration Flower regenerated blood, the Bone Regeneration Flower restored bones, and the Flesh Regeneration Flower rebuilt flesh.

With those three, regenerating Shin Sooa’s arm would be possible.

“How does a human know about the flowers? Did the Rat Hegemon King tell you?”

“Something like that.”

“No matter who sent you, even if it was the Rat Hegemon King, we do not give flowers to humans as a matter of principle.”

Sara Doryeong’s tone was strict.

Kangrim hadn’t expected to obtain the flowers easily, so he remained unfazed.

He met Sara Doryeong’s gaze and spoke.

“It’s not that you won’t give me the flowers, but rather that you currently don’t have any to give, isn’t that right?”