Xi Wu-han, the Captain of the Shadowless Squad, felt that the atmosphere in the room had changed with his answer. A werewolf was giggling by the door, and another man from Moorim watched on bewildered. And their Savior, Kim Bongpal.
âSword Phantom? Iâve heard of him, too. But will a dirty-tempered person with the word Phantom in his nickname come with you obediently?â
He smiled strangely. It was a bit creepy, but Xi Wu-han felt the need to answer.
âSince Shadowless Squad has become like this, it would be impossible, butâŠ.â
With that, he sighed and looked around. There were three members of the Shadowless Squad left, including Xi Wu-han. The other two, however, were unconscious. Besides, there was a problem even if they returned to their senses. The Monstrous Immortalâs evil energy didnât just make them feel uncomfortable, and there was wickedness that penetrated inside and shook their energy circulation.
Because of that, the Captain of Shadowless Squad suffered great damage that would require time to recover from, and his colleagues were the same.
âWe were supposed to drag him out even if we had to use force.â
âOh. By force, and itâs indeed a good idea.â
ââŠ?â
Xi Wu-han was bewildered by Kim Bongpalâs reaction. No, precisely by the fist he raised. It contained a force that Xi Wu-han couldnât have easily prevented, even if he had not been as injured as he is now.
âI also like dealing with things using force. You said you were looking for the Sword Phantom, didnât you? Did you not know his name?
ââŠ?â
An ominous feeling flashed through Xi Wu-hanâs mind. At that moment, the information he knew about Sword Phantom returned to him. A man with black hair looked like he was in his twenties and didnât speak the language of MoorimâŠhuh?
âThatâs his name, you know? The one you said was a great name earlier. Kim. Bong. Pal.â
Xi Wu-han blinked a few times. He understood why things were going this way now.
âWell, shall we start talking again?â
Kim Bongpal said so as he waved his fist. Xi Wu-hanâs expression quickly hardened. If that hit him in his current state, he would definitely die. However, a thought came to his mind before his fear of deathâŠ
âNo, did she send us to deal with a Transcendent?â
âŠDid the Shadowless Squad do something to offend the Divine Lady?
* * *
In the middle of a dark cave sat an old, wounded monster.
-You look terrible.
A voice echoed through the cave, but it didnât come out of the Monstrous Immortalâs mouth.
ââŠShut up. Iâm not in the mood to deal with you right now.â
-Haha. This is awesome. The one-armed Monstrous Immortal, huh? And you were beaten by Maya, not by anyone else?
The Monstrous Immortal gritted his teeth. However, the voiceâs owner showed no fear of him. After all, their level wasnât too far behind even compared to the Monstrous Immortal.
-Maya? Maya the Sorcerer? Did she regain her power?
-Oh. If she had regained her lost power, it was great for the Monstrous Immortal to lose only one of his arms and run away.
-Monstrous Immortal. I can give you the arm of my Chimera if you like. How does that sound?
-Who is Maya?
-Fufu. Once upon a time, there was a supernatural being that made a name for herself. I heard she had fallen to the ground, but I guess thatâs not the case.
More voices intervened, and a hectic conversation ensued. Some were showing respect to the Monstrous Immortal while others were not.
-Or how about my Divine Power? Give me a few Magic Tools, and Iâll make your arm grow back.
-Hey, didnât you hear? Donât you know that the Monstrous Immortal learned black magic?
-Haah. I canât believe another unfortunate soul fell to such a disgusting power.
And then.
-âŠOh. Maya? What a nostalgic name.
A womanâs voice cut them all off.
It couldnât be helped. Scherazard was especially powerful in her own world and this place, where all the famous people from the Shire gathered. The queen of vampires had truly reached transcendence, unlike the half-Transcendent Monstrous Immortal.
-What? Scherazard, are you still alive? But how did Maya regain her powers? Has it been that long?
-Who knows? Maya must have swallowed anotherâs power like Scherazard did. Haha.
Of course, some of them didnât feel uncomfortable with Scherazard. They were a group of strong people. While not divided between justice and evil, in the end, they were a group with a similar essence. That was also why Monstrous Immortal decided to join them when he discovered their existence.
Originally started in Lupaine, theyâd been expanding their reach recently to people from Moorim with similar tendencies. That was how he was recruited.
-Oh my. I canât believe youâd say something that shallow. It is so uncivilized.
Scherazard said. She was one of the leading figures in this group.
-Letâs talk about Maya separately with the Monstrous Immortal later. How about returning to the main topic of todayâs meeting?
-Great. Iâm a busy person, unlike you, morons. Letâs talk about it quickly.
-Fufu. I agree.
Then there was a brief silence, and Scherazard continued.
-Iâm calling you today because of some pretty interesting news. Except for the monsters originally here, there are only two kinds of Otherworlder in the Shire, and no, there âwereâ only two.
-What?
-Huh?
-Yes, thatâs right. New Otherworlders have appeared, and I hear they are made up of only human beingsâŠthatâs it. New prey. Oh, maybe not for some people?
When Scherazard finished speaking, various reactions arose. Some were excited, and others were disappointed. In the case of the Monstrous Immortal, his eyes were shining with joy.
Mayaâs Supernatural Force tormented Monstrous Immortal for hours, even after he retreated. Because of that, he missed his chance to use his regeneration. To recover the missing arm, he needed some lifeblood. More than a few dozen, perhaps as many as a hundred normal people. He was thinking about where to get it, but a new kind of Otherworlder just appeared like this.
âNeither Moorim nor Lupaine?â
Besides, they came with a pretty familiar description. Didnât the Monstrous Immortal know that kind of guy?
* * *
âYou tell me to believe your words?â
ââŠIâve told you the truth!â
Kim Bongpal looked at Xi Wu-han as he answered with exasperation.
It wasnât that he couldnât trust him. Xi Wu-han had answered all the questions so far with great sincerity. Through cross-validation of the information he obtained from Young-no, Kim Bongpal noticed that most of the answers were consistent with what he already knew. Looking at it, he didnât seem to have any intention of lying.
Anyway, what Kim Bongpal confirmed was like this: first, most of the captured Earthlings were incorporated as members of the Celestial Demon Cult, and it was said that many of them were showing signs of adapting. Of course, such things werenât particularly important information to Kim Bongpal, and he was just asking to confirm the truth of one answer.
In the end, only one piece of information that Kim Bongpal wanted to get from Xi Wu-han.
Seo Hayeon. Why was she in the Celestial Demonâs abode? But he hadnât even heard of her name. That being said, he did have some information about the Celestial Demonâs abode. According to him, access to her abode wasnât permitted to most cult members. Aside from herself and her aide, the White-Haired Sword Phantom, only one other type of person was allowed inside.
A disciple of the Celestial Demon.
ââŠHa?â
Kim Bongpalâs frowned. He was a little, no, very irritated right now. Things were going weird in a way he didnât like, though it wasnât bad that Seo Hayeonâs safety was confirmed once again.
However, the likeliest conclusion was that Seo Ha-yeon became the Celestial Demonâs disciple. That was really annoying.
âDisciple? Did that kid become a disciple of the Celestial Demon?â
âSavior! Even though youâre our benefactor, such blasphemous remarks about the Celestial Demon are ignorantâŠ!â
Slap-!
âYou shut up.â
When Xi Wu-han said something, Kim Bongpal could not stand his rising irritation and smacked his head. However, he didnât hit him with mana in his fist like he threatened. But Xi Wu-han couldnât raise his inner Qigong due to his injuries.
Besides, Kim Bongpalâs fist wasnât ordinary, and that alone was enough to knock Xi Wu-han out.
âWow. Thatâs a superb strike, Brother!â
Warg said so from behind, but Kim Bongpal ignored him. He wasnât in the mood to joke around with Warg now.
ââŠâ
For Kim Bongpal, this was a feeling he couldnât understand. Why was he annoyed when he heard that Seo Hayeon became the Celestial Demonâs disciple? Was it because the kid he taught became someone elseâs disciple? That could be a part of the reason. Or was it because he didnât like the Celestial Demon Cult that kidnapped Seo Hayeon as they pleased? That was also part of the reason.
Kim Bongpal pondered for a moment, and he soon concluded.
âIt doesnât matter why. Whatâs important is that Iâm annoyed about it.â
In the first place, there was no particular reason behind him coming to the Shire to find Seo Hayeon after six years away from each other. Kim Bongpal just wanted to, so he just did.
Besides, their relationship was a bit strange. Seo Hayeon called him uncle, but they werenât blood-related. And while he taught her how to fight, that didnât mean they were master and disciple. Their relationship wasnât easily defined in just a few words. Kim Bongpal didnât really like that ambiguous relationship, so he spent six years like that.
Come to think of it, Kim Bongpal didnât expect much from Seo Hayeon. He only taught her how to fight because he didnât want her to die fighting monsters like the other idiot hunters. She mightâve grown into a top hunter, but he didnât really want that. He just hoped she wouldnât die like her foolish dad. Thinking about it, Kim Bongpalâs only wish for Seo Hayeon was still that.
So Seo Hayeon didnât die but rather became a disciple of the Celestial Demon. The latter was still a speculation, but anyway. Even so, Kim Bongpal didnât like the idea of her becoming someone elseâs disciple, and he just didnât like it, and that was enough.
This was why Kim Bongpal had to go to the Celestial Demon Cult, knock down their leader, and bring Seo Hayeon back. However, the only question was whether he could defeat the Celestial Demon.
He wasnât afraid to die and would not be the current Kim Bongpal if he were afraid of such things. But he was afraid to lose.
That sounded a bit funny. However, it was also natural to think about what kind of person Kim Bongpal was.
Kim Bongpal didnât know much about Celestial Demon. It was just that she was from Moorim, had reached transcendence long ago, and was said to be powerful. But it wasnât that she was the Celestial Demon or a great warrior from Moorim that made him afraid.
It was just the fact that the Celestial Demon was a woman that made him afraid to lose.
âFuck. Thereâs nothing more shameful than being beaten by a woman and losing.â
It was a sexist and outdated idea, but Kim Bongpal was born in that old era.
âHey, Warp.â
ââŠâ
Warg did not answer because he didnât know that was the name Kim Bongpal used for him. At that, Tearing Wind Sword slapped Warg and said:
âYoung Brother, Sword Phantom is calling for you.â
Warg frowned at Tearing Wind Sword, who naturally called him a younger brother. But Warg quickly wiped away his frown and answered Kim Bongpal.
âYes! Brother!â
âHave you ever seen that Celestial Demon girl?â
ââŠC-Celestial Demon? Iâve seen her before, but it was 10 years ago.â
âIs that so? Is there anyone around you who saw her recently?â
âHmmâŠthere is. My father visited the Celestial Demon Cult a few years ago and asked her for a duel.â
âDid he win?â
âNo. He lost.â
âReally? Thatâs good.â
Kim Bongpal had realized something in recent weeks.
Practice? Training? It was pretty helpful. The two weeks he spent with Tearing Wind Sword certainly made him stronger. But thinking about the battle with the Monstrous ImmortalâŠ
âThis duel or whatever it is, can I do that too?â
As expected, an actual battle was the best experience.