Chapter 179 : What Is This Again……!?

Paa-ang!

A black arrow grazed past my body.

– Damn it!

– Haoran, your skills have decr……!

– Shut up!

The shouts of the enemies chasing from behind echoed clearly in the gradually quietening forest.

However, the more it quietened, the worse Muno’s expression became.

‘Damn it, this is ominous…….’

The further north I went, the fewer signs of demonic beasts there were, but the demonic energy I felt was rather thickening.

It felt as if demonic energy was spread throughout the entire forest.

However, the possessors of powerful demonic energy sensed from a distance, likely high-grade demonic beasts, seemed to be quietly avoiding the area even when I tried to approach them intentionally.

‘Why are you avoiding me!? A human is approaching!’

The plan to aim for an opening after inducing a clash between demonic beasts and the Magic Knights was already failing.

Is it because they are high-grade demonic beasts that they sense danger better?

‘……Or are they waiting and seeing?’

Anyway, now that I wasn’t confident in dealing with the chasing masked figures alone, I couldn’t think of any other way than luring a demonic beast that could distract them.

Rattle.

Paa-ang!

In the meantime, my body headed further and further north.

“Damn it! Are you guys really going to hold back!?”

“Look who’s talking!”

“If we go deeper, it will be troublesome for us too!”

Ominous voices began to be heard from behind.

‘Hold back?’

What?

Driving me into a corner that viciously was the result of holding back?

‘Until three of you die by my hands? Are you idiots?’

I snorted.

It was probably a bluff to pressure me.

Thinking so, I continued to run.

“Let’s finish this. All together.”

“Okay.”

“Now!”

I felt two of the demonic energies chasing from behind suddenly split left and right and move much faster.

‘F*ck, it wasn’t a bluff?’

Of course, seeing the demonic energy suddenly become unstable, it seemed like a technique they couldn’t use anytime.

‘Like acceleration…….’

But I was more astounded by the fact that they hadn’t used such a technique until their colleagues died.

‘No, they aren’t colleagues…… probably.’

Recalling the words they exchanged, Muno extended his iron chain toward the tallest tree nearby this time.

Rattle.

“If you want to chase…….”

Paa-ang!

“Then try chasing me!”

Swoosh!

The iron chain, shortening exceptionally fast, made his body soar high into the air.

Rattle.

It was a bonus that the iron chains extending from his feet added propulsion as he passed the top of that tree.

Paa-ang.

“Hup!”

Soaring from the forest full of demonic energy at a time when it was already starting to get dark and facing the clear sky, it felt like I could breathe for a moment.

However.

Paa-ang!

If not for the black arrow that struck right in front of my eyes as if it had been waiting.

Fortunately.

‘I knew it would be like this.’

I was already prepared.

Rattle.

The iron chains spread out like a net in front wrapped around the flying black arrow.

Cruuunch.

My whole body was pushed up by the powerful force contained in the arrow, but that was also expected.

However.

Woooong.

‘Ugh?’

Kaa-boooooooom!

The arrow exploding was an unexpected blow.

‘Damn it, I saw it at first…….’

Regret arose even amidst the thrilling shock.

Already, my vision was spinning rapidly, and my five senses weren’t recovering.

The only fortunate thing was that thanks to that explosion, I was flying further than expected.

And at that expected landing point, I finally saw a huge mass of demonic energy that didn’t avoid humans.

The bad news was that two familiar demonic energies were also rushing toward that place at a terrifying speed.

‘……F*ck, somehow…….’

I have to make that huge mass of demonic energy and the enemies collide.

Gritting my teeth at that thought and concentrating, other senses began to recover gradually besides the sense of feeling demonic energy.

And soon.

‘Huh, metal?’

I tilted my head, feeling quite a dense and large amount of metal at the expected landing point.

The moment I barely turned my shaking vision to look down.

“Kyaoooooo!!”

A tremendous roar burst out.

The roar of a giant beast covered in silver fur.

Thump. Thump.

Standing on two legs and beating its chest, it resembled a gorilla I saw in my past life.

But its size was on a different dimension.

‘……Is that King Kong?’

A giant body that seemed to be at least 20 meters tall.

Even.

‘That’s not fur.’

What I thought was silver fur were ‘thorns’ sharply protruding from the gorilla monster’s skin.

Considering the size of the gorilla, they should be called spears or horns rather than thorns, and they were densely covering its whole body.

Furthermore.

‘Metal?’

To think metal thorns would grow on a living creature’s body.

The moment I frowned at that monstrosity fitting for a demonic beast.

“Kyaaack!”

Pabababak.

Some of the thorns covering the gorilla’s whole body shot out in all directions.

“Hup!”

I was surprised for a moment, but.

Woooong.

Fortunately, there was no difficulty in making those spear-like thorns slightly miss using my metal manipulation ability.

Although the forest had become dark instantly, metal or demonic energy couldn’t escape my senses.

Rather.

Cruuunch.

The amount of metal was enough to grab one of them and process it into a ‘Blade’.

Adjusting the landing point roughly using the force of the poured thorns was a bonus.

I even felt the two approaching enemies taking frantic evasive actions at that pouring thorn shower.

‘Very good!’

It couldn’t be better.

Smiling at the luck equivalent to winning the lottery was only for a moment.

“Kyaaaaaack!”

A huge silver rock, no, a fist, struck towards him who landed on a nearby branch.

‘Hup!’

Pa-bak.

Kaa-boooooooom!

As soon as I dodged instinctively, I felt that huge tree scattering into pieces.

“Kyaoooo!”

The red eyes of the giant demonic beast, whose anger hadn’t subsided, began to chase me as I was.

And as if repaying that enthusiastic support, Muno sprinted towards the path he came from, openly exposing his body.

Crack.

Throb.

‘Kuh…….’

My whole body ached because I had pushed myself to the limit, but.

‘This is the best I can do.’

Towards the midpoint between the scattered enemies—one shooting arrows and two handling translucent swords.

Thump. Thud. Thump. Thud.

‘Hup!?’

In the meantime, sliding and dodging the black arrow that flew silently was purely luck.

‘Huuk……?’

Kaa-boooooooom!

It was an even bigger stroke of luck that the arrow exploded on the gorilla monster’s body.

“Kyaack!?”

The moment the gorilla’s two red eyes fell away from me, I could be certain.

‘I shook off one.’

So, I’ll settle this here.

Muno threw his body toward the forest where the enemy on the left, whose speed had slowed down and whose demonic energy was a bit more unstable among the remaining two, was located.

It wasn’t that I was confident in winning completely against those two now.

I only trusted the changed environment, the forest thick with demonic energy, and the darkness that had settled before I knew it.

‘I can see you, but you guys…….’

Can you see me?’

I gambled on that possibility.

And the result.

Kaa-ang!

“How dare you?”

Seeing the masked figure blocking the ambush in the darkness too easily, I had to reflect on my excessive expectations.

Kwakwakwang!

The moment I barely blocked the sword strikes crossing like lightning.

Feeling the other guy approaching me subsequently, I had no choice but to change tactics quickly.

‘Run!’

Rattle.

Just as I extended the iron chain to hook onto a high tree and run.

“Where!?”

“Over there!”

It was astounding that the guys immediately saw through my moving direction and chased after me.

Their movements were as unhesitating as mine.

‘Do those guys have a sense to chase mana or something?’

A situation where such thoughts were inevitable.

Thump.

Rattle.

Glancing back slightly while throwing my body again, two pairs of beast-like eyes were shining white through the masks in the pitch-black darkness.

No, wait.

‘There’s no way that’s normal, right?’

At that moment, intuition struck.

The exceptionally shining eyes under the masks.

At first, I thought it was a manifestation of spirit or will, but if they shine like that, it’s a different story.

Rather than the possibility that both of them, who probably weren’t originally colleagues, underwent the same evolution.

‘Is that mask an artifa-, no, a magic tool?’

If it’s the power of a searching magic tool that allows them to chase the target, it makes sense.

Accurately ambushing me in sync with my movements, whose path even I decided only after entering the northern mountain range.

Being able to block my attacks openly in this darkness.

But there was no time to think deeply.

“How long can you hold out, you bastard!”

Paa-ang.

‘Damn it.’

Since the enemies were closing the distance much faster than before, I couldn’t expect to escape safely at a similar speed to before.

‘What are they identifying me with to find me? Mana? Or…….’

I had no choice but to follow my senses rather than a conclusion drawn by deduction.

Soon, he headed to the place where loud explosions were echoing.

To the scene where the giant gorilla beast and the guy shooting black arrows were playing hide-and-seek.

‘Damn it.’

Paa-ang.

Haoran, who fired Arrows of Ruin in succession, gritted his teeth and threw his body.

Immediately, the giant beast’s fist fell on the spot where he had been.

Kaa-boooooooom.

His black hair fluttered in the shockwave.

Tremendous defense that deflected his arrows, and brute strength that blew away a large tree at once.

‘Estimated Stage 6.’

It was definitely a monster that required at least two ability users of the same rank to subdue even when he was in perfect condition.

It seemed they had already stepped deep into the northern mountain range called the demonic realm.

It didn’t seem to be the territory of the ‘Rulers’ yet, but it was not a good, no, a bad situation.

‘I wanted to catch him as quickly as possible fearing this.’

Distracting thoughts arose, but there was no time to just think.

– Sniff. Sniff.

The disgusting beast moved its nose, and soon rushed towards him again like lightning.

Thump. Thud. Thump.

It was magically closing the long distance with movements that looked slow only because of its huge size.

He couldn’t just run away.

While the others catch the target, he had to at least draw that monster’s attention.

Haoran pulled the string of the ‘Great Strength Bow (巨力弓)’ again and channeled his demonic energy.

Throb. Throb.

‘Damn it. If only my body was in perfect condition.’

The internal injury he got when the magic tool ‘Rock Wall Armor (巖壁甲)’ was shattered by the unidentified beam of light hindered the channeling of demonic energy, but this wasn’t the time to be picky.

Paa-ang!

He fired an arrow again to draw the monster gorilla’s attention.

Boom!

“Kyaaack!”

‘If only the mission succeeds.’

The Master would compensate him again for the magic tools brought from his homeland.

As a martial artist, he doesn’t regret the choice of devoting himself to the Empire and serving the Master to overcome the limits that seemed absolutely insurmountable.

But he cannot accept that the end is just a dog’s death in this demonic realm.

And above all.

‘That achievement at that age. It’s irrational. So you must die. Absolutely.’

He really didn’t like the situation itself where the target, whom he didn’t intend to let live in the first place, kept surviving due to his colleagues’ blunders.

Especially.

‘Damn it. How did he dodge the Silent Arrow (무음시) earlier?’

It was too regrettable that he slipped away from the last move into which he squeezed his strength unreasonably, which he had hidden for a certain snipe.

Throb. Throb.

Haoran channeled his demonic energy again, enduring the pain of his trembling energy veins.

His senses weren’t normal due to the overflowing demonic energy around him and his injured body, but unlike that loach earlier, he couldn’t miss such a huge target even if he tried.

Kaa-boooooooom!

“Kyaooooo!”

Hearing the nervous cry of the demonic beast, Haoran immediately focused his mind again.

While doing so, he didn’t forget to check.

‘The target……?’

He activated the mask he received for this mission, the enemy searching magic tool, to find the target’s location.

But at that moment.

‘Close?’

Suddenly, the target’s presence was detected at a distance of less than 100m.

Confirming that, Haoran turned his arrow toward the target, not the gorilla.

But.

“This works.”

Rattle.

Along with a voice heard from a much closer place than expected, he felt a coldness wrapping around his ankle.

‘Gasp!?’

The moment he screamed, demonic energy drained out as it was.

Feeling all strength draining from his body and even his life force leaking out, he screamed inwardly.

However, it didn’t come out of his mouth.

“Thanks. I’ll live thanks to you.”

Crunch.

While staring cursedly at the target mocking him in front of his eyes and regaining vitality by absorbing his power.

– ……I had my doubts, but you got caught?

There was a familiar voice ringing in his head.

‘Mas…… ter?’

– Useless fool. I accepted you bipedal bastards, and is that your limit? Then I’ll at least use your life.

Soon, his whole body seemed to become abnormally cold.

He felt as if his soul, his essence completely different from life force, was being pulled out.

The final moment he tried not to think about even while making the contract.

The feeling of endless darkness trying to swallow his essence as it was.

– Here, I offer the contracted soul to open the path. Great…….

Along with the Master’s spell, that feeling gradually materialized and began to swallow his soul.

Amidst the sensation of being eaten by something immense and indescribable.

‘Aaaaaaaack!’

Haoran screamed inwardly at the premonition of ruin where his soul, his essence would be torn apart.

“Damn it! What is this again……!”

Along with the target’s flustered voice, his consciousness snapped.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep