Were they too weak, or had he become too strong?
After half a second of consideration, Shinki quickly arrived at an answer.
It was both.
Although the Himejima family’s pursuers were considered elites within the Main Family, their primary opponents were humans.
As a result, their methods were relatively limited.
Coupled with Shinki’s extraordinary talent in close combat, it was only natural that they stood no chance against him.
On top of that, his own strength after receiving his enhancement had become overwhelming.
Setting aside the increase in physical ability alone, the Winged Dragon’s Flame—which functioned much like magic—was enough to place him in an unbeatable position.
Shinki tossed aside the katana, now reduced to nothing more than its hilt.
Ordinary weapons were simply too fragile.
Sacred Gears, on the other hand, were treasures that were almost impossible to obtain.
Since his reincarnation, he had sensed no sign whatsoever of a Sacred Gear within himself, which already proved that he wasn’t one of their hosts.
Of course, even if he did possess one, how many Sacred Gears could withstand the Winged Dragon’s Flame?
At the very least, it would probably need to be a Longinus-class Sacred Gear.
But Longinus weren’t cabbages growing by the roadside.
In the original story, every one of them already had an owner.
How could one possibly fall into his hands?
A weapon that truly suited him.
That was one of Shinki’s few wishes.
After all, when two adults fought, whether one had a weapon or not often determined the outcome.
“Shinki-kun, have the Main Family’s pursuers arrived?” At that moment, Shuri’s startled voice came from behind him.
Although she had been inside the barrier designed to repel people, she had still heard the commotion outside while sleeping.
After all, she was a shrine maiden herself.
Then she stepped outside and saw the corpses torn apart by shattered weapon fragments.
And the young man standing beneath the moonlight.
“Things are fine for now, but we may need to leave immediately.” There was no way the pursuers consisted of only this small group.
What puzzled Shinki even more was that Himejima Shuhuang still hadn’t appeared.
In the original story, he had relentlessly pursued Akeno.
Could it be that the old man had been frightened by what happened that night?
It was entirely possible.
Older humans generally valued their lives dearly, especially those in positions of power.
In the original timeline, the pursuit of Akeno had only ceased because of pressure from the Underworld.
“I’ll go wake Akeno.” Shuri’s face was pale.
She had never witnessed such a bloody scene before.
Suppressing her discomfort, she hurried back toward the inn to wake the sleeping Akeno.
Rustle…
rustle…
At that moment, a faint sound came from nearby.
The night grew darker.
The moon hung alone above the treetops, casting pure silver light while filling the surroundings with an oppressive atmosphere.
A chilling cold spread through the air.
And Shinki felt the unmistakable sensation of being targeted by a predator.
Then, accompanied by the deep, heavy breathing of a beast, the true culprit finally appeared.
Whoosh!
A black object shot out from the shadows.
Its sharp tip tore through the air with a piercing whistle.
Thud!
Two seconds later, a dull impact rang out.
A black stinger pierced deep into the ground.
It seemed to contain some sort of corrosive fluid, causing a sizzling sound as the earth began to melt.
The green grass quickly blackened and withered.
Then Shinki raised his head and followed the direction from which the stinger had come.
The attacker’s appearance entered his sight.
A monster that instinctively provoked disgust.
Its upper body resembled that of a human woman, her hair hanging wildly around her shoulders.
However, where her eyes should have been were fifteen or sixteen compound eyes of varying sizes.
Her lower body was no longer human.
Instead, it resembled a giant scorpion, supported by sharp, bony limbs covered in stiff bristles.
Shinki sucked in a breath.
To be honest, seeing a monster appear out of nowhere in the middle of the night was enough to startle anyone.
It had nothing to do with courage.
It was simply instinct.
However, after the initial shock passed, Shinki quickly recognized what he was looking at.
The half-scorpion creature before him was undoubtedly a Stray Devil.
Also known as Lost Devils, they were among the most common low-level monsters in this world.
Most of them had once been individuals who signed servant contracts with high-ranking devils.
After suddenly obtaining tremendous power, they failed to preserve their original hearts and minds.
It was much like someone who had spent their entire life in poverty suddenly becoming rich overnight.
Most people would immediately indulge themselves without restraint.
Lost Devils were no different.
After obtaining demonic power, they pursued all the things they had once been unable to do.
Eventually, through endless indulgence, they lost their humanity and became mindless monsters.
Their appearances varied wildly, resembling the ancient demons often depicted in movies.
However, excluding special cases from the story, the strength of a Lost Devil generally never exceeded that of a Mid-Class Devil.
After all, those who became Stray Devils were almost always Low-Class Devils to begin with.
Though if they consumed enough humans, they could eventually evolve into Mid-Class Devils.
Not enough.
This Lost Devil wasn’t strong enough to be his opponent.
At that moment, Shinki’s expression froze briefly before turning excited.
What had captured his attention wasn’t the exposed upper body of the Lost Devil, nor its enormous jaws capable of swallowing a person’s head whole.
Instead, it was the system notification that had appeared before his eyes.
Mission Name: Trial of the First Encounter Mission Objective: Kill one hundred Low-Class Devils or monsters of equivalent strength.
Success Reward: One Elite-Grade Weapon Draw.
Failure Penalty: None.