Kwak Jincheol’s party fought well.
If it had been Daehyun, it would have been faster, but they made good use of the full extent of their own strength.
However, the bat had died not purely because of their attacks alone.
‘……It is Demonic Energy.’
Daehyun knew. No, precisely because he was Daehyun, he could tell. The bat had already been struck by an attack mixed with Demonic Energy.
“Let us rest for a little while, then move again.”
Kwak Jincheol spoke briefly to the party members as he caught his breath.
Park Jeongdong and Lee Jisu each sat down on the ground and rested for a while.
“Haa…….”
“Student Daehyun, could you give me some water from that bag?”
The atmosphere relaxed in an instant.
Daehyun naturally took a bottle of water from the bag and brought it to Lee Jisu.
“To think a Vampire Bat would suddenly appear. That surprised me. Ah, thank you.”
“So this was a place with a Named Monster. That was dangerous.”
“If not for the party leader’s orders, that could have been really bad.”
“True.”
Park Jeongdong quietly lowered his shield. Lee Jisu and Park Jeongdong began talking softly.
Daehyun took out a bottle of water from the bag and silently moved beside Kwak Jincheol.
“Ah, thanks.”
Amid the slightly loosened atmosphere, Kwak Jincheol was staring at the bat’s corpse instead of joining the chatter.
It seemed something was bothering him as well.
“Student! Student!”
As Daehyun was looking at Kwak Jincheol’s face, Park Jeongdong’s booming voice came from behind him.
“Student, you saw us fight, right?”
“……Yes, well.”
“How was it?”
“…….”
How was it?
Daehyun looked at the bat’s corpse with an expressionless face. They did not know. They did not know that something lay ahead, that an existence beyond what they imagined, beyond even what they could conceive of, was waiting.
“You were all impressive.”
But Daehyun smiled faintly and praised Park Jeongdong.
There was something frightening ahead.
There was no need to tell them that.
If he said they should retreat here, they would treat him like a lunatic, and even if he explained, they would not listen anyway.
Above all…….
‘I must see what is inside.’
He was curious as well. Who possessed Demonic Energy? How had they come here?
“Ha ha! Student, you know how to get along in society! You are amusing!”
Park Jeongdong laughed heartily and patted Daehyun on the back.
It did not hurt, but it felt strangely unpleasant.
“In that case…… I suppose we have rested enough. Shall we move?”
“Let us.”
“Hup!”
Park Jeongdong began lightly stretching, and Lee Jisu stood up.
“……It is still strange.”
At the same time, Kwak Jincheol muttered that.
“From earlier as well.”
He retraced all their movements, from the moment they entered the Gate until now.
“There are too few monsters.”
This was a Gate. A D-plus rank Gate at that. It did not need to have an enormous number of monsters like a C-rank or B-rank Gate, but the only monsters his party had hunted so far were a few small slimes and the Vampire Bat.
‘……Is it just a coincidence?’
The number of monsters varied wildly from Gate to Gate, so it would not be strange for one or two Gates like this to exist.
However…….
‘Even so, this is too few.’
It felt as if someone had already come and gone.
Kwak Jincheol’s eyes sharpened.
Even a trivial matter could be directly connected to one’s life. That was what kind of place a Gate was.
He could not help being bothered.
“Come on. What is wrong? If there are no monsters, that only makes it safer.”
“That is right. Party Leader, do not scare us for no reason just because we have a student with us.”
Kwak Jincheol’s party members laughed casually as they spoke.
“Hmm…… The profits will decrease a little, but since we have a student with us, is safety not the most important thing?”
Lee Jisu, in particular, was smiling brightly.
Perhaps, just perhaps, he was being overly sensitive for no reason.
Kwak Jincheol thought that.
“Understood. Let us go.”
The party began moving once again.
‘……They threw away their chance.’
That damned greed was the problem.
Daehyun sighed inwardly.
“…….”
After they had walked for a long while,
Daehyun’s ears twitched.
Because he had heard something.
‘There is something there.’
Daehyun turned his head toward the party members around him.
Judging by how they were still moving silently, it seemed they had not heard it yet.
Clatter—.
“Wait.”
The sound came again.
Fortunately, Kwak Jincheol reacted this time, as though he had heard it.
Thankfully, he was not someone whose senses were that dull.
“Everyone.”
Nod—.
The party members immediately stopped walking and quickly formed their formation.
Lee Jisu moved to stand in front of Daehyun.
“I forgot to say this earlier because things were urgent. Student, hide well behind me.”
Her eyes, as she looked at Daehyun, overflowed with courage.
It was a line that naturally made him want to laugh hollowly, but Daehyun silently hid himself behind her.
Then.
Ah…… aaah…….
Sure enough, another sound came from within the darkness.
“……A person?”
Doubt appeared on Kwak Jincheol’s face.
Because of the cave’s echo, it was not precise, but that was definitely the sound of a person.
Aaah…… aaaah…….
And not just an ordinary sound, but a cry mixed with sorrow and despair.
“……Jisu.”
“I am already ready.”
Lee Jisu illuminated the front with light.
In the case of the bat, it had been coming toward them, but this time was different.
It was neither fleeing nor coming toward them, so they had no choice but to shine the light first.
“Aaah…… aaah…….”
“……A real person?”
“Is that not a woman?”
The light illuminated the front, and what appeared was a woman with long hair.
Kwak Jincheol exchanged glances with the party members.
The meaning was simple.
The existence before them. How likely was it that she was a “real person”?
“……Was there any report that another Superhuman came and went before us?”
“That…… of course, there was not.”
The report was not wrong.
Then there was only one choice.
Kwak Jincheol nodded.
“Jisu, magic.”
“……Pardon?”
“Blast her.”
There were two things one could see in a Gate. People. And monsters.
If she was not a person, then the answer was already decided, was it not?
“Pardon? But…….”
“Trust me. That is not a person.”
“No, even so…….”
Lee Jisu hesitated.
Her gaze turned toward the woman before them.
“Aaah…… aaaah…….”
Long straight hair and ragged clothes.
And a cry filled with despair.
Only her back was visible, so they could not see her face, but that was enough.
‘That is not a person?’
Lee Jisu’s pupils trembled.
“……Shoot quickly.”
Though he said that, Kwak Jincheol’s face also looked somewhat conflicted.
At the very back, carrying the luggage, Daehyun watched the entire scene.
‘They are hesitating.’
It was only natural. The woman before them looked unmistakably human on the outside.
It would be fortunate if she was a monster, but what if she was a real person? Then one would become a murderer. Even if the law protected them, that result would not change.
That was what they were concerned about.
‘I am curious as well.’
The woman before them was certainly suspicious.
Inside a Gate, alone, and crying in such a shabby state.
Daehyun knew very well that this was far from what could be called ordinary.
‘Hmm.’
If he had felt Demonic Energy, Daehyun would have charged forward before they even saw her.
However…….
‘Is she truly human?’
He could not feel even the slightest, smallest amount of Demonic Energy from that woman.
For now, that meant she was not a monster.
“Wait a moment.”
Just then, Park Jeongdong opened his mouth.
“I will check.”
He set his shield down on the ground and struck his own chest a few times.
It collided with his steel armor and made a clang.
“I will go and check, so the two of you only need to watch my back.”
Park Jeongdong had confidence.
Despite how he looked, he was a Superhuman.
Though he was D-rank, he was a man who could pride himself on being a tank in his own way.
“There is no need to worry.”
“N-no. I should go instead……”
“Ms. Jisu, you are long-range. Supporting from behind is your maximum strength.”
“……I will go.”
“Party Leader, you need to stop any ambush if one happens.”
“…….”
Kwak Jincheol said nothing.
Normally, he would have stopped him.
If something placed a party member in danger, no matter how trivial it was, he absolutely forbade it. That was Kwak Jincheol’s way.
“It is better than the two of you becoming murderers.”
“……Understood.”
Kwak Jincheol nodded.
As if satisfied, Park Jeongdong moved his heavy feet.
“Aaaaah…… aaah…….”
The woman was still crying.
Park Jeongdong swallowed.
He had spoken proudly, but he was still afraid.
“……Excuse me, are you all right?”
“Aaaaah…….”
Had she not heard him?
Park Jeongdong steadied his breathing and spoke again.
“How in the world did you get in here…….”
“……Revelation.”
“Pardon?”
A short but clear word.
Park Jeongdong tilted his head.
Whether it was coincidence or not, at some point, the crying had also stopped.
“Excuse me for a moment…….”
Leaving behind the eerie atmosphere, Park Jeongdong placed his hand on the woman’s shoulder.
It was to quickly check her face.
At that moment.
Slide—.
“Huh?”
In that fleeting instant, Park Jeongdong sensed something and voiced his confusion.
SLASH—!
A moment later, blood surged from his chest.
“Guh!”
Feeling the pain, Park Jeongdong lost his balance and began to collapse.
“Park Jeongdong!”
“Mr. Jeongdong!”
The situation had changed in an instant.
An ambush they could not even see.
Belatedly, Kwak Jincheol ran while gripping his daggers, and Lee Jisu began casting magic.
However…….
‘Too late.’
Daehyun could see it.
In that brief instant, the woman’s nails had cut across Park Jeongdong’s chest.
And now, that woman was moving to sever Park Jeongdong’s breath.
“Hmm.”
He had no duty to step in.
Saving them was not Daehyun’s obligation.
‘But.’
If the party was wiped out like this, if someone died, troublesome processes would be added later.
“……Tsk.”
Daehyun quickly threw away the luggage and kicked off the ground.
Tap, tap—!
Daehyun’s body had already surpassed a B-rank Superhuman through pure physical ability alone.
The ground cracked, and a tremendous roar rang out.
“Aaah…… aaah…… aaah!”
The woman’s nails, sharper than blades, moved toward Park Jeongdong’s neck.
Right before the nails pierced Park Jeongdong’s throat.
[Skill, Divine Shield (LV.2), activates.]
CLANG—!
Along with a tremendous metallic sound, sparks flew. Daehyun’s shield was fine, but the woman’s broken nails flew briefly through the air.
“What, what is this!”
“……Student Daehyun!”
Kwak Jincheol and Lee Jisu hesitated in disbelief, but Daehyun did not even spare them a glance.
“Aaaaaaaaaah……!”
At the same time, the woman’s crying began turning into a scream.
“The revelation…… the revelation!”
A tremendous scream that created ringing in the ears.
It shook the entire Gate.
For an instant, it felt as though the air trembled.
“……!”
And at what he felt, Daehyun flinched.
Kwak Jincheol and Lee Jisu were the same.
“This person……”
“No, Jisu. That thing is not a person……”
It was exactly as Kwak Jincheol said.
Considering that she possessed “this energy,” she had already left the category of human as far as Daehyun was concerned.
‘……Demonic Energy.’
The two people behind him would only guess that it was something beyond mere killing intent, but Daehyun could tell for certain.
This was Demonic Energy.
“What are you, woman?”
Daehyun’s eyes shone an even brighter gold.