046. Situation Assessment (2)
Incheon, Jung-gu.
In a dark alley, armed men were shouting.
“Hurry, move it!”
At the harsh-looking man’s cry, the others around him tugged on the rope they grasped.
“Uwahh, Mommy!”
“Shut up and be quiet! Anyone who makes noise dies, got it?”
“Hic, sob, sob.”
Those being dragged by the rope were children.
The children were bound and being led somewhere.
“We got quite a lot today, huh?”
“We found a place where ordinary people were hiding. You know there’s an elementary school over there? That’s where they were hiding.”
The man with sunglasses grinned as he spoke.
Thanks to that, his day was going smoothly.
“But where are we taking these kids?”
“I don’t know. We were just told to bring them from above.”
The man with sunglasses looked at the children being dragged away.
As someone low in the hierarchy, he knew little, but he was aware that those children were likely not to be unharmed.
“Maybe the demons want their blood or souls or something?”
“Ugh, just thinking about it gives me the chills.”
“Well, from their perspective, we’re the even more savage ones.”
The man with sunglasses giggled, his point indisputably correct.
From the children’s perspective, the demons and themselves were hardly any different.
‘If only I had become an Avatar, I wouldn’t be doing this.’
Among them, there was a man filled with regret.
Chosen as Players but not becoming Avatars, they couldn’t refuse the hand extended to them by the demons in such a precarious life-or-death situation.
Demons, unlike the gods, were not choosy about whom they contracted with.
As long as one listened to them, they would make contracts with anyone and grant them powerful strength.
Strength that rivaled even that of Avatars.
But such power came at a price.
The work they were doing now was part of paying that price.
“It seems quite leisurely here from all the chit-chat.”
A cold voice came from behind the men.
“Si, Captain Shin Ja-woon!”
“Quiet.”
The man extinguished the cigarette in his mouth against his palm.
Even as the hot cigarette butt was pressed against his palm, there was not a hint of change in his expression.
‘This is a demon’s contractor.’
Black hair and dark eyes.
Though these were traits that any Korean would have, he was different.
Hair dark enough to absorb any light.
It was a distinctive feature of a demon’s contractor. During the bright day, one might distinguish it, but at night, such differences were hard to notice.
“Captain, what brings you here?”
“Came to catch a rat that crawled in.”
“Excuse me?”
The man looked around in alarm.
“Who might be here?”
“I don’t know.”
“Excuse me?”
“I said I don’t know.”
At first, it seemed like a jest, but given his stoic expression, it appeared it was not.
“Then…?”
An ominous premonition washed over him.
The other Players transporting the children shifted their gaze toward Shin Ja-woon.
With a languid smile, Shin Ja-woon said,
“If we don’t know, we just have to kill everyone, don’t we?”
A chilling silence descended upon the alley.
For a moment, they wondered if it was a joke, but as Shin Ja-woon slowly unsheathed his sword, they realized he was serious.
“Damn it, run!”
If caught, it would mean certain death. The Players in this location knew very well who Shin Ja-woon was.
The Action Team Captain of the newly rising power, “Heukcheonhoe,” in the Incheon area.
A demon’s contractor who had slaughtered dozens of Players by himself.
“Such an annoyance.”
Shin Ja-woon let out a faint sigh as he stepped forward.
Red after-images wrapped around the alley, and in an instant, the alley was drenched in blood.
The next day.
In an alley in Bumil-dong, twelve unidentified corpses were found.
***
South Korea, Seoul, Sillim.
Two girls carrying a bundle of daily necessities were on the move.
One girl was a high schooler in her late teens in uniform, while the other was a foreign girl in her early teens.
They were Min-ah and Lynn Taylor.
They were coming back from a nearby convenience store with simple food and necessities.
Society was slowly recovering, but the only places where you could get necessities were system-run safe-zone convenience stores.
Obviously, normal currency couldn’t be used in the convenience stores, which only accepted points.
“Wasn’t I amazing this time?”
Min-ah was recounting her recent exploits killing a raid boss to Lynn.
“A gold grade, no less. I’m seriously incredible.”
Min-ah boasted with a smile all over her face.
She was especially overjoyed because this achievement was purely her talent, without Se-han’s help.
‘Although, it wasn’t without any help from Se-han oppa.’
Only because of Se-han’s ‘Starfish Grimoire’ skill could she have performed so well this time.
A skill that converted ingested metal into part of one’s body, it worked exceptionally well with Ji-su’s transformation abilities.
She could morph a part of her body into a blade for attacking or a shield for defense.
Even if it was destroyed, the transformation would release without bodily harm, which was a significant advantage.
“I was scared, thinking that you or Dad might get hurt.”
Lynn shivered recalling a recent event.
“Ah, don’t worry about that. And Luke is pretty strong, isn’t he?”
Frankly, she hadn’t expected much but was quite surprised.
His rank as a deity-induced Avatar didn’t seem high, but his combat skills were definitely professional.
“Me too…”
“Unni!”
As Min-ah was about to continue, Lynn screamed out like an alarm.
Min-ah didn’t immediately understand why Lynn was shouting, but sensing the presence behind her, she quickly ducked.
Whoosh!
“Damn!”
A hammer whizzed over her head.
It was a hit powerful enough to take a normal person’s life in one blow.
The assailants clearly knew Min-ah and Lynn were Players and had targeted them.
“──Ah!”
Swoosh!
Min-ah, jumping back greatly, transformed her fingers into sharp blades and sliced through the hammer’s handle.
Then, she converted her feet into metal and spun violently using centrifugal force to strike the man’s head.
Thwack!
“Argh!”
As if struck by a metal block, the man spat blood and staggered.
“This, damn it, they’re not ordinary girls! Everyone, attack at once!”
At the man’s command, people hiding around them sprung out at once.
Dark waves spread out from their pupils, turning their eyes pitch-black.
‘Human-shaped monsters?’
For an instant, such a thought crossed her mind, but they weren’t monsters by any stretch.
Yet, since they had attacked her, Min-ah decided it was best to consider them as such.
Players attacking humans were no different from monsters.
“It seems you took our youth for granted…”
Min-ah’s arms extended wide as she sliced through.
Her ordinary female arms transformed into giant mantis-like scythes made of mithril.
“Ah, damn it! She’s an Avatar!”
Min-ah’s transformed arms shredded the attackers’ weapons like paper.
The expensive weapons they had bought were powerless against Min-ah’s attack.
Soon, the attackers realized that Min-ah was not an ordinary person or Player; she was an ‘Avatar.’
People with such unique skills were mostly Avatars.
“Go after the kid!”
Realizing that targeting Min-ah was foolish, the attackers quickly changed their target.
They reached out towards Lynn, who trembled next to her.
‘Ah, shoot.’
Having neglected to watch over Lynn, Min-ah was startled by her mistake.
Swoosh.
“Huh?”
Just as an attacker’s hand nearly touched Lynn, her body gracefully swayed and retreated.
The hands of the three attackers missed Lynn and whipped through the air.
“Chance!”
Taking advantage of the brief opening, Min-ah slashed the attackers’ hands with her scythe-like arms.
Black blood spilled onto the ground.
“Shit! Run!”
Convinced that continuing the fight would be futile, the attackers quickly fled.
Looking back a bit too late, there were a total of four attackers.
“Lynn, are you okay?”
“Yes, yes. I’m, I’m fine, Unni.”
Still trembling from the altercation, Lynn seemed unlike the girl who had just evaded the attackers’ hands.
“That was amazing. How did you dodge that? I honestly thought you’d be caught for a moment.”
“I, I don’t know. I just imitated what you did, Unni.”
“My moves?”
Unsure of her own movements, Min-ah could only tilt her head in puzzlement.
But it didn’t matter how, as long as she wasn’t caught.
“Hmm, but something feels off.”
Min-ah looked down at the severed hands of the attackers on the ground.
Unlike normal red, the dark blood stained the roads.
Additionally, the rapid decay was nothing like a normal human’s limbs.
“I’ll have to ask Se-han oppa about this later today.”
When in doubt, talk to Se-han.
With him, there would always be an answer.
That had become Min-ah’s new principle.
***
“You were attacked by strange people?”
“Yeah. When I cut off their arm, the blood was like this black goop…!”
While Min-ah enthusiastically described the event, I furrowed my brows.
‘Min-ah and Lynn were targeted?’
Something felt off.
If their arms bled black when cut, those assailants could only relate to one thing.
Individuals associated with demons.
These were the lowest rung, so to speak – minions of demons.
And yet, their presence was meant to be subdued at this time.
‘Hold on.’
Why did they have to lie low in the first place?
Starting from that point, I began to think.
Demon contractors and their underlings came to light quite late.
Particularly in places other than Seoul—in Incheon.
Because they didn’t dare step into Seoul due to The Scene’s Kim Ju-won.
Avatar of Lord Hades, Kim Ju-won quickly took control of Seoul’s darkness.
Powerful Avatars flocked under him, and it wouldn’t be odd to call him the sovereign of South Korea’s shadows.
Thus, the demon contractors avoided Ju-won as much as possible.
Whether they didn’t want to reduce their forces or for some other reason, they stayed away from Seoul, The Scene’s base, focusing their activities in Incheon instead.
Later, centering around the ‘Heukcheonhoe’ organization, they began their activities and grew into a grand power sharing the dark side of South Korea with The Scene.
‘If that’s the case, Seoul must be in total chaos behind the scenes right now.’
The underworld wasn’t dominated by The Scene alone.
Many organizations existed, but the vile group, The Scene, absorbed them all.
Right now, Seoul was surely a battlefield of clandestine fights and struggles.
Or perhaps a new organization had emerged to replace The Scene.
‘This is beyond my control.’
It wasn’t all cleared up just because I killed Kim Ju-won.
‘Have I inadvertently given the demons an opportunity to swiftly advance into Seoul?’
I didn’t regret killing Kim Ju-won.
But it was, undeniably, a hassle.
“Do you know who those people are, Oppa?”
“Yes.”
“As expected~! I knew you would!”
Min-ah beamed, giving a thumbs-up, at which I couldn’t help but smile bitterly.
“So, who are they?”
Luke, who had been silent, spoke up with a low voice.
His demeanor was unlike his usual light-heartedness, likely because it involved his daughter.
‘It’s been some time since I’ve seen Luke, no, Mr. Taylor, with such a serious look.’
Perhaps due to memories of my past life, when I saw Luke, I had an instinct to address him as ‘teacher.’
But saying that would surely cause confusion, so to avoid slip-ups, I made a point not to even think of him that way.
“They’re most likely related to demons.”
“Demons?”
Evidently not expecting that answer, everyone around reacted with surprise.
With demons emerging following the gods, their shock was understandable.
“The issue is where exactly they are now…”
The primary organization related to demons was Heukcheonhoe.
Given that, Incheon was the probable location, but Min-ah and Lynn were attacked in Seoul, which sowed doubt.
Changes in the future may have shifted their base, after all.
‘I’m not well-informed on the demon side of things.’
I knew the rough details, but that side was so mired in filth it was difficult to find concrete information.
Besides, someone else had dealt with them before I could even interfere.
“I have a guess.”
Ji-su, who had been listening, hesitantly raised her hand.
“A guess?”
“Yes. I told you about the weird person I met in Gangseo-gu before, right?”
“Yes, you did.”
They were there, and now they aren’t, or so it went.
“That person had black blood. I thought it was just a skill at the time, but if what Oppa says is true…”
That they were either a demon’s minion or contractor.
I did remember that weird folks had gathered around Gangseo-gu, but could it be that a gang under the demons had formed?
It seemed Ji-su had somehow disrupted them, but it was likely that some remnants remained.
“Let’s start by heading there.”
I had to verify how far the poison had spread throughout Seoul.
046. Situation Assessment (2)
Incheon, Jung-gu.
In a dark alley, armed men were shouting.
“Hurry, move it!”
At the harsh-looking man’s cry, the others around him tugged on the rope they grasped.
“Uwahh, Mommy!”
“Shut up and be quiet! Anyone who makes noise dies, got it?”
“Hic, sob, sob.”
Those being dragged by the rope were children.
The children were bound and being led somewhere.
“We got quite a lot today, huh?”
“We found a place where ordinary people were hiding. You know there’s an elementary school over there? That’s where they were hiding.”
The man with sunglasses grinned as he spoke.
Thanks to that, his day was going smoothly.
“But where are we taking these kids?”
“I don’t know. We were just told to bring them from above.”
The man with sunglasses looked at the children being dragged away.
As someone low in the hierarchy, he knew little, but he was aware that those children were likely not to be unharmed.
“Maybe the demons want their blood or souls or something?”
“Ugh, just thinking about it gives me the chills.”
“Well, from their perspective, we’re the even more savage ones.”
The man with sunglasses giggled, his point indisputably correct.
From the children’s perspective, the demons and themselves were hardly any different.
‘If only I had become an Avatar, I wouldn’t be doing this.’
Among them, there was a man filled with regret.
Chosen as Players but not becoming Avatars, they couldn’t refuse the hand extended to them by the demons in such a precarious life-or-death situation.
Demons, unlike the gods, were not choosy about whom they contracted with.
As long as one listened to them, they would make contracts with anyone and grant them powerful strength.
Strength that rivaled even that of Avatars.
But such power came at a price.
The work they were doing now was part of paying that price.
“It seems quite leisurely here from all the chit-chat.”
A cold voice came from behind the men.
“Si, Captain Shin Ja-woon!”
“Quiet.”
The man extinguished the cigarette in his mouth against his palm.
Even as the hot cigarette butt was pressed against his palm, there was not a hint of change in his expression.
‘This is a demon’s contractor.’
Black hair and dark eyes.
Though these were traits that any Korean would have, he was different.
Hair dark enough to absorb any light.
It was a distinctive feature of a demon’s contractor. During the bright day, one might distinguish it, but at night, such differences were hard to notice.
“Captain, what brings you here?”
“Came to catch a rat that crawled in.”
“Excuse me?”
The man looked around in alarm.
“Who might be here?”
“I don’t know.”
“Excuse me?”
“I said I don’t know.”
At first, it seemed like a jest, but given his stoic expression, it appeared it was not.
“Then…?”
An ominous premonition washed over him.
The other Players transporting the children shifted their gaze toward Shin Ja-woon.
With a languid smile, Shin Ja-woon said,
“If we don’t know, we just have to kill everyone, don’t we?”
A chilling silence descended upon the alley.
For a moment, they wondered if it was a joke, but as Shin Ja-woon slowly unsheathed his sword, they realized he was serious.
“Damn it, run!”
If caught, it would mean certain death. The Players in this location knew very well who Shin Ja-woon was.
The Action Team Captain of the newly rising power, “Heukcheonhoe,” in the Incheon area.
A demon’s contractor who had slaughtered dozens of Players by himself.
“Such an annoyance.”
Shin Ja-woon let out a faint sigh as he stepped forward.
Red after-images wrapped around the alley, and in an instant, the alley was drenched in blood.
The next day.
In an alley in Bumil-dong, twelve unidentified corpses were found.
***
South Korea, Seoul, Sillim.
Two girls carrying a bundle of daily necessities were on the move.
One girl was a high schooler in her late teens in uniform, while the other was a foreign girl in her early teens.
They were Min-ah and Lynn Taylor.
They were coming back from a nearby convenience store with simple food and necessities.
Society was slowly recovering, but the only places where you could get necessities were system-run safe-zone convenience stores.
Obviously, normal currency couldn’t be used in the convenience stores, which only accepted points.
“Wasn’t I amazing this time?”
Min-ah was recounting her recent exploits killing a raid boss to Lynn.
“A gold grade, no less. I’m seriously incredible.”
Min-ah boasted with a smile all over her face.
She was especially overjoyed because this achievement was purely her talent, without Se-han’s help.
‘Although, it wasn’t without any help from Se-han oppa.’
Only because of Se-han’s ‘Starfish Grimoire’ skill could she have performed so well this time.
A skill that converted ingested metal into part of one’s body, it worked exceptionally well with Ji-su’s transformation abilities.
She could morph a part of her body into a blade for attacking or a shield for defense.
Even if it was destroyed, the transformation would release without bodily harm, which was a significant advantage.
“I was scared, thinking that you or Dad might get hurt.”
Lynn shivered recalling a recent event.
“Ah, don’t worry about that. And Luke is pretty strong, isn’t he?”
Frankly, she hadn’t expected much but was quite surprised.
His rank as a deity-induced Avatar didn’t seem high, but his combat skills were definitely professional.
“Me too…”
“Unni!”
As Min-ah was about to continue, Lynn screamed out like an alarm.
Min-ah didn’t immediately understand why Lynn was shouting, but sensing the presence behind her, she quickly ducked.
Whoosh!
“Damn!”
A hammer whizzed over her head.
It was a hit powerful enough to take a normal person’s life in one blow.
The assailants clearly knew Min-ah and Lynn were Players and had targeted them.
“──Ah!”
Swoosh!
Min-ah, jumping back greatly, transformed her fingers into sharp blades and sliced through the hammer’s handle.
Then, she converted her feet into metal and spun violently using centrifugal force to strike the man’s head.
Thwack!
“Argh!”
As if struck by a metal block, the man spat blood and staggered.
“This, damn it, they’re not ordinary girls! Everyone, attack at once!”
At the man’s command, people hiding around them sprung out at once.
Dark waves spread out from their pupils, turning their eyes pitch-black.
‘Human-shaped monsters?’
For an instant, such a thought crossed her mind, but they weren’t monsters by any stretch.
Yet, since they had attacked her, Min-ah decided it was best to consider them as such.
Players attacking humans were no different from monsters.
“It seems you took our youth for granted…”
Min-ah’s arms extended wide as she sliced through.
Her ordinary female arms transformed into giant mantis-like scythes made of mithril.
“Ah, damn it! She’s an Avatar!”
Min-ah’s transformed arms shredded the attackers’ weapons like paper.
The expensive weapons they had bought were powerless against Min-ah’s attack.
Soon, the attackers realized that Min-ah was not an ordinary person or Player; she was an ‘Avatar.’
People with such unique skills were mostly Avatars.
“Go after the kid!”
Realizing that targeting Min-ah was foolish, the attackers quickly changed their target.
They reached out towards Lynn, who trembled next to her.
‘Ah, shoot.’
Having neglected to watch over Lynn, Min-ah was startled by her mistake.
Swoosh.
“Huh?”
Just as an attacker’s hand nearly touched Lynn, her body gracefully swayed and retreated.
The hands of the three attackers missed Lynn and whipped through the air.
“Chance!”
Taking advantage of the brief opening, Min-ah slashed the attackers’ hands with her scythe-like arms.
Black blood spilled onto the ground.
“Shit! Run!”
Convinced that continuing the fight would be futile, the attackers quickly fled.
Looking back a bit too late, there were a total of four attackers.
“Lynn, are you okay?”
“Yes, yes. I’m, I’m fine, Unni.”
Still trembling from the altercation, Lynn seemed unlike the girl who had just evaded the attackers’ hands.
“That was amazing. How did you dodge that? I honestly thought you’d be caught for a moment.”
“I, I don’t know. I just imitated what you did, Unni.”
“My moves?”
Unsure of her own movements, Min-ah could only tilt her head in puzzlement.
But it didn’t matter how, as long as she wasn’t caught.
“Hmm, but something feels off.”
Min-ah looked down at the severed hands of the attackers on the ground.
Unlike normal red, the dark blood stained the roads.
Additionally, the rapid decay was nothing like a normal human’s limbs.
“I’ll have to ask Se-han oppa about this later today.”
When in doubt, talk to Se-han.
With him, there would always be an answer.
That had become Min-ah’s new principle.
***
“You were attacked by strange people?”
“Yeah. When I cut off their arm, the blood was like this black goop…!”
While Min-ah enthusiastically described the event, I furrowed my brows.
‘Min-ah and Lynn were targeted?’
Something felt off.
If their arms bled black when cut, those assailants could only relate to one thing.
Individuals associated with demons.
These were the lowest rung, so to speak – minions of demons.
And yet, their presence was meant to be subdued at this time.
‘Hold on.’
Why did they have to lie low in the first place?
Starting from that point, I began to think.
Demon contractors and their underlings came to light quite late.
Particularly in places other than Seoul—in Incheon.
Because they didn’t dare step into Seoul due to The Scene’s Kim Ju-won.
Avatar of Lord Hades, Kim Ju-won quickly took control of Seoul’s darkness.
Powerful Avatars flocked under him, and it wouldn’t be odd to call him the sovereign of South Korea’s shadows.
Thus, the demon contractors avoided Ju-won as much as possible.
Whether they didn’t want to reduce their forces or for some other reason, they stayed away from Seoul, The Scene’s base, focusing their activities in Incheon instead.
Later, centering around the ‘Heukcheonhoe’ organization, they began their activities and grew into a grand power sharing the dark side of South Korea with The Scene.
‘If that’s the case, Seoul must be in total chaos behind the scenes right now.’
The underworld wasn’t dominated by The Scene alone.
Many organizations existed, but the vile group, The Scene, absorbed them all.
Right now, Seoul was surely a battlefield of clandestine fights and struggles.
Or perhaps a new organization had emerged to replace The Scene.
‘This is beyond my control.’
It wasn’t all cleared up just because I killed Kim Ju-won.
‘Have I inadvertently given the demons an opportunity to swiftly advance into Seoul?’
I didn’t regret killing Kim Ju-won.
But it was, undeniably, a hassle.
“Do you know who those people are, Oppa?”
“Yes.”
“As expected~! I knew you would!”
Min-ah beamed, giving a thumbs-up, at which I couldn’t help but smile bitterly.
“So, who are they?”
Luke, who had been silent, spoke up with a low voice.
His demeanor was unlike his usual light-heartedness, likely because it involved his daughter.
‘It’s been some time since I’ve seen Luke, no, Mr. Taylor, with such a serious look.’
Perhaps due to memories of my past life, when I saw Luke, I had an instinct to address him as ‘teacher.’
But saying that would surely cause confusion, so to avoid slip-ups, I made a point not to even think of him that way.
“They’re most likely related to demons.”
“Demons?”
Evidently not expecting that answer, everyone around reacted with surprise.
With demons emerging following the gods, their shock was understandable.
“The issue is where exactly they are now…”
The primary organization related to demons was Heukcheonhoe.
Given that, Incheon was the probable location, but Min-ah and Lynn were attacked in Seoul, which sowed doubt.
Changes in the future may have shifted their base, after all.
‘I’m not well-informed on the demon side of things.’
I knew the rough details, but that side was so mired in filth it was difficult to find concrete information.
Besides, someone else had dealt with them before I could even interfere.
“I have a guess.”
Ji-su, who had been listening, hesitantly raised her hand.
“A guess?”
“Yes. I told you about the weird person I met in Gangseo-gu before, right?”
“Yes, you did.”
They were there, and now they aren’t, or so it went.
“That person had black blood. I thought it was just a skill at the time, but if what Oppa says is true…”
That they were either a demon’s minion or contractor.
I did remember that weird folks had gathered around Gangseo-gu, but could it be that a gang under the demons had formed?
It seemed Ji-su had somehow disrupted them, but it was likely that some remnants remained.
“Let’s start by heading there.”
I had to verify how far the poison had spread throughout Seoul.
