out of here already!”
“I’m intending to do exactly that.”
I wasn’t good with children.
With Rin, it was fine since she was quite mature, but ordinary kids were a bit much for me.
“Ah, you’re different from the other men in black, aren’t you?”
“Of course, they and I belong to different places.”
“Belong?”
“I mean we come from different places.”
Truth be told, I wasn’t particularly affiliated with anywhere at the moment.
I had to start a guild, but which area would be best to buy a building in?
“Are the men in black going to chase us if we go home?”
As we emerged from the building, the children glanced nervously around, their faces filled with unease.
They feared the men in black might appear and take them away again.
Apart from wanting to become Players, they clearly found them frightening.
“All the black-stained bastards around here have been chased away, so you can go home without worry. Don’t be fooled by strange talk next time.”
“Really?”
“Yes.”
I waved my hand to indicate they should leave, and the dozen or so children exchanged awkward glances before slowly making their way home.
“Well then, shall I take a closer look inside now?”
The children were rescued, so it seemed I could leisurely search the building for information.
Now that I think about it, wasn’t it the 7th floor?
It seemed there was a branch chief there.
‘I’ll start by searching there.’
I hoped to gather information about their headquarters to uproot them in one fell swoop.
***
“Sob, waaaah!”
“Send us home, please!”
The sound of children crying resounded within the cages.
In the center of the room, where nearly twenty children were gathered, there was a strange mask.
It looked like it was modeled after a face screaming in agony.
As the children cried more and the fear shook the bars, the mask emitted a subtle light.
It was the Mask of Sorrow that fed on human despair and cries.
The purer the sorrow from emotionally rich children, the higher the quality; Neviros preferred pure sadness in children over adults’ mixed desires and dark sorrows.
Step.
The man guarding the cell turned his head at the sudden noise.
A solitary figure in black was approaching slowly.
It was Shin Jawun, one of the two contractors within Black Heaven.
“No issues standing guard! The mask is operating normally and everything is under control.”
“Is that so.”
Walking in with a laid-back posture, he leaned against the cage from which the crying emanated.
The guard felt uneasy due to his presence.
Who was Shin Jawun?
A man who wouldn’t hesitate to dispose of even his own if slightly annoyed.
His actions were demon-like, yet he couldn’t be reprimanded by the head of Black Heaven because of their shared bond as contractors of the same devil.
If Jawun had been greedier, perhaps Black Heaven would have been his by now.
“Hey.”
“Y-Yes.”
“Step out for a moment.”
“Eh?”
Caught off guard by the sudden instruction, the guard blinked.
“Outside?”
“You’re bothering me.”
Jawun took out a cigarette pack and started lighting up, obviously bothered by the man’s presence.
“Don’t make me repeat myself.”
“Y-Yes!”
Of course, annoying Jawun could be the end of him. Once the guard left, Jawun casually started to smoke.
“…”
While watching the children cry with indifference, Jawun took out a round object from his pocket and rolled it quietly into the cell.
“Tch.”
He grimaced as he looked inside at the glowing mask.
A truly distasteful object.
‘Why would big bro want to use such an item?’
Becoming a devil’s contractor should have been enough.
Jawun owed a lot to the boss of Black Heaven.
He had helped him survive a rough childhood, which was why he rejected the opportunity to become God’s avatar and chose to serve under him instead.
His devil’s contract followed after that decision.
Kang Cheonwoo was a contractor to Neviros, so it seemed only right that he followed suit.
“Such a damn world.”
He had no intention of making a contract with a devil, but it was hard to say no to the head of Black Heaven.
“Trouble, big trouble!”
The guard he had sent away came tumbling back in, sweating.
His warning tone made the guard flinch, but still he wiped his sweat and explained.
“Hwagok-dong branch has been annihilated.”
“What?”
“We’re not sure, sir. The footage shows a man in black, but we can’t be sure since the crows obscured most of the CCTV.”
A man in black? Could it be another devil’s minion?
Black Heaven, with its contractors, was the largest force among devils.
So, there were plenty of enemies, and it was hard to pinpoint any specific one.
‘And crows, you say?’
This had to be the work of a particular devil’s contractor or minion.
“Where’s big bro?”
“He’s on the 5th floor.”
There should have been at least fifty minions at Hwagok-dong branch.
If they were wiped out, this wasn’t any ordinary opponent.
“Jawun!”
As he hurried to the 5th floor, Kang Cheonwoo, the boss of Black Heaven, greeted Shin Jawun warmly.
With anger from the recent report, one eye burned black with fury.
“Some son of a bitch killed all the Hwagok-dong guys.”
“I heard.”
“I need you to take care of this. Can you manage?”
“If that’s what you wish, big bro.”
“Good, good.”
Kang Cheonwoo patted his shoulder and smiled, to which Jawun gave a faint smile in return.
To others, he might be a devil, but to him, he was as close as family.
“I’ll take a look around Hwagok-dong and track him down.”
“I’m counting on you. He seems strong, so stay sharp.”
“Don’t worry about it.”
The man in the CCTV seemed formidable, but Jawun had confidence.
After all, Neviros had directly stated that among all the devil’s contractors, Shin Jawun was the strongest.
out of here already!”
“I’m intending to do exactly that.”
I wasn’t good with children.
With Rin, it was fine since she was quite mature, but ordinary kids were a bit much for me.
“Ah, you’re different from the other men in black, aren’t you?”
“Of course, they and I belong to different places.”
“Belong?”
“I mean we come from different places.”
Truth be told, I wasn’t particularly affiliated with anywhere at the moment.
I had to start a guild, but which area would be best to buy a building in?
“Are the men in black going to chase us if we go home?”
As we emerged from the building, the children glanced nervously around, their faces filled with unease.
They feared the men in black might appear and take them away again.
Apart from wanting to become Players, they clearly found them frightening.
“All the black-stained bastards around here have been chased away, so you can go home without worry. Don’t be fooled by strange talk next time.”
“Really?”
“Yes.”
I waved my hand to indicate they should leave, and the dozen or so children exchanged awkward glances before slowly making their way home.
“Well then, shall I take a closer look inside now?”
The children were rescued, so it seemed I could leisurely search the building for information.
Now that I think about it, wasn’t it the 7th floor?
It seemed there was a branch chief there.
‘I’ll start by searching there.’
I hoped to gather information about their headquarters to uproot them in one fell swoop.
***
“Sob, waaaah!”
“Send us home, please!”
The sound of children crying resounded within the cages.
In the center of the room, where nearly twenty children were gathered, there was a strange mask.
It looked like it was modeled after a face screaming in agony.
As the children cried more and the fear shook the bars, the mask emitted a subtle light.
It was the Mask of Sorrow that fed on human despair and cries.
The purer the sorrow from emotionally rich children, the higher the quality; Neviros preferred pure sadness in children over adults’ mixed desires and dark sorrows.
Step.
The man guarding the cell turned his head at the sudden noise.
A solitary figure in black was approaching slowly.
It was Shin Jawun, one of the two contractors within Black Heaven.
“No issues standing guard! The mask is operating normally and everything is under control.”
“Is that so.”
Walking in with a laid-back posture, he leaned against the cage from which the crying emanated.
The guard felt uneasy due to his presence.
Who was Shin Jawun?
A man who wouldn’t hesitate to dispose of even his own if slightly annoyed.
His actions were demon-like, yet he couldn’t be reprimanded by the head of Black Heaven because of their shared bond as contractors of the same devil.
If Jawun had been greedier, perhaps Black Heaven would have been his by now.
“Hey.”
“Y-Yes.”
“Step out for a moment.”
“Eh?”
Caught off guard by the sudden instruction, the guard blinked.
“Outside?”
“You’re bothering me.”
Jawun took out a cigarette pack and started lighting up, obviously bothered by the man’s presence.
“Don’t make me repeat myself.”
“Y-Yes!”
Of course, annoying Jawun could be the end of him. Once the guard left, Jawun casually started to smoke.
“…”
While watching the children cry with indifference, Jawun took out a round object from his pocket and rolled it quietly into the cell.
“Tch.”
He grimaced as he looked inside at the glowing mask.
A truly distasteful object.
‘Why would big bro want to use such an item?’
Becoming a devil’s contractor should have been enough.
Jawun owed a lot to the boss of Black Heaven.
He had helped him survive a rough childhood, which was why he rejected the opportunity to become God’s avatar and chose to serve under him instead.
His devil’s contract followed after that decision.
Kang Cheonwoo was a contractor to Neviros, so it seemed only right that he followed suit.
“Such a damn world.”
He had no intention of making a contract with a devil, but it was hard to say no to the head of Black Heaven.
“Trouble, big trouble!”
The guard he had sent away came tumbling back in, sweating.
His warning tone made the guard flinch, but still he wiped his sweat and explained.
“Hwagok-dong branch has been annihilated.”
“What?”
“We’re not sure, sir. The footage shows a man in black, but we can’t be sure since the crows obscured most of the CCTV.”
A man in black? Could it be another devil’s minion?
Black Heaven, with its contractors, was the largest force among devils.
So, there were plenty of enemies, and it was hard to pinpoint any specific one.
‘And crows, you say?’
This had to be the work of a particular devil’s contractor or minion.
“Where’s big bro?”
“He’s on the 5th floor.”
There should have been at least fifty minions at Hwagok-dong branch.
If they were wiped out, this wasn’t any ordinary opponent.
“Jawun!”
As he hurried to the 5th floor, Kang Cheonwoo, the boss of Black Heaven, greeted Shin Jawun warmly.
With anger from the recent report, one eye burned black with fury.
“Some son of a bitch killed all the Hwagok-dong guys.”
“I heard.”
“I need you to take care of this. Can you manage?”
“If that’s what you wish, big bro.”
“Good, good.”
Kang Cheonwoo patted his shoulder and smiled, to which Jawun gave a faint smile in return.
To others, he might be a devil, but to him, he was as close as family.
“I’ll take a look around Hwagok-dong and track him down.”
“I’m counting on you. He seems strong, so stay sharp.”
“Don’t worry about it.”
The man in the CCTV seemed formidable, but Jawun had confidence.
After all, Neviros had directly stated that among all the devil’s contractors, Shin Jawun was the strongest.
