Chapter 15 – Day 15

Day 15

“Son of a bitch!”

Crash-!

The young man returned home as if fleeing.
No, the young man who had definitely ‘escaped’ from Mara Monk burst out with an angry shout.

Somehow, all sorts of shattered things were scattered around the young man.

“Damn it, I’ll kill him. I’ll definitely kill him!”

The young man, still unable to calm his anger, was throwing everything he could get his hands on indiscriminately.

How long had the young man been raging like this?

“Is something wrong, young master?”

A middle-aged man approached quietly and asked.

“Ah, Uncle Wei.”

“First, calm down. The master will be here soon.”

As soon as the words ‘the master is coming back’ flowed from the mouth of the middle-aged man called Wei, the young man’s expression hardened.

Wei’s master was soon to be the young man’s father and.
A hero of China… no, a powerful figure ranked within the top 100 martial artists.

“But, what on earth happened?”

“Ah, well…”

Wei asking again.
The young man, who was about to answer without thinking, suddenly closed his mouth.

To be honest, how could he say that he tried to pick up a girl and got beaten up badly before running away?

Especially to Uncle Wei, who was as good as his father’s right-hand man.

But.

“I won’t tell the master, so please let me know. Who knows? I might be able to help you, young master.”

….

Not telling his father.
Is that even possible?

The young man knew his father’s personality all too well.
And, unfortunately, his father had awakened an ability that suited his personality all too well.

Although the Chinese ability users forcibly package their powers as ‘martial arts’, they also know it well.

That the power they possess is not martial arts, but what is commonly referred to as ‘supernatural abilities’.

Just a power gained by chance and coincidence.

It was then, as the young man was looking at the middle-aged man with somewhat suspicious eyes.

“I’m curious too. What kind of mischief were you up to before running back here with your tail between your legs like a worthless dog?”

Flinch-!

A cold voice coming from behind.
The young man trembled and turned around.

There stood a man who looked to be in his early 30s, arms crossed, looking at the young man with disdainful eyes….

“F-Father.”

That man was none other than Xiao Feng, the father of the young man who was beaten by the Mara monk and ran away.

He was ranked 87th in China and a 2nd-grade martial artist.

Could it be that it had already reached his father’s ears?

How on earth?

The young man’s expression twisted slightly as he harbored such thoughts.

The eyes looking at him as if he were pathetic were proof that his father already knew what he had done and why he was angry.

With that, the young man reluctantly swallowed his anger and opened his mouth as if he had no choice.

“What happened was…”

* * *

“I’m sorry, Mr. Cheon Seoa.”

“No, you have no reason to apologize to me.”

“But it was I who invited you to China, Mr. Cheon Seoa. Despite that, to think that you would experience such an unpleasant incident…”

With a sound of “Kheup!”, the Mara monk bowed his head with a genuinely apologetic expression.

The Mara monk couldn’t bring himself to lift his head in front of Cheon Seoa.

What a blunder this was!
He should have brought his subordinates from the beginning.
If he had done so, Mr. Cheon Seoa wouldn’t have had to experience such an unpleasant incident.

No, even now if…

“Please don’t.”

As a cold killing intent suddenly flashed in the Mara monk’s eyes, Cheon Seoa spoke.

Of course, Cheon Seoa also disliked that insect just as much.
But, that didn’t mean the Mara Monk needed to move directly to deal with them.

Cheon Seoa also now knew.

How the children she had given ‘minor help’ to were being treated in the world.

Just now, they were fortunate that no one recognized the Mara Monk’s face, but if even one person had recognized him, it would have been a big problem.

Perhaps, though it’s hard to say, thousands would have died easily.

So.

“I’ll take care of that bug myself.”

There was no need to unnecessarily threaten the Mara Monk’s safety.

That annoying bug, she could just deal with it herself.

To Cheon Seoa’s words…

“Ah…! Lady Cheon Seoa! No, Heavenly Demon!”

The Mara Monk bowed his head with his hands together.
Tears were continuously flowing from the Mara Monk’s eyes.

* * *

The next morning.

Cheon Seoa appeared in downtown Beijing, humming a tune as she walked around.

Her eyes were busy taking in the sights of Beijing, scanning her surroundings, while there were eyes quietly observing Cheon Seoa.

-This is Number 3. Target spotted.
-This is Number 7. The old monk is not visible.

“Understood. Everyone get ready.”

Xiao Feng, the man who received reports from his subordinates spread throughout Beijing, stood up from his seat.

“Stupid fool.”

Shao Feng, who clicked his tongue at the young man standing behind him, moved slightly.

What an embarrassment because of that stupid fool.

He had repeatedly told him to do it properly if he was going to do it.
How much humiliation did he suffer yesterday because of that dimwitted son of his?

That’s why Shao Feng had no intention of letting the target live unscathed.

Although he may be a worthless child, a child is still a child.
Since he couldn’t break his own child’s arms and legs, Shao Feng intended to vent his boiling anger on the target.

After all, with just one word from him, even if the opponent was a fellow martial artist, they would become a villain.
It was enough to make them a ‘mine’ in the Chinese way.

However, there was one regrettable point.

“It’s a shame that Chinese guy isn’t here.”

The ‘target’ currently being reported by his subordinates was merely the little kid his dimwitted son had aimed for.

The real target, who had struck his son and subdued him with mere presence, was nowhere to be seen.

Perhaps his dimwitted son had realized ‘whose’ son he was and hid his appearance.

But.

“I wonder if you can really abandon that little kid.”

Shao Feng, who had somehow appeared in downtown Beijing, said with a grotesque smile.

According to his son’s words.
And, based on what he had been reported, that Chinese guy treated the little kid like a master.

The little girl’s appearance couldn’t be mistaken for Chinese, so she must be the daughter of someone from another country.

But it didn’t matter.

This is China.
In China, one’s words become law.

If he says someone is a villain or a mine, then that person becomes a villain or a mine.
He is a hero, a martial artist, so there would be no problem if he killed such a villain or mine.

After all, why should he, a martial artist of a great nation, care about the opinions of people from smaller countries?

However….

“Somehow… that face looks familiar.”

The girl, busy looking around the banquet with an innocent expression.

Xiao Feng couldn’t shake the feeling that the girl’s face was somehow familiar.

Why did this girl seem more and more familiar the more he looked at her?

No, no.
There was no need to worry about such trivial matters now.

Now….

“Catch that bug.”

He needed to make up for the ‘mistake’ his son had committed.

With that thought, as Xiao Feng gave the order, his subordinates who had been hiding all around sprang out and surrounded the girl.

The girl, despite being surrounded by subordinates exuding a menacing aura, still didn’t erase her innocent expression.

Surely not.

‘Is the cub hiding somewhere?’

However, the only ones that triggered his senses were his own subordinates.

…?
Huh?

“Wh-What-!”

The fact that the only ones triggering his senses were his own subordinates.
As Xiao Feng, feeling something strange about this, looked around, he suddenly realized that the only ones occupying this wide street were the girl in front of him, himself, and his subordinates.

What on earth is going on here!
This was a bustling area notorious for its high foot traffic even in Beijing.

No matter how early it might be, it’s impossible for not even a single ant to exist like this!

Yet, his subordinates didn’t even realize something was wrong, just waiting for his orders.

‘Could all of this have been a trap to lure me out?’

With this thought in mind, Xiao Feng’s expression suddenly contorted.

Certainly, there were quite a few martial artists who held grudges against him.

But they were all just bugs who couldn’t even rank in the top 1000 in China.
Could such bugs have orchestrated this?

That was impossible.

No, if there were beings who could perform such surreal acts among the martial artists of China, or even among the superhumans of the world….

‘It could only be the Nine Villains of the Illuminati. Or the Thirteen Strongest of the Hero Association.’

Among them, those who could actually pull off something like this wouldn’t exceed five at most.

It was then, as Xiao Feng’s mind was becoming increasingly complicated.

“Hmm, unfortunately, one ‘ingredient’ is missing.”

Shudder-!

Indifferent eyes.
No, to put it nicely, they were just indifferent eyes, but in truth, they were ‘dead eyes.’ The moment the word ‘ingredient’ came out of the girl’s mouth, Xiao Feng felt an irresistible fear.

Just as Xiao Feng was about to shout something.

“However, there are a few useless ingredients mixed in. This is…”

‘May I eat them?’

Eat.
What? What does she mean by eat?
No way? It can’t be? It shouldn’t be.
No, it must not be.
But, is it really not?
Come to think of it, a few days ago, there was news of a prison break from Tartarus.
Could it be? Is it real? Is that girl really…!

“Ev, everyone run away-!”

Xiao Feng shouted, forcibly cutting off his thoughts that were linking one after another.

But.

“It’s already too late.”

Cheon Seoa, looking at Xiao Feng with dead eyes, said with a slight smile.

At the same time, with a ‘thud!’ sound, several people collapsed to the ground.

There were empty holes in the chests of the fallen, from which red blood gushed out gurgling.

In addition.

“Ah, heart devouring! It was you after all!”

Seeing Cheon Seoa chewing and eating the hearts of his subordinates, Xiao Feng shouted angrily.

Why did he only remember now!
The opponent was a being who dared to commit the great sin and taboo of ‘heart devouring’ in that small country on the peninsula!

Especially, the one who took that girl out of Tartarus was none other than the Agent, one of the nine most notorious villains of the famous Illuminati.

In other words, that girl might be, no, would certainly be affiliated with the Illuminati. And her position would definitely not be low.

As Xiao Feng’s thoughts reached that point.

“Damn it-! What the hell did this bastard get involved with!”

Rather than cursing his son’s ignorance, he began to flee from Cheon Seoa.

Although Xiao Feng’s ability might not be related to physical abilities, Xiao Feng himself is already a 2nd-class ability user.

At that level, even if one has an ability not related to physical capabilities, their physical abilities surpass those of ordinary humans.

In other words, Xiao Feng’s current physical abilities were more than enough to be called superhuman.

However.

“Wh-what is this!”

Xiao Feng exclaimed in a confused voice as he looked around.

No matter how much he ran, whenever he came to his senses, he found himself back where he started.

At the same time, all of his subordinates were dead with their hearts ripped out.

Cheon Seoa, who had committed this terrible act, slowly walked towards Xiao Feng with the hearts she would use as ‘ingredients’ hanging behind her back.

“Still, it’s fortunate that the quality of the ingredients is good. This should be enough.”

Shiver-!

Cheon Seoa approaching with dead eyes staring intently at him.
The incomprehensible word ‘ingredients’ that Cheon Seoa utters.

Xiao Feng couldn’t understand the meaning of the word ‘ingredients’ that Cheon Seoa was saying.
However, he could at least tell that the word didn’t mean anything normal.

At that…

“Aaaargh! Get away!”

Zzzzing-!

Xiao Feng, screaming in a near-frenzied state, spread both hands towards Cheon Seoa and manifested his ability.

An invisible wave of energy bursts from his wide-open palms, engulfing Cheon Seoa.

But.

“Wh-what-!”

It didn’t work.
His ability didn’t work.

Realizing this fact, Xiao Feng’s eyes filled with despair.

The ability he possessed was ‘Mind Control’.

Xiao Feng, a 2nd-tier ability user, could control the minds of tens of thousands of people if he wanted to.

Of course, this was based on the assumption that all those people were ordinary individuals without any special abilities.

Nevertheless, Xiao Feng prided himself on being able to shake even the mind of a 1st-tier ability user if he concentrated his power on just one person.

The girl in front of him, what level of being was she to be completely unaffected by his ability?

Could it be….

“Zero… rank…?”

Zero rank.
A title given only to ability users with strength beyond 1st rank, literally beings above the heavens.

There were only twenty-two beings given such a Zero rank.

Among them, nine were villains, and thirteen were active as heroes.

Meanwhile, Cheon Seoa, who had been moving slowly, suddenly appeared in front of Xiao Feng and reached out her hand.

Slowly. And leisurely.
Although Cheon Seoa’s movements seemed infinitely slow even to the eyes of ordinary people, Xiao Feng couldn’t avoid it.

No, he couldn’t even perceive the movement of Cheon Seoa reaching out her hand.

At the very least….

Puhwak-!

“Kuhek!”

Only at the moment his heart was being pulled out by Cheon Seoa’s hand did he realize it, slowly collapsing.

Meanwhile, after finishing the collection of all ‘materials,’ Cheon Seoa snapped her fingers, and the street was suddenly bustling with numerous people.

At the same time.

Kyaaaaaak!
A, a corpse!
The heart has been pulled out?
No way!
Run away! Heart Devourer! The Heart Devourer has appeared!

Dozens of people lying dead with their hearts ripped out.
People started to panic and run away, shouting the name “Heart Devourer”.

Cheon Seoa, who was quietly observing the scene.

“I didn’t mean for this to happen… But if it creates a good training opportunity, maybe they’ll forgive me?”

Cheon Seoa scratched her cheek, realizing she had unintentionally raised the infamy of the poor child.