27. Night Flight (2)

The raindrops falling pitter-patter soaked my body.

Staying in the rain made me slightly cold, but it wasn’t to the point of hypothermia or being unable to walk due to exhaustion.

“There it is.”

After wandering the streets for about 30 minutes, I finally found the Korean-style Game Room.

It looked exactly like the kind of place that would be packed with illegal gambling machines no matter how you looked at it.

Set up in the basement of a dilapidated commercial building without even a proper sign, it felt like a den for gambling addicts.

‘Two at the entrance… two more on the rooftop.’

As I got closer to the building, I began to spot several figures wearing black masks one by one.

As if they weren’t even trying to hide that this was a villains’ hideout, they proudly patrolled the area around their base.

‘I should take out the rooftop first.’

Using the sound of the rain to mask my presence, I disappeared into the darkness of the night.

My targets were the gang members watching the surroundings from the rooftop of the building next to the game room. My plan was to kill them first, eliminate the two guarding the entrance, and then infiltrate the game room.

“…”

When I quickly climbed up to the rooftop, Gang Member A was silently scanning the area.

‘Something’s off…’

But up close, for some reason, Gang Member A seemed like his will had been completely stripped away.

It was hard to put into words, but something felt slightly unsettling.

No, wait.

At this late hour, standing guard absentmindedly should make anyone drowsy, but he showed no signs of fatigue. He didn’t even blink, just stared straight ahead, which was downright creepy.

‘What is this eerie feeling?’

I still couldn’t figure it out. He didn’t seem possessed by anything, nor was there any parasitic creature attached to him. Maybe it was just my imagination.

I pulled out my needle blade. Whatever it was, killing him would solve it.

“Hup.”

Getting closer risked detection, so I threw the needle blade with all my strength at the back of the gang member’s head.

Crunch-!!!

“Guh!? Gahhh…”

As the needle blade embedded itself in his head, Gang Member A flailed before collapsing dead.

[15 Points Acquired]

He must have been a non-Awakened. It was a bit disappointing to only get 15 points, but this wasn’t a world where Awakened were the majority, so it couldn’t be helped.

“Huh..!?”

Startled by his comrade’s sudden collapse, Gang Member B snapped out of his daze.

I was already behind him.

Crack—!!!!

I swung a metal pipe with full force, smashing the back of his skull.

Thud.

Gang Member B collapsed, blood pouring from his head. Since he wasn’t dead yet, I hit him once more.

[30 Points Acquired]

The points finally registered.

This guy must have been an Awakened. I wasn’t sure what ability he had, but he was dealt with easily.

If it had been daytime without rain, I wouldn’t have been able to ambush them this easily. The rainy night made it possible.

“Huu.”

Standing in the pitter-pattering rain, I scanned the surroundings.

‘Looks like there are no more guards besides the entrance.’

They were more lax than I expected. Maybe they’d gotten complacent. I hadn’t seen many monsters around this area on my way here.

It was a relatively safe neighborhood, so the guards might have been slacking off.

‘That unsettling feeling is still there… but I should head inside first.’

With a strange sense of foreboding, as if my danger sense was tingling, I picked up my needle blade and prepared to descend.

“Hmm…?”

But strangely, the gang members inside the game room suddenly poured out all at once.

Like the ones I’d just killed, they seemed like their souls had been drained.

‘Don’t tell me… are they all under some kind of mass hypnosis…?’

If it wasn’t possession or parasites, the most likely explanation was some kind of mental attack.

That would mean something inside that game room had taken over the entire villain organization.

‘What is it… what exactly has taken root inside there…?’

I waited for the gang members to leave before entering the game room.

If there was something inside capable of controlling human minds, it was better to deal with it quickly.

******

Inside the dark, unlit game room, only the faint sobbing of a woman echoed.

With her hair disheveled and completely naked, she sat atop a magic circle made of human blood, presiding over a “profane ritual.”

It looked like a ceremony to summon something from the distant beyond.

Almost like the ravings of a fallen saint.

In any case, one thing was certain-this series of actions was anything but normal.

Above all, the sight of the gang members observing her movements in a half-dazed state gave off an unsettling vibe.

The entire atmosphere was permeated with an uncanny dissonance.

It felt like something terrible was about to happen-that vague, indescribable sensation spreading throughout the game room.

“Hear my call and come forth.”

At that moment, the woman, who had been muttering incantations like a madwoman atop the magic circle, finally clasped her hands together and raised her head toward the ceiling.

Oooong–!!!

Instantly, the building trembled slightly as an overwhelming presence filled the space, forcing its way between the woman and the surrounding gang members.

In response, the woman sitting on the magic circle smiled ecstatically, her body trembling like a female in the throes of climax.

Soon, her eyes turned pitch black, and a blood-red halo rose behind her back.

Something had temporarily borrowed her body to exert its influence on this world.

“Kkhhaaak… M-My lord… Here. I offer these sacrifices. Bestow upon us your great blessing…”

The woman’s voice was strained as she forced out the words, her finger pointing at the sacrifices.

The entity borrowing her body let out a sinister sound as it eyed the offerings.

-Crunch. Crunch crunch..!!

With a single gesture from her, the pile of monster corpses in the corner melted away as if swallowed by the darkness.

At the same time, the body of a gang member standing stupidly on the opposite magic circle began to tremble and grotesquely transform.

It was a kind of blessing. Or perhaps a curse.

Either way, one thing was clear-accepting this power would grant strength beyond that of an ordinary Awakened.

That’s why Choi Chang-sik, the leader of the Duero Faction and owner of the Korean-style Game Room, had accepted this woman. He saw her as useful.

“Ughh… Hheeuuuk…”

Of course, the price for accepting this unidentified monster was having his brain scrambled and left in a corner.

In any case, the name of the monstrous woman who had devoured the Duero Faction was Oh Haryeong.

Originally, she had been imprisoned in a facility for ability-based criminals and was a fairly significant villain in the original story.

Her abilities were far too dangerous, and she couldn’t control them, causing massive casualties. As a result, she had been under strict confinement for the past 12 years.

But three days ago, a terrorist attack partially destroyed the prison, allowing her to escape.

She then found a convenient base to exploit-the Korean-style Game Room.

Right now, the game room was in the midst of a profane and sinister ritual, and Oh Haryeong-a high-risk Awakened who had escaped prison with someone’s help-was expanding her influence by manipulating these fools.

If not stopped soon, this area would become her domain.

For someone like her, capable of communicating with beings from another world, this collapse of authority and social order was an ideal situation.

“M-More sacrifices are needed. Goblins won’t satisfy Him.”

She commanded the entranced gang members.

Bring more sacrifices. The offerings are insufficient. Move quickly, or you’ll be sacrificed instead.

The half-conscious gang members hurried upstairs.

Since the hypnosis she placed on them wouldn’t break unless they suffered brain trauma, they had no choice but to obey.

Oh Haryeong smiled as she watched them leave.

It seemed she could begin the process of transforming this world sooner than expected.

“Hmm?”

If only there hadn’t been an intruder.

-Zzzzzzzt!!!!

“Damn it!!!”

A bolt of lightning shot out from the darkness, forcing Oh Haryeong to quickly stand up and use the transformed gang member as a shield.

“Gyaaaaah!!!!!”

The gang member convulsed violently from the electrocution, but since his transformation was complete, the shock didn’t snap him out of it.

“Grrk…”

He didn’t even collapse, stubbornly standing his ground. The intruder hiding in the shadows was visibly taken aback.

“Who are you? How dare you set foot in this sacred space.”

When there was no response, Oh Haryeong plunged her hand into the transformed gang member’s back and ripped out his heart.

Instantly, the crushed heart morphed into a sword.

A writhing blade-its grotesque, club-like shape made the intruder, Elena, gasp.

‘Holy shit… Is that really her…? Why is she here…?’

Elena broke into a cold sweat as she recognized Oh Haryeong, who had appeared as an executive of the newborn Villain Alliance around chapter 200 in the original novel.

Even with Night Vision, it was too dark to clearly identify her opponent before launching the ambush.

If she had realized it was Oh Haryeong sooner, she would have retreated to fight another day.

‘Can I even beat this psycho right now…?’

She was a madwoman who sacrificed even her own allies. Taking her down wouldn’t be easy.

‘But… if I leave her alone, she’ll definitely turn this area into another dimension’s breeding ground. She’s as dangerous as a demon…’

In a way, this was the perfect moment to kill Oh Haryeong. She hadn’t summoned many minions yet, and most importantly, she hadn’t fully absorbed the power from the other world.

If she could win this fight, she could eliminate one of the greatest future threats.

‘Let’s do it.’

Steeling herself, Elena drew her needle blade.

If they met, she would kill her.

Find and destroy-simple principles.