Chapter 246

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More than a month had passed since the successful conclusion of the Family extermination operation.

Yet, the Celestial Corps was still busy with the aftermath of the operation.

They confiscated the Family’s hidden assets and interrogated the captured members.

They collected evidence of crimes and tracked down fugitives who had escaped the investigation.

The operation had been massive, and even though the Family had fallen, they were still the Family.

Once a criminal organization that ruled the underworld.

The king of the criminal world, whose roots had been cut off by the direct intervention of the God of War.

A month was far from enough to wrap everything up.

Moreover, the Celestial Corps’ primary duty wasn’t crime eradication. The Family was a criminal organization composed of supernaturals, so the Celestial Corps had no choice but to step in.

However, their main mission was hunting monsters. The rifts in space and time didn’t care about the Celestial Corps’ circumstances.

With their already busy workload increased, the Celestial Corps was busier than ever.

“A cornered rat will bite the cat… isn’t that what they say?”

On the outskirts of the city.

A neglected slum where few people ventured.

The poorly maintained alleyways were filled with all kinds of filth and trash.

Azure hair swayed in the wind.

Eyes marked by faint scars were firmly closed.

The 4th Division Captain, Karma, spoke with his usual smile.

“Even a cat will feel pain if bitten by a rat. I’d appreciate it if you surrendered quietly.”

“…Damn it.”

The Family executive gritted his teeth. He had prided himself on his strong luck, but it seemed to have run out.

Running into a Captain—and of all people, the infamous 4th Division Captain.

His gaze shifted past Karma. The Celestial Corps had caught his trail, but he had enough time to escape.

A few Celestial Corps members had pursued him, but an executive’s position wasn’t earned through gambling.

Just as the Celestial Corps was a strict meritocracy, the Family also prioritized strength. Being an executive meant he was an exceptionally skilled supernatural.

He had easily subdued the pursuing Celestial Corps members.

They were persistent and annoying, but they weren’t a problem.

The real issue was the Captain who had arrived in the meantime.

Karma, the Storm.

The 4th Division Captain who had even hunted a demonic beast.

He quickly calculated his chances. It was hopeless. There was no escape.

Once Karma had spotted him, his luck had run out. He could already feel the strange flow of air around him.

If he turned his back and tried to flee now, he’d learn firsthand why Karma was known as the “Cruel Storm”.

He couldn’t run, nor could he fight. The executive nervously watched Karma’s every move, wary of even the smallest action.

As the man had said, a cornered rat would bite the cat. Even if it was futile resistance, he would bare his fangs.

Karma let out a small chuckle. His head slowly turned—not toward the executive, but toward a Celestial Corps member slumped on the ground.

‘Ugh, I feel like throwing up…’

Outwardly, Karma appeared calm, but his back was drenched in sweat.

He had tracked down the last remaining Family executive.

To capture the executive without any casualties, at least a Vice-Captain should have been dispatched.

But the situation had been urgent. Realizing he had been discovered, the executive had immediately tried to flee, and ordinary Corps members had no choice but to intercept him.

As soon as he received the report, Karma had ridden the wind to this location.

Covering dozens of kilometers in a matter of minutes had left even Karma exhausted.

But a Captain couldn’t show weakness.

Especially not in front of his 4th Division members.

As the 4th Division Captain, he always had to set an example.

Karma glanced at the unconscious heroes lying around and approached the only Corps member still awake.

Though covered in wounds, she didn’t seem to have any fatal injuries. He sighed in relief internally and knelt down, lowering himself to her eye level.

Karma smiled gently to reassure his subordinate. His eyes narrowed slightly. He recognized her face.

Karma always kept track of all 4th Division members’ personal information, so he naturally knew the Corps member in front of him.

She had graduated from the academy last year, completed her training, and joined the 4th Division not long ago. Her name was… ah, he remembered.

“You’ve worked hard, Miss Aurora.”

※You’ve been working diligently in my absence. Well done.

She looked pale, clearly exhausted. Her teeth chattered as she trembled, her eyes fixed on Karma. His eyes narrowed further.

Poor thing, she’s only been a hero for a short while and has already been through so much.

Feeling pity, Karma placed a hand on her shoulder and offered words of comfort.

“Your wounds are deep. You must be in a lot of pain. Rest now.”

※Get treated quickly. I’ll handle the rest.

“C-Captain, p-please give me a chance… I can do better…”

“Hmm, is that necessary?”

※You’re already doing well enough.

“P-please spare…”

“Chuckle.”

※I won’t kill him. I plan to arrest him.

Even in this state, she was still thinking of others. What a commendable Corps member. Even though the executive had hurt her so badly, she still pleaded for his life.

Karma couldn’t help but smile at her kind heart. But being too kind could also be a problem. She’d need to be more careful in the future.

Finally, she passed out, having reached her physical limit. Karma carefully laid her down. He created a cushion of wind beneath her so she wouldn’t have to lie on the hard ground.

“You’re as cruel as the rumors say… even your own subordinates aren’t spared if they’re deemed useless.”

“?”

Is he introducing himself?

Karma tilted his head, puzzled by the executive’s words. Well, it didn’t matter. What he needed to do now was arrest the man and take him away.

“So, what will it be? Will you surrender? I promise you’ll be treated humanely.”

“…Hmph, what a joke.”

Of course, he wouldn’t go quietly.

Karma wasn’t disappointed; he had expected as much.

Whether the executive surrendered or not didn’t change much.

Still, Karma had offered the chance to surrender on a whim.

It was a gesture of consideration, given that the executive had only subdued the Corps members instead of killing them.

But if the other party refused, that consideration ended here.

This man was the last one.

The long and arduous aftermath of the Family extermination operation.

Finally, the end was in sight.

“Sigh.”

The executive let out a short shout and charged forward. He had no intention of fighting Karma directly. That would be nothing but suicide.

His target was the unconscious members of the Celestial Corps. If he could use them as bait to divert Karma’s attention, even for a moment, that would be enough.

Just a brief distraction would give him a chance to escape.

Of course, he soon realized how arrogant that thought had been.

An overwhelming force that crushed any resistance in an instant.

A storm swept through.

◈

“So, you’ve caught the last rat?”

The God of War nodded upon hearing the report from the 4th Division.

Finally, all the executives of the fleeing Family had been captured. Despite their pathetic combat abilities, their survival instincts were more tenacious than cockroaches.

If even one of them survived, there was no telling when they might establish a new Family.

When drawing the sword, it was necessary to uproot them completely.

“Transport them here immediately. I’ll interrogate them personally.”

“Yes, I’ll relay the order.”

As he watched the member bow and retreat, the God of War fell into thought.

In truth, procedures like interrogations were unnecessary for him. He was the leader of the Celestial Corps, and such matters were handled by those below him.

Yet, there was a reason the God of War was stepping in personally.

‘That bastard must have a seed planted in his body too. Hmph, rotten scum.’

The boss of the Family was Belial. A devil god who had infiltrated human society and absorbed a criminal organization.

Belial was no fool. He was a meticulous devil god. He didn’t overlook even the slightest possibility of information leaking.

He had planted seeds inside the bodies of the executives who held key positions in the Family. In case of emergency, the seeds would sprout, burying any evidence.

This was the decisive reason why the aftermath of the Family’s subjugation had been so sluggish.

Every executive who had opened their mouth during interrogation had died on the spot.

Even the 2nd Division’s vice-captain, Ariene, with her ability to sense presences, couldn’t uncover the truth. Their deaths were concealed with such thoroughness.

When the bodies of the executives who had died from the seeds were autopsied, the conclusion was that they had died from poison or self-harm.

As the executives continued to die one after another, the God of War sensed something was off and personally investigated, eventually uncovering Belial’s hand in it.

But by then, it was already too late. The Family had already fallen due to past subjugation campaigns, and only a few executives remained.

Most of those few had died. Their mouths had been sealed.

The last executive, who had broken through the encirclement and fled, had now been captured.

He was the last remaining valuable source of information. He wouldn’t be allowed to die until he spilled useful information.

There was undoubtedly a reason the devil god had devoured the Family. Those bastards wouldn’t do something so pointless for no reason. The God of War intended to uncover whatever conspiracy they were plotting in the shadows of society.

The God of War frowned as he thought of Belial. The boss of the Family. The devil god who had stolen Lucille’s body. Just the thought of it made his skin crawl.

‘No, it’s not Lucille anymore…’

Yoo-seong let out a bitter smile and leaned back in his chair. Lucia. The girl who had inherited her body. A victim of the Four Seasons’ schemes.

‘Is she doing well?’

Though only a day had passed since they parted, he was already worried.

That girl wasn’t one to be underestimated, but the Belial parasitizing her body was even more formidable.

Even a shattered devil god’s soul was not something to be taken lightly.

‘I’ll have to visit her soon.’

To suppress the devil god’s soul.

…Well, and to see her face too, while I’m at it.

Author Note

A/N (Author’s note):
Karma may be narrow-eyed, but his wit is on par with Lucia’s.

He may seem dark, but his mind is filled with flowers.

Translator Note

T/N (Translator’s note):
A filler might be annoying, but since it’s a Karma focused chapter, it’s welcomed instead!