Chapter 921: So in the end.

“…What did you just say?”

The look of surprise on his face instantly gave way to a murderous glare.

Kwaddeuk-!

His muscles bulged as if his clothes were about to rip, and his disheveled hair began to creep skyward.

Syaaaaaaaah—!!!

The hostility radiating from Baekwol’s body permeated the entire alley.

Tteojeok-! The wall crumbled, and the onslaught seemed poised to push back the darkness before him, but.

[Not bad for a little show.]

The man seemed completely unfazed.

Immense hostility. While those behind him were collapsing, foaming at the mouth, the man remained the very picture of composure.

He merely watched Baekwol, his hands clasped behind his back. Baekwol didn’t like that.

‘What is this?’

What is that composure all about?

What is that composure, with me standing right here?

It felt profoundly alien.

Baekwol clutched his chest.

It wasn’t just the atmosphere; something else was bothering him.

Thump… thump….

Feeling the peculiar vibration from his heart, Baekwol’s expression grew increasingly grim.

‘Is he a noble?’

This was a sensation he only felt from other nobles.

Despite feeling this level of vibration, he couldn’t perceive anything from the man.

Does that mean he’s a pureblood of such a high standing?

No, that couldn’t be it. Baekwol was certain.

If that man were truly a noble.

“How dare you… insult the Master?”

Nobles wouldn’t speak of someone so revered in such a manner.

In a world where people hesitated to even mention a General, to speak of someone far more revered like that.

It was unthinkable.

[Insult?]

At Baekwol’s words, the man tilted his head.

[What insult are you referring to?]

“Shut up.”

Kwadeudeudeuk—!!

Baekwol’s feet dug into the ground.

At that moment, a gust of wind swept through.

“You will die right here.”

Thump-! Baekwol charged forward at incredible speed.

His massive frame strained the alley with even the slightest movement, but he charged forward as if paying it no mind.

Kwaddeuk–!!

His large hands sprouted claws. A potent blue energy surged from the newly grown claws.

Keureureureureureung—!!!

Letting out a beastly roar, Baekwol swung his claws. It was as if the air itself was being torn apart.

The rough and savage assault bore down directly on the man.

Just as the man’s head was about to be ground by the claws.

[Stop,]

—!!!

“Tsk!?”

At the man’s words, Baekwol’s body froze instantly.

It was brief. Barely a fleeting moment, but.

In that short time, a black sphere had approached Baekwol’s eyes.

Woong-!

Then, accompanied by a slight vibration.

Kuaaaaaaaaah—!!!

The sphere before him detonated, causing an explosion.

In an instant, black flames engulfed the surroundings.

What was peculiar was that despite sweeping through the entire alley, there were no lingering embers or damage.

The flames merely flared up briefly, but.

“Keeuuk!”

Baekwol, on the receiving end, clearly suffered damage.

He had narrowly dodged, but his clothes were scorched and his skin burned.

Fortunately, injuries like these could regenerate quickly.

His body had frozen for a moment, but just as he was about to resume his next stance.

Hwareuk-!

The burgeoning flames momentarily began to take shape.

A hand emerged from the black flames, grabbed Baekwol by the collar, and yanked him forward, disrupting his upper body’s balance.

And then.

His knee slammed into Baekwol’s face.

Kwaak-!

“Keok!”

Struck by the knee, his jaw shot backward.

The force was immense. So strong, his body was about to be flung backward, but.

Kkwak-!

“…!?”

For some reason, his body didn’t fly backward.

Baekwol looked down.

He felt an inexplicable pressure around his waist.

Looking, he saw a black cloth binding his waist.

As if to prevent him from escaping.

“Keeuuk!”

Baekwol tried desperately to tear the cloth and break free, but.

Kkwaaak-!

Surprisingly, even with Baekwol’s strength, the thin cloth wouldn’t tear.

“…Impossible-!”

Kwaang-!!

“Keok!”

His shock was brief. Baekwol’s entire body was assaulted by a tremendous number of blows.

Kwangkwangkwangkwang–!!

The man struck every part of his body, from his face to his upper and lower body.

Relentlessly and indiscriminately.

Furthermore, his body, recoiling from the impact and flung away, was repeatedly pulled back by the cloth towards the man.

As a result, the impact doubled,

“Keoheok…!”

Baekwol could only endure the barrage of blows without resistance.

It wasn’t that he didn’t resist at all. He tried desperately to break free, but.

‘…This bastard…!’

Every time, the man swung his fist to thwart his escape.

He struck his joints forcefully to immobilize him, or deliberately attacked him to prevent him from moving in that direction.

Consequently, Baekwol continued to be pummeled.

Later, just when the fists momentarily stopped flying….

Koong…!

His knees buckled and hit the floor.

“Ggeu….”

Baekwol, bleeding and about to collapse, stopped mid-air.

The man was holding Baekwol’s hair, keeping him fixed in place.

[How pathetic.]

“Kkeuheu… heu….”

[I expected someone from the Moonlit Night Nobles of Ya-wol to at least provide some entertainment. I had such hopes….]

The man’s voice was filled with disappointment, and Baekwol’s eyes wavered upon hearing it.

A sense of humiliation rose to his throat.

At the same time, he rolled his eyes up to look at the sky.

The sunset was painting the sky.

Night was still a long way off.

‘…Damn it.’

Night needed to come soon.

Only then could he show this unknown entity his true power, but in his current state, he couldn’t fight properly.

Baekwol grimaced in pain, but.

The man chuckled upon seeing it.

[Beast of Ya-wol. Are you eagerly awaiting the night?]

“…!”

Caught red-handed, Baekwol swallowed hard.

[How amusing.]

The man’s voice clearly dripped with mockery.

[Do you truly believe that even when night falls, you’ll be able to reach the True Sin?]

“You… bastard….”

Zureureuk-! As he spoke, blood trickled from his mouth.

[You are mistaken.]

Kwaang-!!

“Keo-eok!”

With his hair still held, he took another punch.

Was it his imagination? He heard a tteojeok! sound, like something shattering, near his ear.

[Even when night comes, you won’t change at all. Look.]

The man thrust his face before Baekwol’s staggering vision.

Beyond the pure white mask, ash-colored eyes drew closer to Baekwol.

[Isn’t it already night here?]

Saaaaaaah–!!

The black aura emanating from the man enveloped Baekwol.

Like his words suggested, it was as dark as night, but Baekwol thought differently upon seeing it.

‘…Darker than night.’

The nights of Man-gye are beautiful, but this darkness was different.

It was utterly dreadful and chilling.

“You… bastard… just… what are you….”

Baekwol asked in a trembling voice. The man loosened his grip.

Teolsseok-!

Only then did Baekwol’s body collapse to the floor, as if regaining its freedom.

Watching Baekwol collapse powerlessly, the man spoke.

[…Who knows.]

His voice held no trace of interest anymore.

[I don’t think you’re worth telling.]

“You bastard…. Do you know who I a-!”

[I had some expectations for my first prey…. ]

Kwadeuk-!

“Keok.”

Unable to finish his sentence, Baekwol’s head was driven into the ground.

The man had crushed his head with his foot.

[Next time, I hope you’ll keep your head held differently.]

Kwadeuk-! Kwadeudeuk-!!

He continued to stomp on him, crunch, crunch.

Baekwol’s head sank deeper into the ground.

[You don’t even have the right to look at the sky before me.]

Kwadeudeudeudeuk—!!!

After one final, forceful stomp, he lifted his foot from the ground.

He brushed off his foot lightly and spoke, facing forward.

[Clean up this trash. I can’t stand the sight of it.]

As the man spoke, the pressure that had permeated the surroundings subsided. Only then did people rush forward urgently.

“C-Captain!”

However, they paused momentarily upon seeing the man as they ran.

Their expressions showed disbelief, and stark fear was evident in their eyes.

The man, watching them calmly, slowly began to rise from the ground into the air.

The people could only watch the spectacle, unable to utter a word.

[When that insect awakens, tell him this.]

The man said.

[That despite being called a noble of Ya-wol, he was truly insignificant.]

With those words,

Hwareureureuk–!!

The man vanished into thin air, turning into black flames.

“Captain…!”

“What happened!”

People who had rushed to save Baekwol, along with others drawn by the commotion, caused the street to descend into momentary chaos.

---

-Save the Captain…!!

-Get him out of here! Contact the family immediately!

-What is going on…?

-Aren’t those people from the White Clan?

-Who is that? Someone’s head is stuck in the ground…?-

-That outfit…. Huk… No way…!

All sorts of voices could be heard.

The murmuring spread in all directions.

It seemed likely to get even noisier than this.

I watched from a distance, resting my chin on my hand.

“Hmm….”

I let out a sigh. The sigh carried a hint of exhaustion.

It couldn’t be helped.

‘That was dangerous.’

It was a very perilous fight.

Fortunately, things went well, and I could end it quickly, but.

‘Faster and stronger than I anticipated.’

This guy Baekwol was much stronger than I’d realized.

‘It’s a good thing the Dragon Speech worked.’

I tried it just in case, and thankfully, the Dragon Speech took effect.

Those few seconds it bought me decided the outcome of the battle.

Before he could even recover his stance after being knocked down, I unleashed my attacks. I even used the Demon Seal to restrict his movements.

Using those methods, I managed to seize victory in a short span of time.

However.

‘What if the Dragon Speech hadn’t worked?’

If he hadn’t been flustered by it, I wouldn’t have won so easily.

Of course…

‘I would have won in the end, though.’

Fighting him, I felt I would have eventually won.

No matter how tough or fast he was, it didn’t feel like he could actually beat me.

However, the problem was…

‘What if it had been night?’

If it had been night, when they could use their traits and powers.

Would I still have won then?

I couldn’t be sure.

The Moonlit Night Clan members at night were just that different.

“Sip.”

Thinking that far, I processed the information gathered from the fight.

‘First… his reaction was quite intense when I mentioned Man-gye.’

He lunged sharply, as if utterly unwilling to tolerate it. It wasn’t a statement made purely for provocation.

It was a literal mention.

I wonder what he truly thought.

I had said it precisely to find that out.

‘It was more effective than I thought.’

He charged forward as if unable to contain himself, and it was perfect for me to exploit.

‘And.’

I looked down. They still seemed to be dealing with the aftermath….

‘Thanks to that, I could also divert attention away from the Volcano incident.’

The Volcano incident was long gone from their minds.

Extracting the fallen beast-man alone was overwhelming enough. Plus, it was a sudden attack, so they’d be scrambling to handle it.

So, the plan to cause confusion and divert their attention seemed to have partially succeeded, but.

‘Is that really the case?’

I couldn’t be certain of this either.

‘I also doubt if the Demon Artifact would work as it did in the Central Plains.’

The Demon Seal seemed effective, but I don’t know if the mask was too.

I had to consider the possibility of future problems arising from it.

‘…It seems fine for now, though.’

Hmm.

I averted my gaze from below.

‘This is really annoying.’

At the same time, I touched my ear.

The soft texture remained the same.

“…”

As I touched it, it became a bit of a habit, I suppose. I kept touching my ear.

‘They said it comes undone with vigorous movement. Since it hasn’t come undone yet, does this mean this much is fine?’

It was even more fascinating considering I used the Body Transmutation Technique, yet it remained intact.

This suggests it’s not just about creating ears and a tail….

‘It seems to alter one’s very presence.’

There seemed to be something deeper than that.

How curious.

‘Could I learn to use it?’

Perhaps it’s possible.

If I could just understand the principle. As I was thinking that and continuing to touch my ear.

Soft. Soft, soft. Sof….

“…”

I noticed something strange mixed in with the sensation.

Tak-! I grabbed the wrist touching my ear and turned around.

As expected, someone else was there.

“When did you get here?”

“I’ve been found out.”

Of course, it was Cheonma, who had been sneakily touching my ear.

“…I told you to stay put. Why don’t you ever listen?”

“I was staying put.”

Cheonma protested indignantly.

He certainly hadn’t appeared and had stayed put.

I realized that too, feeling a bit sheepish belatedly.

“You touched my ear.”

“That has nothing to do with this.”

“Shut up.”

“…”

It was a bit pathetic, but perhaps not wanting to lose, he seized on something trivial.

Cheonma wrinkled his nose and shut his mouth.

Seeing that, I snorted and walked past.

I was about to head back into the building when.

“I am the darkness born of the heavens.”

“…”

Utteuk.

At Cheonma’s words, I turned back.

And then.

“…You.”

Cheonma was looking at me.

Even with the corners of his mouth slightly upturned.

Anyone with half a brain could tell that was a smirk.

“…What did you just….”

“Not bad for a little show.”

“…”

“I, the…”

“Shut up… Just shut up…!”

I shouted to cut him off before Cheonma could finish.

Cheonma’s smile deepened at my reaction.

Fuck….

‘That damned bastard heard everything.’

Shame washed over me like a tidal wave.