Chapter v20c16

“Huh?”

First Blood’s eyes widened in surprise.

Fifth Blood, who had been stealthily approaching the old man from behind, suddenly collapsed. The old man, oblivious, continued walking slowly.

“Seventh Brother, what happened?”

First Blood asked, bewildered.

“I-I think Fifth Brother is dead, Big Brother.”

“Dead? What happened? Did the old man do something?”

“I didn’t see anything, Big Brother.”

Third Blood shook his head, his expression equally confused.

“Ninth Brother, you?”

“I didn’t see anything either. Did you see anything, Big Brother?”

Ninth Blood asked.

“No, I didn’t see anything either. What’s going on? Did Fifth Brother have a sudden illness? A heart attack or something?”

“You mean like a heart attack? No way. He was perfectly fine the last time we went on a killing spree. He killed dozens of people and was still going strong. Didn’t he boast that he would spend his entire life killing people? He wouldn’t die so easily.”

Seventh Blood shook his head.

“Could it be the old man…?”

First Blood muttered, staring at the old man’s back.

“No way.”

Seventh Blood denied it.

“That’s right. We would have noticed if he had done something.”

Ninth Blood agreed.

“I guess you’re right…”

First Blood conceded.

“According to our intel, the Jin woman and the Yoo guy were lured out of the guild. Then who is this old man?”

“He’s not listed in our target profiles. Maybe he’s just an ordinary old man, Big Brother?”

“Maybe… We can’t be sure. Third Brother, Seventh Brother, Ninth Brother, you three attack him together.”

First Blood ordered.

“Three of us against a doddering old man? We can wipe out an entire mid-sized sect with a hundred or two members in half a day.”

Third Blood complained.

“Better safe than sorry. Just get ready. It’s all the same whether you kill one person or three. Eliminate the old man, find Branch Manager Jang Woo-Yang, and kill him along with Assistant Branch Manager Jang Woo-Gyeong. And of course, we have to kill everyone else too. We’re busy tonight. We can’t waste any more time here.”

“What about the kids from Blue Dragon Manor?”

“Second Brother and the others will take care of them. Don’t worry about it, Third Brother.”

“Hehe, a mass murder after all this time. My blood is already boiling. I’ll take care of this quickly with Seventh Brother and Ninth Brother.”

Third Blood grinned savagely.

“I’ll be waiting. Go ahead, Third Brother.”

The old man had just entered the outhouse.

“Damn it! He went into that smelly place. It would be a shame to die in there.”

Third Blood clicked his tongue sympathetically.

“You’re right. Who’s going to retrieve his body if he falls into the pit, Third Brother?”

“Seventh Brother is right. Let’s just stab him from the outside.”

“Good idea. One, two, three, and we stab him together.”

“Alright.”

They quickly reached an agreement and positioned themselves around the outhouse, making no sound.

“Ready? One… two…”

“Three!”

They thrust their swords simultaneously, as planned.

*Whoosh!*

Their sharp blades pierced the wooden walls silently.

‘Success!’

First Blood, watching from a tree nearby, grinned inwardly.

‘Was I worried for nothing?’

It seemed like Fifth Brother’s death was unrelated to the old man. He would have to investigate later.

‘Of course! There’s no way I wouldn’t notice someone moving at that speed! No, he definitely didn’t move. I’m sure of it! It can’t be some legendary technique that kills people with the mind…’

Killing with the mind? That was just a fairy tale.

‘Huh?’

Something was wrong.

‘Why is it so quiet?’

There were no screams from inside the outhouse, and his three brothers, who had thrust their swords, were frozen in place.

“Third Brother, Seventh Brother, Ninth Brother, what are you doing? Are you enjoying the smell of excrement? Come back here.”

He heard Third Blood’s faint voice.

“B-big Brother, s-something’s wrong…”

But his voice cut off abruptly, as if it had vanished into thin air.

“Hey, Third Brother! Third Brother!”

He called out repeatedly, but there was no response. Not from Third Blood, Seventh Blood, or Ninth Blood. The distance was too short for his telepathic message to be blocked. And his brothers were equally skilled. The sudden silence meant that something had happened to them.

*Creak!*

The outhouse door, which had been tightly shut, creaked open. He tensed involuntarily, even though he couldn’t see anything inside.

“Yawn~”

An old man, his eyes still sleepy, stepped out, stretching leisurely.

‘T-this is impossible! How? We aimed away from the door. He shouldn’t have seen anything!’

The old man was unharmed, despite being stabbed by three swords simultaneously.

“Yawn~ I think I’ll go back to sleep…”

He yawned again and headed back to his room, without looking back.

*Creak!*

The outhouse door creaked shut behind him, as if by itself. And then his three brothers, who had been frozen in place, their swords still extended, collapsed like limp puppets.

“B-brothers!”

First Blood shouted in alarm, rushing towards his brothers, with whom he had sworn a blood oath to spend their lives killing together. He checked their pulses, but they were all silent. Only a faint warmth, mixed with the chill of death, lingered on his fingertips. They had all died the same way. But there were no visible wounds.

“Grrrr!”

He was overwhelmed with grief and rage, seeing his four brothers die so senselessly.

“You old bastard!”

He lost all reason and charged towards the old man, his mind consumed by vengeance. The old man, still drowsy, was walking slowly, so he caught up to him easily. One leap, one swing of his sword, and it would be over. His ultimate technique, his most powerful move, could kill anyone. The old man’s back was completely exposed.

‘Take this!’

*Blood King Slaughter!*

He unleashed his most powerful technique, the one he had honed for efficient mass murder, with all his might. And then it happened.

‘Huh? W-what’s this?’

It happened when he unleashed his killing intent towards the old man’s back. It felt like the gates of hell had opened. Something emerged from the abyss, charging towards him. It was terrifying, bloodthirsty, and cruel. Everyone he had ever killed was coming for him, their numbers countless, like an army marching to war. Leading the charge were his parents and siblings, whom he had murdered. He was frozen in place, paralyzed with fear, as they hacked and slashed at him. Every time their blades grazed him, he felt a surge of pain, as if he had been fatally wounded.

It didn’t matter if it was real or an illusion. It was pure terror. And then the one he feared most appeared before him. He couldn’t take it anymore and lost consciousness. The last thing he saw was himself. He died, overwhelmed by the shock of his own soul attacking him. And the old man lowered his foot, which he had been about to take another step with.

The ordeal, which had felt like an eternity, had happened in a split second.

“Hmm? What was that?”

The old man paused, looking around.

“Nothing important, I guess.”

He wasn’t one to worry about trivial matters. He opened his door, went inside, lay down on his bed, and went back to sleep.

“Mumble, mumble… The kids will take care of it.”

Sleep was more important than some minor disturbance.

* * *

“According to our intel, the brats are staying in that annex on the west side.”

Second Blood said, pointing at a two-story building. While First Blood and his four brothers were dealing with Jang Woo-Yang and Jang Woo-Gyeong, their mission was to secure the children and find the key. And of course, mass murder was also part of the mission.

“Sixth Brother, go check if there are any guards.”

But there was no response.

“Sixth Brother, why aren’t you answering?”

He asked again, his voice slightly irritated.

“Uh, Big Brother, Sixth Brother is not here.”

Eighth Blood replied.

“What? Why not? He was here just a moment ago…”

He wasn’t. He looked around, but only his other brothers were there. Sixth Blood was gone.

“That’s strange. He was following us, wasn’t he?”

“Yes, I saw him too.”

Tenth Blood replied.

“Maybe he went to take a piss?”

Eighth Blood suggested, but no one took him seriously.

“Or maybe he found another tasty prey… A woman, perhaps…”

Sixth Blood had a penchant for raping and murdering women.

Second Blood snapped.

“I told him not to wander off during a mission! Does he think we’re here for fun? Leaving his brothers behind to enjoy himself… I’ll teach him a lesson when we get back.”

“Good idea. Sixth Brother is too reckless when it comes to his hobbies. He needs to be disciplined.”

Fourth Blood, who had a fixation on killing young girls, agreed.

“Tsk, fine. Tenth Brother, you go.”

But there was no response again.

“Tenth Brother, why aren’t you… Huh?”

He was gone. Gone again. This time, he had vanished right in front of them.

‘What’s going on? Are they messing with me?’

They often confused work with play, and considering their usual camaraderie, it was a plausible scenario. But he had to stay calm and act like the second-in-command of the Thirteen Bloods.

“They’re all wandering off. Fine! Fourth Brother, you go. We’ll deal with their insubordination later.”

“Yes, Big Brother. I agree.”

Fourth Blood, sensing nothing unusual, dismissed it as a prank. Pranks were common among them, and no one ever questioned their lack of seriousness. Their missions were mostly extermination missions, and they had always completed them flawlessly – while indulging in their hobbies along the way.

He obeyed and leaped towards the annex, his movements silent. Securing the key before the main battle began was crucial to their plan. Once they had the key, they could unleash their bloodlust and enjoy the carnage. It would quench the thirst of their thirteen blades, at least for a while.

But a few moments later…

“Huh? Why haven’t we heard from Fourth Brother yet?”

Fourth Blood, who had gone to scout the annex, was also silent. He should have been back by now, reporting on the situation. He finally realized that something was wrong. A chilling thought crept into his mind.

“Eighth Brother, be careful! Eighth Brother…?”

He turned around, a sense of dread gripping him. He was gone. Gone too.

‘E-eighth Brother too…?’

He was alone now.

He approached the annex cautiously, his senses on high alert, his sword ready to strike at the slightest provocation.

*Thud!*

Something fell from a tree on his right. He jumped back, startled, drawing his sword.

‘W-what’s that?’

He approached it cautiously, his eyes widening in horror. His heart, numbed by hundreds of murders, pounded in his chest.

“Sixth Brother…”

It was Sixth Blood’s body. His neck was almost completely severed. His sixth brother would no longer enjoy the pleasure of raping and murdering women.

‘What the…!’

But he didn’t have time to think.

*Thud!*

This time, it was the tree on his left. He approached it cautiously, his guard still up.

“Tenth Brother…”

This time, the entire head was missing.

‘It’s like he was bitten by a giant beast.’

It wasn’t a wound that could be inflicted by a weapon.

‘But what kind of beast could be this big? And how could such a large beast move so silently, without making a sound?’

He dismissed it as impossible, refusing to consider the possibility.

He didn’t notice the two golden eyes, like miniature suns, gleaming in the darkness from the top of the tree.

Wild animals, living in a world of survival of the fittest, had keener senses than humans. Unlike humans, who had dulled their senses through language and civilization, wild animals were still acutely aware of danger. A skilled hunter had to be able to suppress their killing intent to avoid detection. And Baek Mu-Hu was one of the most skilled hunters in the world.

She had centuries of experience, honed in the harsh wilderness. It was an insult to even compare her to these pathetic humans.

The Thirteen Bloods, despite their reputation as bloodthirsty madmen, were as helpless as rabbits before the overwhelming power of nature.

‘A-a demon…?’

He couldn’t think of any other explanation. This had to be the work of a demon.

*Flash!*

Two suns flashed above his head. He froze, a shiver running down his spine. He turned around slowly, his body trembling.

And there it was.

He saw it.

* * *

“Why haven’t we received any signals?”

Lee Si-Geon paced back and forth, tapping his arm impatiently. His earlier confidence had vanished.

The ten men who had scaled the wall had disappeared without a trace. There were no screams, no sounds of fighting, no alarms. It was eerily silent.

“This is strange. We should have received some kind of signal by now. Could they have failed…?”

Yoon Yi-Jeong said, and Eleventh Blood objected.

“That’s impossible. We, the Thirteen Bloods, have never failed a mission.”

“That’s right. Eleventh Brother is right. We’re invincible.”

“But we can’t be sure. I’m just being cautious.”

Yoon Yi-Jeong said, trying to control his annoyance.

“Hmph, who could possibly eliminate ten of the Thirteen Bloods without a sound? Anyone who thinks that is an idiot.”

The youngest of the Thirteen Bloods sneered.

‘What an arrogant brat. Look at him! I hope something happened. I want to see their faces when they realize they’re not invincible.’

He suddenly felt a strong desire to see their expressions crumble.

“What should we do, Master? I don’t think waiting any longer will be productive. Even the Thirteen Bloods, who are supposed to bring a storm of blood, seem to be nothing but a gentle breeze tonight. A breeze so faint that you can’t even tell if it’s blowing.”

Lee Si-Geon almost exploded with anger.

“I’ll check it out myself. Follow me.”

He finally made a decision.