episode_0010

At the sudden sound, I reflexively turned around.

Standing behind me were the shadows of three people. They surrounded me, taking positions in a fan shape from all directions.

Behind them, two wolf-like monsters circled around, sending threatening glares.

Saliva dripped from their mouths as they let out low, fierce growls.

“You cried so pitifully that we gave you a last chance, but…”

“Yeah. Isn’t that right? We just wanted to confirm once. What if we had just killed you?”

“…Indeed…”

The shadows chattered as if judging me.

Lost in my own thoughts, I failed to notice their approach.

Each of them wore dark robes with a sinister air.

Occasionally, red glints flashed in the air,

and they performed acrobatic feats with the fierce monsters, almost like a dance.

Thanks to these characteristics, I could immediately deduce their identities.

Black mages.

Heretics who obtained powerful black magic in exchange for their souls.

Every detail of the shadows matched the descriptions of the evil group I had heard in stories.

“…Who are you people?”

“It’s a bit disappointing that you have a scar under your eye. But it’s enough to be considered excellent.”

“Is that so? How much should we ask for…”

“What are you talking about?!”

“Huh?”

I shouted in anger.

The shadows finally stopped talking and turned their heads towards me.

“You still have a lot of energy. That’s why youth is a good thing.”

“…Are you trying to kill me?”

“Hmm? Was that what you were curious about?”

“At first, we also thought of doing that. But your appearance is too precious. You must have never lacked women in your life. Envious, aren’t you?”

“What nonsense… Answer me…!”

“Let’s see, we should give you some medicine first. Don’t worry. It’s medicine that will help you.”

“Medicine…?”

“In the future, you will face various situations. Losing your senses completely is much better than remaining sane. And it will also help keep your mouth shut…”

“What is this…”

“Heh… You’re drooling again. Who would have thought such a bonus would come your way?”

“Let the noble ladies with peculiar tastes know in advance. I think they will pay the most for you.”

The black mages chuckled and exchanged words. It was truly absurd.

From what I could gather, they seemed to be trying to auction me off like some kind of commodity.

I had heard that black mages either lived in seclusion or resorted to pillaging because they couldn’t integrate into society, but I never expected to be treated as their merchandise.

“…I will kill you all.”

“Huh?”

But my mind was not filled with fear. Instead, it was filled with injustice and anger.

“…I will kill you all. Trash like you. Those beasts that made our village like this. I will tear them apart and make them suffer a painful death…”

Driven by anger, I cursed at them.

I had already experienced too much sadness and pain. Now, I couldn’t even properly mourn my family and was being sold off as a product by black mages.

I couldn’t remember committing such a grave mistake that warranted such a severe punishment.

“Hehehe! Despite your appearance, you have quite the courage, don’t you?”

“I, too, had such days in the past. Youth is indeed a wonderful thing…”

“Let’s wrap this up. Just in case, we should restrain him.”

However, the black mages just laughed at me, mocking me as if I were gasping for breath.

One man stopped laughing and pretended to wipe away tears. Then, as if drawing something, he waved his finger in the air.

Soon, five burning rings appeared in front of him.

“It’s best to give up useless resistance. If it hits the wrong spot, it’ll be terribly painful. Well, it doesn’t matter to us, but…”

The dark wizard raised his hand.

The rings floating in the air began to fly towards me.

The speed was very slow, as if it was mocking me by stimulating my fear until the end.

But unlike the words I had just uttered, there was no way for me to counter this situation now.

My back was blocked by a still-standing barrier. The other three directions were blocked by the dark wizards.

Even if I managed to break through the encirclement and escape, my arms and legs would be torn apart by the waiting wolf monsters.

Above all, I had no strength or will left to do so.

Now, will I be bound by those rings, injected with drugs, and sold off somewhere?

It’s just infuriating and sad.

If I had the strength, I wouldn’t have ended my life so helplessly.

I could have protected the village, my mother, and my friends.

…I wouldn’t have disappointed Yeon or let her go.

-Boom!

“Huh?”

I was resigned to accepting the end.

The dark wizard, who had been leisurely, suddenly let out a dumbfounded groan. He reflexively raised his head that had been hanging low.

The rings of fire flying towards me were nowhere to be seen. What I saw was the sight of small, twinkling red particles gradually disappearing.

***

“What is this…?”

“Rang. There’s no time to joke around. If we get caught on patrol, it’ll be bad…”

The voice of my mocking colleague came from beside me. The dark wizard Rang, who had been absent-minded for a moment, finally regained his composure.

“Hmm, what’s going on…?”

Rang coughed and made a gesture in the air again.

The five burning rings reappeared, and Rang, with a gesture of his hand, advanced the rings again.

The target was the young boy sitting in front of him.

-Boom!

However, the rings reached the same point and disappeared.

The magic that made up the rings dispersed into the air like fireflies.

“…What the hell? Did he put up a barrier? But the mechanism is completely different. And he’s clearly incompetent…”

Rang muttered in disbelief. Two consecutive failures were unacceptable.

At first, it seemed like the boy had put up a barrier, but the barrier was just a defense magic that repelled magic.

A defense magic that completely annihilates the target was unheard of in modern magic or dark magic.

Moreover, the boy was supposed to be an ordinary person who couldn’t handle magic at all. The conclusion drawn from tracking and observing the boy for the past few hours was the same.

A sense of unease began to creep in, but Rang soon pulled himself together.

Opportunities to strike a big blow don’t come often. It was a priority to quickly finish the job and leave the scene.

With a final decision, Rang rushed the boy with the binding rings again.

“What the hell…”

However, no matter how many times he repeated it, the result remained the same. Whenever he entered a certain range of the boy, the magic was dispersed without fail.

Frustrated, Rang’s expression turned angry suddenly. And this time, he consumed a significant amount of magic to cast a large-scale spell. Bright red, giant spears appeared in front of him.

“Hey! What are you doing! If that hits, it’s over…!”

“Shut up!”

Other dark wizards were startled and shouted in surprise. But Rang didn’t care and threw the spear at the boy without hesitation.

The spear rushed towards the boy at a speed incomparable to before.

-Boom!

However, once again, the magic dispersed without effect.

Due to the considerable amount of magic contained in it, the aftermath was equally intense.

Thousands of red lights scattered into the air. Particle clusters embroidered the sky like falling petals around them.

“Hey, you guys try it.”

“What?”

“I said do it quickly! That brat…”

Rang urged his annoyed colleagues, causing two of them to reluctantly cast a spell.

And soon, the same confusion as Rang’s earlier expression appeared on their faces.

“This can’t be…what is this…”

“…something’s strange. Maybe we shouldn’t have tried to kill him for no reason. If the magic doesn’t work…”

The conspiracy to secretly abduct the handsome boy had long been abandoned. They had also given up on selling him on the black market for a hefty profit.

With a sinister expression, Rang glared at the boy and pulled out a small dagger from his pocket.

The playful and boisterous demeanor from earlier was now nowhere to be found. Rang tensely positioned himself, never taking his eyes off the boy.

The boy still had a blank and unfocused expression, gazing beyond the darkness without any resistance.

-Swish! Thud! Thud!

It was the moment when Rang was about to approach the boy. Suddenly, the wolf demons howled fiercely, looking at the ruins behind the dark wizards.

Realizing the response, another dark wizard inspected the ruins. Then, as if discovering something, he shouted to his comrades.

“Oh no! Quickly, set up a barrier! Someone is…!”

However, he couldn’t finish his sentence. Something flashed from outside his field of vision, and a huge fireball flew towards him, slicing through his neck.

He couldn’t even make a sound. His headless body fell to the ground with a thud.

“What the!”

“It’s coming from behind!”

As if the fireball was some kind of signal, magic began pouring towards them from all directions. The dark wizards who had surrounded the boy were now the ones being hunted.

-Boom! Bang!

-Crash! Thud!

Thanks to the hastily erected barrier, they avoided direct hits, but that was all. The wolf demons were riddled with holes all over their bodies, on the verge of death.

The dark wizards found themselves unable to move a single step in any direction.

-Grrr!

“Ugh…!”

A sharp blow pierced Rang’s side through a gap in the barrier. Adjusting the striking area while changing positions in the darkness was no ordinary skill.

Whether the attackers were related to the boy was uncertain, but it was certain that they were not ordinary street thugs.

“Damn it…! Damn it!”

Regretting that he had taken on the job, Rang cursed. He had asked about the payment because it seemed quite substantial, but he never expected to end up in this situation.

“I had a bad feeling! That’s why I said we shouldn’t take it! I’m out of here!”

One of his comrades, who had been holding off the barrage with him, took advantage of a momentary gap to attempt an escape. It was unbelievable that the guy who had been so excited just a moment ago was now saying such things.

“Hey! You bastard…!”

-Swish!

“Aaargh!”

Just as he was about to curse the guy trying to run away, a flash of light appeared with the appearance of a shadow in the darkness.

His comrade screamed for him to leave as he writhed on the ground.

-Thud!

Suddenly, a monster-like creature flew towards Rang’s direction. Rang could easily identify its true nature.

Just moments ago, the arm that was attached to the owner was flapping and spewing out the remaining blood.

“This…this is…”

“Hey. Lower your hand. If you don’t want to end up like your friend.”

Rang was about to say something when he realized that a sharp blade was pointed at his throat. Inyoung, who had cut off his comrade’s arm, was approaching right behind him. The one aiming the blade was a tall and fierce-looking man.