episode_0159

159.

“Cough, cough, ugh, ugh.”

Yoo Dahee coughed up blood, his body convulsing.

The sharp blade pierced deep into Yoo Dahee’s abdomen, causing chaos inside.

Additionally, the azure flames fueled by Jin Soyeon’s magic engulfed his bones, muscles, and organs.

An indescribable agony enveloped Yoo Dahee.

“Ugh, ugh, ugh!”

Struggling, Yoo Dahee let out a painful groan through his lips.

It was a fatal wound.

For an ordinary hero or villain, it would have been a fatal blow.

Even with Yoo Dahee’s monstrous physical abilities, enduring this level of damage seemed impossible.

Furthermore, Yoo Dahee was already nearing his limit.

Moving his body any further was impossible.

“Ha, ugh, you, you…”

Yoo Dahee gasped for breath, his face contorted in pain, slowly raising his head to face Jin Soyeon head-on.

There, Jin Soyeon, covered in blood, stared coldly at Yoo Dahee.

There was no mercy in Jin Soyeon’s gaze.

It was as if she was ready to kill Yoo Dahee without a hint of hesitation.

“Jin So, yeon, why?!”

Thud!

Swoosh!

Silently, Jin Soyeon pulled out the sword from the wound.

As the deeply embedded sword disappeared, blood gushed out like a fountain from the wound.

Beyond the spurting blood, Yoo Dahee felt his consciousness fading and his strength leaving his body.

The amount of blood loss was too much.

It was enough to kill him instantly.

Yoo Dahee, clutching the wound with one hand, staggered helplessly. His legs trembled incessantly, and his vision blurred.

Eventually, Yoo Dahee collapsed.

He spat out the crimson liquid, knowing he couldn’t hold on any longer. It couldn’t end like this. It shouldn’t end like this.

Death.

Death was looming right in front of him.

An inevitable death was approaching Yoo Dahee, ready to swallow him whole.

Yoo Dahee tried to rise from his seat, but it was futile.

He stumbled and fell repeatedly.

His arms and legs wouldn’t move properly.

His body had reached its limit.

“Yoo Dahee.”

“…Ah.”

Right before him stood Jin Soyeon.

Jin Soyeon looked down at him with cold eyes.

Slowly, Jin Soyeon raised her arm and lifted her blood-stained sword.

Drip, drip, the sound of blood droplets falling.

Yoo Dahee gazed at her with a half-dazed expression.

And then, as if resigned, he let out a faint laugh.

“Heh, heh. That’s… it.”

In a low voice, he muttered, “I lost… myself.”

Slowly, he raised his head.

He locked eyes with Jin Soyeon.

Yoo Dahee smirked.

“It seems like… your victory.”

“I wasn’t alone.”

A formidable opponent that couldn’t be defeated one-on-one.

Yoo Dahee, who grew stronger with each battle, was only able to be brought down by the combined efforts of dozens of heroes fighting alongside Jin Soyeon.

“Yoo Dahee. Your downfall was ignoring the strength of your comrades in your own arrogance.”

If all the Rebellion members had fought together from the beginning, what would the outcome have been? Perhaps they wouldn’t have been defeated in this manner. Even if they had lost, they could have escaped.

However, Yoo Dahee was alone in this place.

Knowing her own strength, she didn’t bother fighting with her comrades, but eventually, her actions led to this outcome.

“Comrades, huh…”

Yoo Dahee’s expression turned slightly bitter.

How many people could she truly call comrades?

Most of the Rebellion members had only formed alliances out of necessity. If the situation turned against them, they wouldn’t hesitate to flee.

Perhaps the only ones she could consider comrades were Isabelle and Ryan?

If it were those two, they wouldn’t easily abandon Yoo Dahee.

But as mentioned earlier, those two were not here.

Yoo Dahee had to finish this alone.

“Ha, cough, ugh, I was just listening to Isabelle’s words… I was too arrogant. I should be more careful next time.”

“There won’t be a next time.”

Jin Soyeon’s sword gleamed ominously.

“You’re done here.”

“Yeah, …I see.”

She raised her sword a bit higher.

Assuming a stance as if to strike like a bell.

The crimson blade flickered menacingly, as if eager to taste Yoo Dahee’s blood.

Jin Soyeon intended to end it here and now.

In normal circumstances, killing a defenseless villain was prohibited, but no one thought to stop Jin Soyeon.

Yoo Dahee’s performance had been so overwhelming that it was impossible to describe.

If Yoo Dahee were to die and be imprisoned, there was a possibility her comrades would break her out.

Just having Yoo Dahee alive and breathing didn’t guarantee the safety of South Korea.

So, it was time to end it now.

Perhaps this could be the first and last opportunity.

“Soyeon. You don’t have to do this…”

“No. I’ll do it, Jinhyuk. I have to do it.”

Despite Jinhyuk’s words, Jin Soyeon didn’t need to dirty her hands, but she was already prepared.

As the hero who brought down Yoo Dahee, Jin Soyeon felt the duty and determination to see through Yoo Dahee’s end.

There was also a slight hint of revenge towards Yoo Dahee, who had once killed Jin Soyeon.

“Now then.”

“…”

Jin Soyeon imbued her blade with a deep blue magic, sharpening it further.

To be able to cut off Yoo Dahee’s breath in one strike.

“Goodbye, Yoo Dahee.”

“…”

Yoo Dahee could only watch helplessly.

Ah, this is how I will meet my end.

Without achieving anything.

It can’t end here.

I can’t die yet.

But all Yoo Dahee could do now was stare blankly at the blade and wait for death to come…

“Yoo Dahee!”

Clang!

The blade was just about to touch Yoo Dahee’s neck.

The barrier shattered into pieces by an external force.

Someone burst through the shattered barrier like a beam of light and swung a fist towards Jin Soyeon.

“!”

A powerful punch accompanied by a shockwave.

It was an unexpected ambush.

If it had been Jin Soyeon from a few minutes ago, she might have taken the hit.

But Jin Soyeon now was different.

Having grown significantly through her fight with Yoo Dahee, Jin Soyeon swiftly twisted her body to dodge the attack without hesitation.

Boom!

The hefty fist barely grazed Jin Soyeon’s cheek.

Ryan Jones, who had swung the fist, was slightly surprised.

No wonder, that young girl effortlessly dodged the surprise attack aimed to kill.

It was the fist of the Annihilator, who had silenced numerous heroes with a single blow.

“Where are you going!”

“Ugh?!”

No, it didn’t just end with evasion.

The pretty girl with black hair swiftly swung her sword and ruthlessly slashed Ryan’s shoulder.

Aaargh!

Blood spurted out.

Ryan gritted his teeth.

The strongest body enhancement ability user in South Korea, Ryan, had his body cut like a piece of cloth. Who is this girl? What is this abnormal strength? She doesn’t seem like Yoo Da-hee.

“Am I going to miss it?”

Ryan tried to grab the half-collapsed Yoo Da-hee and run away, but Jin So-yeon, who was not going to let him go easily, was not Jin So-yeon.

After taking a stabbing stance, Jin So-yeon tried to pierce through Ryan’s back.

Just as she was about to extend her sword.

“So, So-yeon! Wait, wait a minute!”

“Huh? Jin-hyuk?”

Suddenly, Jin-hyuk stopped her.

Why all of a sudden?

Jin So-yeon blinked with a puzzled expression.

Finally, as if realizing something strange, she looked at Jin-hyuk, who looked a bit embarrassed and gestured towards a certain direction.

When Jin So-yeon turned her gaze to where Jin-hyuk gestured, she realized.

That the heroes of the SL Group, the Black Shadow Clan, were being held hostage.

To Sung Baek-han and Isabelle.

“Jin So-yeon.”

Isabelle spoke.

“Don’t move a finger. And the other heroes too. If you show even a hint of movement….”

Isabelle, covered in blood and almost half-dead, breathed heavily and looked at the hostages with a fierce gaze.

“…You know, right?”

“….”

Jin So-yeon bit her lower lip as if she were angry.

Did she really take the heroes who were fighting Ryan and Sung Baek-san outside the barrier as hostages?

Did she waste too much time?

If she knew this would happen, she should have quickly dealt with Yoo Da-hee.

“So, So-yeon, uh, we shouldn’t worry about it, let’s just…!”

“Damn it, cough, cough. Damn it, the hostages… Hey, Jin So-yeon! Just do it! We, who grabbed them, are wrong, cough, right, what!”

Isi-woon and Kang Dae-han, who had become a mess, shouted, and Isabelle frowned and brushed them off.

“Be quiet. Keep your mouths shut.”

“Cough!”

“Ouch?!”

After a few kicks, Isi-woon and Kang Dae-han fell silent.

Jin So-yeon bit her lower lip tightly.

“…Jin-hyuk, what should we do?”

“….”

Jin-hyuk frowned for a moment and fell into contemplation.

The current situation is very difficult.

Several heroes, including Isi-woon and Kang Dae-han, were taken hostage.

Although he thought he could handle Ryan and Sung Baek-san, who were powerful villains, it seemed that they had fought hard enough.

It seemed that those two villains were stronger than Jin-hyuk had thought.

But why is Isabelle here?

Did she lose to the members of the church, including Rok-san?

“Wounds… Yoo Da-hee, snap out of it! Yoo Da-hee…!”

“Isabelle? Why are you here, cough, cough.”

“Don’t talk, Yoo Da-hee. Let’s at least…!”

Isabelle poured the healing potion.

It seemed like a top-quality healing potion, but it would be impossible to completely recover from such injuries.

At best, it would only be emergency treatment.

To fully recover, they would have to find a healer.

“Phew… I think I’m going to be okay now… Ugh.”

“It’s just emergency treatment.”

“Still, ugh, I won’t die right away, right?”

Do we just have to stand by and watch them?

Wanting to use the barrier artifact to separate the enemies and hostages, but more time was needed for reuse.

Lee Jin-hyuk agonized over it.

What if he gave the attack order to Jin So-yeon right now?

Even though Yoo Da-hee had taken healing potions, he could easily take down Yoo Da-hee, who had not fully recovered.

Not only Yoo Da-hee, but also the seriously injured Ryan, Seong Baek-san, Isabelle, and others could not be opponents for Jin So-yeon.

Furthermore, Yoo Da-hee was bound by the constraints of blood.

Yoo Da-hee could not move a certain distance away from Jin So-yeon.

Therefore, if he was willing to sacrifice the hostages, he could take them all down.

If he was willing to sacrifice the hostages.

“….”

If it were a game, he would not hesitate to sacrifice them.

In a game, you can die and be resurrected quickly, as they are just data made up of 0s and 1s.

But reality is different.

If they die, they cannot be resurrected, and they are living beings made of blood and bones, just like Lee Jin-hyuk.

It was Lee Jin-hyuk’s fault that they were in this situation in the first place.

Because of his inadequate planning, his expectations going awry, and his request to fight together.

Therefore, Lee Jin-hyuk could not force them to sacrifice themselves.

“Cough, cough, sigh, really… Hey, Jin So-yeon. Release this. It’s like a blood collar or something.”

“….”

“Hey. Can’t you hear me?”

“….”

Yoo Da-hee muttered, pointing to the rusty iron chain around his neck with his finger.

Jin So-yeon made a thoughtful expression for a moment.

Then she glanced at Lee Jin-hyuk.

Lee Jin-hyuk nodded briefly as if there was nothing he could do, and Jin So-yeon soon released the blood restraint with a deep sigh.

Crash!

The blood restraint that Yoo Da-hee had tied to prevent him from running away shattered and fell to the ground.

Yoo Da-hee let out a bitter laugh immediately.

“Phew. It feels a bit better now that this dog collar-like thing is off.”

Was he going to be dragged away by Yoo Da-hee like this?

What a good way…

“Jin-hyuk, Jin-hyuk? Can you hear me? Jin-hyuk!”

“…Rocksanne?”

“Ah! Finally! Jin-hyuk, are you okay?”

It seemed that the communication with Roxanne and Muzion was restored due to the broken barrier.

“I’m sorry, Jin-hyuk. We managed to repel most of the Rebellion members, but…”

Roxanne continued, swallowing dry saliva.

“…they managed to take back the pocket dimension.”

“What?”

“It seems Isabelle intercepted it.”

They lost the ability to summon monsters and the pocket dimension was taken back?

“Jin-hyuk. We will hurry to join you, so please wait a little longer.”

As soon as Roxanne’s communication ended.

“Should we start running away now? Oh, of course.”

Somehow, Yoo Da-hee, who received the pocket dimension from Isabelle, turned it upside down and opened the entrance wide.

Wait, is that guy?

“I’m giving you a surprise gift.”

“Yoo Da-hee!”

I tried to stop him, but it was too late.

Countless beads poured out of the entrance of the pocket dimension and shattered into pieces.

And.

“Ah.”

A huge hole appeared in the sky.

As if it were gold, everything split here and there, and countless monsters began to pour out like a flood from the deep crevices.

The smell of malice wafted through the air as numerous monsters poured out from the dimensional rift.

…The situation began to deteriorate rapidly.