𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟏𝟗𝟕
I thought I had managed to wrap things up as quickly as possible, but I ended up being a little late.
I felt a surge of anger as I looked at Cheong Juhwa lying on the ground with blood dripping from her mouth.
“. . .Who did this?”
Naturally, there was no response.
Each of the people currently present here, including Cheong Woon-do, are masters who are renowned in the Korean shamantic world.
It would be impossible for someone like me to get an answer out of them.
However, there is an existence behind me that even they cannot easily deal with.
“I asked you a question, answer me.”
Cheong Woon-do, who had been observing the situation, stepped forward.
“I did it. So what, you got a problem with that? We were going to be enemies anyway.”
He was right. I had anticipated that the elders I had brought along to contain Cheong So-ha’s subordinates would try to take the azure dragon.
I thought I had arrived in time, but it was still a dangerous situation.
However, when I saw the results of that slight delay, I couldn’t help but feel uneasy.
Cheong So-ha glanced at me and spoke to the elders who had stopped fighting.
“First, I apologize. I was deceived by the enemy’s tricks and lost my sense of direction.”
“. . . . . . .”
“However, I cannot tolerate your current attitude.”
Cheong So-ha is a type of person who follows the will and purpose that has been passed down from the origin of the Cheong family.
For her, the sight of the elders insulting the azure dragon, the guardian deity of her family, must be very unpleasant.
The elders’ response to that was sharp.
“What are you talking about now? Are you trying to run away with your tail between your legs now that the situation has turned against you?”
“It’s already too late. The true master of the Cheong family will be decided here today.”
They were right.
Both sides had already suffered casualties, and it was impossible to simply cover it up.
It meant that someone, either the winner or the loser, had to be decided.
Cheong So-ha laughed softly at their response and replied as if she found it amusing.
“Have you really lost your senses? Do you think you can stand up to me just because there are so many of you?”
“How arrogant! I alone am enough, there’s no need for the others to step in!”
It was the 8th elder, Cheong Kang-hoon, who couldn’t hold back his anger and stepped forward.
As a hardliner, his skills were proven, but as far as I knew, he was no match for Cheong So-ha.
As if to prove him wrong, the 5th elder, Cheong Gil-yeong, who was standing next to him, hurriedly grabbed his arm.
“Didn’t I tell you not to get excited! I told you she’s not an opponent you can face alone?”
In the end, the situation proceeded as planned.
Cheong Gil-yeong, Cheong Kang-hoon, and Cheong Ji-woon formed a formation at once, and Cheong Do-yool, who had been coordinating the situation from afar, joined them to face Cheong So-ha.
It was a one-sided fight with four against one.
Hae Ga-ram, who saw this, frowned and said,
“It’s not my place to interfere here, but still, that’s a bit unfair.”
“Can you help Cheong So-ha-nim?”
“That’s what I wanted to do. However. . . . . . .”
Hae Ga-ram glanced at Cheong Woon-do, who was facing the azure dragon.
He was also an elder-level master, so she seemed to think that if he left his post, I might get hurt.
So I smiled softly and answered her resolutely.
“You don’t have to worry about that.”
“. . .Well, if you say so.”
And so, a four-on-two battle, which was somewhat manageable, was formed.
Cheong So-ha, who had even overcome the trial of the Blue-White Soul Mirror, would probably be able to turn the tables and win despite being outnumbered.
And I, who had my hands free, moved towards the azure dragon and Cheong Juhwa, suppressing the emotions that I had been holding back until now.
And after checking her condition up close, I calmly pronounced a judgment to Cheong Woon-do.
“Cheong Woon-do, former 6th elder and disgrace to the Cheong family. An exorcist who has not been officially recognized, but whose skills are said to have reached the special-grade.”
And.
“You attacked Myung-yul, the hero of the Night Parade of a Hundred Demons incident in the past, and lost one of your eyes in the process.”
“. . .You damn son of a b*tch.”
I stared at Cheong Woon-do, whose expression had changed in an instant and who was glaring at me, and smiled lightly.
“Take good care of yourself. If you don’t want to lose the other one here today.”
He was a madman whose very nature was uncontrollable, an existence that was not needed in the Cheong family going forward. So there was no reason to hold back.
Therefore, to put it simply, this was just a way to vent my anger.
🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷
Former 6th elder Cheong Woon-do felt a strange emotion as he looked at Han Kang-yoon, who was blocking his path.
「𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙝𝙚𝙡𝙡 𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙗𝙖𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙧𝙙?」
He had first provoked him by touching a sensitive nerve, and then suddenly summoned the azure dragon and spread a barrier around them together.
There was no advantage to Han Kang-yoon in doing such a thing at this point. After all, Cheong Woon-do had the upper hand in terms of overall power.
「. . .𝙃𝙚’𝙨 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙤𝙧𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙖𝙧𝙮.」
While he was observing the situation after that unexpected action, he was now approaching the fallen girl and performing simple healing, such as restoring the flow of her disrupted spiritual power.
He had an air of composure in front of an enemy of his level.
At first, he naturally intended to take advantage of that gap and beat him to a pulp, but on the other hand, a strange sense of incongruity held Cheong Woon-do back.
「𝙃𝙚’𝙨 𝙘𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙡𝙮 𝙨𝙝𝙤𝙬𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙢𝙚 𝙖𝙣 𝙤𝙥𝙚𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜. . . . . . .」
He had a strange conviction that he should not rush in recklessly.
It was not simply anxiety or doubt.
It was the instinct of Cheong Woon-do, a born fighter, and a warning sent by his honed senses.
So Cheong Woon-do decided to follow his intuition and simply sat down with his arms crossed, watching Han Kang-yoon’s actions.
“. . .There shouldn’t be any more problems. I’ll leave her to you.”
『Leave it to me.』
After finally completing all the healing he could, Han Kang-yoon entrusted the girl to the azure dragon that was guarding him and walked forward to face Cheong Woon-do again.
“I heard you were the type to act without thinking. Have you developed some sense in the meantime?”
“. . .I’ve decided. I’ll bury you in this dirt regardless of this fight.”
Cheong Woon-do went berserk and surged his spiritual power.
In response, the shadow behind Han Kang-yoon began to ripple like waves.
「𝙒𝙖𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙘𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙞𝙣𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙜𝙧𝙪𝙞𝙩𝙮?」
Immediately afterwards, colorful shikigami emerged from the shadow.
Not only was their number impressive, but each of them was surprisingly high-level.
In particular, the giant demon at the very front possessed a power that was not much different from Cheong Woon-do’s.
“You control shikigami? That’s impressive. You’re not just a loudmouth.”
Just recently, he had witnessed the genius of the era who had copied someone else’s grand spell.
However, the talent that Han Kang-yoon was showing now was no less than that.
Cheong Woon-do had also never encountered a shaman who could control so many shikigami alone.
“You’re better than those old farts. If you had a little more time to grow, it would have been a fun fight.”
Cheong Woon-do went berserk at the thrill of the battle that was about to come.
Han Kang-yoon was great, but even so, he was not at a level where he could be his opponent right now.
So all that was left was a one-sided slaughter.
Boom!
“Do you know what the easiest way to deal with guys like you is?”
Cheong Woon-do, who had stomped the ground hard, glanced at the formation and movements of the shikigami and unfolded a prepared ritual.
“It’s to not fight you at all.”
No matter how strong and great the shikigami he controlled were, they would be useless if their master, Han Kang-yoon, was defeated.
And Cheong Woon-do, who had been called a madman and had fought countless battles with the strong, had the ability to make that happen.
Whoosh.
Zzzzt!
“Your movements are good.”
This applied not only to the shikigami, but also to Han Kang-yoon himself.
He had figured out Cheong Woon-do’s intentions in a very short moment and was calmly preparing his countermeasures.
However, that was all.
In the end, Han Kang-yoon would not be able to take that one step further.
Thwack!
Puff─!
“To put it simply, there’s a fundamental difference in level between you and a son of a b*tch like me.”
Unable to grasp Cheong Woon-do’s movements, which were both incredibly fast and delicate, Han Kang-yoon eventually gave him some space.
The result was disastrous.
Han Kang-yoon stared at his own abdomen, which had been pierced by Cheong Woon-do’s hand, and coughed up a mouthful of blood.
“. . .Cough!”
“Don’t worry. After I bury your friend here, I’ll make good use of the azure dragon.”
As he pulled out his hand and was about to head towards his next target, Cheong Juhwa, Cheong Woon-do felt an indescribable sense of eeriness.
「𝙒𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙝𝙚𝙡𝙡 𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨. . . . . .?」
Han Kang-yoon’s eyes, which were staring at him defiantly even in the face of imminent death. And then, Han Kang-yoon, as if his strength had given out, wrapped his arms around Cheong Woon-do’s body and collapsed limply.
His heartbeat stopped, and no longer any sign of life could be felt from his body.
It was the fate that inevitably came to all humans.
It was death, the end of life.
“. . .Ha.”
Cheong Woon-do froze in that state for a few seconds, unable to move.
He couldn’t bring himself to admit that he had felt something akin to fear from Han Kang-yoon in that brief moment.
“What a dirty feeling. I haven’t felt this in a long time.”
Cheong Woon-do quickly dismissed all those thoughts and clicked his tongue as he tried to throw Han Kang-yoon’s body away.
However, strangely enough, Han Kang-yoon’s corpse, which was wrapped around him, felt as heavy as a mountain and could not be shaken off.
“What the. . . . . .!”
Cheong Woon-do had a heart of steel, but he was human after all.
When faced with an incomprehensible situation, he couldn’t help but feel a sense of eeriness creeping up on him.
So as Cheong Woon-do’s expression gradually distorted, a sound that shouldn’t exist suddenly began to reach his ears.
It was the sound of Han Kang-yoon’s heartbeat, which should have stopped long ago.
“You, bastard. What kind of trick. . . . . .!”
Soon, Han Kang-yoon’s body, which had been drooping, slowly regained its strength, and a single voice escaped from his face, which was slightly raised.
“Judging from your expression, it seems you haven’t noticed.”
Cheong Woon-do felt his heart sink for a moment and hurriedly turned his head to look behind him.
The part of his back where Han Kang-yoon had wrapped his arms around him when he died was now engulfed by a curse that exuded an indescribable sense of ominousness, consuming Cheong Woon-do.
“You son of a b*tch. . . . . .!”
The fear that had briefly crossed his mind a moment ago swept through Cheong Woon-do’s head in a more concrete form.
And as the curse that had climbed onto his back finally reached Cheong Woon-do’s eyes, Han Kang-yoon, who was smiling softly, spoke softly.
“Like I said, take good care of yourself.”
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