𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟏𝟒𝟕: 𝐎𝐫𝐨𝐛𝐚𝐬 3
The ground was shattered and Orobas was buried, spewing blood from his mouth.
『You. . .How. . .?』
He looked at Siwoo with eyes filled with shock and fear.
There are often cases where insects kill humans.
There could have been venomous insects, and even ancient execution methods that utilized insects.
However, that was merely an unfortunate accident, not an insect intentionally using overwhelming power to kill a human.
Orobas was terrified at the sight of insects revolting, without even bothering to wipe the pitch-black blood away.
『Dare you. . .I am a devil, a superior race to humans. . .! You little maggot. . .! If I give the order, other devils will come to kill you. . .!”』
“Call them.”
『What. . .?』
“I said call them, you idiot.”
Siwoo grabbed his collar, almost crushing it.
Thud.
Orobas’s face turned beet red as if it would burst.
“Clench your teeth tight, or your cheeks might get torn.”
Siwoo punched his face downward.
Scream!!
His head twisted.
Siwoo didn’t care and swung his fist again.
BAM!!!
Blood gushed from his mouth and nose.
Horrific sounds kept ringing in Orobas’s ears.
He used his hooves and wings to twist out of Siwoo’s grip.
He struggled too hard, and his neck skin was torn to shreds.
『Cough. . .Cough. . .! Y-You little maggot. . . .!』
Suddenly, Balok’s face flashed before his eyes.
Orobas didn’t have enough sanity left to understand the situation.
He did not have the time to figure out why the magic power Siwoo was emanating was stronger and more vicious than when he first fought him, or why the core of that magic power had a completely different foundation from the general magic power of the natural world.
The purest form of natural magic that ancient devils would have trembled at, ‘ether,’ which only dragons could wield.
“A while ago, there was this guy who kept calling me a maggot.”
Siwoo continued, recalling Kagutsuchi.
“You know what I did to him?”
『”Do you expect me, a demon, to. . .answer a bug’s. . .question. . .?”』
Orobas couldn’t finish his sentence, his eyes widening.
The opponent’s form had vanished from his sight in an instant.
A movement faster than a gust of wind.
Orobas instinctively turned and struck with his elbow.
Enemies who disappeared like that usually appeared from behind.
But his arm only sliced through empty air, and
Scream━━!!
Siwoo appeared from the side and kneed his ribs.
『Cough!』
The sound of breaking ribs echoed as Orobas’s body twisted and fell to the ground.
Thud.
Siwoo stepped on his back and grabbed one of his horns.
『Wait, wait. . .Cough! Don’t touch that. . .!』
“Nope, bug.”
Siwoo started twisting and pulling out his horn with force.
Black blood gushed out as the horn slowly tore off.
Crunch.
『Arggghhhh!!』
Orobas rolled his eyes and screamed in agony.
It was the most painful moment of his life.
No, it was beyond just pain.
It felt like his head was being burned from the inside.
Siwoo threw the pulled-out horn away like trash.
Then he grabbed the other horn and pulled Orobas up.
“I asked you before. Do you want to know what happened?”
Orobas trembled as he looked at Siwoo, the excruciating and intense pain coursing through his body.
He no longer saw a mere insect.
Only an overwhelming terror filled his vision.
“I beat him half to death and tamed him. But there’s no need for that with you.”
Siwoo punched his abdomen with full force.
『Cough. . .Ack. . .Spa, spare me. . .I don’t want to die.』
The devil pleaded, coughing up black blood.
He couldn’t even feel humiliated anymore.
The fear of possibly dying was far greater than any humiliation he had ever experienced.
【𝐈 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤 𝐢𝐭’𝐬 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞 𝐝𝐞𝐯𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐧𝐨𝐰.】
“You think so?”
Siwoo grabbed the demon’s neck again and cast a skill.
Thousands of geometric runes filled the air, manifesting a massive magic circle, and power raged through its circuits like a raging waterfall.
A brilliant golden radiance dyed the surroundings.
The life energy from Orobas’s body flowed into Siwoo’s hand.
『Cough. . .No. . .I am a noble devil. . .』
【𝐋𝐞𝐭’𝐬 𝐞𝐚𝐭!】
A black magic circle appeared around Pre, cutting off the devil’s words.
Orobas trembled, sensing the ominous presence from it.
『Why. . .Why is this still. . .』
From the unfathomable depths of darkness, a black hand emerged and plunged into the devil’s heart.
Having already been drained of energy and unable to flee, Orobas shed tears as he watched the black hand ravage his body.
『I’m. . .done. . .』
The core was pulled out of the devil’s body.
Pre flapped his wings lightly and swallowed the core in one gulp.
【𝐈 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐚 𝐠𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐥!!】
Orobas’s body crumbled like burnt ash.
🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷
Siwoo laid down, as if he was about to collapse, and checked his physical condition.
It was certain that his body was suffering immensely from using the core.
It was a small price to pay for using the dragon’s magic.
Even this was less burdensome because he had improved and organized his magic channels in the dungeon last time.
It felt like his muscles were tearing just by moving a single finger.
Siwoo piled up the magic inside the gate into his dantian and cast a skill at the same time to heal the pain in his body.
He would have to endure some fatigue and slight soreness, but he would be able to recover to some extent.
“Big Brother! Are you okay?!”
At that moment, Ah-ming ran towards Siwoo’s location with a worried expression on her face.
The other members of the party followed suit and gathered where Siwoo was.
Everyone was speechless.
“Wow, senior, are you lying down after being hit by the enemy?”
【𝐈 𝐛𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞. 𝐈𝐟 𝐢𝐭 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧’𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐧𝐞, 𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐬𝐚𝐢𝐝 𝐠𝐨𝐨𝐝𝐛𝐲𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 𝐭𝐨𝐝𝐚𝐲.】
“As expected of Pre-nim. . .I hope you treat our .senior well in the future.”
“. . .Jeong-gu. Let’s spar as soon as I get up.”
“I’m sorry, but I don’t spar with patients who have been hit by the enemy.”
Hwang Jeong-gu seemed to like Siwoo’s appearance for the first time and chuckled with delight.
“Big Brother, does it hurt?”
Sion approached and asked Siwoo, tightly holding his hand.
Seeing her harmless gaze, a smile came to his face.
“No, it doesn’t hurt.”
“Then get up.”
“. . .Can’t I just lie down for a bit?”
Siwoo looked around at the other party members.
Everyone looked exhausted with minor and major injuries, but Lo-an and Volk’s conditions seemed to be the worst.
“Did you two get hurt the most because your skills are the weakest?”
“Master. . .I got hurt because I was fighting hard. . .”
“That uncle got hurt while running away from the werewolf.”
At Volk’s excuse, Ah-ming, who was standing next to him, laughed brightly and retorted.
As Siwoo looked at him with pity, Volk glared at Ah-ming.
“From afar, it looked like a very strong enemy. I thought the master would lose.”
Lo-an, who looked just as exhausted as Siwoo, said, recalling the situation from a while ago.
In fact, he had felt a strong magic energy since the middle of the fight with the Lycanthrope Lord.
Even if he didn’t have a particularly keen sense, anyone who could sense magic energy would have known the existence of the devil.
However, no one could bring themselves to speak of that existence out loud.
The magic energy was so powerful and merciless.
Its momentum and energy surpassed that of the Lycanthrope Lord.
Above all, the murderous intent and hatred emanating from the devil terrified even those who had not faced it directly.
Chu Ha-min and Hwang Jeong-gu, who had experienced Balok during the last 〈Gangwon S-rank Gate〉, were somewhat better off, but the other members of the party were too terrified to even guess what that existence was.
Of those who had not seen Balok, Lo-an was the only one who had guessed the enemy’s identity.
After all, there had been a time when he had confronted devils in the past, when he traveled around with Siwoo cutting down the demon race.
“It seems like the devils have gotten stronger than before. Do you think they’re evolving?”
“I guess so? Or maybe a higher-level devil has entered.”
After getting up, Siwoo checked his condition briefly.
His magic energy had recovered a bit thanks to his short rest, and his body was manageable.
The rest would have to be considered aftereffects from using his core, which he would have to endure for a few days.
“You two, come here.”
Siwoo beckoned Volk and Lo-an with his finger.
Then, he spread out his technique and created a huge magic circle.
The cold light that flooded the surroundings warmly enveloped Volk and Lo-an’s bodies and healed their wounds.
“You’ve healed a little bit, Big Brother.”
Sion approached and said.
“Where else hurts?”
“Pervert, your gaze.”
“I’m sorry. I can’t help it because I was born that way.”
“That’s unfortunate.”
“Do you want to try double eyelids while you’re at it?”
“. . .I sincerely decline.”
🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷
Siwoo took only Ah-sul, Red Ear, and Han Tae-chi with him to deal with the Gate Heart.
He only took the two with the highest magic detection abilities and the scholar who was thirsty for research.
Fortunately, the monsters guarding this Gate Heart were not that strong (by Siwoo’s standards), and the labyrinth was simple, so it was quickly found.
Han Tae-chi stared at the Gate Heart as if he had discovered a gold nugget, with a crazed look in his eyes.
Siwoo was about to break it and leave, but Han Tae-chi begged him to let him study it for just 10 minutes, so he waited for that time.
Of course, Han Tae-chi also took the fragments of the broken Gate Heart with him.
As soon as they exited the gate, a considerable number of people were surrounding the gate.
They were all Hunters who had entered the A+ class gate.
“Master!!”
“Hyung!”
Kang Yeo-hwa and Min Si-joon exclaimed with joy as soon as they spotted Siwoo.
“Are you guys okay?”
“Yes, we’re fine. Are you okay, master?”
“Are you okay, hyung? I heard you met a devil inside.”
“I’m fine except for being tired.”
Siwoo smiled wryly at their concerns.
It seemed that the party members who had exited the gate first had told them everything that had happened inside.
“Hahaha! You cleared an S-rank gate with only 10 people! The media will be all over this tomorrow!”
Do Kyung-hoo approached with a disheveled appearance.
“Why would they be all over us just for clearing that?”
“You crazy mutt! Not only the media in our country but the media all over the world will be buzzing! Hahaha!”
“Ha. . . It will definitely have a good promotional effect for the guild.”
“By the way, I heard you fought a devil inside? How did it compare to Balok last time?”
“He was stronger.”
“Hmm.”
Do Kyung-hoo stroked his thick beard with his hand and made a worried expression.
Even Do Kyung-hoo couldn’t defeat Balok by himself.
But what if such strong guys appeared in every gate from now on? . . . .
‘𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘔𝘢𝘥 𝘋𝘰𝘨 𝘸𝘰𝘯’𝘵 𝘣𝘦 𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘤𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘰𝘧 𝘚𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘩 𝘒𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘢 𝘣𝘺 𝘩𝘪𝘮𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘧.’
It felt like it was more urgent to increase his own abilities rather than train his juniors.
“But why is it so noisy over there?”
Siwoo asked, pointing to a tent in the distance.
“Oh, that? Your disciple came looking for you and is throwing a tantrum about wanting to enter the gate. . . I was trying to calm him down.”
“My disciple?”
Siwoo tilted his head and entered the tent.
As he lifted the cloth at the entrance and peeked inside, a loud noise rang in his ears.
“Grandmaster!! Your first disciple has arrived!! I’ve even prepared German sausages that you like!!”
【𝐎𝐡!! 𝐌𝐲 𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐝 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐢𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞!】
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