Chapter: 921
“…What did you just say?”
In an instant, a surge of speculation filled the previously bewildered expression.
Crack!
His muscles bulged as if the clothes he was wearing were about to tear, and his unkempt hair began to rise toward the sky.
Swish!
The hostility radiating from Baekwol’s body infiltrated the entire alley.
Crash! The wall crumbled, and it felt as though the darkness in front of him was being forced back.
[Not bad for a joke.]
The man didn’t seem to care one bit.
The overwhelming hostility was palpable. People behind him were collapsing, foaming at the mouth, yet the author exuded nothing but composure.
With his hands behind his back, he simply stared at Baekwol. It didn’t sit well with him.
‘What the hell?’
What on earth is that sense of nonchalance?
What kind of leisurely attitude is this when facing me?
It felt utterly foreign.
Baekwol clutched his chest.
Beyond that menacing atmosphere, something else tugged at him.
Thump… thump…
Feeling the unique vibration of his heartbeat, Baekwol’s expression twisted in confusion.
‘Is he a noble?’
This sensation could only be felt among fellow nobles.
Even with all this vibration coursing through him, there was nothing visible about the man.
Does that mean he’s a pureblood of that high caliber?
No, it couldn’t be. Baekwol was certain.
If this man truly was a noble,
“How dare you… insult your master?”
There’s no way he could talk about a being as precious as that.
In a world where even mentioning the general takes hesitation, how could anyone dare to speak so casually of someone more noble?
It was impossible.
[Insult?]
The man tilted his head at Baekwol’s words.
[What kind of insult are you talking about?]
“Shut up.”
Crash!!
Baekwol’s feet dug into the ground.
At that moment, a sudden gust of wind swept through.
“You will die here.”
Boom! Baekwol charged in at incredible speed.
His massive body let out vibrations that shook the alley with even the slightest movement, yet he tore through with an intensity that showed he didn’t care one bit.
Crack!!
Fingernails erupted from his large hands, and a strong blue energy surged from them.
Rrrrrroar—!!!
With a beastly growl, Baekwol swung his claws. It felt as if the very air was being shredded.
The rough and savage assault bore down upon the man.
Just before the man’s head met Baekwol’s claws,
[Stop,]
—!!!
“Ugh!?”
Baekwol’s body froze at the man’s command.
Time was short. Just a fleeting moment.
In that brief instance, a black sphere floated ominously into Baekwol’s view.
Boom!
Then, accompanied by a small tremor,
WAAAAM—!!!
The sphere before him exploded in a violent burst.
In an instant, black flames enveloped the surroundings.
What was strange was that despite the entire alley being engulfed, no embers or damage lingered behind.
The fire merely flared up for a moment but—
“Ugh!”
The damage was undeniably clear to Baekwol.
He barely evaded full impact, but his clothes were charred, and his skin was burned.
The good news? A wound like this could heal quickly.
Baekwol’s body tensed for an instant, yet he immediately prepared for the next attack.
Swirl!
The flames began to take shape in an astonishing instant.
A hand extended from the black flames, gripping Baekwol by the collar, destabilizing his stance.
And then—
Baekwol’s face was greeted by a knee.
Crack!
“Ugh!”
He was struck, his chin snapping back.
The force was staggering. He felt his body attempt to spring backwards.
Thud!
“…!?”
For some reason, he didn’t fly backward. Baekwol glanced down and felt an unfamiliar pressure at his waist.
Looking up, he found a black cloth binding him.
As if to ensure he wouldn’t get away.
“Ugh!”
Desperately, Baekwol tried to rip the cloth away.
Riiip—!
Surprisingly, this flimsy cloth wouldn’t tear, despite his strength.
“…What the—!?”
Bang!!
“Ugh!”
The shock was immediate. Baekwol’s body endured a relentless barrage of strikes.
Crash! Crash! Crash! Crash—!!
The man attacked every part of Baekwol’s body mercilessly.
Not a moment’s rest, a storm of blows rained down indiscriminately.
Even when Baekwol was thrown back, the cloth yanked him back towards the man, repeating the vicious cycle.
The compounded force was sobering.
“Ugh!?”
Baekwol had to endure another flurry of beatings without any chance to fight back.
It wasn’t that he didn’t try at all. He struggled to escape.
‘…This jerk!’
Yet every time, the man’s fists swung to block that path.
He struck joints hard to sever movement or intentionally attacked to keep him from escaping.
Because of that, Baekwol continued to be ruthlessly pummeled.
Eventually, when the fists finally ceased flying…
Thud…!
His knees buckled, collapsing to the ground.
“Ugh…”
Baekwol, shedding blood and wobbling, suddenly stopped in mid-air.
The man had a grip on Baekwol’s hair, holding him in place.
[How petty.]
“Ugh…”
Disappointment echoed in the man’s voice. Baekwol’s eyes swayed at the words.
A burning sense of humiliation washed over him.
At that moment, he lifted his gaze to the sky.
The sun was setting.
There was still far too much time until night fell.
‘…Damn it.’
Night needed to come sooner.
Only then could he show his true power to that clueless man before him. But in the current circumstances, a proper fight was impossible.
Baekwol furrowed his brow in agony at this thought.
The man chuckled in amusement.
[Beast of the Night Moon, are you looking forward to it yet?]
“…!”
Baekwol, caught off guard, swallowed hard as his true feelings were laid bare.
[How amusing.]
The laughter was evident in his tone.
[Do you really think you can achieve something when night falls?]
“Y-you…!”
Drip—! Words slipped out, and blood trickled from his mouth.
[Incorrect.]
Bang!!
“Ugh!”
Beaten and gripped by his hair, the pain was relentless.
Was it just his imagination? He thought he heard a snap! as something broke in his ear.
[Even when night comes, nothing will change for you. Look.]
The man leaned in closer, his face intruding upon Baekwol’s faltering stare.
Through the white mask, his gray eyes bore down on Baekwol.
[Isn’t it already night here?]
Swish—!!
Black energy erupted from the man, enveloping Baekwol.
It was dark, as he insisted, but Baekwol couldn’t help but think differently.
‘…Darker than night.’
The nights of the Ten Thousand Realms were beautiful, yet this darkness felt different.
It was unnaturally harsh and chilling.
“Y-you… what the hell are you…?”
Baekwol’s trembling voice was met with the man loosening his grip.
Thud!
Finally free, Baekwol crumpled to the ground.
The man, gazing at the fallen Baekwol with a lack of interest, remarked.
[…Well.]
His voice lacked even a tinge of intrigue.
[I don’t think it’s worth telling you that.]
“You… Do you even know who I am…!?”
[Had high hopes because it was my first prey… but alas.]
Snap!
“Gah!”
Before Baekwol could finish his sentence, his head slammed into the ground.
The man crushed Baekwol’s skull underfoot.
[I hope you reconsider next time.]
Crunch! Crunch!!
He continued to stomp down, the sound echoing as Baekwol’s head sank deeper into the ground.
[Because you don’t even deserve to look at the sky before me.]
Crashhhhh—!!
After delivering one final, heavy stomp, the man pulled his foot from the earth.
He brushed off his relics and looked straight ahead, addressing the onlookers.
[Get rid of the trash. I don’t even want to look at it.]
As his command echoed, the tension surrounding him subdued. Only then did people start rushing forward.
“Chief!!”
Yet, they halted in their tracks mid-run, shocked by the sight. Their faces reflected disbelief, eyes wide with terror.
The man watched quietly as he began to rise slowly from the ground.
The onlookers could only stand frozen, speechless.
[When that fool awakens, be sure to let him know.]
The man uttered with disdain.
[It was quite pathetic to be called a noble.]
With that, he vanished in a flurry of black flames.
“Chief…!!”
“What’s happening!?”
The streets descended into chaos as people hurried to aid Baekwol, mixed with others drawn by the commotion.
– Save the chief…!!
– Bring him here at once! Contact the family immediately!
– What’s going on…?
– Aren’t they from the White Family?
– Who is that? Someone’s head is stuck in the ground…? – Those clothes… gasp… no way…!
The cacophony of voices continued.
The murmur spread to all directions.
It seemed likely to grow even noisier than anticipated.
I observed from a distance, resting my chin on my hand.
“Hmm…”
I sighed, feeling a hint of exhaustion mixed in.
It couldn’t be helped.
‘That was dangerous.’
A very risky fight indeed.
Fortunately, things turned out well, enabling a quick resolution.
‘Faster and stronger than expected.’
Baekwol was much mightier than anything I had ever witnessed.
‘Thank goodness for the incantation…’
I took a chance with the incantation, and surprisingly, it had worked.
Those few seconds had turned the tide of the battle.
I unleashed attacks before he could regain his composure, using my abilities to bind his movements.
By employing those tactics, I managed to seize victory in no time.
However.
‘What if the incantation hadn’t worked?’
Had Baekwol not faltered, this victory wouldn’t have come so easily.
Of course….
‘Eventually, I would have won anyway.’
In the course of our battle, I had felt confident of my victory.
No matter how sturdy or fast he was, he didn’t appear to be able to outpace me.
Yet, the real dilemma lies in…
‘What if it was night?’
If night allowed him to utilize their unique traits and powers.
Would I still emerge victorious then?
I couldn’t be sure.
The Moonlit Tribe operated under entirely different dynamics at night.
“Interesting.”
I pondered thus, synthesizing the insights gained from the altercation.
‘Firstly… when I mentioned the Ten Thousand Realms, the reaction was remarkably intense.’
The way he lunged at me sharpened with a seemingly insatiable fury. It wasn’t even particularly meant to provoke him.
Merely a mention, quite literally.
I began to wonder what he was actually thinking.
That inquiry served as my intent.
‘It was more effective than I anticipated.’
The reaction was one of a restrained beast, and I could utilize that to my advantage.
‘And…’
I glanced down. They appeared to still be sorting through the chaos…
‘Thanks to that, I managed to divert their attention away from the volcano.’
The notion of the volcano had long been erased from their minds.
Now, merely extricating that fallen beast would be a monumental task. Given the unexpected assault, they would be frantically occupied with damage control.
Thus, the plan to incite confusion and obfuscate their focus seemed to have achieved its intended effect at first glance.
‘Is it really so?’
That too was not something I could firmly affirm.
‘Whether the spell will work here like in the Central Plains remains a question.’
While it appeared that the incantation functioned, I was uncertain about whether it applied to masks, too.
It became necessary to contemplate the potential issues that could arise later.
‘… For now, it seems manageable.’
Hmm.
I diverted my gaze from the chaos below.
‘This is just a pain.’
In tandem, I rubbed my ears with my hands.
The soft texture lingered unchanged.
“…”
Engaging in that action had almost retraced to habit, and I found my fingers constantly wandering back to my ears.
‘They say it falls off with vigorous movement. But if it’s still intact, does that mean it’s alright?’
Even as I used the body transformation technique, its permanence amazed me.
This felt more than just making ears and a tail…
‘It seems to alter one’s very existence.’
There felt like there was something inherently deeper at play here.
Fascinating.
‘Could I learn to utilize it?’
Perhaps it was possible.
It feels like just grasping the principle would suffice. While I musingly continued touching my ears—
Tap!—I caught the sensation of an unfamiliar touch.
I swiftly grabbed the wrist that was fiddling with my ears and turned around.
Just as expected, someone was there.
“When did you arrive?”
“I was caught.”
Of course, it was Cheonma who had been sneakily touching my ear.
“… I told you to behave. Why can’t you understand what I’m saying?”
“I was being quiet.”
Cheonma protested as though wronged.
She definitely went without showing up and was sitting quietly.
Realizing that made me a bit embarrassed.
“You touched my ear.”
“That has nothing to do with this.”
“Shut it.”
“…”
It felt a little awkward, yet she apparently didn’t want to admit defeat, so she nitpicked.
Cheonma scrunched her nose and sealed her lips.
Seeing that, I exhaled a snort and moved past her, intending to return to the building.
“I am the darkness birthed by the sky.”
“…”
Suddenly, I turned back at Cheonma’s declaration. Then,
“… You.”
Cheonma was looking directly at me.
With the corner of her lips lifted in a slight smile.
Anyone with half a brain could tell it was mockery.
“… What did you just say…?”
“Not bad for a joke.”
“…”
“I…”
“Shut up… Just shut up…!”
Before Cheonma could retort further, I raised my voice to cut her off.
At that, her smile widened.
Damn it…
‘That little brat heard everything.’
The waves of embarrassment crashed in like a tidal wave.
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