The End of Bewitchment (4)
A fleeting moment.
An eerie silence settled around, as if the entire world had come to a stop.
In the minds of the Mage Practitioners marching toward Seongcheon Yoon Clan, there was only one thought.
It was ironic, but miraculously, everyone present shared the same sentiment.
‘What the hell is this?’
At first, they couldn’t comprehend it at all.
…No, that’s not right.
In fact, it wasn’t that hard to understand.
As a Mage Practitioner training in Chakra, it made no sense that they couldn’t feel such a vivid mental wave.
This was more than just a lack of understanding…
It was more appropriate to say ‘I can’t believe this.’
‘I feel like I’m about to suffocate. What on earth…!’
An invisible storm of thoughts surged from the city center like a tsunami, spreading out in all directions.
In the face of this overwhelming force that engulfed the whole area in an instant, even their touted resistance and sturdy mental barriers were useless.
—Stop.
Just a single word.
The forced will carved into their minds extinguished the rising morale as if doused with cold water.
They couldn’t take a step forward, let alone even breathe properly.
Some tried to resist this compulsion, but such attempts didn’t last long.
“Hah, hah… Damn it! The… the gaze…!”
“Ugh! They’re looking this way! What the hell is going on!”
In fact, it was the less experienced ones who were in a worse situation.
All those who suddenly collapsed, displaying strange reactions were those who usually had confidence in their abilities.
Those who tried to dissect that thought wave in resistance had no choice but to confront something on the other side of the ‘connection’ known as ‘communication.’
Something unexplainable, subtly gazing this way.
Even if it claimed no intention to cause harm, its immense presence was enough to intimidate them.
Soldiers completely neutralized, losing their fighting spirit, regardless of their abilities.
Thus, the war came to an end before it truly began.
“…Incredible.”
A miracle accomplished with just one word.
Ramu, who witnessed this feat right beside Hoon, looked up at him with sparkling eyes.
‘This is what absolute power is… Essential for making the world peaceful…’
Having opened the Chakra of the ‘world,’ she could feel it much more sensitively than others.
Just how much karma was embedded in Hoon’s one word.
How much effort he had put in to accumulate all of that.
‘It felt almost as if Hoon oppa wasn’t alone, but more than ten people were shouting at once.’
Of course, it was a nonsensical delusion.
But it was indicative that she still had much to improve.
Resolved to work harder, she nodded firmly.
‘…I feel definitely stimulated.’
Hoon, glancing sideways at Ramu, tried his best to hide his satisfaction while posing seriously with crossed arms.
An impactful moment that rivaled the celestial Mage Practitioners.
It was indeed rewarding, albeit a little strenuous for drawing upon the mental strength of the other avatars.
“…Hoon? What’s happening…?”
At that moment, Lucette’s voice came from behind, unable to hide her panic.
Turning around, they saw her rushing over, her body sparking with electricity, staring at them in bewilderment.
“Don’t tell me you’ve climbed to the celestial level…? No way, that can’t be. Just reaching the deeper levels is hard to believe, but the celestial level… But this right now.”
Lost in confusion, she forced her eyes shut and took a deep breath.
As expected, there was no way the Yoon Clan wouldn’t recognize the powerful wave that started from their base.
They observed the thoughts contained within and couldn’t help but gasp.
No matter how conservatively it was considered, the scale was simply impossible for someone who wasn’t a celestial Mage Practitioner.
‘Even if you claim to have lowered your aggression, it’s still hard to overlook a mental wave this extensive…’
If that target had been herself, could she have truly overcome it?
Honestly, she couldn’t be sure herself.
“Not yet at the celestial level. I just added a bit of what I can do as an isekai person. Just consider it a trivial feat.”
“…Is that so?”
Lucette, barely convinced by that answer, forced a smile.
Thinking it over, he had indeed left multiple upper practitioners as incapacitated without Chakra, and just a short while after starting, he had even knocked down deep-level practitioners.
It might be rather strange to be surprised by this sort of thing at this point.
“Oh, and it seems I’ll need a little manpower… Is that alright?”
“Because of cleaning up here? Don’t worry. This is also a matter for our Yoon Clan. Every department will be responding at full force already.”
“Of course that’s one thing, but…”
Hoon trailed off, shifting his gaze distant.
It wouldn’t be long before the Yoon Clan found out anyway, but since they were at this point, it seemed better to say it now.
“It seems that won’t be enough.”
And just after he finished that sentence—
Kuoooung—!
A thunderous roar erupted from far away.
Lucette’s face stiffened as she instinctively sensed something was off.
Before she had a chance to speak, her body was engulfed in lightning, disappearing from the spot.
“…Seriously, there’s no need to react so sensitively.”
“Wasn’t it all over? Shouldn’t we help…?”
“Oh, it’s fine. It’s fine. That’s nothing like a war. It’s just…”
Hoon shrugged at Ramu’s worried question.
Then, rubbing his chin, he pondered for a moment before lightly clapping his hands and grinning.
“Yeah, it’s just that a cleaning service is disinfecting. You can just trust the experts and leave it to them.”
“······?”
No matter how much she tilted her head, not understanding his words, he raised his head to gaze quietly at the sky.
“By the way, what a nice day. On days like this, having a picnic under the cool shade of trees would be perfect.”
The sky was exceptionally clear and blue today.
Just like the future laid before them, that high sky was extraordinarily bright.
*
A scruffy man with a beard, lying among the ruins of a collapsed building, stared blankly at the sky through a gaping hole in the ceiling.
‘…Damn it, what a brilliantly sunny day.’
How long had it been since he had looked up at the sky like this?
But that leisure didn’t last long.
If he didn’t get up right away, he might end up lying forever.
Becoming one with the land.
Kuooong—!
Instinctively, his body moved to dodge as a thick leg crashed down where he had been lying.
Though it was just a simple foot cloud, the impact had far surpassed the ordinary.
Crash—
Among the thick dust rising, fissures spread across the ground like spiderwebs.
Buildings trembling as if an earthquake had struck crumbled down precariously, giving in to the crushed ground.
“Ugh, ugh… I’m done for. How did such a crazy monster stick to me…?”
He spat out the blood that had surged from his throat—the Mage Practitioner known as the ‘Human Butcher’ mumbled despairingly.
Around him, the area was already a disaster zone, as if swept over by a massive earthquake.
It happened in an instant.
Five deep-level practitioners and as many upper-level practitioners who had participated in the expedition to Yoon Clan couldn’t even put up a proper fight and had become blood puddles.
Feeling a sense of crisis, he immediately tried to escape again through a spatial crack, but…
The problem was that a giant had seemingly awaited that moment and seized him, dragging him back across space.
Gahk! These attacks aren’t working…!
“Human Butcher! You damn bastard! What did you bring with you!”
Ugh!
What followed was precisely what it looked like now.
The hideout that was set up to assist in today’s Yoon Clan attack was utterly annihilated.
All because of just one presence.
Hahaha—! So, you little bugs gathered here!
With the appearance of a barbaric figure, muscles were visibly flexing.
With just a light gesture, everything obstructing his path was torn apart, and no strike could injure his robust body.
Despite lacking Chakra and notable weapons, the sense of intimidation he emitted surpassed that of any celestial Mage Practitioner.
‘Damn it, if it weren’t for that damned mental wave, this wouldn’t have happened.’
Getting caught off guard had brought about this irreparable disaster.
The situation had deteriorated beyond recovery.
The best he could do now was to escape as quickly as possible from that moving calamity…
‘There’s no way that bastard would let me go so easily.’
Glaring down at his shabby butcher knife, grinning despite the circumstances.
“Hey, buddy! What are you doing here? You’ve graciously invited me here, so let’s join again!”
At that moment, a booming voice echoed in his ear.
Reacting instinctively, the Human Butcher swung the knife in his hand and aimed for the approaching figure’s neck…
Shing!
The lethal blow, infused with deep-level Chakra of murder and middle-level Chakra of slaughter, couldn’t even breach the skin, only sending a small spark out.
That infamous Demon Sword, which claimed to inflict fatal wounds upon human targets…
‘…Hehe, I was hoping, but this monster… truly isn’t human.’
So it was expected that the killing power specialized for ‘killing humans’ wouldn’t work properly against him.
Even if it had, given the difference in strength, achieving meaningful results would still have been difficult.
“What a letdown, making a person feel unappreciated. It’s bad manners for action to precede words, you know? I’ll make sure to correct that bad habit of yours during this opportunity.”
From Harley’s boulder-like fist, the sound of cracking knuckles echoed.
And then, the unfolding event was as predictable as ever.
“Let’s wrap this up, buddy. Even though I look like this, I’m a pretty busy guy, you know? There’s still so much left to do.”
Cough! Urgh, cough!
With his large hand gripping the Human Butcher’s neck, Harley shrugged.
The sounds of combat that had previously roared around had long since dwindled.
That was only natural, as he was now the only one standing upright in that place.
‘If it were the forces dispatched from Hongsan Kingdom and Cheonghae Kingdom, it might be different, but I have no reason to go easy on these Mage Practitioners who are nothing but a hazard.’
Unlike Hela, who was versatile and could perform various tasks, Harley was only capable of smashing everything.
Thus, it was only natural that he set out to exterminate the pests.
‘Alright, looks like this matter is settled for now. All that’s left is to contact Yoon Clan and inform them to clean up this hideout.’
A base notorious for the ruthless Mage Practitioners they used as a hiding place.
They had been eliminated, but there could still be hidden elements, so investigation and cleanup were essential.
Of course, it wouldn’t do to personally handle such a bothersome task.
In that sense, passing it on to Yoon Clan, the party involved, was a very reasonable choice.
However, to do that, it was necessary to convey the message to Yoon Clan first…
“…Huh?”
As Harley was lost in thought, he blinked blankly.
He had rushed through space without thinking about the aftermath, but…
‘By the way, where am I? How do I get back?’
Well, he could use “Hero’s Footprint” to return.
But the problem was that explaining the location of this place wouldn’t be straightforward.
Scratching the back of his head while gazing endlessly at the sky.
“Hahaha! Well, a guy always encounters unexpected things while trying to achieve something great!”
Harley burst into laughter heartily.
Of course, he still had no concrete plan.
Fortunately, he didn’t need to devise a method.
Lucette, who sensed the anomaly and moved toward the source of the noise, confirmed the remaining traces and promptly organized a tracking party.
Thanks to Harley completely destroying the arrival point, calculating the spatial coordinates wasn’t too difficult this time compared to the previous attack.
While he was busy munching down like a locust since capturing General Yongseol, another entity was also achieving meaningful results in a different place while tracking the shadowy figure.
*
On an island among the numerous islands located in the south of the Sabacheon central continent.
“Hah, haha… This is ridiculous.”
A dark-skinned man sat down, deeply bowing his head while letting out a wry smile.
Dozens of black magic circles surrounding him and countless chains wrapping around his body served as proof of his defeat.
‘Never would I have imagined I’d end up like this.’
Just a short while ago, he had never even considered such a possibility.
Whether it was General Yongseol of Cheonghae Kingdom, General Jooryeong of Hongsan Kingdom, or even the Black King.
No matter who it was, he’d been confident he could ultimately subdue them and emerge victorious.
“Ugh, what a troublesome ability. I nearly really lost track of it.”
In front of him, a bewitching woman sat cross-legged in the air, resting her hand on her cheek, letting out a small sigh.
Despite having succeeded in capturing him, it seemed she wasn’t displeased, as her folded wings gave a gentle flutter, hinting at her pleasure.
“The ability to freely swap bodies through hosts. No wonder it was so hard to catch the real form.”
Every time he seemed to be caught, he would swap bodies, and just when it felt like he was close, he’d shift to a distant host, causing a significant delay in tracking.
Had Hela not been a Demon King and possessed the ability to detect and forcibly anchor souls, they would likely still be embroiled in that frustrating chase.
‘Demon King? How can such a being exist in this world? Moreover, the mystique he uses isn’t even Chakra. Could he be an isekai person? A Demon King? What kind of nonsense is that!’
But now, complaining wouldn’t change anything.
“Well then.”
The woman, who had been sitting cross-legged in the air, uncrossed her legs and slowly approached him.
The fully subdued shadow.
An entity that had cast away its original body and name, known as Unknown.
“Let’s have a more intimate conversation.”
Her eyes sparkled with a chilling beam as she gripped his chin, locking gazes with the shadow of Unknown.
