Chapter 54 …
The Crossroads (2)
“…Revenge… you say?”
Choi Yeon spoke as if tossing the word out casually.
It was a question without solid grounds, so it could have been called quite a leap.
However, he believed his guess was correct. It came from the experiences he had accumulated during his time as a hunter.
Hunters who had lost precious people—family or lovers—often behaved like Song Jong-in.
And judging from his mention of capturing a few wanted criminals…
“…A fugitive, then. You joined the Dark Fragrance Society to gather information.”
“Heh, I thought you just had sharp eyes, but our slit-eyed junior’s got sharp instincts too. You’re right on the mark.”
“……”
Crunch. Choi Yeon bit into the sweet persimmon.
He barely tasted the sweetness. At least the crisp texture was still there.
Even if someone knew the backstory better than others, joining an A-rank criminal organization was not a normal choice. Nor was it the right one.
Most likely, ten years of fruitless revenge had driven him this far.
“So you’ve got the gist of my situation. If you were in my shoes, slit-eyed junior, what would you choose?”
Swoosh…
Song Jong-in extended both hands forward. A sweet persimmon rested in his left hand, and a liquor bottle in his right.
Was the Dark Fragrance Society the liquor, and Pakator the persimmon? Or the other way around?
Choi Yeon neither knew nor particularly cared. What difference did it make which was which? That itself was the problem.
“I wouldn’t choose.”
“Huh?”
“You took the wrong path to begin with. Then you should turn back. Why keep walking it?”
“…Huh?”
Song Jong-in’s eyes went blank as he stared at Choi Yeon in a daze.
Why keep going down a wrong path? Well, for revenge…
“……”
Mid-thought, Song Jong-in looked down at his own hands. One held the persimmon, the other the liquor bottle. They felt strangely awkward.
How exactly was he supposed to achieve revenge with this? Could he really fulfill his role?
For the first time, doubt flickered through him.
“…You’re right.”
Song Jong-in nodded slowly.
He finished the persimmon, and the sweetness tasted stronger than before. It was all thanks to the junior beside him.
No wonder that old man had marked this kid as a successor.
Tap.
He set down the liquor bottle and stood up. Then he slowly drew the sword at his waist.
“You going to cut me down because you didn’t like my advice?”
“Heh heh. If you really thought that, why haven’t you drawn your sword?”
Because there was no killing intent or fighting spirit—Choi Yeon didn’t bother answering aloud and simply stood as well.
It didn’t seem like Song Jong-in wanted to start a duel now, so humoring him for the moment seemed fine.
Besides, the way Song Jong-in was looking at him felt warm—like a senior pleased with his junior.
“Slit-eyed junior, you’re not fond of thrusting attacks, are you?”
“No?”
“Heh, you sure lie well. At least moisten your lips first.”
“……”
“My nickname is Sword Demon. You think you can fool a demon?”
“…Even so, being completely honest feels a bit much, doesn’t it?”
He had been treated to chrysanthemum wine and shared persimmons, and even just given counseling.
Still, he was a hunter of the Eastern District. He couldn’t simply reveal all his cards to the Daejeon branch head of the Dark Fragrance Society.
Even though the other man had already read him completely.
As expected of the Chungcheong Sword Demon.
That title clearly wasn’t for show. Choi Yeon preferred slashing attacks, yet Song Jong-in had grasped that after only a few exchanges.
“Your eyes are too good, junior.”
“…Pardon?”
“You can already picture yourself after the thrust. And that image—full of openings, isn’t it?”
“……”
Choi Yeon silently agreed.
If his opponent looked like that, he would have thought them a fool and cut them down without hesitation.
Tap.
The tip of Song Jong-in’s sword pointed at Choi Yeon.
“But that’s your fault.”
“…My fault?”
“Your thrust is sloppy, so of course you keep seeing weaknesses.”
“My… fault?”
“Yeah. Look at me. The day I kept thrusting at you—you couldn’t cut me down in the end, could you?”
“……”
Again, Choi Yeon quietly agreed.
He could see Song Jong-in’s attacks and avoided them all, but he couldn’t connect a counterattack.
If he had tried to counter on that bridge, they wouldn’t be sitting together now sharing persimmons.
It wasn’t because Song Jong-in had used a thrusting skill to hide openings. Even without a skill, his thrusts had been threatening.
“So watch closely.”
“Watch…? Are you planning to teach me thrusting?”
“Yeah.”
“…Why?”
“Payment for the persimmon.”
After saying that simply, Song Jong-in spread his feet slightly. His shoulders drooped loosely, devoid of tension.
But the circulation of mana inside his body was completely different. The steady flow began to accelerate.
Not the slightest disruption appeared.
Step.
Song Jong-in’s left foot pressed into the ground. The recoil traveled upward, moving his body in sequence—legs, spine, shoulders, arm.
His entire body drove the sword forward in a thrust.
Boom…!
The sound of the air bursting briefly swallowed the rustling of cloth. Even though he had moved slowly to demonstrate for Choi Yeon, the power was tremendous.
Choi Yeon did not miss the reason.
During the thrust, the mana circulation synchronized and exploded at the sword’s tip.
“This… is Cham-hon (Soul Sever).”
“Cham-hon…”
“The faster it is—and the more mana you pack into it—the stronger it gets.”
“Oh, so it had that kind of property.”
Choi Yeon honestly admired it.
The faster, the stronger…
Seeing his interest, Song Jong-in smiled with satisfaction. Teaching was pointless if the student wasn’t intrigued.
Then he spoke to Choi Yeon, who was already mimicking the stance.
“So when you use Cham-hon, thrust with everything you’ve got. That’s the most important thing.”
“…Yes, understood.”
“I’ll keep watching, so want to try? It’ll be tricky to control at first—”
“Hmm. I think I can do it.”
“Huh?”
“…Yes?”
“You think you can?”
“Yes. That’s what I said.”
“Heh…”
Song Jong-in let out a soft chuckle as he studied Choi Yeon’s face.
Was he bluffing?
But the slit-eyed junior’s expression hadn’t changed at all. He was simply stating the truth.
Song Jong-in smirked.
Well, this kid was Choi Hee-seok’s successor. It would only be fitting if he could manage at least this much.
“…Did you just think something weird?”
“Huh? Nah, nothing much.”
Yeah, right.
That was clearly the same look as before—when he misunderstood things about being a successor.
Seeing Choi Yeon’s baffled face, Song Jong-in waved his hand dismissively and returned to the main point.
“Anyway. You think you can do it?”
“Yes.”
“Then that’s enough. Keep trying later. Eventually you’ll obtain Cham-hon. Or something else might come to you.”
“Something else?”
“That’s how skills are. I taught you Cham-hon, but sometimes you end up awakening a completely different skill.”
“Ah.”
Choi Yeon had heard of that happening.
Someone once learned a B-rank skill but manifested an E-rank one instead.
At first he thought he’d been scammed, but after learning the truth, he admitted it was his own misunderstanding.
The reason different skills manifested likely depended on specific conditions, disposition, or aptitude.
“…Thank you.”
“It’s fine. Payment for the persimmon.”
Whoosh, whoosh.
Song Jong-in waved his hand as if to say enough with the embarrassing gratitude.
Instead of thanking him again, Choi Yeon handed over the remaining persimmons in the bag.
Naturally, Song Jong-in accepted them with a grin.
Crunch!
They bit into fresh persimmons together. Sweetness and crisp texture blended pleasantly.
Then—
The sound of liquid sloshing.
“Oh, by the way… who is it?”
As if the thought had just occurred to him, Choi Yeon asked casually after another bite.
Because of that, Song Jong-in’s answer came a moment late.
“…Kang Do-hyun. A bastard who treats human lives like flies.”
“You mean the Black Ferryman?”
“Yeah. That’s the one.”
Kang Do-hyun, the Black Ferryman.
Choi Yeon had heard of him—a necromancer exposed while conducting magical experiments in an abandoned hospital outside Busan.
Over twenty corpses were discovered in rooms marked with a full-moon symbol. Some were even missing hunters.
Because of that incident, a bounty worth hundreds of millions had reportedly been placed on him.
“…Understood. If I obtain any information, I’ll contact you.”
“Heh. Sure. I’ll wait without expecting much.”
Song Jong-in chuckled briefly.
If even an Eastern District hunter active in Seonhwa-dong knew of him, it wouldn’t be strange if Song Jong-in had already encountered Kang Do-hyun.
And with fairly high probability, their battle might already have been decided…
Even knowing that, Choi Yeon crunched into his persimmon.
So did Song Jong-in.
＊ ＊ ＊
Under the red sky, Seodaejeon Intersection Station was bustling.
Everyone pouring out moved lightly, on their way home.
The same went for the protected tree in the park.
Office workers stopping for beer, residents walking their dogs, a girl with a sprout-shaped headband playing with a young man, and men watching them fondly.
One by one, the pleasant sounds faded.
The red sky slipped away, and dusk settled in.
That was when it happened.
A man approached silently like a shadow.
Though his body was hidden beneath a night-colored robe, his gaunt frame showed through.
His face was pale to the point of being bloodless. Expressionless and cold, his eyes swept the air as if conversing with something unseen.
“There it is. That’s the one…”
The man spoke without making eye contact with anyone.
His barely moving lips produced a low, quiet voice—like a chant that made the ears uncomfortable.
“Ugh…”
People around the protected tree covered their ears.
They didn’t want to listen, yet the voice kept slipping through their fingers.
“Withdraw, living ones. This is the time of the dead. Leave now while I am still merciful…”
“……”
Their eyes grew unfocused.
An office worker abandoned his beer and left.
A resident dragged their dog away.
Men frowned deeply and glared.
And then—
“…Hello.”
—the girl who had been playing stopped and greeted him.
The leaf on her headband tilted, almost like hands on hips.
“Mister. Can’t you hear me?”
“…?”
“Mmm… You’re supposed to greet people politely when you meet them. That’s what my teacher says…”
“……”
The man’s gaze locked onto the girl as if facing something incomprehensible.
Why doesn’t my chant work on this child?
And what about those young men standing beside her like knights?
He resumed his murmur. There was something he had to do before resolving his curiosity.
“Withdraw, living ones. It is the time of the dead.”
“Mmm… He’s not greeting back…”
“If you do not withdraw, you living ones will burn together with that tree—”
“You’re going to burn it?”
“…?”
Once again, the man’s eyes snapped to the girl.
My chant doesn’t work—and now she even reads my intention?
Seeing the unusual girl, the man grinned wildly.
“O God… Is it that you wished to show me this child?”
He closed his eyes.
With chin raised, he looked as though he were awaiting divine revelation.
Thud.
His head lowered again. When he opened his eyes, he looked sorrowful.
Perhaps no answer had come.
“…Fine. I’ll burn it first.”
“No!”
The girl shouted and stepped forward.
The young men standing together panicked and quickly moved in front of her.
The man watched them with a trembling laugh.
“Child. Park Chae-eun.”
“…!”
“Will you stop me?”
“…No.”
“Then will you block me with those dolls and bricks?”
“That’s not it. And they’re not dolls or bricks!”
“Well now. In my eyes, I can see it all, Chae-eun. Their fear. Their dread.”
“I’m not scared.”
“That is incorrect. Soon, you will fear me.”
Step.
The man planted his right foot forward and continued, as if telling her to watch.
“Because you cannot stop… my steps.”
Step.
He took another step with his left foot—
—and suddenly stopped.
Just now… there had been another set of footsteps.
“…You’ve already stopped me.”
A calm voice flew in.
Then, without warning, the man was stabbed in the back.
From the day the bounty was placed on him until now—
this was the first time anyone had gotten behind Kang Do-hyun.
“Nice to meet you, Mr. Kang Do-hyun.”
To stab someone in the back and then greet them leisurely…
For the first time in his life, Kang Do-hyun burst into laughter.
Was this too… an arrangement from God?
