Chapter 42
Responding to Do-yun’s summons—
The Seed of Specters revealed its presence in midair.
Gu-goong—
It throbbed with a steady rhythm, like a beating heart.
The surface of the seed swelled, and then an inky haze rose from it.
The core disgorged the specters it had contained.
‘Now they’re crawling out on their own, huh?’
Do-yun’s eyebrow twitched ever so slightly.
Their arrogance pierced the heavens.
「Kikikiki!」
「Kyakyakyakyak!」
Thousands of specters darted wildly between the dense forest and towering cliffs.
A herd of runaway colts intoxicated by liberation.
To the eyes of the specters, Do-yun now seemed like a sacrificial lamb laid upon the altar at a festival.
「Did you think we’d grovel at your feet forever?!」
「Time to raise our heads, don’t you think?」
Their tone had changed completely.
Brimming with cheap confidence.
And the source of that confidence was clear:
Do-yun wasn’t even at the level of a fledgling black magician.
A conductor who can’t read sheet music, a chef who’s never sharpened a knife—a hollow authority figure.
From the specters’ perspective, utterly laughable.
「But that guy… does seem a little different somehow?」
「Strange. I sense a familiar aura I didn’t feel before. Could he be… ‘one of us’?」
「So what if he is? You think we’ll kneel again because of that?」
Saaaaaa!
The specters surged like an ebon tidal wave toward the rock where Do-yun sat in quiet meditation.
「Show him what we’re made of!」
「Make him pay for his arrogance! Let him know his place!」
This was no feeble rebellion like before—
It was outright mutiny, forged from unadulterated malice.
Black tendrils snaked in from every direction, lunging to tear their master to shreds—
When suddenly, from Do-yun’s heart, it rang out:
Thump—
A surge of overwhelming black magic that made the rampaging specters falter.
「Th-this aura…?」
「Why does this human radiate such an intense sense of kinship…?」
The specters almost felt an illusion.
The pulse of dark magic emanating from his heart…
It felt as though it was linked to their very origin.
But mere kinship wasn’t enough to quench their bloodlust.
「Once we spread our wings and veiled the night sky, even the distant stars gazed upon us in awe.」
「Then our glorious wings were torn, and we were entombed in this accursed seed.」
「Our pride was trampled, our dignity scattered to dust. Because of him! Because of him!」
A cry of rancor echoed through Do-yun’s mind.
「Even if you share our blood, there will be no forgiveness!」
‘Normally, you’d need to reach Deep Abyssal Refinement to control them.’
The third stage of Abyssal Discipline.
The realm Erast Valter is believed to have attained.
The depth of the Necrcodex was incomparable to Forbidden Tome – Upper Volume.
But still, achieving that level of enlightenment in a day or two was impossible.
‘With just the state of Astral Projection, there’s no way I can suppress this frenzy. I fed them well myself, so now I’m paying the price…’
Yet at the corner of Do-yun’s lips played a relaxed smile.
As if holding a hidden trump card.
‘…Not like I aimed for that stage anyway. I don’t need to.’
The dark core that had sprouted in his chest began throbbing in resonance with his will.
[Activating: ‘Demonic Energy Conversion (AAA)’]
In that instant—
The very nature of the black magic shrouding Do-yun changed.
As though the foundation of his being was transfigured—
As though the very tier of his soul was overturned—
Sssaaah.
A darkness purer than pitch, stained with an ashen hue, wrapped around him.
It flared into black flames that engulfed his entire body.
From the wick of those flames burst forth a new radiance.
「Th-that is…?!」
「Impossible! The true source of demonic power…!」
Kwoooaaahhh—!
A torrent of violent, tyrannical violet aura, enough to devour the world.
The emblem of chaos, ruin, and absolute dominion.
Do-yun had manifested pure Demonic Qi.
He looked down at the ground beneath his feet.
“Kneel.”
「Kyaaaahhh! You—you dare…!」
Thousands of specters shrieked in a maelstrom of terror, awe, and despair.
The being before them was no longer a “rookie black magician” or a “pretender to dominion.”
He stood at the pinnacle of dark power, beyond the reach of rebellion or wrath.
Sasasasasat.
The specters began bowing their heads at Do-yun’s feet—
Like devotees witnessing a god incarnate.
The writhing tendrils in the air collapsed into a black tide that grovelled before him.
「Please… lead us! O mighty Lord of Darkness!」
「Grant us names! New names, so that we may be reborn under your power!」
「Names! Names! Names…!」
Their screams merged into a single colossal supplication that rattled Do-yun’s mind.
「We humbly beg you—clothe these wretched shadows in new flesh, by the glory of our Lord…!」
“If this keeps up, she won’t last much longer…”
Eidos trailed off, his gaze hovering aimlessly in the air, unable to land on the figure on the bed.
Barely perceptible breaths.
Eyes emptied into black voids.
The specter’s corruption had already reached its limit.
‘This is hopeless…’
Chayron, leaning against the window, hung his head and let out a deep sigh.
Modern medicine couldn’t touch it, nor could divine power.
An utterly bleak situation with no hope left.
All but one person had given up.
Han Yeon-ha gripped Seiren’s hand tightly, her eyes fixed on the door.
“He’ll come. He promised he would.”
If he returned as promised, this despair would end.
“You’re late.”
And then—
Do-yun came.
In the darkest hour, like a single beam of light, he stepped through the open door.
“Do-Do-yun-nim…!”
“You’re finally here, Hyun Do-yun!”
Han Yeon-ha and Eidos brightened, their faces flooding with relief.
But Chayron remained doubtful.
‘Even an S-rank healer couldn’t fix this. How the hell could Hyun Do-yun restore a shattered soul?’
The room brimmed with a cocktail of hope, expectation, doubt, and despair.
“Everyone out.”
“…?”
“I need to be alone with her. No one comes in.”
Something in Do-yun’s unyielding gaze sealed Han Yeon-ha’s lips shut.
“…Understood. No one will disturb you.”
Clack.
The door closed.
When Do-yun placed his hand on Seiren’s cold forehead—
“…You again.”
Her lips twisted.
This time, the voice didn’t echo inside his mind.
It spilled from Seiren’s own mouth, though laced with an alien, grotesque tone.
“So you’ve hijacked her vocal cords now, huh? Must feel proud. But guess what?”
Do-yun chuckled.
“Time to topple that fragile sandcastle you worked so hard to build.”
“Don’t make me laugh. The Mother commanded us to seize this vessel! Your wishes won’t change—”
“Then let’s hear from this oh-so-great ‘Mother’ herself, shall we?”
Do-yun snapped his fingers.
[Summon – ‘Seed of Specters’]
At the appearance of the Mother, the specters’ bravado instantly froze.
“Mo-Mother! We greet the Mother!”
Seiren’s face turned reverent.
“We have nearly completed the sacred rite to dominate this vessel. Just one last piece remains and she will be wholly—”
“Call it off.”
Do-yun’s curt words made the Seed react at once.
「Cease.」
“Wh-why cancel the holy rite?”
The specters within Seiren protested in confusion—
But their doubt was soon eclipsed by an even greater shock from the Mother’s decree.
「Obey this man without question. His word takes precedence over mine.」
“What? Mother, why would we bow to this pitiful human—”
The instant the words left its mouth—
An eruption of fury roared from the Seed, thick enough to kill.
「You dare call the Lord ‘a pitiful human’? Insolent, ignorant wretches…!!」
“Wh-what…?”
The Seed trembled as if in shame before Do-yun.
「We beg your forgiveness, Supreme Lord. It is our failing for not disciplining our children! You fools! Do you not see who stands before you? The Dark Lord to whom we shall offer our souls in eternal devotion!」
“…!?”
「Carry out His command without delay. Defy Him, and eternal severance shall be your fate!」
“Eeeek?! W-we shall obey! We submit to His will!”
The specters in Seiren’s body collapsed in terror, prostrating themselves—
Waiting only for Do-yun’s word.
“P-please forgive our insolence and grant us your mercy…”
“No need to tremble. I’m not casting you out.”
“Ahh, such boundless grace…!”
‘As if I’d let you go. You’ll stay bound and pay dividends forever.’
A wicked gleam flashed in Do-yun’s eyes.
“You will not interfere with this vessel’s body or mind. Any act against her will is forbidden.”
“We shall obey!”
This was more than exorcism—it was turning crisis into opportunity.
Do-yun planned to leave Seiren with a gift that would serve her well.
“And gather at her heart’s core to form a single nucleus. Control of it will belong to Seiren.”
“I thought all the praise for the Weird Hunter was a bit exaggerated…”
Chayron’s shoulders quivered.
As the door opened, Seiren’s face was serene—
But the tremor of awe from moments ago still hadn’t left him.
“This guy isn’t a hunter—he’s a damn universal cure for anomalies. Honestly, I’m speechless.”
“That’s not an anomaly…”
Do-yun, sinking into the couch, brushed it off.
“Forget it. How’s the New NPC Society doing lately?”
“Same old.”
Chayron crossed his arms, irritation clear.
“Thanks to you, we’re playing hero in one life-threatening volunteer mission after another. Much appreciated.”
“Well, keep lending a hand with gate control. That’s the only way you survive.”
“And that ‘Messiah Frame’—we’ve got a lot to say about that, too.”
A twitch flickered in Chayron’s brow.
His voice shook with barely checked anger.
“People still see NPCs as ticking time bombs. Sure, we managed to polish our image a bit. The media paints us as national heroes, and on social media? What’s the hashtag again?”
He shoved his phone in Do-yun’s face.
-The New NPC Society is divine!
-#LoyalForLife #ThanksForSavingUs
“So?”
Do-yun didn’t even blink, face blank.
Chayron exhaled a long sigh and finally let his thoughts slip.
“But what’s the point? Public opinion won’t stop a monster’s fangs. And most importantly—you…”
He stopped himself.
Words he couldn’t utter stuck to his tongue.
‘You wiped out all the growth-type NPCs in the Society! We’re at our peak now. Decline is inevitable. You think the world will still hail us as heroes then?’
Do-yun’s lips curled in a calm smile.
“Sounds like you’ve got a lot of complaints.”
“All we want is consistency.”
“Consistency?”
“Fine—treat us like dogs. We’ve got an unbreakable collar around our necks, thanks to you. That’s your right.”
Chayron’s breath trembled, thick with suppressed resentment and resignation.
“But then listen—if that’s how it is, we’ll harden our resolve too. We won’t sit still and take it. We’ll pour everything into snapping this damned leash and cutting your throat!”
“…?”
“But don’t you dare work us like slaves while pretending to be some Messiah. It’s revolting—I can barely keep from puking.”
Chayron glared straight into Do-yun’s eyes—
A blaze of defiance sparking between them.
“If you want to rule us, wear the devil’s mask and be consistent. If you want to win loyalty by saving us, then save us—completely and honestly!”
“How amusing.”
Do-yun’s lips curved into an icy smile—
And Chayron’s stomach plummeted.
‘Crap.’
He’d said too much in the heat of the moment.
Even without the Blood Pact, the gulf between them was an unscalable wall.
Push too far, and he’d be crushed like an insect.
“I was just about to bring that up, actually.”
Do-yun’s voice was oddly serene.
But his gaze wasn’t on Chayron—it reached for a far higher plane.
“Summon every member of the New NPC Society. I have an announcement for them all.”
