Chapter 23
The Arrival of Calamity
“What in the world…?”
Chi Yulang muttered, staring at the two tails sprouting from the fox’s rear.
Though she had seen all sorts of beasts since arriving on this cursed island, a fox suddenly sprouting a second tail with a pop was a first.
“How bizarre.”
Chi Yulang reached out and touched the fox’s tails.
They were soft and fluffy, pleasant to the touch.
The fox, seemingly surprised by its own newly sprouted second tail, curled its body into a ball and sniffed at it curiously.
Pant, pant!
Then, as if in a good mood, it began circling Chi Yulang, prancing around gleefully.
Chi Yulang crossed her arms and quietly observed the fox’s antics.
“It seems to have grown a bit bigger than before.”
Was it possible for something to grow so quickly?
She didn’t know.
She wasn’t well-versed in the ecology of beasts, nor was she particularly curious about it.
But one thing was clear: this creature defied common sense.
Since it had sprouted a tail out of nowhere, she could only accept it as it was.
Chi Yulang turned her head to check the straw bedding where she slept.
It felt empty.
The mana stones she had stockpiled to prevent her streaming room from running out of power were gone.
The culprit wasn’t hard to find.
Beasts didn’t dare come near this place for some reason, so it had to be this little mischievous creature that had eaten them all in the meantime.
“Tch. I’ll have to gather more.”
But for some reason, she wasn’t angry.
It was a bit annoying, though.
Tossing the ginseng aside, she asked.
“Won’t you eat anything else?”
The fox trotted over, sniffed the ginseng, and then gagged dramatically.
“Others are desperate for that stuff, and here you are, acting picky.”
Chi Yulang shot a disapproving glance at the fox, which continued to circle her.
What a finicky creature. So high-maintenance. Maybe she should just chase it away.
Whine. Whimper.
At that moment, the fox, which had been darting around happily, approached and rubbed its head against her leg, acting affectionate.
Chi Yulang frowned and gently pushed its head away.
“Why are you suddenly acting all friendly? It doesn’t suit you.”
Whine! Whimper!
The fox clung to her leg, showering her with affection, its tails wagging incessantly.
“This guy, playing the fox now.”
But to the leader of all demons, Heavenly Demon Chi Yulang, such tricks were futile.
“Get away from me.”
As Chi Yulang tried to escape, the fox wagged its tails and chased after her.
“I said, get away!”
Pant, pant!
Under the moonlight, the twin-tailed girl and the silver-gleaming fox cub chased each other around.
————-
This was the hideout of the Extermination Squad.
Click-clack-
The youngest member of the Extermination Squad, Jegal Samdol, was diligently editing videos as usual.
Dark circles hung heavily under his eyes.
Click, tap!
“Done!”
Jegal Samdol raised his arms in triumph, grinning widely.
If I upload this, I can finally rest…!
“Hmm~”
The thought of sweet, honey-like rest brought a hum to his lips.
Click, click!
He logged into Kwitch to upload the video.
“Hm?”
A batch of fresh, new videos had arrived in his email.
“Oh…”
The hope in Samdol’s eyes died.
I’m going to die like this.
Seriously, at this rate, he’d collapse from overwork.
I need to figure something out…
Jegal Samdol, the clever one of the Extermination Squad, began racking his brain.
“Samdol.”
“?”
A voice called out to him.
But when he looked around, no one was there.
For a moment, Jegal Samdol wondered if he was hearing the whispers of a demon.
“Over here, here.”
Upon closer inspection, the squad’s vice-leader, Trash Pang Deokjo, was calling him from a distance, subtly using a stealth technique.
When did he learn stealth techniques?
“Come here! Hurry!”
Pang Deokjo gestured urgently, glancing around as if he’d just robbed a bank.
Samdol got up and approached him.
“Deokjo hyung?”
“Shh!”
Pang Deokjo discreetly led Samdol to the terrace, constantly checking their surroundings.
Samdol, quick to catch on, lowered his voice naturally.
“What’s going on?”
“Take this.”
Without a word, Pang Deokjo handed him something wrapped in paper.
“What’s this?”
“You’ll see.”
“Gasp!”
Unwrapping the paper, Jegal Samdol was shocked at what he found.
“T-This…! It’s an elixir, isn’t it?”
“Shh! Don’t raise your voice. That woman might be watching from somewhere!”
“Hyung…”
Jegal Samdol looked at Pang Deokjo with moved eyes.
As expected, despite being called trash or garbage, no one looked out for him like Pang Deokjo.
Ah, was this the bond of the organization?
“Eat it quick, before someone sees.”
“Thank you!”
Jegal Samdol swallowed it eagerly.
“Ohh…!”
His exhausted body filled with vibrant energy, and his fatigue melted away like snow.
He instantly understood why people paid so much for elixirs.
Pang Deokjo grinned and said.
“How is it? Pretty great, right?”
“Yesss…”
Jegal Samdol murmured in a blissful tone.
“Now you’re an accomplice.”
“Yess… Wait, what?”
Samdol snapped back to reality.
“An accomplice? N-No way.”
“That’s right. I swiped a few of these from what that woman told me to sell.”
“…!”
What a mistake!
The saying that people can’t be fixed flashed through Jegal Samdol’s mind.
He should’ve been suspicious from the start about how someone like Pang Deokjo had such a precious elixir!
It was because of the sleepless nights that his brain wasn’t working properly.
Murderous intent surged within him.
He wanted to strangle the smugly grinning Pang Deokjo!
“Hyung, really? You’re doing this?”
“I felt bad for you and shared it, and you’re getting mad instead of grateful?”
“Shared? You just didn’t want to go down alone, so you’re dragging me with you! Typical Trash Pang Deokjo.”
“What, punk? You done talking?”
“I’m not done! You filthy insect! Despicable trash! If you’re gonna die, die alone!”
“You little…!”
Boom!
Pang Deokjo and Jegal Samdol, grabbing each other by the collar, simultaneously turned their heads.
Boom!
The sound came from outside the village, toward the Abyss Forest.
Flap!
Birds took flight.
Boom!
The ground shook.
The vibrations grew stronger, and the rumbling grew closer.
Boom!
The old masters of Silverwood Forest stepped out or climbed onto rooftops, staring toward the source of the sound.
Their faces were uniformly grim.
Crack!
Trees fell one after another.
Everyone watched in silence.
Boom!
A calamity was approaching.
Finally, a massive beast arrived at the village’s edge and roared.
ROOOOAR!
“…What the hell.”
Pang Deokjo muttered.
Whoosh!
At the same time, the old masters of Silverwood Forest rushed forward to confront the beast.
This was their last sanctuary.
They would die here if it came to it.
“Damn it.”
Though his hands trembled, Pang Deokjo couldn’t just stand there.
He climbed onto the railing.
As he was about to leap forward, he glanced at Jegal Samdol, who was staring up at him blankly.
“What are you doing?”
“Huh?”
“You’re not going?”
Pang Deokjo’s face twisted fiercely.
Is this guy nuts?
But Jegal Samdol remained calm.
“Hyung, have you heard the saying? With great power comes great responsibility.”
“Why bring that up now?”
“Flip it around, and it means if you don’t have great power, you don’t have much responsibility either. Like me.”
“….”
“I haven’t learned martial arts. I’m just a civilian. If I go, I’ll only be a burden.”
What is this guy talking about?
Pang Deokjo glared at him murderously.
“It’s obvious you won’t be much help either, so why not stay here with me?”
“Hey, you punk!”
Grab!
Pang Deokjo seized Samdol by the collar.
“You call that an argument?”
“Did I say anything wrong?”
Why was it?
His own hands were trembling, but Samdol’s eyes didn’t waver in the slightest.
Pang Deokjo asked in a shaky voice,
“Aren’t you… scared?”
“Well, would being scared change the situation?”
“…Crazy bastard.”
Pang Deokjo let go of his collar as if throwing it.
“Whatever, I’m going. You hide here or run away, do whatever you want.”
“Hmm…”
Jegal Samdol rubbed his chin, muttering.
“Why did that thing show up so suddenly? Right now, of all times, in this place?”
Pang Deokjo snapped back, as if to say what nonsense he was spouting.
“What, you think beasts give warnings before showing up?”
After a moment of thought, Jegal Samdol looked up.
“Hyung.”
“What, punk?”
“Don’t be too reckless. Someone might show up at the critical moment.”
Was it thanks to the elixir he’d given him? His eyes were clear.
“…Crazy bastard.”
Pang Deokjo leaped over the railing.
————-
At the village’s edge, the elders gathered.
They stood to face an uninvited guest.
That’s why they were there.
Shadows fell over the faces of Silverwood Forest’s old masters.
“What a monster.”
“Probably Rank 3. A high-tier one at that.”
“Brings back old memories.”
“Do we have any transcendent masters among us?”
“Old Man Gilnam and Granny Okbun.”
“Just those two?”
“Yeah. The rest are dead.”
“Damn old geezers.”
“…This is gonna be tough.”
“Let’s go anyway.”
The beast let out a massive roar.
Raising its arm, adorned with eerie claws, it swung down.
“Dodge!”
Just as its strike was about to land—
Crack-crack-crack!
From head to toe, it froze solid in an instant.
It was an unbelievable sight.
The old masters were stunned.
“W-What’s this?”
“I don’t know either.”
Then, a voice came from above.
“Hmm! I almost had a disaster on my hands. No need for thanks.”
Looking up, they saw a figure standing atop the beast’s head.
A silver mask gleamed in the sunlight.
“That was dangerously close! If I hadn’t rushed back after the leader’s bad feeling…”
If you listened closely, the tone was awkwardly theatrical, but given the situation, no one noticed.
“Who’s that?”
“You know, that Demonic Cult guy we saw the other day.”
“Natural Black Tiger?”
“That’s the one?”
“Yeah!”
“Didn’t know he was that strong.”
“Phew, we almost all died.”
“We owe him our lives.”
Pang Deokjo’s jaw dropped.
“…What’s going on?”
He hadn’t believed it, but it happened just as Samdol said.
At the critical moment, a savior appeared like a miracle!
Was Samdol a prophet or something?
“Huff! Huff!”
“…Dusik hyung?”
Turning at the sound of heavy breathing, he saw Nam Dusik in his red robe, panting heavily.
With bloodshot eyes, Nam Dusik asked.
“Are you okay? Nothing happened?”
“Yeah, big sis saved us…”
“Big sis?”
For some reason, Nam Dusik glared at the savior chattering atop the frozen beast’s head, muttering curses under his breath.
“That crazy bastard.”
“Don’t badmouth our big sis!”
Nam Dusik stared in disbelief at Pang Deokjo, who was suddenly defending the silver-masked figure as ‘big sis.’
He was about to say something when—
“Hmm. What’s this guy?”
Pang Deokjo and Nam Dusik flinched in shock.
An elderly man with graying sideburns was suddenly standing beside them.
He had been right there, yet they hadn’t noticed him until he spoke.
Despite his age, his posture was straight and sturdy, and he held a long spear, taller than himself, diagonally in one hand.
He was like a well-honed spear.
Nam Dusik knew only one master like this.
“A-Aren’t you the Alliance Leader? Why are you here…?”
Before the Alliance Leader could answer, something dropped from the frozen beast’s head and approached them.
“Alliance Leader? Why are you here?”
The Martial Alliance Leader, Spear Dragon Kang Yoon-je, narrowed his eyes.
“Who are you?”
“It’s me.”
As the figure removed the mask, a face as fair as white jade appeared.
The Alliance Leader’s eyes widened.
“No way, Heavenly Black Feather? You’re alive?”
“Yup. Haven’t you heard? Your news is slow.”
“I heard rumors, but I thought they were just hearsay.”
“Why’d you come all the way here? Don’t tell me the busy Alliance Leader came out for this guy?”
“No way.”
“Then?”
At that moment, the area around the frozen beast’s stomach turned red, and then—Splatter!
Red blood burst forth.
Crack!
The frozen beast shattered all at once, collapsing into pieces.
Step-
Behind it, a figure emerged.
It was someone wearing a hood pulled low, and the path they walked was stained red.
The Alliance Leader pointed his spear at them.
“I came for that guy.”
Dam Wolrin blinked.
“Huh, this wasn’t part of the plan.”
————
Meanwhile, at that very moment—
“Look at this! Kkojil’s got two tails now!”
– ?
– ???
Chi Yulang was streaming.
