◈ Episode 320. The Difference (2)

“What, retreat?”

The Shinhwa Guild raid leader.

Kim Hyunseok rubs his brow nervously. After Gaon, Shinhwa is solidifying its position as the second best guild in Korea. However, in the eyes of the world, they were a frog in a well, with even the top 100 rankings at stake.

Still, there is such a thing as moderation.

“No, Analyst Nam. I’ll admit that our raids aren’t as good as they could be, and I’ll admit that Shinhwa looks even worse, especially when compared to Gaon, and I’ll admit that too. But don’t you think that’s a bit of an understatement?”

Gaon and Shinhwa have been working together since the rebuilding of Yusra.

While Gaon had vastly outpaced Shinhwa as a guild, Shinhwa had also been able to offer Gaon’s help in running the group as a chaebol with a great alliance.

Whatever anyone said, they gave and took.

Bad blood aside, business was business.

Gaon’s chief analyst.

It was clear that Nam Cheolmin was communicating with Shinhwa.

That’s why I wasn’t convinced.

-“I’m not ignoring Shinhwa guild.”

“Then tell me why, because I don’t understand. Look, our average level is 450, too. Shouldn’t we be able to make a good showing here? Ms. Baek will be joining us soon…….”

-“That’s not it, something unexpected happened.”

“What? An incident?”

Kim Hyunseok’s voice was urgent and his excitement was subdued.

Behind his voice, he could hear the sound of relentless typing.

Kim realized what was going on.

“……What happened up there?”

The Zero Mountains.

Vast and tall.

Ever since the update to the real world, there had been no shortage of incidents and accidents in the mountains. It was a given that a dragon would reside at its peak. It was somewhere in the Zero Mountains that Hoyeol, the Shadow Mercenaries, and the Great Evil had fought.

Kim Hyunseok cleared his throat.

“Still, the lower reaches should be fine, right? Of course, we should avoid unnecessary damage, but this is a lowland, isn’t it?”

He wasn’t wrong.

The vastness of the Zero Mountains isn’t just a bad thing. Even if something were to happen up there, the chances of it affecting those down below are slim to none.

But this was an exception.

-“Crazy.”

Thud.

Had the dancing fingers stopped?

The typing sounded like background music.

Nam Cheolmin’s shouting continued.

-“Mr. Kim Hyunseok. You’re not safe right now either. The Zero Mountains are backflowing! The high-level monsters that live up there have invaded the lower area and are descending into the lowlands!”

“……?!”

I said.

It was a complete denial of Arcana’s common sense.

But there was no questioning it.

[A ‘Bloodthirsty Mountain Wolf’ appears in the area].

“Ki, Chief Kim?!”

A bloodthirsty mountain wolf……!

A monster has appeared that I can’t recognize.

No matter what the listener might think, it was Kim Hyunseok, who had considered Nam Taemin as a rival. He’s an unbeatable fighter. He realizes his level every day, so he’s been watching Nam Taemin’s battles on video to get to know his rival.

That was a monster that even the mighty Nam Taemin struggled to kill.

[Bloodthirsty Mountain Wolf: Lv.685]

“Damn!”

-“Boss, did you really go down there already?”

“……It’s a Bloodthirsty Mountain Wolf.”

Kim Hyunseok looked back at the Shinhwa Guild’s power.

“……cih.”

Currently, Master, Baek Yiseol has not joined.

If everyone fights to the death…….

we might be able to do something about that one wolf.

However.

‘Their true strength is hunting in packs.’

A mob with a boss, a named monster, and a tricky pattern of organized movement. When Gaon had defeated them, Nam Taemin had bitten the boss, killed it, and then won the victory by blasting the disorganized group.

Kim Hyunseok gritted his teeth.

‘I am not Nam Taemin, and the Shinhwa are not Gaon.’

This is going to be annihilation.

A despairing quote popped into his head.

But Kim Hyunseok and Shinhwa had forgotten one thing.

They had forgotten one thing: Gaon’s brain was with them.

-“Sir. Please pass this on to the mages of the Shinhwa Guild and players with Agility stats above 400. Tell them to wound themselves to the point of [bleeding].”

“……!”

-“They have a habit of attacking their opponents’ weaknesses, the wounded first. If you have an Agility stat of 400 or higher, you can narrowly escape their pursuit. Mages, as you know, use teleportation at your discretion to put as much distance between you and them as your magic allows.”

Well, we’re still a long way from catching up to Gaon.

Kim Hyunseok immediately followed Nam Cheolmin’s words and gave the order.

The guild members quickly dispersed.

“Whoa.”

After receiving the report, Nam Cheolmin relaxed.

At this rate, all of Shinhwa could safely escape from the Mountain Wolf.

However.

“Eh?”

The position of the Shinhwa Guild updated on the monitor was abnormal.

For some reason.

They weren’t retreating, but rather advancing.

“Excuse me, Mr. Kim. Can you hear me?”

-“…….”

“Hey, Shinhwa Guild President Kim Hyunseok!”

Swoosh.

Ssshhhh.

The sound of running through the bushes continued.

It wasn’t a communication breakdown, nor was there anything wrong with him.

Nam Cheolmin hesitated, then clicked the mouse.

“……This is an emergency, please understand.”

The cooperation between Gaon and Shinhwa is a good one.

Until the drone monitoring, the cooperation was non-existent.

Nam Cheolmin muttered a rationalization.

“It’s a situation that even the commander-in-chief would understand.”

Nam Cheolmin moved one of Gaon’s drones spread across the Zero Mountains to illuminate the Shinhwa Guild’s location, which he saw thanks to his quick thinking.

“Is that……?”

Seven Akshan Demon Hunters.

And.

Dengeng─!

“What, what, what?!”

The sight of them attacking the player.

*

Poof!

Blood spurts everywhere.

An unpleasant stickiness against the skin.

I open my tightly closed eyes.

‘……That’s not my blood.’

Gremory touches her neck with a trembling hand.

It’s stuck.

It’s still there.

It wasn’t until she checked that she saw the player on the ground.

Gremory smiled, her voice trembling.

“Ha……. Hahahaha……. Hahaha!!!”

Now that’s power.

A bunch of lowly humans are demons.

Better than demon corps commanders, aren’t they?

“How dare you speak to my queen……!”

A lesser demon would have lost his cool with his ally lying dead, but look at these foolish adventurers. Aren’t they desperately protecting themselves?

‘With power, you can do it.’

Gremory realized the situation.

‘If this is a world where negative emotions fluctuate……!

A third world that was neither the Demon World nor the Arcana Continent.

She’d only been here for a short time, so it’s no wonder she knew so little, but she could tell a fever when she saw one. Because negative emotions never lie.

“hehe.”

The corners of Gremory’s mouth turn up.

The fear of her natural enemy hasn’t left her.

Gremory found an opening.

“You won’t be able to hold your own for long.”

I never thought the day would come when I would provoke Akshan, my natural enemy.

‘I forgive you, you bastard.’

I was growing more and more fond of the strange blood in my veins.

But the arrogant bastards still didn’t seem to want to talk.

Jeez.

Crash─

Jeez.

The seven demon hunters moved in unison.

Bolts reloaded into crossbows.

Gremory giggled behind the players surrounding him.

It was a bizarre sound, coming from a man who was terrified but hadn’t forgotten to laugh.

“What does the dog of Akshan know about how human life is treated in this land? I don’t see what’s wrong with humans killing each other, but what matters is that you humans killed them!”

That’s how you humans value insignificant lives.

This land, the Arcana Continent, the already devoured Seorn Continent.

They were all the same.

“You’ve done something no different than a demon!”

But as I said, this land.

The world of adventurers was full of contradictions.

Already non-humans were claiming to be human.

-“A supernova? He’s no better than a demon?”

-“Yes, my queen.”

-“Funny how scum like that can be called a hero.”

A demon that can see through negative human emotions.

It was a contradiction that only she could recognize.

Of course, it was good news for Gremory.

‘You will pay for all your sins.’

In this world, things will spread quickly through strange machines.

In reality, it was a human being drunk on their own power who took their own life, but in the eyes of lesser mortals, it was ……. The corners of Gremory’s mouth twitched upward.

“You are a human hunter, not a demon hunter, aren’t you?”

Yes!

Those Akshan bastards can only be seen as murderous.

Gremory rolled her eyes.

‘I never realized how much good it would do to avoid battle.’

There was much to be gained from this battle.

A true test of power, of course.

But more importantly.

A chance to deny Akshan.

Like the holy war on the Arcana continent once upon a time.

To drive the resurrected Akshan back.

A chance to nip it in the bud.

Tadadak!

“You have a lot of anger.”

At that moment, the Demon Hunters rushed in.

‘So persistent.’

Gremory smiled, but gritted her teeth.

She was a new body.

The horror of being imprinted as prey hadn’t worn off.

It seemed the same for the other.

‘It’s so annoying.’

Even with their backs to the wall,

Akshan is not deterred.

No blood, no tears, no emotions.

Push!

The crossbow bolt accelerates.

Boom!

Like a well-trained hound’s leash.

Swoosh!

The silver thread attached to the bolt is tugged.

Swoosh─!

The crossbow bolt begins to bend in an unpredictable direction.

Gremory cried out urgently.

“Protect me……!”

At first, she thought she was being targeted, surrounded by adventurers no doubt.

But the madmen of Akshan were beyond her imagination.

Cuck!

“Huh?!”

The reason for the bizarre deflection of the crossbow bolt was simple enough.

The adventurers were simply looking for a seam in the armor, a weak spot.

“Kugh……?!”

Fluttering─

Not satisfied with one adventurer falling to the ground holding his neck.

The intention was to immediately give the bolt to the adventurer next to her.

Cuck!

Cuck!

Cuck!

“kugh?!”

“eugh!”

“heog!”

The adventurers collapse and faint.

“……You’re crazy.”

Gremory was not convinced.

As she said, things weren’t so bad now.

Akshan’s insanity was making her sick.

“You don’t mind killing humans to hunt me, do you? You’re just as insane as I’ve heard, Akshan. No wonder the great demons of the Arcana continent tremble before you……!”

Gremory realized again.

Akshan, they are dangerous.

When you can nip them in the bud.

It must be pulled out by the roots so that it can never raise its head again.

In that sense, it was a good time for her own.

They are not enemies for nothing.

As much as she recognized Akshan, there was still a part of her that believed in him.

“But this is not the Arcana Continent.”

To hunt demons.

Akshan would do whatever it took.

An unacceptable world.

A glance.

Gremory’s gaze turns to the player.

I’ve heard that little gadget on the suit of armor – the body camera – acts as a sort of evil eye. It must be spreading the madness of the Akshan madmen far and wide.

Gremory recognized the enemy.

“You will not be understood in this land, Akshan, as you were on the Arcana continent. Do you know why? Because humans are born that way, and they all harbor evil within them.”

“…….”

Funnily enough, no answer.

“Enough.”

Then Gremory had no intention of wasting any more time.

Yes, it was time to break the tiresome food chain.

Gremory summoned the power of demons, great evil, and hybrids.

“Rise up. My soldiers.”

……rise.

The fallen players flinched.

Gremory laughed in satisfaction.

‘Reborn, I am no longer the hunted.’

But.

There was one thing Gremory had overlooked.

Gremory had overlooked.

Akshan’s second iron law.

『When [Exorcism Ritual] is active.

Demon Hunter’s attacks.

only deal damage to demons.”』

“……Whoosh!

“……Thud!”

The mortally wounded player who had fallen to the ground lets out a ragged breath.

He clutches at his impaled throat.

No wounds, no bleeding, no pain.

Yes, there is only one thing visible.

A flashing message.

[Status Abnormality, ‘Torture’ dispelled].

“?!”

At the same time, Gremory’s pupils fluttered wildly.

She realized in hindsight.

It wasn’t just fear she’d been holding in earlier.

“Ugh……?!”

Cuck!

Blood rose in Gremory’s throat.

……How?

How the hell were the humans still alive?

Surely, their throats were impaled.

This is unreasonable.

It doesn’t make sense.

I don’t understand.

Why should I, a demon with the power of both a demon and a great evil.

Why do I have to vomit blood like this.

I can’t admit it…….

Never……!!

This moment.

The hundreds of emotions Gremory felt.

could only be described by one word.

‘……, I have to escape!’

It’s a natural enemy that can never be overcome.