Chapter 8
A chorus of terrified screams echoed through the air. It was sudden. Monsters were popping up everywhere in the heart of Seoul.
However, people knew how to survive in a world with monsters, and they quickly began fleeing to shelters. There were many bomb shelters in Seoul where they could hide from the monsters.
Of course, not everyone could make it to such places.
“Ahhh! What do I do…!”
A woman’s shrill scream pierced the air. A massive, muscular creature with crab claws let out a menacing laugh as it slowly approached.
[Hello, little one. Kheh, kheh-heh-heh.]
In front of the crab monster stood a child who had fallen over, paralyzed by fear, tears streaming down their face. The child’s mother could not bring herself to confront the crab monster. Yet, she couldn’t abandon her child to escape alone, so she wished desperately for someone to help.
And the help she longed for did not come from a magical girl.
With a slashing sound, the crab monster’s body was split in two. The child sat there in a daze before someone who had easily killed the crab monster.
The child’s mother realized that the one who had slain the crab monster was the Black Knight. She had seen him on the news before.
It’s the end. The child would surely be cut in half by that Black Knight’s bloodied sword, and even a magical girl wouldn’t be able to stop it.
Unlike what the mother was thinking, the Black Knight crouched down and made eye contact with the child.
[You need to hurry to the shelter. This part of Seoul is no place for weaklings like you to wander.]
At the Black Knight’s words, the child didn’t even think to respond. They simply nodded, burst into tears, and ran to embrace their mother.
As the mother stared blankly at the Black Knight, she realized he was looking directly at her.
And then, whoosh. The Black Knight vanished in an instant.
***
Now, where to next? I began to roam around Seoul, taking care of the nearby monsters first.
Of course, I could have targeted the stronger monsters, but I chose to deal with the weaker ones nearby one by one.
There were two reasons. First, to find Baek Seung-hyun’s memories, I needed to defeat as many monsters as possible. The second reason was that even the weaker monsters were still monsters.
Whether they were A-rank or C-rank monsters didn’t matter. After all, ordinary people could only helplessly die when monsters appeared. Usually, weaker monsters would be easily dealt with by magical girls, so the stronger ones would be prioritized. But this was a special situation. The magical girls were likely overwhelmed and disorganized.
So I chose to take my time, systematically eliminating each monster. I spread my aura around and soon detected a presence.
[This is….]
An A-rank monster. It was undoubtedly the strongest among the monsters that had appeared during the current outbreak.
Without hesitation, I stepped in front of the monster. What lay before me was a hornet monster, gnawing on what appeared to be human flesh.
…Ugh, disgusting.
[Who are you? I feel like I’ve seen you somewhere… Ah, it’s the Black Knight!]
The hornet monster spoke, recognizing me. The creature, a blend of human and hornet features, was about my height. It slowly approached me.
[I heard you escaped from Bing Seol Hwa, right? Yes, you were definitely an A-rank. Why have you appeared here?]
The hornet monster seemed to be trying to converse amicably, but then it pulled out a stinger from its arm and swung it at me. I easily deflected it.
[Oh? You blocked it?]
The hornet monster made a noise that could be interpreted as a laugh and continued.
[Alright, I admit it. You’re definitely strong. Most monsters would be hit and dead by now, but you’re the first one to react.]
I opened my mouth at those words.
[Did you kill the monster?]
[Yeah, I did. What of it? Those worthless creatures think they’re equal just because they’re all monsters, so I ate them all up. Killing monsters helps my magic grow, you know? It really feels good—]
Hearing its words, I realized something.
[I see. So, it was prison, huh.]
[Huh?]
The hornet monster, who had been scratching its face for a moment, spoke with a buzzing sound.
[Yeah, those pathetic ones called me a drug dealer and locked me up. But then suddenly, someone gave me a black seed. They said eating it would grant me power.]
The monster continued, making a buzzing noise.
[The Seed of Darkness, yeah, the Seed of Darkness. Only a few inmates received it, and I devoured all the monsters in that prison.]
Now I understood. This guy had become addicted to the sensation of growing stronger by eating monsters. He probably enjoyed hunting monsters without a shred of camaraderie.
[Thanks.]
[What?]
[Thanks to you, I have fewer annoyances to deal with.]
Yes, this was sincere. A guy who betrays and eats other monsters is despicable, but thanks to him, people were suffering less.
[Thank you? Thank you? Ha… What am I supposed to do? You won’t feel grateful when I eat you!]
With a whoosh, the hornet monster charged at me, using its wings to move even faster. At that, I couldn’t help but snicker.
[-Too slow.]
Bam! I grabbed the hornet monster and slammed it into the ground. It trembled, then quickly rolled away from me.
[W-what? How, how did you catch me?!]
It seemed to have been quite confident in its speed.
[I just saw you and caught you. Watching you roll on the ground to escape was quite amusing. You really suited being pathetic.]
Should I poke at its pride a bit more?
Then, the hornet monster screamed in fury.
[I’ll kill you! How dare you underestimate me!!!!!!!]
Swish.
One of its arms was severed.
[Oh? I was thinking of splitting your body in half, but you’re faster than I thought.]
The hornet monster, having lost an arm, stared blankly.
[H-how… how is this possible? I’m definitely an A-rank monster…?]
[You seem to be under some misunderstanding.]
I took a step closer to it.
[You aren’t even worthy of being my prey.]
[D-don’t come near me… Don’t come…!]
I sliced its body in half. Hmm, I expected this, but it truly hadn’t grown at all. Even as an A-rank monster, it was no match for the gap between it and Bing Seol Hwa.
After dealing with the hornet monster, someone approached, clapping their hands.
“I saw your performance. You were amazing!”
A woman with brown hair styled in a two-sided updo, dressed in flamboyant clothing. I recognized her identity.
[You’re the one behind this incident, aren’t you?]
The executive of the New Humanity Association, Bastet. She was a monster known for causing chaos using the Seed of Darkness in the original story.
And, notably… she was a monster capable of “human transformation.”
“Yeah, that’s right. I wanted to stir things up a bit since Korea has been in an uproar over a single monster, and it looks like it worked. You really are impressive.”
…So, she caused this incident solely to meet me. No wonder the ones who had been inactive suddenly started moving.
“I’d like to have a chat while looking at your face. Try transforming into a human.”
[No, thank you.]
“Oh, you’re a bit prickly. Well then, let’s cut to the chase: How about joining our organization—”
Whoosh!
The woman transformed into her monstrous form in an instant, dodging my sword. She was a monster resembling a black cat. I clicked my tongue at my missed attack.
[Ahaha, you’re quite prickly. Can’t you at least listen?]
[No way.]
What does she mean by listening? They are villains intent on destroying the world. Naturally, it’s right to kill them whenever possible.
[Well, then there’s nothing I can do. I suppose I’ll just be satisfied with seeing your face today and try to escape. I wonder if I can hold out against you for five minutes.]
[Why not fight me? If you win, I might consider your offer. I could be weaker than you think.]
At my words, Bastet let out a snicker.
[You talking big while exuding a menacing aura doesn’t hold any credibility. See you next time~]
Whoosh. I felt disappointment at her sudden disappearance. It seemed I had let my guard down without concentrating my energy. I should have killed her even if it meant using my skills.
No, she was always cautious in the original story. The outcome wouldn’t have changed anyway. With that thought, I sheathed my sword.
And just then, I felt a familiar magical presence.
I looked up at the sky. What I saw was pure white.
“Black Knight.”
Bing Seol Hwa was glaring at me.
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