Kim Min-woo followed behind Park Sung-hyun, feeling deeply uneasy.
‘Konkuk University Station, huh.’
Park Sung-hyun had declared that they were going to eliminate a villain who was using illusions to deceive people at that location.
‘This time, there’s some truth to it... but still.’
Min-woo had heard firsthand accounts from people who had been there.
The idea that one could travel to Busan through Konkuk University Station already seemed absurd, but the other stories were even harder to believe.
They spoke of abundant food supplies, electricity, running water, gas, and even fully operational restaurants and cafés.
‘That’s impossible.’
Something like that simply couldn’t exist.
Honestly, Park Sung-hyun’s claim—that someone was using illusions to manipulate people for an unknown purpose—seemed more plausible.
Even so, Min-woo couldn’t fully trust what Park Sung-hyun said.
‘The man’s lied too many times before.’
Like the boy who cried wolf.
There had been several times when Park Sung-hyun had mobilized troops like this.
The justification was always similar:
But recently, he had uncovered the truth about Park Sung-hyun and his leadership.
He had overheard a conversation while trying to catch a rat.
(So, where’s the next human hunt happening?)
(Hmm. We’ve cleaned out this area, so we need to go farther out.)
(Heh. I really prefer going on these little trips just with us. Boss, please save any pretty girls for me. Hehehe.)
(Hey, those are mine.)
(Tch. I told you before, don’t talk to me, you disgusting cannibal. You make me sick.)
(Hah. Don’t you know the saying? ‘A pretty meal is a good meal.’)
To think that every single member of the leadership—except for him—was absolute trash.
Park Sung-hyun and his officers were nothing but monsters in human skin.
One was obsessed with rape, another was a deranged cannibal.
And soon after, Min-woo realized the true reason why Park Sung-hyun regularly disappeared.
It was for "human hunting."
His trust in the man shattered instantly.
Had the people they’d killed really been villains?
Once that belief was gone, he finally started to see the truth around him.
Park Sung-hyun killed people far too easily.
Before, Min-woo had thought those who were executed were simply idiots.
“Everyone’s starving, why steal?”
“That guy ran his mouth too much.”
“If you leave, you’ll just get eaten by monsters anyway.”
He had genuinely thought that way.
He had assumed that those who died were simply people who failed to adapt to the new world.
But that was only because his circumstances were different.
As an Awakener, Min-woo and his family had received preferential treatment.
While others starved to death, his family had received just enough food to survive.
There was never a reason to go against Park Sung-hyun.
But what if it had been his own family on the execution list?
Would he still have justified it?
‘...Damn it.’
After learning the truth about Park Sung-hyun and his officers, Min-woo wanted desperately to escape.
But he couldn’t.
"Min-woo."
"...Yes, Sung-hyun-nim."
"Got something on your mind lately?"
"...No."
"Really?"
Park Sung-hyun looked down at him coldly and continued.
"You’d better behave. For the sake of your parents and little sister back at base. Got it?"
A chill ran down Min-woo’s spine.
"...I understand."
"Don’t just try—do it. Do it well."
"...I will."
He was in too deep.
Min-woo could escape alone if he had to.
But taking his family with him was impossible.
‘And if I try to run, this bastard will hunt me down himself.’
Min-woo was strong.
After surviving countless battles, he knew exactly where he stood.
He was one of the top Awakeners.
But even so, compared to Park Sung-hyun, he was nothing but a firefly before a raging flame.
No matter where he ran, Park Sung-hyun could find and kill them all.
‘To survive, I need to shelter under someone just as strong as him.’
But who would take him in, knowing the kind of enemy he’d bring with him?
He was skeptical.
‘Damn it.’
Unless Park Sung-hyun died, freedom was impossible.
‘I have to kill him. With my own hands.’
The fact that all of the elite Awakeners were participating in this raid proved how dangerous the mission was.
‘After all, these guys wiped out JHS and defeated that monster at Konkuk University Station.’
Everyone knew about the legendary blade golem that had roamed the area.
‘For them to have taken control of that place... they must have some real combat ability.’
Even if the illusionist theory was true, they still weren’t as bad as Park Sung-hyun.
‘My chance will come. It has to.’
If he killed Park Sung-hyun during this battle and escaped with his family, he could handle whatever came next.
And then—
Thud. Thud. Thud.
A loud noise echoed from the right.
"What’s that sound?"
"What the hell?"
Then—
"Prepare for combat!"
A massive monster appeared in the air.
Kwaaaaang!
"Huh?"
"Why is that thing here...?"
The creature that crashed into the concrete road was covered in black scales and jagged spikes.
It was the size of a house, with venomous fangs glistening under its jaw.
A Black Thorned Spider.
Its appearance sent waves of fear through the group.
‘That thing’s territory is supposed to be far from here.’
Seoul was a monster-infested hell.
Creatures as strong as the Black Thorned Spider typically claimed their own territories and stayed there.
A boss-tier monster never ventured this far from its domain.
The fact that it had suddenly appeared here was shocking.
But there was a reason for it.
"Shit!"
"I-It’s wounded! Focus fire on its left side!"
The Black Thorned Spider that had fallen from the sky was in a terrible state.
Its left face had been completely torn off, three of its legs were missing, and its entire body was shredded.
It looked like it could drop dead at any moment.
It had been driven out of its territory.
With Kim Jae-hyun’s forces expanding their domain, monsters were being displaced from their usual hunting grounds.
Not just humans—monsters were suffering too.
And the Black Thorned Spider’s arrival was just one consequence of that chaos.
"Attack!"
Fwooosh!
The Black Thorned Spider’s face burst into flames, ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ signaling the start of an all-out assault.
However, with its body covered in reptilian scales and jagged thorns, conventional attacks barely made a dent.
But the fighters gathered here were the elite of the elite from the Seocho faction.
"Focus all attacks on the wounds!"
They quickly assessed the situation and executed the optimal strategy.
But that only made things worse.
The Black Thorned Spider, sensing its imminent death, burned the last of its strength in a final desperate struggle.
"Ugh!"
Several fighters were thrown back in an instant, their formation collapsing.
And then—
"Tch. Pathetic."
Unable to watch any longer, Park Sung-hyun stepped forward.
Seeing this, Kim Min-woo’s eyes gleamed.
'This is my chance!'
A wounded beast was always the most dangerous.
Even Park Sung-hyun could end up exposing a fatal opening in this fight.
'You dared to threaten my family? I’ll kill you myself.'
But, unfortunately, that opportunity never came.
Shlick!
In the blink of an eye, Park Sung-hyun leaped onto the spider’s back and sliced off its head with a single swing of his claws.
'...What?'
Kuuung!
The massive head crashed onto the concrete, and the rampaging body collapsed lifelessly.
"Woooooah!"
As the others cheered, Kim Min-woo could only stare in shock at Park Sung-hyun.
'...He got even stronger?'
A month ago, he hadn’t been this powerful.
But now, he was on a completely different level.
Even though the Black Thorned Spider was already injured, to kill it in one strike?
'...Monster.'
He wasn’t human.
Not someone Min-woo could ever match.
'...I have to give up.'
Stabbing that monster in the back?
After what he just witnessed, it was impossible.
If he made a move, the only result would be—
'My family will be the ones who die.'
There had to be another way.
Some way to escape his grasp.
'Please...'
Even though he knew there was no God, he still prayed.
He had seen too much suffering, too much horror, to believe in divine intervention.
He had even watched people beg for God’s help right before they died.
He never believed.
And yet—
'Please... Let that demon...'
When faced with his own powerlessness, all he could do was pray.
'Be destroyed.'
Because he had no other options.
And then—
Thump—!
'...Huh?!'
A searing pain tore through his entire body.
Especially his heart—it felt like it was being ripped apart.
At the same time, he found himself completely frozen in place.
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'What... What’s happening?!'
And it wasn’t just him.
The cheers around him abruptly fell silent.
"Why are you all standing around?! Move!"
The only person still able to move... was Park Sung-hyun.
But something was off—his voice was filled with panic.
"I said MOVE, YOU BASTARDS!! MOVE OR I’LL KILL YOU ALL!!"
But no one moved.
And then—
Squish... Squish...
A man appeared, his footsteps making a sickening squelching sound.
And as he approached—
Thud—!
'!!!'
A horrific sound echoed through the air.
A sound like flesh being torn apart.
Kim Min-woo forced himself to turn his head.
"Khhhk—!"
And what he saw was a nightmare.
'H-Heck!'
Splurt—!
Bodies exploded, chunks of flesh rolling across the ground.
Every step the man took painted the surroundings red with blood.
Yet Min-woo couldn’t do anything.
All he could do was watch death approach with horrified eyes.
'D-Don’t come near me!'
Was it fear holding him still?
Or was it that man’s ability?
'Hrk!'
Even shedding tears in terror felt forbidden.
And then—
Squish—
The man glanced at Min-woo.
But—he quickly lost interest and looked away.
Min-woo didn’t even realize he was still alive until long after the man had passed.
'What...?'
And he wasn’t the only survivor.
Though the number was small, there were others who had also been spared.
The common denominator was clear.
Like himself—
'...Those who never completely abandoned their humanity.'
Those who had clung to survival, too afraid to rebel but never fully embracing the darkness.
The bystanders who had simply looked away.
They had been given a second chance.
"AAAAAAARGH!"
A bloodcurdling scream tore through the air.
It was Park Sung-hyun.
His voice was filled with fear.
And then—
Splat—!
A final explosion of flesh.
"Huff—!"
The paralysis lifted.
"Gasp! Huff... Huff!"
Panting, Kim Min-woo turned his head.
And what he saw—
"...Ah."
It was horrifying.
Bodies ripped to pieces.
A massive pool of blood.
And in the very center—
Park Sung-hyun’s mutilated corpse.
Shredded.
Utterly destroyed.
As if he had been struck by divine punishment.