The Inhuman Demon Realm was a terrifying place, just like the rumors said.
Normally, even with all the Association’s survivors gathered together like they were now,
it was the kind of place where you’d think they wouldn’t last long and would have no choice but to retreat.
But.......
‘Uh, I don’t really know how this is even possible, but.......’
For some reason,
the monsters overflowing through the Inhuman Demon Realm
seemed to be avoiding the man
walking at the very front and leading the group.
Shin Youngjun.
‘Now that I think about it, the Man-Eating Bird not attacking back then wasn’t just dumb luck. That bird saw that man and backed off......!’
‘So it wasn’t a lie that he survived in the Inhuman Demon Realm.’
‘Even so, this is insane. The monsters are avoiding him on their own...... what the hell happened?’
The people following behind were just confused, unable to understand what was going on.
Maybe that man knew some kind of scent the monsters hated and smeared it all over himself.
Or maybe he knew paths the monsters avoided and was guiding them through.
Or.
......GULP.
‘Maybe they’re afraid of someone stronger, so they’re avoiding him.’
The people silently trailing behind ran through all kinds of imaginings in their heads,
but none of them were certain.
......If there was only one thing they could be sure of,
‘If we just follow that man, we’ll be safe!’
A man who survived for months in the Inhuman Demon Realm.
And because of that,
the only sure thing was that if they followed him, they could survive even in the Inhuman Demon Realm.
With that thought,
as the group was calming down to a degree and heading deeper into the Inhuman Demon Realm—
-You...... you......!
“!?”
Up ahead,
they felt dense magic power.
KUUUUNG.......
Something shoved through the huge trees,
and a gigantic beast that looked like it had to be five meters tall approached on two legs.
A massive beast with black fur.
Sharp teeth and muscles packed with incredible density.
Overwhelming magic power felt inside its body.
And despite an already huge frame, it had forepaws that were abnormally massive even for its size, with sharp, pitch-black claws.
Everything about it screamed that it was a powerhouse, but
that wasn’t what made people gape in shock.
-That magic power. To walk around without even thinking of hiding that red, ominous magic power.......
A voice they could hear inside their heads.
The people who heard it had no choice but to stare, eyes wide.
Because—
‘That’s not Korean.’
‘But...... I can understand it.’
What they were hearing up front was nothing more than the sound of a monster growling,
and yet, somehow, they could understand it.
Even though it wasn’t using a human language.
A monster that could convey intent to humans anyway.
‘It’s the same as that giant’s voice back then......!’
It wasn’t just some strong beast-like monster.
It was a being with the intelligence to use language,
and the supernatural ability to communicate with those who spoke different languages, at the same time.
The fact that such monsters existed was fairly well-known, but very few had experienced it directly.
What most of the people here knew was simply that
most monsters with that kind of ability were—
‘Insanely strong......!’
That they were powerful to the point you couldn’t even compare them to ordinary monsters.
-So it’s the scent of the enemy who stole my wife, [Black Claw].......
And then.
The owner of the voice they could feel up ahead
-spat out a voice overflowing with tremendous hostility toward them.......
No, rage and regret.
A voice packed full of resentment.
-To walk around freely in my and my wife’s territory without even hiding that scent......!
-I won’t forgive you!!!
“......Damn it!”
It lunged at them.
“As if it wasn’t already the Inhuman Demon Realm—already a monster like that......!”
“Everyone, prepare for battle!”
“It’s a powerful enemy. Form up and respond with a formation meant for a strong opponent!”
The first enemy they’d encountered since entering the Inhuman Demon Realm.
Thankfully, ever since they’d heard they were going into the Inhuman Demon Realm, they’d expected there would be a clash.
Thinking it would be a hard fight but not a fight they’d lose,
everyone was just about to raise their weapons and take their stances—
“Ts.”
The man walking at the very front,
Shin Youngjun, didn’t even pull his hand out of his pocket.
He clicked his tongue as he looked at the monster.
“I heard this area was pretty much cleaned out. So what the hell is this thing?”
“......?”
It was far too relaxed.
As people were staring at him in confusion—
KABOOOOOOOM!!!
-KUHUK......!
Suddenly.
A tremendous explosion rang out.
“!?”
When the dust cleared,
what people could see was.......
-This presence—don’t tell me......!
That monster that had been about to fall upon them,
the one that looked overwhelmingly strong—
-My wife......!
was lying collapsed from something’s attack.
-And would you shut that mouth, inferior species.
*****
That monster that had looked so powerful
was blasted away, smashing through the forest trees from something’s attack.
‘What is this—!’
STEP.......
From within the darkness,
the monster that launched the attack revealed itself.
-My wife......!
And the people who saw it
had no choice but to stare with their eyes wide.
‘The same species......?’
Because the thing that emerged from the dark
looked exactly like the one that had been trying to attack them just a moment ago.
-My wife, can you not...... not remember me?
-And would you shut that mouth, inferior species.
-Inferior species......! My wife, aren’t you my own kind?
-You’re making me sick. “My own kind,” you say—how long ago was that?
If there was any difference,
it was a little bigger,
and they felt ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ far stronger magic power from it,
-I have been reborn as a great species under the Queen’s grace!
and only its eye color was strangely red.
‘What the hell is even happening.’
After the sudden monster attack,
a monster that looked like its own kind barging in.
It was a bewildering situation, but
Jo Beomseok forced himself to stay calm and observe his surroundings.
And only then did he realize it.
“It’s not just that one that barged in.......”
A dark forest where very little light reached.
Beyond those shadows, he could feel many presences.
He turned his gaze toward where he felt them.
And what he saw there was—
SLITHER.......
red eyes gleaming like jewels in the darkness.
“......Wh-what is that.”
“It’s not just one or two.......”
Dozens—no, hundreds—of eyes
were silently watching them.
The magic power he could feel nearby.
A strangely thickened iron.......
No, the smell of blood.
‘Each one is an incredibly powerful monster.’
Veteran Awakeners broke into cold sweat and tightened their grips on their weapons.
But.......
‘Against that many monsters.......’
‘Even if we somehow win, the damage will be massive.’
Against that overwhelming number of red eyes lurking in the back......
it was hard to be certain of victory.
Then.
-Krrrk.
They said it was probably her husband.
After knocking that monster unconscious, the monster that had slung it over its shoulder—
that gigantic beast
looked down at the humans.
GULP.......
The leaders of each branch standing in front of it swallowed their dry saliva.
Something that appeared out of nowhere and brutally slammed another monster down.
There was no doubt it was powerful, and there was no doubt it was violently aggressive.
As people tensed, thinking a battle was about to break out—
“Hey.”
Facing that monster that looked overwhelmingly strong,
Shin Youngjun frowned and spoke.
“Do I have to look up at you?”
“......!”
“Y-Youngjun......!?”
People were horrified.
‘That crazy bastard......!’
‘I know he’s strong, but even so—!’
‘What kind of nerve does he have, provoking that many monsters!’
Shin Youngjun was definitely strong.
But even strength had its limits.
He’d already taken heavy injuries fighting those “giants,”
and in this situation, even Shin Youngjun had to have weakened at least a little.
And he was provoking a monster that looked vicious at a glance?
“Everyone, defensive posture—!”
Thinking a battle was about to erupt,
Jo Beomseok was about to issue a command order immediately, but—
SLIDE.......
-My thoughts were lacking.
Their expectations
were completely shattered.
That gigantic monster,
and that overwhelming number of red eyes hiding in the dark,
-Please, forgive the rudeness.......
“......!?”
bowed their heads before Shin Youngjun.
*****
The monsters with overwhelming magic power gathered around them.
All of them bowed their heads toward Shin Youngjun.
‘Wh-what is this.......’
‘What.......’
Especially the enormous beast that had stepped out in front.
In its frantic effort to lower that huge body beneath Shin Youngjun’s line of sight,
it hadn’t just bowed its head—it had flattened itself down to the ground.
It was so bizarre that
someone even mistakenly thought, Is that that monster’s combat stance?
-The Queen’s thrall greets the great one.
‘......The great one???’
While people were thrown into confusion, unable to understand the situation,
Shin Youngjun looked down at the monsters and said,
“So you heard the situation, roughly?”
-Yes. Through the two seniors who came first, roughly...... As soon as I received word, I wanted to come out to greet you as quickly as possible, but it seems I was a bit late. Please forgive me.
“Ts...... It pissed me off a little. But things are urgent right now, so I’ll let it slide. From here on, this is your territory, yeah?”
-It is.
“Good. Guide us into your territory. And tell your Queen, too.”
-Yes. What should I tell her?
“Tell her that her oathbound ally, Shin Youngjun, has returned.”
At that,
a hint of puzzlement crossed the monster’s expression.
-Oathbound ally...... is that what you mean?
“Yeah. If you say that, she’ll get it. And.......”
He looked toward the direction he’d come from.
Outside the Inhuman Demon Realm.
“Tell her the enemies are close, so we need to respond fast.”
-......Yes.
*****
The monsters hiding in the darkness revealed themselves.
‘......It’s not just one or two species?’
An overwhelming number of monsters.
They approached the humans and bowed their heads.
“Th-this is......?”
“You can ride.”
“Ride.......”
At Shin Youngjun’s words, people hesitated.
Monsters with huge frames, each and every one of them.
Two or three people could climb onto a single monster, so there were more than enough for everyone here, but—
“......Is it really okay to do that?”
“I told you, didn’t I? You have to trust me.”
“.......”
There was nowhere to run anyway.
People timidly climbed onto the backs of the monsters that came up in front of them.
And then—
-Then, we will depart.
“Uh, uaaah!”
The red-eyed monsters
began to sprint through the dark forest.
“So, what was that thing earlier? Why did it attack me in your territory?”
-It was once my husband.
Shin Youngjun and the leaders of each branch were riding behind the monster that had been the first to bow.
-When I impurely rose in rebellion against the Queen, it was the one I helped escape by sacrificing my life. A shameful past. As punishment for baring its claws at the great one, I will execute this one as cruelly as possib—
“Don’t. If you keep him alive, he’ll be useful, won’t he?”
-You are correct! Then I will grant this one, too, the chance to abandon being an inferior species and become a brother.
A conversation that made absolutely no sense.
A gigantic beast and Shin Youngjun talking like that.
“Youngjun.......”
The ones riding behind it looked at Shin Youngjun with anxious faces.
“Wh-what is going on. And what are these things?”
“What the hell.......”
They even felt a flicker of fear,
and they asked carefully.
“When you stayed in the Inhuman Demon Realm...... what happened......?”
Shin Youngjun survived in the Inhuman Demon Realm.
When they heard that,
people couldn’t easily believe it, and yet they accepted it to a degree.
But even then,
what people imagined was, at most, a brutal survival struggle in the extreme environment of the Inhuman Demon Realm.
Monsters charging from all directions.
A desperate scene of surviving day by day against those monsters.
That was what they’d imagined.
But.......
What he actually showed them when he returned to the Inhuman Demon Realm
went far beyond their imagination.
‘The monsters fear this man and avoid him.......’
‘And there are even monsters that follow him......!’
Only then could people change the way they thought.
When Shin Youngjun said he’d lived through the Inhuman Demon Realm,
it didn’t mean he’d spent his time in some fierce struggle to survive.
Rather, it was more like—
‘Reigning.......’
In the extreme environment of the Inhuman Demon Realm,
he had forced countless demonic beasts to submit beneath his feet,
earned the fear of powerful monsters,
and as a powerhouse of the Inhuman Demon Realm......
he had been reigning.
