Ch 17: Another curse befall after him

"Fucking hell, how is he this persistent? Did that arrow even affect him?"

The cunning man grumbled, frustrated, his tone riddled with shock and fear as he glared over his shoulder once more desperately for any sign of wounds.

But his heart sank as his eyes laid on Lucifer there, standing unscathed. Though blood trickled down, there were no visible wounds.

"The hell? Did he recover? But how? Is he some kind of… halfbreed?" A flurry of possibilities raced through the man's mind, but none of them seemed valid enough to explain what horror he was witnessing.

"Running won't save you. Here, catch!" With a fierce snarl, Lucifer hurled the arrow with his bare hand toward the sly man, finding its mark in a perfect implantation into the back of the man's shoulder. It was a feat which he could barely believe on his usual accuracy—one in ten shots would be this good.

Critical hit!

"Aah!" The man's voice burst out in a primitive scream that resounded through the thick forest.

"Please... spare me! It was all Dong's idea! I was just following orders!" His shaking voice trembled in desperation, crawling through the mud ground, his body shaking in fear.

"Shut up, you bitch! What are you talking about?" Dong retorted, anger bubbling inside of him as he thought of every possibility, regarding his possible death. Each possibility felt more gruesome than the last one.

"No, no brother! I mean, boss… he's lying! It was just all…. Nothing but a big misunderstanding!" Dong stammered, while panic started to rise in his throat as he feared that he gonna be finished now.

"Now look here, you've turned me into the villain of this story, haven't you? No, no… it seems a little lesson is needed for you misguided souls," Lucifer said, shaking his head, feigning a sense of disappointment.

But the three men, who were lying on the ground, felt an icy tremor run down their spines, sensing the shift in the atmosphere.

Lucifer stepped forward, his knuckles cracking. It was an ominous sound—a promise of the violence to come.

"No! No! Noooooooo!"

And then. it became pure mayhem. Their faces twisted into such agony that they were no longer recognizable, even to their parents. He broke their arms and legs one by one, leaving them helpless.

Since quick deaths wouldn't give him more negative points, he planned to enjoy the torment, so without wasting any second, he started venting his anger nonstop on them.

After over an hour of relentless brutality, he still craved more. As the desire to extract every last drop of hatred points did not stop.

But, he stopped. His instincts suddenly flared, an inexplicable awareness triggered by the approach of footsteps—heavy and numerous.

"Boss! That's the person!"

Lucifer heard one of the people accuse him, pointing his finger as if Lucifer were a common thief who had stolen something precious.

Looks like I made a scene. A whole crowd has gathered, and why the hell is that guy pointing at me like I took his fortune?

Lucifer's guard heightened further as he watched the oncoming group, sensing danger in their numbers.

[Detecting that one of the people within the group is at a low-level Earth-Bringer]

Hearing this, his anxiety surged, and he took a step back instinctively.

"What's wrong, little brother? You look terrified. Am I that scary?"

The one leading the group, a man named MuZi, addressed him with a disarmingly cheerful smile. He was handsome, more than just above average, with shimmering golden hair and sharp, eagle-like eyes. Clad in a fit white dress, he appeared to be in his early twenties; the aura he exuded felt righteous, yet Lucifer sensed something far more sinister beneath that facade.

As MuZi advanced towards him deliberately, each step resonating with authority, he didn't spare a single glance at the three men sprawled on the ground behind him.

[Gained 1 hatred points (Malice)]

...,

The closer MuZi drew, the more hatred points Lucifer seemed to accumulate, an unsettling feeling of impending doom gnawing at his mind.

Lucifer's mind started to race wildly.

Fuck, one down, now another arises. Am I really cursed?

Without waiting for a moment longer, Lucifer dashed towards the winding path that led him to Silver Sparrow Mountain, his heart pounding in his chest.

"Here, take this shit, you MF! Do I look like a monkey to you, that I would fall for your little ploy?" He shot MuZi a middle finger as he sprinted away, activating his High-Level Stealth ability obtained from the High-Level Steal Art. His body began to blend into the surrounding environment, becoming nearly undetectable.

"Bullet of Fireball!"

Lucifer felt a chill shoot down his spine as he sensed a sudden surge of heat from behind him. Whipping around just in time, he—

Bang!

A fireball, about the size of a football, hurtled toward him.

The explosion reverberated through the forest, and its impact set nearby trees ablaze. Onlookers gaped, uncertainty clouding their expressions; they were unsure whether the attack had hit its intended target or not. As the smoke cleared, however, they saw nothing on the ground where Lucifer had stood.

The sudden turn of events twisted MuZi's expression into a scowl. "Did this bastard figure out my plan? I guess not… Well, wherever you go, you can't run away from me now."

MuZi's expression twisted into a scowl for a second before returning to normal, similar to that of a true actor, who was good at hiding their true motives.

"Chase him! Don't let him escape!"

At MuZi's command, the group surged forward in pursuit of Lucifer, their confusion palpable as they struggled to detect his presence, which had faded like a whisper in the wind.

"Stop it! We'll end up wasting our energy chasing him like this!" MuZi raised his hand, halting their frantic pursuit.

"But why, Boss?" a concerned voice piped up from the crowd.

"Hehehe… just follow my lead. He won't be able to evade me for long."

-----------------------------------------

"Help! Hee-l-p!"

The three men, lying on the ground in a puddle of their own blood, cried out in despair. 'Did we get abandoned? Can't they see us, poor wretched souls? Why are you leaving… hey, please help us!'

Desperation painted their faces as they cursed one another, their pleas blending into a hopeless symphony of misery.

MuZi turned his gaze, calmly issuing instructions to his subordinates.

Thank God, a few concerned souls approached their side.

'Yes, please help us!' Relief washed over their hearts at the sight of potential rescuers.

"Are you guys okay?" one of the arrivals asked, voice tinged with concern.

'Do you think we are okay with you?' they inwardly screamed, desperation clawing at their chests.

"Hee-l-p!"