637

 [Chapter 167]

[Harbinger of Destruction (7)]

The day the Fairy left for her national tour.

Eun-ha invited family and acquaintances to hold a party at the clan hall.

Family members of clan members also attended.

As a result, the clan hall was bustling with many people for the first time.

"..."

8th floor leisure sports space of the clan hall.

The banquet hall was set up in a direction overlooking Gangbuk.

Eun-ha watched the scene of people meeting for the first time, greeting each other and chatting cheerfully.

...Not much time left now.

A few hours from now.

Around the time it passes midnight, calamity will strike.

At that time when people have let go of all tension.

The invasion of monsters begins.

Knowing this fact, Eun-ha couldn't laugh mixed in with the people who were now having fun.

"Tch, there should be alcohol on a day like this. How can they tell us not to drink?"

"It can't be helped. The reason we're holding this party today is to let our parents know where we're working."

"Still, what's wrong with drinking... We can quickly sober up using magic anyway."

Ariel, Jin Seo-na, Jin Pa-rang.

On one side, clan members were chatting among themselves.

Some clan members seemed displeased that they couldn't drink alcohol.

Nevertheless, they were having a great time even without alcohol.

I've done everything I could.

We prepared water and food that could last for weeks in the basement of the hall, and put quite a lot of effort into the protective magic installed in the clan hall.

Eun-ha turned his gaze away from them.

He had done everything he could.

There were some forceful points, but the clan members followed Eun-ha's words well.

It was the same when Eun-ha told them to invite family and acquaintances for a party on Monday night.

They seemed to have a lot to say, but somehow they managed to gather acquaintances who had to go to work tomorrow.

"The disappointing thing is... that there's only one elixir, I guess."

Eun-ha recalled one by one the things he had arranged for today since creating the clan.

The elixir was disappointing.

It wasn't mass-produced, and what elixirs were available were sold to people in urgent need of treatment.

As a result, Eun-ha only managed to obtain one elixir.

If others heard this, they might say how can just one be so little...

But the more treatment potions, the better.

Eun-ha smiled bitterly at the regret.

There was one more thing he had arranged.

Right then─

"─What are you doing here looking so miserable?"

"I was just getting some air."

While getting some air on the balcony.

Han Seo-hyun approached.

Han Seo-hyun in a dress.

She flipped her hair as she approached Eun-ha's side.

"Why are you just getting air without eating anything, unlike you?"

"I'm not very hungry..."

"Wouldn't it be better to eat a lot even now? You probably won't be able to eat your fill if not today."

"..."

A tone as if casually throwing out words.

But there was weight in her words.

He paused hearing her words.

He turned his head.

Their eyes met.

"Did you think we wouldn't know you're preparing something? Buying stockpiles of food as if preparing for war, setting the date oddly on Monday and making people use their vacation days..." "..."

"And suddenly giving this to us too. I don't know exactly what this item is, but I know well enough that it's an artifact."

Han Seo-hyun adjusted her chest.

Then she showed the ring connected to her necklace.

It was the one-time use artifact Eun-ha had given to clan members today.

"There's more besides this, but there's no need to say more, right? How could we not know when you're doing this?"

Gift <Resistance >.

A Gift that can resist the Level 3 overrank monster Ye-gyeong.

The one-time use artifact had the Gift extracted from Hong Jin-woo, a direct descendant of the Dangun Group, imbued in it.

Eun-ha also wore a necklace with several rings woven on it.

"Don't think we don't know. We're pretending not to know while knowing."

"I'm sorry I couldn't tell you."

"I'm not saying this to receive an apology from you."

When they received this artifact.

No, much earlier than that.

The clan members must have noticed what he was plotting.

Eun-ha knew this too.

Knowing this, he had been relying on their goodwill.

But Han Seo-hyun scolded him sharply.

No, she sharply awakened him.

"It's fine if you don't tell us. It's okay if you don't want to. Everyone has things they don't want to talk about. But you shouldn't be afraid."

"What?"

When did she bring bread?

She put bread in Eun-ha's mouth.

Eun-ha blinked.

She continued speaking.

"You've been preparing as if being chased by something lately, that's being afraid, isn't it?"

"..."

"And today you're not saying anything, just keep looking up at the sky. The clan members can't even properly enjoy the party because they're watching you."

"Ariel and the stupid hyung are..."

"Those two are exceptions. Don't talk back to me."

"..."

"You're the Clan Lord now. Remember that if you're worrying like this, the clan members under you will worry along with you. If something happens then, the clan members won't be able to show their full abilities."

She criticized sharply.

Eun-ha, coming to his senses at Han Seo-hyun's words, looked back.

"..."

""""...."""

Since when?

The clan members had been looking at him.

Only then could Eun-ha realize the emotions dwelling in their gazes.

They were wavering.

They were anxious.

All because he was anxious.

"─That's right. There's no need to worry. We've prepared everything we need to prepare, and now we're not lacking in ability like before."

Eun-ha belatedly realized.

In preparing for this day, he had become too excited.

He had become so excited that his body stiffened, and he couldn't look around.

Then as he focused on himself, he had been worrying.

But it was needless worry.

There was no need to worry.

Because he had gathered strength for this day and brought the clan members together.

"Thanks for waking me up."

"It's fine if you understand. Don't worry. Everything will go well for you from now on." "How can noona be so sure?"

"Didn't you know? I never participate in losing battles."

Han Seo-hyun smiling confidently.

Eun-ha burst out laughing.

There's no separate goddess of victory.

But it wasn't bad.

He doesn't believe in gods, but believing in the goddess of victory wouldn't be bad.

Eun-ha now took her hand and moved his feet towards the banquet hall.

"I'm hungry. I need to eat something."

"What did I tell you? Eat a lot."

As Eun-ha approached them,

The clan members showed affectionate expressions.

Eun-ha, having shaken off his fear, mingled and played with the clan members.

☆

─Whiieeeeeeaoooooooo

It was a sound like blowing a horn.

A sound reminiscent of a cat in some ways, but somehow alien.

A sound that seemed to vibrate the air, using its huge body as a resonance chamber.

Wiieeeeeeaaoooooo

Midnight turning to Tuesday.

At that time when people had fallen asleep,

The sound that spread in the skies over Seoul began to reach their ears.

And─

─Crack─

─went.

They could hear the sound of something cracking.

That sound stimulated some instinct in those who were sleeping.

Crack

Wiieeeeeeaaoooooo

When that sound was heard again,

Their eyes opened automatically.

Countless people opened their windows and turned towards the direction the sound came from.

""""...."""

There was a crack in the sky.

No, it wasn't the sky that was cracked.

It was the Cocoon.

The cocoon that had allowed them to enjoy peaceful days until now.

Now it─

─Crack crack

Began to fall apart piece by piece.

☆

In the deep night, at that time.

The Han River, counted as one of the sources of anomalies, shook violently.

River water so murky its bottom couldn't be seen, possessing the power to give birth to many beings.

Something rose from that river water.

Drip drip

The being stepped onto land without even thinking of shaking off the moisture on its body.

...

The being, a remnant of some monster reigning in the sky above.

With its form not even determined, the being that was just entirely black met a certain man.

"─Follow me."

A man with a slim build.

The man with a white face and piercings opened his mouth without being flustered even seeing the black being.

Nod nod

The being expressed its intention.

At this, the man stepped into a space behind him that seemed like the world was cut off in a circle.

The being followed.

They had moved near Jongmyo Shrine's main hall like that.

"Was it Belphegor? If that guy was alive, it would have been easy to disable the security, this is troublesome."

A man with a somewhat bewitching atmosphere.

The man clicked his tongue looking at Jongmyo Shrine, which was closed due to the late hour and wrapped in powerful protective magic.

Surely there would be Players guarding Jongmyo somewhere.

Troublesome.

Even so, the man twisted the magic formula just by casually waving his hand in the air.

"Come in."

Without being detected by anyone.

The man and the being went inside.

"─Troublesome bastards."

But as they approached Jongmyo Shrine's main hall, they were finally detected by Players.

Nevertheless, the man wasn't flustered and spread his hand towards them.

"You didn't see anything. Continue your duties as is." """"...."""

Corrupting people was simple.

Just stimulate their desires.

And surprisingly, their desire was to wish for nothing to happen while being dissatisfied with their repetitive daily lives.

The man snorted and passed by them.

Eventually─

"─That is the Cocoon."

They were able to approach the Cocoon.

The man gestured.

The black being nodded.

Then it quickly ran to the crystal, changed its body into a huge sickle and destroyed the Cocoon in one go.

Crack

The Cocoon that shone brightly even at night.

The Cocoon changed into simple crystal fragments and shattered.

Crack

And so a crack appeared in the sky.

The crack widened more and more.

In the end, fragments fell.

Above all, as if waiting for this moment, the presence of countless monsters began to be felt outside the Cocoon.

Especially─

─Whiieeeeeeaoooooooo

A sound that induces a strange sentiment.

It was the sound of a whale crying.

No, it was a sound indicating the harbinger of destruction.

Th...ank...you....

Then the black being turned around.

The black being expressed its gratitude.

The man shrugged his shoulders.

Name....

"Why are you asking for my name?"

I'll...eat...you...last....

Nonsense.

The man looked indifferently.

The black being kept cackling, showing something like white teeth, as if very pleased.

Name....

The black being kept asking for the name.

The man was annoyed but had no intention of fighting the black being right now, so he decided to answer.

"─Mastema. That's my name."

The man said his name.

Mastema.

That is the name of a demon that tempts and corrupts humans.

The man grinned.

At this, the black being─

─Your name.... I'll...remember...it....

Leaving those words,

The black being disappeared.

☆

In the dead of night.

At the time when the sound heralding destruction finally filled Seoul,

Namsan Seoul Tower in Yongsan-gu.

Namsan Seoul Tower, which had been called a scar of destruction until now, was undergoing restoration work to mark the 15th year of Seonryeok.

There was one person right there.

─Whiieeeeeeaoooooooo

At the top of the tower under construction,

An old man wearing a fedora and sunglasses in the middle of the night was looking out over Seoul.

"─It's finally beginning."

Overcome with emotion,

The old man muttered looking up at the cracking sky.

─Crack crack

And finally the sky collapsed.

Calamity came to people trapped in a cocoon called peace.

The old man cackled seeing the monsters appearing beyond the broken world.

"Come, calamity."

The old man spread his arms wide.

He didn't waver at all even in the strong wind.

There was nothing left that could shake him.

"Mana moves according to emotions, and the higher the density of those emotions, the higher the quality of mana."

And the emotions with the highest density were negative emotions like hatred, sadness, despair.

So when calamity strikes─

"─High density emotions will arise, they will become anomalies and give birth to monsters, and that will plunge people into despair again. Keukeuk."

It's truly a continuous vicious cycle.

Moreover, how high must the density of despair be for people intoxicated by 15 years of peace.

"So if I obtain those─"

─I will surely advance in an even better direction than now.

If the totality of people's despair all rushes to me and defines me as a being─

"─I will truly become a god."

The being at the ultimate end of the path of demons.

Mana God.

That was what the old man pursued.

Armageddon faced the wind listening to the harbinger of destruction.

☆

Rewinding time, the day before.

Before leaving for her national tour, Im Ga-eul was lost in thought in her office.

"Hmm..."

Tap tap tap.

She absentmindedly tapped her fingers on the desk.

That child doesn't seem like he would talk nonsense...

That child, <Swift Sword> Noh Eun-ha.

She recalled inspecting the Cocoon with Noh Eun-ha recently.

At that time, she received a report that there was nothing wrong with the Cocoon.

Nevertheless, she felt uneasy for some reason.

It was because of Noh Eun-ha.

As far as she knew, Noh Eun-ha was a being that shouldn't be thought of with common sense.

"He's a child who acts unlike his age. He was extraordinary since he was young, would such a child really just ask to inspect the Cocoon saying he was worried?"

Rational doubt.

She asked herself.

"─There's something."

And then she reached a conclusion.

Once she reached a conclusion, her actions were quick.

Im Ga-eul decided to call the Player she currently thought was most trustworthy.

Sang-jin oppa or Jung-hyun won't do.

They have to go on the tour with me...

Come to think of it, the timing is strange. Even though Do-jin is going on the tour with me, why did Hyeon-cheol suddenly get dispatched to Gangwon-do, and Yong-hyun oppa has to go on a business trip to Seongnam?

While scrolling through her contact list,

Thoughts quickly passed through her mind.

Questions bred suspicion.

"─It's me."

[─Yes, Fairy.]

While she's away on her tour.

Coincidentally, three of the Twelve Seats dealers will be absent from Seoul.

If Noh Eun-ha hadn't told her, she would have just been anxious.

But Im Ga-eul, who became suspicious because of Noh Eun-ha, couldn't just be anxious.

So she called 'him'.

The Player she could trust most currently.

"Player Ji Yong-hyun. Please stand by at the clan hall pretending to go on a business trip without being noticed by others. If there's a problem later, say you came back because you were worried about the state of Uijeongbu above Dobong-gu."

Zenith Clan, which claims to be the Fairy's sword, with Dobong-gu and Nowon-gu as its jurisdiction.

Zenith Clan Lord Ji Yong-hyun.

Im Ga-eul asked the <First Sword>.

To this, the Twelve Seats <First Sword>─

[─Yes, I understand, Fairy.]

Responded without expressing any doubt.