Benda.
Swish!
Stab!
Thrust!
And then, explode.
Bang!
With every swing of my sword, monsters collapse, spewing blood like fountains. I didn’t count exactly, but I must have killed over a hundred by now.
Still, there are so many more. Wherever I look, they appear, and wherever my blade strikes, more fall into my trap. I can’t afford to let my guard down for even a second—one slip, and it’s over in an instant.
Just like now.
I calmly steady my breath and grip my sword in reverse. The moment the monster lunges at me with its jaws wide open, I slam my left fist hard against its skull. The dull thud of flesh and bone. Moments later, blood bursts from its mouth like it’s spitting out water.
It’s not dead yet. Though slowed by the blow, it still snaps its teeth, trying to bite me. I immediately thrust my sword, held in reverse with my right hand, deep into its mouth. Twisting and wrenching it side to side, the creature shudders violently before finally collapsing, utterly defeated.
“Phew… huh?”
Just as I finished off that one, a sudden sharp prick ran down my back. I quickly turned and looked up. I couldn’t see it clearly, but I could definitely feel it—the ominous, familiar energy rising from the hill.
Instinctively, I knew: Vivian had summoned the demon horde. So my guess was right.
“Hope they’re holding their own.”
Yeah. With Han So-Young’s abilities, they should be more than capable of holding the line.
I decided to start clearing the valley methodically and quickly scanned my surroundings. For a moment, I felt a flicker of unease.
“Wahahahaha!”
A man let out a booming laugh as he slammed his massive greatsword down, cleaving a monster in two.
“Kihihihihi!”
A woman laughed wildly, raising her spear high. The monster screamed pitifully, blood spurting from its groin.
Soon, the man and woman, eyes gleaming madly, charged off in search of their next prey. And they weren’t the only ones.
The valley was thick with the stench of monster blood and fluids. The users spared no effort, weaving through the creatures and stabbing relentlessly.
A one-sided massacre. It was as if they were competing to see who could kill the most monsters, racing to find and slay them.
It was barely even a battle anymore. Just users gripping their weapons tightly, blindly charging forward.
Not entirely bad. In fact, in this kind of situation, reckless aggression might be the best tactic.
But there was one problem…
“Kikik, kikikik!”
The users’ mental states were way too far gone. It was excessive, to say the least.
One woman even bit down hard on a monster’s severed tentacle, tears streaming down her face in a bizarre, unsettling display.
I had a suspicion.
Kwanghwa—the ability to unleash the emotions buried deep within a user. The stronger the recent emotions, the more powerful the effect. I’m guessing that woman had lost someone very close to her—a family member, or maybe a lover—someone deeply connected to the monsters.
Just then—
“Hyung, hyung-nim!”
Jin Soo-Hyun’s voice called out from somewhere. Without hesitation, I readjusted my grip on my sword and stabbed it behind my shoulder. I felt something soft give way, and I triggered a magical explosion. Sure enough—
The sound of an explosion rang in my ears. I felt debris raining down on my back and immediately locked eyes with Jin Soo-Hyun.
“Why?”
I asked quietly. She stared blankly at me, then hesitated before pointing behind me.
“B-behind…”
I glanced back. Right behind the monster I’d just felled, another one stood tall, probably preparing a delayed attack.
“…”
As I watched silently, the creature suddenly snapped its head around, opened its jaws wide, and charged past me toward Jin Soo-Hyun.
“Damn it!”
Hmph.
“A monster picking its target? Fine, come on! You bastard!”
Jin Soo-Hyun’s furious shout was followed by the sound of her beating the creature like a mad dog. I chuckled inwardly and moved again.
The battlefield was nearly cleared. The once dense crowd of monsters was now thinning out—a clear sign the fight was ending sooner than expected. I turned my gaze toward the hill opposite us and soon understood why.
The monsters were retreating. Those surrounded by users were almost wiped out, but the ones farther away were turning and scrambling up the hill. Given their quick instincts, this was probably a late retreat.
“Where do you think you’re running? I’ll catch every last one of you!”
A furious voice echoed through the valley. It was Go Oh-Hwan.
Pointing at the road-sized hill, he shouted so fiercely that foam flew from his mouth. The users glanced toward the hill, then roared and began the chase.
…A pursuit.
In this situation, keeping up the momentum was probably the right call. But judging by the lingering effects of Kwanghwa, it could be risky. Beyond the hill lay the monsters’ stronghold. Charging blindly could cause heavy casualties.
Thinking this, I immediately searched for An Sol. Luckily, she wasn’t far.
“An Sol!”
“Yes, yes!”
She was chanting protective and healing spells without pause but turned to me, startled.
“Use Awakening or Calm right now!”
“Awakening? Calm spell?”
“Kwanghwa’s effect is way too strong. It’s gotten out of control.”
“Well…”
An Sol quickly looked around, then shook her head with a troubled expression.
“I can do it, but it’ll take some time. Everyone’s scattered all over the place…”
“Hmm.”
“If it were a Miracle, I could fix it all at once. Should I use it?”
“No. That’s not an option.”
I shook my head without hesitation. I couldn’t waste such a powerful resource here.
“Do what you can. Work with the other priests if you have to.”
After hearing her agree, I turned back to the hill. Some impatient users were already halfway up. Seeing that, I didn’t hesitate and took off running.
“Round House.”
Han So-Young spoke softly.
Round House. Meaning: ‘The enemy is lurking near the base.’ Then, something incredible began to happen.
Suddenly, So-Young’s outstretched hand was engulfed in dazzling light. The ground responded, glowing with a brilliant purple hue, and one by one, circular shapes began to rise.
They were magic circles—metaphysical symbols etched into glowing purple runes about a meter across. Not just one, but dozens, maybe hundreds, appeared. Once fully formed, the magic circles swirled around like ice on a frozen pond, dazzling the users and confusing their vision.
“They’ve appeared! The rear guard is the main target… no, some are moving toward the center as well!”
Urgent reports came in. So-Young nodded quietly.
Then—
The magic circles, which had been spinning rapidly, suddenly stopped.
The man, who had been nervously stamping his feet, looked down in stunned silence. The circles had formed a massive formation centered on So-Young. Whatever the pattern, it was clearly organized.
“Fast Pace.”
At that moment, the magic circles, already glowing brightly, blazed with even greater intensity. They burned hot enough to be called searing.
Soon, a brilliant, ethereal soprano voice began to resonate faintly but majestically through the air. It was the sign that So-Young’s summoning ability—the ‘Queen’s Army’—was about to manifest.
So-Young clenched her fist quietly.
“Cockade…!”
Just as she was about to speak with determination—
“Come forth! Pierre! The mad flame jester who commands the Fourth Legion!”
Suddenly, a clear voice interrupted the summoning chant.
Startled, So-Young narrowed her eyes and turned her head. Dark swirling mists had already crept right up to us.
Moments later, the dark fog split apart, and countless demonic beasts poured out in a torrent.
That’s right. Kim Soo-hyun, anticipating the enemy’s attack, had left Vivian behind just in case something unexpected happened.
Soon, the demonic beasts let out their eerie laughter and charged toward the monsters.
“…”
Han So-young tilted her head in confusion for a moment, then slowly lowered her arms.
Meanwhile, at the same time—
“Kill them!”
“Chase them! Hunt them down and finish them off!”
The battle in the valley was nearly over, and the battlefield was entering a new phase.
Users, finally unleashing the anger they’d been holding back, pursued the monsters who, sensing defeat, were fleeing.
Of course, the monsters were much faster. While the users ran on two legs, the monsters slid swiftly up the slope. Since the monsters had clearly decided to escape, it was nearly impossible to catch them unless you were a highly agile user like Kim Soo-hyun.
Still, the users refused to give up. Even after the monsters disappeared over the hill, they kept chasing relentlessly until they finally reached the summit. Just as they tried to spot any trace of the monsters with eyes burning red with rage—
“…?”
The footsteps of the users who had been chasing endlessly suddenly stopped the moment they reached the top.
More precisely, the moment they saw what lay beyond the hill.
Not everyone stopped. Some users, fueled by excessive vengeance, kept running after the monsters. But those less affected by their temperament or spiritual resistance froze. The shock of the scene before them barely stirred the last flicker of reason in their minds.
Then, as a faint white dust seemed to settle over their heads, the murderous gleam in their eyes slowly faded. One by one, the users exchanged uneasy glances.
“Hey! Are you okay?”
An-sol, who had just caught up, panted as she pointed toward the others.
But no answer came. When she finally lifted her head in confusion, her expression changed to match theirs.
On the hill, and beyond it, below—
“What… is this?”
There was nothing.
No forest, no trees.
All that could be seen was a vast, circular ring of hills surrounding a deep, pitch-black pit. The hole, easily over a hundred meters in diameter, was filled with an endless darkness that greeted the users.
How could one even describe it?
A giant dry pond?
A massive chasm?
No.
It was like the very mouth of hell itself—an enormous sinkhole whose bottom was impossible to see.
---------------------------= Author’s Note =---------------------------
Baby Monster: Sis, I’m so scared. Dad will come back alive, right?
Sister Monster: (Gently patting the baby.) Of course. Don’t worry. Dad’s the tribe’s greatest warrior. He’ll definitely defeat the invaders and come back safe.
User: (Tearing apart a defeated monster, chewing it.) Heh heh, heh heh heh, heh heh heh heh!
Dad Monster: R-run away! Grrrraaaah!
Baby Monster: D-dad? Daddyyyy!
Sister Monster: Fatherrrr!
I tried narrating from the monsters’ perspective this time. :)