Blame.
Sinhyeok kicked off the floor and rushed straight in.
He slashed lightly, struck with his fists, and took them all down.
The masked individuals exposed to the lightning collapsed in heaps.
He struck down every single one that emerged from the shadows.
Before long, he had reached right next to him.
Just as Sinhyeok was about to reach right in front of the Persona Guild Leader, the man smiled, grabbed a masked person by the collar, and leaped back.
“Hey, hey, don’t come. If you come, this one dies.”
Sinhyeok was incredulous at his behavior.
“What are you doing?”
“What else? A hostage situation.”
“Unbelievable.”
Glaring at him, Sinhyeok bid farewell to the civilian in his clutches—someone whose identity he didn’t even know.
“Sorry, but you’re on your own.”
“Kekeup, wow~ this soldier is one cold bastard.”
The Persona Guild Leader laughed.
“Do you know who this kid is and that’s why you’re giving up? Huh?”
“Do I really need to know?”
Sinhyeok thought coldly.
*I can’t save everyone.*
He couldn’t confirm their identities, and he lacked the ability to save them all with his current powers.
“That’s too bad. This one might have been waiting for you.”
He looked at the small-statured masked person, his eyes taking on a sinister gleam.
“Right, you still haven’t found your family’s corpses. How did you hold the funeral? Wait, did you use an empty coffin? Kekeuk.”
At the sudden question, Sinhyeok’s expression twisted.
“You… damned bastard.”
Smiling, the guild leader throttled the masked person’s neck.
“Kup… keup…”
Watching the struggling person, the Persona Guild Leader broke into a maddened grin.
“Kekekekeup, who could this be?! Huh?! Is your family really dead?!”
With a look laden with meaning, he alternated his gaze between Sinhyeok and the masked person in his hand.
“Who could this be. Could it be your little sister?”
*Grind.*
At the mention of the family he couldn’t even find a trace of, Sinhyeok immediately pulled out his rifle and aimed.
*Bang!*
The bullet fired at the man’s arm.
The Persona Guild Leader released the hostage and tumbled to the side.
“Hahahaha. Hey, that’s too much. Your sister might have gotten shot~”
The freed hostage collapsed blankly to the floor and twitched.
“Did your family really die? Aren’t you curious?”
Sinhyeok aimed at him as he was surrounded by the masked people.
“If you’re curious, you shouldn’t touch them carelessly.”
Leading the masked people around, he stared at Sinhyeok.
“Then who here is your sister, and who is your mom? Huh?”
*Grind.*
Only the faint sound of Sinhyeok grinding his teeth could be heard.
Those who had fainted began to wake up one by one.
“Now, who among these is your family.”
He spoke with a genuinely happy smile.
“Will you find out?”
Those brandishing gleaming knives moved slowly toward Sinhyeok.
“Damn it.”
Sinhyeok muttered lowly.
Watching them gradually swarm in, he silently clenched the dagger in his hand.
He was listlessly stabbed in the back by an approaching blade.
“Keup.”
He immediately kicked backward to create distance.
He gradually retreated, keeping the swarming crowd in check.
Behind the masked masses, the Persona Guild Leader clapped and laughed.
“Hahaha. Hey, it’s easy to kill them. Stab them all! Shoot them with your gun! Like before!”
He sneered with ridiculous gestures.
Watching that sneer, Sinhyeok gradually fell back.
*Any Lightning left?*
He rummaged through his inventory to check if he had any crystals remaining.
*Damn it.*
There was nothing left.
The rifle and pistol at his side, along with the military greatsword.
He couldn’t bring out any of them.
“That’s right, that’s right. You have to go empty-handed! Are you going to stab your mom with your knife? Thrust, thrust?!”
“You damned bastard.”
Undoing the rifle strap, he grabbed it with both hands and brought the stock down.
*Thud! Thud!*
“Aah! That won’t do!”
His fierce whip dug in sharply.
Naturally, the direction was toward the masked people.
*Swoosh.*
Sinhyeok threw himself into that attack.
“Keueup…”
“Keu. Soldier~ truly the posture of self-sacrifice. Amazing.”
His back hunched as yet another blade from the controlled people stabbed into him.
“Kkeup…”
A dagger embedded itself in his shoulder.
Sinhyeok staggered up and pushed forward with his body.
“What to do? You can’t kill them, but you can’t die either? Huh?!”
Watching the man grow increasingly frenzied, Sinhyeok grew ever more exhausted.
“What are you going to do? Just kill them all?”
Watching him mock, Sinhyeok continued to ponder.
*In one shot. I have to kill that bastard precisely.*
A decisive moment was needed. The Persona Guild Leader smiled, reading Sinhyeok’s thoughts.
“You must be worried. How to kill me in one shot.”
He suddenly stopped laughing and spread his arms.
“Kekeuk. I’m right here. Come kill me! Of course, your mom and sister too~”
Sinhyeok agonized over his relentless mockery.
*Could they really be here? Or is it all a lie?*
He couldn’t decide easily.
Many thoughts passed by. Even so, he couldn’t make the decision.
In the end, he was merely shaken by the bastard’s words.
*Tadadadak.*
Then, footsteps were heard.
And soon, voices that should not have been heard.
“Hyung!”
“Mister!”
The Persona Guild Leader spun around at the unfamiliar voices from behind.
“Huh?! Damn it!”
Dozens of specters rushed him.
“Get lost!”
The specters were blown away by the violently surging energy.
And immediately, Baek Arin’s aura followed.
“Haap!”
The Persona Guild Leader hurriedly ducked and dodged unsightly to the side.
“Hyung!”
Ichan and Arin immediately headed toward Sinhyeok, surrounded by the masked figures.
Sinhyeok urgently shouted at them as they ran over.
“Don’t kill them!”
“Huh?”
At his urgent cry, Arin sheathed her sword.
Holding the scabbard, she swung wildly to create space.
Arin cleared a path, and Ichan immediately ran to check on Sinhyeok.
“Are you okay?”
Sinhyeok scolded the two, who never listened.
“I told you to go. You idiots.”
“Hyung, if we’d left, you’d be dead. Hee-hee.”
Ichan smiled and took out a red potion Sinhyeok had made, pouring it over him.
He pulled out the daggers stuck in Sinhyeok’s shoulder and back and tossed them aside.
“How out of it were you to not even think of using a potion?”
“Thanks.”
Sinhyeok watched Arin brawling with her scabbard.
Arin glanced back and shouted urgently.
“Mister, what should we do?!”
Sinhyeok looked at the Persona Guild Leader, whose poker face had completely crumbled.
“Haa, damn it. These soldier bastards. Hey, won’t you get lost?!”
Watching the man’s composure shatter, Sinhyeok calmly gave his orders.
“Ichan, obstruct the people with specters. Arin, knock them out.”
At the immediate order, the two moved without hesitation.
The surroundings filled with specters under Ichan’s control.
Through that gap, Arin charged in with an aura brimming with light and engaged in a melee.
“They’re really annoying.”
Sinhyeok passed between them and headed for the Persona Guild Leader, his expression completely broken.
“If you’ve got nothing left, just die.”
He swapped the rifle’s magazine.
He loaded the sun round he had saved as a last resort.
“I was going to play a bit more before killing you.”
The man stared at Sinhyeok and took out something he had been saving.
“Let’s all go into the nightmare. Nightmare.”
His shadow swelled madly. It expanded, covering the entire space.
From the distinctly palpable evil energy, Sinhyeok sensed he was different from before.
“Looks like you made a contract with a demon or something?”
“Kekeup, I upgraded a bit. I’m different from before.”
Amidst the filthy energy covering the area, Sinhyeok quietly aimed at him.
“There are no fakes in the nightmare.”
Flames blazed up from the floor.
Sinhyeok felt that the flames didn’t scatter but radiated pure heat.
“Kekekup, how is it?!”
As this filthy space was maintained, the masked people collapsed one by one.
Seeing this, Sinhyeok realized that it was limited.
“Yu Sinhyeok!!! Now die already!”
Sinhyeok quietly shouldered the rifle and aimed at the man’s head.
“You die.”
*Bang!*
A white line streaked out.
Soon, a blazing holy sun arrived before his eyes.
“Hmm?!”
*Kwaaang!*
The round exploded, giving birth to a small sun.
Intense light illuminated every direction.
“Kuaaaak!”
Because the attribute was its exact opposite, it was doubly fatal to a demon contractor like him.
Sinhyeok walked forward and fired a few more shots at him.
*Bang! Bang!*
Sun rounds exploded further at him as he crouched to avoid the light.
“Kyaaaak!”
Beneath the holy sun hanging in the room, he trembled violently and collapsed prostrate.
His exterior was completely charred, his insides shaken.
*Thud!*
Sinhyeok, having approached unnoticed, kicked him.
“Keup.”
Forced to turn his body, he faced the sun head-on.
“Kyaaak!”
Holy light and flames melted his eyeballs and skin.
Sinhyeok watched him burn and leveled his muzzle.
“Die.”
The Persona Guild Leader sensed death and spat out urgently.
“Stop! Your family!”
Sinhyeok’s finger, about to pull the trigger, froze.
At that brief final delay, the man said urgently.
“They’re alive. They’re alive!”
He reached out with charred hands to stop Sinhyeok.
“They’re not dead! Ssaang!”
Sinhyeok looked at him coldly.
“Where.”
He smiled wickedly, buying time.
“Over there somewhere?”
Looking in the direction he pointed, a wavering space was visible.
“Keuheuheup! Come! Demon of Nightmare!”
Realizing at once what it was, Sinhyeok understood.
“Too late! If you kill me, you’ll never find your family! When they arrive, you’re finished! Kyahahaat!”
Sinhyeok turned his head and fixed his gaze on the bastard.
The Persona Guild Leader panicked at that exceptionally cold look.
“You son of a bitch! You won’t find your family!”
“I’ll find them myself.”
“Ssaang!”
*Bang!*
A sun round lodged itself in the Persona Guild Leader’s head.
A holy sun burned his entire body and vanished.
Sinhyeok turned and looked at the wavering portal.
“You get lost too.”
Beyond the hazy portal, a malicious, nightmare-like being stared intently.
*He wishes me to relay a message.*
A filthy demon’s voice sounded in his head.
*He says if you cross over, he will hand over your family.*
Sinhyeok let out a hollow laugh at those words.
He quietly leveled his gun at the portal.
“Get lost. I’ll come find them myself.”
He unleashed rapid fire, emptying the entire magazine.
*Ratatatat.*
*Keuheup, holy power!?*
“It’s heresy, so it’ll be much worse.”
The portal faded and disappeared.
The being on the other side disappeared with a groan.
“Hyung?”
When the portal vanished and the Persona Guild Leader collapsed, the masked people all fell at once.
“Ah, you two okay?”
Sinhyeok turned and checked on them.
Fortunately, neither was hurt.
“We’re fine.”
Arin waved her hand, catching her breath.
“Mister, I’m fine too.”
Sinhyeok approached the people collapsed on the floor and began removing their masks.
“Hyung?”
Arin and Ichan joined him at his frantic movements.
“Mister. We took them all off.”
All the masks were removed, but the person Sinhyeok sought was not among them.
“Who were you looking for?”
At her question, Sinhyeok answered bitterly.
“Family.”
Forcefully suppressing his hollow, sorrowful heart, Sinhyeok spoke with effort.
“Let’s go. We need to get these people out.”
The two quietly checked the people.
“Hyung, all these people are unconscious.”
At that, Sinhyeok counted the collapsed people.
“There are quite a lot.”
There were dozens of them.
“For now, let’s carry them out. And we need to leave quickly. There’s a boss mob—”
He stopped mid-sentence.
The corpse of the Persona Guild Leader, burned by the sun, twitched.
“Hyung?”
“Mister?”
The two felt unease at Sinhyeok’s frozen gaze.
“These fiends always leave a mess behind.”
The twitching corpse creaked as it rose.
The headless corpse erupted with energy madly and grew in size.
“Hyung!”
“Get the people! Ichan, use your specters to possess them or something and move them all at once!”
Ichan panicked at the sudden order.
“I-I’ve never tried that before?!”
“Do it now!”
With a deeply flustered face, Ichan hurriedly pulled out his specters.
“G-go possess them!”
At his urgent order, the specters tilted their heads and hovered over the collapsed people.
“Quickly!”
The specters sighed and smoothly possessed them.
As the fallen people began to twitch, Sinhyeok shouted urgently.
“Get out, now!”
Everyone rushed out in a swarm.
The remnants of the Nightmare, its body swelling, spread its thoughts in an irritated tone.
‘You damned hero refuse!’
Sinhyeok checked the wall with the hole blasted through it.
Part of the wall was writhing as if it were alive.
‘It’s awake.’
He immediately bolted.
‘Come here!’
Boom!
It struck the floor violently. Sinhyeok hurried out of the old castle.
Once outside, Sinhyeok immediately pointed at the portal.
“Get out, quickly!”
The remnants of the Nightmare came chasing after them, its body swelling to an enormous size.
Sinhyeok looked at the trembling old castle.
“That boss mob’s insane.”
At Sinhyeok’s words, Arin and Ichan looked back and flinched in shock.
“Hyung? What is that?!”
The old castle was writhing and moving.
Soon, two eyes snapped open on the roof.
“Mister! Don’t tell me that thing was a mimic!?”
The super-sized mimic opened its eyes in annoyance.
Then it discovered the remnants of the Nightmare blocking its path.
‘Ah? Damn.’
The building split open, gaping wide like a mouth.
Then it swallowed the remnants whole.
“That’s it, hurry and get out!”
Dozens of possessed people went through the portal, and Arin and Ichan escaped as well.
“Good. Now if I just handle that thing properly.”
Sinhyeok stayed behind, watching the super-sized mimic and the remnants of the Nightmare.
At the sight, like a battle between colossal monsters, he was briefly at a loss for words.
“Whoa……”
“What the hell is that now?”
At the familiar voice from behind him, goosebumps shot up all over Sinhyeok.
He flinched.
He turned around with startled eyes.
“What’re you looking so surprised for?”
Lee Gangyeol had entered the portal.
“You were nearby?”
“Yeah. I’m a little late. Some damn bastards set off every gate in the area.”
He pointed at the old castle with eyes and a mouth, and the black stick-figure-like monster.
“So what are those things? One looks like a mimic, but what kind of bug bastard is the other one?”
“I think it called itself a Nightmare.”
“Ah, a Nightmare.”
Lee Gangyeol smiled and stretched out his hand.
“So, did you find the core? Let’s blow it all away at once.”
Sinhyeok immediately pointed at the old castle.
“That’s it. The old castle itself is the core.”
“Whoa… That’s damn huge.”
Lee Gangyeol stepped forward and flicked his hand at Sinhyeok.
“Stay right behind me.”
He leisurely walked forward and greeted the remnants of the Nightmare.
“Hey, you heartless son of a bitch.”
The remnants of the Nightmare, pressing down on the mimic, turned its head.
‘How dare some— Huh, h-huh?’
Seeing Lee Gangyeol at the end of the light gathered at his fingertips, it trailed off.
“Chain Lightning.”
A cluster of lightning, densely interwoven like chains, shot out.
‘As if such a pathetic spell could possibly—!’
His words immediately vanished.
“I never said there was only one.”
The surrounding space rippled.
Lightning writhed everywhere, seizing the entire area.
‘Damn.’
Looking at Lee Gangyeol, Sinhyeok thought of his nickname.
“Still the same as ever, Mr. Bomber.”
Kwarurung.
He burned and scorched the old castle and the remnants of the Nightmare all at once, blowing away the whole area.
Lee Gangyeol turned back with a grin and said,
“My nickname changed again recently. They’re calling me Nuke now.”
Seeing him smile, Sinhyeok let out a hollow laugh.
That was this man’s specialty. A master of multi-casting and high-speed chanting. On top of that, he had an insane mana pool.
“Let’s get going.”
Looking at the core of the gate that had just been blown apart, Sinhyeok thought,
‘Does this mean I get a perfect score?’