Mun-Jae barely moved.
Each time Mae-Bi's blade slashed toward him, he parried with one hand behind his back, dancing through the attacks like wind cutting through leaves. His expression didn't change. Bored. Cold. Precise.
"Tsk."
He clicked his tongue as he deflected another strike, countering with a burst of pressure that sent Mae-Bi sliding back.
This kid… reminds me too much of back then.
The way Beak Mu-Gi made him look like a beginner.
Like a fool.
He shook the memory off like dust and narrowed his eyes.
Mae-Bi's form was sloppy, yes. But there was something else.
That Qi.
Too dense. Too deep. He's only eighteen… but that core was developing at an unnatural rate.
"What are you hiding?" Mun-Jae muttered.
Behind Mae-Bi, Rak swept in with a flurry of precise blows. Mun-Jae parried again, adjusting to Rak's more disciplined footwork.
So this is the one who was supposed to be the leader.
He could see it now. Rak had potential.
But his heart was clouded. Not sharp enough.
Mae-Bi, on the other hand…
Mun-Jae's gaze locked on Mae-Bi's blood-red eyes.
Third-stage Blood Eye.
At his age?
Now he understood why the First Pillar had taken interest in this boy.
He's either the cult's greatest blessing… or its poison.
But then—
A ripple of raw Qi exploded across the battlefield.
Mun-Jae turned just in time to feel the shift in the air.
The others froze. Even the assassins took a step back, instinctively recognizing the pressure.
From the far side of the circle—
Jin.
His eyes blazed with fury.
His veins popped, glowing faintly under flushed skin.
The ground beneath his feet cracked.
Qi Rage.
Mun-Jae's smile returned.
"So the funny one had bite after all."
But that rage… it was unstable. If left uncontrolled, it would shatter his core. Maybe even kill him.
"What a shame," Mun-Jae muttered.
"He won't last long."
Mae-Bi's heart dropped.
He knew that look in Jin's eyes.
He'd seen it before—in another life.
When people lose control of their Qi and their mind, all in one breath.
Jin wasn't leveling up.
He was breaking.
Mae-Bi clenched his dagger, blood dripping from his knuckles. The rest of the squad was barely holding the line. One of them was dead. His hands were trembling, not from fear—but from something deeper.
Turmoil.
Grief.
Failure.
The weight of leadership pressing into his spine like a blade.
[System: "Master… would you like some help? Or are you still angry and stubborn?"]
He didn't answer right away.
He looked around—at the bleeding team, the broken formation, the storm building inside Jin.
He couldn't afford to be just angry. Not anymore.
[System: "Master, I understand. You think you can walk this path alone. But I'm here to make the road easier—to help you survive, and more than that… to help you win."]
Mae-Bi sat still as chaos hummed behind him.
The clash of blades. The curses. The roar of Qi tearing air.
But inside?
Silence.
He stared at his trembling hands.
"Win? I wasn't trying to win anything…" he muttered.
"I was just trying to escape. That's all. Once the centipede was gone, I thought—finally. I can disappear. I can live."
But deep down, he knew better.
There would be no peace. Not in this world.
Not with the storm he remembered—
the war that was coming. The blood. The screams. The impossible monster floating above an army of corpses…
The Heavenly Demon.
The image clawed at his chest.
[System: "This fear… it's part of being human. Maybe that's why my creator chose you. Not because you're the strongest, or the bravest—but because you know what fear is. And still… you move forward."]
Mae-Bi closed his eyes.
Yes. He was a coward once.
A trickster. A runner.
He survived by hiding in the dark and letting others bleed.
But now?
He wasn't alone anymore.
And whether he liked it or not, he was a leader.
"Damn it…" he exhaled. "I don't want to be noble. I don't care about peace…"
But his clenched fist said otherwise.
And his team—bleeding, breaking, still fighting beside him—proved he couldn't lie to himself anymore.
"…but maybe… maybe I can at least be someone worth remembering."
[System: "Then let me help. Let's use everything. I'll begin unlocking the next layer—your potential is no longer sleeping."]
Mae-Bi stood up, body humming as the system began syncing deeper. The pain in his bones faded. The noise around him grew clear again.
Jin. Yuri. Rak. The squad.
And beyond them—Mun-Jae, calm and composed. A predator among wolves.
"This isn't about escape anymore."
Mae-Bi's eyes sharpened.
"This is about climbing high enough… to cut the whole damn cult down."
The Heavenly Demon waited at the top.Mae-Bi would get there.Even if he had to crawl over corpses to do it.
"System," Mae-Bi said under his breath, eyes sharp. "I'm ready. Use everything—100%. I don't care anymore. I've made up my mind."
[System: Finally. You do have a brain.]
Mae-Bi twitched. "…Did you just chuckle?"
A sigh slipped through his teeth. Sarcastic or not, the damn thing always knew when to push.
Still… it helped.
From a few paces away, Rak narrowed his eyes.
"This guy's seriously talking to himself again. Freak."
[System: Initiating Full Sync… Uploading Hidden Functions… Stand by.]
Mae-Bi's heart jumped. "Wait—'stand by'? What do you mean 'stand by'? You told me to use you—don't ghost me now!"
Silence.
[…]
"System? Hello?!"
[…]
"…Damn it. I'm gonna have to fight this bastard without her now?"
Just then—
BOOM.
A shockwave ripped through the trees as Jin and Mun-Jae's fight intensified.
Jin's fist cracked into Mun-Jae's jaw, sending him skidding back across the wet earth.
The boy's face was wild. Unchained. Blood-soaked and burning.
"Yes!" Mun-Jae shouted, smiling like a lunatic. "Pour it all out, kid! Show me what pain made you!"
Jin didn't speak—just kept swinging like a beast let loose.
Their clash dragged toward the bridge, the mist roiling around them like the jaws of hell.
Mae-Bi and Rak broke through the treeline just in time to see it.
"Rak," Mae-Bi said, already moving. "You need to back him up."
Rak looked sideways. "What—now you're using me as punishment?"
"No. I'm keeping Jin alive. You're the only one here strong enough to help stall him. You know that."
Rak clicked his tongue, frustration twisting in his jaw.
But he turned. "Tch. Fine."
He dashed forward into the mist without another word.
Mae-Bi watched the scene unfold—Jin's fury, Mun-Jae's smirk, Rak leaping in to strike—and clenched his fists.
The system was still silent.
"I'll hold the line, even without you," he muttered.