Chapter 102. End of the Late Night Hour
***
The Late Night Hour was almost over.
Gradually, the streets grew sparse, but still many martial artists filled the road.
And then.
At some point, Dong Bong-su began to move while blending in among them.
***
Killing Shadow Squad member Ten was hiding beneath the eaves of a house about ten jang south of Nangnang Tavern.
He was not alone—other Killing Shadow Squad members were also hidden throughout the street.
He could see the figure of Number Twenty-Two, who was hiding deep inside the opposite alley, quite clearly. The moon was bright, and Ten's position was relatively higher than that of Twenty-Two.
He cast a quick glance at Twenty-Two, then returned his gaze to the entrance of Nangnang Tavern where the target was located.
The target, whose bangs covered about half of their face, was still standing in the same spot.
Are they just watching the passersby?
Ten felt irritated because he could not clearly see the target's eyes. Like most assassins, he predicted attack timing and movements by reading the target's eyes. However, this target was fundamentally blocking that method, making him uneasy. On top of that, there was absolutely no information about the target, which only worsened matters.
'Damn it. Why the hell isn't that bastard moving?'
Could it be that they noticed the presence of the Killing Shadow Squad?
That couldn't be.
Though the Killing Shadow Squad's origins were wretched beyond measure, the training they received was no different from hell itself. When it came to hiding, even peak experts would find it hard to match them.
Ten trusted himself and trusted his comrades. All of them had been mobilized. With this many, wouldn't it be enough to assassinate even an elder-class figure of the Nine Sects?
The Killing Shadow Squad never lets go of a marked target. Since becoming a member, Ten had never failed even once. This time would be no different. Information about the target wasn't that important anyway.
Ten's eyes, sunken into the darkness, sank even deeper.
'Move. Move. The moment you move.'
You're a dead man!
Just as he was shouting that inwardly—
'...!'
The target finally moved.
The target suddenly blended into the crowd.
Ten's eyes snapped wide open. The street was crowded with many people besides the target, so he had to be careful not to lose sight of them.
'Fifty steps, forty-nine steps, forty-eight steps....'
To avoid losing the target, Ten continuously measured the distance between them. Though he couldn't see them directly, all the other Killing Shadow Squad members were surely tense as well. The moment the target approached to within one or two steps of any of them, they would unleash their killing blows.
Ten continued counting.
Thirty-eight steps, thirty-seven steps, thir— six steps!?
'Huh!? Disappeared?'
The target suddenly...
Vanished.
Though the crowd was thick, the target's appearance was distinctive enough that losing them should have been impossible...
They were lost.
Not only that, but dozens of Killing Shadow Squad members had been watching the target simultaneously, and yet the target had vanished without a trace.
Startled, Ten looked toward Twenty-Two across from him. But Twenty-Two was staring back as well, apparently having lost the target too.
'It's real! They really disappeared!'
The two simultaneously looked back at the spot where the target had first vanished. It was the middle of the road. There was nowhere to hide. Unless someone possessed concealment technique on the level of the Killing Shadow Squad leader, no one could disappear there. No—even the leader himself couldn't simply vanish outright. At the very least, there should have been some sign of concealment technique being used.
And yet the target had literally just...
Disappeared!?
For the Killing Shadow Squad, losing a target was the same as losing one's life.
The squad leader's orders were absolute.
And if they failed an order given by the unidentified woman who commanded that leader like a puppet?
It was the end.
"Damn it—!"
Perhaps forgetting the Killing Shadow Squad's rule of "never utter careless words during a mission," Ten unknowingly let a sound escape his mouth as he slipped slightly down from the eaves.
Looking across, Twenty-Two was also exposing part of his body outside the alley. And from the opposite side of another alley, Number Thirty-Eight—who had been blocking the target's escape route—stepped out into the street.
Had he found the target?
Thud.
At that moment—
Number Thirty-Eight's head fell off.
"...!"
Ten had no idea what had happened. But who did it was clear.
The target! The target had hidden somewhere and unleashed a killing strike, then vanished again.
"Ghk!"
"W-what is that!?"
"Eek!"
At the sudden appearance of a headless corpse, the people filling the street screamed and scattered in all directions. In an instant, the street descended into chaos.
Because of that, not only Ten but the entire Killing Shadow Squad became even more unable to grasp who the target truly was.
And from that moment, the slaughter began.
Thud.
Number Forty-One, who had been hiding on the roof of a building on the other side, was killed. And for a very brief moment, Ten saw a shadow standing behind Forty-One. But it truly was only a moment.
Right after cutting Forty-One's neck, the target vanished again.
Thud. Thud. Thud....
Number Seven, Number Nine, Number Fifteen...….
The number of Killing Shadow Squad members kept decreasing.
"T-that...!?"
Now, occasionally, they could see the target. At other times, they couldn't even see a shadow. It was impossible to pin down.
When visible, the target was fast. No—so fast that the word 'fast' felt inadequate. The more Killing Shadow Squad members they killed, the faster they became. Sometimes they vanished as if blinking out of existence on the spot, and other times they disappeared as though entering into a pillar itself.
No one could track their movements. It wasn't concealment technique, Lightness Skill, or anything else.
How should one describe it?
The opponent was simply a ghost. A ghost.
"G-ghost! It's a ghost!"
As if voicing Ten's own heart, one of the onlookers shouted. The scattering of people accelerated even further.
Some of the Killing Shadow Squad members tried to mingle with the crowd and escape the area. But none succeeded. The target—no, the ghost—prioritized killing those who tried to flee.
As a result, the Killing Shadow Squad members' range of movement narrowed even further. The same was true for Ten, and likewise for Twenty-Two across from him. The fear that whoever moved first would die was etched into everyone's minds.
Thud, thud, thud...…..
But staying still didn't guarantee survival either. Regardless of movement, slaughter unfolded throughout the street.
Thud, thud, thud...…..
"..."
Ten could only stand there with his mouth open, waiting for his turn to come.
Then, at some point—
Thud.
Across from him, Twenty-Two—who had been standing blankly with his mouth open just like him—lost his head.
The one who had severed Twenty-Two's neck turned their body and looked this way.
Of course, Ten couldn't move. It wasn't because he thought movement would be useless. His body—his legs, his arms... simply wouldn't move.
Swish.
The ghost vanished again. That peculiar movement technique of theirs.
Immediately, a chill ran down Ten's spine.
Behind me. The ghost appeared behind him. He knew without looking.
Because the metallic scent of blood was faintly刺激ing his nose. Soon, his own blood would be mixed in as well.
"Who is she?"
The ghost spoke.
Even the ghost's voice was peculiar. Perhaps it truly wasn't human? It was a completely emotionless voice, devoid of even the slightest trace of feeling.
Ten's eyes trembled violently. He didn't know who the 'she' the ghost referred to was. All he knew was that she commanded the squad leader like a servant.
"I...…"
Ten tried to open his mouth and say 'I don't know.' But the words never came out as sound.
Because his neck was already sliding sideways, his line of sight was sinking lower and lower, and his consciousness had already fled far away.
From that moment, midnight began, and a new day dawned.
***
"My, my. Today's already over. Such a shame."
Yeon Yeong-ha smacked her lips regretfully.
She was sitting astride a branch of an oak tree on a hill about thirty jang away from Nangnang Tavern. From there, she had watched everything that happened in front of Nangnang Tavern.
Despite seeing similar scenes for the third time, it was still fascinating.
Illogical.
That man was a human who had deviated from the normal track. Like herself... perhaps even more abnormal.
If she could see it one or two more times, she felt she might understand... but unfortunately, the day had ended. That fact left Yeon Yeong-ha deeply dissatisfied.
"Elder Noh, did you see it?"
Despite her words, the shadow remained completely unmoving, offering no reply.
"Yeah, right. No way Elder Noh saw it properly."
At her continued words, the shadow finally rippled.
"Huh? Me? You're asking if I saw it?"
"..."
"I didn't see it either. That's why it's driving me crazy. Three times wasn't enough. Far from enough."
With just three times, it wasn't even possible to understand it.
Disappearing and reappearing...
It wasn't just his body. The sword in his hand would exist, then vanish, then appear again and disappear... It was unbelievable, yet something she had clearly witnessed with her own eyes.
Even now, there was no sword in his hand. And yet, when he killed the last Killing Shadow Squad member, there had definitely been a sword in his grasp.
[Kill them. Kill them all.]
Heavenly Slaughter Energy roiled once more.
Yeon Yeong-ha's pupils turned pitch black.
It was hard to endure. But she couldn't allow Heavenly Slaughter Energy to run wild here.
"This is driving me insane. I'm seriously losing it. Elder Noh. I want to play with that man so badly I could die."
Was it because he saw her pitch-black eyes? The shadow trembled as if struck by wind.
"If you go over the back of this hill and travel about ten ri, there's a place called Noh Family Village?"
At her words, the shadow flowed along the branches again, swaying as if nodding in affirmation.
Flash.
Her pitch-black pupils gleamed, soaked in madness.
Reflected in those jet-black eyes was Dong Bong-su calmly returning to the Martial Alliance, and soon even the Martial Alliance patrol members who had arrived after hearing news of the slaughter came into view.
She wanted to play with everyone there, but it wasn't time yet.
Soon enough, a grand stage called the All-Under-Heaven Youth Martial Arts Tournament would be held.
Not yet... now wasn't the time. For today, she would just catch a few bugs to soothe her Heavenly Slaughter Energy.
Dong Bong-su soon disappeared from her sight, and Yeon Yeong-ha also leapt from the back of the hill and left the scene. All that remained were patrol members busily collecting corpses and spectators feeling both fear and curiosity at the appearance of a ghost.
And after some time, dawn broke.
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