Chapter 12: The First Crisis (2)

“It’s been a while since I got hurt! You’re fun!”

Damn it, this isn’t a game!

As time passed, the disadvantage was on our side.

I quickly moved behind Iblis.

They wouldn’t be able to see me, so if I could just find a small opening… I could win…

“Found you.”

Iblis’s head snapped back, and his blood-red, murderous eyes locked onto me.

In an instant, his magic-cloaked hand grabbed my neck.

“Kuhk!”

“Didn’t think about the sound of your breathing, huh? Then I guess hide-and-seek is over.”

I felt his grip tighten around my neck.

The pain from the squeeze was making it harder and harder to breathe.

If I moved even slightly, he’d snap my neck.

“Nothing else to show me?”

Iblis sounded disappointed.

This isn’t a damn joke!

I clenched my teeth and glared at Iblis.

Realizing I had no more cards to play, Iblis didn’t hide his disappointment.

“This is boring now. Goodbye.”

Right before he twisted my neck, his face began to twitch.

The power of Jormungandr’s Fang had finally activated.

Blood vessels thickened in his eyes.

“I’ve never felt anything like this. This is exciting!”

“You psycho….”

Even with his body paralyzed, he was grinning.

It was clear—this man was truly insane.

Being an S-rank, Iblis would shake off the paralysis soon enough.

“Principal! While I buy time, take the kids and run!”

I hated gambling with my life in front of an S-rank, but there was no other choice.

If the kids die, the world ends anyway.

Now is the time for a life-or-death gamble.

If the gamble succeeds, I’ll help evacuate the kids and then escape too.

…Not sure if I can outrun an S-rank, though.

“Oops! That won’t do. I have a mission too, you know.”

A surge of Iblis’s mana destroyed the concrete wall.

The only exit was now blocked.

Damn it—he already broke through the paralysis!?

‘If this keeps up, there’s no chance of winning.’

There was only one way to break through this situation…

The outcome of this fight would depend entirely on my luck.

[S-rank skill “Investment Mastermind” has activated.]

[Recognizing Han Yoosung’s achievement.]

A broken chair.

If it were Han Yoosung, he definitely would’ve charged at Iblis.

Experiments showed I could get investment returns by recognizing events that happened within a day.

[■■■ is calculating what the current user needs.]

[You receive a Fragment of Memory.]

So I could receive things other than stats.

But there was no time to celebrate.

Iblis’s eyes glinted coldly as he reached the end of his patience.

“Daydreaming in front of me? Got anything more interesting?”

“Kuhk!”

A murderous intent filled with real intent to kill.

My dulled hunter instincts began to flare back to life.

Using the air left in my lungs, I managed to squeeze out a word:

“…Claymore.”

The moment I spoke the name, Iblis let go of my throat.

I sucked in oxygen and let out a coughing fit.

“How do you know that name?”

The playful look vanished from Iblis’s face.

A fragment of Han Yoosung’s memory from the investment returns flowed into my mind.

Just bits and pieces, but enough.

Claymore.

A discarded name, once filled with Iblis’s pain—

A name only his family knew.

No one should be able to call him by that name anymore.

Except me, who knew the secret told only to the one he liked—Han Yoosung.

“How do you think I know it?”

Now, I held the upper hand.

With a need for information, the chances Iblis would kill me dropped significantly.

“You bastard… Do you know someone connected to me? No… That can’t be…”

Iblis muttered and lowered his dagger.

The flow of conversation shifted.

My neck, marked by his grip, throbbed as if bruised.

“Let’s make a deal. I’ll tell you what I know, so just let the kids go.”

Iblis clenched his mouth shut and seemed to hesitate.

I had to negotiate while hiding my hand as much as possible.

As time passed, anxiety crept in.

“I’ve decided.”

What flickered in his eyes wasn’t anger—it was closer to madness.

He drew a dagger wrapped in mana.

“You’re coming with me.”

“Goddamn it!”

This is why you can’t negotiate with lunatics!

His dagger radiated enough mana to knock me unconscious.

‘Damn it… The last option—’

Suddenly, a chill ran down my spine, and all my senses sharpened.

Iblis, sensing the same thing, also froze.

No… this isn’t just a feeling!

“Principal! Get down!”

BOOM!

A blade of mana powerful enough to split a mountain tore the classroom in half.

The decrepit school, already unstable, began to collapse from the mana shock.

I should’ve known—there wasn’t just one kidnapper.

“Shit! That bastard Blunt!”

Even Iblis looked panicked as he cursed.

★★★

“Damn it, he actually went in.”

Outside the school, hidden in the bushes, Kim Sungbae looked anxious.

As soon as he gave Iblis the intel, he charged into the school.

Knowing his brutal personality, the teacher was probably dead by now.

No matter how skilled he was, he couldn’t beat an S-rank hunter.

Kim Sungbae grinned slyly.

“Serves him right.”

Even if he’d borrowed someone else’s power, in the end, he was the winner.

No more meddling fools—he could just build his influence again.

“The kids? Who cares.”

Kim Sungbae chuckled.

“I never liked those brats anyway.”

Their mature, unchildlike eyes had always been unsettling.

He had meant to teach them a lesson, but someone had saved him the trouble.

Now, before the situation escalated, he had to get out of here quickly.

“Hm?”

Suddenly, he felt movement in the bushes behind him.

Turning around, he saw a man so large he mistook him for a bear.

A greatsword, so big it looked impossible for a human to carry, was strapped to his back.

“W-What the hell!?”

Startled, Kim Sungbae stumbled backward.

His face wasn’t visible, but the magical energy radiating from him was extraordinary.

A power on a different level—it felt exactly like when I first encountered Iblis.

“W-Who are you…?”

“Do you know where Iblis is?”

His voice was deep and low, like it came from a cave.

‘Iblis? Don’t tell me he’s a comrade of that guy.’

Trying to act tough here would be suicidal.

Kim Sungbae, a textbook weak-against-the-strong type, bowed deeply.

“If you mean Iblis, he’s at the school.”

There was nothing to gain by getting on his bad side.

The massive man walked past Kim Sungbae with heavy steps, heading toward the school.

Only then did Kim Sungbae finally let out the breath he had been holding.

‘Why the hell are monsters like that showing up in this rural backwater!’

“Come to think of it, Iblis forgot something.”

The man stopped in his tracks.

“And what would that be…?”

Before Kim Sungbae could finish, the man swung his greatsword—so fast it was hard to believe.

The steel blade swept cleanly under his neck.

The world flipped upside down, and his vision spun.

He saw his headless body as it hit the dirt.

His corneas turned red, soaked in the blood pooling around him.

“Iblis didn’t take care of the trash before he left.”

Kim Sungbae died an utterly meaningless death.

The man frowned and strapped the greatsword back onto his back.

His gaze shifted from Kim Sungbae to the school.

The magical energy emanating from inside was unmistakably Iblis’s.

“Still playing around inside, huh?”

A detestable man.

He hated Iblis for tormenting the weak just for fun.

If the operation dragged on any longer, things would get troublesome.

He had just received word that the Korean Hunter Association was on its way.

“Time for a change of plans.”

A menacing aura of magic wrapped around the steel blade.

The air grew heavy, and the ground trembled beneath them.

A top-tier slash powered by S-rank magic was enough to slice the old school building in half.

★★★

Iblis’s comrade was outside.

The one responsible for destroying the school.

With magic this powerful, he could be on par with—or even stronger than—Iblis.

“Ugh!”

The school, which had been standing just minutes ago, began to collapse.

There was no way to stop the crumbling building.

Dust scattered as chunks of concrete fell toward the children.

Too slow.

Even if I ran, I wouldn’t be able to protect them from the collapsing floor and falling debris.

I squeezed out every bit of remaining magic and reinforced my muscles.

Using magic boosts physical ability significantly—

Though with my pitiful reserves, it wouldn’t last long.

The principal was carrying Shin Ahyeon.

That meant the ones I had to save were…

I expanded the muscles in my legs and leapt forward.

I kicked off falling debris like stepping stones and snatched the children out of the air.

First was Kim Seo-geon, then Yoon Cheon-woo, then Seong Tae-yoon.

A steel bar scraped my leg.

Blood sprayed in the air like a burst of red mist.

My body felt heavier, like soaked cotton.

My consciousness was slipping.

‘I have to stay awake!’

I took a deep breath and forced out every ounce of remaining strength.

I stretched out my hand and caught Han Yoosung by the arm just before he hit the ground.

At the same time, my magically enhanced muscles suddenly seized up.

I crashed into a solid wall as debris poured down on us.

I held the children close to protect them from the rubble.

Just hang on… One second… two seconds… three seconds…

Ten seconds later, the collapse finally stopped.

Where the ceiling used to be, the sky stretched endlessly above.

“Ugh!”

I coughed violently, the breath I’d been holding bursting out.

“My lungs… feel like they’re going to explode.”

My bruised body throbbed in agony.

My breathing was ragged, and I could feel the metallic taste of blood filling my mouth.

The debris on top of me, thankfully, wasn’t heavy enough to be fatal.

But the aftereffects of squeezing out all my magic left me unable to move.

‘What about the principal and Shin Ahyeon?’

Turning my head with great effort, I first saw the massive man again.

On his shoulder was Iblis, struggling but restrained.

“It’s time to go.”

His mouth twitched, sealed shut—probably by magic.

At his feet lay the unconscious principal and passed-out Shin Ahyeon, cradled in his arms.

The moment I saw him, I knew—he was a kidnapper just like Iblis.

Having completed his task, the man turned to leave.

“Stop!”

He looked at me.

“She’s my student. You can’t just take her.”

I stood with trembling legs, barely staying upright.

If I lost focus even for a second, I’d collapse.

This guy was stronger than Iblis.

And I was practically dying—no strength left to lift a finger.

“…I saw you save the children. Impressive. If I could, I’d like to face you in a fair fight.”

“You talk about fair fights, yet you endanger children?”

His body flinched at my words—clearly hit a nerve.

“…I admit it. That was against my own code of chivalry.”

He’s even crazier than I thought.

Wrecks a school and still talks about chivalry? What a load of crap.

“I have no intention of cutting you down, so don’t try anything foolish.”

Was there any card left I could play?

No skills, no allies.

And with the kids behind me, the odds of winning were basically zero.

But I couldn’t let him take Shin Ahyeon.

“…If you’re going to take Shin Ahyeon, then kill me first.”

It was practically suicide, but I had no other choice.

I’d spent time talking to him, observing his personality.

‘The kind of bastard who plays the noble knight while committing crimes.’

A guy like that decides for himself who’s good and evil.

If he thought someone was evil, he wouldn’t hesitate to cut them down.

Normally, the chances of that greatsword splitting me in half were high.

But if I was right, he’d react differently.