Iron Fiend Appears (3)

When the Iron Fiend first appeared in my previous life, the Thirteenth Unit’s Fifth Squad had been completely wiped out.

Dok Su-gwang died there along with his squad members.

And the damage hadn’t stopped there.

The members of the First Squad who’d rushed out in response to the emergency signal had also taken devastating losses.

Even so, in hindsight, we had to admit we’d been lucky.

Because back then as now, our Thirteenth Unit had Lady Tang Yeo-eun of the Tang Clan with us.

Soon after, all of the Thirteenth Unit’s peak experts had joined forces to take on the Iron Fiend. Even then, however, its skin hadn’t so much as scratched. In desperation, Lady Tang had thrown every last poison she had at it.

It had been nothing more than a desperate attempt, like clutching at straws.

But that brute-force approach had ended up giving us the answer. It had shown us how to kill that terrifying monster called the Iron Fiend.

Now, in front of my eyes, the Iron Fiend, with the same familiar face I had seen in my last life, slowly rose to its feet.

Its thick, blood-red eyes slid over me.

“Seonu Jin! It’s dangerous! Fall back!”

That was First Squad Captain Han Gyoseong, calling out in concern.

I glanced his way and answered with a faint smile.

“I’m all right, First Squad Captain.”

Off to the side, Dok Su-gwang screwed up his face and shouted.

“Quit showing off, brat! Unless you’re a peak master, you can’t possibly—?!”

He broke off mid-sentence, his expression freezing in shock.

Because he was staring at the blade I had half drawn, and at the clear, pale violet energy-qi gathered along its edge.

Sword-energy no less distinct than the band around Captain Han’s blade. Dok Su-gwang muttered, aghast.

“…Peak?”

He couldn’t say anything more after that.

Han Gyoseong, however, shouted again.

“Even if you are, you can’t handle it alone. Sword-energy doesn’t work on this thing!”

Watching the Iron Fiend prowl toward me, growling like a beast, I answered:

“I know. And I never said I’d fight it by myself.”

At the same moment, Captain Seol Pung, Lady Cheong Yeon, and Lady Tang landed beside Han Gyoseong.

Tap.

I flicked my gaze their way, then immediately dashed toward the Iron Fiend.

Boom!

“Grrrrrr!”

It swung its arm like a wild beast, lashing at me.

Whooom!

But my charge was a feint. I sprang up and vaulted over its head.

Startled, the creature’s gaze tracked upward after me—just as Captain Seol Pung, who had streaked in behind like a falling star, slammed his fist into its abdomen.

BOOM!

The Iron Fiend’s body shot back like a fired shell.

But Captain Seol Pung moved even faster than the creature being blown away.

He caught up to it as it flew, twisted once in midair, and hammered it again.

Thud!

This time, instead of flying backward, the Iron Fiend was smashed straight down, plummeting vertically.

Captain Seol Pung changed direction in midair, dropping after it like a lightning bolt.

KWA-BOOOM!

It really sounded like a meteorite crashing into the earth.

And he didn’t stop there.

With the Iron Fiend lying on the ground, he unleashed a storm of chained strikes, as if he meant to pound it through the ground itself.

The vivid red energy-qi sheathing his fists left afterimages like a thousand-armed Bodhisattva.

“Wadadadadadada!”

KWA-KWA-KWA-KWA-KWA-BOOM!

Even if there had been a mountain beneath them, that barrage would’ve bored right through it.

Everyone watched in a daze, stunned by the spectacular display.

And yet, even after all that, the Iron Fiend did not die.

When it swung an arm, trying to swat Captain Seol Pung away, he simply hopped back and withdrew lightly.

He landed at my side and watched as the Iron Fiend staggered to its feet.

“The thing really is unbelievable, just like you said,” he remarked, shaking his head.

“…Yeah. It really is unbelievable,” I replied.

He was talking about the Iron Fiend.

But as for me, I’d been talking about Captain Seol Pung.

Because his ferocious assault had not been wasted.

The creature’s chest, now that it was standing again, was caved in at several spots.

I was sure the bones inside had been crushed.

Captain Seol Pung’s savage strikes had literally beaten its body to pieces.

Punching an Iron Fiend apart… that was something even my past life had never shown me.

I swallowed.

Whatever had happened while I was away, I could no longer gauge just how far Captain Seol Pung’s strength had grown.

Even so, the Iron Fiend was still moving, its red eyes roaming over its surroundings.

Clearing my throat, I turned to Lady Tang.

“Lady Tang, as I mentioned earlier—please.”

She met my gaze and nodded without a word.

Up to now, I’d held back and let Captain Seol Pung experience the Iron Fiend himself.

I’d wanted everyone to see that no matter what they did, they couldn’t simply smash the thing to death.

Then, working with Lady Tang, I’d planned to show them the method for dealing with it—something they would use as a reference going forward.

But…

He actually smashed it up.

I had never imagined he could batter it into such a wreck.

It really was frightening.

Feeling a bit sheepish, I turned to Captain Seol Pung.

“Captain, its attention.”

He nodded once, then charged the Iron Fiend again.

Pa-bak!

The creature growled and swung an arm at him.

Whooom!

But this time, the captain was the bait.

He sprang up out of reach. As the Iron Fiend’s gaze followed him, I darted in and grabbed its arm.

An instant later, its body lifted off the ground and slammed face-first into the earth.

Thud!

It was the Golden Rope technique from Gale Thirteen Throws, the Seonu Clan’s throw art.

With its face buried in the dirt, I braced behind it, pinning one arm, and shouted.

“Captain! The other arm!”

Captain Seol Pung flew in at once and pinned the Iron Fiend’s other arm.

For the moment, we had its body restrained.

What came next didn’t need to be said.

Lady Tang swept in behind the Iron Fiend and drew a long, straight line of Hwagolsan down the back of its neck, then sprang away.

We jumped clear as well.

“Grrrrrr!”

The Iron Fiend got up the moment we retreated, growling as it glared around like a wounded predator.

Maybe the memory of being pummeled by Captain Seol Pung was still vivid, because it didn’t rush in recklessly.

It seemed to be watching, weighing the situation.

But everyone’s eyes were not on that oddly cunning behavior, so unlike a demonic being.

They were fixed on its back.

Ssssss…

From the spot on its neck where the Hwagolsan had been sprinkled, something began to sizzle and melt, sending up thin white smoke.

Han Gyoseong let out a sigh.

“It really… works.”

I stepped forward slowly and spoke.

“From what I’ve heard, it’s extremely intelligent, but still hasn’t fully escaped a demonic being’s instincts. It still has a tendency to obsess over its first opponent. Its mouth is still its weak point—but it almost never opens it now. In other words, it has almost no exposed weak spots.

“However, if Hwagolsan touches its skin, that skin gradually weakens. That’s why we have to wait a bit after applying it. The longer we wait, the stronger the effect becomes.”

Then I turned to Captain Seol Pung.

“Captain, one more time, please.”

He nodded and launched himself at the Iron Fiend again, once more to draw its gaze.

When he vaulted high overhead and the monster’s eyes followed him up, I was already behind it.

Looking at the back of its neck, where white smoke still curled up, I took my sword in a two-handed grip.

This time, I wouldn’t use sword-energy.

Instead, I recalled what Black Wolf had once said.

“Cut along the gap and guide the blade through the hollow; simply follow what is already there.”

Then I drew.

A pale sword-light whispered through the air like a breeze.

For a moment, it felt like I’d sliced the world itself.

There was no resistance, nothing catching on the blade—only softness.

A short time later, as I slowly slid the sword back into its sheath, the Iron Fiend’s head slid forward from its neck.

Its massive body toppled with a heavy thud an instant after.

After the battle, everyone assembled began recovering the bodies of the Fifth Squad and the Iron Fiend’s corpse.

Out of eleven Fifth Squad members, seven were dead.

Despite the victory, the atmosphere was heavy and somber.

While they handled the corpse, Seol Pung ran his hand over the Iron Fiend’s skin.

The feel of it was unfamiliar—hard and stiff, like touching whale hide.

It had clearly once been human skin, yet it was durable enough to endure sword-energy. The thought made him let out a bitter laugh.

Just then, First Squad Captain Han Gyoseong approached him.

“To think you actually beat on something like this,” he said. “I couldn’t even scratch it.”

Seol Pung answered with a wry smile.

“It wasn’t much use, was it? In the end, we killed it just like Seonu Jin said—thanks to Hwagolsan.”

“Hmm. Looked to me like, if you’d kept pounding away, you might’ve broken it on your own. With your strength now, I don’t think I could ever beat you. You’ve gotten too strong. Did you stumble on some kind of fortuitous encounter during the mission?”

His eyes held open admiration—pure, earnest respect for another man’s strength, and a keen desire to learn.

The people of the Thirteenth Unit weren’t used to seeing that; they were more accustomed to the lazy superiority of born geniuses.

But this was the true nature of the man once called a prodigy of Qingcheng—Han Gyoseong himself.

Seol Pung chuckled softly.

“I gained some insight into what the Sword Saint taught me last time. I’m slow-witted—only now do I understand what he was trying to say.”

“The Sword Saint, huh. When he comes back, I’ll have to ask him for some guidance too.”

While Seol Pung and Han Gyoseong talked, I was off to the side, taking charge of the Iron Fiend’s severed head.

I studied its face carefully.

Without those bloody red eyes, it didn’t look fierce at all.

If anything, the tightly closed lips and strong features gave it the air of a righteous hero from the orthodox world.

And I thought that might very well be true.

Before this man became an Iron Fiend, he had probably been such an orthodox hero.

There’s no way they taught a demonic being martial arts afterward. A top first-rate level of skill like that had to be his own. And if what Old Man Seok said was right, it would’ve taken quite some time to complete an Iron Fiend. Which means this man was probably…

I tried to guess where he might have been captured by the Blood Cult.

Wherever that was would be the first place we needed to investigate.

Most likely, that was where demonic beings were being produced….

As I was thinking that and staring at the Iron Fiend’s head, Tang Yeo-eun approached from behind and spoke.

“Is it someone you know?”

I had already sensed her coming. I smiled lightly and answered naturally.

“No. I was just trying to guess where he came from.”

Then I turned to her and asked:

“Oh, Lady Tang—would there be anyone in the Tang Clan who can analyze this kind of skin?”

“Yes. I’ve heard they’re already studying the bodies of gan-gwi, hyo-gwi, and lord-class demons,” she replied.

“Perfect. Then I’d like to ask them to analyze this Iron Fiend as well. How a body like this is even possible, why it’s vulnerable to Hwagolsan, whether there’s any method besides Hwagolsan… And if possible, I’d like to know who this man originally was.”

At that, Tang Yeo-eun gave a bright smile—one she rarely showed in front of others.

“Of course. The people at the main house will probably be delighted.”

She hesitated for a moment, then added softly:

“I’m glad you came back safely. I was worried.”

With that, she turned and walked away from me.

Her head was bowed as she spoke, and she turned away so quickly that I couldn’t see her face—but I did catch the faint redness at the tips of her ears.

Feeling a gentle warmth in my chest, I watched her retreating back with a smile.

And two people, in turn, were watching me.

One of them was Dok Su-gwang.

He glared at me with burning eyes.

A lowborn brat from some insignificant sect, not even of the Nine Great Sects. A pig-like fool who’d been only second-rate when he first arrived at the Thirteenth Unit. An idiot who worshipped Seol Pung and crawled into his squad.

Yet somehow, that same brat had surpassed Dok Su-gwang, and now had returned as a peak master.

Dok Su-gwang simply could not accept it.

He couldn’t accept that I had slain a demonic being he himself couldn’t handle.

Above all, he could not accept that I was now stronger than he was.

Flames of hot jealousy blazed in his eyes as he stared.

And the other watcher was Hae Cheong-yeon.

Since leaving the Mountain Sword Sect, she had gone back to wearing her hair down over her face, hiding her eyes. From beneath that curtain of hair, she expressionlessly watched Tang Yeo-eun and me.

She watched my expression as I spoke with Tang Yeo-eun, watched Tang Yeo-eun’s uncharacteristically shy, flushed face as she turned away, so different from her usual chilly demeanor—and watched me smiling after Tang Yeo-eun as she walked off.

No one could have guessed anything from Hae Cheong-yeon’s face; it was utterly blank.

But beneath her hair, her eyes were roiling like a storm-tossed sea.

Just like her heart.