Sisters

“M-Master?”
“……”

Yu Seha looked at the two before him.

Peng Jin-ah, Plum Blossom Sword Empress.
Both were torn and tattered,
Wearing blood-soaked martial garments.
Fortunately, it was not their own blood.

From those appearances, Yu Seha realized that both of them
Had come straight here immediately after leaving the ‘tower’.
They had literally rushed here without time to tend to themselves.

Yu Seha gave a bitter smile of gratitude and apology.

Looking again, he felt considerable power emanating from both.

Through the blood battle with the Sword Ghost,
They had shattered many levels at once,
Taken flight to become stars,
And Yu Seha had even set foot on celestial bodies beyond them.

Until just a month ago, scarcely noticed,
the strength of the Plum Blossom Sword Empress and Peng Jin-ah was now unmistakable.

‘He has grown much stronger.’

It’s not something Yu Seha—who himself had grown greatly in a short time—should say,
But becoming that strong in such a short period by normal training is normally impossible.

They must have received powerful rewards and raised their rank, making it possible.
They had undoubtedly cleared an uncleared floor of the <Tower of the Sword Master>.

‘But…’

Yu Seha’s face involuntarily darkened.
He was clearly stronger, but

Compared to that monstrous old man before him,
He felt they were far too lacking.

Even if these two joined forces determined to kill…

‘…I don’t think we can win.’

“……”

Meanwhile, Peng Jin-ah looked at Yu Seha with trembling eyes.
Blood far beyond a lethal dose
Soaked the surroundings.

On top of that, Yu Seha’s body was in tatters.
In places his internal organs were even visible.

This alone seemed enough to make him pass out any moment, but…
something even more shocking was right before her eyes.

‘…W-what on earth…’

What was with that lower body…?

Near the waist there was clearly a different, abnormal body.
Peng Jin-ah had fought such a thing herself.
She knew exactly what it was.

‘W-why is a Kirin’s body part attached to cadet Yu Seha?’

Through long experience, Peng Jin-ah was certain.
The form Yu Seha had taken now
was a transformation of a dimension entirely different from monsterification or gigantification-type skills like Neung-hak…

“……”

Peng Jin-ah swallowed a groan.
She barely held back rising tears.
She felt unbearably sorry for arriving late.

That she had left him to suffer to the point of transforming like that
Made her too ashamed to call herself his master.

Her body shook involuntarily.
In that moment, the Plum Blossom Sword Empress issued a sharp admonition.

“Jin-ah, pull yourself together, the enemy is right in front of you.”
“……!”

Peng Jin-ah clenched her teeth.
She gripped the <Great Hope> in her hand as if to break it.

Yes, now was the time…

To face the enemy before them,
The one who killed her mother,
It was time to confront the Sword Ghost.

“……”

The Sword Ghost stared blankly at the two who had intervened.
Well, vaguely familiar faces.

But as if that meant nothing to him,
He displayed a look of being very, very displeased.

“…Insignificant insects not worth remembering have gotten involved.”
“…You bastard…”
“Jin-ah! Calm down!”

The Sword Ghost snorted at Peng Jin-ah’s fierce attack and turned his gaze to Yu Seha.

He soon let out a grotesque laugh.

“What a pity. Still, it seems I’ve taught you everything worth teaching. As expected, my disciple.”

Peng Jin-ah could no longer tolerate the blasphemy of him being called his ‘disciple.’
With bloodshot eyes she poured power into <Great Hope> and charged.
The Plum Blossom Sword Empress also drew his longsword and rushed in to assist.

The Sword Ghost paid no mind to the two who had him cornered.
One eye, one ear,
Even having lost his left arm—which is life to a martial artist—
He showed no sign of weakening.

He raised his greatsword.
With a single swing,
He blocked the two attacks and spoke calmly.

His gaze remained fixed
On Yu Seha.

“At our next meeting I’ll check how far you’ve climbed. Disciple. Then, take my head. I’ll give it willingly.”
“Sh-shut… up!!!”

Peng Jin-ah erupted with volcanic rage and unleashed a sword technique combining [Overlord Sword Technique] and [Paeng-ah Commanding Tiger Blade].

Similarly, the Plum Blossom Sword Empress, who had been unleashing phantom and explosive blades with [Twenty-Four Plum Sword Technique], shouted to Yu Seha.

“Yu Seha! Go! Go now! Leave this to us!”
“…Yes!”

Yu Seha lifted the Kirin’s lower body.
He did not hesitate.

For a brief moment,
he considered whether the three of them should combine their attacks to kill the Sword Ghost here, but…

“’..I can’t see it.’

Even with their current injuries, he couldn’t picture them defeating the Sword Ghost.
He could say this with certainty.
If he wished, the Sword Ghost could leisurely flee at any time.
Frustratingly, that was the absurd level of power the Sword Ghost possessed.
And one must not forget the importance of the matter at hand.

‘Now…!’

The Demon King’s revival—
saving my girls comes first!
He decided to trust and leave this place to the two of them.

Now somewhat accustomed to the .
He charged out at fierce speed, summoning lightning with every infusion of mana.

Yu Seha raised [Breath of the Divine Beast] once more.
The second option activated and the mana that had hit the ground slowly began to recover.
Thus he dashed fiercely toward where his companions were.

<Gonis Hunter Academy> central area.
<Demon King’s Temple>.

A mana storm, thick and pure beyond comparison, was raging.

The source of the mana was the very center of the temple where Moon Ha-yeon had performed the ritual.

Something close to a giant, wildly swinging massive arms from there.

A being commonly called the Demon King.
One of the 72 Demon Kings, identity unknown,
was scattering powerful energy.

Each power was absurdly strong,
but the Demon King’s ego handling them was incomplete.

Thanks to that, although the power gap would normally prevent any fight,
Ma Hana and Ju Na-young were holding their own to some extent.

Having a third person besides the two was also significant.
An orange-haired nun moving about like a dazzling flash of light.

“Mau, mau, mauuu!!!”

Her identity was the Mauu girl.
Choi Mari.

Rushing to join, she was literally pouring everything she had into the fight.

Not just providing heals from the rear,
or buffs.

Surprisingly, what she had taken on was ‘tanking.’
More precisely, an evasion tank.

Bang, bang, bang!!!

“Mauuu!!!”

What made this possible was Choi Mari’s running speed.
The aura and form surrounding her legs
Were unmistakably the speed of the divine beast <Barbados>.

-By the way… I saved some strength for events in the near future. It should be useful.

Choi Mari was grateful to her.
The claim that she had saved power.

Realizing it was clearly for this purpose, Choi Mari
Used the top speed of the divine beast to disrupt the Demon King’s vision.

The Demon King currently lacked proper cognition and ego—literally not even aware of its own name.

It wasn’t using proper skills;
it was merely scattering mana.

Choi Mari easily evaded it and drew aggro.

Taking advantage of that opening, Ju Na-young and Ma Hana relentlessly struck the Demon King.

An efficient strategy.
But in the end, this was also a war of attrition.

As time passed, the balance slowly tipped toward the Demon King, who possessed nearly infinite mana.

“Mau, mau, th-this is a hundred times harder than dieting!”
“Senior Mari, you’re in danger!”
“Mauu!?”

Choi Mari, exhausted, was slowing down.
A massive mana projectile skimmed right beside her,
Making a chilling sound.

Fortunately it didn’t hit, but it was clear this was getting really dangerous.

Ma Hana and Ju Na-young shouted.

“Senior Mari! That’s enough now!”
“Right! From now on, Hana and I will handle it!”

Ma Hana signaled to Choi Mari.
Raising two cute cat tails upward,
she indicated ‘7, 7.’

Choi Mari complied immediately.
This was not the time for bravado.
Even she thought she’d done well.
She stepped back and clasped her hands.

A dazzling Lucky Machine appeared.
Ma Hana, waiting, threw the shield in her hand like a boomerang.

It hit the lever in an instant!
Just as the returning shield landed back in Ma Hana’s hand,
intense light burst from Choi Mari’s body.

Choi Mari clasped her hands.
The most powerful Holy Law she knew within her limits.

She thought of the countless blades months ago that had pierced the body of the <Sea Dragon>.

She unleashed again that technique which formed invisible blades one by one, scattering devastating spiritual blades.

Dozens of blades spewed forth centered on Choi Mari.
The blades, each lacking proper form, thickness, or edge, all detonated against the Demon King’s body at once.

-!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The Demon King’s cry, heard almost for the first time.
Exhausted from using all her strength, Choi Mari
Collapsed to the ground.

“Mau, mauuu…”

The <Magical Artifact> hanging at her neck activated.
As it disappeared, the power of the Lucky Machine
transferred entirely to Ma Hana.

Ma Hana, receiving the power, raised both hands and spat like a beast.

“Muaannggg!!! Super Muanngggg’s Turn!!!”

Ma Hana, now in hyper mode.
She charged.

Even accounting for the Lucky Machine, her released mana and speed
far exceeded her usual levels.

The reason was simple.
The pattern engraved on the back of her hand,
and the stats boosted by <Sharing>.

The power supplied by her precious benefactor and loved one, Yu Seha.
Ma Hana had clearly broken through a wall and reached the upper mid-range of A-rank.

Driving her shield into the staggering Demon King, Ma Hana activated a Holy Law in that state.

“[Wave of Usurping Light]!”

Intense divinity spread, and the Demon King’s form shrank further.

This was not the end.
Ju Na-young, having finished preparations, shouted.

“To Ma Hana’s side!”

The moment Ma Hana executed ‘Nyan Nyan Emergency Escape!’

A blazing breath erupted.

A transparent breath imbued with <Transparency> pierced the Demon King’s abdomen.
With a ‘bang!’ a hole was punched through the Demon King, but
A transcendent being with no proper original body
Began to use mana and regenerate.

It felt like an endless duel,
But Ju Na-young knew well.

“It’s definitely reduced in size!”
“Mwang!”

That the Demon King’s power was progressively weakening—

Meant the sorcerer Moon Ha-yeon, who was fiercely fighting Moon Bora, would feel the effect directly.

Trusting Moon Bora, Ju Na-young reminded herself of what she had to do now.

‘Weaken it here until it can no longer maintain its form!’

A choice possible because he trusted his comrades!

Ju Na-young dashed forward fiercely.
Blue flames symbolizing new power wrapped her entire body.
He even wrapped himself with the borrowed [Roaring Thunder Strike] via <Sharing>.

Ju Na-young clenched her fist.
Patterns drew from his right palm up to his armpit.
Undeniably, the manifestation of his <Ultimate Skill>.

“<Burn and Be Crushed>!”

My personal finishing move!

“Yong Yong Boomerang Fist!!!”

The tacky-but-effective finisher wrapped in azure flames and lightning struck the Demon King.

In the thick spreading smoke,

Ma Hana and Ju Na-young said nothing.
They didn’t bother to gloat with lines like ‘Did we finish it?’
More precisely, there was no need to.

Beyond the cleared smoke,
They saw the Demon King, greatly reduced in size.
It was only slightly larger than Ma Hana.

However, unlike before, its eyes had taken on a calm look.
For a moment a voice—neither clearly male nor female—echoed in their ears.
The bewitching resonance made Ju Na-young flinch.

-Descendant of Kearis, are you? As always, fiery.

“Yong-a…!”

The sudden conversation startled the two.
Whether startled or not, the Demon King, having been pummeled back to self-awareness, bowed politely.

-You showed an unsightly sight.

My name is Kazantia.

-I was the first to awaken among the 72 Demon Kings.

Who would have thought the Demon King would greet us personally.
The two froze in place,
And the Demon King Kazantia glanced backward.

The place where an ice wall had been erected.
Clearly, there had been a fierce clash of mana.
Gazing at it absentmindedly, Kazantia suddenly muttered.

-…A young girl harbors hatred for this world. So she was the one who awakened me… I naturally thought it was that woman Dang Seoran.

So they had been blindsided.
This is interesting in its own way.

-Yes, one must have that much to hold such foolishness without knowing one’s place. That makes it more intriguing. This will be entertaining.

“……”
“……”

The Demon King murmured words unknown,
And at that moment Ju Na-young, who glanced away for an instant,
thought she should land a blow.

But it remained only a thought.
She could not turn it into action.
The reason was the suffocating fear that rose in her.

“…W-what on earth is this…”

Surely…
Its power had unquestionably weakened.
The mana emission was faint,

And it was not the gigantic form from moments ago,
But merely a human-shaped figure, small and of indeterminate gender.

And yet they were afraid.
Being a being born as a ‘transcendent’ from the start,
It held an overwhelmingly different class.

Truly fitting the description of a star in the sky,
A transcendent.

‘I-Is this the Demon King…?’

Grit!

Ju Na-young bit his lip hard.
Shaking off fear through pain.

It was certainly a good decision, but
Regrettably, the Demon King before them
Was not the mere mindless chunk of power from moments ago.

Ziiing!

With no time to react, a jet of black light struck true.
Frightened, Ma Hana screamed loudly.

“Gah!”
“N-Na-young!”
-…Hm? You’re weaker than I thought, descendant of that Red Dragon King… Shouldn’t the two men I feel far away be here? If even one of them came, even I would have trouble dealing with them…
“Mshaaaak!”

Ma Hana’s fear trembled into fury that rose to the tips of her hair.
Her eyes burned with a yellowish light.

Ma Hana didn’t know it, but her irises displayed a peculiar pattern, not the typical vertical shape of the Myoin tribe.

Kazantia flinched for a moment upon seeing it.
As if it had seen something shocking.

“Y-Yong… Ha-Hana, are you okay…”
“Na-young? Your w-wounds!?”
“…Don’t worry. This protected me.”

Ju Na-young raised the [Helios’s Judgment] he had been holding in both hands.

The equipment Yu Seha had prepared for her
Had saved her life once.

Kazantia noticed this as well.
He raised a slender, otherworldly finger once more,
Gathering a beam of black light.

“Mwaaang!”

Ma Hana would not stand aside.
She stood in front of Ju Na-young.
Proudly she raised [Sea Dragon’s Shield] and [Herun’s Fang].
Determined to block at all costs.

The Demon King watching this
Suddenly withdrew its strength.
It lowered both hands as if to do nothing.

“…Mwaang?”

Then it quietly muttered toward the bewildered Ma Hana.
A language spoken here that only Ma Hana and Kazantia could understand filled the air.

Having heard the words with four ears, Ma Hana
Stiffened like stone and blankly replied.

“…W-what, what?”

-…I would have said it. Attacking one’s own kind is not something even I would permit.

Kazantia shifted his gaze.
He showed an attitude of not intending to fight at all.

-Anyway, I am fated to be devoured by that arrogant sorcerer. I will not refuse it. From the moment we were defeated by the dragon in the past, our ambitions were broken. Tang Seo-ran simply doesn’t know that and struts about.

-So don’t strain yourself and step back.

-Still small and young……

Oh Demon King.