By Zephyria 
※ This WNC contains content related to bloodshed, violence, and death.
We continued walking, following Kkokko.
Even though it was a building constructed with the help of magic, it was a building of the mortal realm. Pillars were placed regularly to support the high, large ceiling. Between those pillars were hollow walls, and several Goblins moved along the corridor between those walls.
We climbed stairs designed to be low, matching the length of a Goblin’s legs. As we ascended to a height of about three or four stories, the dim surroundings suddenly brightened. This was because the holes in the walls, created as breathing vents for the Goblins, were now at the same height as my gaze.
The floor of the massive mansion on the first level was bare earth, without a single tile.
It was clear that no effort had been made to beautify a space where countless monster corpses and zombies came and went. Multiple platforms were laid between the walls, and Goblins could be easily seen pouring something down from them towards pools of blood below.
By a rough estimate, there were well over ten pools of blood. A pulley was installed above each pool, and one monster corpse at a time was being steeped in the blood. As I had glimpsed from outside, the blood was a deep purple, almost black. This was likely due to the messy mixture of red, blue, and green blood.
And then, five figures in black robes were visible.
Two were standing, and three were sitting. Their robes were pulled down deep, obscuring their faces, but the occasional yawn suggested they weren’t engaged in anything particularly special. While they idled away the time, they neither chatted amongst themselves nor chanted spells.
They merely stared blankly as the monster corpses, thoroughly soaked in blood, rose as zombies and walked out.
If all these Goblins were to evacuate at once, they would surely notice. What should be done about this? As I pondered this and moved my feet again, figures slowly emerged from a corner of the building, riding in a square box suspended by a pulley, capturing my attention.
There was a man with a gaunt, dried-out physique and a woman with a body more voluptuous than average.
Both were dressed in Central Plains attire.
One of them must be the Thousand-Faced Devil. However, I couldn’t tell which of the two it was. That fiend was always accustomed to slipping into other bodies, so it could be male or female.
I enhanced my Eye Force to examine them closely. Both wore Central Plains-style clothing, and their appearances were not significantly different from people of the continent. The man wore a Central Plains-style Taoist Crown atop his sparse hair, while the woman had twisted her thick, luscious black hair several times, adorning it with Owen-style jewels.
I briefly covered Kkokko’s mouth to stop its ascent and halted its movement.
Sensing my extreme tension, the rest of our party held their breath and looked where I was looking.
The space was so vast that their voices didn’t echo at all, but my hearing had long surpassed human limits. I easily picked up their low conversation from afar as if they were whispering next to me.
“Is Floyd not here yet?”
“That’s for you to do. I consumed Owen.”
The man’s retort was immediately met by the woman’s reply. Her voice, laced with a mocking tone, was clearly sarcastic even without paying close attention. Creak, creak. The Black magicians, noticing the box carrying the two figures descending, began to diligently examine the Magic Circles. The two figures acted as if the magicians were not even there.
The man grumbled irritably again.
“Don’t act like you accomplished it all on your own. If I hadn’t been there, how could Diamant have become King? In the end, you couldn’t even find that Divine object or whatever.”
“Couldn’t find it? If a god makes it, it’s a Divine object. Won’t our little darling make something for us too?”
“How can you trust someone who can’t even take care of himself and wanders around?”
“It’s not about trusting, it’s about expecting. Ex-pec-ting. Still, he’s trying his best, isn’t he? He’s quite talented.”
“Talented at what?”
“Talented at making holes?”
As the woman made a vulgar gesture, the man scowled, unable to bear it.
Diamant has become the King of Owen? What does that mean? Then, is this woman Lady Diamang?
I had been to the Diamang mansion before. However, I had only met Marianne and Tedros, Lady Diamang. At that time, Benjamin and I had searched the annex of the Diamang mansion. So it was natural that this woman’s face was unfamiliar.
But how could she be here? As I harbored such doubts, her laughter grew louder and louder. Some of the Black magicians below covered their ears and cowered. Startled Goblins ran here and there, returning to the holes they had escaped from to save themselves.
The God of Records had said it. Two of the ones I killed had crossed over to this land.
Listening to the rising tone of her voice, I guessed who my opponent was. I immediately surrounded myself with an Aura Barrier. The party members, who had each surrounded themselves with their own auras, shook their heads within my Aura Barrier, trying to regain their senses.
In my memory, she wasn’t this strong. These fiends must have encountered countless fortuitous encounters in this land. The woman, who had been laughing, turned serious and asked the man standing beside her.
“There are unfamiliar friends. You didn’t call them, did you?”
“Of course not. If they were my friends, they would have come through the main gate, not some rat hole like this.”
Soho Cheon-nyeo.
She was an arch-villain who had learned Sound-Based Skills, enjoying the screams of men.
In my past life, I met her not long after the Demonic Cult rose to power. She liked to lure young men with handsome appearances, toy with them, and then torture them to death.
It was my fault that Namgung Seon fell for her trap. At that time, I, finding it inconvenient to deal with young girls, had only brought my nephews, all males, into the world. Despite that, I left the children in the village and went off to survey the surroundings.
If I had included just one or two clever girls among them, Namgung Seon would not have shamelessly chased after women’s skirts. How immense was my regret. After that, I always made sure to bring an equal number of boys and girls, but there was no way to revive the children who had already died.
However, Soho Cheon-nyeo died by my hand three years before my death.
How could she have come here, preserving her soul? Did Yama refuse to accept the souls of impure Demons and send them back?
As Soho Cheon-nyeo drew her weapon, the Black magicians at their positions began to spin their staffs in circles.
Swoosh.
Hugh Benson threw a Flying Dagger. It was just before the end of an incantation, or rather, a Magic spell, similar to one I had heard before. One of the two closest to him fell, struck in the neck by the Flying Dagger, while the other, with the Flying Dagger lodged in his shoulder, fled into a black hole.
Soho Cheon-nyeo, who had been waiting for all the Black magicians to flee into the black holes, let out a sly laugh.
“You’re skilled. If only you were handsome, though. What do you think?”
“You’re talking nonsense again.”
“Nonsense? You, a devil, are so poorly formed you wouldn’t know. Don’t just be jealous, try to have some aesthetic sense.”
Despite the Thousand-Faced Devil’s taunt, the woman did not back down. As Soho Cheon-nyeo took out a pipa from her robe, I leaped from my spot before she could play the first note. The other members did not necessarily follow me.
It was the right judgment. Since I didn’t know the opponent’s divine power or attack method, it was much better to observe more before engaging.
The Thousand-Faced Devil raised both hands high and gestured as if controlling a puppet tied with strings. Sensing the zombies that had advanced earlier returning, I immediately unleashed a strong wave of my energy.
Rumble.
Several pillars supporting the building’s entrance collapsed, sealing it off to prevent the entry of giant monsters.
I wanted them to feel intimidated by my power. I wished they would be too afraid to harm my people, thinking of me. With that thought, the energy I extended as a display could no longer be called Telekinesis.
My energy pressed down heavily on the objects around me. The zombies inside were unable to move, frozen in place, and were crushed, emitting strange sounds. Crunch, Splat, Crackle…
Yet, the woman remained unfazed and was all smiles. Whether she was feigning a smile or was genuinely at ease, I couldn’t tell.
Seeing the zombies being crushed, the Thousand-Faced Devil clicked its tongue and retreated halfway.
Leaving behind the dust and blood, I stood straight and pointed my sword at Soho Cheon-nyeo. Her eyes widened and sparkled, her lips parting in a circle, and her past life’s face overlapped with her current one.
The first words from the one facing me directly were the same as before.
“Ahaha! What a fine catch!”
“…”
“On such a pleasant day, there’s a fitting song. You’re quite a lucky man!”
Ding. The moment I heard the first note, I kicked off the ground.
When facing a master of Sound-Based Skills, people often think covering their ears is enough, but they are wrong. Sound is a vibration of space, and those affected by Soho Cheon-nyeo’s Sound-Based Skills usually died with their internal organs torn to shreds.
Our party, by chance, had developed resistance to Sound-Based Skills from enduring the non-attack of Divine Speech for a long time, but she was already at the Transcendent Peak realm in her past life. What good would prolonged exposure to such an attack do?
I drew my sword deeply, having secretly swept it up from the ground. Clang. A sound of fiercely rising musical notes rang out. Soho Cheon-nyeo, blocking my sword with her pipa, had lips that trembled.
Clearly, she had accumulated more profound internal energy than before. Knowing she accumulated internal energy using the Essence Absorption Demonic Art, I couldn’t think of anything more cruel.
Our gazes met at close range. The woman’s bright yellow eyes glinted like a tiger’s. Not wanting to alert them to my presence, I said nothing. Even with all my might, I only managed to cut one of the four strings.
She, still wearing a smiling face, whined irritably.
“What are you doing! Just watching?”
“Wait and see. I’m busy right now.”
Suddenly, I felt a suspicious presence from above.
Whoosh. I narrowly dodged backward. For a moment, my vision spun with rage.
The two blocking my path were… predictably, my party members.
I stood facing Benjamin and Mage Boulder, who wore expressions of utter dismay.
The Thousand-Faced Devil I knew only knew how to handle corpses. It was unknown when it learned to manipulate living beings like puppets. Should I consider it fortunate that the remaining three were not entirely under the Thousand-Faced Devil’s control?
As Soho Cheon-nyeo embraced her pipa again, Benjamin raised his sword to head height and leaped into my arms. His mouth twitched as if he were about to say something, then closed again. As I met his dismayed gaze, I hardened my resolve.
Hesitation is brief.
I struck him with the flat of my sword. Benjamin was sent flying to the left, crashing through the wall.
CRASH! With a loud noise, Boulder’s face turned deathly pale.