Jinwoo muttered, "Dash."
He drew a sword from his inventory, making it appear as though he had pulled it from inside his jacket. In the next instant, he vanished in a blur, parrying the slicing attacks and the two ice princesses cleanly before closing the distance toward Doma.
Doma smiled and blocked Jinwoo's blade with his fan. The sharp sound of steel clashing echoed through the battlefield as they exchanged blows at high speed.
Though his strength is beyond me… I can see him. He isn't too fast. I should widen the distance between us.
During their exchange, Doma suddenly exploded his left hand. Ice blades and shards burst outward at point-blank range.
Jinwoo had no choice but to dodge. Even so, due to their close proximity, several shards grazed him, leaving shallow scratches across his body as distance was created.
"Blood Demon Art: Frost Vines… Crystal Divine Child."
Frost-covered vines shot toward Jinwoo while two new ice children appeared beside Doma, launching additional attacks.
Jinwoo was forced to retreat further.
Doma laughed lightly. "Though I can't beat you in close combat, I am not exactly a close-combat demon, you know."
His right arm had already regenerated.
Troublesome. His ranged attacks and regeneration… I can't do anything unless I get close. And I can't overuse Stealth because of its high mana cost.
Jinwoo glanced at the system panel.
[NO MANA IN THE ATMOSPHERE
BLACK HEART'S MANA REGENERATION IS DISABLED]
So I can't recover naturally.
He exhaled slowly.
No point worrying. I'll finish him first.
"Reinforcement. Dash."
He vanished again, weaving carefully through the frost vines.
Doma's smile widened.
"Blood Demon Art: Scattering Lotus… Frozen Lotus… Freezing Clouds… Wintry Icicles."
The battlefield erupted.
Lotuses bloomed and shot forward. Some shattered into freezing particles. Others fired blade-like petals. Icicles rained down. A suffocating mist enveloped everything.
Damn… he's just spamming techniques at this point. Does he have infinite stamina? Admin, he's cheating.
As the attacks converged, Jinwoo muttered—
"Stealth. Dash."
He vanished.
Doma narrowed his eyes.
There's that technique again… I can't see him. But I'm prepared this time.
He turned abruptly.
"Blood Demon Art: Lotus Bodhisattva of the Frost!"
A giant frozen Buddha statue manifested, radiating killing cold in all directions. Doma kept his guard up from every angle, waiting to strike the moment Jinwoo appeared.
Then—
A voice behind him.
"Add six points to Strength."
Jinwoo's fist slammed into the Buddha.
The statue shattered in a single blow.
Impossible. How did he get there without me noticing? He had to pass through all those attacks without destroying them… otherwise I would've sensed it. And how does he have no wounds?
Doma's eyes widened as Jinwoo drew a Nichirin sword from seemingly nowhere.
One clean motion.
Doma was decapitated and slashed into multiple pieces, leaving no chance for regeneration.
As his body crumbled—
How delightful… so this is what death feels like.
Even now, his smile remained.
Since childhood, he had felt nothing.
Even at death—
Nothing changed.
And then he was gone.
Doma was dead.
[LEVEL UP!!]
Jinwoo exhaled.
Yes, he had only used Stealth once and never changed direction. He moved in a straight line the entire time, letting Doma assume he would reposition unpredictably.
He never expected Doma to turn his back.
What a stupid plan that was… I thought you were smart.
As for the lack of wounds—
Complete Recovery for the win.
[INFINITY CASTLE]
Inside the shifting halls of Muzan Kibutsuji, Muzan was conducting an experiment when suddenly—
The connection snapped.
His hand froze.
Then the vial he was holding shattered in his grip.
"...Nakime. Call every Kizuki back."
His voice trembled with barely contained rage.
Doma was one of his strongest pawns, second only to Kokushibo. Annoying, yes. But useful. Especially with his cult helping search for the Blue Spider Lily.
Muzan closed his eyes and accessed Doma's final memories.
A man.
Black hair. Dark eyes.
Smiling calmly as he shattered the Frozen Lotus Bodhisattva in one blow.
Even Muzan wasn't confident he could do that so casually.
And the Nichirin blade…
Black.
Is he like Yoriichi?
The mere thought made Muzan's hand tremble.
No… Yoriichi was a different breed. This man… seems manageable.
Still—
For the first time in decades—
Muzan felt unease.
[RANDOM TOWN]
Jinwoo stared at his hand thoughtfully.
The moment I let him gain distance, he started overwhelming me with ranged attacks. If that continued… I would've been forced into a mana disadvantage.
"Excuse me… are you hurt?"
He turned.
Kanae stood behind him, admiration in her eyes. The bandages he had given her were already secured around her wounds.
"No," Jinwoo replied with a small smile. "That demon was too weak."
Kanae forced an awkward smile.
'He was weak? Upper Moon Two… the demon who was toying with me… was weak?'
Though humble, she still had pride as a Hashira — and Jinwoo had unknowingly stepped on it.
But she couldn't deny it either.
From the moment he entered the battle, he became a blur. She had only seen flashes of dust and ice.
She bowed.
"Thank you. Even if you are not part of the Corps, you risked your life to fight an Upper Moon demon."
Jinwoo gently helped her up.
"No need to bow. I only did what I had to do as a human being."
Tears formed in her eyes at his gentle tone. She quickly wiped them away. As she straightened, a faint warmth crept onto her cheeks despite the lingering cold in the air.
"And… thank you for saving me," she added softly, avoiding his gaze for just a moment.
The Kakushi had already begun cleaning the battlefield when a crow descended.
"Oyakata-sama congratulates you for defeating Upper Moon Two and requests that you bring our benefactor to headquarters."
Kanae brightened instantly.
"You heard him. Would you come with us? I promise you won't face any discomfort."
As she spoke, her fingers lightly clasped together in front of her, and the faint pink on her cheeks hadn't entirely faded.
Suddenly—
"Ne-san! Ne-san! Are you hurt?!"
A young girl rushed over.
It was Shinobu Kocho, only fifteen, panic written all over her face.
"Shinobu, I'm fine," Kanae reassured her. "You should thank him."
Shinobu turned to Jinwoo.
"Thank you, mister. Hey, Ne-san — what's his name?"
Kanae blinked.
"I didn't even ask… I'm Kanae Kocho, the Flower Hashira. This is my sister, Shinobu Kocho, my Tsuguko. Nice to meet you."
She extended her hand.
Jinwoo took it.
"Sung Jin-Woo. Nice to meet you."
"Sung… Jin-Woo," Kanae repeated softly, as if engraving the name somewhere in her heart.
A faint blush returned to her cheeks before she looked away again.
"That doesn't sound Japanese," Shinobu said bluntly. "And your clothes are strange. Where are you from?"
Jinwoo smiled faintly.
"From far beyond the sea."
Sea of space-time.
Kanae hesitated slightly as she leaned toward's jinwoo
"Would you… spare us some time and visit Oyakata-sama?"
Jinwoo glanced at the system panel
[QUEST COMPLETEDYOU MAY STAY IN THIS WORLD FOR THREE MORE DAYSREWARDS WILL BE GIVEN UPON RETURN]
Three days, huh? How generous.
He looked at Kanae.
"Sure. Why not?"
[STATUS
SUNG JIN WOO
LEVEL: 27
STRENGTH: 67
STAMINA: 50
AGILITY: 51
INTELLIGENCE: 37
PERCEPTION: 49
MANA: 360/1190
ABILITY POINTS: 0]
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