The World They Live In (4)
"...Magic?"
Mayer murmured dazedly, and the commander of the royal guard slowly shook his head.
"No, Your Majesty. It borrows mental power, but it's ultimately a skill grounded in the body."
They called it Divine Transcendence.
"Grounded in the body? Can a human really unleash that kind of destructive force? You never showed me this before, did you?"
The answer was simple.
"Because I can't do it either." Mayer's gaze swung to Rian.
'I'd heard he was the best among the new-generation swordsmen, but is he even beyond the divine tier?'
He was precisely the kind of talent the Jaive Kingdom needed.
"I'd like a private audience. Relay the message."
The commander of the guard looked uncomfortable.
'If he was someone you could buy with money, honor, or power, he wouldn't be here.'
He was a swordsman even the empire's emperor didn't possess.
"Krrr!" Hundreds of bats screeched and swarmed, coalescing into Nikke's shape.
'I almost got erased.'
If it hadn't been bat mimicry, his torso wouldn't have been pierced—he would have been scattered entirely.
"You've got the luck of your life, then."
Nikke sheathed his whip and backed up against the wall as Jenia stepped forward.
"Where do you think you're running off to!"
Hunters blocked her path.
"Calm down. If you back down now, I'll be grateful."
"Stand aside! That one killed my parents—"
"I know. But darkness is coming soon. You haven't only been fighting for a day or two, have you?"
No one could refute the hunter.
"Damn it!"
While the hunters tensed, Nikke's gaze stayed fixed on Rian alone.
'The True Demon must have given special orders.'
Their orders were to infiltrate the palace, kill the hunters, and assassinate King Mayer.
'And, if possible... capture the Knight of Maha alive.'
'If possible?'
Nikke's face twisted with fury at having failed every order, and he pointed at Rian.
"We will meet again."
Nikke vanished. Rian pulled the divination tablet from Shovel's corpse, now reduced to dry ash.
"That removes the internal spy. From now on the operation won't be leaked."
After saying that, he turned to leave and Benof hurried to follow.
"Wait. You're just going to go?"
"There's nothing for me to gain by staying. From now on I'll act alone."
The law might not recognize it, but after witnessing the Yaksha's power, no one could argue.
"Wait a moment."
The commander of the guard spoke loudly enough for everyone to hear.
"I have one proposal. How about joint operations between the Hunters and the kingdom's security forces from now on?"
It was a plan to have the guard manage things directly and preemptively block infiltrators' access.
"Joint operations?"
The hunters stirred.
Of course it was clearly an attempt to recruit Rian, but with the kingdom's backing the task would be far easier.
One hunter called out, "If it's a joint operation, what support will you provide?"
The commander, having already secured the king's approval, spoke as if nothing could stop him.
"Anything that will drive the vampires out. Weapons, ammunition, war materiel, medicines—operational troops as well."
Jenia frowned. "There's a condition."
As she expected, the commander walked straight up to Rian and extended his hand.
"Maha's Knight. On the assumption you join this operation, I promise full support."
A recruitment move.
"I hate complications. I'll chase the vampires alone. It'll help the kingdom."
The commander couldn't let Rian leave.
"If that's the case, the support will be wasted. You know how strong the vampires are, don't you? Do you not care if they die like dogs?"
"Die like dogs?"
Rian sneered. "You think you're being rational?"
The commander didn't answer.
"If you can tolerate it, then you truly aren't angry. Don't judge them by ordinary standards."
The hunters' eyes hardened.
Sensing their gazes, the commander realized his mistake, but he couldn't back down now.
"You underestimate the commander of the Royal Guard of the Seven-Star Palace. I could detain you by force."
"I'm too stupid to find my way back."
Rian pushed the divination tablet into his back and said, "So I can only move forward."
If they tried to block him, Kashan's terminus line could stretch across the desert all the way to Jaive.
"I was wrong."
The hunters began to change their minds.
"We don't fight with weapons or numbers. I fought them when I had nothing."
"That's right. I can't work with people who haggle over conditions. That's not what I need."
The hunters shouted in unison, "We'll follow you. Lead us."
The decision was made. Rian bowed lightly and descended the stairs.
"I understand your intent."
King Mayer said, "I made you an unreasonable proposal. I will officially sanction the Hunters' activities. Won't you, then, support the palace as a Hunter this time?"
From Jaive's point of view, the vampires were creatures to be expelled as soon as possible.
"I hear special weapons are needed to fight vampires. I'll make a deal. Teach us the know-how and the palace will mass-produce them with its funds."
This time Rian could find no excuse to refuse.
'Jenia.'
The only thing clouding his thoughts was the promise he'd made to her before coming.
Jenia met Rian's eyes and pouted. "We'll call the team Genocide."
Rian smiled and looked to Benof. "I'll take the Hunters to our base first. Issues raised in the meeting will be communicated through the head of security."
"All right. I'll be waiting."
It was best that Benof, who had ties with Rian, handle palace-side responsibility.
At Genocide's base, the hunters were impressed by technology beyond their expectations.
"Oh? You modified it like this?"
Powerer loaded a hefty dual-barreled gun and tested it. "Mega Gun Z-88. Gas-charged. Ergonomic design. There's nothing better for tearing vampire flesh." Now that supplies weren't an issue, Powerer set a target and showed it off.
"Just pump silver into their faces!"
Its recoil reduced accuracy, but twelve silver rounds per second was devastating.
"And this is a shotgun-style—"
As he enthusiastically introduced the firepower, other hunters listened to explanations in their respective specialties.
A hunter who checked the drug device's anti-cell function said the tech was ten years ahead.
Only three of them specialized in metalcraft.
"We can get Obscura B from the palace, but there's no need to change weapons," Jenia said.
Those who wielded metalcraft relied more on their own physical ability than on any particular weapon.
"I won't switch from weapons I'm used to either. I'll make spares in case of breakage. Focus on planning the operation."
Across nations, leaders of hunter groups were usually metalcraft specialists.
The axe-wielder said, "I don't get it. Even with Silver Bone, they couldn't track the Lord's position?"
"I don't know. We searched Rodennin top to bottom, but couldn't detect a wave that felt like a Lord."
"They said within a two-kilometer radius, right? Then there's only one answer. They're hiding outside that radius," the spear-wielder said.
Rian asked, "Is that even possible?"
"Underground. If they're two kilometers down, even Jenia can't search there."
"Oh."
"So far we've been blind by relying only on Silver Bone's ability. That's the weakness. Which is why... I have a method I usually use."
Jenia turned as the spear-wielder grinned like a man enjoying himself. "Hybrid hunting."
Even after midnight, noisy music leaked from the clubhouse.
Genocide's first team—eight hunters including Rian and Jenia—arrived.
'Clubhouse, Blood Night.' The name alone made it seem like a vampire den, but places like this were common in Rodennin.
"There are hybrids here?"
"A pureblood presence implies hybrids. After days of investigation, this place is the likeliest."
Kattein checked a syringe. "It's certainly a blind spot. Even Silver Bone can't pinpoint a half-breed. But could there be a link to the purebloods?"
"Something's definitely happening in the city. If it's related to the Lord, purebloods alone couldn't pull it off."
The spear-wielder sounded certain. "Hybrids, unlike purebloods, have reproductive capacity. Their decadence is unchecked. Brace yourselves."
If you listened closely, under the music you could hear countless moans.
"They don't die and they can reproduce—no shame at all. Hybrids are like a kind of venereal disease."
Powerer scoffed, "Yeah, yeah—hybrid, hybrid."
Genocide used the title "half-breed" because Jenia herself wasn't pureblood.
"Ah, sorry, I misspoke—"
The spear-wielder hurried to apologize, but Jenia shook her head and approached the clubhouse.
"It's fine."
Even if she was a half-breed.
"When I couldn't kill vampires, hating myself was my only consolation."
True rage was like that.
"I see. Still, we'll push forward."
Moved by Jenia's words, the hunters checked their weapons and glared at the door.
"Shall we begin?"
Rian opened the door and the pounding drums spilled out as if trying to escape.
Nikke arrived at the vampires' hideout and walked into the main hall as the Almas watched.
"You summoned me, Great True Demon?"
Faust—third-ranked of the Council of Ten, the White-Ghost Yasha—strolled the wide hall reading a book.
"Have you recovered?"
Nikke bowed sheepishly. "I'm fit to kill someone."
"Oh? Even the Knight of Maha?"
A killing intent flared in Nikke's eyes.
He'd been struck hard by the Law of Authority and only regained his strength after four days.
"There are no rivals in the darkness you gave me."
"You must be prepared to be erased."
When the True Demon's aura poured out, the countless Almas hanging upside-down from the ceiling trembled.
"Soon three Lords will gather in one place. Once that happens, the world will be ours. However..."
There was a single obstacle.
"Assuming there is no bloodline of Ozent."
"I don't understand, Great True Demon. No matter how strong he is, he can't compare to the current Lords."
Of course that included himself, a creature of darkness.
"Do not belittle humans. They look endlessly weak when weak, but when they grow strong they know no bounds."
"I'm sorry, but I've yet to see a human who transcends the power of vampires."
"I have."
From over ten thousand years ago.
"Before I realized the incarnation... back when bats hung upside-down in Heaven's Cave and the world of light watched indifferently.
"One human fought the King of Giants."