Chapter 25: The night without the guilty (2)

Chapter 25: The night without the guilty (2)

Something.

Felt wrong.

As if forcefully fitting parts into a mechanical machine.

'What's... going on here?'

Aside from how they had found their hideout, the fact that he suddenly threw cash and asked where his brother was didn't add up.

"W-Wait!"

Although he spread his hands out trying to stop Lee Woohyuk—

Cruuuunch!—

Wildly getting knocked away, he destroyed a tree thicker than an adult body.

A sword aura reminiscent of a beast's claws ferociously shot after Yujin.

"Shit!" he spread his arms with a panicked expression.

As the stigma of the Owl Nebula on his left chest shone, dozens of black feathers appeared from thin air.

Ch-ch-ch-chiing!!!—

The sword strike easily broke through the black feathers.

Yujin's expression turned pale.

'He's strong!'

Just like the rumors, Black Lion Lee Woohyuk possessed monstrous strength.

"Kugk!"

After barely managing to slow the sword strike down by pouring out black feathers, he rolled on the ground to make distance.

"What a disappointment."

With an expression as cold as ice, Lee Woohyuk chased after Yujin.

"You dared to take aim at me with only this amount of skill?"

Steaming rage soared up.

Just thinking about how anguished Lee Shinhyuk, who had already had an inferiority complex, would feel from this incident drove him crazy.

'When I finally gained a string of hope...'

'When I dreamed that we could return to back then...'

—Everything went to ruins.

"W-What?" Yujin's eyes opened wide.

'I took aim at the Black Lion, Lee Woohyuk?'

'What kind of bullshit is this?'

'Don't tell me...'

Yujin went into a panic.

There were too many things that felt off.

How it all started, even the way things flowed felt twisted.

Which meant...

'Someone... is exploiting the Black Lion.'

There was no way to tell who, but he couldn't think of any other possibility.

Swish!!—

"Kugh!!"

The beast's claw that shot out of the sword cut apart his chest down to his belly button.

Blood spouted out as the flesh tore apart.

"I-It's a misunderstanding!!" he shouted urgently.

"I-I didn't do anything!!!"

"You didn't do anything?"

A cold scoff came out of Lee Shinhyuk's mouth.

If he were his usual self, he might have at least lent his ear out to the poor excuse but—

"Don't speak of nonsense."

—that was not the time.

Swish!—

"Aaaaaah!!"

Cutting a long line across Yujin's side, a handful of blood poured out.

'G-Goddammit!'

He didn't understand what kind of method was used, but the Black Lion thoroughly believed him to be the culprit.

'I can't let this continue.'

He didn't have the leisure to relax and resolve the misunderstanding.

The moment he tried to speak, the claws of the furious Black Lion would shred him to pieces.

'First, I need to run!'

The Black Lion was an opponent he couldn't beat in a fight.

"Huk! Huk!"

Taking rough breaths in, Yujin crossed his arms.

He had one opportunity.

Wringing out all of his mana, he focused all of his mind into his stigma.

Even though he knew that he wouldn't be able to leave a single scratch no matter how he retaliated...

'If I can create even a small gap...!'

For moments such as that, he had always left a hidden card up his sleeve.

Swish! Pshk!—

"Kugh! Kuaak!"

During the short gap that was created when he focused his mind, the beast's claws ruthlessly stabbed his body.

"Black Wing Flurry!" (黑翼散花)

Ttututututuk!!!!—

He struck down his crossed arms in the shape of an X.

Tens, hundreds of black feathers followed the trajectory and explosively shot forwards.

"It's useless."

Lee Woohyuk took a step forward.

Black feathers that filled his entire field of view shot down towards him.

Although It did seem like quite a powerful technique...

"It's still worthless."

Radiant light poured out of the stigma of Leo.

As the flurry of wind flowing out of the sword condensed to its limit, it changed into a sword aura in the shape of a beast's claw.

The beast's claw clashed with the black feathers that rained down.

Cruuuuunch!!!—

The nearby earth, stone, and trees were ripped to shreds like they had been mixed in a blender.

As the dirt scattered, sight was blocked.

Lee Woohyuk cleared the air by lightly swinging his sword.

"Hyap!!"

During the small amount of time Lee Woohyuk spent clearing the dirt cloud, Yujin hurriedly took out a black dagger from his sleeve.

And then—

Psshk!—

—he stabbed his own body without hesitation.

"...What!"

Lee Woohyuk headed towards Yujin in a hurry.

However—

Flutteeeer!!—

—Yujin's body suddenly turned into black feathers and disappeared.

"Damn it!!!"

Lee Woohyuk harshly ground his teeth.

"Where... where did he go."

He quickly observed the surroundings, but due to the strange ability, he couldn't tell which direction Yuijin had run off to.

'I can't lose him.'

Krrg—

The Black Lion fiercely clenched his jaw.

'He shouldn't have exited the mountains yet.'

In order to prepare for such cases, he had requested the Association to surround the area.

Boooom!—

A cannon exploded as the Black Lion sprinted down the forest that was settled in darkness.

* * *

Flutter!—

Hundreds of black feathers split apart the air.

The black feathers that gathered towards one place started to turn into the shape of a human.

"Huk! Huk!"

Yujin, who had returned back into the shape of a human, ran without time to catch his breath.

Rustle! Rustle!!—

He sprinted through the dark forest.

As he was gasping for breath, his sight started to quiver.

"Goddamnit!"

'From when did it start to go wrong.'

'From when did things start to deviate.'

Bang!—

"Kugk!"

He got caught on a tree root and rolled on the dirt ground.

Blood poured out as his wounds widened.

"D-Damn it!" He urgently looked behind, but he couldn't feel the presence of anyone chasing after him.

'Did I... succeed?'

Snap—

As the string of tension released, the fatigue surged in.

"Haa, haa!"

His heart beat like it was about to explode.

Strength wouldn't go into his shaking legs.

"Kugh," Yujin let out a groan while clutching his wounds.

His body became a train wreck, and he had used the emergency star relic he had been saving up all this time, but—

'Still...'

—A bright smile appeared on his face.

He tightly clenched his fists.

'...I succeeded.'

He had succeeded in escaping from that crazy beast.

"Just... just why did this happen."

However, that was all.

He had barely saved his own life, but he had lost everything else.

His subordinates, the opportunity to make up for his mistake.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck!!"

He pulled on his hair while shouting swears.

Recover the Black Star's relic? Instead—the hideout and his subordinates—he had lost them all.

And it was all because some unknown person had made a fool of him.

"W-What should I..."

The insides of his head burned white.

Even if he returned in this state, he would die at the hands of Cheon Doyoon anyways.

"......"

Yujin chewed on his lips.

'Arshad Khan.'

Although he didn't want to request help from that son of a bitch to the point of death, that didn't mean he was actually willing to die.

He had to bow his head and seek assistance.

"Shit."

When he lifted his smartphone and let out a swear—

* * *

Rustle—

"W-Who is it!!"

Yujin hurriedly turned his body towards the direction the sound came from.

The one standing there was—

"Why are you..."

—The scammer that had sold him the fake star relic.

The bastard that would leave him unsatisfied even if he was thoroughly demolished was walking towards him.

"Did you have a rough time? Look at the state you're in."

Ohjin cackled while shaking his shoulders, looking down onto Yujin who was sitting on the ground.

"Just what situation is th..."

Yujin's eyes opened wide, even as he had continued to doubt the situation.

"...Wait."

He put his hand on his forehead with a confused expression.

"N-No way."

Shiver—

Goosebumps overcame his body.

It all started to click.

His mind finally pieced together a picture from the chaos.

'Is this all... that bastard's ploy?'

Yujin couldn't use his brain since he was in such an urgent situation before, but thinking about it now, there wasn't anyone suitable for knowing the hideout's location except him.

Two of his subordinates that chased after him had gotten done in.

"Ah, ahh."

He had already predicted the possibility of the hideout being discovered.

However, he thought that it wouldn't matter.

He believed that it held no meaning.

Since the prey was not himself—but that bastard.

He was the strong.

And the bastard was the weak.

'But...'

It definitely was like that.

It was supposed to be like that.

But how was the weak that existed only to be stepped upon the one looking down on him?

"Do you get it now?"

A gentle voice could be heard coming through his ear.

Yujin's entire body shook as he raised his head.

"The reason I'm here."

"—UAAAAAAAAAAHH!!!!!!"

Bang!!—

Almost as if having a seizure, Yujin screamed out and stomped his feet.

Yujin wrung out what was left of his mana to create black feathers.

"Good grief, well, aren't you darn full of energy?"

Kang! Ka-Kang!—

With a sly smile, Ohjin deflected the black feathers that aimed for his vital points.

"You know, it'll be best for you to refrain from such intense movements."

Lowering his body, he swung his spear low by the ground.

"Kugk!"

Yujin did manage to avoid the attack by taking a light step back, but soon after, he frowned while clutching the wound on his chest.

As the wounds received from Lee Woohyuk opened once again, blood started to pour out.

"See, didn't I say that you shouldn't move?" said Ohjin as he jeered at him.

"You, you son of a..."

"So why did you do it?"

Tch, tch—

Clicking his tongue, he shook his head.

"How does it feel now that you've recklessly provoked the Black Lion?"

"W-What?"

"Hey, you're acting like you don't know again."

"Acting like I don't know? Fuck off!!!"

Yujin's scream rang out.

"You!! This is all what you planned!!"

"Hm? What are you talking about?"

Ohjin slyly shrugged his shoulders.

"Isn't this all your doing?!"

The truth didn't matter anyway.

It hadn't been important from the start.

What was important was not the truth but making it seem like the truth.

"Kidnapping and threatening Lee Woohyuk's brother—isn't this all the doing of the Black Star Organization?"

"Y-You piece of shittttttttt!!"

"Puhahaheh!!!"

Exploding out in crude laughter, Ohjin kicked Yujin in the stomach.

"Kugh!!"

He gently stepped on the collapsed Yujin's chest.

"There's quite a lot of things that I'm curious about with you guys. Won't you tell me?

"...W-What?"

Yujin looked up towards Ohjin like he had heard something preposterous.

"Ha, hahahahaha!!"

Soon, he burst out in laughter as his face distorted.

"Is this the method you used to receive the hideout's information?"

He was left speechless from exasperation.

"Kaa, twe!!"

He spat out phlegm towards the foot Ohjin had on his chest.

"I have no information to give to the likes of you, you scamming bastard."

Even if he was tricked into this state, it seemed like he had no plans on giving information about the Black Star Organization.

Since amongst many other things—

"You won't be able to make me open my mouth, no matter what you do."

—he truly meant his loyalty towards the Black Stars.

"Is that right? Well, I guess I can't do anything about it."

"...What?"

Yujin raised his head to look up at Ohjin.

His eyes met with the black pupils looking down towards him.

"—Huh?"

Why was it?

When today was a night where countless stars shined up above the night sky.

When the radiant Milky Way was embroidered in the sky.

'Why is it so...?'

Only a black sky without a speck of light could be seen.

"Then from now on..."

Grasping one of Yujin's fingers,—

"Don't say a word."

—Ohjin smiled brightly.