Chapter 38
Paradoxically, a hunter’s most vulnerable moment was when they were aiming for their prey.
Now!
Seong-Hwi, waiting for his chance in the thicket, summoned the Symbolic Tarot Deck, and a card flew out of it. It showed a man riding a golden chariot. He was wearing pauldrons shaped like human faces on both shoulders. He was holding a spear made purely out of steel with his right hand and wearing a belt with a moon and scorpion engraved on it.
It was No.7 The Chariot, one of the Major Cards, which symbolized progressiveness, drive, pioneering, war, conquest, penetration, and the like.
[Activating Unique Skill: Symbol Embodiment.]
[Penetrating Spear, one of the symbols of No.7 The Chariot]
A two-meter-long spear appeared in Seong-Hwi’s hand. The spear point was a framea, which looked like a diamond-shaped leaf and was specialized for thrusts. Hence, the spear naturally symbolized penetration.
Not yet! Seong-Hwi shouted inwardly.
Although the Penetrating Spear was relatively powerful because it was an intermediate symbol, it wasn’t enough to penetrate the Demon Knight’s Chaos Mana.
[Activating Unique Skill: Symbol Embodiment.]
[Rose Wreath of Strength, one of the symbols of No.8 Strength]
Seong-Hwi wore a wreath made of red roses on his head.
[Temporarily boosting the Strength stat as per the effect of Rose Wreath of Strength.]
[Strength E(60) → E(99)]
[Duration: 00:00:59]
[Duration: 00:00:58]
...
Seong-Hwi could feel the powerful tension in his muscles.
I’m not done!
He needed to throw the spear with the thought of finishing it off with this surprise attack. He would never have another chance like this once he got the Demon Knight’s attention.
[Activating Trait: Chaos Destroyer.]
[Boosting attack by 40%.]
[Duration: 00:00:19]
[Duration: 00:00:18]
...
Seong-Hwi completed his preparations and immediately threw the spear. The boost in Strength from the Rose Wreath of Strength was further boosted by Chaos Destroyer, which also boosted the penetrative force of the Penetrating Spear.
I can do this!
The Penetrating Spear reached the Demon Knight in a flash, and it was piercing through its armor as it tore through its Chaos Mana.
It’s working! Seong-Hwi thought.
GRAAAH! the Demon Knight roared.
It explosively emitted more grey Chaos Mana, stopping the spear’s advance. Steam rose from the spear.
It didn’t work!
The spear failed to reach the Demon Knight’s os. Seong-Hwi did not waste time jumping out from the thicket and charged at the Demon Knight.
[Rose Wreath of Strength Duration: 00:00:42]
[Chaos Destroyer Duration: 00:00:13]
...
He needed to attack at least once more before the skill and trait effects disappeared.
“Fucking Chaos Mana! It would’ve been done already if my Magic was at D-rank!”
I’ll leave regrets for later. Only think about attacking!
[Activating Unique Skill: Symbol Embodiment.]
[Two of Swords]
A card came out of the Symbolic Tarot Deck, showing a woman whose eyes were covered with a white cloth, sitting on a chair with two swords crossed to form an X. Two longswords of the air element appeared in Seong-Hwi’s hands, and he immediately swung them upward.
“Die!”
Graaah!
The Demon Knight clenched its greatsword and swung it downward, clashing against Seong-Hwi’s swords. Seong-Hwi’s mana mixed with the Demon Knight’s Chaos Mana and exploded.
“Haaah!”
Grrrr!
Seong-Hwi’s Two of Swords and the Demon Knight’s greatsword engaged in a battle of strength.
More! Just a little more!
Seong-Hwi’s swords were slowly pushing back the Demon Knight’s greatsword.
As long as I slash its stomach with the Two of Swords, the air element mana can travel through the hole that the Penetrating Spear made and—
[Terminating Chaos Destroyer.]
Seong-Hwi felt his strength draining as the boosted attack from the trait returned to normal. It felt as if he suddenly fell into a dark cave while he was flying freely through the skies.
Graaah!
The Demon Knight, its purple eyes glinting, did not let that chance slip past and drew out even more Chaos Mana. The grey energy enveloped its greatsword, shredding the power of air infused in the Two of Swords.
[Canceling Rose Wreath of Strength.]
[Strength E(99) → E(60)]
The effect duration of his symbol also ended at the worst possible time. The Two of Swords, overpowered by the Chaos Mana, shattered. The Demon Knight’s greatsword slashed Seong-Hwi’s chest.
“Kurgh!”
[Two of Swords destroyed.]
[Unavailable for 72 hours.]
This was the first time his symbol was destroyed since returning to the past. The Demon Knight swung its fist at Seong-Hwi before he even had a chance to feel sad about it.
[Activating Unique Skill: Symbol Embodiment.]
[Ace of Pentacles]
A golden plate appeared before Seong-Hwi like a shield. However, it cracked as soon as it made contact with the Demon Knight’s fist enveloped in Chaos Mana and shattered.
[Ace of Pentacles destroyed.]
𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮
[Unavailable for 72 hours.]
Seong-Hwi raised his arms to guard against the Demon Knight’s fist, but it sent him flying like a tennis ball hit by a racket, and he tumbled across the ground.
“Kurgh!” he grunted as he stood up quickly to examine his condition.
A puncture wound on the chest. A dislocated left wrist!
His Health stat was high thanks to the Silver Bracelets of Queen Consort Muryeong, and the body armor absorbed some of the shock from the punch. His ribs would have been shattered if it weren’t for his gear. Seong-Hwi forcibly put his left wrist back in place.
[Activating Unique Skill: Symbol Embodiment.]
[Ace of Cups]
A light blue cup appeared in midair and was filled with water. Seong-Hwi immediately poured the water on his left wrist and chest, slightly lessening the searing pain.
Grrrr!
The Demon Knight slowly approached Seong-Hwi, its armor clanking with each step and staring at him as if it had already won.
At this rate, I’ll lose! Seong-Hwi thought.
He could instinctively tell the result of the battle. He managed to deal significant damage with the surprise attack, but continued to be overpowered after that. His symbols would continue to be shattered as the battle continued, and would ultimately result in his death.
Was a Lapang-rank Demon Knight pushing it at my current strength?
Seong-Hwi’s right hand headed to the Teleport Rock in his pocket, but he couldn’t bring himself to grab it.
It’s not even one of the Ten Lords and Fiends or a High Ranker of a superior race. What can I hope to accomplish if I run from a mere Lapang-rank Demon Knight?
Seong-Hwi’s calm sense of reason and blazing emotions clashed. What he had accomplished was already exceptional. He had already earned more than enough in the Dark Forest. He needed to minimize risks for the future.
No, that was wrong. The only end waiting for a coward in this shitty world who only knew how to avoid his problems was a defeat worse than death. Seong-Hwi had already experienced it countless times.
Just then, a voice echoed in his head; it was like cold water being poured on his heated head. It was Mother Maria’s gentle and warm, yet powerful and soul-piercing voice.
“Destiny is weak to the brave and strong to the cowardly. Become someone who grabs hold of his destiny.”
Seong-Hwi’s eyes filled with resolve and emitted ferocious bloodlust.
There is no escape route! I will either kill him or die. That is the destiny I’ve decided on!
Seong-Hwi gathered all his remaining mana. He would be disadvantaged as the battle continued, so he planned on pouring everything into this one attack.
I need a higher Magic stat rank!
He had raised his Magic stat to E(99), but it was still not enough to penetrate the Demon Knight’s Chaos Mana. There was only one path to victory—D-rank Magic.
I didn’t want to use this symbol, but I’m left with no other option!
A card flew out of the Symbolic Tarot Deck. It showed a confident-looking young man wearing a red robe. His right hand was pointing at the sky, and his left hand was pointing at the ground. A Möbius strip was floating over his head like a halo, and a white snake biting its tail was wrapped around the man’s waist like a belt. A wand, sword, cup, and pentacle were laid out on the table before him.
It was No.1 The Magician, a Major Card symbolizing infinity, immortality, the four elements, intelligence, creation, equivalent exchange, and the like.
[Activating Unique Skill: Symbol Embodiment.]
[White Snake of Equivalent Exchange, one of the symbols of No.1 The Magician]
A sleeping white snake biting its tail appeared, wrapped around Seong-Hwi’s waist. Seong-Hwi grabbed the snake’s head and pulled it away from its tail. The white snake’s orange eyes shone as it slithered up his torso at incredible speed and bit his neck. Seong-Hwi was not injured by the bite since the snake was not a physical entity, but it felt as if his soul was bitten.
Take my Health, Dexterity, and Sense!
The White Snake of Equivalent Exchange took those three stats as Seong-Hwi wished. Seong-Hwi’s veins pulsed repeatedly.
[Temporarily lowering the Health, Dexterity, and Sense stats.]
[Health E(60) → F(55)]
[Dexterity E(45) → F(26)]
[Sense E(16) → F(15)]
...
Three stats were lowered to F-rank. Seong-Hwi’s legs shook, and his movements felt sluggish as if he were moving underwater. He also felt like he was stuck in a tiny room with his senses blocked.
Just then, the tail of the White Snake of Equivalent Exchange pierced Seong-Hwi’s chest.
“Kurgh!”
Its tail coiled around Seong-Hwi’s heart and constricted it.
[The White Snake of Equivalent Exchange successfully converted the Health, Dexterity, and Sense stats into the Magic stat.]
[Temporarily boosting the Magic stat.]
[Magic E(99) → D(43)]
Although temporarily, Seong-Hwi had become a Single-D.
“Haaah!” Seong-Hwi roared, feeling the overflowing mana and the searing pain in his heart.
Graaah!
The Demon Knight, who had been slowly walking toward Seong-Hwi to pressure its prey, sensed a threat from Seong-Hwi’s roar and charged rapidly.
“You’re too late, tin can!” Seong-Hwi shouted, summoning a new card from the Symbolic Tarot Deck to embody a symbol he had not even tried to embody due to his lacking Magic stat.
I’ll worry about the rebound later!
The card showed a skeleton in black armor on a white horse with red eyes, passing kneeling people like a triumphant general. A flag with a black background and a white rose in the center fluttered from the skeleton’s back, and it was holding a black scythe for harvesting lives. The skeleton was death itself—it was No.13 Death, a Major Card symbolizing farewell, failure, exhaustion, agony, accident, death, resurrection, and the like.
[Activating Unique Skill: Symbol Embodiment.]
[Harvesting Scythe, one of the symbols of No.13 Death]
[Drastically lowering the Harvesting Scythe’s abilities due to unfulfilled conditions.]
[Deathly Aura is available.]
Seong-Hwi grabbed a long black scythe that felt unsettling just from looking at it. It was the Harvesting Scythe, one of the superior symbols, which boasted exceptional attack power even among his Major Card symbols.
An unsettling black energy blazed from the Harvesting Scythe. It was Deathly Aura, the energy of death, different from the elemental energies like air, fire, water, and earth he had been using so far.
Graaah!
The Demon Knight swung down its greatsword, and Seong-Hwi swung up the Harvesting Scythe. He couldn’t dodge the Demon Knight’s attack with his lowered Dexterity or look for its weak point due to his lowered Sense. On top of that, this was the only attack that his lowered Health would allow him.
I’ll attack head-on!
The Demon Knight’s greatsword and Seong-Hwi’s Harvesting Scythe clashed, making a sound that hadn’t been heard before in their battle.
Grr... aaah!
The Demon Knight looked down at its stomach, its armor creaking as it slowly moved its neck. The black scythe that looked like a giant fishing hook went through the hole created by the Penetrating Spear and pierced the Demon Knight’s os. The Demon Knight’s purple eyes faded, and it collapsed.
“Hurgh! Kurgh!” Seong-Hwi panted heavily.
[Canceling White Snake of Equivalent Exchange.]
[Canceling Harvesting Scythe.]
The symbols were forcibly canceled. Seong-Hwi’s legs trembled, and he fell backward. Blood poured out of his mouth and nose as a result of using a superior symbol when his Health stat was lowered to F-rank.
[Applying Debuff: Bleeding.]
[Applying Debuff: Lethargy.]
[Applying Debuff: Mana Exhaustion.]
...
***
The explosive echoes from the battle between Seong-Hwi and the Demon Knight died down once the battle ended, bringing silence back to the Dark Forest. Leaves blew in the wind, and the dust settled.
“Huff, huff! H-he’s... not human,” a woman said as she walked staggeringly out of a thicket.
She was a Costa Rican from District 6 and had almost been killed by the Demon Knight, but survived thanks to Seong-Hwi. She desperately calmed her shaking as she approached the collapsed Seong-Hwi.
“H-he has to be dead. He is. I’m sure of it. M-monster!”
To her, Seong-Hwi was no different from the Demon Knight.
“If only... if only I had that!”
The woman walked toward the white pillar of light beaming from Seong-Hwi’s pocket as if she were in a trance. It was the light emitted by a Teleport Rock. This was the only chance the woman would get now that the monster-like man had collapsed. All of her comrades were dead, but it did not matter since an even better opportunity had been served to her on a silver platter.
“I can... go to the Mirror World too!” the woman mumbled as she slowly reached for Seong-Hwi’s pocket.
Just then, her hand was severed and fell to the ground.
“Huh?” She stared at her arm stump spewing blood. It took a moment for reality and the excruciating pain to kick in. “A-aaaaaah! Kurgh!”
Something long pierced the screaming woman’s neck. She couldn’t see it, but the blood from her neck revealed what seemed to be a sickle or a boomerang. The woman’s corpse fell lifelessly on the ground, and the air next to her slowly distorted. A brown-skinned boy with black hair and black eyes appeared as if a transparent dye was washing away. Blood was dripping from his kukri knife.
Chaya Singh Rai looked down at Seong-Hwi in silence with a hardened expression. His hand slowly reached for Seong-Hwi toward the white pillar of light beaming from his pocket. Seong-Hwi was completely defenseless. Chaya could rummage through his pocket without him even noticing. It was the perfect opportunity. He felt like he could see his little sister’s face. However, Chaya’s hand stopped.
He clenched his hand into a fist and mumbled, “Shan... I’m sorry.”
Chaya switched the direction of where his hand was reaching and grabbed Seong-Hwi’s shoulder.
[Activating Unique Skill: Concealing Cloak.]
Seong-Hwi disappeared as if being engulfed by the surroundings.
“Shan... I’m sure you don’t want me to survive like a coward either.”
Chaya knew he was making excuses. He just couldn’t give up on his warrior spirit—no, his humanity.