Woooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!
The sea itself seemed to be howling.
The high-level undead, the Death Knight itself, stood at the center of the deck with everyone’s attention focused on it.
Underneath the helmet, the eerie red flames, burning inside the eye sockets of the head, slowly swept the surroundings with its gaze.
The Death Knight’s gaze seemed to be searching for something or someone, and its gaze came to a halt once it spotted Baek-Myun. As it noticed Baek-Myung, the Death Knight started to resume its clanky steps.
“Heeeek…….!”
Baek-Myung began to crawl, scratching the floor with his fingers.
Srrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.
A sword was pulled from the Death Knight’s waist. Unlike the tattered and worn down armor, the blade of the sword was pitch black and looked as if one’s eyes would be cut merely by looking at it.
The sword struck without mercy and penetrated Baek-Myung’s chest.
“Argh!”
Lee Sungmin did not try to restrain the Death Knight’s behavior. This was because Lee Sungmin had zero obligation to help those here on the ship.
Baek-Myung spasmed and flailed like a fish stuck to a harpoon. The Death Knight, looking down at Baek-Myung, twisted its blade ruthlessly as it stepped down on Baek-Myung with its weight.
With a terrible sound, Baek-Myung’s body was torn in half.
Soon after, Baek-Myung’s body dropped to the floor with a thud and his blood and organs spilled out onto the deck. The Death Knight withdrew the sword that had cut Baek-Myung’s body in half and shook it lightly to wipe the blood off. As it clanked and rattled within the armor, The Death Knight then started to move once more.
Everyone on the deck did not dare make any unnecessary noises or movements as they watched the Death Knight move.
The Death Knight was headed to the maids brought by Baek-Myung onto the caravel. Just as the rest of their pirate’s crew and captain, they died too.
The Death Knight, who executed the three individuals, creaked its body and moved again.
The Death Knight looked at the sailors and mercenaries on deck one by one.
Zod was about to lose his mind. He was all ready to leave earlier since he had met Engray Derrand and thought he would somehow make a connection with the Derrand Family as well as chase his ambitions and dreams within the process.
However, the situation was so twisted and confusing as it was, with Engray actually being a pirate named Baek-Myung, and a ghost ship suddenly appearing along with a Death Knight.
It was like a terrible nightmare. Zod shook and trembled as he glanced down at his pants that he had just changed from earlier, already dripping once more with his urine.
“You.”
It was Lee Sungmin where the Death Knight’s eyes finally stopped. The red eyes of the Death Knight shook and a low voice crept out from behind its helmet.
“Are those men your food?”
Asked the Death Knight as it pointed to the rest of the individuals on the ship.
Food? Lee Sungmin tilted his head, unable to understand the Death Knight’s words. The Death Knight looked at Lee Sungmin standing far away and started to talk to him again.
“The humans I killed. They were the ones who invaded our territory. He escaped, so we chased him and killed him. Are you dissatisfied with it?”
“No, I don’t care.”
“As for the other humans, we will not touch your food.”
The Death Knight didn’t seem to want to start a fight or quarrel with Lee Sungmin.
Was it possible that the Death Knight had somehow noticed that Lee Sungmin was at the Realm of Transcendence?
Lee Sungmin tilted his head once more in confusion.
[No, it’s not because you’re a transcendent being, but because you’re being perceived as a monster by the Death Knight.]
Heoju said to Lee Sungmin. Lee Sungmin nodded as it suddenly all made sense to him.
Death Knights were also monsters who had abandoned their humanity. They were martial artists who were once human and signed a pact with a demon in order to live longer. The process involved with becoming a Death Knight, was similar to how one became a Lich, but it was a process with much lower quality of power.
“……they are indeed my food.”
However, Lee Sungmin didn’t exactly mean to eat them for that matter, but he answered like so because he didn’t want to get involved with this Death Knight any further.
The Death Knight alone was not a problem, but the Ghost ship that was close to Zod’s trading ship was very ominous.
The Death Knight then turned around. Its body, which was about to jump back up to the ghost ship, paused. It turned his head and looked once more at Lee Sungmin.
“Wait.”
The Death Knight stared at Lee Sungmin with its eerie eyes once more.
“The captain wants to meet you.”
“What?”, Lee Sungmin asked confusedly
“I won’t hurt you.”
The captain? Lee Sungmin examined the ghost ship once more. When Lee Sungmin hesitated to answer, The Death Knight spoke again.
“I hope you do not refuse. The captain’s order is absolute. If you refuse, I must force you to come with me to the captain’s cabin… willingly or not.”
“……Are you saying that because you’re confident in somehow defeating me?”
“No, I alone am not.”
The Death Knight shook its head with a rattle when asked by Lee Sungmin.
“As for me, I cannot force you. But if I fall to you, all the Death Knights on that ship will come down and try to drag you away.”
[Wouldn’t it be better to follow it first and see what is going on? It said it wouldn’t harm you.]
‘Are you saying we should board a ship full of Death Knights?’
[You don’t have to think about it too negatively. Death Knights are known to not be hesitant when it comes to killing humans, but when it comes to matters with other monsters or undead, it’s different.]
The ghastly and ominous fog surrounding the area was being emanated from the Ghost Ship
However, the ghastly aura of death from the fog and Death Knight started to seem lessened when Lee Sungmin jumped up and boarded the Ghost ship.
Lee Sungmin realized how insignificant the aura of death and hostility from the Death Knight earlier was, once he boarded the ship itself.
This was because once Lee Sungmin stepped onto the deck of the ship, a dense energy of death and horror, multiple times stronger than earlier, was present.
There were sounds of clanging metal everywhere. Lee Sungmin looked in the direction in which the sounds were heard, heightening his senses.
The sounds could be heard first, and their appearances came afterwards.
The floating darkness in the surrounding of the ship started to resemble multiple dark and bulky figures. Before Lee Sungmin knew it, hundreds of Death Knights were standing atop the deck and surrounding Lee Sungmin.
“He is the captain’s guest.”
The first Death Knight, whom Lee Sungmin met first and was guiding him, spoke up. At the words, the surrounding Death Knights took a few steps back.
Their existence itself reminded Lee Sungmin of death, but Lee Sungmin could perceive their intentions vaguely despite them not being living beings anymore.
“This way.”
The Death Knight marched ahead and signalled to Lee Sungmin with a nod to follow. Lee Sungmin followed the Death Knight’s footsteps, carefully caressing the spear mounted to his back.
It was a tremendously large number of Death Knights on board. To be honest, Lee Sungmin had no choice but to be shocked. One Death Knight alone was already an existence most would try to avoid since they were capable of committing mass murder and slaughter, but to see hundreds of them was quite a sight that would cause any person feel nervous.
Even at the view of Lee Sungmin as a martial artist, they were dangerous for one reason. They did not fear death like other martial artists.
Lee Sungmin examined and felt the deathly internal energy of the many Death Knights. Several dozens of them were at the Peak Realm. It was quite an intimidating sight to behold.
[The way Death Knights obtain their strength is completely different from how human beings obtain theirs.]
Heoju murmured.
They were originally warriors and martial artists who had already reached their limits in their lives and made contracts with a demon to obtain longevity. Therefore, their strength could still increase, but it would take much longer than usual.
‘That’s Unfair.’
[What? How is that unfair? Do you realize even with all these monsters and high level undead around Eria, Humans are still the dominant species on the continent?]
Heoju laughed incredulously at Lee Sungmin with a bit of spite.
[Don’t be mistaken though, There will always be some incredibly strong monsters like the 5 Black Stars of Predator. The monsters and humans keep each other in a balance. There are no clear advantages to becoming a monster or staying a human. The only thing that matters to one, is how attached they are to their identity.]
‘I know.’
[Also, speaking of the 5 Black Stars of Predator, apparently I think this ship is the Ghost ship of a monster named Volander. I can only think so because of how many death knights are on board and their levels of power. Weren’t you surprised as well?]
‘Uh.’
[Hahaha! A Death Knight is about the same level as a Werewolf in terms of power among the monsters within Predator. The strongest of the 5 Black Stars would be either Geniella or Volander. There’s also the Mad King of the Werewolves, Juwon, that could also contend with them but, I haven’t seen him in a very long time!]
Lee Sungmin recalled Geniella the Vampire Queen. She, who Lee Sungmin met in Travia, was ironically still one the most powerful beings he had ever met so far in all of Eria.
The power of Lord Sima Ryunju was too unfathomably strong for Lee Sungmin to even begin comprehending his power, but Geniella was not weak either. If anything, she was clearly stronger than Guan Zun, the swordmaster he had just killed in the Elven Forest.
[Of course, if Predator’s 5 Black Stars were any worse than the 6 Divinities, then Beyond the Heavens would have annihilated Predator off the face of Eria.]
The Death Knight and Lee Sungmin came into the hallway where the captain’s cabin was connected.
The hallway was worn down, there were no chandeliers or lights, nor was there any kind of decor. The floor of the hallway made a creaking noise every time Lee Sungmin took a step forward. That sound along with the rattling and clanging of the Death Knight’s armor was a hideous noise that Lee Sungmin really did not want to hear.
It wasn’t long before Death Knight stopped moving. The Death Knight turned to face Lee Sungmin and took a few steps back to the side.
“Go in. The captain awaits you.”
The door opened.
Lee Sungmin slowly went inside.‘Oh.’Lee Sungmin realized that his idea from earlier was completely wrong. He thought the energy of death that was emanating from the ship, was the cause of the sky turning pitch black in the middle of the day, but it wasn’t the ship that caused it.
When Lee Sungmin entered the cabin he could feel it. The dark and deathly energy from the entire area was so dense and thick as it was all coming from the being in front of him. The Death Knight named Volander.
Volander was sitting on an old rocking chair. His armor was detailed with a red pattern on a lightly tinted, black armor. The armor was black, yet it also seemed crystal clear and well blended into the surroundings that it appeared transparent.
Inside the dark black and red helmet covering Volander’s face, a pair of bright golden and fiery eyes were burning brilliantly.
Lee Sungmin felt his heart palpitating at a rapid pace from the moment he faced Volander.
Lee Sungmin’s black heart was responding to the deathly energy from Volander.
“You’re not a monster.”
Volander murmured.
“The body is a monster… but you also don’t feel like a banyo.”(T/N A banyo is half monster, half human, just clarifying here.)
“What’s this bizarre feeling I’m getting from you? That kind of ominous energy can’t come from someone in the shell of a monster and still smells and looks like a human.. Who… no, what are you?”
Volander asked with an inquisitive tone.
“It doesn’t make sense to have such a ferocious bloodlust and not eat humans… Oh! I see now. Are you the one who is bound with the spirit of the Great Yokai that Geniella was talking about?”
[Time sure has flown by.]
Heoju murmured as Volander had identified who Lee Sungmin was.
[When I was alive, I met the 5 Black Stars of Predator. Geniella, Juwon, Henemy, Volander, Arbeth, and many other monsters at their level of power. Volander was strong at the time, but it looks like he became stronger after hundreds of years.]
“Why did you call me?”Lee Sungmin cut to the chase as he took in the information Heoju had given him.
“I’m curious.”
Volander answered Lee Sungmin’s question without hesitation.
“I didn’t mean to threaten you by any means. I don’t like to indiscriminately slaughter humans if it can be avoided.”
“But I heard you exterminated the pirates for invading your territory.”
“That’s a different story. Wouldn’t you judge that humans were your enemies if they invaded your own territory?”
“But I do not kill others unconditionally.”
“You and I are not human. It doesn’t matter what we were, it only matters that we are monsters now…”
“So you simply killed them because you’re a monster and are natural enemies with human beings?”
“You’re misunderstanding something. I exterminated their crew because they were pirates who invaded my territory. If they were a merchant ship or a fishing boat, I would warn them and kick them out of the territory. But they were pirates. That’s why I killed them.”
Volander lifted himself up as he said so.
“You have the body of a monster, but you are also not a monster…… and… you have the energy of a dragon….”
“……what?”
“You give off the same aura as the Dragons of the past.”
Volander stared at Lee Sungmin.
“The arrogant and dominant aura that Dragons had, that they were superior to all the other beings in the world. That very pressure is secretly emanating from you. Don’t tell me you’re a young dragon or a polymorph.”
“No, I’m not.”
“Then what are you? You can’t be both a monster and a human, and yet somehow give off a dragon’s aura.”
Volander slowly approached Lee Sungmin.
“Oh… Now that’s a strange thought.”
Volander’s feet stopped a few steps away from Lee Sungmin.
“I think you might be the Predator of Massacre.”