Chapter 39
“Deputy Yoon!”
“Damn it, I just came for a drink, and now this?! Buff me, please!”
Among the two hunters, the warrior-type man leapt forward, while the mage-type woman retreated and pulled out her staff.
Even if they felt crushed by Lee Hyun’s overwhelming presence, their reaction was exactly what you’d expect from hunters belonging to a major guild—swift and precise.
Flash!
The crystal orb at the end of the staff lit up.
The mage, Jung Rahee, was a blessing-type cleric who specialized in buffs.
[‘Blessing: Strength’ has been granted!]
[‘Immunity Boost’ has been granted!]
[‘Defense Amplification’ has been granted!]
…
Though she was slightly tipsy, thanks to pre-memorized spells, five buffs were instantly cast upon Yoon Kihoon.
Kwaaaang!
With a powerful downward swing of his sword, Yoon Kihoon managed to split the wall of white tidal waves.
“It just looks flashy—nothing special after all—!”
“Not bad. But can you block this?”
Snap!
Lee Hyun flicked his fingers, and the shattered fragments of the wave strung themselves together midair like a spiderweb.
Then—
Boom! Boom! Crackle!
Each fragment turned into a small bolt of lightning, slamming into the ground one after another.
Yoon Kihoon was forced to endure the relentless bombardment alone.
“Grrrhhh!”
In just one breath, more than a dozen shockwaves hammered him.
Unable to block them all, he was struck directly and sent skidding backward.
His armor shattered instantly, tattered to scraps. Burns and scorch marks marred his body all over.
Jung Rahee wasn’t faring any better.
[‘Anti-Magic Wall’ rises high!]
Pouring every ounce of mana into her staff, a shimmering wall of light formed before her to block the oncoming lightning bolts.
Crashhh!
“Kyaaaah!”
But the bolts spiraled midair, twisting together, piercing straight through the Anti-Magic Wall.
An almost supernatural level of mana control.
This wasn’t just about knowledge—it required innate, god-given talent.
‘This… this won’t do!’
Seeing the lightning whip toward her like a lashing serpent, Jung Rahee clenched her teeth.
Her opponent was a caster of unimaginable skill, far beyond her ability to even gauge.
Worse, since earlier her body had felt oddly heavy, her thoughts clouded, and her blessings had weakened as though dulled by something unseen…
‘He can interfere with my mana control as if it were nothing! At least a Ranker—no, perhaps even a High Ranker! Someone I cannot possibly handle!’
Misinterpreting the effects of the curse layers on the space around her, she made a desperate choice.
At her feet lay a long wooden chest.
Originally, this was something entrusted by the guildmaster himself, meant to be delivered carefully.
‘But my life comes first!’
Even if punished later, survival was the immediate priority.
Bang!
Jung Rahee kicked the chest open.
Inside, a staff shot out into her grasp.
Heavy as carved stone, but with an amethyst at its tip that shimmered with peculiar energy.
[Runic Staff of Stonehenge]
The Stonehenge ruins yielded many rune-engraved talismans and staff fragments believed to be ritual tools.
Reconstructed from those pieces, this staff was proven to be a Celtic ritual instrument, perfect for reading the heavens and channeling mana.
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Type: Two-Handed Weapon, Magical Tool
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Origin: Tradition – ‘Runic Ritual of Stonehenge’
Upon closer look, its shaft was densely inscribed with ancient Celtic runes used by druidic priests.
A treasure any mage would go mad for.
In fact, Britain considered it a national treasure, safeguarded in the British Museum.
But by unknown means, it appeared in the black market. Blue Dog Guild, under commission from the Myung family, had successfully acquired it in secret.
They had smuggled a national treasure into Korea.
Even Peng, the Chinese tycoon, coveted it—such was its value.
Jung Rahee, one of Myung Guild’s Rankers directly under Heo Jaewoon, now held it.
The moment it touched her hands, the staff released a tremendous pulse of mana.
Ziiiing!
‘Yes!’
A triumphant smile spread across her face.
With this, if she buffed Yoon Kihoon again, he’d instantly leap several tiers in power.
“You waste your efforts.”
But Lee Hyun had crossed far too many battlefields to be fooled.
[Combat Sense (B) detects suspicious movement in Player: Jung Rahee!]
Snap!
Guided by his Combat Sense, Lee Hyun flicked his fingers again, slashing his forefinger downward.
[Activating Sacred Relic: Golden Arhat Mask—turning curse-script into lightning rings.]
[Success! Rings link into chains. Congratulations! A new spell ‘Lightning Chains’ is born.]
[Your understanding of Lightning has greatly increased.]
The lattice of lightning in the air hardened, taking the form of chains—an evolution inspired by his curse-chains technique.
Crackle-crackle-crash!
Half a dozen taut chains crashed down toward Jung Rahee.
“Gasp…!”
She hastily layered shield upon shield, but—
Thud! Crack!
Each chain struck at different points, piercing the weaker spots. One embedded itself into her left calf.
“Kyaaaaaah!!”
Zzzzzzap!
[You are Shocked. Resistances drastically reduced.]
[Multiple curses flood in, stacking abnormal statuses.]
Her body convulsed violently, her eyes rolling back until she collapsed lifelessly.
That was the terror of Lightning Chains.
They carried not only elemental damage, but a tsunami of curses upon impact.
Rahee had tried to defend against shock alone, only to crumble under the curses that followed. Dead.
The Runic Staff clattered to the ground.
Crackle!
Two chains coiled around it and delivered it to Lee Hyun.
As naturally as if it were an extension of his limbs.
Clack!
Claaang!!
The instant Lee Hyun gripped the staff, his mana circuits burst open.
His mana swelled massively, purer and smoother than ever.
[You have acquired the Runic Staff of Stonehenge.]
[You can now sense ambient mana distribution more keenly. Mana Affinity greatly increased.]
[Your understanding of magic has greatly increased.]
[While wielding this item, you may use Rune Magic. Please learn Rune Magic separately.]
‘So this is what normal mages feel like, huh.’
「Kak-kak. Rune script, is it? Its combinations may mesh nicely with my curse-scripts…」
Like with the [Footsteps of the Shadow], every time Lee Hyun encountered the Myung Guild, they seemed to conveniently hand him excellent treasures.
Coldly smiling, he struck the ground with the staff.
Kwooooom!
A pure white ripple spread through the floor.
Yoon Kihoon, reeling under the earlier barrage, was knocked down and bound tightly by Lightning Chains.
Thud!
Just as Lee Hyun had said earlier, he was forced to his knees. Beside him, Jung Rahee’s corpse sat slumped in the same position.
Lee Hyun showed no reaction to the lifeless body.
‘…A… a monster.’
Han Hyunsoo watched, trembling.
‘Even in secret chambers, to so easily destroy two Myung Guild hunters, one of them a Ranker… and to seize the Runic Staff too…!’
He knew its worth better than anyone, being the one who had retrieved it. In the right hands, it was nearly a relic-class artifact.
And now, in the clutches of a monster.
What disaster awaited? He didn’t want to imagine.
‘…Then what about the Myung Guild?’
He racked his brain desperately.
That monster would never return the staff. Worse, after killing their hunters, reconciliation was impossible.
And as someone stuck in the middle, would the Myung Guild spare him?
“It’s quite usable.”
At that moment, Lee Hyun’s words snapped Hyunsoo’s mind to attention.
“Th-thank goodness it pleases you, sir! It—it seems it has finally found its true master.”
“Perhaps.”
Even flattery stirred no reaction.
To this monster, even national treasures were little more than trinkets.
“Was this the gift Chairman Peng intended for me?”
“Wha… ah! Y-yes, sir!”
Though confused, Hyunsoo recalled Lee Hyun’s earlier introduction.
—He said something about being sent by Chairman Peng…
—Ignoring Peng Jinghao’s commands, only to meet… mere fledglings?
The reports from his men, and Lee Hyun’s own words.
All pointed to Peng Jinghao’s involvement.
‘Damn it! He dumped this mess on us!’
Hyunsoo concluded: Peng Jinghao, having lost the staff at auction, had sent this monster to reclaim it.
The monster himself didn’t care for the details—he had simply come.
Now Hyunsoo knew exactly where he stood.
‘…Better to stir chaos and flee Korea. That’s the only way.’
He’d have to abandon ties with Myung Guild and seek survival abroad.
Lee Hyun smirked coldly, having nudged him into this conclusion deliberately.
‘If he thought deeper, he’d notice contradictions in my story. But in that state, he’ll never get there.’
Of course, one last push was needed.
“Strange, though.”
“E-elder…?”
“Why would my gift be in the hands of such minnows?”
Hyunsoo’s face drained pale.
He could no longer think straight—only desperate to explain.
Then, as if whispered into his mind, the ‘right answer’ surfaced.
“F-forgive me! I insisted it must never leave our hands, but… they said they could handle Chairman Peng’s messenger easily, so they took it anyway…!”
[Curse-Script ‘Brainwash Suggestion’ is in effect.]
“Messenger?”
Lee Hyun’s brow twitched, feigning anger.
Hyunsoo bowed lower.
“Please forgive me! But believe me, I truly wished to protect this gift!”
“So, they intercepted it knowing full well what it was.”
As Lee Hyun’s fury shifted toward Myung Guild, Hyunsoo sighed in relief, while Lee Hyun smiled—he had secured the pretext he needed.
Even if Cartel later investigated, Hyunsoo would testify exactly as Lee Hyun wanted.
‘Once he’s no longer useful, I’ll dispose of him.’
The board was set.
Now only one thing remained.
‘Why not give Myung Guild a little gift of my own?’
Perhaps too immersed in his role as an Apostle of Zeus, his thoughts mirrored that persona.
Swish.
Lee Hyun crooked his forefinger.
Crackle!
The lightning chains rose taut, lifting upward.
Yoon Kihoon, unconscious until then, slowly staggered upright.
“Uh…? Wh-what…!”
Realizing his body moved like a puppet on strings, terror froze him.
Even his mouth produced no sound.
To his eyes, Lee Hyun’s goblin mask looked like a demon risen from hell.
“Do you want to live?”
“Uuughghhh…!”
Drooling, Yoon Kihoon nodded frantically. The sight of Rahee’s dead body beside him was grotesque.
“Then run. Don’t look back. Go to your guildmaster.”
“…!!”
The chains released him, and he bolted in blind panic.
Lee Hyun watched him leave with detached indifference.
Yoon Kihoon ran like a madman.
Even with his stamina and mana completely drained, he forced himself forward.
Stopping meant the demon would devour him—that fear consumed his mind.
[Status Effect: Obsession is corroding your sanity.]
“What’s this? Where’s Manager Jung? Why are you alone? And the Runic Staff?”
His guildmates blinked at his return without Rahee, and without the staff.
“What?”
“You’re back?”
“But why alone? Did something happen?”
All eyes in the warehouse turned to him—Guildmaster Heo Jaewoon among them.
Bloodshot, cold eyes.
Yoon Kihoon opened his mouth, ready to warn them about the demon—
“You! Hey, you!”
Suddenly, his comrades recoiled, pointing at him in alarm.
“What…?”
He glanced down and froze.
His hand was glowing pure white.
Like that monster’s lightning—!
And that was the end of his thoughts.
Light exploded from his eyes, ears, nose, and mouth.
[The new spell ‘White Tidal Wave’ strikes!]
Krrrrrrraaaaash!
Ruuuuumble!!
The warehouse where the Myung Guild hunters stood was obliterated in a flood of blinding white light.
