Chapter 48: Chapter 48
The Slaughterhouse’s assassins possessed situational awareness as sharp as their reputation.
“He’s no ordinary fighter! Don’t let your guard down!”
Three assassins crumpled in the blink of an eye beneath Maeng Hwi’s spear. The rest immediately slowed their advance and shifted into defensive formations. Furthermore, the vanguard scattered left and right, flanking Maeng Hwi’s rear in an instant. A clear sign of their proficiency in coordinated assault.
Naturally.
“Where do you think you’re going!”
The opponent was Sixth Young Master Maeng Hwi. However tender-hearted a fifteen-year-old boy he might be inside, he was the Heavenly Demon’s heir and Mao’s older brother.
As the assassins surged in, he hurled his short spear forward and shot in the same direction like an arrow.
FWISH!
“Gakh!”
The spear pierced the lead assassin’s chest first. Maeng Hwi swept past him and caught the spear shaft mid-flight. Clk!
Divine prowess that drew involuntary admiration.
Dropping low, he stomped on the instep of another stunned assassin. THUD! Yanking the spear free, he swung it sideways into yet another assassin’s thigh. SHLK!
“AAAAGH!”
Three more down in the blink of an eye.
“Cut him down!”
But the enemy numbered dozens, not one or two. Nearby assassins swung their blades in unison, charging. A horizontal slash.
Maeng Hwi broke his rhythm mid-stride, planting his feet. FWISH! The assassin’s blade grazed empty air a single inch before his throat. An exquisite dodge.
But these weren’t clumsy third-raters. They were first-rate assassins. Without a moment’s hesitation, another assassin thrust from the side.
As if he had eyes on his flank, Maeng Hwi spun, deflecting the blade past his ribs, and drove his spear into the assassin’s belly in the same motion.
THUD!
“Kgh…”
But shallow. The impaled assassin merely grimaced, seizing the spear shaft with both hands and glaring with venomous eyes.
“You little brat… Kgh, try taking it back by force.”
He wore leather armor beneath his robes. Maeng Hwi sensed it through the resistance. He abandoned the contest of strength and released the spear entirely.
“What…”
The assassin, expecting a tug-of-war, faltered at the sudden release.
But at that instant.
THWACK!
Maeng Hwi flipped through the air and kicked the back end of the spear.
“K… kgh.”
The spear punched through the leather armor and out the assassin’s back. Blood trickling from his mouth, the assassin staggered five, six steps, dropped to his knees, and died.
At only fifteen, his movements carried a wholly different caliber.
“Don’t let him keep hold of that spear!”
“Coordinate your attacks!”
But dozens of enemies remained. The real fight was just beginning. Two assassins charged from both sides, slashing horizontally. Maeng Hwi hastily retreated with a dozen backflips to escape.
“Got him!”
The moment he reached another assassin, he sprang high, flipped, and kicked that assassin’s back, shoving him forward.
“Huh…?”
With a sickening sound, the two pursuing assassins’ blades carved their own comrade into three pieces.
Then Maeng Hwi dove through the gap between the stunned pair, stepped on one’s knee, then pelvis, and scissored both to the ground simultaneously. THUD!
A child of the Maeng family, one of the three great noble houses, before being the Cult Leader’s heir. Assuming he only knew spearmanship was a grave miscalculation.
He strolled back casually and ripped his short spear free from a kneeling corpse. THWICK!
The assassins recoiled at the suffocating display. The ground was already littered with their comrades’ corpses and blood, yet Maeng Hwi bore only bloodstains on his black clothes. Not a scratch.
If anyone still saw him as a child after witnessing this, they were blind.
As a brief lull settled, Maeng Hwi stopped and steadied his breathing. Wiping his forehead with his sleeve smeared the enemies’ blood with his own sweat.
Even as the Sixth Young Master, his opponents were the Slaughterhouse. Assassins acknowledged even among the Demonic Cult’s shadow organizations. First-rate experts, the cream of the crop. If this dragged on, he wouldn’t escape unscathed.
“Huu. Want to keep going?”
But he had confidence. A stubborn certainty that he would be the last one standing.
“Sorry to disappoint, but I’m different from that idiot standing over there. I don’t go easy. So if you’re going to die, raise your blades.”
The assassins hesitated, glancing at each other. If even one dropped his weapon, they’d all follow suit.
Had he not been there, they probably would have.
“Heh heh. Impressive for a child.”
Slaughterhouse rank four, absolute master Dong-tak.
Had he not been present, that is.
The assassins parted like the Red Sea, and from between them strode a beast wielding an iron mace.
Seeing him, Maeng Hwi’s expression hardened for the first time. He recognized it instantly.
‘This one’s strong.’
In terms of status, heaven and earth. As the young master of the Maeng family, he had no reason to know a mere assassin. But the sharp killing intent radiating from the man’s body was palpable against his skin.
“By the looks of it, you’re a hired bodyguard for the Seventh Young Master. Go home quietly while I’m still asking nicely. This is no place for the likes of you.”
“H-hired?! I am not!”
What kind of bullshit was that? Who hired whom? He was the older brother. But just as Maeng Hwi hadn’t recognized Dong-tak, Dong-tak had no way of identifying the masked Maeng Hwi.
“Not, you say? Hmph, lies spill easily from that hole in your face. Then why appear suddenly and attack our boys?”
“You don’t exactly have a good reason for trying to kill villagers either.”
“What? This brat’s got a foul mouth.”
“You don’t even have a comeback. Anyway, stop your nonsense and go home quietly. Or I won’t stand by either. And I haven’t even shown you my real skills yet.”
Maeng Hwi leveled his spear, signaling that further talk was unnecessary. Dong-tak hardened his expression and licked his lips.
His manner of speech was definitely a child’s. But his skill was genuine.
Especially considering that everything so far had been merely a warm-up. He hadn’t displayed his true martial arts. If he went all out, the carnage would be unimaginable.
Dong-tak signaled his subordinates with subtle glances, then nodded and raised both hands in surrender.
“Fine. I’ll pull back.”
“R-really?”
“The damage is already severe. Can’t afford to lose more men here.”
“Good. Smart choice.”
Maeng Hwi grinned and lowered his spear. Dong-tak shrugged, then slowly approached while speaking.
“But how old are you? Fourteen? Fifteen? Quite an achievement for that age. Who trained you? What family?”
“Why do you ask? And stop coming closer. Stay there.”
“Ah, just curious. Your master must be quite renowned. Let me think…”
“I said stay there!”
Despite Maeng Hwi’s shout, Dong-tak scratched his forehead in apparent contemplation. Then his eyes lit up.
“Spearmanship… that’s it. The Maeng family!”
“Huh?”
“That’s right. The Maeng family. Famous. Plenty of experts, plenty of disciples. One of the three great noble houses. Yes. You trained there.”
“Well, yes, but why…”
Dong-tak had closed to within two steps. His shadow loomed over Maeng Hwi, and up close, the man was as impossibly broad as he was tall, rivaling even Mao in sheer bulk. Maeng Hwi craned his neck to look up.
Dong-tak grinned.
“Nothing special. Just need to know who to avoid when I bury you.”
“What?”
“Farewell, brat. Gwahahahaha!”
FWOOM! Dong-tak’s iron mace fell straight down. Damn it! Caught off guard by the sudden strike, Maeng Hwi threw himself backward.
KWAANG!
The ground where he’d stood shattered. But this was merely a setup. Before Maeng Hwi could land, eight flying daggers converged from all directions.
The assassins.
‘W-when?!’
While he’d been absorbed in conversation with Dong-tak, they’d flanked him.
His martial arts might have been a cut above, but his lack of combat experience and tender nerves had cost him.
KA-KA-KA-CLANG!
Maeng Hwi spun his spear, deflecting the daggers. But his condition upon landing was dire. One hand clutched his side. Blood streamed down his thigh.
He’d missed two of the eight.
“Heh heh. Naive brat. The Maeng family taught you how to fight, but not how to win.”
“You bastard… Kgh.”
Maeng Hwi staggered under sharp pain. The thigh was manageable, but the side wound was deep. His mind was already growing hazy. Moreover, the tingling sensation spreading through his body was paralytic poison.
‘Idiot! What do I do? Taking all of them is impossible. How did I end up doing something so stupid…’
Self-reproach flooded in. But it was too late. What was done was done. One option remained.
Though he’d achieved only the fourth stage of mastery, the Maeng family’s hereditary demonic art, the Great Shattering Spear Technique, could tear through everything ahead once unleashed.
The problem was finding the opening to use it.
“Breaking a kid’s head isn’t usually my taste, but… I suppose I’ll make an exception. Heh heh.”
“You cowardly bastard!”
“Hmm, no. That’s what the smelly righteous sect bastards would say. In this cult, the winner is the strong one. Well, I’ve taught you this much, so tuition should be collected. But never mind. Consider it your fare to the afterlife. Gwahahaha!”
WHIRL, WHIRL! Dong-tak swung his mace overhead. Behind Maeng Hwi, the assassins had already closed in. Maeng Hwi swallowed dry and twisted his spear, gripping it tight.
Between the assassins’ daggers and the boar’s mace, he’d have to absorb one. A truly desperate situation.
His only chance of victory was singular.
‘Take down that pig.’
Maeng Hwi steadied his resolve. And just as the pivotal clash was about to erupt.
“URYAAAAAH-!”
From behind, a deafening battle cry as the red-haired idiot threw himself into the fray.
“Mao?!”
Seventh Young Master Mao.
“What the!”
Caught off guard by Mao’s sudden assault, Dong-tak whipped around and swung his mace. FWOOM! Maeng Hwi bit his lip hard.
‘If I unleash my technique here, he’ll be caught in it too. You idiot!’
He pivoted to face the rear, where assassins massed with daggers ready. He spun his spear and thrust forward.
『Great Shattering Spear Technique, First Form: Wind Dragon Wave』
KWAAAA!
Wind chi channeled through the spear shaft became a massive cyclone that swept the front.
“KAAAGH!”
“Gakh!”
The assassins caught in its path were shredded, their black clothes torn to ribbons as if slashed dozens of times. Everyone within ten paces was reduced to wreckage in a single technique.
Truly tremendous martial power. This was the Maeng family’s Great Shattering Spear Technique.
‘Kgh… that idiot…?’
Ignoring his own agony, Maeng Hwi immediately turned to check on Mao. His eyes nearly popped out of his skull.