Chapter 461 – Kim Kat and the Haunted House
ㅡKeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaak!!!!!
The race queen, now completely transformed into an evil spirit, came flying at me.
ㅡWhoosh!
Crimson flames blazed in her wake. The fire-engulfed skeleton was truly a death god risen from hell.
ㅡThe moment you feel fear, you lose.
There was no retreating; this was a one-way street.
A showdown where only one of us could survive.
“I’m strong against that.”
That’s why I’ve survived until now.
Believing this, I stepped forward, blade leading the way. My body was protected by steel, and my sword was longer than the fiend’s arms.
Please, brass-plated archangel!
Show me the power that instantly fucked up the corrupted kobold queen!!
“Kieeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeek!!!!!!”
Screaming, I charged forward. Holy light erupted from the blade. Indeed, the sacred water of faith and trust! But if this strike didn’t work, there would be no victory!
With that conviction, I swung my sword.
ㅡClang!
Holy light and vengeful flames collided.
ㅡFssssss!
“Kieheeeeeeeeeeeek!!!”
The fiend shrieked.
My sword had cleaved through her wicked grip. The attack was working. But at the same time, the holy light emanating from the sword began to fade rapidly.
The attack works.
I can inflict critical damage.
But the opportunities are few. If the divine power was being consumed this quickly, the enchantment might wear off before long.
“Tricky!”
Only one bottle of holy water remained.
“But!”
If I didn’t finish it off before using it all, I would lose.
“That’s enough against this Heavenly Demon!”
Uncertain possibilities seep into the mind, planting seeds of unease. The sprouted anxiety would diminish my fighting spirit and senses. Right now, I am Ghostbuster Kim Kat. An expert in hunting ghosts! Such as I can never lose to a ghost!
“Dejaaaaaaaaat!!!!!!”
I mustered my courage and fighting spirit.
The race queen, faltering at my momentum, retreated slightly.
“It hurts… It hurts!!! Ah! Weren’t you here to save me! My hands are burning. Burning… Hngh! Please! Please, stop now!”
“Yes! I must stop! I will stop you now!”
Where is its weakness? Should I aim for the neck? Or the heart? That’s why facing a monster for the first time is such a pain in the ass. I had no idea where to aim.
I briefly considered which of the two I should aim for while attempting an attack, and missed a beat because of it.
“Burn to ashes!!!”
ㅡChwaak!
“Keuhahahaak!!”
The fiend’s arm, extended in an instant, slipped through the gap in my blade and tore through my breastplate. A steel breastplate being torn apart!!!! If I hadn’t twisted my body to dodge, it would have reached my bare skin!
ㅡWhoosh!
But the attack didn’t end there.
“Son of a bitch!”
My chest was on fire.
“Son of a popped firecracker!”
Panicked, I thrashed around, throwing off my breastplate and quilted armor. The breastplate had only been torn, but the quilted armor, being made of cloth, had burned to ashes.
“You son of a bitch!!!! My armor!!!!!”
Fortunately, my bare skin wasn’t hurt, but that was it! I had lost my precious armor!
“The bastard who cuts out my heart!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”
Enraged, I gripped the hilt of my sword once more and charged at it. I didn’t care what kind of son of a bitch it was! If there was no escape anyway, the only thing I could do, armor or not, was to fight!
Don’t deflect, don’t defend.
I would have to fight using only evasion and attack. If it had enough power to cause that kind of damage, armor was meaningless in the first place.
“I won’t forgive you!!!!!!!!!!!!!”
The divine power contained in the blade was faint.
Even so, I swung the sword.
ㅡClang!
“Kiehyaaaak!!!!”
The fiend swung its arm to block my attack. It didn’t go in deep. Because there was little divine power left.
“Damn it!”
The impact had weakened.
“Hngh…! Hngh! Don’t do this… Please stop… Please stop… Please get me out of here… Hngh!”
But even a weak attack was enough to make the fiend retreat.
Her trauma.
It was related to pain. Even a small wound startled her greatly, and she shed black tears from the empty eye sockets of her skull.
A woman with strong combat power due to her resentment, but not a warrior.
ㅡDrip. Drip.
The flowing tears became flames.
The flames spread across the floor, and the walls of the passage began to burn. The temperature rose in an instant, and sweat poured down.
A ghost that controls flames.
“…I’ve come to get you out of here. Stop now and take my hand. Let’s go to a good place. A happy place. A place without pain or hatred.”
A dangerous enemy.
Especially if physical attacks don’t work properly.
“Fusion Confucianism will guide you.”
ㅡPssh…
Now the radiance surrounding the sword was faint.
Even so, I had to go.
“Hngh…! No, no…! Noooo!!! It’s hot, it’s hot. Please put out the fire, please! It’s too hot! I can’t think straight!”
“Wait. I’ll put out the fire soon!”
ㅡDejaaaaaaaaat!!!
I kicked off the ground and sprinted through the burning passage.
The opportunity was when the fiend was wailing.
I aimed for the heart of the crying woman. After attacking there, I would go for the head. Let’s bet my fate on those two. Since the divine power had weakened, I had to aim for what I suspected were its weak points!
ㅡWhoosh!
At that moment, a candlestick that had been flying near the fiend rushed towards me. I easily dodged it, and perfectly evaded the grip reaching for my neck—
ㅡThwack!
And stabbed the sword straight into its heart.
“Kieheeeeek!!!!”
“Did I get it?”
Don’t let your guard down.
Immediately, I twisted and turned the sword, performing an upward slash to sever its head!
ㅡChwaak!
With that, I took both the fiend’s heart and head.
ㅡPshh.
At the same time, the power of the holy water disappeared.
Did I defeat it?
“Kahahheuk…! You too, you’re all the same! You inflict pain on me!”
As expected.
The fiend did not fall.
“…Shit.”
Her wounds began to heal in an instant.
What a load of crap!
The fiend had no vital points. It was the same no matter where I struck. At best, one bottle of holy water was absolutely insufficient to overwhelm her resentment. Could adding another bottle here inflict any meaningful damage?
ㅡWhoosh!
Along with that, a rain of fire poured down.
“Damn it!”
I immediately moved nimbly to avoid the firestorm.
At the same time, the fiend slowly advanced as if trying to enter the basement. Crying, wailing, spewing out screams and curses, slowly.
“A terrible place…! Hngh! Hngh! I don’t want to go! I don’t want to go! It’s painful if I go in… But! But. Now I have to go.”
Now.
There was only one bottle left.
“Last chance.”
There was no way to kill it.
The holy water, on which I had bet my fate, had landed a blow, but it was not enough. To kill it, I needed more powerful and larger quantities of holy water.
I had already used up one bottle and hadn’t even made a scratch.
If Eliza had been by my side… could I have overcome it?
I don’t know.
That thing in front of me was a fairly strong fiend.
“No one saved us… No one, no one…”
She was getting closer and closer.
The moment it entered the basement, everything would be over.
“Damn it…!”
Holy water doesn’t work.
Which means.
I can’t kill it unless I can unleash ‘sword energy.’
The primal power of mana.
My mana control was so fast and precise that it was incomparable to anyone else. Karin said that very few people could manipulate the mana within their bodies as freely as I could.
There was no way I couldn’t unleash sword energy.
Unleashing sword energy was a simple matter. Beyond the muscles, to the outside of the skin. By releasing mana and materializing it.
ㅡGooo.
The boiling mana was fluctuating as if it would burst out at any moment. Mana and muscles were telling me. Let me out. Let me out and defeat that thing.
The senses, clearer than ever, felt the mana.
The sensation of fluctuating just below the skin.
“…”
But even though I was holding the sword, sword energy was not being unleashed. It was only fluctuating within my body, begging to be released, but it couldn’t pierce the skin.
“…The Heavenly Demon’s name will weep.”
Sword energy wasn’t coming out.
In the end, this last remaining bottle of holy water was my fate.
I sprinkled the last of the holy water on the sword.
I recalled the faces of Claudia, Winia, Karin, and Risha. I can’t promise that I’ll return. But I believe I can return. No matter what, I will return.
“Kiek…!”
Let’s just think about that for now.
“Kieeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeek!!!!!!!!!!!”
Radiance erupted from the blade. Bigger, more powerful! My roar filled the passage. Evil spirit, I am the Heavenly Demon Kim Kat!
To charge at a fiend with only a shining sword while almost naked was foolish to an extreme.
“It hurts… It hurts…! Don’t hurt me…! Hngh! I don’t want to anymore! Stop! Stop! I want to stop!!!”
“I hurt more, you son of a bitch!!!!”
ㅡClang!
And collided with the fiend.
Her burning heat was transmitted right in front of me. The black skull screamed, tears streaming down, looking at my face.
“Kieeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaak!!!”
“Uwooooooooooooo!!!”
ㅡClang!
ㅡClang!
I ignored the burning of my body.
This was the last chance. I evaded the fiend’s attacks, landed counter-attacks, and unleashed a series of strikes.
“Holy Executive Sword Dance Dejaaaaaaaaatㅡ!!!!!”
“Kieyaaaaak!!!!”
The final flurry, honed through practical experience and perfected through endless training, was the essence of everything I had. My Executive Sword Style, modified and created solely to kill enemies!
Would it work?
No, it had to work!
ㅡChwazazak!!!
As attacks continued, the radiance surrounding the blade faded, but I was aware of this and focused my attacks only on the parts the fiend was regenerating.
“Kyahaaaak!! It hurts! It hurts!! Stop, stop it!!!!”
Screams erupted.
The holy radiance was fading.
“Behold the power of Fusion Confucianismㅡ!!!!”
Finally, when I slashed its neck—
ㅡCrash!
“Everything!!! Burn to ashes!!!”
ㅡFlames erupted.
“Teeeeeeeng!!!!”
The impact sent me flying backwards.
The radiance of the blade had scattered like mist.
“No one! No one saved us!!! Then everyone must feel the same pain!!! They must feel it as I did!!!”
Had the shadow of despair fallen?
My skin was hot. My arms were burned in several places. It would take some time to heal, damn it.
That’s only if I get out of here alive, though.
ㅡKieeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaak!!!!!!!
But it didn’t seem meaningless.
As a result of slashing with the sword enchanted with holy water, her body had stopped regenerating and was constantly spewing out black liquid. Unfortunately, it seemed I couldn’t finish it off.
A clear critical hit.
Just one more move.
I would have won if I had just one more move.
ㅡWhoosh!
Flames engulfed me. The flames filling the walls reached the door of the basement. A space completely filled with flames. The flames of despair. Was I, Kim Kat, about to be cooked well-done? Beef gets tougher and stronger when cooked for a long time. But not humans.
“…It’s hot.”
ㅡThump, thump.
The world was noisy, so my heartbeat resounded clearly.
That heartbeat swallowed the fiend’s screams.
“…Is this your hatred.”
The burning walls.
As the critically wounded race queen screamed as if tearing herself apart,
ㅡWhoosh!
ㅡWhoosh!
Accordingly, the hellfire filling the walls of the passage undulated, emitting a hot haze.
Haze, it was a mirage.
ㅡThe vast, sprawling mansion in its prime.
The marble gleamed, and the foundation stones were solid. The mansion was diligently managed and cleaned by numerous servants befitting its size. Laughter never ceased, and many visitors came. Good music and good food abounded. The owner of the mansion lived without formality with the servants.
ㅡGiggle!
The laughter of women, as beautiful as Teacher Seol Woon-do’s compass, echoed. Was it a happy time?
ㅡWhoosh!
However, in the scene that soon changed, only a red and black world was visible.
The servants were brutally murdered. The maids were kidnapped. The women of the mansion were violated and thrown into the basement. Who were the invaders? Men with swords. They became the embodiment of violence and created a scene of carnage.
It was a scene I had seen.
ㅡBlazing.
The flames scattered again in disarray.
This time the fire went out, and the mansion in its prime was shown again. And then the fire started again. The fire went out again, and the prime… a jumbled mess. A laughing woman was engulfed in flames, and an orchestra played in the ashes. The illusion of the mansion in its prime and the ruined mansion intersected in a chaotic manner.
The longing to return to the past and hatred were mixed together, and the passage to the basement had become a completely different world. On the left wall, people were laughing in the mansion in its prime, and on the right wall, women were screaming in the burned-out basement.
Resentment and hatred.
“Everything…! Everything! Burn to ashes! If you burn…! We! We can be freed! So!”
Encompassing that illusion, the disheveled race queen approached the basement.
“Take away our pain…!”
She pleaded, crying.
“If you do that.”
Her pain and hatred had already been transmitted to me to an overflowing degree.
“What will happen to the people who will burn here?”
To escape from pain, she tries to pass it on to others. She was in so much pain and had so much hatred that she recognized it as an unjust act.
“Just like you, they will wander the mansion forever, hating a non-existent revenge target and creating other innocent victims.”
Do you really want that?
“Do you want that?”
The race queen answered my question.
“…I want it. I want it to be that way. Because you must also suffer. I can’t be the only one suffering. It’s unfair. It’s unfair. It’s unfair. It’s unfair… It’s unfair. It’s unfair…!”
The race queen’s desperate cry.
Its misalignment and distortion were conveyed to me. As a result, the true truth of Fusion Confucianism awakens. The race queen in front of me was a victim.
Yes.
“Ah.”
Was a victim.
“Is that so.”
‘Was’ a victim.
“This place is.”
I finally realized.
“It was a sugarcane field.”
A brutal plantation.
A hellish sugarcane field.
The African blacks who were hunted down, loaded onto terrible ships like cargo, and transported across the sea to foreign lands.
They suffered hellish pain and torture in places they didn’t even know, and died.
The reason why the black people suffered was purely because the absolutely evil imperialists wanted it. They captured slaves and increased their wealth. They stole other people’s lives and inflicted brutal violence, all to fatten their own bellies.
The absolute evil of human history.
Imperialism.
“But even if it’s a sugarcane field. Even if they are black people who suffered at the hands of cruel and inhumane imperialist whites.”
However.
“To harm innocent people while trapped in that anger and hatred is.”
Even if they were black people who had suffered such pain. To direct that hatred at innocent people who had nothing to do with imperialism.
ㅡIt’s wrong.
“It’s unforgivable.”
Forgiveness. Pain. Morality.
The despair and hatred they must have harbored.
The inevitable spread of anger. But because they had no power, they had to be swept away. They suffered because they were weak. They were victimized because they were weak. Then, is weakness a sin? If that is a sin, can you call the women in front of you sinners when they died?
“That’s not it.”
Only then did the true truth of Fusion Confucianism take on a clear form and flicker as if it could be grasped.
Things I hadn’t seen before. Things I had ignored came into view. There was no end to the path to the truth of Fusion Confucianism. I was just walking through the world, heading towards that end.
Judgments of morality and value change at any time.
Until I reach the truth.
“That’s not how it should be. Even if it’s pain that was unfairly received. It’s wrong to pass it on to someone else who has nothing to do with it.”
“You don’t know…! Our pain! Don’t try to act like you know!!!!!! Because you’re going to be the same as the men who broke into the mansion!”
ㅡKyaaaaaaaaaaaak!!!!!!!!!!!
The fiend screamed fiercely and rushed at me.
Evil light erupted from her eyes. To her, trapped in hatred, my appearance would only be seen as something disgusting. It’s only natural. She’s overlapping me with those warriors from the past.
Now it’s the end.
“But now.”
ㅡI can do it.
Let’s put true morality on the blade.
It’s not a difficult task. I’ve done something similar before. Above all, I am a seeker of Fusion Confucianism. Spreading the doctrine to widely benefit the world is my mission and duty. The spirit of Hongik Ingan. If I don’t unleash it, I’ll literally become a human roasted red.
ㅡThis is what I must do.
I straighten the blade. I focus to the extreme, controlling the mana within my body. It’s a simple task. I’ve fought like this until now.
“True Style Swordplay.”
Now, let’s take another step forward from there. The mana I control, outwards. Externally. Let’s unleash it outside the skin. My mastery of the Heavenly Demon Overlord Steps has already risen. My perspective is different from back then. I can do it now.
ㅡYou can do it, Kim Gatt.
“Third Secret Technique.”
ㅡThump. Thump.
My heart beats rapidly. The mana that I haven’t been able to express externally until now. I’m about to unleash it right now. A storm of mana rages within me. My muscles swell, and my long, flowing hair floats.
And so, as a true principle of Fusion Confucianism, I have resolved to save the woman.
“Style Sword Aura.”
Mana explodes.
ㅡFsssssssssssssssssssh!!!!!!!!!!!
Thereby, a more brilliant and immense tidal wave of mana than anything else is contained within the sword.
