Chapter 0 – Assassinated
That day was a special day. It was two days after the mission that the entire unit had been working on for five years had been successfully completed.
Judging from the fact that alcohol and food were distributed so that all the members of the unit could freely eat, the higher-ranking people must have thought so too.
Good quality meat that would normally be hesitant to buy, and various types of alcohol delivered in wooden barrels.
Of course, everyone had a party from morning to evening. By the time the sun went down, drunkards were everywhere.
Throwing up, talking, crying, drinking again… They were very funny.
But I wasn’t in a position to laugh at anyone either. It sounds like an excuse, but if it hadn’t been for a heavy drinking day like today, there’s no way I wouldn’t have noticed someone hiding in bed.
My mouth was dry and my heart was stuffy, so when I opened my eyes, someone was sitting on the side of my bed. It was dark at night, so only the silhouette was visible.
“You woke up earlier than expected. Are you on the strong side?”
Cold voice. It was a woman. Hearing the voice, I couldn’t remember who it was.
No one close But it was a voice I had never heard before.
In this case, I wasn’t optimistic enough to think that my partner was drunk and had come to the wrong bed or had a one night stand.
In fact, normally, I would have already gotten up and given a shot.
But, damn it, my body didn’t budge.
There was no sensation, as if all the nerves in my body had been cut off. At least the mouth seems to move.
Something happened to me while I was sleeping. Is it magic or poison?
“Who are you? What have you done to me?”
“I fed you poison. Your heart will stop and you will die in about 10 minutes.”
What? 10 minutes?
That’s the kind of time you’ll never be able to jerk off. That I die in just 10 minutes?
I tried to circulate magic power through my entire body, but I couldn’t even do that with my numb body like a piece of wood.
The limit was to focus the mana in only two eyes.
I rolled my eyes with enhanced eyesight and saw the crazy woman who poisoned me.
She didn’t even think about hiding.
Black hair, black eyes. The sharp, well-trained body first caught my eye.
I could tell at a glance because he was wearing a combat uniform that clung to his body. It was normal up to this point.
However, the canine tail protruding from around the hip and waist, and the pointy ears standing on the head were very distinctive.
“You… Kang Ji-ah? You… To me?”
“Yeah. By the way, it’s useless to try to resist the poison with magical power. The effect has already spread throughout your body while you’re sleeping. It’s time for your heart to feel stiff and stuffy.”
“It’s been like that since before. More than that, why are you doing this to me? Did I do something wrong?”
I deliberately smiled and spoke.
Jia Kang was speaking in a cold voice without any expression, but she twitched her fingers as if she couldn’t hide her nervousness.
“Don’t you understand? Don’t you know what it means to die? Isn’t it normal to beg for help or be angry?”
“Will you spare me if I beg you? Then I will.”
“…”
Tok. Tok. Tok.
Jiah Kang started tapping the back of her hand with her index finger.
It seemed that the mask that had been hiding her expressionless expression was about to come off little by little.
The corners of her lips twisted very slightly.
“In the first place, did you think about the afterlife if I die? You certainly don’t intend to live as a fugitive for the rest of your life.”
“It’s a neurotoxin created inside the body with my own magic. No one knows that I can create poison with my magic, so it will be treated as a heart attack without any problems. Any traces of my coming here will be removed with cleaning magic.
Nothing will happen if you die alone.”
Kang Ji-ah tried to speak calmly, but I could see that she was quite agitated.
Kang Ji-ah belongs to the 27th hunting group, and I belong to the 5th hunting group. Although the groups are different, she is the same leader.
There were quite a few times when we helped each other during the hunt. We often had conversations.
I know her She didn’t know her deeply, but she knew that she wasn’t cold-blooded without her blood or tears.
Killing people is very stressful. Especially if you know someone.
Kang Jia’s cold voice and expressionless expression like a mask are probably her best defense against the stress.
If you can embarrass her with her unusual affectionate behavior and strip her of them and reveal her true feelings, she will be able to elicit more information.
“This method is wrong, Kang Ji-ah. What will it change?”
“…What?”
“You like me? Well, I’m rather handsome… You did this because you liked me. But if you kill me, do you think I’ll become your property?”
“What the hell are you saying now…”
She said in a bewildered voice. I quickly cut her off.
“This is why love ruins the body. You said you fed me poison made inside your body?
“Shut up.”
“Obsession and love are similar but different. Somehow, I’ve never seen the men who approach you succeed. There must be someone you have in mind.”
“I told you to shut up.”
Kang Jia’s eyes, which contained her magic power, shone in the dark.
It’s strange to see a pretty woman getting angry.
He has animal ears and a tail, and even his eyes are shining, so he really looks like a beast.
“Shut up. Isn’t that too much? Because of you, I have less than 10 minutes left. Shouldn’t you also remember the last voice of the person you love?”
Kang Ji-ah gasped, unable to continue her words.
It was clear that anger welled up in her chest.
Had it been bright in her room, she would have seen her neck turn red.
Eventually, she leaned over and grabbed my collar.
“How can you be so calm about dying now?”
Did you look calm? I’m glad then
“I’m feeling really fucked up right now… Even as I’m killing my enemies…”
“What?”
I was genuinely perplexed.
Why am I your enemy?
Jiah Kang started pouring out her words as if she didn’t hear me.
“Even at the moment of his own death, there’s no way a normal guy would feel guilty for the sake of others…”
“My mom…Dad… Even when she annihilated her family, she must have joked like she does now.”
“I will… Never forgive you. I will hate you forever, even after you die.”
A few drops of her tears fell on the blanket I covered. They were tears of anger and hatred.
But am I the one who wants to cry?
I haven’t lived a clean life, but I swear I’ve never even met Kang Jia and her family.
But there is no point in saying such things now. She must have been convinced that I was the culprit on some basis. That would obviously be incorrect.
Even if I say that I am not the culprit now, it will only waste time. It would be more efficient to ask why she thought I was the culprit.
“Wait, wait. I killed your family? On what basis?”
“You’re saying you’re going to stop pretending now? I see you every day, even in my dreams. You look different from now, but there’s no way there’s another human with the venom that only beasts possess. You’ve been hiding it well until now, but you showed your tail two days ago. I can only thank Heaven for giving me the opportunity to kill you.”
Two days ago?
I slain the ancient beast that made this whole area its hatchery, and sucked the miasma it left behind. With the power that only I have in this world.
No, if Kang Ji-ah’s words are true, that may not be the case. At least she was a real master at tracking down the beast’s miasma. Especially if he smelled the reverberation of poison from me.
It is unprecedented in history that humans have succeeded in controlling miasma, but since I have that talent, is it any wonder that there are other people with similar talents?
Anyway, it’s getting harder and harder to breathe. The end seems to be coming.
“Oh, wait. I think it’s almost over. My heart is about to stop.”
Kang Ji-ah didn’t answer anything. Is she saying she doesn’t want to talk to me anymore?
However, there will be no choice but to react to my words that followed.
“Should I tell you why I’m so calm, my true feelings?”
“…?”
“I absorbed a huge amount of miasma two days ago and learned a new unique magic.”
“A new unique magic? Your magic was obviously to strengthen the body. Even so, it seems it’s already too late to resist the neurotoxin.”
“Body enhancement? It’s not magic, it’s just a side effect.
Magic that returns to 24 hours ago by death. This is the magic I got.”
She stared blankly at me for a few seconds, then Jia Kang suddenly burst into laughter.
“Ha! Yes, now it’s a bit like a human reaction. But I want to live, right? It was novel for begging for my life.
A time machine triggered by your death? Think you’ve seen too many movies? Did you test drive it?”
“Honestly, you can’t commit suicide just to test magic. It was a magic that could not be used for the rest of your life, but things turned out like this. I wonder if this is fate.”
My heart is tight. I can not breathe. My vision is blurred…
But I have to say this as much as I can.
I opened my mouth and spoke the truth for the first time today.
“We weren’t very close, but I considered you a comrade.”
“What are you talking about now?”
“You won’t believe me… I’m your enemy… No. If you go back anyway… It’ll be a conversation you never had…”
The words didn’t come out right. My heart hurts so much.
I couldn’t see ahead anymore.
My back, which should have been numb, was hot as if it were burning. The magic was working.
“You’re going to hate me… You said it. I… Do the same. You bitch… I’ll be sure to go back…”
So I was assassinated.
