Chapter 391: Invasion(5)

TL: Yul, xLordFifth

PR: Gort

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Geniella leisurely strolled through the forest, fully aware from the start that the observation lenses and familiers were recording her from every corner.

Though they had tried to conceal their presence, to Geniella, their efforts were blatantly obvious.

Despite pinpointing their locations, Geniella opted to ignore them, adopting an attitude of indifference; if they wished to observe, she would let them.

The forest felt alive, its subtle shifts perceptible even without direct sight. Geniella's body, sensitive to the currents of magic, conveyed to her the unfolding chaos within the forest.

As she had anticipated, liches, monsters, and death knights were dying without even a chance to exert their strength.

It was not surprising, as Volander, the Red Ghost, Arbeth and Kim Jonghyun were not present. (TL: had to do a bit of digging for this. The Red Ghost, previously tled Henemy (IDK why, it doesn't make any sense), is the King of Yokai/Monsters before Yana took over)

The force that Geniella had led here was numerous yet lacked substance.

Gemini, following Geniella, did not wish to understand her motives; however, having spent centuries together, she comprehended why Geniella would undertake such meaningless and inefficient acts.

'To deliver despair.'

Geniella had always operated as such—dangling hope before snatching it away.

She relished watching her adversaries desperately cling to the hope before them, only to cruelly strip it away and trample on it.

The current situation was no different. Geniella, by leading an ineffectual force to its death, was nurturing hope in her adversaries.

Perhaps they might even believe they could win. It was this very torment of hope she engaged in. Had she coveted a complete victory from the start, such maneuvers would have been unnecessary.

She could have breached the barrier with the Ghost Ship, unleashed her forces, and personally led a massacre.

A powerful magician? Under the full moon, Geniella was invincible, rendering their preparations futile against her.

Their magic might harm Geniella's body but could not bestow death upon her.

A warrior beyond human limits? To Geniella, a vampire adept in slaughtering humans, they were no different.

"What would they be thinking about?"

Geniella chuckled to herself.

"Chen and Kuhn will die. They are far too weak compared to their opponents."

"Indeed."

"Juwon might win. But, he will be the only one among those I've brought who survives. The rest will perish."

"But Queen remains unscathed."

"True."

Gemini's lips twitched at Geniella's laughter. Geniella knew of Chen and Kuhn's impending deaths.

Despite years of companionship, Geniella felt no sadness or regret over their demise.

Her emotions had long been eroded away. Her desire was the end of the world.

Having seen and been captivated by a vision of destruction, Geniella had acted to bring about a future brimming with slaughter and feast for centuries.

Even if that future vanished and she could no longer see what was to come, Geniella's desire remained unchanged.

She still longed for the world's end.

"Wouldn't it be wondrous for them to be utterly convinced of their victory? To finish their individual battles, join forces with the Ghost Spear, and then together, attack me."

Geniella's eyes glazed over in fantasy, deriving pleasure from imaginings yet to unfold.

Envisioning Lee Sungmin's face filled with the assurance of victory... To witness it firsthand... Ah, ah. Shivering in anticipation, Geniella clasped her chest tightly.

"I want to crush it."

She harbored no intention of killing Lee Sungmin.

But his companions were another matter.

Those in this forest...

Whom should she kill first? Perhaps Silent Flash? No, her death should be savored till the end.

That Crimson Sage? Too precious to kill off immediately. (TL: Crimson Sage is "적색 현자" in the raws, referring to Scarlett)

Preferably, those less closely connected would be sent off swiftly; then. the Silent Flash and the Crimson Sage would experience a tormenting demise.

To rip them apart in the view of Lee Sungmin or disembowel them.

Transforming him into a vampire seemed intriguing.

"Would you turn him into a vampire?"

"If he begs for it."

What expression would cross Lee Sungmin's face as his confidence in victory crumbles, replaced by utter despair? Geniella yearned to see him pleading for his life. At that moment, she would offer, smiling, the choice of vampirism.

'Aine...'

Prescan, stealthily trailing behind, paid no heed to the conversation between the vampires. Prescan had no doubt in his mind that he was the only one with common sense among this group.

Trying to understand their nonsensical conversations was a waste of time. It was more important to rescue Aine.

"Why are you walking so slowly?"

Geniella and Gemini were strolling leisurely. Prescan had to suppress his boiling frustration with their pace.

But he couldn't yell at them to hurry up, and he didn't want to speed up and go ahead on his own either.

Prescan knew his place well. If he went ahead, he would either disintegrate by the holy power of the Saintess waiting ahead or be obliterated by the Ghost Spear, that damned heart thief and kidnapper.

"Aine... just you wait."

Paternal affection burned within Prescan's heart.

Aine's body was slumped.

She was already a corpse, heartless. Next to Lee Sungmin, who had knelt down, Osla stood with a stiff expression.

The thumping in his chest felt odd. He felt alienated—as if his body no longer belonged to him. The transformation was a success.

Lee Sungmin's body had always been a monster. With Osla's help, he had devoured Aine's heart.

He had hardly taken any of Aine's powers. The only thing Lee Sungmin had taken was her heart.

"Are you satisfied with the trade?" Neville asked.

Lee Sungmin slowly nodded his head with his hand on his chest.

Desperation did not awaken him, nor did it lead him to a new level of martial arts.

Instead, it forced him to rack his brain over what he could possibly use.

Erebrisa handled everything.

Until now, Lee Sungmin had regarded Erebrisa as nothing more than a convenient store.

He recalled a long memory.

A memory from the mountains of Mush.

Erebisa had even purchased a 'soul' from Mush.

"Yes."

The trade was satisfactory.

Lee Sungmin had sold Aine's soul to Erebisa. The soul was extracted, leaving only an empty body behind.

Only after doing so did Lee Sungmin take Aine's heart. Lee Sungmin did not desire the power Aine possessed.

He doubted this frail body could handle such strength anyway.

What Lee Sungmin needed was Aine's black heart. He intended to add it to this imperfect body, to see what it might bring.

Lee Sungmin raised his hand to caress his face, pushing off the half-peeled scales with his fingertips.

He looked down at his damp body.

'Metamorphosis...' (환골탈태)

It wasn't a complete metamorphosis. However, the gambit was somewhat successful. The black heart evolves its owner according to the situation.

The black heart Lee Sungmin originally possessed was already complete, but with Aine's added, it successfully forced an evolution.

A half-baked metamorphosis was better than nothing.

"This is the first time purchasing such a soul. What do you desire in return?"

"I plan to fight the Vampire Queen."

Lee Sungmin got up and replied.

"What do you need for the fight?"

"The courage to run away."

Nebl grimaced as he answered.

"If you're truly thinking of fighting the Queen, reconsider. Tonight is a full moon."

"I cannot run."

"Unfortunately... We don't have anything that would help in a fight against the Queen."

"Then, I will receive the payment later."

Worried, Neville pondered for a moment at Lee Sungmin's response.

But no matter how much he thought, it was impossible to offer advice useful for fighting the Vampire Queen. Neville sighed and nodded his head.

"Let's hope we can meet again."

"There's something I must receive, so we'll surely meet again.""What do you plan to receive?"

"Grant me an audience with Laplace."

At Lee Sungmin's words, Neville's face stiffened slightly.

"That's not within my jurisdiction..."

"Let's discuss that issue next time. Oh, and just out of curiosity... if you were to sell the soul of the Queen, could you buy it?"

"That... if the situation allows, buying it could be possible. However, to extract the soul, the Queen must be completely subdued."

"I'll call you if the situation becomes possible."

Hearing that, Neville bowed his head slightly and vanished into the shadows. Lee Sungmin rubbed off the dead skin covering his face with his hand.

Osla, who had been watching from the side, sighed and snapped her fingers. A cool breeze brushed past Lee Sungmin's body.

With his face now clean, Lee Sungmin slightly bowed towards Osla.

"Thank you."

"It's nothing significant... So, do you think you can do it?"

"We'll only know if we try."

"I'll help as much as I can... but I can't face the Queen with mere strength alone. My rank might be higher... but don't rely on that too much. Didn't I tell you? Even though Geniella isn't an ascendent, she's stronger than one."

"There's nowhere in this vast world where I have a more advantageous position than fighting in the Forest of the Fairies."

Geniella is coming.

Even without anyone telling him, Lee Sungmin could feel it definitely.

His heightened senses were detecting the ominous approach. The queen of monsters, who has accumulated power over hundreds of years, is coming here.

[You've grown a lot.]

Heoju muttered.

[Geniella from 400 years ago was strong, but not to this extent.]

'It's been a long time.'

[Still, not more than this old man. And from what I can vaguely feel... It might be close if you fight well with your dead master. But that's something you'll only know after fighting.]

Lee Sungmin chuckled at those words. Despite being in such a favorable condition, he hadn't yet reached the height that his master had reached.

If it had been Yang Il-Chun here instead of Lee Sungmin.,, if the lord of the Sama Order hadn't died, such a situation wouldn't have arisen.

Thinking about it, Yang Il-Chun was truly a great figure. He, along with Heoju, had initiated the Apocalypse and was a being who could have ended them.

"My master is gone."

He doesn't say dead. He has escaped this world and embarked on a long journey. It's pointless to think... if his master was alive.

No matter how much one longs for and misses him, he won't return. The one here now is neither Yang Il-Chun nor Wijihoyeon but Lee Sungmin.

Lee Sungmin clenched the mask he had put inside his bosom with his hand.

"I must do it."

[Aren't you afraid?] Heoju asked.

Why ask? Lee Sungmin thus questioned.

"You know."

Heoju and Lee Sungmin were connected spiritually. Even if Lee Sungmin didn't show his fear, Heoju could feel it. Heoju sighed deeply and said.

[I thought everything would work out well when you eradicated the Predator of Massacre.]

"Same here."

[And when you opened your eyes 10 years later. I thought there would be no particular difficulties.]

"I'm always up against those stronger than me."

[This time it's a bit too much.]

"I'm no longer under the protection of fate."

Suddenly recalling something, Lee Sungmin reached into his spatial pocket.

[Hey, you.]

Realizing what Lee Sungmin was thinking, Heoju voiced his incredulity.

Lee Sungmin held the egg he took out in his hand. Then, he threw the egg towards the largest rock nearby.

Crack! The egg, thrown with internal power, shattered the rock. Beyond the broken pieces, the egg rolled on the ground.

"If thrown well, even an egg can break a rock."

"Madman."

Heoju chuckled dryly.

Why couldn't I have argued like this when Frau scolded me?

Lee Sungmin felt a belated regret.

TL Note: Well well well, I might have to lock in on translating cuz the next few chapters are so good