Strange things continued to happen. Surprisingly, the boy who introduced himself as my fan was not a Hunter, but a Constellation. “Um, can Constellations get lost or starve?” I asked. The boy smiled shyly. “Of course, Mr. Death King. All Constellations are different, you know!” Since our paths were similar, we decided to travel together for a while. As we walked along the quiet forest path with rabbits and deer peeking out from the grass, we chatted. “I don’t have a single follower. There was one six hundred years ago, but that was it. No one has believed in me since. In short, I’m dirt poor.” “Oh, I see...” I looked at the boy from head to toe again. Dressed in rags, he looked like a poor neighborhood kid. I murmured, “You’re at least six hundred years old?” “I might even be ten times older than that. Constellations have a very different sense of time compared to Hunters! We generally count up to a thousand years, but after that, we give up. It’s meaningless, pointless, and boring!” That was terrifying. I tilted my head. “If you’re Constellation, you would have a title. What’s your name?” “Wow... Of course, I do have a title and a real name. It’s embarrassing to tell them to you, Mr. Death King, because I admire you too much... But I’ll muster the courage! Yes! My name is—” [■■■■ ■■■■■■■■■■■■■.] For some reason, it felt like a good name. It seemed to fit the boy, who was standing before me with a bright smile, as if the name had been chosen specifically for him. “That’s nice. Why do you feel shy about it? It’s a cool name.” “R-really? Hahaha. If you say so, then I guess it is. Wow! I’m embarrassed...” The boy laughed softly, innocently scratching his cheek with his index finger. I smiled warmly and looked around. “By the way, what is over there?” “Is there somewhere you want to go?” “I want to stop by a city or a village to get some supplies. If possible, I’d prefer a big village.” I wanted to buy this boy, who didn’t really look like a Constellation, a new set of clothes. As I was thinking about that, the boy suddenly raised his hand. “Ah!” “If that’s what you’re looking for, it’s at the end of this path!” “What?” I turned my head in the direction he was pointing. Enhancing my vision with aura, I looked into the distance and saw a village, just as the boy had said. I murmured, “Hmm? You’re right.” When we arrived, the village was neither too large nor too small—it was exactly the kind of village I had been hoping for. I entered a clothing store on the street. The wind chime hanging on the door swayed. The middle-aged shop owner, who had been reading a book inside, looked up. “Welcome.” “Hello. I’m looking for some clothes.” I pointed out the window. In the middle of the street, the small boy stood, staring in our direction. “Clothes that would suit that boy over there. Something comfortable. Do you have anything?” “Boy?” The shopkeeper looked out the window in confusion. “What boy?” “Over there. The boy dressed in rags.” “Hm? I’m sorry, but I don’t see anyone. I don’t understand what you’re—” “Ah, you mean him.” The old man adjusted his glasses. Perhaps his vision had deteriorated with age. He smiled awkwardly, slightly embarrassed by his mistake. “I’m sorry. Yes, he seems very fragile. That’s a pity. You want something comfortable for him to move around in, yes? Just wait a moment, I’ll bring something right away.” “I’m just doing my job here.” I paid the shopkeeper and handed the clothes to the boy, who looked up at me blankly. “Um, Death King, what is this?” It was a wide, white robe. Though it seemed prone to getting dirty because it was white, it was a magical item, enchanted so that dirt wouldn’t stick to it. Cold and heat resistance magic was included as a bonus. In an emergency, it could be used as a sleeping bag, and it had plenty of pockets for storage. “I just felt kind of robe might come in handy for you instead of any other fancy clothes. Want to try it on?” Hesitantly, the boy put on the robe. His pure, innocent appearance perfectly matched the white robe. I felt a strange sense of pride looking at him from front to back. “Oh, it looks good! Hmm, perhaps it’s a little big.” The robe was nice, but too baggy for the boy’s build. It looked almost one and a half times his size. “That’s strange. I thought it would fit perfectly...” “I think this size is fine.” The girl pulled her hand out from under the sleeve. A moment ago, her hands had been buried in the sleeves; now, they were just above her wrists. It didn’t feel like the robe was too big for her. “That’s a relief. I guess I was mistaken.” I smiled at the girl. “Well, it hasn’t been long, but it was nice having you along. Be careful not to get lost in the forest next time. There’s no guarantee someone like me will be there to help you. I’ll get going now.” As I turned to leave, the girl grabbed my sleeve. “M-Mr. Death King! Please hold on a moment!” Her lips parted, but her tongue seemed to lose its way, circling inside her mouth. She looked up at me and bit her lip tightly. In her eyes, countless thoughts seemed to cross each other. What was going on? As I was about to ask her what was wrong, someone suddenly interrupted us. “There you are. I’ve been searching for you for a while.” I quickly turned my head in the direction of the voice and gripped the hilt of the holy sword. The voice came from exactly twelve steps away, but I hadn’t noticed any movement until the person was within twelve steps of me. One thing was clear. The person was incredibly skilled. I knew exactly what the Guardian was warning me about, so I nodded. Yes, that guy is the strongest Hunter I’ve encountered on this floor so far. The man was wearing a black robe. “I wondered where you had run off to, but you were just hiding in the village. I guess your plan was to hide in plain sight, but you weren’t the only one who thought of that.” The man was wearing a worn out bamboo hat that was full of holes. It would fail to block the rain and snow, even revealing the man’s face. It was clear he was looking at me. “You’re hanging around with a strange guy. Come with me. You don’t want to see blood flowing down the street, do you?” the man told the girl. The tug on my sleeves got stronger. Completely terrified, the girl clung to me. “Um.” I shifted slightly to shield the girl from the man’s gaze. The man in the bamboo hat frowned. “What?” “I don’t know who you are. I also don’t know why you’re trying to take her away, but the fact that you asked ‘what’ instead of ‘who are you’ when you just met me shows your character.” “Interesting.” The man in the bamboo hat sneered. “You can tell a person’s character, but you can’t see their level. People like you are usually the first to die. It’s quite surprising you managed to climb to the sixtieth floor.” “That would probably mean that I’m not ordinary.” “If you don’t die without getting decapitated, I’ll admit it.” In the blink of an eye, the man drew his sword and swung it. Black aura swayed and instantly sliced between us. However, just as he had reduced his twelve steps to six, my sword blocked his attack. The man’s eyes widened in surprise. Three shurikens flew toward me from three directions: southeast, behind me, and west. The man wasn’t alone. He had brought his colleagues and put them on standby for an ambush. However, I had already noticed them. I shot the three shurikens down before they could reach within twenty steps of me. “Huh.” The man’s eyes widened even more. Suddenly, a passerby who happened to be near me took a dagger from his pocket and rushed at me. He was also one of the man’s accomplices. I strengthened my right hand with my aura and grabbed the dagger tightly, twisting the newcomer’s hand, breaking his entire arm, and throwing him backward. “Not bad,” the man muttered. Only then did time seem to resume its flow. Screams echoed through the street. People who had belatedly noticed the fight quickly scattered. The girl and I, along with the man in the bamboo hat and his accomplices, were the only ones left on the street. The man nodded. “You have the skill to make up for your arrogance, I see.” “Well, I have the skill to teach an arrogant person a lesson.” “Do you know who you’re defying?” “Well, um, I’m not sure.” I stroked my chin. “Probably just a group of assholes trying to drag away a powerless Constellation?” For original chapters go to novel·fire·net The expression of the man with the bamboo hat became more interesting, but it wasn’t enough. A face defined a man. I wanted to make his face look even more interesting. I said, “Ah, I can also see your organization is so poor that you can’t even afford a new bamboo hat. Would you like me to sponsor you? I have more money than I know what to do with. I could help four beggars like you. Five is too many. Please draw lots among yourselves and decide which one of you is going to drop out.” The man in the bamboo hat adjusted his long sword. “Alright. It’s decided. I’ll cut out your tongue and feed it to the dogs.” The blade was sharp, giving off a cold aura. It was clear at a glance that he had honed his skills through extraordinary means. The girl’s anxious voice came from behind me. “M-Mr. Death King...” Should she ask for help? Or would that be a burden? She seemed to be torn between two choices. I winked at the girl. “It’s okay.” The girl’s head drooped. Meanwhile, the man in the bamboo hat took a stance. “I am the leader of the Blood Demon Cult. I am the Heavenly Blood Demon.” “Huh?” I blinked. “Heavenly Blood Demon?” “Blood Demon Cult? So, a demonic cult?” “Indeed.” The man in the bamboo hat smiled slyly. He seemed satisfied with my reaction. “It’s too late to have regrets. Of course, if you cut off your own tongue and apologize, I may forgive you. You can live the rest of your life without a tongue and repent for your arrogance. I am merciful to those who know how to reproach themselves.” “What? That is a straight up cultist mindset!” The man in the bamboo hat stopped talking. I was dumbstruck. “What kind of cult leader are you, referring to yourself as Heavenly Blood Demon? Heavenly Blood Demon Cult?! A demonic cult is a demonic cult, and the Heavenly Demon is the Heavenly Demon. Where the heck did this Heavenly Blood Demon concept come from?” “Hey, who gave you permission to add “demon cult” to your group’s name? Now I see you’re not just beggars. I spoke too soon. Even the Beggar Gang has more legitimacy than you. Did you know that, if the Beggar Gang accused you of being worthless scum, the murim authorities would side with them? And one of the Four Demon Kings under my wing is the Blood Demon King. He’s not even a leader; he’s just my subordinate. So, where did you get the nerve to call yourself the Heavenly Blood Demon? Do you want to get beaten up? Shall I pummel you here so hard that you’ll never stand up again?” “Anyway, people from murims tend to have no manners, strangely. Know your level. I mean it. All right. Now, let’s get back to business. Listen carefully. First, remove demon and heavenly from your name. I’ll let you keep blood and cult in your cult name.” The man’s face contorted. “I’ll kill you. I’ll kill you, no matter what!” Why was this cult leader so angry? The one who farts always gets angry for some reason.[1] 1. It’s a Korean idiom meaning that the one who is at fault tends to get angrier. ☜