"Hmm... Our little cuties made a big nuisance out of themselves. The job was to kill with as much inflicted pain as possible, Did I wreck them way to quickly? Well, It was fun watching you all cry out for help while your guts seeped out. But what can I do? They're telling me to kill you quickly." Gang Shik held the last of the convicts by his neck as he spoke.
"Pl-Please don't kill me..." The convict begged for his life.
Kim and Yun walked around the corner to see Shik holding the convict, and neither could move due to their shock.
"So, it goes around. That saves me a lot of time, but my schedule has been changed." Shik cut off the convict's head with a dagger. Shik obviously had intentions to kill the two, causing Kim to snap out of his shock and yell.
"AHHHHHH!" Zen, Julie, and Song heard a yell. "Extreme killing intent?!" Zen felt Shik's aura.
"Mr. Song, we should head back!" Song agreed with a nod and started sprinting towards where the scream came from. Zen and Julie followed him.
Zen suddenly saw something no one else did. He threw his hand up in front of Julie and grabbed Shik's wrist, who was trying to stab Julie with his dagger.
"Hoh, pretty fast." Shik complimented. "What are you doing?" Zen asked, not caring for his tone. "He blocked my ambush? What is that strength?" Shik jumped back and thought about his enemy.
"You actually stopped that? You have some incredible senses. Even if my orders were to not get in problems, that healer would be a major problem." Shik informed.
"What is this feeling?" Julie felt the bloodlust that Shik was giving off.
"I'm going to kill you all. Just like them." Shik's eyes glowed as his purple hair shook lightly. His shadow took over the bodies of the fallen convicts.
"W-Wait! Why is a guild member doing this?!" Song asked, nearly begging for an answer.
Zen then looked around for the first time, only to see something shocking.
He saw Kim sitting in a puddle of his own blood, muttering to himself, "I can't die... Not today..."
Zen instantly knew of two options, his Yeon Hon Principle or Julie's healing. He knew that trying Julie's would be better.
"Miss Julie... Heal him!" Julie nervously nodded and rushed over to Kim, trying to heal him. No matter how much she tried to heal him, he just continued to bleed. He continued to spit up more and more blood, no matter what she did.
"No... You... Can't... Save... Me... Anyways..." Kim softly grabbed Julie hand, causing her to stop. "I lost...too much blood." Kim softly spoke.
"You can't die! You have to live for your family!" Zen yelled. "You have to live... so I can hate you..." Zen walked up to Kim, his mind flickering between the choice to save him or not.
"I'm sorry... I really am. I wanted to apologize with my head down, but if I put my head down... I'd die." Kim chuckled. He looked up and smiled at Zen, his blood staining his teeth.
"I'm sorry Mr. Zen. Really sorry..." Kim went limp, almost dying. But Zen rushed forward, and put his hand on Kim.
"Yeon Hon Principle." A flash of light blinded those who were in the cave. Then, Kim looked to be alright, but unconsious.
Zen then turned and look at Shik, "Why did you do that to Mr. Kim?" Zen had a silent rage in his voice. Julie was still in a silent shock for what just happened. "Did... he just heal Mr. Kim in an instant?! I couldn't imagine doing that! And... Isn't he a melee fighter?! How could he heal?!" Julie thought as Zen became so much farther to reach.
"Did Zen... just heal Mr. Kim?! Is that even possible?!" Song thought before he realized that Zen was more than different compared to before.
"He can even heal too?! I have to bring my A-Game in order to beat this guy." Shik thought before answering Zen.
"Dunno. Could've been monsters. It's like a natural catastrophe. I just thought of a new story. At first it was a massacre story of the goblins, but now I've gotta change it. The criminals broke free, killed you all, and tried to escape. After killing all of you, they tried to kill me, who was busy fighting the boss. But it was far too much to kill me, a B Rank Hunter, so I was the only one who lived." Shik made up a cover-up story.
"You piece of..." Zen mouthed off as he began approaching Shik. "No, he's not someone you can beat. I will do it." Song walked past Zen.
"As a C Rank, I know I can't normally beat him. But I have Ms. Julie for buffs and he probably has a weak defense." Song walked up to Kim's unconsious body, and the sword that he had. "I hope you don't mind if I borrow this for a moment." Song walked up and raised his sword to face Shik.
"It's been a while since I've raised my sword against another human. Miss Julie, can you give me some Physical buffs?" Song asked. "Huh?! Yes!"
"Mr. Song with a sword?!" Julie thought, very confused.
"What's a magician like you doing?" Shik asked, chuckling at Song futile attempt to fight him.
"Physical buffs are useless for a Mage...but for now..." Song readied his sword, and poured his magical energy into it. "I'm a swordsman!"
After an attempt against Shik, Song was on the floor, cut up and on his knees. Just before Shik was about to kill him, Song fired off his flames in hope of catching Shik.
Shik dodged, but became extremely agrivated.
"To unleash your energy as soon as a sword comes hurtling towards you... Not a bad plan, you sly old fox." Shik held his dagger up high, ready to slay Song.
"Die." Just before his dagger could hit Song, but a familiar dagger interupted his plan.
Zen forced Shik to jump back as he protected Song.
"You again?! Who are you?! What's your rank?!" Shik asked as shock settled on everyone's faces.
"Zen Han, E Rank." Zen said calmly, his face staying serious. "An E Rank? That can't be." Shik denied. "Are you a False Ranker? No, you've known them for too long. Then there's only one option, you've been reawakened." Shik exposed Zen as The Gamer stood tall.
"Mr. Zen?!" Song began. "Reawakened?!" Julie finished.
"In any case, let me teach you a lesson, as your superior." Shik began to approach Zen, both of his daggers in his hands.
"Tell me, why do you do this?" Zen asked. "What, this? Killing the prisoners?" Shik smiled, showing his teeth. "I mean everything." Zen held a serious expression, one that burned into Shik.
"Hoh. That's a pretty damn scary face you've got there!" Shik smiled more, his demented nature showing clearly.
"Relax, I'm not doing this for fun. A father came to me one day-!" Shik began, but was interupted.
"I don't care, it'll be one huge lie anyways." Zen confidently spoke.
Shik stood with a blank face for a moment, then he rushed towards Zen. He slashed at Zen, but was simply blocked.
"It doesn't matter if you believe me or not, you'll die with the ready of these pitiful insects. " Shik no longer hid his intentions.
"Then you're damn pitiful as well." Zen spoke. "What?" Shik questioned. "Cause you're going to die soon." Zen's intentions became clear for Shik, and caused a shiver to go up his spine.
"I don't know how many Ranks you've rose since you were E Rank, but this won't be as easy as you think!" Zen slashed through Shik's defense, but only cut through an after-image as Shik dodged.
"Slow." Shik insulted. "Pretty fast..." Zen quietly complimented.
"How can they move like this?! He really is no longer the Mr. Zen I knew..." Song realized.
"3 billion Won is too little for this job! Who would've thought I would meet a Hunter on this level!" Shik yelled as he and Zen locked eyes at the same speed.
"Is this your fastest speed?! Even if your eyes catch up, if your body can't then it's useless!" Shik insulted.
"Zen! Stay strong!" Julie started providing buffs for Zen.
"No matter how close our skills are, one thing will make a world of difference, our experience! And that will be your fall!" Shik thought as he threw one of his back-up daggers at Julie. "If you're gonna protect your healer, do it right!" Shik thought the dagger would've killed Julie, but Song interupted and blocked the dagger.
The two shot all around, Zen barely dodging Shik then counterattacking, and Shik was attacking relentlessly, but was caught off guard when Zen would land some hits. Shik landed a barrage of hits, expecting Zen to bleed, but he was only forced back.
"Hoh, you're pretty durable Huh?" Shik asked as he jumped away.
"Sorry, but can you lower your killing intent?" Zen asked, his ability activating. "It's sensitive to killing intent, and it activated on its own." The system forced Zen to kill Shik, not giving him the ability to override the order.
Zen brought his dagger up, and prepared to rush forward. "I'm coming." Zen surprise Shik.
"What is he thinking? I'm holding the advantage." Shik questioned as Zen rushed him.
"For once, I'm actually thankful for the system. It's given me another reason to kill you." Zen and Shik clashed in a flurry of sparks due to their weapons clashing.
"A class that specializes in agility and daggers. A close ranged damage dealer that focuses in assassination. Aren't I the best counter for you?" Shik asked.
"Yeah. I'm learning a lot from you. Including the fact that talkative guys are generally useless in battle." Zen landed and instantly activated Sprint, charging at a shocked Shik.
Zen then slashed Shik on his cheek, gaining the special effect of the dagger. "I see, it's your dagger." The effects were cancelled by Shik's resistance. "Not bad." Zen complimented.
"Allow me to show you something too." Shik faded away in an instant, his presence completely fading. Zen quickly got over his shock and blocked an attack that came from his left.
"You actually blocked it when I'm still hiding my presence? Your senses are pretty great." Shik complimented.
"This skill is commonly known as Stealth, a few amount of assassins even have this skill. Nobody knows that I have this skill because, everyone who has known ends up dead." Shik informed Zen as he slashed his legs.
"Your tendons are severed, you may be able to heal others, but healers can't heal themselves." Shik then pointed his dagger at Julie. "Don't try anything and stay where you are. I will come for you when it's your turn." Shik threatened as Julie shook slightly out of fear.
"Even if you can move, you won't be able to go at the speed you did last time. Your leg-!" Shik spoke endlessly, until Zen interupted him. "You talk too much. Status Recovery." Zen used his Status Recovery and fully healed himself, shocking everyone.
Zen stood up, and felt his reckless anger die out. "It feels like even anger is wasted on the likes of people like him. "
Zen focused and attacked Shik. Even though his presence was still hidden, Zen found him and tried to stab his neck.
"There's no hesitation when you aim for my neck. I finally get the difference between you and them. You... You've killed before, haven't you?!" Shik grew a demented smile, and then the truth became clear for Song.
"Zen had to make such a difficult decision in such a short amount of time. That is what truly changed him."
"Awakening sets the level for Hunters, it defines life itself. That is why, Reawakening is so powerful. So, I will release my full power." Shik rushed Zen, and started attacking him all over.
Zen blocked a barrage of attacks that Shik was dishing out. "He's finding me because of the bloodlust I give off right before I attack. So I have to break the flow!" Shik planned on breaking the flow when Zen looked straight at him and activated Bloodlust.
Shik suddenly felt like he was walking through a thick amount of water, and a dark horrifying shadow flowed over him. Two large golden objects, that resembled the outline of eyes, towered over him.
"Is that... his shadow?" Shik thought right before he suddenly was impaled by Zen's dagger.
"Guk-!" Shik was stabbed by Zen's dagger.
"Hunters are those who witness countless deaths and take lives themselves. Because it's usually a life or death situation, they not only fight against monsters, but amongst themselves too. We are already 'perfect' killing machines. Same goes for you. You wouldn't Lump Hunters with ordinary people, would you? So, I'll die because I lost. It's only natural. But before I die, Let me ask you one question... What are you?" Shik laid against the wall, slowly bleeding out, Zen's dagger stuck in him.
"Hm, I'm not sure." Zen answered partially honestly. "A babble mouth may be useless, but it isn't great to have a lot of secrets either." Shik's eyes were painted red, due to the blood that filled them. "You won't be able to hide anymore now that you've killed me." Shik groaned as Rasaka's dagger's effects started to activate.
"Let's say I'm a Hunter that grows stronger with every fight, how strong do you think I can become?" Zen asked, as the realization settled on Shik.
"You will become...as strong as your shadows depth in the darkness." With those final words, Shik then breathed for the last time.
The system went off and rewarded Zen with 5 new points. He accepted the rewards then looked at his hands. "I feel as if I lost something within myself."
"Zen, thank you." Julie thanked him.
"We would've died without your help." Song said. "Mr. Kim would've died too." Song said as he lugged Kim over his shoulder.
"Now, what should we do about this situation? Should we just leave and report this to the guild?" Song asked Zen.
"Well first, we should close the gate." Zen made his intentions to solo the boss obvious.
"It's sad we could only save Kim." Song mentioned as Zen took out his dagger from Shik.
[You have obtained the skill: Stealth.]
The skill can be obtained when this stone is broken.
A small stone with an odd insignia was given to Zen after he killed Shik.
"We'll go report to the guild first." Song got ready to leave. "We'll be outside, so please hurry." Julie requested.
"Yes ma'am. I'll be quick, so don't worry." Zen got up, but then remembered something as Julie and Song got further and further away.
"Hey Julie!" Julie turned back around to see Zen jogging to catch up to her. She came to a stop, while Song continued.
"Yes Zen?" Julie asked innocently, her views on the man not changing because of the events.
"I noticed something." Zen bent down towards Julie's ear and whispered something, "You're still anxious, aren't you?" Zen asked, knowing a way he could help.
"I...am..." Julie admitted, embarrassed with her current condition. "I know a way to help out." Zen softly grabbed Julie's hand, surprising her just a little bit.
"Yeon Hon Principle." Zen spoke and in an instant, Julie felt totally refreshed.
"What... did you do?" Julie thought about the traumatic experience at the Dual-Dungeon, but felt no fear. Her hands didn't shake, and she felt like she had nothing stopping her.
"I realized that you... were struggling. So I have just helped you." Zen answered simply and smiled at Julie, causing the woman to blush.
"Now, go catch up with Mr. Song." Zen ordered as he made his way back to where he was before. "Yes sir!" Julie said with unimaginable vigor.
"I know you're alive. Get up." Zen commanded brutally of one of the inmates. The inmate slowly got up, showing Zen his cut vocal cords.
"Wow, he was brutal. If I wanted, I could heal you." Zen started dragging the hopeful inmate. The inmate soon lost that hope as he realized that he wasn't being dragged towards the exit, but deeper into the dungeon.
Zen entered the boss room with the inmate, "This place!" The inmate began thinking as he locked eyes with the boss. "Do you remember the faces of all your victims?" Zen asked a rhetorical question, already knowing due to checking his information with observe.
"You're trash even beyond Gang Shik, there's no way I'd let a monster like you outside." The inmate was then attacked by the goblins, almost as if Zen ordered it. And a silent wail echoed throughout the cave.
The monitoring division arrived at the scene quickly and dealt with the situation. Zen didn't notice it before, but Mister Grim, was an A Rank, far beyond Zen's beatable range. Zen was informed of Hang Dongsu wanting his head by Mister Grim.
Zen learned of a new reason to become stronger, because an S Rank Hunter was after his head.
"I'll get stronger. No matter the cost!" Zen yelled out as he got back home and did one thing, "And In order to do that... I need to use the Abyss Auction, whether I like it or not!" Zen yelled out, his soul burning with the passion of a thousand stars.