Chapter 294: Interlude - Banquet (4)

A piercing bloodlust pricked at his skin, and sharp silver eyes locked onto Kwon Oh-Jin.

“You dare... lay your hands on my daughter?” Leoru said.

“It’s a misunderstanding.” Kwon Oh-Jin felt completely dumbfounded.

He never imagined that Riru would suddenly say such a thing. Naturally, he felt wronged, but what father wouldn’t lose his mind upon hearing his cherished daughter blurt out such vulgar words too filthy to even speak?

To make matters worse, Leoru had already drunk quite a bit. It was unreasonable to expect any rational thinking at this point.

“No matter how angelic my Riru is...!”

Crack!

Leoru shifted into his werewolf form, and a menacing aura exploded in all directions. “How daaaaare youuuu!”

“D-Dad! It’s not like that!”

“P-Please calm down, Chief!”

Even the Silver Mane Tribe members who had been drinking jumped in to hold back Leoru, who was screaming with bloodshot eyes.

After the wild uproar, where the festive mood boiled over into total chaos, Leoru bowed deeply after hearing the full story.

“I apologize...”

Next to him, Riru glanced around and nervously fidgeted.

“Riru,” Leoru said.

“

Hic?!

”

“Never say something like that again.”

Riru drooped her head. “I-I’m sorry.”

Leoru deeply sighed and shot a sharp glare at the subordinate who had egged her on. “I’ll be sure to tell your wife about this.”

“C-Chief, anything but that!”

“Silence!” Leoru kicked the clinging subordinate away and stood up. “That’s enough drinking for tonight.”

“I agree.”

Thanks to Leoru's rampage, the table and chairs had all been smashed. The feast couldn’t continue anyway.

“Mr. Oh-Jin.”

“Yes?”

“Where’s your next destination?”

“Good question...”

Despite the unexpected chaos, they had successfully completed their mission in the beastkin kingdom. Now, only the demonkin and the dragonkin kingdom remained.

Kwon Oh-Jin wondered which to visit first.

I should head straight to the demonkin kingdom, but...

After fighting Kalike, he changed his mind.

Heading there directly would be too dangerous.

Even though Kwon Oh-Jin’s group possessed power equivalent to a small army, the demonkin weren’t any weaker. Receiving support from Earth wasn’t an option since the Awakeners there were already preoccupied with fighting the Named monsters.

Only one realistic option existed. They needed to borrow the beastkin and dragonkin’s strength to fight the demonkin.

“I’m planning to go to the dragonkin kingdom first.”

Only then would they stand a chance.

“You mean the Dragonian Kingdom?”

“So that’s what it’s called.”

“You didn’t even know the name?”

“No.”

He had barely been in the Demonic District for a month and still didn’t know much.

“Then you wouldn’t know how to get there either, right?”

“Have you ever been there, Chief?”

“No, I’ve never gone myself.”

“I see.” Kwon Oh-Jin had hoped that Leoru would have some useful information, but that hope quickly faded.

“I do know how to get there. However...”

“Is there a problem?”

“You’ll have to go around the Sky Mountains, so it’ll take quite a long time.”

“Sky Mountains?”

What the heck is that now?

“

Hmm

. I guess I should explain from the beginning.” Leoru began with a troubled expression. “There are three forbidden zones in the Demonic District. The Demonic Beast Forest that you already crossed, the Sky Mountains, and a place known as the Withered Valley.”

Leoru picked up a fallen branch and began sketching a map on the ground.

“They’re roughly located in this area.”

Kwon Oh-Jin instantly recognized the Demonic Beast Forest since he had already passed through it, but another terrain stood out as oddly familiar.

“This is the Withered Valley?” Kwon Oh-Jin asked.

“

Ah

, yes. Have you heard of it?”

“I’ve actually been there.”

He had first arrived there when the black rift pulled him in. The place where those hideous monsters lived that made one nauseous just by looking at them.

So, I’ve already been to two of the three forbidden zones in the Demonic District.

Kwon Oh-Jin dryly laughed as he looked over the map Leoru had drawn.

“If we just cross the Sky Mountains, the Dragonian Kingdom is right there?”

“Yes, but I wouldn’t recommend crossing the Sky Mountains.” Leoru firmly shook his head with a stiff expression. “The Sky Mountains are Behemoth’s territory.”

“Behemoth?”

“It's a powerful monster that rules the entire Sky Mountains. It’s also been blessed by the Black Stars.”

Kwon Oh-Jin’s eyes narrowed sharply. The image of the mother beast he fought when he first arrived in the Demonic District flashed through his mind.

A Star Spirit.

Another being like Riarc, who had inherited part of a Celestial’s soul. Considering the overwhelming power that the mother beast had shown, it was best to avoid Behemoth if possible.

“How long would it take to go around the mountain?” Kwon Oh-Jin asked.

“The Sky Mountains are massive. Even at your fastest, it would take nearly two months.”

Given the current situation, with the demonkin preparing a full-scale invasion of Earth, wasting two months would be far too costly.

“Could you tell me more about Behemoth?”

“Are you seriously thinking of crossing the mountains?”

“I don’t have much time.”

He had already passed through the Demonic Beast Forest and the Withered Valley. They had no reason to avoid the Sky Mountains now.

“It’s not like I plan on fighting Behemoth or anything,” Kwon Oh-Jin said.

He only wanted to cross the Sky Mountains to reach the Dragonian Kingdom as quickly as possible. They didn’t need to directly fight a Star Spirit blessed by the Black Stars.

Leoru swallowed hard and nodded. “Behemoth is a monster blessed by the Celestial Felis. Because of its terrifying speed, it’s also known as the Black Storm.”

“Is there any way to avoid it?”

“I’m afraid that’s something that depends purely on luck.” Leoru shook his head with a troubled look. “It roams the Sky Mountains like it owns the place. If you want to avoid it, you’ll have to cross and simply pray that you don’t run into it.”

“I see.” Kwon Oh-Jin clicked his tongue and furrowed his brow.

The fact that they simply had to hope not to get caught felt pretty annoying.

It can’t be helped if there’s no other option.

If things went south, they would just have to fight Behemoth to reach the Dragonian Kingdom faster.

“Thank you for the valuable information.”

“No, I’m sorry I couldn’t be of more help.” Leoru bowed with a stiff expression.

He wanted to assign some warriors to accompany Kwon Oh-Jin, but he couldn’t spare any forces while pro-demonkin factions still remained in the kingdom.

“It’s alright.”

“Once things settle in the Khan Kingdom, I promise I’ll support you however I can.”

“

Haha

, thank you.” Kwon Oh-Jin faintly smiled and stood up. “Well then, I’ll head off to get some rest.”

The feast had ended, and now they needed to conserve their energy for the journey across the Sky Mountains.

***

The next morning, Song Ha-Eun stumbled out like a zombie and clutched her head from the hangover.

“

Agh...

my head.”

Even with her messy hair and wrinkled clothes, her beauty hadn’t faded in the slightest.

“You okay, Ha-Eun?”

“

Ugh

. I feel like dying.”

She spotted Kwon Oh-Jin packing his things and quickly toddled over. Clinging to him like a cicada, she tilted her head up and closed her eyes.

“Gimme a kiss.”

What the heck is this woman doing? Acting like this first thing in the morning?

“No.”

“

Aww

, why not?”

“Your breath stinks.”

“What do you mean?”

“Don’t you remember throwing up yesterday?”

“W-What? I threw up?!”

“You did.”

All over me, actually.

“

Ugh

, seriously? I really do stink.”

Although she had rinsed her mouth a bit the night before, it apparently hadn’t gotten rid of the smell completely.

Song Ha-Eun wrinkled her nose in disgust. “I’m going to wash up first!”

“Okay.”

“When I get back—kiss!”

Kwon Oh-Jin chuckled as she darted out of the room. If anyone else had seen that, they would probably grab the back of their neck in secondhand embarrassment. Oh well, he couldn’t say no to what she wanted.

“

Hmm...

In that case, I’ll go first today,” Isabella said.

Isabella had snuck up beside him at some point, closed her eyes, and puckered her lips. When Kwon Oh-Jin lightly kissed her, Isabella smiled bashfully.

“Are we leaving today?” she asked.

“Yeah.”

“I was hoping we’d stay a little longer... That’s too bad.”

“Well, we’ve done everything we came here to do.”

They had no real reason to remain here any longer.

“I should go say goodbye to the villagers.”

“Leoru will probably gather the tribe members in a bit.”

It hadn’t been a long stay, but leaving without saying goodbye felt wrong.

After packing their things, Kwon Oh-Jin and Isabella stepped outside. The village was already bustling in the early morning, likely busy cleaning up after the feast from the night before.

Kwon Oh-Jin smiled at the beastkin hurrying about.

“If it weren’t for you and Ha-Eun, I probably wouldn’t have seen this kind of peaceful scene.”

Just because he was a scammer didn’t mean he was emotionally numb. Having lived in Seoul, surrounded by only buildings and apartments, this quiet rural village stirred something in him.

“We didn’t really do much,” Isabella said.

“Come to think of it, who were those demonkin that attacked the village?”

Things had been so hectic that he hadn’t gotten the chance to confirm.

“Remember that mansion we visited first? They were from there.”

“

Ah

, the weakest one.”

That made sense. Attacking a village with only elders and children left behind didn’t require any strong forces.

“What about the other one?”

“Sorry?”

“Didn’t two demonkin attack the village? One was from that mansion we visited first, but who was the other?”

The Silver Mane Tribe had killed two demonkin at the royal castle, and Kwon Oh-Jin killed one. They said five demonkins existed in the kingdom altogether, so the remaining two should have headed for the village.

Isabella frowned and cocked her head in confusion. “What are you talking about? Only one demonkin came to the village.”

Kwon Oh-Jin’s expression stiffened.

What the hell?

If only one demonkin had attacked the village and four of them had died in the Khan Kingdom, where was the last one right now?