Episode 77
Fukuoka, Japan.
It was late in the day when there were not many tourists.
Inside a residential area.
There were poorly maintained country houses with only the elderly left there.
Ten houses crowded together.
Although it is an ordinary residential house with no problems on paper.
In reality, it was being used as a hideout for A-class demon Gnat and his subordinates.
One of ten houses.
There, a gnat was ravaging a man.
"Hehe… "This guy looks mouth-watering."
The gnat drooled as it observed the naked body of the man.
The naked man instinctively covered his chest.
It was just barely enough to cover up his well-muscled chest.
"What you're doing is cute, too."
The gnat wiped its saliva and laughed.
The naked man is a C-grade player belonging to the Fukuoka branch.
He possessed body strengthening skills and was famous for hunting down numerous low-level demons with his bold actions.
At least now that I'm naked.
It was difficult to find the strength he had back then.
This was because the person looking at his bare body was Gnat, a demon famous for not distinguishing between male and female colors.
This is a situation where a C-grade player is facing an A-grade mine.
In reality, there were not many people who could maintain their sanity.
"Oh, don't come…" !!"
The man let out a loud scream and took a step back.
The body strengthening skill has already been used.
Even so, the skin gets prickly.
It is difficult to hide the trembling of your body and voice.
A demonic gnat that violates its opponent and then rips off its limbs one by one.
When I thought of that notoriety, my eyes became dizzy.
The man, remembering the terrible future, cried and shouted.
"The more rebellious he is, the softer his flesh is."
The gnat approached with a long stride, frowning like an insect.
The face that was filled with lust was shining with murder and madness.
"Save me… ."
"hey. "Please make me a little more excited."
Wow.
The gnat kicked the man's leg.
The stat difference between a grade A mine and a grade C player.
The gap in power that came from there broke the man's legs helplessly.
"Okay… evil… eww… .eww… ."
The man's face, stained with fear, quickly became covered in tears.
I'm already out of my mind.
It was natural that men could not maintain their skills.
"good. That's the look. Now I finally have an expression suitable for delicacy. Hehe… ."
"Save me… Give it… please… anything… ."
The man sitting on the floor pleaded, but the gnat did not listen.
Just like a gourmet preparing for a big meal, he said a devout prayer.
"Don't be too upset. "The world is a world of jungle."
Then, the gnat opened another door that was locked.
"… … !!"
Five or six humans, naked and unconscious.
Among them, there was a player who acted as the man's partner.
Gnat shouted as he admired the man's dazed face.
"It's like a fucking friendly match. "I can't bear to not eat people like you!"
Gnat's Grade A skill, Cannibal.
It was an ability that temporarily increased physical abilities the more people it consumed.
The target must be a person, and the ability level is random.
It wasn't a matter of simply activating a skill.
As soon as the gnat became an awakened person, it suffered from extreme hunger.
After being ridiculed for his insect-like appearance, it was not surprising that he took the path of becoming a demon.
'Hehe… Of course, there is also the process of coveting the body before that.'
As the gnat tore the man's hair, he screamed and sobbed once more.
"more… ! more… !! "Scream more!!"
The gnat shouted loudly like a person who has lost his mind.
The stress that had been building up even before the friendly match began exploded in front of the food in front of them.
When a friendly match begins, S-rank players turn on their eyes and look for Mine.
Because I know the danger.
It was a gnat hiding in a hideout, carefully eating the ones it had caught 'in advance'.
"Hehehe… ."
It seems like he gets excited just thinking about it.
The gnat struck the man down with a trembling hand.
Crack.
"Huh… !!!"
With a single gesture from the gnat, the man's shoulder was broken.
"I told you to scream. Look at this. "You're already experiencing withdrawal symptoms because you don't do as I say."
"right… right… ."
"Damn you fucking players. A friendly match for everyone to enjoy together?! you're welcome!! Damn friendly match!! "Conscientious citizens like me have to survive with the things they raise there!!!"
"please… ."
The man pleaded again.
However, the gnat, already dominated by desire, could not hear it.
The gnat's red eyes were shining.
"so. Give me the greatest pleasure."
The gnat opened its animal-like mouth and bit the man's belongings.
Wow. Crack.
A scream mixed with terrifying sounds rang out.
The subordinates waiting in the nine nearby mansions showed no movement.
* * *
"Umm… Good. delicious. "It's thrilling."
I checked the status window, feeling the boiling power of the gnat that had finished man-eating.
C-grade player.
Just by cannibalizing a low-level player, his strength level increased by 30.
Of course, it is a brief increase in ability level.
It was enough time to enjoy the drug-like ecstasy.
"Hehe… flaw… "I wonder what will happen if I cannibalize an S-class."
I don't know, but my instantaneous strength may exceed S rank.
No, wouldn't it be possible to catch an S-rank player even in this state?
As he thought about that, the gnat's body trembled once again.
A new desire to cannibalize advanced players arose.
The fundamental human desire to overeat.
'I want to eat.'
'I want to eat an S-rank player.'
'Would it be dangerous if I went out now?'
'no. Why would they come all the way to a remote corner like this, leaving the capital city overcrowded?'
'Shall we go out?'
'Shall we eat one more and catch one more?'
'okay. 'Let's have just one more person.'
It was a time when the gnat was lost in his own thoughts.
Sigh.
The doors of the mansion, which were locked with triple locks, began to open one by one.
"I'm here at the right time… ."
Of course I thought they were subordinates.
The gnat, who was about to give instructions for hunting preparations, stopped when he saw an unexpected face.
A man who is muscular in a different way than the guy he cannibalized a moment ago.
Are you twenty years old now?
His face still had a youthful look to it.
It was also a face I saw somewhere.
"You're a grade A demon gnat, right?"
"… … !!"
It's not Japanese.
However, it wasn't the first language I'd heard.
A language you often hear here in Fukuoka.
'New Korean?'
After a while, the insect-like expression of the gnat changed strangely.
Today is the opening ceremony of the friendly match.
The face that ranks first in daily video views comes to mind.
"That's right. "Gnat."
Appreciating the target's expression of astonishment.
Taehyun smiled brightly.
* * *
dump.
It has been over five minutes since I was interrogated using the skill 'Complete Hypnosis'.
The gnat's body fell down helplessly.
He could no longer endure the skill and his mind collapsed.
Just like Milena, an S-class demon.
The gnats will no longer be able to lead a normal life.
"By the way, Kenji Miyazaki… He was connected to some pretty big names."
Taehyun whistled, remembering the information he learned from the gnat.
As a Mine person, I thought it would be quite difficult to achieve this level of scale.
No way, the ship behind it is a Japanese S-class demon.
I had no idea that he was 'Kenji Miyazaki', who goes by the nickname Samurai.
"That guy. "He was clearly a member of the Triad."
Taehyun repeated the name of the MINE organization representing Asia.
Triad Association.
Asia's largest mine organization with New Korea, Japan, and China all involved.
At the top were the Three Elders, who exercised influence in each country.
'If you make a mistake with this, you could end up in trouble instead of a big catch.'
The triad from my past life came to mind.
Ji Jin-hee, the president of the association, was also a pan-national organization that was limited to keeping the New Korea branch in check.
It was not unreasonable for Taehyun to consider the possibility of hunting.
'There are 800 points on each of Samrodu's necks.'
It is already notorious enough to be known to the public, so it is by far the highest in points earned.
'Is the problem an information network?'
The reason we have not yet been able to find even a trace of Samrodu is largely due to the fact that the organization operates in a secretive manner.
If the tail is stepped on, it is cut off.
Even if you are an excellent player, a prolonged war of attrition will tire you out both physically and mentally.
Eventually, before it even reaches the head or torso.
You will be attacked by demons from three countries.
'Well, it doesn't apply to me.'
Taehyun recalled the skill 'Complete Hypnosis' that became his fortune.
A skill perfect for hunting demons that minimizes movement while maximizing speed.
so.
"At this point, I have to strike first."
Tae-hyeon, who had decided on the game for this friendly match, contacted the taster and A-young.
The first day of the friendly match was drawing to a close.
* * *
At that time, Shibuya, Tokyo.
Among the numerous buildings was a shell company owned by the Japan Players Association.
A building that looks like an ordinary delivery company on the outside.
In the basement of such a building, a prison was built under the guise of an interrogation room.
A place where people related to the association are imprisoned and sometimes eliminated without a word.
It was a place that Japanese players called Under Ground.
The Asian Player Friendly Tournament began today.
A man with his entire body restrained was held in a solitary cell in the underground.
Ryohei Isaka.
A Japanese S-rank player famous for his nickname, Devil.
At some point, he went missing and was groaning with the tendons in his limbs broken.
Japanese player license revoked and indefinite imprisonment.
This was a punishment given after it was revealed that he had been in cahoots with Mine after the attack at the West Point auction house.
'nice… Sigh… .'
Ryohei Isaka laughed in his hazy consciousness.
For him, who was leading an enviable life as an S-rank player, death seemed like a better option.
'You bastards… How are you any different from the demons? .'
Ryohei Isaka cursed and I giggled to myself.
It was already difficult to think straight due to the sedatives and tranquilizers administered every day.
Perhaps in the next few years.
Ryohei Isaka was destined to rot miserably in the basement and then disappear.
No one will seek him anymore, no one will remember him.
at that time.
Again. Again. Again.
The sound of footsteps echoing quietly in the basement stopped in front of Ryohei Isaka.
'… … ?'
He confessed his relationship with Mine and was imprisoned here with all his tendons cut off.
No one comes to this underground to find themselves anymore.
That's what I thought.
Ryohei Isaka, who had become dazed, raised his head.
Through his blurred vision, he could see that someone was in front of him.
Ryohei Isaka gave strength to his weakened eyesight.
I saw a woman's face.
"It's been a while. devil."
Grinning.
Saint. Yoshikawa Tsurara.
She held out her hand to Ryohei Isaka with an extremely innocent smile.
Hiding the malice hidden within innocence