Dark Curtain Hunt (4)
Hongsan Country, surrounded by red mountain ranges rich in rare resources.
And the Cheonghae Kingdom, which has large ports bordering the blue sea.
Even though decades had passed since the end of the war, the two countries were still enemies and had a grudge against each other that had not yet disappeared, but there was no room for disagreement about the fact that they were the great powers representing Sabah.
It goes without saying that there was no need to explain in detail how strict the security of the palace where the ruler of that powerful country resided would be.
Wheein—! Wheein—!
As such, this situation was not usually a big deal.
A loud alarm sound that rings out ceaselessly from the palace of the Qinghai Kingdom, which is fighting for world hegemony.
That sound meant that not only the outskirts of the palace, where officials could come and go relatively easily to do their work, but even the border of the Cheongryong Palace, where the Emperor and other members of the Imperial Family resided, had been breached.
‘···This is definitely not normal.’
An office set up near the Cheongryong Palace.
Kursi, the prime minister of Cheonghae, who was eighty years old this year, looked out the window with a wrinkled face.
“Hurry up, you slugs!”
“We must block all routes as quickly as possible!”
Outside, many unmanned personnel, including the guards, were running around busily, but he, who was also a practitioner of the depths, simply stared quietly at the sky beyond the window.
“What is this?”
The palace was already covered in a purple sky.
Even for him, who has lived a not-so-short life, this was a sight he had never seen before.
The problem was that it wasn’t just a visually unusual phenomenon.
‘What is this creepy feeling…’
The prime minister frowned as he lightly brushed his goosebump-covered arm.
He was able to feel it more keenly because he had reached the lofty realm of depth.
How much pure, terribly evil is contained in ‘that thing’.
If the devil who brings troubles like those in stories were to appear, would he do something like that?
Just by facing it, I felt an eerie magic that made me fall into a state of deep thought.
A practitioner who lacks the basics will be rendered helpless and powerless just by coming into contact with it.
‘Is that the Black King’s trick? … No, no. That can’t be. There’s no benefit to doing such a crazy thing, and even if he’s a bastard, it’s impossible for him to do something like this.’
Something unexpected.
My head was spinning with unexpected variables.
I couldn’t even guess how this could have happened.
No matter how many things haven’t gone according to plan lately, I can’t believe that he, who has the Insight Chakra, wouldn’t have noticed something…
“Your Excellency the Prime Minister!”
At that moment, when he was racking his brain.
The secretary, who had gone outside to find out what was going on, opened the office door roughly as if he was going to break it down with a pale face.
“It is said that General Yongseol personally led the guards to respond to the rebels who broke through the defenses of the Blue Dragon Palace! However, immediately after that, that terrible magic began to encroach on the surrounding area, so the outcome is unknown···.”
I could understand it well.
Because the center of the phenomenon was so deep that even the prime minister standing at the edge of the depths could not see through it.
If he, who has the chakra of insight, can do that, how much more so can others?
“I heard that His Majesty has already moved to a safe place in case of an emergency. Your Majesty, please also leave immediately!”
The prime minister nodded heavily at the secretary’s words and turned away from the window.
Now that the Emperor, the only superior, had left the room first, there was no need to look around.
‘It doesn’t seem like the greatest warrior in the Qinghai Kingdom, the General, will be defeated so easily… but the ominous feeling from earlier shows no sign of abating. For the time being, it would be best to protect yourself as much as possible.’
Something incomprehensible was happening here in the palace.
The intuition that brought him to this position rang the alarm loudly.
In times like this, it is best to avoid trying to do something useless and to get away from the scene of the problem as quickly as possible to ensure your safety.
“In such a crisis situation, it is the duty of a subject to support his sovereign. I will go to where the Emperor is.”
Making that excuse, he led his attendants out of the office and hurried on.
No matter how much he boasted of his omnipotent power, the safest place in the palace had to be by the Emperor’s side.
By now, most of the palace’s forces would have gathered around the Emperor to protect him.
‘First, we need to figure out the detailed situation. This kind of thing couldn’t have just happened. After gathering information, we need to figure out how to deal with it…’
But very unfortunately.
He couldn’t go very far and had to stop in place.
“Huh~?”
Suddenly, a woman’s voice was heard—somewhat sticky and languid.
“Where are you going in such a hurry?”
At the same time, the actions of the performers suddenly stopped.
And then, regardless of gender, they all opened their mouths blankly, with a dazed expression on their face as if they were possessed by something.
‘Huh, what is this?’
A chill ran down the spine of the prime minister, who was the only one who was able to maintain his sanity thanks to his strong will.
His crisis detection radar screamed, and the creeping ominousness began to rapidly rise, suffocating him.
“Well, it looks like you’re very busy. But I came all this way… Could you spare me a moment?”
He slowly raised his head, his face hardened.
On the roof of the building next door that I just passed by.
On the eaves, the owner of the unfamiliar voice was looking down at him, smiling broadly and resting his chin on his crossed legs.
‘···It’s a monster.’
A pair of high-rising horns, black wings folded neatly behind its back, and playful, reverse-eyes that sparkle like jewels.
The moment I faced the opponent, I instinctively felt it.
That is something that should not exist in this world.
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“If you stare at me like that, even I would feel a little embarrassed.”
Hela, who smiled playfully despite her words, winked.
It was a familiar gesture, as if it had been a habit of his.
“···What happened to the general?”
The prime minister, who had tried hard to ignore it, barely opened his mouth.
From the moment I recognized my opponent, a strange sense of pressure began to creep in ceaselessly.
If you let your guard down even for a moment, you’ll be swept away by that invisible storm.
Now was the time when I had to somehow hold on to my reason.
“Huh? Ah, that energetic old man?”
Hela’s eyes widened at the prime minister’s question.
As if I never expected you to ask that.
“Don’t worry. I’m not that bad of a person. I wouldn’t carelessly harm someone who came here to do their job diligently, right?”
The Demon King who came from another world and invaded the palace of a country without permission made a boast.
It was a very believable sight.
“Well… I got hurt a little because I held on for no reason, but since I’m so strong, I think I’ll be able to fully recover if I just rest for about a month.”
However, he answered my questions kindly.
There was no reason I couldn’t tell you something as trivial as that.
“···Huh, huh···. Is that so.”
The prime minister made a subtle expression.
There were complex emotions involved, some of which seemed both fortunate and regrettable.
Hela looked at him like that, smiled meaningfully, and continued speaking.
“Anyway, you are the prime minister of Qinghai, right?”
“I feel like I already knew everything, so what more can I say now?”
“That’s right. If you keep resisting and sticking your feet out here, I was going to give you a little harsh scolding. So, about my business···”
The moment she was about to speak her true business.
The prime minister, who seemed to be responding to the conversation obediently, made a face and pulled out a secret plan he had secretly prepared.
“No anger, open!”
The chakra he learned, ‘Insight’, is the power to see through the truth.
On its own, it may not seem like a particularly aggressive ability, but when a special vision is added, it becomes a different story.
Kkwadduk—!
A stone wall jutting out from the ground separated them.
No, not only that, but the walls that had risen up all around the area as if drawing a specific pattern began to resonate with each other.
Woohoo—
A tremendous pressure that was pushing down on Hela’s body along with a slight trembling vibration.
In an instant, the golden aura, which had been repeatedly overlapped and amplified, poured down on her.
“This is···.”
Hela, who was about to grab the opponent by the collar as soon as the abnormality occurred, hesitated.
Because the world’s principles have become distorted and errors have arisen, it has become difficult to control one’s body.
It was not a level of oppression that could be ignored simply because one had power.
She could tell right away what the prime minister had done.
‘The palace itself was used as a medium for magic.’
The palace of the Qinghai Kingdom, which has been in the position of a great power for a long time and has been rebuilt and reinforced repeatedly, is in itself no different from the crystallization of the mystery of Sabacheon.
Simply put, he hacked into the palace’s security system and used its resources to twist a certain range of laws.
Just to hold onto Hela’s ankle for a moment.
‘The opponent is a formidable foe that even a general could not defeat. There is no chance of winning even if we fight them head-on.’
I don’t know why, but it seemed clear to me that it was him and nothing else that she was after.
In times like this, it was best not to try to fight, but to retreat as much as possible and disappear.
‘It’s a shame that all the preparations I’ve made so far have been wasted, but there’s nothing I can do. For now, I have to stay alive so I can do something. It won’t be difficult to win the lottery later on.’
The plan was perfect.
Now all that remains is to take advantage of the confusion and use the opened passage to escape.
“···You know, I told you, didn’t I?”
But as always.
At first, everyone had a plausible plan.
Before it collapsed without any room to move.
“If you resist unnecessarily, I will hurt you.”
When on earth did I get here?
The prime minister stiffened as he looked at the different colored odd eyes that were approaching his nose.
‘···how?’
I can’t understand.
But that was to be expected.
Even if it is called the chakra of insight, there is a limit to what it can see through.
And if it was the Demon King’s “Seven-Colored Eyes”, it wouldn’t be strange at all if I didn’t recognize it.
The white eye of extinction and the blue eye of stillness.
Hela reached out, easily tearing through the invisible net that was closing in on her.
“Got it.”
A faint smile spread across the mouth of the hunter who had finally caught the prey he had been aiming for.
***
In the middle of the palace grounds, which were in chaos due to fierce fighting, with buildings collapsing and the ground turning upside down.
“Hmm.”
General Yongseol, lying on the floor, groaned, holding his head with one hand.
My overloaded head was constantly gushing with heat, along with a throbbing headache.
If he had not been the best warrior in the Qinghai Kingdom, it would not have been strange if he had died long ago.
‘Now it’s just a meaningless assumption.’
He slowly looked around with a frown, and let out a small sigh when he saw the guards strewn about like trash on the messy floor.
Although they did come together, most of them were of little help in dealing with the invaders.
Actually, there was nothing I could do about it.
In order to properly demonstrate one’s abilities while facing that existence, one must at least reach a deep level.
Even if you approached them without even that much skill, you wouldn’t be able to hold out for long and would just fall down one by one, only hindering your allies.
···Just like they did a little while ago.
“General! Are you okay?”
While General Yongseol was catching his breath and reviewing the past battle.
His men, who had just arrived to provide support, ran over and helped him up.
He frowned, but did not refuse the help and got up.
“Your Majesty?”
“You are safe. It is thanks to the time you gave us to properly prepare our defenses. Even if the astronomical practitioners were to rush in, we would be able to repel them.”
He nodded at those words and thought of the monster again.
Why on earth did she invade this Blue Dragon Palace?
One thing was certain at the moment: the Emperor, the supreme figure of this country, was not her target.
Of course, I had one guess.
“What about the evil spirit?”
“···That.”
The evil spirit suddenly stormed into the palace and showed its true colors as it advanced rapidly.
Her target was none other than Kursi, the prime minister of the Qinghai Kingdom.
“You kidnapped the prime minister and disappeared?”
“Yes.”
It could be said that it was a very serious problem.
Because of his position, which was virtually at the top, he was well-versed in all kinds of national secrets.
Every time he opened his mouth about such secrets, the Qinghai Empire would suffer astronomical losses.
‘But now, something else is bothering me more. He was after the prime minister from the beginning. And he···.’
Unlike General Yongseol, who represents the military, the prime minister is the top official who controls the country’s policies and exercises regency, boasting great power.
To be honest, the general had been suspicious of him all along.
Although there was no concrete evidence, they were keeping a close eye on him to see if he was plotting treason or something similar.
So, while moving according to the emperor’s will, he was secretly keeping the prime minister in check…
‘So this is how it turns out. Kidnapping…’
Although it was clearly an unfortunate event, it was also true that I had a strange feeling.
Of course, this kidnapping of the prime minister would certainly not be good news for the general and other military officials.
After all, guarding the palace was the job of the military officers.
‘Besides, if this fact becomes known to Hongsan-guk…’
A situation where the person with the highest authority next to the Emperor has been openly kidnapped in the Imperial Palace, the heart of the country.
This was an inexcusable and colossal national disgrace.
My eyes became dark, wondering what kind of ridicule I would receive.
Because the uproar was so great, it was difficult to hide the truth.
Hongsan Kingdom must have a spy planted here.
Since they too were like that, this news will soon reach their ears.
‘Whew, my head hurts. We need to come up with a rescue plan as soon as possible.’
General Yongseol let out a deep sigh.
It was then that he heard news from a spy on Hongsan Kingdom’s side.
It wasn’t long after that.
“Wait, what? What happened to that viper-like woman?”
There is intelligence that General Ju Ling, the proud astronomer of Hongsan-guk, has been beaten to death by a mysterious person and kidnapped.
‘What on earth is going on?’
A situation that is heading towards chaos where you can’t see even an inch ahead.
But even in the midst of all this, one thing was clear.
That’s right, he was extremely lucky the other day.
