There was something about being in a foreign land that made people’s hearts flutter . This was especially true for those that lived in Seoul .

  The party walked down the road at night while gazing at the bright stars and the Milky Way .

  “It has been a while since I could watch the stars like this . It’s very pretty . ”


  “Don’t you work on the Moon as a researcher, Ms . Chelsea? You should have gotten a lot of opportunities to see the stars . ”


  “You really don’t know anything, Mr . Sungyoon . ”


  Chelsea wagged her finger .

  “There is a clear difference between watching the stars from space and from Earth . They both evoke completely different emotions . ”


  The others nodded at Chelsea’s words .

  Sungyoon and his party were heading toward Lee’s house . However, even though he had accepted Lee’s invitation of his own volition, Sungyoon looked disappointed . He kept looking backward .

  Jimin let out a sigh and said .

  “It is just a couple of hours . You’re usually separated from her for a longer period, so why are you acting this way today?”


  “That’s for work, so it can’t be helped . But we’re on vacation . What if Shinhae wakes up? What if she becomes disappointed by her father’s absence?”


  Shinhae and Jiyoon were not going to the dinner . The little girl had been tired from swimming all day, so had gone to sleep, and Jiyoon had stayed behind to look after her .

  “Shinhae told you she was tired and wanted to sleep . It’s true that she doesn’t like being separated from you, Mr . Sungyoon . However, she’s not the type of girl to cry without a good reason . Don’t worry about her . ”


  Shinhae had spent a lot of time away from Sungyoon, so she did become lonely easily . However, she had also developed an independent streak thanks to this experience . And even if Shinhae were to look for her father on waking up, Jiyoon was there to give an explanation . Shinhae would be disappointed, but she would understand the situation and wait for her father .

  “If you’re like this right now, what will you do when she gets married?”


  Jimin spat out her words .

  Sungyoon came to a stop . His head moved in a mechanical manner as he looked at Jimin .

  “.…… Marriage?”


  “You don’t have to react in such a stereotypical manner . Stop it . ”


  Jimin shook her head from side to side and walked forward . The others let out a burst of bitter laughter .

  Lee’s house was located atop a hill in an isolated location, so the road was quiet and didn’t even have proper illumination . It was a scary environment, but none of them felt fear . The world-famous Knight and his party had negotiated with their countries, and they were allowed to carry their Devices and Gems . Since they were fully armed, they had no reason to be afraid .

  Boom!

  “Huh?”


  The party stopped walking . They heard a pretty large explosion and saw flames reaching high in the air .

  By the location of the flames, the party could tell that the explosion had occurred at their destination, Lee’s house .

  “Mr . Sungyoon!”


  When Grace called out his name, Sungyoon immediately increased his speed .

  “The two of you should accompany Ms . Jimin and Ms . Chelsea!”


  Since these two couldn’t fight, Sungyoon left them in the care of Grace and Emily . Then, like a bullet, he shot forward toward the fire . As he moved closer to the red conflagration, the smell of smoke got thicker . So he put more strength into his legs .

  When Sungyoon arrived at Lee’s house, he saw a large flame dancing and engulfing the picturesque white bricked house . It was a horrifying dance expressing the devil’s delight .

  Sungyoon was about to check if anyone was inside and save them, but before he could do it, something else caught his attention -

  Hmmph! Your resistance is futile . ”


  ‘Monster?’


  His eyes clearly saw a monster .

  This monster was much larger in size than a human . Horns, wings, and black needles were all over its body . It couldn’t be anything other than a monster, but . . .

  ‘It spoke?’


  Of course, monsters were incapable of speaking as they didn’t possess a rational mind . However, the monster in front of him had spoken . This was his first time seeing a monster capable of speech, so Sungyoon was taken aback .

  ‘Did this guy do all this?’


  Sungyoon looked between the burning house and the monster . He couldn’t fathom the identity of this being, but one thing was for sure . It was not to be underestimated . Sungyoon quickly took out his weapon -

  Some poor bastard came in . I guess he doesn’t value his own life .

  The monster already knew Sungyoon had arrived on the scene, so it didn’t look surprised . It turned toward Sungyoon, while Sungyoon wondered how to respond when meeting the first monster capable of speech .

  He didn’t know whether to immediately attack it or ask it a question . While Sungyoon was having a hard time making up his mind, Kevil’s eyes widened -

  What the hell? This guy is better than this one!

  The delight in its voice was evident . Kevil then unloaded something from its shoulder and carelessly threw it aside . Sungyoon finally realized Kevil had been carrying Lee . The old Connector was still alive since he was groaning . But Sungyoon could tell he was in a rough state .

  Lee was missing an arm and a leg, and his entire body was coated in blood . Sungyoon could even see bones sticking out the region where the limbs had been severed . The version of Lee, who had been deeply moved by meeting Sungyoon, could no longer be seen .

  This monster had attacked Lee for some reason and set his house on fire .

  Sungyoon raised his sword and shield . He had no idea how strong the monster was, so he overclocked his Gems .

  “Did you do this?”


  Sungyoon’s voice was low and calm . However, anyone familiar with him would have heard the suppressed rage in his voice .

  However, Kevil didn’t respond -

  Ke ke ke! It’s really hard to find sacrifices . I can’t believe a good one just happens to be nearby . I’m really lucky on my first expedition!

  “I asked if you did this . ”


  Kevil ignored Sungyoon’s words once again .

  Boom!

  Kevil took a stride, and Sungyoon raised his shield in preparation for the attack .

  No, he was trying to raise his shield .

  Kwahng!

  Sungyoon had no idea what had just happened when his eyes shot open .

  “Kuh-huhk!”


  As if a groan had risen up from the deepest part of his body, Sungyoon’s entire body hurt .

  If he were a normal person, he would’ve died from the breathlessness due to the pain -

  Huh? Did you regain consciousness? You’re pretty amazing .

  Sungyoon heard an ominous sound and shook his fuzzy head . As his eyes came into focus, he looked ahead .

  The demonic monster was approaching him .

  Sungyoon tried to get up, but his body wouldn’t move . So he looked down .

  Absolute mess!

  That was the only phrase that could describe what he saw .

  All his limbs were broken, and they were pointing at odd angles . The middle region of his armor had been destroyed, and he could see his chest caved inward . His axe and his shield lay in the distance

  Cough!

  A metallic taste rose up into his mouth, and Sungyoon threw up . Red blood flowed down his lips . He was sure his organs had been damaged . Sungyoon realized that he had been hit by the monster .

  However, Sungyoon didn’t remember what kind of an attack it was, and how had he received it -

  If you had stayed unconscious like that guy, you could have avoided feeling the pain .

  Kevil spoke in a sarcastic manner . Sungyoon ignored the pain as he moved his broken hand and tried to activate his healing Gem . His twisted limbs returned to normal, and the pain slowly dampened -

  Oh ho! You’re different from that trash over there . I can see why you give off a strong scent .

  Strong scent! It was an odd choice of words, but Sungyoon couldn’t afford to pay attention to what the monster was speaking . He had to either defeat it or run away .

  Sungyoon activated his spells .

  Boom!

  Massive gravity hit Kevil .

  Puh-uh-uhk!

  At the same time, spikes made out of rock shot up from the ground . These spells were much weaker compared to what they were on the Moon, but Sungyoon couldn’t be picky .

  Bul-duhk!

  He got up and immediately moved away . His body still ached, but he didn’t have the luxury to rest . His sword and shield re-appeared .

  Kwahhhhhhng!

  The rock spikes surrounding Kevil crumbled into pieces, and a long whip of fire shot toward Sungyoon .

  “Koohk!”


  Sungyoon bent down, and the attack grazed past above him . However, it was enough to cause damage, and the effect of the attack was astonishing .

  Hwah-roo-roohk!

  ‘Hot!’


  The whip had been flying in the air, yet the grass on the ground was set on fire . Sungyoon felt as if he was walking within the volcanic region of the Great Labyrinth .

  Boom! Boom!

  The rock spikes melted from the heat, and Kevil appeared from the aftermath . Its hand held a long flame which looked like a fire whip .

  Kwah-doo-doohk!

  The long toenails protruding from its black feet crushed the broken pieces of the rock spike -

  Good! Good! It’s fun when the prey puts up a fight .

  Puh-uhng!

  Kevil swung the fire whip in a threatening manner, and it was enough to burn the surroundings .

  However, Kevil didn’t look satisfied -

  Tsk! Places with no magical energy are annoying . How much power did I lose?

  The monster wielded a shocking amount of power, yet it complained about the reduction in its power . Sungyoon was baffled .

  Kevil once again focused his attention on Sungyoon -

  That one was too weak . He almost lost his mind from fear when he felt his great presence . I gave him some points for putting up a fight even as he cried to protect his family . Still, he remained a piece of trash . His family was burning in front of him, yet he could only cry . He wasn’t able to put up a decent fight . I hope you fight back a bit harder . This won’t be fun for me otherwise .

  Sungyoon’s face crumpled .

  His wife was a failure, but Sungyoon treasured his daughter . So he couldn’t forgive any violence against Lee’s family .

  It happened at that moment .

  “Mr . Sungyoon!”


  He heard some voices . His party members, who he had left behind, arrived at the scene .

  The faces of Jimin, Chelsea, Emily, and Grace went pale . They watched the flames rage around Sungyoon and Kevil -

  Are they your comrades?

  Kevil asked .

  Sungyoon could clearly see a smile form on the monster’s face . A chill ran down his spine, and he could feel cold sweat cover his whole body .

  Kevil’s red eyes looked down at Sungyoon, and it spoke -

  This is great timing . The spices to the main dish have arrived . What will you do?

  Just then, Sungyoon heard the loud sound of the heartbeat within him .

  However, the heartbeat wasn’t the only thing that had sought him out this time around . Sunyoon felt like foaming at the mouth . Then, as if he were having a seizure, his hands violently shook and went limp . At this moment, he just wanted to sink to the floor .

  Ba-dump! Ba-dump! Ba-dump!

  Sungyoon felt as if he were hiding, and a scary giant eye was looking down at his back . He felt fear .