Here's an Opportunity-Chapter 222: The Duels (4)

Was a water gun filled with holy water the ultimate weapon Kim Ki-Rok had prepared for the demons?

Not exactly.

Divine power could destroy demonic mana, but the opposition ran both ways. Given enough demonic mana, it could overwhelm and erase divine power. Even if holy water carried divine power, they would exhaust their supply long before a duel ended if they relied on it as a finisher.

They were meant to pin the demons down and bleed their mana, Kim Ki-Rok thought, pumping the water gun while keeping one eye on Mammon. The Greater Demon was already bounding from shield to shield, using them like stepping stones to move straight toward Kim Ki-Rok.

Kicking off the ground, Kim Ki-Rok hurled himself backward. He sighted down the barrel and squeezed the trigger. Holy water roared from the muzzle in a continuous torrent. This modified water machine gun was unleashing a stream that tore through the air like a fire hose.

When the tank ran dry, he ditched the gun, drew another Water Panzer, and did it all over again: fire, toss, repeat. At his allies' request, he had already handed out several to the Hunters fighting alongside him. As he flung the latest empty gun to the ground, he tallied what he had left, reached into his subspace pocket, and, with a thought, fished out a compact pistol-shaped model.

This one had an automatic pump, burst fire, and rapid reload. He had saved it for the perfect opening, a chance to catch Mammon off guard. But against an opponent this skilled, and stronger than ever before, he had no choice but to use it early.

The holy water tore through the air and ate into the Aura Shield Mammon held before him. Mammon had looked calm at the sight of yet another toy gun, but the instant Kim Ki-Rok pulled the trigger, a chill raced down the demon's spine. He jumped, formed a new shield beneath his feet, then glanced down to confirm the burst had chewed a hole through the last one before it crashed to the ground. Gritting his teeth, he forced his body to move even faster as he charged straight at Kim Ki-Rok.

Kim Ki-Rok kept firing as he fell back, trying to stretch the distance. Mammon, using conjured shields as rungs on an invisible ladder, drove forward regardless. Even with the other Hunters' support, the gap shrank. After all, human bodies and human mana pools could not match a demon's.

As Kim Ki-Rok fired five more bursts from the modified pistol, Mammon blew off his final foothold in a surge of mana. With a sharp rush of wind trailing behind, the Greater Demon crossed the last meters in an instant and swung his demonic sword. Kim Ki-Rok tossed the pistol aside, flooded his Guardian gauntlets with mana, and punched into the descending blade.

The impact bloomed into a blast that hurled Mammon out of the circle of holy ground. Kim Ki-Rok skidded to a stop beyond its edge as well. Both men rose at once and locked eyes.

Mammon sprang back onto Aura Shields and charged across the sanctified earth. Kim Ki-Rok met him head-on, fully aware that Guardian was shaving away his level every second to feed his temporary stat boost.

They faced each other again across ground humming with divine power. Kim Ki-Rok pulled a vial from his belt and dashed its contents over the soil, replenishing the sanctity underfoot. Mammon, in answer, flooded the air with demonic aura, scouring away the gathering divinity.

He was burning mana to strip away what time would have erased on its own.

He's trying to keep this battle short, Kim Ki-Rok thought.

He flashed a hand signal to the scattered Hunters, warning them of Mammon's aim for a swift finish, then drove forward.

***

Lee Ji-Yeon drove her blade into a Greater Demon's heart and raised her head.

Their gazes met. Blue blood leaked from the demon's mouth, but he was smiling. Even with both arms severed and holy water lashing him from every direction, he barked a laugh.

In the moment of his death, his eyes still gleamed with fierce joy.

Lee Ji-Yeon stared into them, stunned for a heartbeat, then shook it off and checked him for any remaining threat.

"What a shame. I should have followed Sir Mammon's example and trained a little more," the Greater Demon said with a regretful sigh.

With her sword still buried in his heart, he took a few steps back and surveyed the field.

"Hm..."

All around lay demon corpses and Hunters receiving treatment.

"It seems you've taken no casualties," he observed.

As he realized why the duels had been moved up, he turned around and said, "You, woman."

"Say what you have to say," Lee Ji-Yeon replied evenly.

"What is that metal?" he asked. "The one with such high mana resistance."

"It's called Pastera."

"I've never heard the name. A celestial metal?" he pressed.

Such a thing had never appeared in the Material or Demon Realms. That left the Elemental or the Celestial. Yet, if it resisted elemental power and refused even to conduct elemental energy, then it was more likely the former.

"I'm afraid not," Lee Ji-Yeon said.

"Then where is it from?"

Lee Ji-Yeon hesitated.

"I will die here regardless," he coaxed. "Kim Ki-Rok surely told you what awaits us after these duels."

She weighed it for a moment. A perfect summoning was already off the table, and when this was over, the Continental Alliance would scour out every black wizard. She leaned close and whispered the truth.

"It's from another dimension."

"Hahaha!" The Greater Demon threw back his head and laughed, blue blood spraying.

With Ine's help, Lee Ji-Yeon vaporized the droplets before they could touch her face, then calmly looked back up at him.

At last, the demon's mirth dwindled to a sigh. "Haah... that's right. Your world can travel between dimensions, can't it?"

***

Some Hunters, like Lee Ji-Yeon, ended their duels with a few words. Others, though they had time to talk, finished things with a single swing.

"I—"

The instant the words left Yeqon's mouth, a hammer smashed into his face, bones cracking wetly as everyone flinched and looked away. For a moment, Jeong Man-Kook stared at the headless corpse that had been their opponent, then turned away.

"Phew."

"Oh, geez..."

The others sank to the ground, groaning with relief. Yeqon had been so dangerous that the slightest misstep might have been fatal. Some Hunters sprawled on their backs to catch their breath while others dug out water bottles from their subspace pockets and drank.

Jeong Man-Kook, a chocolate bar already between his teeth, trudged over with his hammer on his shoulder. "Has the signal come?"

"No, nothing yet," a Hunter answered.

"I see." He swallowed the bar in one bite and sat down with them.

"Are you alright?" asked a Golden Lion Hunter.

Unlike the other teams, Jeong Man-Kook had met Yeqon alone in close quarters. He had taken many strikes on his own body, blows strong enough to tear flesh and show bone. Now, not a single one of those wounds remained.

"Hm?" The Golden Lion Hunter blinked at the speed of this near-total regeneration. He hadn't seen Jeong Man-Kook drink a potion, but the proof was there.

"Don't tell me Calorie Buff has a permanent boost, a short-term boost, and healing?" he blurted.

Jeong Man-Kook shook his head. "Nope. On my Guildmaster's recommendation, I cleared an A-Class Gate and picked up a skill."

"A skill?"

"A skill that restores health and mana by consuming food."

The Golden Lion Hunter chuckled. Nothing could have fit Jeong Man-Kook better than a power that made him stronger the more he ate.

A voice crackled over their earpieces from the squad fighting Mammon with Kim Ki-Rok.

—The signal has arrived.

The resting Hunters surged to their feet. Those who had been saving supplies uncorked potions and chugged them, then drew their weapons again.

***

Kim Ki-Rok flicked open his status window, checked how far his level had fallen, gauged the distance, and cut off the mana feeding Guardian. Despite Mammon's efforts, the gap between them had stretched again.

He pulled a repeating crossbow from his subspace pocket, set his stance, and aimed at the Greater Demon held in place by the other Hunters.

His reserves have definitely fallen, Kim Ki-Rok thought.

Even Mammon couldn't slip every strike. Cuts, punctures, and what looked like acid burns marred his skin. By Kim Ki-Rok's estimate, the demon's mana sat below half. When Mammon hit thirty percent, he would accept the inevitable and change tactics. He wouldn't concede, but he would act.

You've prepared well for this duel...

Just as Kim Ki-Rok recalled what the "previous" Mammon had said, the real one moved.

Mammon's eyes flashed as he poured a heavy share of his remaining mana into raw physical enhancement. With every Hunter wielding Pastera, he even diverted the power he would have spent on Aura Shields into his body, trusting his demonic blade alone for defense. He sent the nearest Hunter flying, then stamped the ground, loosing a rippling shock of mana with a heavy stomp[1] that tore Nakasone Soichi out of stealth.

A crossbow bolt hissed toward him. Mammon batted it aside without looking and turned, fixing Kim Ki-Rok with his gaze.

"You've prepared well for this duel," he said.

It was the very cue Kim Ki-Rok had been waiting for.

"Ah!" he exclaimed, as if remembering something. In his fluster, he forgot to keep squeezing the trigger.

"If this continues, I will lose," Mammon admitted with a thin smile, his remaining mana surging through his limbs. Still smiling, he warned, "You have ten minutes."

"Haaah..." Kim Ki-Rok exhaled, signaled his comrades, stowed the crossbow, downed a potion, tore a scroll to release its spell, and used Mirror on a nearby Hunter to claw back some of the stats he had paid into Guardian. Then he reactivated Guardian.

"To all Hunters," he said over the radio, steady now. "Here are your orders."

Mammon dropped into a low stance, demonic energy bleeding from his sword as he leaned forward, his gaze fixed on Kim Ki-Rok.

"As discussed, we split into two teams," Kim Ki-Rok continued.

At once, the Hunters moved as planned, splitting in two. Team One scattered to hunt nearby black wizards while Team Two closed in on Mammon.

Encircled, Mammon glanced about and casually asked, "Are you changing the rules of our duel?"

"No," Kim Ki-Rok said. "They will observe from a distance."

Then why ring us in? Mammon wondered, though he put it off for later. He flashed a grin as the answer occurred to him.

"You want a one-on-one?"

Kim Ki-Rok brought his Guardian-clad fists together with a crack and smiled back. He bent his knees, tipped his torso forward, and said simply, "Yes."

"Kukuku. This feels like last time."

Once again, the Hunter and the Greater Demon faced off against the clock, but this time only the victor would live.

As Mammon sprang forward, Kim Ki-Rok moved in the same heartbeat, buffed to his limits but still barely keeping up.

1. The original text refers to a specific type of footwork practiced in Bajiquan. One can look up Zhenjiao if you're interested in learning more. ☜