The hunter division had formed a protective perimeter around me.
"Don't make a move, demon!" shouted the A-rank captain. "Sir Lee, I forbid you to take a step. That's an order."
"The strongest hunters in this city are dying as we speak. There's nowhere left for you to run—we've sealed off every gate to this zone."
"You're far too intelligent for a common demon. Tricks won't save you. I'm sure the S-rank hunters have already completed their mission."
"Oh really?" the demon sneered with a mocking grin. "Then why is it so quiet outside?"
That's when it hit us—there were no battle sounds beyond these walls. It was as if the fighting had stopped. Only the faint, rhythmic scraping of a spear echoed in the distance, striking against something solid.
"Right now, your comrades are hanging on by a thread."
"Impossible! Those hunters are on par with Dukes in terms of power! Demons like you should be no match."
"Then go outside and see for yourselves… humans."
"Captain, what should we do? I don't think this monster is lying."
"Damn it…"
I stepped forward and said coldly:
"Very well. I'll meet your leader. But if I find out you lied… I'll kill you on the spot."
My fists clenched, my expression turned cold and sharp. The demon didn't answer. He simply turned and walked toward the exit.
"Follow me."
The hunters and soldiers looked at me in shock, their eyes frozen. Some thought I'd lost my mind; others assumed I was pretending in front of the demon.
The truth? I was barely holding myself together. Standing before him, cold sweat soaked my back and my heart pounded like a drum. I did everything I could to suppress my fear.
We followed the skinless monster outside. As we stepped into the open, a fierce battle came into view—Park Ji-sun was locked in deadly combat with a winged demon whose head was twisted upside down.
Every movement screamed bloodlust. They were equals in strength, though Ji-sun lacked in endurance. After all, it was a battle between man and beast.
"I brought him to you!" the demon called out to the winged figure. "What are your orders?"
"I'm busy right now!" the strong demon snapped, dodging a flurry of Ji-sun's attacks. "Kill him."
"As you wish."
The demon turned to us and unleashed a guttural howl that echoed through the complex. In response, dozens of long-armed demons emerged from every corner—at least twenty of the grotesque creatures, their muscular forms towering at nearly two meters tall.
"We're surrounded!"
"Do not panic!" barked the captain. "Our primary objective is to protect Sir Lee at all costs!"
"Yes, sir!"
"Prepare for battle!"
"Sir!"
The captain also summoned his Kenketsu from his right arm. His determination struck me as odd. Why are you so determined to protect me, even at the cost of your life? You all look to be in your thirties—you still have your whole lives ahead of you…
"I just hope," he said to me, "that we don't give our lives in vain. You must survive, strongest hunter in the world."
There was a sincere light in his eyes. He was ready to die for the mission—for the operation. These people... they would go to any length to serve their country, for the sake of all humanity.
The demons charged, three against each hunter. The soldiers immediately launched grenades to keep them at bay—special powder grenades designed for maximum destructive impact. Everything was being thrown into stopping these creatures.
But compared to these demons, we were weak. The soldiers, lacking any demonic power, were quickly torn apart. Humans are such fragile beings...
The B-rank hunters barely held their ground. Only the captain held the line—issuing commands, adjusting our formation, and expertly countering incoming strikes.
"We can't handle this on our own—we need reinforcements!" he shouted into his radio.
From the rooftop, the S-rank hunters swooped down like a storm, obliterating half the enemy in seconds.
"They lured us to the other side of the compound!" Min-ho added, shielding a soldier from an incoming demon.
Chan-wook walked up and tapped my shoulder, clearly displeased.
"Who told you to go outside? Trying to get yourself killed? If you were stronger, this wouldn't even be a conversation."
"That was my call," the division captain admitted. "I put their lives on the line… We thought you'd already lost."
Kwon Sora, a woman in her early thirties, dismissed her Kenketsu. She raised her hands to her mouth, horrified by what she saw.
"Hey, guys… That demon I thought I killed... why does he look like a human now?"
Everyone turned. Lying on the ground before her was the bloodied corpse of a demon—transformed, from foot to head, into a ten-year-old boy.
Sora's dark hair flowed in the breeze, and her pale blue eyes radiated fear and confusion.
"What… what does this mean?"
The boy's terrified gaze seemed to scream, "I don't want to die."
"The demon… turned into a child?"
The boy slowly lifted his head and whispered,
"Please… don't kill me…"
"Sora!" shouted Chan-wook from behind. "What are you waiting for?"
"I… I-I can't. He's just a kid…"
Nam Gyeon-ho, an S-rank military hunter, ran up and pushed her aside. He summoned his massive axe and leapt toward the child, ready to finish the job.
But what happened next froze everyone.
In the blink of an eye, bloody tendrils shot from the boy's tiny hands—roots made of flesh—that pierced straight into Gyeon-ho's body. They drilled through his chest and burst from his back.
The hunter choked on blood, his eyes reddening, his arms falling limp.
Within the hour… two S-rank hunters had already died to demons.