Dark Fantasy Genius Demon Hunter

The Shrine

Cities have their own laws and rules, but they do not reach the outskirts.

It’s like how, even if a monster appears and tears apart a few people, the local security forces never show up.

The innkeeper who runs the tavern here couldn’t possibly be unaware of this.

Of course, they knew, and that’s precisely why they had been exploiting it cleverly until now.

They had been selecting guests who were easy targets to pickpocket.

Gaon, who looked shabby, was likely seen as one of those easy marks.

But it was a huge mistake to think so.

‘No wonder they were checking me out from top to bottom earlier. They must have only seen me as an easy victim to rob.’

Gaon smirked bitterly and quickly rose, hiding behind the door.

The lock, designed to only be operable from within the room, or at least should have been, was undone.

This confirmed everything.

It became clear that the innkeeper had planned the attack from the moment Gaon checked in.

Moreover, the innkeeper had been so meticulous with the hinges that the door opened smoothly without a sound.

Gaon, inwardly impressed by how silent the door was, contrasted it with the loud scream of the main door earlier.

The innkeeper and an unfamiliar man stealthily entered the room like petty thieves.

Gaon didn’t hesitate.

He lunged toward them, throwing himself from behind the door.

The man in front was startled, expressing his confusion.

“What, what’s going on?!”

The man who had noticed Gaon too late tried to react, but it was already far too late.

“Ugh, guh!”

Thud!

The dagger Gaon threw accurately pierced the man’s skin, avoiding his futile attempts to dodge.

He was too slow to escape Gaon’s speed, and there was no way for him to avoid the attack.

Moreover,

‘It’s gotten faster.’

Although it was subtle, Gaon could clearly feel the change.

It was the talent that had begun to manifest after his fight with the monster.

The feeling of his blade cutting through flesh was transmitted through the dagger.

Gaon slightly furrowed his brow, but that was all.

He considered anyone trying to kill him, whether monster or human, an enemy.

Thinking that way, swinging the dagger felt much easier.

He twisted his hand to put more force into it.

The dagger, caught in the stiffened muscle, was pulled out.

The cold steel tore through the warm flesh.

And as expected, intense pain hit the man.

“Gah! Aaahh!!”

The man, who thought he would be the one doing the stabbing rather than being stabbed, screamed in agony.

His pupils shook uncontrollably as blood poured out in a steady stream.

“You, you said it would be the same as usual, didn’t you? You never mentioned anything like this!”

“This, this can’t be happening…”

It was a brief exchange.

But in that short conversation, Gaon caught on to the entire situation.

“You did something to this room. A sleeping drug, right? I haven’t eaten or drunk anything here, so it must have been something applied through scent.”

Gaon hadn’t realized it due to the sharp, rancid odor in the room, but it seemed that some kind of substance that induces sleep had been mixed into the air.

“How… how did you know?”

The innkeeper’s voice trembled uncontrollably.

“You used some cheap drug, so why are you doing this to me?”

Of course, Gaon wouldn’t have known this if the brief exchange hadn’t happened, but it was as if he already knew, so he responded calmly.

There was no need to highlight the missing details and belittle the innkeeper.

In truth, Gaon hadn’t known, but it wasn’t the sleeping drug that was the problem.

Before the drug had a chance to take effect, his enhanced recovery had already neutralized it.

“It’s always worked until now. There’s no way this is happening… Krah!”

The innkeeper suddenly screamed.

A dagger had already pierced his shoulder.

“I’m not really interested in hearing this story.”

Gaon, who had thrown the dagger, calmly pulled his arm back and walked toward the innkeeper.

The terrified innkeeper clutched his shoulder and began to retreat.

“Ugh… please, please spare me.”

“Why should I? You were planning to kill me too.”

“Th, that’s… not true! I only planned to rob you.”

“Yeah, right.”

“I swear, it’s the truth! I swear!”

The innkeeper, still backing away, suddenly turned his head in alarm.

The damp wall welcomed him.

Gaon reached out and pulled the dagger from his shoulder.

Once again, the innkeeper screamed wildly.

“P, please spare me. I’ll give you anything if you let me live. Money? If you go to my room, I’ll give you all the money I’ve saved up. I swear!”

“Money?”

“Y, yes! Although my earnings from the inn are just enough for a lowly monster hunter, I’ve been running this inn for a long time, so…”

Gaon, mid-conversation with the innkeeper, suddenly spun around like a flash of lightning.

The man who had been lying on the floor passed by in that open space.

While the innkeeper continued explaining and trying to keep Gaon’s attention, the man on the floor had regained his senses and was sneaking up on him.

He had tried to act as quietly as possible, but his attempt was in vain.

“Too bad for you.”

“H-How…?”

The man, looking at the blade that had effortlessly sliced through the air, trembled in disbelief.

Gaon raised his second finger and lightly tapped his ear.

“I heard everything.”

“What? What are you talking about?!”

“The sound of your footsteps.”

“That’s… impossible!”

But it made perfect sense.

Gaon’s physical abilities had begun to grow rapidly, and his senses had become significantly sharper.

The sound of blood sticking to the soles of his shoes?

Of course, he heard it.

It was so clear that it would have been strange not to hear it.

The innkeeper’s expression twisted in frustration.

The loud, distracting chatter he had been doing had now become completely useless.

The enraged man shouted at the innkeeper.

“Kill him! What are you doing?! It’s just one scrawny guy, why aren’t you attacking him?!”

If he didn’t stop the bleeding immediately, he would die.

This fact made the man desperate.

He charged at Gaon.

Only then did the innkeeper snap out of his stupor and try to follow him, but he was too slow.

Of course, all of it was pointless.

Gaon easily dodged the man’s attack and sliced his throat.

Thwip!

“Keuhr.”

Then, he spun his body and stabbed the innkeeper in the chest, right where the heart was.

Thud!

“Guh!”

The two useless bodies collapsed to the floor.

The sharp, rancid smell of blood filled the air.

Life drained from the two corpses.

Two dead bodies.

Murder.

That realization hit Gaon like a tidal wave.

The mental shock overwhelmed him, but he gritted his teeth and endured it.

If he didn’t kill, he would die.

This place was always like that.

He repeated that in his mind.

He couldn’t die in vain here. He had to survive and go back.

To do that, he would do anything. He could do it.

If something was in his way,

Even if it was a person,

“I can kill them without hesitation.”

Yes. If this situation happened again, he wouldn’t hesitate to act the same way.

With that resolve, he strengthened his determination.

Maybe it was because of that, but the shock of killing someone was surprisingly bearable.

Since his battle with the monster, and even in the short time since then, he had already developed enough mentally to withstand the shock of murder.

Still, he couldn’t stop a bitter smile from forming on his lips.

It was self-mocking, stemming from the fact that he had only just left a blood-soaked battlefield and now found himself standing in yet another pool of blood.

“I can’t stay here any longer…”

Gaon stepped out of the room, his boots squelching with blood.

Despite the chaos he had caused, no one came to check on him.

Maybe it was because the inn had gained a reputation for guests disappearing, or maybe it was just bad timing—he couldn’t tell.

‘Maybe the horrifically unsanitary guest rooms drove customers away completely.’

Gaon shook his head and searched the ground floor, which was likely used by the innkeeper.

Before his death, the innkeeper had bragged about having a lot of money, so Gaon intended to find it.

Even if it was a lie, it didn’t matter.

After all, the money Gaon had paid earlier would still be kept there.

“…I keep getting the feeling I’m just farming corpses.”

Gaon scratched the back of his neck, feeling uneasy for no particular reason.

“No, that’s not right. When in Rome, do as the Romans do.”

There was no need to feel guilty about stealing. That was a rule that applied to the modern world before coming here.

It wasn’t as if the innkeeper hadn’t tried to rob Gaon first, and ended up dead as a result. The remaining wealth would go to whoever picked it up, and there was no reason to leave it behind.

***

It took a while to find the hidden coins.

The innkeeper was a cautious man, so the money was hidden in various corners.

‘There’s probably a secret spot around here… no, there definitely is. But that’s not something I can waste more time on.’

Gaon quickly gave up on the idea. It might take longer to find it, but the chances of actually finding it were slim.

He didn’t want to waste any more time here.

The money he did find amounted to about 3 to 4 times what he had paid for the room.

Gaon was satisfied with this. He knew that if he tried to fill the feeling of regret with satisfaction, he would inevitably become a monster.

Although he had started to accept the memories of a different life, Gaon’s identity still lay in his modern-day self. Perhaps that’s why he felt this way.

He had decided to live by Roman laws, but that didn’t mean he would become a murderer.

Had they not come to kill him, Gaon wouldn’t have killed them. It had been self-defense, and searching the inn had just been the rightful act of a victor claiming spoils.

That’s all.

The streets were gradually brightening with the dawn.

“Now… where should I go?”

Gaon hesitated as he stepped out of the inn. He had left, but he felt uncertain about what to do next or where to go.

It felt like being abandoned on a remote island.

“Familiar… though.”

Gaon bit his lip.

He had experienced many enemies during his office life.

Had he ever felt isolated? Countless times.

So, the feeling he had now was nothing special.

He muttered to himself as he walked without any particular direction.

As he walked, he began to see people.

It was morning, and people were beginning their day.

Shops were opening, and the smells of food were wafting from the restaurants.

Unlike the inn, which had been in a desolate area, this place was lively.

With no clear destination, Gaon simply walked among the people.

After walking aimlessly, he eventually arrived at a place.

A temple.

Unknowingly, he had followed the footsteps of those starting their day by praying to God.

“Hm…”

Gaon quietly watched the people disappearing into the tall, white building with its spire.

Then, following them, Gaon also entered the temple.

He had never believed in gods, nor had he ever been religious.

Of course, he had never visited a church, cathedral, or temple.

Yet, for some reason, he found himself following the people into the temple.

It was because of a voice he had once faintly heard in the modern world.

[Please save my world.]

What did that mean?

Why him, of all people?

He had so many questions he wanted to ask the god who had kidnapped him.

Gaon put a few of the coins he had found into the donation box and made his way toward the prayer area.

“God…”

“Please…”

It wasn’t a comfortable prayer hall with chairs to sit on; rather, it was just a cheap cloth spread out on the ground outside, with many people already sitting, praying toward God.

Gaon sat in a corner, following their lead.

Maybe he had been swept up in the atmosphere.

‘Alright, let’s hear it. What is all this about?’

He asked this mentally, albeit in a defiant and rebellious tone.

“Hah, what am I even hoping for?”

But soon, Gaon chuckled bitterly and shook his head. His situation felt so absurd that he almost couldn’t stand it.

Without much thought, Gaon stood up.

No, he tried to stand up.

But—

Whoosh—

Suddenly, the sky opened, and a pillar of light descended.

“…What?”

Something was happening.

Something huge.