Chapter 35: A Coincidence for the NPC (6)

***Yeomyeong furrowed his brow. He was caught off guard from behind without even feeling any mana or presence.

Only when he belatedly focused his senses, did he feel a very faint presence.

However, just as he was about to turn his head a little more to size up his opponent, a cold gun muzzle pressed against his cheek.

“, don’t even think about turning your head any further. You should raise your hands up above your head obediently.”

The threatening tone was quite domineering, but the frivolous voice made it sound less like a threat.

“And take the strength out of your grip and put your hands up while I’m still being nice.”

Yeomyeong frowned as he continued pressing the neck of the rat-like bastard. Should he just let this bastard go?

The contemplation didn’t last long. He decided to first assess the opponent.

“…This is a personal matter. It would be better if you didn’t interfere.”

“It’s a personal matter for me too. It’s my hobby to save people, you know?”

The gunslinger spoke as if she were a hero of justice, but the words she uttered were clearly a lie.

Because a faint glimmer of joy crept up on the face of the rat-like bastard being choked to death.

Yeomyeong squinted and continued speaking.

“What’s your relationship with this bastard?”

“…No relationship at all.”

A brief silence fell. After a moment, a long sigh pushed away the heavy silence that had settled like a fog.

“, I really can’t lie. Well, all I can say is that I at least recognize Wollard’s face, so is that enough?”

Yeomyeong pondered over it with Wollard’s neck still in his grasp. It wouldn’t be bad to just snap his neck right now, but the gun pressed against his head was the problem.

He sighed and flung Wollard to the floor.

“!”

Wollard, who was rolling on the floor, lay there gasping for breath while frothing from his mouth.

After watching this for a moment, the gunslinger opened her mouth.

“You said it was a personal matter? What exactly did that person do for you to try to kill him by snapping his neck like a chicken’s?”

“…That bastard tried to kill my benefactor.”

“! Justifiable revenge?”

Wollard, who had been listening to their conversation, was shocked and attempted to interject with drool still dripping from his gasping mouth.

“No, ! That’s not it at all!”

“What’s not it?” S~eaʀᴄh the novel(F~)ire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

“Everything! It’s all a misunderstanding. Huh, that person’s benefactor is also my benefactor. I just had a slight misunderstanding with that person—”

“Hey.”

The moment he said the word ‘misunderstanding’, Yeomyeong cut him off and began gathering his mana.

His golden eyes flashed with anger.

“Is it a ‘slight misunderstanding’ when five people, including a Superhuman and armed men, come to grab someone by the collar?”

“No, that was… not intended… I didn’t do it on—”

“Shut your trap.”

Not only did Wollard, who couldn’t sense the mana, fall silent, but even the gunslinger shut her mouth. Yeomyeong glared at him, ready to pounce on him at any second.

The situation grew tense. After a brief silence, the gunslinger sighed.

“Hah, this guy really is a bastard.”

Unable to respond, the rat-like bastard lowered his head. Yeomyeong gathered his mana and initiated the Surging Wave technique.

The moment he extended his hand blade to prepare his next strike, the gun muzzle that had been pressed against his cheek moved.

The gunslinger fired a bullet at Wollard’s calf. It was an attack without any warning or premonition.

Both Wollard, who had been shot, and Yeomyeong, who was watching, blinked in shock.

“! Shit! My leg! My leg!”

Wollard, who felt the pain belatedly, screamed as he clutched his leg.

Perhaps due to some special treatment, the bullet had managed to pierced his calf bone and flesh cleanly, and blood flowing from the hole in his calf soaked the floor.

“…What the hell are you doing?”

Yeomyeong asked her in a subdued voice. The sudden interruption caused the mana he had gathered to scatter.

“I have a condition where I just feel like shooting whenever I see a bastard… Well, it’s not murder, though.”

“…He’ll probably die from blood loss with a wound like that.”

“His life won’t be in danger if he gets treated within 3 minutes.”

From her confident manner of speaking, it seemed like she had done something like this before. Only then did Yeomyeong turn his head to check the opponent’s appearance.

The spot where the gunslinger should have been was empty.

What Yeomyeong did see was a slender hand holding a revolver floating mid-air.

Yeomyeong recognized the type of magic used instantly and raised an eyebrow. It was the same magic Freya Cahn used to hide her Sister Swords.

Although he couldn’t tell how difficult it was to use Invisibility Magic, he was sure that casting magic on the entire body was no small feat.

The gunslinger was either a great Mage or possessed an even greater magic item. Either way, she wasn’t someone to be underestimated.

While Yeomyeong’s mana was trying to find its place, sounds of boots hurrying and shouts could be heard from the end of the alley.

It was the voices of the military police responsible for maintaining public order in the Mercenary Zone. The fact that they sounded closer than expected meant it was only a matter of time before they reached the alley.

Yeomyeong glared at the invisible gunslinger. The per— no she, undoubtedly, spun the revolver in a showy manner.

“Oh my, the military police will be here soon. Shall we go our separate ways? That guy might actually die if left like this.”

“What if I refuse?”

“Why? Do you want to leave him to die? But you know, there’s no need to kill him.”

“…”

“With a hole in his calf bone, he’ll have a lifelong ache even if it’s treated. Doesn’t that seem like he’s paid his dues?”

“Every time he feels that pain, he might be reminded to seek revenge instead.”

“Uh… you could say that as well… but I will make sure that it never happens. I swear. The Blue Rat will never, ever come near you or your benefactor again.”

Her manner of speaking was as if she would wink at him if her face were visible. Instead of responding, Yeomyeong continued to stare at the spot where the gunslinger supposedly was.

After a moment, she added somewhat sheepishly.

“Oh, really. Isn’t this enough to make you believe me?”

“...Do I look like a fool who would believe the words of someone who won’t even show their face?”

“Come on, seriously? You can only trust what you see? Even religious people believe in gods without even seeing their faces, you know?”

“I don’t go to temples.”

“Oh, really? Must be nice being a non-believer huh?”

While the two bickered back and forth, the forgotten Wollard was gasping for breath with half-closed eyes. It was a typical symptom of imminent death from blood loss.

“Damn, he’s really going to die at this rate.”

Seeing that, the gunslinger sighed and shifted her gun slightly. Was she going to shoot? Yeomyeong tensed his muscles.

.

Contrary to his expectations, she threw the gun to the ground.

Then she raised her now-free hands, grabbed something in the air, and 'spread' it.

A transparent curtain created by magic parted, revealing what was concealed behind it—Between someone’s chin and solar plexus… a smooth jawline, a slender neck, and something huge.

Yeomyeong, who was ready for a fight, frowned, wondering what was happening.

Regardless, the opponent immediately reached into her chest and pulled something.

It was a pendant with crossed swords, an axe, and a bleeding heart symbol. Though it wasn’t from Earth, it was a symbol familiar to Earthians—The symbol of Redox, the red god of war and struggle worshipped by warriors beyond the Dimensional Portal.

Why was she bringing out a symbol of God at a time like this? Yeomyeong’s eyebrow arched as mana swirled around the pendant.

The mana wasn’t something the gunslinger had infused; it was emanating from the pendant itself.

“…A Holy Relic?”

Unlike ordinary magic tools that couldn’t be activated without infusing mana using an external source, this object was able to emit mana all by itself due to the Holy Blessing.

It was a proof of faith and a reward for belief.

“Fortunately, you recognized it right away. Yes, it’s a Holy Relic.”

The mana emanating from the Holy Relic was dense enough to make his skin tingle.

It was a Holy Relic not given to just any priest, but a high-ranking one that would typically only be seen on TV. This naturally implied that the opponent was also a high-ranking priest…

“…So you’re not a gunslinger but a priest.”

“Well, I’d rather be a gunslinger.”

She grasped the pendant and pulled it away from her chest. Then she extended her hand and handed the relic to Yeomyeong.

“Here, take it.”

“…What?”

“It’s a guarantee for my vow. If the Blue Rat harms your benefactor by any chance, take this and go to the Redox Temple and ask for revenge. I assure you, the Church will give appropriate retribution to those who break their vow.”

“…”

“Isn’t this enough?”

Yeomyeong briefly glanced at the hand holding the pendant and the empty space before accepting the pendant.

He did so not because he trusted her but because he trusted the Holy Relic and the Redox Church—The only Church of gods who communicated with their followers directly.

They would raise their swords against any cultist who sold their names.

Perhaps this Holy Relic was the most trustworthy guarantee in the world….

However, there was nothing more certain than death. Yeomyeong swallowed his thoughts and subtly made way.

Seemingly waiting for this moment, the gunslinger concealed her upper body with Invisibility Magic once again and rushed to the rat-like bastard.

“Wollard, you idiot. You can’t even endure one bullet?”

And just as Yeomyeong subtly placed his hand on his weapon…

The hand floating in the air shimmered with white light. It wasn’t the fake light shown by cultists but genuine Holy light that performed miracles. Even the Incheon parish priests he remembered couldn’t emit such light…

Doubts spiraled endlessly in his mind, but they didn’t turn into queries. Seeing the light, Yeomyeong pondered briefly. That light represented the will of the gods. Would the gods abandon him if he killed the person responsible? Or wouldn’t it be better to trust the guarantee and retreat?

As Yeomyeong was torn between committing murder and belief…

-

The shouts of the military police could be heard from a distance. Would he be able to kill both of them before the military police arrived? The answer was no.

Yeomyeong moved his hand from his weapon and touched the Holy Relic in his pocket, feeling its warmth. Was this the will of the gods, or just a coincidence? He didn’t know. Nor did he want to know.

He turned and walked towards the opposite side of the alley. He didn’t know how this connection would develop, but it was time to leave.

As he left, the frivolous voice called out from behind him.

“Hey! It sucked to meet you, so let's never cross paths again!”

Whenever someone said that, they always ended up meeting again. Yeomyeong didn’t respond and simply left the alley.

* * *

Kim Mansoo and Cheon Yeomyeong met at the road right in front of the mercenary group’s base camp.

“Why did the guy who left first arrive at the same time as me?”

Seeing Yeomyeong’s clothes covered in dust, Kim Mansoo instinctively suspected something had happened, but Yeomyeong’s expression was way too calm.

“I got lost, Sir.”

“Got lost? What happened to the map?”

“I lost it.”

Hearing Yeomyeong’s calm answer, Mansoo’s eyebrows furrowed deeply.

He wanted to retort sharply, but given his own guilt for falling asleep in the car, he had nothing more to say.

“, fine. At least you made it to the base.”

In the end, Kim Mansoo said nothing else and just entered the base camp.

.

The old hinges creaked as soon as the door opened.

Whether it served as a doorbell or not, the dozen or so mercenaries inside the camp turned to stare at the two.

“Oh? Vice Captain? Aren’t you supposed to be facing disciplinary action?”

The first to speak was a burly man with a thick beard. Judging by the neatly disassembled automatic rifle laid out in front of him, it seemed like he was maintaining his firearm.

“Yes, I’m being disciplined. So, I came to Manchuria as an instructor.”

“Instructor?”

The middle-aged man then glanced at Yeomyeong, who was standing behind Kim Mansoo.

Perhaps because Yeomyeong appeared younger than expected, the man forced a laugh and said…

"I keep telling you to control that temper of yours. And now, someone at your level has to babysit? Really?”

“Stop babbling, you punk! When’s the next deployment?”

“The deployment? Well… you’ve arrived just in time.”

“Just in time?”

The middle-aged man chuckled while skillfully assembling his rifle.

“It’s today, in exactly three hours. We’re heading out to support the team that went to North Manchuria.”

Kim Mansoo sighed.

“Starting with an actual battle on the first day, it seems like the new guy’s really lucky.”

“Is supporting an expedition a joke? How’s a newcomer supposed to keep up?”

“It’s not a joke, Vice Captain. I also joined after two days.”

“That’s because you’ve served on active duty before. This kid’s a rookie who hasn’t even started military service, so today will just be about getting assigned...”

Just as Kim Mansoo was about to refuse, Yeomyeong, standing behind him, interjected.

“I will go.”

Kim Mansoo’s expression immediately twisted in surprise. Seeing this, the middle-aged man burst into hearty laughter.

“ Finally, a decent one has arrived! Yes, that’s the spirit! You’ve got to be proactive if you’re in the mercenary business!”

, the middle-aged man, who had finished assembling his firearm, stood up. He slung the automatic rifle over his shoulder and stood before Yeomyeong.

“Newcomer, what’s your name?”

“Cheon Yeomyeong.”

“Yeomyeong, welcome to the 3rd team of the Sonjuk Mercenary Group. I’m Tian Lin, the team leader. As for the rest of their names …”

Tian Lin surveyed the base camp briefly and shrugged.

“I’ll let you know only if you don’t fall behind on your first deployment.”

Amidst the snickering of the mercenaries, Kim Mansoo massaged his throbbing forehead.

***

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