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The skeleton soldiers’ and hunters’ swords clashed against one another while the archers readied their crossbows. The tips of their arrows burned bright red. 

“Fire!” 

At the attack squad’s team leader’s command, countless arrows flew through the air. The arrows exploded into flames on impact, but the skeleton soldiers were able to escape the flames. The hunters spread out to each side. 

“Now!” 

The hunters aimed their rifles and shot. Magic bullets from all sides rammed into the skeleton soldiers. Their armor cracked, and sounds of their bones being crushed could be heard. The hunters surrounded the skeleton soldiers in a circle and continued the crossfire. It did not take long for the skeleton soldiers’ bodies to break down. 

“Great, we got i-” the hunter was unable to finish his sentence. His eyeball burst from the impact of a bone arrow. As the hunters turned to look at their wobbling colleague, bone arrows began to rain down on them. 

“Shield!” A hunter with a shield struck it into the ground, and a transparent but solid barrier surrounded the hunters. The bone arrows crashed into the barrier and broke into pieces with a spark. After undoing the barrier, the hunters began to attack once again. 

Kang Hyuk looked to the hunters’ dead bodies. Shortly after, a black light wavered and soared up. The dead bodies exploded, and from within, skeleton soldiers rose. The black light flowed into the skeletons’ skulls. The skeleton soldiers all were approximately two meters tall with wide build. Their weapons were axes made of bone and hefty in structure. They were Kang Hyuk’s 7th legion’s assault soldiers: their purpose was to charge at their opponents with great speed and force and to destroy. 

Kang Hyuk was summoning his 7th legion soldiers into the apartment complex. Cha Hyukkyu’s eyes grew in size, and he wondered, They’re much bigger than the ones from the lobby. Is he strengthening his summons by accumulating souls as more people die? 

The skeleton soldiers charged toward Cha Hyukkyu, but he was able to quickly get out of the way by leaping into the air. The sword he took out glowed blue as he swung it down onto the skull of a skeleton soldier. A blue line of light split the skull in half. Cha Hyukkyu smoothly landed back onto the ground and swung his sword once more. A blue light wavered in the space between him and the skeleton soldiers, and multiple skeleton soldiers fell to the ground as their bones were sliced. 

Cha Hyukkyu looked at the pile of broken bones and asked, “Haa, when are these bastards gonna get here?” 

***

Near the entrance of the apartment complex, Kang Hyuk’s skeleton soldiers were in guarding position. There was a man watching these soldiers from afar. 

“Hey, Hwang Kyuho.” 

“Ah, you’re here, hyung-nim.” 

The rest of Gargoa Guild’s attack squads were arriving one by one. 

A man with a build resembling that of a professional wrestler spat out his cigarette to reply, “I don’t need a greeting. Where’s Cha Hyukkyu?” 

“Hyukkyu hyung is already in there fighting,” answered Hwang Kyuho. 

“He never listens even though I keep telling him an impatient man dies the earliest. Dumbass,” replied the man, turning his gaze to the apartment complex. 

“The surveillance team asked me if I was gonna fight with him, so I said no.” 

“Why not go and fight too?” 

“How would a coward like me go in there?” replied Hwang Kyuho. “You know I need the emotional support of stronger members to fight well.” 

“And not because you know you’d get leader position for the fourth attack squad if Hyukkyu dies?” 

Hwang Kyuho smiled coldly. “No way. I’m not that heartless, hyung-nim.” 

“I know very well that you are that heartless. Kang Min’s the only one who didn’t know.” 

Hwang Kyuho licked his lips. “Can I really take his spot if he dies?” 

“Ask Vice Master that. I don’t have that authority.” 

“But you’re the fighting king and leader of the third attack squad. Don’t you have any say?” 

“Dumbass, do better instead of asking these kind of questions. You’ve been real annoying with how you’ve been acting lately. Okay?” 

“Watch me. I’m a bit annoying, but you know I did manage to stab Kang Min,” replied Hwang Kyuho. “Even as the best hunter in the world, he had a human reaction when stabbed. I’ll stab the heart of that bastard’s older brother.” 

“You sure about that? He’s a necromancer.” 

“Hyung-nim, it’s not like necromancers are immortal. I got a bunch of divine potions from the Elijah Order for this exact reason.” Hwang Kyuho looked at his subordinate behind him. The subordinate took off the backpack he was wearing. 

“What’s all this?” 

“Hyung-nim, this is what the American guilds are using nowadays to hunt down necromancer criminals,” explained Hwang Kyuho. “Apparently the vatican’s disciples in Europe used their magic power to make this special-grade holy water. Even a single drop is enough to melt all the Undead.” 

“Dumbass, are you here to sell drugs?” 

“As the Fight King, you can resolve everything with your fists, but I fall behind a bit on physical combat. I’m gonna fight using this.” 

Hwang Kyuho was aware that Kang Hyuk was after him and had thus prepared the best he could by taking the vatican’s holy water that Gargoa Guild had been importing in from the USA and Europe. He was certain that Kang Hyuk’s army of Undead were no different from the Undead he had fought in the past. 

“Hey, Oh Taeho, come share this to everyone.” 

“Yes, sir!” Oh Taeho opened Hwang Kyuho’s backpack and began giving the potions containing shiny water out to the attack squad members. 

“Here you go, Captain,” Oh Taeho offered to the third attack squad captain. 

“I don’t need it. I’ve got this,” the man dubbed Fight King showed Oh Taeho his cross necklace. 

“What is that, hyung-nim?” 

“An artifact that saintess gave me.” 

“Ah, the one you had a great night with?” 

“Bastard, you’ve got great memory in that category.” 

“I might not remember my parents’ name, but I’ll never forget that kind of stuff.” Hwang Kyuho smugly smiled. 

Suddenly, Fight King’s gaze wavered. What is this feeling that someone’s watching me? He glanced over the skeleton soldier crowd. Within the solidarity of the countless Undead demonic beasts, all with eye sockets that helf a black light, was Kang Hyuk watching him. Fight King thought to himself, Found him. 

Kang Hyuk was watching Hwang Kyuho through the gaze of the skeleton soldiers while his skeleton soldiers were fighting Cha Hyukkyu’s subordinates. Through Gaze of the Deceased, it felt as if he was seeing Hwang Kyuho right in front of him. Kang Hyuk felt an itch inside his heart, knowing that the hunters that were responsible for the death of his brother were gathering one by one outside the apartment complex. 

***

The ground underneath the skeleton soldiers were piled with the hunters’ bodies. The only one left standing was Cha Hyukkyu. 

“Huff... Huff...” 

Lamur walked out holding his cane. Having faced Lamur, Cha Hyukkyu was unable to use his powers like earlier. What is that monster...? His body was full of self harm scars. 

Lamur picked a skull on his cane and whispered to it. The skull then started speaking in an undeciperhable language as if singing. Cha Hyukkyu stabbed himself with his sword each time he heard the skull’s talking, unable to stop himself being controlled by the unknown power. 

“Aaagh!! Fuck!!” 

His sword, once embraced in blue light, was now rotting black. Due to Lamur’s curse cast on him, he could not fight nor run. Lamur flicked one of the skulls with his finger towards the kneeling Cha Hyukkyu. Upon hearing the skull’s speaking, Cha Hyukkyu aimed his sword towards his heart. 

“Aaagh! Stop! S-save me! Please!” 

Cha Hyukkyu could see Lamur’s cold sneer and Kang Hyuk’s merciless gaze. The sword went through his heart and came out through his back. 

Watching the life leave Cha Hyukkyu’s eyes, Kang Hyuk spoke. “They’re all here. Collect all the souls here.” 

“I will follow Your Lord’s orders.” 

Lamur planted his cane on the ground, and the souls escaped from the dead hunters’ bodies. The souls collected into each skull on the cane. Each time a soul was absorbed, Lamur’s cane increased in thickness, and the branch-like bones where the skulls hung spread and grew like a tree. 

Kang Hyuk was looking at the apartment where his brother had lived. The building was black in places from mold. The spots were as dark as the shade on a day with blazing sun, and it spread silently. The mold was creating small fractures in the exterior of the building. Kang Hyuk muttered something to himself, and each floor of the apartment building began to crack in places. Chunks of concrete and windows fell from the high-up floors. The black mold that had spread from the insects’ bodies were breaking the structure of the building. 

“What the hell?” 

The hunters gathered outside the apartment complex collectively looked toward the apartment as the top part of the building cracked. The concrete walls below began to fall apart. The building was falling with tremendous noise that vibrated the ground. As it fell, thick dust blew like a tornado. 

“Watch out! The building’s crashing,” said the attack squad members, backing away. 

“Captain! The connection with Captain Cha Hyukkyu is broken.” 

“Ask the surveillance team guys what’s going on.” 

“Well, the connection with them is cut too.” 

“What?” 

Hwang Kyuho looked at the debris of the apartment with a confused look. 

“I think the apartment’s fallen.” 

“Why would it suddenly fall? Did it take magic attacks?” 

Ignorant of what’s happening in the complex, the second attack squad arrived. 

“Hey, Park Yoonchul, is everyone here?” A man in a gray suit emerged from a high-class car. 

“Hey, Han Taeho, do you think I’m here to make reports to you?” replied Park Yoonchul, Fight King and captain of the third attack squad. 

“I’m higher rank than you in the guild. If I ask for a report, then you should give me one, don’t you think?” answered Han Taeho, pushing his glasses up his nose. 

“Higher rank? I don’t agree with that.” 

“Then we can prove it here before going in.” 

“Should we?” 

Park Yoonchul approached Han Taeho. Hwang Kyuho stepped in between them. 

“Don’t be like this, hyung-nims,” interrupted Hwang Kyuho. “There’s a real fun event ahead of us. Our opponent is that creepy necromancer bastard in there. If hyung-nims are gonna fight each other, I’m gonna run from fear.” 

“...” 

Park Yoonchul and Han Taeho did not reply. 

Standing in front of the remains of the apartment, Kang Hyuk muttered to himself. I give life to those beings without, so respond to my calling.  

Black mold from the summoned insects’ bodies marked the concrete debris. The mold began to vanish, and the concret chunks began to wriggle. They pulled each other together like magnets and formed a shape. The pieces were coming together like clay by Kang Hyuk. 

The sounds of things crashing and breaking attracted the attention of the hunters. 

“What is all this noise?” 

Behind them, multiple cars pulled in. 

“Ah, you’re here, sir.” 

“Report on the current situation,” replied Vice Master as he exited the car. “I assume no one went in before me?” While walking towards the hunters, he stopped. The hunters’ eyes followed to where Vice Master was looking.