novelraw Chapter 23
Chapter 23
Chapter 23. It Ended Before It Even Began
Rain poured down like a waterfall. Kuli’s figure darted through the dark alleys like a ghost.
His speed was so fast that a series of vacuum-like afterimages briefly appeared in the rain curtain before vanishing again.
According to the plan, the fake Kuli could delay things for at most half an hour. He had to end this quickly.
With the strength of an Elite-level thief, it took him barely more than a dozen breaths to cross five city blocks and arrive outside the largest casino controlled by the Blood Hand Brotherhood—the headquarters of the scar-faced brute—Blood Hand Casino.
“Big! Big! Big!”
“Raise the bet!”
“Hit! Hahaha!”
“No more bets!”
The shouts of the dealer and the roars of gamblers sounded particularly harsh beneath the pounding rain and rumbling thunder.
Kuli raised a hand to wipe the rain from his face. Beneath the hood of his cloak, the corner of his mouth curled into a cold smile.
He adjusted the drenched cloak so the hood perfectly concealed his face, then staggered forward with the unsteady gait unique to gamblers and pushed open the door leading to “fortune.”
***
“Move it, you bastards! Get your clothes and tattoos ready!”
Inside a temporary hideout prepared in advance, the scar-faced brute cursed in a low voice while his subordinates hurriedly changed their outfits.
“When we rush into the shops, grab whatever you see. If the security squad shows up, set a fire and withdraw! Move fast!” The scar-faced brute grabbed a coat embroidered with a poison scorpion pattern and pulled it over himself. If someone thought the Blood Hand Brotherhood would take the blame for this, they were dreaming!
Three streets away, the lanky man from the Noose Gang was performing the same disguise.
Both gangs had silently reached the same conclusion—taking the money was fine, but taking the blame was not.
High above the pitch-black sky, Isos’s distorted form flickered in and out within the lightning like unstable television static. These humans’ overly cautious preparations made him restless with impatience.
If not for his lord’s order that he must wait until these people entered the Rock Adventurer Team’s territory before acting, he would have swallowed them all already.
Only when the fake Kuli rushed into the Rock Adventurer Team’s territory first did Isos’s head finally split open into an exaggerated grin-like crack.
“Finally~ dinner time~”
The dozens of men led by the fake Kuli had barely stepped into the Rock Adventurer Team’s territory when the already dim surroundings grew even darker.
At first they thought the rain was simply obstructing their vision, but soon they could no longer see even the slightest glimmer of light. It was as if they had stepped into the gaping maw of an abyss, completely losing their sense of direction.
“Boss? Are you still there?”
“Boss… are you… still there…”
…
A trembling voice from one of the lackeys echoed repeatedly in his own ears. He stretched his hands forward, groping blindly, yet felt nothing at all.
Even more terrifying—just a second earlier he could still faintly hear the splashing sounds of people stepping into puddles while moving forward.
The next moment, even the violent sound of rain disappeared. The entire world was left with nothing but the thunderous beating of his own heart.
Unfortunately, he received no reply.
They were already trapped inside Isos’s shadow body. Aside from themselves, they could no longer perceive the existence of anyone else.
“Ah~ the taste of fear~” Isos greedily inhaled the aura of fear within his body.
Human flesh and souls were like chewing wax to him, but those spiritually rich emotions were exquisite delicacies.
“These disgusting bodies and souls can be left for the other colleagues. They’re really too unpleasant to eat.”
Just as he savored the endless “feast,” the scar-faced brute and the members of the Blood Hand Brotherhood also leapt into the prepared shadow maw like moths flying into flames.
Isos suddenly trembled with excitement, his entire form rippling irregularly.
The man wearing those blood-gold gauntlets gave him quite a surprise!
Sharp punches filled with dense killing intent left streak-like scars within the shadows.
When the brute was nearly exhausted, he actually managed to tear open a crack in Isos’s body. Rain mixed with the salty sea wind suddenly rushed in through the opening.
Hope instantly filled the scar-faced brute’s eyes. For the first time he felt how wonderful it was to be alive. Using the last of his strength, he lunged toward the crack.
Only to discover in despair that his feet had no surface to push off from. He merely performed a futile jumping motion in place while watching the gap shrink smaller and smaller.
“No—!”
The scar-faced brute’s unwilling roar had barely pierced the rain curtain before countless shadows wrapped around his body. Like a drowning man pressed beneath water, he ultimately left behind nothing but a string of desperate bubbles.
“Ah~ satisfying!”
Isos’s body churned violently in satisfaction, twisting and writhing like boiling asphalt.
His neck twisted at a bizarre angle as pitch-black eyes locked through the rain curtain onto the members of the Noose Gang. The devouring desire surging within him caused the shadow body to expand and deform, countless tendril-like shadows waving around him.
“Maybe… I should take the initiative? It’s not that far anyway…”
The shadows began spreading outward like a spiderweb. But just as they were about to extend beyond the territory of the Rock Adventurer Team, he suddenly clenched an invisible “fist,” forcibly drawing all the leaking energy back into his body.
“Huff… huff…”
He had almost… almost become a monster that only pursued indulgence again. His tattered cloth-like body rose and fell violently as though he had just survived a life-and-death battle.
If Lord Kyle saw him like this, he would definitely be disappointed…
No!
He had to control himself. He also wanted to have his own emotions, his own ideals. He did not want to be a monster that only fed on the spiritual emotions of others!
Chaotic footsteps from the Noose Gang echoed through the rain curtain, but they no longer stirred any emotional ripples within Isos.
Shadows surged forward like a tide, mercilessly sweeping across their bodies.
There was no struggle, no sound. As if erased by an invisible rubber, they vanished without a trace.
Soon, the thick darkness receded, and the streets returned to their dim state beneath the heavy rain—as though nothing had ever happened.
***
“Hahaha! What a windfall! Those idiots from the Blood Hand Brotherhood hadn’t even submitted their yearly tribute yet!”
Kuli grinned, blood seeping from the corner of his mouth. The sharp pain from the wound in his left arm caused his steps to stagger slightly.
He limped toward the docks while biting down on a bandage and wrapping it around his arm.
He hadn’t expected the people left behind there to be quite so formidable. Even while poisoned, they still managed to injure him.
“But it doesn’t matter…”
With his uninjured right hand, he touched the spatial pouch inside his coat. It was filled with magic crystals, jewels, and precious magical items!
The sensation beneath his fingers made the smile on his face appear especially ferocious beneath the rain.
With this “capital,” it wouldn’t take him long to rise again.
No—he would certainly do even better than before!
The torrential rain had become perfect cover, ensuring no one noticed him. Even the vagrants hiding in various corners curled themselves tighter, afraid the cold rain might soak their last remaining clothes.
After smoothly crossing nearly a quarter of the city through streets and alleys, Kuli reached the small fast boat he had prepared earlier at the dock.
He raised the sail, untied the ropes, and cast one final glance at Coral Thorn City—the place where he had struggled for nearly twenty years—through the curtain of rain.
Then, without looking back, he plunged into the dark sea night.