"ShiHoon? A-are you really ShiHoon?"
KangWoo's eyes shook, and it looked as if he were having a bad nightmare.
"N-no. There's no way you’re ShiHoon."
His body trembled, and he grabbed his hair and shook his head.
He tried to deny reality.
There's no way the demon in front of him was Kim ShiHoon.
"H-hyeongnim."
"Shut up! How dare you act as if you’re ShiHoon!" he shouted aggressively.
He brought out Del Lain, the sword that emitted a golden light, and a strong killing intent rose from him.
He glared at Kim ShiHoon and Yogsaron with resentment.
"Where is he?"
Boom! He stomped on the ground.
Golden light started to spread in all directions.
''Where's Kim ShiHoon, you motherfuckers?!!" he desperately shouted as if he wanted to erase the worst possible scenario in front of him.
[HAHAHAHA!!!]
Yogsaron grabbed his stomach and began laughing out loud.
The tips of his mouth went up as if he found the situation funny.
He opened his mouth while looking at KangWoo.
[You can't recognize your little brother despite him being right in front of you?]
"Wh-what?"
[That, over there, is your little brother.]
He raised his hands and pointed to Kim ShiHoon.
"That demon is ShiHoon? Don't say nonsense!" he shouted, but he already knew it.
He already knew it from the atmosphere that came out of him and how he was looking at him.
"Hyeong… nim."
"No…"
He tried to deny it.
He shook his head with a pale expression on his face.
He didn't want to believe the nightmare.
"Why… why are you…"
"I'm… sorry."
Kim ShiHoon lowered his head.
He'd fallen after being deceived by Satan.
He felt as if his heart were burning after KangWoo saw him like that.
Kim ShiHoon looked at his own body.
'Even now…'
It still wasn’t late.
He could go back… He could still clean the spoiled water.
KangWoo also had the body of a demon before accepting Tyrion's strength and becoming an Apostle of the Hero God.
Just like him, he just had to give up on the demonic energy that was inside his body.
"Ugh…"
A thirst spread through his body.
He felt as if his throat was being scratched with sharp metal, and his body trembled as if it were being dried up.
'I must give it up.'
He had to let it go…
He had to let the dark energy inside his body go…
It wasn't hard…
All he had to do was let go of the rope…
It was simple and easy, but…
"UGH, AAAHHH!"
He struggled in pain.
The horrible thirst that a demon's body caused that he'd never felt until that point took control of his body.
It was like a drug addict was trying to spit a drug out that was already on his tongue.
It was like pouring a glass of water out in front of someone who was about to die of dehydration under the sweltering sun.
No, it was worse than that.
There was a reason why most people that accepted demonic energy inside their bodies lost their minds.
Not only that, but the demonic energy inside his body belonged to the Demon King.
The desire caused by a demon's body was eating his body as if it was a curse.
"Sh-ShiHoon!"
KangWoo anxiously spread his hands.
Kim ShiHoon started to convulse.
"Ah… AAGGHH!"
He scratched his cheeks with his claws and tore his skin.
Black blood poured down from his cheeks.
His body twisted and he grabbed his hair. Crack. His fingers pierced his head.
His scalp was torn away, and he screamed.
Crack-!
He raised his sword and smashed his arms.
He desperately swung his sword to free himself from the desires.
Blood splashed everywhere, and his bones became visible.
That only lasted for a moment. As if the time were being rewound, his wounds closed up again.
Only the pain remained.
"Get out of me!!!"
It didn't stop.
Tears dripped from his eyes.
If things went on like that, he would become Satan's puppet.
He would end up killing the woman he loved and twisting the neck of the hyeong he admired.
No, KangWoo was overwhelmingly stronger than him, so the opposite was probably going to happen.
Either way, it didn't matter.
Both results would be catastrophic.
There was no hope anymore.
'I must free myself.'
He had to be free from Satan's deceptions and his own horrifying desire.
He put more strength on the sword.
He hoped the pain would wash away this mind-blowing thirst.
"ShiHoon!"
KangWoo went to him.
He grabbed the sword and shouted, "Stop it, you idiot!!!"
"Hyeongnim, I…"
"You can tell me later. First, you should calm down…"
"No."
He shook his head.
* * *
He could feel that the demonic energy was starting to change his body even more.
It would be the end if he couldn't stop it from spreading right then.
He would fully become a demon and turn into Satan's puppet.
"I must do it right now."
"What… what do you have to do?!"
"I can revert it. It… still isn't too late," he said in a desperate voice.
It wasn't too late. Not yet.
He grabbed the sword and sawed at his arms again.
The sharp blade cut his muscles and bones.
A horrible pain spread through his body.
He began pouring the demonic energy from inside his body out through the wounds.
Crack-
The horn that had appeared on his forehead disappeared, and the bat wings were starting to decrease in size.
"Ugh, agh…"
The more he pushed the demonic energy away, the more intense the thirst became.
His consciousness became blurry.
It felt as if the demonic energy that had devoured his body was talking to him.
- Are you really going to give up?
The demon's sweet whisper…
He could see the demon wearing a red mask laughing while looking at him.
"Shut… up."
He knew it was an illusion.
The Satan he could see and hear was all fake.
It was just a nightmare created by that crazy thirst, but even if he knew it was fake, it was hard to resist the temptation.
Crack. The horn on his forehead started to rise again.
His field of vision was distorted and covered by darkness.
"…"
KangWoo looked at Kim ShiHoon.
It wasn’t hard to guess what he was experiencing.
'Not good.'
He knew how strong the desires of a demon were.
When he fell into the Hell of the Nine Skies, he struggled a lot while trying to resist those urges.
'Was it not enough for me to appear?'
He was hoping Kim ShiHoon could push those temptations away after looking at him, but it seemed like the stimulation wasn't big enough.
'If Kim ShiHoon keeps living as a demon…'
He already used the Satan cheat, so he had washed away the suspicions about the Authority of Subordination.
ShiHoon staying as a demon might be helpful, but he shook his head.
'No.'
Kim ShiHoon's source of strength wasn't demonic energy.
That was like putting petrol into an electric car.
It was hard to imagine what side effect it would have if things kept going on like that.
'In the worst-case scenario…'
Kim ShiHoon would die.
KangWoo's eyes narrowed.
He couldn't let that happen.
'Then it’s time…'
It was about time to use his last card.
The tips of his mouth went up.
'This is going to work.'
He was sure of it.
He looked at Kim ShiHoon, who was trembling in desperation.
"Ehem."
'First, adjust the vocal tone.'
He closed his eyes a bit and tried to get the emotions right.
His little brother who had turned into a demon… His ally had fallen after being deceived by a demon…
The friendship and love that blossomed in the middle of a desperate situation…
The setup was very important.
KangWoo slowly opened his mouth, extended his hands, and grabbed Kim ShiHoon's shoulders.
"ShiHoon! Come back to your senses!!"
'The emotions are on point.'
He spoke in a desperate voice that surprised even him.
Ting-
[Activating the Authority of Subordination.]
He could hear the notification message bell at the same time.
Black energy flowed out of KangWoo's hands and entered Kim ShiHoon's body.
"Hyeong… nim."
"Come back to your senses, bastard!!"
"I'm… sorry… Hyeongnim… I…"
Kim ShiHoon's body trembled.
"Ah."
At that moment, Kim ShiHoon's eyes widened.
He felt an unknown sensation rising from inside him.
He quickly turned his head.
[Hahaha. Can you feel it? This is the strength of the 'seed' that Mr. Satan planted inside you.]
Yogsaron opened his mouth while he watched everything unfold with his arms crossed.
Kim ShiHoon's expression darkened in despair.
"No…"
The desire to destroy, the hatred, and the craziness…
Kim ShiHoon's hands were moving on their own.
"N,-no!!"
He was doing his best to control his own movement, but it wasn't enough with that.
The seed that Satan had planted blossomed inside him.
A horrifying desire to kill was aimed toward KangWoo.
"What's wrong?!"
"H-hyeongnim! P-please get away…"
Stab-
"Ah."
The sword in his hands pierced KangWoo's stomach.
Kim ShiHoon's eyes and mouth fell open.
He could feel his hands stained with blood.
It was the chilling sensation of killing in cold blood.
"Cough."
Blood spurted out of KangWoo's mouth.
He looked at the sword piercing his stomach in disbelief.
"H-hyeongnim… I'm sorry… I'm… sorry."
Tears dripped from his eyes.
He was hoping everything that was unfolding in front of him was just a nightmare, but the hot blood flowing over his hands was proof that it was real.
"Wh-what did I…?"
He felt that he was about to go crazy.
No, he might have already gone mad.
KangWoo hugged him when he was about to lose his mind.
"Hyeong… nim…?"
"Haa. Cough! Come back to your senses, you idiot."
His voice was so weak that it sounded like he would perish at any moment.
"I don't know why you've become like this."
"H-hyeongnim… Y-you shouldn't talk anymore. You’re b-bleeding!" Kim ShiHoon shouted while crying.
KangWoo ignored him and didn't let him go.
"You can do it."
"…"
"You can beat this."
KangWoo smiled at him.
"ShiHoon…"
He placed his hands on his cheek.
"Thanks for staying as my little brother."
"Ah."
Kim ShiHoon's body trembled.
Trauma. The trauma that had been carved into his soul…
- I'm sorry for giving birth to you.
The words that had been applying pressure on him…
Those words that were a nightmare and a curse… Up until then, he'd lived to go against those words.
Tears dripped from his eyes.
KangWoo’s words of affirmation; his thanks for being there…
How much had he wanted to hear those words?
"Agh…"
He could do it.
Satan's seed, and the demonic energy inside his body… he could toss it all away.
Thirst hit him, but he ignored it.
A craving for strength invaded his mind, but he ignored it.
'I…'
His sight became pitch-black.
He tore down the darkness from which he couldn't see anything.
The darkness disappeared; instead, it became filled with a blue light.
Kim ShiHoon's body was surrounded by intense blue light.
Ting-
[Your assimilation with Martial God Cheon TaeHwang has reached 51.2%.]
[All the conditions for Transformation have been fulfilled.]
[Your body is being restructured.]
[You've learned the unique skill 'Sword Control.']
BOOM!-!!
The ground shook.
When Kim ShiHoon's body was surrounded by blue light, KangWoo's body fell to the ground.
KangWoo slightly opened his eyes and looked at Kim ShiHoon; the tips of his mouth went up.
'Yes! Fuck! This is it!'
He remembered his last phrase.
- Thanks for staying as my little brother.
'Woah.'
KangWoo trembled in excitement while thinking about what he'd said.
'I’m so fucking cool.'
That was why everyone loved him.
