Chapter 17 : Open Fire II

The giant wings made of shadows allowed me to hover for a moment.

Although I couldn’t fly freely through the sky, the ruined city provided many platforms to step on.

Tap!

I stepped on a collapsed building and leapt again.

As my slowed speed picked up and I soared into the sky,

I finally found my target.

A woman with a surprised expression, looking up at the sky.

[82 Seowang Nosik’s Last Strike]

She looked nothing like her nickname suggested.

The weapon she held was a long rifle.

There were no other users around.

She must have taken this remote spot for sniping.

That was her mistake.

Hovering briefly in mid-air, I swung my katana and dove towards her.

Flutter!

The wings on my back flapped strongly, adding to my speed.

“Take this…!”

A groan escaped through clenched teeth as the opponent aimed the long rifle at me.

A red target appeared precisely between my eyes.

It was almost like predicting the future.

I moved my wings to change direction.

Pop-!

Bang-!

A gunshot rang out with a strong flap of my wings.

A white flash grazed my cheek by a narrow margin.

From the weapon, skills, and equipment used,

I had made all my judgments.

The opponent could never defeat me.

Even if there was a trap below, the future wouldn’t change.

So I pressed on.

Whoosh!

As my falling speed increased, the opponent’s expression turned desperate, and they began to turn.

But it was too late.

If they had turned the moment they saw me, they might have had a chance, but my katana was already reaching out towards them.

“Gasp…!”

From above to below.

As the long katana pierced the opponent’s head,

their body crumpled to the ground, unable to withstand the impact.

Crunch!

Twisted and broken bones pierced through the skin, and red blood flowed out.

Was it the vampire’s instinct?

I licked my lips as I watched.

[82 Seowang Nosik’s Last Strike]

↓ [Human Corpse]

The information of the opponent changed.

The nickname was replaced with “Human Corpse,” and the description became simpler.

The system ruling over this world had decided.

The user impaled by my katana was no longer a living being.

I pulled the sword from the corpse.

The blood on the blade was naturally absorbed by the shadows.

Though I wanted to drink all the blood from the corpse right then, there were still three human users left.

Thinking of Hwanggu and Aurel, I had no time to linger.

I spread my wings and leapt once more.

Flutter!

“Hwanggu, follow me carefully….”

“Okay!”

Aurel cautiously followed, thinking of Charlotte.

If the opponent were an ordinary human, Aurel would have joined the fight too.

Aurel wanted to help Charlotte, but at level 12, attempting to help now would likely result in her head being blown off by a single sniper shot.

Aurel and Hwanggu moved very cautiously.

They even flattened themselves on the ground, fearing their movements might be detected.

They covered a significant distance.

Aurel sighed in relief as she looked back.

They had reached a place far from the explosion site.

She thought they were quite safe now.

It was at that moment Aurel sighed with relief.

Bang-!

A loud gunshot rang out, and red blood spurted in front of Aurel’s eyes.

The first thing Aurel felt was pain.

A burning pain started from her arm.

“Aurel!”

Since becoming a vampire, Aurel hadn’t experienced such pain often, and she couldn’t gather her thoughts.

She also couldn’t understand why Hwanggu was looking at her like that.

Worry, confusion, excitement, anger—Aurel was stunned by the emotions she sensed beyond Hwanggu’s gaze.

Sizzle-

White smoke rose belatedly.

Aurel finally realized the state of her arm.

Her arm below the elbow was gone.

“Gasp…”

A shocked gasp escaped her lips.

Aurel saw her arm lying on the ground.

The once white arm was now red with blood, and the severed end was charred black, emitting white smoke.

It wasn’t an ordinary attack.

It was an attack using silver bullets.

Aurel felt a severe dizziness and collapsed.

“Growl!”

As Aurel couldn’t move, Hwanggu immediately crouched down.

Even though Hwanggu had lost her memory, her instincts were still intact.

Her companion had been attacked.

Although they had only been together for a short time, and despite not knowing their relationship before losing her memory, Hwanggu recognized Aurel and Charlotte as members of the same group.

And Charlotte had also asked Hwanggu for a favor.

Hwanggu didn’t forget Charlotte’s request.

“Growl…!”

The growling sound came from deep within Hwanggu’s throat.

Hwanggu instinctively began using the werewolf’s skills.

Partial beast transformation activation.

The pale moonlight in the sky began to empower Hwanggu.

Her hair grew out, covering her back.

Her arms and legs slightly increased in size, covered by brown fur.

It was as if a transformation from human to wolf was taking place.

Her nails and claws turned into something far from human.

“Roar!”

Hwanggu’s transformation didn’t stop there.

The fur covering her body extended and formed a long, fluffy tail.

She appeared half-human, half-wolf.

Hwanggu instinctively knew that this form allowed her to reach her maximum speed.

With her body transformed, her sense of smell also improved.

Hwanggu lifted her head and sniffed the air.

Sniff, sniff-

The information conveyed through the scents was immense.

She could determine the enemy’s position, body size, strength, and even their emotions.

There was only one enemy targeting this place.

Following her instincts, Hwanggu kicked off the ground and charged forward.

“Hwanggu…!”

Aurel called out, but Hwanggu didn’t stop.

She moved solely to eliminate the threat to her group.

Starting to run on all fours, Hwanggu disappeared into the darkness with unprecedented speed.

Tap, tap, tap-

Tap, tap, tap-

Tap, tap, tap-

Footsteps echoed from all directions.

The human who had attacked Aurel and Hwanggu,

Mariette, took a deep breath, calming herself.

She knew her opponent was a werewolf.

That’s why she had followed them here.

Mariette was confident in close combat.

Her build focused on a one-handed sword and handgun skills, making her a close-combat dealer.

Having hunted several werewolves before, her confidence was high.

But.

Tap, tap, tap~!

“Gasp!”

Mariette swallowed dryly and aimed her handgun into the darkness.

The incessant footsteps disoriented her.

The werewolf’s movements were so fast that she couldn’t aim her gun properly.

Tap, tap, tap!

Footsteps echoed once more.

Mariette, in a panic, fired her gun towards the sound.

Bang-!

A white flash accompanied the silver bullet as it was fired.

The flash briefly illuminated the world.

Revealing a small wolf girl.

She left an afterimage as she melted into the darkness.

Thump-

Thump-!

Thump-!

Her heart pounded loudly.

Mariette realized she was feeling fear.

She looked around for a while, then started shooting into the empty air.

Fear had thrown Mariette into a state of panic.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

With each spent bullet, the footsteps of the wolf girl grew closer.

Tap, tap, tap-

Tap, tap-

“Gasp…”

How much time had passed?

Mariette realized her back was drenched with cold sweat.

Click-

Click-

Her once full silver bullets were now depleted.

She needed to reload quickly.

Fumbling, she reached into her pocket.

“Growl…”

A low growl emerged.

Mariette turned with trembling eyes.

When had she gotten so close?

Mariette hadn’t heard any approaching sound or sensed any presence.

The only indication was the growl escaping the werewolf girl’s mouth.

Would admitting it was a mistake save her? No, she wouldn’t have shown mercy if it were the other way around.

Mariette swung her sword frantically.

A military longsword bought from a shop.

A cheap item, but the best she could get at the moment.

And that was her last desperate act.

Swoosh-!

A blade cutting through the air.

At that moment, something shone like a soft moon in the sky.

Slash!

A faint crescent moon-like trajectory.

Suddenly, Mariette felt her strength draining away.

Her gaze fell on the military longsword she was holding.

The once solid blade had been sliced cleanly.

That was the last thing Mariette remembered.

Thud-

Hwanggu looked at her claws.

She didn’t know exactly what she did, but she understood she had used a sudden burst of strength to cut through the opponent.

Her softly glowing claws resembled the moonlight.

“Ah!”

At that moment, Hwanggu remembered Aurel.

She had left her friend, whose arm was severed, alone.

Shaking her head vigorously, Hwanggu sprinted back to where Aurel was waiting.

Tap, tap, tap!

“Aurel!”

“Hwanggu!”

Hwanggu sighed in relief after checking on Aurel’s condition.

The arm that had been severed was reattached to its original place.

Although it was wrapped in a white bandage in the middle.