Chapter 92: The Hundred-Eyed Specter Awakens

-Insignificant

The half-demon who survived the silent swordsman’s slaughter alone.

He was closer to a human than a yokai.

“I’ll tell you everything I know about the Garbage Mountain! Please, just spare my life!”

“……

At least he was quick to assess the situation.

 Oh, I think I’m getting used to the silent swordsman’s expressions now.

Just now, they looked a little disappointed.

 No, that was the face of someone debating whether to kill.

 This level of slaughter addiction definitely requires treatment.

 Hah! Stop joking and just die already.

 He should’ve started with a thank-you instead of begging for his life!

 But… it’s terrifying…

 Surviving alone after all your kind got massacred? Yeah, that’s scary as hell.

The half-demon revealed everything he knew.

The legion that the Yokai Queen had sent to the human world.

The deployment of forces within the Garbage Mountain.

Even who had dispatched the Crocodile General.

[You have obtained information about a Greater Yokai.]

[The Greater Yokai is wary of your actions. Avoid encounters with his subordinates.]

The mastermind who had sent the Crocodile General the Greater Yokai.

It was a name she had heard before.

The one who had reduced the Executioner to a mere gatekeeper.

The very culprit behind mobilizing yokai forces and resources to invade the human world.

One of the greatest figures responsible for the bleak world of half-demon’s Dirge.

‘If there’s an end to this journey, it will come after defeating the Greater Yokai.’

The Yokai Queen and the Yokai General.

Even those formidable boss-level yokai paled in comparison to the Greater Yokai.

They had merely fought over the remnants of the power he had abandoned.

By contrast, the true strength of the Greater Yokai, who had gathered the most elite forces of the yokai world, was bound to be incomparably higher.

“The Queen sought to overturn the situation by relying on the legacy of the former ruler, the Yokai King.”

“She even sent her right-hand to act as the commander of the human world’s base here.”

“The Hundred-Eyed Specter, Dodomeki. She is the Yokai Queen’s right hand and the one who rules this Garbage Mountain.”

It was an oddly detailed account for a half-demon s*ave to know.

Hae Eung Eung didn’t bother to hide her suspicion.

Noticing her doubt, the half-demon paled and shook his head frantically.

“I am neither a spy nor trying to deceive you! The reason I know more than others is because I was once a member of the Hundred-Eyed Specter’s corps!”

Then why had he become a s*ave?

Even before she voiced her question, the half-demon bowed his head and hurriedly answered.

“It’s shameful, but I attempted to escape from the Garbage Mountain and failed. Some of the yokai who crossed into the human world brought back news…”

“I heard there was a human who had defeated the strongest Yokai General, Victro. I wanted to escape before that human arrived.”

Yet in the end, he failed to escape, became a s*ave, and even ended up facing the very human he had tried to avoid.

Fortunately, unlike the other slaves, he had managed to conduct himself well enough to survive both the yokai and the silent swordsman.

“You’d probably find the Crocodile General’s story more interesting than mine. He was sent by the Greater Yokai as an envoy to the Queen.”

It was obvious that he was trying to shift the attention away from himself.

Hae Eung Eung didn’t blame him.

Fear in the eyes of those who witnessed her sword was nothing new to her.

“The Crocodile General that’s what we called that crocodile yokai. The Queen said that if she found the relic, he would lend his strength.”

Thanks to the half-demon’s information, many of her questions had been answered.

With little else left to offer, the half-demon trembled, looking utterly pitiful.

“Are you going to kill me now?”

A hunting dog that has outlived its usefulness is put down.

Even among humans, that was common knowledge.

But Hae Eung Eung didn’t like that kind of reasoning.

Every act of devotion deserved an appropriate reward.

That was what she believed.

Because reality had never worked that way.

Hae Eung Eung extended a hand, offering him the wardrobe handle.

The half-demon hesitated before accepting it with a dumbfounded expression.

His face soon brightened with relief.

“Thank you! Thank you for sparing me!”

It wasn’t because she was tired of carrying the wardrobe around.

She didn’t feel lonely just because she was alone.

It wasn’t that.

She simply hated the kind of reality where cruelty and ruthlessness were considered common sense, while kindness and compassion were seen as foolishness.

That was the only reason she had handed him the handle.

Taking down the overseer didn’t take long.

As the yokai guards he had sent outside vanished one by one and the number of those protecting him dwindled, fear took hold.

Terrified, the remaining jailers screamed that it was the work of a vengeful spirit and scattered in all directions, only to be cut down as they ran.

With the last one alone, she finished him off leisurely.

“M-Monster… such terrifying strength…”

All of this had happened within an hour.

The half-demon was so afraid of this beautiful human woman’s power that he couldn’t even meet her eyes.

But at the same time, deep in his heart, he envied her.

‘If only I had that kind of strength!’

Only those who have suffered the sorrow of being exploited for their weakness could understand.

‘But… does she really need to be that strong?’

Even he, who had longed for power, found his thoughts shifting as he witnessed it firsthand.

“Urgh—!”

“P-Please… spare me…”

The checkpoint guards stationed in Section 4 of the Garbage Mountain.

They were tasked with preventing slaves from escaping the restricted zone marked by the yokai’s spirit barriers.

Now, their limbs flew through the air, their screams rang in his ears, and the scent of blood soaked into the ground.

At first, she took them down one by one, like an assassin.

But once night fell, darkness seemed to pose no hindrance at all as she plunged straight into enemy lines.

When the torches were snuffed out, only the sound of blood boiling in the night remained.

And whenever someone managed to rekindle a flame, they were met with a field of corpses.

 Who’s the real yokai here?

 At this rate, they might as well treat her like a sword-wielding yokai.

 She’s cutting down yokai twice her size like they’re nothing.

 How does she even see in the dark?

 Every time the torchlight flickers, I get startled…

 If there was a yokai like the Silent Swordsman in half-demon’s Dirge, I would’ve given up on clearing the game ages ago.

 Ending? What ending?

 I just imagined the Silent Swordsman drinking blood and turning into a yokai… almost passed out from fear.

 She’s already this strong as a human imagine how terrifying she’d be if she became a yokai.

Even boss-level yokai wouldn’t dare face the Silent Swordsman without thorough preparation.

Against someone of her caliber, the lesser yokai who had relied solely on their superior numbers never stood a chance.

[You have exterminated all minor yokai and stationed forces in the Garbage Mountain.]

[The Hundred-Eyed Specter awaits you at the incinerator.]

The battlefield was now fully cleared.

With all the small fry eliminated, only one opponent remained—

The Yokai Queen’s right hand and the ruler of this Garbage Mountain, Dodomeki.

“Um… do you have any regrets?”

“…About the relic, I mean. If you hadn’t killed off the slaves or yokai, you might’ve been able to find it just by searching the Garbage Mountain, even if it took more time.”

The only half-demon the Silent Swordsman had spared from the Garbage Mountain voiced his regret.

‘The relic… Having it would have been useful, I suppose.’

But she knew better now.

Relics were not simply convenient artifacts.

The Crocodile General himself had warned her.

A relic isn’t completed through legacy and history alone. Every relic must first endure a tragedy before it is truly perfected.

A relic was an object steeped in sorrow and misfortune, only becoming whole through tragedy.

Such a thing should never be sought lightly.

‘I’d rather hand off the Mirror of Tranquil Waters to the Wandering Merchant as soon as possible.’

Even the relic she already possessed felt like a burden.

The thought of taking another?

Not even the slightest temptation crossed her mind.

[Story Mode]

The Silent Swordsman walked without making a sound, while the half-demon followed behind, dragging a rattling wardrobe.

They stopped at the incinerator, where crimson flames flickered, and waves of heat radiated through the air.

[The history of the defeated is always so meaningless.]

[They become nothing more than filthy, rotting garbage, discarded and forgotten.]

[And once they are completely burned away, only ashes will remain.]

A voice like polished jade too pure and elegant for such a filthy, wretched place.

A yokai stood there, wearing a kimono with sleeves so long they nearly touched the ground.

From behind, she looked so beautiful that one could mistake her for a human.

[Scattered like dust in the wind, the remnants of sorrow.]

[The history of the fallen, standing at the edge of oblivion.]

[The inevitable future awaiting all humans of the mortal realm.]

She turned gracefully, the embroidered patterns of her kimono catching the firelight as she spread her arms.

Her sleeves fluttered in the air, as delicate as the wings of a butterfly.

[This is the place where the remnants of misery are put to rest.]

[The incinerator of Garbage Mountain.]

Her arms lifted high toward the sky, her long sleeves cascading down.

[So why, I wonder, has someone like you appeared in this incinerator?]

[There is no one left for you to save with that precious strength of yours.]

[Was it not the people you wished to rescue, but rather the Yokai King’s relic that you desired?]

She reached out toward the Silent Swordsman.

[Or perhaps… have you finally abandoned your meaningless purity and decided to become a yokai?]

Her bewitching smile carried an unnatural charm.

Her soft, elegant hand extended as if urging her to take it.

【Interaction Choices】

1. Take the yokai’s hand.
2. Take the yokai’s hand.
3. Take the yokai’s hand.

As if there were no other options.

A forced choice.

A relentless demand.

‘Pathetic.’

[OUT BREAK!]

[Your strong synchronization has broken the choice restriction.]

[Current Synchronization Rate: 75%]

With just a slight activation of her inner power technique, Hae Eung Eung created a new option.

【Interaction Choices】

1. (Silently point the sword at her.) (Synchronization 60% or higher)
2. (Silently point the sword at her.) (Synchronization 60% or higher)
3. (Silently point the sword at her.) (Synchronization 60% or higher)

[(Silently point the sword at her.)]

Illusions. Hypnosis.

How many had tried to manipulate her with their cunning tricks, relying on such supernatural deceptions?

‘The brainwashing of the Imperial Palace. The engraving of the Blood Cult. All of them were vile restraints meant to shackle both body and mind.’

The Imperial Palace, that gilded cage, had attempted to break her wings, ensuring she could never leave.

The Blood Cult had branded her, warping her mind to see every enemy as the Emperor himself.

Compared to those soul-shattering brainwashing techniques, this little trick of illusion was nothing.

[One who, despite being human, wields power surpassing even the yokai.]

[One so formidable that they walked away from a sealed deal with the Crocodile General.]

[Your will is just as strong as the rumors say.]

The yokai woman’s smile deepened.

[Ku-hu. Kuhuhu.]

[Kuhuhu… Fufu… Fufufufufu!]

[Wonderful. I like you. A warrior who toppled the mightiest of the yokai realm, yet possesses the mental fortitude to resist my charm with ease. That body of yours…]

Her pale, porcelain-like skin cracked.

Black veins surged forth, grotesquely bulging across her body.

[I can grow even more than a hundred eyes.]

As those countless eyes opened all at once—

The Hundred-Eyed Specter, Dodomeki, the field boss of Garbage Mountain, revealed her true form.