Chapter 60 – Affairs in the Dungeon (4)

“I found it.”
“…!”

-Whiiiiing!

As the chain spun wildly, the instinctively outstretched forearm was torn apart.

-Krrrunch!

The chain pierced through the skin, and the saws and shards shredded the muscles. A sharp blade sliced through the insides. Sensation of bones and muscles separating. It didn’t take long for the forcibly drawn mana to stop the chainsaw’s operation.

“!”

The girl’s face was filled with confusion due to the sudden engine halt.

“…Such a lunatic.”

Forgetting the pain amidst the excitement of battle, her expressionless face was captured in my blood-red vision. The violently pulsating mana seemed ready to engulf the girl at any moment.

Even as the girl tried to pull out the chainsaw, my bloodied hand tightly gripped it. Without a word, I extended my remaining hand to snap her neck.

-Whiiiiing!

The engine stalled once more. An artery severed, blood gushing out in streams.
Miss it, and you die.
I clenched my jaw and gripped the chainsaw handle tightly.

Shiver. Eyelids tremble in pain.

– Kwajik!

It was then that another chainsaw pierced my back.
The fact that there was one more person. I hadn’t even noticed their approach in my excitement.

The eyes of the two girls, clad in black, flickered with hatred.

“Gurgle, khuh…”

Contorting like in a spasm, I writhed out of my position.
The two girls, their faces strikingly similar, were handling the bloodstained chainsaws. The trees stared at me with wild eyes, as though they’d lost their senses at the girls’ arrival.

A green bead was embedded in the handle of the chainsaw.

I sensed an aura similar to Lee Seong-Han’s.

“…What are you really?”
“There’s no need for you to know.”

The girl with a more youthful face didn’t hesitate to show her hostility as she spoke.

“Why are you targeting me?”
“A pathetic man. An idiot. Don’t you know that?”
“I’ve come here and endured several injustices, how could I possibly know?”

My vision blurs.
Based on the amount of magical power and physical strength, it’s slightly below that of the liberated Lee Se-Young.

“Die here for the sake of the World Tree.”
“Beta, you spout too much nonsense.”
“…Anyway, don’t think you’ll die easily. You will meet your end here after being violated.”

The healing power that I’ve activated with all my might is forcibly supporting my body, which feels like it might crumble at any moment.

Escape is impossible. The magical power of my entire body is wrapped around me.
The mana, slithering like a snake, coils around each circuit.
My muscles swell, and my blood ceases to flow.

More skillfully. Far stronger.
I heighten my concentration and assume my stance.

The Wooden Carving Fist Technique – a form of punishment.
A top-tier martial art that I developed and Baekdo refined.

Though I am still unable to reach Baekdo, I have made progress enough to surpass my previous limitations.

One step further from there. Ignite the circuit and forcibly surpass the limit.

-Pick, Piik!

Accelerated blood flow. Trembling muscles. Blood gushed from the area where the saw had sliced.

Life expectancy is diminished, but what does it matter if one is to die immediately? The mana manipulation ability, having reached its peak, could now effortlessly traverse a specific threshold.

– Thump, thump.

Steady the breath. At this point, not even a single step back can be taken. They exchange glances that seem ready to tear each other’s flesh at any moment.

– Drip. Drip.

In the silence, only falling droplets of blood mark the passage of time.

– Tarrrrr.

The chainsaw resumes its vibration, each chain imbued with mana, proudly displaying its might. A burst of light radiates from the green orb.

– Quaad deuk!

[―!!!!]

As they each charge forward, gripping their weapons tightly, the dozens of trees surrounding me simultaneously target me.

– Wheein!

A weapon far too noisy for an ambush. Simultaneously, amidst the trees, a girl known as Beta brandished her chainsaw with enough force to cleave my head in two.

I turned my head to evade the attack. Before the blade could reach my trapezius muscle, I struck her waist with my arm.

-Paang!

For a brief moment, a strike that gathered mana towards a single point. Had she been an ordinary hunter, it wouldn’t have been surprising if her intestines had spilled out right then and there.

“Argh!”

A wave of turbulent air sent Beta flying. The disabled chainsaw failed to pierce even my skin, rolling powerlessly on the ground. What’s crucial is that dozens of wooden beings were now targeting me.

From the gaps between the trees, another girl had her sights set on my neck.

‘Would there have been a chance if we had fought from the very beginning?’

I sensed defeat. A branch, touched by my outstretched hand, crumbled under my strength and fell away.

[Aaaah!]

They could no longer even speak human words.

-Whiiiiiiir!

A roaring chainsaw targeted my back, and I turned my head, crossing my arms to block it.

-Kiiiikriiiik!

A sound reminiscent of cutting through steel. I spun my legs around and delivered a kick. Even so, I missed, and a nearby tree took the brunt of the impact, shattering into pieces.

Roots, sprouting from somewhere, entwined around my shin and both arms. As I struggled to break free, my insides twisted, and blood spewed out.

In the midst of my rapidly accelerating thoughts, I couldn’t form a coherent idea. All I could do was somehow fend off the blows coming from every direction.

But to others, my desperate resistance might have appeared akin to the ferocity of a wild beast.

“Kraaah, kuh.”

I couldn’t tell if the sound originated from my mouth or the gory hole in my abdomen.

Ah.

As the end approached, a bitter taste filled my mouth. The taste of blood.

I never thought I’d meet my end like this. The wretched souls who’ve threatened me with death until now will surely face divine retribution.

-Clank.

The heavens and earth seem to flip upside down. The chainsaw’s engine comes to a halt. I can’t fathom who sent these contemptuous women sneering down at me. Did I unknowingly commit some act that brought a curse upon myself? Was there truly a reason to go so far as to set traps in that dungeon, bent on killing me?

“Hah. Whew. We did it. Alpha.”
“…Yeah.”

A voice, filled with a sense of accomplishment, emanates from somewhere. I no longer feel any resentment. I left those emotions behind long ago.

“…Mad women.”

I can only mock.

【 ……Force is activated! 】

* * * * *

Things take an unexpected turn.

Lee Se-Young gnawed at her nails. A sharp pain was felt, and blood oozed from the once orderly nails.

“…Damn it, really.”

Curses laden with sorrow and lamentation. She took a band from the drawer and tightly wrapped it around her finger.

“Those bastard World Tree creatures.”

Three days had passed since Lee Si-heon was kidnapped. After assessing the situation, she could tell what happened without having to see or hear the scene. For whatever reason they held a grudge against him, the World Tree targeted Lee Si-heon.

Forcing him to commit crimes, manipulating his fate. Would they even attempt to take his life after twisting his personality?

Though Lee Si-heon himself seemed unfazed, it was because he hadn’t yet grasped reality.

In the end, like a fool, he was finally caught.

“…I shouldn’t have left him alone.”

She clenched her teeth numerous times, suppressing her anger. She couldn’t let this fury, boiling like lava, go unaddressed.

Regret serves no purpose. It is best suited for when everything has come to an end. With twin flames flickering in her eyes, she made the call, swallowing the taste of blood.

To the woman who answered the phone, Se-Young whispered in a hushed voice.

“Are you ready?”

[Yes, but this is extreme for someone who was supposedly just kidnapped… If the goal is image-making, there’s no need to go this far-]

“Enough of the pointless talk. If you’re ready, proceed immediately.”

[Ah, yes.]

After ending the call, Lee Se-Young exhaled a trembling breath and gazed at the mirror near the dressing table. Mascara beads etched beneath her eyes, dark circles reaching down to her cheeks, and a haggard expression that was beyond words. She touched her crumbling cheeks, recalling Lee Si-heon’s rough hand that had once yanked them.

“Ha.”

It was laughable. To think she would become like this over just one man. It was so ridiculous that she couldn’t help but laugh.

‘Don’t you dare die.’

If you die, I’ll follow you all the way to hell.

* * * * *

In the Enchanted Forest,
A sanctuary for forsaken trees.

– Whoosh.

At the heart of such a forest, inside a well-crafted wooden house, Alpha was cleaning the blade of her chainsaw with a faded cloth.

– Clunk.

The door opened, and her sibling entered.

“Sister.”
“Mm-hmm.”
“I’ve spread the potion everywhere.”
“What about the handcuffs?”
“They’re secured.”

Handcuffs that suppress the magical circuits and lower one’s abilities.
Having used something meant for the worst criminals, it was safe to assume that the man wouldn’t lose control now.

Alpha leaned the freshly oiled chainsaw against the wall and gazed at her sibling.
Their eyes, still retaining emotion, held much more light than her own.
She embraced her sibling and gently stroked their head.

“You did well. The World Tree will now guide our path.”
“Will it reveal our names too?”

“Of course. You’ll find out soon.”

For the woodsmen and the trees, a name held a value comparable to a lifetime.
To them, a name served to confirm their very existence.
It didn’t merely end at being born into the world and acquiring it. The adjectives attached to the trees carried a value beyond imagination.

That’s why the woodsmen, each bearing their own name, were treated as nobility.
Those who lost their names received treatment worse than humans.

So lowly that they couldn’t even protect the names bestowed upon them by the World Tree.
Alpha and Beta were abandoned children who had lost their names.

The World Tree they worshipped was their salvation—a being to whom they owed immense gratitude.
Having been saved, they blindly followed the tree, regardless of right or wrong.
Lee Si-heon was the worst kind of person.
Alpha and Beta were conditioned to recognize him as such.

In the future, Lee Si-heon’s treatment would be something to ponder.

Whether it was torture or drugs, it was evident that Alpha and Beta delivered the most dreadful deaths imaginable.

“Everything. As the World Tree commands.”

Alpha and Beta rose from their seats and trudged outside. Passing through the crudely constructed door, they left the house and headed toward the underground den. A place permeated only by frigid air. Upon opening the door adorned with thorns, a pungent scent of blood grazed their nostrils.

Alpha and Beta saw Lee Si-heon tied to the bed.

“The preparations are complete.”
“Mhm.”

A younger sibling responding to the elder’s words. What they had prepared was nothing extraordinary.

Since the idea hadn’t originated from them, the preparations were straightforward and simple. The Green Dawn was the art of domination. The revelations the World Tree had imparted to them were unspeakably horrendous and horrifying methods.

“…Cough, cough.”

The man opened his eyes and drew in ragged breaths.

Then, he gazed at the ceiling and the girls with unfocused eyes, and murmured in a voice tinged with a sigh.

“Why did you save me?”

A voice filled with half resentment. At that, Beta shouted at him with a furious expression.

“Silence! Before I grind your lips with a saw. Just talking to you makes me want to retch. Why do you even try to speak, as a man who incurred the World Tree’s wrath?”

The man quietly observed the girl’s face. All he needed to convey was a single word.

“Who earned the grudge?”

A voice filled with anger. Beta, feeling fear from the cold gaze behind the mask, instinctively stepped back. She then felt ashamed of her reaction and raised her voice even louder.

“Hmph, well. Regardless, you will die today. And in the most terrible way imaginable.”

The man remained silent but looked around with eyes that appeared to be deep in thought. Beta, emboldened by his silence, crossed her arms and tried to say something…

“There will be nothing-“
“Beta, quiet.”

Muffled by Alpha, he closed his mouth.
Alpha briefly flirted with the man before turning her back. Beta followed suit, trailing her sister.

Regardless of the struggle that ensued here, the loser had already been determined.

Lee Si-heon.
Today, he was expecting four guests.