Mind Demon's Path of Domination

"Why are you moving so fast?" Yuri asked, her nerves taut. "You are moving more than 150 meters per second! Nearly half that of the speed of sound." She paused for a second and said, "Something’s moving behind you with nearly the same speed but slightly faster."

"An A-Rank Hunter is chasing me."

Something cracked on the other side. "An A-Rank Hunter?!"

"A strong cohort."

"With your speed, in due time, you will be caught, Mark. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck."

Mark knew that, too.

In fact, he regretted the past deeply at this moment.

When he had the chance all those days ago, he should have killed Shiden and the rest of the Trio Hunters. He did have that chance once when he had just come to this world. Yet, the mysterious presence inside the shadow had made him worried, and Mark hadn’t gone through with his desire to murder and steal.

That had been stupid.

At that point, Seo Jin Hu was nothing but a weak mortal inside the shadow—he was hiding in fear more than for some hidden scheme.

Mark had the urge to turn back and face his enemies in battle but he knew he was no match for them. The Trio Hunters were already hard to handle, not to mention Hanmo on top of that.

"What is Dona doing?" he asked.

"...She is asleep. It was you who tired her out before heading out." Yuri sounded grim.

"I still have a chance," Mark said calmly. "I’ll kill Hanmo."

"Hanmo, the Ice God?" Yuri sounded truly horrified. "If he is behind you, others would soon follow. He has other A-Ranker friends—he must have contacted them. Maybe, he is so casual because another A-Ranker is waiting for you infront."

Mark’s hair rose. Would Seo Jin Hu have the chance to do it?

"Shift your route and see if they react in some weird way, like taking out a phone or something."

...

Soon enough, in five minutes or so, the Hunters reached the place where Mark left Seo Ran Hun’s body. They looked down.

"It’s my cousin," Seo Jin Hu’s consciousness glinted through all four of their eyes.

Then, he looked at the bold words written in blood: If you follow me, Seo Jin Hu, this guy will die.

Seo Jin Hu laughed. "The demon is even literate guys." He then chuckled at his Cousin. "It’s this idiot. Demon, you don’t have to kill him."

Hanmo waved a hand. A single ice spear pierced the youth’s abdomen. "I will kill him myself. He was the last hindrance in my rise. My heart wavered whenever I met him; now, that is over, too!"

Even though all of the four Hunters—Shiden, Maki, Fulan, and Hanmo—had eyes overflowing with tears, their lips were curved in an eerie smile. 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

Mark could only grit his teeth. He only got 30 seconds extra from that diversion. And now, he was sure his other plan wouldn’t work either—he had planned to enter a city and take humans hostage. But now that was a dead idea.

Now, I only have some choices left.

Strangely, he was calmer. His mind was clearer than ever.

I am not going to die today.

...

Mark flew into the Mega Dungeon with a sweat-soaked body.

His mind was taut with pressure and now, he could see the enemies just 3 kilometers or so away from him. They had grown closer. And was getting closer.

"I can’t last much longer," he said into the walkie-talkie.

Yuri said with a sigh, "I will try what I can to give you some more time."

...

From an old laboratory hidden inside a sewage drain, something stirred.

Drr.

Tszzs.

Click.

Mouse and spiders scattered away.

...

Reaching the Mega-Dungeon’s barrier, Hanmo slowed down and looked back. A thing was coming.

Boom!

Something exploded, and all of their ears rang.

When the smoke scattered, an icy orb was revealed. Inside it, a disheveled Hanmo and his trio. They looked down with frowning eyes.

From amidst dust and glittering ice shards, a monstrous shadow walked out. The afternoon sun lit its yellow metallic body in bright glares, and Seo Jin Hu’s heart thumped within his chest.

"Mini Missile Launcher," a steely, mechanical voice announced, devoid of emotion. "Target set, 300 meters airborne."

Launching.

Gears whirred and clicked as the Mecha’s shoulders unfolded, revealing an arsenal of doom. In the air, Hanmo swiftly reinforced the protective ice sphere enveloping them.

Fwoop! Fwoop!

BOOM!

Their bodies jolted violently, every nerve alight with the raw power of the blast. While demons might shrug off bullets and bombs with disdain, humans lacked the innate Physical Resistance to do so. They needed a Hunter who could act as a shield for times like this, and Hanmo was exactly that.

"An interesting technology," Maki said from the protection of the sphere’s insides, sweat trickling down her immature face. "I shall take it for myself to play with."

The metallic helmet of the yellow mecha opened, and inside was a small monitor with the image of a digital middle finger.

"Charging. Target found. Midair. Calculating the movements."

This time, Hanmo reacted with aggressive precision. His hand clenched; the sky above darkened as ice crystallized into countless deadly spears, plummeting down with lethal intent.

Crunch. Crunch.

The mecha was skewered.

Yet, in the throes of destruction, it began to pulse with a sinister green light, and its actual mechanical arm moved in a clearer middle finger. It detonated in a colossal explosion.

Shielded by his ice sphere, Hanmo weathered the storm, the blast resonating through his very bones.

As the debris settled, he cautiously dissipated the sphere, only to hastily reform it as a toxic green mist enveloped them.

Poison.

"Fuck, Fulan Heal!"

All of their faces were tinged with green; it was truly toxic. But a glowing light illuminated their bodies, and they slowly calmed down.

"What a cunning trap," Maki spat through clenched teeth. "Is that demon working with humans? He is harder to deal with than expected."

...

Noticing that the Hunters no longer could see him, Mark’s face morphed into a cold smile. Distraction. Until now, Hanmo had always kept his eyes on Mark. His gaze must be just as potent as a demon, Mark always felt it against his nape.

But now, inside that green mass of poison, even if they won’t really be hurt, they were going to be distracted. That was all Mark needed.

"Thanks, Yuri, I owe you one."

From the other side of the walkie-talkie, she said with a groan, "You sure do. Controlling that Mecha is very dangerous. My body must be full of radiation sickness now... But yeah, this is about what I could do for you. Sorry, rest is up to you."

"Drink some black water and heal, and thanks. Leave the rest to me."

Yuri cut the call, no longer distracting him.