CHAPTER 133 — After New York, Again**
An egg.

His target was clear. It was the immense Black Flame, which was growing larger by the second. It had already grown to the size of a house. He had never seen a flame this large before. Even Jerakson's flame was but a small torch compared to this.

It was so large he wasn't sure if he could cut it in a single strike. But it was still a Black Flame, so if he kept cutting at it, it would eventually disappear.

The problem was that landing even a single blow was not easy.

Clang—

Lin Shenlin's body blocked Jinwoo's sword as it aimed for the egg of flame. The headless body deflected his blade, and the head, glowing with light, flew up on its own and fired a powerful beam.

It wasn't comparable to a dragon's breath, but its power was considerable. The sword wielded by the body was no less skilled than when Lin Shenlin was alive. In fact, with the power of the Lord of Light added to Lin Shenlin's memories and body, it was even more powerful.

"Tch."

[Huhu, do you think that will be enough?]

The Lord of Light laughed playfully, taunting Jinwoo. He wasn't one to fall for such words, but it was true that this was not easy. If it had been just Lin Shenlin himself, it would have been much simpler...

"What is that egg?"

[It's a secret. You'll find out in a moment anyway, so don't be impatient.]

She called it a secret, but she didn't seem intent on hiding it. Did "you'll find out in a moment" mean something was about to be born?

If so, Lin Shenlin's body had only one role: to buy time until the egg hatched. To hold back Jinwoo, the only one here who could cut the flame as a flame.

'Whatever is born, it's unlikely to be stronger than Silbaern or Jerakson...'

Even so, he couldn't ignore it. He had been able to fight the two dragons freely because the battlefield was the Spirit Realm—a place where he could focus on the battle without worrying about collateral damage.

Indeed, when he fought Silbaern and when he fought Jerakson, the terrain had changed to the point that the ground split and mountains crumbled.

But this was Earth. And it wasn't far from the metropolis of Hong Kong. While not right next door, for a being like Jerakson, it was a distance that could be covered in a few flaps of its wings.

If such a powerful being were to run rampant here...

'This is far more serious than the Ireland incident.'

It would be much harder to deal with. In terms of simple size, it probably wouldn't be bigger than Ireland. Judging by the speed at which the egg was growing and the Lord of Light's "in a moment" remark, there was no way it could grow that large.

The problem was the likelihood of it being hostile. Ireland had no hostility and was simply moving, but the Lord of Light was different. To cause such an incident on Earth, she must have a malevolent purpose.

Fwoosh—

The egg grew a little larger. It was still absorbing flames from all over, growing bigger and bigger.

Jinwoo tried to approach to cut it before it was too late, but he was blocked by Lin Shenlin. To be precise, by the Lord of Light wearing the shell of Lin Shenlin.

[It really won't be long now, so can't you just watch quietly? It's a bad thing to interfere with the birth of a new life.]

"A new life? Why are you giving birth to something like that here, instead of the Spirit Realm?"

[Because this star has reached its end.]

What?

[Jerakson devoured countless stars, and this star was one of his meals. And he's eaten most of it. I don't need to tell you; as an inhabitant of this star, you should know that well, right?]

It was a story he didn't need to hear. Every human knew that over 99% of Earth's land was covered by the Black Land.

[Is there any point in extending the life of this star? Rather than struggling to continue a difficult life, it seems better to give up once and aim for the next. I am merely trying to offer kindness.]

"...Your twisted personality is the same as ever."

Lin Shenlin's head laughed. She ignored Jinwoo's curse and continued speaking.

[Did you know? Light signifies a beginning and governs the birth of life and stars. It always arises from darkness, and the deeper the darkness, the more brilliant the light that is born.]

That was the salvation she offered.
To sentence a dying star to euthanasia and, from the ensuing darkness, give birth to a new light.

In other words, it was like pressing the reset button on a broken computer—no, it was like throwing away the broken one and buying a new one altogether.

But Earth was not something that could be compared to such things, so Jinwoo found it hard to accept her words.

Her words sang of immediate destruction, something that Jinwoo and the current human race, who were living in the present, could not accept.

She wasn't even hiding her purpose, so there was no need for further conversation. Jinwoo swung his sword, and Lin Shenlin's body blocked two strikes. But the third sword cut through its torso, and the fourth sword sliced through its head.

Finally, the fifth strike was unleashed upon the egg of Black Flame, creating a large gash and a crack on its surface.

'Did I wound it?'

As expected, it was too large to be cut down in a single blow. But if he kept cutting at it like this, it would eventually crumble. He thought so, but the egg's momentum did not falter. Instead, a brilliant light poured out from the crack.

[You're too late. The light of creation has already descended.]

The egg of Black Flame. A brilliant light burst forth from its cracked surface. But within that light, in its deepest depths, was a flame where white and black were intertwined.

It was a form he had never seen before, but the aura it exuded was similar to Jerakson's flame, which he had seen in the Spirit Realm. In other words...

'This isn't just a part of her.'

This was different from the case with Grisella. Unlike then, when she had sent down a part of her soul to achieve her goal, this time, it wasn't just a part.

[My name is Prycia. I am the Monarch of Twilight, who governs the Light of Creation and the Darkness of the End.]

The egg shattered, and a monster resembling an angel revealed itself.

The first thing he saw was the wings. They looked similar to a bird's, yet they were entirely different, almost divine.

But at the center of the wings was a monster. The silhouette was that of a woman, but a closer look revealed subtle differences. Her body was made of a carapace of unknown material that shimmered with an unsettling gloss, and on her head, two pairs of threads resembling antennae swirled.

Unlike her bright wings, her body was very dark. Her hair was unkempt and disheveled, adding to her sinister and bewitching aura.

Despite all this, she wore elegant robes as if she were a saint, but they could not hide the palpable grotesqueness that clung to her.

'For now, I have to start the fight here.'

He had failed to cut her down before she was born. In that case, he had to at least fight her here. The worst-case scenario was letting her escape from this place; the best was fighting her much farther away.

[Hmph.]

As if mocking Jinwoo, Prycia stretched her body forward and accelerated. In an instant, she shot past Jinwoo and flew toward the place with the most humans nearby: Hong Kong.

The Black Flame that had formed the egg's shell followed behind her. From that filth, like a black stain on her white wings, poured out minions and monsters that likewise held Black Flames.

"Dammit!"

Jinwoo immediately gave chase, but he had no wings. While he could fly for a short time with a magic item, it wasn't enough to catch Prycia, who was flying at full speed.

He arrived back in Hong Kong long after her, and by then, the barrier that had protected the city had already been shattered.

—WEEEEEEE-OOOOH!
—Emergency! Emergency! All citizens, evacuate! Please evacuate to the nearest shelter!

The disaster that struck Hong Kong was unprecedented. A flying entity resembling an angel, the likes of which had never been seen before, had taken control of the skies above the city. Her white wings were beautiful, but from the Black Flame that covered them, hideous monsters poured out.

They smashed buildings, destroyed factories, and overturned rivers and roads. People hastily took refuge underground, but the city was half-destroyed faster than everyone could evacuate.

"Stop them! Evacuate the people!"

"What in the world is this disaster?!"

Fortunately, there were many Hunters staying in Hong Kong. It was already a city with many Hunters, but now there were Hunters from all over the world who had gathered because of the White Land.

S-class Hunters held back the powerful entities, while A-class Hunters dealt with the grunts. Hunters of B-class and below helped with the evacuation of citizens and secured their safety.

They didn't have the numbers to protect the entire city, but they could protect parts of it. However, they were just as close to panic as the ordinary citizens.

"What in the world is that thing? It seems to have flown from the direction of the White Land!"

"I doubt anyone knows! Figure it out later and just kill the monsters in front of you for now!"

With many strong and experienced Hunters, their response was swift. Though it was chaotic because they all belonged to different organizations, they thoroughly defended their assigned sectors. It seemed they had learned a lesson about large-scale disasters from the Ireland incident, and the effects were clearly visible.

However, this was different from the Ireland incident. Back then, S-class Hunters had been summoned simply to stop the impending disaster. But the ones gathered in Hong Kong now were those whom Prycia had intentionally lured and assembled.

"Aaargh!"

"Kuaaaargh!"

The rain was still falling. A toxic rain that melted the bodies of fallen Hunters, refining them into Black Flames and delivering them to Prycia. It was said to have no effect on the living, but it was a potent poison nonetheless.

"Quick, gather the S-class Hunters!"

"Most of them are already responding!"

"Then why can't we stop it?!"

The relatively brave commanders and leaders tried to grasp the situation, but it was impossible. The S-class Hunters here all belonged to different organizations, and even considering that, the situation was too urgent.

KRRRRR-RUMBLE—!

Just then, lightning struck, hitting the angel in the skies of Hong Kong directly. Countless bolts of lightning fell upon each of her wings, and a similar baptism of lightning rained down on the nearby monsters.

"Khahahahaha!"

The S-class Hunter of London, the Thunder Emperor Reinhardt. The old man with a bushy beard laughed loudly, but his eyes, which were not smiling at all, commanded the lightning.

"What are you!"

His voice boomed, piercing through the loud downpour. It was not a question of "who," but "what." The aura emanating from Prycia was that alien. It didn't feel like she was the same kind of living being at all.

[...]

Prycia's response was to ignore him. She didn't even deign to look at him, let alone reply. The countless bolts of lightning seemed to have no more effect than a gentle breeze.

"...After New York, again."

He had felt a similar sense of powerlessness during the Ireland incident. At that time, the Thunder Emperor had fired more than ten thousand bolts of lightning to pierce Ireland's shell, but he had achieved little.

It wasn't just the Thunder Emperor. The calamity in New York had made all the renowned S-class Hunters from every nation feel a sense of powerlessness.

What was happening in Hong Kong now was similar to that. The difference was that the progression was incomparably faster. Compared to Ireland's slow steps, which befitted its size, Prycia's wings were swift.

Just then, a single point of light glittered amidst the streaks of lightning. Lightning itself was an energy that emitted a strong light, so the light hidden within it was hard to spot. Reinhardt only noticed it just before it was fired.

'This is...!'

He didn't know what it was, but that light was ominous. He hastily tried to twist his body, but it was too late. It felt like it would be fired at any moment and pierce his heart.

A single sword blocked its path. The sharply honed blade split the light, and the sundered light scattered backward, exploding with a deafening roar. Feeling cold sweat trickle down his back, Reinhardt spoke the name of the man before him.

"Kang Jinwoo...?"

"It's been a while, Reinhardt."

Jinwoo didn't know English, so he just spoke, but fortunately, Reinhardt had learned some Korean after the New York incident. He was at a level where simple communication was possible.