After Ten Millennia in Hell

"K-Kang-Woo…?" he uttered, looking at Oh Kang-Woo in disbelief.

Reynald was overwhelmed with shock at the unexpected development of events. He dropped to one knee as he continued to bleed.

"Just… why?" he questioned.

Reynald couldn't understand why Kang-Woo had done this.

Kang-Woo was a member of Guardians and one of the individuals that Gaia trusted most. He wasn't a Protector who had been chosen by a god, but Reynald had not doubted that he was a righteous hero because of the unwavering trust that Gaia had in him. However, the price of such a belief had been high.

Reynald hadn't even had the time to defend himself. The dark-red spear had pierced his solar plexus in the blink of an eye. He received such severe damage that it wouldn't be strange if he had died immediately. It was a miracle that he was still conscious.

"A-Aaahhh."

His mouth fell open as the pain spread from his solar plexus to the rest of his body. He was losing consciousness.

Knowing he couldn’t afford to die here, Reynald did his best to stay conscious.

"You—"

Reynald began to say something, but he stopped when he heard the little girl's voice.

"Kang-Woo, can I come out now?"

Reynald turned to the source of the voice, and his eyes widened in astonishment.

"What… the…?"

He saw the little girl he'd tried to protect while risking his life. The frail-looking, beautiful little girl who had thanked him with tears in her eyes was looking down at him with cold eyes devoid of emotion. He could even see a hint of disgust in them.

"Si-Hun will arrive soon with Gaia, so you have to leave before that. You too, Vaal Zahak," Kang-Woo told his summoned beasts.

[Yes, Master.]

"Okay. I’ll do as you say, Kang-Woo."

Echidna and Vaal Zahak nodded.

Kang-Woo looked at Vaal Zahak and asked, "Are you hurt badly?"

[Hahaha. The injuries aren’t light, but I have no problem moving.]

Vaal Zahak laughed as if he was trying to prove he was okay.

However, unlike what he said, his body seemed to be in really bad shape. There were cracks all over his bones, and his black robe was tattered. He had a few shattered ribs, and his skull had been crushed.

If he hadn’t been a Lich, he definitely would've died. Nevertheless, such damage was huge even for a Lich. He was having a hard time keeping his balance.

Kang-Woo clicked his tongue. "Stop acting strong and get some rest. Echidna, take Vaal Zahak back."

[Master…]

Vaal Zahak trembled as if those words had moved him.

Echidna nodded and ran toward Kang-Woo, who patted her head.

"That guy touched me. It felt disgusting."

She glared at Reynald while tugging on Kang-Woo's clothes.

Reynald felt faint, as the little girl whom he had risked his life to save was glaring at him resentfully.

"What in the world… I-Is this a nightmare? Maybe I'm hallucinating…" Reynald muttered.

He rejected the unbelievable reality. To Reynald, the scene was more shocking than the dark-red spear that had pierced his body.

Still refusing to believe what was happening, Reynald extended his hand toward the girl.

He said, "I-It's dangerous. You're being deceived by an evil dem—"

Echidna snorted while kicking his hand away.

"Hmph. Don't insult Kang-Woo. He's a way better person than you," she replied.

'Sheesh, you're making me blush,' Kang-Woo thought with a smirk. 'I sure am a good person.'

He couldn't deny Echidna's words. No one had more pure intentions for protecting the world than Kang-Woo did. No one could dare to call him evil. After all, he was trying to protect Earth from the Demon of Prophecy, Satan.

"Wha…" Reynald slurred his speech in confusion.

Then his eyes suddenly widened; he finally understood what was going on.

"D-Don't tell me, you were all in on this together?!" he questioned.

"Took you long enough." Kang-Woo snickered.

Reynald should've realized that as soon as Kang-Woo stabbed him.

'He probably never imagined that a frail little girl would deceive someone,' Kang-Woo thought.

This was likely due to the "underdogma"—a belief that the underdog was always more morally correct than the more powerful. Reynald had not imagined that Echidna, who looked like a little girl, would stab him in the back. It was proof of how outdated Reynald's way of thinking was.

"D-Don't tell me… you…" Reynald uttered while trembling.

His fading consciousness cleared up as if he had gotten struck by lightning.

The only being who could control Vaal Zahak and make him use such a filthy tactic… There was only one being that Reynald knew who could do something like that.

"Sa…tan…!"

"The hell are you talking about?" Kang-Woo frowned in disgust.

'Me? Satan?'

Kang-Woo couldn't believe Reynald was comparing him to the evil and wicked Demon of Prophecy who was trying to destroy Earth. He wondered if there was an insult more unpleasant than that.

"How dare you compare me to Satan?" Kang-Woo said in anger.

He was okay with everything else, but he wasn't okay with someone calling him Satan.

"Don't try to act as if you aren't Satan, you evil demon!"

"You're quite spry despite having a hole in your stomach."

Kang-Woo clenched Gungnir's shaft and twisted it violently.

"Kurgh!"

The wound widened, and a huge amount of blood poured out. It was unlikely that Reynald could recover from such a critical injury, even with Tirion's power.

"L-Lord… Tirion…" Reynald reached out in desperation.

He prayed to Tirion once again, but a miracle couldn't happen twice. Tirion had run out of power. He had nothing left to send to Reynald after already sending him power once.

"Cough!" Reynald coughed up more blood.

In the end, he didn't receive an answer from Tirion.

"I guess miracles only happen once," Kang-Woo said, lightly patting Reynald's shoulder. "You’re being punished because you're trying to live life on easy mode, man."

If Reynald hadn't been chosen by a god, he would never even have come all the way to another world.

Kang-Woo bent down and took off his mask for Reynald to see his face.

"Y-You’re…" Reynald's eyes widened. "A-Aaahhh."

He remembered Kang-Woo's face. He couldn't ever forget it.

Tears flowed down Reynald's cheeks. He understood everything now. From the moment he came to Earth, he'd been dancing in the palm of Kang-Woo's hand.

Reynald fell into despair. The tears didn't stop.

"Well. Let me be frank. I'm sorry," Kang-Woo apologized and clicked his tongue.

If Reynald hadn't known anything about Kang-Woo, Kang-Woo wouldn't need to kill him. Reynald was old-fashioned and stupid, but he was a good person who fought for the weak without hesitation.

"But I had no other choice," Kang-Woo stated.

There was nothing Kang-Woo could've done about it. He didn't have any ill feelings toward Reynald, but the complex turn of events had forced him to make this choice.

Kang-Woo continued, "Of course, there might have been a better way. You might have understood my circumstances if I had taken a long time to persuade you."

It wasn't like Kang-Woo hadn't thought about that… but he couldn't take the risk of letting all the trust he'd built so far crumble.

"Y-You s-son of a…" Reynald stammered as he looked up at Kang-Woo in fury.

Kang-Woo wasn't surprised. He hadn’t expected Reynald to be satisfied with his excuse anyway.

Kang-Woo smiled bitterly and placed his hand on Reynald's chest, concentrating the Authority of Waves in his hand.

"I'm sorry, Reynald."

CRACK!

The Authority of Waves launched from point-blank range destroyed Reynald's ribcage and exploded his heart. Reynald died instantly.

"I'll remember you," Kang-Woo said.

With that, Reynald stopped breathing.

There was a heavy silence.

Kang-Woo ordered Echidna and Vaal Zahak to leave. He'd successfully eliminated Reynald, but the situation wasn't over yet.

"Hyung-nim!!" Kim Si-Hun called out.

He was running toward Kang-Woo with Gaia in his arms.

Kang-Woo saw Grace McCubbin and a few other members of Guardians whom he'd never seen before following behind Si-Hun.

"This is…"

Si-Hun's eyes widened upon seeing Kang-Woo kneeling beside Reynald's corpse.

Kang-Woo lowered his head.

"I'm… sorry," he said quietly.

He clenched his hand into a fist and punched the ground.

Crack. The hard rock cracked, and an imprint of Kang-Woo's fist was left in the rock.

"Hyung-nim…"

"I was a step too late." Kang-Woo's anguished tone conveyed how regretful he was.

"Wh-What happened, Kang-Woo?" Gaia asked in a shaky voice.

Unable to find the words to explain, Kang-Woo kept his head lowered.

"Aaahhh…" Gaia gasped.

Even without Kang-Woo saying anything, the tense mood told Gaia what had happened—that Reynald had already lost his life.

Gaia trembled in shock. "How could… something like this have…"

She had been able to feel some hope after meeting the hero who had been chosen by another god. Gaia had thought that Reynald would become the hero they needed to resolve the dismal situation they were in. Yet, that hope didn't last even a single day and ended up crumbling in the hands of an evil and wicked demon.

"I'm sorry. If only I hadn't suggested the spar…"

"No. Not at all. It isn’t your fault, Kang-Woo," Gaia said, shaking her head.

It wasn't Kang-Woo's fault. He wasn't the one who had tricked Reynald and killed him, so no one could say it was his fault.

'Of course, it isn't!' Kang-Woo exclaimed delightedly in his mind.

He could tell that Gaia didn't suspect him in the slightest.

'YOLO!'

Kang-Woo wanted to dance because of how well he'd dealt with the situation. It was as if all the worries that he'd felt because of Reynald's appearance on Earth had vanished.

For a moment, Kang-Woo felt guilty about having killed Reynald. Nonetheless, the guilt melted away instantly after reaffirming to himself that he had had no other choice.

'All right. Now, it's time for the finishing touches.'

The finishing touches were the most important part of anything.

"We've lost another hero," Gaia stated sorrowfully.

"Yes," Kang-Woo said. He raised his head and saw that darkness was being cast over the golden sky. "The light… is fading."

A single tear ran down his cheek.