SSS-Ranked Demon Hunter: The Prodigy
Chapter 38: The Look of Pure Evil

Chapter 38: The Look of Pure Evil

"Brother, you’re my hero."

Seojun woke up from a nightmare, his body drenched in cold sweat. His glassy eyes scanned the room in a panic, searching for his younger brother.

He rushed through the house—but there was no sign of Haebin.

"Haebin!!" he shouted from the balcony, startling the elderly woman living below.

"Seojun, quit screaming! You’ll give me a heart attack, you brat. Youth these days..."

"Hey, old lady! Have you seen my little brother?"

"Hmm? He was just outside a moment ago. Took off crying. I heard on the news that a kid died nearby yesterday. Poor boy... might’ve been his friend."

Wasting no time, Seojun splashed cold water on his face, threw on a hoodie, and darted out the door.

His first stop was the playground, where Haebin often played with Mujin. And there he was—sitting on the curb, face buried in his hands.

"What are you doing here?" Seojun asked, catching his breath.

"Mujin was eaten by a demon... But how? There aren’t supposed to be demons around here. It was always peaceful... What kind of monster could’ve done this?"

That raspy voice hit Seojun straight in the heart.

"I’m... so sorry. He was a kind kid."

"Tell me, brother... Is this our reality? Is this the world we deserve? Why do we kill each other, when we could just live in peace...?"

"That’s impossible. If not for our nature—ours and humanity’s—we might be able to live together. But that’s not how it is. Nature itself stands against us."

"I don’t get it... I never understood why living beings find joy in taking life. Why can’t we live side by side?"

"It’s survival of the fittest. The weak are fated to fall. Haebin, there’s a power in you—even we demons don’t understand it. Stop being weak."

He extended his hand to his brother, looking out into the distance.

"Let’s go."

Without hesitation, Haebin reached for his hand.

"You’re strong, brother. Stronger than anyone. I’ll always be on your side. Brother, you’re my hero."

Minutes later, they returned home. But Seojun didn’t go inside. He stood in the entranceway, deep in thought.

"Goddamn fate... You’re ruthless. I really am sorry, Haebin."

Inside, the boy sat quietly, washing his tear-streaked face.

"You’re my hero..." Seojun echoed in his mind. "I heard that today already... Could this be a Familial Memory?"

Suddenly, the world stopped around him.

Time froze.

The adults on the street, the squirrels in the trees, even the caterpillars on the grass—all stood still.

Then came the sound: rustling grass, wind rising like a sudden breath. A shadow loomed above the house—the silhouette of an aircraft descending.

The drone of helicopter blades cut through the silence as it lowered toward the apartment.

From all corners, demon hunters emerged at once.

And before he could move—

Seojun was shot in the head.

"What... is this...?"

Confused by the eerie silence, he collapsed. All ten hunters sprinted toward the fallen body.

"Secure the target immediately," came Jisun’s voice over the comms. "You know it’s never that easy to kill a demon."

"Roger!"

They swarmed around him, dragging his limp body into the open. A cable dropped from the chopper, and down it came—Jisun himself.

"Terminate him."

People watched from balconies and windows, stunned. Even Haebin, frozen in horror, saw his brother’s lifeless body.

"No! My brother!"

At that moment, Seojun’s eyes snapped open.

In an instant, his legs lashed out, kicking nearby hunters square in the face.

He knocked two more aside and glared at the descending Jisun.

"You’re probably wondering," he growled, "how we found you. Quiet neighborhood, sure. But don’t pretend. We know everything about you, demon."

"That makes things easier," Seojun replied with a wicked smile, wiping blood from his lip and reinforcing his body with blood-fueled strength.

He suspected they didn’t yet know he was the Death Icon. Unleashing his full form here would mean certain death. Too public. Too soon.

"Jisu-u-u-n!!" he roared and lunged at the hunter.

Each of his movements was unnaturally fast, as if he could bend time itself.

But Jisun wasn’t caught off guard. Not this time. He had seen this technique before. It mirrored the Death Icon.

He read Seojun’s moves with unnerving clarity, dodging each strike effortlessly.

"Can’t land a hit, can you?" he mocked. "A chasm opened before you, and now you can’t cross it?"

"Shut your damn mouth!" Seojun growled, slashing in a fury.

"I’ll tell you why—you’ll never reach the other side. That gap between us? It’s the difference in strength."

Jisun weaved between attacks like a dancer, amused by the display.

Then—he struck.

A solid punch to the gut. The force crushed Seojun’s body like it was hollow.

If not for his hardened skin, he would’ve died instantly.

Staggering back, gasping, Seojun could feel the damage to his kidneys.

Jisun pressed forward, summoning weapons forged from his own blood.

His movements accelerated until the world slowed again around Seojun. That creeping dread whispered: Run.

"Kenketsu: Twin Moonpiercers."

Two long spears materialized in Jisun’s hands, tailored to his sharp and agile combat style.

Seojun dodged the first strike—but not the second. The spears pierced his forearms.

The other hunters swarmed in, mutated arms ready. They attacked in perfect coordination.

This was Jisun’s personal squad—each soldier trained to support the strongest among them.

One, a tall and muscular hunter, slashed at Seojun’s throat with a massive blade. He barely avoided a fatal hit.

Bloodied, face slashed, his clothes soaked—Seojun realized it was time.

Time to survive.

Time to unleash hell.

He drove his mutated legs into the ground. A tremor surged beneath them as the earth cracked open.

He leapt into a counterattack, transforming his arms into monstrous claws and slashing in a wide arc.

Several hunters were caught in the strike—skin split open in a straight line. One woman-hunter even lost both arms.

Another stomp shattered the earth again. As chaos erupted, Seojun dashed through the quake and kicked the muscular hunter straight into a wall.

Dazed, this hunter barely heard the child’s voice:

"Brother! Brother!"

No one else noticed—except him. And then... an idea struck in his mind.

Meanwhile, Jisun rejoined the fray, even faster than before. He noted Seojun’s mutated limbs were near-impervious to piercing attacks.

So, he targeted the torso.

Ducking under a claw swipe, he drove both spears into Seojun’s stomach.

The demon didn’t even register the strike before he was lifted into the air—impaled and hanging.

"You’ve got to be kidding me..." he thought. His body wouldn’t respond.

"It’s over," Jisun said coldly. "You feared your own transformation. That was your downfall. I expected more."

"Sir," an A-rank hunter approached. "Is he dead?"

"Not exactly..."

A voice called from a nearby balcony:

"Mr. Park! I caught a little rat. Looks like this demon’s got a younger brother!"

He held Haebin in one arm. The boy struggled, but couldn’t break free.

Hearing that, Seojun’s mind snapped back. Rage flared in his eyes as he tore himself off the spears and bolted forward.

Jisun grabbed his hoodie mid-sprint.

"The kitten’s cornered. How sad."

The buff hunter grinned:

"Let’s kill the kid in front of his big brother. Let’s see how it feels to lose everything."

Seojun’s face twisted in agony.

"No-no-no-no-no please! Don’t touch him! Don’t you dare hurt him!"

"Oh, now you beg? Let’s start with the boy, then."

The man grabbed Haebin with both hands and squeezed. The boy’s neck strained—on the verge of snapping.

"Don’t you dare, you scum! Not him! You filthy bastard!"

Seojun’s eyes turned blood-red, his face flushed with pressure. Trapped by Jisun’s grip, he reached out helplessly in misery.

The muscular hunter only grinned wider. That cruel, uncanny smile pushed Seojun’s mind over the edge.

Suddenly, he was consumed by hatred. From the very neurons of his brain, every fragment of his life with his younger brother flashed before him.

No matter how harsh he had been with Haebin, he had never let anyone harm him — he had always protected him.

Now, like a cornered kitten, he was powerless against his enemies. He saw each of them as villains trying to take away everything he held dear.

That hatred birthed within the demon a new essence — the meaning of his existence.

"I am the demon who will claim the souls of all who stand in my way. My path shall be painted with their blood, and from their corpses I will forge fountains and oceans. Your lives will serve only to feed my desire to slaughter more of your kind."

Slowly but surely, the demon was losing his mind. Standing on the edge of life and death, he found a new kind of peace.

"I am horror incarnate."

In the blink of an eye, his entire body transformed — faster than anyone could have anticipated. His arms and legs grew stronger, his body tougher and more imposing.

His head twisted unnaturally upside down, and from his back sprouted wings — pale and drenched in seeping blood.

The great demon howled, a dark and thunderous roar erupting from his chest.

A sound that echoed far and wide, heard by every living soul in the district.

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