SSS-Ranked Demon Hunter: The Prodigy
Chapter 70: Ash Rain

Chapter 70: Ash Rain

Harin couldn’t run with the sniper rifle in her hands. She tried once more to shoot Altair, hoping she’d hit him this time—but missed again.

The demon’s twin katanas were already closing in. The garrison soldiers stationed on the rooftops couldn’t withstand him at close range. All of them were torn apart by his sweeping strikes.

To save the soldiers, Sora leapt across balconies and swung her blade at Altair, but he parried her attack just in time.

"Don’t you dare kill my people!" she shouted and launched another strike.

Knowing she was no match for a demon like him, Sora still refused to retreat. The Crimson Reaper struck again and again, breaking through her guard.

Eventually, helicopters received the order to open fire. The turrets quickly locked onto Altair. Sora managed to leap out of the way, but the demon wasn’t foolish either: despite taking a dozen bullets to the body, he didn’t falter and retreated beneath the rooftops.

Standing to the side, Jisun pondered:

"Demons aren’t stupid either. To disable our firepower, they started targeting our snipers. But something doesn’t add up... why did they suddenly forget about Lee Kihyun, after going through all that effort to capture him before? Could this be a feint?"

He glanced my way, scanning the helpless expression on my face.

"This kid can’t even stand. His wounds used to heal within minutes... So he can’t control his regeneration anymore? Either way, right now, he’s defenseless..."

The turrets kept thundering in the air, shattering rooftop tiles. And then Jisun saw the fierce Altair charging straight toward him—and froze.

"No way..! So it really was a feint. Killing the snipers was just an excuse to get close to Lee Kihyun!"

Altair was sprinting full-speed, gripping his katanas tighter. His furious gaze locked onto Jisun, silently saying, "I’m taking your soldier, and there’s nothing you can do to stop me."

Then Jisun shouted:

"All units, defend him! Don’t let the enemy capture Lee Kihyun!"

Minho, having just broken away from the green-eyed demon, turned to the airborne Chanwook:

"Amur Tiger! Go after him, now!"

"Like hell I will!" Chanwook snapped arrogantly as he battled Seojun. "I’m not helping him. He’s a demon—let him die like all the other scum."

Minho growled in frustration. That’s when Rin, still distracting the enemy commander, spoke up:

"You go! Leave Lee Yeonho to me!"

Minho dashed toward me immediately, but he wasn’t fast enough. He realized—Crimson Reaper was so close to me that no one would make it in time.

The demon ignored Jisun entirely and swung his blades directly at me. At that moment, it seemed no one could save me.

The turret shots couldn’t reach him in time.

Suddenly, a thunderous sniper shot rang out across the battlefield, striking Altair and tearing a hole through his body. Coughing up blood, the demon looked up.

The shot had come from Harin—her aim precise. She had stopped his attack.

"Freaking sniper..!" Altair snarled and leapt away to dodge more turret fire.

Harin, her face glowing with determination, was ready to do anything to keep the demons from reaching me. She aimed again, trying to catch Altair mid-move, this time aiming for his chest.

Despite the wound, Altair was still fast. Ignoring the searing pain, he sharpened his blades once more and jumped onto a rooftop—intent on killing every last garrison sniper.

Ducking and weaving through bullets, he bounded from balcony to balcony, slashing soldiers to pieces. At that moment, Minho lunged at him.

The berserker wielding twin axes was a nightmare opponent for the demon. Altair had already lost to him once—during the last Blood Moon.

His katanas couldn’t parry Minho’s attacks, making him an easy target.

"I’d love to fight you," Altair muttered, "but I’ve got more important things to do right now."

He slipped past the hunter and charged toward Harin’s unit.

"Where the hell are you going, mutt?!" Minho roared and hurled his axe at the demon.

It hit Altair, knocking him off the roof. His body crashed down, smashing through balconies and tearing walls apart.

Breathing heavily, Minho rushed to my side, lifted me up:

"We’ve got to get you out of sight. If they get their hands on you, who knows what’ll happen..."

"Minho..." I clung to his neck. "I’m useless... I’ve let everyone down..."

"Stop that. You’ve done more than enough. If Osiris was here, we’d all be dead in minutes."

Meanwhile, Rin was still fighting Lee Yeonho alone, chasing him down with his long aura blade. The green-eyed leader was astonished by the hunter’s speed—every time he teleported, Rin instantly reacted with a counterstrike.

The commander was genuinely baffled. Why would such a powerful hunter walk away from his rank?

"You’ve got tremendous potential," the leader said, deflecting Rin’s strikes with a dagger. "Why did you stop serving?"

"Being a protector of humanity doesn’t suit me," Rin answered, lunging with a fierce thrust. His blade extended even further. "And what about you? Why won’t you fight back? Do you think I’m so weak I don’t even deserve death?!"

"Not at all. You’re a worthy opponent. Know that."

With a leap backward, Lee Yeonho turned toward our direction.

"But right now, I have more pressing matters."

Suddenly, he sprinted toward me and Minho with devastating speed. Each of his steps tore the ground apart and ripped through the air. Rin was stunned. He gave chase—but couldn’t catch up.

"All units, protect Lee Kihyun!!" Jisun cried again, and all the soldiers turned to the rampaging enemy.

Chanwook didn’t care—he was too busy holding off Seojun. Reina was guarding the soldiers from attacks by other demons.

Minho gently laid me down and summoned his axes again. He was ready to take the full brunt of the attack to stop Lee Yeonho from getting to me.

On the rooftop, Harin fired a shot at the commander—but he was too fast. Then, suddenly, Yeonho shifted course and charged straight toward her. Leaping onto the rooftop, he swung his dagger at her.

My eyes barely registered how quickly he reached her.

In that moment, the world slowed to a crawl—along with my heartbeat.

My gaze froze on the dagger aimed straight at her.

The blade slashed through both of Harin’s arms. She fell onto her back, paralyzed by fear, crawling backward in a panic, only now realizing she had lost both arms.

"No...!" I screamed in rage. "Stop! Leave her alone!"

"You shouldn’t meddle in grown-up affairs," Lee Yeonho muttered, grabbing her by the hair.

Then, he kicked her in the head, snapping her neck.

Harin died instantly. Her body rolled off the rooftop and crashed onto the pavement below. The light in her eyes vanished forever.

My ears stopped hearing anything except my own scream. My teeth clenched, and I clawed my way toward her lifeless body.

"Harin!"

A dark voice echoed beside me—my inner demon, who had been silently watching.

"How does it feel, boy? It’s all your fault. Your weakness killed her! Give me your body, and we’ll end this now!"

I said nothing.

Never. I’ll never give my body to a demon.

As the leader turned toward me, Rin attacked him from behind. Sora followed, hurling herself at the demon with everything she had.

Despair—it loomed over all of us, rattling every thought. Any soldier who witnessed the death of their comrades began to lose the will to fight.

Out of the wreckage, the Crimson Reaper burst forth with blinding speed. His blood-soaked katana lashed toward Minho’s neck. The strike was so fast and precise, it was impossible to block or dodge.

Blood sprayed from Minho’s throat. He clutched at his neck, eyes wide with disbelief, staring at the enemy whose body was still torn from their last clash.

Altair was barely alive, but he fought with everything he had. With only one arm, he swung his katana again and again.

Minho, struggling to breathe, did his best to defend himself.

"Minho!" Jisun shouted, rushing over. "Leave him to me! Protect Kihyun!"

Jisun fought Altair barehanded. Even without weapons or armor, he overpowered the wounded demon.

Minho rushed to me and lifted me up again—his eyes burning with fear of death.

"Kihyun," he rasped. "We can’t give up..."

"Minho... Are you okay?"

"It hurts. Like hell."

I was stunned he could even speak with his throat torn open. He dragged me as far from the battlefield as he could.

"It’s hard to accept that this is how it all ends..."

"Minho..! You’re hurt—let me go!"

"No, I was ordered to protect you... Forget the wound. I’ll manage."

But it wasn’t true...

Minho’s strength faded with every second. Hope left his eyes. His will weakened, and his armor began to crumble.

"You know, Kihyun... You really look like my little brother. I hope this time I’ll save you..."

Behind us, Altair lunged with a feral roar, cutting through the air with his katana—aimed straight at the berserker he had once lost to.

The blade pierced through Minho, slipping past his weakened armor.

The hunter froze, holding his breath. The katana had gone straight through his gut.

I fell to the ground, my head hitting the asphalt.

Altair withdrew his blade and collapsed from exhaustion.

Minho stood, illuminated by the dying light of the sun, unable to fight anymore. His soul wept in agony—a hero who had lost his purpose.

"So this is the end," he whispered, eyes locked on the sky. "It hurts... to admit how beautiful this whole story was."

"Minho!" Jisun screamed as he ran up.

"But I never had a say in this story."

"Don’t black out! We can still save you!"

"J-jisun..."

We were losing. Some soldiers and troops began to cough. Minho noticed a strange taste in his mouth—something radioactive.

Was it chemical? From where? The air seemed clean, nothing but the scent of blood.

The demon Zhuan Ren, standing alone among the swarm of demons, smirked wickedly.

"Chief, everything is ready."

"I see," Lee Yeonho grinned. "Then begin."

All eyes turned to the demon. Slowly raising his hands, Zhuan Ren clapped.

Silence followed.

And soon after, every soldier who had tasted that strange bitterness began to mutate. Their bodies boiled and bubbled.

In the end, half our forces transformed into mindless demons.

I opened my eyes and saw Minho turn toward me. His eyes were filled with horror, then silence. Finally, he gave me one last radiant smile.

"I’m happy... that you’re safe."

In a flash, his body mutated, his limbs expanded—and he exploded into pieces...

...right in front of me.

My thoughts were swallowed by endless darkness.

"Your pride brought you here," said the demon, my inner voice. "Everyone you loved and respected... will die here. There’s no stopping it. Give me your body, and let’s paint the battlefield red. Isn’t that what you want, deep down—to destroy the whole world?"

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