SSS-Ranked Demon Hunter: The Prodigy
Chapter 77: A Love Letter to You

Chapter 77: A Love Letter to You

I kept lunging at Osiris, each time faster than before—faster than I ever thought myself capable of. Yet every time, he slipped away, earning no more than shallow cuts.

This couldn’t go on. I had to be faster... stronger. With each swing of my blade, I clung to the hope that I’d land a real hit. I knew his fighting style hadn’t changed since the last time.

I had to defeat him!

Dodging one of my strikes, he dipped low and kicked me square in the face. My body crashed into the rubble and vanished from sight.

"Tough luck, lovebirds," Osiris muttered, glaring at where Hizumi was hiding. "Sorry, woman, but your little lover’s pissed me off good. He deserves to die more than anyone."

Suddenly, I burst out from beneath the debris and drove my blade straight into his abdomen.

I did it! The deadliest blow is the one your enemy doesn’t see coming.

If I keep this up...

But before I could finish the thought, Osiris—at a speed beyond my eyes—struck me with a crushing punch. I was hurled backward, the air torn from my lungs. Such raw power...

I hadn’t even had time to reinforce my body. That hit—if it were any harder, it might’ve sent me to the afterlife. Every cell in me recoiled. That strike... it shook the world.

My body crashed through a nearby building. Without delay, Osiris came at me again, his fist breaking through the dust cloud.

To Hizumi, our battle must’ve looked like a storm of lasers. A mind game deciding our lives. If I lost... all my dreams would vanish.

I couldn’t allow that.

Emerging from the dust in a furious dash, I slashed everything around me into fragments. One of my attacks finally hit true.

I tore off half of Osiris’s face—he could no longer speak.

Screaming, I struck again and again.

My enemy’s fury didn’t fade. If anything, it made him more terrifying. He wore no armor, wielded no blade—yet his brute strength overwhelmed mine.

He was stronger... but I couldn’t give up!

Even if the battle was unfair—I had to win.

Faster... stronger!

I charged him relentlessly, throwing my all into every strike. Blow after blow slammed into his torso. Blood... I thirsted for it.

But in my blind offense, I failed to defend. He struck with his sharp arm, driving it into my heart in a blink.

He tore a hole through my chest, ripped out my heart, held it in his hand—and kicked me into a wall.

Hizumi ran onto the battlefield.

"Darling...!" she cried, but I couldn’t hear her.

She knelt before my limp body, half-buried in the wall.

Where was I? Why was I here?

I remembered nothing. My dim eyes caught glimpses of my love, screaming with all her soul: "Please, don’t fall asleep."

"You can’t die here... Do you hear me? Please, listen to me."

What could we do now? I’d made a mistake—and I was paying for it. There was nothing left to consider.

"Kihyun, don’t lose your will to live. Please—stay alive while I still breathe. I told you I would share your fate, didn’t I?"

Osiris stepped toward us slowly.

Holding my head in her arms, Hizumi, through tears, whispered:

"Be at peace, my love. I’ll live for you. I’ll never leave you alone, no matter how foolish that sounds. Because I love you. And for our love—I’ll do anything."

Turning her determined gaze toward the enemy, Hizumi stepped forward and mutated her arms. They became long, whip-like appendages—sharp, flexible, deadly.

"Never look back, darling. Or you’ll lose what matters most!"

Hizumi...

She launched herself at the enemy, keeping him at bay with her whips. Though she couldn’t see his movements clearly, she pushed on.

She no longer feared defeat. She counted on a drawn-out fight—long enough for me to recover and rise again.

"Are you watching me, love?" she shouted, leaping off the walls, lashing at Osiris. "This is my dance for you! My banner—so you’ll understand one thing: You’re not as weak as you think you are! You’re not alone in this war!"

Osiris grabbed one of her whips, yanked her in, and kicked her in the gut. She was sent flying, hitting the ground hard. Clutching her ribs, she slid back, barely stopping herself.

Yet her eyes still gleamed. Even in front of such a powerful foe, she shone. She couldn’t regenerate quickly—but that didn’t matter.

Getting up again, she attacked, whipping the ground, her strikes tearing it apart.

"And maybe then you’ll realize how much you mean to me. I love you, Kihyun. I always will. No matter what. Even if the sun goes out—even if we lose this war—I’ll still love you."

Lying there, waves of emotion washed over me. Memories of my parents’ love. Hizumi’s love. Everyone who once loved me... had died.

I couldn’t take it anymore.

This world—hell itself—mocked me every day. Why had death become our norm?

Why was Hizumi fighting in my place?

A demon’s regeneration only activates in two cases: a desperate will to live, or the desire of the Taurus Demon—if you are its heir. In the latter case, the Duke couldn’t care less about my girlfriend’s fate.

The only one who did... was me.

Suddenly, my body’s cells surged into motion. The hole in my chest began to close, new muscle spiraling to cover it.

Meanwhile, Hizumi was faltering. Slower than before. One final hit sent her flying, knocking her out cold.

She crashed to the asphalt—but Osiris wasn’t done.

No... don’t finish her! Don’t you dare—not her...!

Hizumi, my love.

They said I was hope—but without you, I’m just ashes in the wind!

But Osiris didn’t care about my thoughts. He walked up to her, gripped her throat, and started squeezing. She woke up, gasping.

Unable to breathe, Hizumi met his eyes with a defiant smirk—provoking him further.

"Goodbye, my sun in the darkness."

Crack.

The silver-haired monster snapped her neck and tossed her body aside.

Spitting on the ground, Osiris pondered how far he’d dragged his pride through the mud—killing a girl just to break me. But if that was what it took to shatter my spirit, he didn’t mind.

Turning to me, he was mesmerized.

My shocked gaze turned black—then burned with a rage this world had never seen. I no longer felt human. What he did to Hizumi... he’d face the same fate.

My wounds sealed shut, consumed by fury. For the love you took from me!

"Damn piece of shit!!!"

Twin blades appeared in my hands—my Swordspears, hungry for blood.

I poured every ounce of energy into my strikes—down to the last cell.

Osiris felt my primal hunger and fear seeped into him. All he could do was defend himself—each dodge met with another furious attack. I read every movement before it happened.

"This kid... What drives him?! Such power—he’s a monster!"

Rushing at him, I sliced off his arm. He leapt away—but I was already behind him. I could smell his fear. My will to kill was greater.

"How did you become this dangerous... in just minutes? Is it because of love?!"

"Old man," I said, my eyes cold. "Shut up."

I moved in a blur, slashing his throat. He stumbled back—but I kept closing in, my blades relentless.

One strike took his eye. Another—his leg. With the third, I pierced both blades into his heart.

Osiris could no longer move. He gurgled blood, his mind clouded by memories of youth—of strength.

But now... you kneel before me.

...Hizumi, are you watching?

From the clouds, or from hell’s depths—I hope you’re smiling. I wish this had ended differently. I’m sorry. You loved a fool.

But believe me. This requiem... is for you.

I tore his heart from his chest—and crushed it in front of his fading eyes.

"You’ll hurt no one ever again."

Moments later, the old man collapsed—his life finally gone.

You weren’t as strong as you thought. All your arrogance crumbled the moment you disturbed our peace.

Did I win...? Or lose? You took everything from me. Bastard, even your death won’t be enough to ease this pain...

I fell to my knees and cried.

Hizumi.

You were my last hope for a bright future.

With you gone... I lost my reason to live. As if the final spark I clung to was torn away.

Opening my eyes, I saw crimson clouds... and a black moon. Storms gathered above, scattering dust into oblivion.

So this is my world now. Nothing bright remains.

Only darkness.

I no longer wish to go on.

Lowering my head, I saw the blades in my hands begin to wither and bleed. A sudden gust of wind swept away the last of my thoughts, and I collapsed to the ground—forsaken by fate.

Demons, who had been lurking on the edges, watching the battle’s end, began to surround me. Their instincts screamed to strike as one... but something held them back. They feared me... or perhaps protected me.

Before long, footsteps echoed nearby.

A trio from Umbra emerged from the shadows. Wordless, collected, they took my body and carried it away.

Where they were taking me—I didn’t know. I didn’t care.

The fire in my eyes had gone out, like the final ember fading from a dying flame.

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