Editor: Cherish
The Andras Guild.
One of the most important medium-sized guilds. It has been the subject of the wildest rumors.
Especially its founder, a player named Cho Dok Hyun, also attracting the attention of Hwaran squad, was under close observation.
Under these conditions, they were based in a place where people wouldn't exactly go, and no one would know where they were.
Walking through confusing alleyways that looked more like a labyrinth, the guy guarding the front door said in a low tone:
— Hold it right there.
He was staring at the human figure emerging from the darkness.
Looking at the familiar face in the dim light, the guy relaxed.
— Kang Chul Ho?
— D… yes.
— You and Tae Ho were going after the victims today. Why did you come back so late?
— Bus… business. I had things to do.
Chul Ho gestured to the huge suitcase he brought with him.
The guy guarding the entrance cocked his head and looked at Chul Ho who was acting strange.
— Business? What kind of business? And where did you lose Tae Ho?
— Tae Ho is dead.
— What? How is he dead?
The guy, obviously not believing his ears, looked at Jung Ho.
— Weren't you at the Level D Gate? Are you saying that he died at the hands of a Level 2 Player?
— We crossed paths with one high-class Player. I barely managed to kill him and got the sacrifice.
— Huh.
— I'll write a detailed report later. Take the sacrifice.
He handed over the huge suitcase.
The guy who received the shipment squinted and looked at Chul Ho.
— You're acting a little weird.
— I'm a little shocked by Tae Ho's death.
— Hmm. You were in a very good relationship with him. There's not much time left before the ritual, so you can tell me about it later.
— Yes… yes. Then I… — Chul Ho, who no longer wanted to be in this unfortunate place, quickly turned around.
At that moment, the guy guarding the entrance put his hand on his shoulder.
— You need to participate in the ritual too.
— Today… I don't want to.
— What? What do you mean? I mean, you brought the sacrifice, so you should get an award. I envy you. You'll have a new Power after you get the Magi.
— I don't… I don't need it.
Not understanding what happened with Chul Ho, he squinted again and shook his head.
Getting the 'reward' was the most important part of the Players' ritual.
When they receive a 'reward,' they also receive Magi, a more powerful and destructive force than Maryok.
The Magi is like a drug.
With the power comes thirst, and then that thirst is replaced by something more.
— Something else happened? — The guy looked at Chul Ho with doubt, unable to believe anyone would refuse to be rewarded with all his might. He seemed to be willing to give his life as well to not participate in the ritual.
The Chul Ho he knew would never give up gaining strength just because his comrade died.
Chul Ho's forehead was sweating, and he turned to the guy.
— No… nothing happened. Deal with the victim, please.
— Hmm…
Looking after Chul Ho running away, the guy opened the suitcase he left behind.
Inside, a man was lying unconscious, with sharp features and blood on his head.
— It's true that he's the victim. — After guaranteeing this, the guy closed the suitcase and brought it into the guild's lair.
As soon as he went inside, a skinny man in a big hoodie approached him, his face covered in shadows.
The guy with the suitcase bowed deeply.
— Founder! The victim has arrived.
— We're late today.
— Our men were attacked by a high-class Player.
— Hmm. So what?
— They say Tae Ho died.
— Oh, I see.
Cho Dok Hyun was indifferent, as if he wasn't interested in the news of his guild member's death, and turned his back on the guy.
— Bring in the victim. The ritual will begin soon.
— Yes! — The guy answered loudly and dragged his suitcase towards the ritual room.
Inside the room were eight guild members kneeling and dressed in tidy robes.
They were Players who knew the true nature of the guild of Andras.
— Ooh!
— The great Andras!
As the guild members greeted Cho Dok Hyun into the room, they bowed forward.
Cho Dok Hyun's radiant gaze directed at them was more like the gaze of a madman. What was going on here was more like a gathering of religious fanatics than the guild.
Cho Dok Hyun smiled ominously as he looked at the audience.
'Everything is going well.'
It's been a year since the turnover.
The number of his followers, albeit slowly, has been increasing.
Cho Dok Hyun's eyes were shining like a madman's, and he was clicking his tongue.
It wasn't that hard to corrupt the Players with Magi.
Because if you're a Player, you're attracted to power, and the Magi was the right thing for it.
'A little more and they will become demons in human form.' The more Magi humans consume, the more they become like a demon.
Cho Dok Hyun himself was already filled 20% with the devil's power.
His goal was to become the strongest demon in human form.
He was also going to increase the power he has.
His smile trembled with madness as he remembered the moment he heard about the possibility of a ritual.
He could not have been wrong: the more rituals you perform, the more people you sacrifice, the more Magi you get and become stronger.
Devilish powers give the Players powerful abilities, which was ridiculously praised.
'It's enough to become a demon.'
Eternal youth and infinite powers.
Being a demon is the eternal road that can rid you of death.
— Let us begin the ritual, — he said with a low voice and struck the ground with his dark brown staff.
— Uh-oh!
— Great!
When they heard the ritual began, the members of the guild bowed and stuck their heads to the floor.
— Prepare the mana stone.
— Oh, yes!
The guy ripping the victim's body upon the altar opened a safe just below.
There were over a thousand mana stones inside.
To perform the ritual, they took out all the stones they had.
'It will be possible to perform 30 more rituals with these mana stones.' Cho Dok Hyun looked at the mana stones stored under the altar and smiled ominously.
— Who is receiving the reward today?
— Chul Ho was supposed to receive it, but he said he wouldn't participate in the ritual this time.
— Did he, now? — Dok Hyun squinted and nodded his head. — In that case, no one will be rewarded today. —
— Аhh…
His words made the faces of all the guild members darken. And then there was a desire and judgment in their eyes.
— Quiet!
There was silence in the hall.
— If you want to be rewarded so much, bring the sacrifice and bring the mana stone. If you do not take action, you will not receive the reward.
— Yes!
Dok Hyun, listening to his followers, smiled coldly.
'This time, I'll take the Power for myself.' He took a deep breath in excitement as he imagined drawing the Magi from the victim.
— Let's get started.
While he had still been a disciple, he learned to extract the Maryok from mana stones. So part of that thousand rocks has already lost its light.
The Magi square below the altar illuminated and began to distort the air.
In this little distorted air, black power was spilling over.
The Magi.
Power, many times more destructive than Maryok, a great force that can turn a man into a demon.
'Wonderful.' He smiled satisfactorily, looking at the successfully obtained Magi.
Using the Magi square for the ritual, they created a rift leading straight to Hell.
The resulting rifted Magi was headed for the body of the victim.
If they had not used a victim and immediately absorbed the Magi of the rift, the person who took the force would certainly die.
Once the Magi enters the body, the ritual ends. All that was left was to wait for the Magi to kill the victim.
'Tonight I will drink all the blood.' After drinking blood from the victim's body, they received the Magi safely.
Since there was no need to share blood with a follower today, he could get all the power at once.
'Kill faster!' He turned to the rift from which the Magi was flowing into the victim's body, wanting to drink blood faster. And the Magi really began to flow at an even higher rate.
'He's holding up well.' He looked surprised at the victim receiving the Magi. Usually, the victims would start twitching, but now he wasn't watching it.
Of course, each person had their own limit on getting a Magi.
Sometimes it didn't even take a second to receive the Magi, and then the person died immediately.
'Perhaps he has a special Class A ability?' The higher the ability class, the longer the victim could withstand the Magi.
'If he holds on so long…' Of course, the longer Magi flows into the victim's body, the more it becomes.
Dok Hyun, watching how long a Magi spills over into the victim's body, smiled joyfully.
It took a lot of strength to maintain the split, of course, but so far, the mana stones have been sufficient.
'How lucky!' Of all the victims he'd seen before, the guy lying on the altar had been drawing in energy the longest.
And being able to drink all the blood on his own, he couldn't rejoice in such a strong victim.
It was as if heaven itself had given him such a chance.
'His strength is ten… no, once every fifteen more times than a normal victim.' Dok Hyun's desire was even stronger.
— Hurry up and open your eyes and scream that there is power! — His thoughts have involuntarily come out of his mouth.
He wanted to drink the blood-filled with Magi right now.
— Haaaaaah!
The split Magi continued to flow into the victim's body.
— Yes! Perfect!
He waited until the light from the magi square went out and for the victim to scream.
— Huh? — But no matter how long he waited, the young man wouldn't open his eyes. — What's going on? —
And the Magi still kept flowing into the boy's body.
— So why doesn't it stop?
It kept flowing.
— Wait… wait a minute.
Without stopping.
— St… stop!
Not for a second.
— I said stop!
The Magi began flowing into the body of the young man even faster.
Until all the mana stones brought by the followers lost their glow.
As there was no more strength to sustain the rift, the distorted air just disappeared.
— Ahhh! — Because the forces that could sustain thirty more rituals had evaporated at a time, Dok Hyun made a complaint cry.
The young man lying on the altar began to rise up.
He looked around with curiosity and smiled.
— Wow, that was 20 units of Magi at once.
He cracked a smile at a sudden gift.
Dok Hyun, terrified that nothing had happened to the victim, couldn't shut his mouth.
— Can we do this ritual again?
There was a coffin silence hanging from the room.