Kingdom: The Black Moon Assassin

"They wanted to kill nothing more than a child, one who doesn't understand evil."

The leader of the assassins, an old man nicknamed Zong, felt his heart sink at the sight unfolding before his eyes.

His companions, his brothers-in-arms, fell dead, decapitated by a fierce demon who had lost all sense of survival.

An unreal vision was developing before him at the hands of a single man.

Their martial arts, crafted to kill, the pride of their group—those techniques meant to suppress and kill—were being countered at every attack they launched against the man they had come to assassinate.

Logically, one might think a sword's blade would break in battle, but they couldn't comprehend why all their weapons shattered upon striking Jun's sword.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

The heads of many black-clad figures fell to the ground. Zong saw it all clearly. The expression on his face, as his subordinates' heads rolled toward him, was one of shock, as though he couldn't believe his brother had died.

With a crunch, Zong raised his head.

At the end of his gaze was a man drenched in blood, his body marked by numerous cuts, who had turned his brother into a corpse.

This was the one many considered the new god of martial arts.

A coat clung to his body, and beneath it, pale skin and sorrowful eyes were visible.

At first glance, those eyes appeared lethargic.

However, if you looked closer, you could see a seething ferocity swirling within them.

Zong immediately grasped the true identity of the man he had thought he could kill with ease.

It would be strange not to know. The way that dark energy surrounded him and his methods of killing were carved into the battlefield.

Then, another thought crossed his mind as if it were a natural fact.

"I'm going to die here."

He and his subordinates, who had come here to kill Jun, would fall without exception.

That thought didn't cross Zong's mind by chance; it was something that came to him instinctively.

His body trembled, he felt stifled, and his vision blurred.

"I must retreat." Naturally, Zong took a step back.

He clenched his teeth and tried to control himself, but even that wasn't easy.

Avenging his brothers, the long-cherished desire of his kin, and other secondary thoughts slipped away from his mind.

His mind was focused on one emotion, an emotion he had long forgotten and struggled to remember.

Fear…

The moment he faced a black moon, the moment he saw those fierce eyes, fear engulfed his entire being.

Though he tried to stay calm and assess his strength, the conclusion remained the same.

His body was more powerful than ever.

He was overflowing with strength, so much so that he doubted it was truly his.

This phenomenon occurred according to the rules etched into this space.

However, this did not guarantee victory.

Though his physical strength had increased, he could not use magic. There was no technique that could stop the sword of the God of martial arts, which would pierce his heart.

Zong knew it. The reason they were hunting Jun was because they had been promised freedom if they succeeded. They were slaves, warriors, slaves who had been fed by Zhao and used to appease the foolish king.

They could flee now, but that too was impossible.

Obviously, Zhao had poisoned them with a rather unique toxin, forcing them to consume a rare antidote or die within a week.

That's why they couldn't escape.

All of them were doomed to a fate worse than death.

Moreover, now they couldn't escape even if they wanted to.

Jun's calm demeanor reinforced that belief.

In the end, the conclusion reached through reason could only serve to turn the fear weighing on Zong's heart into absolute despair.

Once more, his teeth ground together. His muscles tensed.

Zong's gaze turned toward his brothers who were "still" alive.

Their anxious, trembling eyes revealed that they, too, were without options.

A tense atmosphere.

The next moment, Jun's voice echoed, saying, "You still have a chance to kill me; don't give up before you start."

It was like the whisper of a beast.

When Zong heard Jun's voice, it was the first thought that came to mind.

Zong shuddered at the voice and realized that Jun was looking at him with a faint smile. Seeing this, he felt anger rising from deep within his heart.

His long-held yearning was before his eyes. Behind Jun's life lay salvation and glory for his people.

But what kind of hell is this?

After the anger came anxiety, and then self-loathing.

"We will be free one way or another." His voice trembled more than ever. It trembled even more than when he first witnessed the world's cruelty.

The assassin companions looked at Zong.

Zong received their gazes and shouted with a choked voice.

"Our long-desired wish!!!"

Crack!

Zong attacked Jun, and as he shouted, the other assassins also stepped forward.

The smile deepened on the deranged Jun's lips. Zong, feeling despair once more at this sight, shook off the emotion and extended his hand toward Jun's neck.

It was a frantic attempt.

A pathetic move.

Moreover, in the end, it was a move that didn't reach him.

Jun raised his sword. A sword that was raised only when Zong's hand extended toward his neck.

The thin sword sliced through Zong's wrist.

Crack!

It was a sound Zong didn't hear through his ears but resonated directly in his head.

His field of vision expanded. The accompanying sound also resonated endlessly.

Zong's eyes opened wide, his mouth agape as if they were about to break, watching his wrists being severed before him.

A moment that felt like an eternity. In the end, when Zong returned to reality, his body writhed in pain.

"Aaaaaaarghhhhhhhh!!!"

His heart pounded violently. Every sense in his body sharpened. An electric current surged constantly through his head.

Jun smiled as if his mouth was about to burst, reveling in a sensation he hadn't felt in a long time.

An attack aimed at the left chest.

Another toward the ankle.

After dodging them with minimal movement, Jun swung his sword to decapitate the assassin crawling on the ground.

The sensation of tearing flesh and cutting bone traveled from his arms up his spine. Then, the feeling spread throughout his head, producing an exhilarating sensation.

Clang!

A cold sound and a spurt of blood rose above the neatly severed neck.

"Aaaaarghhhh!!!"

A screaming was heard. It was the sound of the assassin who had aimed for his heart just moments before.

Upon hearing the sound, Jun turned his head toward the source, and sure enough, there was an assassin with a face filled with anger and despair.

Jun felt a sense of joy at seeing his expression as he laughed and spoke in a mocking tone.

"Don't get discouraged. I'll send you to hell soon."

The assassin's gaze turned to Jun. His face soon took on a furious expression.

The assassin attacked again. This time, Jun didn't dodge.

He tensed his muscles, leaned forward, and then held his sword with both hands.

As soon as the assassin drew close enough, Jun swung the sword with all his might.

Crack!

A sound mingled with the swoosh of a sword and the crunch of bones soon echoed.

When the sword, which had passed from his extended fingertips to his arms, shoulders, chest, and waist, rose once more into the air, the human figure split in half and fell to the ground.

Crack!

There was the sound of flesh hitting the dirty ground, followed by the sound of footsteps trampling it.

It was a surprise attack from behind.

Jun, sensing this presence, turned and swung his sword once more. The wielded sword slashed through the neck of the assassin who had launched the surprise attack on him.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Another sound echoed, and Jun's vision reflected the assassin's head spinning in the air as he fell.

Jun muttered inwardly as he watched the decapitated neck hit the ground.

'...Now.'

Jun let out a deep sigh. His gaze turned to the only living dragon.

In a corner of the wasteland, an old man crawled on the ground with severed wrists.

The movement of crawling while gasping was clearly an attempt to escape.

Jun walked slowly, letting out a small laugh as he watched him and smiled.

"Isn't that unfair? All your so-called brothers are fighting and dying, so don't you think it's unfair to run away alone?"

A sarcastic tone was heard from Jun.

When Jun spoke, Zong, bewildered, slowly turned toward him.

"Ah, ahh…"

Tears welled up in Zong's eyes, streaming down his dirt-stained face and leaving crooked marks.

A face stained with fear.

The moment he saw it.

Jun's body halted.

It was due to a sudden wave of dizziness.

Jun's head, which had been burning for a while, cooled in an instant.

"Poison…" Jun looked at his wounds, noticing darts lodged in his skin, and then looked at Zong, who was now smiling.

"Only now do you realize?"