Appearance of the Iron Demon - 1
Yunnan Province, Qujing.
Heuk Sa-yeongchang Dok Sugwang, the Fifth Squad Leader of the Flying Dragon Thirteen, was on an afternoon patrol with his squad.
As he led them at the front, he could hear the faint whispers of the men following behind.
"Even with one squad missing, patrol duty feels like it comes around too quickly. My body feels more and more worn out."
"Exactly. I hope the Seventh Squad returns soon. Nothing's happened to them, right?"
"What could possibly happen? Though Seolpung is only the Seventh Squad Leader, he's no less skilled than Han Gyo-seong, the First Squad Leader. And his members—Lady Naseoyu, Lady Cheongyeon, Seonu Jin, even Bi Sa-yeong—none of them would be out of place as squad leaders themselves."
"That's true. In fact, I heard even Han Gyo-seong admitted that Seolpung was stronger than him. And Seonu Jin was even considered for the vacant Fourth Squad Leader's position. Isn't that why the Seventh Squad was dispatched this time?"
"Really, to that extent?"
As their whispers reached his ears, Dok Sugwang's expression twisted more and more, until he finally barked in a low, angry voice:
"Silence! Have you all lost your minds?! Who said you could gossip during patrol?!"
Startled, the squad members immediately cut their conversation short.
Dok Sugwang glared at them fiercely.
Small talk during patrol wasn't unusual—he himself sometimes indulged in it.
But everyone knew his moods changed the rules. Famous for his bad temper in the Thirteen Squads, all the Fifth Squad members realized they must have hit a nerve.
They guessed it was likely because they had been speaking of Seolpung, the Seventh Squad Leader.
Dok Sugwang had disliked him for a long time.
But in truth, what bothered him most wasn't Seolpung—it was Seonu Jin.
"That arrogant bastard, being called squad leader material? The Fourth Squad Leader? Hah! What a joke."
Of all people, Dok Sugwang knew best that Seonu Jin had been considered for the Fourth Squad Leader position—because he had opposed it most fiercely.
He remembered well when Seonu Jin first came to the Flying Dragons looking like a pig. Now, that annoyingly handsome bastard had ended up in Seolpung's squad—the one Sugwang already resented—and was rising in status nonstop.
What stung most was the reason for his nomination:
Because Seonu Jin had overwhelmed him in their duel.
Sugwang had been completely pushed back and had only ended the match by forcing a stop. The memory still burned with humiliation whenever jin's face came to mind.
Grinding his teeth, he swore:
"Just wait until you return. This time I'll smash you to pieces."
For the past month, he had trained furiously for revenge, waiting eagerly for Seonu Jin's return.
At that moment—
From deep within the jungle came a beast-like cry.
"Kiaaaak!"
It was a Ghoul.
Dok Sugwang shouted at once:
"Ghouls! Everyone, defensive formation!"
The squad quickly arranged themselves around him in practiced coordination.
Shashashak!
Veterans of countless battles, their movements were flawless.
Moments later, the sound of something large forcing through the forest drew near.
Susususus!
It was a large number.
"There are many of them! At least twenty! Vice-leader, the signal!"
At his swift order, the vice-leader of the Fifth Squad, Jang Yeo-yeo, immediately launched a firework signal.
Bang!
A burst of red fire and smoke shot into the sky—just as a horde of ghouls burst from the jungle.
"Kiaaaahhh!"
"Kyaaaahhh!"
"Kkiiiieeeek!"
About thirty of them—too many for one squad alone.
But Dok Sugwang remained calm.
"Form the Triad Formation!"
The squad split into groups of three just as the ghouls crashed down on them.
The first to face the wave was Dok Sugwang himself.
One ghoul charged, shrieking like a beast.
"Haaaap!"
Puhak!
His spear, charged with murky spear-qi, pierced through its gaping jaws like lightning.
With a twist of his body, his Black Serpent Spear cleaved upward, blowing away its upper jaw, before storming through the others like a whirlwind.
Puh-puh-puh-puhpuhk!
The spear spun around him like a living thing, smashing ghouls aside, sometimes cleanly severing heads.
His skill had certainly grown stronger.
Having broken the charge at the front, he glanced back at his men and allowed himself a faint smile.
After Seonu Jin, Bi Sa-yeong, and Bae Jong-gwan had once rescued the Sixth Squad from a ghoul horde, the squad leaders had emphasized training in Close Combat Techniques.
They had realized that in a ghoul swarm, survival depended less on killing and more on repelling and throwing them off balance.
That was why they worked in threes now: one with sword-qi killed, while the two beside him knocked away the rest.
It worked—the Fifth Squad was holding steadily, none looking in danger.
Sugwang relaxed slightly.
With no mid-level ghouls among them, he felt confident they'd suffer no casualties.
"Perhaps I didn't need to call for support after all."
But then—
Vice-leader Jang Yeo-yeo shouted:
"Squad Leader! These things are strange! They're ignoring us and running past!"
"What?"
Sugwang frowned. That was impossible.
Ghouls never ignored prey once engaged. They were known for their obsessive fixation.
Yet when he looked—he had to admit she was right.
The ones knocked aside by his men weren't coming back—they were racing straight past, toward the rear.
A violation of everything they knew about ghouls.
"What the hell… are they?"
Jang Yeo-yeo muttered:
"Doesn't it seem like they're fleeing from something chasing them?"
"Nonsense! Ghouls have no emotions beyond hunger for humans—"
At that moment—
Puh-uhk!
A ghoul at the very back suddenly had its head explode like a melon.
"Huh?!"
Then the one in front of it suffered the same fate.
Puseok!
The cause was clear.
Someone was flying forward with lightfoot skill, striking ghouls' heads with a single palm.
Jang Yeo-yeo gasped:
"Who is that?!"
No one could answer.
They had never seen this warrior before.
He was a large, burly man, hair wild, dressed in a tattered blue martial robe.
Though his robe was worn, his palm strikes were killing ghouls one by one with terrifying ease—at least a high first-class expert, his wild, feral speed like that of a master.
"First-class? A peak expert?"
He wasn't using inner force like a true peak, but his slaughter was ferocious, almost beastlike.
Even the squad members were struck with awe.
"Who could he be?"
As Dok Sugwang frowned, the stranger cleared the path, finishing off even the ghouls Sugwang had knocked aside, until he stood before them.
Before Sugwang could react, Jang Yeo-yeo stepped forward respectfully with a clasped fist:
"Greetings, senior! We are warriors of the Flying Dragon Thirteen!"
The man turned his gaze on her.
And Dok Sugwang, watching closely, saw it—
Through the wild hair shadowing his face, his eyes gleamed with a bloody red light—like those of a demon.
"!"
Startled, Sugwang lunged at Jang Yeo-yeo.
"Dodge!"
But at the same moment, the strange man leapt at her with a sudden palm strike.
Puh-oong!
The blow grazed past her head, scattering her hair.
She had barely escaped thanks to Sugwang shoving her aside with his spear shaft.
As Yeo-yeo stumbled back in fright, Sugwang twisted in midair, his spear coiling like a living snake around him before lashing out at the stranger.
Wiiiiing!
Puhhhk!
The man, who had exposed an opening while missing Jang Yeo-yeo, was struck squarely by Dok Sugwang's spear shaft and sent flying backward.
Dok Sugwang immediately kicked off the ground, ready to press a follow-up attack.
Whoever he was, there was no doubt he was an enemy.
"I don't know who the hell you are, but—huh?!"
But he was forced to recoil in shock and hastily assume a defensive stance.
The man who had been flung away by a clean strike from his spear now sprang back without the slightest injury, charging once more.
"What?!"
The man thrust both palms at Dok Sugwang.
The momentum was powerful enough to shatter boulders.
"Tch!"
Dok Sugwang spun his body again.
His Black Serpent Spear whipped around him like a snake and slammed into the man's twin palms from the side, managing to deflect the force of the strike.
Teoteong!
And then he launched his counterattack.
The Black Serpent Spear turned into a line of light as it pierced toward the man's exposed chest.
Spear-qi condensed at the tip, surging forth as vividly as true inner force.
"Haaap!"
Jjeooong!
"Kghh?!"
But in the next instant, Dok Sugwang had to pour all his strength into simply keeping hold of his wildly trembling spear shaft.
His hands felt numb, as if the sensation had been paralyzed.
"Th-this is…"
He could hardly believe it.
The thrust he had put his full might into—enough to pierce through any foe as a top first-class martial artist—hadn't even scratched the man's chest. Instead, it had bounced off as if he had struck an iron plate.
"Urgh!"
As he struggled to keep hold of the violently vibrating spear, Dok Sugwang suddenly caught sight of the man's glowing red chest.
And he heard the beastlike growl.
"Grrrhhhhh…"
Dok Sugwang muttered, almost groaning:
"A… demon?"
***
"Strange, my chest feels tight."
"Yeah. It feels like we've been away for a whole year."
At last, we had returned, and the unchanged sight of the Flying Dragon Thirteen's headquarters stirred an indescribable emotion.
Nestled deep within the jungle, the sight of those familiar buildings felt almost like coming home.
Bi Sa-yeong murmured with a wistful expression:
"To return to this hellish front and yet feel like I've come home… I don't know whether to be glad or resentful."
If even Bi Sa-yeong felt that way, then my own feelings—having spent over ten years here in my past life as well—went without saying.
With a faint smile, I muttered:
"I'm grateful. Just to have a place to come back to."
Twice across two lives, this place had been my refuge.
Of course, just gazing at it would make my chest swell with emotion.
But not all of our squad members were swept up in sentimentality.
"We've only been gone for thirty-four days. I'd rather just get back, file our report, and get some rest."
The one speaking so dryly as she walked ahead was none other than Lady Cheongyeon.
"Ch-Cheongyeon."
"Wait for us, sister."
Lady Na and Lady Cheon hurried after her, glancing nervously at us.
Normally calm and without mood swings, Lady Cheongyeon had, unusually, seemed in low spirits for the entire return journey.
It was the first time since she had joined the Flying Dragons.
Lady Na and Lady Cheon were clearly worried, sticking close to her.
According to the others, she hadn't seemed like this before our return—her mood had only soured after we came back.
It was puzzling.
"What on earth is going on?"
I, who had known her the longest, was the most unsettled. She was never like this.
I racked my memory, wondering if I had unknowingly done something wrong.
At that moment, Bi Sa-yeong asked in a low voice:
"I've been thinking… did you do something to offend Lady Hae?"
I flinched at the sudden question.
"Me? What could I have possibly done?"
"No, I mean, her mood only got worse after we came back. It can't be because of me, right?"
Could it be?
Had I done something wrong to her?
I combed quickly through my flawless memory, reviewing my actions.
But nothing came to mind.
I hadn't even been around her much recently, so there was no chance.
"Come on, no way. She must just be tired."
It was then—
Bang!
A sudden explosion thundered from the jungle ahead.
Startled, we all turned our heads. In the distance, faint red smoke was rising above the treetops.
"A signal for support?"
"An emergency?"
Squad Leader Seolpung's face hardened.
"Only one firework so far. Reinforcements will already be on the way. Still, we should return quickly."
We hurried back to headquarters and reported our return to the Flying Dragon Thirteen's Commander, Storm Blade Wind Yang.
As always, Commander Wind Yang listened silently, then spoke briefly:
"So that's what happened. I'll discuss it with the Sword Saint. Good work. Get some rest."
It seemed the Sword Saint had taken near-total control of the front lines during our absence.
Seolpung then asked:
"We saw an emergency signal earlier."
But Wind Yang shook his head as if it were nothing serious.
"Squad Leader Han Gyo-seong went right away. If there's a problem, another signal will come. For now, rest."
We all nodded.
If even Han Gyo-seong—said to be equal in skill to Seolpung—was on the scene, then it should be fine.
Though of course, that had only been said before this recent deployment.
After Seolpung gave his respects and we prepared to leave, I carefully asked:
"Has this kind of thing happened often while we were away?"
Wind Yang shook his head.
"No. This is the first time since you left."
The first…
So the Iron Demon had not yet appeared.
Then, could it be?
A sudden sense of foreboding struck me.
"Do you know which squad is on duty this time?"
"…The Fifth."
The Fifth Squad—Dok Sugwang's squad.
The very one who had reacted most dismissively when I warned them about the Iron Demon.
And the very same squad that had been annihilated by it in my past life.
On the very day of our return, the emergency signal had come—and it was from Dok Sugwang's squad.
Too much of a coincidence.
The dread in my chest deepened.
I imagined—
If this really was the Iron Demon's appearance?
And if even Squad Leader Han Gyo-seong had gone without bringing the Skullfire Mountain?
Could fate really be so cruelly exact?
But accidents often happen through such cruel coincidences.
Outside the commander's chamber, I turned quickly to Seolpung.
"Squad Leader, I don't like the feeling of this. Will you come with me?"
For a moment he looked puzzled, then his face hardened and he nodded.
"Understood. If it's your intuition, Jin, I won't ignore it."
Bi Sa-yeong asked seriously:
"Should we come too?"
"No. If I'm right, we'll need someone who can wield inner force. For now, the Squad Leader and…"
I turned my gaze toward Lady Cheongyeon. She nodded without hesitation.
"Let's go at once. Straight to the Fifth Squad for support?"
Of course—it was just like her.
I had worried about her mood, but clearly there was nothing to worry about.
Smiling faintly, I replied:
"No. First, to Lady Tang Yeoeun."
She blinked in surprise at my answer.
"Lady Tang?"
"Yes. We'll need the Skullfire Mountain."
And with that, I leapt into motion.
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