_*Kugugugung!_
As the battle raged on, Harley took a quick glance around.
‘It feels eerie… Could there be more traps?’
However, nothing particularly stood out to his senses.
Just like before, only the Buncheon Society and Dracul’s goons flittered around him like mayflies.
‘Still, I can’t ignore Harley’s instincts—it’s best to be cautious for now.’
While he scanned the area, his body, already accustomed to multitasking, continued the fight effortlessly.
_*Kuwung— Skakak!_
With a heavy thud, a thick arm swung, and five razor-like claws at the end ruthlessly tore through the air.
A primal instinct fused with the intellect of a sentient being.
Even just moving about was enough to make him formidable, and now, understanding the meaning of nothingness and using it actively, he was nothing short of a walking disaster.
_*Puhwahak—!_
“Gross— this monster…!”
“Cough! Don’t act rashly! Salmun! Is it still far?”
“Crazy! Just how tough is that body!? What kind of resistance does it have!?”
The fight, however, was not as simple as they’d hoped.
Though there was a significant difference in ranks, the opponents were strong ones who had also transcended their limits.
Of course, they had the assistance of several high-ranking vampires, all equipped with unique skills and abilities.
‘Looks like they brought in some high-tier talents. They must have really prepared for this event.’
Harley twisted his head to meet the gaze of the ones glaring at him, looking rather ragged from the fight so far.
Though he had taken down quite a few vampires, it clearly wasn’t enough.
It seemed he needed to deal with the lackeys of the Buncheon Society first, but the empowered ones were staying guarded, making it difficult to settle things easily.
‘Things don’t seem to be going well. It might be a bad idea to hold back information leaks.’
Perhaps he had underestimated them too much.
If he let even one escape from here, the loss would be greater.
The number of strong beings often determined the influence of a faction, after all; it would be wise to reduce the number of strong foes within the Buncheon Society as much as possible.
“Cough— There’s no helping it then.”
Since the stage had already been set this way, there was little meaning in holding back any longer.
It seemed a bit excessive to hide anything further at this point.
“What are you trying to do now…?”
“Stay on guard! Don’t act first…!”
As Harley reacted, sensing something, the enemies began to tense up.
_*Duk!_
The “Seed of Madness” residing within him pulsed, as madness began to surge through his body.
And using that as energy, the “Engraving of the Dragon King” glowed beneath his crimson scales, while his “Biotic Aura” flared up like a raging fire enveloping his form.
“Wait, that energy response is…!”
“Falcon! Quickly, defense first…!”
In the next moment…
With a crouched body and ten fingers planted on the ground, he launched himself forward.
_*Quack— Kwaaang!_
“Coughhahaha!”
In an instant, he kicked the ground and soared towards the enemies like a rocket.
“Faster…!”
“……!”
Someone tried to bind him using an unknown power, but it was in vain.
The madness-infused energy flowing with dragon scales resisted external forces, while the mystery of the engraving fostered his inner energy, allowing him to disregard the hostile phenomena.
_*Puhwahak!_
In a hurry, one vampire attempting to get close crumbled to pieces with a mere flick of his wrist.
No matter how impressive their regeneration was, that level of damage was beyond recovery.
_*Kwaang—!_
Soon enough, Harley’s claws had grown twice the size, stretching across the air.
It was the defensive ability of the hammer warrior, who had played a significant role in allowing the Buncheon Society’s side to endure thus far.
Only with a single attack did cracks begin to spread like spider webs in contact, but that brief moment gave the skilled opponents enough time for countermeasures.
‘Until now…’
Now that he had made up his mind, there was no reason to hesitate.
His jaw stretched wide apart, as the razor-sharp teeth glinted dangerously—.
_*Kwaizik!_
He bit down on the barrier that obstructed him.
“What the hell?!”
The act of devouring, heavily fortified by “Devour,” exploded with destruction beyond the previous level, tearing a large hole through the invisible curtain blocking his way.
With that, the rest was a piece of cake.
_*Kwa-duduk! Kwadak!_
In a flash, he surged through the destroyed barrier, mouth agape, teeth bared, quickly approaching the muscular giant.
The scene was so grotesque it could evoke primal terror, but amidst it all, the seasoned veterans reacted expertly.
The hammer warrior, swinging a massive hammer in a frontal assault, the female swordsman with an eerie energy hidden in her longsword aiming for the back, and the martial artist coming down from the skies, along with the remaining vampires assisting them.
Until just a moment ago, Harley would have held back to maintain a proper pace, but now that he had fully committed, such reservations meant nothing.
_*Giiing—_
The left eye suddenly burst forth with a green light as the “Gem Eye: Suppression” activated.
The overwhelming energy of madness ignited instantly, generating immense physical power that restrained the actions of nearby individuals.
“Cough?!”
“What is this…?”
Of course, they too were skilled enough, so the suppressive force didn’t last long, but for Harley, that fleeting moment was more than enough to finish what he had set out to do.
_*Kuuung—_
“Cough!”
With a ferocious assault aiming for openings, the hammer warrior flew back as if hit by a dump truck.
Though he had just managed to block the direct hit with his hammer earlier, it didn’t matter much.
His goal was only just beginning.
‘I need to finish this guy as quickly as possible.’
At that moment, time fragmented into fleeting moments.
Harley’s hands collided with the warrior’s hammer in a dazzling display.
The hammer and fist clashed, leaving shockwaves, while claws and grip created sparks.
_*Kugugugung—_
The late-joining allies of the warrior quickly dove in to assist.
A strange power-infused longsword sliced through, leaving significant wounds, while the martial artist burst shockwaves in succession to push him back, but…
Harley, possessing near-immortal regeneration, paid them no mind.
He charged on solely after the hammer warrior.
With such flow of events, the outcome was only natural.
“Don’t!”
“Falcon!”
Eventually, supported by his comrades, the hammer warrior lost his weapon and was bound by the collar.
“Now, just one left.”
“Cough!”
_*Pooduk!_
Ignoring the surrounding interference, Harley twisted the neck of his prize caught in his grasp.
And that was…
The starting signal for the unfolding slaughter.
*
The ultimate evolved life form, Harley.
His creation traces back to the aftermath of Hans wearing the Hahoe Mask and Heinz II putting down the Buncheon Society’s hardliners.
It was there that he first encountered Yul Ryeong-ja within the mental realm of a captured Buncheon Society executive.
At that time, Hans discovered the whereabouts of those lurking in Korea through memories he had read, and after launching an assault there, he managed to gather various data…
Among them, the ‘Complete Evolutionary Organism Project’ and samples of ‘Ravenous Dragon’s Blood’ were included.
Dr. The doctor, who had been bustling around conducting various research at once, was hoping to gain a new perspective, so he deliberately spread the topic across multiple branches and spurred competition.
Believing that progress in science and technology comes from exchange, he didn’t bother worrying about the potential leaks of research data during that process.
For him, it was because he had strong faith in his own superiority.
No matter how many people he gathered together in this world, no one could be as good as him.
If someone advanced the research even slightly with some brilliant creativity, it would be a plus.
Ultimately, everything served as his nourishment, and he believed he would be the one to finish it all…
He thought so.
_Tak tak tak—_
The doctor, staring at a holographic image with bloodshot eyes, chewed on his nails.
He paid no mind to the blood oozing from his fingertips.
In fact, with his full concentration on the “Eye of Truth,” there was no remainder of mental energy to devote elsewhere.
“…Was the added component based on black magic? Among them, it resembles Hadessia lineage quite a bit. It seems complex formula has been applied, and it looks like various elements have been mixed in here… In addition, there’s quite a bit of advanced chimera engineering. Modern biological techniques seem to have been mixed in as well…”
The doctor muttered incessantly like a madman.
While it couldn’t match an actual encounter, this holographic projection was quite a well-crafted magical equipment, allowing him to glean a fair amount of information.
Consequently, the conclusion he reached was…
“…It’s undeniable.”
Though there were slight differences in the details, it was clear that it contained his agonizing hypotheses, arguments, theories, and proofs.
“Hoo— Ha— Hoo, hoo.”
After a brief moment of bending down to catch his breath, he raised his head and locked his gaze onto the muscular monstrosity, now exceeding three meters in size, rampaging against the Buncheon Society’s powefuls.
That exquisite ‘work of art.’
“Who on earth…?”
The pinnacle of efficiency he had only designed but never implemented.
A manifestation of the concept of evolution in life; the epitome of beauty that surpassed even the creatures shaped by the gods.
An artificial being that transcended its limits and reached unfathomable realms.
“How… How, how, how, how…!”
Deep within his heart, a feeling he had never felt before began to boil over.
The doctor clawed at his bloodied face in madness, mumbling to himself furiously.
At this point, it didn’t matter that the research results had been stolen.
What was concerning was something else entirely.
“How is it posssssssssible—!!”
He couldn’t comprehend.
How could such a feat be achievable?
Even while witnessing it with his own eyes, he still could not grasp it.
And that was what drove him insane.
_*Puhuhihahak! Pukikik—!_
His established complex formula and existing research based on science, enhanced by black magic, chimera techniques, alchemical methods, and pharmacological processing…
Yet he had already tried all of that.
The result was his failure.
And someone else produced a masterpiece like that.
‘Who could it possibly be? How…?… Is that madness energy the key? No, no matter how I look, that seems to be an added feature. Then what method…?’
Curiosity about the incomprehensible, doubts, inquiries, questions, skepticism.
An inferiority complex and feeling of defeat that someone was above him; jealousy towards that person.
And the humiliation of having to accept it all.
The anomalies of Harley as an experiment and his skill of “Adaptation,” along with the Undead King Hans’s abilities, were unknown to him; thus, he could never realize such things.
No, even if he knew, the emotions he felt wouldn’t change much.
In any case, it was a plain fact that someone else had succeeded before he had.
“…Just watching won’t be enough.”
After a time of repression, the doctor twisted and then suddenly stood still, whispering.
The quest for endless knowledge was the greatest virtue one could possess as a sentient being.
He couldn’t just stand still now that he had faced the unknown.
‘If it’s insufficient, just fill it.’
If he could carry out a proper analysis, the situation would change.
Research inherently belonged in the laboratory.
If he could obtain that work of art, dissect it and analyze it thoroughly…!
“Puhuhuhuhik—.”
The twisted gaze of the doctor, seeping with excitement, turned toward the holographic experiment, Harley.
Ends
