Baek-Hyeon's smile faded as his expression shifted to a taut, serious one, looking down at Korain with his divine, golden irises, "...What're you implying, Korain?"
"I'm implying that something isn't right about you. I have a certain sense for this kind of thing–I can almost smell it: the dishonesty, the facade, the paper-thin veil of benevolence. In reality, you're–"
"Korain."
The mix-colored haired man was stopped in his words by another voice–a commanding tone that even he stopped to listen to.
"Leader?" Korain looked to the side.
Standing by the stairwell that led to the higher floors, the silver-haired leader of Gangcheori stood with a tight expression, adjusting his glasses as he walked towards the two.
"What's the meaning of this? This is no time for quarrels," Dae-Seong told him.
Korain unhanded Baek-Hyeon begrudgingly, looking at the leader, who was already dressed in his snow-white armor with his greatsword on his back.
"But…!" Korain tried to explain.
"--But there are more important things at hand. We can discuss this later, but for now, I need you on the upper floors–the enemy attack is only growing more fierce. The others are fighting up above," Dae-Seong told Korain before looking at Baek-Hyeon, "...I'd like you to scout the perimeter outside. Your divine light is the only thing capable of combating the darkness–it's a job only you can handle, Baek-Hyeon."
"Leave it to me," Baek-Hyeon moved out with a grin, waving off.
Korain was still hesitant about all of this, but a glare from Dae-Seong forced him to follow the orders given to him, heading up the stairs to assist the others.
After Baek-Hyeon broke down the barricade to the front door and left, it was just him, Xiaodan, the unconscious Eunji, and now Dae-Seong, who for some reason simply stared at him until the other two left.
"Dae-Seong?" He called out.
The silver-haired man adjusted his glasses before a smile reached across his lips, "How was that? Convincing, no?"
"What…?" He replied quietly.
Focusing on the familiar figure in front of him that was now smiling oddly in the darkness, he squinted to get a read on his player profile:
[Player Recognized…]
[Error.]
"Jeong-Hui…" Xiaodan said his name quietly from behind him.
"What is it?" He glanced back at Xiaodan.
"Is that…something the leader always does?" Xiaodan asked.
"Huh…?"
As he turned his gaze forward once again to look at what Xiaodan was referring to, his stomach sank as he witnessed "Dae-Seong's" arms unnaturally extend downward, growing in length as his bones creaked, growing taller as a whole, yet thinner.
"...Fooled you…All alone…"
The pale skin of the man began to peel away, melting as his entire appearance drooped and washed away along with his hair and outfit.
Within moments, his entire appearance melted away, revealing a lanky figure, dressed in an all-black set of belt-wrapped garments resembling a straightjacket.
"...Who are you?!" He asked, stepping back.
Though he wanted to prepare for a fight, his arms were preoccupied with holding Eunji.
The mysterious, skin-crawling figure laughed lowly at his question, seeming to take pleasure in his confusion, "Kehehe…Wouldn't you like to know?"
"Jeong-Hui!...I think this is one of them!" Xiaodan said anxiously, standing by him with a stance ready for a fight.
"Huh?"
"One of those creepy people I ran into before…They use a unique System! What was it called again…?" Xiaodan mumbled.
It was the lanky, shapeshifting figure that answered with a quiet laugh, "...The "GOETIA System"...kehehe…The fangs to bite into all the pretty bodies I want."
Already it was clear that the one they were faced with wasn't of a stable mind, laughing as only his mouth was visible from the belt-wrapped mask around his head, smiling wide and cackling as his sights seemed to set on Xiaodan.
"...Pretty girl…I want you…I bet you taste delicious," the man slipped his tongue from his mouth, making a gut-wrenching movement with his drooling tongue.
Xiaodan held a nervous smile, "Hate to break it to you, but I'm not a girl."
"Huh?" The crazed man let out, "...Lies. Deception! Kahaha! That won't stop me from tasting your smooth skin!"
Beginning to walk towards them with an uneven, stumbling step with his arms swaying side-to-side, the crazed user of the GOETIA System approached.
"Well, that didn't dissuade him…" Xiaodan muttered.
He wanted to help, but Eunji's state made it a tall order as he looked on urgently, not knowing what he should do.
I can't set her down–it's too dangerous around here. Forget the centipedes…there's also a creep like this lurking around! He thought.
"Xiaodan…!" He called the name of his comrade.
"I know," Xiaodan smiled, cracking his knuckles, "I'll take this one on myself! Just keep the princess safe!"
There was an air of confidence around Xiaodan that he couldn't quite place; he bounced in place, warming his body up as he lightly shook his limbs before swiftly shifting into a sturdy stance, preparing to clash with the enigmatic enemy.
Despite being of a lower level, Xiaodan's lack of hesitance and complete confidence was enough to place himself on a higher realm than he normally should be; it was a perfect understanding of his own capabilities, and a trust in his strength.
Be careful, Xiaodan! He thought.
While the lanky, salivating figure approached, Xiaodan burst forth with a special technique–"Tiger's Dogma"--a skill that concentrated the muscles of his legs, contracting them to their max before releasing, resulting in an explosive force that allowed Xiaodan to dash with incredible speed.
"Graah–!"
Unable to react to this speed, the long-armed man attempted to swipe at the martial artist without any form or elegance, but was too late as a palm strike from the feminine, silver-haired man struck his chin with a thunderous impact.
"Oooeugh…"
The player-killer stumbled back, swaying and shifting as they were left discombobulated from the harsh strike to the chin, drooling over themselves.
Xiaodan returned to a stance, but didn't follow up, seeming to believe it was the end of the encounter, but he knew better:
"Keep going! Don't let up–!" He yelled out, though it was more of a warning.
Just as the silver-haired, lithe figure heard this and stuck true to those words, spinning around into a roundhouse kick–it seemed to come a moment too late.
Or rather, it was anticipated.
A grin came over the belt-wrapped figure's mouth, suddenly coming to as if feigning being stunned by the attack with a cackling laughter.
"What the–?!"
Xiaodan's foot sank right into the tall, hunched-over man's abdomen, being pulled in as if it were made of liquid.
As Xiaodan tugged his foot back, standing on one leg, though still balanced through their proficiency, their slipper couldn't budge from the rippling, liquid-like body of the cackling figure.
"Kehehe…Got you, pretty one…"
The long-armed figure continued to laugh, letting his tongue hang out as it dropped down, salivating in an abhorrent delight.
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