Chapter 90: Shadow Killer 2
A lot of the information about the shadow killer came from the investigators who had written reports about the murders.
The main contents of the documents were the witnesses’ statements, the victims’ autopsy results. The conclusions of each case were all the same. ‘Unfeasible’.
To quote, “This is definitely the work of a devil!”
‘This is troublesome.’
There was a lot of content, but none of them could help him identify the criminal.
After reviewing all the documents piled up on the desk, Woohyuk organized the events that had occurred in his mind.
The first victim was Count Cromwell.
He did not leave his office for two days after receiving the notice, but was eventually killed by the shadow killer.
According to the testimony of the soldiers with him at the time, Count Cromwell’s shadows began to move freely and strangled him.
It had happened so suddenly that they were incapable of stopping it.
The second victim was Baron Duncan.
He was taken over by fear once he received the notice and ran away from the city. However, he was discovered dead two days later in a wooden hut in the forest outside the city.
His face had been cut off by a sharp weapon and he was hanging upside down facing a mirror on the wall, just like one of the punishments of hell in the Book of the Dead.
This gruesome incident sparked chaos in Neferti and the nobles began to shiver in fear of this killer.
‘And the murders didn’t stop there.’
The shadow killer was an expert.
Even if the target was surrounded and protected by priests, he never failed to reap the target’s soul. And if the target ran away, he somehow managed to find them and kill them.
There currently were a total of six known victims.
If Woohyuk couldn’t uncover his techniques and methods before the sun set, Count Oswald would become the seventh victim.
‘The possibility of the use of illusion magic or curse magic is very high.’
He had seen many demons during his previous 40 years in this world, but he had never seen one who could control his opponent’s shadows.
Therefore, the shadow killer was using a secret trick to commit his crimes.
These kinds of results could very well be caused by high-level illusion spells or curse spells.
‘Then I must stay with Count Oswald no matter what.’
Within this tightly guarded city, it was necessary to approach the target very closely to leave behind a powerful curse marker.
He had probably already accomplished this task before even sending the murder notice.
After his deductions, Woohyuk went to look for Count Oswald.
“There are a few things I would like to ask you about the shadow killer.”
“Go on. I’ll answer anything I can.”
Count Oswald was lifeless as he had spent the night awake.
Woohyuk observed his appearance for a while before asking.
“Did you see a suspicious individual before receiving the notice?”
“Suspicious individual? Not that I know of. If I had seen someone like that, I would’ve had him captured and sentenced immediately.”
A witch hunt was currently ongoing in the capital city of Neferti.
They weren’t hunting actual witches, but sentencing innocent people by accusing them of being the shadow killer.
Woohyuk frowned as he listened to Count Oswald.
‘I see that paranoia is spreading.’
If he used his undeads or his demonic energy in this situation, he would face the wrath of the entire Izuna Kingdom.
He could always use his Jester’s Mask to change his appearance, but the problem was Choi Kayoon.
Not only did she have an adventurer’s watch, she was also a monster tamer. She was the perfect scapegoat.
‘I have no choice but to hide my powers.’
An unfavorable condition.
However, he was confident he wouldn’t lose as long as the opponent wasn’t as powerful as the 72 demon kings.
As he calmed himself down, Woohyuk reached his hand out to Count Oswald.
“With no disrespect, you look like you’ll fall over in any second. I wish to check your condition.”
“Do, do as you wish.”
The count was aware that Woohyuk was a trustworthy man through Tinia’s letter.
When Count Oswald expressed his cooperation, Woohyuk used his inner demonic energy to scan every corner of his body.
‘As I thought.’
A stigma made of dark energy was on his heart.
It was most probably an interconnector that linked the curse caster and the target.
Although he had to erase it right away to protect Count Oswald, he decided to leave it untouched.
‘It would be problematic to lose my only trace of him.’
If he learned that his plan had gone down the drain, the shadow killer would find a different method or would run away.
Therefore, it was safe to say that leaving the stigma alone and tracking down the criminal was a wise decision made by Woohyuk.
After observing the black stigma for a while longer, he activated the Memory Pendant.
‘It wouldn’t hurt to try.’
The chances were low, but he could discover some useful information, just like he did with Tinia and Choi Kayoon.
As the pendant activated, a certain scene appeared in Woohyuk’s mind.
‘A ball.’
A large hall where nobles dressed in fancy and luxurious clothes were dancing.
It appeared to be inside the royal palace in the center of the city Neferti.
‘Maybe there was a woman who caught his interest.’
The Memory Pendant only shows memories that mean a lot to the target.
Woohyuk watched the scene through Count Oswald’s eyes when a woman in a black dress approached him.
“Would you have a moment to spare?”
“Oh, of course My Lady. Apologies, but your name is…?”
“Amy. Amy Klein.”
She had neatly tied black hair and purple eyes, along with a voluptuous body that didn’t suit her slender face.
Amy was glamorous and captured the attention of many men surrounding them.
“I am Count Oswald. If I may ask, are you looking for a dance partner?”
“No, I simply wish to talk with a handsome man like you for a short moment.”
Amy smiled mysteriously and laid her hand on the count’s chest.
A rather obvious beauty.
However, Count Oswald had already fallen for her seduction and was making a dumb face.
‘How unsightly.’
Woohyuk clicked his tongue as he watched the events transpire.
At that moment, the woman’s ring caught his eye.
‘Hm? That’s…’
A somewhat familiar pattern.
Woohyuk rummaged through his memories to remember what the pattern meant, and he froze when he found out.
[The Witch Cult]
A group of fanatics whose objective is the return of Lilith.
They burn towns and villages to perform evil rituals and ruthlessly slaughter innocent people.
Amy was one of the executives of this cult.
She was definitely the one who had left the stigma on Count Oswald’s heart.
“It’s an honor to receive the attention of Lady Amy. Why don’t we find a quiet area where we can sit down and talk peacefully?”
“Unfortunately, time won’t allow me to partake with you. I must soon head home, My Lord.”
Amy shook her head with a sad expression.
Amy and Count Oswald exchanged a few more words before she wished him farewell.
“It was a pleasure to meet you. I hope we can see each other again, even after the sun sets.”
“Without a doubt, My Lady. I will be waiting for you.”
Count Oswald made a regretful face before he kissed the back of her hand.
Amy made an enigmatic smile and pressed down on his chest with her index.
“I will not disappoint your expectations, Count Oswald.”
She giggled as she secretly engraved the stigma while Count Oswald was enchanted.
However, Woohyuk didn’t miss the true intent behind her actions.
‘So this is how she’s been killing the nobles one by one.’
As he thought about it now, all of the victims were men. The fact that Amy’s seduction technique had worked was no surprise to him.
As he found out the truth behind these incidents, Woohyuk exited Count Oswald’s memories.
“I believe that you must rest for a while. Your body has become considerably weak, Count Oswald.”
“I understand. I’ll close my eyes and rest for a bit.”
Count Oswald placed his hand on his forehead and muttered.
Woohyuk nodded and silently left the office.
‘I need to inform Choi Kayoon in advance as well. Tonight is going to be chaotic.’
He needed to make preparations.
Woohyuk recalled his battles against the Witch Cult as he walked towards the guest room.
***
Amy had not been caught in the past as she was using a secret stigma amongst witches.
Once the interconnecting stigma was engraved on a target, she could cast all kinds of curses on the victim and also influence the surrounding people.
In other words, the shadow devil that the eyewitnesses saw kill the victim was fake.
The victims weren’t strangled to death by their own shadows but were killed by the curse spells Amy cast on them.
‘Or she might’ve killed them personally.’
Using advanced stigmas, it was possible for puppeteers to constrain their targets as if controlling their own puppets.
It would also be possible to determine their location.
Either way, she would be hiding and waiting near the target in case anything went wrong.
Woohyuk spoke as he watched the sunset through the window.
“It’s about time. Let’s begin.”
“Will it really go as planned? If Count Oswald dies as we try to capture the woman from the Witch Cult …”
“Don’t worry. She’s definitely coming alone.”
The barrier around Neferti had been strengthened, and ordinary witches from the cult would be incapable of setting foot in the city.
Therefore, they only had to capture the woman called Amy Klein.
It wouldn’t be too late to remove the stigma on Count Oswald after capturing her.
Before setting their strategy in action, Woohyuk was discussing with Choi Kayoon when…
Knock knock.
They heard someone knock on the door.
“Come in.”
Creaaak.
The door opened and a brown-haired maid entered, a nervous look painted on her face as Count Oswald’s destined moment was approaching.
“Sir Chun Woohyuk, Count Oswald is calling for you.”
“Alright. Let us head there now.”
Woohyuk replied formally before following the maid.
He noticed a few guards carrying a large statue of a goddess in the corridor.
Every item in the mansion that could be considered divine was being moved.
‘A meaningless act.’
As the power of the gods had weakened, the power of divine objects had also decreased.
Therefore, no matter how many of those the count gathered, he wouldn’t be able to block an executive of the Witch Cult.
The circumstances could change if a high-grade divine item were used, but Woohyuk doubted a noble from a small kingdom would possess such an item.
After passing by the guards, he entered the office. Count Oswald welcomed him with a bright expression.
“Ah, you’ve arrived. Over here is the Pitbull Clan leader Shin Dong-il. He’s someone I specially commissioned.”
A young black-haired man stood next to the count.
‘Interesting.’
It was definitely the man who had appeared in Choi Kayoon’s memories.
Woohyuk made an amused face and extended a hand to Shin Dong-il.
“I’m Chun Woohyuk, a special mercenary.”
“Special mercenary? You must have confidence in your sword skills. You seem to be Korean, so let’s get along.”
Shin Dong-il smiled brightly as he spoke. He then pointed towards the ring Woohyuk was wearing.
“Why are you working as a special mercenary when you’re a clan leader? Your clan’s even at the highest tier.”
“I have some circumstances.”
Woohyuk spoke as little as possible.
Since he had brought Choi Kayoon to his side, Shin Dong-il was no different than an enemy.
“Well, I guess that it’s not important right now. Anyways, where are your clan members?”
“In a different region. I’m the only one in this city.”
“Hm… Aren’t you underestimating the shadow killer too much? That guy might actually be a demon.”
Shin Dong-il stared at Woohyuk with a dumbfounded look.
Due to that, Count Oswald wore a suspicious expression. Woohyuk finally felt the need to explain.
“It’s useless to bring many members to deal with this affair. The previously targeted nobles all had recruited many guards to protect them.”
“...You’re not wrong. Now, let’s end the chitchat and get ready.”
Shin Dong-il took out a scroll from his pocket.
Woohyuk frowned as he recognized the scroll.
‘That’s…’
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