“Hiya. You mustn’t move yet.”

Ms. Shim held her daughter Hiya’s hand tightly.

Hiya was covered in bruises and wounds from head to toe. The girl had suffered the worst misfortune of her life. Three days ago, on her way to work, she was brutally assaulted—beaten and even sexually violated by a man.

“Mom, you heard, right? That bastard got out and said he’s going to kill us all.”

The perpetrator was a man named Gongpae, one of the Beast Faction gangsters controlling this area. He had committed this atrocity not at night but in the morning.

Despite her battered body, Hiya reported him directly to the local Martial Alliance branch. But barely three days after being arrested, she heard Gongpae was released. Even at the branch, he openly shouted that he was innocent and warned he wouldn’t spare Hiya or her family once free. Yet, they let him go.

“We have to leave, Mom.”

Hiya staggered to her feet but immediately sat down again from dizziness. Every part of her ached.

“With your body like this, where do you think you’re going?”

“We have to. He’s going to kill us.”

Tears welled in Hiya’s eyes. She never dreamed they would release that man so easily. What were they supposed to do? What were they supposed to do?!

Ms. Shim pulled her daughter into a tight embrace.

“It’s all my fault. It’s because of me.”

She had lost her husband and was raising her children alone. She had lived fiercely, but a year ago, she had a serious fall and severely injured her leg.

Now unable to work, her ten-year-old son had begun work as a servant, and her fifteen-year-old daughter, who helped at the fabric store, had taken on washing dishes at the inn at night.

They were such good kids, earning living expenses and buying medicine for their mother. Yet this terrible misfortune had come to her daughter.

Tears streamed down Ms. Shim’s face. She gritted her teeth to avoid crying in front of her daughter, but the tears came anyway.

Hiya gritted her teeth and stood again.

“Mom, pack. I’ll get the cart.”

Ms. Shim grabbed her hand.

“You should go. Take your brother and hide for now.”

“Mom, there’s no time. You know I won’t leave without you.”

“Where would I go with you? Just go hide for a while, okay?”

Hiya’s mind raced with every possible thought.

Where could she take her injured mother and young brother? Or if she were bitten by a mad dog and that man came looking, should she beg for forgiveness? She had no idea what choice was right.

‘Someone please tell me what to do! Please help me!’

The fifteen-year-old’s only place to cling to was the sky.

Just then, her younger brother Seok burst through the door.

“Mom! Sister!”

He looked flushed with excitement.

Seeing him, Hiya snapped to attention, realizing leaving was the right thing to do to save her brother.

“Pack your things, Seok.”

“Why?”

“We’re leaving. Only pack what’s necessary.”

“Sis! Wait! Listen to me. I asked a warrior for help. He said he’d help us.”

At that, both Ms. Shim and Hiya were surprised.

“Who is he? Someone you know?”

“No, I met him today for the first time.”

Hearing that, Hiya sighed.

“Seok, listen to me. Don’t ask just anyone for help. What if that warrior dies at the hands of the Beast Faction?”

“No, he seemed really scary and strong.”

Hiya sighed again.

“Then who is he? Why did he come alone?”

“He told me to leave first.”

“That guy won’t come. He was just annoyed you asked, so he said that. Hurry and pack.”

She staggered up. Though it was hard to walk, she was determined to get her mother onto the cart and leave.

When she opened the door to leave, she was shocked.

Gongpae stormed into the yard, looking furious.

Hiya gasped and fell to her knees in shock.

Gongpae said coldly,

“How dare you report me? Because of you, I was locked up for three days.”

For the past three days, whenever Hiya thought of Gongpae, she only wanted to kill him. In her imagination, she stabbed him with a kitchen knife, smashed him with a hammer, bit off his neck. Dozens, hundreds of times she killed him.

But seeing him in reality terrified her so much she couldn’t think of anything. Her whole body trembled and her mind went blank.

At that moment, Ms. Shim came out dragging her bottom, sitting.

“Hey, I’m the one who reported him. Blame me if you want.”

Gongpae sneered.

“I care for your crawling mother like a bug, and you’re snitching?”

Hiya screamed as if having a seizure.

“Shut up! Shut up! Who are you! Why! Why! Aaaaah!”

She shouted louder because she was scared.

“That crazy bitch needs a beating to come to her senses.”

Gongpae raised a hand to hit her, but Seok ran out.

“Don’t! Don’t touch my sister!”

Seok stood before Hiya.

Hiya pulled him behind her. They both resisted and fell backward.

“You’re crazy, you’re crazy. What good is living like this? Today, you all die by my hand. I’ll bury you all in one place.”

He really {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} intended to kill them all and drew a dagger. Seeing the blue blade, Hiya and Seok froze.

“Please save us! Please save our family!”

At that moment, a low voice came from behind them.

“Shouldn’t that plea for mercy be directed at you instead?”

Startled, Gongpae turned around to see Geommuguk and Kwonma entering.

Gongpae immediately recognized that these two were no ordinary warriors. Especially when he saw Kwonma looking at him like he was an insect, his whole body’s hairs stood on end.

Seok shouted excitedly,

“Warriors! You’re here! That’s a warrior! You came!”

Ms. Shim and Hiya realized that these were the warriors Seok had mentioned earlier.

Gongpae also realized the kid had called these warriors.

“Warriors, there must be some misunderstanding. I like that woman.”

Gongpae’s blatant lie made Geommuguk shush him with a gesture.

“This is your last chance in this life. You have only one word left to say. And even that isn’t your right.”

Geommuguk asked Hiya,

“Miss, do you want an apology before this guy dies?”

Before dying?

Hiya looked at Geommuguk in surprise. He nodded once.

Hiya shook her head. She didn’t want to talk to the man.

“You don’t even get to say your last nonsense.”

Just as Gongpae opened his mouth,

Geommuguk’s wind technique subdued his arteries and demonic blood. He wasn’t given even a single chance to speak.

Kwonma walked slowly toward Hiya.

Guessing what he intended, Geommuguk covered Seok’s eyes.

Kwonma stood before Hiya. Swallowing nervously, she looked up at him. She had never seen anyone so terrifying before.

“Show me your fist.”

Hiya extended her trembling hand in a fist. Kwonma’s large hand enveloped hers. Together, they slowly pushed their fists forward.

At the moment the question ‘What is this?’ crossed Gongpae’s face—

Fwoooaaang!

A terrible, ear-piercing roar of wind!

Puff! Puff! Puff puff puff! Puff puff puff puff puff!

Gongpae’s bones shattered explosively. From his toes to arms and legs, ribs and spine, shoulder blades and neck bones—all broke and crushed without exception.

“Uaaaaaah!”

It was excruciating pain unlike anything he’d ever experienced. Unable to scream because his arteries were suppressed, the pain was even worse.

After all that agony, his face suddenly caved in and he collapsed.

All this was contained in that one move where Kwonma held Hiya’s hand and pushed forward.

But it wasn’t over. As if refusing to allow even his corpse in the household, Kwonma flicked his hand and the corpse floated into the air.

Another punch shot into the air.

Krarrrung! Bang!

Thunder sounded as if the heavens were punishing him.

Kwa kwa kwa kwa kwa kwa!

A tremendous force swept over his corpse, which disappeared without a trace as if by magic.

“Ahhh!”

Hiya couldn’t believe what she’d seen. It was like a hallucination.

At that moment, Kwonma squeezed her fist once more.

Hiya felt the fist’s unspoken message:

Live strongly from now on.

Hiya looked up at Kwonma, who glanced down at her indifferently.

She was no longer afraid of his face. He was no longer a demon but like one of the Four Heavenly Kings standing at the temple entrance—a guardian protecting her from evil spirits.

Seok didn’t see Gongpae turn to dust, but he knew by feeling that Gongpae was dead.

Geommuguk gently wiped Seok’s tears with his palm.

After removing his hand from Seok’s face, Geommuguk turned him toward himself.

“From now on, live bravely like today.”

That courage to approach the fearsome Kwonma and ask for help— with such courage, Seok would surely live well.

“Yes.”

Seok hugged Geommuguk. Trembling in his arms, Geommuguk gently stroked the boy’s head.

“Master, please accept my bow.”

Hiya tried to bow to Kwonma, but an unseen force stopped her.

“No need.”

“Please accept my bow. It’s all I can offer.”

“I only did what your brother asked.”

With that, Kwonma looked up to the sky, hands behind his back.

Hiya looked at Seok, who ran and clung to his sister.

“Sis.”

“Seok.”

This time, Seok looked at Kwonma with admiration and gratitude, but Kwonma simply looked skyward with hands behind his back.

Ms. Shim tearfully expressed her gratitude.

“Thank you. I will never forget this kindness even after death.”

Geommuguk told Ms. Shim and Hiya,

“I know he belongs to a gang. We will handle it ourselves, so don’t worry anymore.”

And the luck given to this family was not over.

Perhaps feeling compelled to help further, Kwonma approached Ms. Shim and suddenly asked,

“Since when?”

“Huh?”

“Your leg. Since when has it hurt?”

“Oh, about a year.”

“May I examine it?”

Before she could answer, Hiya quickly said,

“Please!”

Kwonma examined her leg.

“Even if it hurts, endure a little longer.”

Before she could protest,

Crack. Snap. Click.

The sound of bones resetting. Years of stiffness yielding, Ms. Shim screamed. But the pain didn’t last. Kwonma understood human bones and muscles better than any healer.

After a moment, Kwonma said something amazing.

“If you rehabilitate for a while, you will get up and walk again.”

Ms. Shim was so shocked she couldn’t speak, and Hiya and Seok cheered.

“Thank you, Master.”

“Thank you. Thank you.”

The three hugged and cried.

Finally, Geommuguk gave Hiya an envelope containing enough money to open a small shop so the family could live.

Hiya asked, voice trembling,

“Why do you give me this?”

“I’m not the one giving it. It’s money extracted from that gang, so don’t feel burdened.”

How could money or Gongpae’s death heal her wounds?

This would be a lifelong scar. She would have nightmares and a deep mistrust of men.

But this was all Geommuguk could do. She must overcome this and live well for the rest of her life.

“Why do you grant us such great kindness?”

Hiya felt as if all the blessings she’d never had came at once. It seemed almost too much.

Geommuguk looked at Kwonma and said,

“It’s because your brother chose that handsome face over there.”

Leaving Ms. Shim’s place, we headed straight to the Beast Faction.

If we didn’t clean up the backyard, Seok’s family would be in danger.

Before going, we learned that the Beast Faction had done every imaginable evil deed—intimidation, extortion, assault, murder. They ruled this area like kings, the local dark forces.

Even if these bastards were the way they were, the Martial Alliance branch that tolerated them was an even bigger problem.

“The fist technique you used earlier was truly magnificent.”

In fact, it was too refined a fist to be used on a worthless bastard like Gongpae.

Still, Kwonma had killed him personally because of Seok. Since Seok asked for help, Kwonma saved his family with his own hands, letting him live with pride in his choice.

But what moved me more was how Kwonma grabbed Hiya’s hand and sent the bastard flying. Because of that large, strong hand, I believe the girl will live well—remembering that hand when times are hard.

“I respect you.”

“You’re all flattery.”

“I mean it, Master.”

Though I subtly called him Master, he remained the iron wall.

“The attempt was well done, Young Master.”

Thus, we arrived at the Beast Faction’s manor.

The guard at the gate panicked upon seeing Kwonma’s figure, slammed the gate shut, and ran inside.

“Alert! Alert!”

Hearing the shout, Kwonma said self-deprecatingly,

“See? Just my face alone triggers alarms.”

If Seodaeryong had been here, he’d have teased me for days, but with Kwonma by my side, no one would be intimidated by just a face.

“Did you see? The look of admiration the girl gave Kwonma just now?”

Maybe because of that, Kwonma slammed his palm on the gate, and with a loud bang, the heavy gate was ripped open like paper.

Kwonma went inside first. From behind, his massive back completely filled the huge entrance.