After I left the tavern and started walking, I noticed several eyes following me.
At first, I ignored them, thinking they were just people around the area, but the stares continued for a long time.
"Bugs," I thought as I remembered where I was. I was most likely being followed.
While I was inside the rift, I discovered something about the Eye of Truth.
The ability that allows me to see mana directly is something I can activate and deactivate at will.
I discovered this because of an attack from one of the monkeys back then. If I hadn't activated it at that moment, it would have likely pierced my heart and killed me.
And that was when I realized I could activate mana vision.
Now I activated the Eye of Truth again, and with mana vision disabled, I noticed several figures moving swiftly through the alley behind me.
"One… two… three." I confirmed three people following me.
I closed my eyes and began weaving threads of mana around me.
Tiny, invisible threads.
This was another skill I had learned.
But based on my memories of the novel…
I released the mana threads and began to faintly sense my surroundings.
But that wasn't all.
At the same time as the Eye of Truth activated, a resonance occurred.
A small map began forming inside my mind.
With that map, I could now perceive and sense everything around me simultaneously with the Eye of Truth.
I smiled slightly when I realized the people following me were nothing more than a weak group ranked F.
Even though I could let them go, I won't.
Maybe this way, they had killed many others before.
Their intentions were clear from their greedy eyes—they wanted to rob me.
Just like they had robbed their previous victims.
I had never killed anyone before, which is why I stopped.
Yes… I wanted to kill them.
In the future, many characters will appear—especially insane humans.
This was a golden opportunity to get used to it, or rather, to strengthen my will.
Thoughts ran through my mind. One told me to kill them, the other rejected it.
"Why not leave them? I can avoid bloodshed. Maybe I should hand them over to the police?"
Other thoughts rejected my own inside my head.
It felt like two people were talking.
"What do you mean, no killing? Are you acting like a hypocrite now? Didn't you kill those beasts without hesitation?"
A cold voice, as if it came from the depths of the abyss.
"But they are humans… we don't have to kill them, right? Maybe we should hand them over to the police."
"Damn it," I gritted my teeth as the pain began affecting me.
I quickly activated the Calm Mind skill, and the voices began to fade.
As I said before, although we had become one person, it still had its problems.
I touched my golden eyes with my hand while regaining my calm.
I will kill them.
That is all I will do now.
All of this happened while I was still walking, and after a few seconds I found myself in front of a wall.
I had deliberately lured them here.
While continuously activating Calm Mind to suppress my thoughts, my silver eyes turned cold.
"Come out," I said in a voice as cold as the abyss.
As my voice fell, I felt the three figures glance at each other before slowly stepping forward.
At first, they were covered in darkness, making them hard to see, but as they approached, their appearance became clearer.
A middle-aged man, fat like a pig, his black eyes filled with greed.
An ordinary-looking woman wearing inappropriate clothes that emphasized her curves, her red hair falling over her shoulders and her green eyes full of lust.
The last one emitted the strongest aura.
A tall, bald man with dark skin, his clothes seemed woven from darkness itself, blending into the night.
His eyes were deep red.
I observed them and assessed their levels. The fat man and the woman were F+, while the black man emitted an aura as if he were E-.
They looked at me, and I looked back at them.
The fat man spoke first, his short height now noticeable.
"Hey kid, why don't you hand over that ring and help the adults here make some money?"
He rubbed his hands together, greed in his eyes.
"Hey kid, why don't you play with this big sister for a while?"
The woman said with disgusting eyes. I wished I had my sword at that moment to stab her face.
The black man said nothing, continuing to observe me.
But I could feel his killing intent.
Although he wasn't strong, his intent was something else entirely.
If my aura was like someone who kills ants, his aura was like someone who kills chickens.
Still, I felt no fear.
I was stronger, and since there were three of them, their arrogance had reached the sky—they thought I was prey.
But they were wrong.
And they would learn that.
I will make them understand.
I turned my black ring into my usual katana and drew the second sword.
"Then you chose the hard path?"
"Even if you chose the easy one, we would've killed you anyway."
"Kid, why don't you think again and play with big sister?"
I looked at them while they spoke, the black man still silent.
"Hehe," I let out a laugh. They were arrogant… just like I used to be.
I infused my right-hand katana and my entire body with mana.
Before they could even react—
I threw the blade with full force toward the woman's head.
I knew what would happen. In truth, I hesitated while holding the sword, but Calm Mind erased that hesitation.
Only coldness remained inside me.
My emotions began to dull.
My eyes were as cold as ice.
As I watched the blade fly toward her head—
Crack.
With a sharp sound, the sword pierced her skull while she was still smiling.
I looked into her eyes. They were still full of life, as if she couldn't believe what had just happened.
Blood began dripping from her head.
She staggered, her vision fading.
Slowly…
She collapsed.
She was dead.
And I was the one who killed her.
As my emotions twisted again, Calm Mind began to activate violently.
At one point, I felt like my head would explode.
Sudden calm.
No…
It was like ice was poured over me.
All emotions were erased.
I looked at her again—but this time, I felt nothing.
Calm Mind evolved again.
I couldn't withstand the shock.
So the skill endured it for me.
And evolved.
I turned my cold gaze toward the remaining two.
"You… you!!" The fat man paled as he pointed at the dead woman.
"You killed her!" he shouted in terror.
Once again, I gave them no time.
"A chance," I thought as I reinforced my legs with mana.
Whoosh.
With the sound of wind, I disappeared.
Only an afterimage remained.
I was now in front of the fat man.
"How—"
He couldn't finish his sentence.
With a single slash…
His head flew into the air.
I saw his wide-open eyes—disbelief, terror, and shock frozen in them.
My emotions were calmer than before.
It felt like my head was made of ice.
I turned toward the last man.
He had fallen to the ground.
I walked slowly toward him.
He tried to stand.
But he staggered.
Once.
Twice.
He finally stood.
He drew his sword quickly.
He took a fighting stance, but his trembling body betrayed him.
I could tell from his movements that his killing intent was strong despite his weakness.
"He only kills the weak," I thought, my eyes growing colder as anger boiled inside me.
"Weak," I said slowly.
But this time, I wanted to confirm something.
The man looked at me in shock, his eyes still filled with fear.
"P-please stop," he begged, his massive body trembling.
"Spare me…"
"If you can block my attacks, I'll let you go," I cut him off.
"No!" his face twisted.
"How can I believe you?"
"You don't have a chance," I said.
He tried to steady himself, but his hands still shook.
"AAAAH!" he screamed and charged at me like a beast.
"Block," I said as I placed my katana in front of me and easily deflected his strike.
He staggered back, trembling again, tears forming in his eyes.
"Come on," I provoked him.
"Nooo!"
He froze again.
I slowly walked toward him.
He kept retreating on the ground.
I didn't give him the chance and threw my sword.
It cut through the wind and struck its target.
It pierced his side and pinned him to the ground.
I walked closer.
I raised my foot slightly.
"Crush."
I crushed his head.
Blood scattered.
He died.