Infinite Evolution Hunter - Chapter 79

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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79
“That’s the kind of magic people would call witchcraft.”
Eres glanced at the corpses of the fallen knights as she spoke.
The sensation felt similar to Corruption somehow. But there was no way Bae Na-young could be here. The scent was too mixed with various odors to be certain, but I didn’t detect her fragrance either.
“I’ll follow the traces for a bit.”
“Why do you know this woman?”
“It’s probably nothing, but… I should at least check.”
It seemed more likely that a witch with abilities similar to Bae Na-young’s was here than the idea that Bae Na-young had somehow crossed over to Telus and was killing knights. Yet something felt peculiar about it all.
I traced the footprints and scent from that point, then directed Maron accordingly.
The scent contained more non-humans—beastmen, orcs, goblins—than humans. I’d grown familiar with their distinctive odor while spending time with Blitz and Sono Rim, different from monsters. This scent was similar to that.
“My lord… are you truly certain about this?”
As Maron followed the direction I indicated, his face twisted with anxiety as he turned back to me.
“Don’t worry. I have the strength to protect you. Now stop the carriage.”
I said this as I leaped down from the carriage.
Multiple non-humans were lying in ambush ahead. Beyond scent, instinct, and sound, I could now sense them through their life force as well—my ability to detect ambushes had developed considerably.
“Leave at once!”
A beastman with a lion’s head roared from a distance, his voice echoing thunderously through the valley. When I thought of a lion beastman, I’d imagined something like a human form with fur and ears, similar to how Blitz had transformed into a werewolf form. In reality, it was a completely leonine head atop a heavily furred, humanoid body.
“This is no place for your kind to enter! Leave! And forget what you’ve seen today!”
For those who had slaughtered knights, they were remarkably courteous.
“I’ve come to meet the witch!”
I shouted back. It couldn’t possibly be Bae Na-young, but the magic resembled her Corruption, and something about it felt familiar.
“There is no witch! Only the Saint resides here!”
Could it really be Bae Na-young…?
“I’m going in!”
I raised both hands to show I carried no weapons and walked forward.
“Anyway, these Empire bastards never listen when you ask nicely.”
Humans, beastmen, orcs, and goblins poked their heads out from both sides of the valley. The lion beastman then leaped down from a high rock and approached me.
“Leave.”
The lion beastman, a full head taller than me, bared his sharp fangs and growled.
The pressure emanating from him felt incomparably stronger than any mere lion. An ordinary person would soil themselves just from seeing such a face up close. But ultimately, he was only around C-rank hunter level. Not strong enough to have taken down those knights alone.
Among those hiding, I sensed no one with particularly strong power.
“I have no intention of fighting. I simply wish to meet that witch… or rather, the Saint.”
“You’re not fit to meet her.”
“I’m not from the Empire, though?”
“…You’re unreasonable. I’ve given you plenty of chances. Don’t blame me.”
The lion beastman swung his hand. However, his claws remained retracted, suggesting no lethal intent, and his speed was slow.
I caught his hand lightly and threw him over my shoulder, sending the lion beastman crashing to the ground.
“Ugh!”
As the lion beastman—twice my size—went down so easily, his companions flinched.
“I have no intention of hurting anyone either. Just let me meet her.”
“Let go of my brother!”
A sleek leopard beastman lunged at me with claws extended, ready to rake across my face.
“Stop!”
The Lion Beastman, realizing I harbored no killing intent, tried to restrain his companion, but the leopard had already closed the distance.
With my foot pinning the Lion Beastman’s neck, I seized the leopard’s wrist and drove my palm into his solar plexus.
The leopard crumpled forward, and that seemed to be the signal—they came at me from all directions.
“Sigh….”
I had no choice but to grapple with each attacker, throw them aside, and strike their necks or chests to render them unconscious. There was a chance they might be connected to Bae Na-young, so I had no desire to kill them. Besides, I was no murderer—I didn’t slaughter everyone who came at me.
“C-Come out, everyone! He’s strong!”
“He’s after the Saint! Protect the Saint!”
With a commotion, dozens—perhaps hundreds—of people poured out. Yet among them, few could be called true warriors or mages. They looked more like ordinary folk wielding farm implements.
“Stop! I mean no harm. Please, let me meet with the Saint!”
I shouted, but they refused to listen. I struggled to incapacitate these desperate fighters without inflicting injury.
Then a cry erupted from behind.
“There they are! The ones who murdered the nobleman at the Spring of Fate!”
Dozens of Imperial Guard knights and mages descended upon us, having tracked us here.
“There’s a black-haired woman! She’s the witch! Kill her!”
One knight, resting his chin on the edge of a carriage where he’d been watching, spotted Eres and shouted.
“So you were the Empire’s lackeys all along! Brothers! Take up your weapons!”
The beastman forces mistook us for allies of the Imperial army.
“Damn it….”
The situation was spiraling into complete chaos.
The disparity in power was evident. Without proper warriors, the beastmen would be annihilated if left to their own devices.
“This is giving me a headache….”
I threw myself into the fray, breaking the knights’ arms and legs to render them immobile.
But the battle was so chaotic that the beastmen didn’t even notice my assistance.

At that moment, I sensed something attempting to interfere with my mind. However, my fortified mental skill had leveled up enough that it had no effect whatsoever.
I spun around and sprinted toward the direction the curse came from, bounding across the shoulders and heads of the charging beastmen as if I were flying.
“Bae Na-young!”
“Huh? Oppa?!”
The curse lifted.
“I… I’m sorry! You were so far away I couldn’t see your face!”
“… You shouldn’t cast curses without seeing who you’re targeting, should you?”
“That’s… our allies looked like they were in danger, so I cast it in a wide area. I’m sorry.”
I pointed to the beastman I’d knocked out first.
“I didn’t kill him. Just knocked him unconscious. Let’s deal with that one first. Try to calm your friends down. I’ll handle the knights.”
Whether Bae Na-young had interfered with the beastmen’s minds and signaled them to retreat, they suddenly froze before uniformly backing away.
“They’re fleeing! Catch them!”
I weaved through the charging knights in a zigzag pattern, knocking each one unconscious one by one.
With one group gone, my movements became far easier.
It didn’t take long for me to subdue them all.
“How did you even get to Telus?”
While the beastmen were binding the knights, I approached Bae Na-young.
“I pestered Sono Rim and Blitz until they brought me.”
“But where are Blitz and Sono Rim?”
“On the Western Continent.”
“… You crossed over alone?”
“They kept saying I couldn’t, so I snuck away without telling them.”
“Holy maiden! Run away!”
Young beastmen rushed over and bit at my neck and legs. Not that their teeth could pierce anything.
“You guys! Stop it! This is the person I was looking for!”
“Huh?”
The young dog beastman biting my neck widened his eyes, drool dripping down my throat.
* * *
“So… you’re saying I thought I was captured, so you destroyed the Imperial Prison Camps one by one, and in the process became the leader of this massive group?”
“Yes…”
“There’s nothing wrong with that… there’s nothing wrong…”
She threw herself into this world to save me. And that wasn’t enough—she somehow made her way to the Eastern Continent alone. My girlfriend’s determination was admirable. Though it was also a little terrifying.

“Thanks. But don’t do that next time. We got lucky. If we’d run into a Master-class existence, even you would’ve been in danger.”
“Understood.”
“You came right after I disappeared?”
“Sono Rim bought us time, so I couldn’t come immediately. When I said I’d contract with a demon and cross over, he told me to come back with him right away.”
“Hahahaha.”
“Hehehehe.”
“You weren’t actually serious about that, were you?”
“….”
Bae Na-young turned her head away.
She was smiling faintly, but it definitely didn’t seem like a joke. She probably would’ve found a way to contract with a demon and crossed over no matter what. I needed to grow stronger so this wouldn’t happen again. Otherwise, Bae Na-young would turn into a villain in no time.
“But… oppa… who is this woman? How long have we been separated….”
Bae Na-young pinched my arm while staring at Eres. She’d been anxious whenever other women approached me because of Ye-seul too.
“No, no.”
“No? How is it that every place we go, more women show up?”
Her words grew curt, a sign of her anger.
“She’s not related to me, I’m telling you.”
“Are you trying to turn your surroundings into a harem?”
“Hmm… how should I explain this? You know that great existence Sono Rim was talking about?”
Bae Na-young nodded.
“She’s one of them.”
“… I think I might’ve cursed her earlier….”
“If she hasn’t said anything yet, it should be fine. Besides, an existence like that wouldn’t be affected by attacks from people like us anyway… something’s coming.”
I pushed Bae Na-young behind me.
“You bastards!”
A thunderous voice echoed through the valley. The knight was well past his prime, but his voice was no weaker than a young man’s.
“How dare you harm an Imperial noble on Imperial soil, you insolent wretches! I am Suden, a knight of the Imperial Guard and the Damen Family, and I shall punish you all!”
The aging knight unsheathed a greatsword as tall as himself from his back and drove it into the ground.
Thud.
The impact was heavy enough that the sound of it striking the earth rang out loudly.
“Crime demands a price. Criminals must accept the execution of justice.”
He grasped the hilt of the sword with both hands firmly. Then he spread his feet wide and tensed his arms.
“Everyone down!”
He swung the blade with all his might. It wasn’t just any swing. I could feel his absolute resolve to pour everything into this single strike.
Swift yet heavy, the sword released a wide and sharp aura forward.
Had this been a forest, the attack would have severed all the trees at his shoulder height and toppled them.
Those who crouched at my warning survived, but several of the non-humans had their upper and lower bodies separated.
If I waited any longer, only innocent people would keep dying, so I moved forward.
“Leave the innocent people alone and fight me.”
“Innocent? You are all criminals. I will punish you first, and then all those behind you.”
Suden gripped his sword again.
“What crime did the people behind me commit? I’m the one who did this.”
“The sin of killing a noble runs deep. Those who violate the Empire’s sacred law, and those who aided them—all shall face execution. If we do not punish those who break the law, who would ever obey it?”
“What kind of bullshit law is that? Anyway, I have no intention of dying quietly. Come at me.”
Suden’s veins bulged across his forehead as he drew his blade back.
His power far exceeded Jung Min-gi’s Moon Slash ability. The real problem was speed. This wasn’t some boy’s manga where I needed to wait patiently for him to finish his preparation.
I charged before he could even swing.
As if he’d anticipated this, Suden leaped backward while slashing diagonally downward toward my shin. My feet were already airborne, leaving no room to dodge, so I channeled aura into my fist and struck the blade’s flat.
Crash!
The moment his sword met my fist, Suden released the blade and hurled an aura-infused punch at me.
I’d underestimated him based on his preparation stance, but I was wrong. He hadn’t wasted his years—he knew precisely what to abandon and what to seize, executing the transition flawlessly and with speed.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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