Deep in the night, Kwon Jiyong stood on the edge of a cliff as his hawk-like eyes scanned the entire lake down below. He received a report from one of his men that an imoogan was lurking here and scaring the locals in Hwanghae, a province in the North. Moo Yeon, his indispensable guard, was not with him this time since he entrusted Sandara's safety in his hands, so he could only take Hong with him, the second in command among his guards.

Imoogans has a mind of a human, only much more wilder and aggressive like that of a beast. Once they find a prey, they will pounce on them in an instant, their blood and life out of them to retain their human features and attributes. Some more advanced imoogans, those who had consumed human blood regularly, prefers female humans, especially ones, and would abduct them then assault them ually later on in their lairs.

But their physical form were limited, unlike imoogis who had two forms— their imoogi form and their human form. While well fed imoogans could make an illusion to their preys that they were humans, some can only retain a human body with the features of an imoogi such as snake-like eyes, sharp fangs, a pair of horns, and a rough, scaly skin. This type was same as the one that attacked Sandara in Andong.

While both former kinds were threats to humans, the most savage type is the one who haven't fed long enough to drive itself wild. Since its human attributes had faded, it could only be predatory and savage, and would feed on a human flesh and blood. This type was the same as the one that wounded him back at the Hidden Seclusion. He trapped a few in there hoping that they could still do something about it to bring it back to its usual state but elder Dong decided it would be hard to tame such ravenous form. After exchanging reports and messages to the Dragon Realm, Dong Youngbae finally released an order to eliminate the rest of the remaining imoogans in its bestial form, and only retain the ones they could still tame and control.

"Daegam," Hong bowed behind him, letting him know that everything had been prepared.

Kwon Jiyong lifted his hand, the other securely holding his sword, and upon his signal, his men below started to move.

One of his men rushed towards the lakeside and with a knife, he made a cut on his flesh and let the blood drip down into the lake. Kwon Jiyong coldly watched from above, carefully keeping an eye on the still and deep waters. 

Soon, the silent waters bubbled up. He adjusted his grip around the hilt of his sword and when a loud shrill cry resonated in the cold, damp air, arrows immediately rained down on the dark form that suddenly rose from the waters.

But the arrows were merely forms of distraction and didn't even weaken the creature. As the creature further emerged and started to walk with huge steps towards the land, it let out its sharp fangs as it pulled the buried arrows out of his thick, rough skin. Hong immediately flew down to attack the beast, the sharp blade of his sword glistened with killing intent.

As the second round of arrows were fired, Hong aimed for the beast's arm but just as soon as his blade cut through its thick skin, it howled so loud and flung Hong effortlessly into the lake, the sword left buried in its scaly flesh which it effortlessly pulled away and threw across the archers.

The attack seemed to have awakened its fiendish side even more and before the man who had a cut on his arm run away, the creature lept in the air and pounced on him, clawing his face down to his chest and turning him into a distorted mess.

Kwon Jiyong positioned his sword and jumped down, stabbing the imoogan from behind, but just as before, the beast only let out a growl and twisted in pain. Before the force could send him catapulting into the trees, Kwon Jiyong kicked it, making it easier for him to pull the sword out. As the form rolled on the ground, Kwon Jiyong surged down with a lightning speed and in a blink of an eye, his sword was buried into the imoogan's chest making it howl in pain before dropping once more with a loud thud.

Kwon Jiyong twisted his sword into its flesh making it cry out once more. Soon, it slumped down, until his cries became nothing but soft wails before it finally lay down panting weakly. Kwon Jiyong pulled his sword out from the imoogan and Hong who just emerged from the waters immediately rushed to his side.

"Clean this mess," Kwon Jiyong told Hong, handing his sword to him before glancing at the dead body to his left. His guards know the dangers they could face while working with him. Death was inevitable as they tread the hazardous path of exterminating these creatures, and tonight, one of his loyal men had fallen again. 

Taking off his cloak, Kwon Jiyong was about to cover the dead body when suddenly, the creature behind him rose to its feet and dug its sharp claws into his back.

"Daegam!" Hong used the his lord's sword in his hands to cut the hand of the raging imoogan but the creature already raked Kwon Jiyong's back making him fall to his knees. As the beast howled in pain, Kwon Jiyong stood up, completely ignoring his wounded back. In a flash, his eyes turned into serpent-like slits, flickering with ruthless slaughtering instinct.

The beast had long been shot by another deluge of arrows turning itself into a porcupine, but Kwon Jiyong hadn't been satisfied. Before he could control himself in front of his men, his fingers already made its way to dig into the wounded chest of the creature and when he pulled it back, black streams of blood gushed out of it as he held a dark, beating organ in his palm. He crushed it in his hands before lifting the creature once more and slamming it onto the boulders by the lake side. 

It took quite a while for his breath to become normal. As he tried to regain control, he shut his eyes for a while, calming the fire inside his body.

"Daegam!" Hong rushed to his side along with the archers. "Forgive us Daegam!" Hong knelt on his knees and the rest followed. This was not the first time he had accompanied his lord to a mission but this was his first to lead the guards and take Moo Yeon's place. The imoogan they've encountered tonight was very strong, so much stronger than the others but if he speaks out loud, wouldn't it only sound as an excuse for his incompetence? Realizing he did a terrible job and put his lord in danger, he positioned the blade of the sword against his neck to commit suicide but Kwon Jiyong only spoke coldly.

"Clean everything up and make sure not to leave any trace." He breathed, his voice was firm and low. Using the cloak on his other hand, he wiped the blood off of his hand before covering the dead guard's body with it. He turned to Hong and glared at him. 

"I have the sole right to claim your life. Until then, stay alive,"

He left without any word while everyone bowed behind him. As he walked away, the deep wounds on his back started to throb painfully. He knew the wounds were severe. Too bad, General Choi went to a different hunting spot to find an old imoogi and bring hum back to the realm, while Elder Dong stayed at the Hidden Seclusions so he had no one to help him manage his injury.

He had a fair share of injuries before, but this by far was the most savage one he'd ever fought with. A stab in the heart was enough to kill a lowly imoogan. How could that one be so strong?

He scoffed at this question. He wouldn't have any problem even if the creature was stronger than the others. It would still be no match to his strength. The question should be, why did he let