Chapter 27
Chapter 27
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 27
Chapter Title: The Legend's Holy Sword
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[Hey. Kid!]
The holy sword trembled, spitting out a sharp voice.
[Are you seriously planning to carry me around bare-handed? What if the blade gets nicked—will you take responsibility?
Didn't you bring a top-grade leather sheath with humidity control?]
“......”
Eris's eyebrow twitched.
The heart-swelling emotion she'd felt just moments ago was shattering in real time.
The legendary weapon had one hell of a foul mouth.
'Even the hero, hardened by grueling training, was left speechless.'
A line from the original novel flashed through Emperor Darcor's mind.
[And why are your hands so damn sweaty? Ugh, it's all sticky. Pull out a handkerchief and wipe them right now!
I'm a sensitive sword, you know.]
“Y-you insolent scrap heap!”
Eris burst out in anger.
“I'd be thanking my lucky stars if you let me draw you, even bowing my head. What'd you say? Sweat? Want me to pick you up again? Should I shove you right back in?”
[What? Shove me? This ignorant little brat dares threaten the legendary holy sword?!]
The hero and the holy sword's first encounter was an absolute disaster.
A deep furrow creased the brow of Darcor, who was watching it all unfold.
‘Haa... What a headache.’
Snap.
[Aaack!]
Darcor lightly flicked the flat of the holy sword.
“Quiet down. Before I melt you down into a spoon.”
[A sp-spoon? Y-you thug! How dare you strike a holy sword? Hey, kid owner—you're the owner here.
That guy's being a total punk; say something!]
“I'm making chopsticks out of whatever's left.”
[......]
Vicious.
As expected of a family man who'd stubbornly scraped by through hard times.
Cowed by the razor-sharp killing intent,
the holy sword huddled its blade and muttered.
[So sad... So unfair. The last hero wasn't like this. Damn my luck.]
The grumbling lingered in his ears, but
Darcor slowly turned his head to gaze at the corner.
The guardian Dullahan.
Swoooosh.
The Dullahan, which had been smashed into the floor moments ago, struggled to rise.
The explosive bloodlust and madness from before had vanished like a bad dream.
The blue flames blazing above its shoulders now flickered calmly, like a candle.
The fire no longer felt threatening.
A lonely watchman who had guarded the holy sword in that single spot for decades.
Like a veteran soldier who'd finally fulfilled his long duty.
Only a deep, gentle aura remained.
Darcor withdrew his hand from his pocket
and neatly straightened his rumpled clothes.
Then he bowed deeply and formally in respect.
“Guardian. You've endured so much all these years.”
It was sincere.
A human's respect for the being that had stood alone in silent vigil over the tomb for endless ages.
At Darcor's greeting, the Dullahan's flames swayed softly.
A warm energy flowed over him, as if it were smiling gently.
[O noble one.]
Not the ear-shattering boom from before.
A clear vibration that stirred the soul reached Darcor's ear.
[Thou who should not exist in this otherworld.]
Darcor's eyes widened slightly.
As expected, it had seen through him.
It knew he was a soul possessor,
an outsider from another world.
[Yet thy existence must be heaven's will as well. Even twisted karma is but part of fate.]
The Dullahan's gaze pierced straight through Darcor.
Darcor scratched his head awkwardly.
“Well, that's just how the world works, right?
Nothing ever goes according to plan.”
[Heh heh... Indeed. Life is like that...
May fortune grace thy path ahead.]
Fwaaa...
The Dullahan's weathered armor began crumbling from its toes upward,
bit by bit.
The blue flames scattered like fireflies, melting into the dawn air.
The moment of release from long bondage,
departing for true rest.
[...Grandpa.]
The holy sword, which had been yapping nonstop until a moment ago, called out softly.
A faint vibration hummed from its blade.
[You've worked so hard. Sorry for being such a noisy pain all this time... keeping you up, tormenting you.]
The fading Dullahan raised a hand and waved it slowly.
The air around them grew endlessly warm.
As if patting their head, whispering ‘It's okay, I understand it all.’
[In your next life, don't guard some cold hunk of steel like me. Eat warm meals, get plenty of sleep...]
Like a grandfather bidding farewell to his grandchild.
[Just live a happy, ordinary life. Got it? See you later, Grandpa. Promise!]
The holy sword's cry echoed.
In response, the Dullahan left behind one final pulse of warmth, then
scattered completely into the starlight of the night sky.
The thick fog lifted,
and clear moonlight shone down on the empty tombstone.
“......”
Eris sniffled, rubbing her nose.
“What the... all of a sudden...”
She wiped her eyes and cradled the holy sword a little more tenderly.
‘Farewell. I'll take good care of your chatterbox.’
Darcor gazed briefly at the light dispersing into the sky.
Then he finished his short moment of silence.
“Let's go. So he can rest easy.”
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ In the pre-dawn hours, the capital's night streets lay quiet.
Eris trailed after Darcor, stealing glances at him.
Her head was a whirlwind.
At first, she'd pegged him for some rich lunatic.
But then he smashed a death knight bare-handed,
even sent its soul to rest, and unearthed the holy sword to boot.
‘Just what the hell is he?’
Unable to hold it in any longer, Eris hesitantly spoke up.
“Hey, mister.”
“Yeah.”
“What do you really do for a living?”
Suspicion brimmed in Eris's eyes.
“You seem loaded, fight like a monster. And how the heck did you know the holy sword was buried in that grave?
Are you some kind of fortune teller or what?”
Darcor chuckled.
“What do I do? Just draw pay from the national treasury.”
“National treasury?”
Eris cocked her head.
“Hmm... With skills like that, you're no low-rank... Knight maybe? No way—Imperial Royal Guard?”
The girl's imagination took flight.
“Aha, got it. You're the Emperor's shadow, handling his secret missions! Something like that, right?
That's why you hide who you are—nailed it?”
Pretty solid deduction.
Even if the target was a bit off.
Darcor shrugged.
“You've got quite the imagination. Eh, close enough. I'm on pretty good terms with the Emperor.”
“Whoa... for real? Bet you rake in big pay then.”
“Decent haul.”
“No way...”
Eris's eyes sparkled with envy.
Before long, they'd arrived at a massive stone edifice.
Towering walls that seemed to pierce the night sky.
The palace ramparts.
“Whoaaa.”
Eris's jaw dropped as she craned her neck back.
The walls gleamed faintly in the moonlight, stretching endlessly high.
“It's huge. But mister, why're we here?”
“Why? I live here.”
Darcor answered as if it were obvious.
“Huh?”
Eris stared up at him in disbelief.
“C'mon, don't mess with me. Live here? This is where His Majesty the Emperor resides.”
“Exactly. Told you, I live here.”
“Ah...”
Eris clapped her hands as realization dawned.
“Ohhh, so you bunk right by His Majesty's side? Eat and sleep here, guarding him and all?”
She patted Darcor with pitying eyes.
“That sounds rough. Can't even go home, stuck sleeping here.”
Darcor chuckled and shook his head.
“But this isn't the entrance... Isn't the gate way over that way?”
“Gate'd make too much noise.”
Eris frantically scanned the area.
“Noise? Why? Forget your pass?”
“Hold on tight.”
“Huh? Hold on to wha—”
Whoosh!
Darcor scooped Eris up
and tucked her under his arm like a sack of luggage.
Tucked like baggage in an instant, Eris flailed wildly.
“Wh-wha?! P-put me down!”
“Watch your tongue. You'll bite it.”
Darcor casually bent his knees.
Kaboom!
The ground cratered,
and Darcor rocketed into the sky.
The palace walls, famed for their immense height, shrank beneath his feet in a blink.
“Kyaaaaaaaah!”
Eris's scream tore through the night sky.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ “Ugh... urk... uwooo...”
A flawless infiltration without a speck of dust raised.
But the passenger under his arm was another story.
The moment Darcor set her down,
Eris crumpled to the ground, heaving dryly.
Her vision spun wildly.
[Ugh, motion sickness! Can't you move any smoother?]
The holy sword whined from Eris's grip.
[This is why I said only spatial transfer magic for me. Jumping walls like some low-class punk?]
“Hoo... haa...”
Eris staggered to her feet.
Trembling with betrayal, she jabbed a finger at Darcor.
“M-mister! Wall-jumping? Shadow nothing—you're just a thief!”
“A thief, am I.”
A chilling voice drifted from the shadows.
Click. Click.
Someone stepped out from the garden bushes.
A beauty whose blue hair gleamed coldly in the moonlight.
Escort Knight Edel.
She stood with arms crossed, fixing the pair with a piercing glare.
“Eek!”
Eris yelped and ducked behind Darcor.
“M-mister... we're in deep! A k-knight caught us. What now...”
Eris went pale, yanking at Darcor's clothes.
“Run! I'll draw her attention—”
“Edel. Up late?”
“Haa... Your Majesty.”
Edel sighed and strode forward.
“Do you even know what time it is? You have any idea how much grief I went through sweeping the west annex?”
“Had some business.”
“Business my ass!”
Her cheeks puffed out in indignation.
Eris blinked in a daze.
That scary lady chewing out mister?
“H-His... Maj...?”
Eris's eyes spun in confusion.
Edel let out a deep sigh,
then spotted the kid cowering behind him.
“And what the heck is with this brat? You didn't kidnap her from somewhere, did you?”
“As if. She's a scout. A scout.”
Darcor shrugged casually.
“Now then, time to ditch this. It's suffocating.”
He shrugged off the shabby robe he wore.
Slipping off.
As the robe pooled on the ground,
the figure it had concealed emerged under the moonlight.
Gold epaulets gleaming in the lunar glow.
A black uniform tailored from the finest silk.
The empire's one and only sun.
The Emperor.
“Wha...?”
Eris's mouth hung open.
Clang!
[Aaack! You brat!]
The holy sword, unceremoniously dumped on the ground, shrieked.
[I'm a national treasure, you idiot! Don't drop me! Ow, my back!]
The holy sword rolled across the ground, howling,
but not a word reached Eris's ears.
Her eyes were locked solely on the man before her.
The thug from the back-alley tavern.
The shady rich guy tossing gold like confetti.
The monster who'd pulverized a death knight.
Eris's finger trembled as she pointed at Darcor.
“Th-this thug mister is...”
Her voice cracked.
“E-Emperor... Your Majesty?”
Darcor cocked his head slyly.
A roguish smile played on his lips.
“What? First time seeing the Emperor?”
“Hup!”
Eris slapped both hands over her mouth.
Her legs buckled, and she collapsed right there.
‘I'm screwed. Who'd I talk down to like that? Whose back did I smack? Death sentence. Definitely a death sentence...’
She'd thought it was her big life turnaround.
Turned out it was her life-ender.
“Well, shall we do proper introductions now?”
Darcor offered his hand.
“Welcome aboard, Eris.”
Under the moonlight,
the tyrant's smile shone brighter than ever.