Chapter 6
Chapter 6
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 6
Chapter Title: The Sword Demon and the Demonic Sword (5)
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-Sshhhk!
A black blade sliced through soft flesh, scattering red blood.
The splattered blood stained the green leaves and white petals red.
The whisper of grass dancing in the cool breeze vanished, buried beneath the screams and agony of terrified men.
"S-save me! Kugh!"
"Huuuugh! M-monster!"
"A-a demon! A demon! Run—kuaaagh!"
"Please, just spare my life... Kgggh!"
Every time Unmyeong swung his sword, human screams erupted like untuned instruments.
Merciless violence wielded from a position of absolute dominance.
And he enjoyed this moment.
The Grand Master of the Heavenly Demon Cult, the despair of all swordsmen, the public enemy of the martial world—the Sword Demon.
Such infamous titles were not earned for nothing.
They were medals forged through countless evil deeds, proof of his very existence.
"Hiiiik!"
Towards the fleeing bandit, Unmyeong finally unleashed a blade aura formed from demonic energy.
-Fwwshk!
His body split in two by the blade aura, which was strengthened by the demonic sword, the bandit collapsed, scattering blood and flesh everywhere.
The great demonic master, the cruel slaughterer Unmyeong, surveyed the scene of the massacre he had created, savoring the pleasure of his own superiority.
Covered in blood along with his Soul-Severing Sword, he was overcome by a palpable sense of overwhelming superiority he hadn't felt in a long time, and a smile crept onto his face.
"Hahh, yes. This feels much better."
As he felt the unpleasant emotions of late wash away with the blood, Unmyeong felt as though the great hole in his heart had been patched, if only a little.
But the moment was fleeting. The Soul-Severing Sword whispered to him.
[I see an unhealed wound in your heart.]
"Shut up. I don't want you to ruin this mood."
[You may want to look away, but you will eventually have to face it. The small child cowering in your heart.]
"..."
Unmyeong tried to ignore the demonic sword's voice, closing his eyes and suppressing his unpleasant feelings.
But the Soul-Severing Sword would not leave him be.
[From your touch on me, I can feel an undeniable emptiness.]
[Must you feel superior through this kind of slaughter just to affirm your worth? How pitiful, Unmyeong.]
"—Didn't I tell you to shut up!"
Unable to hold back any longer, Unmyeong shouted at the Soul-Severing Sword.
"You're too loud! I could take you back to the blacksmith who made you right now and have him smash that mouth of yours!"
[Do you think silencing my mouth will heal the wound within you? My foolish master.]
Unmyeong was about to say more, but his subordinate, who had approached, asked with a cautious tone and demeanor.
"Um, Lord Sword Demon? Are you all right?"
"Hahh, I've made a fool of myself. This damned demonic sword was chattering so loudly that I lost my composure."
Unmyeong was ashamed of himself for losing his cool in front of his subordinate.
'To think I got caught up in its cunning tongue...'
But looking at Unmyeong, the subordinate replied with a slightly hesitant expression.
"Lord Sword Demon, are you perhaps hearing a voice from that sword?"
"Yes. Didn't you hear it? It's been getting on my nerves ever since the carriage."
"Uhm, I'm terribly sorry, Lord Sword Demon, but I haven't heard any sound at all."
"What?"
As Unmyeong stared with a somewhat surprised expression, the subordinate answered cautiously.
"I was debating whether to mention it, but I didn't want to make you uncomfortable. The truth is, you've been talking to yourself ever since we were in the carriage. You were talking to yourself while looking at the sword during this battle as well, so I came because I was concerned."
"You can't hear what it's saying?"
As Unmyeong looked at the Soul-Severing Sword with a flustered face, the demonic sword replied in a mocking tone.
[It seems no one can hear my voice but you. Isn't this the best?]
'This can't be.'
In that moment, Unmyeong realized he had been making a scene in front of his most trusted subordinate, ranting at his sword like a madman.
'No, that blacksmith definitely heard the demonic sword's voice, just like me! Is it because he forged it himself? Dammit!'
Unmyeong, who cared deeply about his reputation, quickly tried to salvage the situation by clearing his throat and making an excuse.
"Ahem, it seems my mind was also attacked when we were ambushed by that high-ranking Blood Demon. I apologize for showing you such an unsightly display."
"How could this be... I'll return to the main cult at once and bring a demonic physician."
"No, that's not necessary. The demonic physicians are a precious asset to our cult. I can't call one for such a trivial reason."
"What are you saying?! The demonic physicians are here to serve the Seven Demons, including you, Lord Sword Demon..."
"Enough. A good night's sleep should be sufficient. Don't do anything unnecessary; let's continue to Qinghai."
"...As expected, you are admirable. Your overwhelming mental fortitude, unshaken even by the Blood Cult's vile schemes—I, Sohwal, wish to learn from it."
"Hmm, yes. You have plenty of potential. Continue to strive."
"As you command!"
Watching Sohwal bow her head in obedience to the Sword Demon's words, the Soul-Severing Sword spoke to Unmyeong in a sarcastic tone.
[My master, so desperate to hide his own disgraceful behavior. Have you no shame?]
He wanted to retort with a "shut up" immediately, but with his most trusted subordinate right in front of him, he couldn't reply carelessly.
[Kukuk, to become so meek over a little reputation. How utterly ridiculous.]
'Kugh, dammit!'
Swearing internally, Unmyeong forced a smile at Sohwal and said.
"Return to the carriage first. I'm going to look around for a moment and check if there's anything unusual."
"Understood. If anything happens, I will join you immediately."
"Right."
After sending his subordinate back to the carriage, Unmyeong moved a short distance away and spoke to the Soul-Severing Sword.
"From now on, in situations where I can't speak, you are to remain quiet. That's an order."
[I refuse.]
"Y-you piece of trash! Shouldn't we at least argue on equal footing!"
[I have no physical body and can only move according to your will. You dare speak of fairness with me? How utterly foolish.]
"You are nothing more than my tool! So you will obey my words!"
Unmyeong, seething with anger, raised his voice at the demonic sword, his face beet red.
But as if enjoying his reaction, the Soul-Severing Sword's mouth showed no signs of stopping.
[Are you angry? If you don't like it, why not just leave me back at that forge? Why do you insist on holding onto me even after suffering such humiliation?]
"That's because you... Dammit!"
If he told the truth, it would be akin to praising the demonic sword, so it was difficult to say anything.
The Soul-Severing Sword, accurately perceiving Unmyeong's predicament, began to mock him without hesitation.
[At this point, I'm starting to seriously doubt if you have some masochistic tendencies. I had acknowledged you to some extent, seeing you had a knack for wielding a sword, but this... is below my expectations.]
"Y-you...! Shut up! You defective piece of junk! How dare you insult your master like that! You reject! As a tool! As a weapon! You're a failure!"
Logic wasn't working and his anger was boiling over, so Unmyeong finally lost it and resorted to blind insults.
But the Soul-Severing Sword's tolerance for insults was far too high to be discouraged by such a pathetic level of criticism.
[Then you, who insists on carrying around such a defective product, are also a failure as a martial artist. Is the name 'Sword Demon' just for show? What kind of Sword Demon doesn't even have a single proper sword?]
Usually, in arguments like this, the one who gets swept up first is the one who ends up looking childish.
And the Sword Demon, who had never had a verbal argument in his life (he never needed to), fell right into the demonic sword's trap.
"I have lots! A whole lot! If you went to my home, you'd find it overflowing with swords better than you! You foolish, insolent, defective lump of iron!"
Unmyeong, thoroughly provoked, retorted while throwing a tantrum.
But since the one who gets angry first is the one who has been psychologically drawn in, the winner of this argument was already decided.
[Tsk, how utterly childish. I feel like I'm talking to a brat. I can't bear to watch your disgraceful display any longer, so I'll stop here.]
"W-what did you say...?"
[If I engage any further in your low-level conversation, I feel my own class will drop. Get a grip.]
After driving in the final nail, the Soul-Severing Sword slowly closed its red eye as if it had said all it needed to say.
Seeing this, the Sword Demon let out an empty laugh and, for the first time in his life, uttered a vulgar curse.
"Th-this goddamn son of a bitch... Ha, haha."
Unable to contain his rage, Unmyeong finally threw the demonic sword to the ground and stomped on it repeatedly.
"You reject! Failure as a tool! Failure as a weapon! Failure! Faiiiluuure!!!!"
But the demonic sword's consciousness had already moved elsewhere, so it felt no impact at all.
To make matters worse, the Sword Demon's loyal subordinate, Sohwal, was watching this display with a worried gaze.
"L-Lord Sword Demon..."
***
"Uggghhhhn!"
Inside the blacksmith's workshop, I opened my eyes in the workroom and stretched my whole body.
"Wow, the satisfaction of that takedown was something else..."
We weren't particularly close, but the Sword Demon had always been good to me, so I only planned to rough him up a little with words. But the satisfaction of laying into him was so exquisite that I might have gone a bit too hard.
"Seriously, all the stress I've built up is just melting away. Wow..."
I let out a sigh of admiration without realizing it and recalled my conversation with the Sword Demon.
The purpose was to analyze the Sword Demon's hidden psychology from our conversation for more appropriate interactions next time, but every time I thought about it, it was so funny that I couldn't help but laugh.
"Khehehek, ah, it's such a shame I'm the only one who saw that. Ahk, kukuk."
Right. I'm always swamped with work. I should allow myself this much of a diversion.
"Hahh, ah, it's been a while since I had a proper laugh."
And so, for the next few days, the sound of clear laughter could be heard from the haunted forge of the Heavenly Demon Cult.