Chapter 228
Chapter 228
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 228
Chapter Title: Act 44. Land of the Forgotten (6)
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‘The Sword Saint instead of the captain of the Shiranui.’
They were both S-rank, so was there really a need for the Sword Saint to come instead?
Where in the world was their captain, and what were they doing?
“Ugh… Sword Saint-nim. Are you here to help?”
“There was an additional report. It seems we were overlooking something.”
“If you’re here, Sword Saint-nim, I feel reassured. Please take care of him. In the meantime, I’ll tie down that dokkaebi bastard and restore the passage.”
“Ah, about that…”
The Sword Saint scratched his cheek with an awkward expression.
“The order is to retreat.”
“What? Retreat? That’s absurd! We were almost there! The sheer amount of manpower and money we’ve invested in this…!”
“I said it was an order.”
As the Sword Saint’s voice grew heavy, Iwato visibly flinched.
Just as I thought. They couldn’t afford to invest any more into this either.
The slightest miscalculation in their preparations could cause the entire archipelago to sink into the sea from the disaster that would follow.
“Above all, I am not strong enough to stop him. That was a strike with considerable intent, yet he blocked it without trouble. Moreover, he has yet to reveal most of the power he possesses.”
“How could that be…!?”
“If you understand, then withdraw. He doesn’t seem to have any intention of pursuing. Am I wrong?”
“No, you’re right. If you withdraw peacefully, I’ll release the hostages.”
The Sword Saint smiled at me and sheathed his sword.
I, for one, welcomed the fact that an unnecessary fight was avoided.
I didn’t want to drag this out, after all.
It was a bit anticlimactic, but sometimes, anticlimactic is good.
[What’s with his way of talking? What century is it?]
‘He grew up in a family like that. Think of it as being similar to Shie.’
A lineage of samurai passed down through generations.
That tradition has continued to this day, and the Sword Saint focused more on swordsmanship training than his studies.
That’s what ultimately allowed him to blossom like this.
“What’s this? You made them retreat with your presence alone? Hah, look at this guy. You’re the real deal, a real piece of work.”
“Did you take care of all the oni?”
“Beat ’em to a pulp. Vented all my pent-up anger. *Hic.* Now I’m starting to feel the booze.”
He slung the club, caked with blue blood, over his shoulder.
Besial made a face as if to say, ‘Is that how you treat a treasure?’
“To interfere with our Hero’s work… I will not forgive you!!”
Just before stepping through the gate, Iwato shouted, grinding his teeth.
A Hero. So it’s a Hero.
I let out a smirk.
“That Hero of yours would be furious if he knew what you were doing. Wanna bet? If I tell him, will he defend you, or will he leave in disgust?”
“……!”
The ‘Hero’ at the center of the Japan storyline is, as the name suggests, a righteous person.
The possibility of the Progressor having taken that position… was probably zero.
No matter how skilled they were, they couldn’t have managed that.
Because at the start of the game, all the EX-rank unique abilities already had owners.
“Damn it…!”
Iwato cursed as he disappeared.
The Sword Saint remained until the very end, only moving after all the onmyoji, including the freed hostages, had returned.
“Ah, there is one thing I am curious about.”
“……?”
“Pardon the intrusion.”
The air, which had turned chilling in an instant, pressed down on my lungs.
Something was coming.
The moment I felt it, I reflexively drew my sword without thinking.
“Tsubame Gaeshi.”
In the blink of an eye, a sword swung at me at subsonic speed.
After blocking the first strike, a second came immediately from the opposite direction.
A continuous attack, yet with almost no time lag, feeling nearly simultaneous.
*CRRRRASH!!*
The impact unleashed a shockwave beyond what one would imagine from a clash of swords, sweeping through the surroundings.
“My, my. To think my finest technique was blocked. I can only express my admiration.”
The Sword Saint slowly withdrew his sword.
I was well aware of the sly fox hiding behind that hearty laugh.
I clenched and unclenched the hand that had held my sword, narrowing one eye.
‘Did he stop himself from doing the third strike?’
The complete Tsubame Gaeshi consists of three sword strikes flying at once.
As one of the pinnacle skills of swordsmanship, even the Sword Saint at this point should only be able to use up to two strikes.
Nevertheless, the fact that he showed movement attempting a third strike meant he too had grown stronger than in the original story.
I hadn’t revealed what kind of technique I possessed, but the aftermath left my arm throbbing with the recoil.
“As a sign of my respect, I shall tell you one thing. About what kind of business this was.”
“I doubt there’s any benefit to me in you telling me.”
“Please accept it as a personal favor.”
How shamelessly he says that.
I scoffed inwardly and examined the Sword Saint’s status window.
[Character Information]
Name: Kazumoto Yuki
Gender: Male (26)
Strength: 70(+6) Stamina: 60(+5) Agility: 73(+7) Mana: 70(+4)
Unique Ability: Extreme (極) Iaido (S)
Traits: Path of the Sword (S), Finishing Touch (A), Sword and Mind as One (A)
Skills: Single Lineage Transmission - Saeki-ryu (流) (S), Tsubame Gaeshi (S), One Question, One Answer (A)
One Question, One Answer (一問一答).
A type of information-stealing skill where if I give some information, the recipient who accepts it must unconditionally provide information of equal or greater value in return.
The moment I agreed to the Sword Saint’s offer, the condition would be met, and I would be forced to say one thing.
If I refused to receive the information, that content would be erased from my memory.
‘However.’
I nodded.
“Alright.”
The corner of the Sword Saint’s mouth lifted slightly.
He must have thought I took the bait.
“Our Yamato Guild has a contract with the oni. It is not simple domination. It may look like we rule them, but that is not the reality. The oni wish to expand their sphere of influence, and in exchange for helping them, we obtain fine equipment from them. What do you think? Is it not a mutually beneficial relationship?”
“What are you two talking about over there?”
Cheon-ryang yawned languidly.
Another effect of One Question, One Answer.
Those outside the designated small space could not hear the information.
I crossed my arms and pretended to think for a moment.
“Now, it is your turn.”
Normally, one would be flustered at this point.
Because they would be forced to speak, regardless of their own will.
It wasn’t a mental interference type, so even ‘Watcher Beyond the Screen’ had no effect.
The moment I showed affirmation, One Question, One Answer would activate.
I shook my head.
“No, I’ll choose not to have heard this information.”
“…Are you certain?”
“I’m sure.”
My mind went blank for a second.
I couldn’t remember what we had just been talking about, as if that specific part had been erased.
The Sword Saint had said something, but I didn’t know what it was.
I pressed my forehead for a moment, feeling the strangeness of it.
“I cannot understand. I thought I provided quite valuable information…”
“I guess I didn’t see it that way. I don’t even remember what it was.”
“A pity.”
The Sword Saint narrowed his eyes slightly.
He must have wanted to dig up as much information from me as possible, but I wasn’t about to fall for such a trick.
Ah, but maybe I should intentionally leak one piece of information.
“If you have a complaint, come find Rebellion.”
“…I will remember that.”
The Sword Saint nodded and disappeared beyond the gate.
Then, the gate vanished without a trace, and silence fell.
The name Rebellion needed to spread gradually.
To keep Salvatio in check from pulling any more tricks in the future.
“Besial.”
[Yeah?]
“What did the Sword Saint say?”
[Heeheehee. I heard everything. He probably didn’t even know I was here, did he?]
Besial covered his mouth and giggled.
If One Question, One Answer were S-rank and only applied to a ‘single target,’ it would be a different story, but as an A-rank skill that applied to a small area, there were several workarounds.
Even if it were S-rank, it wouldn’t have mattered, since Besial is connected to me.
[He said they had a contract with the oni to get equipment. It seems possible because some oni have a knack for blacksmithing, and others possess equipment passed down from ancient times.]
“Making contracts with oni to get equipment? What an interesting idea.”
Among the oni were those with abilities comparable to dwarves.
As Besial said, higher-ranking oni could possess legendary armaments or even equipment from myths.
It would be difficult to kill them and take it, so they must have used that method.
They were quite clever.
‘But since they failed to restore the passage in time, it will take quite a while for them to try this again.’
Did this mean I had crushed one of the Yamato Guild’s ventures?
Not bad.
As long as there was a high probability the Progressor was manipulating the Yamato Guild from behind the scenes, suppressing the Yamato Guild was linked to suppressing Salvatio.
“This should keep them quiet for a while.”
[It’s only a temporary measure, though.]
Right. This was nothing more than a temporary measure.
Buying time until the next fight with the Yamato Guild.
For now, that was enough.
***
“…Rebellion?”
The man was lost in deep thought.
An insect-like monster before him tried to attack, seizing an opening, but it was engulfed in crimson flames and turned to ash before it could even touch the man.
“Never heard of it. Was there such a guild?”
“From what I heard, it did not seem to be a guild.”
The Sword Saint replied, moving his sword slightly.
*Shwwwing!*
Five mantis-like monsters were cut down at once, their headless bodies stumbling before collapsing.
A precursor to disaster.
The sudden surge in monster appearances was by no means a welcome event.
“Kim Se-hyeon… I think I’ve heard that name before. If I remember correctly…”
“He is the player currently showing the most outstanding performance in Korea. We speculate he is the Progressor.”
Another player nearby answered immediately.
Someone in a position to be treated with utmost respect by an A-rank player.
The unparalleled genius who became the vice master of the Yamato Guild in the shortest time.
Tenka (天火). Yaogami Jun.
That was the man’s identity.
“I thought things would proceed more easily than expected since the Strategy King has been quiet, but it seems things aren’t going my way.”
“The Strategy King?”
“It’s nothing. You don’t need to worry about it.”
“I am curious. You sometimes use words I have never heard.”
The Sword Saint gave a meaningful smile.
When Yaogami didn’t answer for a while, the Sword Saint, as if his interest had waned, began swinging his sword at the monsters again.
The Red Gate vibrated violently, about to summon the last monster.
Yaogami’s gaze was fixed on a point farther away.
He flicked a finger, covering the gate in crimson flames.
“So the L Team and the Disaster of Defiance incidents were no coincidence after all…”
***
“By the way, you punk! Why did you have to blow things up like that!? I’m sure we agreed to just give them a warning and leave it at that!?”
Now you’re saying this?
When I stared at him in disbelief, Cheon-ryang cleared his throat and got angry instead.
“Coming from you, who seemed to go even wilder than me.”
“That’s not important at all! The point is, who was it that made such a mess! Don’t change the subject!”
“I figured if we were going to do it, we should at least tie up some loose ends. Finishing it completely is impossible for now, so I just bought some time while I go take care of other things.”
“No, that’s not what I’m trying to say…! Good grief!”
Cheon-ryang pounded his chest in frustration.
“Even I, living here, know what’s going on outside! Japan has a single massive guild running a dictatorship, doesn’t it? You went and confronted them head-on by yourself, so how are you going to handle the aftermath!?”
“But I have you, Cheon-ryang-nim, and the other dokkaebi.”
“What was that?”
“Do you think I gave you the gourd for no reason? Honestly, to someone who loves alcohol, it has nearly infinite value.”
Cheon-ryang’s jaw dropped.
Besial climbed on top of Cheon-ryang’s head, tapped his forehead, and muttered, ‘Poor dumbass.’
“No, that’s…”
“I’m kidding.”
“R-right? You’re kidding, right? You don’t mean it? Goodness, you punk. You’ll give me a heart attack. So, what are you really going to do? You do have a plan, right?”
“Of course. I’m not alone either.”
“Hmm…”
Cheon-ryang stroked his chin and hummed thoughtfully.
“Your name.”
“Pardon?”
“Tell me your name. I haven’t even heard it yet.”
“It’s Kim Se-hyeon.”
“Right, Kim Se-hyeon…. Hmm. Good. It’s a fine name.”
It didn’t seem like he was asking out of simple curiosity.
I was puzzled, but I waited quietly for Cheon-ryang’s next move.
However, the action Cheon-ryang took was quite unexpected.
*Shlick!*
He cut his arm with his own fingernail and let some of the blood drip into the gourd.