I Inherited the Basement of the Tower - Chapter 36

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

Inherited the Basement 1 of the Tower – Episode 36

Pitter, patter.
Barkalor listened quietly to the sound of rain tapping against the window.
With the rain falling after so long, both his knees ached dully.

‘I’ve grown old too.’

What if I had devoted myself to the Temple as a resident when I was a bit younger?
As time passed, regret only swelled in one corner of my heart.

‘No.’

I cast aside meaningless regrets.
I met a new Master in this new environment called Earth.
As long as my Master trusts in me, I must do my best.
Even so, these days were far more fulfilling than when I was unjustly made a Demon King and managed the Demon King’s Castle.

“Heh. An uninvited guest, perhaps.”

Then.
An unfamiliar magical aura caught in the detection magic he had spread out.
One was definitely my Master.
But who was the other?
Eltos, the blacksmith I recently recruited?
No, I’ve sensed his magical aura before.
Then could it be Yahwi?

‘That’s not it either.’

Yahwi’s rank was Rare.
Compared to combat residents of the same rank, there was certainly formidable latent potential remaining, but that was all.
Rare was rare.
At least by the methods I knew, a Rare-rank resident could not produce this much magical power.

‘Compared to my Master, this is at least five times the magical power.’

With the stat boost bonus from the Purification Tree buff, there would be an increase in ability values, but five times that?

‘Not an Antagonist invasion, then.’

Otherwise, my Master wouldn’t be sitting there so calmly.
More than anything, Yahwi would have rushed out first.

“This is troublesome.”

Barkalor voiced a possibility he’d been deliberately ignoring.

“I was hoping it wouldn’t be that.”

Even as Barkalor sighed, a boisterous laugh drew closer from afar.

“Kahahaha!”

It was Yahwi.
And he’d evolved into Artifact-grade.
Yahwi, with his seal broken and immense power unleashed.

“Behold, I, the Artifact-grade Yahwi, make my grand entrance!”
“I’m sorry, old man. Yahwi was so excited I couldn’t stop him.”

My Master spoke with an apologetic expression.

“Not at all, Master. I was just taking a rest myself. I’ll prepare some tea, so please make yourself comfortable.”
“No, it’s fine. I need to practice the Fourth Form. Eltos and you are both working hard, so I can’t afford to slack off.”

Ah.
Truly, my Master is remarkable.
Meanwhile, that fool Yahwi over there….

“Kyahahaha! Come on, Barkalor! Let’s spar!”

Inside my Master’s Abode, he swung a Yado around menacingly, threatening me.
My Master whispered so that Yahwi wouldn’t hear.

“Just humor him with one sparring match. Whether you win or lose, he’ll quiet down.”

I will win.
Barkalor shifted his gaze toward Yahwi.
Though he appeared reckless, judging by the magical power I could sense.

‘Not a hero—something beyond that.’

Suddenly, a dull ache throbbed near my ribs.
In my previous life, I was cut by a blade on a rainy day just like this.
The hero was a righteous and formidable man deceived by the ideology of the White Horse Tower.
I barely stopped him by countering with curses and dark magic I’d spent a lifetime researching.
Yet he never surrendered until the end, and carved a sword wound across my chest—a true master.
But.

Snap!

“Dull Haze.”

Barkalor suddenly extended his hand toward Yahwi.
Darkness flew forth like a beast baring its fangs, but—

Clang.

In the next instant, the blade was already sheathed.
The curse scattered without a trace.

‘Ah.’

Though I couldn’t see it, Barkalor understood.
It wasn’t merely a sheathing.
He’d severed the curse’s aura that descended upon him with a speed far more devastating than the attack itself.
Then sheathed the blade in preparation for the next assault.
All of this transpired in the blink of my Master’s eye.
Though I’m not a combat-type resident, I was once a Demon King in my previous life and possess countless battle experiences.
My superior intellect simply far exceeded what was needed for managing the Temple, so I took on that role—it didn’t mean my combat ability was lacking.
Therefore, I was confident I could suppress the previous Yahwi by any means necessary.
But now that he’s become Artifact-grade, that’s no longer the case.
There are simply no openings.

“Is it over?”

Yahwi’s eyes sharpened with an intensity that belied his usual demeanor, his expression turning uncharacteristically grave.
Barkalor chuckled softly, shrugging his shoulders with amusement.

“Heh, truly a monster. Master, I apologize, but I cannot comply with an order to spar.”
“…I see. It was a request, not an order. But I understand now.”
“…! You sensed it then. Precisely. Now that we stand at the same rank, a match with a combat-type Resident cannot be established.”
“Yes. I didn’t see it with my own eyes, but I felt something.”

Kang Ha-jin touched the area near my arm.
The place where the curse had passed through.
Barkalor’s assumption that I wouldn’t detect it had been a miscalculation.

‘Indeed. Remarkable.’

At merely level 10, to sense the exchange of power from moments ago.

‘Truly, he will become something great.’

Within him, an intense yearning began to surge.
It was something he had considered before.

“…Yahwi, you fool. Accelerate your efforts in transmitting your swordsmanship. This old man also has something he wishes to teach the Master.”

Yahwi let out a small laugh.

“I was thinking the same. The Master suits the blade better than that peculiar power of yours.”
“…Tsk.”

Barkalor laughed while concealing his expression.
My apologies, Yahwi.
Things will not unfold as you believe.

‘The Master’s talent is not limited to the blade alone.’

An innate sensitivity to mana and its manipulation.
This alone had stirred the heart of an old dark mage.
Necromancy and curses.
The Master would surely master both of these disciplines.

‘Moreover, if my calculations are correct, my Master will make another significant leap forward in this Special Dungeon Layer.’

That’s when I’ll make my move.
Yahwi-ryu?
I’ll tear apart that antiquated swordsmanship and rebuild it with my own version.

“Kekekeke.”
“…Why do you look so terrifying?”

Barkalor didn’t realize that Ha-jin had discovered his sinister laughter.

* * *

Clang! Clang! Clang!

The Temple was loud for the first time in a while.
On one side, Eltos was hammering heated sunstones into ingots.

“Master! You must move faster!”
“Tsk, easier said than done…!”

On the other side, in the Swordsmanship Hall, Yahwi and I were in the midst of sword training.

‘An opening!’

My confidently swung blade was easily blocked.

Ching!

“You must increase your speed, Master!”
“…Insane.”

I gritted my teeth.
Yahwi, now an Artifact-grade Resident, literally flew through the air.
Everything I’d learned of Yahwi-ryu until now was merely a taste.
I’d seen him perform Yahwi-ryu for the first time after becoming Artifact-grade to loosen up his body.

Yahwi-ryu First Form, First Strike of the Night.

Crash-boom-crack!

With the first technique of the Sword Master—one that supposedly summoned a single strand of night—the earth split open.

‘…How is that supposed to be a single strand?’

It was a single strand, technically.
Just an extraordinarily large and thick one.
I’d never witnessed his other techniques firsthand, but they would undoubtedly be far more formidable than the demonstrations I’d seen before.
And that realization set my heart racing.

‘I can grow stronger.’

I’d been diligent when I first learned Yahwi, but at some point, I’d grown lax in my training with it.
After all, monsters and knights fell with merely a casual swing.

‘I could suppress the Solar Knight without even Nix’s blessing.’

Yet now that Yahwi had become an Artifact-grade weapon, it blocked my full-power attacks with startling ease.
It was more than enough to reignite my drive.

‘There truly is no end to cultivation.’

Just when I thought I’d grown stronger, another towering mountain range appeared before me.
Of course, I was the type who drew motivation rather than despair from new walls.

‘What will Master teach me next?’

Even the curse he’d taught me simply and directly had proven invaluable in my conquest.
So I couldn’t help but anticipate what he would teach me now.

‘…Though it is a bit frightening.’

He tried to hide his smile, but it didn’t escape my senses.
That sinister grin was like glimpsing the Demon King of my past life.
Well, Master surely wouldn’t teach me curses that shouldn’t be learned or anything harmful.

“Come to think of it. I never did ask if you were Eltos.”

I went to ask him about it on the side.
The moment I saw that wicked expression, I forgot all about it, thinking I needed to escape the situation.
Fundamentally, the old man barely sleeps and works constantly.
Moments of leisure like before wouldn’t come around easily again.

“I was curious about something. Why doesn’t the old man have any memories of Goddess Nix?”

During a brief break in training.
Yahwi handed me ice water and a towel while speaking.

“Thanks.”

The cool towel against my head felt like I might actually survive.
After practicing the Fourth Form, my entire body was drenched in sweat and every muscle screamed in agony.
The praise I’d received on my first attempt was surely hollow.
Compared to how Yahwi, an Artifact-grade resident, performed it, I couldn’t even replicate 1%, let alone 10%.
I wondered if the day would ever come when I mastered it perfectly.

“Well, maybe he made the contract right before death, so he doesn’t remember?”
“In any case, I remain uneasy, Master. You shouldn’t trust someone who wields such sinister power. After all, the blade is supreme, the very best. If anyone claims to teach you something, please tell me first.”
“…Hmm. Anyway, what kind of new equipment would be good?”

Ding!
【Black Armor threatens to destroy any other armor you wear.】

“Fine. Armor is settled with you. For weapons, I’d prefer a sword form. So, Yahwi, do you have any ideas?”
“Huh!? Master! Are you perhaps changing the subject!? If that old man Barkalor mentions something new, you absolutely must tell me…?”

Since Yahwi kept being annoying, I jabbed at his weak spot.

“If an Artifact-grade resident is this strong, how powerful would a Legendary-grade combat resident be?”
“…A new weapon. I’ll think about it seriously, Master.”

As expected, Yahwi quickly fell silent, glancing at me nervously like a puppy, but I’d genuinely become curious.

“What grade would I be, if we’re ranking by tiers?”
“Master, you’re obviously Mythic-grade! Hehe.”
“You bastard. Your tongue is Mythic-grade too.”

I asked Yahwi with a slightly awkward smile.

“I said I was a genius, didn’t I?”
“Yes. Among all the disciples I’ve taught, there has never been one with talent equal to yours, Master.”
“Then what about your disciple? If he continued to live and train even after you died—what would have become of him?”

The original owner of the body I’d possessed during the second task.
Borrowing Yahwi’s memories from his past life, that fellow was a dullard.
Well, since Yahwi-style itself was a specialized swordsmanship, he would be considered dull by Yahwi’s standards, but he likely had greater potential than most ordinary warriors.

“…That fellow, you say.”

Yahwi fell into thought for a moment.
Perhaps because we’d already shared the past.
Unlike before, he didn’t try to hide or avoid the question.

“Well, I suppose he might have become the greatest swordsman under heaven. His talent falls short of yours, Master, but Yahwi-style is such an excellent technique after all. Hehe.”

Longing bloomed across Yahwi’s face as he spoke.
In barely audible tones, he murmured, “I wish we could meet someday.”
I patted Yahwi’s back with a light slap.

“It always comes back to praising Yahwi-style. You’re quite the narcissist.”
“Hahaha. Master will surely become the strongest Hunter. Just you wait and see!”

Yahwi rose from his seat and drew his Yado.
It was a sign he wanted to continue training.
Oh no, is the break over already?
My body’s fatigue hadn’t fully faded, and I wanted to rest a bit longer.

Zing—.

Just then, my phone rang with perfect timing.

“Hmm, let’s postpone training for now. We have a visitor. Oh right, Yahwi. Where did you put that Wild Hog meat back then?”

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