Sword Master With One Strike Kill - Chapter 114

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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One-Strike Kill Swordmaster Episode 114

 

Episode 114. Haibroon Subjugation War (8)

 

* * *

 

‘What in the world…’

 

Tyrant Dragon stared at the scene before him with an expression of utter disbelief.

 

Jaque’s corpse split precisely in two. And right behind it, Gaon’s back as he stood there indifferently.

 

None of this situation made any sense to him.

 

“Ha.”

 

A hollow laugh escaped him without realizing it.

 

Tyrant Dragon hadn’t taken his eyes off Gaon for even a single moment.

 

Yet he couldn’t even grasp when Gaon had moved.

 

Gaon, who had clearly been standing far away, had somehow moved behind Jaque.

 

‘This is absolutely mind-boggling.’

 

He hadn’t detected the moment the sword was swung, the trajectory of his body’s movement, the sound of cutting through air, or even the faintest trace of killing intent.

 

A familiar sense of déjà vu struck him.

 

That very day when he first met Gaon in Labyrinth Village.

 

The strange swordsmanship that had blocked his punch felt exactly like this.

 

If there was one difference… back then he had drawn his sword to protect himself, but this time he had drawn it to kill someone.

 

‘Absolutely astounding. He can unleash that level of strike without even opening his「Transcendent Realm」?’

 

An absolute one-strike kill that gave the opponent no chance to react. A one-sided judgment with no room for resistance or possibility of defense.

 

Gaon’s fighting style was closer to an execution than a battle.

 

‘He’s a type of swordsman I’ve never seen before.’

 

Thump, thump-!

 

The moment he realized this fact, Tyrant Dragon’s heart began beating wildly.

 

If this was still with his restrictions not fully lifted, just how powerful was Gaon’s true martial prowess?

 

The thrill felt when facing a formidable enemy. The yearning for fierce clashes where life and death hung in the balance. All of it began heating up Tyrant Dragon’s entire body.

 

‘That’s exactly why I want to fight that guy even more…’

 

Tap tap tap-!

 

Right at that moment. The sound of multiple footsteps along with rough breathing began to be heard from far away.

 

“Huff, haah…!”

 

Paladins who had rushed over in haste began appearing one by one on top of the hill.

 

Following them, councilors also appeared.

 

Their usually dignified faces were mixed with bewilderment and shock.

 

Judging by how they were all breathing roughly, they seemed to have run at full speed from the Holy Sanctum to this place.

 

“Huff!”

 

“Good heavens, what is that…”

 

Pause-.

 

Right at that moment, witnessing the battlefield, they all drew sharp breaths.

 

The monster’s corpse split precisely in two. Gaon standing indifferently beside it. And the sight of two Sword Masters standing dazed in the distance.

 

“…”

 

“…”

 

“…”

 

That’s right.

 

The battle was already over, and the outcome had been one-sided.

 

Whoooosh-.

 

The corrupted Jaque was dead. And Gaon, who had faced him, was simply standing there quietly without a single wound.

 

* * *

 

‘Hm…?’

 

Swish-.

 

I looked up at the hill.

 

Investigation Team members and Paladins led by Sikan Bauer. And even councilors who had rushed from the Holy Sanctum.

 

Everyone was breathing heavily while looking down at me. With gazes mixed with complex emotions like shock, relief, and a bit of fear.

 

‘…They all came rushing over in a group.’

 

It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that almost all personnel except the injured in the Holy Sanctum and the clerics treating them had gathered here.

 

Well, that’s understandable.

 

During the Sacred Inquisition, the leader of the Traditionalist Faction and pillar of Middle Temple had suddenly transformed into a worshipper of Evil Gods.

 

If I were in their position, I would have been startled and rushed out to check the situation too.

 

“It’s, it’s over…”

 

Thud-.

 

Then, one councilor let out a sigh of relief and slumped down in place.

 

Seeing Jaque’s corpse cleanly severed in two, he seemed to think the situation was over.

 

At this, several Paladins also began to relax. Lowering their weapons and releasing their guard stance.

 

The Investigation Team members also prepared to come down the hill to handle the situation.

 

“Don’t move.”

 

“…?”

 

“…?”

 

Freeze-.

 

Right at that moment, everyone who heard my voice echoing quietly through the Uncharted Wilderness froze.

 

I slowly looked up at the hill and continued in a low, sunken voice.

 

“Have you already forgotten what happened in Merirose, Sikan Bauer?”

 

“…!”

 

“Never make hasty judgments about the final moments of worshippers of Evil Gods.”

 

As soon as my words ended, Sikan Bauer shouted toward the Investigation Team members with an expression as if he had realized something.

 

“Everyone hold your positions!”

 

Crackle, crackle crackle-!

 

Right the next moment, electricity sparked menacingly from Jaque’s corpse.

 

From the severed cross-section, an ominous dark crimson aura more sinister than ever began rising up.

 

Crrrrrack-!

 

At the same time, the corpse suddenly began swelling up.

 

Self-destruction technique.

 

The curse of Evil Gods that doesn’t end even in death, and the final struggle of the corrupted was about to begin.

 

‘…It’s starting.’

 

While everyone was panicking, I calmly observed the situation.

 

I suddenly recalled when I first faced Jaque’s final phase.

 

Back then, I was so focused on the battle itself that I forgot to drive him outside the Holy City.

 

No.

 

I didn’t even know he had a self-destruction pattern in the first place.

 

Naturally, the result was quite horrific.

 

『Kwaaaaaaaaang──!』

 

The city’s facilities were already half-destroyed from the aftermath of battle.

 

Jaque’s self-destruction drove the final nail into the coffin.

 

…Half of the Holy City evaporated.

 

Thousands of civilians turned to ash in an instant, and Middle Temple’s major facilities disappeared without a trace.

 

That round ended up being completely ruined after the boss battle with the corrupted Jaque.

 

‘Actually, we’re still not at a safe distance even now.’

 

Although we had managed to put some distance between us with the help of Tyrant Dragon and Heukgol, it was still too much to guarantee the complete safety of the Holy City.

 

Moreover, this was a situation where all the key figures of Middle Temple had gathered – councilors, paladins, and even investigators.

 

If the self-destruction exploded like this, a truly horrific situation would unfold.

 

With Middle Temple’s leadership annihilated in an instant, the Holy City would lose its function completely.

 

Gooooooo-!

 

The demonic energy pouring from Jaque’s corpse grew even thicker.

 

Now it was distorting even the surrounding air, making space itself appear to twist.

 

“Everyone fall back!”

 

Sikan Bauer shouted desperately.

 

“Now! You must escape this place immediately!”

 

The paladins began hastily supporting the councilors as they fled.

 

But the situation was already too late.

 

Jaque’s self-destruction would explode soon, and there was nowhere near enough time for them to reach a safe distance.

 

“Damn it!”

 

Had they realized this fact from the ominous energy?

 

Tyrant Dragon and Heukgol. The two Sword Masters wore grim expressions as they each tried to stop the explosion in their own way.

 

“This time I really need to deploy 「Transcendent Command」…”

 

“No.”

 

“…What?”

 

“I clearly told you. I don’t need your help.”

 

“…”

 

A moment of absurd silence flowed.

 

Tyrant Dragon and Heukgol looked at me with incredulous expressions.

 

“I understand well enough that you’re strong, but this time we need to join forces. Don’t tell me you can’t feel that energy? That explosion absolutely cannot be handled alone…”

 

Shing-!

 

I ignored Tyrant Dragon’s words and suddenly drew my sword.

 

Even I thought this was really unnecessary posturing. The sight of myself putting on airs like this made me cringe.

 

‘But you know what.’

 

What was the purpose of unfolding this plan in the first place?

 

What was the reason for deliberately taking on the role of defendant in the Sacred Inquisition, drawing such massive aggro to focus people’s attention?

 

There were really many reasons…

 

To leave a strong impression on the two Sword Masters, and furthermore on Middle Temple’s core members. To nail down the fact that I wasn’t just a simple ‘Sword Master’.

 

To achieve that purpose, I had to endure this level of character acting.

 

“Inhale, exhale.”

 

I took a deep breath.

 

The standard way to deal with self-destruction was to deploy the highest-level barriers and shields thoroughly prepared by multiple clerics.

 

But this time was different.

 

‘…This much, I can block perfectly well on my own.’

 

Having blocked The Adversary’s 「Black Downpour」, I should be able to handle Jaque’s self-destruction, which had the same nature, with 【Ultimate Auto-Parry】.

 

Ding-!

 

〔You have used Authority Skill: 【Ritardando True】.〕

 

Tick, tick, tick-!

 

Time slowed down.

 

No.

 

More precisely, my perception speed had increased.

 

I could see the demonic energy pouring from Jaque’s corpse slowly expanding like slow motion.

 

Soon everything around would explode.

 

That destructive power would be beyond imagination.

 

But…

 

━━━━━━━━━━━━

 

[Usage Effect]

 

Automatically defends against fatal attacks regardless of perception stats.

 

━━━━━━━━━━━━

 

‘…I can block it. Easily.’

 

* * *

 

Step-.

 

One step, then another step.

 

Gaon walking toward Jaque’s corpse with an utterly calm demeanor.

 

Tyrant Dragon and Heukgol could only watch this Gaon with half-believing expressions.

 

‘Again, by himself…?’

 

They had already confirmed sufficiently that Gaon was an outstanding swordsman.

 

But blocking an explosion single-handedly was a problem of a different dimension.

 

Stopping energy spreading in all directions with just one sword was impossible, no matter how excellent a swordsman.

 

After all, a sword was a weapon for cutting things.

 

It wasn’t a shield for protecting something.

 

Kwaaaaaa──!

 

At that moment, an eardrum-splitting roar echoed.

 

Flames of annihilation that tore through space itself, spreading death. The wave of destruction that began from Jaque’s corpse extended in all directions.

 

Right then.

 

Shing-!

 

The moment Gaon gripped his sword, the air of the world changed.

 

Simultaneously, invisible currents began swirling around him.

 

Buuuuum─!

 

“What the…?”

 

A single trajectory.

 

But that sword strike transcended the laws of physics.

 

The trajectory that began from the sword tip spread out in a fan shape, simultaneously blocking all directions of the exploding energy.

 

A miracle where one line covered an infinite plane.

 

A linear trajectory perfectly blocking the explosion rushing from all sides…

 

Literally transcendent swordsmanship.

 

Kaaaaaang-!

 

Sword and explosion collided head-on.

 

At that point of contact, space-time warped. Light refracted, gravity twisted, and the order of cause and effect reversed.

 

Gaon’s sword strike hadn’t ‘cut through’ the explosion.

 

He compressed the directionality of energy trying to spread in all directions into a single straight line, then reflected it in the direction he desired.

 

Kwaaaaaa-!

 

The reflected explosion swept away in the opposite direction from the Holy City.

 

Red flames split the sky. Clouds were torn apart, the earth melted away. Traces of destruction continued beyond the horizon.

 

However.

 

The place where Gaon stood was peaceful.

 

Everyone behind him was also safe.

 

Without even a single speck of soot on them.

 

“….”

 

“….”

 

“….”

 

The Tyrant Dragon, Heukgol, and everyone from Middle Temple stared at the scene in stunned silence.

 

There were no words in this world that could explain what had just happened.

 

Deflecting an explosion with a sword? Was such a thing even possible?

 

‘Ah.’

 

In that moment, everyone was certain.

 

Gaon was on a different level from other Sword Masters.

 

No.

 

…Perhaps he was already someone who had transcended the limits of a Sword Master.

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