Sword Master With One Strike Kill - Chapter 148
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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 148
Episode 148. The Trial of Tarosk (6)
* * *
Thud, thud-.
The sound of footsteps felt strangely unfamiliar.
It was thanks to my hearing returning to life after being sealed for 3 hours.
‘The penalty has been lifted.’
The reason the Trial of Tarosk was so notorious wasn’t simply because of the vicious gimmicks that appeared in each room.
The real problem was the accumulating restrictions.
Once a penalty was applied, it rarely got lifted.
The structure required time to pass or specific conditions to be met for removal.
As this continued, shackles would pile up one by one, eventually reaching an unbearable level.
‘To make matters worse, the two teams split at the crossroads are completely cut off from each other.’
No communication possible.
No situation awareness possible.
They couldn’t know what restrictions the other team faced or when they might be lifted.
As such, suspicion would grow stronger as the trial progressed.
Especially in the game, it was extremely rare to tackle the Rashutku Ruins with trustworthy party members like now.
A situation where individual interests took priority over mutual trust.
In this dynamic, when tackling ruins with enormous rewards at stake, seeds of suspicion would naturally sprout.
─Isn’t that team just dumping all the burden on us?
─Why are all the strange penalties concentrated on our side?
─Aren’t those bastards planning to betray us and monopolize the rewards?
Once distrust took root, what followed was obvious.
Proper cooperation became impossible as they checked each other, eventually leading to the catastrophe of stabbing allies in the back.
‘A scene I witnessed countless times through 200 playthroughs.’
No matter how skilled the assembled experts were, how many times had I seen them ultimately fail to overcome the wall of trust and collapse on their own?
‘But.’
This time the situation was different.
Ding-!
[The Protagonist]: ?
[Strawberry Latte]: ☑
The private message function.
Through this, we could communicate with the other team in real time.
‘This is really convenient.’
Although there was a limit to the amount of text that could be sent, it was sufficient for passing the trial.
Just the fact that we could share each team’s progress and penalty accumulation status in real time began to steer the trial in a completely different direction.
Most importantly, my conversation partner was Strawberry Latte.
A friend I had consistently contacted and interacted with for 12 years. Someone who knew each other’s tendencies and thought processes inside and out.
Therefore, unnecessary explanations or complex negotiations weren’t needed.
A few concise lines of text were sufficient.
With just that, we could perfectly understand each other’s intentions and make optimal decisions.
[The challengers on the right path have transferred their restriction.]
[Selecting random target.]
[For the next ‘2 rooms’, ‘Biyolf’s’ vision will be blocked.]
“Ahhh! My eyes…!”
Right then, Biyolf, who had been walking down the corridor, screamed while clutching both eyes.
Of course, there was no need to be surprised.
Taking on the vision blocking penalty on our side was already something I had discussed with Strawberry Latte.
“Lord Gaon! Emergency! Emergency! My eyes suddenly can’t see…”
“Calm down. Just rest for a moment while we pass through 2 rooms and it’ll be lifted.”
“Ah, I see. Understood.”
“…?”
Pause-.
I was momentarily speechless.
‘No way…’
…If he was going to calm down that easily, what was all that fuss for?
I looked back at Markus Koshate in bewilderment.
“Markus, support Professor Biyolf.”
“Yes.”
Swoosh-.
With a concise answer, Markus carefully took hold of the swaying Biyolf’s arm.
Anyway, I already knew all the gimmicks of the rooms we’d face ahead.
If we proceeded while appropriately distributing penalties like this, the strategy could continue smoothly.
─By the way, is it okay for me to follow into the ruins? I’m only 2nd tier, so wouldn’t it be a bit dangerous?
Hadn’t I said it?
That Strawberry Latte would never become a burden to us.
Rather, considering the ‘trait’ he possessed, he would become an essential ally for this strategy.
Right.
I hadn’t brought Strawberry Latte all the way to Dungarrd, the Dark City, for nothing.
“Huh…?”
How many more rooms had we passed through?
Adelia, who had been leading, stopped walking and turned to look at me.
“Lord Gaon, I can finally see the end of the corridor.”
Whoooosh-.
Adelia was right.
In the distance, brilliant light was flowing out from between the gaps of a massive door.
Emperor Tarosk’s Audience Hall.
Finally, we had broken through all trials and reached our destination.
* * *
‘Wow…’
Thud-.
As we exited the corridor, a massive space unfolded before our eyes.
The audience chamber still boasted majestic grandeur despite hundreds of years having passed.
The ceiling was dizzyingly high, and lighting installed throughout emitted a gentle glow that illuminated the entire space.
‘…It’s much more magnificent than when I saw it in the game.’
Faded marble pillars stood in regular intervals, and between them, antique sculptures revealed their weighty presence.
The traces of time were clear, but you could immediately tell how magnificent this space had once been.
“…?”
Right at that moment.
Familiar silhouettes appeared from the passage on the opposite side.
It was Strawberry Latte’s party.
They too seemed to have passed through the trial without major injuries.
Everyone looked perfectly fine, with no one hurt.
Ding, ding, ding-!
(b˙◁˙ )b
(b˙◁˙ )b
(b˙◁˙ )b
Strawberry Latte began spamming emoticons one after another.
It seemed like they were celebrating successfully passing through the first gateway of Tarosk’s trial.
Of course, the expression of the pink-haired young man visible in the distance was utterly stoic. The way he surveyed the surroundings with sharp eyes looked exactly like a mage.
Anyway, that bastard’s quite the actor, isn’t he? Is it a basic requirement for becoming a Possessed One?
‘But still…’
Swoosh-.
I turned my gaze away.
There was no time to leisurely exchange greetings with Strawberry Latte’s party.
Indeed, from the moment we set foot in the audience chamber, I could feel an overwhelming presence.
Kuguuugu──!
At the highest point of the audience chamber.
The jade throne positioned atop dozens of steps looked less like a simple chair and more like one massive structure.
And upon that jade throne sat a man of enormous stature.
His build was as massive as a mountain, and his entire body was muscular.
Though his face was hidden behind a helmet and hard to see clearly, the two eyes visible through the gaps held a sharpness that seemed to pierce through everything.
Tarosk, the elder of the twin emperors.
He slowly lowered his head and looked down at us.
[I had not expected you to break through the trial so easily.]
A deep, low voice filled the entire audience chamber.
In the gaze visible beyond the helmet was an emotion of interest.
A sign of inner surprise at results that exceeded his expectations.
[Usually, the more one possesses, the greater one’s desires become.]
“…”
[Therefore, they typically pay no heed to the safety of their companions on the other side, recklessly pushing constraints onto them, and eventually both sides enter the path of destruction…]
Tarosk paused briefly and looked back and forth at our party.
[Yet somehow, you were different. You distributed the constraints with surprising precision, and maintained trust in each other until the very last moment.]
“…”
[It seems I underestimated you. At first, I thought you were arrogant and blinded by greed… but having passed through the trial so perfectly, I must withdraw my hasty judgment.]
Tarosk leaned forward and continued speaking in a dignified voice.
[You are more than qualified to obtain the ‘treasure of the imperial palace.’ However, know that there are still several more tests remaining.]
“…”
[Before the second test, if there is anything you are curious about, feel free to ask. Within the permitted scope, I shall gladly provide answers.]
Instantly, the entire audience chamber fell into silence.
Everyone kept their mouths shut and only watched each other’s reactions.
“Th, then…”
A careful, trembling voice broke the silence.
Markus, who had been hesitantly glancing around, finally gathered courage and began to speak.
“Forgive my presumption in asking… but is His Majesty of the Rashutku Empire also one of ‘The Primordial Beings’?”
Instantly, the atmosphere in the audience chamber changed subtly.
Tarosk maintained silence for a moment, then nodded his head.
[The current me is not. But the main body was indeed so.]
“Ma, main body…?”
[What stands before you is merely a ‘thought-form.’ Not the true Emperor Tarosk, but a doppelganger containing some memories and will.]
There was a strange loneliness in Tarosk’s voice.
[The main body died long ago, along with the fall of Rashutku.]
“…”
Markus couldn’t continue speaking for a while, then carefully opened his mouth again.
“Then the Rashutku Empire, which once received the favor of The Great Ones… why did it come to ruin?”
[…]
An extremely sensitive question.
But it was also a fundamental doubt that any scholar studying ancient civilizations and ruins would want to know.
A brief silence flowed.
The giant emperor sitting on the jade throne quietly opened his mouth.
[All those details will naturally become known when you reach the next trial…]
“No.”
Thud-.
That was the exact moment.
When I firmly cut off Emperor Tarosk’s words.
“We will not challenge the second trial.”
“…?”
“…?”
Freeze-.
The entire audience chamber froze in an instant.
Everyone’s gaze turned toward me at once.
Adelia was speechless with bewilderment, and Pean tilted his head with a puzzled expression, letting out a small laugh.
Even Tarosk couldn’t find words for a while at this unexpected reaction.
[…]
Creak-.
The next moment, Emperor Tarosk slowly rose from the jade throne.
An enormous giant body.
The overwhelming presence of just one being… even though it was merely a ‘thought-form’ and not the main body, was enough to make one’s breath catch.
[Do you think you have a choice in this matter?]
Kuuuung-!
When the emperor took one step forward, the entire floor vibrated.
[No matter how splendidly you passed the first trial, the sins committed in the past do not disappear.]
“…”
[Have you forgotten that you coveted the empire’s treasure and dared to set foot in this sacred imperial palace despite not being of noble blood?]
Tarosk’s eyes flashed red.
[To forgive this, I granted the opportunity called ‘trials’… but if you refuse even that.]
Kuung, kung-!
The ground shook with each step he took down the stairs.
[I will have no choice but to personally deliver punishment.]
“…”
“…”
Everyone tensed at the situation that seemed like combat could break out at any moment.
But I was different.
“I’ll say it once more.”
With my arms crossed, I looked up at Emperor Tarosk with a calm expression.
“We have never committed any crimes.”
[How dare you run that mouth of yours…!]
Kuguuuuu─!
Tarosk’s rage reached its peak.
However, I took a step forward without a moment’s hesitation.
Because…
“A mere remnant of thoughts dares to think it can harm the true ‘master’?”
[…?]
I had a trump card that could shatter Emperor Tarosk’s logic.
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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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