Sword Master With One Strike Kill - Chapter 150

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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 150

 

Episode 150. Treasure of the Imperial Palace (1)

 

“The Koshat Siblings are the rightful heirs who carry on the legitimate bloodline of the Rashutku Empire.”

 

[….]

 

“Therefore, what we did was not theft. It was merely rightful inheritance.”

 

Hissss-.

 

A brief silence flowed.

 

Emperor Tarosk still hadn’t let down his guard, but now he could no longer carelessly interrupt my words.

 

Aurellius’s name.

 

And even the inside story of how the Rashutku Empire came to its downfall.

 

Having accurately pointed out all of that, my statements now carried a weight that could no longer be taken lightly.

 

“And that is also what Aurellius would have wanted.”

 

[…!]

 

Once again, his brother’s name came up.

 

At those words, Emperor Tarosk’s eyes wavered for a moment.

 

I continued speaking in a calm voice.

 

“From the moment I set foot in these ruins, I have consistently claimed innocence.”

 

[….]

 

“But you did not listen to my words. Instead, you forced trials upon me.”

 

Of course, Tarosk might have felt wronged too.

 

I had never once clearly revealed the identity of the Koshat Siblings. I had trailed off at crucial moments, and sometimes blatantly provoked Tarosk.

 

This attitude had stirred up anger, and eventually Tarosk, unable to bear it any longer, had driven me into trials.

 

‘But….’

 

That was exactly what I had intended.

 

I had deliberately gotten under his skin.

 

To make him force unjust trials upon the innocent.

 

And from the moment he fell for such intentions, Tarosk had incurred a clear ‘debt’ to us.

 

─What are you bothering to play along with these guys’ childish games for!

 

─….

 

─I’ll just blow them all away with magic! Just give me permission!

 

Suddenly, I recalled the words Biyolf had spat out during The Quiet Ball.

 

At that time, I had restrained Biyolf.

 

The reason was simple.

 

‘The Ruins of Rashutku are not just a simple dungeon, nor just some ordinary trial.’

 

It was someone’s record, and a place that contained someone’s final wish.

 

And….

 

The master of the trial would always bestow corresponding rewards upon those who knew how to respect that intention.

 

“Our party, together with a heir of noble bloodline, passed through the trials designed by you brothers in the orthodox manner.”

 

[….]

 

“We saw through the bond between brothers, understood its meaning, and as a result reached this audience chamber.”

 

Haven’t I said it many times?

 

Lost Elder is a world where high risk, high return applies.

 

Rewards follow as precisely as a blade, matching the hardships players endure.

 

“I’ll overlook the first discourtesy you committed for Aurellius’s sake… but the second is different. This time I have absolutely no intention of letting it slide.”

 

Not only did we shoulder risks we didn’t need to take, we even conquered them perfectly.

 

So.

 

Now it was time to receive appropriate compensation for that.

 

“Surely you don’t intend to drive the innocent into trials and then pass it off without any compensation, do you, Tarosk?”

 

[….]

 

Swoosh-.

 

Emperor Tarosk, who had been silently looking down at us for a while, sheathed his great sword.

 

Then he let out a heavy sigh and turned his back.

 

[Follow me.]

 

“…?”

 

[I need to verify the bloodline. Only then can I be certain.]

 

* * *

 

Thud, thud-.

 

Tarosk silently moved his steps toward the depths of the audience chamber.

 

We too began to carefully follow behind him.

 

At the far end of the audience chamber sat a small altar.

 

On the altar, which appeared to be made of aged marble, a transparent crystal orb about the size of a palm sat alone.

 

[Drop a single drop of blood each onto that crystal orb.]

 

Tarosk said, looking at the Koshat Siblings.

 

[If you truly are descendants who carry the blood of House of Tarosk, the crystal orb will react.]

 

As if it had known such a moment would come someday.

 

The crystal orb seemed to have silently kept its place, waiting long for its role to arrive.

 

For a moment, heavy silence flowed.

 

Natalya Koshat carefully drew a small awl from her belt.

 

Though she had appeared as an adult when we first arrived at the audience chamber, she had now returned to a child’s form again due to the restriction’s influence.

 

Her small figure holding the awl looked somehow pitiful.

 

“Ready, brother?”

 

“…Yeah.”

 

Nod-.

 

Markus briefly nodded his head.

 

Tension was clearly visible through his glasses perched on his nose.

 

Prick-.

 

Natalia carefully pricked the tip of her finger. A single drop of vivid red blood formed on the small wound.

 

She carefully wiped the bloodied awl on her sleeve, then made a shallow cut on Markus’s fingertip.

 

“Then, now….”

 

The siblings looked at each other for a moment, sharing a brief glance.

 

Then they stepped toward the altar almost simultaneously.

 

Drop-.

 

Drop, drop-.

 

Blood droplets fell onto the crystal orb.

 

“….”

 

“….”

 

Gulp-.

 

Both Markus and Natalia swallowed nervously, unable to hide their tension.

 

It was something even they themselves couldn’t be certain about.

 

What if there was no reaction at all?

 

Would they have to face Emperor Tarosk’s wrath once again?

 

Such anxiety flickered across both their faces.

 

Flaaaash─!

 

Right at that moment.

 

A dazzling golden light burst forth from the crystal sphere.

 

As if the sun itself had descended upon the altar, brilliant and intense light bathed the entire audience chamber in radiance.

 

[Ah….]

 

Tarosk’s voice trembled faintly.

 

The doubts he had harbored all this time quietly crumbled before the truth before his eyes.

 

[…Truly, they were descendants who carried the blood of our lineage.]

 

In his eyes visible through the helmet, indescribably complex emotions surged like waves.

 

Longing and relief, guilt and joy.

 

Everything mixed together, shaking Tarosk’s heart to its depths.

 

[I was foolish. Your words were right.]

 

Tarosk slowly bowed his massive body, deeply lowering his head.

 

That figure looked less like an emperor and more like a brother who had suffered from guilt for long years.

 

[I have committed rudeness toward the legitimate descendants of Rashutku, so I must properly apologize.]

 

“….”

 

[Follow me. I shall guide you to where the palace treasures lie.]

 

His voice carried a calm and solemn resonance that was clearly different from before.

 

[There, I shall bestow fitting rewards.]

 

Thud, thud-.

 

Tarosk began moving his steps again.

 

The Koshat Siblings following behind him still couldn’t hide their bewildered expressions.

 

They seemed to still find it difficult to fully accept the fact that they were truly descendants of royalty.

 

Swish-.

 

Just then, Pean approached my side and carefully posed a question.

 

“May I ask how you knew?”

 

“….”

 

“Emperor Aurellius, and even the truth about how the Rashutku Empire met its downfall… I understand well enough that you know such things. You are a Primordial Being, after all.”

 

Pean paused briefly before continuing.

 

“But how did you discern the fact that those siblings are descendants?”

 

Glance-.

 

Strawberry Latte, who had been listening to my conversation with Pean, sneakily looked this way.

 

Her face was expressionless as usual, but her eyes couldn’t help it. The anxiety of ‘what if’ was clearly revealed.

 

─How are you going to answer this?

 

An expression that seemed to ask just that.

 

But I did nothing and simply kept my mouth shut.

 

I just silently stared at Pean.

 

It was something I had realized long ago, but in certain situations, silence often became the most effective answer.

 

‘Besides….’

 

Pean, this guy.

 

I’ve felt this since the Istereg incident, but he’s really good at delusions.

 

He assigns tremendous meaning to even my smallest actions.

 

So, like last time, if I just stay still….

 

“As expected, you used [Supersense].”

 

Right.

 

He’s misunderstanding on his own again.

 

“Amazing. A thought-form is merely a doppelganger after all, so it shouldn’t have been able to sense something like bloodline aura.”

 

Pean glanced at me and continued speaking.

 

“To still remember the aura of someone you directly encountered in the Primordial Era, and then detect it from those siblings. Truly insight worthy of you.”

 

“…?”

 

“Even during the trial of two paths, you used supersense to overcome the restrictions, didn’t you? I felt my power resonate intermittently.”

 

No.

 

Wait a minute.

 

“You’re truly amazing, Gaon.”

 

Pean continued with pure admiration.

 

“It took me hundreds of years just to learn one supersense. So naturally, I thought you would need some time as well. But… to handle it so perfectly in such a short time, I truly never imagined it.”

 

This is a bit much.

 

I’ve been subjected to another ridiculous misunderstanding. This time as a monster prodigy who mastered supersense in a short time.

 

Of course….

 

‘…I still can’t use that properly, friend.’

 

Supersense was still an unknown territory for me.

 

I recalled when I used that ability during the trial earlier.

 

My head was engulfed in burning pain, and my brain nearly overloaded from the flood of information pouring in.

 

Right after the trial ended, I even had a nosebleed streaming down, so that says it all.

 

‘But Pean misunderstands that I’ve already finished adapting….’

 

Really, where does one learn such amazing talent for misunderstanding?

 

You’re creating my plausibility all on your own, aren’t you, Pean?

 

Ding-!

 

“…?”

 

Right at that moment.

 

A notification sound rang in my ears.

 

Wondering what it was, Strawberry Latte had sent an empathy emoticon.

 

(´･ʖ̫･`)

 

‘What’s this?’

 

A face with a big nose.

 

Could it be Pinocchio?

 

Is she… calling me a liar right now?

 

[The Protagonist]: Hey.

 

[The Protagonist]: This time I didn’t lie, did I?

 

[The Protagonist]: He just misunderstood on his own.

 

When I sent the message, Strawberry Latte immediately sent a reply.

 

ʅ(•̆. •̆)ʃ

 

‘No, what the….’

 

…I don’t know why such empathy expressions even exist.

 

There are too many varieties.

 

At this point, even without a chat function, we could probably communicate just with emoticons.

 

[We have arrived.]

 

While I was thinking such thoughts, Emperor Tarosk’s low voice echoed.

 

Swish-.

 

When I looked up, a massive door had revealed itself before our eyes.

 

The door was glowing with golden light, boasting overwhelming majesty beyond any door we had passed so far.

 

[This is the Treasure Vault of the Rashutku Empire.]

 

Emperor Tarosk stood before the door and looked back at us.

 

[The treasures you have encountered so far are merely fragments of the legacy Rashutku left behind. The true essence begins now. Are you prepared?]

 

Creeeeak-!

 

With his words, the door began to slowly open.

 

The intense light seeping through from beyond colored the entire corridor.

 

Natalia let out a small gasp. Markus also adjusted his glasses in admiration. I could see his scholarly curiosity burning brightly in his eyes.

 

Thump-.

 

I too could feel one side of my chest pounding.

 

Though I had seen the treasure vault many times during my 200 playthroughs, the game and reality would surely be different.

 

‘Finally.’

 

It was time to face the true reward of the Rashutku Ruins.

 

The moment to break through my greatest limitation was approaching.

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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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