Sword Master With One Strike Kill - Chapter 235

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

One-Strike Kill Swordmaster Episode 235

Episode 235. Ancient Dragon’s Spring (8)

Swoosh-.

At that moment, Tyrant Dragon looked back at me with a bewildered expression.

After glancing around cautiously for a moment, he carefully whispered in my ear.

“Countless worldlines, timelines… what the hell are you talking about?”

Gulp-.

There was some inexplicable desperation in Tyrant Dragon’s muttering voice.

Though he didn’t speak the words directly out loud, looking at his eyes, I could almost hear the hallucination.

─Include me too! Don’t just talk about things only you two know, please let me in on it too!

He seemed to think I had an important conversation with the Ancient Dragon.

Well, that was actually correct.

However.

“…”

I gave no answer and maintained silence with my mouth firmly shut.

I couldn’t explain that Roel was originally a game, or that I was a player who got possessed after playing it 200 times, could I?

There was one major realization I’d gained since falling into this world. Namely, that in situations where answers are awkward, it’s better to just maintain dignity and keep your mouth firmly shut.

[…]

Naturally, the Ancient Dragon was also silent.

Hiss-.

Only a subtle smile lingered at the corners of her mouth. With an expression as if she knew everything but wouldn’t bother to say it.

A moment of silence flowed.

Tyrant Dragon, who had been looking back and forth between the Ancient Dragon and me waiting for an answer, soon let out a deep sigh.

“Phew… Anyway, what a guy with unnecessarily many secrets.”

Though his voice was full of frustration, he didn’t dig any deeper.

He seemed to have instinctively realized that asking questions wouldn’t get him proper answers anyway.

Right then.

Ding-!

〔Your bond with Yeonwoo the Feathered Sword deepens.〕

〔Skill: 【Avatar Manifestation】 proficiency has increased. (23%→24%)〕

A notification window appeared in the corner of my vision.

I had expected it, but actually confirming the proficiency increase gave me a subtle feeling.

‘…Why is this one rising so fast?’

Thanks to the Ancient Dragon’s statement, the misunderstanding about me being a regressor seemed to have deepened even further.

Well.

What clearer evidence of being a regressor could there be than being an existence that had passed through countless worldlines and timelines?

‘This is getting scary now.’

Fast.

The speed was too fast.

For now, there were clear benefits like increased bonds and improved proficiency, so it wasn’t bad, but…

‘…There won’t be side effects, right?’

I could only hope there wouldn’t be aftershocks when the truth was revealed later.

Of course.

Even if something did happen, I could probably get through most situations with quick thinking.

‘Anyway.’

Every dungeon had trials and rewards.

That was how the world of Lost Elder was designed.

The Ancient Dragon’s Lair was no exception.

As I mentioned before, here you could obtain tremendous rewards that could break through the limits of your starting point.

But to do that, you had to pass through all the prepared gates.

[The second gate is simple.]

While I was thinking such thoughts, the Ancient Dragon broke the silence and spoke.

Swoosh-.

Her gaze turned toward the crimson pool situated in one corner of the cave.

[You just need to enter that spring water.]

“…?”

Pause-.

Tyrant Dragon frowned.

The Ancient Dragon’s explanation was excessively brief. No, it was unhelpfully so.

“Is that all?”

Tyrant Dragon asked cautiously.

It was strange to see him using formal speech unlike usual. He was probably showing respect toward the primordial dragon.

However, contrary to his polite tone, Tyrant Dragon’s expression was suspicious beyond measure.

Considering that the first gate involved facing dozens of Dragon Knights, the statement that you just needed to enter the pool felt anticlimactic.

[That’s right.]

The Ancient Dragon slowly nodded.

[However, that pool is not ordinary spring water.]

“…?”

[It contains the enlightenment from the moment I transformed from mortal to transcendent.]

The Ancient Dragon’s voice resonated softly throughout the entire cave.

[All development stems from the past. True growth occurs in the process of facing mistakes, acknowledging limitations, and rising above them. That was the truth I realized.]

The surface of the crimson pool slowly rippled.

As if responding to the Ancient Dragon’s words.

[That’s why I left this spring water. For those who would follow me on the path of ascension. Even if not that, for those who seek to transcend their own limitations.]

“…”

[Those who enter will face the past they least want to recall. The most terrible memories. The most regrettable moments. That hell they most wanted to escape from.]

The Ancient Dragon paused briefly and gazed at us.

[The end will be one of two things. Either struggling in those memories and ultimately drowning without escape, or overcoming the past and receiving the spring’s blessing.]

The rewards given by the spring water were infinite.

To what extent? Each person received different things depending on how they cleared the trial.

Some gained clues to ascension, others obtained tremendous power.

Of course, in my case, what I needed to obtain among those many rewards was clear, and I had to dedicate everything for it.

[The choice is yours. But there’s one thing I can say for certain.]

“…”

[The very process of facing the past and overcoming it will be the greatest gift this spring water can give.]

Hearing those words, Tyrant Dragon wore a contemplative expression for a moment. Then he glanced at me and asked.

“Are you going to enter?”

Nod-.

I nodded silently.

“Of course.”

That was why I had come to this place in the first place.

“…”

Tyrant Dragon also slowly nodded.

His eyes held a will as if he had resolved something.

And so.

We walked side by side toward the crimson spring water.

Splash-!

The water surface began to ripple. A gentle heat enveloped my entire body.

Swoosh-.

I took a deep breath and submerged my head into the water.

Ding-!

〔Vilopozy: The second trial of the ‘Hidden Dungeon’ begins.〕

〔Overcome your past and escape from the Spring of the Ancient Dragon.〕

* * *

In the World of Loel, players do not die.

More precisely, there is no permanent death.

Everyone dies once during the tutorial, then becomes an Immortal and resurrects.

However, time passes until resurrection, and during that time, the world’s end accelerates little by little.

‘That’s why death itself is a penalty.’

The difficulty was so insane that running a no-death playthrough to the end was impossible anyway.

‘And the Spring of the Ancient Dragon is…’

The way this trial worked in the game was quite simple.

You had to clear the boss that gave the player the most trouble so far. In one go, with no deaths. If you failed, you would drown in the spring water.

Those who reached this place through the standard route had already faced countless high-difficulty bosses, so passing the trial was not easy.

‘Of course, it’s not a problem for most veteran gamers who made it to the Hall of Fame.’

But now the situation was different.

Ding-!

〔Recreating your worst past.〕

Because this time, the subject of the trial was not a game character but ‘me’.

Game knowledge and strategies wouldn’t work.

I had to fight purely against myself.

“…!”

A child’s voice echoed in my ears.

For several years.

That scream that had endlessly echoed in my nightmares.

“أرجوك…! أرجوك، أنا بريء!”

My vision, which had been submerged in darkness, began to flash mercilessly.

* * *

Ding-!

[Middle Finger]: Jaque’s trial cleared.

It was a note from Gaon from a few hours ago.

‘Jaque’s trial…’

Strawberry Latte read the note while thinking about the trial’s reward.

Befitting a trial themed around growth, the reward obtainable there was also clear.

‘You can evolve one of the player’s traits or skills to the next level.’

The problem was that you could only evolve exactly one target.

That’s why the choice was important.

Depending on which ability you enhanced, your entire playstyle afterward would change.

‘And…’

Strawberry Latte naturally thought of one particular skill.

The ability that most players chose after clearing Jaque’s trial, boasting overwhelming efficiency.

【Ten Thousand Connections Jade Eyes】

A skill that greatly increases the favorability of those who look at you.

It seemed simple at first glance, but the actual effect was tremendous.

‘Having higher initial favorability with NPCs means…’

You can easily receive quests.

You can easily obtain information, get favorable trading conditions. Even hostile factions become open to persuasion.

If you evolved this through Jaque’s trial reward, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say Roel’s difficulty would dramatically decrease.

‘Though clearing it would still be impossible.’

Roel was that kind of game from the beginning.

However.

‘The problem is that…’

Strawberry Latte’s expression became subtly distorted.

Ten Thousand Connections Jade Eyes is a unique skill. An ability that only one person in the world possesses.

In other words, for a player to obtain this…

‘You have to directly transplant that person’s eyes.’

What more is there to say?

Roel is a game based on a grim dark fantasy worldview.

A world where corpse exhibitions appear and NPCs get dissected alive.

The existence of such cruel builds wasn’t surprising.

‘Actually…’

Countless players chose this method.

To be precise, Western gamers were first. There was a reason why the name Fate Gaze was more famous.

The domestic community’s reaction at the time was intense.

[Muwolcha]: Wow… I can’t do that.

[Siwoncoi]: It is pretty disgusting;;

[Nadigondujjang]: Western bros are definitely bold lol How did they even figure out this kind of build lololol

[Roelzoa]: Even if it’s just a game, it’s a bit;

[Starlight Guardian]: Fuck lololol Is plucking out a kid’s eyeballs and sticking them in my eyes normal gameplay? lol

No matter how much it was just a game, the act itself of doing such things to a young child caused revulsion.

But then.

[Kongiabum]: Hey but the efficiency on this is insane

[Kongiabum]: With just this, Sword Masters don’t attack first

[Kongiabum]: They actually come out friendly

[Muwolcha]: ?

[Muwolcha] : Those crazy bastards come out friendly?

└[Kongiabum] : Yeah, once I tried it, I can’t play without it anymore because it’s too frustrating.

└[Kongiabum] : Even the quest acceptance difficulty itself changes.

Kongiabum’s testimony changed the atmosphere.

The build’s efficiency was overwhelming.

What did game ethics matter? It was just a virtual world anyway.

After that, the Jade Eyes of Myriad Sorrows gradually began to be introduced domestically as well. Though not as actively as in the West, it established itself as a frequently used build.

However.

‘Only one person was different.’

A vivid memory surfaced in Strawberry Latte’s mind.

A ranker who, despite playing Roel for nearly 200 playthroughs, was the only one to refuse that route.

It was a build that everyone had tried at least once, but he alone never touched it.

─Latte.

Gaon.

Hall of Fame ranking 1st place.

When Strawberry Latte asked why he didn’t use Fate Gaze, he had met her at an offline gathering, and with a darkened expression, he downed his drink and spoke.

─No matter how much it’s a game… I can’t do such things to a child.

He was someone who used every means and method available.

He didn’t hesitate to make cold choices for efficiency.

But he absolutely never used the Jade Eyes of Myriad Sorrows build.

Not even once.

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