Sword Master With One Strike Kill - Chapter 251

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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 251

Episode 251. Descent (2)

* * *

“Tyrant Dragon.”

I said briefly.

“I need to have a private conversation with the hero for a moment.”

“….”

Nod-.

Tyrant Dragon nodded and withdrew from the laboratory.

Seeing that he didn’t raise any particular questions or objections, it seemed he had been uncomfortable in this situation from the start.

‘He kept flinching every time Muwolcha looked at him….’

An appearance so terrible that even a Sword Master would be disgusted.

Just what did you do, sister?

Thud, thud-.

The sound of Tyrant Dragon’s footsteps grew distant along the corridor before completely disappearing.

Thunk-.

Soon after, the sound of the laboratory door closing could be heard. Now only Muwolcha and I remained in this place.

Silence flowed.

Fifteen fluorescent purple monster eyeballs turned toward me all at once.

It was as creepy as looking at a spider in close-up.

Of course, attaching fifteen eyeballs was impossible within Roel’s system. This meant Muwolcha actually only had two real eyes.

‘Then the rest of the eyes are….’

…Obviously, you know.

They must be fake eyes created by skillfully combining dot placement and tattoo customization.

How do I know this?

‘Because I’ve tried it too.’

Of course, I didn’t ruin my character’s appearance for fun, but purely to experiment with what kind of impact such an appearance would have on gameplay.

‘But she really made it well….’

Even knowing they’re dots and tattoos, they feel like real eyes. It’s as if their gaze follows me around.

Anyway.

“It’s been a while, sister.”

“…Ppakgyu.”

Sigh-.

Muwolcha sighed with a complicated expression.

And.

I couldn’t help but sigh as well.

Whew-.

Despite that appearance, her voice was exactly the same as when we met in reality.

The very same voice that threw jokes while drinking beer at the Roel meetup.

It was complicated.

In many ways, it was truly complicated.

“I….”

Muwolcha’s gaze turned toward the opposite side of the laboratory.

Swoosh-.

There was a large mirror hanging on the wall.

In the mirror was reflected a monster with fluorescent purple skin.

“…I’m really fucking ugly.”

Slide-.

Muwolcha covered her face with both hands and slid down to the floor.

Actually, it wasn’t an appearance that could simply be dismissed as ‘ugly.’ But I wasn’t tactless enough to refute her words one by one here.

“Does this make sense? Really?”

Muwolcha muttered with a trembling voice.

“It’s a game. A game. Just a bunch of data. But how does this become reality? Is it a dream? It must be a dream, right? No, this really doesn’t make sense!”

Her voice grew louder and louder.

“Then fuck, does that mean all the games I’ve made at the company became real worlds and kidnapped players too! Aha! So that’s why our sales kept declining!”

Of course not.

That was just users getting tired of pay-to-win business models and leaving the game, and the games failing due to a vicious cycle of even worse monetization schemes to fill the revenue gap.

Muwolcha knew this fact too. It was a story she had confided to me while raising her beer glass at the Roel meetup.

But this time too.

I wasn’t tactless enough to refute her words one by one here.

“What about me in the real world? My friends? What about my family….”

Trailing off, she looked at herself in the mirror once more.

“…Fuck.”

A short curse slipped out.

“I’m only managing because I have mental fortitude correction traits, but if I didn’t, I would have definitely fallen into panic.”

“…By mental fortitude correction, you mean the 「Noble Mindset」 trait?”

Nod-.

Muwolcha nodded her head.

The cool-headed mind essential for mages. And the noble mindset that Monk-based martial artists must develop.

Both were traits that provided corrections to the player’s mental fortitude stat.

The fact that Muwolcha possessed this meant that at least her character stat distribution was done properly.

‘Except for the appearance.’

I faced Muwolcha and carefully opened my mouth.

“You heard everything from Strawberry Latte, right?”

“…Yeah.”

Muwolcha nodded. It seemed Strawberry Latte had explained things well through notes.

“The Battle of Vilopozy ended well, and we let Dorico Shiro and Hodupayi live. We also handed over Zahhar’s corpse as is.”

“Ah.”

Muwolcha let out a short sigh.

“The fact that you made such a choice means… don’t tell me you’re trying to lure ‘The Mysterious Man’ as the boss for Wintershield’s defense battle?”

“Yes.”

I nodded.

As expected of the 3rd ranked player, Muwolcha immediately grasped my plan.

Zahhar’s corpse. Dorico Shiro and Hodupayi. The Brain Core that fell into the Evil Gods’ hands. And the Second Apostle’s descent plan. When all the puzzle pieces fit together, one picture would be completed.

“But….”

Muwolcha frowned.

“Isn’t that actually making the situation worse? It becomes much more dangerous than the original scenario.”

“In normal cases, yes. But if we prepare well, there shouldn’t be any major problems. Rather, it will help us later on.”

I continued speaking calmly.

“Of course, for that to happen, your role is important now, sister.”

“Me?”

Muwolcha pointed to herself.

“Can I be of help?”

Her voice was mixed with doubt. It was natural. Considering her current state, she couldn’t help but feel that way.

“You distributed your stats properly, right?”

“I did it by the book.”

“Then there’s no problem. That talent alone will be enough to help.”

That’s not all.

Muwolcha would become an informant that could be planted in the city. A channel for real-time communication through notes. And one who was favorable to me and easy to communicate with.

Possessed Ones.

At least at this point in time, the advantages these beings provided were enormous.

“Even if that’s true…”

At that moment, Muwolcha continued speaking.

“With my appearance like this, what help could I be? Just like in the game, most NPCs would probably just be horrified and run away.”

“…”

“So I was thinking, Ppakgyu. If I go to the Sunken Temple and get a character change ticket, then come back with a normal appearance…”

“Noona.”

I interrupted her.

Actually, she wasn’t wrong.

Eventually, I would need to change Muwolcha’s appearance. And the character change ticket in the Sunken Temple was the only solution to this situation.

But.

“Let’s live with that appearance for now.”

“…What?”

If I utilized Muwolcha’s acting skills and that appearance.

I could proceed with future plans much more smoothly.

Really.

* * *

“…”

Jeokyo’s Humble Cabin.

Sikan Bauer and the investigators sitting on the old sofa quietly looked around their surroundings.

Every slight movement produced creaking sounds, but none of them showed any signs of discomfort.

They couldn’t be rude in a Sword Master’s dwelling.

How much time had passed?

Rustle-.

A sound came from the kitchen, and The Recluse appeared carrying a tray.

On the tray were steaming teacups and bite-sized refreshments neatly arranged.

“Thank you, Lord Jeokyo.”

Sikan Bauer politely bowed his waist as he received a teacup. The other investigators quickly followed suit and bowed their heads.

Right then.

“What? There’s none for me?”

Heukgol whined in a dissatisfied voice.

“…”

Swoosh-.

The Recluse silently looked at Heukgol.

Though his face was completely hidden by the helmet so his expression couldn’t be read, that silence itself created a strange sense of pressure.

Of course, Heukgol didn’t care and demanded again.

“What are you doing? Give me tea and something to eat too.”

Thump, thump, thump-.

The Recluse, who had been staring intently at Heukgol for a long while, silently moved his steps and disappeared somewhere.

Soon rustling sounds came from the kitchen again, and after a moment The Recluse reappeared.

In one hand was a steaming teacup.

And in the other hand was…

‘…A mop?’

Sikan Bauer’s eyebrows twitched slightly at the suddenly appearing object.

“Haha! I’ll drink it well!”

Heukgol giggled and grabbed the teacup. Then he poured the hot tea into his mouth all at once.

Drip drip drip-.

Naturally, the Death Knight had no esophagus. The hot tea flowed straight down between his ribs, wetting the sofa and floor.

“…”

The Recluse silently looked down at that scene.

Sigh-.

With a long sigh, The Recluse brought the mop to the floor.

Regardless, Heukgol giggled and turned toward the investigators.

“You’ve worked hard coming all the way here! Like all of the Uncharted Wilderness, this forest is particularly treacherous, so you must have suffered.”

Sikan Bauer briefly bowed his head and answered politely.

“Yes. But we’re relieved to confirm that Count of Heukgol is safe.”

“…What? Safe?”

Heukgol let out a hollow laugh.

“I’m not particularly safe though?”

Hop-.

Heukgol jumped down from the sofa and stood on the floor. His height now didn’t even reach Sikan Bauer’s knees.

“Look.”

Heukgol said, looking down at his shrunken body.

“I’ve become this weak. I probably won’t be able to play the role of a Heretic for several years.”

Sikan Bauer was silent for a moment, then carefully opened his mouth.

“Still, we’re just relieved that you’re alive.”

It was a voice filled with sincerity.

Heukgol giggled and climbed back onto the sofa.

A moment of silence.

Sikan Bauer put down his teacup and opened his mouth.

“Actually…”

His voice became even more cautious.

“We came to see Count of Heukgol because we have something to ask you.”

Snicker-.

Heukgol immediately answered as if he had expected this.

“You’re here because of the guy who killed me, right?”

“…Yes.”

When Sikan Bauer nodded, Heukgol closed his mouth.

His expression became serious, with all the previous playful atmosphere completely gone.

“He was a really strong opponent. Although I was saving my ‘Transcendent Realm’, he would have been a difficult enemy even if I had deployed it.”

Heukgol slowly continued speaking.

“In pure swordsmanship… I was completely outmatched.”

The investigators’ expressions all hardened at once.

If a Sword Master honestly admitted his defeat and spoke to that extent, it meant that enemy was truly an outstanding master.

“Do you have any other information? Did you speculate about the enemy’s identity, or discover any clues?”

“Information? What more information do you want? Anyway, if you guys came all the way here, you must have grasped the entire situation through the Memoirs of Aiter right after I died, right?”

“…”

As expected of a Sword Master. Though he showed careless behavior, he saw right through how Middle Temple would act.

“All we obtained was footage of Count of Heukgol’s battle with the Mysterious Assailant. We have no other information whatsoever.”

“Haah…”

Heukgol sighed and shook his head.

“I have no idea either. I can’t even get a sense of where that kind of kid suddenly popped out from.”

The moment those words ended.

The atmosphere in the living room became even heavier.

In a situation where divine beasts had fallen and Silkroad Barrier had become unstable, now even an abyssal monster capable of defeating a Sword Master had emerged.

“Well, at least one thing is certain….”

Heukgol opened his mouth again.

“Among the Sword Masters, there are only two who can face this thing.”

“Two people?”

Sikan Bauer’s eyes sharpened.

“Yeah. First, Pean. He never loses to anyone, so he should be able to somehow endure against the monster I encountered.”

Sikan Bauer nodded. If it was Pean the Sword Master, that would certainly be possible.

But enduring and winning were completely different matters.

“If you want to subjugate it….”

Heukgol nodded with a confident expression.

“Gaon, there’s no answer other than him.”

* * *

“Damn it.”

A man clicked his tongue as he walked along a dim alley.

His face, covered by a worn coat, was full of irritation.

“Why are they so late?”

The man was a merchant who brokered all kinds of illegal deals based in Dawnguard.

Among these, there was a particular field where he made the most profit. It was contracts with Black Mages belonging to Ataraxy.

Periodically disposing of chimeras created by Black Mages, or failed enhanced humans on their behalf.

Of course….

‘Disposal is just an excuse.’

In reality, his purpose was to sell them to the Underground Arena.

‘But why aren’t they showing up?’

The man’s brow furrowed.

Two days had already passed since their scheduled meeting time. The Black Mage was someone who kept time appointments thoroughly, regardless of anything else.

For him to be this late was an unusual occurrence.

“Damn it.”

Finally unable to bear it, the man began heading directly to the laboratory.

“If I can’t get the goods by today, the delivery deadline to the Underground Fighting Arena will be delayed…!”

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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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