Sword Master With One Strike Kill - Chapter 253

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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 253

Episode 253. Descent (4)

For a moment, silence flowed.

Hodupayi’s eyes trembled faintly.

‘First Apostle…?’

He had met her a few weeks ago. It was when he visited Central Headquarters for additional budget allocation.

At that time, she had requested the creation of a ‘vessel’ to make the Second Apostle descend, and Hodupayi, who happened to be visiting headquarters, was enlisted for that task.

But the First Apostle was here in the Western Branch Director’s Office?

Why on earth?

‘Is she having a meeting with the branch chief…?’

Just as he was thinking that.

He paused—.

Hodupayi’s gaze fixed on the secretary.

“…”

Something was strange.

The secretary’s lips had turned deathly pale.

Though she maintained her respectful bowing posture, her hands were trembling violently.

As if she had witnessed the most horrifying thing in the world.

‘Wait a minute.’

Hodupayi had a timid and fearful personality.

But such people tend not to miss subtle emotional changes in others.

Hodupayi’s survival instincts began to sound an alarm.

Just a moment ago.

The words the secretary had spoken flashed through his mind.

─The First Apostle is waiting inside the room.

The First Apostle was waiting.

However.

Why wasn’t there a single mention of the branch chief?

Suddenly, a chilling coldness crept up his spine.

An ominous premonition.

An instinctive warning that something was wrong.

“I, I’ll… c-come back later…”

Hodupayi hastily stepped backward.

“A-anyway, I already reported all the incident details through communication…? There’s nothing more to explain… I d-don’t need to unnecessarily interrupt an important meeting…”

“The First Apostle.”

Abruptly—.

The secretary cut him off with a trembling voice.

“Right now, she wishes to meet with you, Hodupayi.”

“N-no…!”

Hodupayi muttered in an even more urgent voice.

“M-my physical condition is really bad right now, you know? I j-just finished combat and my stamina is depleted, my mind is hazy, and on top of that, my colleague Zahhar passed away…”

Trembling—.

Hodupayi’s voice wavered. His words got more tangled than usual.

“S-so right now I’m not in a state to properly converse with anyone! I’ll rest a bit and come back later!”

Logically speaking, these were words that could easily be refuted.

His physical condition was bad?

Yet he had effortlessly dragged Baekryong’s corpse here, something that would be difficult to move even with dozens of adult men clinging to it.

His mind was hazy?

Despite Zahhar’s death, far from mourning, his eyes had been clear as he treated the corpse like useful experimental material.

The other party could have pointed out those contradictions.

However.

“Hodupayi.”

The secretary’s reason had also long been paralyzed by fear.

“Please…”

Her voice, already trembling, collapsed—.

“P-please… *sob*…”

As if what she had been holding back burst forth, tears streamed down the secretary’s eyes.

Her distorted face was saying this.

If you don’t go in now, I will die.

“…”

Hodupayi stared blankly at the sobbing secretary for a long while.

Then.

Sigh—.

He let out a deep breath.

Hodupayi slowly moved his steps toward the tightly closed door.

Creeeeak—.

Before he could even reach for the doorknob, the door opened by itself.

At the same time.

Hodupayi was able to face the completely transformed scenery of the branch chief’s office.

“…”

It was bright red.

The branch chief’s office, which had been neatly decorated with white wallpaper when he visited last week, was now completely covered in red.

No.

It wasn’t wallpaper.

Instead of the sharp paint smell that should pierce the nose, a heavy metallic stench that penetrated deep into the throat filled the entire room.

On the walls.

On the ceiling.

On the floor.

Even on the desk.

Everything visible was stained with the color of blood.

“Hehe, you came?”

“…”

“…”

At the voice coming from one corner of the room, Hodupayi slowly shifted his gaze.

The First Apostle.

A monster wearing the shell of an innocent girl.

She gazed at Hodupayi with a bright smile.

While preciously cradling the Western Branch Head’s severed head in her arms.

* * *

“So then.”

Swish—.

Tyrant Dragon crouched down on the floor and looked down at the man before him as he spoke.

“You’re making deals with the Black Mages to sell experimental failures to the Underworld Arena, right? But this time the appointment was delayed, so you came directly to the laboratory.”

“So they’re dealing with those dark mages to sell failed experiments to underground fighting arenas? But this time the delivery was delayed, so they came directly to the lab.”

“Yes, yes…! Th-that’s right…! Hic!”

The man, Franky, nodded frantically while tears and snot streamed down his face.

His legs were bent at unnatural angles. They had been broken during the process of being subdued by Tyrant Dragon.

Unable to move, collapsed on the ground, he was drenched in sweat and sobbing.

Just as Tyrant Dragon was about to speak again while coldly watching Franky writhe in pain.

“Hey.”

Gaon, who had been quietly observing the situation from the side, slowly approached Franky.

Swoosh—.

He too lowered his stance and met Franky’s gaze.

Calm but sharp eyes stared directly at Franky’s face.

“Do you recognize who I am?”

“…?”

Confusion spread across Franky’s face.

“I-I’m sorry, my lord…”

He muttered with a trembling voice.

“M-my eyes are dim… I cannot recognize who you are, my lord…”

He showed no sign of remembering at all.

It was only natural.

To Franky, people were nothing more than merchandise.

There was no way he would remember the face of each slave he had sold.

“Four months ago.”

Gaon spoke calmly.

“I’m the slave you sold to the Underground Arena.”

“…?”

Franky’s face contorted further. He still looked like he couldn’t recognize him.

“Th-that’s…”

Just as he was about to protest.

Shing—!

Gaon instantly drew his sword and slashed Franky’s throat.

“…!”

At that gruesome sight, Muwolcha reflexively turned her head away.

One side of her chest throbbed. She felt something rising from deep in her throat.

However.

“…”

Gaon himself didn’t even blink.

He remained crouched and began searching through the corpse. As naturally as picking up something dropped on the street.

Swoosh—.

Before long, Gaon pulled out a small leather pouch from inside Franky’s clothes.

It was a spatial storage pouch.

Ding—!

[Middle Finger]: You know too, don’t you, sis?

[Middle Finger]: That bastard Franky is a golden goblin.

I know.

The human trafficker Franky.

He was an NPC that anyone who played the game would inevitably hate. A villain-like existence who sold the protagonist at the very beginning.

So when they encountered him again, players would always kill Franky without exception.

The game company seemed to know this too, as they hid numerous treasures on Franky’s body, making him a kind of ‘golden goblin’ role.

Yes.

I know all of this.

But.

“…”

Now that the game had become reality.

Gaon’s appearance, calmly searching through a corpse after killing someone, felt strangely alien.

No matter how much mental correction there was from 「Noble Heart」, this situation was nothing short of shocking for Muwolcha, who had lived in 21st century South Korea.

Ding—!

Then.

Another note arrived.

[Middle Finger]: You’ll have to adapt from now on.

Muwolcha looked up.

Gaon was looking at her with an expression worn down beyond measure.

* * *

Drip, drip—.

Only the sound of something falling from the ceiling filled the room.

The Branch Chief’s Office stained red.

Dorico Shiro and Hodupayi couldn’t utter a single word, just staring blankly at the First Apostle sitting across from them.

Grinning broadly.

The First Apostle was still wearing a bright smile. With an expression that looked as joyful as a child on a picnic.

It was suffocating.

This silence had been continuing for dozens of minutes already.

No one opened their mouth. No, they couldn’t. If they said even one wrong word, their necks would fly off just like that branch chief’s.

Right then.

“Hodupayi.”

The First Apostle slowly opened her mouth.

Her eyes fixed on Hodupayi. She seemed determined not to look away until he answered.

“Do you know why I killed the branch chief?”

“…”

Gulp—.

The sound of dry saliva going down Hodupayi’s throat could be heard clearly.

“B-b-because I… failed the mission?”

“Ahahaha!”

The First Apostle burst into laughter as if amused. After laughing for a while, she shook her head and answered.

“If that were the reason, I would have killed you instead of the Western Branch Head.”

“Th-then why…”

“The branch chief annoyed me.”

The First Apostle continued with a bright smile.

“On the surface, he pretended to be loyal. He recommended you, Hodupayi, for the Second Apostle’s descent, welcomed us kindly… Yes. On the outside, it all looked cooperative.”

“…”

“But the reality was different. Budget complaints, time complaints, manpower complaints. He never properly supported anything. Always moved with the bare minimum, you know?”

The First Apostle’s voice gradually lowered.

“This Vilopozy operation was the same. I asked him to send a bunch of other Black Mages besides Zahhar, but do you know what the branch chief said? Resource waste. He said that much was sufficient to deal with a Sword Master.”

She chuckled.

“What’s even funnier is…”

The First Apostle stared directly at Hodupayi.

“The branch chief thought this operation itself was unnecessary from the start. He said what’s the point of bothering them now when there’s a Sword Master in Tunnel Village. If we wait a few months, or even a few years, the Sword Master will eventually leave for other missions anyway, so why not slowly recover the test subjects then.”

The First Apostle’s hand stroked the head in her bosom once more.

“But you know, our ‘Black Star’ wants to reclaim his body as soon as possible, right? But the branch head kept, kept dragging his feet. I had to constantly pressure him before he finally sent Zahhar.”

Her voice gradually lowered.

“The branch head didn’t prioritize ‘Their’ plan above all else. Preserving Ataraxy’s assets and manpower was more important to him. Organizational stability was more important. Minimizing risks was what mattered most.”

“….”

“So he always hesitated. Always calculated. Always moved defensively.”

The First Apostle looked at Hodupayi as she spoke.

“Do you think someone like that could properly serve ‘Their’ will in the future? He might ruin something even more important next time, right? I couldn’t stand to see that happen.”

“….”

“Hehe, so I killed him.”

Only then did Hodupayi fully understand the situation.

They intended to turn Ataraxy into their puppet.

Their plan was to devour this entire organization by killing anyone who displeased them or caused even the slightest annoyance.

‘Just like what happened to the Western Branch Head, I could also be….’

A chill ran down his spine.

He felt his mind going blank.

Just then.

“In that sense.”

The First Apostle spoke again.

“I’m going to pour absolute support into you.”

“…What?”

“You’re the most important person for the Second Apostle’s descent, aren’t you, Hodupayi? You’re even the only one who can mass-produce chimera legions to strengthen our forces.”

Grin—.

She smiled with satisfaction as she spoke.

“So, I’ll give you the entire Western Branch budget.”

“…!”

“If you want, I can pull additional funds from headquarters too. Use it freely.”

The fear and terror vanished in an instant.

Hodupayi dropped to his knees on the spot and bowed his head to the First Apostle.

“I-I pledge my lifelong loyalty!”

* * *

“Lord Gaon!”

Adelia smiled brightly upon seeing her master’s figure in the distance.

Pause—.

But a moment later.

Her expression gradually hardened.

“Huh?”

Tyrant Dragon and Gaon, the two Sword Masters, had captured and brought back some unknown monster.

‘Didn’t they say they were bringing back the hero…?’

But what is that monster?

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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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