Sword Master With One Strike Kill - Chapter 298

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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 298

Episode 298. Creepy Creepy Rashutku (7)

“An intruder? What do you mean by that, Pean?”

“….”

Jeungmu asked in a calm voice.

But Pean gave no answer.

He simply kept his head lowered in silence, concentrating all his nerves on the presence he sensed from afar.

‘This is….’

It was familiar.

An all too familiar presence.

Dark and merciless killing intent. A coldness that seemed to reject life itself.

And above all, that distinctive fishy aura that could only be felt from those who served the Evil Gods.

‘…Golem Knight.’

Clench-.

Pean gripped Seorineul’s handle tightly.

The sworn enemy of the Diviners and Middle Temple’s highest priority target for elimination. A Worshipper of Evil Gods classified as especially dangerous even among the Immortals.

He had now set foot somewhere in these Rashutku Ruins.

“Pean?”

Whoosh-.

Jeungmu called out to Pean once more.

He had clearly noticed from Pean’s expression that the situation was far from ordinary.

‘Should I tell the others about this?’

Pean hesitated for a moment.

In truth, the Golem Knight’s intrusion was important information that should be shared with everyone.

A moment’s carelessness could lead to an unexpected disaster.

‘But….’

Swish-.

Pean glanced sideways.

He saw the Boy in White Robe.

The figure of Balhwan leaning against the restroom wall with an expressionless face.

‘…Balhwan will obviously be shaken.’

The enemy who massacred his clan.

The opponent Balhwan had yearned to take revenge against for hundreds of years.

If he learned that such a Golem Knight was nearby, Balhwan’s reaction was as predictable as fire.

He would lose his composure, be swept up by emotion, and likely act recklessly.

‘This isn’t the time to be distracted by other matters.’

For now, safely exploring the Rashutku Imperial Palace was the top priority.

Obtaining Vilopozy’s Lost Technology manual through this exploration was also important.

There was nothing good to be gained by causing unnecessary chaos at this point.

Having finished his thoughts, Pean slowly steadied his breathing and organized his judgment.

‘The Golem Knight’s presence is faint.’

Like a form dimly visible through fog, it couldn’t be clearly captured.

This meant the distance was considerable.

‘At least we won’t encounter him immediately.’

The Ruins of Rashutku were vast.

This was evident just from the map they had obtained last night.

This site consisted of dozens of buildings, intricately intertwined passages, and endlessly connected maze-like structures.

Even if the Golem Knight had entered the ruins, the probability of accidentally encountering him was low.

‘Of course….’

…the reason that bastard had come to this place at this time was surely to interfere with the party’s objectives.

‘Therefore, I must at least convey this fact to Lord Gaon.’

Naturally, Gaon would have already noticed the Golem Knight’s intrusion.

He was someone who had even detected the fact that Pean himself had encountered an Intruder in the distant Abyss.

Still, it was better to make everything certain in preparation for any contingency.

“Balhwan.”

Having made his decision, Pean carefully spoke up.

“Please tell Lord Gaon.”

“…?”

“That it seems a Worshipper of Evil Gods has infiltrated the Ruins of Rashutku.”

* * *

‘What…?’

Pause-.

The moment I heard Pean’s words from Balhwan, I frowned.

A Worshipper of Evil Gods had infiltrated Rashutku?

‘…An Intruder?’

The first possibility that came to mind was that.

An Intruder’s intrusion.

It was a pattern I had experienced three or four times while playing the Rashutku Ruins scenario.

A truly annoying hostile NPC that appeared at unpredictable timing to torment the player.

Actually, when the half guarding the ruins entrance died….

‘…there are cases where the other half immediately approaches to fill that gap.’

If so, there was a high possibility this was such a case now.

‘Wait a minute.’

But I immediately felt something was off.

If Pean had detected an Intruder, there would be no reason to use the vague expression “Worshipper of Evil Gods.”

It was an opponent he had faced several times already, and he should be able to clearly identify its nature.

Yet he chose a general category instead of a specific name?

‘It means he’s deliberately hiding information.’

Pean had already identified who the opponent was through his supernatural senses.

But he intentionally chose ambiguous wording to avoid revealing that fact to others.

At that moment, the conclusion narrowed down to one thing.

‘Who is he trying to protect?’

I thought of the personnel exploring the Ruins of Rashutku together.

Adelia, Pean, Jeungmu, Balhwan, and the Relic Investigation Team members.

Among them, the person who would be emotionally shaken upon learning the identity of a specific Worshipper of Evil Gods was….

‘…Balhwan.’

Right.

The answer was clear.

The enemy who massacred his clan. The opponent he had yearned to take revenge against for hundreds of years.

If he learned that such a being was right nearby, it would be nearly impossible for Balhwan to maintain his composure.

In other words, the Worshipper of Evil Gods that Pean detected was….

‘The Golem Knight.’

Swish-.

Having finished my thoughts, I looked at the Boy in Black Robe and answered calmly.

“Tell Pean that I’ll be up soon, so he shouldn’t worry too much.”

“….”

“And I too was aware of the existence of the Worshippers of Evil Gods.”

Nod-.

Balhwan nodded his head and turned around.

I feigned a calm expression while clicking my tongue inwardly.

‘Tsk.’

The Golem Knight infiltrating the Rashutku Ruins was a development I had never experienced before.

At this point in time, there was no justification for him to seek out Ravenhil.

Currently, the Five Nightmares would be preparing their operation to interfere with Wintershield’s great migration.

A busy time when each was moving according to their assigned roles.

But the fact that the Golem Knight appeared here alone meant something had gone wrong.

‘Then I need to consider the reasons why he might be moving now…’

I considered the possibilities one by one.

Either he received orders from the Outer Gods, or cracks had formed within the Five Nightmares.

Or perhaps a completely unexpected third factor had intervened.

Either way, one thing was certain.

‘…The pace is accelerating.’

In the original game, the mid-phase transition occurred after the Wintershield Defense.

But now the situation was much more advanced than that.

If my speculation was correct about the collapse of the Five Nightmares and the emergence of new Worshipper groups, along with the resulting power restructuring…

‘The scenario would already be in the mid-phase.’

Of course.

I wasn’t certain that the Worshipper Pean detected was really the Golem Knight.

And there was a possibility my reasoning had reached the wrong conclusion.

‘I’ll confirm later.’

Whew-.

I exhaled softly and organized my thoughts.

We would soon leave the waterway and return to the Imperial Palace anyway. I could talk directly with Pean then.

Therefore.

It seemed better to focus on the situation at hand for now.

[This is the place.]

“…”

“…”

Stop-.

With the Ghost Prime Minister’s words, the group’s footsteps halted.

The place we arrived at after following the maze-like waterways for a long time.

What blocked our path ahead was a massive iron gate.

“This is…”

Swoosh-.

Adelia cautiously reached out her hand.

An iron gate located deep in the drainage system.

Abnormally thick iron bars completely blocked the path.

Cold air and a fishy smell leaked through the gaps between the doors where red rust bloomed like flowers, and rough chains were pulled taut as if trying to confine something inside.

[The source of the curse sleeps inside that iron gate.]

The Ghost Prime Minister slowly spoke.

I stared at the tightly closed iron gate and said.

“But we can’t approach it.”

[That’s right.]

It was the same as the sealed passages in the Imperial Palace.

It wasn’t a barrier.

It was sealed by strong physical force. Not something that could be opened with [Barrier Breaker], but a stage that could only be unlocked by meeting specific conditions.

While I was thinking this, the Prime Minister continued his explanation.

[To open this iron gate, you must collect three essences scattered throughout Rashutku.]

Swoosh-.

Following the Ghost Prime Minister’s gaze, I could see three grooves carved into the wall right next to the iron gate.

Each was sized to fit a fist-sized sphere.

Next to them, symbols were carved one by one.

The first.

Winding octopus tentacles. The tentacles extending in multiple directions were carved so vividly they seemed to move alive.

The second.

A diamond-shaped stingray. Its widely spread fins and long tail were elegantly expressed.

And the third.

A mask split in half.

Two faces wearing crowns were carved. It was clearly a representation of the Twin Emperors.

[You can obtain an essence each time you clear those three trials.]

“…”

[Only when you place all those essences here will the iron gate finally open.]

I examined the symbols in order.

Naturally, I knew what each one meant.

‘Mukyeonjiju.’

The octopus tentacles.

The giant tentacle monster I had faced deep in the Rashutku Ruins.

‘The Aquarium.’

The aquarium Upapa created for the Rashutku Empire. And the various spirit creatures that swam within it.

‘And…’

The last symbol.

‘…The trial of two paths that fully captured the bond of the Twin Emperors.’

Right.

They were all trials we had cleared in the Rashutku Ruins.

‘However.’

There was one problem.

What I had cleared at the time was the ruins of the Parallel World.

In other words, the Mukyeonjiju, the divine beasts of the Aquarium, and the trial of two paths I had faced were all essentially illusions.

‘Their true forms are still alive here.’

Ultimately, it meant we had to clear the trials we experienced in the Rashutku Ruins in more difficult versions.

[By the way.]

Just then.

The Prime Minister added one thing.

[If you obtain even one essence, the other two will disappear within 3 minutes, so be careful.]

“…?”

“…?”

Silence flowed.

It essentially meant we had to defeat all three trials simultaneously.

Pause-.

Upon hearing those words, the expressions of Muwolcha, Adelia, and Balhwan all hardened at once.

“Wh-what do you mean…”

Didn’t I tell you?

Apart from the horror theme, the Imperial Palace Quest is incredibly difficult.

* * *

“Th, that’s why….”

Hodupayi cautiously opened his mouth.

“What do we do now?”

His voice was filled with anxiety.

It was a natural reaction.

It was no different from disobeying the First Apostle’s order to create chimeras and just running away.

Far from procuring materials in Ravenhil, they had been busy fleeing from the Golem Knight.

If they returned like this?

It was obvious they would incur the Apostle’s wrath.

“Wh, what do you mean what do we do! You must have a plan, right? Right?”

“….”

Despite Hodupayi’s continued pressing, Dorico Shiro didn’t answer.

She was lost in her own deep thoughts.

‘I can’t return to places where the Outer Gods’ influence reaches.’

She still didn’t know why the Golem Knight was trying to find her, but at least one thing was certain.

She couldn’t get involved with those related to the Outer Gods anymore.

Atalaxia had the First Apostle. The Heretics’ strongholds were the same. Wherever they went, it was a place touched by the Outer Gods’ hands.

There was no safe place. At least, not within the network of Worshippers of Evil Gods spread across the entire continent.

‘Then….’

Swoosh-.

Dorico Shiro slowly lifted her face and spoke.

“Hodupayi.”

“Yes?”

“I don’t really like it, but there seems to be only one place we can ask for help.”

“Wh, where is that?”

“Middle Temple.”

“…!”

Hodupayi screamed in horror.

“I’m a continental public enemy! If I go there, I’ll die! They’ll execute me!”

“What else can we do? Who isn’t a target for execution?”

“Are you crazy? Middle Temple is really out of the question! It’s dangerous!”

“Other places are dangerous too. So we should bet on the side with higher survival odds.”

“No, what the….”

“Hodupayi, you’re a target for execution wherever you go anyway.”

“What?”

“Don’t you remember the Golem Knight from earlier? You’re marked by the Heretics now too.”

“Why! Why on earth! I was just playing with monster corpses in my room making chimeras! I lived so quietly! I didn’t do anything!!”

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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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