Sword Master With One Strike Kill - Chapter 63

—————
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 63

Episode 63. Haewolsumo (1)

Freeze-.

The Crimson Empress’s face hardened stiffly.

She moved her lips as if she couldn’t believe what she’d heard.

‘He was caught tailing him…?’

Isaac Beriloff was a talent specialized in stealth and infiltration.

He had even been entrusted with the Holy See’s highest-grade relic, “Tristan’s Cloak.”

So how was his surveillance discovered?

Did he perhaps make a mistake during the mission?

Such doubts crossed her mind briefly, but the Crimson Empress soon shook her head.

‘…No.’

Isaac Beriloff was a capable member.

Capable enough to have never made a single mistake while acting as a double agent for the Ruin Guild.

That’s why the Crimson Empress trusted him strongly.

She didn’t think Isaac Beriloff would have made such a ridiculous mistake on such an important mission.

‘So this means…’

The Crimson Empress’s expression became quite serious.

‘The Thirteenth Sword Master’s abilities far exceed my expectations.’

It was truly a shocking situation.

It was already surprising that he had subdued Isaac Beriloff, who excelled at stealth, but to even see through “Tristan’s Cloak.”

Right.

The birth of the Thirteenth Sword Master after hundreds of years was definitely not a coincidence.

“Hah.”

The Crimson Empress let out a sigh.

Her mind became complicated.

Whatever the reason, failing the background investigation was a very painful mistake. With their surveillance discovered, it would be difficult to expect a favorable attitude from the other party.

And rightfully so—who would like a force that was investigating them?

Their trust relationship had become strained even before their first meeting.

‘How do I resolve this?’

The Crimson Empress fell into thought.

How much time had passed? She slowly nodded with an expression as if she had decided something.

No matter how she thought about it, there was only one way to repair the relationship in this situation.

‘I need to prepare a gift in advance.’

Showing sincere goodwill to someone you’ve wronged.

There was no more certain method of reconciliation than this.

‘Of course, since we need to win the Sword Master’s favor, the Holy See will have to offer something important.’

Naturally, such compensation couldn’t be decided overnight.

So the Crimson Empress decided to think about the gift later and turned her gaze back to the member.

“So… what happened to Isaac Beriloff?”

In fact, the Crimson Empress already knew the answer.

Since the surveillance was discovered, there was no way Isaac Beriloff would be safe.

Sword Masters were generally violent and prideful. They wouldn’t have left alone the rat that was tailing them.

‘Still, the fact that we made contact with Isaac Beriloff means he at least preserved his life.’

Well, that alone could be considered fortunate in this misfortune.

But what was this about?

While the Crimson Empress was thinking such thoughts alone, the member gave a completely unexpected answer.

“Brother Beriloff is currently helping the Sword Master with his business.”

“…?”

“I didn’t receive detailed information about what kind of matter it is, but he said he plans to return to Wintershield Magic Academy with the Sword Master once this business is finished.”

“…”

Pause-.

The Crimson Empress who heard the report had no choice but to keep her mouth shut for a moment.

‘What…?’

He’s casually using someone who was investigating him?

Does he have a personality that doesn’t hold grudges?

Or perhaps… he prioritizes efficiency above all and doesn’t discriminate against people who might be helpful to him?

“…”

She didn’t know.

With insufficient information about Gaon, she couldn’t understand his inner thoughts at all.

The fortunate thing was that Isaac Beriloff was safe.

“Phew…”

The Crimson Empress sighed and hung her head low.

“…I understand. Let’s stop talking about the Sword Master here and focus on properly concluding this ‘ritual’ first.”

“Yes.”

The member who briefly bowed withdrew.

Along with the gradually fading footsteps, the corridor became as quiet as death.

The Crimson Empress, who was quietly staring into the dark void, recalled Gaon’s message that Isaac Beriloff had revealed.

─Arrange a meeting with the Empress. I will help your organization achieve what it truly desires.

‘What The Organization truly desires.’

The Crimson Empress’s eyes sank coldly.

Sword Master Gaon.

Indeed… what was he planning?

* * *

“We’re going to kill a divine beast.”

Freeze-.

As soon as I finished speaking, Isaac Beriloff froze solid.

Adelia, who had been walking alongside me, was also startled and looked at me.

“G-Gaon?”

Adelia asked for confirmation.

“What did you just say? That you’re going to kill a divine beast? I think I must have misheard…”

“No, you heard correctly.”

“…”

“We’re going to kill a divine beast.”

When I calmly repeated my words, both of them couldn’t hide their shock. They seemed at a loss for words at my declaration to kill yet another divine beast after the Celestial Dragon.

“Why are you both so surprised?”

“…”

“Shouldn’t you have noticed by now that we’ve come this far?”

Swoosh-.

I said this while looking around.

A forest thick with dark blue trees.

Beyond the hazy fog that obscured our vision, a blue light faintly rippled.

As if restricting the entry of outsiders, some massive barrier was blocking our path.

【Forest of the Heavenly Sea】

This was the name of this place.

A mysterious forest that appeared when you left the central city Centerium and crossed straight through the Unexplored Territories to the southwest.

In its deepest depths, a single divine beast lived.

Just then, Adelia mentioned its name.

“Don’t tell me… you’re planning to hunt Haewolsumo?”

“That’s right.”

Divine beasts are broadly divided into two categories.

The wandering type that roams the world freely like the Celestial Dragon or Cheongyeong. And the settled type that stays in their territory for life, guarding it.

Among them, the divine beast we would hunt this time belonged to the latter.

‘Haewolsumo (Sea Moon Jellyfish).’

As you could tell from its name, it was a divine beast that took the form of a jellyfish.

Its appearance, with gentle light rippling through its translucent body, evoked the scene of moonlight dancing on the water’s surface.

Because of this, people sometimes called it ‘Middletemple’s Moonlight.’

‘It’s one of the most beautiful divine beasts.’

Residents of the Holy City often visited the Forest of the Heavenly Sea to see this mysterious divine beast.

Especially the children of Noble Families had built many memories with Haewolsumo since childhood.

According to the original story, Adelia also had a special connection with this divine beast.

“…”

That was probably why.

The reason Adelia’s expression suddenly darkened.

“Don’t tell me, like with the Celestial Dragon… Haewolsumo has also fallen to corruption?”

Nod-.

When I silently nodded my head, Adelia bit her lips tightly.

I could see turmoil flickering across her expression.

“You don’t look well.”

“Ah, well…”

Adelia quickly lifted her face. After hesitating for a moment, she answered.

“When I was young, I often visited this place with my father.”

To Adelia, Haewolsumo wasn’t just any divine beast.

A friend she had bonded with since childhood.

An existence that held precious memories shared with her late father.

The fact that she had to personally subjugate such a Haewolsumo would be an unbearably cruel situation.

‘But…’

It couldn’t be helped. If we didn’t deal with Haewolsumo at this point, it would return as an even greater disaster later.

“Adelia.”

Knowing this better than anyone, I posed a question to Adelia.

“Can you kill Haewolsumo without hesitation?”

“…”

I carefully observed Adelia’s expression.

It would be perfectly natural for her to hesitate in answering such a situation.

However, Adelia’s response came much faster than I had expected.

“Yes.”

A voice without a trace of wavering.

Before I knew it, Adelia’s eyes held firm resolve.

“From the moment I became The Protagonist’s disciple, I was prepared to accept anything.”

“…”

“So please don’t worry too much. I’ll do my best to subjugate Haewolsumo.”

Right.

That was an excellent mindset.

If nothing else, Haewolsumo absolutely had to be finished by Adelia’s hand.

Having finished that thought, I pointed to the barrier and said.

“Then let’s move inside now.”

“Yes.”

Adelia nodded and took the lead.

Then she began to caress the barrier with skilled hands.

Swoosh-.

Before long, the curtain blocking our path disappeared.

As the high-level barrier that only those with Noble Family blood could open was released, the 「Forest of the Heavenly Sea」 revealed itself.

Whoooooosh─!

…Of course, with scenery completely different from what Adelia remembered.

“Huh?”

Just one step.

We had only taken one step inside the barrier.

But the surrounding air changed instantly.

“Wh-what is this…”

The forest that had been green was now dyed red.

Even the sunlight filtering through the leaves looked grotesquely distorted.

A chilling scene as if the entire world had been stained with blood.

Ding-!

Just then, with a short notification sound, a system window appeared in one corner of my vision.

〔Forest of the Heavenly Sea: You have entered a ‘Hidden Dungeon.’〕

My eyes grew coldly calm.

‘…Now, I’ll finally face that creature.’

* * *

Kieeeeeek-!

In the forest where ominous energy rose.

A bizarre cry echoed from within the thick fog.

Haewolsumo was writhing in pain, fluttering its multiple tentacles.

“Hehe.”

The black-haired woman smiled brightly.

Eerie crimson pupils flashed between the talismans plastered all over her forehead.

“You’re really pretty.”

The woman kissed Haewolsumo’s tentacles and grinned foolishly. The jellyfish’s body, gradually turning red, was reminiscent of a blood-colored moon.

“You were beautiful before too, but… your corrupted form is much more lovely, isn’t it? There, there.”

The woman’s sharp black fingernails poked at Haewolsumo repeatedly.

Kieeeek-!

Each time, the jellyfish writhed as if having seizures, and the woman burst into delighted laughter.

“You’ll keep staying with me forever from now on, right? Hmm? Let’s live together for a long, long time. I’ll love you so much…”

Pause-.

At that very moment, the black-haired woman’s expression suddenly contorted.

Lifting her head sharply, she began frantically looking around like a madwoman.

“What’s this?”

Someone had invaded her territory.

No.

…To be precise, three people.

“No, I was having such a delightful time playing with my pet jellyfish… How dare some little rats interfere…”

Snap-.

At that moment, the world became silent.

The enraged woman stopped everything she was doing and perked up her ears.

As if she was listening to someone telling her something important.

“…Ha.”p>

Soon the woman burst into a snicker.

“Really? He came here?”

Hiss-.

Her lips stretched wide, forming a crazed smile.

“Camillo, the one who killed that perverted corpse maniac… ‘The Mysterious Man’?”

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