The Crazy Battle God Has Returned - Chapter 110

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

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A Mad Swordsman Returns – Chapter 110

Han Yu-sung and Ran were inside the Difficult Realm.
Once, this was the Blood Ghost Tomb where he had battled the Spirit of Blood Ghost.
Now that its purpose had been served, it remained little more than an empty field.
For reasons I couldn’t fathom, the Lord of Training had preserved this Difficult Realm.
Whether to honor the Spirit of Blood Ghost or simply out of laziness, I couldn’t say.

‘Either way, it served as an excellent trap.’

The cliff where the Blood Ghost Tomb stood was ideal for setting a trap.
Once I confirmed the Difficult Realm remained, I lured Ran and the assassins before escaping down the cliff using Shadow of Night and Decoy.
What happened after that hardly needs explanation.

[You have paid 8,000 coins as the cost of using ‘Thunder God’s Wrath’.]
[Your body cannot yet withstand Thunder God’s Wrath. Regeneration speed is greatly reduced.]
[Aaahhh… C-coins, my coins…. Master! This, this is a disaster! This skill is a coin-devouring monster, I tell you!]

I had tested Thunder God’s Spear against the assassins.
Its power was undeniable. The problem was that Kakasha screamed inside my head at the astronomical amount of coins it demanded.
Moreover, the cooldown was extraordinarily long.

‘If I keep using it, I’ll go bankrupt.’
[Now you understand! Curse you, Thunder God! Bestowing such a cursed skill!]

Kakasha continued to rage relentlessly.
I ignored his complaints and looked down at the player before me.
Ran stared at me with a face full of wariness.

“…Is there something I need to do for you?”

Regardless, thanks to this, I could speak in a quiet place.
A place where I didn’t need to worry about the eyes of others or the gaze of the Lord.
Ran pondered the true meaning behind what I had just said.

‘The other assassins… I don’t see them. Did he kill them all? If so, then he spared only me. But why would he need to do that?’

Ran quickly assessed her current situation.
Han Yu-sung had kept her alive, tending to her wounds without letting her die.
Whatever his reasons, it meant he wanted something from her.
In that moment, one possibility crystallized in her mind.

“You want to use me as a spy, don’t you?”

Han Yu-sung laughed silently at her words.
Ran had faithfully served as Maezato Oju’s aide for a long time, and as a result, she had earned considerable trust from Maezato Rinzo.
If Han Yu-sung knew that and had spared her life because of it.
There was no other possibility.

“That’s right. I’ll spare your life. In exchange, you’ll report to me how Maezato Rinzo moves within Zanwol.”
“Ha, you think I’d accept such a proposal?”

Ran scoffed.
He was asking her to become a spy in exchange for her life. Tremendous danger would follow—barely different from dying here and now.
What reason could she possibly have to accept such terms?

“Don’t you want to escape from Zanwol Guild?”
“What? What do you mean by that…?”
“Maezato Oju was a reckless fool who caused trouble wherever he went. I know you were the one who cleaned up his messes. Isn’t that right?”

Ran did not answer.
But her silence was answer enough.

“You probably thought things would become easier once Oju died, but look at your situation now. Haven’t you been driven into a corner instead?”
“That’s… that’s not it. It’s not like that…”
“Isn’t that what you yourself believe?”

He was right.
It matched exactly what she had thought before coming here.
Assassinate Han Yu-sung, the man who killed Oju.
And do it by infiltrating Korea, a foreign land.
There was nothing more to say—it was an impossibly dangerous mission.

“Since you’ve spent so long cleaning up after Oju, you must have hoped Zanwol would repay you somehow. But is this the reward you wanted?”
“Ugh, kgh… Stop it! Don’t manipulate me!”
“I’m offering you a chance. A chance to escape Zanwol Guild. And a chance to receive the fair reward you deserved and leave.”

Ran bit down on her lip.
The situation was infuriating and humiliating beyond measure.
What made it worse was that I couldn’t refute Han Yu-sung’s words.
Even she had begun to wonder if this ordeal was punishment.

“Maezato Rinzo lost Maezato Oju, who would have been his blade. He’ll spiral out of control under the pretense of earning the Lord’s trust. In that process, do you think you’ll survive? And now you’ve lost trust after failing this task as well.”
“…What do you want from me?”
“As I said before—information. I’m not asking you to do anything dangerous. When Maezato Rinzo leaves his castle, report it to me.”
“You… surely you’re not…”

Ran’s eyes widened as she heard Han Yu-sung’s words.

“You’re planning to kill Maezato Rinzo?”

Han Yu-sung didn’t answer.
He only smiled in silence.
Just as Ran had done moments before, that was his answer.
Ran’s body trembled at his response.

“What you do with the chaos after Maezato Rinzo’s death is your choice. You’ve supported Maezato Oju for so long—you must know plenty.”
“…”

If Maezato Rinzo died, the Zanwol Guild would collapse.
Ran could easily seize the Maezato Family’s vast wealth during the upheaval.
She knew their locations because of Maezato Oju.

‘Will I spend my entire life like this, following orders? Or…’

Will I use this chance to break free from every shackle?
Ran’s eyes turned cold and sharp.
This was an opportunity to obtain everything she desired. The price she’d have to pay was, in a sense, trivial.
For someone like her, it wouldn’t be difficult at all.

“What do I need to do?”

Finally, the answer Han Yu-sung had been waiting for came from Ran’s lips.
His smile deepened as he heard it.

* * *

[The oath has been fulfilled.]

Ran examined the contract before her with careful attention.
Literally speaking, her life hung in the balance of this document. Should she break the covenant, she would vanish exactly as written here.

“If you return to Japan alone, you’ll draw suspicion. That’s why I’ve kept a few assassins alive. Rendezvous with them and make your way back to Japan.”
“…Understood. I’ll establish a communication network soon.”

This was why Han Yu-sung had refrained from eliminating the unconscious assassins.
Ran offered him a light bow before swiftly departing the Difficult Realm.
Now that the oath was sealed, there was no need to worry about betrayal.

“Well then, I suppose I’ll wait for the Alliance to arrive.”

After confirming Ran’s departure, Han Yu-sung exited the Difficult Realm.
He then waited for the Alliance members who would surely be searching for him by now.
How long did he wait?

“Here! There are traces over here!”
“Ah, Han Yu-sung! Are you alright! Everyone, prepare for combat!”
“Wait, hold on—the enemies….”

The Alliance’s security team arrived at the scene, having only just grasped the situation.
Han Yu-sung was a crucial player—both within the Alliance and across Korea. For this reason, they had discreetly assigned a protection detail to guard him.
The problem was that they had arrived far too late.

“Han Yu-sung! You don’t have a scratch on you. You’re unharmed?”
“These charred corpses… From the traces, it doesn’t appear to be your handiwork.”

The security personnel looked around the Difficult Realm with bewildered expressions.
A Korean player had been attacked by Japanese assassins.
The attacked player was none other than Han Yu-sung, who had recently gained considerable prominence.
This was more than enough to spark an international dispute.
It would certainly do so—if the assassins’ identities were ever revealed.

“They appear to be professional assassins. It seems they had prepared a spell that activates after death to conceal their identities.”
“Assassins like that… We’re fortunate you’re safe. Do you happen to know anything related to this? Perhaps something you overheard during the fight?”
“Nothing. They attacked without warning. Everything happened too quickly.”
“I see….”

All remaining traces had burned away, making identification nearly impossible.
What remained was only the result: ‘Han Yu-sung had narrowly escaped assassination.’
The security team exhaled deeply.

‘I’ve never protected anyone as troublesome as this man.’
‘Can we even call this protection in the first place….’

Han Yu-sung was an extraordinarily difficult target to protect.
Living in the Lord of Training’s safe house meant his residence itself was unknown. At best, whenever he showed himself, the security team would immediately move in to guard him.
This time, however, Han Yu-sung had moved covertly, making that impossible.
That was why the security team had arrived so late.

“I understand why you moved quietly given what I see here, but please at least give us a heads-up before you go anywhere. Incidents like this will happen repeatedly.”
“I’ll do my best.”
“For now, we’ll collect these remains. They probably won’t yield much, but there’s always a chance something useful might turn up.”

The security team had grasped the situation intuitively.
This place held a hidden Difficult Realm. He must have been trying to move as discreetly as possible so others wouldn’t learn of it.
The situation had become complicated when assassins got involved.

“Then, we’ll withdraw for now.”

The security team collected the remaining traces and left the cliff.
Despite what they said, they would keep watch from a distance.
They would observe until Han Yu-sung returned to Seoul.

“They’re going to such lengths just to plant one spy.”
[Truly. Is this spy really so necessary?]
“It is. Enough to endure this annoying charade.”

I already knew who had sent the assassins.
The reason I concealed it was for Ran, whom I had planted in the Zanwol Guild.

‘The assassination failed. But Ran handled the aftermath, and they succeeded in withdrawing to Japan without exposing their identities….’

This much wouldn’t deal a significant blow to Ran’s position.
She would retain enough value to be useful as a spy.
I concealed the assassins’ identities with that goal in mind.

“How troublesome. It would have been easier if Rinzo were Korean.”
[What would you have done then?]
“I would have marched straight in and beaten him to death.”

Maezato Rinzo is a difficult man to kill outright.
He wields considerable power within Japan, and his influence is broad enough that he could even aspire to an Apostle position among the Sworn Servants of Justice.
Simply marching in and killing him would invite severe backlash.
Above all else.

‘He barely moves outside of Japan in the first place.’

Rinzo remains barricaded within Japan’s fortress, never venturing out.
Rather than acting openly, his method is to lurk in the shadows, commanding subordinates like Oju to reap the benefits.

‘And that Oju is now dead.’

In the process, he must have lost considerable trust with Achiros as well.
He will attempt to recover from this in some way.
There is a possibility he will overreach, or even leave his castle to handle matters personally.
Han Yu-sung intends to seize that opportunity.
The moment he abandons his own methods.

“If Zanwol collapses, it will deal a blow to Achiros as well. It is quite an important military asset among the Sworn Servants of Justice in Japan, after all.”
[Hmm, so the trouble is worth enduring.]

Rinzo had operated as Achiros’s limbs and hands.
To diminish Achiros’s influence, he needs to be eliminated.
The Zanwol Guild, and its master Rinzo. All of them.

‘I will need a stage once more.’

What is needed is a proper stage where Rinzo can be killed.
If Han Yu-sung’s predictions hold true, that stage will be created soon enough.

* * *

In Japan, at the Guild House of ‘Zanwol’.
Rinzo stood gazing out the window in silence.
Behind him, Ran lay prostrate, her expression heavy with shame.

“So, you failed.”
“Yes. I apologize, Chairman. I have something to—cough!”

In that instant, a golden ashtray flew straight at Ran’s face.
Thwack! Unable to dodge, Ran staggered backward from the impact.
In her eyes, she could see Maezato Rinzo trembling with rage.

“Incompetent fool! What became of the assassins who went with you!”
“The survivors were recovered and brought back. None were captured by the Korean side. The bodies burned at the scene, so the Korean Alliance won’t find any substantial evidence.”
“Pathetic! I sent you elite operatives, and you return in failure! They were all Gold-rank masters! How could you fail with them!”
“…I apologize, Chairman.”

Ran bowed her head deeply.
Her mind churned with countless thoughts.
If she hadn’t colluded with Han Yu-sung, it would have been revealed that Maezato Rinzo sent the assassins to Korea.
Had that happened, what would Maezato Rinzo have done to her?
That future played out vividly before her eyes.

“The Koreans don’t suspect anything, correct?”
“Yes. Han Yu-sung himself won’t know who attacked him.”
“Useless wretch! Prepare the next assassination! Make certain that Han Yu-sung—that Korean dog—can be killed!”
“I will do my utmost.”

The assassins sent this time were those who handled Zangetsu’s dirty work.
To think so many of them had been slaughtered.
Though their identities remained hidden, the fact that Han Yu-sung possessed enough power to eliminate the assassins alone was troubling.

“Failure is not an option. I cannot afford to fail again…”

Maezato Rinzo bit his lip anxiously.
The position of Apostle, once within reach, now felt distant.
Yet it was too early to surrender. His rival Lee Su-ho had also fallen behind significantly after failing to conquer the Reward Dungeon.

“…I need a reversal. Something to turn this situation around.”

Ran watched Maezato Rinzo murmur to himself in silence.
Just as Han Yu-sung had said, Maezato Rinzo had lost his composure ever since losing Maezato Oju as his blade.
So then, was it wise to remain on this ship?

‘There’s no need to go down with a sinking ship.’

Ran’s eyes gleamed with cold calculation.
Han Yu-sung was right. Maezato Rinzo would spiral into madness, and standing beside him offered no guarantee of survival.
It was wisest to seek an escape before that moment came.

‘Betraying Maezato Rinzo.’

Having watched Maezato Rinzo for so long, Ran was certain of one thing.
He would throw a desperate gamble to break free from his predicament.
And that gamble would lead directly to his death.
She waited with her head bowed, anticipating the moment when it would come.

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

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