The God-Possessed Swordsmanship Genius - Chapter 34

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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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Sword Genius Blessed by a Spirit, Chapter 34

“It’s been a while, Castellan. I hope you’ve been well?”

Allen greeted him with a bright smile.
Anyone watching would have taken them for old friends who were genuinely glad to see each other.
Though he had every reason to be taken aback, the Gangcheol Castellan received the greeting with a face as calm as still water.

“I’ve been well enough. It’s been three months, hasn’t it? I was astonished to hear you’d been made squad leader of the Flying Sword Corps.”
“I feel the weight of such an undeserved position on my shoulders.”
“If it’s the Second Young Master, I’m sure you’ll do splendidly. Ah, should I be calling you Second Squad Leader now?”
“Any title will do. Please just call me whatever is most comfortable for you.”

Having finished the brief exchange, Allen turned his head.
Near by, someone was watching him with a murderous look in their eyes.
It was Isolde, the man whose arm Allen had twisted.

“Oh, you’re here too? I owe you an apology for that time.”

At Allen’s words, Isolde’s face twisted sharply.
But he was too ashamed of having his arm wrenched by Allen to press the matter here and now.

“No need. It was nothing worth mentioning.”

Of course, his true feelings lay elsewhere.

‘If I hadn’t let my guard down, the outcome would have been different.’

At Isolde’s silent transmission, Allen laughed out loud.
But he had no intention of arguing with him here.
After all, this was the Gangcheol Castellan’s main stronghold. As long as he stood within these walls, Allen intended to show him respect.

“I appreciate you thinking so. Let’s have a cup of tea together another time.”
“Anytime.”

While they exchanged such simple greetings, the other swordsmen of the Flying Sword Corps passed through the transfer gate and came over.
It was just as the Castellan was welcoming Lukas, the last one to step through the transfer gate.
Allen sent a silent transmission to the Castellan.

‘Would you mind seeing me privately later?’

For just a moment, the Castellan’s gaze drifted in his direction.
But being the seasoned man he was, he didn’t show much of anything and shook hands with Lukas.
His expression was all bright smiles, yet his eyes betrayed that his mind was working hard behind them.

* * *

“…What is this?”

The Castellan asked with a look of bewilderment.
Inside the reception room of Gangcheol Castle.
Allen, Lukas, and the Castellan were seated together there.

“Weren’t we supposed to meet just the two of us?”
“Did I say that?”
“Well, I didn’t exactly…”
“The reason I asked to see you was not as the Second Young Master, but as the Second Squad Leader of the Flying Sword Corps. The Corps Commander is here as well.”

Lukas took his seat and, looking at the Castellan across from him, asked his question.

“Am I making you uncomfortable?”
“Uncomfortable? Hardly.”

Lukas narrowed his eyes at the Gangcheol Castellan, who clicked his tongue as if disappointed.
What is this old man scheming now? That was the suspicion in his gaze.
Knowing full well he was being watched, the Gangcheol Castellan said nothing more and simply lifted his teacup.

“So why did you call us here? Squad Leader Two.”
“I have a request for you both.”
“A request?”
“For this mission, please allow Squad Two to move independently.”

Lukas’s eyes went wide at Allen’s request.
The Gangcheol Castellan, on the other hand, brightened and smiled as though intrigued.
Lukas, still flustered, asked.

“What’s gotten into you all of a sudden?”
“Exactly what it sounds like. On this mission, I want Squad Two to carry out separate assignments.”
“And why is that?”
“You said the success rate for this mission was forty percent, right? Three months ago, it was ten.”

Lukas nodded.
This was information that had been shared not only with Allen, but with the other squad leaders as well.

“The odds rose too fast.”
“Is that what you find strange?”
“Stonevill sits across from the Sword Graveyard, and the empire is standing off against us there, isn’t it?”
“And?”
“What if someone provoked this fight between the empire and Bishuken?”

Lukas and the Gangcheol Castellan exchanged glances at the unexpected remark.
Neither of them could immediately say that it wasn’t so.

“It’s also strange that information about the Demon Sword has been spread evenly to both powers. And the sudden jump in our chances of finding it is no different.”
“What exactly are you trying to say?”
“If someone engineered this situation, and the real Demon Sword is hidden somewhere else…”

The rivalry between Bishuken and the empire over the Demon Sword had now reached its peak.

“That might mean they’ve practically already found it by now.”
“…”

At Allen’s words, the expressions of Lukas and the Gangcheol Castellan grew grave.
If that were true, then what?
They would be like a dog chasing a rabbit that had already vanished. Not only would they lose the Demon Sword, but Bishuken’s pride would be bruised as well.
After a moment’s thought, the Gangcheol Castellan and Lukas spoke up.

“It’s not entirely impossible. But the chances are slim.”
“Exactly. We, too, have found the recent changes strange.”
“Right. If there’s even a sliver of possibility, it’s hardly worth much, but there’s no harm in taking it into account.”

With that, the Gangcheol Castellan fell silent.
Even though this was Gangcheol Castle, Allen’s direct superior was Lukas, the Flying Sword Corps captain. In the end, the permission was his to give.
After weighing it for a moment, Lukas asked.

“Are you sure about this? If your reasoning is wrong, Squad Two won’t earn a single merit on this mission.”
“And if I’m right, we might win everything.”
“Fair enough.”

At Allen’s answer, Lukas nodded.

“Fine. For this mission, you can lead Squad Two however you see fit.”

The moment the permission left his lips—

*Ding!*

[A mission has been registered.]
[Category: Mission]
[Secure the Demon Sword, Kagros.]
[Deadline: ∞]
[Reward: All stats +3]

Allen’s eyes snapped open.
At the same time, his fingers tightened into a fist.
The first problem he’d considered the hardest had been solved. He’d even managed to secure a new mission on top of it.
The Demon Sword’s acquisition, and on top of that, stats through a mission.
Counting the wager with the First Squad Leader, a great deal was riding on this, and none of it was small.

‘I’d love to redirect the entire Flying Sword Corps elsewhere, but…’

No matter how he turned it over, that was impossible.
Bishuken had been tracking the Demon Sword for a long time, and the result of that pursuit was the Sword Graveyard in Stonevill.
For now, no matter what arguments Allen put forward, they couldn’t carry more weight than the family’s intelligence.

‘I’ll have to be satisfied with this much for now.’

In any case, he had achieved his intended goal.
The real work started from here.

“Thanks. For trusting me.”
“Don’t flatter yourself. I just left the door open a crack. Anything else to say?”
“No.”
“Then get going. The mission starts tomorrow, so turn in early.”

Allen nodded and rose from his seat. At the same time, he bowed toward the Gangcheol Castellan and left the reception room.
That was when it happened.

“Squad Leader Two.”

Once again, Lukas called out to Allen.

“Don’t push yourself too hard.”

At those words, Allen let out a faint smile.
Was he worried about Allen himself, or about Squad Two, now cut loose from the rest of the mission?

Allen thought he understood why Lukas had addressed him as “Squad Leader Two” instead of by name, so he answered plainly.
I suspected she’d called him “Squad Leader” instead of his name on purpose, so Allen answered calmly.

“Don’t worry, Commander.”

Patting his chest twice, Allen walked straight out of the reception room.
Watching his retreating back, Lukas let out a small sigh.

“There’s no sincerity in that answer.”

* * *

The next day.
Allen led Squad Two out of Gangcheol Castle and set off toward Stonevill.
Stonevill, a trading city built on a landscape of rock.
As the enormous city came into view, Mary spoke up.

“Are we really the only ones acting separately on this mission?”
“Yes. On this mission, we’re going our own way.”

With that, Allen laid out the objective of the mission.

“We’re searching for clues to yet another Demon Sword.”
“There’s another Demon Sword?”
“Nothing’s certain. There’s only a possibility.”

Mary’s expression darkened at Allen’s answer.
Uncertain. Only a possibility.
A mission hedged with words like those was almost always of extremely low priority.
The other squad members looked just as unimpressed.
Bigra, his face twisted with irritation, asked.

“Isn’t this just a way of cutting our squad out?”

It was a situation that made such a suspicion perfectly reasonable.
Allen shook his head firmly.

“It’s nothing of the kind, so stop wasting your thoughts on that. Either way, on this mission we’re going to find one person.”
“Who is it?”
“Here.”

Allen showed everyone a portrait he had prepared in advance.
After a short while, once he judged that everyone had memorized it, Allen burned the paper and let the ashes scatter.

“Never forget that face you just saw. Today we’re going to find this man in Stonevill. Understood?”
“Yes, sir!”
“We don’t let on that we’re Flying Sword Corps. We act naturally. And the details of this mission are top secret. Leaking any information is strictly forbidden, not only during the mission but even after it’s over.”
“Yes, sir!”
“We move in groups of three. When the sun sets, everyone returns to this spot.”

At the word “groups of three,” Mary glanced over her fellow members and asked.

“Won’t that leave one person behind?”

Including Allen, Second Squad had sixteen members.
Divided into groups of three, one person would inevitably be left over.
And Mary immediately figured out who that one person would be.

“You’re planning to work alone, aren’t you?”
“That’s right.”

Before the conversation could drag on needlessly, Allen hurried to scatter his squad members.

“There’s no going back on this decision. It’s the middle of the city, so there’s no danger. Just focus on your assignments. Dismissed!”

At the order, Second Squad moved quickly.
They changed into the clothes they had brought along and played the parts of ordinary travelers and merchants.
Allen disguised himself as a wandering free swordsman. For someone traveling alone, no identity could look more natural than a free swordsman.

The streets of Stonevill were bustling with trade.
Goods of every kind lay on rock-hewn stalls, and merchants and buyers were haggling loudly over prices.

“Fresh fish from the eastern continent’s coast, just arrived today! Grill it and you’re done!”
“Buy two loaves of bread and get one more free! Now’s your chance!”
“Good Slavic leather in stock! Get ready for winter early!”

Weaving through the bustling street, Allen made his way toward a quieter corner where few people passed.
A relatively deserted stretch of road.
Allen had sought out this place from the very start.

Medicine shops, herbalists, taverns that brewed their own liquor, pawnshops, and the like.
This was a district where shops dealt mainly in goods that were expensive and hard to come by.
Among them, the place Allen entered was a forge tucked away in a corner.

Swish.

He pushed aside the thick cloth that covered the entrance, and a wave of heat rolled over him from within.
Allen called out toward the back.

“Is anyone here?”

No answer came.
Allen didn’t wait. He stepped further into the forge.
Once he had gone a little deeper, he saw an array of equipment hanging along the walls.
Swords and spears, armor, shields. The basic gear of the trade.
Every piece was of superb quality, outstanding work.

‘The skill hasn’t faded at all.’

Compared even with the equipment used at Bishuken, these held their own. No, some of them were even better.
To think such pieces were simply hung carelessly on the wall like this.
Admiring the gear, Allen kept walking inward.

Clang, clang, clang.

As he went a little farther in, the sound of hammer striking metal reached his ears.
Someone was inside.

“Is anyone here!”

Allen called out again.
Only now seeming to hear him, the hammering stopped.
Inside the forge, where the fire had gone dark.
Someone emerged from the dim workshop.
Judging by the atmosphere, I had expected a burly, muscular blacksmith of advanced years to appear.

“…Who are you?”

The one who stepped out, a hammer in one hand, was a small boy with reddish hair.
A young blacksmith with a long scar running across his cheek.
Convinced he had come to the right place, Allen smiled brightly and spoke.

“I’ve come to pick up a sword.”

Most likely, the boy wouldn’t know.
Which sword Allen meant.

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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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