The Regressed Magic Swordsman Devours the North - Chapter 48

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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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Episode 48. Great Transformation (2)
Rulian, who was called “Millis,” sat quietly in a room with Tiern, reading the Command Document.
With “Snow Leopard Rulian,” captain of the Snow Leopard Squad, and “Black Leopard Tiern,” his second-in-command, gathered in one place.
It was like the emblem of the Yin-Yang Masters said to dwell at the eastern edge of the continent.
Several subordinate officers stood among them—all warriors who had seen battle against the Beasts, and all fighters who despised thinking with extreme passion.
Men who yearned for blood and the battlefield,
Yet could not abandon the thought of doing what was right—cursed souls, every one.
“Captain. So what you’re saying is… we just kill all the bad guys, right?”
“I’d like to do that too, but for now we follow what Sion says. The young master is the operation commander.”
“……Surely we’re not going to spare these nobles?”
Rulian held his tongue. Honestly, he had no idea what Sion would decide either.
‘Kill all the nobles?’
And then what? What would become of Travis after that?
Right now, the Self-Defense Force and the local landholders stood united against the nobles and criminal organizations, yes, but……
They were people with desires nonetheless. Once the enemy vanished, it was only a matter of time before the armed Self-Defense Force became a band of brigands.
Some of those who had tasted blood were already strutting about, lusting after women.
There were even those who carried themselves as though the entire world belonged to them.
For now, the Snow Leopard knights, armed with iron discipline, stepped forward to punish and manage such men, but…… how long could this last?
Already, incidents and accidents were beginning to break out in Nistingear, their original posting, and it would not be long before they had to depart.
“If we apprehend all the nobles, sweep up all the criminal organizations, and arrest anyone in the Self-Defense Force having unnecessary thoughts, won’t that do it?”
One of the officers asked.
“Even if we purge all the criminal organizations, another will move in to fill the void. How would the landholders here respond then? We can’t stay here forever anyway.”
Tiern answered.
It was a realistic objection.
“Aren’t there wandering knights in this region? Couldn’t we just hand command of the Self-Defense Force to them?”
“Wandering knights don’t serve anyone who isn’t a noble.”
“They’ll serve if they don’t want to die.”
“No…… they’re not that kind of men.”
In fact, wandering knights did not serve anyone who wasn’t a noble.
Even if they were newly ennobled, counterfeit aristocrats—they were that sort.
Men who clung to strange notions of honor, even unto death.
“So what, then? Do we pardon the nobles and say, ‘Don’t do it again next time’?
Then the united Self-Defense Force will rise up and cut off their heads and hang them from pikes.”
He was right. And if that happened, Rulian had no confidence he could control the Self-Defense Force.
The back-and-forth continued, and Rulian observed his subordinates’ debate.
When you were going to raise a disturbance, you needed a plan. But in the current situation, finding one was proving difficult.
But then.
Tap-tap.
The sound of a notebook being tapped came at the door.
“Come in.”
One of the officers entered and handed Rulian a letter.
“A letter from Young Master Sion.”
Rulian unfolded the letter before his men’s eyes. He read it slowly.
A brief silence followed.
Rulian’s mouth opened.
“……Tell everyone to assemble. Have the Self-Defense Force leadership gather too. We move together on this.”
“””Yes, Captain!”””
His men rushed out. A smile played at Rulian’s lips. Tiern grinned along with him.
“Well now. This is something.”
Hearty laughter mixed with a low hum.
“He’s really gone and done it.”
***
Golti, the head researcher at Post 24, had finally been granted a vacation after a long time.
“Mmm-hmm, mmm-hmm.”
He hummed to himself without thinking.
And well he should—a Post 24 researcher’s vacation came once a year, and that single time lasted only three days.
For Golti, this time was more precious than gold, so he had to enjoy it. Yes, he had to enjoy it.
The first place he would visit was the North Wing Travis Branch.
The reason was to give money and gifts to his family living in the Central Empire.
“Off I go, then. Father’s heading out.”
In that instant, something flashed before his eyes, and his consciousness snapped off like a switch.
The darkness descended the moment his leave began. And from within that darkness, he heard voices.
“Could you reconstruct this face exactly as it is?”
“It’s possible.”
“Then do it. I’ll analyze this person’s background and fabricate false credentials.”
“…Yes. But… is this really all right?”
“It’s not a matter of being all right. This must be done.”
What on earth are they talking about? Reconstruct a face? What does that even— Who are these people? Have I been captured?
Golti was bewildered. Not that it mattered—the two voices continued regardless.
“What will happen to this person now?”
“We’ll kill him.”
“Pardon?”
“Yes.”
“Still… it seems he was trying to send a package to his children…”
Wait? Kill me? Hold on just a moment.
Sweat began to bead on Golti’s palms.
“He must be killed. Looking at what he’s done—you wouldn’t believe he’s a father to anyone. Absolutely. He must die. These are the kind of men who must die.”
Golti was bewildered. Why? What did I do wrong? I only did what I was told from above—ran the experiments, did the work.
No, wait. Weren’t they experimental subjects who came voluntarily for the advancement of humanity?
They seemed to suffer, yes, but what of it?
Yet.
The voice that reached him was resolute.
“Intentional or not, it cannot be undone now. However, if this man cooperates, that’s another matter.”
Golti cried out silently. Please! Please let him cooperate!
***
“Golti?”
In the basement research wing of Post 24, someone called out my assumed name.
Still can’t get used to it, honestly. Who names someone Golti?
I turned to face the researcher who’d called me. It was a man called Slur. Odd name choice here too.
“Yes, Slur.”
“You’re back from leave already? You look a bit brighter.”
“Three days off is precious time.”
I’d secured Golti’s cooperation, gleaned various information—his speech patterns, his colleagues’ quirks, the layout of the research wing—and.
Now I’d successfully infiltrated.
“Now that you’re rested, shall we get to work?”
I followed him deeper into the research wing. Through the hallway, past floor-to-ceiling windows, bizarre scenes flickered past.
A gorilla with patchy fur loss, convulsing.
A dolphin in a tank with exposed brain matter, performing arithmetic exercises.
Different species copulating. The process of infusing Mana into the gestating offspring.
Yet Slur and the other researchers moved about checking vitals as if it were all routine, utterly unmoved.
Slur stopped at a place marked Research Room W.
Whiiiiish———
The gate slid open.
A pristine, sterile white space emerged.
Slur glanced at me and spoke.
“I’ll be analyzing Mana Wavelengths, so would you handle the log entries for me?”
“Understood.”
“You didn’t forget everything during your time off, I hope?”
“Of course not.”
He walked toward a booth sealed with special Mana Crystal Glass. Inside lay a fist-sized crimson crystal.
Achingly familiar.
The Mana Engine from Jepren’s body. And the Mana Engine I’d destroyed days ago in Duke Caster’s office.
It was identical to the Mana Crystal inside that engine.
I scanned the entire scene with Mana Detection, then pressed a Copy Stone to the research log.
Mana Engine. Mana Wavelength. The facility’s internal structure. I documented it all carefully.
“Slur, I’m going to step out to the restroom for a moment.”
“Of course, go ahead.”
Slur and Golti alike—they worked with no emotion. Doing as told. Men who’d never truly considered what they were doing.
Were they stupid? No. They were sharper and more accomplished than most. But something was missing.
The capacity to empathize with another’s suffering. The impulse to care for their own kind. If that’s what they lack, then I owe them no empathy for the pain they’ll feel going forward.
I stepped out of Research Room W and walked through the corridors. Methodically, I surveyed the other laboratories.
Experimental Subjects. In other words, I calculated where the hostages were held and mapped the escape routes.
And I recorded everything in a hastily assembled Mirror Notebook.
So my teammates could extract the hostages. After that, I continued my careful circuit through the facility.
Not a single person missed. Meticulous, down to the last detail.
And that was only the beginning.
I examined the research data as well.
The dull, glittering Particle Afterimages radiating from the crimson Mana Crystals and crystal formations. I scanned them with Mana Detection.
Thump—thump—
Lumen’s Divinity captured them like photographs. I cannot interpret these myself, but Doctor Crombell will be different.
And these materials, in time, will become the technology that saves humanity from extinction.
In some areas, there were beings like Jepren who survived implantation of a Mana Engine and continued moving of their own accord.
—Grrrrrrgh.
Around them, engine sounds howled like wild beasts. Large frames. Creatures that appeared considerably formidable.
Then our eyes met with one of them. It was clear this one wanted to charge out and rampage immediately.
The creature studied me intently. I studied it in return. Then I took out my notebook and pretended to write something.
At that, the creature turned its head away.
I, too, returned to Research Room W as though nothing had happened.
“Slur. What do you think of Jepren?”
I asked Slur this question.
“Oh. Golti. I thought you had no interest in Experimental Subjects already removed. But it seems I was mistaken.”
“Well, he was valuable research material.”
“Ha. Management laments it greatly too. As for me, well. There are more Compatible Subjects like that. We can just make more, can’t we? That’s what I think.”
I exchanged various comments with Slur. He really does look like an ordinary researcher.
Establishing logic.
Running experiments.
Compiling data.
Stripping people naked.
Driving electrical cords through their entire bodies.
Inflicting pain to observe emotional responses.
Just following orders, whatever comes.
“Hah…”
A sigh escaped me. But what could I do? I simply crumpled the paper I’d tucked in my pocket.
Crunch.
That was the signal.
————Boom.
As if an earthquake had struck.
A violent tremor shook the ground.
The Genesis had begun.
***
Whoooooosh—
It was a rainy night.
The Iron Teeth, Red Triple Eyes, and Green Snake—three criminal organizations had barely managed to raid two villages while evading the Travis Self-Defense Force’s watchful eyes.
About a hundred people had been abducted. Men, women, elderly, children.
“The E5 Frensis Building is just ahead.”
“Be careful not to lose anyone.”
“We’ll cooperate fully.”
Under normal circumstances, they would snarl and fight among themselves, but for now, all three remained calm.
They had all seen it—the impossibly powerful beings mixed in with the Self-Defense Force ranks.
“What happens if the E5 Experimental Subjects fight those beings?”
“Unknown. Both are stronger than us.”
“Damn it. We die if they don’t listen. We die if they do.”
Faced with such overwhelming fear,
they found common cause.
The three criminal syndicates had clashed with the Self-Defense Force multiple times trying to kidnap the residents. And each time, they lost.
“We have to say it now. We’ve lost over fifty of our people. We can’t take any more.”
“We’re the same.”
And so, when they arrived at the E5 Frensis Building with all the residents in tow,
“Welcome.”
Beneath the gray sky, a man stood in the rain.
The man in the white uniform wore a face that radiated genuine delight at the reunion.
The moment the gang bosses saw that expression, chills crawled down their spines.
“Damn it. For real.”
“Those bastards sold us out.”
“I knew they were rotten.”
Their assumptions were wildly off the mark, but it hardly mattered.
The smiling man—Rulian, that is—simply chuckled to himself and snapped his fingers with a crisp flick.
“Time to dispense some justice.”
Whoosh.
From nowhere appeared twenty-seven Snow Leopard Squad knights in white uniforms, materializing before the three gangs.
Though outnumbered five to one, the rival bosses looked like mice facing tigers—every last one of them was gripped by fear.
“Sweep them up quickly. We’ve got to deal with the E5 Frensis Building next, after all.”
The Returned Demon Swordsman Devours the North
Author
: Bangsim
Production Date
: June 16, 2026
Publisher
: ACES Media Inc.
Editor-in-Chief
: ACES Media Editorial Team
Address
: 10F, Urban Bench Building, 325 Teheran-ro, Gangnam-gu, Seoul
Email
: [email protected]
※ This work is published by ACES Media Inc. in accordance with the copyright holder’s contract.
The content cannot be used in any form or by any means without permission from the company and author.
This ebook is protected by copyright law, and unauthorized reprinting or reproduction may result in legal liability.
UCI
: G720:N+A129-20260615032

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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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