The Regressed Sword Demon Is a Catastrophe-Class Inquisitor - Chapter 3

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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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Chapter 3. I’m Pleased As Well.

“…Will you spare me if I answer?”

In my past life, I killed everyone who stood in my way.
By my standards then, they deserved to die, but now I’m uncertain whether that was truly the case.
So before I cut off this wretch’s breath with my blade, I’m gathering information and organizing my thoughts.

“I’ll decide that now. Who ordered you to kidnap me?”

I already knew the answer, but confirmation was necessary.
Gojang hesitated briefly before responding.

“…Baron Scalen. He’s not far from your Luminara Family’s territory, so you’d know of him.”
“I see.”

So nothing has changed from my past life.

“You don’t seem surprised. Baron Scalen has a good reputation on the surface—it’s surprising you’re not shocked. Or did you already suspect something?”

As he said, Baron Scalen enjoyed a favorable reputation among the people. He made regular donations to the Temple and took good care of his subjects.

“Silence. I ask the questions.”
“….”
“Answer.”
“Understood.”

I nodded with satisfaction and posed my next question.

“Does Baron Scalen plan to strike our Family within a month?”
“Probably. Originally, he intended to kidnap you to draw attention away from the Family, then exploit the opportunity.”
“I see.”
“But if he learns you’ve escaped, he might move faster, fearing the plan could be exposed.”

That was certainly possible. Baron Scalen was cautious, but bolder than one might expect.

“Why is Baron Scalen targeting our Family Estate?”
“That much, even I don’t know. I merely accepted the commission.”

The man hesitated before continuing, gauging my reaction.

“But I suspect he’s after your Territory.”
“Our Territory?”
“He moves in secret to destroy the Luminara Territory, then uses his reputation as a pretext for ‘salvation’ to formally claim your lands. There’s no other reason he’d target your Family Estate.”

At this point, I wondered if this man knew everything already.
But with enough information, one could deduce most things, so I didn’t dwell on it.

“Clever.”
“Th-thank you.”

When I fell silent, he spoke first.

“At this rate, it’ll be difficult to stop Baron Scalen. He won’t act directly, and we lack concrete evidence. So use me as your witness.”
“You?”
“Yes. That gives us grounds to involve the Theocracy’s Heresy Inquisitor. Even if we can’t find evidence, we can at least delay his plans.”
“That could work.”

A strange gleam flickered across his eyes.

‘Ah, that’s right.’

Then I remembered something I’d forgotten and searched my belongings. But there was only a wine bottle—nothing else.

“What happened to my letter?”

The reason I suddenly returned to the Family Estate after wandering the Theocracy was because of a letter my Sibling had written.
He looked flustered and glanced silently toward the collapsed campfire.

“…I see.”

I rose from my chair.

“What’s your specialty?”
“Specialty?”
“Yes.”
“As you saw earlier, I know how to wield a sword. And….”
“And?”
“I’m quite skilled at roasting sweet potatoes.”
“That much is true.”

I nodded and looked down at him.

“I see. So your plan is to force-feed me sweet potatoes until I choke to death.”
“What?”
“And when I ask for water, you’ll draw your blade and slit my throat. Repaying sweet potatoes with sweet potatoes, is that it?”
“….”
“Am I wrong? Answer me.”

The faint brightness that had crossed his face drained away in an instant.
Having his innermost thoughts laid bare, he shook his head in resignation.

“…Kill me.”
“Of course I will.”

I pulled the longsword embedded in the ground and drew a horizontal line.
His neck flew upward in a spray of blood. Thus, one Sweet Potato Master vanished from the world.

“Now who will roast my sweet potatoes?”

I wiped the fresh blood from my blade with a sense of loss.

‘That’s why you don’t burn someone else’s letters. You just don’t.’

I hadn’t killed him solely for burning the letter. A man who revealed his employer’s secrets so easily would betray just as readily.
Moreover, with his tendons severed, he could have sought out Baron Scalen immediately out of spite.

“The letter… is it still alive?”

I scanned the campfire back and forth, but all I found were flames and ash.
I smacked my lips and stirred the fire. Sparks scattered upward like fireflies dancing into the sky.
Chasing after them, I unconsciously gazed upward.
Countless stars embroidered across the darkness. A moon hanging its round face in the heavens.

“Ah….”

It was a strangely beautiful sight.
I hadn’t looked up at the sky often since becoming the Sword Demon.
It had been stained red with blood, and I always felt as though those I’d killed were watching over me.

“Hmm….”

After a moment of silent communion with the moon, I suddenly felt the desire to protect this night sky.
In my past life, I had no particular goal. I simply wandered, unable to die, until I clashed with the Demon God who stood in my path.
But now, for reasons I couldn’t quite explain, I didn’t want to let others taint this night sky.

– Sword Demon, can you win?

The question Ludian had posed to me at death’s threshold.
The Demon God was formidable. Not only did it possess boundless demonic energy, but even wounds I inflicted with my blade regenerated instantly.
Now I had a new tool—holy power—but even with it, my previous life’s cultivation alone wouldn’t suffice.
To defeat the Demon God, I had to become stronger than I was before.

‘Well then. I’ll give it my all.’

After gazing at the night sky for a while longer, I drained the last of the liquor from the bottle into my mouth.
It was time to return to the Family Estate.

* * *

Luminara Barony Office.
Benedict Luminara, the family head and lord of the barony, pressed his throbbing temples.

“Ugh… troubles never come alone.”

The territory’s condition had been far from favorable lately.
The Luminara Territory was exceptionally vast for a barony, allowing for the cultivation of abundant crops.
So even Benedict, whose administrative skills were mediocre, had been able to keep the people well-fed.

‘But for the past six months, plague has ravaged the land, and crop yields have plummeted.’

And that was merely the beginning.
Rumors spoke of establishments catering to greed and lust sprouting throughout the Luminara Territory, a land devoted to the Ella Faith, like weeds in an untended garden.
With territory so vast relative to our population, governance had become increasingly burdensome.

‘And then there’s the eldest son, wandering about outside the Family Estate….’

It had been roughly six months since Kael departed on his pilgrimage.
I would have been delighted if he’d truly gone to cultivate his faith, but by now I understood well enough that he’d simply used the pilgrimage as a pretext for running away.

‘Kael has always despised being confined by any framework.’

That such a boy had been born into a devout Ella Faith family—I could understand his frustration.
Still, I wished he would return soon….

‘Goddess Ella, I beseech you. Please grant that my son Kael returns safely to the Family Estate.’

Benedict clasped his hands together in prayer.
Should he return, I would no longer impose faith upon him. I merely hoped he would not stray too far from the path.

Knock, knock—

– My lord, it is Cedric.
“Enter.”

As the butler opened the door and stepped inside, Benedict inquired.

“What brings you here?”
“Young Master Kael, who departed on his pilgrimage, has returned to the Family Estate.”

Benedict’s eyes widened as he rose abruptly from his seat.

“Is this truly so?”
“Yes, my lord.”
“Where is he now?”
“That is….”
“That is?”

The butler hesitated for a moment before answering.

“He’s at the Chapel.”
“The Chapel?”
“Yes….”

The Chapel?
So he hadn’t run away—he’d actually gone on a pilgrimage?

“I-I can’t believe it. I need to see it with my own eyes.”
“Of course. I’ll guide you.”

Following the butler, I arrived at a small Chapel within the Village.
Standing before the Chapel, Benedick swallowed hard and stepped inside. There, many people were gazing toward a statue of the Goddess.
The moment Benedick pushed through the crowd….

“Ah….”

He simply collapsed to the ground, overwhelmed by the shocking sight.
Sunlight pouring through the window frame. Beneath it stood a young man, hands clasped together in quiet prayer.
That troublemaker who had always given Benedick headaches….
That free-spirited bird who had abandoned the Family Estate, suffocated by doctrine….
Was now praying before the statue of the Goddess Ella.

*Gulp*

Benedick swallowed hard, as if caught in a dream.

“A g-ghost?”

* * *

There are several ways for Holy Knights to increase their sacred power.
One can pray to the Goddess Ella, capture demons and offer them to the Goddess, receive worship from others, and so forth….
Sacred power also accumulates during periods of silence and fasting, but such methods are hardly efficient.
Besides, it’s impossible given my nature.

‘So the most fundamental method is prayer.’

While this method only yielded a modest amount of divine power, it was worthwhile to practice whenever I had the opportunity.
That was precisely why I was praying to the Goddess now.

‘Goddess Ella, don’t hold back—come down for a moment. We need to talk. Surely you owe me an explanation of what’s happening here?’

Had any follower of the Ella Faith witnessed this, they would have collapsed in shock, but since it was a meditative prayer, only the Goddess could hear my words.

A soft shimmer—

Yet remarkably, divine power was accumulating within me, bit by bit.
Prayer itself was fundamentally a form of ‘dialogue’ with the Goddess, after all.
It meant that regardless of what I said, as long as I prayed, it would work.

‘Surprisingly, more divine power is flowing in than I expected.’

Perhaps it was because this was the first time I had prayed of my own volition.
The Goddess must have been moved by my transformation.

‘Now that I think about it, I’m the only one talking. Is this really a conversation? Listen here, Goddess Ella. Say something back.’

No response came. Was she too embarrassed, or was she unable to speak in this situation?
In any case, the accumulating divine power was beginning to diminish, so I ceased my prayer. The longer a prayer continued, the less efficient it became.

‘This method should work well for increasing my divine power. I won’t need to worry about growth.’

The reason I, the Sword Demon, knew of these methods was simple.
Having the Holy Knights chase me around naturally led to learning all sorts of things.

‘As a child, I was hunted by women. As I grew older, I was hunted by Holy Knights….’

If there was one thing they all had in common, it was that I was always fleeing from them.
My entire life had been one long chase.

“M-master, are you alright?”
“Y-yes, I’m fine….”

As I opened my eyes, commotion erupted from behind me.

“Is the eldest young master praying to the Goddess right now?”
“Or is he planning to headbutt her statue? Why does he always wonder if he can beat someone….”
“Shh! She’ll hear you!”

I turned and raised my hand to the villagers with a smile.

“That’s right. Indeed. The reckless eldest young master has returned as a devout follower of the Ella Faith. Let’s welcome him with applause.”
“….”

Not a single person clapped. The villagers’ bewilderment was unmistakable.
Only one little girl, who had been staring blankly, began clapping before her mother stopped her.

“Kael?”

Someone called my name. It was a voice I’d somehow forgotten.

“Are you really Kael?”

A middle-aged man with streaks of white in his hair.
Though lean, his frame was corded with muscle, standing with an air of dignity and nobility.
Yet his eyes betrayed emotions he could not conceal.

“It has been a long time.”

I smiled faintly at him.

“Father.”

Benedict Luminara. A face I had somehow forgotten stood before me.
Father smiled and approached me.

“Are you hurt anywhere?”
“No, Father. And you are well, I trust?”

As I genuinely examined his condition, Father’s eyes grew moist before he answered.

“Of course.”

Apart from looking weary, Father seemed unharmed. Not a single wound marked his body.

“Where are Mother and Aren?”
“They went out for a bit. If you return to the mansion and wait, you’ll see them.”
“I see.”

Father alternated his gaze between me and the Goddess’s statue before asking.

“By the way… did you just offer a prayer to the Goddess?”
“Yes.”
“Of your own accord?”
“Of course.”
“Heh heh….”

Father laughed with evident delight.

“The Goddess must surely be pleased with your prayer. This is the first time you’ve worshipped her of your own volition.”
“I believe so as well.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes.”
“Ha ha ha.”
“Ha ha ha ha ha.”

Father’s laughter subsided as he composed himself and asked.

“Then will you now attend the ceremonies faithfully?”
“That’s somewhat….”
“Mm.”

Father nodded as if he understood.

“I see. I won’t press you further on this matter. Proceed at your own pace.”

I was somewhat taken aback by Father’s changed demeanor.

“Oh. Your kindness has grown as much as the white hair on your head, Father.”
“…?”
“I shall assist you until your black hair turns to roots.”
“…Kael.”
“Yes, Father.”
“Today is a joyous day.”
“I am joyful as well, Father.”

Father gazed at me, then exhaled a deep sigh.

“But tell me—why did you suddenly have a change of heart? Did something happen during your pilgrimage?”
“Hmm….”

I folded my arms and contemplated his question carefully.
My previous life—where the Family Estate fell to ruin, the Theocracy crumbled, and humanity was annihilated by the Demon God.
I could not reveal all of that, so I simply nodded vaguely.

“There was much that transpired.”
“…I see.”

Father chuckled softly and turned away.

“In any case, let us return to the Mansion. We have ample time to share what we’ve missed.”
“Yes. I agree entirely.”

Thus, I returned to the Mansion alongside Father after so long.
It was time to proceed with the next plan.

(To be continued in the next chapter)

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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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