The Reincarnated Assassin is a Genius Swordsman - Chapter 1209

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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 1209

“What…?”

Charlie’s eyes widened in disbelief.

“T-Taking the Tower! What are you saying! No one has ever done such a thing!”

He let out a loud cry, as if I were spouting nonsense.

“Never done it?”

I tilted my head, regarding Charlie with curiosity.

“Why not? Isn’t fighting over the Tower the natural order of things?”

In this land filled with nothing but vile desires, the notion that no one would covet another’s Tower seemed far more bewildering to me.

“W-Well…”

Charlie swallowed hard as he prepared to answer.

“The reason is simple.”

Strude Priest stepped forward and raised his index finger. Even that gesture looked identical to Derus Robert’s.

“Because they fear losing what they already possess.”

He shrugged as if I should have known this already.

“Fear losing it?”

I let out a hollow laugh.

“So these insatiable beings who came all this way to fulfill their vile desires won’t engage in mortal combat because they fear losing what they have?”

Unable to comprehend this with my understanding, I furrowed my brow deeply as I regarded Strude Priest.

“As you said, we initially held life-and-death duels with our Towers at stake.”

Strude Priest nodded calmly, as if affirming my words.

“The Tower Masters had poured deep and intense desires into each of their Towers, so the victors gained tremendous wealth. Conversely, the defeated lost everything and fell from positions of power to the lowest ranks in an instant. After witnessing such devastating and hollow endings, life-and-death duels involving Towers gradually diminished, and now no one attempts them anymore.”

He twisted his lips into a sneer, as if mocking the abundance of cowards.

“So those with Towers don’t engage in life-and-death duels at all?”

I furrowed my brows slightly, demanding an answer.

“No, that’s not quite right.”

Charlie shook his head calmly.

“Life-and-death duels occur daily, but they simply refuse to stake their Towers—their very everything.”

He pursed his lips, explaining that they left their Towers untouched and wagered only modest amounts of desires, gradually raising their Towers bit by bit.

-Hah…

Wrath wrinkled his nose in disbelief.

-They’ve abandoned true combat and merely suck blood like mosquitoes!

He scoffed, certain that such creatures were precisely why they had been summoned here.

“I… I understand that.”

Charlie drew a short breath.

“A Tower Master who built a Tower is nobility in this Celestial Realm. Victory elevates them to higher nobility, but defeat? They become worse than commoners, worse than beggars. So naturally, they decided it’s better not to risk it!”

He pressed his lips firmly together, saying that even if he were a Tower Master, he wouldn’t stake his entire Tower in a life-and-death duel.

“Especially since those people achieved nothing outside and only became nobility here in the Celestial Realm, they desperately want to protect that hard-won status and power. It’s only natural.”
“And that’s exactly why you’re all in such a pathetic state.”

Raon clicked his tongue as he looked at Charlie.

“This place is structured so you can keep challenging yourself as long as you don’t give up, yet people abandon their efforts the moment things become painful and difficult. That’s why there’s no progress.”

Derus Robert had designed this Celestial Realm’s structure to wring out every last drop of human desire, like squeezing a dry cloth.

The prohibition on murder, the creation of desire’s life-or-death contests—all of it was meant to absorb every speck of human longing without leaving a trace.

Yet people failed to understand this structure and lived as losers here just as they did outside. Seeing them so steeped in failure was both pitiful and frustrating.

“Hmm….”

Charlie lowered his head, unable to find words, and let out a sigh directed at himself.

“Y-you’re right. I wasn’t like this when I first arrived here either….”

He clutched at his own hair, lamenting how he had abandoned challenges at some point and chosen only the easy path.

“Ahahaha!”

Strude Priest clapped his hands and burst into laughter.

“You truly are different! Extraordinary!”

He nodded, amazed that someone who had only just arrived could speak such words.

“Ah, but perhaps that’s natural for a newcomer. You haven’t been tainted by the stagnant waters yet.”

Strude Priest made no effort to hide his cheerful laughter, clearly impressed with Raon.

“Spare me the pointless flattery. It’s something you can’t do anyway.”

Raon furrowed his brow as he regarded Strude Priest.

“I have one question for you, Believer.”

Strude Priest raised his index finger again and gazed at Raon with penetrating eyes.

“Are you truly prepared to stake your Tower and face a life-or-death contest, even if it means losing everything?”

His eyes gleamed a sharp blue as he posed the question with utmost seriousness.

“Of course.”

I nodded without the slightest hesitation.

“Even if I lose and forfeit everything, I’ll rise from the ashes and start anew.”

I clenched my fists, declaring that even if all my desires were stripped away, I would immediately stand and face a new challenge.

“How truly amusing.”

Strude Priest trembled with laughter, his head bowed.

“Very well.”
“What’s so good about it?”

I straightened my posture and frowned at the laughing Strude Priest. The sight of him reminded me of Derus Robert, so I let my irritation show openly, using this moment to vent.

“Allow me to notarize this agreement.”

Strude Priest raised his hand and tapped his chest.

“From this moment forward, anyone who engages in a life-or-death duel with you over the Tower shall receive twice the desires they would normally obtain. Of course, you shall receive double as well.”

He nodded, explaining that while the risk remained unchanged, the rewards from a life-or-death duel would be doubled.

“T-twice?”

Charlie’s eyes widened as if he had never considered such a possibility.

“At that rate, they’ll bite.”

I nodded gravely at Strude Priest.

—Double, then…

Wrath murmured the word “double” and narrowed his eyes to slits.

-Are you testing me?
‘No, that’s not it.’

I shook my head firmly.

‘At first, he suspected me, but when I offered my desires, I completely deceived him. He genuinely took a liking to me.’
-Why?
‘Because I can resolve this frustrating situation in the Celestial Realm.’

I twisted my lips into a smile while gazing at the Towers.

-A frustrating situation?
‘Yes. Those who gather desires must stake everything they have and continue clashing to obtain more desires. Yet those who’ve grown stronger only concern themselves with their own safety and remain idle—surely everyone finds that frustrating.’

Derus Robert had likely constructed this game believing people would fight for greater power once they gained strength. But contrary to his expectations, the humans here were far too worn down by defeat.
Those who had finally succeeded only cared about their own security, so even if unspoken, irritation must have been simmering beneath the surface.

When I offered to resolve that problem in their stead, it was only natural they welcomed me like a benefactor and offered additional rewards.

“However, this condition will only apply when wagering Towers in a life-or-death duel, not desires. If you win, twice the Tower the opponent has built will be added atop your own Tower.”

Strude Priest chuckled, saying it would be quite entertaining.

“That’s sufficient.”

I lowered my hand, indicating I desired nothing more.

“Then when shall we begin?”

Strude Priest clasped his hands respectfully, saying he would prepare to announce the details accordingly.

“What a foolish question.”

I shot Strude Priest a look of irritation as he smiled with the same familiar warmth as Derus Robert.

“Right now. Immediately.”

* * *

After Raon departed, night descended upon the Temple.

“You’ve brought something quite entertaining.”

Strude Priest turned around, his eyes gleaming with cold intensity.

“Yes. The material was too intriguing to leave in the Land of Clouds.”

Baife bowed deeply before Strude Priest, his head lowered.

“But have you examined him?”

His eyes narrowed, betraying his greatest curiosity on the matter.

“Given what you said, I examined him thoroughly. A worm who believes he has lived a desperately harsh existence.”

Strude Priest recalled only the surface that Raon had deliberately exposed—Jilpen’s facade—and nodded slowly.

“As expected.”

Baife exhaled a short breath of relief.

“Why? Did Caripen provoke him?”

Strude Priest chuckled coldly, as if he understood the source of Baife’s concern.

“No. I merely wished to verify something.”

Baife shook his head vigorously, insisting he wanted to be cautious for the sake of this Celestial Realm.

“Jilpen is like a frog that only gazes upward. He merely leaps and leaps again.”

Strude Priest waved his hand, dismissing the need to think deeply about Raon.

“Yet thanks to that frog, it seems great change will come to this Celestial Realm.”

He smiled darkly, anticipating that the quality and quantity of desires produced in the Celestial Realm would double going forward.

“Indeed. If the rewards for life-or-death duels wagered with the Tower double, anyone will challenge him!”

Baife smacked his lips, remarking that even those insects obsessed with self-preservation would find that reward hard to resist.

“He will be pleased as well. Not just desires, but….”

When Strude Priest spoke of “him,” his eyes grew hazy as though he had just beheld a divine presence.

“The Shadow will grow stronger too.”

* * *

“How infuriating!”

I lay sprawled among the thicket, my brow furrowed in frustration.

“Wait a single day? The Celestial Realm moves at a glacial pace, even for heaven’s sake!”

Strude Priest had asked me to wait just one day before beginning the life-or-death duel for the Tower.
In truth, the delay wasn’t unreasonable, but I seized the opportunity to curse Strude—Derus Robert’s avatar—to my heart’s content,
scrunching my nose in disdain.

“Um, um….”

Charlie approached my side, swallowing hard.

“Are you really going through with this? If you lose, you’ll forfeit everything….”

He furrowed his brow, explaining that defeat meant having all my desires stripped away in that instant, reducing me to the lowest tier.

“If I don’t, when will that Tower ever be built? Even if I drain the desires from these young fools, it won’t reach that sky no matter how many years pass.”

I pointed upward with a finger at the blackened sky of the Celestial Realm.

‘That place cannot be reached by ordinary means, I’m certain.’

Though it appears close, that sky is absolutely unreachable through desire duels alone.
Only by conducting a life-or-death duel for the Tower—creating results visible enough to draw attention—can I summon the Archangel.

“I-I mean, Lord Jilpen seems to have swollen his audacity so much it might burst.”

Charlie shook his head, saying that if it were him, he would never step forward in a life-or-death battle and would simply enjoy his current life as a Tower Master.

“A life like that holds no meaning whatsoever.”

I clicked my tongue sharply in disapproval.

“You’d be worse off than a house cat raised on feed in the Land of Clouds.”

I scoffed, declaring that I would rather die than live such a pathetic existence.

“That, that is….”

Charlie started to speak but closed his mouth again.

“You’re right. It is a pathetic life.”

He bit his lip, as if realizing that what he had desired was ultimately nothing more than a sandcastle.

‘That fellow too….’

I smiled faintly as I watched Charlie engage in self-reflection.

‘He’s useful.’

Seeing how he continued to gain spiritual enlightenment throughout all this, Charlie seemed like a capable talent despite his cowardice.

“But why are you sleeping here, Jilpen?”

Charlie tilted his head as he looked at me.

“You could go to the Dormitory and rest since you’ve obtained a new desire.”

He blinked his eyes, asking if I hadn’t gained a desire through the life-or-death battle when I left the Temple.

“It’s a waste.”

I answered immediately.

“With this desire, I can build the Tower one level higher.”

He smacked his lips, saying he was saving money to build the Tower even higher.

“Ah….”

Charlie’s mouth fell open in disbelief.

“Wait, hold on. But why do you spend so much money on food?”

He blinked, clearly confused.

“You need a full belly to fight.”

I furrowed my brow, wondering why he was asking something so obvious.

‘Truth be told, I’d like to economize on food too….’
-Absolutely not with meals!

With a Demon Lord so obsessed with food, I couldn’t afford to cut back on eating without raising suspicion.

‘I could be questioned about it.’

When I was in the Land of Clouds, I always ate voraciously, so any sudden change in my diet would draw unwanted attention. I had no choice but to continue consuming massive quantities of food.

-Heh!

Wrath snorted and shook his head.

-Someday you’ll be grateful to the True Demon King. If you ever develop a taste for this….
‘Wait.’

I raised my hand and silenced Wrath.

‘It’s finally here.’
-Hm? What’s finally here?

Wrath tilted his head, confused.

‘The response to the message I sent before arriving at this place.’

I watched the gently swaying bushes, curling my lips into a subtle smile.

‘It’s Evelyn.’

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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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