The Reincarnated Assassin is a Genius Swordsman - Chapter 1213

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

Chapter 1213

I gazed at Strude Priest, whose blue eyes betrayed his shock, and drew a cold smile across my face.

‘As expected, he’s not as cunning as the original.’

If this were the real Derus Robert, he would have maintained his composure even in such circumstances. He had performed the role of a righteous being so naturally that no one suspected him until I exposed his true identity.

But the Strude Priest before me now couldn’t perfectly control his emotions at this unexpected outcome, his eyes and lips frozen rigid with tension.

‘He’s no different.’

Baife, who had brought me to this Celestial Realm, was also trembling with his shoulders as his jaw hung slack in shock at Kurk’s defeat. The way his eyes darted left and right suggested he was worried about what lay ahead.

‘This will work perfectly.’

It was true that suspicion might arise from a human like me instantly crushing Kurk, a Celestial Race member, but judging from Strude Priest and Baife’s reactions, I could deceive them without difficulty if I simply proceeded as planned.

“Well? Aren’t you going to answer?”

I furrowed my brow as I looked at Strude.

“You’re not going to backtrack on your word now, are you?”

I snapped my fingers arrogantly, reminding him to keep the promise he’d made himself. Yet I exhaled roughly, as if exhausted from the life-or-death duel.

“Ah…”

Strude Priest let out a short exclamation, as if coming to his senses at my words.

“Of course.”

He erased the awkwardness and nodded, drawing his usual smile.

“As I mentioned earlier, you should be able to reach the sky with the desires Jilpen has accumulated.”

Strude Priest waved his hand lightly as if to say there was nothing to worry about.

“However, given the sheer volume involved, it will take some time to convert it all into the Tower.”

He bowed slightly, explaining that since both Jilpen and Kurk had wagered an enormous amount of desire, constructing the Tower would require time.

“I have no objection. In fact, it would be fair to say the Tower of Babel is already complete, so there’s no urgent need to raise it immediately.”

I stroked my chin, telling the Strude Priest that I understood.

“Thank you for your consideration—”
“But.”

The Strude Priest raised a finger as he bowed with a smile.

“It seems they don’t share that sentiment, do they?”

I pointed with my extended finger at the people who had witnessed the life-or-death duel between myself and Kurk.

“Don’t you feel their desire for the Tower to be raised right now?”

The gaze of the masses is always formidable, no matter when or where. Especially in a place like the Celestial Realm, built upon the faith of its people, that power became all the more overwhelming.

“That’s right!”
“Just like Jilpen! Well said!”
“We want to see the Archangel right now!”
“No, just bring us God!”
“I don’t need the Archangel or God! Just show us the Tower piercing the sky!”
“Honestly, I’ve only heard stories passed down through legends. So few people have actually seen the Archangel.”
“Finally, we’ll see the Archangel!”

The inhabitants of the Celestial Realm roared their demands to summon the Archangel immediately, their fists raised above their heads as if pounding the very heavens.
It was only natural—I had used the Archangel’s existence, a being said to grant any wish, as bait to ensnare them in desire.

‘Excellent!’

I curled my lips upward, watching the crowd perform even more intensely than I had anticipated.

‘The response is better than expected.’

From the start, I had anticipated that even if I won the life-or-death duel, Strude Priest would not immediately construct the Tower for me.
It was obvious he would try to buy time, either replacing me with another Celestial or attempting brainwashing.

‘There were several ways to prevent that.’

I had considered staying with as many people as possible so they couldn’t replace me, or even countering their brainwashing with my own, but the best method was this current choice.

‘Leveraging the masses.’

This Celestial Realm is a livestock farm where Derus Robert and the Celestials use human desires to stockpile feed for themselves.
If the dreams and hopes of these livestock crumble, the very foundation of this Celestial Realm will collapse, so they cannot stop the chaos unfolding now.

—Ugh….

Wrath pressed his forehead as if his head ached.

—I truly cannot fathom how far ahead you think and plan. Rather than face you, I’d sooner fight two other Demon Lords!

He let out a heavy sigh, expressing his absolute reluctance to engage me in a battle of wits.

“Build the Tower! Build the Tower!”
“Summon the Archangel! Summon the Archangel!”
“Jilpen! Jilpen! Jilpen! Jilpen!”
“If you don’t, we’ll destroy everything! Open the sky right now!”

The residents of the Celestial Realm, united as one, thrust their fists toward the sky, demanding the Tower be raised immediately to summon the Archangel.
Even those who had initially harbored jealousy were astonished by my overwhelming power in crushing Kurk, and like the others, they chanted Jilpen’s name, desperate to actually see the Archangel.

“Hmm….”

Strude Priest let out a low groan, gripping his temples.

“Understood. I will handle this as quickly as possible.”

He sighed as if receiving instructions from his true form, then nodded.

“Please wait a moment.”

Strude Priest told me to wait while glaring at me intently. It seemed he was receiving harsh words from his true form, Derus Robert.

“Wait a moment, all of you. Watch from here!”

Raon turned to face the crowd and spread both arms wide.

“I’m going to become a Transcendent!”

He openly declared his wish to become a Transcendent and, like the others, thrust his fist toward the sky.

“Uooooooooo!”
“Jilpen! Go first! I’ll follow soon after!”
“I’m not even making a wish for myself, so why do I feel so good?”
“We’ve been watching this guy ever since he arrived in the Celestial Realm until now.”
“That’s right. We’ve seen how he’s grown, so we can’t help but cheer him on!”
“He’s challenged endlessly. A guy like that deserves to succeed—I want to watch and learn from him!”

The people had truly become Raon’s followers, praising his false name and even sending applause his way.

—You create your own faction wherever you go.

Wrath let out a hollow laugh as if exasperated.

—As I’ve said before, you’re too good to be wasted in this place.

He stretched out his round, bread-like hand in a gesture that seemed at odds with his serious tone.

—Follow the True Demon King to the Demon Realm! The talent to make people naturally follow you is a power granted only to kings!

Wrath spoke of becoming a king—something he hadn’t mentioned in a long time—and nodded solemnly.

‘The Demon Realm….’

Raon gazed at the false sky of the Celestial Realm and narrowed his eyes.

‘It’s where you live, so I’d like to visit someday, but not now.’

I felt the immense desire that Kurk carried seeping into my soul, and my cold eyes flashed with resolve.

‘Today, I’m going to kill Derus Robert.’

* * *

“How did things spiral into such a mess?”

Derus Robert stood with his long legs crossed, his piercing gaze sweeping downward.

“I-I sincerely apologize.”

A man bearing an identical appearance to Derus trembled violently as he fell to his knees. It was Strude Priest, who should have remained in the Celestial Realm. His body shimmered with a translucent quality, as though only his soul had been dragged forth.

“I thought Kurk could defeat that human without difficulty, yet it seems he grew careless….”

Strude Priest gnawed at his lips, lamenting how Kurk’s negligence had led to his defeat at the hands of a mere mortal.

“….”

Kubara stood before the bookshelf with her hands clasped, offering no words, her eyes gently lowered.

“T-the livestock of the Celestial Realm are watching, so it seems we have no choice but to grant that human’s wish by any means necessary….”

Strude Priest clutched his head, lamenting that they had run out of alternatives.

“Tsk.”

Derus Robert rotated his right wrist habitually, clicking his tongue. He closed his eyes as if lost in thought.

“Ugh….”

Strude Priest, gripped by severe tension, pressed his head to the ground beneath Derus’s feet, emitting only faint whimpers.

“His wish was to become a Transcendent, correct?”

Derus slowly opened his eyes, gazing down at Strude Priest.

“Y-yes! Since childhood, he lived crushed beneath the weight of power, and he said he wished to become a Transcendent to exact revenge upon the world!”

Strude Priest rambled on about Jilpen’s upbringing without being asked, nodding repeatedly in succession.

“So an ordinary human defeated the Celestial Race through sheer desire? You verified his identity properly, I trust?”

Derus Robert narrowed his eyes with suspicion at that particular point.

“Yes! I have verified the soul multiple times through the Archangels’ Barrier, so the identity is certain!”

Strude Priest trembled violently, seized by terrible fear under Derus Robert’s cold gaze, as he answered.

“A Transcendent, then….”

Derus Robert stroked his flawless, smooth chin.

“A wish like that could certainly be granted.”

He nodded calmly, as if becoming a Transcendent was well within his capabilities.

“Yes? Truly, sir?”

Strude Priest blinked, having not anticipated such a response from Derus Robert.

“Infusing divine power to transform an ordinary human into a state resembling a Transcendent is relatively simple. Of course, sustaining it is difficult….”

Derus Robert twisted his lips as he mentioned the difficulty of sustaining it.

“Sustain… Ah!”

Strude Priest’s eyes widened as he grasped the meaning behind Derus Robert’s words.

“You mean to transform them into a Transcendent state and then send them outside to be disposed of!”

He nodded, affirming that such a thing was entirely feasible.

“Even if that human dies outside, the livestock of Heaven would have no way of knowing.”

Derus Robert shrugged as if to say it was simple enough.

“In fact, this works out well. The energy rising from Heaven recently has increased dramatically, and if this matter concludes successfully, we could accumulate more than twice the power we anticipated before the war.”

He curled his lips upward, as if turning this crisis into an opportunity.

“….”

Kubara didn’t speak, but her eyes widened slightly in surprise at Derus Robert’s swift and precise judgment.

“Yes! I shall prepare accordingly!”

The Strude Priest felt the perfection of the plan Derus Robert had crafted in that fleeting instant, and bowed deeply at the waist.

“Then, which Archangel will fulfill that man’s wish?”

He licked his lips, curious about which Archangel would descend through the gates of Heaven.

“Raphael.”

Derus Robert spoke the name of the Archangel of Healing and tilted his chin.

“The others aren’t here at the moment, so Raphael has no choice but to go. Besides, he’s specialized in this sort of thing.”

He nodded calmly, reasoning that Raphael would be the best choice to reveal himself for such a task.

“Yes! Then I shall proceed with that understanding!”

The Strude Priest bowed one final time to Derus Robert before sending the soul back to Heaven.

“Wait.”

Derus Robert stopped mid-nod and gazed intently at his leather gloves.

“I’ll go myself.”

His brow furrowed slightly as he changed his mind.

“Yes? Then, that is….”
“Give me your body.”

As Derus extended his hand to reclaim what he had given, Strude’s soul was crushed like it had been struck by a hammer, flattening under the immense pressure.

“Gaaahhhhhhh!”

He burrowed into the compressed soul of Strude, abandoning his own body in the dim Study as he vanished.

“….”

Kubara lifted her eyelids, her gaze fixed upon the hollow corpse of Derus Robert, now devoid of soul. The subtle shift in the color of her eyes was barely perceptible.

* * *

“Then I shall now construct the Tower according to Jilpen’s desires.”

Strude Priest nodded as though he had finally gathered sufficient power, then stretched both hands toward the sky.

Kwaaaaaaaa!

The earth beneath Raon’s Tower, which had obscured more than half the sky, fractured violently, and new layers erupted upward without restraint.

Kugugugugugugu!

Raon’s Tower exploded like molten lava within a volcano, soaring skyward in an instant as though it would pierce the heavens themselves.

“Wow! Look at that!”

Charlie shook Raon’s shoulder, letting out an exultant cry.

“Jilpen’s Tower is rising endlessly!”

He stamped his feet excitedly, convinced that his true wish could finally be realized.

“Strude Priest always keeps his promises!”
“Strude Priest…?”

Yet Raon, rather than watching the Tower, fixed his gaze upon the back of Strude Priest’s head as he raised it, biting the inside of his lip until blood pooled.

‘That isn’t that incompetent priest at all….’

It’s Derus Robert!

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