The Reincarnated Assassin is a Genius Swordsman - Chapter 180

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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 180

Rimer climbed to the top of the spire in the city’s center and gazed down upon all of Forban.

“Troublesome, but unavoidable.”

Based on what the mayor had said, the disappearances were far more serious than I’d anticipated. This was no time to assign tasks to my unit members and loiter in the Gambling House.

‘Oma is certain. The question is whether it’s the White Blood Cult or not.’

Their methods resembled those of the White Blood Cult among Oma’s ranks. However, the world harbored far too many lunatics to pin it down to a single faction with certainty.

‘Whoever it is, I need to capture them before they flee.’

Now that I’d confirmed Zigheart and Balcar had arrived, they wouldn’t move as freely as before. With escape likely imminent, I had to find them first.

“Hah…”

Rimer closed his eyes. The azure wind swirling around him unraveled like thread, dispersing across all of Forban. It was a technique that melded wind spirit arts with aura.

His senses, normally confined to his immediate surroundings, stretched like a clock hand, extending to encompass an entire quadrant of the city.
While it was difficult to perceive fine details and consumed considerable aura and mental stamina, he could discern the locations where disturbances occurred.

‘Burren’s just trudging through his assigned spots methodically. Martha’s ignoring orders and doing whatever she pleases. And Lunan… is he sleeping right now? No, wait—’

As I scrutinized what each member of the Gwangpung Unit was doing, my eyes snapped open.

“Raon?”

The one I trusted most was in a place I never could have imagined.

“What are you doing there!”

I’m working too!

*

*

*

Forban, true to its reputation as a tourist city, boasted a diverse array of gambling establishments.

Ask different people which gambling house was the finest, and you’d get varied opinions—but ask anyone where to win the most money, and they’d all cry out in unison: “Orc’s Desire.”

Orc’s Desire distinguished itself in two ways: it was the oldest gambling house in Forban, and it offered the highest payout ratios.

In other words, you either walked out penniless or became an instant millionaire. There was no middle ground.

Of course, most patrons lost spectacularly, and only a rare few struck it rich—but today, one of those rare few was happening right now.

“Woooow!”
“He won again! Tripled his winnings again!”
“How has he not lost a single hand?”
“He hasn’t won every hand. He just has an uncanny knack for folding whenever his opponent’s hand is stronger!”
“This is insane. His luck is absolutely ridiculous.”
“One or two wins might be luck. But this? This is skill! Pure skill! A true gambler!”

Hardcore gamblers, their faces flushed with excitement, crowded around the corner table, their eyes fixed solely on the game as they cheered wildly.

“I’m so jealous. That’s the kind of jackpot that hits maybe once a month….”
“Damn, if he cashes out now, he could buy a house.”
“It’s not just the money—he’s betting so boldly on every hand. The pot keeps swelling. How does such a young guy have such guts?”

At the center of the poker table that held their attention sat Raon, stripped of his uniform and dressed as a traveler, with a mountain of chips stacked before him.

“I… I had no idea you were so skilled at gambling.”

Jatis swallowed hard, his eyes counting the chips piled in front of Raon.

“It’s nothing special. Last time, he went to the Camelun Underground Casino and cleaned them out completely.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. That arrogant princess—I mean, Princess Jeina—got wiped out there too, which is why she’s been in a foul mood ever since.”

Dorian immediately slapped his own mouth the moment the word “arrogant” left his lips.

“As I said, there’s nothing our faction leader can’t do. He’s practically supernatural.”
“Wow….”

Jatis didn’t even hear Dorian’s crude way of referring to Princess Jeina. He simply stared at me in a daze. On top of my strength and wisdom, I possessed such skills too—admiration burst forth from him unbidden.

However, contrary to what Dorian and the gamblers thought, I wasn’t particularly skilled at poker. There was only one reason I kept winning money. It was thanks to the Demon King of Wrath, who was obsessed with food.

-That old man has a full house. You’re dead this round.

Wrath, visible only to me, drifted through the air and read every hand of everyone seated at the gambling table, so there was no way I could lose even if I wanted to.

‘Just one card off.’

I clicked my tongue briefly and discarded my hand.

“Dead.”
“Ugh!”
“Nngh….”

The moment I said dead, the old man seated to my right and the blue-haired beauty on my left let out quiet groans.

Based on their reactions so far, all three of them—the two players and the dealer in front—were professionals hired from the gambling house. Even with their combined efforts, they couldn’t win, and their faces had turned as pale as blank paper.

-Remember this clearly. Five sets of marble ice cream and the three most famous dishes in this place.
‘Of course.’

I nodded. The price for employing the Demon King of Wrath was so cheap it was laughable.

‘I always keep my promises.’
-Liiiiiar! How many times have you promised to do something and failed to deliver! When you made that sword, didn’t you fail to eat roasted pork belly!
‘That was an act of nature….’
-It was an act of nature you could have prevented! If you break your promise this time, I will never listen to your requests again.
‘I understand. I’ll definitely keep it.’

I patted Wrath’s shoulder soothingly. I couldn’t afford to lose such easily exploitable labor.

“Th-then we’ll begin the next game.”

Cold sweat streamed down the dealer’s forehead. Since the gambling house’s daily revenue had been fluctuating wildly from the previous round, he looked like he was dying.

I’ll be back.

The Dealer spread the cards, and the moment the exchange ended, Wrath moved as if he’d been waiting.

“The woman has a full house, the old man has a flush.”
‘This is the moment to go all in.’

I examined my cards with an impassive expression. Four cards of the same number. A four of a kind.

“All in.”

I shoved every chip on the table—a veritable hill of them—into the center.

“He’s gone all in again!”
“Insane….”
“He’s lost his mind. He’s not thinking straight!”
“Did he get a royal flush or something?”

The gambling-obsessed spectators drooled eagerly, anticipating how the hand would unfold.

“M-Master. Perhaps we should stop here….”
“Not yet.”

I shook my head.

“We didn’t come here to gamble.”
“Oh! Right!”

Dorian’s eyes widened. He’d been so absorbed in the poker that he’d forgotten our true purpose for being here.

“Phew, give me a moment to catch my breath.”
“What on earth did you eat to have such nerve? My heart won’t stop racing.”

The Dealer let out an exclamation, and the woman beside him crossed her legs with a seductive smile. It was a deliberate attempt to draw attention—a classic move to manipulate.

“From the north.”

While appearing to acknowledge the two of them, I used my senses to observe the old man on my right. The moment I heard an unusual sound as his hand smoothly brushed across the cards, I extended my arm.

“Stop. Were you switching cards?”

I seized the old man’s wrist and offered him a cold smile.

“W-what! Let go!”
“How long did you think you could pull off such a pathetic trick? Do I look like some naive fool to you?”
“I, I have evidence… gahhhhh!”

As I twisted his wrist, cards identical to those on the table cascaded from the old man’s sleeve.

“Here’s your evidence.”

I lifted the five cards he’d switched from the floor. When I flipped them over, a flush appeared, just as Wrath had said.

“A flush is a decent hand. But how about this?”

I flipped over the hand the old man had switched in. Five cards with matching suits and consecutive numbers. A straight flush.

“You knew, didn’t you?”
“I, that is….”
“You couldn’t possibly not know. You’re the one who dealt these cards.”

When I cast a murderous glance at the Dealer, he flinched and stumbled backward.

“A straight flush! He switched the flush for a straight!”
“That bastard was a card sharp? I’ve been losing to him every time!”
“The dealer and the sharp are in on it together? Damn it! Orc’s Desire is using a card sharp!”
“It was all a con!”

As the gamblers erupted in outrage, every game in the Gambling House came to a halt, tables overturned, and chaos erupted.

-Destruction, mayhem, fury! Splendid!

Wrath cackled, saying he’d witnessed humanity’s true nature for the first time in ages.

-Is this the sight you desired?
‘No.’

I shook my head and sat calmly, savoring the chaos unfolding before me.

“Guest.”

I turned at the voice from behind. A neat-looking young man with his hair combed back was smiling.

“I’m Kent, the manager who runs Orc’s Desire. I heard there was a problem with the game. I’m truly sorry.”

He bowed respectfully, as if taking full responsibility for the fault.

“You orchestrate everything and then play dumb?”

I let out a scoff and waved my hand dismissively.

“Forget it. Bring the money. You know you owe me three times the value of those chips, right?”
“Of course. However, given the amount, I believe it should be handled upstairs. Would you mind following me for a moment?”
“You’re not planning anything foolish?”
“With so many eyes watching, what could I possibly do?”
“Fine.”

I nodded and followed the manager upstairs. Dorian and Jatis trailed behind in a daze.

“I apologize for the disturbance. As compensation, all guests here will receive chips worth fifty silver coins!”

A gambling house employee who came with the manager placed silver chips on the tables, announcing they were being distributed.

The gamblers who had been causing a commotion moments before rushed over like possessed men and snatched up the chips.

I watched the scene for a moment before entering the manager’s office. It was a spacious room, but there weren’t many furnishings, and several large, muscular men stood against the walls like statues.

Click!

As Dorian and Jatis entered the office, one of the large men standing behind locked the door.

“Huh…”

The manager turned around. The gentle smile from moments before had vanished, replaced by cold, sinister eyes that glared at me like those of a malevolent spirit.

“You bastard. Where did you crawl out from? The Elf’s Valley? The Giant’s Footprint? Or is it that newly opened Cat’s Jelly?”
“The gambling house names are pretty childish. Cat’s Jelly, really.”

I chuckled softly as I recited the names of the gambling houses the manager had mentioned.

“You picked a fight knowing this place is under the Thief Guild’s protection? Want to disappear without a trace?”

At the manager’s gesture, the hulking figures standing like screens came to life. They cracked their knuckles menacingly and rolled their shoulders.

“What about the people outside?”
“I scattered feed for those swine. They’re so obsessed with gambling they won’t care whether you leave here as corpses or alive.”
“How convenient. Trash that won’t mind getting beaten to a pulp.”

I smiled faintly.

“You lunatic!”
“So this place really does belong to the Thief Guild? Then I’ve come to the right place.”
“The right place for your funeral! What are you waiting for! Kill these bastards!”

As the manager pointed his finger, the hulking men kicked off the ground and charged forward.

“If words aren’t necessary, that works better for me.”

I extended my hand toward Dorian.

“A club. Something small.”

*

*

*

“So you’re saying there are quite a few missing persons among your people?”
“Y-yes! That’s correct! There were… quite a lot of them.”

The manager nodded eagerly without even wiping the blood streaming from both nostrils. Around him, the bloodied hulking men lay scattered like fallen leaves.

“What were the circumstances of their disappearances?”

I tapped the ground with the blood-soaked club as I asked.

“Ugh, that’s….”

The manager swallowed hard as he watched the club, swung down with casual force, gouge deep into the stone floor.

“To be honest, I don’t know much. People disappear so suddenly, even while we’re walking together. I can’t tell who, when, or how it happens. But….”
“But?”
“There were some testimonies that whenever someone disappeared from the area, people felt a chilling sensation.”
“A chilling sensation….”

I furrowed my brow. Even though it didn’t affect me directly, if people felt a chill, it was certainly a malevolent aura—demonic energy, spectral energy, or blood energy.

“It’s not just tourists or passersby who disappear. There have been many cases where entire families vanished overnight. And it all happened so naturally….”
“Naturally?”
“Yes. There were several instances where people simply vanished without any signs of forced entry—no broken doors or windows, no traces of resistance whatsoever.”

The manager trembled, whether from the shock of the truth or fear of the disappearances.

“City Hall didn’t mention anything like that.”
“Those money-obsessed fools have no interest in disappearances. I’ve told them several times, but they won’t listen.”

He muttered that his reports never reached the mayor before being cut off. It seemed someone in City Hall was involved in the human trafficking.

‘There’s no way disappearances on this scale would spread otherwise.’

Three months had passed since these disappearances began before they requested support from Zigheart, which was quite a delayed response. It seemed someone in City Hall had been continuously obstructing things.

In a way, it made sense. There was no better place than City Hall to obtain information and conceal it.

“Where is the Thief Guild located?”
“It’s in a Tea House called Nokeum Seori on the West Side of the city.”
“A Tea House?”

A Tea House sold traditional sweets and tea. It was a place that seemed completely at odds with a Thief Guild.

“What’s the password?”
“That….”

The manager hesitated before opening his mouth.

“You just need to ask for the red tea instead of the blue tea.”
“That’s basically asking to see blood. You haven’t taken enough of a beating yet.”
“Eeek! I’m telling the truth! That’s the password!”

As I rose to my feet, gripping the club, the manager frantically waved his hands and bowed his head repeatedly.

“Actually, sir, to be completely honest, you won’t even need the password. They’ll recognize you the moment you arrive.”
“Hmm….”

He was right. Given the Thief Guild’s superior intelligence network, they would already know that I had destroyed the Gambling House in multiple ways—whether they attacked first or bowed their heads would depend on that knowledge.

“Understood.”

I shook the blood off the club and handed it back to Dorian.

“Ugh, more blood!”

Dorian grimaced and wiped away the remaining blood before tucking the club into his waist pouch.

“Whoa….”

Jatis still hadn’t adjusted, letting out a shaky breath.

“A-are you leaving?”
“We are. But first, we’re taking what we’re owed.”

I held up four fingers and wiggled them.

“Hand over the gold coins. Three times the value of the chips.”
“Ah….”

The manager’s face turned deathly pale as his last shred of hope evaporated.

*

*

*

I left the Gambling House with Dorian and Jatis, heading west toward where the Thief Guild was located.

“Ah, so you were planning to seek out the Thief Guild.”

Jatis scratched his cheek as he approached.

“Those at the bottom of society know far more about such matters than those at the top.”

I nodded. Disappearances like this happened far more frequently among commoners—particularly the lower classes dwelling in these Back Alleys—than among nobility who could afford dedicated guards.

The Thief Guild might possess information even the City Hall didn’t know.

“Do you think the Thief Guild will accept a commission?”

Dorian gestured toward the Orc’s Desire, his expression darkening.

“We’ve drained their coffers and reduced the manager and guards to pulp. Won’t they just come at us with blades?”
“If the Thief Guild doesn’t want to end up the same way, they’ll accept the commission. Besides, I haven’t cheated anyone.”

I had done nothing wrong in this affair. They were the ones who resorted to tricks at the gambling table and threw the first punch.

-You shameless wretch! I was the one who moved, wasn’t I?
‘You’re only visible to me. That’s not cheating—that’s my ability.’
-Ugh.
‘Don’t be angry. Ice cream is waiting for you.’
-Tsk! You really are….

I pushed away Wrath, whose brow was furrowed, and shrugged.

“You’re moving quite decisively this time.”
“We’re pressed for time.”

If my suspicions were correct, the culprit behind this incident was one of the Oma—the White Blood Cult. To stop those lunatics, conventional methods wouldn’t suffice. I had to exhaust every option and resolve this swiftly.

“What admirable dedication to reducing the number of missing persons!”

Jatis suddenly clasped his hands together, his eyes gleaming with fervor.

“You’re willing to exert all your strength to resolve this matter, even if it means facing criticism, Raon!”
“Not particularly. I simply want to catch them before they escape.”
“Such humility! You truly are a paragon of knighthood! I have much to learn from you going forward!”

He exclaimed in admiration, bowing so deeply it was almost uncomfortable to witness.

“Uh, well….”

I was contemplating how to respond when it happened.

Kyaaaaaaah!

A woman’s piercing scream erupted from the adjacent alley. I immediately pinpointed the location using my aura perception and vaulted over the wall toward the source of the cry.

“Grrgh!”

Three burly men in robes were stuffing a gagged Girl into a burlap sack. She thrashed her legs desperately as if pleading for her life.

“Damn it!”
“Finish this quickly!”

The long-haired man closest to me drew a dagger and rushed forward.

Whoosh!

I effortlessly sidestepped his thrust and struck the long-haired man’s temple with a light tap. Despite the gentleness of the blow, he lost consciousness and crumpled to the ground.

‘These aren’t them.’

They lacked aura entirely—merely common thugs with minimal physical training. There was no way these wretches were behind the disappearances.

“Those bastards!”
“Kidnapping in broad daylight!”

Dorian and Jatis, who had caught up moments later, rushed in and swiftly subdued the bewildered pair.

“Are you alright?”

Dorian extracted the Girl from the burlap sack.

The girl radiated an ethereal beauty—her crimson hair blazed like dancing flames, her skin shimmered pale as frost, and her luminous golden eyes gleamed with an otherworldly allure.

“Th-thank you so much.”

Her voice held an enchanting charm that matched her appearance—a melodious tone that resonated in the chest like morning dew gently caressing leaves.

“N-no, it’s nothing.”
“N-not at all….”

Dorian and Jatis shook their heads, their expressions dazed as if entranced.

“You saved me at the very beginning, didn’t you?”

The girl approached, lifting her gaze. Her golden eyes drew my vision in completely.

“I’m really grateful to you.”

With each step she took, her face seemed to loom larger, and my heart stirred restlessly.

An overwhelming urge surged within me—to embrace her and offer comfort.

‘These are my thoughts?’

Absolutely not.

I, who had lived as an assassin, could never harbor such thoughts before even assessing the situation.

Hum.

As doubt crept in, a faint vibration emanated from behind me. The Soul Reaper Sword—the demonic blade that only resonated when sensing enemies—began to tremble.

‘The White Blood Cult!’

I instinctively activated the Ring of Fire.

Whoooosh.

Six rings resonated in harmony, and clarity washed over me like a bucket of cold water.

Now I could see the Girl’s face properly. She was still beautiful, but her features had an uncanny, unsettling quality—as if they’d been forcibly assembled.

‘Hah…’

Without revealing that I’d regained consciousness, I let my eyes glaze over as I followed Dorian and Jatis.

No one was better at concealing their true nature and controlling their expression than I was.

“Thanks to you, I’m alive.”

The Charm Girl’s eyes sparkled even more intensely as she drew closer. An enigmatic fragrance I’d never encountered before tickled my nostrils.

Screech!

My mind threatened to cloud over again, but the spinning ring of fire swept away that haze.

“N-no, that’s not it.”

As if completely entranced by the Charm Girl, I stammered awkwardly and shook my head.

“I was so scared.”

The Charm Girl stepped closer. Within arm’s reach, she extended her hands as if asking for an embrace.

“Ah…”

I opened my arms as she intended. The Soul Reaper Sword’s vibrations intensified. I kept my expression blank, my mouth forming a perfect circle of surprise.

“Thank you.”

The moment I bent forward to embrace her, the Charm Girl’s eyes turned chillingly cold.

“For dying for me.”

Her hand, glowing with an eerie white light, thrust toward my heart.

Whoosh!

The speed and vicious force were fast and powerful enough that I couldn’t have dodged them without preparation—but I was already ready.

I drew the Soul Reaper Sword just before her hand strike could touch my left chest.

Shiiing!

The crimson blade emerged smoothly as if I’d been waiting for this moment, and sickly yellow aura burst into flames from its edge.

Swhaaack!

The instant white and yellow energies twisted together in a spiral, a severed forearm erupted, spraying white blood.

“Kyaaaaaaah!”

The Charm Girl seized her severed arm and unleashed a scream as monstrous as any beast. Murky blood, as if diluted with white paint, streamed from the stump of her forearm.

“So it was the White Blood Cult after all.”
“B-but you were clearly under the spell… how…?”

I laughed coldly, shaking the filthy blood from the Soul Reaper Sword.

“Well done.”

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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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