The Reincarnated Assassin is a Genius Swordsman - Chapter 191

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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 191

Soft moonlight brushed across the dusty window bars of the Gwangpung Unit’s Master’s Quarters.

In that room, where the nameplate of Senior Instructor’s Rest Room had not yet been removed, Rimer rose with a rustling sound.

He swayed on his feet as if he had just awakened from sleep.

“Haa…”

Rimer exhaled a sigh as he removed his coat, blackened with soot.

“Still, I managed to survive and make it here.”

I couldn’t remember how I’d reached the Master’s Quarters. It seemed I’d sought out the most familiar place while my mind was half-gone from Glen Zigheart’s lightning strike.

‘Today hurt quite a bit more than usual.’

Glen Zigheart naturally never used lightning that would inflict fatal wounds or lasting aftereffects on me. He used only lightning that dealt pain—but today was different.

Lightning that struck faster than the activation of sword energy, and a technique that tore through the sword energy itself—it seemed he had transcended another barrier.

‘Truly remarkable.’

Already existing at a level beyond humanity, yet still having heights to reach—Glen Zigheart was truly an enigma incarnate.

If Glen Zigheart, who had overcome the Demon, had hardened his resolve and ignored those neutral fools’ words, perhaps a third of the Continent would already be under Zigheart’s dominion.

‘I need to be more careful going forward.’

Rimer swept back his blood-red hair with a faint smile. I should refrain from teasing Grandfather for a while—he was so worried about his grandson. If I provoked him now that he’d grown stronger, I might actually end up dead.

“Haaah.”

Rimer raised his arms and stretched luxuriously.

‘Fortunately, everything worked out well.’

The Gwangpung Unit had engaged in live combat with Oma—an opportunity that money alone couldn’t buy—and Raon had defeated the Apostle.

With Glen opening the Library of Enlightenment and bestowing such a magnificent gift upon the unit members, everything had truly gone according to plan.

‘Glen will take care of Raon without me having to say anything.’

Since Raon was the person Glen cared for most right now, he would surely give him something even more special. There was no need to worry.

‘Now I can finally rest easy and take a break.’

Rimer picked up the reward pouch he’d received from Glen off the ground. He imposed punishments but didn’t confiscate rewards. True to form, he was a fair man.

‘Still, visiting the Gambling House would be pushing it.’

With Glen’s eyes gleaming so menacingly, I’d have to avoid the Gambling House for a while. I should observe his mood carefully while training the unit members for the next few days.

“Then I’ll head somewhere comfortable to rest… huh?”

I tucked the pouch of gold coins into my pocket and opened the door to the Master’s Quarters when someone crossed the Training Ground toward me. That familiar gait and those crimson eyes gleaming in the darkness—it was Glen Zigheart.

“M-Master?”

Rimer’s eyes narrowed at the sight of Glen Zigheart.

‘Why is he coming here?’

I’d already given him his reward and his punishment—I couldn’t fathom why he would seek me out at this late hour.

‘Ah! Is that it?’

Perhaps he’d come bearing medicine because I’d lost control of my power during today’s lightning strike.

“You don’t need to concern yourself with me like that… ugh!”

Rimer stopped abruptly, smiling as he moved to greet him. Glen Zigheart’s expression was frigid—not the eyes of someone bringing medicine or an apology, but those of a villain ready to devour him whole.

“Wasn’t it enough that you’ve lost your mind? Now you’re teaching the children to gamble as well?”

“What? Me?”

What was he talking about? Gambling?

“I didn’t care that you alone were losing and ruining yourself. But now you’re trying to corrupt these young saplings as well.”

“Me, me?”

I had often told the children they’d lost or failed, but I’d never actually taught them anything.

“How transparent, making excuses like that.”

As Glen Zigheart pointed his hand toward the sky, I found myself unable to move, as though shackled by invisible chains.

Rumble, rumble, rumble!

Dark clouds, blacker than the night sky itself, crept together and began to form towering thunderheads.

“Last time I held back, but this time I’ll put some real force into it.”

Held back? I nearly lost consciousness from the pain!

“It is your karma—accept it gracefully.”

Watching the crimson lightning descend, there was only one thing Rimer could say.

“…Me?”

*

*

*

The Heavenly Sword Master rubbed her eyes and looked at the Training Courtyard again. It was Raon. It was definitely Raon, yet for a moment, it seemed as though Glen was treading his footwork.

The reason Raon appeared like Glen was simple.

‘He’s developed….’

The Heavenly Stroke Technique that Raon now wielded possessed power. It carried the mystery and majesty that Glen had demonstrated.

An involuntary sigh escaped her at this achievement, which was on an entirely different level from before. Of course, it wasn’t quite comparable to Glen, but it was certain that he had stepped onto the same path.

‘How is this possible in such a short time?’

Even if he had maintained perfect concentration, it was merely seven hours. To master the ancient martial art of the Heavenly Stroke Technique through training in such a brief span—less than a single night—was impossible by any standard she knew.

‘What on earth is he?’

Raon did nothing extraordinary. He simply continued observing footprints, treading the Heavenly Stroke Technique, examining the footprints again, and extending the technique anew, yet somehow Glen’s essence had begun to permeate his footwork.

The Heavenly Sword Master wondered if this was truly reality and gently bit the inside of her cheek.

It hurt. This wasn’t a dream, yet it felt like one. Faced with this impossible reality, cold sweat trickled down her back.

‘What method did he use?’

She couldn’t fathom how a mere boy who hadn’t even reached Master rank could acquire the Heavenly Stroke Technique, which existed at a far higher level. She had known he possessed talent, but she never imagined it would be to this degree.

“Sigh….”

I stopped my cursory observation and focused entirely on Raon. Within his crimson eyes lay the footprints of Glen’s ultimate stepping technique.

‘Surely not….’

The Heavenly Sword Master’s lips trembled.

‘Has he entered a state of perfect focus?’

Warriors who reached elevated realms experienced a phenomenon during training or life-or-death battles where all their senses became dozens of times more acute, and time seemed to flow slowly.

It was commonly called a state of perfect focus, a state of selflessness, or an ascension entry—and Raon appeared to have entered that very state.

‘A mere boy who hasn’t even reached Master rank entering a state of selflessness during training?’

In a battle where life and death hung in the balance, perhaps. But entering a state of selflessness during training was extraordinarily rare. She herself could count such instances on one hand, and all five of those occasions had occurred only after reaching Master rank and gaining enlightenment.

That Raon, who hadn’t even reached Master rank yet, had entered such a state while performing high-difficulty training so demanding that concentration was nearly impossible—it was beyond belief.

“There was a reason the Patriarch ordered me to observe him.”

Glen’s command to observe Raon hadn’t meant to protect him. It meant to discern what manner of person he truly was.

“Mysterious, extraordinary, a rare specimen.”

Those three words were the only way to describe Raon. Despite a life filled with its share of trials, she had never encountered anyone like him.

Boom!

Raon continued treading the Heavenly Sword Steps while locked in deep meditation. Whether aware of his own progress or not, his eyes remained entranced as he simply gazed at his footprints and extended his feet once more.

His concentration, honed sharp as a blade’s edge, was palpable even from where I stood. Curious to see how far he would ascend, I found myself unable to leave my post even as the sun climbed above the mountain.

“Hmm?”

As I watched Raon, a maidservant emerged from the Annex Building carrying a tray of food, approaching the Training Courtyard.

Should I stop her?

The state of deep meditation Raon had entered was an opportunity that might come once in a lifetime, if ever. If I allowed an interruption, he could lose all the enlightenment he’d gained thus far, or worse, suffer internal injuries.

Just as the Heavenly Sword Master moved to intervene, the maidservant approached Raon, then suddenly stopped. She gazed at him intently for a moment before turning back with the food still in her hands. After that, the Annex Building fell silent as if night had descended once more, and none of the other maidservants ventured into the Training Courtyard.

‘Could it be…’

The Heavenly Sword Master swallowed dryly and looked back at Raon.

“This isn’t happening just once or twice?”

His footwork was slowly and subtly beginning to resemble Glen Zigheart’s Heavenly Sword Steps.

*

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*

I stopped walking only after encountering the third moon in the Annex Courtyard.

“Phew….”

I exhaled and collapsed onto the ground, which was covered with footprints. I had become so absorbed that I didn’t have the strength to move a single finger.

I lay there and gazed up at the sky. Seeing the moon fuller than it had been two days ago, I couldn’t help but smile. My body and mind were utterly exhausted, yet my spirits soared. The smile came from knowing that my Heavenly Harmony Footwork now and my Heavenly Harmony Footwork in the future would be different.

‘I’ve definitely improved.’

Mastering the Heavenly Harmony Footwork was still far, very far away. It would take decades more of training to reach Glen’s level.

Yet the footwork that had barely been ordinary had now sprouted enough to be usable in actual combat. For merely two days of training, it was an astounding advancement.

‘But there’s something lacking.’

Because I had etched Glen’s Heavenly Harmony Footwork directly into my mind, I could tell. I had replicated his postures, hand seals, and movements exactly, yet his footwork was somehow different from mine.

‘What could it be?’

It seemed like something more fundamental than merely the level of martial mastery or the achievement of the Heavenly Harmony Footwork, but I couldn’t pinpoint the exact reason.

‘Hmm, perhaps I’ve overtaxed my mind.’

Not just my mind, but my body too had reached its limit, leaving me mentally foggy and lethargic. It seemed I would need to find the difference between Glen and me after I had rested.

—This damned bastard….

Just as I was about to drift off to sleep, Wrath ground his teeth together.

—You’ve been causing chaos for two days, robbing me of sleep, and now you want to rest yourself?

‘Wrath. It’s been a while.’

—A while? A WHIIIILE? You won’t sleep either! No sleep, and I won’t let this grudge of eight meals vanishing before my eyes go unanswered!

The mention of meals disappearing likely meant the servants had brought food and then taken it away again.

Roooaaarrr!

Wrath’s eyes snapped open with ferocity, unleashing wrath and frigid energy. The icy surge, towering like a tidal wave from the great sea, coiled around my mana circuits and dantian, while the fury of twenty-five years that had settled deep in my chest began to crush my soul.

—I shall seize your body and conquer the Continent through culinary mastery. No, conquest of the Continent!

‘You were about to say culinary mastery, weren’t you?’

—Silence!

Though Wrath had unleashed his full power in rage and frigid energy, the pain was less severe than expected.

The reason was simple—even now, collapsed from exhaustion, the Ring of Fire continued to turn.

Whoooosh!

The Ring of Fire, now as natural as breathing, melted away Wrath’s frigid energy and calmed his fury.

-Tch! W-why!

Wrath’s mouth fell agape in bewilderment that he couldn’t overcome me, exhausted as I was to the point of death.

-You… can’t do this to me.

-A wretch without the strength to speak, yet why can’t I break through!

-…I have no strength to speak, but you can still defend.

I continued operating the Rings of Fire with a hollow laugh. Though I lacked the energy to spin all six rings simultaneously, I endured the agony and resonated five of them.

-You… what exactly are you! How can a mere human…!

As Wrath gritted his teeth in panic, a message declaring his defeat materialized before me.

[You have endured the interference of 【Wrath】 while in an exhausted state.]

[All stat points increase by 1.]

Normally, the system would have raised only a single individual stat by 1, but because I’d withstood Wrath’s interference while exhausted, it raised all my stats. Truly, the system was impartial.

-Jeeeeean! This means I can’t sleep, can’t eat, and now my stats are being stolen too!

-That’s why I told you not to do it.

With the bonus added before sleep, I’d be able to enjoy a deep, restful slumber.

[You have exhausted both body and mind to their limits.]

[Sloth’s effect maximizes the quality of your sleep.]

As my eyelids grew heavy, a new message appeared.

-This, this is that thing, isn’t it! That ridiculous ability that boosts stats just from getting some good sleep!

I closed my eyes, using Wrath’s screams as a lullaby.

-You stupid Sloth! I’ll definitely come find you later! Because of you two bastards, my original body is falling apart!

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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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