The Reincarnated Assassin is a Genius Swordsman - Chapter 294

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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 294

“Ugh….”

A faint groan escaped my lips as I stirred for the first time since donning the helmet, my body trembling back to life.

Merlin’s mouth curved into a satisfied smile as she watched me quiver.

“It looks like it’s almost over.”

The stimulation returning to my body suggested that the battle between Rocta and me in the Mental Realm had reached its conclusion.

‘His mental strength is far greater than I anticipated….’

Originally, I had expected Rocta to awaken once he finished adapting to the body, but the fact that it took over three hours just to seize control suggested that Raon’s mental fortitude was far more resilient than predicted.

‘Still, Rocta emerged as the victor.’

My eyes had turned crimson red. The blue light flickering within the eyes behind the mask confirmed that Rocta had claimed victory.

‘It was wise to administer the Soul Severance Elixir beforehand.’

Had I not mixed the Soul Severance Elixir into the spirit medicine in advance, the battle in the Mental Realm would have dragged on far longer, and Rocta might have lost. Though I had exhausted most of my elixirs, I was satisfied that events had unfolded as planned.

Whoooosh!

Merlin lifted me into the air with her telekinesis and gently lowered me onto the floor.
Now that the soul was taking possession of the body, it was far better to lie on the ground than to remain seated, as any external stimulation needed to be completely avoided.

‘At last, we meet….’

Rocta had been more than just my knight—he was family, a companion through centuries of existence. The thought of seeing him again after all these hundreds of years made my heart surge with emotion.

I hadn’t slept or rested for over a week, yet I felt no exhaustion. I simply longed to see him.

After confirming my safety, Merlin stepped back and turned to look behind her. The Severed Soul Sword remained in the same position as before, his gaze fixed upon me.

“What about you?”
“….”

The Severed Soul Sword didn’t answer Merlin’s question, keeping his gaze fixed solely on Raon.

“Doesn’t it feel a bit itchy?”
“….”

At those words, the Severed Soul Sword’s shoulders trembled ever so slightly.

Merlin narrowed her eyes as if she’d expected exactly this, observing the Severed Soul Sword.

“I’m sorry, but.”

She turned her gaze back. Her lips pressed firmly together as she regarded the dragon helmet, which emanated a soft blue luminescence.

“I’m desperate too. I can’t back down.”

*

*

*

“Ugh….”

Wrath touched his swollen eyes with his round hands and sniffled.

“You are the fifth one to throw a punch at the True Demon King.”
“Fifth? You’ve taken quite a beating.”

I chuckled at the sight of Wrath, whose face had turned as blue as tropical fruit cotton candy.

“Are you really the True Demon King?”
“Listen carefully! Not ones who’ve taken the punch, but ones who’ve thrown it! And among those five, you’re the first to ever hit the True Demon King this hard!”

Wrath shrieked as if he’d been wronged.

“Ugh, I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve been struck!”
“Well, I’ve been keeping track. Exactly 294 times.”
“What….”

Wrath’s jaw dropped, clearly shocked at the sheer number of blows he’d endured.

“294 times? 294?! Even if I tried, I couldn’t land that many strikes!”
“You wouldn’t understand, but the impact sensation is incredible.”

I chuckled softly as I watched Wrath growl in frustration.

Wrath was perfectly round and densely packed, with just the right size for striking. It felt like punching a premium punching bag that floated in mid-air. The impact was oddly addictive.

“That the True Demon King… the lord of the Demon Realm… has been struck 294 times by a mere human. This must be a dream. It has to be a dream….”

Wrath buried his face in his plump arms, shoulders trembling. The being who had just displayed overwhelming strength and beauty was now despairing at the reality of becoming a tropical-flavored cotton candy.

“I’m sorry, but my revenge has only just begun.”

I laughed coldly as I watched Wrath whimper.

“What, it’s only just begun?! You’re not planning to hit me again, are you?! After pounding me 294 times, you want more?! Have you no conscience whatsoever?!”

Wrath’s complaints accelerated to more than twice their usual speed, clearly desperate to avoid further punishment.

“I do have a conscience. I won’t hit you anymore.”
“Then….”
“You said you’d feed me mint chocolate three times a day, remember?”
“What….”

Wrath’s eyes trembled like a pendulum. He seemed even more terrified now than when I was hitting him.

“Starting today, your meals will be nothing but Nadin bread. Nothing else will touch your lips.”
“You madman! The True Demon King doesn’t even like mint chocolate! That bread tastes like rubber—you hate it too, don’t you?!”
“I’m fine with it.”

I shook my head calmly. Perhaps because I’d lived without caring about taste in my previous life, as long as my stomach was full, flavor was irrelevant to me.

“What….”

Wrath caught the glint in Raon’s eyes and realized his previous words had been sincere.

“No! Anything but that!”

He cried out in absolute refusal, summoning rage and frigid energy. Yet the power was pitifully weak, drained by the immense effort of manifesting his true form.
However, perhaps because manifesting his true form had consumed too much power, he was incredibly weak.

“Nadine bread is torture! Even raw rubber is better than that!”

Despite his weak strength, Wrath threw a punch of cold energy as if attempting to resist.

“There’s a saying like this in the human world.”

Raon tilted his chin to the side and raised his right fist.

“You have to throw a good punch to receive a good punch.”

Along with those words, I struck at Wrath as he lunged forward. Wrath bounced back like a rubber ball and crashed into the corner.

“Ugh, more, hit me harder, you damn bastard…”

Wrath lay sprawled out with his mouth hanging wide open.

“I hit it softly.”

Raon let out a small chuckle. If he hadn’t held back, Wrath would have been completely crushed and folded up by now.

“No, not bread… anything but bread. Hit the True Demon King instead…”

Wrath left those words behind and closed his eyes. Even as he lost consciousness, he wanted to change the menu—his obsession with food was truly remarkable.

“I haven’t finished speaking yet.”

I was about to say I wouldn’t eat mint chocolate anymore, but I held back because Wrath might actually die from the shock.

Raon turned his head to the right. A small dragon that looked like a lizard was flattened against the floor. It was Rocta, who had admitted defeat and lost his space.

“It’s your turn now. Do you want to start with rock-paper-scissors? Or should we just go right ahead…?”
“I have already conceded defeat. If there is something you wish to ask before I depart, speak now.”

Rocta exhaled softly and closed his eyes.

“Disappear?”
“Those who lose in a battle of souls are absorbed into the victor’s spirit and vanish. In other words, I’m not even worth striking anymore.”

He nodded calmly, as if he wished to depart like a true knight. It was a far cry from his demeanor when he first appeared.

I narrowed my eyes as I regarded Rocta.

‘He’s definitely fading.’

Unlike Wrath, who maintained his form despite taking nearly three hundred blows, Rocta’s figure had become translucent.

Just as Rocta had said at the beginning, it seemed the rule of this realm was that the defeated were absorbed into the victor’s soul and disappeared.

“Time is short, so I’ll ask quickly. Is the Merlin outside the real Merlin?”
“She is.”
“How is a human from hundreds of years ago still alive?”
“She isn’t alive.”
“Then she was resurrected after dying?”
“A sorcerer who formed an alliance with us at the time recovered Merlin’s soul from her frozen corpse after she passed away.”
“So that sorcerer was like an ancestor of Eden, and his descendant implanted Merlin’s soul into a mask in this current era?”

I had sensed something was amiss from the moment I first saw Merlin. Those snow-white hands and lips could never belong to an elderly woman.

“That is my understanding.”

Rocta nodded, saying he had heard as much through Merlin’s voice.

“To be honest, I don’t know the exact circumstances. I’ve only been trapped here, occasionally hearing stories through the princess’s voice.”
“I see….”

That made sense. The information I needed from Rocta wasn’t about Eden, but about this realm itself.

“What changes when your soul is absorbed into me?”
“The grade of your soul will rise significantly. You’ll be able to wield the abilities I once possessed as well.”
“Abilities?”
“Simply put, your aura will increase, and you’ll master the swordsmanship and cold energy manipulation I used, allowing you to reach a higher level of martial prowess.”

Rocta spoke with a calm gaze, as if death were already at his doorstep. I had expected him to resist or buy time, so his candor was surprising.

“Further growth here….”

I clenched my fists. I had already won the wager against Wrath, and now absorbing Rocta’s soul would grant me additional growth in stats and combat power—not a two-for-one, but a three-for-one deal.

“One more thing. How do I develop this Mental Realm?”

Wrath had told me this place held the key to achieving Sword Realm Manifestation, so I wanted to know more.

“Experience.”
“Experience?”
“Even when people face the same circumstances, what they feel and comprehend differs. This world is like a building constructed from the countless experiences you’ve accumulated. If you look upward, you’ll ascend to greater heights. If you look downward, you’ll grow more steadfast.”

Rocta explained that this world transforms based on the thoughts one harbors and the experiences one undergoes.

‘Wrath was right.’

If I accumulated numerous experiences as the deflated cotton candy suggested and developed this place further, I might one day transform it into my own world—a true Sword Realm Manifestation.

“Now, let’s talk about you.”

I proceeded to ask Rocta about his personality and preferences. After this world ended, I would need to impersonate him for Merlin.

“My name is Rocta Deport, as I mentioned. A Blue Dragon….”

Surprisingly, Rocta answered everything truthfully.

“Last question—what is Merlin’s purpose?”

After learning about Rocta’s personal details, I asked about Merlin.

“To bring me back to life and be together like before.”
“Together? Like in your past life—are you planning to massacre people again?”

Roengrin had mentioned that Merlin commanded monsters to slaughter countless people in her previous life. It seemed they intended to recreate that carnage in this world.

“No, that’s not it. I simply wish to live alongside her. I am the only family she has left.”

Rocta’s eyes drooped downward.

“Living together as family?”

Now that I thought about it….

I turned my gaze toward where the Frozen Castle once stood, now vanished. When the castle crumbled, there had been a log cabin inside it as well, much like Merlin’s chamber.

“Merlin was a princess of the Sirken Kingdom. She lost much, and in the end, I was all the family she had left.”
“Sirken—is that the kingdom you say you built after destroying another?”
“Indeed. Though it was also a kingdom that fell before we built it anew. Well, there’s no time to explain in detail.”

Rocta gazed at his own form, now barely visible, and offered a serene smile.

“The princess is a pitiful soul. She has her own circumstances, you see….”
“Is that why you answered so kindly?”

I fixed Rocta with a cold stare. I’d wondered why he was being so forthcoming, but it seemed he was trying to ask me to look after Merlin once we left this world.

“Everyone has their circumstances.”

Everyone living in this world has their reasons. And because of that understanding, Merlin had come far too far.

“That’s true. Both the princess and I know we’ve committed grave sins. It’s just that she….”

Rocta couldn’t finish his final words before dissolving into frost and vanishing. Strangely, his eyes didn’t seem regretful at all.

Boom!

As Rocta completely disappeared, the Mental Realm began to shake violently.

“What’s happening?”
“What else? Now that the half-soul has been completely absorbed into your soul, all the chaos in this world has ended.”

Wrath crawled over like a slug and heaved a long sigh.

“So we’re returning to reality?”
“Indeed.”

Raon gazed at his trembling world as if an earthquake had struck it, and a smile crossed his face.

‘I’ve gained far more than I expected.’

The reward from my wager against Wrath, and the abilities I would obtain by absorbing Rocta—it was a harvest beyond my calculations.

‘And….’

I turned around and took in the sight of my own world, still small and fragile.
I closed my eyes, hoping that through countless experiences, this small and weak space would transform into a place capable of achieving Sword Realm Manifestation.

“I’ll come back later, Wrath.”
“That….”

As my consciousness began to fade within the trembling world, I heard Wrath’s whisper.

“Hey, you’re not really just eating Nadin’s bread, are you? Right?”

Even at this moment, he was thinking about food—so his claim about wanting to eat mint chocolate freely wasn’t a lie after all.

He truly was a remarkable one. That’s why I decided to answer him honestly.

Yeah. That’s right.

*

*

*

“Mmm….”

Raon’s eyes opened. Before he could even examine all the magical circles inscribed on the ceiling, Merlin, wearing an old woman’s mask, thrust her face close to his.

“Do you recognize me?”

For the first time, urgency colored her voice—a tone drenched in anticipation and madness.

Raon slowly rose to his feet and met the trembling gaze in Merlin’s eyes.

“Are you… the princess?”

I mimicked Rocta’s tone, letting my voice tremble slightly.

“Ah….”

Merlin’s legs gave out beneath her, and she stumbled backward. Behind the mask, her eyes trembled violently.

“Rocta. Rocta. Rocta!”

She embraced me while calling out Rocta’s name endlessly.

“Finally, we’ve met! Finally, we’re together again….”
“I apologize, but my memories are still muddled. The memories of Raon Zigheart and my own are intertwined….”

I continued to act out Rocta’s manner of speaking, shaking my head.

“I’m still uncertain about many things.”
“That’s alright. Time will heal it. You’ll become yourself again.”

Merlin wept while holding my neck tightly. Unexpectedly, a fresh spring flower scent wafted from her.

‘This woman is sincere.’

I narrowed my eyes as I watched Merlin’s trembling arms. They said she was my last remaining family, and Merlin was treating this moment as nothing short of a miracle, her joy transcending mere happiness.

“Are you alright, princess?”
“Don’t worry about me.”

Merlin shook her head with a smile.

“Are you hungry? I’ve prepared all your favorite foods.”
-Food?

Even in this moment, Wrath was fixated on food. Truly shameless.

“Come on… ah.”

Merlin gestured for me to follow, then collapsed.

“Your Highness?”

I caught Merlin and assessed her condition. There wasn’t a shred of energy left in her body. She seemed to have lost consciousness entirely from sheer exhaustion.

‘Fainting from fatigue…’

Now that I thought about it, I had never once seen Merlin rest. She had prepared meals with her own hands and continuously made preparations, moving without pause.

Looking at the immense mana contained within these six magic circles, she couldn’t have done this alone.

‘She pushed herself too hard.’

It was clear that over the past hours, without a single moment of sleep, she had prepared the magic and then lost consciousness as the tension finally broke.

I lifted Merlin into my arms and stood.

“….”

The Severed Soul Sword remained in the same stance as when I had donned the dragon helmet, standing motionless.

“I need to let Her Highness rest. Step aside.”

I held Merlin as carefully as possible and gestured with my chin.

“….”

The Severed Soul Sword did not move immediately. Instead, he gazed into my eyes within his helmet. In his emotionless golden gaze, an indescribable, strange light shimmered.

“Did you not hear me tell you to move?”
“….”

Only after I spoke twice did the Severed Soul Sword step back. As he moved aside, an exit appeared in the wall just as it had when I entered.

“Thank you.”

I nodded to the Severed Soul Sword and slipped through the corridor.

“….”

Severed Soul Sword stood motionless as a statue until Raon led Merlin out of the chamber. When the rotating corridor sealed shut once more, his hand trembled faintly.

*

*

*

Raon returned to the log cabin, laid Merlin on the bed, and gazed intently at the old woman’s mask.

-Won’t you take it off?

Wrath, who had returned to his small cotton candy form, pointed at Merlin’s mask.

‘She’ll be a nuisance if she wakes up.’

If I touched the mask and Merlin happened to wake, she would cling to me and refuse to let go, making it difficult to move freely.
While she was unconscious, I needed to examine Rocta’s memories and construct a convincing script.

-You’re a cold one. The True Demon King would have removed it out of sheer curiosity.

Wrath muttered, “That’s why he hit people 294 times.”

‘That’s because you deserved it.’

I chuckled and sat down on the floor.

‘I need to concentrate. Stay quiet.’

Rocta’s memories were hazy now, drifting like clouds in empty sky. Only by focusing intently could I grasp them firmly enough to deceive Merlin completely.

-Hmph. I have nothing more to say.

Wrath turned his head away with obvious displeasure. Since that was his nature, I didn’t mind and tried to focus when a message appeared before my eyes.

[You have achieved victory in the wager with 【Wrath】.]
[All stats increase by 10 points.]
[The trait 【Poison Resistance】 has increased in rank.]
[The trait 【Spiral Force】 has increased in rank.]

It was a message informing me of the rewards for my victory in the wager against Wrath. The amount was considerable, but the message continued for quite some time.

[You have achieved your eighth consecutive victory against Wrath.]
[Due to the effect of an 8-win streak, additional stat increases are applied.]
[Strength increases by 3 points.]
[Agility increases by 3 points.]
[Perception increases by 4 points.]

A consecutive win message. I had defeated Wrath eight times in a row, and my stats had surged accordingly. A thrilling sensation coursed through my spine as my abilities skyrocketed all at once.

—Ugh…

Wrath’s mouth fell open as he read the message. It seemed he was shocked not just by the stats themselves, but by the fact that he had lost eight times in a row.

But the message was far from finished.

[You have absorbed the soul of Dragonian Rocta Deport.]

As Rocta’s soul was absorbed, the rewards cascaded below like a carpet unfurling.

—Grrrgh!

Wrath gnashed his teeth as he stared at the messages.

—How am I supposed to stay silent when this is happening to me!

His eyes trembled violently, darting up and down.

—Why does the True Demon King have to take 294 hits and lose stats to this cursed wretch!

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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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