The Reincarnated Assassin is a Genius Swordsman - Chapter 523

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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 523

A deafening roar pierced the air!

What erupted from the sea, raising a massive tidal wave, was not Kaibhar the Kaibhar—it was a Sea Serpent.

But it was unlike an ordinary Sea Serpent. It was a King Sea Serpent, with a head and body roughly twice the size of the one that had fled after being struck by Kuberard’s weapon.
The creature radiated an overwhelming presence befitting a monster bearing the epithet “Demon of the Sea.”

I bit my lip as I gazed at the King Sea Serpent’s fangs, which were longer and thicker than a spear.

‘That’s right. He mentioned there was one of these.’

I recalled Rabawin mentioning a King Sea Serpent when he spoke of the enemy’s forces. It seemed the creature had emerged from hiding now that the monsters were being pushed back.

“Ah…”
“A-a King Sea Serpent!”
“What kind of monster grows to such a size!”

The sailors swallowed hard, visibly shaken by the King Sea Serpent’s immense proportions.

“No matter how large, it is merely a monster! Hold your positions! We can win this!”

Kuberard showed no sign of intimidation despite the creature’s colossal frame. He raised his weathered hand to rally the panicked sailors.

A deep, resonant hum filled the air!

The King Sea Serpent merely flicked its tail lightly, yet a fierce wave surged forward. The defensive formation created by twelve warships swayed as though it would shatter.

“Fire!”

At Kuberard’s command, the sailors moved into action. Still gripped by fear, their movements were sluggish, but they unleashed the anti-monster weapons with precision.

A sharp metallic ring echoed across the water!

The harpoons and hooks Kuberard had crafted pierced through the King Sea Serpent’s thick scales and embedded themselves in its flesh.
Blue blood spilled forth, but the wounds were shallow. The creature’s immense size meant its flesh and hide were proportionally thick.

“Kiiiiaaaaaah!”

The King Sea Serpent shrieked, raising its tail high. Sharp scales layered thickly upon it, forming a shape like a massive war hammer.

“Hmm….”

I watched the shadow of the King Sea Serpent’s tail cast upon the warship, placing my hand on the hilt of the Heavenly Sword.

‘I can’t block that.’

If Rabawin were here, he could easily defend against it, but he was currently locked in a life-or-death battle with the Sea Mist Tribe’s leader on the water. There seemed to be no one to stop this attack now.

“I’ll go.”

As I drew the Heavenly Sword to intercept the King Sea Serpent’s tail, Aris shook her head.

“No, we don’t move.”
“But….”
“Didn’t the Old Man say it when we set out? We must focus only on Kaibhar. This isn’t our battlefield.”

She even crossed her arms, as if determined not to move no matter what happened.

“The King Sea Serpent’s attack is coming!”
“Prepare!”
“Mages, take your positions!”

Sharing Aris’s conviction, all the sailors aboard the warship didn’t look toward us for help.
Despite their fear of the monster, they understood that they had to handle this themselves.

Craaaaaash!

Finally, the King Sea Serpent brought down its blade-like tail. It was merely a simple motion, yet it carried the weight of a mountain within it.

Whoooosh!

The moment the King Sea Serpent’s tail was about to cleave through Cheongpung, a semi-transparent light erupted from the center of the twelve warships. By the flow of mana, it appeared to be a shield spell pushed to its maximum.

Craaaaaang!

The mana barrier the mages had stored on the ship collided with the King Sea Serpent’s tail, and a storm-like shockwave swept across the surroundings.

“Kiiiiiii!”

The King Sea Serpent recoiled in apparent shock, but the shield protecting the warships shattered like thin glass.

“Ugh….”
“Just one strike….”
“Damn it!”

The mages’ expressions darkened. They couldn’t believe the shield had broken from a single impact.

“Now! Pour everything into it!”

Kuberard realized this was the opportunity to capture the King Sea Serpent and ordered all weapons to be unleashed.

The warships with their defenses breached turned their bodies and fired the loaded harpoons, hooks, and sea spears toward the King Sea Serpent.

Fwooooosh!

Dozens of weapons shot forward like streaks of light and embedded themselves into the King Sea Serpent’s body.
As numerous weapons pierced its flesh, deep wounds tore open, but given the creature’s immense size, the injuries were neither fatal nor enough to sap its strength.

“Kiiiiiii!”

Rather, as if only its temper had been provoked, the King Sea Serpent shrieked and thrashed about wildly. The ropes connected to the harpoons pulled taut, causing the warships to sway as though they would sink.

“H-Hold your positions!”
“Secure the ships!”

The captains of each warship attempted to hold their ground by connecting the ships to one another with mana lines and iron chains, but the King Sea Serpent’s strength was overwhelming.

Crunch, crunch, crunch!

Twelve ships began to be dragged toward the King Sea Serpent.

“W-We must cut the ropes and chains!”
“No!”

Kuberard shook his head at those urging him to cut the harpoon line.

“If the line snaps, that monster will rampage freely and slaughter us all!”

He was clearly no stranger to battle, reading the ebb and flow of the battlefield with practiced ease.

Yet the King Sea Serpent, living up to its notorious reputation as the Sea’s demon, forcibly raised its tail despite being restrained by the harpoon embedded in its body.

Before anyone could react, it brought that tail crashing down toward the warship on the far right.

CRASH!

The warship split cleanly in half, sinking into the sea like waterlogged paper.

“Aaaahhhhh!”
“M-Monsters are coming!”
“Damn it! Why here of all places!”
“Help me!”

The sailors who had escaped instant death cried out for rescue from the water.
But the claws of the monsters were faster than the outstretched hands of salvation from the other ships.

SCREECH!

Marine monsters like Sharkmol and Rain Lizards, creatures for whom the sea was home, tore through flesh and crushed bone.

“Fire!”

Kuberard forced his gaze back and unleashed the reloaded weapons.

Given the target’s immense size, the harpoons and hooks embedded themselves in the King Sea Serpent’s body once more, yet it only bled blue blood—it did not fall.

“SCREEEECH!”

The King Sea Serpent shrieked, belching a black cloud of venom from its fangs as it advanced toward the warship on the left—a cloud far larger and faster than the poison mist it had unleashed before.

WHOOOOSH!

The warship’s yellow iron plating could not withstand the toxic cloud, and holes tore through it. Soon the entire vessel began dissolving in the corrosive venom.

“Jump! Jump overboard! If you stay here, the poison will kill you!”
“Ugh!”
“Damn it!”

The sailors leaped into the Sea or onto other ships before the vessel could dissolve completely. They had evaded the poison, but the breach in our defenses widened, and the monsters grew more frenzied.

“Tch….”

I bit my lip as I watched the dying fall around me.
A child younger than Yua was pierced by Sharkmol’s claws and perished, while an elderly man who appeared older than Glen collapsed with flesh torn from his body.

The lives of warriors who had rushed here, valuing vengeance above countless other things, were fading away.

Though I understood that I must endure—having faced all of them during this journey—I could not remain still.

“I know, but it’s hard to bear….”

Had I remained the assassin Raon, I could have withstood it without difficulty. But having lived a life in this world and come to understand the value of human existence, I found it impossible to stay silent. My hands trembled uncontrollably.

“Still, you must endure.”

Aris shook her head, saying this was not the moment.

“You have to hold on.”

Her lips quivered as if chilled by the cold. She seemed to be forcibly suppressing her rage and sorrow at the helplessness of the situation.

‘That’s right. She must be suffering far more than I am.’

I had only just met those now dying after we set sail.
But for Aris, they were subordinates she had personally accepted. It was only natural that she bore a heavier burden.

-The thief woman has some mettle, doesn’t she.

Wrath twisted his mouth as he observed Aris.

-The True Demon King despises those who abandon their subordinates, but this… this thieving woman got that part right.
‘….’
-The lizard is merely meat to me, but to you humans, it is an apex predator. Without proper preparation, you will be annihilated in an instant.
‘I know.’

I exhaled slowly, lowering my hand from the hilt of the Heavenly Sword.

“Ugh….”

Casualties began appearing on the Cheongpung as well. Nuan, moving under Kuberard’s orders, had her shoulder pierced by Balas’s rusted spear.

“Nuan!”

Morin threw down the hammer he was holding and rushed forward to save her.

“Gah!”

But he too, having not yet properly cultivated his martial foundation, was struck in the thigh by the spear and rolled across the deck.

The two children, who appeared younger than Yua, had risked their lives coming here, they said, to witness the death of Kaibhar, who had destroyed their family and village.
It seemed they would die before that dream could be realized.

“Damn these monsters!”

Kuberard, apparently deciding that tactical instructions were now meaningless, seized a massive hammer and positioned himself before the children.
Balas did not miss the opening as Kuberard’s hands trembled with exhaustion, driving his spear forward.

Squelch!

The rusted spear lodged itself in Kuberard’s waist. Yet he grasped it and refused to let go.

“You will not pass behind me!”

The warship’s deck was chaos, and with the monsters vastly outnumbering them, no one had the luxury of spare hands.

Kuberard seemed to understand this as well—he neither called for help nor looked toward where I and Aris stood.

“Ugh….”

I gritted my teeth, glaring at Aris, but she kept her hand firmly on the hilt of her sword, refusing to move an inch.

‘Hold on. Just a little longer….’

As I forced myself to maintain composure by channeling the Ring of Fire, the King Sea Serpent raised its head.

Its power was so immense that the ropes and chains hooked around it snapped, and the warships lurched violently.

“KIIIIAAAAAAAH!”

The King Sea Serpent opened its massive maw. Venom poured from its blackened throat like a deluge.
If that fell as it was, the entire ship would dissolve.

“….”

Aris showed no intention of intervening this time either, even closing her eyes.

BOOOOOM!

Just as the cloud of venom was about to engulf the ship, a colossal aura exploded through the air.

KUUUUUNG!

More than half of the King Sea Serpent’s head flew off as it plummeted into the sea. The largest wave yet surged forth.

CRAAAAAASH!

A ferocious wave accompanied by a powerful sword wind swept across ten warships, cleaving all the monsters in two.

It was Rabawin. He had returned after crushing both the Sea Mist Tribe’s leader and the King Sea Serpent’s head, and now he bowed before Aris.

“I have returned.”
“…You’re late.”

Aris exhaled softly and lifted the corners of her mouth into a smile.

“My apologies.”

Rabawin bowed his head. He too bore the marks of a grueling battle, his entire body covered in wounds.

“I’ll take command again.”

He pulled the spear embedded in Kuberard’s waist and gave a light signal before ascending to the upper deck.

“The King Sea Serpent is dead! Save those who fell into the water first!”

Prioritizing rescue, he swept away the marine monsters swarming the sea.

Glug glug glug glug glug!

As the warship’s crew threw ropes to rescue the fallen sailors, bubbles erupted once more from the depths where the King Sea Serpent had sunk.

An even more massive surge emerged than when the King Sea Serpent first appeared.

BOOM!

The sea surface exploded as a leg the size of the warship itself rose from the water. Eight legs covered in a nauseating number of suckers, and a head bristling with horns like embedded blades—it was the colossal sea monster, the Kraken.

“Ah…”

I exhaled sharply upon seeing the Kraken.

‘A Kraken here?’

I had thought Kaibar would emerge this time, but I couldn’t fathom why the Kraken appeared instead.
The monsters were all dying—I couldn’t understand what he was thinking.

“I’ll handle the Kraken! All other ships, deal with the remaining monsters!”

Rabawin gathered his aura without even catching his breath properly. Just as he was about to tear the Kraken’s leg with his sword aura—

‘Huh…?’

A tremendous chill rippled from the deep sea beneath the Kraken.
It was extremely subtle. I wouldn’t have sensed it without the Ring of Fire and Glaccia.

“Raon.”

Aris uncrossed her arms and placed her hand on her sword hilt. Her eyes gleamed with an eerie light.

“He’s coming.”

I nodded sharply, my head turning with swift certainty.

‘My instincts were right.’

In the depths of the sea, Kaibhar was moving. He was using the Kraken and other sea monsters as bait, attempting to annihilate everyone here with his frigid breath.

Aris and Wrath were correct. Had I engaged in combat, I would have perished as a frozen corpse without ever understanding what happened.

Shing!

I drew the Heavenly Sword and Soul Reaper Sword, rushing toward the Kraken. Aris was already moving ahead.

“What?”

Rabawin, who had been advancing to capture the Kraken, spun around with wide eyes.
He seemed too focused on the Kraken to sense the frigid aura rising from the seabed.

“Surely not….”
“Take all the warships and retreat!”

Aris gestured forward with a tilt of her head, pressing ahead.

“We’ll handle this from here.”

I sent Rabawin a grateful glance before stepping onto the water’s surface.

Whoooooosh!

The moment my foot touched the sea, the entire surface began to glow with azure light.

Crack!

The sea freezes over, and the breath of the sea monsters submerged in the water disappears. A deathly breath so cold that even the slightest touch freezes the soul. If that continues to pour out like this, it wouldn’t just be the monsters—humans would be annihilated too.

Ding!

Aris Zigheart draws her sword while treading on empty air. A colorless, flickering aura and will twisted the space around her.

Screeeeeech!

The spatial blade she unleashed cleaved Kaibar’s frigid breath in two, yet its lingering force remained.

Whoooosh!

I wove Manhwagong through both the Heavenly Sword and the Soul Reaper Sword. The breath of the fire dragon erupting simultaneously from both blades collided with the breath of cold that sought to devour the world.

Boom!

Cold and heat clashed upon the sea surface in a terrifying explosion. White steam rose across the entire ocean—far beyond what the Sea Mist Tribe’s mist could produce.

“Ugh….”

I bit my lip. The frigid breath, befitting a dragon’s mightiest attack, pierced through my high water resistance. My bones and flesh felt as though they were freezing solid.

‘I have to endure this!’

If I don’t hold the line here, nothing matters!

To save so many, I could only watch as others fell. If I could do nothing, there was no reason for my existence here.

Rumble!

I poured forth all the Manhwagong energy amplified through the ring of fire.
The flames atop my descending blade spread like a bird’s wings, melting away all the rising cold breath.

Whoooosh!

In the end, Kaibar’s frigid breath killed not a single human, only freezing the Kraken and monsters before fading away.

But Kaibar’s assault was far from over. This time, a powerful surge of mana flowed from beneath the sea as if he intended to detonate his magic outright.

“Everyone, fall back!”

The moment Rabawin’s cry echoed, dozens of lights burst forth from the churning depths.

Zing!

Aris pointed her sword toward the sea. The moment the crimson blade distorted space, the magic rising from beneath the waves was cleaved diagonally in two.

Kugugugugugu!

Even though I had cut it before it could fully emerge, Kaibar’s mana was so incredibly pure and potent that a massive shockwave erupted from deep within the sea.

‘This time….’

I wielded Glacial and extended both blades forward. Frost flowers bloomed atop the silver tree that sprouted along the blade’s edge, scattering as hundreds of petals.
It was a flame spirit unfolded through the essence of frost.

Zzzzzzzzzt!

The fragments of cold descended like cherry blossoms, freezing the sea surface and significantly diminishing the destructive force of Kaibar’s mana explosion.

“Haah….”

I exhaled roughly, watching the frozen kraken burst apart.

‘Good thing I endured.’

If I had lost focus to the King Sea Serpent or the kraken, I would have been annihilated by that beast’s breath or magic.
Thanks to holding firm as Aris and Wrath had advised, I managed to block Kaibhar’s cowardly attack.

“Well done.”

Aris smiled softly, as if she had always believed in me.

“If I couldn’t manage this much, there would be no point in coming this far.”

I turned to look back, exhaling heavily. Fortunately, following Rabawin’s orders, the warships had retreated far behind us.

Kugugugugugu!

Not just the waves—the entire sea itself began to tremble.
The presence was on a different dimension from the King Sea Serpent or the kraken. It was as if the entire world was screaming.

Pwoooooong!

A colossal shadow spread across the water’s surface like the moon rising over the sea, and a neck that seemed to stretch endlessly—like sunlight scattered across a lake—thrust upward into the sky.

“Ah….”

I swallowed hard, lifting my gaze upward.

‘So that’s Kaibhar, the Light Dragon.’

Its scales shimmered with an ethereal light as if the sea itself had been woven into them, and the neck they encased was as thick as all the sailing ships in this place combined. It stretched long like the main street of the Royal Castle, so vast it was difficult to perceive with the naked eye.

Above the neck that seemed to touch the heavens, fish-like fins rose like blades, possessing a noble majesty as if they were works of art.

Grrrrroooaarrr!

Kaibhar lowered its neck, and its head came into view. Diamond-shaped eyes that rose above scales thick enough to withstand a river’s current blocked out the sun. The world darkened as if night itself had descended.

What was peculiar were its horns—while the right horn stood like a constructed spire, the left horn was broken in half.
Yet somehow, that only made its madness all the more apparent.

“This is….”

Kaibhar, the Light Dragon.

As Aris had said, Kaibhar’s size was beyond anything humanity could contend with. Even if I unleashed my aura endlessly, I doubted I could sever its neck.

-Hmm, I’ve seen that lizard somewhere before….

Wrath stroked his chin while observing Kaibhar. I ignored him, knowing he was about to say something absurd.

“From now on, this is where it truly begins. Stay focused.”

Aris exhaled slowly and tightened her grip on her sword. Even she seemed tense, her eyes narrowing with concentration.

-Anyway, that beast has really packed on the meat.

As expected, Wrath’s nonsensical commentary began. It was madness utterly out of place with the situation, but somehow it eased the tension.

ROOOAAARRRRR!

Kaibar roared toward the sun. The sea’s surface collapsed as if crushed, and a terrifying tempest surged forth, erasing the sun from the sky.
The sound was so deafening that my eardrums felt ruptured, and for a moment, I heard nothing at all.

[Wretched insects!]

Kaibar’s head, which had been glaring at the sun, turned downward. Those reptilian eyes, sharp and predatory, fixed upon Raon and Aris.

“Ugh….”

My fingertips trembled.

‘Is that dragon language?’

The very sound itself carried the power of dragon language, and a suffocating terror seeped into my chest, squeezing my heart. However, because I had endured the presence of other Demon Lords and Glen’s overwhelming aura, it wasn’t unbearable.
However, whether it was because it was a different Demon Lord or because it had endured Glen’s momentum, it wasn’t unbearable.

“What’s with that lizard suddenly attacking out of fear of that bug!”

Raon struck his trembling chest with his fist and cursed.

[….]
[….]

Aris’s eyes widened in surprise, and Kaibar’s gaze turned toward her.

“They kept going on about Kaibhar this and that, but when I actually saw him, he was just a pathetic lizard.”

An arrogant voice rang out from Raon’s mouth as if Wrath had sprung forth.

There’s no need to concern ourselves with justice when dealing with bugs that bring threats to this world.

Hatred and murderous intent began to bloom in Kaibar’s eyes.

“That would be you. Destroying the City and ruining nature—that’s what you did!”

Raon clenched his molars and bit down hard. Having witnessed countless corpses in the ruins of Aikar, anger surged within him at those words.

“A human. His eyes are similar to that guy’s.”

Kaibar’s eyes narrowed to slits as well, a flicker of disdain crossing his gaze.

“That one?”
[Do you know this?]

He pulled his neck back from its forward lean. With that single movement, the sun that had been obscured descended, and the tempest was driven back.

[Only humans possess the ability to summon a Demon Lord from the Demon Realm to this land.]
“….”

I did not answer.

‘That’s….’

I had witnessed countless tales of Demon Lords summoned by humanity’s basest emotions, and I stood beside one such being, yet I had never seen another race call forth a Demon Lord as he claimed.

“So what of it!”

Aris Zigheart’s eyes narrowed as well, as though she too had never heard such an argument.

[Only humanity’s vile emotions can summon the Demon Lord that disrupts the balance of this Continent. Therefore, you wretches are nothing but vermin to this land.]

As Kaibar’s voice grew louder, the very atmosphere trembled and resonated. My ears felt as though they might tear from my head.

[And the Demon Lord is a being that should never exist across all dimensions.]
-That arrogant lizard deserves to die!

Wrath’s fists trembled as he glared at Kaibar.

“You speak as though you’ve actually seen a Demon Lord. From where I stand, you’re far more worthless than any Demon Lord could ever be.”

I twisted my lips as I looked at Wrath.

[That’s only because you’ve never laid eyes upon a Demon Lord.]

Kaibar’s eyes blazed with a chilling, bone-deep cold.

[The Demon Lord. The Blue Demon Lord slew my kin, who moved to maintain the balance of this Continent, and….]

He ground his teeth as if recalling that moment.

[I roasted that corpse and devoured it. If you didn’t witness that pure malice, that savagery, then shut your mouth!]
“Ah….”

I trembled as my jaw quivered, rolling my eyes to the right to gaze at Wrath.

‘So that’s why the dragon became Kaibhar….’

It was because of this creature?

White breath flowed from Kaibar’s snout. The cold seemed to radiate naturally from his fury.

[That creature broke my horn as I tried to save my kin, then mocked me, saying it would eat me if I came back with more flesh! All humans who would summon such a beast deserve to die!]

I nodded with certainty upon hearing those words.

‘That’s him, alright.’

This carnivore had been corrupted by a Demon Lord….

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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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