The Reincarnated Assassin is a Genius Swordsman - Chapter 530

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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 530

I steadied my trembling chest and lifted my gaze.
Unlike the small, modest village that had flickered through my mind moments ago, Capoli Village was refined and dotted with substantial buildings.

With just a bit more growth, it would deserve to be called a small city. It bore no resemblance to the village in my hazy memories.

Yet the ridge of the mountain looming over Capoli Village and the sunset suspended between its peaks aligned perfectly with the memories that had suddenly bloomed.
It felt like two different paintings drawn by different hands overlapping into one.

‘I’m certain….’

I pressed my pallid lips together.

‘This is the village where I lived.’

Like muddy water surging when one splashes in a valley, the past of my previous life, submerged in the depths of memory’s ocean, slowly surfaced.
This was undoubtedly the village where I had spent my childhood before being taken away.

‘That’s why everything felt so familiar.’

When Siris, controlling the water puppet, had spoken of Capoli Village, I’d felt that familiarity. Walking naturally along the Forest Path as I approached here, gaining certainty when I saw the mountain ridge from the village entrance—it was all because I had lived in this village.

‘Ugh….’

A sharp headache accompanied new memories flooding my mind. A young man and woman—they appeared to be my mother and father from my previous life.

I couldn’t see their faces. Only their hands and mouths were visible, and their touch was remarkably rough, their lips twisted as if frozen in anger.

Then came the memory of my mother running down the Forest Path with me on her back. Her steps were rough and careless. She seemed indifferent to whether I was hurt or not.

“Ha….”

I exhaled a low sigh, cradling my forehead.

‘I thought I was kidnapped, but was I sold instead?’

I had consoled myself, thinking I wasn’t abandoned by my parents but rather kidnapped by Shadow. It seemed that wasn’t the case.

Nausea washed over me. Regret crashed like waves—why had I come here only to witness such filthy memories? My insides ached as if ants were gnawing at my heart.

‘Damn it….’

As I clutched my throbbing head, a soft voice reached me from behind.

“Is something troubling you?”

I spun around in alarm. An elderly man with a benevolent expression stood before me, bent at the waist with a gentle smile.

‘I didn’t even notice an ordinary person approaching….’

Not even a trace of mana emanated from the old man. A commoner who hadn’t even begun to study the martial arts. My emotions had been so turbulent that I hadn’t noticed him drawing near.

“…I’m fine.”

I spoke in the deep, gravelly voice of a middle-aged man, matching the appearance I was disguising.

“Hmm, it seems this isn’t your first time here.”
“What makes you say that….”
“The Forest Path.”

The old man turned and pointed to the Forest Path I had just traversed.

“Those visiting our village for the first time walk the main road, not that narrow path.”

He offered a faint smile and extended his hand.

“Berurik, Village Chief of Capoli Village.”
“I go by Valen.”

I gave the alias I had prepared beforehand and clasped Berurik’s hand.

“You seem surprised to see our village after so long.”
“Indeed.”

I nodded, sensing that Berurik might provide valuable information about the village.

“It’s changed quite a bit. A little longer and it would be worthy of being called a city.”

He surveyed the entire village with a satisfied gaze.

“Why has Capoli Village grown so much?”
“Naturally, it’s because of the Iron Ore Mine.”
“The Iron Ore Mine?”
“Hmm? You don’t know about that either? The mine was discovered quite some time ago….”

Berurik tilted his head, mentioning that the mine had been discovered when he was young.

“I’ve visited this place a few times, but I only ever passed through, so I didn’t know much about it.”
“Then I should explain it to you!”

He approached me with a smile, his lips itching to share the news of the village’s development.

“Come inside first.”

Berurik made a light gesture and entered the village ahead of me.

I watched Berurik’s back and licked my lips.

‘It’s not a bad thing.’

Because I’d arrived at Capoli Village so quickly, the Black Market’s information hadn’t arrived yet.
Since it was an opportunity to gather information first, I followed behind him, matching his pace.

“The reason our village developed so much is because of the Iron Ore Mine, as I mentioned earlier. I was living in the neighboring village at the time, so I don’t remember the exact details, but it’s been over several decades.”
“….”

I narrowed my eyes as I listened to Berurik’s words.

‘It must have been after I left the village.’

If the Iron Ore Mine had existed before that, the village wouldn’t have been so small and modest. Whether I was kidnapped or sold, the mine must have been discovered afterward.

“The iron ore at the mine entrance was poor quality, but as you go deeper inside, the quality improves and the reserves are abundant, so our village’s name is gradually becoming known. Recently, we even opened a new trading partner in the Central Continent.”

Berurik couldn’t hide his smile, pleased that the village was developing.

“That’s fortunate. But I’m curious—how did you come to be the Village Chief here when you previously lived in a different village?”

I feigned interest in Berurik while posing a question designed to extract information.

“I originally lived in Frisil Village, on the opposite side of Haro Mountain.”
“But why did you come here…?”
“Both our village and Capoli Village faced a terrible calamity.”
“A calamity, you say?”
“A landslide occurred.”

Berurik sighed while cautioning some children running through the village.

“Decades ago, both this village and Frisil Village—where I lived—were devastated by a landslide. More than half of each village collapsed. Countless people died, regardless of age, and many bodies were never recovered.”
“I see…”
“It was hell itself back then. Frisil Village, where I lived, suffered greatly, but Capoli Village was nearly wiped out entirely. When everyone was preparing to abandon the village, thinking it couldn’t be sustained, an Iron Ore Mine was miraculously revealed.”

He pointed toward the entrance of the mine constructed on the mountainside of Haro Mountain.

“Though it’s disrespectful to the deceased, the living must survive. The survivors from both Capoli and Frisil gathered here and became miners. The Yuwhwa Merchant Group even built a factory like that, allowing everyone to live comfortably.”

Berurik gazed at the massive factory erected in the center of the village, his eyes growing distant.

“I had no idea such a tragedy had occurred. There must have been many children who lost their parents—it must have been absolute chaos.”

I expressed sympathy while subtly probing about the children.

“Unfortunately, most of the children and the young couples raising them were buried by the landslide. Back then, it wasn’t the cries of children that filled the air—only the wails of adults.”

Berurik shook his head, saying he still couldn’t forget that hellish scene.

“I see…”

My hands, hidden within my sleeves, trembled.

‘They didn’t just take me.’

Even in such a remote village, if numerous children had been abducted, the nearby martial sects or kingdoms would have been forced to investigate.

Derus Robert must have orchestrated the landslide deliberately to suppress any external investigation into the kidnappings.

‘Vile demons….’

Not content with kidnapping children, they triggered a landslide that killed their parents too—even the demons of hell wouldn’t stoop so low. My stomach churned as if I might retch.

“Haah….”

My lips parted involuntarily, and ragged breath spilled out. If Derus Robert had been here, I’m certain he would have lunged at them without hesitation.

“Here it is.”

As I forcibly suppressed my emotions, Berurik’s footsteps halted. At the entrance to Haro Mountain stood a massive stone tower, towering like a building itself.

“This is a memorial stone and tomb built to console those who died back then. The survivors from that time constructed it with their own hands.”

Berurik gazed at the stone tower with distant eyes.

“Such a thing can hardly console those who died so tragically, but….”
“….”

I listened to Berurik’s words as I approached the tower. When my trembling hand reached out to touch it, a vivid shock struck my mind, and a new memory surfaced.

No—not a new memory, but one I’d seen the moment I arrived in this village.

Yet this time, my mother’s and father’s faces appeared clearly.

My father had a fierce appearance with a thick beard, but his eyes were gentle. My mother had black hair swept back gracefully, with an elegant bearing. Their rough hands and firm lips remained unchanged, but their eyes were different.

My parents gazed at me with eyes brimming with sorrow, regret, and urgency.

Father gently stroked my head, then handed me to Mother and picked up the axe hanging on the wall.

Mother nodded, then climbed through the window. She ran barefoot past the village entrance and into the Forest Path.

Her feet and face were scraped by branches as she ran without pause, her breath ragged and labored, yet she never stopped moving.

But Mother never made it out of the Forest Path. The moment a black shadow obscuring the thin moon drew near, she coughed blood and collapsed. My memory ended there.

‘Then that gesture….’

The stiff gestures, hardened expressions, and rough strides through the forest that I witnessed from my mother and father when I first came to this village—all of it had been their desperate attempt to protect me from Derus Robert’s subordinates.

I was never abandoned. I was never sold.

My parents had fought desperately to shield and protect me, even in the face of their own death.

Through the fog of descending pain, I heard the voices of my mother and father.

William.

The name they had called me—a gentle name meaning one who is mild-mannered and loves peace. A name I had failed to live up to.

With the vivid memory of my mother and father smiling as they looked at me, all the past memories that had bloomed in my mind gradually sank away.

The stone tower came back into focus. All strength drained from my body. My limbs trembled so violently I could no longer stand.

Raon collapsed to his knees. Biting his tongue to conceal the fury blazing from the depths of his soul, he clasped his hands together.

‘Mother. Father.’

I swear vengeance. By any means necessary, I will bring Derus Robert’s head to this place.

Consoling the dead could wait. Now was the time to swear revenge for those who had died unable to even close their eyes after losing their child.

“Much obliged.”

Berurik patted my shoulder with a gentle smile.

“They would be grateful to you as well.”

He seemed satisfied, believing I had offered a prayer to comfort the dead.

“Is there anything else you’d like to know? These are all stories everyone knows, but it’s been so long since I’ve had a chance to talk—this old man’s spirits have lifted.”

Berurik smiled, apparently pleased with the person named Valen that Raon had created.

“I’ve been looking for work. How are the Factory and the Iron Ore Mine operating here?”
“Oh, truly?”

Berurik smiled, saying he would introduce me if I wanted to work. It seemed that quietly listening to everything he had to say had earned me points.

“For now, I need to inform an acquaintance in the village I originally planned to visit, so I’d like to just look around today.”
“You won’t regret coming here. It will soon become a city.”

He gestured quickly and entered the Factory first.

“Huh? Village Chief?”
“What brings you here at this hour?”

The Factory workers standing before the blast furnace bowed their heads upon seeing the Village Chief.

“I just stopped by while passing through.”

The Village Chief waved his hand, telling them not to worry.

“He’s caught another young person and started chattering away.”
“Look at his parched lips—he must have really worn this one out.”
“He snares one person every week without fail.”

The workers shook their heads sympathetically.

“Hey! You people! Don’t say such things about a good man!”

The Village Chief’s face flushed with embarrassment as he waved his hand. It seemed this wasn’t the first or second time this had happened.

“….”

I bowed my head to them and examined the Factory.

‘They’re all ordinary people.’

There was no mana within them, and none of the distinctive movements of assassins. They were clearly just people maintaining this Factory.

On the surface, the Factory appeared to have no major issues. But Siris wouldn’t have lied, so there was definitely something hidden within.

Just as I was about to activate the Ring of Fire and Seolhwa’s senses, a door on the left side opened, and a portly middle-aged man with a protruding belly walked out.

“Ah, Village Chief. You’ve arrived?”
“Work Foreman. Why is it so hard to see your face these days?”

Berurik addressed the middle-aged man as the Work Foreman, his lips twisting into a grimace.

“There’s simply too much work. And who might this person beside you be?”

The Work Foreman smiled at Raon, though his eyes remained cold and unsmiling despite the curve of his lips.

“Ah, I caught him passing by. It’s been a while since I’ve had someone to chat with.”

Berurik chuckled, as if to say he’d approached first.

“Ha, another victim has been added to the count.”

The Work Foreman waved his hand, asking him to enjoy the Village Chief’s endless chatter.

“Not at all. I’m the one who should be grateful for hearing such wise words.”

Raon bowed his head at the Work Foreman’s words. When he lifted his gaze again, his eyes had settled into an eerie, chilling light.

‘Found him.’

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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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