The Reincarnated Assassin is a Genius Swordsman 960

 Chapter 960

 

Raon clenched both his fists the moment he woke from death.

‘I finally blocked it.’

Since he died immediately after blocking Wrath’s attack, it was hard to say he had fully succeeded in defending.

But the mere fact that he hadn’t been instantly killed by Wrath’s full-power attack gave him a sense of satisfaction.

‘Of course, there are still plenty of things I need to reflect on…’

If his strength had been even slightly greater, Heavenly Drive might’ve broken, but his chest wouldn’t have been split apart and he wouldn’t have died. What he regretted most was that he lost strength at the very end and ended up taking Wrath’s attack head-on.

‘No, maybe it wasn’t strength. If my swordsmanship level had been just a little higher, I might’ve been able to withstand it.’

He had tried to overcome strength with softness, knowing full well he was still far too lacking to block Wrath’s attack head-on.

But the gap in power and strength had been too overwhelming, and so his sword technique shattered.

If his proficiency of the flexible sword and severing sword had been higher, he might have been able to redirect Wrath’s attack using the Golden Void Infusion. The fact that he couldn’t do that left a bitter ache in his chest.

‘But that guy…’

Raon licked his lips as he recalled the blue cold energy Wrath had unleashed.

‘Why did he incorporate swordsmanship to it?’

He had taken the power he had cultivated on his own and adapted the sword principles he’d observed at Raon’s side to create an entirely new technique.

‘He must’ve recovered his power after entering the Chamber of Self.’

With his power restored, it would’ve been easy for him to overpowered Raon, so there was no need for him to incorporate swordsmanship. Raon couldn’t understand why he did it.

‘Don’t tell me…’

Could he have been influenced by me?

Wrath had always been by his side during training. Whether he wanted to or not, the principles of swordsmanship must have embedded themselves into his mind.

‘Just like I was influenced by Wrath… he must’ve been influenced by me too.’

The thought made him chuckle without realizing it. It felt like the sense of closeness he felt toward that cotton candy fool had deepened.

“Shall we keep going?”

Now that it felt like he’d become true friends with Wrath, he didn’t want to stay still any longer. He wanted to keep pushing himself and find a way to block that guy’s attack.

Paaaaang!

Raon stepped forward using the Supreme Harmony Steps and began crossing the ocean once more to face Wrath again.

‘With my current level, perfectly blocking Wrath’s attack is impossible.’

They were both Transcenders, but the gap between them was enormous. Trying to block Wrath’s attack with just defense alone would be impossible. Heavenly Drive would break, and in the end, his head would go flying again.

‘Redirecting is difficult too.’

Wrath’s swordsmanship wasn’t particularly high, but his strength was absurdly strong. Just incorporating sword principles made his attacks terrifying.

If Raon tried to forcefully redirect it again like last time, it wouldn’t just be his head, his chest would get cut open, and he’d die.

‘And trying to attack would just be suicide.’

Wrath’s strikes were several times faster and stronger than Raon’s own.

His head could be taken off before he even had the chance to unleash his sword field (Genesis), so trying to counter with an attack was nothing short of a suicidal act.

“Ha…”

Raon let out a hollow laugh as he pressed his fingers against his temple.

‘Now that I think about it… this is ridiculous.’

Defense doesn't work, redirecting doesn't work, attacking doesn't work.

‘Then how am I supposed to block it?’

Realizing he couldn’t block, couldn’t redirect, and couldn’t attack left his chest feeling tight, like something was stuck there. The frustration gave him a pounding headache.

‘Wait. None of the three work? Then what if I try all three at once?’

Up to now, he had tried using all three swords. He had even activated the Divine and Demonic Harmony to dual-wield the divine and demonic swords. But in front of a true absolute being like Wrath, his lack of proficiency always led him back to relying solely on Heavenly Drive.

‘The answer wasn’t Heavenly Drive alone.’

If he wanted to block even a single one of Wrath’s attacks, he would need to improve his proficiency in wielding all three swords, Heavenly Drive, the Blade of Requiem, and the Wooden Ring Sword—together.

‘Yeah. I’ll try everything I can.’

By now, the fear of death had completely vanished. The only thing consuming his mind was the desire to become stronger. Even if it meant dying not just fifty times, but a hundred, he was determined to block Wrath’s attack at least once.

Paaaaaaaah!

Without hesitation, Raon dashed across the ocean, thinking of every possible way to block Wrath’s strike.

‘Hm? I can already see the island?’

He hadn’t even run that far, but he could already see the gray island in the distance.

‘Did the Supreme Harmony Steps improved?’

Crossing this vast ocean dozens of times must have significantly increased his proficiency with the footwork technique.

‘No, it’s not just the footwork.’

Glacier, which had been absorbing the cold energy from the ocean and the cave, had also started to stir, as if it were about to break free from its shell.

It was still far off, but if he could grasp even a single clue, he might be able to break through the wall of ten stars.

‘Just as I thought... Wrath really is a lucky charm.’

This time, Wrath hadn’t handed over any grand reward directly, but by facing him at full power, Raon felt like he was gaining far more than ever before.

‘And he seemed to be enjoying it too.’

At first, Wrath had been hesitant about killing him. But now, he had a rather satisfied expression on his face.

‘Well… it wasn’t the last time, though.’

In the previous fight, his lips had quivered in shock when his attack didn’t kill him instantly.

Raon stepped into the black mirror, smiling as he recalled Wrath’s expression.

“Hoo…”

As soon as Raon landed on the snowy field, Wrath rose to his feet with a visibly irritated expression.

“You’re not some five-year-old brat. Don’t you ever get tired?”

His nose crinkled in disbelief. Though his appearance looked like the embodiment of beauty, his behavior hadn’t changed one bit from when he was a fluffy cotton candy.

“I'm still far from done.”

Raon drove Heavenly Drive and the Blade of Requiem into the ground, then activated the Divine and Demonic Harmony. He raised the divine sword in one hand, the demonic sword in the other, and floated the Wooden Ring Sword above his head.

“I thought you said you’d stick to using one sword because you couldn’t focus otherwise?”

Wrath furrowed his brow, as if asking what Raon was thinking.

“I did. It got so complicated I could barely move my hands. But it feels like the right time to take the challenge.”

Raon crossed the blazing divine sword and frost-covered demonic sword and bit his lip.

“You can only grow by overcoming difficulty.”

If you only flaunt your strength in front of equals or weaker opponents, you’ll fall behind in the end. He wanted to prove that he could wield three swords in front of a Transcender like Wrath.

“Hmph. Do as you please.”

Wrath narrowed his eyes slightly and raised his hand. Perhaps because of what happened in the previous fight, he seemed even more serious than before.

Wooooooong!

Without even announcing an attack, Wrath summoned a shimmer of frost from the tip of his finger.

‘Here it comes!’

It was unexpected, but opponents didn’t always warn you before they attacked. It was only right to be ready.

‘Just as I planned.’

Raon recalled the three sword techniques he’d visualized while crossing the ocean, attack, defense, and redirection. He channeled a different flow into each of the three swords.

Wooooooooong!

With the flame of the divine sword, he raised the Firewall. With the frost of the demonic sword, he drew the Golden Void Infusion. And with the Wooden Ring Sword controlled via the Dancing Sword, he unleashed the Void Slash.

But before the flow of the three swords could connect as one, Wrath’s slash swept in first.

Kyaaaaaang!

The Firewall shattered, the Golden Void Infusion split apart, and the Wooden Ring Sword was flung away. And then—

Shrrrraaaak!

Just like the very first time, his head was severed once again.

“Too sloppy.”

Wrath shook his head firmly, as if Raon still had a long way to go.

“If the flow of the three swords doesn’t connect, it’s worse than using just one.”

He clicked his tongue sharply, as if telling him to get his head straight.

“Don’t worry…”

Raon gave a faint smile.

“I’ll be right back.”

Leaving those words behind, he crumbled into sand and vanished.

"He's always been a guy with an intense desire for strength, but...."

Wrath narrowed his eyes as he watched Raon, who even overcame death itself.

"It's almost excessive right now. It's surprising he’s not shouting at the King of Essence to hand over his power."

Wrath had always known Raon was obsessed with swordsmanship, but in this place, that obsession poured out to an extreme degree.

‘Excessive desire? Don’t tell me… <Greed>’s influence?’

Wrath narrowed his eyes to slits as he looked at the spot where Raon had died.

‘That bastard Greed… Was this his plan all along?’

It had been puzzling from the beginning, why Greed had handed over such an overwhelming amount of <Greed> right away. Now, it looked like that bastard was trying to mold Raon to his liking.

‘Foolish bastard.’

Wrath let out a faint laugh and shook his head.

‘That weasel was destined to become the King of Greed even without your meddling!’

Just as he was thinking Greed would come to regret it someday, the dimensional gate opened, and Raon walked in.

Having crossed that vast ocean dozens upon dozens of times, his proficiency of the footwork had grown to a level that was incomparable to before.

“Let’s start again.”

Raon tilted his head, signaling he was ready for another battle.

‘No…’

Wrath shook his head in disbelief, looking at Raon smiling like he was enjoying himself.

‘The King of Essence might be the one to regret it first…’

He should’ve just run away from the beginning!

*   *   *

Swaaaash—

As Raon moved across the ocean, he clicked his tongue.

‘This isn’t easy.’

He thought he had gotten used to wielding three swords, but against someone like Wrath, a true absolute being,  he realized his technique was riddled with holes, worse than just using a single sword.

A hot flush of embarrassment rose to his face.

‘But that’s what makes it fun.’

Having many shortcomings meant there was still plenty of room to grow, and that made him happy.

‘Bit by bit, I’m starting to see the path I need to take.’

Since he began using three swords, he had died more than forty times. Each time he died and came back, he reflected on himself and tried again, and now he could feel that his swordsmanship had grown to an entirely new level.

‘In the last fight, I managed to redirect the attack well, but my defense collapsed. Because of that, I couldn’t even launch a proper attack.’

He had assigned a different purpose to each of the three swords, and it wasn’t easy to control their power and flow in harmony.

Especially because the Glacier was being overwhelmed by the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation, it was difficult to maintain a proper balance between cold and heat.

‘Still, if I keep pushing through, I’ll achieve it eventually.’

Vowing once again to block Wrath’s attack, even if it meant dying a thousand times, Raon stepped into the blue cave.

But something was different this time.

Wooooong—

The cave’s ceiling and walls rippled as if they had turned to mud, and the frost that had been glowing with a soft blue light now looked as if they were about to explode.

‘What the…?’

It didn’t feel good. He pushed strength into his legs and quickly advanced with swift footwork through the cave.

Upon reaching the cave’s end, he saw a mirror tinged with black. Cracks he hadn’t seen before spread across its surface like spiderwebs.

‘Is it over…?’

Frowning, Raon reached out to the mirror. As the sensation of his legs floating took over, his body was sucked inside. Fortunately, the path leading to the snowy field still remained.

But the state of the snowy field wasn’t normal either. The sky was collapsing, and the ground was cracking, creating spaces of emptiness.

“This is the ninety-ninth time.”

Wrath shook his head as he looked over the cracking ground.

“Ninety-nine? What do you mean?”

Raon narrowed his eyes, turning to Wrath.

“You’ve died ninety-nine times now.”

“Oh…”

“It seems that in this space, you can only die a hundred times.”

Wrath clicked his tongue, remarking that even here, death had a limit.

“So if I die one more time, I’ll die in the real world too?”

“That’s possible. But more likely, you’ll be kicked out of this place.”

He lowered his hand, saying Raon would likely be forced out of the Chamber of Self.

“Well, that’s a relief.”

Raon let out a sigh of relief.

“A relief?”

Wrath gave a hollow laugh, as if he couldn’t believe what he was hearing.

“Yeah. It means I can fight you one more time.”

Raon smiled as he drew Heavenly Drive and the Blade of Requiem.

“Did you not hear what the King of Essence just said? He said you might really die this time!”

“But you said it’s more likely I won’t. I trust you.”

Raon trusted Wrath, and he didn’t want to miss this final opportunity.

“You’re insane enough to put Greed to shame… and yet—”

Wrath furrowed his brows, but then gave a faint smile.

‘He finds himself… respecting you.’

Even if <Greed> was at work, he had never seen anyone so purely and earnestly want to grow stronger.

And the fact that this desire wasn’t just for Raon’s own sake, but for others. That made Wrath’s fondness for him grow even more.

“Very well. The King of Essence’ll face you one last time.”

Wrath nodded and stepped forward.

“You’re not going to go easy on me just because it’s the last time, right?”

Raon shouted not to hold back as he activated the Divine and Demonic Harmony.

“Of course not. He’ll give it his all to kill you.”

Wrath nodded again, straightening his posture. His eyes sparkled with an icy gleam that made it clear—he meant every word.

“Haaah…”

Raon felt the ground trembling beneath his feet, as if it were about to collapse, and slowly closed his eyes.

‘So this is the end.’

Even while enduring the pain of death, he had grown stronger each time, and he was glad for that. He had cherished this time, knowing it would never come again, but now the end was approaching.

‘Let’s give it everything I have.’

This was a chance that would never come again, a fortuitous opportunity he could never grasp again. To not miss this final moment, he sharpened his focus to its peak and opened his eyes.

“Come.”

With the divine sword and demonic sword in his hands and the Wooden Ring Sword floating above his head, Raon gave a small nod.

“Very well.”

Wrath twisted his lips into a grin and stretched out his hand.

“I’ll give you a death more spectacular than any before!”

The moment a blue light flared at the tips of Wrath’s long, graceful fingers, Raon stepped back using the Supreme Harmony Steps.

Thwaaang!

Having crossed the ocean a hundred times, the Supreme Harmony Steps had grown so much that it now moved his body as if it were transcending space itself.

Buying time with his footwork, he used the divine sword’s flame to raise the Firewall.

Fwoooosh!

What had once been a square-shaped wall of flame now took on a refined curve, like a fortress wall, standing firm before him.

Fwoooosh!

At the same time, Raon used his left hand to draw the White Shadow Slash with the demonic sword.

The light of the demonic sword swept across the dark sky and surged upward like white waves.

As the red shield and white canvas unfurled, Wrath’s slash came crashing in.

Kuwaaaaaaah!

The flame shield barely withstood the frost assault, but the canvas of the White Shadow Slash, weakened due to Glacier’s insufficient power, began to shake as if it were about to tear.

‘I have to endure it.’

He had known from the start that the White Shadow Slash, powered by the nine-star Glacier, wouldn’t be enough. His left hand screamed in pain, as if being ripped apart, but he forced himself to endure.

‘I’ve swallowed plenty—time to cough it up!’

He released all the cold energy he had accumulated from crossing the ocean and walking the cave a hundred times.

Wooooong!

A silver moon, split in half, seemed to shine down on him, emitting a serene, crystalline light that drew out the cold energy.

Wooooooooong!

Glacier’s frost circulated rapidly along the Ring of Fire, generating a massive cold energy that wouldn’t lose to the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation.

Tuwuuuuung!

In that instant, a shock struck him, like a blade of cold energy erupting from deep within his heart and piercing through all three of his energy centers.

His energy center began to pound violently as if going out of control, and an enormous cold energy shot through every mana circuit in his body.

Ten stars. The ten-star Glacier unleashed a frost on the demonic sword’s blade, denser and deeper than even moonlight.

Wooooooong!

The canvas of the White Shadow Slash, which had looked ready to tear apart at any moment, was now dyed in silver frost, forming a silk-like wall that would never break.

‘Now!’

While blocking Wrath’s attack with the flame of the divine sword and the frost of the demonic sword, Raon unleashed the Gentle Wind, where wind and lightning moved in harmony.

Kuwaaaaaaang!

The three lights collided with Wrath’s strike, sending out a colossal shockwave powerful enough to erase the entire snowy field.

The collapse of the snow field, already on the brink, accelerated, faint snow blossoms soared skyward from the shattered land.

“Guhk….”

Under the gaze of that blue snow, Raon dropped to one knee and coughed up blood.

The Blade of Requiem and the Wooden Ring Sword had both shattered, and a long, blade-like wound had torn open across his abdomen.

But he hadn’t died.

Nor had he suffered a fatal wound.

Crackle.

Leaning on the only sword that hadn’t broken, Heavenly Drive, Raon slowly rose to his feet.

“I died a hundred times…”

Straightening his back against the overwhelming emotions that surged through him, he looked straight at Wrath.

“But in the end… I blocked you.”

He wiped the blood from his lips and pounded his chest with that same bloodied hand.

“Ha…”

Wrath let out an incredulous laugh and nodded.

“The King of Essence admit it. Of all the beings he has ever seen… you’re the craziest bastard of them all!”

With that praise, the world faded to black. This really felt like the end.

In the darkness, Raon saw the faint image of a blond man smiling in satisfaction. He couldn’t tell if it was a reflection of himself or the figure of the first head of house.

Fwoooooosh—

Raon slowly closed his eyes as he fell into the darkness.

*   *   *

“Mmh…”

Raon let out a low groan as he pushed himself up.

‘This is…’

For the first time in what felt like forever, he wasn’t looking up at a white sky. A dark ceiling and a dim, dying lantern greeted him instead. He had returned to the entrance of the Chamber of Self, connected to the audience chamber.

‘Is it… really over?’

The sensations he had felt inside the Chamber of Self had been so vivid, so real, that it still didn’t feel like he had truly come back.

Just in case, he looked into the mirror inside the room, but now it was just an ordinary mirror, reflecting only his own image.

Haaaah….

As Raon was examining the mirror, Wrath popped out from the ice flower bracelet.

My head hurts. He feels like he’s going to die from exhaustion.

Rubbing his eyes like he wouldn’t sleep for days, Wrath grumbled.

“You remember everything?”

Raon jerked his chin at Wrath.

Of course he remembers, you clingy leech of a bastard!

Wrath scowled, saying it was something he’d never forget, even in death. It seemed everything that had happened in the Chamber of Self had indeed been real.

“Amazing.”

Raon let out a quiet chuckle as he felt the Ten-Star energy of both the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation and Glacier flowing through his energy center.

“They both really reached ten stars.”

He had worried about what he’d do if the growth he achieved in the Chamber didn’t carry over, but every bit of it had come back with him to reality.

“What about you? Did you bring back everything you gained there?”

The same for the King of Essence.

Wrath nodded, saying it was a mysterious place.

H-He managed to recover some of his power too. But…

“But what?”

N-Nothing!

Wrath quickly turned his head, then sneaked a glance back at Raon.

‘Why is this rascal being so quiet?’

He expected Raon to start yelling about killing him nonstop or bringing out Nadine bread, but he was surprisingly calm. So much so that it caught him off guard. It felt like the Raon from the Chamber of Self and the one here were different people.

"Martial arts aside, it's strange that aura and physical growth carry over to reality. What kind of place is that?"

While Raon was murmuring about wanting to test his new strength, a system message popped up before his eyes.

[You have passed the Trial of the First Head.]

[You have experienced 101 deaths.]

[All stats…]

[A new trait….]

On top of the rewards he had seized inside, the system was handing out extra prizes.

So you were acting quiet for this! He knew it! You damn leech of a bastard…!

Just as Wrath was about to scream, Raon dismissed the message window.

…Huh?

Wrath, who’d been bristling with rage, froze on the spot.

"Shall we go get something to eat?"

Raon shrugged his shoulders, saying they should fill their stomachs first.

F-Food? Not Nadine bread?

"Why? Did you want Nadine bread?"

T-that’s not it! You said you were going to feed me nothing but Nadine bread no matter what!

“We both went through a lot.”

With a gentle smile, Raon shook his head.

“Let’s go.”

He rose at a leisurely pace and gestured for Wrath to follow.

‘There’s no need to rush anymore.’

He had achieved a level of growth that defied common sense in such a short span of time. There was no longer any reason to torment Wrath, who had helped him get this far.

Besides, if he got greedy for more strength now, he might get hurt instead. It was time to rest.

“Well, if you don’t wanna come, that’s fine.”

N-no, he’s coming, but… it’s just, you’ve changed so much, it’s unsettling.

Wrath, now perched on Raon’s shoulder, gulped dryly.

Did you lose your mind after dying a hundred times or something?

‘Maybe I did.’

Raon chuckled softly as he opened the door and stepped outside.

If you're being threatened right now, tap your sword three times! The King of Essence will save you!

‘I’m not!’

Unable to hold back anymore, Raon gave Wrath a flick on the forehead.

Then why are you acting like this?! You were like a rabid dog rampaging in the Chamber of Self!

‘Because there was something I had to get in there. Now that it’s over, I can go back to being my usual calm self.’

What nonsense! You were always insane! You just went even more insane in there!

‘Think whatever you want.’

As Raon and Wrath bickered their way out, the Chamber of Self was once again enveloped in quiet darkness.

But somewhere, a breeze blew through, and a soft golden flame lit up in the extinguished lantern, as if waiting for the two to return someday.

 

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