The Reincarnated Assassin is a Genius Swordsman 1013

 Chapter 1013

 

You’re putting a leash on a Transcender?

Wrath widened his eyes as he looked at Raon.

What kind of bullshit is that?

He tilted his head, as if wondering whose leash Raon was planning to grab.

‘The balance between the Five Kings and the Four Demons has changed now.’

Raon twisted his lips as he gripped the hilt of Heavenly Drive for the first time in a while.

‘With the Fallen’s death, the balance was broken.’

The Fallen had died, and a large number of the demons of Eden under his command were also slaughtered in large numbers, so it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that Eden’s current forces were less than half of what they once were.

‘Before that, the Black Tower collapsed.’

Unlike Eden, which still had the Heavenly Demon alive, the Black Tower had completely fallen with the death of its sole master.

‘And on top of that…’

Raon raised a finger and tapped on the window, through which sunlight was rippling.

‘One of the Four Demons’ pillars, the Holy Sword Alliance, is neither on their side nor ours, they're neutral.’

Rector and the Holy Sword Alliance would not side with the Five Kings, but they wouldn’t join the Four Demons in war either. They would never stray from their position of strict neutrality.

‘In reality, it’s not the Five Kings vs. the Four Demons anymore, it’s more like the Five Kings vs. the Three Demons.’

Some of the Five Kings' Transcenders were injured, but except for Ogram, all of them had injuries that would eventually heal.

At this point, it was no exaggeration to say that the Five Kings had established clear dominance over the Four Demons.

Then what will you do about the archangels?

Wrath furrowed his brow as he looked up at the blue sky.

Each one of them is practically a high-level Transcender. He hates to admit it, but one of them is even on the King of Essence’s level.

‘I remember, of course.’

Raon exhaled a heavy sigh.

‘But considering that Derus hasn’t made a move yet, he probably hasn’t summoned all the archangels.’

Derus was lying in wait, silently gathering his strength. Considering his perfectionist personality, it was clear that he believed he still had time.

Even if the summoning takes time, he’ll eventually call the other archangels too.

Wrath clicked his tongue, saying that Derus’ gaze had clearly shown that desire.

‘I know. That’s why I’ve come up with a plan of my own.’

Raon waved his hand, telling him not to worry.

What plan?

‘Secret for now. You’ll find out soon enough.’

He doesn’t know why, but hearing that you have a plan suddenly gave him chills.

Wrath gave a small shudder, saying it felt just like when he was about to have something taken from him.

‘Your instincts are sharp.’

Raon smacked his lips as he looked at Wrath.

Ehh?

‘It’s nothing.’

He waved his hand and turned again to the window where the warmth of the sun streamed in.

‘Anyway, all the factions that had been watching from the sidelines in the standoff between the Five Kings and the Four Demons will now have to choose a side. Most of them will probably crawl over to us.’

He narrowed his eyes as he looked up at the sky, so blue it was clearer than the sea.

But why grab the leash?

‘Because I might miss my chance if I don’t. I need to be prepared in advance.’

Raon tied a letter to the leg of the black swallow of the Shadow Agents that he had prepared earlier and sent it out through the window.

Fwaaah!

As if it already knew its destination, the swallow soared high into the sky and flew toward the south.

Now the King of Essence understands what you meant.

Wrath nodded calmly as he watched the swallow’s tail disappear into the sky.

‘But before that…’

Raon smacked his lips again as he looked toward the location of the fifth training ground.

‘Should I check on our own kids’ leashes first?’

*   *   *

Kyaaaaang!

Burren and Mark Goetten clashed swords and then retreated in opposite directions.

“This is ridiculous.”

Burren let out a dry laugh as he looked at his slightly trembling blade.

“You reached Grandmaster later than us, but you’ve already caught up to our level…”

He spoke with a mix of surprise and admiration, then offered his congratulations.

“It’s all thanks to the palace master’s guidance.”

Mark Goetten tilted his saber toward the ground and nodded calmly.

"I was able to reach my current level because he told me it wasn't too late yet."

He said it was because of Raon that he didn’t give up, and he tightly gripped his saber.

“A flower that blooms in hardship is always the most beautiful.”

Burren once again congratulated him, clapping his hands.

“If you’re done, step aside!”

Martha shoved Burren out of the way and stood in front of Mark Goetten.

“Hey, old man. You’ve got to spar with me too. I’m not going to go easy on you like Burren did.”

She flicked her hands off like a back-alley punk, telling him to come at her properly.

“Alright!”

Mark Goetten nodded, signaling he was ready anytime, and blocked Martha’s incoming strike head-on.

Claang!

With the clash between the two Grandmasters, a powerful surge of aura erupted into the air above the fifth training ground.

“Next is me…”

Runaan slowly raised her hand, as if she also wanted a spar with Mark Goetten.

“Huaaaahm!”

Krein let out a long yawn as he watched Mark Goetten and Martha’s duel.

“It’s peaceful. Now that the palace master isn’t here. I haven’t felt this relaxed in ages.”

He leaned back against a tree, saying there was no need to watch his back.

“You feel relaxed because the palace master isn’t here?”

Dorian rolled his eyes slightly, as if asking what he meant.

“When the palace master is around, even if I’m giving it my all in training, I still feel pressured.”

Krein snorted as he looked up at the tree.

“He trains so hard it makes me feel like I’m just slacking off, even when I’m not.”

He shook his head, saying he hated that feeling.

“That’s actually a good thing.”

Trevin pointed a finger as he looked at Krein and Dorian.

“People only grow when they feel they’re lacking.”

He furrowed his brow, saying that without Raon, he actually couldn’t train properly.

“That’s just because you haven’t been under our palace master for long, Sir Trevin!”

Krein waved his hand vigorously.

“It’s not just that he puts pressure on you! He shows up out of nowhere and forced a spar, and just beats the crap out of you on the spot!”

He let out a rough breath like he was spitting out everything, saying Raon’s training was far harsher than Burren or Martha’s.

“I wish he’d stop with that damn focus enhancement training.”

“Yeah. Every time we do it, my body breaks down. I can’t even move afterward.”

“I hate sparring with the palace master. I never land a hit, I just get beaten up. What’s the point of that?”

“The training keeps getting harder. I don’t even feel like I’m getting stronger anymore.”

“Maybe he’s training us just so he can beat us up.”

The swordsmen who agreed with Krein gathered around and nodded enthusiastically.

“……”

Only Dorian remained silent, his eyes trembling slightly as if he sensed something.

“So you all feel the same way!”

Krein stomped his foot grandly as he looked around at the approaching swordsmen.

“I’m telling you, they really don’t get it! Monsters like them don’t understand how we feel!”

He ground his teeth, saying people like Burren, Martha, and Runaan didn’t understand their pain.

“It’s true that Sir Raon’s training made us stronger. But we should do things differently now. It’s always sparring, always focus enhancement training. It’s boring and not even fun!”

Krein snorted, calling Raon the King of Repetition.

“Dorian. Why are you staying quiet? You’ve got plenty of complaints too. Say something.”

He tapped Dorian on the shoulder, urging him to let out all his pent-up frustration.

“Mmgh.”

Dorian raised the hand that had been covering his mouth and pointed behind Krein.

“N-No way…”

Krein gulped dryly, sensing fear from Dorian’s trembling finger.

“He’s behind me?”

“Yeah…”

Dorian nodded with teary eyes.

“Ahaha…”

Krein trembled all over like a skewered freshwater fish and slowly turned around.

From behind the tree he had been leaning against, Raon emerged, his red eyes gleaming.

“Pa-Palace master! When did you get here?”

Krein forced a smile as he scrunched up every muscle in his face.

“Just now.”

Raon nodded calmly, as if he hadn’t heard a thing, and made his way toward the platform.

“W-What the…? Did he not hear us?”

Krein smacked his lips as he stared at Raon’s back walking up to the platform.

“It… kind of seems like he didn’t?”

“He arrived exactly when we finished talking.”

“T-Thank goodness…”

The other swordsmen muttered that they’d barely survived and let out sighs of relief.

“I barely made it out alive.”

Krein wiped away the cold sweat pouring from his forehead like rain, as if he’d just returned from a trip to hell.

“Ugh…”

But Dorian, who knew Raon best, shut his eyes tightly as though he could already see Krein’s future.

Tap.

As Raon stepped to the edge of the platform, the Light Wind swordsmen, who had all been doing different things, gathered before him and stood at attention.

“Did everyone take care of themselves properly while I was gone?”

Raon lowered his red gaze and made eye contact with the swordsmen of the Light Wind Palace.

“Yes, sir!”

They all answered in unison without a hint of hesitation, like a single person.

“Since the break ended, everyone’s been participating in training since dawn.”

Burren reported that there were no issues and that all the swordsmen had focused on their training.

“They’re used to it now, so they start training on their own without being told.”

Martha let out a bright laugh, as if she was proud of them.

“Only one person was always late…”

Runaan gave a small nod, as if reporting that even tardiness had gone down.

“That one person was you!”

Martha shouted at Runaan, looking dumbfounded.

“I never said it wasn’t me.”

“Then why are you talking like it’s someone else!”

She ground her teeth, telling her to get a grip.

“Hmm…”

Raon left the bickering Runaan and Martha alone and looked back at the Light Wind swordsmen.

“It’s clear that everyone’s been training diligently. Good work. But…”

His tone had been praising them, but then his gaze turned sharp.

“I don’t think the results of your training are showing properly.”

He shook his head, sensing that their overall power levels hadn’t changed much from a while ago.

“Well, that’s because…”

“You don’t get stronger overnight just by training!”

“Yeah. It takes time…”

Burren, Martha, and Runaan all let out sighs, saying they’d already passed the level where effort shows immediate results.

“Familiarity is a dangerous thing.”

Raon habitually tapped the scabbard of Heavenly Drive.

“Once the body and mind adapt to difficult training, you don’t gain much from it anymore.”

Swordsmanship is perfected through repetition, but physical strength and mental strength don’t improve through familiar effort.

“To be honest, all of you are strong.”

Raon extended his hand toward the Light Wind swordsmen.

“Your physical strength, mental strength, and swordsmanship are all beyond your current level, and you’ve accumulated plenty of real combat experience. You won’t lose easily to opponents of the same level.”

Through the focus enhancement training, he had developed their mental strength. By beating them himself, he’d toughened their bodies. And through sparring, he had filled in their real combat experience. It wasn’t an exaggeration to say that the Light Wind Palace was the strongest single armed group.

“But there’s one thing you all lack.”

Raon raised a finger and pointed to his energy center.

“Aura.”

The Light Wind swordsmen all had decent aura, but because they were still young, they often fell short in both quantity and quality compared to opponents of similar level.

“That’s why I’ve come up with a new training method. This one…”

As soon as the word “new” came out, Raon glanced at Krein, who was already trembling, and let out a chilly smile.

“It won’t be boring at all.”

“Uh…”

Krein realized then that Raon had heard everything and his face went deathly pale.

“For the first one…”

Raon slowly twirled his finger as if thinking it over.

“Uuuuugh…”

As if sensing his fate, Krein stepped forward on his own.

“Let’s start with Martha.”

But instead of Krein, Raon extended his hand toward Martha.

“Not Krein?”

Martha tilted her head, surprised.

“Yeah. You first.”

Raon smiled as he stepped in front of Martha.

“Sit and face forward.”

“Got it.”

Martha obediently turned her back to him, showing complete trust.

Wuuuuung.

Raon gathered the heat of the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation and the cold of Glacier at his fingertip and injected it into Martha’s mana circuit.

“Krgh!”

Martha, feeling excruciating pain from the sudden surge of aura, lifted her trembling eyes.

“This training is about using your own aura to push out the aura I just injected.”

Raon gave a faint smile as he continued to pour aura into Martha’s mana circuit, even as her shoulders trembled from the pain.

‘I never thought I’d end up using this as training.’

Originally, this method was his own personal torture technique used to extract information from enemies.

But after hearing Krein’s complaint that his training was boring, he gave turning it into a new aura cultivation method a try.

‘For something I came up with on the spot, it’s not bad.’

Unlike during torture, Martha could resist with her own aura, so the quality and density of her aura would steadily grow stronger. It was similar to how muscles rebuild stronger after being torn.

‘If she can endure this training to the end…’

It might produce results even greater than fully absorbing a highest-grade elixir.

No one can fully absorb the effects of an elixir just by consuming it.

But if she endured this training, she could end up with aura even stronger than what a fully absorbed top-grade elixir would provide.

‘Of course…’

Raon let out a soft chuckle as he looked at Martha, her face flushed red.

‘It won’t be easy.’

This training required enduring intense pain while continuously operating aura cultivation techniques, placing it among the most difficult Raon had ever devised. It was something no average willpower could possibly endure.

“Krrrrgh….”

Martha gritted her teeth so hard they made a grinding sound as she glared at Krein, eyes pouring out fury as if blaming him for her pain.

“Next, then…”

Raon raised his hand to choose the next person.

“Hmm…”

“Burren.”

Ignoring Krein, who had started to step forward, Raon called Burren and pushed aura into him just like he had with Martha.

“Aaaargh…”

Burren also struggled to endure the pain, chewing hard on his lips as he glared at Krein.

“Next, Runaan.”

“W-Wait!”

Krein jumped ahead, cutting off Runaan.

“P-Please! Do me next! I’m begging you!”

He rubbed his hands together like a fly, as if begging for his life.

“No.”

Raon shook his head, sensing the cold stares directed at Krein.

“This training exists thanks to you. You’ll go last.”

Saying he’d make sure to take proper care of him, he stepped up to Runaan and injected the heat of the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation and the cold of Glacier into her back as well.

“Hrrmph…”

Even Runaan, who usually had barely any reaction, clenched her blank-looking eyes in pain and looked up at Krein.

“Argh! Stop it already!”

Krein screamed for mercy and slammed his head to the ground.

The King of Essence has met many demons in his life…

Wrath clicked his tongue, as if in utter disbelief.

But never one who drives people to their deaths like you! You sun-like bastard!

‘Isn’t the sun considered a compliment in the human world?’

Raon bowed his head, thanking him for the praise.

That’s not a compliment! It’s a damn insult!

*   *   *

One week later.

The Light Wind swordsmen overcame the aura of the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation and Glacier that Raon had injected into them and made it their own.

Raon gave a small nod as he watched them cultivating their aura with full concentration.

‘They’ve adapted faster than I thought.’

He had expected it to take a month, but they overcame his aura much faster than expected.

‘And their proficiency went beyond what I’d hoped.’

The training had originally been intended to raise the level of their aura, but as a bonus, they had also gained resistance to heat and cold.

It seemed that all the training they had done until now had worked together to produce this effect.

‘Of course…’

Raon let out a chuckle as he sensed the bloodlust coming from the swordsmen, who were glaring at Krein’s back as he cultivated at the front.

‘For him, it must be hell.’

The swordsmen were all glaring daggers at Krein, clearly thinking that this training had been created because of him, cursing him with their eyes.

If Raon weren’t there, they’d probably be throwing fists at him out of rage.

The more he thinks about it, the more he pities your enemies.

Wrath clasped his hands together, saying he would start praying for their souls.

‘No need to pray for them. Every last one of them deserves to die.’

As Raon shook his head coldly, a pure white bird descended from the sky before him. On its forehead was a red dot, emanating a mysterious aura like clouds hanging over a high mountain.

“Hmm…”

Raon took the white paper tied to the bird’s leg and unfolded it.

‘So it finally arrived.’

The letter, written in elegant handwriting, said that he was welcome to visit at any time.

“Enough.”

With a wave of his hand, Raon recalled his aura, and the Light Wind swordsmen, their eyes weary, lifted their heads.

“It’s already over? I can still keep going!”

Martha clutched her knee, gasping for breath.

“Yeah. I was just starting to get the feel of it…”

Burren smacked his lips, looking like he wasn’t satisfied yet.

“I’ve gotten used to the fire now…”

Runaan nodded, her flushed face suggesting she had adapted to the heat of Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation.

“A new mission will be coming down soon. Be ready.”

Raon brushed dust from his uniform and straightened his disheveled hair.

“A mission? I thought we weren’t getting any for a while?”

Trevin narrowed his eyes as he looked at the white paper.

“It’s not something handed down from above. I’m going to propose it to the head of house.”

Raon wrote a reply saying he would come soon and tied it to the white bird’s leg.

“What kind of mission are you proposing…?”

Dorian swallowed dryly, sounding nervous.

“The remaining two of the Five Divine Orders.”

Raon looked at two streaks of cloud sinking below the grand sun, a cold smile on his lips.

“It’s time to bring the Thespian Emperor and the Queen of Swords to their knees.”

 

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