The Swordmaster Wants To Live Peacefully [EN]: Chapter 35

Swordmaster Wants to Live in Peace – Episode 35

The Sword Demon

“Ooh, ooh… is this the savior who will defeat that vile one…?”

“Yes, he is Yoo Seong-woo, whom we have brought from Earth.”

As I entered the Abyss, I saw sturdy ramparts.

The last land of the Towel Tribe, their final stronghold. The fortress, ‘Wolseong’.

“It’s Yoo Seong-woo.”

“I am Yeongwol, the commander of Wolseong. To think this old man would live to see the day we reclaim our land…”

The Towel Tribe member who greeted Yoo Seong-woo was an old man who appeared even older than the other Towel Tribe members.

“You’re celebrating before we’ve even fought. What’s the situation?”

“It’s not good. We’re holding out as much as we can at Wolseong Fortress, but it’s on the verge of falling. If you had been any later…”

“Then I’ve arrived just in time.”

“That’s right.”

Yoo Seong-woo seemed accustomed to the situation, asking Commander Yeongwol about various things.

What the battlefield situation was like, what the enemy’s forces were like, and where their weaknesses lay.

He received all the information from Yeongwol, including the enemy’s weaknesses and formations, and began to formulate a plan to attack the Sword Demon.

“So, in the end, if we defeat the Sword Demon, all the others will fall too.”

“That’s right. According to what we’ve gathered through the Wolmun [a magical gate or portal], all the forces are organically connected, so if we defeat the leader, the Sword Demon, it will be resolved. But the path to the Sword Demon is so…”

The Sword Demon was also aware of this fact, so he was cautious of unexpected situations and did not step forward, instead focusing on attacking the Towel Tribe with his subordinates.

Moreover, he thoroughly defended against the Towel Tribe, preventing them from breaking through.

The Towel Tribe had tried to break through that defense line several times, but neither they nor the Divers [individuals from other worlds or dimensions] could break through.

Even if they did break through, the extreme loss of forces would have prevented them from fighting the Sword Demon properly.

After hearing the story, Yoo Seong-woo drew a map in his head and thought about how to turn the tide of the war.

The Towel Tribe’s forces were overwhelmingly small, and the path to the Sword Demon was long.

It could only be described as the worst situation.

The Towel Tribe also knew this, so they looked grim throughout the explanation.

“Not bad.”

However, Yoo Seong-woo dismissed the current situation as ‘not bad’.

In fact, he had fought on battlefields worse than this, so he could say that.

On a battlefield where others would have run away, he chose to step forward and fight.

“I need the latest information from the battlefield. Can the reconnaissance team move?”

“Yes. There are Towel Tribe warriors who are fast on their feet.”

“Then refrain from combat and only gather information on the current situation. I will devise a detailed plan then.”

“Understood.”

With those words, Yoo Seong-woo began to tour the ramparts, guided by Yuwol.

It was to grasp the surrounding geography and current situation.

Yeongwol, who was watching Yoo Seong-woo’s back as he walked towards the ramparts with Yuwol, thought.

‘But did he come alone?’

What they had to face now was the existence that had driven the Towel Tribe to the brink of annihilation.

But for him to face them alone was no different from suicide.

No Diver who had come so far had come alone.

He was an opponent who could never be defeated alone, and they were cunning.

They had even increased their forces to the point where it was uncertain whether they could be dealt with even if hundreds of people came.

‘…Priestess, I will trust you.’

Yeongwol closed his eyes and decided to trust Yuwol.

She was the one who heard the voice of the moon more closely than anyone else.

Therefore, she was wiser than anyone else, so everything would head in the right direction.

* * *

“Has anyone fought the Sword Demon before?”

“There were. But they are all dead now. No one who has fought the Sword Demon has ever returned alive.”

“Has anyone seen the swordsmanship he used?”

“…Only records remain. It is said that he uses a tyrannical dual swordsmanship with swords in both hands.”

“Dual swordsmanship, I see. Understood.”

Over the course of a full day, Yoo Seong-woo crammed everything about the battlefield into his head at Wolseong.

What is needed before facing a powerful enemy is to know the enemy.

Use everything that can be used in the surrounding environment, and kill the enemy by any means possible.

Yoo Seong-woo had killed enemies that way until now.

The Towel Tribe warrior who had conveyed the current situation to him stood before him, paused for a moment, and then opened his mouth.

“…I apologize for being rude, but how does the savior plan to face him?”

“Don’t call me by that title. Yoo Seong-woo is enough.”

“Yoo Seong-woo.”

“Yes. That’s enough. You asked how I plan to face the Sword Demon.”

“Yes. He is a monster that no one has ever been able to face. His merciless blade easily splits the earth and sky…”

“If he splits the earth and sky, I will just split him.”

“…?”

“Why does he split the earth and sky in the first place? Isn’t he wasting his strength by showing off his power unnecessarily?”

“No, that’s not what I meant.”

“That’s right. Showing off one’s power is something that only half-wits who like to show off do. A true master does not reveal his skills.”

“And you are that true master?”

“Yes. I will kill the Sword Demon.”

Yoo Seong-woo said that and waved his hand, saying there was nothing more to say, issuing an order to leave.

The Towel Tribe member, who looked like he understood something but didn’t quite know what, bowed his head and left the room.

Yoo Seong-woo, who was left alone, took a long breath.

Sword Demon, there was no particularly good way to attack him.

Except for the hill where the fortress was located, the area was flat, so there was no terrain suitable for traps, and the Towel Tribe’s forces were inferior to the Sword Demon’s subordinates.

That meant that while he was facing the Sword Demon, there was a possibility that the Towel Tribe would be wiped out by his subordinates.

For reference, the Sword Demon’s subordinates were monsters similar in form to the Sword Demon.

They basically took the form of humans, but their hands were fused with blades of various shapes.

“…Hmm.”

Yoo Seong-woo put down the papers he was holding and got up from his seat.

Rather than sitting here and looking at documents, it seemed faster to go outside and check on them directly.

He summoned Ilsaeng [his sword] and roughly stuck it into the belt at his waist, then moved to avoid the eyes of the Towel Tribe members.

Even if they were the same Towel Tribe, not everyone had the same monstrous senses as Yuwol, so it was easy to slip out of the ramparts.

After leaving the ramparts, he headed straight to the nearest place where the enemies were.

There were monsters loitering on the plains below the hill beyond the ramparts.

As in the data he had received, the appearance of the guys with blades fused to both hands or one hand was grotesque.

Parts of their bodies were melted, their skin was mottled, torn muscles and bones were dangling, and blood vessels were protruding.

They were so gruesome that you would have to check your sanity if you suddenly encountered them on the street.

“Ooh…”

Of course, that was based on the standards of ordinary people, and Yoo Seong-woo had seen monsters like that often in the Otherworld, so it ended with a brief exclamation.

Over there, the monsters would have to check their sanity if they saw Yoo Seong-woo.

“Then a little test…”

Yoo Seong-woo picked up a stone from the surroundings and threw it at one of them.

The stone, which flew without making a sound, burst one of their heads.

The guy whose head had disappeared collapsed to the ground, but the other guys loitering around didn’t care.

“Reaction speed is not great, no camaraderie, and they die if their head disappears.”

It was important information because there were sometimes guys who were perfectly fine even if their heads disappeared.

Yoo Seong-woo slowed down and threw another stone.

And one of their heads burst again.

“They can’t respond to silent, unexpected attacks.”

This is also good information.

The Towel Tribe’s physical abilities are excellent.

From what I’ve seen, they also have a knack for infiltration using their excellent senses, so if they ambush, their chances of winning will increase.

After testing a few more things, such as fire and water, he returned with meaningful information and called Yeongwol and Yuwol.

Then he spat out the plan he had in mind.

“I’m going to burn the whole area.”

“…Excuse me?”

“Send people out to get oil. Something that burns well.”

“I didn’t hear you wrong, did I? You’re going to burn it?”

“Yes. I did a little test and they are weak to fire and have no camaraderie. Their reaction speed is slow and they are weak to ambushes. The only way for the Towel Tribe to win against them is to start a big fire to confuse their senses and then ambush them from all over the place.”

At Yoo Seong-woo’s words, Yuwol and Yeongwol looked at each other.

Their faces seemed to be reconfirming whether what they had heard was real.

Fire attack. It was a method that the Towel Tribe had never imagined.

The Divers who had come here had not used such methods either.

What they had done was to believe in their own strength, make plans, and try to attack ‘as they would in the Abyss’.

But their downfall was that the enemy was not the beasts that could usually be seen in the Abyss.

“What are you doing? Didn’t you say time was of the essence? Move. Oh, and if possible, buy armor with fire resistance.”

“Understood. Grandpa, I will go to Earth.”

“…Go ahead.”

After Yuwol left, Yeongwol began to work out a detailed plan with Yoo Seong-woo.

Basically, it was a plan to confuse the enemy with fire and move a small unit to whittle down the enemy’s forces.

“The personnel should be those who are good at assassination. Those who can suppress their presence as much as possible.”

“Understood.”

“What is most needed now is to give the Towel Tribe a breather. To broaden their range of movement.”

“Then what about the Sword Demon…?”

“When their numbers are reduced and the defense is weakened, we will break through at once. I will face the Sword Demon alone.”

Currently, the Sword Demon is like strong steel. But the Towel Tribe is like soft nails.

Re-tempering it with fire to break through the steel.

Even if they can’t break through, a small crack is enough.

It will be Yoo Seong-woo’s job to pry into the gap and smash the hard steel.

That could be said to be the gist of this operation.

“Are people very anxious? I know there are also non-combat personnel.”

“Unfortunately, yes, that’s right. Everyone who has come so far has brought others with them, but Yoo Seong-woo came alone. That part may be further stimulating their anxiety.”

“I guess so. The people on the battlefields I’ve been on were mostly like that. They said I didn’t look trustworthy.”

“No, not that far…”

Yeongwol trailed off.

He said that, but Yeongwol had similar thoughts.

There was not much motivation in Yoo Seong-woo’s eyes, and his actions were firm but somehow seemed to be missing a screw.

He was just trusting and acting because he was the person Yuwol, the priestess, had brought through the Wolmun.

“Whether you trust me or not, it doesn’t really matter. Just follow my instructions and move accordingly.”

With those words, Yoo Seong-woo blinked slowly.

For some reason, that figure looked like an old general who had gone through several great wars.

Even though he looked younger than himself…

As Yeongwol bowed his head, Yoo Seong-woo opened his mouth.

“I have never been defeated on any battlefield I have stood on.”