Cooking Swordmaster [EN]: Chapter 221

67. The Swordmaster Who Cooks

Pandemonium was eerily similar to the Abyss.

‘Since the Abyss is said to be an assemblage of fragments from various dimensions, it’s not that strange that it resembles Pandemonium.’

Unlike the Abyss, which was like a dungeon with rooms and corridors, a vast expanse of land unfolded before Cainchel’s eyes.

Elizabeth, who entered Pandemonium a step behind Cainchel, spoke abruptly.

“Kid, all we have to do is defend the gate until the ritual is over. No matter what happens, we can’t leave this place. Absolutely.”

“Of course. I thought demons would attack as soon as we arrived, but thankfully, there’s nothing.”

“Are you sure about that?”

Just then.

A piercing scream echoed from not far away.

“S, save me! A demon is trying to kill me! Please! Is anyone there!?”

Cainchel drew Fragarach [his magical sword] and tried to run towards the sound.

Elizabeth, with a knowing look, held a blade infused with Aura [a type of magical energy] to Cainchel’s neck.

“……What are you doing?”

“I knew it. Cainchel is too kind. Have you already forgotten where we are?”

Cainchel’s head, which had been heated by the heat of Pandemonium, cooled down.

‘Let’s think calmly. There’s no way a woman would be crying out for help in a place like this, right?’

“Kyaaaaak! P, please save m……”

Cainchel activated Fallen Star [a sword technique] towards the direction of the scream. He sensed a gathering of numerous hostile presences beyond the ridge.

If he had rushed in response to the call for help, he would have been ambushed by hidden demons.

Elizabeth cautiously surveyed the surroundings.

“Fortunately, I don’t sense the energy of the Top Ten. Their danger rivals the Seven Deadly Sins. Anyway, do you understand now? Demons are truly cunning. They’ll use every means possible to deceive you.”

After that, the demons tempted Cainchel to leave his post with various illusions for a while.

They even imitated Payne, whose memory was fading, to shake Cainchel’s heart.

— Son……. What are you doing there……. Come here and save me……. Are you so happy to abandon your father and take the position of head of the family…….

Cainchel bit his lip. One hour left.

If he could just hold out for one hour, everything would be over.

Turning around, he saw Elizabeth and Gawain also fighting against the weaknesses within themselves.

“Brother Palamedes……. If I hadn’t killed you back then, more people would have died. But I won’t make any more excuses.”

“……Half-Succubus? Bloodline doesn’t matter! Don’t cowardly spout nonsense like that, come out and say it if you have a problem! I’ll take you on anytime!”

At some point, the mental attacks that had been confusing his eyes and ears stopped.

It seemed they realized that attacking weak points was no longer effective.

They would regroup and attack with other means.

Elizabeth, adjusting her sweat-soaked clothes, said.

“Hmph. The small fries are giving us quite a hard time……. The reason they’re not attacking directly is probably because they’re afraid of Fragarach. Unlike the Seven Deadly Sins, they bleed when cut by the sword, and if severely injured, they disappear.”

“But didn’t you say that the King of Lust has changed several times? There must be a way to defeat the other Seven Deadly Sins too……”

“That’s because they’re born that way. The object of lust is often not just one.”

“……That’s true.”

“Ahaha! Although there are occasionally oddballs like you, kid.”

Elizabeth smiled brightly and explained what she knew about the Seven Deadly Sins.

— Seven Deadly Sins.

The seven sins that flowed from the blood of Deus, who had transformed into a human form.

Lucifer, the King of Pride.

Leviathan, the King of Envy.

Satan, the King of Wrath.

Belphegor, the King of Sloth.

Mammon, the King of Greed.

Beelzebub, the King of Gluttony.

Asmodeus, the King of Lust.

They, the worst enemies of humanity, were ultimately born from Deus.

Therefore, it is impossible to completely destroy them.

Even if they die, the demon who is covered in their blood will become the new Seven Deadly Sins.

In the end, the only way to stop them is to suppress their desires and seal them as if practicing virtues.

“The reason why the title given to Sword Masters in Britannia is virtue is because Aura Blades are needed to suppress demons. But……”

A tremendous presence suddenly emerged from the demon camp, which had been quiet for a while.

Kukukukukung-!

With a massive earthquake that made it impossible to even stand properly, he appeared.

It was a place less than a few hundred meters away from where the gate was.

He was a handsome young man who looked like an aristocrat, except for his ash-gray skin and blackened eyes.

Surprise and horror appeared on Elizabeth’s face.

“Sword Demon Bassago!”

“……Bassago? Isn’t he one of the Top Ten?!”

The lord of as many as 26 demon legions, and a demon who rose to 6th place in the hierarchy solely through swordsmanship in Pandemonium, where intrigue is rampant.

She thought that only the lesser demons coveted human souls.

But to think that such a big shot would appear from the start.

Gawain laughed fiercely.

“What brings the great Archdemon to such a remote place?”

“How intriguing. To think there would be such a strong human. Although it is an incarnation through an avatar, I understand why you stopped the King’s forces.”

“Doesn’t sound like a compliment at all?”

“Strength is the law! Pandemonium is governed by the rule of the strong! But, after 10,000 years of endless ranking battles, all that remains is a tiresome war of attrition. Rather than tearing each other apart and eating our own flesh, wouldn’t it be more constructive to pounce on new prey?”

Bassago pointed to the rift in space with his chin and continued.

“Besides, if we miss this opportunity, we’ll have to wait another thousand years for the gate to open. Step aside. I’ll spare you out of respect for your strength.”

In the end, it meant that there was not enough territory compared to the population. The reason why demons and humans wage war is similar.

“Sorry, but I can’t do that.”

While Gawain drew attention, Cainchel and Elizabeth went behind Bassago.

Elizabeth swung her sword. An Aura so blue it was almost white was formed on her sword.

Bassago’s aura was terrifying. But Cainchel and Elizabeth pressured Bassago simultaneously as if they had made a promise.

Bassago blocked it all so easily. It was as if he had eyes in the back of his head.

“As expected of the Prophecy’s Young Lord. How many seconds ahead are you seeing?”

“Daughter of a Nightmare. For one, your sword is quite sharp. I’ll tell you as a compliment. The future I see is exactly 2 seconds ahead. Of course, with just that, I have never lost.”

“Ugh……!”

At the same time, Elizabeth’s left arm flew off. It seemed she had been struck by a slash so fast it couldn’t be seen.

Cainchel bit his lip.

He wanted to help the injured Elizabeth, but he couldn’t in this situation.

Elizabeth wouldn’t want that either.

Bassago was clearly wary of Fragarach in his hand.

If his heart was pierced by it, even a great demon would disappear on the spot.

‘The Sword Demon’s ability to see the future is truly amazing, but I have a similar skill. Brilliant Road……!’

Then, a pure white light exploded on Bassago’s left waist. He muttered with a clearly bewildered expression.

“What happened? I didn’t see this future. Hooh……, a tremendous achievement at a young age. What is your name, human?”

Cainchel continued to swing his sword as if there was no need to answer.

Bassago is strong. Moreover, if the gate is breached, countless demons residing in Pandemonium will pour out.

There are less than 10 minutes left. He had to hold out until then somehow.

Bassago used a massive greatsword that seemed to be 2m long as a weapon.

When it cut through the space, a tremendous shockwave erupted that made his whole body tingle.

‘What is this ridiculous power?!’

There was almost no chance of winning if he continued to fight at close range. Cainchel widened the distance between himself and Bassago and activated the Noodle Making skill [a unique ability]. Then, five strands of noodles popped out and wrapped around Bassago’s body.

Elizabeth did not miss the small gap that Cainchel had created. She activated her strongest attack.

“Light Wings……!”

Even though she was missing one arm, her Aura was still intact. Wings of fiery red light rose behind her back.

“Not a chance!”

Bassago scoffed and swung his sword with the force to split the sea.

A tremendous gale struck Elizabeth.

She was thrown back without even being able to resist properly.

“……Cain…… Take care of the rest…….”

Cainchel went straight behind Bassago. As he activated Igieo Geom [a sword technique], Fragarach, which had left his hand, began to draw a trail of light in the air.

“Hooh, you know some interesting tricks.”

“Are you sure about that? Onion Swordsmanship……!”

Then, one sword increased to seven and began to pressure Bassago simultaneously.

Bassago used Future Sight to read Cainchel’s movements.

A young knight who had not lived even 1/1000 of his life continued to choose and attack with only the best sword paths.

A tremendous sense of pressure was felt.

It was the first time he had fought an opponent like this.

Kiiiiiiing-!

In the end, he allowed another effective hit on his right chest. The area where Fragarach’s blade had passed was burning black.

The corners of his mouth, which had been consistently relaxed even against three Sword Masters, trembled.

“To think there would be a human who wields seven holy swords. You are indeed worthy of setting foot in Pandemonium. I would like to play a little more, but unfortunately, I am also running out of time.”

Elizabeth, who was holding her severed arm and giving first aid, shouted.

“We have to stop him! He’s trying to call his subordinates!”

“Subordinates?!”

Bassago raised his arm.

Without missing the gap, two Fragarachs cut off both shoulders, but they could not stop Bassago’s mouth.

“Come, my forces!”

Kugugugugung-!

Then, causality was twisted, and 1,000 demons stationed a few kilometers away gathered behind Bassago.

Most of them were lower-ranking demons, but that didn’t mean they were weak.

They were strong enough to easily take on three or four Sword Knights alone.

A bitter smile appeared on Bassago’s lips.

“Let’s end the duel here. Listen! The 26th Demon Legion Commander orders! Trample and defeat the humans before you! The target is Britannia!”

“Ooh! Ooh! Ooh!”

Then, a tremendous roar echoed, shaking the earth.

Cainchel understood why the Dragon Lord sacrificed his precious clan’s child to block the gate of Pandemonium.

The demons, who had been endlessly repeating wars for ten thousand years, were ridiculously strong. If they were released, not only Britannia but the entire continent would be in danger.

He had to stop them at all costs.

For some reason, Abel’s image came to Cainchel’s mind at that moment. A precious friend who always calmly and composedly analyzed the situation and came up with the best solution.

If he were here, would he have suggested a good solution?

‘No, Abel is not here. I have to figure it out.’

Cainchel looked at the kitchen knife he was wearing on his waist. The moment he held it, the serendipity that he thought he had no connection with began to explode.

And he met many people and came to know their true feelings.

For their sake, he must not let the demons out of this place.

As Cainchel looked with determined eyes, Gawain nodded.

“It’s not fitting for a knight to die in bed anyway, right? I knew I would meet my end like this. Still, I wanted to show the new junior a little bit of a cool appearance, but it’s a shame.”

“You were cool enough. If it weren’t for your help, I wouldn’t have been able to fight Bassago so fiercely.”

“Tch, you brat. Well, let’s go. Let’s hold out for even a second longer.”

There were only 7 minutes left.

He didn’t know how long he could hold out against Bassago and his forces, but he would swing his sword until the very end.

Elizabeth also nodded, holding her sword with her remaining arm.

“Hah, if I had known this would happen, I would have asked for the chicken Morgana left behind. What a shame. Still, well, if I’m dying with you, kid, it won’t be so lonely.”

And scratching her head as if embarrassed, she continued.

“I’m saying this now. Kid……. No, Cainchel. There’s something I want to tell you. I……”

But Elizabeth couldn’t confess her feelings. Because a tremendous Aura exploded and swept in from somewhere.

“Aura Field.”

A giant wall of Aura instantly annihilated dozens of lower-ranking demons.

At the center was a face familiar to Cainchel.

“Hector……?”

* * *

Hector’s Aura Blade is specialized in defense. It creates a giant wall of Aura to block any attack with minimal damage.

Now he was using it for attack.

Hector looked at Cainchel with indifferent eyes that held no emotion.

“5 minutes. No matter what happens, I will stop the demons trying to pass through this place during that time. Cainchel, Gawain, and Elizabeth, please defend the gate.”

“……Why are you here?”

Then, anger, resentment, pity, regret…… and many other emotions appeared and disappeared in Hector’s eyes.

“I have come to do what I could not do 12 years ago. Payne did, and I could not.”