Cooking Swordmaster [EN]: Chapter 239

With ‘Fallen Star’ in Cainchel’s possession, a surprise attack was meaningless.

That was how he was able to respond to Bassago’s attack, which had displayed movements transcending human limits.

However, could he attack recklessly when he didn’t even know who the opponent was?

‘Well, there’s no need to be considerate if they’re charging in with hostility. Should I just capture them and interrogate them?’

Reaching a simple conclusion, Cainchel first looked for a suitable location.

In the worst-case scenario, he might have to fight the Janissaries [elite Ottoman soldiers] or the chieftain’s subordinates.

The strongest means of attack Cainchel could use was the Igeoegeom [a fictional sword technique], utilizing Fragrach [a mythical sword].

To properly utilize it, a wide space was needed.

‘Besides, I’m a stranger here. I need a place with as few people as possible.’

Coincidentally, there was a half-collapsed abandoned house along the attacker’s path.

Choosing that place as the battlefield, Cainchel hid in the shadow of the building and waited for the opponent to approach.

‘He’s coming……!’

Approaching was an unidentified man completely covered in a black robe.

Cainchel’s eyes widened. Inside the deeply pressed hood was nothing but pitch-black darkness.

Ominous.

A sense of unease, as if looking at a blackened potato, washed over him.

It was clear that he was someone who used unclean power, like an undead or a necromancer.

‘……In that case, Fragrach!’

Cainchel didn’t wait any longer and took a Jingeok [a swift movement technique] towards the black hood.

In an instant, the distance of nearly dozens of steps became zero.

At the same time, the brilliant light of Fragrach split into seven strands.

Recently, he had been able to draw an additional blade when exerting his full power.

It was thanks to creating 7-star dishes several times and gaining enormous experience.

Onion swordsmanship becomes exponentially stronger with each additional blade.

However, handling the eighth blade was more difficult than expected. At best, he could only use it to prepare ingredients.

Perhaps, as befitting the Carter family’s secret swordsmanship, it was impossible to achieve greatness through repeated use alone?

However, seven blades were enough to stop the movement of the rushing black hood.

“Kkeuaaaak!”

The black hood screamed as the suddenly appearing blades lacerated his body.

With a sizzling sound, black smoke rose from his body.

‘What is this? It’s passing right through as if cutting through empty air?’

Then, a tentacle popped out from Cainchel’s groin and provided a detailed explanation.

― Be careful, partner. It seems he can freely transform his body into an ethereal form (靈體) [a form like a ghost or spirit].

‘Ethereal form?’

― Astral body……. It would be easier to understand if you think of it as a ghost.

Among the undead, there are types without form, unlike ghouls or death knights.

However, it seemed certain that he had suffered considerable damage from the previous attack.

‘As expected of a sword that destroys the impure. It really is a great cooking tool the more I use it.’

The black hood… Muhammad, who had transformed his body into an astral body, shouted in great dismay.

“My invincible body received from that being! What on earth is happening?!”

If he allowed even one more attack like that, his body, even if received from a god, would be annihilated.

And there was only one way to recover the stamina consumed in regeneration.

Muhammad flew at tremendous speed towards the crowded street.

Someone who saw him exclaimed in surprise.

“What?! What is that shadow sud…”

Those were his last words. With a pop, his upper body disappeared.

It happened so quickly that it didn’t feel real at all.

“……Did someone just die……?”

“Kyaaaaak……!”

Muhammad began to absorb souls from those around him indiscriminately. Then, his blurred body regained its original form.

There was a face all too familiar to the Sekhmet tribesmen.

“Mu, Muhammad Chieftain?!”

Hearing the trembling voice, Muhammad grinned.

“Hassan, who works in the mine, isn’t it? Is there a problem?”

“……Haha. I guess the alcohol I drank yesterday hasn’t worn off yet. There’s no way the chieftain would do something like this.”

“What are you talking about?”

“It’s nothing.”

As the head of the man he was talking to disappeared, Muhammad’s lips twisted.

“Now that I’ve been exposed, I can’t let you live even more.”

Cainchel, who arrived a beat late, was speechless at the tragedy unfolding before his eyes.

“Damn it. This is why I tried to avoid crowded places……. But he definitely said chieftain, right?”

The name Muhammad Alauddin flashed through Cainchel’s mind.

He had only targeted this place as the first target because it was the Banned Sultan faction’s source of funds.

‘Who would have known such a monster was hiding? This Ottoman [referring to the Ottoman Empire] is a complete demon’s den!?’

He didn’t know where he had obtained such evil power.

However, to reduce the damage even a little, he had to deal with it as quickly as possible.

Bishop, sensing that he had discovered something, accelerated Cainchel’s mind and spoke.

― Listen for a moment before you fight, partner. At first, I thought he was a lich. But that is clearly the power of a demon itself.

‘A demon?! What, I went through so much trouble to close the gates of the Demon Realm. Why are they popping out again?’

― Surely coming out has been completely blocked. But it seems that giving power to humans through contracts is still possible. Do you know the term ‘Crossroad Demon’?

‘Hmm……. I think I heard it from the demon expert, Goethe.’

Crossroads are places where worlds overlap, and they can be said to be places where demons often appear.

― The demons you meet there usually grant wishes in exchange for souls, and deceive contractors with cunning words. It’s a similar method to what Morgana or Bathory suffered.

‘But that doesn’t look like a simple power to me?’

― I think the demons are getting impatient since the gate was closed. They are trying to gather souls even by sharing their power. Besides, it seems like they are fulfilling the contract very well.

Bassago, who was one of the top ten demons, could not be defeated even when two Sword Masters attacked him.

What would happen if contractors who obtained their power started appearing one after another?

‘I’m glad that Muhammad seems unskilled in using his power. Anyway, if he’s using demonic power, he’ll still be vulnerable to fire. First, release the mental acceleration. I’ll use Tadakki [another fictional technique] to buy some time.’

― Got it!

At the same time as the almost stopped time began to flow.

The Tadakki made with the Aura Blade Signature exploded at Muhammad’s feet.

Peopeopeong-!

His body blurred for a moment and then returned to normal.

“The monster is suddenly burning! Run away in this gap!”

“Keuk! Where do you think you’re going!”

Muhammad tried to spew black darkness towards the people. But it was blocked by Cainchel’s subsequent attack.

“You’re the one who’s going to be distracted.”

“Hehehe. You’re the one who did that strange attack just now. But sniff, sniff, this is…….”

Muhammad’s eyes widened. The smell of chicken, which had removed that being’s blessing, was coming from the young knight’s body.

“Kakakak! As expected, I have the blessing of God! I never thought the prey I was aiming for would come to me on its own! Thank you so much! I was surprised by the sudden attack just now, but it will be different this time!”

“I know someone who did the exact same thing as you. His name is Count Algedi, and I wonder if you’re curious about how he ended up?”

Instead of answering, Muhammad’s hands were dyed black.

Cainchel shrugged his shoulders.

“Actually, I wasn’t going to tell you anyway.”

Fragrach, which had already risen behind Cainchel, emitted a brilliant light.

It was the start of the second battle following a brief reconnaissance.

* * *

Muhammad was the first to attack.

The black mist emanating from his body was literally dominating the entire space.

It was all abilities he had received from that being.

Muhammad had met a god at a crossroads three months ago and made a contract.

He received a total of three abilities in exchange for his soul.

The first wish he made was for an immortal body. Then, when a sacred light was enveloping his body, he would not die even if his head was cut off.

The second was the ability of absolute obedience.

There was a condition that the opponent had to violate a taboo, but if he could solve that, even their soul would become his.

The last thing he wished for was absolute power. Then, the god gave him this.

Cainchel narrowed his eyes as he looked at the black abyss surrounding Muhammad’s body.

When he saw it from a slight distance, he thought it was the same ability as Valter, who was a member of the Pentagram.

However, when he faced it at close range, he could see its true nature.

‘This is a bug?’

Muhammad was turning his body into countless small bugs and using them for attacks.

Then, Bishop coughed awkwardly, looking very embarrassed.

― Ahem, ahem. You can be wrong when you live.

‘Anyway, there seem to be at least hundreds of thousands of them. With so many, it’s no wonder such tremendous hostility is being emitted.’

Cainchel’s eyes lit up.

If this entire space is Muhammad’s body, it means that even a roughly swung attack will hit.

“You seem quite confident in your swordsmanship, but once you enter my attack range, you are a dead man. This sacred light absorbs not only the opponent’s life force but also their soul. Now, power received from that being. Grant death to that insolent knight!”

Then, the swarm of bugs that looked like a black abyss instantly covered Cainchel’s body.

Joy appeared on Muhammad’s face.

“Keukakakak! Even a Sword Master who covers his whole body with Aura must have gaps for breathing! No matter how small it is, the sacred light will squeeze through there and take your life!”

“Sherbet!”

As Cainchel activated the skill, tremendous cold air was emitted, centered on the Durendal [Cainchel’s sword] he was holding.

If the opponent is not an ethereal body but a bug, its activity can be stopped by freezing it.

The frozen bugs fell to the ground with a thud.

Cainchel, who was at the center, did not appear to have suffered any damage from the bugs’ attack.

After learning the true nature of Muhammad’s abilities, he had covered his entire body with meringue.

Muhammad, realizing this fact, shouted with a still relaxed expression.

“It’s useless to forcibly block your breathing holes and endure! Humans can only hold their breath for a maximum of 5 minutes! Eventually, the breath you inhale to live will bring you death!”

In fact, the power he received from the god……. No, the demon, was only the ability to turn his body into hundreds of thousands of bugs.

The promise to grant three wishes was a blatant lie from the start.

Muhammad knew that the young knight had a sacred sword that could eliminate the bugs of the Demon Realm.

So, he was sending only a part of his body to attack, leaving the main body in a distant place.

There is a limit to how long a human can hold their breath. If he just endures a little longer, the young knight will destroy himself.

His ability to transform into hundreds of thousands of demonic insects (魔蟲) was so powerful that it could easily defeat even a Sword Master.

But Muhammad didn’t know.

Cainchel had created vacuum-aged chicken to release the brainwashing using bugs.

And that he could hold his breath for a whopping 21 minutes.

‘I never thought I’d use vacuum resistance here. I feel rewarded for cooking so hard.’

From Muhammad’s perspective, it was nothing short of meeting his natural enemy.