The 9Th Class Swordmaster: Blade Of Truth [EN]: Chapter 31

29. Me

“Is he a father?”

“Yes, yes, that’s right… I can’t live without that child. Have mercy…”

“Mercy? I gave him a fair chance to bet his life on a coin.”

“……”

The answer to the pleading man was cold.

“Didn’t you run away because you wanted to live? You said you’d do anything. I’m giving you a chance to live again after almost dying. Where else can you find such mercy? Or are you saying your daughter is important and those people are worthless?”

“That, that’s…”

At Kyuran’s words, the man raised his head.

Numerous people – men, women, and children – stood before and behind him.

“Hic… hic…”

“Please, save me!!”

“Please…”

Cries mixed with sobs erupted from everywhere.

“Ugh… ugh!!”

The man nonchalantly grabbed the woman’s neck and lightly lifted her with one hand.

Crack—

Then, the strength in his grip gradually increased, tightening the steel collar [a magical item restricting movement and speech] more and more.

“Ugh!!! Ugh!! Ugh!! Ugh!!!”

The woman struggled, grabbing his hand, as if she couldn’t breathe.

Watching her legs move frantically like a seizure, he wore a bizarre expression, as if satisfied.

Snap-

The flailing stopped.

“You may enter. You have done your duty as a child.”

“Th-this… Uwaaa!!!”

As their eyes met, the man who had been kneeling a moment ago screamed and rushed at him.

‘Idiot…’

‘I’ll be cleaning up several corpses today.’

‘Why did he have to act up when he could have stayed still?’

The people surrounding him already knew what the man’s end would be.

“Ah, right. You said you couldn’t live without this woman either,” Kyuran said, as if it were someone else’s business.

Then, he roughly threw the woman’s corpse he was holding and clenched his fist towards the rushing man.

‘Free city? Don’t be ridiculous.’

‘Do you think the Gold Lion [a powerful organization] is saving you just to make a few bucks?’

‘That man deliberately picks only those who have no money to put on the ship.’

It was a terrible hobby.

Killing becomes dull before you know it.

Then there is something to look for.

Justification.

Distorted, justified killing was Kyuran’s only pleasure.

‘Poor guy…’

‘It’s useless when you die.’

‘If the corpse were intact, a corpse merchant would buy it, but it looks like it’s ruined.’

Kyuran’s massive body leaped towards the old man.

Swish…!!

A cold energy emanated from his fist.

As three streams of water swirled around his arm, the man who witnessed his daughter’s death closed his eyes as if choosing death, unlike the thoughts of those watching him.

He fled from ridiculous taxes and exploitation.

“……”

This place, which he thought was his last hope, was not hope but despair waiting for him.

Thwack—!!!!

The wooden floor under Kyuran’s feet could not withstand his power and shattered in all directions.

“Ugh…!!”

“Kyaaak…!!”

Screams were heard.

His subordinates hurriedly moved away, afraid of being caught inside.

At that moment.

Crack…!!

Bang!! Bang!! Thwaaaang—!!!

The building shook and explosions erupted.

“What… what?!”

At first, they thought it was because of Kyuran.

But they realized that the explosion was not happening inside the building but outside.

They hurriedly opened the door of the building.

Tap… tap…

Grumble…

At that moment, the subordinate who opened the door couldn’t close his mouth, his face etched with surprise.

“What is this…”

Everything was red.

Everything in front of his eyes.

Bang-!! Thwaaaang—!!

Thwaang—!!!

“Put out the fire…!!!”

“Quickly, bring water!!”

“Call all the guys who can use water magic!!”

Confused shouts followed.

All the ships docked at the lawless port…

“Are burning?”

It was then.

“Cough?!”

As a strong wind blew, the rising smoke rushed into the harbor all at once.

As the acrid smoke enveloped him, the subordinate hurriedly turned his head.

Swish-

The moment he closed his eyes, a flash of light flickered in the black smoke.

Slash-

The man’s body, who was blankly looking outside, collapsed helplessly.

Gurgle… gurgle…

The eyes of the man who fell to the floor looked up.

He tried to say something, but he couldn’t even breathe properly due to the backflowing blood, and he died as it was.

‘Hmm, Aidan Hamill, his skill in handling the wind is still useful. The smoke is coming this way properly.’

The pitch-black smoke covered the lawless port on the wind.

“It’s fortunate. There are plenty of things to burn at sea.”

In an instant, black smoke filled the harbor, making it impossible to see even an inch ahead.

People were thrown into confusion, scrambling to put out the fire. Passing through the crowd, Caryl covered his nose with his sleeve and thought.

‘I can feel a gaze. If I had Duke De Hold’s fog magic, I wouldn’t have needed to use a fire attack… That woman, whose intentions I can’t fathom, must be hiding somewhere here.’

Swoosh-

Dodging the blade that emerged from the smoke, Caryl beheaded another enemy.

‘It reminds me of the old days.’

In his previous life, he had a body that couldn’t use magic.

He had to face the Imperials with only his sword.

That’s why, before he grew bigger, his childhood fights were more like assassinations than head-on battles.

Hiding his presence.

Aiming for the back.

Chwaaaak—!!!

Red blood spurted from the blade he instinctively drew. Caryl spun Agnel [his sword] once on his palm and then lowered the blade.

Thwack! Thwack-! Thwack-!

Thwack–!!!

As if pressing down, he stabbed the dagger dozens of times from the legs to the waist of the enemy who was next to him a moment ago.

“Cough… Keuk….”

Pushing away the corpse of the enemy collapsing in front of him, he looked ahead.

The acrid smoke quickly stung his face.

‘It seems difficult to move for a long time.’

Quick decision, quick action.

He had experienced countless battlefields.

Besides, this isn’t war. There are no trained soldiers or knights fighting for an honorable death.

No matter how many there are, if you catch the leader, the rest are just a disorganized mob.

Slowly.

Without a sound.

Caryl walked.

“Looks like you’ve killed a lot of people.”

“……!!!”

At the voice coming from the smoke, Kyuran drew the thick sword he was wearing on his waist and swung it.

Whooooong—!!!

But his sword only cut through the air.

A calm voice was heard, as if whispering.

“I’ve done quite a bit too.”

* * *

All the ships in the lawless port were burning, but there was one.

There was only one ship that was intact.

Wooowoong……!!

Woong……!!

In the midst of the swirling wind, Suan Hazar was frantically moving the oars to control the direction.

‘Damn it… What is that kid?! He jumps into the fire without a care.’

Unlike him, Aidan Hamill, standing at the bow, was glaring sharply.

“Hoo…….”

The intense wind emanating from his arms slowly began to subside.

It wasn’t for attack, but he poured magic into a wide area close to the entire harbor.

Aidan Hamill rubbed his wrists as his arms felt numb.

“You’re amazing. With that kind of skill, you don’t have to come to Tatur…?”

Suan, who had no idea about Aidan’s circumstances, spoke with a surprised expression at him using magic.

“It’s a meager ability. It’s the level of magic that an Imperial has from birth. I’m like this after using magic for only a short time.”

He showed his trembling arms to Suan.

Certainly, the time he created the wind was only a few minutes.

“…….”

His words weren’t all lies.

In the first place, he wasn’t a magician.

For him, magic wasn’t a means of attack. It was only for hiding his presence as an assassin.

However, controlling the wind direction to match the movement of the smoke and changing the intensity at each location was not something that even magicians could easily do.

‘According to the original plan, I was going to make Suan Hazar fight Kyuran… It’s completely messed up.’

Of course, he didn’t care what happened to the lawless port.

Suan Hazar.

This man, who is called the Slave King and enjoys absolute popularity among the ethnic minorities, was an indispensable existence in their plan.

‘His Highness ordered me to bring him to our side no matter what, but why are things so twisted….’

He was going to start with gradual behind-the-scenes work.

But suddenly, he received a report from Piasta that he had run away with an unidentified boy, and the situation changed so urgently.

‘There must be a reason why someone who would have been released anyway ran away.’

There’s no need to worry.

Immediately.

It was because of the boy who entered the burning lawless port without a care.

‘I thought he was just a brat who looked no more than 15 years old… That was an aura that even assassins hardly have.’

Aidan felt goosebumps as he watched him kill people without changing his expression.

‘But I also found out something. First of all, he is a fire-type user. If he set fire to this entire ship… He must have at least 2nd class magic.’

Aidan, who had no way of knowing that Caryl could use colorless magic that wasn’t bound by attributes, made a wild guess and smiled with satisfaction.

‘I have to report to the higher-ups.’

Capable talent.

Arrogant but charming.

‘Besides, the years he has lived are different.’

Being young clearly means there is a gap somewhere.

He can be handled enough.

‘That person might like it.’

Of course, Aidan has no way of knowing that Caryl McGovern has lived several years longer than he is now and has experienced hundreds of battlefields.

He doesn’t even know that he, who seems to be firmly prepared, looks infinitely vulnerable to him.

It was something that would not exist in the history of his previous life.

Aidan Hamill’s first and greatest error, who had all the information on the continent in his hands, was happening here several times.

‘His swordsmanship is also considerable….’

He is completely missing the point to the extent that there is no need to explain further.

‘Where was he raised?’

He imagined all sorts of things, recalling the instructors of the Lurein Duchy and the Istria Three Kingdoms in his head.

‘As expected…….’

Then, he nodded as if he had made a great decision and thought.

‘No matter which organization he belongs to, if we take him away, it will damage other countries. I’ll check it with my own eyes.’

His head was already full of Caryl, not Suan Hazar.

Why?