The Bastard Swordsman Of The Imperial Guard [EN]: Chapter 4

The Ghost King

The day after I became real friends with Gent.

I was walking inside the compound, following Yuri.

“Mr. Rael. I know you came with Gent’s recommendation, but… are you really okay? You still have about a week left to adjust. Even if your mind is fine, your body might not be.”

“I’m fine. I know my body well. I think I’ve adjusted enough already.”

I stretched my arms around in front of Yuri, who was giving me a worried look, and loosened up my body.

Gent and Yuri both kept repeating that the mana in this area was distorted.

‘They said it’s like Alheim, which gnaws at the soul.’

It’s my first time in a place like this, but I don’t feel particularly uncomfortable.

‘It’s thanks to my constitution.’

I thought it was a stupid constitution that doesn’t receive curses or blessings, but because I have no soul, I was able to resist the mana that gnaws at souls.

‘If I had known this sooner, I would have become a guard in the Alheim region.’

They even get hazard pay there, so the salary would be much higher.

At least it’s better than the capital guards, who suffer from low pay.

I wouldn’t even get dragged into the special guard unit for causing an accident there.

‘But… this is a crisis and an opportunity.’

Failure is the mother of success, and being transferred to the special guard unit was to gain momentum.

There’s no harm in building a friendship with Yuri, the next emperor.

Even if I don’t get ahead, it will be a great help in life.

“Since you say so, Mr. Rael, I’ll have you start working from today.”

“Yes. Are you going to tell me about the work now?”

I was frustrated because they hadn’t answered me even when I asked subtly until now.

“I’ll explain it to you slowly as we go.”

Yuri smiled brightly and walked ahead, and I followed behind her.

Yuri, Gent, Reina.

The three of them are the founding members of the special guard unit.

After observing them for three weeks, I could see that one of them would disappear on a regular cycle.

‘Because it’s a special guard unit… are they guarding something?’

My heart was pounding as I tried to confirm the truth of the many rumors.

As we walked down a path I had never been on before, Yuri spoke first.

“The Imperial Special Guard Unit hasn’t even been around for 10 years.”

“Yes. I know. It was created not long after the Great War stopped and a formal peace treaty was signed with the demons.”

The peace treaty signed with the demons in Alheim.

Of course, in the novel, the war starts again not long after.

“You know it well. The Imperial Special Guard Unit is an organization that monitors the monsters that flowed into the Empire during the Great War.”

“…Monsters?”

“The reason I haven’t told you about her until now is… just knowing about her existence can damage your soul. Fortunately, you seem to be fine, Mr. Rael.”

Yuri’s expression, which always has a faint smile, hardened.

I have a feeling that an important story is about to come out.

I asked what I was curious about before that.

“Ms. Yuri. I have something I want to ask before I hear something important.”

“Yes. Anything.”

“Why are those guys following us?”

Yuri turned her head to look at the end of my finger.

She discovered the two of them awkwardly hiding behind a tree and widened her eyes.

“Ms. Reina? No, even Mr. Gent?! When did you guys follow us this far?”

“To think his senses are still alive even after coming this deep, his senses are definitely sharp.”

“I told you, Rael is special.”

I shook my head as I looked at the elf and the giant who revealed themselves from the tree with an interesting expression.

They just followed us openly, what nonsense are they talking about.

Are they preparing for a comedian recruitment instead of the Imperial Special Guard Unit?

“Mr. Rael. To notice them, what are you…”

I was more dumbfounded to see Yuri unable to hide her embarrassment next to me, but I was able to understand the situation quickly.

The distortion of mana must be the cause.

The two of them hid their bodies in mana, and Yuri didn’t notice, but I did.

“Please continue with what you were saying first. So who is that monster?”

“…The monster we’re monitoring is the Ghost King Yaksha.”

“Ghost King?”

I narrowed my eyes as soon as I heard the word Ghost King.

It was a name I had heard in the original novel.

The disaster of the Empire and humanity.

The strongest scourge that turned the peaceful Empire into a sea of fire.

The worst villain who caused more casualties than the final boss.

A villain with the same importance level as the Empire’s saintess.

‘…Why is a guy who should have come out in 7 years already here?’

The saintess hasn’t even been appointed yet.

The story of the original was still in the middle, and the real crisis hadn’t even started.

But the people who are gathering around me were not ordinary.

‘The future emperor of the Empire and his two close aides. And even the Ghost King?’

What the hell is this special guard unit that importance level 1 people are gathering?

The protagonists of the original are supposed to be playing in the academy, so why is this ordeal befalling me.

I couldn’t understand at all.

“So, is the special guard unit’s job to monitor the Ghost King?”

“Yes. That’s right. She needs to face an intelligent being every few days.”

“I understand roughly… but why are you entrusting such a monster to ordinary guards? Why not just kill her?”

“…The Ghost King cannot be killed. Her existence itself is the evil of humans. In other words, the moment you kill her, the evil of humans will be released into the world.”

The Ghost King is Pandora’s box.

The moment you open the box, evil pours out.

“Then why not purify the evil? That’s the specialty of the priests of the Order [religious organization].”

“No. Even the Order cannot purify the Ghost King. Unless a legendary saintess or hero appears, such a thing is difficult.”

It means time is needed.

In the original novel, both the hero and the saintess appear.

I thought it was a trash novel, but it had some coherence.

“I still don’t understand. If she’s that strong, shouldn’t a cleric or knight be guarding her? To entrust the work to a mere guard unit.”

“…I don’t know that far. I’m just a guard like you, Mr. Rael. All I know is that we have to face her for a set amount of time.”

“Hmm. Well, I guess so.”

It’s a ridiculous lie to me, who knows that Yuri is a princess, but seeing her lips twitch, it seems like she has her own worries.

I didn’t continue the conversation and followed Yuri, looking behind me.

Fortunately, Gent and Reina didn’t follow anymore.

“This way.”

How long have we walked?

We arrived at a remote place even in the special guard unit’s compound.

In the middle of a forest where dense trees blocked the sunlight, there was a staircase leading underground.

The entrance of the staircase was covered with steel, contrasting with the forest.

No, upon closer inspection, the entire underground wall connected to the staircase was covered in steel.

Thump, thump-

I opened my mouth as I stepped on a texture different from dirt.

“…This is a very ominous staircase.”

“Yes. It’s where a ghost is sealed.”

I followed Yuri’s guidance and went down the ominous staircase.

I felt strange every time I moved my steps relying on the weak lighting.

The gloomy energy became stronger as I went underground, and I felt a chill for no reason.

‘No, it’s not just a feeling, it really feels colder.’

The temperature is originally low underground where it doesn’t receive sunlight, but this place is colder than that.

Besides, this wall wasn’t ordinary steel either.

When I touched the wall, a cold chill permeated my body. There is only one such mysterious metal in the world.

“…This is Eternal Ice Iron, right?”

“It’s an alloy of Eternal Ice Iron and Adamantium [an extremely rare and strong metal]. I can confidently say that it’s the best anti-magic metal in the Empire. It’ll be even colder because it absorbed the yin energy while in contact with the Ghost King.”

Eternal Ice Iron, a steel that has absorbed yin energy for ten thousand years.

And Adamantium, the strongest metal on earth that costs a fortune.

It’s a legendary metal that a guard like me would be lucky to see even once in my life.

‘They buried those expensive things in a corner like this?’

How great of a monster is the Ghost King?

I could feel the pressure as I went down the stairs one step at a time.

My body was not only chilling but also aching.

Yuri, who was walking in front, looked even more tired.

“Mr. Rael. You have to go in alone from here. If two or more humans come in, her evil will explode.”

“Okay. Thank you, Ms. Yuri.”

“Yes. Then I’ll come back in 8 hours. …You can come out right away if it’s hard to endure.”

I went down while listening to Yuri’s worried words.

At the end of the basement, there was an iron door that one person could barely pass through.

When I carefully opened the door, a dark and damp space greeted me.

I took a step, ignoring the cold energy that covered my body.

‘That’s… a prison?’

After walking a few steps, I saw a prison-like structure.

The alloy made of Eternal Ice Iron and Adamantium surrounded the prison, and the Order’s prayers were engraved on the walls.

“…”

Thud-

All the senses in my body screamed that it was dangerous.

I instinctively grabbed the handle of the sword tied to my waist.

I felt a murderous intent that seemed to be strangling my neck and looked straight ahead.

A heterogeneous space that was more than just a simple prison.

Inside, a girl was sitting.

‘I can’t call her a girl.’

Her red hair and eyes sparkling like flames were beautiful, but the small horns on her head reminded me that she was not human.

And what about the ominous energy emanating from the black clothes covering her whole body and that small body.

Even I, who have no soul, was trembling.

Numerous restraints were intricately intertwined on the girl’s body.

The faint light inside the prison was reflected on the restraints.

Only then could I read the prayers engraved on the restraints. It was the same as the one engraved on the wall of the prison.

Dozens of anti-magic chains that could catch any spirit were gathered to restrain a single being.

Sreung-

The monster, feeling the presence of someone, slowly raised her head to look at me.

I widened my eyes as I met the monster’s eyes.

– I want to bite your heart out.

– I want to tear your mouth apart.

– I want to tear off your fingers one by one.

An ominous voice ringing in my head.

I know because I’ve experienced it.

– Die die die die die die die

This was a curse.

Even a powerful curse that ignored my constitution.

‘Those Imperial bastards… kill a monster like that.’

A sinister energy that made my muscles tingle was strangling my heart.

A thick murderous intent covered my whole body, and an irresistible tyranny pressed down on my shoulders.

The fact that I could feel such a strong curse meant that the curse could materialize and become a phenomenon at any time.

Crack-

I could taste blood from my lips that I instinctively bit hard.

Only then did I come to my senses and regained my sense of reality, gripping my sword tightly.

I erased the curses and abusive language filling my head with my will.

‘That was close. I can’t believe they’re hiding a monster like this.’

Hundreds of those restraints are useless.

The being in front of me can kill me at any time.

Whether that was true or not, I couldn’t bear the fear the moment I faced the Ghost King with a human body.

‘This is why people go crazy.’

I’m like this even though I have no soul.

I can’t even imagine the pressure that the humans in this world would feel when they face him.

“…”

Next to the prison, there was also a chair and a desk that the warden seemed to use.

I stood still, unable to move a finger, tense with the Ghost King’s presence.

In that quiet silence, it was the Ghost King who spoke first.

“You’re quick to come to your senses. Are you a knight commander?”

“…”

The pressure that was slightly pressing down on my body disappeared.

I slowly met the Ghost King’s eyes.

The restraints holding her body did not kill her eyes at all, and she tilted her head like a girl of her age.

That action seemed to show pure curiosity.

“Why would a man who is the commander of the Empire’s knights be demoted to a place like this? Did you assassinate a noble or something?”

“…I beat up a young master from a count’s family who was causing trouble in a bar.”

I answered carefully. At the same time, the ominousness that filled my body decreased a little.

Whether it was because I was adapting to this situation, or because the Ghost King was restraining her power.

Honestly, I don’t know.

‘But one thing is certain.’

I have to continue this conversation.

My senses were telling me that.

“The Empire is so corrupt that a knight commander would be demoted for that? That’s amazing.”

“…I’m not a knight commander.”

“What? Then are you a royal guard?”

“No. I’m the captain of the capital’s guard. I was in charge of the 3rd guard unit.”

The Ghost King is an existence beyond my common sense.

I corrected the facts because I didn’t know what would happen later if such an existence misunderstood me, but she looked at me with dissatisfied eyes.

I felt like I would fall into fear just by looking at her.

‘Why are you doing this to me?’

The Ghost King, who had been staring at me, turned her body as if she was fed up after a while.

Only then did I realize the cold sweat flowing down my body.

‘….’

All the muscles in my body are tense.

The consumption of mental strength and physical strength was too severe just by facing her.

I looked at the Ghost King, who had turned her back, and carefully sat down on the chair.

Ghost King Yaksha.

If religion is made up of human hope, then ghosts are the embodiment of human evil.

The strongest power in the world is said to be hope, but evil is no less powerful.

Especially in a world where evil is as strong as it is now.

A ghost created when the soul of a resentful human meets deep evil.

That’s how the Ghost King was born.

Numerous humans died.

It was a fear that humans could not understand or resist.

The Ghost King’s power, which had drunk the blood of countless humans, reached the sky and became so strong that it laughed at even the gods, and at some point, it began to be called Yaksha.

‘What useless information.’

I shook my head, recalling the background of the novel.

A monster that could easily destroy a country alone.

I couldn’t understand why the Empire was leaving this monster alone as I am now.

‘What did I do wrong to be dragged to a place like this. Where else is there a guard who thinks about the Empire as much as I do….’

How many guards are as loyal to the Empire as I am to give me this ordeal.

No one in the world is without a story, and everyone says that what they have experienced is the most difficult, but no matter how I think about it, I think I am the most difficult.

‘Say something like you did earlier. I’m so anxious.’

The Ghost King, who was talking about the knight commander, hadn’t said anything for hours.

Yuri said that I had to endure for 8 hours, but not even half of it had passed yet.

The only good thing was that I had somewhat adapted to the atmosphere of this unpleasant prison.

Eternal Ice Iron is a metal containing ten thousand years of yin energy.

Since it was made of such metal on all sides, my whole body had no choice but to feel chilly.

When I accepted that fact, my body felt more comfortable.

‘Why is she still looking at me?’

The problem is the Ghost King’s gaze.

The Ghost King had been staring blankly at me for a while.

I thought about talking to her, but the ominousness was still there.

I felt like it was getting colder because I was feeling that gaze, so I shuddered.

“Heh heh. Kyahaha.”

“…?”

When I looked at her face at the sound of frivolous laughter, the Ghost King’s mouth opened as if promised.

She raised the corners of her mouth with an interesting expression.

“Human. You are very strange.”

She laughed like a child and emitted red light from her eyes.

Even though her appearance was like a pure child, the murderous intent emanating from her was real.

That bizarre harmony made the Ghost King even more terrifying.

‘What did I do to make that crazy monster laugh?’

My body flinched at the murderous intent seeping out from beyond the prison.

Should I kick down the door and get out of here now?

‘…No. Let’s calm down.’

As a result of watching for 3 hours, that seal was no joke.

No matter how much of a Ghost King she is, she can’t break the seal and kill me right now.

My senses are also saying that.

But even knowing that, I feel fear.

The strong murderous intent that made it awkward to know that my heart was beating confused even my senses.

“Haa….”

It felt like my whole body was slowly sinking into a swamp.

The fear that slowly eroded my body did not become familiar even when I tried to get used to it.

‘I was born a man and have a lot to do. You and I lived in the glory of protecting the country….’

I even tried singing a military song from my previous life, but the country I am in now is the Empire.

I was furious when I thought about protecting the Empire that had put me in the special guard unit.

“Our Father in heaven. Namu Amita Bul Gwanseum Bosal [Buddhist chant]….”

In the end, I had no choice but to pray to the gods of my previous life.

Still, the gods had some influence, and my heart became a little more comfortable.

“……..”

After memorizing the prayer and barely recalling a few verses of the Order’s teachings, my heart became a little more comfortable.

‘Still, I can endure it now.’

Humans are animals of adaptation.

At first, it was hard to even breathe, but now breathing was not difficult.

As I slowly became accustomed to the ghostly energy of the prison, the clock on the table finally announced that 8 hours had passed.

Fortunately, the Ghost King did not speak to me after giggling.

Only then was I able to get up from my chair.

“…I’ll see you again next time.”

As expected of someone from the Eastern Land of Courtesy, I greeted her.

I bowed my head and turned around, but belatedly, the Ghost King’s voice pierced into my head.

“Next time you come.”

“…?”

Surprised, I turned around.

She was still in prison.

“Bring me something sweet. I’m bored because I’m trapped in this narrow place.”

“Ah, yes. I’ll remember it.”

I wanted to ask what nonsense she was talking about, but Rael quietly turned his body.

I didn’t want to be around this prison anymore.

The throbbing of my heart did not subside until I got away from the prison and opened the door.

Squeak- Thump.

After the prison door closed.

Only then did Rael let out a sigh of relief and shudder.

“…I almost died.”

I felt my body calming down for sure as I got out of the Ghost King’s gaze.

Even if I had no soul, the murderous intent and ghostly energy emanating from her body were vivid.

I clenched and unclenched my fists to regain my sense of reality.

‘If my senses are alive, it seems like I won’t die….’

I was thinking about various things and going up the stairs when I felt a presence from above.

When I raised my head, I could see the faces of the three special guards.

‘Still, they were worried about me.’

I had never seen them leave their posts as a group while they were out on duty.

That means they were waiting because they were worried about me, who was having my first experience.

I felt a little bit of camaraderie.

I smiled and approached them.

‘What is that?’

And, I looked at the stretcher that Gent and Reina were holding in front and behind.

The stretcher was big enough to move one adult male.