The Swordmaster Wants To Live Peacefully [EN]: Chapter 268

Swordmaster Wants to Live Peacefully – Episode 267

Swordmaster Wants to Live Peacefully Episode 267

Nox (10)

A strange current began to flow throughout the Japanese archipelago.

One might call it tension. It felt as if a war was about to break out at any moment.

Tension soared as a Class 1 Abyss Break neared in Kansai, Osaka.

In Kanto, Tokyo, divers from various guilds headed south.

These individuals, who normally had no interaction, came down, claiming it was to stop the Class 1 Abyss Break.

In a way, it seemed like they were all joining forces to prevent the Abyss Break, but the real reasons were unclear.

Kanto rarely interfered in Kansai’s affairs, often just observing.

The Kansai side knew that those guys wouldn’t help willingly, so they were wary, while Kanto acted arrogantly, trying to take credit.

“Who the hell are those guys?”

Hong Seohwa frowned as she spoke, and Koyuki, who was next to her, said,

“They’re divers from Kanto. They seem to be from Tokyo… What’s brought those slowpokes all the way here?”

“Kanto? Tokyo? I don’t know any foreign divers except for a few famous ones.”

Hong Seohwa shrugged, while Schueranel was sitting and tapping away at a game console.

There was nothing to do anyway until those monsters popped out.

In the meantime, a man with two Japanese swords at his waist approached Koyuki.

“Long time no see, Koyuki.”

“…Yamio. I didn’t expect the Samurai Association to come.”

“With such an event in Kansai, the Samurai Association should step up, shouldn’t it?”

“What? Miyamoto Musashi? Why do you guys have that crazy bastard?”

“Because he’s the idol of the samurai! Haha!”

The man called Yamio laughed loudly. He was an S-class diver belonging to the ‘Samurai Association,’ a prominent guild.

They operated mainly in Kanto and rarely set foot in Kansai, but….

“And a Class 1 Black Gate is about to open, so of course, we have to rush over. Aren’t we all subjects of the Imperial Empire (皇國臣民) [archaic term for citizens of the Japanese Empire]?”

“Imperial Empire my ass….”

Koyuki felt a headache coming on.

The fact that there were people spouting such outdated nonsense in the 21st century was infuriating.

Yamio turned his gaze to the two people next to her.

“By the way, Kansai seems to be severely lacking in talent. Do you have to resort to pulling in outside help like this to solve things? Even second-class citizens….”

The moment the words ‘second-class citizen’ came out, Hong Seohwa frowned and glared at Yamio.

Then, after a moment of consideration, she took a step forward and threw a punch.

Thwack!

A heavy sound echoed. Hong Seohwa’s fist, which Yamio couldn’t react to with his speed, landed squarely on his face.

Yamio’s body was pushed back and slammed into the ground, and Hong Seohwa dusted off her hands and said,

“Second-class citizen my ass, you pathetic bastard. A samurai cosplay moron stuck in the past….”

“Y-you bitch!”

Yamio staggered to his feet. Blood was streaming from his mouth and nose.

He mumbled, then spat out blood, and a few teeth came out with it.

His front teeth and canines seemed to be broken.

Hong Seohwa chuckled and mocked his appearance.

“If you hadn’t spouted that nonsense, you wouldn’t have gotten hit, would you?”

As Yamio got hit, the Samurai Association divers nearby all drew their swords and aimed them at Hong Seohwa.

Yamio also drew one of the Japanese swords from his waist and muttered,

“This crazy Joseon [Korean dynasty] bitch….”

“Huh! The Jap who started it has a mouth on him. Should I have just killed him?”

Hong Seohwa said, igniting flames all over her body.

Her superpower, ‘Ignition (發火),’ used to be just surrounding herself with fire.

But not anymore.

Her mastery of the ability had reached perfection, and her magic power had reached S-class or higher through transcendence.

The flames flowing from her were no longer simple flames.

She had reached the realm of karmic fire (業火) [fire born from one’s actions or destiny] that could burn anything according to her will.

Most of the Samurai Association divers were A-class, B-class, or C-class.

Only two were S-class, including Yamio, and the other S-class was not present.

In other words.

No matter how hard they tried, it was virtually impossible to defeat Hong Seohwa alone.

With a confident smile, she further increased the size of the magic-filled flames.

More splendidly!

More hotly!

The sight was like a small fire dragon (火龍) establishing itself and growing its presence, causing some of the samurai who had drawn their swords to retreat, unable to withstand it.

The same was true for Yamio.

Perhaps he didn’t know that the diver in front of him possessed such power, he glared with a cold sweat.

Hong Seohwa didn’t even draw her sword.

She simply clapped her fists together and spoke to them.

“Only those who are prepared to die should come at me. I’ll burn you to the bones!”

“T-that’s enough, Hong Seohwa. Everyone has understood.”

Koyuki, who was watching, stopped her, fearing that things would become more complicated.

She didn’t want infighting to lead to self-destruction before the monsters even appeared.

As Koyuki pleaded almost desperately, Hong Seohwa finally extinguished the flames and snorted.

‘This should be enough.’

The reason she hesitated before beating up Yamio earlier was different.

It was a kind of declaration. When working with people from other regions, it’s easy to encounter various difficult situations.

It meant that if they weren’t stronger than her, they should shut their mouths.

Her declaration worked very well.

Having seen her power, most wouldn’t even think of touching her.

“Ugh, when is Master coming?”

Standing still made her body feel stiff.

It would be a little less boring if a monster popped out of the Abyss.

And as if granting her wish.

“…Break imminent! They’re coming out soon!”

“Prepare for battle! Everyone, prepare for battle!!”

A diver from the Inari Shrine, who was measuring the dimensional waves, shouted, and the other divers prepared for the battle that would soon begin.

In the meantime, a woman dressed in an Onmyoji [traditional Japanese occultist] outfit walked out from among the people and threw a few talismans.

The flying talismans drew a circle around the Abyss and formed a barrier, connected in gold.

“I’ll buy you time. Prepare more thoroughly.”

The person who threw the talismans was Nagi Seo, the head of the Yasaka Pagoda in Kyoto.

It was the moment she finished her Jeongyang [ritual purification] and stood on the battlefield again.

Behind her, Onmyoji belonging to the Yasaka Pagoda stood in a row.

A sortie to protect their land.

“Tch. It’ll take a little longer.”

Hong Seohwa, who had drawn her sword, put it back.

Then she muttered softly.

“I should have just gone in with Master.”

***

Yoosungwoo, who had entered the Abyss alone, first encountered a large army of Oni [Japanese demons or ogres].

The hideous-faced monsters he had seen in Kasuga Mountain were lined up in droves.

In addition to the Oni, several other monsters he had never seen before glared at Yoosungwoo, exuding murderous intent.

This was the difference between Japanese and Korean monsters.

Korean monsters have many folktales that are friendly to humans. Even if they attack, it’s only a prank, and most stories end happily.

There’s even a story of a goblin and a farmer competing in wrestling, acknowledging each other, and sharing buckwheat jelly.

However, Japanese monsters and Oni are different. Even if they look similar to goblins, their personalities are extremely vicious.

There are many stories of them cruelly killing and even eating people.

The same goes for Gyuki and Nure-onna [dangerous Japanese Yokai].

Yoosungwoo, who had met the Oni’s gazes, spat out,

“A bunch of beggars gathered together, it’s nothing but a beggar’s den.”

And, before the Oni could even get angry, a slash followed.

A red flash flickers.

In the blink of an eye, before that.

A very fleeting moment.

The long, extended red flash harvests the Oni’s necks.

When Yoosungwoo brought the extended sword back to his waist, the heads of the Oni that had been flying rolled to the ground.

The bodies that had lost their heads soon fell like dominoes, and Yoosungwoo walked over the fallen Oni’s bodies as if they were a carpet.

The Abyss where Shuten-doji was located was a rocky mountain with a large river flowing through it.

It was similar to the environment he had faced against Maynard in the past.

But the difference was that the flowing river reeked of alcohol.

“Ugh.”

The river itself was made of alcohol.

Perhaps if he went up this river, he could see Shuten-doji.

His senses told him so.

The huge waterfall visible in the distance.

Shuten-doji is below that.

Yoosungwoo climbed the rocky mountain at a leisurely pace, without being in a hurry.

The Oni and monsters he encountered along the way were sliced and thrown into the river.

“They eat well.”

As soon as he threw the Oni’s corpses, a huge bone whale soared up and ate them.

That’s also a type of monster.

Yoosungwoo watched the sight of several of those guys swimming for a moment before taking another step.

He climbed the mountain again for a long time.

Then, he found several human heads stuck on skewers and scattered around.

Below them were the bodies of people who seemed to have been eaten.

The corpses of those who had come to attack Shuten-doji before.

Due to the cruel nature of the Oni, they had decorated it like this to break the spirit of the next challenger.

“…….”

Laughter leaked out at the sight of the Oni doing things that only stupid orcs would do.

Would they be scared by this?

He had already seen enough of this kind of thing in the other world.

If he were scared by this much, he would have died a long time ago.

Yoosungwoo climbed the mountain again.

And, finally.

He reached the waterfall.

A huge waterfall made of terrible poisonous alcohol (毒酒), a constantly pouring waterfall, greeted him.

“Welcome. Why don’t we start with a drink?”

On a small rock under the waterfall.

There was a half-naked Oni.

Bulky muscles and bronze skin all over his body.

Up to this point, he was not much different from a human.

What proved that he was not human were the horns protruding from the temples and the center of his forehead, the sharp fangs protruding from the outside of his lips, and the reverse eyes (逆眼) [eyes with the white and black parts inverted].

The place where the whites of the eyes should have been was filled with black, and the pupils were aquamarine.

Holding a wide red sake cup in one hand, he received alcohol towards the waterfall, then drank it all at once.

“Kyaa! Even diluted, Shinpenkidokushu (神便鬼毒酒) [divine, convenient, demon-poison sake] is amazing. Now, why don’t you have a drink too.”

Even though the waterfall was falling tremendously, his voice was not drowned out.

Shuten-doji, also known as Shutendoji (酒呑童子) [the sake-drinking child], a great Japanese monster, repeatedly offered alcohol with a friendly smile.

With a confident face that he was sure you would like it once you drank it.

Yoosungwoo smirked, drew his sword, and swung it.

Likewise, a flash flickers.

The red flash, as if cutting the world in half, splits the falling waterfall in half.

The split waterfall stopped as if time had stopped.

Soon, it began to pour down again.

Yoosungwoo, who cut the water with his sword, said to Shuten-doji.