Weapon-Eating Bastard [EN]: Chapter 174

Weapon-Eating Bastard – Episode 174

The entrance to the Papal State’s main headquarters.

Originally, the main headquarters, which should have been guarded by a large number of troops in case of a terrorist attack, was being protected by only a handful of knights, far fewer than regulations required.

“Cough, cough…”

And even those knights soon collapsed to the ground.

Before the fallen knights stood a woman in a robe and a man with a physique that seemed twice as large as an ordinary person.

“Ha, you guys are really… I’m going to report this to the main group. This is clearly your mistake,” the woman in the robe, the puppeteer, muttered with a frown.

In front of them stood a man with only his private parts covered by a pure white cloth, his eyes closed tightly, and a woman in a white mask.

“I’m sorry. We also didn’t expect things to turn out this way. But the neutralization of the main headquarters building is complete as planned, so don’t worry.”

“Neutralization is complete? How?”

“The new masks, having shed their human skin and regained their freedom, sacrificed themselves for the great cause,” the man wrapped in white cloth, the Apostle of Behemoth, said with a gentle smile.

“Well, anyway, I’m glad to hear that. It’s already messed up as much as it can be, but we’re splitting up here as planned,” the puppeteer thought.

She had used a lot of ‘souls’ this time because she was in a hurry to use the puppets, but she could just refill them. If she could reach her goal, she could make up for all the losses.

“I understand.”

“Then let’s go in.”

It was the moment the puppeteer was about to move.

“Wait!”

The giant man, who had been silently standing next to the puppeteer, glared and grabbed the puppeteer’s shoulder, pulling her back.

Swish!

Almost at the same time, something invisible passed by their front.

“Gasp!”

She tried to avoid it, but one of the puppeteer’s arms was sharply cut off, and blood splattered in the air.

And the next moment.

Thud! Crunch!

Stepping on the shattered pieces of stone on the torn-up floor, a woman walked from behind them.

The apostle, who had been wearing a consistently meaningful smile, the talkative puppeteer, the giant who didn’t show any particular expression, and even the white-masked woman.

Everyone who saw the woman hardened their expressions for the first time.

“Don’t even think about going any further.”

She had no wrinkles, and her posture was upright, making it impossible to guess her age.

She looked like a girl, a young person, and even a middle-aged person, giving off a strange impression.

The giant man, upon seeing her, widened his eyes and said.

“…Saintess Christina.”

The sword of the Papal State.

The shield of the kingdom.

One of the strongest swordsmen of the era.

“How are you here? I heard you were seriously injured and collapsed?”

The puppeteer, despite having her arm cut off, asked Saintess Christina without any change in expression, as if she felt nothing.

“You will die here, so there’s no point in hearing the reason,” Saintess Christina uttered such eerie words with a still gentle expression.

The giant man clenched his fists and stood in front of the puppeteer.

“Go in. I’ll stop her. I’ll take care of this.”

“Are you sure?”

Nod.

The man nodded silently.

The apostle, who was watching from the side, said to the white-masked woman next to him in a firm voice.

“I need to help him.”

“Yes, Apostle.”

“I will allow you to remove your mask.”

The white-masked woman trembled at those words.

It was impossible to know exactly because she was hidden behind the mask, but she seemed to be terrified, shocked, or perhaps even feeling joy.

“I… I will obey.”

The giant man and the white-masked woman stepped forward in front of Saintess Christina.

“…”

Saintess Christina silently pointed the sword in her hand at them.

The sword’s blade was so transparent that it looked like ice, and it sparkled in completely different colors depending on how the light hit it.

A celestial-grade holy sword, the ‘Sword of Salvation’. [Celestial-grade is the highest rank for holy swords.]

It was a top-tier holy relic said to have been made by melting a piece of the spear that pierced the side of the Son of God and a fragment of a meteor.

Immediately after.

Whoosh!

As if a star had exploded, a massive light descended upon the scene.

* * *

When I dealt with Bishop Horatio, I saw the dragon mask covering his face turn to dust.

I watched the scene for a moment.

Did Bishop Horatio really take off the mask, or did he put it on?

And did he really want this ending?

‘It doesn’t matter anymore.’

All that remained after the mask disappeared was Bishop Horatio, staring at the sky with empty eyes.

I felt the mansion’s security forces rushing towards me.

I briefly wondered if I should leave the bishop’s body behind.

‘That’s not my problem to worry about.’

I retrieved the sword embedded in Bishop Horatio’s abdomen and quickly flew away.

Vatican City was in complete chaos.

Even without using the Evil Eye, I could feel all sorts of energies intertwined in my senses.

Boom!

The sound of something exploding, collapsing, and people screaming or shouting.

The light of auras and magic was coloring the sky as dusk fell.

Vatican City was already a battlefield.

An unprecedented tragedy was unfolding in the capital of the country known as the safest in the world.

‘Where should I go?’

I hesitated for a moment at the crossroads.

Should I leave the enemies at the main headquarters and the Grand Cathedral to the kingdom’s forces and move to save lives?

Or should I head towards Saintess Christina and watch the direction of this whole incident?

I soon made a decision.

‘I’ll go to Saintess Christina.’

Now that the kingdom’s knights and mages have moved, there’s no need for me to move to rescue people.

I immediately flew, riding on the roofs of buildings.

Before long, I arrived at the main headquarters building of the Papal State.

I found Saintess Christina there, and…

“…!”

In the storm of light that burst out brilliantly, I could directly see what the power of a transcendent who had reached the 1st Class was like.

* * *

Saintess Christina created light.

It wasn’t a flash of light caused by magic. It was pure light that contained no impurities.

‘What on earth is this?’

A human was manipulating light.

Just by swinging her sword, a brilliant light that seemed to push away the entire night of the kingdom pushed away all the darkness.

Humans feel death and fear in dark places, and life and safety under the light.

And now, I.

In the flash of light unfolding before my eyes… I saw death.

Crackle!

The color of everything that touched the light disappeared, and the sound disappeared.

I felt a strange impression from that light.

It felt as if this brightly shining radiance was Saintess Christina herself.

And I had heard of this before.

‘Mind Sword…!’

The ultimate secret technique that those who walk the path of the sword obtain upon reaching the pinnacle.

Whoosh!

The moment I saw that, the light that had enveloped everything around me began to dissipate as if scattering.

“Hoo.”

Saintess Christina let out a very short breath.

That was all.

The world didn’t seem much different before and after Saintess Christina swung her sword.

There was no shockwave after unleashing a powerful technique, and no traces of destruction were revealed.

Just beyond the air that had calmed down.

Thud!

Only one cracked white mask fell to the ground and shattered, with no sign of the person wearing it.

“Krrr…”

The mask wasn’t the end.

Behind it, a giant man covered in blood announced his survival, exhaling a phlegm-filled breath.

‘He survived in that light?’

The fact that he was still alive even though he had been swallowed by that light came as a shock.

The giant man was clearly breathing, even as blood dripped from his entire body.

“I endured… enough.”

The man didn’t fall and turned his head to look at the main headquarters building.

Saintess Christina frowned very slightly.

The man turned his gaze and looked at me.

“Lee Chul of the Soongmoo Yi family. I see that today is not the day. Someday, I will come to find you.”

I didn’t know what he meant, but I knew that he was showing me some kind of interest.

“I’ll look forward to the next-.”

-time.

Before those words could finish, Saintess Christina swung her sword again.

A streak of sword energy crossed the space and aimed at the man.

But at that moment.

Crack!

Suddenly, the air split open, and the giant’s body was sucked somewhere, and the Saintess’s sword energy flew through the air, tearing apart the innocent void.

“…I missed him.”

Saintess Christina lowered her sword.

I approached her.

Saintess Christina’s complexion was a little paler.

The quality of the flowing magic power was quite chaotic.

It seemed that the reason she couldn’t swing her sword until that man escaped was because she was not in good condition.

‘So she did have an injury.’

Unlike what was known, it wasn’t to the point where she couldn’t move, but it was true that she was seriously injured, and she couldn’t avoid internal injuries because she had unleashed the ultimate technique called Mind Sword in that state.

“…I appreciate your concern, but I’m fine,” Saintess Christina said that as if she had noticed my gaze.

I nodded silently and brought up another story.

“Saintess Christina. Are those all the enemies?”

“No. Two people have infiltrated the main headquarters.”

“Two people?”

“I was wrong. Behemoth wasn’t the only one who attacked the kingdom. The man who just ran away was a Kabbalah monk, and there was one more person next to him.”

As expected, Kabbalah had also started something.

“The Behemoth side will probably head to the underground, and the Kabbalah side will aim for the secret library.”

“I understand. Then we’ll have to split up.”

Saintess Christina closed her mouth for a moment at those words and looked at me.

Then she nodded and said.

“Yes, let’s do that. You’ll be enough as you are now. No, I’m glad you’re here.”

“What do you mean?”

“I can’t use my full strength against the Apostle of Behemoth who went underground. That’s why I was injured.”

I couldn’t help but be surprised for a moment.

Was she saying that Saintess Christina, a 1st Class knight, couldn’t handle the enemy?

“No. This isn’t a matter of superiority of power, but a matter of the type of power. I can’t oppose him, but if you, who inherited the blood of the Soongmoo Yi family, face him, there won’t be a big problem.”

I couldn’t understand what she was saying, but I couldn’t ask for an explanation right now.

“Anyway, I understand. I’ll go underground.”

“I’ll go to the secret library. Then I’ll leave it to you. Young Master Lee Chul.”

“Yes, I understand.”

I nodded and immediately moved.

* * *

The main headquarters building was a shocking sight.

They weren’t just wearing masks, but monsters were wandering around, and ordinary employees muttering like fanatics popped out everywhere.

Swish! Crunch!

I didn’t hold back.

Since I had already been there once, I didn’t get lost.

Underground.

I went deeper and deeper inside.

Quickly kicking off the ground, I rushed inside.

And at the end of the secret underground passage in the deepest part, I found a wooden door that was wide open.

Even though it was a seal that could only be opened by one of the two bishops reciting a prayer, the door was open.

Holding Mujin in my left hand and Black Night in my right, I prepared everything I could, including the Evil Eye and the Martial Body, and stepped inside.

And inside, I faced the Apostle of Behemoth.

A man looking at the transparent glass case with his hands behind his back.

He turned his head towards me with a benevolent smile.

“You’ve come.”

I was about to kick off the ground and swing my sword.

But the man smiled at me and slowly opened his eyes.

Thud!

In an instant, all the magic power in my body drained away, and I felt an enormous sense of fatigue throughout my body.

‘What, what is going on…!’

The man’s eyes… had no eyes.

There was only a gaping black hole.

However, I felt as if the power of my entire body was being sucked into that gaping hole.

‘I don’t know what kind of strange power it is, but!’

I swung Black Night and slashed through the air.

Clang!

At that moment, the man staggered and squeezed his eyes shut.

“Hahaha. To think you’d break this.”

The man smiled as if he was enjoying it.

Then he straightened his back and smiled brightly.

“Shall we start with introductions? Young Master Lee Chul of the Soongmoo Yi family. I am Behemoth’s…”

“I don’t need it.”

The magic power that had been drained away was instantly restored.

I stretched out Black Night again without saying a word.

Stab-!

And Black Night plunged into the man’s chest so naturally.

Because the attack was so easily successful, I stared at the man with wide eyes.

The man smiled even as his heart was pierced and spoke.

“I really wanted to meet you.”

The man’s hand reached for the cover of the glass case.

And.

Rumble!

The black object escaped into the world.