Chapter 150: Sword King
On the snowy mountain where a snowstorm was raging.
A man with long crimson hair, sitting at the edge of the cliff, sneered.
The red scarf wrapped around his neck fluttered slowly in the wind.
He liked this moment the most.
When the yellow sky unfolded.
The sensation of the entire world writhing as if on edge.
This sensation reminded him of his old homnd.
“What the hell are you doing? Why did you mess with Hadenhartz!”
It was at that moment. The man, lost in pleasant thoughts, slowly turned his head to the side.
Standing there was a woman with long, disheveled ck hair.
Instead of her usual attire, she wore a robe entirely ck in color.
Clenching her fists tightly, she red at the man with eyes full of unyielding anger.
The man, however, tilted his head, as if he couldn’t understand her frustration.
“Well, isn’t it the best opportunity to gain high-quality World Erosion power?”
His alias was the Mad Sword Emperor.
He was a world eroder affiliated with Ixion.
The Mad Sword Emperor’s world erosion became stronger as he fought against more powerful opponents.
Naturally, the higher the level, the greater the power of the world erosion he could obtain.
Currently, in Hadenhartz, there was none other than the Sword King Rai Valheim.
With such an opportunity to gain top-quality world erosion, there was no reason not to act.
“I’ve heard about your power. If it’s like that, why don’t you fight me instead!”
“Hahaha, that’s impossible.”
The Mad Sword Emperor shrugged exaggeratedly.
“You, being a world eroder yourself, know full well how world erosion is created, don’t you?”
Ebsque bit her lip hard.
World erosion was, quite literally, erosion.
World erosion is created by consuming and eroding parts of the world.
Therefore, even if those unrted to this world band together, world erosion will not be produced.
Ebsque was well aware of this fact.
“If that weren’t the case, I wouldn’t have been chasing after the strong like this, would I?”
“Don’t make meugh.”
Ebsque scowled and red at him.
“You just want to fight. All those excuses are just a cover.”
As she red at him with a furious expression, the Mad Sword Emperor, who had been silent, covered his mouth.
Then, he let out a short chuckle.
“Yeah, so what? Why does that matter?”
The Mad Sword Emperorughed as if there was nothing surprising about it, and the power of world erosion surged from Ebsque’s hand.
Even as the jet-ck energy began gathering around her, the Mad Sword Emperor remained unperturbed.
“I don’t get you, new recruit. I move because it benefits Ixion.”
At the mention of Ixion, Ebsque faltered.
Ixion—a group that came together to use world erosion to create a god.
They sought to recreate their lost world.
“But how does stopping me benefit Ixion in any way?”
“…The opponent isn’t Hadenhartz. It’s Valheim. How do you n to deal with the aftermath? Valheim wille after Ixion.”
“Hahahahaha! Even better! Wouldn’t we get higher-quality world erosion? It means our world woulde closer, even faster!”
The Mad Sword Emperor burst into maniacalughter.
From the look on his face, he seemedpletely sincere.
“…You’re insane.”
Ebsque stared at the Mad Sword Emperor with disbelief.
Meeting her gaze, the Mad Sword Emperor slowly ceasedughing.
“How surprising. We, who’ve already experienced the end of our own world, went mad a long time ago.”
The Mad Sword Emperor’s crimson eyes glowed faintly as he reminisced about events from long ago, his smile turning twisted.
“Recruit, since there seems to be something in Hadenhartz that matters to you, let me say one thing.”
With a rumbling <i>boom</i> in the sky, lightning struck.
It was the sound of world erosion beginning to move in earnest.
“This world isn’t ours.”
With the lightning striking behind him, he spread his arms wide, as if telling her to face reality.
“It’s just and of nutrients to save our world.”
Yellow rain began pouring from the sky.
“Shouldn’t the insects living on thisnd be ground up finely to make fertilizer?”
The yellow raindrops slid down the Mad Sword Emperor’s cheek as he spoke.
He genuinely regarded the humans of this world as mere fertilizer.
Just as they didn’t see world eroders as humans, world eroders also didn’t see them as humans.
Ebsque, feeling the weight of this reality, bit her lip.
Perhaps in the past, she might have thought the same way.
But things were different now.
Unlike before, she had met someone decent.
Ebsque pressed firmly against her chest.
She had made a promise to him.
A promise to protect Hadenhartz.
That promise was to the one she owed her life to.
It was to a person that freed her from a curse she thought would bind her forever.
“Even so, I can’t…”
Just as she was about to speak again to stop the Mad Sword Emperor, the space beside him suddenly began to twist and warp.
Seeing this, Ebsque instinctively held her breath.
Soon, through the distorted space, a single ck frog popped out.
The Mad Sword Emperor, upon seeing the frog, smiled as if he was delighted.
“Oh, Commander of Ixion, what brings you here?”
“Bringing ruin, crimson, descending.”
At that moment, meaningless words poured out from the frog.
Its voice, mixed with noise, was unpleasant to hear.
The Mad Sword Emperor, after listening to the frog for a moment, tapped it lightly.
“Commander, the trantion isn’t working.”
The frog fell silent for a moment.
Then, after a few croaks, its voice changed.
“…I came because it seems there’s been a disturbance.”
The new voice was smooth and clear, like the sound of a polished jewel.
Hearing this voice, the Mad Sword Emperor grinned.
“A disturbance? Nothing of the sort. I’m just getting some work done.
By the way, the Sword King is here. I’ll just pick up some world erosion and leave.”
“There’s no guarantee it will go as smoothly as it did with the Poison King.”
“It’ll be fine! This time, we even have the recruit!”
The Mad Sword Emperor, grinning, swiftly pointed at Ebsque.
Ebsque opened her mouth to speak, then closed it again, over and over.
Because she knew exactly who that ck frog belonged to.
The ck Witch.
Themander of Ixion and the woman who could bring back therades Ebsque had longed for with all her heart.
It was because of that woman that Ebsque joined Ixion.
And it was because of that woman that Ixion could exist.
She was the only one capable of creating the god of world erosion.
“Ebsque Benapochi.”
At that moment, the ck Witch called Ebsque by name.
Ebsque flinched, and the ck Witch continued speaking.
“Don’t get too close to the Mad Sword Emperor.”
It was simple advice.
She didn’t stop the Mad Sword Emperor.
That, in essence, meant she was permitting his actions.
Ebsque’s eyes wavered.@@novelbin@@
She wanted to say, <i>Stop immediately,</i> but she couldn’t.
She had spent her entire life pursuing the revival of herrades, endlessly researching necromancy.
Yet the revival of life was something she had never achieved.
The ck Witch was the only one who could make it happen.
Because of that, Ebsque couldn’t defy her words.
<i>‘Once again…’</i>
Just as when the Empire had taken her heart, making her a puppet of the Night Raven, she was bing a puppet of Ixion.
This realization filled Ebsque with intense self-loathing.
She was making the same mistake all over again.
In the meantime, the ck Witch’s frog turned to smoke and disappeared.
She had truly onlye to check what was going on.
“Now then, Recruit, it’s time to get to work.”
The Mad Sword Emperor spoke to Ebsque, who had lowered her head, with a grin.
He, too, knew that Ebsque couldn’t defy the ck Witch.
“Of course, you remember your task, don’t you?”
“…To ensure no one approaches while you fight the Sword King.”
“Exactly, that’s it! And just to be clear, don’t interfere. I need to savor this and let it mature.”
Ebsque pressed her lips together tightly and turned away into the darkness.
The Mad Sword Emperor, watching her retreat, turned his head back with a grin.
Because at the edge of the snowy mountain, someone was racing toward him,
the snow swirling furiously around them.
He drew a crimson de that matched the color of his hair.
One of the Ten Heavenly Swords.
The <b>Blood Curse Death de (血癩死刀)</b>.
The crimson, gleaming sword shimmered as if eager for its next prey.
At that moment.
From the snowy field the Mad Sword Emperor had been watching, a thunderous <i>boom</i> erupted, sending snow flying into the air.
“From that distance?”
Even the Mad Sword Emperor reacted with surprise.
At that moment, he caught a glint of something shining in the snow.
Seeing it, he immediately drew the Blood Curse Death de.
<i>ng!</i>
The crimson, blood-like aura of the de rippled as it deflected something.
The deflected object soared into the sky and then came to a sudden halt mid-air.
The Mad Sword Emperor’s gaze followed it upward.
What he saw was a single sword.
A sword had been thrown.
And not just from a close distance—it hade from the furthest visible point on the snowy mountain.
“Wow, is that a monster?”
But it didn’t end with just the flying sword.
The sword, which had been hovering mid-air, began to growrger andrger.
The Mad Sword Emperor let out a short chuckle.
He knew exactly what this was—a technique created by the Sword King, Rai Valheim.
<b>The Emperor’s Annihtion Sword (帝王殲滅劍).</b>
Before long, the colossal sword filled the sky, its enormous form reflected in the Mad Sword Emperor’s two eyes.
A massive shadow, cast by the colossal sword in the sky, loomed over the mountain.
In the distance, flocks of birds began fleeing frantically, as if escaping impending doom.
Before this overwhelming sight, it was impossible to envision a future beyond death.
And then, the sky began to copse.
“Well, well.”
The Mad Sword Emperor licked his lips with his tongue.
“Is it right to stoke my expectations this much?”
At the same time, a crimson aura began to coil around the Blood Curse Death de.
The bright red aura extended beyond the de, wrapping around the Mad Sword Emperor’s arm.
<i>Thump!</i>
The pounding of his heart resounded so intensely it echoed in his head.
The crimson aura gradually took shape, manifesting into a grotesquely oversized arm, stripped of skin.
At the end of this monstrous arm, the Blood Curse Death de, held firmly in his hand, transformed into an even more horrifying form.
Muscle fibers and blood vessels intertwined to create the shape of a de.
At that moment, the ck gem embedded in the center of the sword slowly began to open, revealing an eye.
As the jet-ck pupil emerged within the gemstone, heat surged from the Mad Sword Emperor’s body.
With a powerful leap, the Mad Sword Emperorunched himself into the air.
His monstrous arm and the grotesque, massive de that the Blood Curse Death de had be stretched toward the sky.
<i>Kagagagagagagagagagang!</i>
The collision of Rai Valheim’s Emperor’s Annihtion Sword and the Blood Curse Death de sent out an earth-shattering noise.
The impact tore apart the surrounding forests and mountains, sending debris flying in all directions.
Anyone who had witnessed this spectacle would have been left utterly speechless.
<i>Ka-gang!</i>
And in that sh of power, it was the Mad Sword Emperor who emerged victorious.
He had managed to push back the descending Emperor’s Annihtion Sword.
The Mad Sword Emperor grinned triumphantly.
He relished the numbing sensation coursing through his arm, a testament to his madness.
As he prepared tond on the ground, he noticed something odd—the sky still felt dark.
The moment he raised his head, he realized why.
Another sword loomed above the Emperor’s Annihtion Sword.
Because from the beginning, the Emperor’s Annihtion Sword was never just one de.
More swords began to appear in the sky, multiplying at an rming rate.
“Wow.”
The sight of the sky filled entirely with the Emperor’s Annihtion Swords was enough to make even the Mad Sword Emperor falter for a moment.
Under this sky of nothing but swords, he muttered to himself.
“They say Valheim is a den of demons. Looks like it’s true.”
And this time, the sky truly began to copse.
Trantors note: