Chapter 149
[Translator – Kie]
[Proofreader – Kawaii]
Chapter 149: Returning Home (1)
***
Damien did not set his destination as the Spring Castle.
Before returning to his family, he had to deal with the artifacts in his possession.
‘This kind of thing is best left to Green Scent.’
Damien was going to entrust the sale of the artifacts to Green Scent.
Green Scent was an organization with tremendous influence in the capital. They even ran the black market, so they were perfect for handling the artifacts.
However, if he were to hand over all the artifacts, Pandemonium might be able to identify Damien, so he planned to only select items that were often found in other ruins.
‘I’ll have to train those guys while I’m at it.’
Those guys referred to Dominico’s party.
Although Dominico’s party had joined him, he thought they were still lacking in many ways to be used as a fighting force immediately.
’20 regular soldiers, 6 low-class, 4 middle-class, and 1 high-class.’
Normally, even this level of strength would be something to brag about anywhere.
The problem was that the enemy Damien was preparing for was Pandemonium.
Pandemonium had such a powerful force that they even belittled Masterclasses. He couldn’t possibly fight them with this kind of strength.
It wasn’t like Damien could use Dark Binding every time.
“From now on, you will repeat the movements I teach you 10,000 times a day.”
On the way to the capital, Damien summoned Dominico’s party and said.
– Master, You mean 10,000 times now?
Dominico asked with a surprised face. After forming a master-servant relationship, Dominico had been using honorifics with Damien.
“Why? Do you have any complaints?”
– I can do it, but… it seems like too harsh of training for the other guys.
Dominico had a point. Even doing a downward strike 100 times was so tiring that his arms felt like they were going to fall off. So what about doing a more complex movement 10,000 times?
“It would be harsh if you were human. But you guys are undead now, aren’t you?”
You don’t need to eat or sleep. You can’t even get injured.
“Don’t whine and just complete it. You don’t have anything to do inside anyway, do you?”
Damien said, pointing to the travel bag.
It was an artifact used by the Corpseplay that had the ability to store multiple undead.
From what Damien had learned, the inside of the travel bag was an empty space, so the undead could move around freely.
“My goal is to make all of you high-class.”
At Damien’s words, Dominico and the other spirits burst out laughing. They seemed to think he was joking to motivate them.
However, Damien didn’t laugh. Only then did Dominico and the other spirits realize that Damien was serious.
– … Are you serious?
“Of course. I don’t talk nonsense.”
It wasn’t an impossible goal. Damien had Dark Binding.
With Dark Binding, he could share his knowledge and experience with them.
Of course, it was only temporary, and they would all forget everything once Dark Binding was stopped, but the feeling would remain to some extent.
Damien calculated that if he could combine his guidance and training with periodic use of Dark Binding to engrave the feeling, he would be able to achieve his goal soon.
“Oh, you need to become a Master. You know that, right?”
Damien said to Dominico. Dominico smiled bitterly.
– I don’t know if I can live up to your expectations.
“Don’t act weak. You’re the most likely one to do it.”
Perhaps it wouldn’t be long before Dominico reached Masterclass, even faster than the others reached Highclass.
That’s because Dominico had that much talent.
“Oh, and….” Finally, Damien turned around.
There, Miya was observing the snake on the branch with a curious face.
“You see that? Fight with her for 3 hours a day.”
– ……Yes?
Dominico was startled and looked at Damien.
“She has good talent, but she lacks experience, so she always loses.”
– In that case… I will follow your orders.
“Don’t do it half-heartedly. You have to do it properly.”
– I understand. I will fight with the intention of killing her.
“No, that’s not it.”
Damien shook his head and said.
“Just kill her.”
– ……Yes?
“Don’t fight with the intention of killing him, just kill each other. You won’t really die anyway, right?”
Dominico was already a dead soul. In Miya’s case, her regeneration ability was further enhanced by consuming the blood of the phoenix.
Dominico looked back at Miya. In terms of appearance, Miya was a beautiful woman with a gentle impression.
To just kill such a being?
– That…….
“You have something to say?”
– No, it’s nothing.
However, Dominico had no choice but to obey Damien’s orders. He had received too much favor from him.
“Kyaa!”
Unaware of the fate that awaited her, Miya happily grabbed the snake’s tail and spun around.
***
After that, Damien made contact with Green Scent in the capital.
He selected artifacts that wouldn’t attract attention when sold and entrusted them all to Green Scent.
He checked the items coming up for auction at the market, just in case there might be something useful.
“Too bad. All potions here are useless for me. No mana cultivation techniques at all.”
From the high class onward, ordinary potions couldn’t increase mana.
Legendary potions like Philosopher’s Stone and World Tree’s Fruit were needed.
Otherwise, accumulating mana slowly was the only option. The problem was Damien didn’t have time for that.
“To fight Pandemonium, I need to become a master class as soon as possible.”
Damien intended to completely annihilate Pandemonium.
During the War of Destruction, Pandemonium was the strongest ally of the Dorugo.
Considering that, he couldn’t kill every single member. At least the organization needed to be dismantled to some extent.
“Send the money to Count Haksen.”
With that, Damien left Green Scent. Now only the journey home remained.
Damien set his course for Spring Castle, where his family resided, as he left the capital.
While moving along the main road, a vast forest greeted Damien.
As Damien crossed the forest with his horse, suddenly, he stopped the horse and muttered to himself.
“When did the Apple Kingdom become so ominous?”
Before he finished speaking, arrows flew out of the bushes. Damien didn’t even look at the arrows; he just leaned back. The arrows passed in front of him.
Soon, countless arrows flew from among the bushes. The spacing was too tight to dodge.
Damien drew in mana and released it outward. The shockwave caused by the mana swept away all the arrows.
“This is getting annoying.”
If a fight broke out here, the expensive horse would likely die.
After landing on the ground, Damien slapped the horse’s hindquarters. The horse neighed and galloped forward.
“Come out.”
As Damien scanned the forest, a woman wielding a sword emerged from the bushes.
The woman swung her sword at Damien. Damien blocked the attack with Dawn.
A considerable amount of shock was transmitted through the blade. Damien asked with a puzzled expression.
“High class? There shouldn’t be any female high classes in the Apple Kingdom, right?”
The woman didn’t answer Damien’s question. She just swung her sword.
Damien blocked all of the woman’s attacks with Dawn. However, no matter how many attacks he blocked, the woman’s hands didn’t stop.
Her relentless and entwining swordsmanship was like that of a snake.
“Where do you belong? What’s your motive for targeting me?”
Damien threw another question.
At that moment, he felt a presence behind him. A man with a spear rushed toward Damien.
The man continuously thrusts the spear at Damien. Damien blocked the spear with Dawn.
If the woman’s swordsmanship was relentless, the man’s spear was exceptionally swift and accurate.
“So, there was one more high class.”
Just by looking at the posture of wielding the spear, Damien could tell. This man was also a high class.
The two high classes cooperated to attack Damien. Their sword and spear incessantly aimed at Damien’s vital points.
Damien’s pupils moved quickly. He read everything about the two’s techniques, muscles’ movements, and even eye movements.
Once everything was grasped, the movements of the two were as clear as if they were in his hands.
With all the pieces in place, all that remained was to finish the job.
Damien used the Art of Sacrificial Raging Demon Manifestation.
As his body temperature rose, all of his senses were enhanced. At the same time, the movements of the two people slowed down.
The spears and swords that were raining down at a tremendous speed also slowed down. It was as if they were moving underwater.
In a world where everything was slowed down, Damien was the only one who maintained his original speed.
Damien twisted his body to dodge the spears and swords. Then he slashed the throats of the woman and the man once each with his sword.
Damien deactivated Art of Sacrificial Raging Demon Manifestation. The world that had been flowing slowly sped up again.
“Ugh!”
“Gasp!”
Only then did the two people realize that their throats had been cut.
The two people clutched their throats with faces of disbelief. Blood dripped continuously from between their fingers.
“Grr… ugh…”
“Gasp, ugh…”
The two people desperately used their mana to stop the bleeding. As expected of High-classes, the blood that was flowing stopped quickly.
However, they had only stopped the bleeding, and they were no longer in a condition to fight. If they moved even a little bit violently, the wounds on their necks would surely burst open again.
The two people looked at Damien with faces full of fear. He raised his sword to finish them off.
It was then.
An arrow flew out of the bushes.
It was incomparably faster than the arrow that had flown in first.
It was not a speed that could be avoided. Damien raised his sword to block the arrow.
At that moment, a tremendous shock was transmitted. Damien’s body was pushed back.
‘As expected, a Masterclass was hiding.’
When he used the Art of Sacrificial Raging Demon Manifestation, Damien could have killed the two people completely, but he did not.
It was not only because there was no killing intent in the two people’s attacks, but also because of the enormous aura hidden in the forest.
The aura was hidden, but it could not deceive Damien’s senses.
“Who is it?”
Damien pretended not to notice the existence and shouted, looking in the direction from which the arrow had come.
Then, two people walked out, pushing through the bushes.
One was a woman with a sharp impression. She was holding a longbow in her hands that was about the same length as her own height.
And next to her stood a boy.
Unusually, the boy had both white hair and eyebrows. He looked like an old man.
“He’s quite a loud guy.”
Unlike his young appearance, the man’s voice was old and rough.
“Cynthia, did you see that? That guy blocked your arrow.”
The boy asked the woman, looking back at her. The woman did not say anything.
The boy continued speaking with an excited expression as if it didn’t matter.
“You said you didn’t have the intention to kill him, but… a High-class blocked a Masterclass’s attack? Isn’t that really amazing?”
Damien did not respond to the boy’s praise either. To be exact, he did not have a reason to do so.
‘…Why is this person here?’
Damien was in great confusion after confirming the boy’s face.
Anyone who knew the identity of this man would have felt the same way as Damien.
The boy’s name was Karl Hopper.
He was the man known as the Mercenary King.
***
[Translator – Kie]
[Proofreader – Kawaii]
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