The Reincarnated Assassin is a Genius Swordsman

“Raon! Are you awake?”

Sia ran toward Raon with a smile as bright as spring flowers.

“Yeah. Just a moment ago.”

Raon opened his arms and carefully caught Sia as she leaped into them.

“I’m so glad you’re safe.”

Sia hugged him tightly, saying she had been very worried. Her warm body naturally brought a smile to his face, but there was something he had to ask first.

“Noona, why is that man with you?”

Raon pointed toward Darkhan, who was still standing by the lake.

“I’m not totally sure. He suddenly showed up and started teaching me swordsmanship. He explains things just as easily as you do.”

Sia nodded, saying her skills had improved thanks to Darkhan’s guidance.

“Of course! There isn’t a person in this world who has mastered more swordsmanship than I have!”

Darkhan let out a hearty laugh, claiming that since he knew so many styles, he was naturally a great teacher.

“Why? Is he a bad person?”

Sia tilted her head, seeming to have a favorable impression of Darkhan.

“He’s not a bad person. It’s just…”

Raon set Sia down and shook his head.

“He’s not a good person either.”

The word that suited Darkhan best was chaos. A man who was neither good nor evil. A lunatic who would do anything for the sake of swordsmanship.

“Actually, I can tell he can see just fine. I think he wears that eyepatch just to make people pity him.”

Sia clenched her fist, convinced that Darkhan’s eyes were perfectly fine.

“T-that’s not it.”

Raon’s shoulders trembled slightly. It was a little awkward to tell her that Darkhan had committed the madness of gouging out his own eyes because he wanted to grow stronger.

“Anyway, learn what you can, but don’t get attached. He’s the kind of person who could point a sword at you at any moment.”

Raon gripped Sia’s shoulders, warning her to be careful of Darkhan.

“He’s already asked me to fight him. He says my sword is ‘interesting.’”

Sia folded her fingers, saying Darkhan had already asked for a duel more than ten times.

“Are you actually insane? Why would you duel Noona!”

Raon frowned as he looked at Darkhan.

“You underestimate your sister too much. That child already has the knack for it. Since it’s come to this, why don’t you act as the referee?”

Ignoring Raon’s protest, Darkhan flicked his finger and asked him to officiate the battle. He was a true psycho.

》”Sigh! I knew he’d be like this.”

Wrath let out a sigh, saying Darkhan was exactly the same as ever.

“Noona. Ignore him whenever he asks to fight. Absolutely do not cross swords with him.”

Raon shook his head, telling Sia to keep ignoring his requests.

“Okay. I will.”

Sia smiled brightly, promising to do as he said. Whether it was during puberty or now, she always placed his words above everything else.

“What a shame. It would’ve been fun.”

Darkhan smacked his lips as if it were a waste not to fight Sia.

“It would only be fun for you.”

Raon shook his head.

“I’m the one who taught Noona. I’ll face you once my injuries have healed.”

Raon pointed to himself, offering to duel in Sia’s place.

“That wouldn’t be bad either.”

Darkhan raised an eyebrow, finding the prospect amusing.

“Now tell me. Why are you here in Zieghart?”

Raon narrowed his eyes as he looked at Darkhan, who wore a thin smile.

“What a strange question. I was called, so I came.”

Darkhan pointed to himself, claiming he had received a formal summons.

“You were called?”

“Yes. To be honest, I nearly died too.”

He lifted his shirt to reveal pitch-black scars carved across his chest and shoulder.

“Is that Deathly Energy…?”

Seeing that it had pierced through Darkhan’s Aura and Will and left behind such eerie sword scars, it was clearly the Deathly Energy used by Derus.

“Correct. It was completely different from demonic energy.”

Darkhan frowned, explaining that while demonic energy and Deathly Energy shared the same root, their power differed like heaven and earth.

“Honestly, it was very dangerous. I barely survived because your grandfather saved me and that beggar staying in this house treated me.”

He clicked his tongue as he touched the wound on his chest.

“It was that dangerous? For you?”

Raon swallowed dryly as he watched Darkhan pull his clothes back down.

‘Was Derus that strong?’

No matter how much Derus had grown, Raon had thought Darkhan should have been able to stop him. Especially since Darkhan possessed the realm of the Heart Sword, Raon had thought he might even have been able to capture Derus. He had never imagined Darkhan would end up like this.

》”That lunatic…”

Wrath lowered his brows deeply as he looked at Darkhan.

》”He has grown weaker.”

‘Weaker?’

》”Indeed. Those physical wounds are merely the surface. His mind and soul suffered a great shock.”

‘Come to think of it…’

Raon bit his lip as he looked at Darkhan the same way Wrath was.

‘Darkhan’s Soul Rank has shrunk.’

Except when he had been pretending to be a beggar, Darkhan had always openly revealed his Aura. Since he was the type to flaunt his strength to everyone, it was obvious that the presence of his soul had diminished compared to before.

“It seems you noticed.”

Darkhan chuckled and nodded.

“As you suspect, I have grown weaker. I fell into Derus’s trap and made a very great mistake.”

“A very great mistake?”

“Actually, rather than a trap or a mistake, it was just bad luck.”

“Does it have to do with the Heart Sword?”

“Exactly.”

He snapped his fingers, confirming it.

“Derus was certainly strong, but with the power I had at the time, I could have stopped him well enough. But the moment I used the Heart Sword to properly clash with him, I realized something was wrong.”

Darkhan’s complexion turned pale.

“Derus’s soul was not one. Beneath the soul we know, there was a massive soul of unimaginable size…”

Darkhan recounted everything that had happened within the Mental World of the Heart Sword.

“If Glenn Zieghart hadn’t arrived after that, both I and that muscle-bound old man would have died.”

Darkhan let out a short breath, admitting that he had survived thanks to Glenn. Since he called Fedrick a beggar and Ogram a muscle-bound old man, it seemed he truly had no regard for anyone who wasn’t a swordsman.

“A massive soul combined with shadow-like beings…”

After hearing Darkhan’s story, Raon imagined the soul Derus had hidden. A massive conglomeration of souls covered in thousands of blinking eyes, filling the entire Mental World. Just imagining it made the hair on the back of his neck stand up.

》”Do you know what it is?”

‘No. I don’t.’

Raon had thought he knew Derus better than anyone, but he hadn’t known that another gigantic soul existed inside him.

‘He said it was a shadow-like soul, right?’

Was there some connection between Derus and the shadows? Derus had preferred the name Shadow so much that he had even named a major assassin organization after it. Since even the soul itself flickered pitch-black like a shadow, there did seem to be some connection.

‘Of course, I shouldn’t overthink it.’

There were still too few clues about Derus’s soul, so for now, it seemed best to simply accept the information as it was.

“So the Mental World created by the Heart Sword collapsed, and that’s why you grew weaker.”

Raon nodded, saying he understood now.

“Yes. I suffered a shock severe enough to nearly shatter my Upper Dantian, so I had no choice but to weaken. But that wasn’t all.”

Darkhan raised a finger and tapped his temple.

“Derus possessed the ability to plunder the power of others.”

“What?”

Raon swallowed hard when he saw Darkhan’s grim expression.

‘Plundering power?’

He knew Derus possessed many abilities, but he had never heard of him being able to steal someone else’s power in the middle of battle. Now he felt he understood why the man had grown so rapidly.

“Wait a moment…”

Raon swallowed again as he looked at Darkhan.

“If you were struck by him in the Mental World created by the Heart Sword…”

“Yes.”

Darkhan nodded calmly.

“He took my Heart Sword. He didn’t steal all of it, but he will certainly be able to reach the realm of the Heart Sword.”

He furrowed his brows, saying that the next time they met, Derus might be able to use the Heart Sword.

“If he forges a Heart Sword with that massive soul, no one will be able to endure it.”

Darkhan twisted his lips, suggesting that even Glenn might find it difficult.

“Though not me!”

He clenched his fist as if he were still confident he could defeat Derus.

“Now that I’ve told my story…”

Darkhan smacked his lips and approached Raon.

“Let’s have a round!”

He drew his sword, demanding a fight immediately.

》”Is he some kind of puppy?”

Wrath let out a hollow laugh in disbelief.

》”Just like a dog drooling over a bone, that bastard goes into heat whenever he sees a sword.”

Wrath looked disgusted, saying the man was insane to the core.

“I told you I haven’t recovered yet.”

Raon shook his head, saying that his wounds had not fully healed yet and that his stamina and mental strength still hadn’t recovered either.

“Then I’ll wait. Five minutes should be enough, right?”

“……”

Five minutes. It seemed this man’s sense of time was different from that of a normal human.

“Does the Head Of House also know that Derus took the Heart Sword?”

Raon tilted his chin as he watched Darkhan repeatedly grip and release his sword.

“Probably not.”

Darkhan shook his head as if it were obvious.

“Huh? Why?”

“Because he didn’t ask.”

He lowered his hand, saying he hadn’t said anything because Glenn never asked.

Smack!

Raon slapped his own forehead and squeezed his eyes shut.

‘That man really is…’

A lunatic who was impossible to deal with.

===

As soon as dawn broke, Raon left the annex.

“I’m coming too!”

Darkhan, saying it looked like it would be fun, followed him into the audience chamber of the Head Of House.

“I greet the Head Of House.”

“Want to have a round?”

Unlike Raon’s respectful greeting, Darkhan immediately tilted his chin and asked for a fight. However, unlike when he challenged Raon or Sia, he didn’t seem entirely serious.

“I decline.”

Glenn waved his hand, saying this was not the time to fight.

“Rise.”

The moment he gave the order, Raon’s knees straightened naturally and his waist lifted. The movement of Aura felt as though it touched the heavens.

“It seems you have no major injuries.”

Glenn nodded calmly, saying he had been worried because he hadn’t been able to come see him and was glad Raon was safe.

》”That old geezer is a master at lying!”

Wrath shook his head in firm denial.

》”He came every day and took shifts with the Madwoman, yet he says he couldn’t visit! He should at least make his lies believable!”

Wrath furrowed his brows, saying Glenn’s obsession rivaled Evelyn’s.

“It is thanks to your concern, Head Of House.”

Because Darkhan was standing beside him, Raon bowed and addressed him as Head Of House rather than Grandfather.

“Ahem! Cough-cough!”

Glenn’s curled lips trembled slightly, as if those words alone had pleased him.

“Do you have a cold? Why are you coughing so much?”

Darkhan lowered his brows as he looked at Glenn.

“Just go spit out your phlegm!”

He openly pointed out something that no one else had ever dared to say.

“…It is nothing.”

Glenn turned his gaze away, looking embarrassed.

“Very well. Since you were unconscious, you must be curious about what happened.”

He spoke to Raon, trying to shift the atmosphere.

“Yes. I heard about Derus from Darkhan, but I still don’t know about everything else.”

Raon lowered his hand, saying he would listen carefully.

“Hmm? I believe I told you not to say anything?”

Glenn frowned as he looked at Darkhan.

“I don’t see any reason I should listen to you. Though if it’s about swords, that’s a different matter.”

Darkhan shrugged, asking why he should obey. In truth, he wasn’t wrong.

“Haaa…”

Glenn let out a deep sigh and rubbed his temples as if he had a headache.

“I shall explain from the beginning. After you lost consciousness…”

He explained in detail everything that had happened after Raon fainted.

“Thanks to Princess Jaina, we were able to go to the Beast Union and rescue Darkhan and Ogram.”

“Princess Jaina went that far…?”

Raon recalled Jaina’s gaze when they first met and the look he had seen from her during this war, and a soft smile formed on his face.

‘She really has changed a lot.’

There was a saying that people never changed, but looking at Jaina and Karoon, it seemed that wasn’t always true.

“I have one question.”

Raon raised his hand toward Glenn.

“How strong was Derus Robert?”

“Apart from the Heavenly Demon and myself, no one would be able to face him.”

Glenn shook his head, saying that the current Darkhan would not be able to stop Derus.

“That’s…”

“No need to worry.”

Darkhan chuckled as he looked at Glenn.

“Even Derus, after eating my power, just got thrashed by your grandfather! It was a magnificent sword!”

He revealed an ecstatic expression, saying he wished he could have experienced Glenn’s sword himself. He truly wasn’t normal.

“And I can win too. Fights aren’t decided by raw power alone.”

Darkhan thumped his chest with his fist, looking truly confident.

“Um, I have something I need to tell the Head Of House.”

Raon bit his lip deeply as he looked at Glenn.

“Speak.”

“It seems that by consuming Darkhan’s Mental World, Derus has reached the realm of the Heart Sword.”

With a heavy sigh, Raon relayed everything Darkhan had told him to Glenn.

“I see.”

However, Glenn’s expression didn’t change at all, as if he had already known.

“You knew?”

“Since Derus plundered Darkhan’s power, and it happened within a Mental World created by the Heart Sword, I thought it was naturally possible. Furthermore…”

Glenn raised a finger and pointed at Darkhan.

“That fellow came and told me himself. He kept rambling about wanting to fight a Derus who had mastered the Heart Sword.”

“What?”

Raon turned to Darkhan, his eyes wide.

“You said you didn’t tell him!”

“That was a lie.”

Darkhan giggled and waved his hand. Perhaps because of the shock to his Upper Dantian, he seemed even more insane than before.

“Don’t believe anything I say unless it’s about swords and swordsmanship.”

He openly told Raon not to trust him.

“But this is about swordsmanship!”

“……”

Darkhan shut his mouth tightly, as if he had nothing to say to that. He was a lunatic.

“You must be worried about him using the Heart Sword with that massive hidden soul.”

Glenn nodded as if he had read Raon’s thoughts.

“Yes… As Darkhan said, if he forges a Heart Sword with such a massive soul, no one will be able to stop him.”

“There is no need to worry so much.”

Glenn rose from his throne and stood at the edge of the platform. The sunlight pouring in through the window fluttered around him like a golden cloak.

“The Heart Sword is not a martial art that becomes stronger simply because the soul is large. Just as a masterpiece sword is created through tens of thousands of hammer strikes, forging a Heart Sword requires time spent in agony, hammering one’s own soul.”

Glenn lowered his hand, saying there was no need to rush.

“To forge a Heart Sword using a soul that is not his own will require a very, very long time, so there is no need to worry.”

He nodded, saying Derus’s growth would actually be delayed by it.

“Focus only on establishing a Heart Sword that contains your own soul. A single, sharply forged masterpiece sword is capable of piercing through hundreds of greatswords.”

At Glenn’s words, the shadow of Derus that had felt as if it were strangling his shoulders seemed to vanish instantly.

“I understand.”

Raon bowed, saying he would focus only on himself.

“I watched your battles from beginning to end. There must have been many difficult moments. You endured them well.”

Glenn nodded with a solemn gaze, saying that they were the reason he had been able to win this war.

“I will proceed with the formal rewards for merit soon, so you may look forward to them.”

His lips twitched like a freshly caught fish as he said a reward fitting for Raon’s achievements would be granted. He seemed to be in a very good mood.

“Thank you. However, I did not achieve this alone. It was thanks to the help of others.”

Raon bowed as he thought of everyone who had participated in the war, beginning with Darkhan standing beside him.

“Ah, what happened to the wounded?”

Thinking of the others made him remember the Transcendents of the Five Kings Alliance who had suffered severe injuries.

“Fortunately, no one died after the war. Not only Darkhan, but Ogram is alive and well too. However…”

Glenn lowered his gaze and rubbed his temple.

“King Lecross’s condition is not good.”

He let out a murky sigh.

“The problem is no longer whether he can wield a sword. They say he may never wake up again.”

“Ah…”

Saint Fedrick and Saintess Olga were at the White Blood Cult’s main headquarters. The fact that they couldn’t restore him even with their combined power meant his condition was truly grave.

“I see…”

Raon bit his lip deeply.

‘I expected it, but hearing it directly…’

‘It makes my head spin.’

King Lecross had stayed until the very end to stop the White Blood Lord even after his heart had been slashed by Denier’s sword.

Because he had fought by staking even his Life Force, going beyond his physical body and mental strength, even if he woke up, he would no longer be able to wield the power of the Black Sword King.

‘We managed to capture the White Blood Lord, but the losses are heavy.’

King Lecross’s life was hanging by a thread, and Chamber, Larian, and Aris were all in no condition to fight.

Ogram had recovered his strength, but he had still suffered injuries that made it impossible for him to fight immediately.

‘And then…’

He turned his gaze to the side and looked at Darkhan.

‘Darkhan, who could have served as a trump card to stop Derus, has also collapsed.’

Darkhan had suffered a tremendous shock to his Upper Dantian and would need a long period of recovery.

The number of casualties in the Five Kings Alliance itself wasn’t high, but the severe injuries suffered by the top experts were a painful blow.

》”Still, aren’t there only two bastards left now!”

Wrath snorted, saying it would all be over once they killed Eden and Derus.

‘Eden is one thing, but Derus still has enormous power left.’

》”Enormous power? Ah!”

As if something had just come back to him, a freezing blue chill flickered in Wrath’s eyes.

》”Those damn Angel bastards!”

‘And not just ordinary Angels, but Archangels.’

Seeing how the number of Archangels had been increasing one by one ever since Uriel, it was obvious that even with the White Blood Lord and The Fallen One dead, they were still outnumbered in terms of Transcendents.

‘I have no choice…’

Raon let out a deep sigh and shook his head.

‘I’ll have to begin that plan.’

》”That plan? What plan are you talking about?”

Wrath opened his eyes wide in curiosity.

‘I wonder?’

Raon let out a deep, chilling smile as he looked at the curious Wrath.

》”Wh-why are you smiling at this King like that! It feels disgusting!”

‘Because looking at you makes me want to laugh.’

He drew an even deeper smile at Wrath, whose eyes widened in alarm.

》”I asked why you’re laughing! Say it!”

Wrath seemed to sense something ominous in that smile and stepped back, his tail trembling.

‘Hehe.’

》”Stop laughing! It’s scary! What are you planning to do to this King!”

‘Hehehe.’

Raon wore an eerie smile, twisting only his lips upward while his eyes remained still.

》”T-the Madwoman and that sword-crazy bastard were nothing!”

Wrath screamed as he gasped for breath.

》”You are the greatest lunatic in all the dimensions!”