Chapter 127
Chapter 127
Aden, who entered the empty VIP room, immediately let his blood drip onto the blade of the dagger Andromalius.
“qjsWjrqjsWjr qjsroEkfk WlflWlfl WkfkWk, dkdit.”
He then read the language of the underground world that appeared.
– A ‘Blood Contract’ has been established.
– The spirit of the weapon is partially awakened.
Three things were needed to awaken the abilities of the 72 Demonic Swords.
The contractor’s blood.
The life force of a sacrifice for the contract.
A small amount of dark demonic energy.
In the past, Aden had to gather a large amount of life force as a sacrifice to awaken the power of the 72 Demonic Sword, Baalzebul.
He had poured in the life force of dozens of trolls.
However, this time, it seemed he didn’t need to go that far.
– It required such a sacrifice because you possess the remnants of the Lord of Gluttony, that is, Baalzebul. Dragon Slayer.
The power to absorb the essence of the opponent and make it his own.
According to Curse, such a fraudulent power required many sacrifices.
Andromalius, being the remnant of a lower-ranked fallen lord, explained that a very small amount of sacrifice would suffice.
“That’s good to hear. I thought I might have to go out and catch some beasts.”
Aden took out a yellow amber gem with a greenish hue from his subspace pouch.
The Ents’ Tears.
It wasn’t just an ordinary Ents’ Tears but a large one the size of a three-year-old child’s fist.
The Ents had collected tears from the entire tribe to make the amber as a gift for their chief, Aden.
The Ents’ Tears were useful for various purposes, so he carried it for emergencies.
‘The Ents’ Tears are filled with the life force of the forest.’
Aden stabbed the dagger into the Ents’ Tears.
– Absorbing the life force of the ‘Ents’ Tears’.
– 10%… 46%… 100% achieved.
– The second condition has been met.
As expected of a lower rank, the life force of just one piece of the Ents’ Tears was enough.
“Now, awaken.”
Aden held the dagger and drew a small amount of dark demonic energy from the Demon Stone into the blade.
Sss.
A dark and sinister aura swirled around Andromalius and was soon absorbed.
After a moment.
– I am the one who held the serpent that watches over all evil.
A faint red light settled on the dagger as the dormant spirit awakened.
– The remnant and will of the one once called the Count of Justice…
Just like when the spirit of Baalzebul awakened, the spirit of Andromalius spoke solemnly in Aden’s mind.
“Hey, Curse. Do these guys pre-write their lines for their introduction? They sure make a big deal out of it.”
-…Doesn’t everyone want to be solemn for their first appearance? Dragon Slayer, please understand.
– You are the one who will… gasp!
The spirit of Andromalius, who was trying to continue solemnly, gasped in shock at the presence felt within Aden.
– Y-you, you, you… you are…!
Confusion and astonishment filled the spirit’s voice.
Fwoosh.
Curse manifested in his small form, showing his appearance as the Demon Lord.
He floated and looked down at the dagger, expressing some admiration.
“Ho, interesting. It retains quite a strong sense of self.”
– D-demon Lord! Why are you here? And what is that form…!
“By the way, you speak quite informally, remnant of Andromalius.”
– Kugh!
“Do you want to get devoured by me? Keep flapping that mouth of yours if you do.”
-…
The dagger fell silent.
Aden didn’t know exactly what the relationship between the fallen lords and the Demon Lord was.
‘Much information about the underground world has been lost.’
After the fall of the ancient kingdom of Florence, the Empire deemed all black magic and related knowledge heretical and burned them all.
However, after that, the knowledge that had been forgotten spread again through the disturbances caused by warlocks and the Great War of Talos.
At that time, Aden had meticulously collected information to suppress the warlocks, and thanks to that, he knew at least this much.
But even so, a lot of knowledge related to the underworld was lost, so he couldn’t know the details.
‘One thing is certain, the 72 Demon Swords fear the Demon Lord.’
As the contractor of the demon sword, Aden could sense the fear of Andromalius.
It even felt as if the blade of the dagger was trembling.
No, the dagger really was trembling.
The small figure of Curse, only about a palm’s length, crossed his arms and gestured with his chin towards the sword at Aden’s waist.
Curse was referring to Baalzebul, one of the 72 Demon Swords whose spirit he had devoured.
Curse smacked his lips with a wicked grin.
“The Lord of Gluttony, its spirit was quite delicious. A fine delicacy.”
-……Please spare me.
In the end, the spirit of the thoroughly intimidated Andromalius surrendered to Curse, clearly showing their hierarchical relationship.
It was a conversation between an ancient king of the underworld and a fragment of the current sole ruler of the underworld’s soul.
Though it might sound impressive when put that way…
“Two similar lowlifes making a fuss.”
Aden looked down at them with disdain.
From Aden’s perspective, it was just a trivial scene of a 10-centimeter brat scolding a dagger.
Seeing Aden’s gaze, the spirit of Andromalius felt a surge of indignation.
-Kugh! What is that look? How dare a mere human…
“Are you insulting the human who is both my host and your contractor?”
-…Of course, I am nothing compared to a great sword like you. Haha, Contractor, no, Master.
At Curse’s single remark, the attitude of the demon sword completely changed.
Originally, the 72 Demon Swords had a habit of trying to manipulate their contractors.
After all, their essence was the ancient kings of the underworld.
Because of that, Aden had almost been momentarily bewitched by the spirit of Baalzebul at first.
But in the end, Curse, who was within Aden, devoured it.
-I will do whatever you ask! Despite appearances, I am quite a capable dagger…
Seeing the terrified reaction of this fellow, it seemed there wouldn’t be any major issues.
Aden smiled brightly while looking at the dagger.
“Yes, you must be capable. If you don’t want to become that fellow’s next meal.”
-……
Andromalius felt that his sword life was completely ruined at that moment.
* * *
As the sun set, the brilliant full moon rose, quietly illuminating the darkened world.
It was nighttime at the Heride Viscounty.
A black silhouette sat perched on a large tree at the outskirts of the viscount’s estate.
“Ugh, what’s going on? Why did the master have to visit that pig of a viscount’s house today of all days?”
The shadow grumbled continuously as it looked at the estate, which was illuminated here and there by torches and magic.
His figure was obscured by the shadows, making him hard to see.
“No matter how much I pride myself as the best, even if there’s no vault I can’t crack, this is my first time breaking into a place guarded by the master… Should I just give up here? Ah, alright, alright! I’ll do it! I’ll do it, so stop nagging!”
The man hidden in the tree’s shadow muttered and fidgeted as if talking to someone beside him, even though he was clearly alone.
To anyone else, he would have seemed like a madman conversing with an imaginary friend.
“Seriously, anyone would think you were my mother. What? It feels similar? Ah, damn it, what kind of nonsense is that… Alright, fine! I’ll use proper language! No more swearing, okay?”
The man and the entity he was talking to seemed to have a close and unpretentious relationship.
The man sighed and put his hand on his forehead.
“Haa, since I’ve already sent the warning letter, I have to break in today. The knights and bright lights are nothing, but the master is the problem.”
The man grumbled.
“Aden Remes? Remes? Something like that? I heard he just came of age, so what did he eat to become that strong… Damn it, it’s infuriating.”
The man envied Aden.
In the south, he was hailed as a hero for capturing a High Troll Shaman, and in the north, he saved the Grand Duchy by defeating the Winter Queen. He was famous, strong, and handsome… Damn, everything about him was enviable.
The man mumbled to himself.
“If only I could become that strong, I could achieve my goal quickly.”
There was a brief silence.
Soon, the man nodded as if he had received a reply from the invisible entity.
“Yeah, you’re right. There’s no need to rush. If we keep going like this, we can achieve it. Alright, let me make a plan for a bit.”
The man, who was deep in thought, suddenly exclaimed, “Ah!”
“How about we try it this way? Hey, listen up.”
He laid out his plan to someone unseen.
“How about it, is it good? Oh, that’s a good idea too? Then if we adjust it like this… Wow, that’s perfect! Alright, let’s go with this!”
The man looked down at the bright Heride Viscount’s mansion with a triumphant expression.
“Heh, there is no treasure that this ‘Phantom Thief Unknown’ can’t steal. Just wait, gem! Hahaha!”
Soon after, the man’s figure disappeared from the tree.
He left no trace behind, making it impossible to know where he had gone.
* * *
“To think he would steal on such a bright night, he must be an extraordinary thief, Sir Aden.”
“Extraordinary? He’s just an attention-seeking perverted bastard.”
Under the bright full moon, Aden and Lowe chatted as they stood guard.
Besides them, dozens of knights were stationed around the annex.
Aden frowned as he looked at the bright full moon.
‘Unknown mainly committed his crimes on nights with a full moon.’
The night of a full moon was bright.
In general perception, it was the worst night for a thief to commit theft.
But Unknown chose the night of the full moon to flaunt his skills and mock his opponents.
‘What? Can’t you catch me even on such a bright night? The Mercenary King is useless against this Unknown. Nah-nah, hahaha!’
He really was a perverted bastard. Even though it happened in his previous life, Aden could still vividly recall his mocking laughter.
“Sir Aden.”
As Aden gritted his teeth and got lost in thought, Lowe suddenly spoke to him.
“If you don’t mind, there’s something I’d like to ask you, Sir Aden.”
“Hmm? What is it, Lowe?”
Aden reacted nonchalantly, but Lowe’s question was quite unexpected.
“What is your relationship with the Mercenary King, Sir Aden?”
“…What are you talking about?”
Aden asked calmly, although he felt caught off guard inside.
Lowe looked at Aden with calm eyes, trying to understand his thoughts.
“When Priestess Lunia mentioned the Mercenary King, I saw your eyes waver greatly, Sir Aden.”
“….”
The Aden that Lowe knew was a person who exuded confidence and ease in everything.
It wasn’t arrogance stemming from underestimating or ignoring situations.
It was confidence and composure born from the assurance that he could overcome any hardship.
But when the Priestess of the Slaughter Cult, Lunia, mentioned the Mercenary King, Aden’s expression changed, something Lowe had never seen before.
Though it was a brief moment, Lowe, who had always been by his side as a guard knight, noticed the change.
“Although it was more than half a year ago and I can’t be certain, I recall that when you dueled with Border Count Sedus, you said something like this.”
At that time, the Border Count admired Aden’s swordsmanship and asked what it was.
Aden had vaguely answered.
‘It’s a sword created by a certain mercenary,’ he had said.
Back then, everyone, including Lowe, had brushed it off, shocked by the fact that the wastrel noble had won a bet against a Sword Master.
But Lowe, reflecting on that memory, recalled the words.
“So, it’s just a guess, but I thought maybe Sir Aden had a chance encounter with the Mercenary King outside the family and was taught swordsmanship by him.”
If that were the case, all of Aden’s actions during his time as a wastrel noble made sense.
He often went out alone, leaving his guard knights behind, supposedly to play.
‘But if that was actually to train under the Mercenary King?’
The Mercenary King’s swordsmanship was renowned and desired by many.
However, a mercenary was still a mercenary.
For a high-ranking noble to be taught by a mercenary could tarnish their honor.
Thus, Aden would have needed to train secretly, away from the eyes of the ducal family.
He must have acted like a wastrel to ensure no one questioned his frequent outings.
If this hypothesis were true, it wouldn’t be strange for Aden to have awakened Sword Aura at the age of eighteen.
It was impossible for an eighteen-year-old noble to awaken Sword Aura just five months after starting training alone.
Yet, he reached the level of a master within about a year of training.
However, it wasn’t an unreasonable story if he had received instruction from a formidable figure like the Mercenary King.
“I’ve heard rumors that the Mercenary King’s successor awakens Aura within a year. I dismissed it as mere gossip, though.”
If Young Master Aden had learned swordsmanship under such a Mercenary King, it wasn’t strange at all for him to have awakened Aura so quickly.
Realizing this, Lowe felt a shiver run down his spine.
All possibilities pointed to a single truth.
With eyes shining with certainty, Lowe asked Aden,
“You hid your talent, pretended to be a wastrel, and learned the Mercenary King’s swordsmanship. You are the successor of the Mercenary King. Am I correct?”
“……”
Aden was momentarily at a loss for words.
Wow, can it be interpreted that way too?
