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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Yuziro
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The sound of rain lulled the occupants of the mansion into a deep sleep, a slumber shattered by the frantic cries of a soldier echoing through the halls.
“Attack! To the main house! This is not a drill! We’re under attack!”
Though merely a soldier, the urgency of the situation stripped away any pretense of formality.
His desperate cries signaled an event unprecedented in the mansion’s history.
Perhaps that was why, instead of reprimanding the panicked soldier, the resident knights quickly donned their armor and raced towards the source of the commotion.
Five knights, followed by a similarly equipped group of retainers, charged towards the main house, their movements radiating a palpable tension.
“Haaah. What kind of hot-blooded idiot raids a noble’s mansion in this downpour?”
One knight, conspicuously sluggish amidst the chaos, yawned languidly as he assembled his armor.
Emerging from his quarters, he grabbed a nearby soldier and asked,
“Hey. What’s going on?”
“A-an attack, sir! The main gate’s been destroyed, and the soldiers sent to intercept… they’ve been slaughtered!”
The soldier’s eyes, wide with terror, spoke volumes.
It wasn’t the wary apprehension of a routine skirmish, but the stark despair of witnessing an insurmountable force.
The knight, sensing this, felt a surge of excitement.
“Slaughtered? How many attackers?”
“J-just one, sir.”
“Just one?”
The knight didn’t express anger or disbelief.
The sheer absurdity of the situation, mirrored by the frantic activity around them, was explanation enough.
This had to be interesting.
His instincts screamed it.
“We’ll need to retrain the soldiers after this. That should have been the first thing they reported!”
One man attacking a Count’s mansion in the capital?
The knight’s drowsiness vanished, replaced by a growing anticipation.
He released the soldier and sprinted towards the main house.
The mansion was large, even for a Count.
Despite enhancing his speed with Aura, it took time to reach the main house.
Along the way, he encountered more panicked reactions, each fueling his excitement.
The most telling, however, was a faint command echoing from the distance.
“Knights! Bring the knights! Soldiers, fall back! We can’t win!”
“Ha! Now this is promising. I’m coming! Get out of my way!”
He hadn’t even heard the clash of steel yet, but he already had a strong suspicion about the attacker’s identity.
The moment he’d heard about the single attacker, one name had sprung to mind.
A name shrouded in a mix of truth and rumor, a figure of almost mythical proportions.
The man who had slain the young lion of Rudra and even defeated the Hero.
While most knights and old soldiers scoffed at the younger generation of heroes, dismissing their abilities, this knight, himself among their ranks, had taken the rumors seriously.
He had been waiting for this.
Arriving at the main house, he felt his anticipation rewarded.
As if perfectly timed, he witnessed the attacker effortlessly deflect a coordinated assault from three knights, decapitating them in a blur of motion.
“The Guillotine of Levien. Eldmia Egga!”
“Eldmia Egga, yes, but what’s with the nickname?”
The attacker’s casual demeanor, almost bordering on thuggery, belied the honed physique and stance of a seasoned warrior.
The faint Aura he exuded was meaningless now.
It was the trail of carnage leading from the main gate to the heart of the mansion that spoke volumes.
“Doesn’t seem too concerned about his reputation, does he?”
“I’m very concerned. It’s just that the interesting ones never seem to reach my ears. It’s getting a bit ridiculous.”
Five knights and over ten retainers lay dead.
Yet the attacker remained unfazed, his breathing even.
The sight filled the knight with exhilaration.
“So, you any good? Things got a bit hectic, but it’s quieted down since you arrived.”
In contrast to the knight’s excitement, Eldmia merely tilted his head, a look of mild annoyance on his face.
“I don’t like distractions when I fight.”
“And you think anyone’s going to let you just waltz in here and slaughter everyone? Were you the strongest here before I arrived?”
A grin spread across the knight’s face, threatening to split his cheeks.
He maintained his composure, however, and replied,
“That’s right. I was the strongest…”
He paused, a flicker of confusion crossing his face.
“…Why past tense?”
“Why past tense? That’s a silly question.”
Eldmia’s response, laced with a weary exasperation, was punctuated by a strange gesture.
He slid his blade between his bicep and forearm.
The knight, momentarily puzzled, watched as the pristine white of Eldmia’s clothes turned crimson.
He’d been so focused on the carnage that he hadn’t noticed the lack of blood.
Oh, that’s a new one.
“Because I’m here now.”
Eldmia’s smile returned, a simple statement of fact.
Whether it was confidence or a taunt, it was effective.
“Hahaha! Interesting! Very interesting! This should be good!”
“I’m not interested in ‘good.’ Let’s just finish this quickly. Oh, is Envelde upstairs?”
“Haha… I’d imagine so. Why?”
“It would be embarrassing to cut through everyone only to find he’s on the first floor.”
The casual dismissal, the utter lack of respect, stung.
The knight’s amusement faded, replaced by a flicker of annoyance.
He was about to retort when Eldmia spoke again.
“I’m busy, so let’s make this quick.”
Without warning, Eldmia closed the distance, his blade a blur.
“Impressive footwork!”
The knight had anticipated the double acceleration, but the sheer speed was still startling.
It was effective for a surprise attack, but useless at close range.
Against an opponent of equal skill, it merely meant a slightly faster exchange.
Close-quarters combat was always faster, more chaotic.
“We should at least exchange names. You should know who’s killing you.”
“That’s why you already know my name.”
Eldmia’s words were more irritating than his swordsmanship.
The knight paused, momentarily distracted, trying to decipher the meaning.
He almost missed Eldmia’s next attack.
“Wow, you’re good with words…”
Eldmia pressed his advantage, giving the knight no time to recover.
Another textbook attack, flawlessly executed.
The knight had seen countless textbook maneuvers on the battlefield, but this was different.
This is actually impressive.
“But… not particularly threatening!”
“You think so? Nice sword, by the way.”
The compliment, completely out of place, caught the knight off guard.
He nearly lost his focus again.
Ironically, it was the sudden flash of light from Eldmia’s blade that snapped him back to reality.
The erratic bursts of speed were unsettling.
“Damn it, is that all you’ve got? Can’t I get a word in edgewise? Your tongue’s a bit dangerous.”
Even a momentary lapse in concentration was a liability against an opponent like this.
There was nothing particularly flashy about Eldmia’s technique, no overwhelming Aura, yet he refused to yield.
He was relentless, exploiting every opening, every hesitation.
The knight realized, with a grudging respect, that he needed to take this seriously.
“Let’s take a breather!”
Clang!
The knight’s strike, a deliberate invitation to clash, was easily parried.
He’d intended to send Eldmia flying, but the boy barely moved.
To his surprise, Eldmia seemed equally surprised.
“You found time for that at this speed?”
“Getting used to it. I told you, I’m strong.”
The tingling numbness in the knight’s hand, a sensation he hadn’t felt in years, fueled his excitement.
He finally introduced himself.
“I’m Gish Whimir, the Demon Slayer, a name known throughout the front lines. Your level of skill is common there.”
Eldmia was skilled, undeniably so.
His achievements at such a young age were astonishing.
But death didn’t discriminate based on age or reputation.
On the battlefield, Eldmia was just another soldier.
Gish decided to offer the boy a final lesson, a lesson paid for with his life.
“Kid. Let me show you what a demon-slaying knight can do.”
“…Demon?”
But for some reason…
“You earned the title ‘Demon Slayer’ fighting demons on the front lines?”
Eldmia’s response was a chilling smile.
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[It’s gaminng time]
Ah ha, seems he’s getting closer~