Solo Swordmaster – Chapter 144

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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Like snowflakes dusting the winter landscape, motes of light drifted down, melting into his palm.

Limon watched the remnants of Vellus’s Constellation, the shattered fragments of starlight that had erupted upon its demise.

‘Indeed.’

He was accustomed to severing Constellations and absorbing their fragments. Yet, he found himself fixated on these particular motes of light.

‘This is what becomes of a human who cannot contain a Constellation’s power.’

He had suspected it since he first felt the strange dissonance within his own body after absorbing a Constellation’s power.

The fragments of starlight weren’t just a blessing. They could become a curse if not properly handled.

That was why he had prioritized assimilating the Constellation’s power above all else.

And now, having slain both Ryu Kang-chul, consumed by his Constellation, and Vellus, fused with one, he understood.

This grotesque mutation was one possible outcome of recklessly absorbing a Constellation’s power. This was the source of the dissonance he had been feeling.

‘It’s not surprising.’

It was only natural.

Only characters in games could grow stronger without consequence. In reality, battles left scars, both physical and mental. One lost more than one gained.

Such immense power, encompassing even divinity, couldn’t possibly come without a price.

Players, accustomed to gaining power simply by leveling up and collecting loot, might not understand.

‘But even players don’t always just gain power.’

He absorbed the last mote of starlight and turned, his gaze falling on the blonde woman, her chest pierced, slumped against the wall.

After a moment of silence, he spoke softly,

“That was a beautiful melody.”

Eugene didn’t reply, only smiling faintly. Limon frowned, then beckoned Na-kyung.

“Na-kyung, come here.”

[What? Why?]

Na-kyung, puzzled, hopped over to him. Limon picked her up and removed the ring from her ankle.

[Hey! That’s my item…!]

Beep, beep!

Na-kyung chirped in protest, flapping her wings. Limon tossed her aside and took Eugene’s hand, slipping the ring onto her finger.

[You’re perceptive, Partner.]

“I’ve lived a long life.”

Limon chuckled at the telepathic message that echoed in his mind as soon as he put the ring on Eugene.

“Was this it? Your ‘personal reasons’?”

[Partly.]

“I figured as much.”

He understood now why Eugene couldn’t abandon her mission. Despite her injuries, her heart ripped out, she was still alive. But her lips moved silently, unable to utter a sound.

“Was it congenital, or acquired?”

[Fortunately, the latter.]

“Is being unable to speak or sing without a Constellation’s power something to be grateful for?”

[It taught me that money corrupts the soul.]

Eugene replied calmly.

If she hadn’t loved singing as a child, if she hadn’t been able to earn money singing on the streets as a white orphan, if she hadn’t been driven by greed, clinging to her meager earnings, only to lose her voice in the process… she would never have learned that money was worthless, a poison that corrupted the soul.

[And that every reward comes with a price.]

Having lost her voice, she resorted to begging and pickpocketing, eventually entering a dungeon out of desperation.

There, the ‘Raging Immortal Giant,’ coveting her talent, offered her a deal, her voice in exchange for her service. She accepted without hesitation.

Now, she was bound to the Liberation Brigade, her voice forfeit if she disobeyed. She had become a berserker, reveling in the slaughter of those who had stolen her voice, finding pleasure in each kill.

It was a valuable lesson she wouldn’t have learned if she had been born mute.

Limon listened quietly, then said softly,

“You sound like you have no regrets.”

[Regrets? Why would I regret anything?]

“You’ve become a Constellation’s puppet, and you don’t regret it?”

[No reason to.]

Eugene’s voice was firm.

Even if she could go back, she would make the same choices.

[At least I got to sing.]

If she hadn’t become a Specter, she would have ended up selling her body in the back alleys, a caged animal, deprived of freedom, unable to even speak, let alone sing.

This life, where she could sing freely, was better.

“I doubt you only killed one or two people for that song.”

[That’s a shame.]

“…I see.”

Limon understood.

She regretted the killings, but only superficially. If it meant regaining her voice, she would gladly sacrifice hundreds, thousands more. She was a berserker, a mad killer, a criminal.

“I can’t let you live.”

[Oh? Was there a chance I could have lived?]

“No. I was going to kill you anyway.”

[That’s a real shame.]

“You weren’t planning to live anyway. Why the fake regret?”

[HAHAHA, you know me too well, Partner.]

“We were friends.”

Eugene was barely clinging to life, the remnants of her immortality fading with the demise of the ‘Raging Immortal Giant.’ And even if she could survive, she wouldn’t want to.

A life without music was worse than death.

“One last question.”

[What?]

“Why did you help me? You would have been better off if he had won.”

Revenge wasn’t her motivation. Vellus’s victory and the return of her Constellation were her only chance to sing again.

Why had she thrown away her hope and helped him?

[Because you’re my Partner.]

“That’s all?”

[Not ‘just.’ I can’t live without you anymore, Partner.]

Eugene chuckled.

She had been a free spirit, content with singing alone. But after meeting Limon, after experiencing the joy of singing alongside his music, she could no longer be satisfied with singing alone.

Her soul was bound to him. She would have gladly sacrificed her life, and even her precious music, to help him. Her fate had been sealed the moment she agreed to sing for him.

[So, Partner, can you do me one last favor, in return for my song?]

“What is it?”

[Play for me. One last time. Not a fake performance tailored to my song, but a real one, filled with your soul.]

She wanted to know if his music, the music she had sacrificed everything for, was truly worth it.

Limon, looking at her, asked dryly,

“You think I’ll do that?”

[Yep.]

“…Why are you so confident?”

[Because you promised, Partner. You said you’d play with me until I died.]

“I said all night, not until you died.”

[A promise is a promise, right?]

Eugene grinned, challenging him to go back on his word.

[And if you do, I’ll tell you something good.]

“Something good?”

[Yep, the Liberation Brigade’s true objective. Something you definitely need to know.]

She spoke confidently.

The Liberation Brigade, shrouded in secrecy… this was a chance to learn their true motives, a chance he wouldn’t get again.

“Are you serious?”

[I swear on my soul, I’m serious.]

“What good is a soul you can’t even sell?”

Limon stared at Eugene, who winked despite the gaping hole in her chest, then sighed. He picked up the Black Abyssal Violin, lying discarded where Vellus’s body had dissolved.

“I can’t promise you’ll like it.”

[It’s okay, as long as it’s your soul playing.]

“I still don’t know what this ‘soul’ thing is.”

Limon grumbled, but he took the violin and bow, assuming the position. He suppressed the curse that tried to force him to play and closed his eyes.

He still didn’t understand what Eugene meant by ‘soul.’ But he had a feeling it was the essence of her captivating music, the reason his own playing had stagnated.

‘Julia said my playing would improve if I loved music.’

As the Witch of the Violin had pointed out, he didn’t particularly enjoy playing. He had learned the violin solely to dissolve the Constellation’s power within him.

That was why he had said he didn’t play for pleasure.

‘But is that really true?’

He asked himself. Could he not enjoy something he used as a tool? Could he not be moved by something he didn’t love? Had he been visiting Eugene simply because he had free time?

‘Yes, I admit it.’

He had to admit it.

‘I enjoyed playing with you.’

He might not be as obsessed as Eugene, but he had come to enjoy playing music.

Like clothes gradually soaked in the rain, he had been influenced by the music-obsessed madman, finding pleasure in their shared performances.

But unlike Julia’s prediction, his playing hadn’t improved. Because he hadn’t wanted it to. He subconsciously knew that to truly improve, he had to pour his heart into his music.

‘Being honest is difficult.’

Especially for a cunning old man like him.

The longer one lived, the more one experienced, the more one learned to hide one’s true self, ashamed of its ugliness. And he, a swordsman who had lived for centuries, whose life had been steeped in blood… expressing his deepest emotions through music was not just difficult, it was agonizing.

He couldn’t bear to imagine how terrible his music would sound if it truly reflected his feelings. It was like publishing his childhood diary as an autobiography.

‘Damn it all.’

Yet, he didn’t put down the violin. Not to learn the Liberation Brigade’s secrets. Not to repay her favor. Those things didn’t matter.

Eugene, a mad killer, a criminal, didn’t deserve any favors or negotiations.

But as a friend, as a fellow musician, he would endure the pain.

He opened the locked doors of his heart and drew the bow across the strings.

The stars trembled.

The world held its breath.

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