<The Demon Lord of the Swordsmanship Family Chapter 47>
When you enter battle, your head must always be cool.
That’s what my mentor taught me, and it has now become my cardinal rule.
You must analyze the entire battlefield with a cold rationality and assess your situation dispassionately.
What is the key to this fight?
To k*ll the enemy?
No. It’s to rescue the hostages.
But here arises another issue.
The hostages are children. From toddlers who’ve just learned to walk to elementary school students. Even if I were to rescue them, could these children escape under their own power?
Unfortunately, the answer is no. There are at least dozens, maybe even hundreds of these child hostages, far too many for me to handle alone.
In the end, I must eliminate all the enemies inside here in order to rescue these hostages.
And I must do so as secretly as possible.
“Ugh!”
I clamped my hand over the mouth of one who had stepped out to smoke.
The struggling b*stard even tried futilely to break free from my grip by using mana, but alas, I’m too strong for the likes of him.
He quickly passed out, collapsing like a limp pillar.
But I can’t linger.
I heard new footsteps coming from the path the unconscious man had just walked down.
I immediately hid my body.
“Huh? Didn’t the guy go first? Where could he have gone?”
“Maybe he went to take a big one? His farts were killing me.”
“True, he did say he wasn’t feeling well earlier.”
The two men lit each other’s cigarettes.
Fortunately, they didn’t notice me at all. I quietly listened to their conversation.
“It’s suffocating. The atmosphere is completely ruined.”
“Yeah, I know.”
“Phew~ Headquarters wants us to withdraw from the Korea branch, but our Head is obsessed with some research and just plows forward. What do you know about what’s going on? Isn’t it strange?”
“Hmm, this is a rumor.”
The man cautiously glanced around then whispered dramatically, “Headquarters tried to transfer the project our Head was in charge of to another branch.”
“What!? You gotta be kidding me. That’s crossing the line. As humans, that’s not right. That project, from start to finish, was controlled by our Head.”
“You’re right. Our Head was the one who planned ‘The Busan Disaster’ after all, to collect ‘bloodline’ samples. And now they want to transfer it to the Japan branch after all these years, it’s crazy.”
“What? Japan branch? The branch getting the transfer is the Japan branch? sh*t! Absolutely not!! We can’t lose to Japan even in rock-paper-scissors, so how can we let them take the project? This is unacceptable.”
“Whoa, you’re quite patriotic.”
“Was I overdoing it?”
The two men chuckled at something amusing.
From their talk, they seem to have quite a bit of information. I’ll dig deeper myself.
My hands seized the two men by the back of their necks, pulling them towards me.
“Gasp!”
“What the hell!”
They cried out and resisted, but this space is shielded by an Anti Field.
It’s a place completely isolated from the outside, and in other words, there’s no way my identity will be revealed no matter what they do.
“As quickly as possible.”
Asura and Baphomet nodded and pounced on the frightened men.
A moment passed.
Now that I have all the information I need, I left the smoking area, wearing a white gown and mask.
‘This went well.’
I was originally planning to proceed blindly without much information, fishing one by one to see what I could catch.
But this went better than expected.
One of the men I dealt with earlier was from the facility management team, and he had some useful information. I’m on my way to take advantage of it now.
I walked casually past the cameras.
My body is already engulfed in various spells: anti-detection spells, invisibility magic, and countless others.
A camera means nothing to me. In fact, unless a higher-level mage comes along, there’s no way I’ll be discovered.
I eventually entered what appeared to be the auditorium of a university. As expected, enemies acting as sentries were visible outside.
Should I eliminate them? No, it’s better if they appear as though they fell unconscious due to equipment failure.
I slipped past the guards and infiltrated inside.
Once I entered the basement, I found the object before me.
A generator.
This large-scale generator was responsible for all the power in the research facility.
‘So this thing’s been acting up lately…’
My hand reached for the magic gem embedded in the generator and effortlessly smashed it.
Peeee-!!
Beep! Beep! Beep…
A loud alarm sounded in the control room. Clearly, it indicated a problem had occurred, yet the reactions of the maintenance team members were surprisingly calm.
“No question, it’s the generator. Sure enough, output is decreasing… I knew it.”
“Again? This is the fourth time today.”
“See? We should’ve known from the start. How can you possibly run this place with only one generator?”
Already the fourth breakdown today.
Technically speaking, the problem isn’t with the generator. The Evolutionary Group is entirely sincere with their research, but they wouldn’t conserve something as trivial as equipment.
So then, what’s the problem?
The situation is problematic.
Due to an unforeseen large-scale experiment suddenly starting, a conflict has developed between headquarters and the Korean branch.
Originally, this experiment required three generators of the same model, but they’re running it with just one, so trouble was bound to happen.
As a result, an experiment that should have started three days ago was delayed by a day, and now the generator fails roughly every four hours.
This has made the smooth progress of the experiment difficult.
A member sighed as he glanced at a computer monitor.
The children contained in the experimental tanks. Bubbles were rising in the blue liquid surrounding them.
“Is it even logical that we’ve acquired these test subjects but we’re struggling to maintain life support? At this rate, we won’t be able to proceed with the tests.”
“You’re not the only one thinking this. Everyone here knows it.”
“Then we need to stop it!”
“Screw off, you don’t know what you’re talking about.”
If someone could stop it, it would have happened already. He was one of the longest-serving members of the Evolutionary Group. Naturally, he also had connections with the Branch Head, Director Kim.
His real name was Kim Do-jeon.
Once he had entered the Academy as the second-ranked student and was considered exceptionally talented.
But he was expelled in disgrace after violating regulations during an experiment, becoming an infamous “Mad Scientist” and a named villain. Now, he was the Branch Head of the Korean Evolutionary Group.
His hatred of “Bloodlines” was genuine. There was no way someone like Kim Do-jeon would abandon the “HomunculusF Project” which forcibly awakens the “Bloodline Inheritance.” He would risk his life to see it through.
Anyone who gets in his way will be removed.
Even if they were members of his own group…
“If you want to live, just shut up. There’s no escape for us. This experiment absolutely has to succeed, or we all d*e.”
“d*mn… I hope the initial stages were successful.”
“Hmm~ Let’s send in the maintenance team. Who’s volunteering?”
“I’m human, please exempt me. Last time, they cursed at me nonstop.”
“Same here.”
“…Alright, I’ll go.”
A moment later, the member furrowed his brows while listening to cursing over the phone.
“Today alone, how many times has it happened already?! We haven’t slept!”
“I know. Very well aware. What can we do though? The experiment has already started, hasn’t it? We have to finish it, regardless of the outcome.”
“Hey! You b*stard!! If this is how it’s going to be, increase the maintenance team members! You Fucker!”
Smash!!
The receiver was violently slammed down, and on the monitor, the maintenance team started moving about.
The member sighed and opened the door.
The maintenance team grumbled their complaints as they went out.
But nobody noticed.
That through the now empty door, an uninvited guest had entered.
The door closed behind me, and confirming that there was no one around, I dissolved the ‘Invisible’ spell.
“Phew.”
…I was really sweating this one.
Invisible: A magic spell that makes a single target invisible.
A 5th Circle spell that appears to be fairly standard and useful due to the Circle it belongs to, but it is, in fact, classified as a non-mainstream magic spell.
Because it consumes mana extravagantly.
Thanks to this, I had to use one of the ‘bento boxes’ I had stored.
‘Anyway.’
The infiltration was successful.
The corridor ahead. Though I’ve never seen it before, it still feels familiar. It’s odd, isn’t it?
Though I’ve never seen this place, I’ve ingrained my knowledge after forcibly extracting it from someone.
I recalled those extracted memories and engraved them in my head once again. There are some impurities in the forcibly extracted memories, but now is not the time to worry about that.
I lightly swallowed my nausea and brought up a map in my mind.
A three-dimensional diagram of the building appeared, as if it were a 3D model…
I darted forward.
‘Let’s go.’
Moving toward my objective.
An ‘Anti Field’ to block information transmission, ‘Silent’ to block sound, ‘Feather’ to manipulate weight, along with tens of other spells surrounded me.
In order to block all possible variables, and to control every possibility.
For the sake of the hostages, the children’s lives.
Absolutely no mistakes can be tolerated.
Predictably, the mana consumption is beyond imagination.
But I have the ‘bento’ I’ve stored up over time.
‘One at a time.’
Asura and Baphomet opened their realms.
Screaming souls.
They are the waste I encountered on my journey here.
Pleading to be killed, “Please, k*ll me first,” they reached out their hands as if trying to tear themselves apart.
Asura and Baphomet selected two of them, crunching them up and eating them.
The souls vanished into the void, yet they seemed to be smiling even as they disappeared, as if their suffering had finally ended.
‘Well, not my problem.’
They are worthless waste. A waste that cannot even be recycled. I’ve done them a favor by properly separating and disposing of them. If anything, the Environmental Protection Agency should award me a prize.
I chuckled softly and continued down the stairs.
My mana was surging. The impurities in the souls made me feel sick. This is why I usually avoid using “sacrifices,” if possible.
‘When I get back, I’ll need to start by creating a new ‘leg’.’
Expanding the mana hall should help avoid this nauseous feeling, shouldn’t it?
While pondering how to acquire a demon’s corpse, I arrived at my destination.
I steadied my breathing and concealed myself against a wall.
I activated ‘Magic Eye,’ opening up another vision.
“…”
“…”
Two men guarding a door.
Behind that door are the children.
‘However…’
These two guardians. Their composed demeanor is unlike the trash I’ve encountered so far. One can determine the quality of ten through observing just one, their presence is unmistakably extraordinary.
‘This is going to be a headache.’
They’re fairly strong.
Roughly around the level of Jung-woo? Definitely stronger than Mary.
Somehow, I need to eliminate these two without drawing attention. This situation, even for me, must be approached with caution.
I pulled out a sword from an aetheric space.
It wasn’t the usual greatsword I use but a longsword. In the confined space, the greatsword would be disadvantageous.
I tightly grasped the longsword, my hand drenched in sweat.
It’s been a while, this sense of tension.
‘Well then, let’s go all-out.’
Magic activation.
Antifield
Anti Field
As the Anti Field enveloped the corridor, consuming the two men…
At that exact moment, I leapt forward.
“…”
“…”
In that instance.
Time Freeze
Time Freeze
The flow of time around me froze.
Subsequently.
Dispel
Dispel
Clearing away any unforeseen variables, the moment the flow of time resumes…
The two men were already within my attack range.
Geomho-ryu Quick Swordmanship
Falling Star
Lightning flashes as two streaks of sword energy fell like shooting stars.
The dazzling light lingered briefly.
The aftermath of the light revealed two heads rolling away.
“Oof, got a little too tense there, and now my neck hurts.”
The one-hit k*ll combo linked in this succession of Anti Field, Time Freeze, Dispel, and Falling Star.
This one strike used up ‘six bento boxes’— six boxes!
This is more consumption than even the Apocalypses I used during the midterms.
Still, I’ve cleaned up perfectly.
I wiped off the bl**d cleanly and summoned Asura and Baphomet to collect the bodies and remaining two soul wastes.
Continuing with the extracted information, I entered the password.
Bip-bip-bip…
Click.
The door opened, and what filled my sight were cylindrical glass tanks filled with a blue liquid, housing the submerged children within a vast underground auditorium.
“Good.”
My tense heart settled a bit.
It’s a scene horrifying enough but, compared to how much worse I have endured in previous battlefields, it’s almost a relief.
Honestly, I had anticipated the worst.
I know all too well how cruel humans can be for their own gain.
But these children are peacefully sleeping like this, and I’m almost thankful.
Almost there.
Once I take control here, it’ll be over.
“Baphomet.”
Baphomet’s head turned toward me.
“Materialize.”
Baphomet’s arm forced its way through the rift.
Rip.
It tore through the space.
Baphomet forcibly split the gateway between the void and the physical world.
Horns raised high, mocking the world.
Right Arm
Baphomet
Manifestation
Right Arm, by the command of your Demon Lord Master.
“Protect.”
Baphomet bowed his head.
