Chapter 187

Posted by Kuze, ? Views, Released on March 1, 2025

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Returning to the mansion, I fell into thought.

‘How am I going to get the holy artifact?’

The Eight Swords of the Empire. Or perhaps it’s a holy object only held by the royal family.

To obtain such a holy artifact, I had to go directly to the Empire or meet the Eight Swords separately to acquire it.

I had business in the Empire, and if I met them, something would definitely happen, so obtaining it shouldn’t be too difficult, but…

“Hmmm…”

Would the Eight Swords reveal themselves so easily, though?

The Duke of a nation, the Saintess and all that?

‘Guess there’s no choice but to barge in.’

“Ubbubub…”

While I was out for a moment, Sre was sprawled out on the fluffy carpet, fast asleep.

He already slept a lot, but ever since merging with Sugarado, he had spent more than half of the day sleeping.

Considering he’s still in infant stages, that’s to be expected.

As I stroked the sleeping Sre, I suddenly stopped and got up from my seat.

“…There’s really no need to go after all.”

[?]

■

‘This must be the place.’

Besk Ronhadia, the Duke of the Twin Moons, arrived at the mansion where Lily was staying, based on the information he had received.

It turns out this Outsider is the culprit behind this situation, and the Magic Lord instructed to keep an eye on him. They say Lily has the Hatchling of a Dragon.

Besk’s assigned mission was to slay the Dragon on the frozen mountain, but he also had the task of resolving this situation.

And that Hatchling was another way to tackle that resolution.

“Lamb skewers… slurp.”

From what I’ve seen so far, Lily and the Hatchling look just like a happy owner and pet, but the reality was different.

In the frigid cold, a child of Sugarado and a replacement to prevent “destruction.”

In fact, Lily transformed the Hatchling into a replacement, and while she’s not going to kill it right now, she would surely do so if things reached a breaking point.

‘Relaxed and sleeping, huh?’

While countless individuals, including myself, had their eyes on that pure white neck, the subject was comfortably curled up on the fluffy carpet, sound asleep.

“Uboo… uhh…”

Drool dripped from the Hatchling’s mouth.

Besk felt a sense of pity as he drew his cherished sword, the Twin Moons Sword, from the Sword Saint.

The sharp energy of the sword didn’t spread throughout the room but resided solely with Besk.

Before coming here, Leo advised against it, but that was a a laughable story.

I heard that Lily is a force so powerful that even Leo couldn’t beat her and that she possesses a strength nearing the ‘Eight Swords’.

‘What nonsense.’

While Besk might not be able to defeat Lily, it’s a different story when he wields the Twin Moons Sword.

‘A holy artifact, not just any weapon.’

The reason the Ronhadia family was among the top ten noble families in the Empire was largely due to the influence of this holy artifact.

No matter how strong Lily may be, she can’t possibly defeat him while he wields the Twin Moons Sword.

You can’t defeat yourself.

Moreover, this time the goal isn’t to face Lily but to take the Hatchling’s head.

‘This is child’s play.’

I approach cautiously.

Inside the still mansion, there’s no one but that serene Hatchling.

The Hatchling sleeps, unaware that I’m nearby.

“Fool.”

I mutter softly.

Still oblivious.

This must be the limit of a lizard.

No matter how much it flies or crawls, it can’t compete with a human using a relic.

“Then…”

I dash towards the Hatchling’s neck without a moment’s hesitation.

Kraan!

“…Kraan?”

Even though the blade struck precisely at the neck, the Hatchling’s head remains attached.

In fact, it’s still sound asleep.

Besk seems unable to believe this situation and strikes harder with his blade.

Kaaaang─!

He hits so hard that his wrist stings.

Still, the Hatchling remains unharmed.

“……This is nonsense.”

Relics are negated only by similar level relics or techniques that go beyond standards, like Magic Lord’s magic.

But the opponent is just a Hatchling, not a dragon from the snowy mountains.

No matter how strong a dragon, a mere Hatchling shouldn’t have such defensive capabilities.

‘Did that outsider named Lily do something?’

It’s a possibility.

According to the info, Lily can create something like a barrier.

“This is a headache.”

But it’s not without a solution.

Sreung.

I cross the dual blades into an X.

The Twin Crescent Blade resembles two crescent-shaped swords glimmering in the light.

Naturally, using both swords amplifies their power and speed compared to wielding just one.

I had been striking with only one sword until now, but using both should be sufficient to break through.

This is it.

“Hah!”

The two swords came crashing down.

“Iyaap.”

Thunk.

Besk’s neck was struck by a dull object.

Crash!

“Thank you.”

■

I obtained a weapon imbued with Metamorphosis.

‘Twin Crescent Blade.’

Should I call it a smaller version of Black Destroyer from Blask?

With the two silver blades reminiscent of crescents overlapping perfectly, they fit together as if they were one.

Since it’s a sword meant to be used as a set, there’s surely some special enhancement effect when swung together.

Of course, I focused on the fact that there were ‘two’ rather than the effect.

‘With two swords, there’s double the Metamorphosis.’

Given the abilities and appearance of the swords, it’s clear that a material of sufficiently high quality has been used.

It was clear that there must have been materials of a certain level of equality involved.

“Ugh…?”

“You can sleep more.”

I patted Sre’s head, which had been lazily lifted.

Honestly, I never expected to obtain something like this; it’s just fascinating.

How did the timing align so perfectly?

[Lolololololol]

[Is this the level of the Eight Swords? ;;]

[Unbelievable]

[Materials just roll in!]

[Why are they here?]

[What’s with the charity raid?]

[?]

[Unbelievable]

[Is this an imperial charity organization?]

[Welfare giving]

[Lololololololololol]

[So lucky]

Sre tilted her head and sniffed at the fallen Eight Swords.

Soon, she frowned and lowered herself, moving to the back of me.

You really don’t need to be that on guard.

[Is this also a legitimate competition?]

“Yes. You challenged me, didn’t you?”

Someone secretly infiltrated the mansion where I stay to kill Sre, whom I was protecting.

Moreover, even after waiting a couple of times and pointing out they couldn’t catch her, they still didn’t give up.

In fact, they tried to strike even harder.

“Still, it was pretty fierce.”

Is it because it’s a holy relic?

Honestly, I wanted to keep watching a bit longer, but the momentum of the dual swords was more than I expected, so I intervened quickly.

If I had left things as they were, wouldn’t the outcome have been nearly equal with Sre not using her claws?

Considering Sre merged with Sugarado and got even stronger, their level must be higher.

“Plus, the fact that the Eight Swords of the Empire came means they want to catch the dragon on the mountain. If I turn this into a weapon, wouldn’t this person’s purpose be achieved?”

So this fallen Eight Swords is happy to achieve their goal without using their hands, while I get to easily make a weapon.

It’s like killing two birds with one stone.

[?]

[Is that so?]

[Anyway, sounds about right]

[Lololololololollol]

[Ah, lol, they said they’d catch it for you]

[That makes sense, right? Lily is an angel?]

[Wow]

[It’s definitely Lily, lol]

[???: Our way of thinking is different]

[So nice, Lily]

[Lily seems really nice, for real, lol]

Anyway, I handed the dual swords directly to Drak.

Drak looked at me like I was crazy and asked how I did it, but I had no idea.

The only chance of retrieving it would have been to breach deep into the Empire, but this really just rolled in on its own.

Moreover, it’s perfect in terms of justification and circumstance.

‘Truly, the world is strange.’

Feeling the strangeness of the world again, I casually placed the Eight Swords in front of the mansion where the imperial forces were stationed.

Won’t they just take it?

■

“AAAAAA!!!”

Crash!

“Calm down!”

“Calm down?! Does it look like I can calm down?!!”

“Do I look like a fool?!!”

The next day, Besk, having regained his senses, swept up everything within reach in a frenzy.

He lost the holy item.

And all because he got knocked out with a single blow to the back of his head.

‘What a disgrace…!’

With his reputation already on thin ice, he had been planning to seize this opportunity to make a change.

It was his chance to conclude the hunt successfully and showcase the Empire’s might to that foolish kingdom…!

“…I’m going to that damn Lily right now!”

“Calm down. This isn’t the time to attack.”

The knight in the golden armor hurriedly attempted to restrain Besk, but Besk, already boiling with rage, spat venom.

“So! Are we just supposed to hand over the holy item like this!”

“…There are plenty of ways to reclaim the holy item. First, we need to move after the hunt concludes. Only then can we claim the moral high ground.”

“Moral high ground.”

Kuh.

“When has the Empire ever needed a moral high ground?”

The Empire, which boasts of its wide land and influence, having launched conquest wars through sheer might?

Besk scoffed, but the knight’s response was cold.

“Yes. It is important.”

“How dare you, a mere nothing…”

“Besides, this is also the will of Duke Huangyeol.”

At the mention of Duke Huangyeol, Besk’s mouth snapped shut.

Duke Huangyeol was a bloodline of the royal family and the strongest force among the Eight Swords.

Besk followed and trusted Magic Lord more, but Huangyeol’s will was almost identical to that of the Empire.

“If the Twin Moon Duke had captured that hatchling in one go, it would’ve been fine. But since he was spotted once and failed, it puts us in a very disadvantageous position morally.”

“……”

“Moreover, since we lost the holy item…”

Defeating Lily might be impossible.

“…It was because I got careless. If I fight properly, I will win.”

“But? We currently have no holy item, how do you plan to win?”

The one who answered wasn’t the knight.

Thud.

Leo emerged from a second-floor room into the lobby, supported by spirits.

“I told you not to go. Honestly, you never listen.”

“…The arrogance has reached the heavens. The Spirit Lord who protects you is not here.”

“……”

“Furthermore, Duke Huangyeol, who issued the command, wouldn’t care about such trivial matters.”