The Regressed Son of a Duke is an Assassin

“Screeee…”

With a bizarre cry, the Death Worm returned to the ground.

Of course, it was not because it had felt full and decided to return.

Vibrations continued to be felt below the ground.

“……”

The Death Worm circled around me.

It was watching for an angle to snatch me up once again.

Being flustered was enough the first time.

I had no intention of being easily caught, nor did I plan to give it any angle to work with.

With chilling speed, the creature rose up behind me.

The moment I sensed its direction, I quickly rotated my body and soared high into the air.

-Bang!

The creature’s mouth, wide open, burst forth from the ground.

Inside, numerous protrusions, presumed to be its tongue, were wriggling grotesquely.

Ugh, it is even more disgusting seeing it after a while.

I feel like I am going to vomit if I keep looking.

It seems I need to do a bit of trimming.

-Swish!

After adjusting my grip on the sword, I delivered two slashes from the air.

The crossed paths of the blade manifested as sword energy and plunged into the creature’s mouth.

“Kweeek!”

The Death Worm’s tongue was helplessly severed, unable to avoid the attack.

The creature writhed in pain and soon hid itself back into the ground.

The continuing vibrations suggested it had not fled.

Even considering our encounter, why did it appear here?

This place is still at the entrance to the Lemea Valley, very close to the knights’ station.

It hates sunlight and does not move unless in the shade, so its appearance here is highly unusual.

[You do know it came because of you, right?]

Kaeram suddenly pointed it out to me.

Not understanding why, I immediately looked at her and asked.

“Why? What did I do?”

[What did you do? Have you forgotten how you’ve been draining the blood of the creatures living around here? That worm has an incredibly keen sense of smell…]

Out of nowhere, what smell?

Is she saying I smell like I am cooking meat or something?

[You look completely clueless. Shall I explain your current state? You’re like a special dish, a mix of foul demon blood and pure human blood. A delicacy that can’t be found anywhere else, perhaps?]

“……?”

I quickly cleared my momentarily dazed thoughts and organized my reasoning.

My consumption of demon blood has turned me into a mixed special dish for the demons?

That means, the more I take their blood, the more I evolve into a better prey for them?

“So, it came all this way to eat me?”

[It won’t be just ashes, right? Soon, other famous demons from the demon world will rush in like they’ve found a prize! Wouldn’t it be nice not to have to bother searching for them?]

She was actually smiling, as if it were a good thing.

Indeed, looking back at my past life, it seemed like the more I ate the flesh of demons, the more they got entangled with me.

Just as it is not strange for a beast to prey on another beast, demons ultimately do not perceive each other as anything but prey.

Having recently consumed the blood of demons, their traces spread through my body, making me appear to be the same kind of prey.

No wonder the hellhounds earlier seemed odd…

“You’ve been quiet about this till now.”

[Hmph! Who do you think I did it for?]

After all, if she had kindly informed me, it would not be my beloved sword, would it?

-Rumble

The movement of the Death Worm continued.

In the end, running away would mean it would just invade up to the station; it means I have no choice but to kill it here.

[Let’s take it easy, master. You know it’s useless to try swordplay against that thing, right?]

It was tempting me.

The skin of demons fundamentally has the toughness equivalent to metal.

I could force my way through mid-level demons like ogres, but against higher-level demons like worms, human strength is ineffective.

You might slice off its tentacles as if trimming stems, but to pierce the outer skin enveloping its body, the sword needs to be enveloped in sufficient mana.

The problem is that this requires at least the power of a 7-star mage.

Not that I am saying it is impossible.

After all, I possess a divine magic sword unmatched anywhere in the world…

“Honestly, I didn’t want to comply, but this time, I’ll admit defeat and join you.”

[Oh? You’re cooler than I thought? That’s right, men should be decisive, that’s how you get women to follow you~]

“If only you’d keep quiet…”

What was the reason I brought out Kaeram in the first place?

Simple.

To use her power.

However, up till now, I had not been utilizing her power properly as a magic sword.

To be precise, I had not been able to.

Swordsmanship? Magic? The occasional secret technique?

Honestly, I could do it all with just a branch, not a sword.

A swing and a slash, and the trivial beings die; what need is there for the power of a magic sword?

So, Kaeram must not have been satisfied either.

No matter how much I despise the being I call a perverted magic sword, Kaeram is clearly a divine weapon beyond the realm of humans.

Why do we call a god a god?

Because there is an insurmountable difference that cannot be bridged by the realm of humans.

A vast boundary that humans, with their mere hundred or so years of life, cannot catch up to even if they run for their entire lives.

This magic sword can transcend the boundaries of humanity.

Of course, there are conditions and a price attached…

“Dark Art 9th Form: Manifestation of the Magic Sword!”

With the incantation, Kaeram, who had been smiling, transformed into a mist.

Her physical body, gradually diminishing, was soon absorbed rapidly into my body.

[Ha! How long has it been since I’ve felt this sensation? How does it feel, master?]

Kaeram disappeared, but her voice resonantly echoed in my head.

My heartbeat accelerated, my blood flow became rapid, and heat spread throughout my body.

How does it feel?

“It feels so good that it’s killing me!”

Manifestation of the Magic Sword.

I had handed over my body to her to draw out Kaeram’s true power.

My physical form is now being consumed by her soul.

If I lose my focus for even a moment, this perverted magic sword could completely take over my consciousness.

[Don’t push yourself, master! Just let go of everything and be at ease~]

Do you think I do not know what you are up to?

If I let my guard down even slightly, she would immediately grind my soul.

All this just to deal with a single demon.

“Phew…”

I looked up at the sky and let out a long sigh.

But it is not all bad.

This overflowing madness, as if I could smash the whole world.

It is an emotion I have not felt in a very long time!

Right now, even if a god stood before me, I would have no fear!

If it is the power of the high and mighty, it should at least be like this!

“Let’s have some fun, Kaeram!”

Kaeram’s intense cheer echoes fervently in my head.

-Rumble!

The sound of the Death Worm moving once again starts to approach closer.

Unlike a moment ago, when I was on high alert, now my mind is utterly at ease.

Until the creature comes right before me, my body remains immovably in position.

Exactly ten meters below my two feet.

The Death Worm’s wide-open mouth shot up rapidly.

When was it?

A phrase from someone in my past life crossed my mind.

When life suddenly seems futile and you wish for death, pluck a flower and reflect on your life.

With each petal you remove, think of shedding the worries and troubles clinging to your body, and you will find yourself left with nothing but a bare stem.

Even if it looks desolate, there is no need to appear beautiful by carrying the burden of distress that ruins oneself.

And if you let all the leaves, filled with negative emotions, blow away in the wind, eventually, only the pure self, filled with hope, will remain…

Do you think it is nonsense?

Such pie-in-the-sky talk can still inspire someone.

Yes, this was one of the secret techniques I created myself, reminiscing about those times.

To shake off all the trivialities of the world and stand proudly alone at the center, becoming that bare stem…

“Mist Sword: The Scattering of Eight Petals.”

As I executed the sword technique, a dark light emanated from Kaeram.

The sword, raised slowly, yet with a speed that seemed savage to the world,

Cut through the space a total of eight times, staying in place.

-Bang!

The Death Worm finally revealed itself above the ground.

However, what it encountered was not my body, but the eight sword lines suspended in the air.

-Crackle

The body of the Death Worm, coming into contact with the sword lines, split apart as easily as a sliced apple.

Even if the skin of this demon was tougher than the finest steel, it could not withstand the sword energy of the supreme magic sword.

Precisely into eight parts.

Like petals scattered by the wind, the divided body of the Death Worm fluttered in eight directions.

-Plunk

The petals vanished, and a red blood rain poured down in their place.

A beautiful sight that deeply stained the empty night sky.

The vitality within my body surged like waves.

I wanted to immerse myself in this sensation for a long time, but regrettably, it seemed there was no time for that.

Far off, the urgent footsteps of knights could be heard…

* * *

-Thump! Thump!

An unknown booming sound was heard from not too far away.

It seemed to come from the direction of the entrance to the Lemea Valley.

The knights, realizing the situation, immediately headed towards that location.

The vibrations felt underfoot became clearer, and the aftermath grew increasingly larger.

Some of the higher-ranking knights could guess what kind of demon was responsible just from the effects of the vibrations.

Of course, the exact truth would have to be confirmed by seeing it with their own eyes, but at least one thing was certain.

It was definitely not a demon of a mid or lower level…

Along with this, a smell as if something had been burned wafted from the surroundings.

It was similar to the smell when burning creatures from the demon world, but it seemed not to be a matter of concern at the moment, as most passed it by without much thought.

The forest path ended, and a barren valley appeared.

It was a dark, lightless crevice, but the scattered bodies and bloodstains of demons were clearly visible.

“……!”

The knights could not contain their astonishment.

The bodies of demons were dismembered so brutally that it was hard to believe a human had done it.

Had they fought among themselves?

That question was fleeting,

As an unidentified figure flickered in front of the knights.

It was not far, but the dark visibility made proper identification impossible.

One of the knights cast a spell.

“Light of Guidance!”

The valley, previously shrouded in darkness, was brightly illuminated.

“……?”

The mysterious presence slowly revealed its outline.

However, nothing could be confirmed.

The surroundings were lit up brightly enough to see even an ant hill, but no one there could fully perceive the entity before them.

The mysterious figure, surrounded by black mist, perfectly concealed itself, conveying an alien feeling the knights had never encountered before.

A negative sensation that made it difficult to approach easily.

As everyone hesitated, Duke Vert, having received the report, joined them belatedly.

“……!”

The duke’s eyes were different from the knights’.

If the knights’ gaze was that of encountering something new they had never seen before, Duke Vert’s gaze was as if he had encountered something from an old memory, something that should never exist, something that could not be explained, an entity that negates the very nature of being human…

“Mi, Mist…?”

Doubting his eyes, the duke quickly gathered his wits and looked straight ahead once more.

However, that mysterious figure had already disappeared from sight.

(To be continued)