REAPER SCANS
Regressing as the Reincarnated Bastard of the Sword Clan
[Translator – Mr.Ghost]
[Proofreader – Harley]
Chapter 119 - Mystic of the Dragon Slayer (4)
A new memory from Kriemhild began to play.
Fwoooo!
“Haa… Haa…!” Kriemhild was panting roughly.
Her sword was stabbed into the ground through the head of the evil dragon, who now lay limp. With his last remaining strength, his eyes shifted, looking toward the dragon slayer that had cut him down.
“For the sword that penetrated my skull to have been one made from my ribs... Hahaha... And for the one to have stopped me to be none other than a friend I’ve given my heart to,” the evil dragon smiled.
Despite having lived for thousands of years, Kriemhild was the first and only friend he had ever made. She was a friend who opened her heart to him, who had been dying from the curse of the Forsaken God.
It was a friendship that transcended race.
“Cry not, my friend. Though saying farewell brings tears to my eyes, I am happy that I was able to entrust my final respite to you. Blessed I am.”
“Levy.”
“But it is regrettable that this is how we must part ways. May I ask you a final favor?”
“...Of course.”
“The twin swords I bequeathed you. Pass them down separately, and only give them both to a successor worthy of it.”
Kriemhild seemed to understand the evil dragon’s request, “Is it because of the Forsaken God?”
“The Forsaken God will return one day. They will try to cover the world in their shadow, a remnant of their base that no one remembers anymore.”
“......”
“So you must find it. To stop the shadow at all costs.”
“I understand. I don’t want anyone to face the same misfortune as us.”
“Thank you. I was fortunate to have made a friend like you.”
With that as his final words, the ground beneath the evil dragon slowly crumbled as he sunk deep into the ocean. With him sank the demon sword that would be named Balmung by future generations.
Kriemhild silently watched him sink, countless memories flashing through her mind.
Though they began as friends, in the end, her friend was unable to overcome the curse and became an evil dragon. Because she had stayed by his side for so long, she gained resistance to the curse and was forced to become a «Hero».
After a long, tumultuous battle, she was able to put an end to the conflict by stabbing the sword into the neck of her friend.
Only after a long time had passed did Kriemhild stand up from her spot, stabbing the other half of the twin swords into the ground.
She then turned her gaze toward Theo, “This mystic was created to fulfill the final will of my old friend, Levy. However, I never expected it would be obtained by a descendant of the North, said to be blessed by a dragon.”
She looked Theo up and down before continuing, “And you even performed a revival ritual by utilizing my bones. A significant other of a dragon with both the trait of and resistance to Dragon Slayer! Unbelievable! I can’t imagine a more invincible combination!”
She sounded impressed, fascinated by the way Theo overcame the trial of the mystic.
Theo showed his respect, “Let me formally introduce myself. My name is Theo Ragnar.”
“And I am Kriemhild. I was originally a slave with neither a first nor last name. I was only given this name after becoming a «Hero»,” Kriemhild had a faint cold smile on her face, her eyes intense and tranquil.
No longer present were the eyes of the young girl in the first vision. The only thing that remained was the gaze of a veteran warrior who had faced all kinds of trials.
“For this mystic to have awakened, I presume Levy has woken up from his deep slumber?”
“Yes. That’s correct. In this age, people refer to him as the ‘Sea King’.”
“A king of the sea… He would have enjoyed that title. Since we don’t have long, let’s get straight to the point. Raise your sword.”
This was an opportunity to be taught by Kriemhild.
Theo slowly raised his Drake Blade.
The greatsword had been damaged greatly through the rough battles against the Dragon Bone Army.
“In this world, there are far too many «Protectors» who ended up in the same or similar state as Levi due to the actions of the Forsaken God.”
Theo finally realized that the Forsaken God was another title referring to the «Nameless Sovereign».
“The traces left by the protectors are what humans normally refer to as <Mystics>. They are remnants or preparations left behind from a bygone, forgotten era.”
“......!”
‘Mystics are defense mechanisms to stop the «Nameless Sovereign»?’
Realizing the Relics of the Primordial Dragon weren’t the only ones of their kind, Theo’s heart raced from the newfound revelation.
“The ‘key’ left behind by Levy to obtain those mystics is none other than Balmung and Hrotti, a set of twin swords carved out of his own ribs…”
Theo clenched his fist. A path he had not anticipated now lay in front of him.
“I shall now teach you how to use one of the two swords, Balmung. I call this technique… Nibelung.”
As Kriemhild raised her sword, Theo focused intensely on every minute movement.
“In the ancient language, it means ‘ruination’,” she explained as she began her lesson.
* * *
“What is that noise?” Umberto, who was in the middle of reading a book, lowered his glasses and scowled.
One of his men suddenly barged into his office, “We have an emergency, sir! The Colossus of Kriemhild is collapsing!”
“...Give me the details. What is going on?”
“The mystic is rampaging! There has been an emergency summons of not just the guards but the entire alliance!”
“Antonio, that fool! What kind of mess has he started?”
The reason the Black Skull was able to get close to the statue without any problems was thanks to Umberto’s assistance.
He didn’t actually expect that Antonio and his friends, who had nothing but lofty ideals in their heads, could actually obtain the mystic.
With the general assembly coming up, he gave them his assistance, betting on the one-in-a-million chance that maybe they’d at least obtain some clue about the mystic.
What he had not foreseen was such a catastrophe. As things stood, the blame wouldn’t be pinned on just the Black Skull but also on the Spinolas as a whole.
“What are the Grimals and Romelins doing?” He had to act fast and beat the other major families to the punch.
“The head of the Grimal family has mobilized the Demonbane Order and is headed to the Colossus, sir…”
“Damn it!”
Bang!
Umberto slammed his fist onto his desk in rage.
The Grimals were the family leading the pro-Troivan faction within their autonomous territory. With banking being their primary industry, they wielded enormous influence across the world. That was how they built a good relationship with the Troivans.
They were of the opinion that the territory needed to receive the help of the Troivans to put the Sea King to sleep and build a long-lasting cooperation with the Troivan Clan.
Meanwhile, the Spinolas stood on the opposite side of the aisle, heading the anti-Troivan faction.
If the Spinolas were held responsible for the destruction of the monument said to hold the spirit of their great ancestor, it would give way for the Troivan Clan to amass further influence.
‘I will not serve our Floating Archipelago to those scoundrels on a silver platter!’
The problem here was that the family head of the Grimals had personally deployed the Demonbane Order.
The Demonbane Order. Publicly, the Grimals had said that they were merely a mercenary group hired from the ‘continent’. However, everyone knew that they were in fact a military unit dispatched by the Troivan Clan to exert their influence in the archipelago.
They were extremely skilled, giving the Black Skull a hard time. Their involvement in this matter signified that the Grimals saw this as an opportunity to seize power.
“Gather every single man you can. A war might break out, so tell them to brace themselves. We will also head to the Colossus.”
“Yes, sir,” Umberto’s subordinate gave a heavy nod before running out.
After putting on his coat, Umberto clenched his fist. What would the fate of the Floating Archipelago look like if they went to war against the Troivan Clan, backed by the finances of the Grimals?
He couldn’t envision anything other than a grim future.
* * *
Reaper Scans
[Translator – Mr.Ghost]
[Proofreader – Harley]
Join our discord for updates on releases! https://dsc.gg/reapercomics
* * *
“Ahaha! It seems that Umberto’s greed finally made him dig his own grave,” Giuseppe, the head of the Grimal Family, let out such robust laughter that it shook his rotund body.
A man wearing a mask carved out of wood was sitting across from him, nodding his head.
「Do not get full of yourself. Arrogance can quickly ruin even the most fool-proof plans.」
The man was unable to speak with his mouth properly, but the voice he could make sounded like nails scratching on glass.
However, the biggest thing of note was that the magic power he used to speak was thick enough to make Giuseppe’s spine shiver.
Noil. A word meaning nine in the old Eastern language.
That was what the Demonbane Order referred to him as. It was to signify that he was one of the Noble Servitors, the nine pillars that held up the Troivan Clan.
‘If every pillar of the Troivan Clan is like him… No, the rest are likely even stronger. In which case, not defying them is the right choice.’
Giuseppe was certain that the war between the Ragnar Clan and the Troivan Clan would end in a dominant victory by the Troivans. That was why he was betting the future of his family and the Floating Archipelago on them.
“If my arrogance strays me from the path, then I know you will course correct for me, sir. As I know nothing about politics, I am putting my faith in you, Ninth Servitor.”
「As always, your tongue is as slick as oil.」
“As I am a simpleton, I shall take that as I have yet to wrongly misinterpret your words, sir.”
Noil decided not to waste his time any longer on this pointless discussion and changed the subject.
「As you have requested, the Demonbane Order will capture the Black Skull before they can flee the scene. They will then be promptly taken to the Imperial Palace.」
“The Black Skull is a rebellious faction declared an enemy by the imperial family. If we can successfully rope them and Spinolas together, the rest of the Maritime Alliance and the Floating Archipelago will have no choice but to side with the Troivan Clan.”
「But in turn, the military force of the Floating Archipelago will be cut in half. Are you alright with that?」
“I know that the Troivan Clan will supplement the forces that we lose. Am I wrong?”
Noil silently clicked his tongue at how much of a scheming rat Giuseppe was. It was clear to Noil that Giuseppe thought he could order the Troivans around with his wealth, planning on bribing the central members of the Troivan Clan.
‘He’ll learn soon enough that some things money cannot buy,’ Noil shrugged it off, passing it off for the higher-ups to take care of.
“But in order for us to achieve our plan, you must capture Antonio, Umberto’s son, alive.”
「Don’t worry about that. That is the specialty of the Demonbane Order.」
Giuseppe once again shivered at the chilling tone of Noil’s voice. But he quickly shrugged it off, already able to picture the Floating Archipelago under his rule.
* * *
“Grey…! Losing Slo was bad enough. Not you, too!” Antonio clenched his teeth, seeing the corpses of the Geng Gang littered around the Colossus.
The worst-case scenario he had wanted to avoid had come to fruition.
“Theo! Theo!”
“Where are you, Theo? Answer us!”
Meanwhile, Selford and Erin were busy searching for Theo, but they couldn’t find even the smallest trace of him. Between the heat, the flashing light, and the dust cloud, searching was not easy.
“I’m nearing my limit,” said Ray.
Selford and Erin flinched upon hearing her statement. After all, it was thanks to Ray’s frost that they were even able to search the premises.
As they were about to ask how much longer she could hold out for…
“Someone is here,” Selford detected something and quickly turned his head.
Erin and Ray also turned their gazes.
Beyond the fire next to the bright light, dozens of fierce men appeared, all exuding an intense aura and ready to fight.
“Arrest all the survivors near the Colossus. Any corpses that are hard to retrieve, you may bring back only the head for identification purposes!”
“Yes, sir!”
“Yes, sir!”
‘Is it the island guards? No, their killing intent is too powerful. This more resembles the Troivans—!’
Fwip! Fwip! Fwip! Fwip!
Selford’s thoughts were interrupted by four people jumping through the fire and landing next to them.
“Erin! Frost Sword!” Selford shouted.
While Erin and Ray blocked the onslaught of their ambushers, Selford leaped toward Antonio.
Clang!
Selford managed to rescue Antonio just in the nick of time. He then corrected his stance and aimed his sword forward.
“You must be one of the strangers Antonio brought with him. Not bad, blocking my sword. It makes me curious as to who you are. Though, you do seem familiar,” the opponent chuckled with a laid-back tone.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. I don’t remember ever making a creepy friend like you,” Selford scoffed, bringing his blade next to Antonio’s neck.
“Don’t come any closer. Or this young master’s head is going to drop clean.”
Antonio flinched at the cold touch of the blade, but Selford looked unphased.
The enemy smirked in response, “Right. The third son of the Spinola Family. The higher-ups wanted us to bring him back alive.”
The cold smile on the enemy’s face intensified, “But it can’t be helped if he dies because of a hostage situation. This is better for me. It makes transporting him that much easier.”
The enemy walked toward Selford, daring him to do it.
“Mmph! Hmmph!” Antonio wriggled, begging for mercy.
‘These guys, they’re not part of the Maritime Alliance. Are they an outside faction…?’ thought Selford.
Suddenly it clicked. Selford realized their identities, remembering what Theo said in passing. The Troivan Clan.
“You sure know how to run your mouth. I’m going to enjoy torturing you to find out what you know,” the enemy dashed toward Selford.
Cling! Clang! Clang!
In an instant, Selford and the enemy traded blows a dozen times.
This only further confirmed Selford’s suspicions.
Information about Ed’s swordsmanship had now been shared with every swordsman of Ragnar, and those characteristics were clearly visible within his opponent’s fighting style.
‘Do the Troivans have their hands deeper into the archipelago than we anticipated? If so, I need to report this to high command right away,’ thought Selford.
But the problem was that more opponents were arriving every second.
They could have at least attempted an escape if they had found Theo, but they had failed to even find a trace of him yet—and they weren’t in position for a strategic, temporary retreat.
If they managed to catch Theo, it’d alert the Troivan Clan that the Ragnar Clan was attempting something here.
“You look like you’re putting a lot of thought into this when it’s futile to even struggle,” the enemy mocked him before roaring loudly.
「Soldiers, assemble into the Demonbane Formation to entrap the enemy!」
Dashing around, the Demonbane Order quickly lined up into a tight formation.
The Troivan Clan were famed for their formations and cooperative attacks. Some even said that once you fell prey to their formation, you would never escape alive.
‘Shit!’ Selford realized the true danger they were in.
Right as he was about to shout something…
G-g-grind!
The Colossus of Kriemhild, which was crumbling and wobbly, suddenly started moving.
As the head turned sideways, the eyes looked toward the Demonbane Order as it lit up.
Flash!
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