REAPER SCANS
The Reincarnated Martial God Brings Down the Heavens
[Translator – San]
[Proofreader – Abstract]
Chapter 172 - The Border Plan (2)
“Crazy old man. Your journey to the afterlife won’t be a peaceful one.”
Kamaras let out a brief chuckle before stepping forward. However, he did not let down his guard.
As his opponent drew his sword, the intensity of his presence became even clearer.
‘So the old man has some skill.’
Even so, nothing would change.
It wouldn’t matter even if his opponent was one of the three Masters of the Kingdom of Hart.
Grip.
“I’ll cut you down in one strike.”
And finally, Kamaras grabbed the weapon he had been carrying on his back.
For convenience, people called him a swordsman, but his weapon wasn’t a sword. It was a long pole with a dagger, an axe, and a pickaxe attached to its shaft.
A halberd.
“Come at me! You country bumpkin old geezer!”
Swish!
As he shouted out loud, his opponent kicked off the ground and charged forward.
‘His speed’s decent!’
Kamaras’ eyes gleamed as he raised his halberd high, but then—
Rumble!
“…!”
Before his opponent entered his range, streaks of blue sword energy shot toward him.
A continuous flow of powerful, surging energy emanated from the curved tip of the saber. It was akin to waves crashing against the shore.
‘…No. With that sheer force, it could be called a tsunami.’
Alarm bells rang in his mind.
And immediately—
Crash!
Kamaras slammed his long halberd into the ground like a bolt of lightning.
Rumble!
The entire atmosphere trembled.
The air warped and cracked.
Amidst this shift in the environment, the very ground flipped over at an incredible speed.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Sword energy and the upheaved earth clashed relentlessly, just like a tsunami smashing against a dam.
Crash!
The shockwave shook the entire area, as if an earthquake had struck.
Stagger!
The old man momentarily lost his balance from the impact and Kamaras did not miss that opening.
“Die!”
Leaping high into the air, Kamaras swung his halberd down with all his might, aiming to cleave the wretched old man in two.
Slash!
“…!”
The halberd accurately struck the old man’s head. However, Kamaras’ expression remained rigid.
‘I didn’t feel anything.’
The moment the thought crossed his mind, his opponent’s figure vanished like a mirage. Lifting his gaze, Kamaras saw that the old man had already retreated far back.
“To think you’re at the level where you can shift your position in an instant…”
Kamaras let out a hollow chuckle.
Mages had a spell called ‘Blink’ that allowed them to teleport.
Similarly, swordsmen who reached a certain level could momentarily accelerate their movements to an extreme degree.
But such skill was beyond a newly ascended Master. It required, at the very least, a seasoned Master to even attempt it.
“I thought you were just a country bumpkin.”
Kamaras had no choice but to acknowledge his opponent. The man looked like nothing more than an old hermit.
Yet his skill was remarkable. So much so that it shook Kamaras’ pride as a Master from the Empire.
“Woooaaahhh!”
Cheers erupted from the Kingdom of Hart’s side, perhaps because the old man was holding his ground against an Imperial Master.
‘Interesting. Has the remote Kingdom of Hart really grown this strong?’
Kamaras shook his head.
No, that wasn’t it. This old man was simply a special case.
“What’s your name, old man?”
At last, Kamaras asked.
The old man smirked.
“I see you’re finally curious about my name.”
He answered without hesitation.
“I am Draksir de Foltaine.”
“Draksir de Foltaine?”
Kamaras tilted his head in confusion. The name sounded familiar.
“Do you hold a title?”
“I do. I am a marquis of the Kingdom of Hart.”
“…!”
It was only then Kamaras’ eyes widened in recognition.
“Oh! I heard there was a rather successful merchant in the Kingdom of Hart. Could that be…?”
“Heheheh.”
“But you…”
Kamaras furrowed his brows.
There was no need to finish his thought—‘You’re a swordsman, aren’t you?’
He had already seen it with his own eyes.
“…I see. You were hiding your skill.”
The Empire wasn’t the only one hiding their skills, it seemed.
Kamaras’ eyes darkened. There was something else that bothered him.
“…Old man, I’ve seen many sword techniques, but I’ve never witnessed one like yours, which resembles a surging tsunami. It somewhat resembles the old ‘Swordsman of Waves,’ but… his swordplay was much smoother than yours.”
Yes.
Urha, the Swordsman of Waves.
Compared to him, this old man’s swordplay was rough and crude.
‘Heheheh. As expected of the Empire.’
Draksir de Foltaine inwardly admired Kamaras’ sharp observation. In that brief exchange, his opponent had already analyzed his swordsmanship.
‘There’s no reason to reveal all my cards just yet.’
However, one word caught his interest.
“Tsunami…”
Muttering to himself, Marquis Foltaine smiled faintly. He had no title as a swordsman yet.
“…I quite like that.”
Swish!
Adjusting his grip on his sword, he charged forward once more.
This was the first official duel of Draksir de Foltaine—a man who would later be known as the Swordsman of Tsunamis.
* * *
Reaper Scans
[Translator – San]
[Proofreader – Abstract]
Join our discord for updates on releases! https://dsc.gg/reapercomics
* * *
The Swordsman of Flames led his group away. At the same time, Count Kaiman sent me a telepathic message before we parted.
-It seems our journey together ends here.
-You’re not coming?
-Heheheh, haven’t you already heard? I’m a subordinate of the Blazes now.
-And they actually believe that?
Despite everything, Count Kaiman remained composed.
-Even if they don’t believe me, they have no choice but to accept me. In a situation where strong rivals like the Full Moon and the Undefeated exist, they can’t afford to turn away even a single useful hand. Moreover, thanks to Your Highness’s actions, the Blazes have lost one of their valuable assets.
-Well, do whatever you want. What about me?
-How shameless. After all I’ve done for you, you want more?
-Are you going to let someone else snatch up your precious prey?
-Hahaha! Of course not. Don’t worry, I’ve already made the necessary arrangements.
With that, Count Kaiman handed me a map.
-Follow this map, and you’ll find a tunnel. It’s an unofficial route into the Kingdom of Hart that bypasses the border.
-You really are insane—digging multiple rabbit holes like this.
-Heheheh, thanks for the compliment. Until we meet again, in good health.
Even as my thoughts continued, we pressed on through the tunnel.
“…This is incredible.”
Nella couldn’t hide her astonishment at the well-constructed interior.
“To think someone could secretly build a tunnel like this without the Imperial Palace knowing. Count Kaiman is certainly no ordinary man.”
Hearing that, I shook my head.
“No, this wasn’t made just for escape. The Imperial Palace is probably well aware of its existence.”
“What do you mean?”
“Think about the distance we’ve covered. This tunnel stretches at least dozens of kilometers. Imagine how much manpower was needed to build something like this.”
“…!”
Nella’s eyes widened.
“This is a national-scale project. It’s likely that it wasn’t Count Kaiman, but the Imperial Palace that built this tunnel.”
Her mouth slowly fell open in realization. If she was as smart as I thought, she would quickly deduce its purpose.
“Could it be… for war?”
I silently nodded.
Twenty years.
The Empire had spent all that time consolidating its strength. A tunnel of this scale was no surprise.
“A passage like this has endless strategic value. They could deploy special forces behind enemy lines undetected or launch a surprise attack deep within enemy territory.”
Nella swallowed dryly.
“So the Empire really has been preparing for war all along…”
“Twenty years isn’t a short time.”
As we continued our conversation, a light appeared at the end of the tunnel.
Clang! Clang!
“…Huh?”
Nella tilted her head in confusion.
“Do you hear that? The sound of metal clashing.”
“...”
My expression hardened.
I had noticed it much earlier.
A faint sound of clashing metal had been disturbing me ever since we entered the tunnel.
‘It’s definitely coming from above.’
I looked up at the tunnel ceiling.
The ground above was thick and solid, excellent for soundproofing. Yet, the noise still reached us through that dense layer of earth.
Which could only mean one thing—
‘The individuals fighting up there are just that powerful.’
We hastened our pace and quickly emerged from the tunnel. But at the exit, we found a dead end.
“This should be the end, right? There was only one path, and there’s no way a light fixture would be here by chance…”
The light was coming from a recessed lamp embedded in the wall.
I pushed against the wall.
Rumble!
It slid open far more easily than expected.
“Hmm.”
Beyond the wall lay a cave in the middle of a mountain. Its entrance was cleverly concealed by dense foliage.
“No wonder the tunnel was sloping upward…”
Nella muttered as she wiped her sweat.
At the same time, I jumped onto a nearby tree, focusing my mana into my eyesight.
“…!”
And then, I saw him.
“Marquis Foltaine…?”
Far in the distance stood a familiar figure—his entire body soaked in blood.
***
Thud!
“Huff, huff, huff.”
Marquis Foltaine planted his saber into the ground, gasping for breath.
‘As expected of the Empire.’
He muttered bitterly, a faint smile on his lips. But his opponent didn’t look much better.
“…Impressive. My perception of kingdom-class Masters has been completely shattered today.”
Kamaras stood with his clothes in tatters, nearly half-naked. It was the result clashing against the raging waves of a tsunami.
His body was covered in numerous wounds.
‘It’s been a long time since I’ve struggled this much.’
Kamaras’s expression hardened.
If this old man had been just a little younger, the battle would have been far more difficult.
In a prolonged fight, endurance mattered most—and age was unforgiving.
“…A shame. If you had been born in the Empire, you would have made a name for yourself far earlier in life.”
Kamaras spoke sincerely.
At the same time, Marquis Foltaine grit his teeth and forced his trembling arms to lift the saber.
“Enough talk. Come at me, boy.”
“Heheheh, no need to provoke me—I was coming anyway.”
Kamaras, exuding the composure of a victor, raised his halberd.
And then—
“Farewell!”
Whoosh!
The halberd swung down with overwhelming force.
‘Damn it!’
In that fraction of a second. Time slowed for Marquis Foltaine alone.
‘…Heheheh. I would’ve liked to see that bastard’s face one last time before I go.’
The face of a certain smooth-talker came to mind.
‘To ensure you make it back safely… I won’t go down easily.’
Hummm!
Marquis Foltaine’s mana hole surged wildly.
Yes.
Even if he died, he would take one of Kamaras’ arms with him. This was his final gamble.
‘True mana.’
Also known as the essence of life itself.
“...!”
Perhaps Kamaras sensed the energy, and his eyes widened in response.
‘Heheheh. I don’t have long to live anyway. Taking the arm of a young warrior like you is quite the bargain!’
Strength surged through his exhausted body. Or rather, it should have.
But then—
“…?”
His mana hole refused to move. An external force had wrapped around him, gently suppressing his energy.
‘What in the world?’
For Marquis Foltaine, it was an unbelievable phenomenon.
But—
Boom!
Fortunately, the owner of that mana wasn’t an enemy.
“You should be more mindful of your age.”
“...!”
Marquis Foltaine wasn’t the only one in shock. Even Kamaras looked at the newcomer with an expression of astonishment.
Because the halberd that had split the battlefield in two had been so effortlessly blocked.
“You…?”
Marquis Foltaine’s voice trembled as he looked at the familiar figure.
“Wh-Why are you coming from behind?”
The newcomer smirked.
“Because this is where I belong.”
“What…?”
“I’ve always been grateful for everything you’ve done for me. I’ll be the one to protect your back, Father.”
“...!”
* * *
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