The Reincarnated Assassin Is a Genius Swordsman

Chapter 706 A dazzling array of multicolored spells erupted over the magic circle Merlin had drawn. It was her specialty—a magical bombardment that wielded hundreds of spells with a single incantation. Hundreds of spells, not just the four elemental attributes of fire, water, wind, and earth, but also light and darkness, rained down upon the Specter's undead legion. Despite her severe injuries, Merlin maintained her focus. She detonated all the spells at precisely the intended locations without the slightest error. The sky and river exploded in succession, creating fissures in the air as if slashed by a blade, and the evaporated river water rose like a wall. "Haa..." Merlin bit her lip as she gazed at the wall of steam that reached the sky. 'I hit them, but the power is weak.' The impact on her heart, where the magic circle was fixed, had significantly weakened her spells. It seemed less than half of her usual power. "Damn it!" A searing pain engulfed her entire body, but this wasn't the main issue. She could endure physical pain indefinitely. 'The real problem is...' The mental anguish. Her heart ached with despair over whether Raon could safely escape this place. 'I was foolish.' The Fallen had said he wouldn't interfere with the life-or-death battle between Raon and the Axe King. Even on the day of the battle, there was no movement, so she had let her guard down and tried to gather information as usual when she was suddenly ambushed by The Fallen. The impact was so great that she lost consciousness with a single blow, but thanks to the doppelganger she had prepared in advance, she was barely able to escape. If Raon hadn't told her to prepare for escape, she would have died or been captured on the spot. 'Even though I escaped, it ended up like this...' The Specter knew better than anyone that she couldn't betray Raon. Even knowing it was a trap, she had no choice but to come out. As the harsh river wind blew from above, settling the steam and dust, the Specter's figure was revealed. "Even a mosquito bite would hurt more than this." The Specter curled up the corners of his mouth as he dusted off his robe, which was untouched by dirt. It seemed he had blocked the magical bombardment with the black magic Bone Wall, which summons a wall of solid bones. Still, about half of the undead legion he was controlling had melted away in the magical bombardment. If she could erase all of those, it would be easier for Raon to escape this place. "There's no need to worry." The Specter smiled as he looked at Merlin's trembling eyes. "I have no intention of chasing after Raon Zieghart while leaving you behind. Right now, you're all I want." He waved his hand with eyes filled with desire and disgust. "I won't kill you right away. I'll make you feel the same pain as me. No, even more excruciating pain!" "What a shame. I don’t feel pain… Urgh." Merlin coughed up bright red blood as she bent over. 'In this state, I won't last long...' She felt a pain as if her chest bones were constricting inward. It meant that her body and mind had reached their limit, and it wouldn't be strange if she died soon. She could endure any pain, but she would soon lose consciousness regardless of her will. 'But I can't die like this.' It wasn't because she was afraid of dying. If she died, the Specter's malice would be directed at Raon, so she couldn't die like this. She had to kill him even if it meant using her last resort. "You can't feel pain? Then I'll just have to capture Raon Zieghart and torture him." The Specter twisted his lips as he looked at Raon's invisible ship. "You'll suffer when you see him in pain." "Shut up!" Merlin spread her hands with a pale complexion. The magic circles blooming behind her back once again emitted a clear light. "Are you going to throw a fireball in that state?" As the Specter sneered, the undead legion began to move. Monsters filling the entire field of view swarmed from all directions. Bone gargoyles and wraiths poured down from the sky, while bone mantacoons and sharkmaws surged from the river. Amidst the undead legion, even a bone dragon's breath made of dark mana flew in, leaving no corner to escape. But this dangerous situation was the picture she had hoped for. Merlin folded the wings of the magic circle she had spread out while looking at the approaching undead legion. Hundreds of magic circles overlapped in her palm, drawing a deformed geometric shape. What bloomed there was a brilliant white light. It was the spear of god that would blow away the darkness entirely. The grand annihilation magic, Gungnir. The absolute magic bearing only the notion of destruction through the competition of yin and yang broke through the undead legion and stretched towards the Specter. The moment Gungnir exploded in front of the Specter, the darkness subsided, and daylight returned, brightening the world. The undead filling the area around the river all melted away. The Specter didn't escape unscathed either. The left side of his upper body was cut off as if sliced by scissors. "Cough..." However, befitting a ghost with undead abilities, he was regenerating his body even as he coughed up blood. "Haak..." Merlin bit her lip and raised her hand. 'I have to end it here.' It was already a blessing to have created Gungnir in its incomplete state. She had to decisively cut off his breath while his injuries were severe. "Die... Cough!" Merlin coughed up black, dead blood as she tried to manipulate mana. She trembled all over, bleeding not just from her mouth, but also from her nose and eyes. "Stupid woman." The Specter curled his blood-soaked lips. "Do you still think you're normal!" He shouted and stretched out his right hand. Merlin's body swayed greatly, and the old woman's mask she was wearing split in half. A young woman's face with skin so pale that veins were visible was revealed. Her beauty was indescribable, but strangely, her half-closed eyes had red crosses in them. "I'm sorry, Raon..." She fell into the river water, uttering Raon's name until the very end. "You won't escape even in death... Ugh!" The Specter frowned as if losing strength while trying to lift Merlin with telekinesis. "Get her out right now!" Instead of using his own strength, he gestured behind him, and a gargoyle descended, extending its sharp claws towards Merlin. Just as the gargoyle's claws were about to pierce Merlin's shoulder, the river water rose as if alive, creating a dense fog and translucent water droplets that obscured visibility. "What, what's this!" The Specter bit his lip and stirred up the wind, but the fog remained fixed in the air as if anchored. "Damn it all!" He descended directly into the river water, riding a bone dragon. But all he could see was the gargoyle floating on the river water. Merlin, whom it had gone to capture, was nowhere to be seen. 'Did she escape?' No! She definitely fainted! Merlin valued Raon's life more than her own. Such a crazy woman wouldn't run away. 'And this isn't magic.' The fog and water droplets filling the riverbank showed a flexible flow as if nature itself had caused them. It definitely wasn't Merlin's magic. "Search!" The Specter gritted his teeth as he summoned all the remaining undead. "Turn this entire river upside down if you have to, but find that woman!" His golden eyes filled with madness. "I will never, ever let her go!" * * * Dorian's ship, riding Merlin's wind, slowed down significantly as it touched the river water. However, there were no pursuers visible behind them. It seemed they had all gathered around Merlin. "Even a rough count showed over a thousand undead. Can she hold out?" Krein trembled his chin as he looked back. "Ah! I'm not worried about Merlin..." He hunched his shoulders as if he had made a mistake. "Merlin did save us. There's nothing wrong with being concerned." Rimmer shook his head with a sigh. (84) "Well, you don't look well, and that worries me more." Dorian nervously swallowed dry saliva. "She's a magician. She'll probably fight for a while and then escape." Burren bit his lip while ruffling his own hair. His expression was anxious, contrary to his words. "No." Martha clenched her fist tightly as she looked back. "What?" "Merlin won't run away." "Yeah..." Runaan nodded as if agreeing with Martha's words. "The masked woman will fight until she dies." "..." The two bit their lips, unusually in agreement. "Sigh..." Rimmer sighed as he massaged the back of his neck. "Right now, we can only believe. There’s also what Raon said." "The Division Leader?" "What did he say?" Dorian and Krein widened their eyes and thrust their chins forward. The other Light Wind division swordsmen also leaned forward curiously. "He said we wouldn't die as long as we don't leave the river. Something about help from an unseen place?" Rimmer narrowed his eyes as he pointed to the Lable River. "Help from an unseen place?" "Yeah." He shook his head, saying he didn't know the details either. "Let's keep going for now. We're not far from the rendezvous point." "Yes. But..." Dorian sighed as he fiddled with the control panel. "The ship is a bit damaged, so it's slowed down. We have materials to repair it, but..." "Keep going like this." Rimmer shook his head as he looked around. "Once we pass this gorge, the river widens again. We're not far now." "Yes!" Dorian nodded and gripped the control panel tightly. The squad leaders and the Light Wind division remained tense, surrounding Raon. After about 10 minutes, the gorge ended, revealing the true form of the Lable River, which could be mistaken for a sea. "We're almost there. Just hang on a little longer..." However, just as Rimmer was encouraging the exhausted Light Wind division... A massive battleship surged from the river water with a tremendous splash that seemed to reach the sky. It was the Blue Wolf, the South-North Union's first battleship with submersion capabilities. Dorian's ship shook violently as if it would break upon colliding with the Blue Wolf. "Ugh..." Rimmer bit his lip as he pushed Dorian's ship back. 'The Blue Wolf here, of all places...' An ominous creaking sound began to come from the ship due to the impact of colliding with the Blue Wolf. If they hadn't blocked it with aura in advance, it would have shattered completely, sending everyone into the river. "Finally caught you!" Helgroom, the Vice Leader of the South-North Union riding on the bow of the Blue Wolf, smiled so widely his lips seemed to tear. "How... how..." Dorian's hands trembled on the control panel, unable to believe it. "We took a different route to avoid your monster." Helgroom raised his chin, saying they had moved on an entirely different path to avoid Glenn. "It was obvious where you'd go." He emanated intense killing intent, as if to say it was impossible to escape the South-North Union via the river. "Why chase us all the way here when the battle there must be fierce too?" Rimmer forced a sneer. "He takes priority." Helgroom frowned as he pointed at Raon, whom Federick was holding. "Raon Zieghart is the most dangerous one in this battlefield." He bit his lip, saying Raon was someone who must be killed at all costs. "You're lucky to be popular with both men and women." Rimmer frowned as he grabbed Raon's shoulder. 'Damn it!' Just a little further and they would have made it. If they could just cross this waterway, troops and fast battleships were waiting to block the path. It was frustrating to be caught here. 'We have no choice but to fight.' There was no option other than combat. The best they could hope for was to fight here and wait for the standby forces to arrive. "Prepare for battle!" At Rimmer's shout, the Light Wind division raised their swords. A fierce aura, as if wrapping the river wind itself, filled the swordsmen's eyes. "Ram them!" Helgroom ordered to smash Dorian's ship itself to maximize the advantage of the river battlefield. As the Blue Wolf charged towards Dorian's ship as if to devour it, a dark shadow appeared over the river water. Everyone's gaze turned blankly to the sky. "Huh?" "What, what is that!" "A ship! It's a ship!" As if mocking the Blue Wolf that had risen from the sea, a black-tinged battleship was falling from the sky. The black ship descended in front of Dorian's ship, blocking the Blue Wolf's path. The bows of both ships cracked like dry firewood as they collided. "That ship is..." Rimmer's lips trembled as he saw the emblem of a sword with a star engraved in the center of the black ship. "The Holy Sword Alliance!" Helgroom also bulged his eyes upon seeing the Holy Sword Alliance's emblem. "What the hell are you doing! Didn't you say you wouldn't get involved in this matter!" He waved his hand as if telling them to withdraw immediately. "Do you know the meaning of the name 'Holy Sword Alliance'?" A young man with a dignified appearance stepped forward on the bow. It was Mustan, the disciple of the Sword Demon and the newly appointed Sword Lord. "What?" "The holy sword we praise is neither a sharp blade nor absolute swordsmanship." Mustan shook his head as he faced Helgroom. "The holy sword is praise and adoration for a true swordsman. I'd rather gouge out my eyes than watch trash like you extend your filthy hands towards a swordsman who will achieve the holy sword." His eyes were no longer filled with arrogance and envy. They looked down at Helgroom with a clear light reminiscent of Raon. "Haa..." Helgroom gritted his teeth. "Annoying pests keep swarming today!" He gritted his teeth and threw his spear, which he had been gripping like a harpoon. The storm-like Astral Ring that blazed over the spear tip shot out as if to erase Mustan. However, his spear strike crumbled before a single white sword, only lashing at the river water. Behind the river water that surged and subsided, the figure of an old white-haired swordsman appeared. It was Rector, the Blood Sword Master of the Holy Sword Alliance. (E/N: Reminder it was the other title he was given by the leader of the sword alliance. It is his official title in the alliance; sword demon is his unofficial title "outside the alliance") "Rector..." Helgroom's jaw trembled. "You, you're interfering too..." "Didn't you touch my disciple first?" An aura like a heat haze blazed from Rector's feet. It was a chilling killing intent that made the title 'Sword Demon' seem insufficient. "This is self-defense, you South-North Union scum." (E/N: just wanted to say those chapters have been so wild wow, and I think it is far from the end)