The Reincarnated Assassin Is a Genius Swordsman

Chapter 708 With a powerful thrust, Beorn pushed Federick away with his left foot and drove his sword deeper into Raon's heart as he lay submerged in the river. 'It's pierced through.' He felt the blade sink into flesh. But a Grandmaster's life is tenacious. He needed to end this decisively. Ignoring the silver frost and water droplets surging from the river, Beorn channeled an Astral Ring into the tip of his blade. "Stop!" As Rimmer was approaching at lightning speed, Beorn immediately detonated the Astral Ring. The explosion from the sword technique unleashed a powerful shockwave that swept across the area. The successive bursts of water spray sent the Light Wind division swordsmen scattering in all directions. "Aaaagh!" Rimmer screamed as he thrust his sword at Beorn. Beorn parried Rimmer's attack with the longsword he had submerged in the river. His blade was coated with sticky blood. "It's already over." "Bullshit!" Rimmer pushed his sword forward, biting his lip, but Beorn's eyes remained calm. "I pierced Raon Zieghart's heart and detonated an Astral Ring. Even a Transcendent Warrior couldn't survive that." Beorn shook his head, stating that Raon must have been torn to shreds and died. "He wouldn't die that easily!" Rimmer roughly pushed Beorn away and dove into the river to search for Raon. "Are you trying to die?" Martha's black eyes flashed with red killing intent. Unable to contain herself, she entered berserk mode and charged at Beorn. "Shut up!" Burren also raised wind blades, his hand veins bulging with effort. Beorn retreated rather than face the attacks from Rimmer, Burren, and Martha, deflecting their force. "I have no reason to fight you." He narrowed his eyes, saying he had already completed his mission. "Hey, you sure you killed him?" The Evil Goat Demon twisted his lips as he blocked Lawaine's sword. "As I said, I detonated an Astral Ring inside his heart. Raon Zieghart is dead." Beorn spoke of Raon's death as if to crush their last hope. "You..." "Ah..." Burren and Martha lowered their swords as if drained of strength. The Light Wind division swordsmen trembled, their jaws clenched. As everyone stood wide-eyed, unable to speak, Runaan stepped forward. "He's not dead." She shook her head, her gaze unwavering. "Raon is not dead!" Runaan let out a clear cry as she summoned blue frost. "That's right. That crazy bastard couldn't have died!" Martha nodded and followed behind Runaan. "I have no intention of fighting you." Once again, Beorn retreated without raising his sword. He said this was as far as he'd go and disappeared into the shadow of the waves. "Kuhahahahaha!" The Evil Goat Demon burst into maniacal laughter, even as he coughed up blood under Lawaine's pressure. "Finally, the nuisance is dead." His twisted eyes shot towards Runaan. "Runaan. Now you and I can become one. Such a happy time..." "That will never happen." Runaan maintained a calm expression even in the face of the Evil Goat Demon's chilling aura. Her eyes remained steady, as if they would never waver in any situation. "Raon is not dead, and I will kill you, brother." "You'll kill me?" A red tongue darted out from beneath the Evil Goat Demon's helmet. "That doesn't sound too bad either." He smiled as if looking forward to it and waved his hand. "I'll come for you soon." The Evil Goat Demon sliced his palm with his longsword. As the blood-soaked blade shortened, his body became hazy as if enveloped in mist. "What are you doing!" Lawaine's sword slashed through the Evil Goat Demon, but he vanished like smoke, becoming a phantom. It seemed he had used that artifact to appear here as well. "Damn it!" Lawaine struck the river in frustration. He slapped his own cheek to regain his composure and then looked up. "Everyone, come down! Search the entire river!" "Yes, sir!" The crew members aboard the Azure Wind put on their equipment and dove into the river to search for Raon. "Let's go too. That bastard must be alive, we have to find him no matter what." "Right. He's not the type to die here." Martha bit her lip and was the first to enter the river. Burren and the Light Wind division swordsmen nodded and followed after her. "..." Runaan clenched her trembling fist and was the last to descend into the river. * * * The riverbank where Raon and Axe King Roman had fought to the death had completely changed. The land and forest had disappeared entirely, replaced by an endless expanse of water like the sea. The ground had been completely hollowed out and filled with water. A swordsman wearing a blue dragon helmet was thrown from the shallow river. He coughed up black blood, and his right shoulder was completely mangled, swaying like a reed. "Kuhehe." The blue dragon-helmeted swordsman straightened his back calmly, as if he felt no pain. He smirked at Glenn, who hadn't moved a single step from his position. "Is this the Unblemished Perfection? You've certainly transcended the realm of humanity." "You find this amusing?" The South-North Union Leader furrowed his brow as he wiped the blood trickling down his chin. He too seemed injured, his complexion poor. "How could I not?" The blue dragon-helmeted swordsman chuckled and even applauded. "I'am lucky to experience such a thing." He scratched his neck, saying he had tasted a new realm as he looked at Glenn's sword. As the blue dragon-helmeted swordsman raised his black sword with relish, the split sky shattered and Chamber and The Fallen tumbled out. The two magicians looked as if they had been through a fierce battle in that space, with not a single part of them unscathed. "Damn that mask!" Chamber gritted her teeth as she threw away her witch's hat, which was more than half torn. "Even at your age, the title of Archmage of Eternal Flame hasn't faded, I see." The Fallen smiled faintly as he dusted off his tattered robe. "However, I'm starting to see some gaps. Your techniques are becoming shallow." "That was just a coincidence. I've thought of a way to clip your wings too." Chamber wiggled her finger as if suggesting they start over. "Stand back." Glenn stood beside Chamber and raised the Heavenly Tremor. Lightning ignited above the white blade, becoming thousands of thunderbolts that covered the sky and earth. The blue dragon-helmeted swordsman, the South-North Union Leader, and The Fallen—all three Transcendent Warriors—were pushed back by the lightning streams and coughed up blood. "I'll end this here." "What? Kuhahahahaha!" As Glenn tried to unleash the Heavenly Tremor with a pale face, the blue dragon-helmeted swordsman burst into laughter, grabbing his ears. It was such an eerie laugh that it halted the battle. "Yes, it has come to this. Perfect timing." "What on earth..." "It's best we end this game here." He waved his hand as if to say that's enough. "You won't be able to leave this place alive." As Glenn frowned and tried to approach, two streaks of golden light fell from the distant sky. The river was torn apart, creating a wall that separated the Zieghart forces from their enemies. "This is..." Sheryl lowered her twin swords and looked up. Five brilliant lights flickered in the dark night sky. Dragons. And all of them were ancient dragons. The body of the largest Gold Dragon flashed, and it descended before Glenn and the dragon-helmeted swordsman in human form. "Dragon Lord." Glenn bit his lip as he looked at the Dragon Lord blocking his path. "Stop." The Dragon Lord spread his hands towards Glenn and the blue dragon-helmeted swordsman. "I cannot overlook any further combat." He shook his head, telling them to cease fighting. "You always appear at moments like this." Glenn curled his lip as he looked at the Dragon Lord. "If you don't back down, I'll cut you down too." "Are you saying you'll wage war against the dragons now?" "You're the ones who stepped in first. I'll decide when it's time to ascend to the heavens." He raised the Heavenly Tremor as if he meant it. A pure white radiance, different from lightning, ignited and illuminated heaven and earth. The sword technique of the absolute swordsman, worthy of being called a divine blade, contained both mystery and despair. "M-Madness!" The Dragon Lord retreated in shock, and the South-North Union Leader bit his lip until it bled. Even The Fallen's mask contorted with tension. "Why don't you listen to what I have to say before you swing that?" However, the blue dragon-helmeted swordsman stepped forward as if amused. "About Raon Zieghart, whom you came here to protect even at the cost of appearing here." He smiled as he drew his finger across his throat. "He's dead." "..." A torrent filled Glenn's red eyes, and the Heavenly Tremor, which had seemed unbreakable, tilted downward. "Bullshit!" Sheryl shook her head, saying it was nonsense. "You mustn't believe it! It's just a ploy to escape from here!" Roenn also frowned, saying it must be a lie. "Whether it's true or false, you'll know if you go check. He died where you had the pirate ship waiting." The blue dragon-helmeted swordsman shrugged, insisting it wasn't a lie. "How sad that today's protagonists have all died." He laughed, covering his mouth, contrary to his words of sadness. "Pirate ship..." Glenn's hand holding the Heavenly Tremor trembled as he looked at the blue dragon-helmeted swordsman. 'Could it be true...?' Alice's pirate ship, the Azure Wind, had been waiting out of sight of the South-North Union and then ascended the river. The fact that they knew about the Azure Wind meant there was a real possibility that something had happened to Raon. "If you don't go now, you might not even be able to retrieve the body." The blue dragon-helmeted swordsman waved his hand, suggesting they should hurry. "Old man. You can't fight them in that state anyway." Chamber shook her head, exhaling softly. "Let's check on Raon first and then decide what to do." She raised her mana, saying she would send them with teleportation magic. "...Alright." Glenn nodded, grinding his molars. "If something has happened to Raon, I'll make sure none of you can live or die properly." He spewed flames from his eyes as if he meant every word. "I'll be waiting." The blue dragon-helmeted swordsman stepped back and spread his hands. "Get ready." As Chamber closed her eyes, a massive magic circle appeared on the river, enveloping the Zieghart warriors and Balkar magicians. As she snapped her fingers, those standing on the magic circle vanished in a flash of light. "Whew." The blue dragon-helmeted swordsman, Derus Robert, whistled and laughed. "Is Raon Zieghart really dead?" The South-North Union Leader narrowed his eyes as he approached him. "Yes. He's definitely dead." Derus nodded as he stroked the back of his hand. "Then we can't let them go like this! This is our chance to kill Glenn Zieghart!" The South-North Union Leader clenched his fist, asking what he was doing. "No. Engaging him now would be suicide. Letting him go is the right move." The Fallen smacked his lips as if he had read Derus's thoughts. "As sharp as ever." Derus chuckled and pointed to his head with his finger. "I never intended to kill Glenn today from the start. We can't kill him anyway." "Then why did we fight until now?" "To sharpen the blade." "Blade?" "Yes. Now that we've sharpened the blade..." He curled his lips into a long smile as he stroked his black sword. "We just need to thrust it in." * * * The Zieghart and Balkar alliance materialized in a flash of light in front of the pirate ship Azure Wind. "Hmm..." Glenn narrowed his eyes as he looked at the river where pieces of the deck were floating. There weren't many people on the water's surface, but he could sense many presences beneath the water. "H-Head of House!" Lawaine, standing on the water and breathing heavily, bowed his head to Glenn. His eyes wavered like waves. "What happened. No, what's become of Raon?" Glenn immediately mentioned Raon's name as he descended before Lawaine. "While we were transporting Young Master Raon, we were ambushed. The Evil Goat Demon appeared using a teleportation artifact..." Lawaine quickly explained the situation that had unfolded here. "...They said Young Master R-Raon was dead and then disappeared." He shook his bowed head as if ashamed. "His chest was pierced and an Astral Ring exploded inside?" Sheryl gritted her teeth. Even she wouldn't survive if an Astral Ring exploded after her heart was pierced. "Yes. But believing that Young Master Raon couldn't have died, we're currently searching..." "Tell everyone to come out." "Ah, yes!" When Lawaine sent an aura message to those underwater, soon the Light Wind division and the Azure Wind's crew surfaced. Their faces were deeply wet with a mixture of tears and river water. "Haaah..." "Ugh..." Rimmer, Burren, Martha, and Runaan were the last to emerge, and the four looked as pale as sheets, as if this was their first time coming up for air. "H-Head of House." "Stand back." Glenn stepped forward and raised his right hand. His Willpower exploded, causing the river water to rise in a massive bubble. "I'll hold it back." As Chamber clasped her hands together, a wall of mana formed in the space hollowed out by the river, preventing the water from rushing back in. "Everyone, go back down!" Rimmer jumped back into the now-exposed riverbed without even catching his breath. The Light Wind division also descended to continue the search without even wiping off the water. "..." Glenn scanned the riverbed even as he held the river water aloft. 'He's not here.' There was nothing but soil and gravel on the riverbed; no sign of a person. While there were monster and human bones scattered about, those couldn't be Raon. 'Raon!' You're not the type to die in a place like this! Glenn gritted his teeth and lifted even more water. Even for him, this was straining after the fierce battle he had just fought, and blood trickled from his mouth. Yet he didn't stop channeling his Willpower. "He... doesn't seem to be here." Chamber bit her lip as she spoke in a stiff voice. She shook her head, saying Raon wasn't anywhere to be found even after searching the entire area. "Ah..." Martha let out a groan as she spotted a gleaming red dagger on the exposed riverbed. It was the Blade of Requiem with its sheath shattered. "T-This..." She brought the trembling Blade of Requiem to Glenn. "It's Raon's sword." "..." Glenn closed his eyes after looking at the Blade of Requiem in its half-broken sheath. This wasn't damaged from hitting the bottom. It showed signs of having been shattered by a massive external impact. As Glenn's emotions surged through his Willpower, the suspended river water began to evaporate, and red heat started to rise from the riverbed. "Sheryl." Glenn wiped the blood trickling from his lips and turned his gaze. "Call for a grand conference. The agenda is..." He bit his lip as he looked up at the moonless sky. "The annihilation of the South-North Union. No, the Five Demons." Glenn declared firmly, as if he no longer cared about the consequences. "H-Head of House!" Rimmer ran up to Glenn and fell to his knees. "Raon isn't dead yet!" "T-That's right! He's not the type to die here!" "That bastard absolutely won't die!" "He's alive." He, Burren, Martha, and Runaan shook their heads, insisting they should keep searching. "..." Glenn closed his eyes and then opened them again. "Continue the search. But we can't just sit idle like this." He couldn't just let go of the boy who only wanted to become stronger. The boy who had shown such confident eyes when he said he would bring Sylvia into the direct lineage. The boy who had never received love from his incompetent grandfather. "We'll hold a family conference and..." As Glenn revealed his deep anger, determined to see this through to the end, the waves parted and the Sword Demon Rector appeared. He bit his lip, sensing the anxiety emanating from the chaotic situation. "What in the world has happened?" "..." Glenn and Rector's gazes clashed fiercely.