The Villain Carries the Holy Sword – Chapter 118

Chapter 118: Passing Through Memories (3)

The Elf Village.

Traces of life remained, but now it was deserted. Everwyn spoke as they walked.

“I wanted to be free. The Ross bloodline felt like it was strangling me, like I could never escape the Marquisate.”

“Hmm.”

“But even though I got out……”

“Ah.”

Everwyn frowned.

Cain’s replies were much too indifferent for such a serious story.

“Still, thanks to me, you’re getting out of the forest quickly and heading to the World Tree, so could you answer me properly?”

“I don’t make it a habit to chat with someone I will kill.”

“……You’re worse than Edmund.”

He didn’t realize it before, but now he was sure.

Being compared to Edmund was the worst insult imaginable.

“Abel, you deal with her.”

Cain shrugged and walked forward. Shocked, Everwyn watched him.

“Are you treating a person like luggage right now?”

“You’re not a person.”

“……”

“And you’re already dead. Your very existence is a contradiction.”

Even as he said it, Cain smiled bitterly to himself. It felt strange to say such things, especially coming from him.

The one who changes and fixes this world.

Suddenly, a question popped into Cain’s mind.

‘Why hasn’t the World Line Fixation moved?’

Quest updates were always unpredictable and erratic.

But he had a general sense of the World Line Fixation. It increased as he created a future different from the previous world line.

However, he hadn’t seen a message about it changing since it had shifted to 18.5% after receiving ‘Head Breaker’ from Hybolt.

‘A lot has happened since then, hasn’t it?’

Cain felt uneasy.

It was as if he was holding his breath for something huge that was about to happen.

But no matter how much he thought about it, he couldn’t figure it out.

Cain lowered his head and walked forward, Everwyn chattering away behind him.

“I’m dead? Then did I get married? Judging by your reaction, it doesn’t look like it was to Heatherward.”

“……”

“You married His Majesty, King Hybolt.”

It was Abel.

When Cain didn’t answer and just kept walking, Abel, who had taken over, answered for him. Everwyn’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Me? With that unlucky Hybolt? Are you crazy?”

“I don’t know the details.”

“Well, what do kids know? So, do I have kids, too?”

“Yes.”

“I wanted to have a daughter who looked like me. Is it a daughter or a son?”

“A daughter.”

The Everwyn created by Marquis Ross and Glumiêm was the Everwyn before Edmund helped her escape.

In other words, from the then-Everwyn’s point of view, hearing about what her current self had done was fascinating.

“Wow, I guess I’m doing well. But why did I die?”

“I heard it was the curse of the Ross bloodline.”

“Ah……”

She was quick to agree.

She knew her own personality better than anyone.

“Yeah, if it were me, I would have just endured it until I died. That’s so like me. But I would have figured out a way to solve it, so I wouldn’t have died that quickly, right?”

“What?”

Cain turned around at her words.

Everwyn tapped her head with her index finger.

“Heatherward might have the brawn, but I’ve got the brains. I’m saying I came up with a way to almost completely break the curse of the Ross bloodline.”

However, the Everwyn of reality was consumed by the curse of the Ross bloodline and attacked everything around her.

“It takes time, but I can almost completely suppress my instincts. Of course, I lose most of my power as well.”

And so, she asked Edmund.

To kill her.

To crush her heart.

“Even if it failed, I would have lived as long as a normal human. Why? Did someone put a curse on me?”

“……”

‘Commons’ came to Cain’s mind.

The ones who moved secretly in the background of history.

The ones even the Hero and Lord East didn’t know about.

‘They have incredible information networks and power.’

A colossal organization whose true nature and purpose remained shrouded in mystery.

[Hidden secrets are revealed.]

[World Line Fixation: ▲ 18.6%]

Cain smiled bitterly.

Absolute evidence, which should have left no trace, was revealed through a combination of coincidence and miracle.

‘So that’s when it goes up.’

It was as if it were meant to give him an answer.

Cain realized once again how much he didn’t know.

Swooosh!

From afar, a black figure could be seen rushing towards them from the World Tree.

Crackle!

Lightning struck.

A flickering light poured through the leaves.

And then, shining head!

“Cain!”

It was Heatherward Ross.

In his hands were two daggers.

He had closed the distance with incredible speed and was now thrusting the daggers toward Cain’s neck and heart.

Clang!

And the Agweska was pulled out.

‘Two points make a line.’

Ting, Ting━!

The two daggers were flicked away with minimal movement.

The daggers were black, and Agweska was black, but the depth of their color was different.

The moment the two blades touched, sparks flew.

Whoosh━.

Heatherward moved to the side like the wind.

And then, he immediately swung his arm, aiming to sever Cain’s hamstring.

Thud.

Cain crossed his feet and dodged to the side. And towards the exposed head of the Marquis Ross.

Bang!

He thrust his back foot out.

The force of the blow crackled with white lightning in the air. If it had connected, the Marquis Ross’s head would have been blown to pieces.

He dodged by momentarily disappearing into the shadows.

“Abel!”

At Cain’s cry, Abel grabbed Everwyn’s arm and pulled her into his arms.

Clang.

He immediately drew his sword and held it to her pale neck.

Marquis Ross’s furious assault ceased. He was probably watching the situation unfold from within the shadows.

Cain gripped Agweska tightly.

“Hey, traitor to the kingdom.”

“……”

“No need for long speeches.”

Cain raised his hand.

Abel immediately moved to plunge the sword into Everwyn’s neck.

Bam━.

Understanding the situation, she closed her eyes, accepting her death.

Rustle.

At that moment, Heatherward rose from the ground. It was as if he was clad in shadows.

His coat fluttered in the forest breeze, and the perfectly tailored suit underneath revealed the Marquis Ross’s physique.

Click.

Cain snapped his fingers at the appearing Heatherward.

“If you want her to live, come at me.”

“How arrogant of you, boy.”

“It’s better than an old man betraying humanity.”

“……I should have killed you sooner.”

Rustle━.

Marquis Ross lowered his center of gravity.

True to his nature of utilizing incredible speed and shadows, he lowered himself even further than expected. A stance meant to exploit his opponent’s openings and blind spots.

He was like an assassin.

At that moment.

The color of the world disappeared, and time stopped momentarily. A quest window with slightly different colored borders than usual, similar to when he faced Ballam, appeared.

+

『Fallen Kin of Shadow Bloodline』

The noble lineage of the night has fallen.

Their glory and honor are gone, their power and duty vanished. All that remains is a mere fraction of their strength and shadows.

Clear Conditions: The end of ‘Heatherward Ross’.

Success: You will get lucky once.

Failure: You will continue to have bad luck.

*There may be additional rewards.

+

Cain grinned.

‘Easy.’

Color returned to the world.

Whoooosh!

Heatherward charged at a speed slightly faster than sound.

Shick!

Cain dodged the dagger that came slashing horizontally.

Whizz!

He dodged the dagger aimed at his chest.

“……!”

Heatherward had never encountered anyone who could evade his blades so easily, except for Edmund.

Frustrated that his every move was being read, Heatherward accelerated even further.

Thump!

Now, he even mixed in shadows.

He thrust at seemingly empty air, but a shadow enveloped his arm.

Fwoosh!

A blade shot up from the ground where Cain stood, aiming to pierce his foot.

Extremely tricky attacks.

He was aiming for the space between breaths.

He was dismantling the small, reflexive movements that humans made before moving.

As expected of the Kin of Shadow bloodline, the Ross’s swordsmanship was insidious.

Furthermore, his body, honed through years of training, showed no signs of fatigue despite the high-speed exchanges.

Thump.

Then, Cain took a step forward.

Heatherward’s eyes widened.

White Starlight.

The sky poured down.

Dark clouds parted,

The sun rose,

Light streamed in,

The wind blew.

An overwhelming pressure that seemed to encompass all of nature.

From the ends of the heavens.

Snow fell.

A blizzard that would cover the world in white piled up on Heatherward’s shoulders, the weight of the snowflakes mirroring the weight of his grief.

“How dare you!”

He straightened his bent posture.

However.

Thump.

Cain took another step forward.

Glumiêm must have noticed by now, especially with how intensely they were fighting.

Trusting in Oleciren and the expeditionary force to carry out their diversionary tactic, Cain unleashed the pure white lightning that coursed through his body.

Crackle!

Brilliant pure white lightning erupted from Cain’s entire body and Agweska, and the pressure pushing down on Heatherward increased endlessly.

“Just because the enemy is fast doesn’t mean I have to be faster.”

Cain walked slowly.

Heatherward, at the end of his approach, tried to escape through the shadows.

Rustle.

But it was not a physical weight, but the weight of the heart, and even the shadows could not withstand it and scattered.

“I just need to be faster than my opponent.”

Thud.

Heatherward’s knees buckled.

He boasted that he was faster than Edmund in terms of pure speed, but it meant nothing to Cain.

He gritted his teeth and endured the weight bearing down on him.

“You chose the wrong opponent.”

Heatherward smiled bitterly at Cain’s words.

“The worst.”

“I made this because I had a lot of experience dealing with people like you.”

“It’s not magic, but a combination of spellcraft and footwork. I never knew such a technique existed in the world.”

If it were magic, it would have simply increased the weight.

However, the ‘White Starlight’ that Cain unleashed was accompanied by the weight of the heart as well.

“Any last words?”

Heatherward looked at Everwyn, who was under Abel’s sword. He could tell that she had played a part in his demise.

And he was glad.

“Whether she lives or dies, she is a Ross.”

And that was why he loved her.

Although this end was absurdly hollow, Marquis Ross accepted it.

“Save her.”

Crackle.

Amidst the surging lightning.

Cain shook his head.

“No.”

“……”

He pointed to the World Tree.

“She wishes for her own death.”

“That sounds like her.”

Shhhwing!

Cain’s Agweska drew a black and white trajectory in the air with its black blade and white lightning.

Dark Sky Bright Light.

Original Style.

Kyrie.

Thump.

Marquis Ross’s head separated from his body.

Remembering that they could easily come back as undead, Cain thrust his sword into Marquis Ross’s body once more.

Crackle!

The Pure White Thunderbolt emanating from Agweska incinerated his body.

“Can you walk on your own now?”

Abel released his grip.

Everwyn picked up Heatherward’s head with her eyes closed and asked.

“Thank you.”

“It was my duty.”

“Considering the sins he committed, you could have made him suffer. You have the power to do so.”

Cain looked away.

“I wanted to……”

The anger he had harbored towards Marquis Ross from the previous world line.

If it weren’t for him, none of this would have happened to him. If it weren’t for his twisted love, everything would have been fine, but……

It had already happened.

Irreversible.

“But I didn’t want him to die like that in front of his kin.”

Cain smiled bitterly.

[『You have successfully completed ‘Fallen Kin of Shadow Bloodline’.』

[You will get lucky once in the future.]

Everwyn approached Cain with his head in her hands and grasped Cain’s blade and Marquis Ross’s coat.

[‘Kin of Shadow Heart’ is being absorbed into Agweska.]

The Marquis Ross’s coat, scorched by lightning, and the black daggers that had fallen to the ground slowly began to be absorbed into the sword.

“I’m sorry. Can you give me some time to be with him as a Ross bloodline one last time?”

Cain sheathed Agweska and began to walk.

“Until the World Tree falls.”

Abel followed behind Cain.

The two passed by Everwyn, who could only stroke her brother’s head, unable to cry or laugh, and approached the World Tree.

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