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[Translator - Pot ]
[Proofreader - Kawaii ]
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Chapter 228: Undercurrent Schemes
"Let's wrap it up for today."
Balthazar said, putting away the bowl of blackened water.
"To move on to the next stage, we must have the secret manual left by our ancestor."
"It will be a sweet reward given at the end of revenge."
"That's right, Allenvert."
Balthazar covered my hand with his hand, which was as thin as a winter tree branch.
"But since your comprehension is so outstanding, you might be able to complete it yourself."
"For now, I will focus on perfectly mastering what I've learned today."
"Do so. There is no better learning than following the natural order."
"Understood."
"It's too late. Go back now."
The time was already past 2 AM.
.
.
.
"Allen, it seems your progress was significant."
My mother, who had been guarding the door, noticed my change.
"At the very least, it seems you can now remove about half of that 'time-limited' label."
I grinned.
"I can now control this power according to my will."
I gathered the Dark Mana above my palm. As I watched the black lightning-like aura flicker, I then drew out the blue aura of the Seven Stars of the Black Sea Technique.
"Ah, the two auras, black and blue, are intertwined like two snakes."
"It's still at a rudimentary level, but it's possible to control two powers simultaneously."
This isn't all.
'Once I deeply train the Ink Soul Sacred Shadow Technique and reach the second level.'
I will be able to clash and even integrate the two powers of Dark Soul Mana and Brilliant Spirit Mana.
'In other words.'
It means it will also become possible to integrate, clash, and fuse the Seven Stars of the Black Sea Technique and the Dark Mana.
Drawing out and fighting with different powers is dangerous, but it will allow for diverse and powerful combat.
'At that time, I will completely surpass my previous life's level.'
...Finally, I will gain the power to confidently cross swords with Verdzig.
"Although Young Master Verdzig has already crossed the barrier of the 7th tier, he is hiding that fact externally."
I suddenly recalled Rudgarda's words.
'I had already noticed that Verdzig was concealing his true level.'
To have crossed the barrier of the 7th tier at a mere age of twenty-something is truly remarkable. If decades pass like this, he will probably become the kingdom's greatest swordsman of this era.
'Just like Father.'
The power Verdzig possesses now is probably almost on par with Ivan when he killed me.
In other words, he is currently on equal footing even if he were to fight the Grand Commander of the Royal Guards, the Grand Commander of the knighthood, or the Grand Commander of the Special Operations Division.
Compared to Ulbhild, Verdzig clearly possessed a higher level of talent, a genius that rarely appears even once in a generation.
'It will be difficult to find a rival even within this duchy.'
And I am in a position where I have to compete with such a person. Even in this moment of greedily devouring opportunities and sharpening them on the whetstone of talent, I must never be satisfied. That was the reason.
"...If these auras are extremely compressed and turned into aurablade, the foundation of the Ink Soul Sacred Shadow Technique will be completed."
I did as I said. Then, the two opposing auras intertwined, creating a small, tangerine-sized sphere.
"Is it the kind that explodes if you touch it?"
Knut asked with interest.
"That's right, brother."
"Hmm."
Then, Knut unexpectedly grabbed the sphere.
"Whoa!"
KWAH-AH-AH-AHNG!
An ominous explosion resounded, and Knut calmly opened his palm.
"It's quite prickly."
"...Unbelievable. What do you eat to make your body so strong?"
Knut's palm was perfectly fine without any injuries.
"What? If it had been in its completed state, my palm would have been torn apart."
Is this what they call indestructible? I looked at Knut's steel-like muscles with renewed amazement. One hit and my bones wouldn't even be salvageable.
"...Brother, you're a monster too."
"Knut has especially trained in the sturdiness of the body among our clan's martial arts, so there's no need to be too disappointed."
Balthazar chuckled.
"But you are mischievous. To provoke your younger brother's competitive spirit."
"As an older brother, it may be a bit childish, but as a warrior, isn't it a natural feeling?"
That's true.
I nodded and said to Zizek,
"By the way, Zizek, you take responsibility for arranging a conversation between Nagan and Brother Knut."
"Ah, yes. Understood."
I still pointed out Zizek's stiff way of speaking.
"Speak more comfortably."
Zizek replied, looking flustered.
"How could I possibly dare to speak so casually to the Young Master...?"
"It's cringeworthy, so cringeworthy."
"!"
Zizek had an expression that seemed to say, 'How could the esteemed Young Master use such underworld slang!'
'Ah, this guy really doesn't adapt.'
Just how much of a fantasy has he been harboring about me all this time to act like this? It seemed like I would have to give him some mental re-education soon.
'It's just like watching those Special Operations Division guys who worship Ulbhild.'
Anyway, being handsome and talented was also quite tiring. What could I do but endure it?
"And Mother."
"What is it?"
"I'm sorry, but it would be best if you returned home first."
Having read the question in my mother's eyes, I explained.
"There's a place I need to stop by briefly before going back."
There's been a gaze that's been bothering me since earlier.
***
"Skella, Harald."
Verdzig, clad in black martial attire with a treasured sword at his waist, gazed down at the back alleys of the night spread out beneath his feet.
"Just as you two said."
Verdzig's eyes gleamed sharply, a cold sneer playing on his lips.
"To think he was secretly collaborating with those rats."
The Pawelmoon.
One of Grunewald City's five major organizations, they used a large and extravagant mansion as their base, as if flaunting their power.
"I wonder what kind of conspiracy they are so diligently discussing, even sacrificing sleep in the late hours of the night."
Though unknown to the public, they secretly cooperated with Verdzig's clandestine organization, acting as his intelligence network.
Of course, their honeymoon relationship was also facilitated through the Bergens.
"Among them are executives who have allied with the Black Society and received their 'baptism'."
Verdzig nodded at the report from his adjutant, Harald Grimarr.
"Indeed. I can sense traces of murky demonic energy."
No one could deceive his heightened senses.
"...To think that even the Godfather took the lead in switching sides."
Surprisingly, it was the head of the Pawelmoon who orchestrated this betrayal.
"A man whose liver has grown larger than his stomach."
"To have overcome the fear of this Verdzig, it is truly embarrassing."
Verdzig chuckled derisively.
"Perhaps it is because Allenvert, no, Karzan, has been too rampant lately."
His presence, which had been observing the situation and gathering information, had been temporarily forgotten amidst the recent chaos. And the head of the Pawelmoon would pay dearly for that oversight.
"Young Master, preparations for internal cooperation are already complete."
The one who reported the Godfather's betrayal was none other than the second-in-command of the Godfather's faction.
"Hercassel, you are wise. By reporting your superior's betrayal, you have easily inherited the organization."
A traitor, and one who swore allegiance to him. Such a person would not easily betray again.
Verdzig understood human psychology well. Especially when it came to intrigue and machinations.
"Send a message to the leader of the Red Mist Alliance."
"Yes. What should I send?"
"Inform him that the Godfather of the Pawelmoon has been compromised by the Black Society, so we will execute him and install someone else as the head."
Then, Skella, who had been listening quietly, interjected.
"Are you sure about this? Bazalo won't like you, Young Master."
"Impudent."
Harald frowned, but Verdzig raised his hand to calm him.
"Skella, how can one please everyone? Rather, it is a much easier path to proceed while incurring a moderate amount of resentment."
"..."
Skella bit back the sarcastic remark, 'Just like you do to me,' and remained silent.
"Come to think of it, Bazalo, he's too old as well. Even the full moon wanes."
No one present failed to understand the ominous underlying meaning of those words.
"Let's begin."
Verdzig drew out a sharp killing intent.
"We will annihilate those who resist and then behead the Godfather."
"Yes."
He intended to single-handedly crush that massive organization with only two subordinates.
"Skella, kill the guards. As soon as they fall, we will infiltrate the mansion."
The reason he was going to the trouble of acting personally was also to remind the underworld of his terror. Therefore, the more brutal the method of disposal, the better.
"But Skella."
Verdzig asked, as if there was one thing he needed to confirm.
"How are things progressing with Allenvert and the Eisenach side?"
"The meeting is going on for a long time."
"Is that so? It must be quite touching, a reunion of a separated family."
Verdzig chuckled.
"However, they were once the masters of the mountains. They must be busily discussing grand strategies. It is a pity we cannot eavesdrop on that."
If they got that close, they would surely be caught by Allenvert's keen senses.
Verdzig had no intention of underestimating the current Allenvert, who had killed Huten and even mastered the Ink Soul Sacred Shadow Technique.
"Let's begin."
* * *
Skelde, the 8th Branch Leader of the Black Society, who had returned to his office, roughly swept his salt-stained, moss-green hair upwards.
"Troublesome."
Black pentagrams flickered in his languid eyes.
"...Karzan."
He was reading a document detailing Karzan's activities.
"...The age doesn't match. Unless he alone has been eating some elixir of immortality."
Karzan's appearance, as written in the document, was roughly in his mid-thirties. Coincidentally, that was because his time had stopped 17 years ago.
"His level is even lower than back then. Late 5th tier, or early 6th tier?"
He had suspected that Karzan might have miraculously survived and drifted into the underworld of Litvaleur—
"So it's just a person with the same name after all."
His words and actions, his unique cunning, boldness, and impetuosity were exactly as he remembered Karzan, but the evidence that hindered his deduction in crucial areas was too solid.
"...Venion, that bastard has raised a useful pawn."
Venion, the leader of the Shadow Division who had long competed in the shadows, plotting against each other.
Georg's sharpest and most secretive blade, he was someone Skelde had a long-standing bad relationship with.
'With this level of scheming, that guy must have been involved.'
He guessed that Karzan was Venion's pawn and subordinate.
...To think that he was Allenvert himself, and had regained the memories of his previous life as Karzan—
Even the most delusional madman would not dare to imagine such a preposterous notion.
'Moreover, the name Karzan is originally a name rarely used in both Flanders and Litvaleur.'
That was because Karzan had originally crossed over to Flanders to escape retaliation after avenging the Godfather he had followed in the underworld of another country.
But there was no way Skelde could have known that. Above all, he was just a former big shot who had died and disappeared long ago.
'Back then, I was just a young martial artist of the 5th tier.'
His current position, having reached the powerful realm of the 7th tier, was as different as heaven and earth.
"...The scar I received that day still throbs."
Skelde, who usually kept his forehead scar hidden under his bangs, touched it and closed his eyes.
'Anyway, I need to report this to Lord Ivan.'
Having organized his thoughts, the branch leader asked his subordinate.
"How far has the infiltration of the Pawelmoon progressed?"
"It's going smoothly. Now that the Godfather has passed the 'baptism' and gained power, he will no longer be able to disobey the Branch Leader's orders."
"Tell them to quickly bring in the factions that haven't been infiltrated yet. If those bastards fear Verdzig and reject our offer—"
It was at that very moment, as Skelde's instructions continued.
"A, a big problem! The Pawelmoon has been attacked!"
"What?"
Skelde frowned and asked.
"Attacked? By whom?"
"It seems Verdzig has noticed the Godfather's betrayal!"
"......!"
Skelde grabbed his forehead.
"This is driving me crazy."
Once again, just as everything was falling into place, disaster struck.
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[Translator - Pot ]
[Proofreader - Kawaii ]
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