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[Translator - Kiteretsu]
[Proofreader - Kyros]
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Chapter 90
If not for Presia, he wouldn’t have obtained the Vampiric Ring, wouldn’t have won Kashmir’s heart, and wouldn’t have drawn the attention of the magi.
In the end, it was as if he’d received the greatest gift.
‘Should I give her a gift in return as a sign of filial respect? I mean, she is technically my aunt.’
He was strolling along leisurely, casually thinking such things that would make Presia’s blood boil if she heard them.
That’s when someone blocked his path.
“…Hey.”
It was the mama’s boy, Mysak.
He glared viciously at Christian, his face twisted in a deep scowl.
“Don’t get cocky. Soon, I’ll personally cut off your head and toss it to the dogs.”
A crude threat.
But Chris showed no particular reaction.
Normally, he might have thrown some insults, but this time, he simply stared silently at Mysak.
‘Why does this guy look so… weak?’
Of course, Christian had always considered Mysak insignificant.
But this wasn’t the same as before.
‘I don’t feel threatened at all. It’s like… I’m looking at someone weaker than me.’
A surprising realization.
Mysak was a 4-star.
Purely by stats, he should have been superior to 3-star Chris.
With such killing intent pouring out of him, there should have been some sense of threat—but there was nothing.
In fact—
It was laughable.
Like watching someone weaker baring their fangs in vain.
At the same time, Mysak felt something similar.
Looking at Chris felt like facing a solid wall.
He was trying to threaten him, but instead, it was Christian who felt threatening. Like staring into the eyes of a predator.
And the reason both felt that way was simple.
‘I’ve gotten stronger.’
It was because of what happened in the underground garden.
Chris instinctively realized—
‘I’ve already earned the right to surpass this wall. All that’s left is stabilizing it.’
Without realizing it, Chris had stepped into the realm of 4-star!
It was just that, because the leap was so sudden, an imbalance remained—keeping him technically within the bounds of 3-star.
‘I just need to stabilize that imbalance. Then I’ll reach 4-star immediately.’
It hadn’t even been six months since he became 3-star, and now he was about to reach 4-star.
It was an insane pace that would make any genius in the world seem mediocre, but Christian said nothing in awe. Instead, he simply opened his mouth toward Mysak.
“Move.”
“!!”
Surprisingly, Mysak flinched and stepped back.
He was overwhelmed by the sheer presence.
Maybe it was instinct.
He could feel it now, Christian stood above him.
“Ah, just so you know—”
Christian looked sideways at the stiffened Mysak.
“If you bother me again, next time I’ll kill you.”
“……!!”
His icy gaze pierced straight through Mysak’s heart.
“Keep that in mind.”
He meant it.
Ever since Presia tried to trap and kill him, the line had already been crossed.
Christian had made up his mind to kill Mysak when the opportunity presented itself.
‘Keeping him alive will only cause trouble later.’
Maybe Mysak sensed Christian’s sincerity.
He couldn’t say a word and just swallowed hard.
Christian left Mysak behind and returned to his quarters.
\[Ohoho… Young master, you’ve returned? This girl has been waiting ever so eagerly for your arrival. I heard the splendid news.]
“Yeah, good to see you.”
\[Then how about a glass of virgin’s blood juice?]
“More importantly, clean everything up around here. And make sure no one comes near for the next few days.”
\[??]
Christian grinned.
“I have work to do.”
It was time to grow stronger again.
* * *
Meanwhile, Mysak returned to his room and smashed the furniture apart.
“Damn it!! Shit!!! That arrogant bastard!! I’ll definitely kill him!!!”
Unable to accept that he felt threatened by someone like that, he vented his fury.
The attendants could only tremble, not daring to say a word.
Getting caught on a day like this meant dealing with a corpse.
As expected, Mysak’s eyes darted around wildly, looking for someone to take out his anger on.
As the attendants trembled—
A cold voice rang out.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
“Mother!”
Presia frowned and raised her hand.
Smack!
Mysak’s face flushed red.
The attendants sucked in a breath and quickly fled outside.
“Mo-Mother…”
“Pitiful. What a disgraceful display.”
Mysak lowered his head.
Presia looked at her son with boiling frustration.
She knew too.
That her son was lacking.
But Presia still couldn’t bring herself to let go of the thread holding Mysak.
She had no hope left but Mysak.
“I’ll give you one last chance. I’ll assign you to the Dark Ghost Unit. From now on, you’ll serve as the acting commander of the Dark Ghost Unit, which is currently vacant.”
“!!”
“Lead the Dark Ghost Unit and earn merit.”
Mysak’s eyes widened.
It was the Dark Demonic House’s most elite combat unit.
Specialized in covert operations, terrorism, and assassination.
If he could lead such a unit, he could accomplish many feats.
“Th-thank you. I will certainly achieve results worthy of this position.”
Presia let out a quiet sigh.
This time, even Presia had to push herself to the limit.
She had begged her husband, Marquess Langham, even kneeling before him to ask for one last chance for Mysak.
Even then, she couldn’t secure the official commander’s position—only the temporary one.
Mysak would need to prove himself with merit before being promoted to the official commander.
“There’s something else you must do besides achieving merit.”
“What is it?”
“Christian’s head.”
“!!”
Presia’s eyes turned cold.
“During a mission, use the Dark Ghost Unit’s power to kill Christian. I’ll create the opportunity for you.”
* * *
Christian took a deep breath.
He was crossing the threshold of 4-star.
It was taking longer than expected.
Because he had intentionally chosen the more difficult path.
‘If it were just about crossing the threshold, I could’ve done it long ago.’
4-star, “Black Sword Conversion.”
It wasn’t just about manifesting the black sword—it meant freely transforming and adapting its form.
Frankly, Christian found it laughable.
‘What’s so hard about that?’
Ordinary talents—
No, even those considered geniuses had to use various techniques to manifest the black sword in reality.
Setting a core as a pillar, maintaining the flow of demonic energy according to magic formulas, and even relying on magic circles.
Those methods weren’t considered shortcuts.
Originally, when 3-star demonic beings tried to manifest the black sword, those were the standard textbook techniques.
Reaching 4-star was difficult because it required manifesting the black sword without using those techniques.
The difficulty was on a completely different level.
Thus, 4-star was the first true wall demonic beings encountered.
Up to 3-star, with enough effort, one could eventually reach it. As long as they followed the set rules, they could eventually manifest the black sword.
But from 4-star onward, effort alone wasn’t enough.
Innate talent was necessary.
There were countless who couldn’t achieve it even after dedicating their entire lives.
But Christian was different.
From the very beginning, when he first manifested the black sword, he never relied on any techniques.
He simply wielded the black sword with his natural instincts, as if moving his own limbs.
So of course, the 4-star level—Black Sword Conversion—came easily to him.
If he wanted to, he could cross that wall and achieve it right now.
‘But it’s not enough. So what if I can convert the black sword? What real significance does that have?’
Reaching the level of Black Sword Conversion opens up countless possibilities for application, but in the end, the black sword is still just a black sword.
It didn’t satisfy him.
‘Is there no way to surpass the limits of the black sword?’
In truth, Christian had already surpassed those limits.
His black sword, imbued with his will, held a power fundamentally different from that of other black swords.
Increasing its raw power any further was impossible.
‘But what about transformation? Even Black Sword Conversion has its limits. Is there a way to break past them?’
Though it’s called Black Sword Conversion, it doesn’t mean it can transform into just any form without restriction.
Black Sword Shield.
Black Sword Javelin.
Black Sword Mist Veil.
Black Sword Chain Ring.
Black Sword Flame Toss.
And so on.
There were several fixed forms.
Did there really have to be such limitations?
Originally, yes.
Black Sword Conversion wasn’t something that could be reshaped at will like clay.
You had to follow the set rules.
However—
‘That time, when I struck down the Spider Queen’s neck.’
Christian narrowed his eyes and recalled the moment.
The black sword infused with an overwhelming, limitless amount of demonic energy.
That wasn’t Black Sword Conversion.
It was simply an anomaly, born from Christian’s monstrous talent.
However—
‘It’s no different.’
Christian raised his sword.
Flash!
The sword split apart.
He was imitating the splitting sword technique that Jupien had displayed.
Though he had only observed it a few times, his proficiency didn’t fall short of Jupien’s.
Unfair talent.
And Christian didn’t stop there.
‘More. More.’
Sixteen, thirty-two, sixty-four—
In Christian’s inner world, the sword split endlessly.
An illusion within his mindscape, with no physical form.
Within that infinite realm of his mindscape, he moved his will.
His will imbued itself into the swords within the mindscape.
That will carried demonic energy, and the countless swords all gained substance and surged forth.
An infinite barrage of swords filling the world.
“!!”
Christian’s eyes snapped open.
‘That mindscape just now…’
How should he describe it?
It wasn’t something as trivial as Black Sword Conversion.
It was something on a far higher dimension.
But even that was still Black Sword Conversion.
Just like what he had done when he beheaded the Spider Queen—it was no different from Black Sword Conversion.
The moment he realized that, Christian understood that he had reached the realm of 4-star.
Fwoosh!
A black shield bloomed from his hand.
It was a Black Sword Shield.
But it was different from the typical Black Sword Shield.
His shield immediately transformed into a long spear, and then changed again into a whip-like chain.
To others, it would’ve been a shocking sight.
Ordinarily, after manifesting a Black Sword form, it was impossible to shift it into another form.
Shield, throwing spear, chain ring—each type of Black Sword form had its own incantations and techniques, and those conflicted with one another.
More importantly, each form was fundamentally different, with no common ground—so in principle, converting one into another was impossible.
If one wanted to use a different form, it had to be manifested anew.
‘But it works?’
Christian tried converting the black sword again and again, as if playing with a toy that transformed at will.
He had achieved unrestricted, infinite Black Sword Conversion!
A feat impossible even in the upper level of 4-star.
‘Well, the actual achievement is still just lower 4-star, though.’
Still, there was an unexpected bonus.
‘I’ve reached complete 5-star in the Fusion Path: Star Radiance.’
Christian extended his hand.
Fwoosh!
A perfect Aura Blade burst forth.
Originally, he had only barely touched the threshold of true 5-star, but now, by chance, he had achieved full 5-star.
The realm of lower 5-star.
He had become an “Elder Knight” class.
‘Was it thanks to that infinite sword in the mindscape that my Fusion Path ascended too?’
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[Translator - Kiteretsu]
[Proofreader - Kyros]
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