The Terminally Ill Young Master is the Mad Dog of the Underworld-Chapter 255

[Translator - Pot ]

[Proofreader - Kawaii ]

Chapter 255: Ivan

Meanwhile, Reinholdt was being ganged up on while carrying the burden that was Zizek.

"Sir Zizek, please close your eyes for a moment!"

"Huh? What! What's going on!"

To help him, Kreutzel used his signature illusion magic to extract Zizek from the battlefield.

"Whoa!"

Zizek let out a scream as he felt the sky and earth spinning around him for a brief moment.

With the burden of Zizek removed and his freedom restored, Reinholdt instantly burst forth with his mana, sending the griffin riders flying.

"Well done, Kreutzel!"

Though it was help from a thief he wanted to kill, Reinholdt was a soldier who knew how to put duty before personal feelings.

"I'll join the battle now!"

"Yes!"

He immediately chose to join the chaotic battle unfolding on the battlefield.

"Damn it!"

"Provide cover!"

At Turnak's orders, the Special Operations Division members took up positions behind Reinholdt and stopped the pursuers.

"Indeed."

Reinholdt, who had been frustrated by the coordinated attacks, smiled with relief.

"Grunewald's Special Operations Division is excellent."

They knew exactly where to scratch the itch.

Screech!

While Siena was exchanging blows with Gilbert, Reinholdt targeted Gilbert's back with his signature powerful slash.

"!!!"

As the startled Gilbert retreated, Siena's slash grazed his shoulder blade.

"Damn it!"

A griffin rider approached Gilbert from behind after drawing blood.

"Sir Gilbert! Please get on!"

He loaded Gilbert onto the griffin's broad back and took flight.

"Dernheim!"

"Sir Gilbert, I'm sorry, but..."

After Dernheim dodged Knut's wind pressure with acrobatic flying, he spoke.

"The battle situation is unfavorable like this. I think you need to make a decision."

"...Damn it!"

Gilbert, who couldn't even handle Knut or Rudgarda, let alone Valkenhain's Young Lady, gritted his teeth.

"Fine, I can't retreat like this."

If things weren't going well, he would choose mutual destruction.

That was the mission ingrained in the ant soldiers raised by the Dark King.

"Black Wind Squadron, ascend upward!"

At his command, the griffin riders all took flight at once.

"?!"

"I'll 'recover' immediately."

Gilbert raised a sphere filled with black, ominous mana.

Then a horrific scene unfolded.

Boom! Boooom!

The bodies of the wounded or dying Black Robes, or those with inferior skills, began to swell and explode along with chunks of flesh.

"Ahhh!"

Several Special Operations Division members and intelligence agents caught in the explosions suffered severe injuries.

"What is this..."

"Sixth Commander, they're trying to self-destruct!"

Rudgarda, who sensed what was about to happen, shouted.

"Everyone, deploy your defensive techniques!"

"Too late."

Gilbert, having extracted mana from the bodies of the Black Robes who survived the explosions, gathered it above his palm.

Screeeech!

Ahhhhhhh!

The terrible mana, filled with the wails of vengeful spirits, took the form of howling demons.

"Since it's come to this, all of you die."

As they were about to be unleashed as a fearsome technique to cover the battlefield, blood and darkness mixed together, mercilessly tearing everything to shreds.

"Crazy!"

Rudgarda was horrified.

"This kind of magic attack can only be from ancient times."

At Reinholdt's muttering, Siena nodded.

"It's a martial art that could only be created by people from that era when humans ground other humans to death."

Just as Siena bit her lip and was about to deploy her Black Dragon Scale Lock Armor...

"This crosses the line a bit."

"?!"

Someone's slash tore the demonic forms to pieces.

* * *

"What's all this explosion noise?"

I turned around.

Although I was too exhausted to use my enhanced perception right now, I could feel something like a storm of ominous mana from afar.

"Step back, Karzan. I won't allow anything more than this."

However, due to the presence in front of me, I didn't have the luxury to worry about that.

"...Ivan."

"You recognize me after all."

Ivan smiled coldly.

'Ah!'

I finally realized my mistake, but honestly speaking, it would have been stranger if someone of Ivan's caliber couldn't recognize me with all these clues laid out.

'It's not like he's some idiot.'

"It's really strange. Did someone capture Karzan's soul and stuff it into an identical vessel?"

Ivan tilted his head sideways, as if he couldn't understand.

"...At first, I thought some bastard was impersonating Karzan."

Ivan pointed at me.

"The sword you wield, it's Grunewald's swordsmanship, but I can tell. Karzan's movements and martial arts are melted into it everywhere."

"..."

"But your level has fallen compared to back then, so what's going on? Besides, you definitely died. Even if I sprinkled Ereshkigal on your corpse, you couldn't have been revived."

Ivan continued speaking, ignoring my silence.

"Moreover, you had no connection whatsoever to Grunewald..."

That was right. What business would I have with a ducal clan from across the sea in another country?

"Karzan, say something. What happened?"

I spoke to the right hand of the Dark King's right hand, whose intentions I couldn't read at all, as if he had reached the 8th tier.

"What are you muttering about like an idiot by yourself? Have you gotten senile too?"

"Haha! It's such a familiar way of speaking that I miss it rather than just being glad to hear it."

Ivan, who had already grown old, laughed.

"Anyway, impressive. To defeat Schelde."

"Were you watching everything?"

"Yes."

Ivan replied.

"He already surpassed you from 17 years ago. To me, he's no different from a chief disciple. He was part of your assassination squad too."

Of course, now he's in this state, Ivan said, pointing at Schelde.

"Don't worry about word getting out. I knocked him unconscious."

"Ridiculous. When?"

Ivan answered simply.

"He was already unconscious when you called my name."

"..."

Anyway, this meant he wanted this conversation to not reach Schelde's ears.

"This bastard is doing things he never used to do."

"If it were 17 years ago, maybe not, but now I'm also one of His closest associates. Don't I have at least this much discretion?"

"Right, if you've been doing servant's work for decades, it's proper to acknowledge it."

"Don't be so sarcastic."

Ivan looked at me.

"What are you relying on to talk big when you're so pathetic you'd collapse with a light touch?"

"Did this bastard eat his age through his asshole? At that age, is bragging about strength the only logic you can present?"

"Haha."

Ivan smiled like an old man who had mastered the ways of the world.

"It's really been a long time. 17 years ago and now, you're the only one who can talk to me like this."

I got goosebumps and rubbed my arms.

"Anyone would think you're some retired old master. Putting on airs so disgustingly."

"However."

Ivan pointed at me.

"If all of this is an act to deceive me, even your way of speaking might be well-rehearsed acting."

"!"

I briefly shut my mouth as if hit right on target.

Though it was true that I was glad to see him despite our bad relationship, I had no intention of immediately revealing my identity.

'You're still fucking suspicious as ever.'

Moreover...

"That's enough."

Venion, who had appeared at some point, was watching us from a distance.

"Venion!"

The man who was Grunewald's Intelligence Director and also my sword instructor was approaching with an unusually stern expression.

"Oh my, Venion."

Ivan spoke like a man quite familiar with Venion.

"You look pale. Are you injured?"

"Gilbert attempted to self-destruct."

"Since your forces were quite strong, it couldn't be helped."

Ivan nodded as if even his subordinates' extreme measures were natural.

'Still the same, you bastard without blood or tears.'

Unsurprisingly, that man was Ivan.

Even after 17 years of becoming middle-aged, his nature hadn't changed.

"But it's surprising. I never expected the one called 'Dark King's Blade' to personally grace us with your presence here."

It felt strange to see a man of Grunewald's Intelligence Director's caliber treating Ivan as a big shot.

Of course, that bastard was strong.

'Even if Father stepped in, it wouldn't be easy to subdue that bastard.'

Of course, there was no doubt that Father's presence and martial prowess were considerably ahead of Ivan's, but in a fight between 8th-tier masters, it would be impossible to guarantee victory.

Nevertheless...

'That bastard is just an idiot.'

Of course, this was because I had a relationship with that bastard as frenemies.

Anyway, treating him like some great expert was too creepy and horrible for me.

"..."

So I kept my mouth shut.

"Venion, did you come to stop me?"

Ivan spoke with a solemn face, unlike before.

"To stop me, you should have brought the Black Serpent Duke instead of yourself."

"What absurd things I'm hearing. If our lord stepped forward, the likes of you wouldn't even last a hundred seconds."

Ivan chuckled.

"Is that so? But it's true that with your current injured state, you could never stop me. It wouldn't be bad to collapse Grunewald's troublesome intelligence network while we're at it."

Rumble...

The night clouds split from the aura Ivan released.

'Crazy bastard, he's fucking strong.'

I was thinking that behind my expressionless face.

"If we could break one of the Dark King's blades, that would be profitable for us too. Remember that this is Grunewald's territory."

Ivan drew his sword that emanated demonic energy.

"Arrogant, shadow of the Black Serpent Duke."

The two men swung their swords at each other.

Claaaang!

The clash rang out, and a deafening shockwave spread.

The one who stepped back was Venion.

'Wow, crazy.'

Below where the swords met, dozens of sword marks were left on the ground.

"Venion."

Ivan spoke.

"How many years has it been? You've gotten stronger again."

"You as well."

"I have many things I want to ask you, but since 'the very fact that I'm curious about something' would be giving you weaknesses to bite into, I'll pass today."

Ivan sheathed his sword and turned around.

...He didn't say a single word to me. I read some intention in that and remained silent.

"Let's do this. Your victory. I'll abandon the Ebony Oath and withdraw, so step back and handle the situation."

"That sounds more like a notification than a negotiation."

Ivan didn't reply and loaded the unconscious Schelde onto the griffin's back.

"Take your master back."

The griffin flew into the sky, afraid of Ivan.

Ivan had already disappeared.

"...Venion."

I finally called Venion.

"Young Master, this was truly dangerous. However, defeating Schelde and recovering the Ebony Oath is an enormous achievement."

"I think so too."

I nodded.

"Though I nearly died because of it."

"I also considered intervening, but I was sensing that man's presence, so I waited first."

I nodded.

If Ivan was watching this fight to confirm that I was Karzan, then Venion couldn't rashly interfere either.

"Of course I understand."

Anyway, Venion was being treated as the mastermind who raised the current me without doing anything.

'This is why people should live virtuously.'

Anyway, I would need to explain my bad relationship with those bastards to this man somehow.

But not now.

"Phew."

I finally sighed and sat down on the ground.

"I'm very tired. Sorry, but please handle the cleanup."

"Leave it to me."

"Kreutzel kept his word, so treat him as my guest and retainer."

"I'll handle that well too."

"Good, then..."

I closed my eyes as if fainting. It had been such an exhausting day.

"I'll lie down and rest for a bit, so please set up a guard."

And that night, Ivan came to find me.

[Translator - Pot ]

[Proofreader - Kawaii ]

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