Episode 180. Return (1)
Meanwhile, on Pamuk Boulevard.
Every night as the carriage raced down the street, Damon and Rubin’s training continued without end.
Rubin intentionally increased the number of training sessions even though he could have finished it if he had put his mind to it. That’s how much of Damon’s swordsmanship he absorbed.
‘Of course, even if I were to engrave all of Damon’s sword techniques, it wouldn’t be my sword technique.’
The 6-star swordsmanship of Darkness. Just as the saying goes, “Darkness leads the sword,” the swordsmanship that is naturally radiated is the sole property of its creator. It is not something that can be expressed through imitation, but rather a unique realm.
However, it was clear that Rubin was advancing more quickly to the new world through Damon’s sword.
“Your Majesty, there are only three days left until we reach the mansion. We will leave Pamuk Road before daybreak. Today, I must see the end of my sword.”
Damon announced that the end had come.
Rubin followed the advice without a word. He wanted to practice for a few more days, but he had no choice.
Using the ‘Shadow Force’ and the Blood Frost Blizzard, I took Damon’s sword. Without missing a single breath, even the last.
Saaaaah.
“Thank you, Damon.”
Rubin, who had cleared the blizzard and even put the black lacquer aura to sleep. After that, the two of them chased the carriage that was further away than ever.
When they caught up with the carriage and settled at the back, both of them had beads of sweat forming on their foreheads.
“master.”
While cooling off, Damon opened his mouth.
“As I said before, the ‘Eight Great Clans’ have been summoned for this funeral.”
“I heard that there are eight great families, called the ‘Black Spirit Family’. I don’t know the details, but Puree told me. They are the eight most powerful families.”
“Yes. The Eight Black Shadows. Do you know the names of the current Black Shadow lords?”
Before arriving at the mansion, it seemed as if Damon had something to say. Rubin, who was curious about the current dark shadow, nodded his head as if asking for an explanation.
Then Damon listed the names of the eight black shadows.
“There are eight of them: Lil Jephard, Anon Ascalzi, Kaban Crokison, Desril Lildens, Shakes Pear, Diven Khaldun, Marek Helid, and Benik Benar.”
These were names I had heard before. In particular, some were better known by their nicknames than their real names. ‘Muyeonggwi Lil’, ‘Ghost Sword Anon’, ‘Ghost Dance Kaban’, ‘Hell-Round Death Lil’.
In my previous life, the only people I had ever met were the children who took the exam with me. So the only one I had ever met was Kun’s father, Kaban.
But now that I’m facing the strongest of the current families, I feel like I’ve been reborn and am starting a new life.
“It is very rare for the eight members of the Black Shadow to gather in one place, and at the main house at that. In fact, it was a one-time experience for me as well.”
“If it were just one time, it would be when the owner of our Roinen House changed.”
When my mother inherited the family, it was more than twenty years ago.
“Of course, the black shadows of then and now have changed quite a bit.”
Either died during a mission, died while fighting for the title of Black Shadow, or gave up the title.
“They are people who aim to realize the pinnacle of martial prowess. So rather than being assassins, they have the character of pure warriors.”
That was true. Even the Imperial Order intentionally gave fewer assassination missions to the Black Spirit Family.
The Imperial Order believes that the longer a Black Spirit family has its history, the more likely it is to produce useful assassination swords among its children and vassals.
However, it is also true that the moment they lose their status as a Black Shadow, they are given difficult missions that could threaten their lives.
“Damon, you are on guard. They are gathering in one place.”
“… Yes. It is a time in history when the power of the main family is stronger than ever. However, His Majesty the Emperor is trying to punish the Assassin Sword Family, and the Black Shadow is with them. And on top of that… … .”
Damon’s eyes seemed to foresee a great ordeal.
“It bothers me that the young master is also there….”
“… … .”
“Your Majesty the Emperor, the Imperial Order, and the Eight Black Shadows. They all do not know the master’s level. The master’s level that surpassed that of Master Dorion long ago.”
Although Damon didn’t add anything, by Rubin’s standards, it was a breeze to surpass Dorian.
What he really wanted to hide from the public was the fact that Rubin’s growth was faster than that of Siren’s peers.
“Your Majesty, you must keep that realm hidden as much as possible.”
Damon seemed to think that this was the way to go for the Assassin’s Blade, who was about to incur the Emperor’s wrath.
however-
“no.”
Rubin thought differently.
“I agree in front of His Majesty the Emperor and the Imperial Decree. But it is not yet the ‘time’, so I must hide it.”
It’s not ‘time’ yet? Damon wondered what time period he was referring to, but decided it was just rhetorical.
Rubin’s voice, which had become much firmer, continued.
“But it’s different for the black spirits.”
“yes?”
“Even though Heukyeong seems to be overwhelmed by his mother’s overwhelming powerlessness right now, he probably thinks of her as the last spark of his family.”
“Does that mean you will reveal your true nature to them?”
Rubin nodded.
“If that happens, I won’t hide it.”
“… … .”
This will be a warning. A warning to all assassins, including Black Shadow.
It is impossible to determine the true intentions behind Telmah’s summoning of the Dark Lords, but it cannot be ruled out that he was trying to cause a rift in the Assassin Swordsmanship.
Defection or betrayal of the collateral branch?
It was something that had never happened in a previous life. It was something that the ‘clan’ of Amyeon could not even imagine.
But this time, the flow was different. It is unknown how the scheme of Telmah and the imperial command, which did not exist in the previous life, will unfold.
The dangers that come with having one person shoulder all the authority are something the Dark Lords would know best.
Because I have personally seen, and some have experienced, that when you lose your position as the Black Shadow, your family’s status declines significantly.
‘That’s why they might be looking forward to a situation where only their mother is gone.’
Of course, even without his mother, he knows that Killian, Damon, and several other high-level vassals, including the Assassins, will be able to hold out for a while. However, no matter how great they are, they cannot compare to the presence of a great successor candidate.
That was why Rubin wanted to reveal his realm to the Dark Lords at the right time.
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“Damon.”
“Yes, your highness.”
“Can you tell me the tendencies of the eight Black Shadows? If you know, you can also tell me their realms.”
We had to devise a strategy from various angles. It depended on what kind of punishment Telmah would hand down.
Perhaps we should regard the Black Shadows as internal enemies, or perhaps we should embrace them as full members of the family.
To do that, information about the eight Black Shadows was important.
“Out of the eight, only four have maintained their position as Black Shadow for over 15 years.”
“What about the other four?”
“There will be a generational change within 15 years. Once you lose your position in the Black Shadow, it is not easy to regain it. One rare case is… Benik Benar. He has been repeating the return and retake of the Black Shadow for decades.”
Damon added immediately.
“The bottom four, including Benik Benar, are definitely 6-star players.”
“So you’re saying that among the top four there will be a 7-star?”
“Yes, there may be 7 stars among Lil Jeppard, Anon Ascalzi, Caban Crokison, and Deathril Lildens.”
“Lil, Anon, Caban, Deathril… … .”
Rubin tilted his head. It was quite a surprising fact. As far as Rubin could remember, none of the top four had been black shadows in the past 15 years.
‘That’s strange.’
Even if we exclude Kun’s father, Kaban, since we know he died during a mission.
I didn’t know anything about the other reels, Anon, and Deathril.
’15 years later, where are those three?’
Even if there were seven of them, why didn’t they join the Assassins to fight against Telmah?
No, rather… how could the strongest warrior in the collateral lineage disappear from this world in just 15 years? Did Telmah eliminate them first?
Questions continued to arise, but it was clear that they were questions that could not be resolved right away.
‘Let’s solve these questions later and focus on the problem at hand for now.’
After that, Rubin focused on his conversation with Damon.
Damon points out that the Dark Shadow can be divided into upper and lower groups, and that the two groups show a gap not only in terms of realm but also in psychological aspects.
While the top four families have enjoyed the status of the Black Shadow for over a decade and embody inaction, the bottom four families are obsessed with the Black Shadow.
Rubin was mindful of the gap between the dark shadows. There would be a time when he could exploit that gap.
“Don’t you even know who is the strongest among Lil, Anon, Caban, and Deathril?”
Damon nodded to Rubin’s question.
“They may have internally decided who is superior and inferior, but it is not known to the public.”
It was because of Siren. Before Siren, when the realm of the Black Shadow surpassed that of the Roinen family, they were busy revealing their own realm. It was pressure on the main family.
But now it was different. Since Siren reigned, the Black Shadow did not reveal who was the strongest and who had reached the 7th star. It was a strategic cover-up for the sake of the Black Shadow’s authority.
‘That’s too bad. If I knew who the strongest was, I could probably manipulate the situation the way I wanted.’
But there was no other way. The only way to find out who was the strongest was to clash swords with them, but even then, there was no guarantee that Rubin, who was still not as good as the Black Shadow, would be able to figure it out for sure.
‘For now, we’ll have to wait and see what kind of punishment Telmah will hand down.’
As the carriage moved forward, Rubin realized that the intersection was waiting at the end. He organized his thoughts to that extent.
If you take the path leading from this intersection, you will soon reach the Roinen Mansion. Damon happened to tell me about it.
“It is time for you to go in now.”
As more time passed, it was time for Rubin and his party to get off the carriage. The carriage provided by the Empire could no longer approach the Roinen Mansion.
They walked for a full day until they came to a wall of fog surrounding the mansion.
As the darkness faded and the sun began to shine, the fog of the Roinen mansion began to surround them.
‘You’re back home.’
Even the toxicity that would drive a normal person crazy was completely familiar to Rubin.
This is where the beginning, the end, and a new beginning unfolded. Before the return, this place was destroyed by Telmah, but this time, it had to be protected.
Thud thud.
“… … .”
At that moment, when determination was naturally taking hold, Rubin felt someone approaching him from beyond the thick fog.
I thought it was a black shadow taking a walk around the mansion, but it wasn’t.
‘It’s too weak to be called a black shadow.’
Then the candidates were quickly narrowed down. As Damon and Lang’s assassination squad retreated behind Rubin, it seemed that they also realized who the man in front of them was.
Soon, Inyeong approaches, stirring the fog.
“It’s been a while, Rubin.”
“You were my older brother.”
First, there was Dorian. He was a half-brother with a twelve-year age difference. He had met Maphis once before, but it had been a long time since he had seen Dorian.
He is now twenty-five years old. He has grown a fairly thick beard.
“I heard you came from far away. I thought you would come today.”
Meanwhile, Dorian quickly checked the faces of those guarding Rubin.
He knew Damon’s face, but he didn’t know about the Lang Slaughter Squad. Even if he didn’t know that they were the Slaughter Squad, he knew that they were quite different from the vassals who had come to fetch him.
Rubin instantly read the complex emotions flashing across Dorian’s face.
‘Then that’s right.’
No matter how big the age gap was, or even if the reason they met again this time was because of Maphis’ death, Rubin was nothing more than a rival to Dorian.
Of course, on the other hand, there was not even the slightest thought of competition.
“Excuse me, but I would like to meet your Majesty first.”
Rubin passed by Dorian.
In terms of sheer brilliance, Dorian was better than the dead Mafis. It was as if he had just passed the third star and ascended to the fourth.
Even so, to Rubin, he was nothing more than an opponent who had been surpassed. Damon and his vassals followed Rubin in silence.
“… … .”
I stopped walking for a moment and looked back, and saw Dorian shivering.
As Rubin looked at Dorian, a good strategy came to mind.
‘If he just got out of the 3-star level, he probably thinks he’s not that bad. He’ll definitely try to show me his level.’
Rubin’s purpose was not to trample on Dorian’s will. That was just a secondary effect. What he really was after was not Dorian, but the dark shadows.
‘I guess I’ll have to use Dorian to get a hold of some of the Dark Shadows.’
