The Swordsman Genius Returnee Even Swallows Immortality

18

[The Tower tries to block your path.]

[The achievement ‘Slayer of the 4th-Floor Master’ has been registered. ]

[The demerit of the ‘4th-Floor Master of the Tower’ seesps into your body.]

[‘Chilling Cold’ has taken root in your body.]

– Strength has increased by 95.

– Tenacity has increased by 83.

– Aptitude has increased by 91.

– Finesse has increased by 88.

– Demerit has increased by 87.

Haberl looked at the now-familiar list of words.

The numbers just keeping getting bigger.

As they did, his presence undoubtedly grew larger as well.

Four digits were gradually approaching.

No wonder the Tower kept trying to block his ascent.

Endless strength.

It was clearly different from the strength that came from training and experience.

That was when it happened.

For the first time, the demerit within his body reacted.

[Your presence becomes more solid.]

[ The Serpent of Wisdom begins to climb upside down towards the tree roots. ]

[ The ‘Whisperer’ notices your presence that has absorbed its child. ]

The arrangement of letters began once again.

This time, they were completely different letters than before.

‘Whisperer?’

Doubt mixed into Habel’s eyes.

The evil spirit inside his body wriggled around on its own.

It’s an unpleasant feeling.

‘There’s something I don’t know.’

This situation where he keeps absorbing evil spirits.

Something was clearly happening.

‘Where did this come from?’

However, Habel immediately suppressed the evil spirit with force.

He had no intention of leaving the evil spirit to do as it pleased.

Instead, he knew one thing.

The evil spirit is deeply connected to an existence he doesn’t know, just like the Whisperer earlier.

“Tsk, what on earth does the Devil want?”

The moment Habel clicked his tongue, he saw people beyond the broken wall.

The Knights of the Shooting Star were belatedly arriving.

And among them was Dante.

The victory or defeat didn’t matter anymore.

It seemed they had decided to come together.

Crash!

In the meantime, debris poured out where the Frozen Saint had been shattered.

It was the moment when the 4th hierarchy was truly cleared.

* * *

A friendly match between Banphelion and Glacies.

This friendly match recently became a topic of conversation among people.

The reason was simple.

None other than Banphelion was the victor.

“If it’s Banphelion, then that’s….”

“That’s right. The place where the super rookie, Dante, is.”

Banphelion was already a rising star.

Such Banphelion had won against Glacies.

Of course, the words couldn’t be stopped.

But that wasn’t all.

“I heard Dratein was exiled?”

“They say he did something cowardly in the friendly match.”

Amidst the buzz of the friendly match,

Drathen himself admitted to resorting to underhanded tactics to secure victory.

As a result, he was banished from his family.

“On top of that, he went to support the 3rd Knights of the Shooting Stars?”

“That’s right. But apparently, he started showing strange symptoms at the Tower.”

“I heard the rumors of the Ominous Paper becoming stronger lately.”

Thanks to that, the two families were on everyone’s lips day after day.

Such gossip was the perfect pastime for those with nothing better to do.

And among them, there were some who were particularly sensitive to such information.

A luxurious bar.

The lights were on, but there was only one table in the bar.

A man sitting at that table looked at the empty seat.

“Looks like that Drathen guy really did get banned.”

He chuckled in disbelief.

Short, gray hair that revealed his scalp and a large muscular build.

Bold, masculine features.

Pembola August, the direct descendant of one of the Five Great Families, August.

“Is that Dante guy really that great?”

A red-haired man spoke up.

Short in stature but with the greatest aura among them, the direct descendant of Ignore.

Azares Ignore looked intrigued as he rubbed his chin.

“Don’t go setting fires again on impulse. Pyromaniac.”

“You think I’m crazy to do something like that? I’m a good guy, you know.”

Penbola snorted in response.

‘Good guy, my foot.’

Azares has a fiery temper, as befits a Crimson Mage.

The gleam in his eyes made it clear that he was definitely interested in Dante.

‘Looks like we’ll have another explosion soon.’

Penbola clicked his tongue.

But he didn’t bother to stop Azares.

Once he gets burned, he’ll understand Dante’s strength.

“I didn’t like Drathen, but I didn’t think it would go this far.”

Penbola looked at the empty seat again.

Drathen’s arrogant personality was annoying.

But that didn’t mean he was happy that he lost to a rookie.

“Varia, did you hear anything from Baria and Grazia?”

The conversation turned to a man who had been silent until now.

Long, raven hair and purple eyes.

He looked up, his hood still pulled down.

Baria Grazia.

He was a direct descendant of the Grazia family.

“I don’t know.”

“You know, but you pretend not to. You’re a secretive one, aren’t you? Anyway, why isn’t Cabal coming?”

Cabal Cain.

He was another person who wasn’t here.

“He’s probably looking up at the sky.”

Penbola let out a long sigh at Azaris’s response.

He had gathered the direct descendants of the Five Great Families, but…

These guys were always doing their own thing, so it was pointless.

‘With Drathion gone, this won’t last long. It’ll be difficult to unite the Five Great Families in my generation.’

Penbola was surprisingly perceptive.

Unlike his rough appearance and large size, he was more interested in politics and current affairs.

So, naturally, his interest turned to Dante.

‘Banphelion, huh? Is it time for a change in the Five Great Families’ regime?’

Penbola didn’t think the Five Great Families could stay in power forever.

New winds always blow.

‘Especially now that the Five Great Families’ reign has been long and everything has started to stagnate.’

That’s why a new wind is even more important.

The Five Great Families had maintained a balance of power for too long.

‘Because of that, the other families must be watching for an opportunity.’

Everyone will try to ride that wind.

The question is, can you ride the wind?

Or will you be culled?

‘Maybe I should make a move first?’

The one who rides the new wind first will rule the new era.

Time is not infinite, even for the Five Great Families.

Penbola smiled sinisterly to himself.

The era will fall into the hands of those who move first.

And on the other hand, in the same situation…

Baria Grazia was quietly lost in thought.

He clearly remembered what he had seen that day.

The sight of Habell was overwhelmingly defeating the fourth-order trial.

The one who had spoken to Habell that day was none other than Baria.

He had gone to the fourth-order as Baria’s messenger, curious about the goodwill mission.

‘The way to deal with a disaster is not to confront it, but to avoid it.’

He had called Habell a disaster.

The events of that day were still vivid in his memory.

‘So, what do they intend to do with the information I found out?’

At the same time, Baria had a question.

Habel had asked him to find the location of an item as he sent him away that day.

Baria gave him the information right away, not wanting to get caught up in anything unnecessary.

‘What is he planning to do?’

Baria had a headache.

After all, Baria knew well where that item was.

“Huh.”

Unlike the two of them who were racking their brains.

A carefree humming sound came from one side.

It was none other than Azaris Ignore, who had been treated as an arsonist.

‘This will be fun. I wonder if he fights well since he’s an examiner.’

The crazy guy was looking forward to the battle with Dante.

Time passed like that, each of them with their own thoughts.

* * *

Just as the world was heating up with various stories.

Habel, the center of the story, was yawning.

Was it because he had spent too long in the Devil’s Palace?

He felt tired naturally when he was just walking outside normally.

“The sunlight is nice.”

Habel, who was feeling the sunlight coming in between the clouds, turned his head.

Then, as if on cue, Dante met Habel’s eyes with a nervous expression.

“Sir Habel, are you really going to go in?”

“I told you I would. I’m going to receive an apology.”

Habel and Dante were now standing in front of a mansion.

The splendidly decorated mansion made the beholder shrink back naturally.

That was natural.

It was the mansion of the famous Glyssis family.

After finishing the 4th stage and coming down from the Tower.

The place Habel went to after taking care of the byproducts was none other than the Glyssis main house.

Despite the recent friendly match causing such a stir.

Habel came to find Glyssis without any hesitation.

Dante gulped.

He had definitely said that he would do anything following Habel.

However, he was nervous when he actually faced Glyssis.

Even though the Knights Templar had been humiliated by Habel.

They were one of the Five Great Families that ruled the world.

Their power outside the Tower was beyond words.

“Why are you so worried?”

Looking at the anxious Dante, Habel laughed in disbelief.

“It’s not like I came here to just demand an apology.”

Even Habel didn’t come here recklessly.

He had his reasons.

“He just wants to gain something else by demanding an apology.”

“Something else?”

“If he asks for something outrageous, the next request will seem small in comparison.”

“Ah, I see.”

“He intends to obtain the items listed in the information you received last time.”

Dante blinked.

That was the information he had requested from a member of the Graizer family he had met at the 4th hierarchy.

Some of those items were in Glacies.

“Will you be alright?”

“Trust me.”

Having said that, Havel stood before the mansion’s massive gate.

The walls stretched up to the sky,

And the gate before him resembled a castle gate.

“What is your business?”

One of the gatekeepers who had been eyeing the two suspiciously asked.

But instead of answering, Havel lifted his leg.

The gatekeeper looked puzzled by the sudden leg raise.

In that instant, Havel kicked the castle gate.

BOOM!

The gate flew open with a deafening sound.

The gatekeeper’s eyes widened in shock.

It was absurd enough to kick open the gate of Glacies.

But the heavy steel gate had been broken with a single kick.

“W-what?”

The gatekeeper was momentarily speechless.

He didn’t know how to react to this situation.

Even Dante was taken aback by Havel’s sudden action.

But Havel was relaxed.

Sometimes, brute force was necessary.

“When one party doesn’t want to talk, a deal tends to go smoother if the other party is desperate.”

Especially if the other party was someone they absolutely had to make a deal with.

“Gatekeeper.”

Havel called out to the dazed gatekeeper.

“Y-yes?”

He answered with a dazed look through the thick smoke.

“Banpelion has come for an apology. Call someone to guide us right now.”

“Ba-Banpelion!”

The gatekeeper finally snapped out of his daze.

Banpelion, who had been closely associated with Glacies lately.

It was because he realized that the protagonists of the name had come.

The gatekeeper hurriedly ran inside like crazy.

Meanwhile, Havel entered the gate leisurely, carrying the luggage.

“Dante, do you know how to act like an idiot?”

The one who is most difficult to communicate with is basically an idiot.

So Havel decided to be an idiot at the moment.

And that was something he had often done in the past.

* * *

The old butler of the Glaysis family.

He was feeling very troubled now.

The intruders broke the main gate of the mansion and came in without permission.

The butler couldn’t help being shocked when he saw them.

Who on earth dared to break the main gate of Glaysis?

But he was a man beyond imagination.

“I,th,those two.”

“I have no intention of talking to a butler. Bring your master here right now.”

The butler’s face turned pale.

At first, the butler, who judged that it was an invasion, had hurriedly sent for soldiers.

But they were all defeated by Havel.

As soldiers, they couldn’t stop Havel.

The problem was that the knights were the same after that.

The butler saw the knights lying at the end of the mansion.

Their plate mails were all dented.

What was engraved on the dented mail was Havel’s fist.

From that alone, Havel’s strength could be easily guessed.

“Or are you saying that you can’t even apologize after doing such a shameful thing?”

“Th, that’s not it.”

Havel frowned, and the butler panicked.

It seemed that he was not someone who could communicate.

“A, apologize quickly…”

And from behind, Dante spoke in a crawling voice.

Unfortunately, Dante had no talent for acting like an idiot.

Although Havel tried his best, he was only able to do so much.

Considering his usual personality, it would be too much to ask him not to run away.

‘It’s about time someone came out.’

Havel urged the butler and glanced around.

Maybe to show off their wealth, there were many works of art and expensive things here and there.

It was a part that revealed Glaysis’ vanity.

“These damn things… That Banphelion is acting arrogant as ever.”

Naturally, Havel was not pleased by this fact.

“I wish they’d reveal their identities and stop this nonsense.”

At that moment, a voice rang out.

Havel turned his head, and there stood a middle-aged man.

He had sharp features, but overall, he was a rather plump middle-aged man.

However, what stood out the most was his glassy blue hair.

That hair was the symbol of Glyce.

In other words, he was a Glycean.

‘He’s not a Black Knight, it seems.’

Havel noticed that he didn’t sense much presence from him.

Instead, his eyes, which quickly scanned the situation, allowed him to guess his position.

“It’s Banphelion.”

Havel informed him once more, even though he must have already known.

“Butler Jang, escort the guest to the guest room.”

He then led Havel inside without further ado.

“H-He’s ordering us around…”

“Dante, that’s enough.”

“Yes…”

Dante looked even more exhausted than he had been at the tower.

Havel, on the other hand, stroked his chin.

He had created this situation, yet he showed no anger and led them inside right away.

‘This might be more difficult than I thought.’

It has been a long time since he had done business.

In his active days, he had been known as the merciless Iron Blood.

It seemed he would have to show them what he was capable of.