The Return of the Limited-Time Sword Master

Chapter 58: Cleanup Time (3)

Jurgen von Brightner trembled with rage at Martin’s declaration.

In contrast, the Dark King continued to smile, as if thoroughly enjoying himself.

“I’ve fooled many, but I never thought the day would come when I’d be the one on the receiving end. You should take pride in this, young master. No one has ever driven me this far before.”

“Pride, my foot. What meaning is there in being praised by a rat who slits throats in the dark?”

“Harsh, but fair. Still, my admiration is sincere. You’ve piqued my curiosity. How can you wield martial arts while suffering from the Dragon’s Curse? And how are you so adept at manipulating wind through Spatial Domination?”

Martin smirked and retorted, “You think trade secrets are so easily shared?”

“Looks like I’ll have to find out for myself , then.”

“You can try, but I doubt you’ll succeed. Honestly, I was disappointed last time. I only used martial arts and wind manipulation, yet you still couldn’t beat me.”

“I promise, you won’t be disappointed this time.”

“That’s for me to decide. But really, why is someone like you interested in drugs? Claudel just amplifies the senses—it’s meaningless to someone like you, a 7th-circle mage.”

“You’re awfully shameless, young master. You refuse to reveal anything about yourself yet pry into the secrets of others.”

“Nobles are supposed to be shameless. It’s part of the job.”

Even as he bantered with the Dark King, Martin clicked his tongue inwardly.

Despite his constant provocations, the Dark King wasn’t fazed. If anything, the smile on his lips only grew wider.

‘As expected from the Dark King. His control over his emotions is remarkable.’

His attempts at provoking the Dark King had failed, but Martin wasn’t particularly bothered.

After all, there was another target.

Turning his head, he locked his gaze on Jurgen.

“You must have had it rough, running a drug plantation while also cleaning up after the Gustin family. But it’s been worth it, right? Lord Mateus is famous for taking good care of his people.”

“…You’re spewing nonsense, young master.”

“Deny it all you want. I’ve already received intel on the close relationship between the Brightner and Gustin families. Though, to be precise, you’re the one who bent the knee.”

Boom!

Without a word, Jurgen slammed his staff into the ground.

A powerful aura flared up around him, and the jewel at the tip of his staff pulsed with a bright orange light.

The energy spread to the ground, and a massive magic circle appeared.

But Martin scoffed.

“Trying to look impressive now is pointless. You’re just a lackey who bowed to a branch family.”

“Shut up!”

“Judging by your sharp reaction, it seems you already knew that yourself.”

Grit.

Jurgen’s face flushed red with anger.

“You’re quite skilled at getting under people’s skin, young master.”

“Facts tend to sting the most.”

“So truth is the sharpest weapon, huh? That’s something new I’ve learned today.”

Swoosh.

Not only did the Dark King’s shadow split into hundreds of tendrils, but the other shadows around them did as well, snaking outward like living creatures.

It was an intimidating sight.

And they weren’t alone.

“Everyone, prepare for battle!”

The knights of the Brightner family, who had followed Jurgen, infused their weapons with aura.

There were thirty of them—three times the number of White Dragon Knights.

In addition, over two hundred guards aimed their magic rifles.

In terms of numbers, it was a complete mismatch.

Yet Martin remained completely unshaken.

“Anyone scared? Feel free to step back if you are.”

“No one in the White Dragon Knights trembles at something like this. Those without that level of courage wouldn’t have been selected in the first place,” Fritz Khan replied calmly.

Almost on cue, the other knights chimed in.

“The training we went through after joining was far scarier than this. I’d rather keep fighting them than go through that again.”

“Especially the courage training… Just thinking about it gives me chills.”

Despite the enemies before them, the knights remained at ease.

Their composure only served to irritate Jurgen further.

“Kill them all!”

“A criminal barking orders? Wipe them out.”

Both sides gave their orders, and the battle finally commenced.

As it erupted, Sara quickly shouted,

“Everyone, fall back!”

“Follow us!”

Under the guidance of the Cry of Freedom members, the protestors retreated in an orderly manner to avoid obstructing the battle.

‘She’s got good instincts,’ Martin thought, genuinely impressed by Sara.

* * *

Whoosh!

The first to move was the Dark King.

Twin daggers glinted in his hands, while hundreds of shadow tendrils, each wrapped in aura blades, snaked around his body.

It was clear that his skills were formidable.

‘But I’ve seen these techniques before.’

Martin could clearly see not only the Dark King’s movements but also the writhing shadows around him.

With ease, he swung the sacred sword, Kaizen.

Slash!

The golden aura blade cleaved through the space before him.

The shadow tendrils caught in its path were shredded in an instant, but that wasn’t all.

The spatial rift created by the sword generated a powerful suction force, pulling in more shadows.

Though the Dark King quickly reinforced his control over the shadows, many were still sucked in and disappeared into the void.

‘Damn.’

The Dark King clicked his tongue.

While he was momentarily distracted by the shadows, Martin had already closed the distance between them.

Kaizen hurtled toward him at a frightening speed, and the Dark King instinctively crossed his daggers to block.

Boom!

A powerful explosion erupted, scattering fragments of aura blades in all directions.

“Ugh.”

A short groan escaped the Dark King’s lips, along with a spray of blood.

Though he thought he had blocked the attack perfectly, he had still taken damage.

‘So it’s true—those cursed by the dragon have limitless mana.’

He had never been overpowered in terms of mana before, but today, his confidence had been shattered.

Still, the Dark King retreated without hesitation.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

At the same time, dozens of ice spears rained down on Martin.

It was a combination of the Brightner family’s unique ability, Freezing, and a 6th-circle spell.

Each spear was aimed precisely at Martin.

‘Predictable.’

Jurgen was someone Martin had faced before his return—he had even personally severed Jurgen’s head.

As such, he was already familiar with Jurgen’s attack patterns and easily read the flow of the assault.

Once again, Kaizen was swung.

Crash!

The golden aura blade shattered all the ice spears.

The resulting shockwave swept across the surroundings.

“Ugh!”

Jurgen vomited a mouthful of blood from the backlash of his broken spell.

But there was no time for him to catch his breath.

“I’ll handle you!”

“A mere knight dares to challenge me?”

Seizing an opening, Fritz Khan charged toward Jurgen.

Naturally, Jurgen didn’t just stand there. He focused on launching spells to create distance between them.

This meant he could no longer pay attention to Martin.

‘That’s fine.’

Thanks to Jurgen, the Dark King had regained his composure.

He charged at Martin, thicker shadow tendrils writhing around him than before.

But Martin easily cut through the shadows and blocked the Dark King’s lightning-fast strike.

Once again, the two daggers clashed with Kaizen.

This time, Martin was pushed back slightly, but his face showed no signs of panic.

‘What is this?’

The Dark King felt a sudden sense of unease.

A chilling fear gripped him.

Instinctively, he tilted his head to the right.

Slash!

A crescent-shaped golden aura blade grazed his cheek.

‘Spatial Slice.’

Though it was his first time seeing the technique, it was so well-known that he recognized it immediately.

But there was little time to dwell on it.

Whirr.

Before the golden blade had fully passed, Martin used Spatial Movement and appeared right in front of the Dark King.

Martin swung Kaizen wildly, forcing the Dark King into a desperate defense.

Each time their blades collided, shockwaves and fragments of aura shattered parts of the city hall.

At a glance, it seemed like they were evenly matched.

But the Dark King knew better.

As time passed, more and more wounds appeared on his body.

‘They say the Adalbert family’s swordsmanship is the best in the Empire…’

He had been impressed when Martin used martial arts.

But that was a mistake.

Compared to the swordsmanship Martin was displaying now, the martial arts were nothing.

Martin’s strikes were sharper, faster, and more powerful.

The shifts in his technique were so extreme that even the Dark King, with all his experience, struggled to keep up.

In three minutes—no, one minute.

The fight would be decided.

And he would be the one to fall.

‘In that case…’

Jurgen had something the Dark King desired, which was why he had made a deal.

But no matter how important it was, it wasn’t worth more than his life.

The Dark King quickly came to a conclusion and acted on it.

“Haa!”

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Dozens of shadow tendrils collided with each other.

With aura blades embedded in them, they exploded violently.

The intense heat and shockwaves tore through the garden, leaving it in ruins.

The explosion also surged toward Martin.

Whirr.

Martin waved his left hand.

Space distorted, and the shockwaves were sucked into the rift.

He had easily blocked the attack.

Yet Martin frowned.

“Unbelievable. The so-called Dark King… running away.”

In the moment of the explosion, he had sensed it.

The Dark King had slipped into the shadows.

If Martin knew where he was headed, he could chase him with Spatial Movement.

But that was all he could do for now.

With his current mastery of Omni Distortion, it was impossible to interfere with the shadow world.

-What assassin would face a knight head-on? Our realm is in the darkness, young master.-

“You’re planning to assassinate me?”

-If the contract comes in, I’ll have to. That’s an assassin’s purpose. But I won’t be the one to initiate it. I have no desire to make enemies of the Adalbert family. Especially considering your talents, I imagine you’ll only grow stronger.-

“I appreciate the honesty. But since you’re being so open, how about telling me why you came here?”

-I can’t do that. In a deal, trust is everything. Well then, farewell, young master.-

With that, the Dark King’s voice disappeared.

Martin snorted.

“Trust? Yeah, right.”

The Dark King had gone silent.

But what did it matter?

There was someone else who knew the truth—or at least someone who knew more.

Swish.

Martin turned his head.

He saw Fritz Khan and Jurgen von Brightner locked in a fierce battle.

“I’ll have to keep him alive for now.”

At least until all the truths were revealed.

Flash!

Golden aura spread out from Kaizen, merging with the space around them.

A cube of energy formed, large enough to cover the entire ruined garden.

“What is this?!”

Shock spread across the faces of Jurgen and the remaining members of the Brightner family.

They tried to respond, but Martin didn’t give them the chance.

With a heavy swing, Kaizen came slashing down from above.

Slash!

“Arrgh!”

“Aaagh!”

Within the confines of the spatial cube, the blade raged like a storm.

The Brightner family’s guards were killed in an instant.

The knights tried to resist, but as time passed, they fell one by one.

In the end, all were annihilated.

Only one person remained breathing—Jurgen.

“Gahhh!”

But his condition was dire.

His right arm had been severed, blood gushing from the wound like a waterfall.

“Your mouth is still intact, so you’ll live for now. I’ll give you one last mercy—if you tell me the truth, I’ll grant you a swift death. If you refuse, well, you won’t like the outcome.”

Martin smiled as he pulled a potion from his subspace.

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