The Terminally Ill Young Master is the Mad Dog of the Underworld-Chapter 276

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[Translator - Pot ]

[Proofreader - Kawaii ]

Chapter 276: The End of the Bloodbath

When Gelberich died, the hellscape created by the Blood Forest Abyss Art quickly began to revert back to reality.

Shhhhh—

As if mourning the massacre, untimely rain began to fall.

An overwhelming downpour strong enough to wash away all the blood spilled by human hands flowed down the city streets and into the Lindela River.

“……”

I stood in the rain, quietly watching the scene.

Somehow, it felt better to have the blood washed away by the falling rain than by more blood.

“You'll catch a cold, my lord.”

Rudgarda, looking worn out, approached and sat beside me.

“You’ve done well, Sixth Commander.”

“There’s no need for praise.”

Rudgarda shook her head.

“I heard it was an intense and bloody battle. I never imagined such a horrifying demonic art could exist.”

“They say he was one of the Dark King’s Executors. It seems he was created for the purpose of eliminating martial artists of the 7th tier and above.”

“If they sent someone that powerful, it means the Dark King now sees you as a serious threat.”

I nodded.

“Most likely. Though in the end, it just cost him a piece of his own power.”

My mood was somber the entire time.

‘If there are more demonic arts like that still locked away in the Dark King’s armory…’

Once the war begins in earnest, just how many horrifying techniques will be unleashed upon the world?

Compared to Gelberich’s monstrosity, even the demonic arts used by Huten or Schelde seemed almost cute.

‘…If that’s the case, just how dreadful must the demonic art sealed in the Ebony Oath be?’

If we hadn’t retrieved the Ebony Oath, the catastrophe that occurred here today could’ve engulfed the entire continent.

“You’ve done something incredible, my lord. There’s no telling how many lives you just saved.”

As I gazed at the battlefield that had been swept by disaster, I spoke quietly.

“But they came here for me. If I hadn’t been here, none of this would’ve happened.”

Rudgarda’s voice hardened.

“Don’t blame yourself, my lord. What matters is that you prevented something far worse.”

“……”

Feeling the sincerity in her words, I replied.

“You’re right. That was a weak thing for me to say.”

Rudgarda gave a light laugh.

“You’re still soft inside, after all.”

“……”

I shrugged in response, avoiding her gaze.

“By the way, I heard the Special Operations Division had their hands full too?”

They’d attacked the ships docked at the port, neutralized the defensive forces, and took out the reinforcements. And Rudgarda—

“Rather than charge into a battlefield already consumed by demonic arts, I thought it wiser to stay with Kailan and prepare for the worst.”

She recalled the decision.

“I wanted to help, to be honest.”

“You made the right call by staying back as a reserve. Besides, you took on a hard job that went unnoticed—I'm sorry I couldn’t give you more credit for it.”

“Credit isn’t what I’m after.”

Rudgarda smiled faintly.

“Avenging the father who abandoned me, that's my only reason to keep living.”

“……Yeah.”

We were blood-sworn allies, after all, united by a common enemy.

“If my father truly joined hands with monsters like that, then I can never forgive him.”

And I agreed wholeheartedly.

“This isn’t just politics or scheming. If monsters who kill and exploit humans with demonic arts aren’t considered evil, then what does good or evil even mean?”

Now, I have three major enemies ahead of me:

Verdzig.

Grimnar Angantyr.

The Black Society.

“……I wonder if they’re all still alive.”

Rudgarda immediately understood what I meant and answered.

“Call it intuition, but I think the Bisakino Brotherhood is still fine.”

“You really believe that?”

“From what I saw while serving in the military, Young Master Verdzig is ruthless and cold, but he has a strange sense of boundaries. I don’t know if it’s out of a desire to be acknowledged by Black Serpent Duke or something else…”

“……Hmm.”

I knew well the love and hatred Verdzig felt for our father.

“Besides, Black Serpent Duke and Intelligence Director Venion wouldn’t just sit around and watch. Young master Verdzig is smart enough to know there are lines even he shouldn't cross.”

I nodded.

“You seem to understand my brother better than I do.”

“Sometimes you have to take a step back to see the full picture.”

Rudgarda smiled lightly and then asked,

“Come to think of it, where’s Lady Siena?”

Why was he asking me that? I tilted my shoulders slightly, feeling a small twinge of confusion.

“She said she still had energy left and wanted to help clean up the battlefield.”

***

“Surrender. We won’t kill those who lay down their arms.”

Siena stood amidst the remains of the White Mercenary Corps, whose forces had been devastated by the Blood Forest Abyss Art, offering terms to those still fighting.

“The assassins from the underworld, the marquis’s knights and soldiers, even the other mercenary groups—all of them have fled.”

She addressed the commander of the remaining mercenaries.

“At this point, I’d say you’ve honored your contract and obligation.”

“…Our idea of honor differs, Lady of Valkenhain.”

The commander declined her offer with a heavy voice. freёnovelkiss.com

“We’re a patchwork of many units. Strictly speaking, I’m only the captain of one segment of the White Mercenary Corps. What does that mean? Even if we fall here, others will carry on.”

“……Are you saying if you lose credibility, it affects all the other units?”

“You’re quick to understand, clever lady.”

The commander raised his bloodstained, chipped blade with great effort.

“Just as knights have chivalry, mercenaries have our own code. Please, allow me to fulfill my duty with an honorable death.”

“……”

Siena raised her sword in solemn respect.

“You, honorable mercenary—what is your name?”

“I am Carpeyo, captain of the White Mercenary Corps.”

“I will vouch for the fact that you kept your word until the end.”

Siena’s blade, having once again surpassed its limits, gleamed with a chilling light.

Slice!

The White Mercenary Corps’ flag, slashed diagonally, fluttered to the ground.

“You, who know honor—the banner has fallen. Start anew. Isn't life more precious than pride?”

“…!”

Carpeyo’s eyes widened in shock.

“Among the countless humans consumed by that demonic art, how many truly understood honor? Death is ultimately meaningless. Even if it’s disgraceful, cling to life if you must.”

“……My lady.”

Carpeyo’s voice trembled as he spoke.

“Thank you for your mercy. I’m ashamed that I felt relief the moment the banner was cut down.”

Siena smiled faintly.

“Now that you’ve been given another chance to live. Make sure you never suffer such disgrace again.”

***

Drak Svaltalfar.

The prodigious assassin who had become the young head of his clan was silently tailing Marquis Belorok, who was attempting to escape amidst the battlefield devastated by Gelberich’s demonic arts.

But the marquis met a pitiful end.

“Are you from the Webern clan? H-here is the marquis’s head. I surrender, please, have mercy—!”

Drak sighed as he looked down at the retainers begging for their lives, offering the severed head of their own lord.

“I wanted to kill him myself, but... what a pathetic death. It’s such a contrast to the power he once wielded.”

“Y-yes, of course.”

The bloated retainers shamelessly agreed, their voices groveling.

Drak, watching them with cold, detached eyes, gave a light wave of his arm.

Splurt!

“They're not worth sparing. Retainers who don’t fulfill their duty have no right to live.”

He looked down at the severed heads now lying at his feet and continued.

“You fed off his wealth all this time, and now you think you can survive by clinging to another? You got too greedy.”

Crunch!

Drak stomped down, crushing one of their useless heads beneath his heel. Then he picked up the marquis’s head.

It was twisted in disbelief and rage, a face frozen in horror.

“Request complete.”

Though Belorok had been his enemy, Drak, as the head of a noble clan, had taken it upon himself to collect the marquis’s blood price. He wrapped the severed head in cloth.

“Drak, is that his head?”

Ghir approached from afar, his clothes torn to rags and slung over his shoulders.

“Brother. You’re alright?”

It sounded more like a passing greeting than a genuine inquiry.

“Yeah, but it was close this time. Every last bastard in the Black Society was a lunatic.”

“I could tell from a distance things were getting wild. What the hell happened?”

“They called it Blood Forest Abyss Art. The guy was supposedly one of the Dark King’s Executors—someone who mastered the demonic arts of old. Allenvert, Lady Siena, and I teamed up just to barely take him down.”

Ghir added with a chuckle, “Though the two of them finished the job without me in the end.”

“You did well. I guess my fight was a bit too easy by comparison.”

It was true. Drak didn’t even have a scratch on him.

“If I’d stayed here, I would’ve died of boredom. So, was it you who killed the marquis?”

“No. His retainers betrayed him.”

“Hah, trash.”

Ghir spat on the corpses of the dead retainers.

“What about his son? I remember there was some piglet-looking brat.”

“Looks like he abandoned his father and ran.”

“Yeah? Let’s hunt him down. That’s too disgusting to let slide.”

“Are you sure? That wasn’t part of the original job.”

“I just want to kill the little shit. I don’t need to get paid for it.”

Just then—

“There’s no need for that, gentlemen.”

“Hm?”

A shadow operative named Regeron was approaching from a distance.

“We’ve already captured the marquis’s son. Rather than wiping out the entire line, it’s better to keep at least one direct descendant alive for trial and cleanup.”

“Oh?”

Drak clapped lightly.

“Now that’s thorough work. How’d you catch him?”

“He was fleeing toward the harbor. Looked like he was planning to escape by ship, weighed down with valuables. I’ve no idea how he thought he’d get far like that.”

Ghir clicked his tongue at the sight of the limp young noble.

“Everyone in this clan is pathetic. Hard to believe someone like this actually defeated the Weberns.”

“They only won because of the Black Society’s help.”

Regeron, who knew the deeper history, replied calmly.

***

The war was over.

Once the cleanup was finished, Kailan would officially declare victory over the territory and petition the king to reinstate the Webern Countship.

“With Valkenhain and Grunewald assisting, that process shouldn’t be too difficult.”

The justification was solid, and now that the evidence of collusion with the Black Society had surfaced, the royal approval was practically guaranteed.

“I’ll never forget your help. If you’re ever in trouble, don’t hesitate to call on me.”

Kailan, arm in arm with his fiancee Liliet, appeared at the banquet and personally poured us drinks.

“Rebuilding won’t be easy.”

“But it’ll be better than those long days spent dreaming of revenge.”

Kailan smiled warmly.

“Once the reconstruction is done and I reclaim my title, I plan to formally propose to Liliet.”

“That might take a while.”

“True, but I hope you’ll all attend the ceremony when the time comes.”

He smiled again.

“By then, I’ll show you a fully restored Castle Webern, so splendid that no one will remember the ruins it once was.”

It was a lofty promise but one that sounded good.

“Um, excuse me.”

Liliet looked toward us and asked,

“Are you and Lady Siena… a couple?”

“Huh?”

“Where did that come from?”

“Well, you two seem really close. And didn’t you carry her down from the sky at the end? It sounded so romantic—”

“Ahem. That’s not the case.”

Siena quickly cut her off.

“It’s a misunderstanding, so please don’t say such things elsewhere.”

“I’ll second that.”

But then Ghir, smirking like a troublemaker, chimed in.

“Hey, if the two of you got married, wouldn’t the king have to step down from the throne?”

“What the hell are you saying? You trying to get charged with treason, dumbass?”

“Relax, I was just kidding. Why you flipping out like that?”

“I should just stop talking altogether.”

Siena and I briefly made eye contact, then turned away at the same time.

“Going somewhere, my lord?”

Jeffrey asked. I snorted in reply.

“Going for a walk.”

***

That same day, a bloodbath erupted in the underworld of Grunewald.

“Verdzig, what the fuck are you doing?”

With a look of disbelief, Schelde glared at Verdzig.

“Are you trying to mae an enemy of us?”

“When were we ever allies that you can say shit like that?”

Verdzig brushed back his blood-soaked bangs.

Not a single wound marked his face. It was proof of how thoroughly he had dominated the battlefield.

“I thought you’d work with us to check Allenvert. Was I mistaken?”

“Your delusions got the better of you, Schelde.”

Verdzig glanced around the utterly destroyed 8th branch of the Black Society.

“My lord, all those trying to escape have been eliminated.”

Harald reported, and Verdzig gave a nod.

“I see. Looks like Allen really hurt you. To think you’d be wiped out this easily.”

“……”

Schelde tried to reply, but the pain from his mutilated body made him grit his teeth in silence.

The reinforcements from the Black Society and even the branch chief substitute had long since been killed by Verdzig and Skella.

“I don’t care to listen to your pathetic excuses. Just get lost already.”

Splurt!

Verdzig lopped off Schelde’s head and calmly wiped the blood from his blade with a cloth.

“...This was the right call.”

He murmured, as if reaffirming his own decision.

“No matter who wins between us, we can’t let the Black Society profit from it.”

Regardless of how things ended, his duel with Allenvert would be settled one-on-one.

There was no need for the Black Society to interfere in that battle of strategy and power.

That was Verdzig’s choice.

“Don’t you agree, Allen?”

Skella silently watched Verdzig as he muttered to himself.

[Translator - Pot ]

[Proofreader - Kawaii ]

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