Swordmaster's Youngest Son Novel - Chapter 841

Chapter 841

Temar glared at Murakan, disdain in his eyes.

«Me, destroying Idal? Padler’s kingdom? Are you really using that nonsense as justification for killing my comrades and the knights of my Family?»

Murakan pulled the Shadow Blade, Barisada, from his chest.

Temar tried to retrieve the blade he was holding, but it wouldn’t budge.

«Nonsense… Yes, I wish it were all just a horrible dream, desperately hoped for that.»

Black tears streamed down Murakan’s cheeks as he looked at a blurred vision.

He wasn’t seeing Temar in front of him.

Instead, he was facing the truth of the Ten Great Knights he himself had been forced to kill.

The reason Murakan massacred Dranax and Kamalga was that they finally succumbed to Zipple’s manipulation of history.

«Dranax, why are you doing this? What’s the reason behind killing them? And not long ago, you attacked the allied clans – Piroth, Bile, and Ligan – and wiped them out.»

Dranax blinked as if he didn’t understand what Murakan was saying.

«What are you talking about? When did I do that?»

«What…?»

Outside Dranax’s camp, the blood of the villagers he had killed formed a river.

Murakan had just witnessed this scene moments ago and had rushed down to the camp.

Moreover, the massacre wasn’t limited to the vicinity of the camp.

Most of the villages and towns he passed on his journey had become ruins of death.

They were all along Dranax’s path.

«By God… Don’t you remember what you just did?»

«Ah, leave me alone. I’m already exhausted from dealing with those Zipple bastards, and now you come here spewing nonsense and gibberish. Are you crazy?»

«Please, Dranax, you can’t do this… Control your mind. You’ve been resisting Zipple’s manipulation of history until now, haven’t you?»

«Manipulation of history? What the hell is manipulation of history?»

Normal conversation was impossible.

Dranax had been completely consumed by Zipple’s manipulation of history.

He and Kamalga were carrying out massacres without any awareness or memory of their actions.

They were killing relentlessly, completely disconnected from reality.

When Dranax and the members of the Kamalga clan killed people, they turned into monsters.

Their bodies turned purple, and their features blurred as they ruthlessly tore people apart.

Even children turned into those monsters.

Even young ones who couldn’t hold a sword transformed into monsters and roamed the towns, waiting for the moment of slaughter.

And when the transformation ended, they didn’t remember anything, not even the existence of the ‘manipulation of history’.

Lokia referred to this state as «Spectral Transformation or Phantom Transformation.»

«Murakan, those who became phantoms due to the manipulation of history have no way out, not even for the Witch. Their condition will only worsen. The carnage and slaughter will intensify, and if they don’t have targets to kill, they will eventually turn on each other… and if that’s impossible, they will turn on themselves.»

Lokia had already captured some of those affected by Spectral Transformation and had conducted several experiments.

«I even told the Witch that I would make any sacrifice, but she said it would be absolutely impossible to lift Spectral Transformation unless some unknown god resurrects.»

«What about the others… damn it… maybe the others won’t come back, but Temar is a Genesis Knight. Did she also say there’s no way he’ll come back?»

«As the patriarch is a Genesis Knight, there may be variables that even the Witch can’t predict. But it’s not just about spectral transformation for the patriarch; he’s suffered complete demonization. Even if the patriarch returned to his previous state, the people he’s killed won’t come back to life. You have to admit, Murakan, that we’ve lost.»

«Shut up, Lokia.»

«Padler became a vengeful spirit after the shock of the patriarch destroying Idal, and Dranax, Vyollo, and Frey became phantoms due to the manipulation of history. Most of the remaining people are also in a dangerous state. Where is the hope? To save the survivors, we must stop the war.»

«I told you to shut up.»

«Since the patriarch became a monster, you’re the only one who can persuade the Chief Butler and the remaining comrades. Think carefully about what’s right. While you drift away from reality, the patriarch and our comrades continue the massacre. They’re destroying those we try to protect, the land we try to protect, everything, with their own hands.»

Murakan didn’t listen to Lokia’s words anymore.

He couldn’t bear to hear them. Even without Lokia telling him, Murakan himself knew better than anyone.

That there was no more hope.

Ten days later, Murakan went to find Dranax again.

For those ten days, Dranax and Kamalga had been constantly soaked in blood that could never be washed from their hands.

Murakan felt an overwhelming sense of guilt he couldn’t shake off, not only for them but also for the people they had killed.

[I’m sorry, Dranax. I can’t… I can’t do anything more…]

«Murakan, everyone suspected you were a traitor, but I trusted you. I was even about to strike those who said they couldn’t trust you anymore, even my younger brother and the other knights. But in the end, this is how it turns out.»

Murakan thought it would be better if Dranax resented him and died that way.

Instead of dying while remembering the massacre and carnage he had unwittingly caused, Murakan felt that facing Dranax’s hatred would be a better option.

Above all, Murakan believed he deserved to be resented and cursed.

Despite possessing such great power, he couldn’t prevent his comrades from becoming phantoms.

Taking their lives was the only thing he could do.

[Dranax, don’t forgive me.]

«You either close your eyes, or you open them. You can’t forget the look of hatred in their eyes. Just as you are now, they must have felt truly betrayed.»

Temar continued to build up strength to retrieve his sword.

The aura and Shadow Energy condensed in the blade exploded several times, but Murakan didn’t flinch.

Vyollo Runcandel.

When Vyollo arrived to avenge Dranax, Murakan was burying the dead killed by Vyollo’s hands.

Even in the presence of numerous corpses, Vyollo didn’t show any reaction.

He acted as if the corpses didn’t exist at all.

«No, forget about us. Even in death, we won’t forget you. I don’t want to be remembered by you. Even as a phantom, I will curse you, again and again. The future that Solderet desired will eventually be consumed by curses and blood and have a dark end.»

Murakan’s heart was breaking.

As Vyollo spat venomous words filled with hatred, Murakan continued to bury the bodies in silence.

After taking Vyollo’s life, Murakan couldn’t bring himself to bury him alongside the others. He flew to a distant island and buried Vyollo there. The graves of Dranax and Kamalga he had created before had already been found and destroyed by Zipple without a trace.

Vyollo’s grave suffered a similar fate shortly after. Murakan no longer had the strength to protect his comrades’ graves.

Swish…!

Finally, the sword, Barisada, slipped from Murakan’s grasp.

Temar stepped back, preparing his Shadow Blade once more, as Murakan muttered to himself.

«Yes, you’re right… My actions can never be justified. No matter the reasons, I couldn’t protect my comrades. I abandoned those who trusted me and depended on me.»

The reason no one lived near the Murakan Mountains was that Temar and the Ten Great Knights, now turned into phantoms due to the manipulation of history, were committing massacres.

Refugees were fleeing from all over the Hufester Alliance.

Frey was guiding them, ensuring they weren’t harmed in the ongoing attacks by Zipple.

She was completely absorbed in commanding the battlefield, with no time to rest.

But at night.

The refugees who followed Frey, trusting and believing in her, met their end at the hands of the one who became a phantom.

Once the spectral transformation lifted, Frey believed that all the scattered corpses had been killed by Murakan.

She wasn’t moved by resentment towards Murakan, like Dranax or Vyollo, but by a sense of obligation to save innocent lives.

That’s why, when Murakan went to find her, she fought to escape, to save more people.

Unaware that she was responsible for the massacre.

Murakan could have easily defeated Frey, but each time, he couldn’t bring himself to pursue her to the end.

In her eyes, he saw a desperate determination to save others.

Even though she knew letting her go would lead to more deaths, her already broken heart couldn’t muster the resolve to trample her in his pursuit. Her heart was already broken.

«You’ve gone mad… because of Zipple’s manipulation of history.»

[Frey, that’s right. All this is manipulation. I’ve gone mad because of Zipple’s manipulation of history, while you saved countless lives from me. So now… rest.]

«If I had known this would happen, I wouldn’t have liked you… if I had known it would end with me hating you like this.»

The black smoke escaping from Murakan was cut once more by Temar’s Shadow Blade.

The Murakan from a thousand years ago no longer felt pain.

There was no more agony left within him.

His already desolate mind was focused solely on one duty.

It was a sense of duty to grant rest to Temar and the others.

The only thing driving Murakan was the mission to stop their slaughter and protect the remaining survivors.

That made him fight.

«You’re the last one, Temar. I hope you’re the last one. I’ve sought you out more than ten times. Believing that you, like no other, can overcome this terrible fate. I’ve done everything I can. But there’s nothing more I can do. Today, I will kill you and end this war. We will be completely erased from history.»

Murakan transformed back into his true form, spreading his two pairs of wings.

The dark smoke that was being absorbed by the Shadow Blade quickly dissipated into the darkness of Shadow Energy.