The Second Son of The Marquis Runs Away from Home ~ Lacking Talent, He Abandons Everything and Becomes an Adventurer ~ - 102

Chapter 102: Declaration

(Eight Thunder Gods! Can you hear me!?)

(……, ……)

I leapt backward to avoid the swung sword while speaking inwardly to the Seven Branch Sword, but I felt as though my words were not getting through.

Rolling to avoid the sweeping blade, I found myself back in the center of the execution ground, surrounded by the enemy. Shion slowly approached, holding a sword in each hand.

…His right arm, which should have been severed, was now connected by a dark red discoloration. The sword, shaped like a serpent’s head, was pulsating as if it were alive—was it some kind of monster?

I blocked the next swing with my black sword. The snake-like mouth of the blade suddenly opened, spewing fire.

“Ugh!?”

Immediately, lightning was unleashed from the sword. I turned my back and blocked it with the Seven Branch Sword, but a shock and numbness ran through my entire body.

“It’s a bioweapon I created. Shion can still use the swordsmanship from his life, but you can’t even use divine artifacts, let alone normal magic… Die miserably.”

I blocked the twin swords with my sword and blade, narrowly avoiding them as I stood up.

“…Shion was a skilled warrior.”

I muttered while holding the sword and blade. Shion, with his twin swords imbued with flame and lightning, came at me, and I faced him head-on.

“He fought for his subordinates, for the people, for the country, risking his life… He was a man who upheld his pride until the very end!”

Even as I was pushed back, I kicked him in the stomach. Had it been the Shion from his living days, he wouldn’t have been affected by such a strike, but now, as a silent corpse, he took the hit and was sent flying.

“Do you not care about toying with his corpse? Do you not feel ashamed of dishonoring the dignity of the dead, tainting their pride?”

Mudo looked down at me with cold eyes. He answered in a detached voice.

“How foolish. All living things, once dead, are just piles of bones and flesh, bags filled with excrement. Meaningless struggles, meaningless existence, meaningless life… The empty shell of a foolish, ugly, and hopeless life, rotting and returning to the earth, becoming food for beasts—is it not more useful to repurpose them this way? What’s wrong with that?”

…My head was clearing, but as my mind calmed, the emotions welling up inside me only made my grip on the sword stronger.

I took a deep breath and locked my gaze on Shion as he stood up. With emotionless eyes, he stared back at me and readied himself, as though the pain from my kick meant nothing.

“Cut off all four limbs. Shion.”

Shion raised his twin swords imbued with flame and lightning, charging at me. At the same time, I sheathed my sword and stepped forward.

As Shion’s raised sword descended toward me, I stepped in closer, drawing my sword from its sheath. With one swift motion, I cut through Shion’s torso, severing him at the waist.

Without losing momentum, I swung my sword downward with all my weight and strength, splitting Shion’s upper body cleanly in half from head to waist.

At the center of the severed chest was a cursed seal. The seal crumbled in flames, and as it burned away, Shion’s corpse also began to disintegrate.

“…Hey.”

I glared at Mudo, maintaining my focus. If I could kill him with my gaze alone, I would have already done so with the intent to kill.

“Stop playing around and bring them all at once. After I cut down everyone you’ve revived… I’ll crush you.”

Mudo ground his teeth and swung his scepter. The sound of the scepter echoed, and the corpses of the warriors rushed toward me all at once.