Chapter 534
Sin is passed down through blood to future generations.
This was something the Dark King heard from his father when he was young.
A saying that the sins of one’s ancestors have been passed down to their children, and that their karma has accumulated.
The most common thing the Dark King heard from his father was an apology.
[I’m sorry for giving birth to you.]
[I shouldn’t have given birth to you.]
In a way, it was a bitter thing to say, but the Dark King understood as he listened to the story.
It was a situation where that was unavoidable.
A monster who wanted to be human gave birth to a monster.
The child was born with the hope of being human, but the blood was too thick to allow that.
This was his father’s wish.
Regardless of his regrets, the reason the Dark King was born a monster was his father’s desire.
About twenty years had passed since the birth of the Dark King.
His father passed away.
As always, he presented an apology to the Dark King while dying.
For some reason, he wore a happy smile.
The Dark King, seated in front of his tombstone, wore an expressionless face.
It’s not that he wasn’t sad.
He felt emotions, but they weren’t enough to twist his expression into something dramatic.
Only then did the Dark King realize that he truly was a monster.
Moreover, he began to understand why his father smiled like that when he left.
“Are you happy that you’ve passed?”
This was a question directed at the tombstone.
This blood curse is cruel.
It suffocates emotions, and its appearance can become hideous at times.
As if to prove he was a monster, his physical abilities were exceptional, yet he was merely a monster.
His father referred to this curse as the Curse of the Dragon’s Blood.
They say it’s a curse given by a dragon.
Having the blood of a dragon but failing to become a dragon, he falls grotesquely.
That wasn’t frightening; it didn’t matter whether he was a dragon or not.
There was one problem with this curse.
He yearned to become a dragon, yet he also howled and cried to live as a human.
And yet…
It was a curse that made him despise humans and look down on them.
The power that incites chaos, encompassing all contradictions.
That was the essence of this curse.
Furthermore, when this blood awakens, a voice lingers in one’s head.
—Serve the dragon.
Someone unknown kept whispering incessantly.
You who cannot become a dragon, serve the dragon.
A haunting voice that echoed daily.
No matter how much he was fatigued or howled, it was an echo that would never fade away.
There’s only one way to escape this curse.
That is to bear children and free oneself from the curse.
The vicious blood that forbade him from dying by his own hand wouldn’t let go unless he produced someone to take his place.
The Dark King’s father bore him to escape this curse.
To surpass the curse, children must be born.
Only then can one achieve liberation and face death. Truly a horrendous curse.
The mother who gave birth to him died.
Until the moment of his death, the father never mentioned the Dark King’s mother.
Having passed on the Curse of the Dragon’s Blood, his father closed his eyes when the Dark King turned twenty.
The one who only offered apologies and expressed remorse wore the happiest smile upon dying.
Now, what remained was the life of the Dark King, who had turned twenty and awakened his blood.
In front of his father’s tombstone, the Dark King made a vow.
To lift this curse.
He vowed not to pass it onto future generations like his father, but to face death head-on.
That’s how he lived.
—Serve the dragon.
He lived while enduring the sound echoing in his ears.
—Kill that insignificant lower species.
Emotions were parched and twisted.
Perhaps because he had become a monster, his gaze towards humans was chillingly cold.
It was the same in dealing with them, so he held no hesitation in killing.
The Dark King possessed talent.
Moreover, due to the ‘power’ contained in the curse, harming others was not a difficult task.
He wasn’t intoxicated by power, yet he made consistent use of it.
With time, he soon became known as the Dark King, reaching the pinnacle of the dark world.
As he gained power, other assassins began to flock around him.
That’s how the All-Night Assassination Corps came into being.
That was only a hundred years ago…
“Wait a minute…what?”
I interrupted, having listened intently to the Dark King’s words.
The Dark King, who had been explaining calmly, closed his mouth and stared at me.
I found it odd that he looked at me, seemingly questioning why.
Did I mishear something? It definitely felt strange.
“…A hundred years ago? You just said a hundred years ago.”
“Yes.”
The birth of the All-Night Assassination Corps was a hundred years ago?
While it was rare for a master like the Dark King to live that long, it wasn’t unheard of.
‘…Looking at the flow of the story, it seems like he lived much longer than that.’
As I listened to the story the Dark King shared, tales from far beyond a hundred years ago surfaced.
That being said…
“…Senior, how old are you?”
“I haven’t counted since one hundred and fifty.”
“…”
I had to clamp my mouth shut at that casually blurted proclamation.
‘…One hundred and fifty?’
I certainly heard that.
A hundred and fifty years old? Even more so if he hadn’t counted since then.
‘That old dude looks really young.’
From merely observing the Dark King’s external appearance, he absolutely didn’t appear that age.
Even if it were said that he had reversed aging, it was still far-fetched.
He could easily pass for someone not yet in his forties, no matter how many times hit.
Even now, his skin had changed a bit, looking somewhat peculiar, but back when he had white hair and white pupils, he was a handsome young man.
How could such a person be a hundred and fifty years old…
I was left dumbfounded, realizing his age was far beyond my expectations.
As I sat there, staring blankly at the Dark King, he resumed explaining.
“The curse doesn’t even allow death.”
“Well…does that mean you’ve achieved immortality?”
A curse that doesn’t permit even death.
Is that what a curse should be called?
At least…
“…If you can’t die from old age, there’s always murder, right?”
If you wish for death, it’s perfectly reasonable to let someone else kill you, if you can’t do it yourself.
There could be poison, or other means to achieve it.
Why hasn’t he done anything?
Around that time, doubts began to sprout.
“Because it doesn’t permit death to those of lower species than oneself.”
“Hah, that’s just a ridiculous story.”
Unexpectedly, I cursed out loud after hearing his tale.
How incredibly self-important must one be to create such a ludicrous scenario?
Furthermore…
‘What about the lineage of Yuan Ga.’
The family of Yuan Il-cheon, who saved the world. The Golden Sky of Yuan Ga.
If their bloodline was cursed in such a manner…
Why…?
“…Do you not know how such a curse came to be?”
“It is recorded that a great dragon was angered, resulting in this curse.”
A great dragon became enraged, thus the curse of Dragon’s Blood was placed upon them.
‘A great dragon…’
Naturally, the one that came to mind was the one and only being.
‘Blood Demon.’
Considering that it was the only one who could be vaguely assumed to be a dragon; if any curse were to be invoked, he would be the most likely candidate.
The Blood Demon cursed the blood of Yuan Il-cheon.
Is this a matter to be determined? Just then, after making that link in my mind.
I spoke the words I had wanted to say to the Dark King.
“By the way, Senior.”
“Yeah?”
“Could you please treat me a bit more comfortably?”
For goodness’ sake, I wanted to straighten my kneeling legs, and the sudden shift to formal speech was giving me goosebumps.
“Why are you acting like this…”
“…”
The Dark King fell silent for a moment before responding.
“Hmm.”
He then briefly groaned, shifting his body slightly.
As a result…
“…!”
Before I knew it, the Dark King’s dagger was poised at my throat.
No, it hadn’t touched me; he halted just before contact.
What’s going on?
It’s one thing that I didn’t heed the Dark King’s movement.
I was overwhelmed with a feeling of danger.
It felt as if he meant to kill me.
Yet for some reason, that attack stopped.
Feeling puzzled, I glanced at the Dark King, who retracted his dagger before speaking.
“I cannot harm you, nor can I act against my constraints.”
“…What happens if you don’t do that?”
“That is something I must do.”
Hmm.
In other words, the Dark King must perform such an action towards me, whether he wants to or not.
This means he couldn’t attack me.
Was this to demonstrate something?
I lightly brushed my cool neck.
I was somewhat irritated that I didn’t react in time.
“…Alright. I understand everything.”
Sure, I know there’s something cursed hanging over the Dark King.
I realized that he had become what he was, a dragon, and that I was brought into this because I’ve turned into a dragon.
“So, what exactly do you want from me, Senior?”
What does the Dark King desire from me now?
I needed to ascertain that accurately.
‘Did he ask me to lift his curse?’
He requested me to dissolve his curse. The Dark King asked me just that.
‘How the heck am I supposed to even do that?’
Even if I wanted to lift it, I had no method to aid him.
No, even if there was a method, I’d need to know it first.
‘How can I lift it if I’m unaware of the method?’
Given these circumstances, I was utterly unsure how to handle the situation.
Regarding this, the Dark King stated:
“He said that if you meet a dragon, the solution will be revealed. They would know the way.”
I frowned at those words.
Meeting a dragon would somehow resolve the issues?
“…Who said something like that?”
You’re saying that meeting a dragon would lift the curse? If a dragon placed the curse, then it’s logical that the dragon would remove it, but…
If someone has heard this, the situation is different.
It would imply that someone provided that information.
With a somewhat serious expression, I asked the Dark King.
“Taecheon.”
He promptly replied.
“The master of Taecheon said that.”
“Taecheon…Taecheon?”
His words caused my eyes to widen.
Taecheon…could it be?
“…Are you referring to the demonic realm located in the northeast?”
Taecheon’s demonic realm.
A realm that opens up in the border region of the Central Plains, near the Black Dragon River.
A place that doesn’t spill out demonic beings like ordinary demonic gates or True Demonic gates.
A few open demonic realms managed by the Martial Alliance.
That would be the farthest among them.
However…
‘The master, you say?’
The term “master” spoken by the Dark King…
That word struck me deeply. Here, “master” ultimately refers to.
‘The master of the demonic realm known as Taecheon.’
It would be akin to the master of the world.
So, the Dark King met the master of this realm called Taecheon.
He heard that he could lift the curse by meeting a dragon.
‘What kind of guy is he, exactly?’
It seems odd that an entity of a different world suddenly appeared and talked about dragons.
“That means…does it relate to why you’re here, Senior?”
“Yes.”
In response, the Dark King answered without hesitation.
The reason the Dark King was here.
While he surely had a request from the Lord of the Tent, I recalled something else first.
“What about the Black Dragon Sword?”
The clear reason I came to the event in this world.
It was the Dark King who obliterated the grotesque manifestation of the Black Dragon Sword in a single strike.
Did that also have some correlation?
“Taecheon said that to lift the curse, one must meet a dragon. Thus, he agreed to tell me the dragon’s whereabouts.”
Though his stiff formal speech continued to be very irritating, I didn’t point that out.
“That is what that bargain was for.”
“…That bargain?”
“To eliminate this aberrant Apostle.”
Apostle?
So, the answer regarding why he sought the Black Dragon Sword was tied to that.
‘Does this mean the Black Dragon Sword was the Apostle of Taecheon?’
By mere mention, it seems to represent the master of the demon world.
Thus, the Black Dragon Sword implies being the Apostle of that master. Without even considering how these events unfolded.
If that’s the case…
‘…Is that why the one they said was dead has come back to life?’
The Black Dragon Sword had met its end at the hands of the Sword Sovereign; now it lives again.
That its existence was intervened by some high being of the demon world fits the narrative somewhat.
Although I still had some questions lingering.
“Then, what’s the reason for you to avoid dealing with the Black Dragon Sword immediately?”
Why did the Dark King have to come to the Shining Sword Pavilion to eliminate the Black Dragon Sword?
I couldn’t wrap my head around that.
In response to my question, the Dark King slightly tilted his head and replied.
“That was the best method.”
“Excuse me?”
“Approaching the Black Dragon Sword was necessary. It just so happened that he sought my assistance. So, I utilized him.”
“…!”
Hearing the Dark King’s nonchalant words, I finally understood the ominous veil spread across the Shining Sword Pavilion at the time.
“…That was your doing?”
Every time I recalled it felt oddly familiar.
I didn’t consider it at all.
‘Is that the same technique used to kill me countless times?’
The veil that stretched overnight, claiming to assist in my training.
Is that what rendered the power I was witnessing back then similar to that?
Now it clicked why the Dark King had suddenly appeared at the Shining Sword Pavilion.
This was the underlying reason.
To seek information for finding a dragon.
To fulfill the request of Taecheon.
“…So that’s how you ended up meeting me?”
“Yes.”
At the Shining Sword Pavilion, he encountered me, resonating with him.
Finding it odd, he took on a request from the Lord of the Tent and then wound up unwittingly evolving and becoming a dragon.
So that was the implication.
‘Is there such a ridiculous coincidence?’
I mentally scolded myself for questioning that.
This was no coincidence.
There couldn’t be a chance it was just a fluke.
‘Taecheon…’
Maybe that enigmatic being was aware that I would become a dragon.
Thus, sending the Dark King in my direction to entangle with me.
This was mere speculation, but it felt oddly plausible.
‘Why did he eliminate the Black Dragon Sword?’
It was odd enough not to know what kind of guy he was. If the Black Dragon Sword was his Apostle, why eliminate it now?
‘…Taecheon was at the Black Dragon River.’
The only demonic realm accessible.
Of course, it was impossible to approach since numerous valiant clans were stationed there.
Yet it was comparatively straightforward to locate.
The distance may be a pain, but…
‘I ought to give it a go.’
I decided to plan a visit to that place.
Although it might not be feasible in the near future, it was worth putting on the list of things to do.
Moreover, given that the Dark King continued to respond, I could presumably gather information if I sought it.
But first, I needed to finish what we were initially discussing.
“I don’t know how to lift your curse.”
I answered honestly.
I didn’t want to feel as though I were lingering over something I couldn’t do.
“…”
As I spoke with those thoughts in mind, the Dark King’s expression remained unchanged.
What’s going on?
Is that all? I looked at the Dark King with a perplexed glare.
“It doesn’t matter.”
“…What?”
His reply made me momentarily halt.
Doesn’t matter?
The one who had just knelt down, pleading to lift the curse? What kind of strange nonsense is this?
“Should you be unable to lift my curse, I have another request.”
“Another one?”
So, he desires something other than lifting the curse?
“What is it?”
I inquired first.
I needed to know so I could either accept or decline.
Wearing a somewhat uncomfortable expression, I questioned the Dark King, who immediately answered.
Then…
“Right here and now”
I found myself holding my breath upon hearing the Dark King’s utterance.
“Please kill me.”
“…!”
His dry and tremulous voice spoke a shocking request.
This…
Seeing his expression and hearing those words made me realize that the Dark King’s original plea had apparently been something of this nature.
Both the request to lift the curse, and the current demand were essentially the same.
What the Dark King had desired all along was that.
He…
“Thus, I earnestly implore you to save me.”
He had been wishing for his own death from the beginning.
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