The Duke's Son :Re-Chapter 281

Boom!

The bunker vault door bulged with dents—

Boom! Boom!

As the door progressively warped, the sound of subsequent impacts grew to thunderous clarity in Geum Tae-Byeok’s ears. Sweat beaded his forehead as he silently cursed the smug face of his broker.

“Can withstand a nuclear blast,” my foot. That damn scammer must’ve skimped on the door’s black-iron content.

Black iron was a precious metal foreign to Earth. The cost per kilogram to import it from gates was astronomical, but the metal’s properties were equally outstanding—and chief among which was its raw durability; no earthly materials were as hard or as tough as black iron.

A metallic screech pierced Geum Tae-Byeok’s ears, breaking him from his thoughts.

Is that...?

The tip of a ruby sword jutted from the vault door, the tip withdrew, and a large circle of metal flew free from the door.

Jae-Hyeok lowered his foot and walked in.

Geum Tae-Byeok swallowed.

That red sword...

From surviving the Five Elements Reversal array to cutting a hole in his vault door as if it were paper—Jae-Hyeok’s means were completely incomprehensible to Geum Tae-Byeok. He was a count with rich connections and profoundly deep pockets. He’d spent years in study, and years more brokering information with his S-class colleagues. Yet none of it had prepared him for this.

“You... are you really sixteen years old?” Geum Tae-Byeok’s voice trembled as he retreated. Countless “what ifs” and “hows” coursed through his mind, and, fueled by fear, the answers Geum Tae-Byeok arrived at grew increasingly wild—until he blurted: “Are you a regressor? Is this your second or third life?”

It was a setting Geum Tae-Byeok had only heard of in novels, but how else could he explain Jae-Hyeok’s present power?

“There’s no way a brat like you could climb so high—not unless you know the future and have been stealing opportunities for yourself! No, no, no! I will not bow to fate. Even if you are favored by the gods themselves, I will not yield!”

Geum Tae-Byeok unleashed his aura, and it swept out with a woosh. Couches slid and chairs flipped; filing cabinets keeled over, and stacks of research papers and blueprints crashed over the floor—only to be sucked into the air, shredded and scattered like confetti.

As a titled count, Geum Tae-Byeok's aura indeed lived up to his accomplishments. Even among the S-class, his energy was exceptionally dense.

Jae-Hyeok finally spoke.

“How about starting with an apology?”

Anger smoldered in the depths of Jae-Hyeok’s cold, cutting tone.

For how many years had the Geum family harassed him? For how many years had they schemed for the Kang family’s lineal techniques?

The answer was too many.

Geum Tae-Byeok’s eyes bulged, and the veins within burst like fireworks.

“Y-you! How dare you speak of apologies after killing my son and wreaking ruin across my estate!”

Geum Tae-Byeok’s mana churned with greater force as his anger grew. Soon, even the heavier objects took to the air, suspended in his aura.

“You remember my deeds well. I wonder why you can’t remember your own.”

Jae-Hyeok took note of several hovering pieces of furniture and large decorations, all of which happened to obstruct Jae-Hyeok’s line of sight.

How could it be a coincidence?

Geum Tae-Byeok was an S-class veteran who’d roamed the earth for nearly a hundred years. His wild aura seemed to be an extension of his rage, but Jae-Hyeok was immediately suspicious.

He’s definitely scheming something. There’s also the mystery of his vanishing aura.

Geum Tae-Byeok had managed to slip away from Jae-Hyeok’s notice during the morning’s ceremony—something an S-class player should have been incapable of doing.

Is he really just an S-class player, or is he actually a high-level transcendent who’s concealed himself... Jae-Hyeok still didn’t know, so he assumed the worst; I should finish this in a single blow if possible.

The greatest strength of Kang-style swordsmanship was its speed—so much so that the first draw of his sword always caught opponents unprepared. Of course, the technique’s focus on speed was also why his Kang family’s sword-drawing technique favored a brief, aggressive style. After all, the more drawn out the battle, the more likely his opponents were to adjust and adapt to the speed of his sword-draw.

If Geum Tae-Byeok was really a high-level transcendent, then the failure or success of Jae-Hyeok’s first strike could mean the difference between victory and defeat.

Just once.

Jae-Hyeok took a deep breath and cycled his mana according to his Kang family’s mana control technique. Mana coursed into his sword arm, into his caves, and into the intricate web of muscles that supported his waist.

Outwardly, Jae-Hyeok’s aura was as calm as a lake—betraying no sign of what was to come.

Meanwhile, Geum Tae-Byeok continued to prattle.

“You vicious brat. Tell me what you did with my son. Is he buried on your estate?”

“His remains? Sorry, I melted him down. Go outside, and you might catch a whiff of him.”

“You son of a bitch!”

The pain of lost family...

With his mother’s passing, his father’s coma, and his siblings' departure, Jae-Hyeok knew this pain better than anyone. He knew how deeply it could cut.

However, he couldn’t sympathize with Geum Tae-Byeok.

Geum Tae-Byeok and his son had reaped their own fates. They’d plotted against his Kang family and harbored vicious designs for Jae-Hyeok himself.

Therefore, the end of Geum Tae-Byeok’s son, as well as the coming end of Geum Tae-Byeok, was as it should be.

“My son! My successor! You killed him and didn’t even spare his corpse!”

Geum Tae-Byeok roared, his face a perfect mask of anger. And yet, the furniture suspended in his “chaotic” aura remained hovering where they were—perfectly stable, and perfectly obstructing Jae-Hyeok’s field of view.

Jae-Hyeok narrowed his eyes. As I thought, he’s been calm from the start.

“There will be no traces of you left in this world!” Geum Tae-Byeok swung his arm just as a whip manifested in his grasp, the tail of which disappeared behind the floating furniture like a streak of light—snaking around and between floating couches, cabinets, and end tables—before lashing at Jae-Hyeok’s face from a blind angle.

Just then, the large cones floating around Jae-Hyeok also flared with an eerie light—Jae-Hyeok had taken them to be decorative ornaments when, in fact, they were arcane obelisks of Geum Tae-Byeok’s own design. Synced to his aura, the obelisks channeled Geum Tae-Byeok’s mana both to emit Auditory Hallucination, Blindness, and Coercion area-of-effect debuffs within a ten-meter range and to cast Fighting Spirit and Continuous Hits buffs on Geum Tae-Byeok himself.

[Your fighting spirit is boiling. All stats have increased by 10%.]

[Your attacks will deal damage to the target twice.]

Confidence returned to Geum Tae-Byeok’s eyes as he watched the scene unfold. Having activated the arcane obelisks, the advantage was his.

“So what if you are a National Treasure?”

A National Treasure was still a human.

If they were whipped, their flesh and muscles would tear and their bones would split, just like any man or woman.

“Hahaha. Die, brat!”

***

In the dark vault of Jae-Hyeok’s mind...

—Father? He’s nothing but a corpse with a pulse. He was a failure at life, and he is a failure at death. Don’t ask me to watch him. Don’t ask me to stay. Little Brother, this is goodbye.

......

—Child, did you miss Mom?

......

—Son, it hurts... It hurts so, so much! Hurry and give me the elixir! Hurry, hurry, hurry!

[You are hearing voices.]

[Your vision has darkened.]

[The will of another sways you: all stats decreased by 30%.]

A nightmarish cacophony of laughing and wailing voices filled Jae-Hyeok’s mind. At the same time, his body grew heavy, and a black haze covered his eyes, darkening and blurring his vision. He felt as if he were being crushed from all directions.

But it lasted only a moment.

[Your constitution stirs.]

[You have resisted the following: Auditory Hallucination, Blindness, and Coercion.]

Jae-Hyeok’s honed mind and body had always been the bane of debuff magic, and after transcending, that fact had only become more true. Let alone the low-level Auditory Hallucination and Blindness debuffs, even the high-level Coercion debuff didn’t stick.

The world came rushing back to Jae-Hyeok, and the first thing he felt was the wind from the approaching whip.

Boom!

Jae-Hyeok’s aura erupted and in a flash—he was gone.

The laugh died on Geum Tae-Byeok’s lips and, stiffening, he looked down only to see a ruby sword jutting from his chest, clean through his heart.

A pale arm slowly withdrew the sword.

“E-eh...?” As Geum Tae-Byeok struggled to register the situation, Jae-Hyeok’s cold voice entered his ears.

“I could’ve just taken your head off with this strike, but that would’ve been swifter than you deserved.”

“Deserve?” Geum Tae-Byeok bared bloody teeth. “Brat, you won’t meet a good end. Your arrogance will be your end.”

Jae-Hyeok met Geum Tae-Byeok’s wild eyes, and his own dulled; In the end, the old man showed not a shred of remorse...

“A waste of parting words.”

Whatever, I suppose this way it’s easier to hate you, Jae-Hyeok thought, and following a flicker of red, Geum Tae-Byeok’s head fell from his shoulders and the light fled from his eyes—yet in that final moment of life, the old man’s gaze subtly shifted to something just behind Jae-Hyeok.

Jae-Hyeok immediately reacted.

But it was too late.

The instant he spun around, a cold sword light swept across his chest, opening a massive, bloody furrow that spanned from waist to shoulder.

A voice followed. “You lowered your guard. Don’t blame me for taking advantage.”

“Cough!”

Blood poured from Jae-Hyeok’s chest.

Had he been even 0.01 seconds slower to react, he would’ve died then and there.

Jae-Hyeok stepped back and summoned a potion after sheathing his sword—yet his hand never left the hilt, and his eyes never left the man before him.

His intuition told him that showing even the smallest opening could spell his end.

The man glanced at Geum Tae-Byeok’s severed head and sighed. “I should’ve stepped in earlier. Alas, I overestimated Geum Tae-Byeok’s skills.”

“Chivalrous Yamamoto?”

Chivalrous Yamamoto, a Japanese National Treasure and a top-level contender for the title of world’s strongest...

According to the rumors, he had acted with chivalry during his days as a nameless player, earning himself a reputation as one of the few who walked the path of justice.

Many players believed Chivalrous Yamamoto was on course to earn a saint title and join the likes of the Sword Saint and Bow Saint.

Why was he in a place like this?

Jae-Hyeok was confused, then confusion turned to surprise as Yamamoto slowly swept his sword through the air and completely vanished from view... No, not just from view; Jae-Hyeok couldn’t sense him at all.

“...I see.”

So that’s how Geum Tae-Byeok escaped me during the appointment ceremony.

Jae-Hyeok tightened his grip on Iyagurt.

“From the beginning, you’ve been using Geum Tae-Byeok as bait. What grudge is there between you and my Kang family?”

Jae-Hyeok drew Iyragurt and cast Thunderbolt Sword as he spoke. Lightning energy filled the air, and golden arcs snapped and danced before locking onto a certain direction.

Yamamoto met lightning with sword, but in doing so, his concealment faltered and he reappeared.

“What... do you mean by that?” Yamamoto wore his confusion openly, yet the response he received was a flurry of red sword shadows.

Clang! Claaaang!

Every time Jae-Hyeok and Yamamoto’s swords clashed, lightning branched wildly from the point of impact.