Reincarnated as the Adopted Son of a Prestigious Swordsmanship Family

Chapter 48: Return

“I’m leaving.”

“Contact me. Whenever you have time. Reporting was mandatory, wasn’t it.”

“Yes. I know.”

As he took a step, the space changed.

The feeling of floating, the incongruous sensation, regained its sense of reality. The air and the view were familiar.

Simurtr took a deep breath and looked to the side. As soon as she arrived, Semenu left the annex. She had said she would leave immediately after finishing her business with Sword Master Orde and Aran.

She had said she would return when her work was done, but… well, he didn’t know how long it would take. Semenu hadn't said anything about her work.

Beep. Beep. Beep.

The quiet annex suddenly became noisy. Beeeeep! The noise grew louder. Simurtr furrowed his brow at the sudden noise.

“So you’ve appeared.”

A rather heavy voice was booming. A few people burst out through the door that had been half-smashed open. Simurtr looked at the first one to pass through.

“Jahar?”

“Oppa! Don’t block the way!”

Then, Jahar’s body was sent flying diagonally. Someone had rammed him with their shoulder from behind.

“Ael?”

“It’s dangerous!”

“Meram?”

The sword aura that had been shimmering around Jahar and Ael disappeared. Meram, whose eyes he met last, turned off her magic.

“…Young Master?”

“Simyun?”

“Little brother! You’re safe!”

Meram dropped her orb with a dazed expression.

Ael called his name in relief. Jahar hugged him tightly.

“What is this…?”

This situation, Simurtr couldn't understand.

***

After the 6th Sword Order returned, the Grand Council Hall was convened accordingly. The Black Snake of Degrate was searching for traces all over the main house.

Because Janya and Beden had disappeared, and Elder Kelken had died in the process.

“Ah, so they’re going to target me?”

“Yes. Since you made the biggest contribution.”

“And they say the culprit always returns to the scene of the crime. If they come again, we surmised it would be the annex where you are staying.”

“That makes sense. And just then, the alarm magic went off, so you came to check, and it was me.”

“That’s right, Young Master.”

It was said that Simurtr came to mind next.

Since the intruder who had helped Janya and Beden escape was likely on Janya’s side, it was obvious they would target Simurtr, who had caused this incident.

It was a plausible story to Simurtr’s ears as well. Now that Janya was gone, he was now the only clue that could track the intruder or his faction.

“I shouldn't have stayed in Degrate. No. I should have just walked.”

Simurtr found that fact quite regrettable. The one who had gotten away in Huit had been bothering him so much.

He had to find the beast anyway. For the sake of the main house and Degrate, and personally as well. They were the ones who had aimed for his life, and he had no intention of leaving any future trouble.

“But Kelken is dead?”

The former 4th Head of the Sword. Kelken, who was called a blood fiend rather than a sword demon in the Doom War. He had been living in the Senate of Elders and had become responsible for Beden’s education in a hut on the Sacred Mountain.

“The Kelken I know? The former 4th Head of the Sword?”

“Yes. That’s why the Grand Council Hall was convened. Since he’s not someone who would go down easily.”

It was a situation Simurtr agreed with. Even though he had retired, so easily? It was impossible with just a degraded Phantasmal Ability.

“Evaporation. That’s what the Black Snake of Degrate said.”

Ael said. Evaporation. In that industry, it was high praise.

“Don’t tell me, the Sword Master?”

“…Why is father coming up.”

Ael and Meram frowned at the same time.

Sword Master Orde was worried about Janya. That’s why he had said it. Fortunately, Jahar didn’t understand.

“The suspect is.”

“I don’t know. He was living in a corner of the Sacred Mountain. So the discovery was late.

Elder Kelken was someone who really disliked interference.”

At Simurtr’s words, the three nodded. It seemed even Meram had been mobilized. Unlike swordsmen, magic was useful in many ways.

“But you couldn't find anything?”

“Yes, no traces of magic were found at the scene.”

“But Degrate couldn’t find anything either?”

The three nodded. Did that make sense? Simurtr tilted his head. In his opinion, the most likely suspect was a Phantasmal Ability user.

In that case, the Black Snake should have found traces of Phantasmal Ability.

“Yes, since there are no Phantasmal Ability users.”

“There are no Degrate bloodkin in the Black Snake?”

“They said they were dispatched from the main house, but they haven’t arrived yet. We thought you would come with them, Young Master.”

“Ah.”

The reason Simurtr had arrived so quickly was thanks to Semenu, who was on par with a Phantasmal Ability user. Unless the dispatched person was Jiaren, they couldn't match that speed.

‘It would be different if Jiaren brought them.’

Simurtr thought of Jiaren. Was she the type to allow transportation? No. Personality aside, she had said that Degrate’s movement technique required a mark.

Jiaren had never visited Mectera. Aran and Jiaren, who shared the same headache, had held their meetings in an objective place, not Mectera.

“Still, they should know, shouldn’t they? Since they belong to Degrate, after all.”

Regardless of the presence of bloodkin, it should be a matter of course. They would be the next most familiar with Phantasmal Ability after the Degrate bloodkin.

“How many days has it been?”

“Three?”

“Damn it. But they can’t feel it?”

He had thought about resting a bit when he returned.

“Follow me. I’ll find it for you.”

Leading the three, Simurtr left for the Sacred Mountain.

***

“Simyun, you? Can you really find it?”

“Phantasmal Ability is a covert power, they said.” Read full story at novelꞁire.net

The siblings chattered beside him.

“Of course. You think I stayed in Degrate for no reason? I’ve experienced it to death.”

Simurtr did not reveal the fact that he had learned Phantasmal Ability. He would ask Aran to keep it a secret, and he wouldn't tell the main house.

‘They would all go crazy.’

A child of Mectera learning an external power? And an assassin’s at that? The aftermath when it was revealed was a pain just to imagine. Medeoban might even foam at the mouth.

“No matter how sensitive you are, I don’t think this will work……”

“I agree.”

Meram agreed with Ael’s words.

“That’s because you guys haven’t experienced it. Once you get a little used to it, you can feel everything.”

He might be able to reveal the Phantasmal Ability to Meram and Ael. If Jahar found out, he would have a fit, screaming ‘Little brother!’, but Ael would probably just accept it.

“I don’t think so……”

“I’m telling you it’s true. As long as the gap isn’t extreme, it all works. I’ll tell you later.”

Now that the possibility of magic had been eliminated by Meram, the most likely culprit was Phantasmal Ability.

‘I’ve seen a user in person. It’s not strange for his comrades to use Phantasmal Ability too.’

Only one person, whom he had luckily killed, possessed Phantasmal Ability? Simurtr didn't like such hopeful assumptions.

There would be more of them with degraded Phantasmal Ability. It was more comfortable to assume so.

‘Kelken is dead.’

Kelken’s death added credibility to the assumption. The one who had fled from Huit was not that skilled. If he had been, he wouldn't have been caught in the Sword Net.

The fact that the degraded Phantasmal Ability user from Huit had committed suicide as soon as he was caught also supported this. It was proof that the enemy was a group. And one that included a strong person capable of killing Kelken.

‘Sacred Mountain.’

Mectera often used that mountain for training. Right now, Kelken was also teaching Beden in a corner of the Sacred Mountain.

This meant the magic power was dense. So, the remnants of magic power would also remain strong. Meram’s words that there were no traces of magic were probably true.

Then what about Phantasmal Ability? Of course, the remnants would still be there.

‘A degraded Phantasmal Ability without Asha is nothing special.’

The snakes of Degrate might not know, but Simurtr did. Asha. He had personally confirmed and consumed its existence. He had awakened to Phantasmal Ability.

‘And there are two pieces of luggage.’

The traces were definitely there. Simurtr was almost certain. The heavier the weight carried, the clearer the footprints. It was no different for Phantasmal Ability. Especially if it was a degraded version.

‘First of all, there’s definitely Phantasmal Ability. Then what else?’

They escaped Mectera with just that crappy Phantasmal Ability without Asha? Without leaving any witnesses? Simurtr couldn't believe it. The Mectera duchy was larger than the capital.

‘There’s another means.’

If he found the traces of Phantasmal Ability and followed them, a new clue would surely emerge…….

“It’s Simurtr!”

There were quite a few people at the entrance of the Sacred Mountain, but Medeoban was the first to recognize Simurtr. Aran and Orde were with him.

“When did you arrive.”

“Your body. Was there any trouble?”

“I’m fine. I returned through a hidden Phantasmal Ability user.”

Simurtr replied to Medeoban and Orde. Medeoban was still suspicious, and Orde was pitiful.

He was closer to a wreck than a Sword Master.

“Where is the location?”

“What are you going to do there.”

“The snakes are not doing their job, are they? Where are they.”

“They are in the hut. But what did you say?”

“I think I can find it better.”

Medeoban and Orde were puzzled.

Taking over the snake’s role? Although the exception of a degraded Phantasmal Ability user had been revealed, Phantasmal Ability was still the domain of the Degrate bloodline. Even the closest Black Snake couldn't get a grasp on it.

“This way.”

Aran, who had shared a look with the two, led the way.

Through Simurtr’s attitude, Aran was convinced that he had come back after awakening to Phantasmal Ability.

“Young Master, was there any progress.”

“Of course. I’ll show you when we get there.”

“Showing it might be difficult.”

“Then don’t look.”

“I don’t want that.”

The conversation was vague, so the siblings and Meram couldn't understand exactly what Simurtr had been doing in Degrate.

It took quite some time to get to the hut where Kelken and Beden had stayed. Considering it was a walk using magic power, it was a considerable distance.

“What’s the cause of death?”

“His throat was slit.”

“A sword?”

“So it seems.”

“Whoever it is, he’s a disrespectful bastard.”

“I agree.”

If the opponent had truly wielded a sword, there was no way Kelken would have been defeated. Both Simurtr and Aran had that thought at the back of their minds.

Though he had weakened, he was still the Head of the Sword Kelken. A former Head of the Sword of Mectera had his throat slit by a sword? No one in Mectera would believe it.

“The cut?”

“It was extremely rough.”

“So he doesn’t even know how to use a sword?”

“So it seems.”

After killing him, he made the cause of death look like a sword. And that too, sloppily, without any care. It meant the enemy was mocking Kelken, mocking Mectera.

This was the holy land of the sword. Kelken was an elder who had been a Head of the Sword.

“They’re asking for death.”

It wasn't because every Tom, Dick, and Harry was looking down on Mectera. If that had been the case, he would have let it slide.

Simurtr remembered the Kelken he had met on the battlefield. They didn't have a deep relationship, but he knew he was not a swordsman who deserved such treatment. The murders he had enjoyed had never been committed against his allies.

“There it is.”

Soon, Aran’s guidance became unnecessary. People dressed entirely in black were scanning the surroundings in a line.

‘Anyone can see they’re the Black Snake.’

The hut should be beyond them. Simurtr walked ahead.

Asha was in his heart. This meant he was qualitatively different from the Black Snake, who had only been frequently exposed to phantasms.

‘I’m the most sensitive one here.’

Simurtr focused on his spread Sword Net. 5 meters. Within that short range, countless pieces of information reached him.

The abundant mana of the Sacred Mountain was the basis. On top of that, various things were painted over.

Someone was heightening their eyesight with magic power and examining an innocent tree, while another was activating magic power on useless bushes and the ground…….

“Everyone, back off.”

Simurtr said with a frown. It was too chaotic. There were too many people using magic power. Most of it was from the Black Snake.

“Who are you.”

Someone who heard Simurtr’s words approached.

“Mectera, of course. And you? The leader of the Black Snake?”

“I am the vice-leader of the Black Snake. I believe this scene has been entrusted to our Black Snake.”

As he spoke, he looked at Aran. The entrustment of the scene had already been approved by the Mectera side.

“You, you don’t know me?”

Simurtr said. The vice-leader of the Black Snake was a pretty high position. Jiaren had already informed the clan of Simurtr’s Asha consumption.

“I do not.”

“Really? Jiaren… no, the Phantasm didn’t tell you?”

Degrate’s guidelines would have changed too. Whether she liked it or not, Jiaren was in a position where she had to get on his good side.

“Simurtr Mectera, you really don’t know?”

“The hidden Phantasm’s……”

As Simurtr pointed to his face with his finger, the vice-leader gasped.

As expected. The Phantasm had a means to immediately disseminate information to the snakes under her command. The story about him would have flowed to the Black Snake as well.

“Now you know what I’m going to do, right?”

“…Yes! I will withdraw them immediately. Please call for us when you need us.”

At the vice-leader’s gesture, the Black Snake members flew away. They were too quick to understand. When he blinked once, the Black Snake members were already far away.

‘What on earth did Jiaren say.’

Simurtr turned his head back. It was the direction the vice-leader had run off to, but when their eyes met, he bowed his head low.

“See. I’m this important.”

Simurtr said to his bewildered party. He didn't know what was going on either, but what was good was good.

“…You didn't cause any trouble there, did you?”

Ael, who was watching, said. Beside her, Jahar and Meram nodded. It was a truly novel sight. Degrate listening to Mectera’s orders.

“If I had, would they have accepted it so readily?”

“Then why are they acting like that?”

“Degrate likes me.”

“Why?”

“I don’t really know that either.”

The siblings and Meram couldn't understand the reality. It was a separate issue from them listening to him.

The man who was the vice-leader of the Black Snake had become too polite as soon as he heard Simurtr’s name.

“…Did you get some kind of position in Degrate?”

Aran, who knew the truth, also spoke.

No matter how much he had obtained Asha, wasn't that reaction too excessive?

“Aran, you go a bit further away too. You’re the noisiest one here.”

If he were to focus on the Sword Net, the most distracting thing was Aran. His magic power was so large that he couldn't focus on anything else.

“Alright.”

Aran moved out of the Sword Net’s range. After confirming that the siblings and Meram had also left, Simurtr focused on the Sword Net again.

Phantasmal Ability was something he already knew, but he had now acquired the concept himself. After mastering Phantasmal Ability, the Sword Net had become even denser.

This meant his senses had expanded further. The Sword Net, which had only been sensitive to magic power, was now also sensitive to phantasms.

‘A degraded version without Asha.’

A phantasm is a covert thing. Then what about a degraded version?

It was extremely crude. He had experienced it directly in Huit, and no matter the intruder’s level, it wouldn't be much different.

Asha was in his heart, and he had already experienced Jiaren’s phantasm. He had been exposed to Semenu’s even more.

‘In this era, there is no Phantasmal Ability user superior to those two.’

This meant he had already experienced the greatest covertness of the era. And he could guarantee that the intruder’s was no match for theirs.

Simurtr slowly moved his steps. In the front yard of the hut, a bloodstain was clear. To be precise, it was soil that had already been eaten by the blood.

‘The body was found here.’

That blood was Kelken’s. His severed neck and body were said to have been on that ground. But the only thing he could feel in that spot was the magic power of the Sacred Mountain.

If the battle had really taken place here, if it was certain that Kelken had died here… then traces of the phantasm should have been found along with that bloodstain.

‘It’s not here.’

Not the hut. The place where the battle took place was elsewhere. Simurtr moved his steps.

“What. Did you really find something?”

“Shh. Little brother, the youngest is concentrating.”

Outside the Sword Net, Aran, Meram, and the siblings followed him quietly.

“As expected of the hidden Phantasm’s lover……”

The vice-leader of the Black Snake muttered quietly. The Black Snake group was also following behind Simurtr.

‘Here.’

…How far had he walked? It wasn’t that far.

But it probably wasn't a place the Black Snake had reached. The Black Snake was still focused on the scene. They didn't follow blindly.

The snakes of Degrate moved based on clear evidence. It was a time when they would still be searching for traces at the scene.

‘They would have been more obsessed since the family’s divine power might have been involved.’

Simurtr stopped and placed his hand on the pommel. The black medium. Magic power rotated through his circuits.

After one rotation, it returned to his heart. The magic of the Star breaker flowed through the imprint of Asha engraved on his heart.

A white phenomenon color bloomed above the pommel. If he changed his intention here, it would become a phantasm. A small Simurtr walked on the pommel.

‘One more time.’

The same process was repeated. To be precise, up to the part that flowed through Asha’s imprint.

Then, when the white phenomenon color bloomed again.

‘If I fail here.’

If he didn't focus on his intention, if he became distracted. That is, if he didn't think of a concrete phantasm.

‘Like this.’

He fails. The phantasm, which had taken on the phenomenon color and was about to be materialized, wavered next to the small Simurtr.

The magic power that was about to be converted into a phantasm lost its shape and became chaotic. What was neither magic power nor a phantasm was incorporated into the mana of the Sacred Mountain.

…Those incongruous fragments were scattered everywhere. The remnants of a phantasm that should have disappeared long ago, but remained because it was the Sacred Mountain.

Simurtr followed those scattered things. Like a milestone, they showed the direction. They were distributed evenly along a single line.

‘They moved while materializing a phantasm.’

But like a degraded version, it wasn't covert.

The destination was the hut. The place where Kelken’s body had been. A procession was walking that path in reverse. The party and the Black Snake moved, following Simurtr.

“Blood.”

The voice came from behind. It was not something that flowed into the ears of the focused Simurtr. The vice-leader of the Black Snake pointed to the ground. Blood-soaked soil came off on his finger.

They moved the body. The battle took place elsewhere. The fact that only Simurtr had seen through it was now realized by those who were following him.

‘Blood. Since Phantasmal Ability can’t exert physical force unless it’s the materializer.’

He could hide his own traces as much as he wanted, but the traces left by Kelken. He couldn't keep hiding those. The materializer had already left Mectera.

…The traces grew thicker. The blood that had stained the ground began to form a path. It was to the point where he didn't even need to focus on the Sword Net.

‘Why did they move it.’

The reason they had moved Kelken’s body to the hut and tried to stage the scene of the battle by squeezing blood from the corpse.

‘Why? Because the means of escape wasn't Phantasmal Ability? To hide that?’

Arriving at the true battle site, Simurtr realized the reason.

“…Warp.”

Meram, who had arrived a moment later, muttered. It was the Sacred Mountain of Mectera, one of the most famous in the empire.

Although it was a degraded version, it was a place where even the traces of the most covert Phantasmal Ability remained, so the traces of magic… Of course.

“There are traces of a warp. It was to buy time for the traces of the intrusion and escape to disappear.”

Because if magic was activated in Mectera, not the Sacred Mountain, there was no way the swordsmen wouldn't know. There was no way there wouldn't be a witness within the territory.

“Magic Tower.”

The Hero Family, Basor. That damn traitor’s group.

The warp was theirs. The symbol of the Magic Tower, which was called the counter to the Doom Species’ rifts in the past, before they developed the formula for the Magic Gate.