The Return of the Iron-blood Sword Hound

Chapter 257: Sword Tomb (3)

From Cradle to Tomb.

A life governed solely by the blade—that’s the existence of the Baskerville hunting dogs, members of the Ironblooded Sword Clan.

“True Baskervilles are born in the ‘Cradle of Blades.'”

Everyone in the world knew about this fact.

…However, within the legends passed down within the family, there was a continuation of this story.

“True Baskervilles die in the ‘Tomb of Swords.'”

This was a faded inscription found on an old page of a history book. An ancient myth that everyone deemed fictional.

But the moment Vikir discovered this place, the ‘Sword Tomb,’ he sensed something different.

Among the proverbs handed down in the Baskerville family, there was not a single falsehood. Quite literally, ‘from the cradle to the tomb.’ The path of Baskerville is entirely made up of blades.

Vikir once again realized that it was the destiny of the Ironblooded Sword Clan hunting dogs.

Thump, thump, thump—

Vikir ascended the steep stairs inside the tower.

Each step resembled a sharp spearhead, rising high. If one were an ordinary person, they might not have recognized these as stairs.

While the inside of Mage Tower was mysterious, beautiful, and dreamlike, this tower was a desperately desolate, suffocating, and lonely space.

With every step, the feeling of flesh being cut by the surrounding granite and metamorphic rocks, rusted swords embedded here and there—numbing and slicing away.

Prickling sensations—countless blade tips, relentless sharp glares.

As he ascended, the feeling that his entire body was gradually shrinking overwhelmed him.

Worn away, carved, and chipped step by step, the stairs seemed to demand a heavy toll to climb.

If Vikir were not a Swordmaster, he would have died the moment he entered, with his entire body turned into minced meat.

Eventually, Vikir reached the upper part of the tower.

Countless blades were stabbed in, resembling the scenery of the ‘Cradle of Blades,’ but here, the atmosphere was much more brutal and sharp, filling the empty space.

…This was because of the old man seated on the central throne.

A throne of iron formed by sharp blades.

And there, a man in thick iron armor, with a long flowing gray beard, sat.

Under gray eyebrows, the place that should have been white was filled with empty darkness, and in the center, coldly burning, were red pupils that seemed like the finest rubies.

“…!”

Vikir quickly discerned the identity of this old man.

Cane Corso Le Baskerville.

Even Hugo, who killed all of his brothers to become Lord of the House, couldn’t win against him until the very end.

A former member of the Seven Counts from the chaotic era who had faced adversity and is the strongest among the current Seven Counts.

While the usual strength of the current counts ranged from Peak Graduator to almost touching the boundary of SwordMaster, it was never the case for Cane Corso.

Although Cane Corso was Hugo’s cousin, their ages differed by more than a generation.

He was already stronger than Hugo, who is a Swordmaster now, even before hiding from the world.

…Perhaps because of this?

Cane Corso never revealed his face at family events like banquets or family meetings, refusing all attendants, including stewards and knights.

He stayed uninvolved in any worldly matters and erased all traces of himself entirely in his final years, disappearing into seclusion.

So, his deeds were only preserved in historical records, filled with seemingly unreal events, to the point that even the direct descendants of the Baskerville family were skeptical if he was real or not.

However, when it came to Cane Corso, no one denied that he was the strongest swordsman in the Baskerville family.

“If my brother had ambitions for the family head position, I wouldn’t be sitting here now,” even Hugo, the greatest of them all, admitted it.

…On the other hand.

‘Indeed, he was here.’

Vikir quietly pondered this alone.

Before Vikir’s regression, there was a time when a horde of demons invaded, crossing the Red and Black mountains.

Their goal was, of course, to conquer the human realm.

After crossing the mountain range and gathering, they noticed that several legions were missing among the legions that should have been assembled.

The demons, and the Human Alliance both quickly tracked their whereabouts.

And soon, a surprising fact was revealed.

Countless, truly enormous numbers of demons attempted to cross the Yuni Salt Desert.

And they had all perished.

Of course, considering the presence of salt storms and Basilisk, it wasn’t unusual for a few legions to be annihilated. But the complete destruction of several legions was inexplicable.

So, a few squads were urgently dispatched to investigate the scene.

…However, not a single survivor among the demons who entered the Yuuni Salt Desert was found.

They were either missing or discovered as torn-apart, fragmented corpses. Even that was only found after being carried far away by the storm.

As a result, the Human Alliance concluded that something strong and unknown, something dangerous, existed in the Yuni Salt Desert.

After much deliberation among the great heroes crawling around putting their heads together for a long time, it was decided that the incident was caused by a very powerful Master, who had turned away from the world and lived in seclusion, Cane Corso.

‘…If a Baskerville hound died trying to deliver a letter, it seems Hugo already suspected that Cane Corso was here.’

So, Vikir had come here today as well.

Hugo Le Baskerville, a Swordmaster who mastered Baskerville 7th style, and Cane Corso, known to have already surpassed Hugo long ago.

Vikir sought to meet Cane Corso to find clues about Baskerville’s 8th style and to discover a way to surpass the Swordmaster.

‘And, of course, to obtain Ghostwood as a side benefit.’

Reading the book [The Return of the Magic Hound of Morg]. one can understand. Ghostwood grows here.

Furthermore, thanks to Vikir’s past life knowledge, he knew that Ghostwood was present in the Yuni Salt Desert.

Vikir recalled scenes from his past life…

‘At that time, countless lives were sacrificed to prevent Ghostwood from falling into the hands of demons.”

And using the lives sacrificed, Ghostwood grew even larger.

A tree that covered the entire desert, even more massive and taller than the entire range of the Red and Black Mountains.

It seemed like seeing the World Tree from mythology beneath the twisted branches that spread throughout the mountains.

Underneath, countless fruits were hung on the grotesque branches.

The fleshy fruits, shaped like dangling skulls, were filled with mana from the lower dimension, spurting out with blood-like juice when demons took a big bite. Simultaneously, agonizing screams filled with pain echoed loudly.

Ghostwood Fruits. Spectral Flesh.

When a demon devoured the fruit in one bite, thick mana from the lower dimension gushed out along with the blood-like juice, creating a painful scream, “Kyaahh,” reminiscent of a row of corpses hanging by their necks.

The Demons, who were all dying, would be again ready to fight and were more powerful than before, as a single bite of Spectral flesh would completely revive them.

The Ghostwood provided tremendous strength to the demon legions, simultaneously turning into a catastrophe for the Human Alliance.

“…”

Vikir concluded his reminiscence.

To his surprise, behind the Iron Throne of countless assembled swords, something obscure came into view.

That was it. That was the Ghostwood.

Other than that, there seemed to be no tree worthy of being called Ghostwood in the world.

A tree nourished by the resentment, cries, and despair of the dead. The skeletal-shaped fruit, filled with the power of the deceased, grew from the nourishment of hatred and agony.

The way it branched and climbed was so eerie that it sent chills down Vikir’s spine, even someone like him.

Still small, but given time, it would cast a shadow darker and larger than any other shadow in this world.

On the other hand, Cane Corso raised his head. In a voice as heavy as molten lead, he spoke.

“This is the Sword Tomb. The place where those who pursue the essence of the sword eventually come.” His black eyes with ruby-like iris, made him look young and handsome.

Vikir’s curious expression was noticed.

“…Kid, who are you?”

Cane Corso was much older than Hugo and technically Vikir’s great-uncle.

But he didn’t bother respecting the family’s laws or hierarchy. That’s why he could unsheathe his sword so freely.

“Find out for yourself.”

Vikir had only one interest: the path to Baskerville 8th Style and the Ghostwood fruits blossoming behind the Iron Throne.