SFRW-Chapter 263

Ch. 263 Sword God From The Ruined World

– It seems I expected far too much from you.  

At Barhaut’s words, which bordered on reproach, Luam, kneeling on one knee before him, shook his head.  

“That is not the case.”  

– Not the case?  

A subdued anger seeped into Barhaut’s tone.  

“I will capture him with my own hands and make him pay. Please trust me and wait just a little longer.”  

Luam’s voice, as he asked for trust, carried more confidence than desperation.  

– Hmm.  

Barhaut, who understood Luam’s situation, responded with a brief hum.  

Now, even Vampica had been killed.  

The fact that their opponent had surpassed one of the Six Seats was no small matter.  

Yet, Luam answered with unwavering confidence, so Barhaut had no choice but to trust and wait.  

“There is one favor I’d like to ask of you.”  

– A favor?  

Luam was someone who usually resolved everything on his own, so Barhaut was curious about what he could possibly request.  

“I ask for Vipiens’s assistance.”  

At the mention of Vipiens, Barhaut fell silent as if struck by disbelief.  

Though Barhaut bore titles like Dimensional Conqueror and Planet Destroyer, even he found Vipiens an exceedingly troublesome existence.  

Moreover, without the Gem of Authority, facing Vipiens was far from pleasant.  

And now, Luam was asking for his help?  

– I’ll consider it.  

Barhaut couldn’t outright refuse, so this was the only answer he could give.  

“Thank you.”  

As Luam bowed and left, Barhaut, now alone, tapped the armrest of his chair.  

– Vipiens…  

Barhaut’s most formidable enemy was none other than Vipiens.  

A being who had lived for over 7,000 years, the power he had accumulated over that time was something Barhaut—without the Gem of Authority—could hardly contend with.  

Yet, the sole reason Vipiens remained under Barhaut’s rule was a single, fatal shackle binding him.  

– Luam must know this, hence his request…  

Still, Barhaut preferred to avoid invoking Vipiens’s power unless absolutely necessary.  

Now, burdened with yet another dilemma due to Luam’s plea, Barhaut sank deeper into thought.  

***

“This place is a complete mess.”  

The Gauman Kingdom.  

The Bamut Kingdom.  

The Barbar Kingdom.  

The guardian planet of Barhaut, where Seo Do-jun and his party had newly arrived, was embroiled in a three-way war—a land where blood never dried.  

“You know what’s the most insane part, Uncle?”  

Choi Kang-soo, who had gone to gather information at a local tavern, spoke in disbelief as he shared what he’d learned.  

“The so-called ‘Emperor’ is the root cause of this entire three-way war.”  

“Emperor?”  

“The guy who ruled the continent before it split into three. As you’d expect, he’s Barhaut’s loyal dog.”  

“So, he’s the Administrator.”  

Choi Kang-soo nodded, chugging his beer before continuing.  

“Anyway, this mad Emperor split the once-unified continent into three.”  

“By himself? Why?”  

“Because he hated the peace that had settled over the land. He ordered three of his subordinates to each establish a kingdom and even tore the land apart to divide it among them.”  

Choi Kang-soo’s expression twisted in disgust.  

“So… to put it simply, he got bored, split the continent into three, and made them fight each other?”  

“Pretty much.”  

Choi Kang-soo gave a thumbs-up, impressed by Seo Do-jun’s summary.  

At first, the three kings obeyed out of fear, but humans don’t stay docile forever.  

Once they gained their own factions, it was only natural for them to start thinking differently.  

If they allied with the other two and overthrew the Emperor, wouldn’t they be able to rule their own kingdoms without war?  

When Seo Do-jun pointed this out, Choi Kang-soo explained:  

“The Emperor kept one force solely by his side—the Imperial Knights. They’re so powerful that even the combined might of the three kingdoms can’t oppose them. Rumor has it they’re not even human. The kings are too terrified to even dream of rebellion.”  

In essence, the Emperor had kept his true power hidden.  

“I don’t know how strong these Imperial Knights are, but does that justify slaughtering each other in endless war?”  

Seo Do-jun couldn’t fathom it.  

If death was inevitable either way, he’d rather choose how to die on his own terms.  

“The reward is that the unifier of the three kingdoms will be named the Emperor’s successor.”  

“Ah…”  

That changed things.  

The promise of succession—a legitimate claim to power backed by the Emperor’s might—was a tempting enough prize to risk everything in this bloody puppet show.  

It was a common tale.  

If you scaled it down, it was just a family feud—except the stakes were an entire continent.  

Absurd as it sounded, it was only possible because Barhaut had already conquered this world.  

“There are conditions to the war, too.”  

“Conditions?”  

“Never cease fighting for even a day. No restrictions on methods. No alliances.”  

These three rules were absolute.  

“No breaks? Is this Emperor a warmonger?”  

Choi Kang-soo scoffed.  

“Not just a warmonger—a complete psychopathic murderer. Even during Barhaut’s conquest, this Emperor butchered countless people to ‘prove his loyalty’.”  

And it didn’t stop there.  

After the conquest, the Emperor executed anyone who showed even a hint of rebellion—along with everyone connected to them.  

“They say the blood spilled under his rule rivals that of the conquest itself.”  

“So, where is this Emperor?”  

Seo Do-jun wanted to find and kill him immediately, ending this farce.  

But it wasn’t that easy.  

“No one knows where he is. The Imperial Knights vanish just as mysteriously.”  

That was what made him so feared.  

The kings lived in constant terror that the Emperor would appear the moment they disobeyed.  

“Then we’ll just have to stir the pot.”  

If they openly defied Barhaut, the Emperor would have to show himself, right?  

Choi Kang-soo and the others nodded in agreement.  

What could be easier than making the enemy come to you?  

“While we’re at it, I’d like to focus on Grichuk’s recovery too.”  

Rahuf glanced at Grichuk, who sat huddled in a corner, draped in a tattered mage’s robe.  

“Are there suitable targets?”  

Seo Do-jun asked if there were irredeemable souls—like the Emperor—to which Choi Kang-soo grinned.  

“They’re everywhere. Most of the three kingdoms’ people are like that, but the Barbar Kingdom is the worst.”  

“Barbar Kingdom?”  

“Savages. The kind who consider human flesh a staple food.”  

Choi Kang-soo suppressed a gag as he spoke.  

The more Seo Do-jun heard, the more he knew they couldn’t be forgiven.  

“Then we head to the Barbar Kingdom.”  

Their destination was set—to lure out the Emperor and restore Grichuk.  

***

Long ago, the Tamad Continent was home to savage tribes, each living by their own brutal codes.  

Historically, when these tribes united under a single warlord, even mighty kingdoms and empires trembled.  

During Barhaut’s conquest, these tribes had been the toughest foes—warriors who’d rather die than submit.  

The current Emperor was the one who broke them.  

A former savage warlord himself, he understood their nature and bent them to his will.  

Now, the Barbar Kingdom—the unified savage tribes—was the most aggressive in the three-way war.  

Barbar Kingdom Borderlands  

Over a thousand warriors feasted noisily, drinking and carousing around roaring bonfires.  

“Today’s efforts deserve celebration! Drink! Eat! Revel!”  

“Woooooh!”  

The warriors gulped down sour-smelling liquor from large bowls.  

Their feast included unidentifiable meat roasting over the flames.  

“So tender!”  

“This is the fuel we need to swing our blades tomorrow!”  

“Those weak Gauman and scheming Bamut dogs wouldn’t understand this taste!”  

The warriors tore into the meat—some charred, some still dripping blood—laughing raucously.  

“Ugh! Ugh!”  

Bound to wooden posts, prisoners writhed in terror.  

“Hey! Shut them up!”  

“I’ll do it!”  

A warrior, chewing on bloody meat, stood and hurled his handaxe.  

Thunk!  

It embedded itself in a prisoner’s forehead.  

“Hahaha! Nice throw! My turn!”  

Another drunken warrior staggered up, grabbed a spear, and threw it.  

Thud!  

It grazed a prisoner’s side before sticking into the post.  

“Missed? Hahaha!”  

Cursing, the warrior yanked the spear out and hacked off the prisoner’s arm.  

“Aaargh!”  

As the prisoner screamed, the warrior tossed the severed limb onto the fire.  

Watching from afar, Seo Do-jun had seen enough.  

He nodded to Rahf.  

War’s tragedies were nothing new, but this crossed a line.  

‘A cannibal feast, then feeding humans to dogs?!’  

This was unforgivable.  

Survival might justify desperate acts, but treating humans as mere livestock? Never.  

At Seo Do-jun’s signal, Rahf began murmuring an eerie incantation, a sinister smile playing on his lips.