Regressing as the Reincarnated Bastard of the Sword Clan

Chapter 194

The Sword Orb was in a precarious state, brimming with chaotic energy after absorbing the madness and malice from the Orb of Perdition. The sheer intensity of its accumulated power threatened to explode at any moment.

Fortunately, most of the vile energy had been expelled, preventing an immediate catastrophe.

Yet Kyle now proposed to unlock the latent energy within the Sword Orb.

“If left as it is, the orb will only continue to swell in size. Malicious energy becomes exponentially more dangerous the longer it festers,” Kyle explained.

“You’re telling me to conquer it,” Theo replied.

“So that when you face the Dragon Emperor, you won’t succumb to his influence. Besides…”

Kyle’s lips curled into a faint, sardonic smile.

“If you can’t overcome this, you hardly deserve to be called my son.”

Theo nodded, acknowledging the truth in his father’s words.

As the Heir Apparent, he knew he would face far more scrutiny and opposition than ever before—both within Ragnar and beyond.

The 18 Elector Houses, the Imperial Family, and the Sacred Demon Cult—all would watch for any opportunity to strike at Ragnar.

Even the Dragon Emperor was merely another obstacle Theo would have to overcome.

“Before fully unlocking the Sword Orb, I have one request,” Theo said.

“A request? What is it?”

“The Dragon Fang Blade, Hrunti. Please give it to me now.”

“Hrunti?” Kyle tilted his head, then smirked as he deduced Theo’s reasoning.

“You’re planning to use it as an exorcism tool to suppress the malice.”

“Yes,” Theo confirmed.

The Dragon Fang Blade, like its twin the Dragon Slayer Blade, was a weapon forged from the Leviathan’s rib and blessed by the Primordial Dragon.

If used properly alongside the Dragon Slayer Blade, it could serve as a powerful countermeasure.

“If I can pit the guardian of Hrunti against the malice in the Sword Orb, like I clashed the powers of the [Ring of the Desert] and the [Iceflower Butterfly], I can control it more smoothly,” Theo thought, a small smile forming on his lips.

?At it again, Master? Always with the schemes…?

?Hrunti, forged from the Leviathan’s rib… didn’t it carry the blessing of the Primordial Dragon??

?The guardian slumbering within Hrunti—it must be Nessie.?

?We might as well offer our condolences in advance.?

?Ragnar will always be Ragnar, no matter how refined they seem on the surface.?

The guardians murmured among themselves, though Theo ignored their chatter.

“Take it,” Kyle said, pulling a blade from the rack behind him and tossing it to Theo.

Theo caught it carefully.

Buzz! Woooong!

The Dragon Slayer Blade at Theo’s side hummed with excitement, as if overjoyed to reunite with its twin.

Fwoosh!

Theo brushed his fingertips along the glowing blade.

“Red light?”

The aura radiating from Hrunti was unlike the blue light he had seen on other artifacts.

As Theo attempted to initiate a quest to unlock its powers, a message suddenly appeared.

[The ownership of this item has already been assigned.]
[You cannot perform the quest.]

“What?!” Theo shot to his feet, startled by the unexpected notification.

“What’s wrong?” Kyle asked.

“This item… it seems its seal has already been broken once.”

“What does that mean? Are you saying someone other than the chosen wielder unlocked it?”

“Yes.”

“Impossible.”

Kyle frowned, his expression darkening.

He knew much about Ragnar’s secrets, though not as much as the chosen wielder.

“The Primordial Dragon’s artifacts can only be unlocked by the chosen wielder. If it’s been opened…” Kyle trailed off, realization dawning. “The Dragon Emperor. He must have done something. But how?”

When the chosen wielder’s regression ends, their eligibility is supposed to cease as well, meaning they would lose the right to use the Primordial Dragon’s artifacts.

That was why, despite countless artifacts appearing throughout history, only Theo could wield them.

If Hrunti had been unsealed, it could only mean that the Dragon Emperor had managed to restore—or partially reclaim—his status as a chosen wielder.

“He must be found and destroyed as soon as possible,” Kyle said, his tone grim. “If another regression takes place, the consequences would be disastrous.”

?Isn’t it impossible to take an artifact from its rightful owner?? one of the guardians asked.

?Not quite,? Lodbrok interjected, breaking his silence for the first time.

Although Lodbrok avoided channeling whenever Kyle was present, the urgency of the situation took precedence.

?Ultimately, the chosen wielder is just another Ragnar. The traditions of Ragnar were built by Sigurd, but the power behind them came from the Primordial Dragon. Ownership can be claimed by force.?

Fwoosh!

Suddenly, the red aura around Hrunti shifted, overlaid with a blue hue, blending into a violet glow.

?Take it by force, partner. Remember, you are the soul I, Lodbrok, have recognized.?

[A new claimant for ownership has appeared. A hidden mission has been initiated to seize ownership.]
[Quest Received.]

+

[Scenario Quest #10]
You have obtained the Dragon Fang Blade, Hrunti. Remove the current owner and claim ownership.

• Difficulty: SS
• Reward: Ownership of the Primordial Dragon’s artifact, enhanced Sword Orb energy.
• Failure Penalty: Death

Note: The item is heavily tainted by an unknown energy. Purification is required to claim ownership.

+

Screech!

An ear-splitting wail erupted from Hrunti as waves of madness and malice burst forth.

?So much for resolving this easily—you’ve only made things more difficult for yourself.?

“I know,” Theo muttered irritably to Certosucus, one of the guardians. Activating his [Insight], he focused on Hrunti.

The blade, darkened and corrupted by madness, seemed to cry out for salvation.

“They forcibly unsealed it, corrupted it, and claimed ownership. How long has this blade suffered?” Theo wondered, feeling a surge of both pity and resolve.

“Father.”

“…Then let’s begin,” Kyle replied.

Theo had called him “Father,” a word that made Kyle pause momentarily before he smiled and placed his hand on Theo’s head.

“Close your eyes.”

Theo obeyed.

As soon as the Sword Orb began to stir within his chest, the world around him flashed brightly—

And Theo’s consciousness went dark.

***

When Theo opened his eyes again, he found himself in a dark forest.

The towering trees above were so dense that it was impossible to tell if the darkness came from the thick canopy or from nightfall itself. The gloom enveloped the forest, making it hard to see even a step ahead.

“Where is the Dragon Emperor’s vestige? And the Guardian…?” Theo muttered.

This situation couldn’t be treated like a typical artifact quest.

With the Dragon Emperor’s vestige mixed in, the quest’s difficulty had undoubtedly skyrocketed. The SS-rank designation alone signaled a level of challenge Theo had never faced before.

Crunch, crunch!
Slurp, slurp!

“What’s that?”

Theo stopped, his enhanced hearing picking up the sounds of someone devouring food.

He infused his spiritual energy into his hearing, honing his senses until he pinpointed the source of the noise.

As he approached the source, Theo stepped into a small clearing.

There, he saw a man ravenously devouring piles of meat and food.

Bones, stripped clean, were stacked in a mound to his left, while the ground around him was littered with the butchered remains of monsters, their stench permeating the air.

The scene wasn’t terrifying—just grotesque.

Then Theo’s gaze fell on one particular corpse among the carnage.

It was a massive dragon, its body spanning over ten meters. Its elongated neck was particularly striking.

?Nessie!?

?…So, it’s dead.?

The Guardians’ voices were laced with shock, confirming that the slain dragon was indeed Nessie, the guardian of Hrunti.

“Then that man… is he the Dragon Emperor’s vestige?”

Theo cautiously drew the Dragon Slayer Blade.

Ziiing!

The blade resonated, seething with an intense rage unlike anything Theo had felt before.

“Huh?”

The man, sensing Theo’s presence, abruptly stopped eating and turned his head.

“Not the Dragon Emperor.”

Theo froze in his tracks.

The man’s face confirmed his suspicions—it wasn’t the Dragon Emperor.

While the figure’s overall appearance resembled a human, his face was grotesquely distorted.

Where his eyes should have been, a gaping maw chewed at chunks of meat. Meanwhile, where his mouth should have been, two wild, rolling eyes fixated on Theo.

The aura emanating from the man was unsettlingly unfamiliar.

It was similar to the energy of the Nameless Sovereign, but its essence was distinctly different.

“Slurp! Well, well! A new visitor? I didn’t expect this! How delightful!”

The man’s eyes, positioned beneath his jaw, rolled aimlessly, unable to focus.

His mouth, still chewing, somehow managed to laugh at the same time.

The grotesque display transcended mere horror, evoking a visceral revulsion from Theo.

“Hmm… But I can’t just let a guest go without a proper meal! Oh, look! I just caught this—care to join me for a bite?”

The man extended a chunk of meat dripping with blood, clearly uncooked.

?Step back, partner.?

Lodbrok materialized in front of Theo, shielding him. Her tense expression was one Theo had never seen before.

“Loddy?”

?That creature is far beyond what you can handle right now.?

“Who is he?”

Theo’s enhanced sight revealed the truth. The man was not a normal living being.

He was on par with the Nameless Sovereign.

No, not merely comparable—this being was a god.

“How can a being like this appear in a quest involving the Dragon Emperor’s vestige?” Theo asked, struggling to process the situation.

?That is an Outer God, as ancient as the Nameless Sovereign. A being even we Guardians struggle to contend with.?

“An… Outer God?”

Lodbrok nodded grimly.

?We call him the God of Gluttony, Ashin—a being perpetually consumed by insatiable hunger. No matter how much he eats, he is never full.?