The Hero Becomes the Duke’s Eldest Son

Translator: Marctempest
Editor: Rynfinity

Chapter 73

The strike vertically slashed through the basilisk’s body.

Kiaaaaaaa!

The basilisk’s agonized scream echoed as the black knight’s lightning-infused slash struck. The creature’s thick scales and skin tore apart, revealing its bones and internal organs.

It trembled as it bled dark green blood from its massive body…

Thud!

The basilisk collapsed sideways, seemingly out of strength. The impact sent water from the lake splashing into the air before it came crashing down again.

Thud.

Dares nearly fell to his knees but managed to stay upright by using his greatsword as a cane. He breathed heavily, then looked at the basilisk, half of its body submerged in the lake while the other half lay on the ground.

Its body was brutally mangled, as if struck by lightning. Though still breathing, it was clear the creature had sustained fatal injuries.

Despite expending all his strength, a peculiar euphoria and vitality resisted the poison, keeping him alive. When Dares glanced at his sword, he noticed that the scattered threads of aura had fused into one, encasing the blade.

It was an Aura Blade, the symbol of a Sword Master, a superhuman realm.

“Could it be… I…?”

As he realized the reality, his eyes widened.

Thud.

A sword pierced through his back.

“Uh…?”

Dares stared blankly at the blade protruding from his abdomen. The situation was so sudden and surreal.

Then…

“Congratulations on becoming a Sword Master, Black Knight Dares Clayman.”

A voice whispered in his ear.

“And now, goodbye.”

The voice held a cruel, mocking tone.

– Activating the Power of Gluttony.

* * *

In a trembling voice, Curse spoke to Aden.

“Tell me the truth, Dragon Slayer King, are you really human?”

“Shut up. You’re noisy.”

“You must be one of my kin disguised as a human. How else could a human be so treacherous?”

Aden, disguised as a black knight, had been watching the basilisk fight from nearby, hidden.

‘According to the original plan, the black knight would die, and I would finish off the exhausted basilisk.’

In Aden’s estimation, the black knight had only a 20% chance of winning, even with the warlocks’ support.

Had he been in perfect condition, the odds would have been around 40% to 50%.

But after enduring the monster wave, facing the basilisk meant the black knight’s odds were as low as 20%.

‘But to not only survive with those odds but also awaken the Aura Blade… Dares Clayman, you are indeed something special.’

In the original future, he would have become a Sword Master a few years later.

However, the life-or-death experience against the basilisk had shattered the barrier holding him back.

‘That slash I saw earlier was like a minor version of Sylbeta’s.’

His loyalty and admiration for Sylbeta Sias were so great that his strike was a mirror image of his. The black knight had aspired to wield Sylbeta’s sword.

It was natural for a sword to resemble its master.

Despite the unexpected variables, there were no issues.

No matter how close to the superhuman realm he had reached, what could he do?

With his mana depleted, poisoned, and exhausted, sneaking up and stabbing him with Baalzebul was easy.

Aden’s stealth skills were almost at a professional assassin’s level.

“I can do better from now on.”

— — — —

<[Master Assassin]>

— — — —

Thanks to reaching the superhuman realm, he gained a high-level achievement.

Aden smiled as he looked at Baalzebul.

“And I’ve obtained the wraith of a Sword Master knight.”

Everyone Aden killed with Baalzebul lingered around him as wraiths.

Thanks to this, he could summon the wraith of a Sword Master at any time.

‘Though the summoning time will be short due to its high level.’

It was undoubtedly a great gain.

It also meant cutting off one of Sylbeta’s significant limbs.

“Now, it’s time for dessert.”

The basilisk.

Aden had learned about it through Curse and used it to eliminate the black knight.

But there was another important purpose.

“The basilisk’s heart is a very rare elixir.”

A basilisk, in its dormant state, stored all its life force in its heart.

That heart, filled with condensed life force, was the source of its poison.

Eating and digesting such a heart could alter one’s physique and grant a special trait.

‘Immunity to all poisons.’

Immunity to all poisons.

As the name implied, consuming a basilisk’s heart granted resistance and freedom from all poisons.

Even a Sword Master could be vulnerable to poison, making it a significant concern for Aden.

Thus, he had planned to hunt a basilisk if he ever ventured into the southern unknown forests.

But now, the opportunity to capture a basilisk had come much sooner and more easily than expected.

‘Luck is on my side.’

Luck.

There was no better word to describe the current situation.

– Luck? Without me, you wouldn’t have even known about the basilisk’s existence, Dragon Slayer King.

Curse boasted, seeking gratitude from Aden.

Since he wasn’t wrong, Aden acknowledged it this time.

Aden approached the basilisk, which was now in a state of torpor.

“It’s best to handle this quickly.”

According to Curse, a basilisk, once in a torpor, would start releasing poison within an hour.

It was best to deal with it swiftly.

The basilisk’s scales near its heart were completely shattered by the black knight’s attack, making it easier to cut.

Shiiik.

Aden’s sword aura sliced through the basilisk’s chest.

Psssh.

Blood filled with intense poison flowed out like a breached reservoir.

Aden grimaced as he mustered all his mana to resist the poison.

If it had been an ordinary person, they would have died within three seconds of inhaling the toxic fumes.

‘Even for me, lingering for more than five minutes would be dangerous.’

But he knew it would end within that time, so there was no problem. After five minutes, no poison would be able to harm him.

With a few deep cuts, he sliced his way inside…

“Found it.”

Aden spotted what he was looking for.

Thump, thump.

The basilisk’s black heart was pulsating. Dragons typically stored their life force and mana in their hearts or cores. The basilisk, in this case, stored its life force in its heart.

Aden severed the veins and tendons connected to the heart and extracted it from the basilisk’s body.

Thump, thump.

Even separated from the basilisk’s body, the heart continued to pulse, spewing poisonous blood. Its writhing appearance was somewhat grotesque.

He furrowed his brow slightly.

‘It would be great if I could just absorb it with Baalzebul.’

To gain immunity to all poisons, he needed not only the basilisk’s mana but also the poison contained within its heart.

In other words, he had to eat it to benefit from its effects.

“Time for a meal.”

Aden lifted the writhing basilisk heart and…

Crunch.

He stuffed it into his mouth and began to chew. Consuming a heart the size of a child’s head was quite a challenge, but Aden ate it all.

Then he immediately sat cross-legged on the spot.

The basilisk’s poison spread throughout his body, causing his insides to burn. He felt pain like electric currents running through him, but he endured it.

The poison was transforming his body’s constitution.

At the same time, he began to harness and tame the mana flowing from the basilisk’s heart.

‘Poison mana.’

The basilisk’s mana had poisonous properties. Just like when he absorbed the troll’s mana, the basilisk’s mana fiercely resisted.

However, it was no match for Aden’s semi-master level mana and his innate control.

Feeling the mana of poison settle into his mana core with a ‘thump,’ he subdued it.

By then, the transformation process from the heart’s poison was complete.

“Let’s test this out.”

Aden released the aura he had been using to resist the poison.

If it didn’t work, he would die in excruciating pain from the poison emitted by the basilisk’s blood.

“It worked.”

Aden took a deep breath, free of pain despite being covered in the basilisk’s blood. He had obtained a body immune to all poisons.

Aden cut his wrist, drawing blood. He then used the newly acquired poison mana to spread the blood over nearby plants.

Hiss.

Despite being plants adapted to the poisonous environment of the Forest of Death, the grass withered and died shortly after coming into contact with his blood.

It meant his blood had become a potent poison that the plants couldn’t withstand.

“I’ve also acquired poison blood.”

By consuming the basilisk’s heart and obtaining poison mana, Aden could now generate poison within his body at will.

Aden could now transform his blood into poison anytime he wished.

“Congratulations, Dragon Slayer King,” Curse said, his voice trembling slightly.

Aden felt a shiver run through his body, as if bugs were crawling all over him, and he scowled in disgust.

“Crazy, what nonsense are you spouting? What’s your scheme?”

“No scheme. I’m simply glad you are now free from all poisons,” Curse’s voice was oddly elated.

If that were all Curse had said, Aden would have continued to be suspicious. But his next words dispelled any doubts.

“So you no longer need to consume that damned Gehenna’s Breath. No more Holy Potions either.”

“That was your true intention,” Aden chuckled.

Curse always screamed in agony whenever Aden drank a Holy Potion.

‘And those screams were my daily pleasure.’

Curse was so overjoyed that his voice oozed with emotion.

But Aden, with a wicked smile, decided to correct Curse’s misunderstanding.

“No, I will continue with the Forced Awakening Method 2.”

“…What do you mean?”

“Eating the basilisk’s heart grants immunity to all poisons. But there’s one exception.”

The venom gland beneath the basilisk’s fangs.

This gland contained the most potent poison in the western continent. It was strong enough to threaten even a Sword Master’s life.

Mixing that venom with Gehenna’s Breath would create a reaction, forming an even stronger poison.

And that poison could affect even a body immune to all poisons.

‘It was a discovery Kalsis made while researching a poison potion to intoxicate high-ranking Talos.’

It was a poison combination he discovered ten years from now, so in this timeline, it was still practically invincible.

“That… that means…?”

“I’ll continue drinking Gehenna’s Breath. And of course, the Holy Potion too.”

“But you said you were immune to all poisons! How can you still be affected by poison? That makes no sense!”

“Well, life often doesn’t make sense. Like a dead man returning to the past and inhabiting a noble’s body, with a Demon Lord living in his head. So just give up.”

“Noooo!”

Curse despaired.

The only consolation for Curse was that consuming the basilisk’s venom reduced the required number of doses to 300.

That tripled the deadline, enough to provide some comfort.

‘Which I won’t tell him about.’

Aden decided to savor Curse’s despair slowly.