The Ascension : A New Beginning (Solo Leveling x Tower of God) [ON A HIATUS]

Chapter 22 : Troubles Brewing

"Ugh..."

Sam slowly opened his eyes only to find himself lying on a bed in an unknown room.

'What happened earlier? Where am I?' He felt a severe headache, as he struggled to remember what landed him in this situation.

"Oh. You are finally awake..."

The door to his room was opened and a person wearing a black mask entered the room. Seeing the man triggered something in Sam's mind.

"Nocturne... Yeah, that explains a lot of things." He remembered everything that had happened before he blacked out - His meeting with the mysterious regular, the duel that followed and how it ended. "I presume you have a lot of questions in your mind?

"Indeed so." Sitting on a nearby chair, Jinwoo continued. "It only makes sense that I need to know exactly who or what I am working with, right? So tell me. What is up with this sword of yours?" He asked as he summoned the katana from his inventory.

"... Its name is Muramasa. And it is a cursed sword." Sam spoke after a short pause. "It is an ignition weapon that hosts a spirit, and a rather malevolent one at that."

'Looks like my guess was right.' Jinwoo remained silent as Sam continued the explanation.

"To be more precise, the weapon hosts a vengeful spirit. This weapon and the spirit exist solely for a single purpose - To exact vengeance. And as its wielder, the duty naturally falls upon me."

"But if its reason for existence is vengeance.... Why did it attack me? I'm confident that I have no connection whatsoever to this sword or anything related to it." Jinwoo asked him.

"I'm...unsure about that as well." Sam answered. "The blade was literally forged as a result of negative emotions and it constantly tries to affect and take control of its wielder's mind. But when I faced you, I could sense the spirit growing far more restless and aggressive than usual. The moment I went unconscious, it managed to take control of my body." He explained.

"But if the weapon is that dangerous, why don't you get rid of it?" Jinwoo pressed on. "From what I've seen, your swordsmanship is already polished and you have a talent for it. It shouldn't be that hard to find a replacement for your katana. Even if you are on a quest for vengeance it shouldn't matter which weapon you use for it, right?"

Sam lightly chuckled. "I'm kinda surprised you didn't try to give a heroic speech on why revenge is a bad thing and that I should try and make peace with my inner demons."

"It's not my place to meddle in the personal affairs of someone I just met." Jinwoo shrugged it off.

"Fair enough." Sam replied, seemingly content. "And as for the reason I didn't discard the blade, it is both because of my personal feelings towards the matter and the quality of the weapon. While it does have shortcomings, the blade makes up for it in quality. Do you know how many rankers will kill to attain a weapon of this caliber? And while the spirit inside is unpredictable, that is the reason why I was looking for a teammate who is stronger than me - So that they can stop me should things go south."

"You speak as if you are a pacifist." Jinwoo commented. "I didn't see any of that during our fight."

"It's not killing that I'm against." Sam clarified with a snort. "While I don't mind getting into conflicts, I'd rather cut down a thousand enemies than a single ally. That is all. "

"Well, that settles it." Content with the answer he received, Jinwoo offered him a hand. "Welcome to the team."

Sam readily shook his hand, with a grin on his face. "Pleasure to be working with you. So, where's the other team member? From what I heard you always travel alongside a blonde doggo."