Chapter 17 – The Blade That Never Rusted
The Red Legion was collapsing.
Even if Sam told himself it was part of a past he had abandoned, the Legion did not see it that way.
To them, their master was still alive.
And a master—once worshipped—was never truly gone.
Inside the underground chamber where Sam, Varkhad, and the Slaughter Team had gathered, tension hung thick in the air.
The lights flickered.
Once.
Twice.
Then—darkness.
Every rune on the walls died at the same time.
Varkhad's instincts screamed.
Before anyone could react, the darkness folded.
And in the center of the room—
A figure materialized.
He wore a deep blue cloak that seemed untouched by the shadows around it. His presence was tall, composed, overwhelming. Two curved purple horns rose from either side of his head, faintly glowing. His eyes—deep, endless blue—looked like oceans that had swallowed entire worlds.
The pressure alone forced Varkhad to step back.
His hand went to his weapon.
Sam did not move.
The figure's gaze locked onto Sam.
Then—
Without warning—
He knelt.
One knee to the floor. Head bowed.
"Master."
The word echoed like thunder.
Varkhad's eyes widened.
Sam remained still for a full second.
Then he walked forward slowly.
"…You're alive."
His voice was low. Heavy.
The figure did not lift his head.
"Rank One General of the Ten," he said calmly.
"Sixth Sage reporting."
Sam did not hesitate.
He pulled him into a brief, powerful embrace.
For that moment—
There was no God Slayer.
No conqueror.
No legend.
Only a man reunited with a blade he had once trusted with his life.
Varkhad spoke softly, disbelief clear in his voice.
"Sixth Sage… it's been a long time."
A faint smile crossed Sage's lips.
"Too long, Varkhad. I thought everyone was gone. Buried. Forgotten."
"I thought the same," Varkhad replied.
Sage stepped back and straightened.
The warmth vanished from his expression.
The Mind of the Legion
"Master," Sage said, his tone sharpening,
"the Red Legion is under assault."
Sam's expression turned cold instantly.
"I have no ties to that organization anymore," Sam replied flatly.
"It's my past."
Sage took one step forward.
"But their blood," he said quietly,
"is being spilled in your name."
The words landed hard.
"This isn't just a purge," Sage continued.
"It's bait."
Varkhad clenched his jaw.
"They're trying to draw you out."
"And they are succeeding," Sage added.
"You've never shown mercy to enemies before, Master. Since when did you start?"
Silence filled the room.
Sam finally spoke.
"If I knew who it was," he said calmly,
"they would already be dead."
Sage's eyes narrowed.
"I know who it is."
The room froze.
"I also know where he is."
Sam turned slowly.
"…Who?"
Sage exhaled.
"Do you remember," he asked,
"a man who once led attacks on the conquered planets? Someone who used your shadow to rise?"
Varkhad stiffened.
"You're not talking about—"
"Space Master Gazel?" Varkhad said.
"The traitor who gained power through the Legion and later caused the civil war?"
Sage shook his head.
"No. Gazel is dead. You made sure of that, Master."
Then Sage looked straight at Sam.
"This is his brother."
Varkhad's breath caught.
"Master… if this is who I think it is—"
Sage finished the sentence.
"—Master Gogo."
Absolute silence.
Sam's eyes glowed faintly red.
"…Gogo."
The name scraped against something old.
Something buried.
The Hidden King
"He is still alive," Sage continued.
"Hidden. Watching."
"More than that," Sage added.
"He has been living in this universe under another identity."
Sam's expression darkened.
"Go on."
Sage's voice dropped.
"He is the Grand Master of the Elves."
The room seemed to crack.
Sam's mind flashed.
A memory surfaced—
Meera.
The Elf Kingdom.
The gentle, smiling elder who had introduced himself as a guide.
The man who had spoken of fate.
Your time will turn soon, child.
At the time, Sam had assumed it was a blessing.
Now—
It felt like a curse.
Varkhad spoke carefully.
"Master… the one Meera calls 'Master'—"
"Yes," Sage said.
"He uses the same name among the elders."
Sam's fist clenched slowly.
Elf Master.
The realization burned.
"That bastard," Sam whispered.
A cold smile touched his lips.
"He dared to step inside my home."
Sage nodded.
"He is after Nirvana," he said.
"And through you… he seeks enlightenment."
The red glow in Sam's eyes sharpened.
"So he wants to kill me," Sam said quietly,
"and use my existence as a stepping stone."
Varkhad drew a slow breath.
"And he thinks he can."
Sam lifted his gaze.
The air around him tightened.
"No one," Sam said, voice calm and lethal,
"gets to touch my family."
The ground trembled.
Sage knelt once more.
"Your blade has never rusted, Master," he said.
"And your war… has only just begun."
Sam looked ahead.
The hunt was no longer about shadows.
It was about betrayal.
And blood.
Sam slowly closed his eyes.
The war chamber of the palace was completely silent—broken only by the faint hum of floating runes and the distant crackling of eternal flames. Sage and Varkhad stood before him. Tension weighed on their faces, but there was one thing both shared now—clarity.
"So that's why…" Sam spoke without opening his eyes.
"…he's moving with such confidence."
Sage lowered his head and stepped forward.
"Yes, Master."
"He knows you are not using your full power," Sage continued.
"He knows you are holding back—for your family."
"And that's why," Sage said quietly,
"he is killing a part of your past every single day."
Those words didn't fall into the air.
They fell into Sam.
The Red Legion.
People forged by his hands.
Mistakes born from his will.
Shadows that still followed him.
Sam opened his eyes.
His aura expanded slightly—an invisible pressure spreading through the hall. Hairline cracks appeared along the carved pillars. The flames burned brighter.
Yet everything remained under control.
"Touching the Red Legion…" Sam said calmly,
"…was his greatest mistake."
Sage and Varkhad dropped to one knee at the same time.
"Master," Sage said,
"your orders?"
Sam didn't answer immediately.
This was the same Sam who had fought gods.
Who had burned entire universes.
But today, his anger was different.
This anger did not roar.
This anger planned.
"We will not react anymore," Sam said.
"We will hunt."
He took a step forward. His eyes held that familiar cold fire—visible only when a decision became irreversible.
"Sage," Sam commanded,
"I want every remaining unit of the Blood Legion assembled before me within the next fifteen hours."
Sage lowered his head even further.
"As you command, Master."
"Varkhad," Sam continued.
Varkhad planted his halberd against the floor.
"Get the location from Sagr."
"Gogo's coordinates?" Varkhad asked.
"Wherever he is," Sam replied.
"Take Team Slaughter with you."
"Destroy every base he has."
"No safe zone is to remain."
Sam exhaled slowly.
"He's playing with our minds."
"I want his plan."
"Within the next twenty-four hours," Sam said, locking eyes with them,
"Gogo's story ends."
The silence in the hall deepened.
Sam shifted his focus.
Knightwell.
His home.
His family.
"I'll contact Knightwell in the meantime," Sam said.
"Check the situation there."
His voice softened—for just a moment.
"Now either Gogo survives…"
"…or the Red Legion does."
And then—
Somewhere far beyond reality's layers—
An unseen eye was watching.
Not physical.
Not divine.
But aware.
Before that eye, Sam's plans unfolded like pieces on a chessboard.
"Interesting…"
The whisper dissolved into space.
The universe remembered a name.
God Slayer.
Later That Night
Sam stood on the balcony.
Below him, the city lived—lights, traffic, unaware lives moving forward.
He activated his comm crystal.
"Knightwell."
A reply came instantly.
"Perimeter secure. Threat level: zero."
Meera.
Ruhi.
Safe.
Sam closed his eyes—for just a second.
"Good," he said.
"Stay hidden."
The connection ended.
Sam looked up at the sky.
"You're trying to break me," Sam said quietly.
"Through my family."
A faint smile appeared on his face.
A dangerous one.
"But you forgot…"
"…who I am."
His aura expanded slightly again—just a signal.
Just a warning.
End — Storm Before Collapse
The war had not begun yet.
But the decision was already made.
Gogo had played the first move.
Sam had decided the last one.
And when the God Slayer hunts—
The universe can only watch.