N/T: Translation made by our friend 'Irving'. A big round of applause for him :)
C 295
"I can't live like this! I can't even eat, always losing my stats! It doesn't even feel like living!"
"Quiet down a bit."
Raon pushed back the raging Wrath with the back of her hand and confirmed the rewards he gained from absorbing Rockta's soul.
[All stats increase by 10 points.]
[<Glacier> achievement greatly increases.]
[Rank of Water Affinity increases.]
[Rank of Water Resistance increases.]
[<Frostwind Swordsmanship> is imprinted in your mind.]
As soon as he saw the message, his mouth hung open.
The rewards were even higher than what he had received from winning the bet against Wrath.
"All stats have gone up by 10 again."
With all stats increasing by 10 points once more, a rush of excitement washed over him, almost making his hair stand on end.
"I'll need some more time to adapt."
With all stats going up to 20 points, strength and agility each increased by 3 points.
To adapt to heis new physical capabilities, he needed training and time.
Huff, huff.
Raon looked at the achievement increase message from Glacier and summoned a chill that felt like a cold breeze.
The deep blue chill formed a small storm in his palm.
"It seems to have become stronger."
The power of the cold was much stronger than before he put on his helmet, and he could feel it on his skin.
"Darn it…"
Seeing Wrath grimace, he was sure that the intensity of the cold had indeed increased.
Swoosh!
Raon touched the cold emanating from his palm and let out a faint smile.
"It might be slightly unbalanced."
Until now, he had intentionally balanced Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation and Glacier, but with Rockta's soul merging in, the achievements and volume of the cold surpassed that of heat.
With Water Affinity and Water Resistance both increasing, the gap would have grown even wider.
He needed to check the altered physical abilities and also examine how to manipulate the cold.
"And…"
Raon closed his eyes and recalled the swordsmanship that had appeared in his mind earlier.
It was a unique swordsmanship that felt as cold and resolute as the winds of the Northern Sea.
"Frostwind Swordsmanship."
He didn't know the full essence of the swordsmanship yet, but its form and techniques were vividly etched in his mind.
"Not bad."
No, it's quite exceptional.
Frostwind Swordsmanship was a parrying sword that could cut through an opponent's swordsmanship.
Its nature was different from the sword techniques he had learned so far, so he was eager to try it out.
He had gained many rewards, from enhanced abilities to Water Affinity, and even swordsmanship, but there was one more important thing.
"Martial Mastery."
Perhaps due to fighting against the formidable Rockta or absorbing his soul, the barrier that had held her back crumbled completely, and he reached the intermediate level of a master.
"Now I can properly fight him."
At this point, he could face the formidable man in the snake helmet with his advanced-level mastery.
He could probably even defeat him.
"He gave me something good before he left."
Raon pulled off the blue dragon helm with a satisfied smile.
Rockta had left behind his many abilities despite the unease he had shown at the end.
"But that's the price, isn't it? Farewell to your master with as little pain as possible."
Even if there were circumstances with Merlin, he couldn't just let her go. Payment had to be made. He had resolved to send her off without much suffering when the time came to deal with her.
"Then, memories…"
"Grrr!"
Just as Raon was about to review the memories left by Rockta and Frostwind Swordsmanship, he heard Wrath groaning.
"What?"
"Aren't you like summer mosquitoes, sucking the King's stats and traits!"
"That again?"
Raon chuckled.
"If the King live an average human lifespan, only bones will remain in the King's true form!"
The guy seemed scared of that day, shivering in fear.
"Reap what you sow."
"If you hadn't charged at me to take over my body, your betting rewards wouldn't have been taken away. It was all your fault."
It was all his fault.
"Damn it..."
Wrath seemed to know that too, as he buried his face in his plump arms and started sobbing.
"Hmm..."
Raon tapped on Wrath's round head while contemplating.
"He must be feeling a bit bitter because of that whole Demon King thing."
Was it because he had seen his regal and imposing true form? The now pudgy cotton candy-like appearance seemed a bit pitiable.
"Alright, I understand. I'll cancel the Nadine bread."
As soon as he said that, Wrath's sobbing stopped abruptly.
He slowly raised his head, his round pupils narrowing as he rolled his eyes.
"Is that really true?"
"Yes."
"Phew! I'm alive then! I'd rather lose 100 stats points than eating Nadine bread."
Wrath let out a sigh of relief as if he was relieved from a great burden.
"Even a demon like you has a conscience, huh?"
"But..."
Raon poked Wrath with a smirk on his face and tilted his head.
"But from now on, no more mint chocolate."
"Wha- What are you talking about!"
"I'm saying I won't eat mint chocolate."
"Why?"
"Because it doesn't taste good."
"Are you saying you don't understand the pleasure of the refreshing coolness and sweetness filling your mouth at the same time?"
Mint chocolate was like that? It's a taste he knows nothing about.
"Pathetic that you don't know the taste of mint chocolate! Poor you!"
"It doesn't matter if I don't know. Decide. Whether you'll have a meal without Nadine bread or eat Nadine bread and mint chocolate."
Raon shrugged his shoulders as if saying choose either one.
"Ah, even a demon wouldn't present such options!"
Wrath's eyes shook like a sailboat facing waves.
"That's on the same level as asking someone to choose between their mother and father! You ungrateful brat!"
"A demon calling me ungrateful..."
Raon shook her head back and forth.
No matter how you look at it, Wrath is the one truly insane here.
* * *
Raon looked at the moonlight seeping through the window and got up from his bed.
It was nighttime here, so in reality, it would be daylight outside.
"Where..."
He placed his hand on Merlin's shoulder as he lay in bed and assessed her condition.
"She won't be able to get up for a while."
Merlin had pushed herself without proper rest, using mana recklessly and injuring her body.
At the very least, she wouldn't be waking up for another two days.
"I can go out now."
Recalling Rockta's memories and Frostwind Swordsmanship, Raon had spent over half a day in the room, so no one would find it strange if she left Merlin behind.
Raon briefly glanced at Merlin, who was breathing softly, and then went outside.
As he walked through the corridor, the Eden spirits bowed politely, as if they had seen Merlin's shoulder.
He had been fully accepted as a member of Eden.
"Rockta would have ignored them, I suppose."
Rockta, being a knight with strong pride, probably wouldn't have even acknowledged the spirits' greetings.
Raon ignored their greetings and walked outside the main hall.
He went to the boundary where he had dueled with the man in the snake helmet and started stretching his body lightly.
"Indeed, things have changed."
With many stats increased, his physical movements had become faster and stronger than before.
"Strength isn't everything though."
When facing sewage creatures, it didn't matter if his physical strength and speed were greatly increased.
But when fighting against masters, perfect control of his body was more important than just being strong.
To be able to face anyone without difficulty, he needed to fully understand his body's limits.
Raon drew Heavenly Drive sword.
This wasn't his usual practice of swordsmanship; this time, he demonstrated the newly learned Frostwind Swordsmanship.
Whooong!
As he unleashed heis first sword strike using Glacier, a chilling wind radiated from the sword, drawing shimmering lines of silver in the air.
The firm yet chilly sword strike held a strong stance that could deflect any attack the enemy brought.
Swwish!
The second sword strike started from below and shot upward.
This technique was fast but tightly coiled like a constricting snake, creating an unbreakable rhythm similar to a shield.
After executing all the techniques of Frostwind Swordsmanship, Raon lowered his sword.
"So, this is Parry Sword."
Parry Sword was a sword technique that severed the opponent's flow.
It had a grim characteristic of cutting off the opponent's martial arts flow and launching a fatal counterattack.
With the help of the Ring of Fire, he could analyze his opponent and create a highly efficient sword technique.
"Combining Frostwind swordsmanship with Fangs of Insanity swordsmanship could be interesting."
The Fangs of Insanity swordsmanship focused on exploiting an opponent's openings, while Frostwind Swordsmanship cut off the opponent's breath.
If he could harmonize the two techniques, an incredible swordsmanship might be born.
After fully displaying Frostwind Swordsmanship to understand the changes in his body and engraving the swordsmanship into his muscles, Raon turned around.
"How long are you planning to watch?"
He narrowed his eyes as he looked up at the empty rooftop.
"It is not proper for a knight's training to be observed casually."
"Didn't really care about swordsmanship. I just observed whether you'd stay or leave."
One side of the rooftop blurred and the man in the snake helmet appeared.
He raised his hand with a slightly weakened voice.
"I have no intention of leaving Princess behind."
"Princess..."
the man in the snake helmet looked into Raon's eyes through the dragon helmet and smirked.
"I suppose she really was a princess. A princess who hasn't been praised for hundreds of years."
"Are you mocking me?"
Raon frowned at the man in the snake helmet and glared at him, feigning heightened emotions.
"No, I simply stated the truth."
the man in the snake helmet shrugged with a calm expression.
"If you have nothing to do, how about a duel?"
"A duel?"
"Yes. My body hasn't fully adapted yet. Having a proper fight now would help me adapt faster."
Raon tapped his sword provocatively with a slightly excited voice.
"I wonder how it'll turn out."
Except for Merlin, the man in the snake helmet was the only one he had conversed with in Eden.
If he could deceive him, he could act without hesitation.
"...."
the man in the snake helmet didn't answer and observed Raon closely.
"You don't seem very interested. How about observing someone else?"
He lifted his head after a pause. A trace of annoyance crept into his voice.
"It seems you're not very appealing. I'll find someone else to observe."
"I got it."
Raon chewed on the inside of his cheek.
The attitude of the man in the snake helmet was distinctly different from yesterday.
"Well then, I have another question."
"What is it?"
"Where can I find the report to acquire weapons and armor? These swords don't fit well."
Raon pointed to the Heavenly Drive sword and the Blade of Requiem.
"It's inside Daejeon. Right next to the room where the Spirit-Bonding Ceremony was held."
the man in the snake helmet waved his hand as if to quickly disappear, then lay down on the roof.
"Thank you."
Raon slowly turned his back and clenched his fists as he headed towards Daejeon.
"Now I can move openly."
Having deceived the man in the snake helmet, he had nothing to fear as long as he was careful with the unpredictable Death Knight helmet.
-What in the world are you?
Wrath scanned Raon from top to bottom and frowned.
-It's one thing if it's something else, but why are you so good at acting!
"It's a basic skill."
-You're not a member of a theater troupe or a circus, and acting isn't a basic skill!
Of course, it wasn't a basic skill of a swordsmanship lineage, but rather a basic skill of an assassin.
To carry out assassinations, one had to be able to perform flawless acting no matter how they transformed their appearance.
-But why are you trying to get a sword? Knights can use any sword. You don't need to go as far as using a different weapon for acting.
"I'm not aiming for the sword."
Although he had asked the man in the snake helmet for the location of the sword and armor in order to deceive him, he already knew the location of the report and didn't actually want the sword and armor.
What he truly wanted was something else inside that report.
-What, what is that?
"You'll know when you see it."
Raon nodded at the tense Wrath and entered Daejeon.
He headed for the room right next to the wall where the Spirit-Bonding Ceremony had taken place.
Woong woong woong!
As Raon tried to enter the room, a dimensional portal opened on the ground, revealing two figures wearing black goblin helmets.
"Only individuals of 8th-grade rank or those with permission from an 8th-grade rank can enter the Jinmu Report."
"Was I 7th-grade?"
Merlin had boasted about being 7th-grade from the very beginning.
"Yes, you were."
The goblin helmet wearers replied without a hint of emotion in their voices.
"These guys are strong."
Even though they wore goblin helmets, significant energy pressure emanated from them.
The souls imbued in those helmets seemed to be far from ordinary goblins.
"The princess is currently unconscious. I need the sword and armor to protect her."
"Only individuals of 8th-grade rank or those with permission from an 8th-grade rank can enter the Jinmu Report."
The goblin helmet wearers repeated the same statement and lowered their heads.
"Tsk."
Raon clicked his tongue in annoyance.
He thought being 7th-grade would be enough to enter, but the room's defenses were stronger than he had anticipated.
"Before Merlin wakes up and starts chasing me... Hm?"
Just as he was regretting not having a chance to gather the items before Merlin woke up, he sensed a massive presence from behind.
Swiftly turning his head, he saw the man in the snake helmet standing there silently.
"This guy is truly..."
It was extraordinary to pierce through his senses and approach him silently.
There seemed to be some kind of martial art that could scatter one's senses.
"…."
The man in the snake helmet stared at Raon for a moment, then stepped forward and placed its hand on the door.
Wooong!
The door split open like in a fire, revealing a passage emitting a faint light.
"…."
The man in the snake helmet didn't enter but turned its body slightly.
"Do you want me to go in?"
"…."
It didn't answer and remained in the same spot.
Based on his past experiences, it seemed like the right answer.
Raon entered the passage without further hesitation.
"What on earth is he thinking?"
He was quite confident in reading the minds of others, but this man was an exception.
He didn't speak or react, making it completely impossible to grasp his thoughts.
Since there was no harm in accepting this assistance, Raon decided to go along with it for now.
"Thank you."
Raon nodded his head and headed inside.
Perhaps due to the permission from the man in the snake helmet, the motionless figures with goblin helmets didn't block his way and just stood still.
Whooong!
The interior of the report room was much larger than it appeared from the outside.
Top-tier weaponry, armor, and shields were neatly organized, not leaving a mess.
After examining the weapons and armor, Raon turned around.
The passage closed again, as if the man in the snake helmet had no intention of coming in.
"They might suspect I'm here for the weapons, but it's useless."
Because I have no intention of taking any weapons.
Raon proceeded towards where the armor was stored.
Passing various high-grade armors emanating different kinds of mana, he arrived at a spot where two monster-shaped helmets were placed.
He picked up the crocodile-shaped helmet and grinned smugly.
"I've been looking for this."
After absorbing Rockta's soul, he had gained the ability to sense the presence of other helmets.
He had asked the man in the snake helmet about the location of the report because he knew that there were helmets here containing the souls of monsters.
-You can't possibly...!
"That's right."
Raon chuckled softly.
"I'll have to devour the souls within the other helmets as well."
It wasn't just Rockta's soul he was after; he intended to consume the souls within all the helmets present here.
Regret for kidnapping me is going to haunt you.
* * *
A small hill near the commercial city of Cameloon.
At the location where Raon had his first confrontation with the White Blood religion, a red-hot forge-like structure stood, emitting a crimson glow as if stained with blood.
Curiously, the cauldron was manned by people of all ages.
A beautiful woman, a sturdy man, a child who seemed around 10 years old, and an elderly person who looked like they could collapse at any moment each held a leg of the cauldron.
On the seat of the cauldron, a crimson footprint was imprinted, and within it, the leader of the White Blood religion reclined, gazing down at the reddish-brown earth.
"My children are disappearing from this land."
She gazed at the land without a drop of blood as her eyes filled with a sense of longing.
"Don't worry. The Blood Deity will embrace all of you."
After finishing her short prayer, when the White Blood religion leader opened her eyes, the cauldron attendants of the Sign moved towards the edge of the hill.
As the day had brightened, not only Cameloon but also other cities in the distance were faintly visible.
"Ha."
The White Blood religion leader cast a distant gaze, as if she could see far beyond Cameloon.
A faint sigh escaped her red lips as she looked at the field that had fallen next to Cameloon.
"Such a cute place to hide."
She raised the corners of her lips while looking at the field that lay next to Cameloon.
"They are hiding in a place like that?"
"Did you find it?"
A Tenth Apostle, standing like a statue behind her, approached the cauldron.
"Yes, can't you see it?"
The White Blood religion leader raised a nearly transparent white finger, pointing to the empty field.
"Hmm..."
The Tenth Apostle furrowed his brows as he increased his senses, yet he couldn't find anything.
"It might be a bit difficult for you."
The cult leader smiled faintly and flicked her finger.
A pale white aura emanated and permeated the Tenth Apostle's gaze.
"Ah!"
The Tenth Apostle exclaimed in surprise.
As the cult leader's energy touched his eyes, a massive formation unfolded before him on the otherwise ordinary field.
The formation, adorned with depictions of the sun, moon, and stars, was so massive that it covered the entire field.
"This is..."
"The sun and the moon. It must be his craftsmanship."
The cult leader nodded in agreement while observing the symbols of the sun and moon engraved into the formation.
"Let's go and see."
At the leader's nod, the cauldron moved forward.
Despite the cauldron attendants' feet lifting off the ground and reaching into the air, the cauldron's movement was as smooth as ever.
"If I marked it as mine..."
The White Blood religion leader rested her chin on her hand on the cauldron's armrest and let out a satisfied smile.
"Wherever it is, I'll find it."
