N/T: Translation made by our friend 'Irving'. A big round of applause for him :)
C 371
Raon looked down at the messages that were rising up like stairs.
[The Blade of Requiem has absorbed all the dark mana.]
[A new trait is created.]
[The trait <Divine Bloomed in the Shadows> is created.]
The name of the newly acquired trait was strange. He tried to see the content, but there were still other messages left.
[The Blade of Requiem offers purified dark mana.]
[The level of the trait <Ghastly Energy Adaptation> increases.]
[All stats increase by 8 points.]
The second message was that The Blade of Requiem had purified the dark mana and offered its energy, and that the trait and stats had increased as a result.
What is it!
Wrath stuck his tongue out and popped out in front of the message.
Why is that insignificant thing giving energy while consuming my abilities? Isn't this too unfair!
Wrath seemed to be filled with dissatisfaction, with its plump cheeks puffed out.
'The world is unfair to begin with.'
Shut up! I can't stand it today! I will break that bug and find the light!
'You're a demon king...'
The word "light" is a word used by priests. It was so absurd that he could only laugh in vain at the thought of a Demon King of Wrath seeking light.
'And move aside.'
Raon pushed Wrath away and looked at the newly created trait.
<Divine Bloomed in the Shadows>
It is a reverse divine power created by the mixing of ghastly energy, blood essence, and mana, which are imbued with negative energy, which can be mixed with other energies.
"Huh?"
Raon opened his mouth wide when he saw the content of the trait.
'So can I fuse mana and divine power?'
Originally, mana and divine power cannot be fused.
Even if a person has both energies, they have to store them in different places and use them separately, but this trait is said to make the impossible possible.
Woowoowoo!
When he was reading the trait again, a mysterious and auspicious energy from The Blade of Requiem seeped into his energy center.
'Is this the divine power that bloomed in the shadows?'
It was really nothing.
If it were ordinary divine power, there would have been a commotion as soon as it entered the energy center, but as it quietly seeped in, it was a special divine power that could be mixed with mana as described in the trait.
However, the size of the divine power was not so large. It would disappear once used, and it would take quite a long time to fill up.
'It won't be easy to raise.'
The trait's level had to be raised to increase the quantity and quality, so it seemed that it would take a lot of time and effort.
Divine! It's ridiculous! Why does divine come out of blood energy, ghastly energy, and mana!
'That's why it's called divine power that bloomed in the shadows.'
This is not my trait either! Why is this... I see!
Wrath's eyes rolled back and he turned to The Blade of Requiem.
All of this is the work of that bug! I will never forgive you!
Wrath couldn't stand it any longer and let out anger and coldness to The Blade of Requiem.
Woowoowoo!
The Blade of Requiem erected a wall of ghastly energy as if to say, come at me anytime.
Impudent!
Wrath was so annoyed that he poured out an enormous amount of anger and coldness that he had accumulated over time.
Kukuku!
Even though The Blade of Requiem had grown, the wall of ghastly energy was crushed in an instant due to the difference in their original strength.
Woowoowoo….
The Blade of Requiem cried out in pain as if it was in pain.
'I'll give it a try.'
Raon raised the ghastly energy of The Blade of Requiem and the divine power that had sunk deep into his energy center and stood in front of Wrath.
Woowoowoo!
The divine power, which flashed with silver, combined with ghastly energy to form a grand wall to block Wrath's attack.
Kwaddu!
The wall of ghastly energy, which became firm due to the divine power, was not only able to perfectly block Wrath's attack, but also launched a counterattack.
Kughuk!
Wrath retreated, waving his hands as if he had been thrown into hot water.
It's dirty and vulgar to use divine power!
Wrath's big eyes welled up with tears, as if he was angry.
"How is it? Does it look like real divine power?"
That's right! It doesn't smell dirty, but it's definitely a hateful divine power!
'That's good.'
Since it was eaten by Wrath, the demon king, it was clear that the divine energy contained the power of the divine.
However...
It's too little.
The amount of divine power was only a small amount. Even now, it has completely run out after blocking Wrath once.
Woowoowoo!
The Blade of Requiem cried out softly in gratitude for being saved.
'Thank you, I guess'
Raon smiled lightly and patted The Blade of Requiem.
You two are getting along so well! Hnn!
Wrath turned his head and let out a long snort like a buffalo.
'Then I'll praise you too.'
Raon patted Wrath's head with a snicker.
'But this divine power is whose power....'
While taking care of The Blade of Requiem and Wrath and thinking about the trait, Dorian's chin trembled.
"Why, why are you laughing?"
"Huh?"
"That evil laugh! What are you going to do again!"
"No, I..."
"I really can't do anything! I'd rather die!"
Even though he had just taken care of Wrath and The Blade of Requiem, Dorian backed away with frightened eyes and then jumped down the cliff.
"Hmm..."
Raon licked his lips as he watched Dorian run down the cliff like an animal.
"Jumping off a cliff? It would be a good training for courage if I asked him to do it while suppressing his aura."
At the laughing words, Mark Gorton sweated for the first time.
'Can I really follow this person...'
* * *
Raon finished his preparations to leave and turned around.
Mark Gorton stood at attention, as if to escort him.
He looked as if he had shed the years he had lived as a mercenary and was returning to being a knight.
"Are you ready to leave?"
"Yes."
Mark Gorton nodded, relaxing his posture.
"You don't have any luggage?"
"I've always only carried weapons, so I have nothing to take."
He tapped the shabby sword hanging from his waist. It looks like he bought a cheap sword after his sword broke in a duel.
'I'll have to get him one soon.'
Even if his condition is not good, Mark Gorton is a master level. I wanted to buy him a weapon that suits him.
Crunch, crunch.
Turning to the right, Raon heard the sound of a squirrel chewing on leaves. Dorian was chewing on a cookie from his belly pocket.
"Are you really going? Not taking the successor training?"
"The head told me to follow you, the vice-leader, and see a lot of things. And..."
He took out a round bead from his belly pocket.
"He said he would teach me with this."
Dorian smiled with his head down, as if he was happy to be leaving together.
"You're going to do successor training on top of my training? You're full of enthusiasm."
Raon smiled and looked down at Dorian.
"Uh..."
Dorian's shoulders shook as if he had just thought about training.
"Uh, I thought you were going to let me off the hook for training?"
"I didn't think so."
"I'm the successor to this Merchants Association..."
"I'm your superior."
Raon shrugged, and Dorian's face turned pale.
"I'm going to stay here and complete the successor training perfectly and come back..."
"Mark!"
"Yes!"
Mark Gorton grabbed Dorian's neck as he backed away. He seemed to be quick-witted because he had experienced both knight and mercenary.
"Sir! We've been through the mountains together! Are you betraying me already?"
"I'm sorry."
Dorian was squirming and crying, but Mark Gorton never let go.
Raon turned around and looked at the distant sky.
"I'll be 20 when I go home."
Finally, he turned 20, but he didn't feel anything. He only thought about the duel with Roman, which was two years away.
"Let's go. To Zieghart."
"Yes...?"
"Yes!"
The three of them left Sepia Merchants Association with a weak voice and a loud voice.
...
Adis Sephia watched Raon and Dorian leave with a smile on his face.
"They're leaving in a fun way."
"Are you sure it's okay to let them go like this?"
Regwin approached him and sighed.
"You wanted to see Dorian for a while longer, didn't you?"
"A month and two weeks was enough. It would be greedy to ask for more."
"But you could have kept him here under the pretext of his successor training..."
"I want that child to see more."
Adis looked at Raon, who was walking in front of Dorian, with a faint smile.
Even though it was important to receive successor training here, it seemed that growing up watching his back would be a great help to both Dorian and Sepia Merchants Association.
"The White Sword Dragon is a connection that money can't buy. He's been a great inspiration to me too."
Regwin followed Adis' gaze and nodded.
"Yeah. He's... an amazing... guy..."
Adis' fist suddenly shook.
“That damn greedy bastard! If he keeps thinking about money from such a young age, he’ll go bald!”
“M-Master?”
Regwin widened his eyes as he watched Adis suddenly have a fit.
“Calm down!”
After shaking his shoulder, Adis’ eyes returned to normal.
“S-Sorry. I was just so annoyed.”
Adis shook his head and sighed.
‘The expenses were more than I expected.’
Raon’s demands didn’t end with developing the surrounding areas of Zieghart, but that was just the beginning.
He stated his demands in a firm and detailed manner, as if he was preparing for war.
It was so much money that he couldn’t even get a good grasp of how much it would cost.
“That kid would have become great even if he wasn’t a warrior. And…”
Adis nodded heavily as he looked at Raon’s back, which was getting further away. His gaze trailed off before turning to Dorian, who had started walking on his own.
“That child will also grow into a bigger person by watching him. But…”
“What?”
“I’m just so annoyed that he took so much from me! Raon Zieghart, you idiot!”
“M-Master!”
* * *
A secluded beach.
A white folding bed is placed on the golden sand, which sparkles in the sun.
“Hmm!”
Tacheon smiled faintly as he lay on the bed.
“It’s peaceful here.”
The man standing in front of the beach ignored his words and stared out at the distant sea.
“Peace?”
The answer came from the right, not from the sword.
“That doesn’t exist in this world.”
The man in a robe that looked like it was covered in darkness, with blue flames burning in his eye sockets, shook his head.
“It’s all just a false color, just like this beach.”
The man in the skull mask snapped his fingers, and the blue sea turned dark as if it had been dipped in ink, and the golden sand was filled with red blood clots.
“Manghongwi, why are you being so boring?”
Tacheon snapped his fingers again, and the beach, which had turned into hell, was filled with life again.
“……”
Despite the drastic changes, the sword still stood in front of the sea, staring at the distant horizon.
“Manghongwi, have you checked ‘that’?”
“Yes, it’s there.”
The flames in Manghongwi’s eye sockets lowered at Taecheon’s question.
“It’s 1.65 times more than the information I received. If it explodes, the entire area will be wiped out.”
“Good. Then I’ll leave it to you.”
“Understood.”
Manghongwi stood up and bowed.
“Are you leaving so soon? You don’t have to rush to handle it. The schedule is all connected.”
“I’m busy cleaning up the messes that idiot made.”
As Manghongwi clicked his tongue, Merlin popped out of the air, slicing through the void.
“Who’s the idiot?”
Merlin, who was wearing a mask of an old woman, smiled coldly at Manghongwi.
“You tell me.”
"Originally, an idiot should come out when I speak."
The flames in Manghongwi's eyes burned brighter.
"Come on, stop fighting, you two."
Tacheon grinned and gestured with his hand. He looked at Merlin and suddenly snapped his fingers.
"Oh, did you hear? Raon Zieghart has stirred up the Black Tower."
"..."
The first to react wasn't Merlin but the Manghongwi. His head turned slightly backward.
Tacheon enjoyed this reaction and spoke with a drawn-out smile.
"Eden, the White Blood religion, the South-North Union, and now the Black Tower. It's been a while since someone clashed with all four Demons."
Tacheon narrowed his eyes slightly as he looked at Merlin.
"Merlin, what do you think?"
"I don't care."
Merlin waved his hand dismissively and lay down on a makeshift bed.
"You don't care? Doesn't your family member reside within Raon Zieghart? You should seek revenge."
"If I could have saved Rockta, I would have done it even if it meant breaking bones and shedding blood. But souls devoured souls. It's too late now."
She sighed deeply and closed her eyes.
"Now, my only goal is restoration."
"The idiot is finally saying something sensible."
"Is the idiot you, with not a strand of hair on your head?"
Merlin scoffed at Manghongwi.
"Shut up."
"My mouth?"
"Huk..."
A chilling coldness emanated from Manghongwi's cracked skull.
"Do you want to fight right here? This big sister will play with you."
"You're still insane."
Manghongwi and Merlin both stood up simultaneously, radiating immense mana.
Tacheon watched them with a dry smile, feeling a shiver run down his spine.
* * *
Zieghart fifth Training Grounds.
The sounds of training that echoed in the training grounds finally ceased as the sun, which had illuminated the world, set, and the late-rising moon reached the center of the sky.
"Huk..."
Burren lowered his sword and exhaled heavily.
"Today, we'll stop here!"
At his shout, the members of the Light Wind who had been wielding their swords all over the training ground stopped and collapsed to the ground.
"Ugh..."
"So exhausting."
"I feel like I'm going to die for real..."
Perhaps because all the Light Wind members had given their all in their training, there was no trace of regret on their faces.
Tsk.
Martha looked at the fallen members and clicked her tongue, as if she found them pitiful.
"Aren't you going to get up? Shouldn't you loosen your body after training?"
She kicked the downed disciples and forcibly helped them to their feet.
"Can't we do this later?"
"I really have no strength left..."
"Get up, now."
When Martha scolded them, the fallen members scrambled to their feet and began stretching. However, there was one person whom Martha couldn't get up.
"Yawn..."
Runaan lay on her back, looking up at the starry night sky with a yawn.
"You should do it too!"
"No, I don't want to."
Martha tried to lift Runaan, but she refused to budge, as if glued to the floor.
"What on earth... Oh!"
Sudden coldness rose from the ground beneath Runaan. She pressed her back and the ground together with a layer of frost, making it impossible to detach.
"This is really insane!"
"Ugh..."
Martha tried to forcibly remove her, but Runaan continued to emit coldness, keeping her back and the ground firmly connected.
Burren watched Martha and Runaan's battle of pride with a smile.
"You've changed a lot too."
"What!"
"You were worried that the members might get injured, so you asked them to do stretching, right?"
The Martha of the past wouldn't have cared about what others did and would have focused solely on her own tasks or left the training grounds.
Seeing Martha now, who managed and educated the members after training, it seemed like her mindset had changed a lot.
'Probably thanks to Raon and the head of house.'
After the conversation between Raon and the head of house, Martha seemed to have started putting her heart into Light Wind squad.
"Oh, no!"
Martha turned away with a flushed face and let go of Runaan's neck.
"It hurts."
Runaan, who had been pressing her head against the ground, frowned.
"Because Raon isn't here. I'm doing it on his behalf! When is he coming back? He doesn't even think of coming back even when the days change!"
Martha looked at the sky and grumbled.
"I want to see the handsome Raon."
Runaan mumbled like she was savoring an ice cream cone.
"He was supposed to return immediately and continue training! When is that guy coming back? He doesn't even think of coming back even if the sun changes!"
Martha scolded as she turned her back.
"He's indeed a bit late."
Burren nodded with narrowed eyes.
"But thanks to that time, we've steadily improved our skills. Even if Raon comes back, he won't be able to say much."
"We've completed the demon-like training with the head of house and the instructor. It's even harder than not being able to sleep because of concentration reinforcement training, and it's scary. With our current level, we can handle it."
"When he returns and sees our skills, he might be surprised."
"That's possible!"
The Light Wind squad members smiled at each other. They had trained diligently, so they were confident.
"To be honest, the training of the vice-leader is way too brutal, isn't it? Yes, it makes you stronger, but it's just too extreme. People do age, you know."
Krein continued talking without properly looking at their expressions.
"Training should have a structure, but vice-leader's training lacks that structure and foundation. Since he consider himself genius and just create and conduct it casually, it's nothing but brute force training, and we... huh?"
He raised an eyebrow, noticing the wide-eyed shock on Burren, Martha, and other members faces.
"What... Urgh!"
Krein turned around in surprise, following the gestures of the members, and fell backward in shock.
"V-Vice Captain!"
Without knowing when he arrived, Raon, with his crimson eyes ablaze, was smiling.
"I see. My training was indeed brutal and lacked a foundation."
Raon nodded with an even brighter smile.
"No, what I meant was..."
"Well, I've prepared new training, and it's a truly foundational one."
Raon's sharp pupils gleamed like a beast's as she spoke.
"It feels like you've been waiting for me, so there's no need to wait any longer. Let's start the training right now."
"Uh, well, we just finished the training a moment ago..."
"Y-Yeah, today's training was quite exhausting."
"No, this is the moment when human instincts will come into play."
"G-Gulp!"
Burren and Martha also closed their mouths when they saw Raon's eerie expression.
"Ugh."
Dorian, observing Raon's expression from the side, trembled, his lips quivering.
"I've seen a demon...."
