Chapter 490
The sea of astral energy that covered the sky subsided, and a moonlit night descended. The dispersing light clusters, like scattered stardust, signaled the end of the duel.
The moment Raon tilted Heavenly Drive to the ground, Jerome, Mason, and Pendleton, who were standing on the opposite side, knelt down at the same time.
Although their aura and stamina remained, their eyes had turned white, as if their fighting spirit had disappeared.
Raon brushed off the dust on his black dragon coat and approached Mason.
"Wha, what kind of swordsmanship was that just now...?"
Mason trembled his lips as he looked up at the cloudless night sky.
"How can a Master level display such martial arts!"
He couldn't take his eyes off the sky as if he couldn't believe it. His expression, which seemed to resemble Heukgeumje, collapsed.
"Damn it...."
Mason shook his head weakly, as if his will to fight had disappeared.
"Ah, it's so damn embarrassing. What kind of face is this!"
Jerome frowned as he looked at Raon, who didn't have a speck of dust on him.
"It should have been a fight we shouldn't have done from the beginning, but because of that damn master!"
He threw down his spear and lay down on the crushed arena ground. He muttered to himself as if he didn't have any intention of fighting anymore.
"Ugh...."
Pendleton pounded the ground with her fist in a fit of anger as if the defeat had fueled her rage.
Although she didn't seem to have much expectation for this duel, it seems that she actually had a stronger competitive spirit than others.
"No one has yet admitted defeat."
Raon put the Heavenly Drive in its scabbard as he looked down at Mason, Jerome, and Pendleton in turn.
"Wh-what..." Mason's eyes widened. The situation had concluded, so why talk about defeat?
"I'm sorry, but I'm a little ignorant, If you don't say it properly, I won't know," Raon shouldered Heavenly Drive, brushing his ears.
"Just a moment, this is just the end…”
"I said that when we first started," Raon interrupted Mason with a cool smile. Unlike her smile, a radiant heat emanated from her shoulders.
"I don't know how to stop.”
"Uh..."
"What?”
Understanding the meaning behind Raon's words, the three displayed yellowish complexions.
"I-I lost..."
Before Mason could declare defeat, Raon swung the sheathed Heavenly Drive down.
Crack!
Mason, who was hit squarely in the temple, fell to the arena ground with his eyes rolled back. His legs, which were sticking out of the ground, trembled violently.
"Now, who's next?”
"You crazy bastard! Where does one defeat a surrendered opponent?"
As Jerome reached out to pick up the spear he had thrown on the ground, Raon stepped on it with his foot.
"Kughuk!”
Jerome, whose fingers were stuck between the spear and the ground, groaned.
"I didn't hear you. And is it okay for someone who lost a duel to be this fine?”
"I'm not fine! I'm telling you, I've been injured internally because of your fancy swordsmanship!"
Jerome raised his head and frowned.
"No sign of injury."
"What?”
"I don't see any signs that I won. And she got it worse," Raon pointed at Runaan , who still hadn't opened her eyes.
"The one who beat the Azure Lunar Blade was not us... but..."
"It's the same thing. Besides..."
If you want to make a mess, you have to do it properly.
Glenn's mission wasn't about gaining fame but rather, 'Come back after making a big scene.' The head and body of the dragon were drawn, now it was time to put the finishing touches on the eyes.
"This lunatic!"
Jerome yelled and tried to get up, but his fingers were stuck and his arms and shoulders were flailing.
That's a compliment.
Wrath raised his head, saying that calling a crazy person a lunatic was a compliment.
'That's right.'
Raon chuckled softly, lightly pushing away Jerome's hand and lifting his chin.
Paaaaaak!
A loud sound, like a large walnut cracking, echoed as Jerome crumpled, blood spraying like a rainbow.
"Then the last one..."
Raon's gaze slowly turned to Pendleton.
"Kill me."
Pendleton raised her eyes with a still unfazed gaze.
"A gaze that I like."
Raon nodded and turned around.
"Where are you going!"
Pendleton stood up with her teeth gritted.
"Why are you letting me go? Just because I'm a woman..."
"I'm not letting you go."
Raon smiled calmly and turned around.
"Because your height wasn't suited for the target point."
'Now it's okay.' Mumbling to himself, he swung Heavenly Drive.
Poooook!
Pendleton's head, which was hit on the forehead with the scabbard of the Heavenly Sword, swayed heavily and fell backwards.
"If you lose, you should take a hit. I had no intention of going easy from the start."
Raon put Heavenly Drive back on his waist and stood in the center of the ruined arena ground.
"Next."
Even after crushing the four disciples of the Five Divine Rulers, his arrogance, who called out for the next, cast a silence like night over the arena.
"Kugh, I should have said ‘Next’ like that!"
Krein licked his lips with a look of regret.
"A disheveled appearance is handsome! A passionate appearance is handsome! Winning appearance is also..."
Encia was drooling as she kept pressing the shutter button of her camera so hard that her hands couldn't be seen.
"That's right. Really hand... um."
Denning Rose, almost unintentionally joining in the 'handsome' shout, quietly covered her mouth.
"That's a real monster...."
"He's arrogant, but it suits him so well."
"Not just strength, but his personality is complete..."
"It's satisfying to finish things properly."
"I still can't forget that last swordsmanship. It felt like cutting through the sky."
The spectators sighed as if they were tired of Raon's power and arrogance.
"I wonder if anyone will come up now?"
"Who would dare challenge a monster who broke three peak Master level individuals at once? It's impossible unless it's a Grandmaster."
"In the end, the winner is Raon Zieghart. His fame will rise again."
"It's not just that. He'll get the heart of Lavasiri and a frost elixir that's similar to it. They're treasures that can't be bought with money!"
Everyone thought that there would be no more challengers and prepared to congratulate the winner.
Raon looked around the spectators and VIP seats and raised his hand.
"Is there anyone else?"
As he shouted out for a challenger, a man in a black robe came up from the center of the VIP seats.
It was Yuria of the Magic Tower, a man with a huge physique that was about to tear his generous robe.
Raon frowned as he watched Yuria, who was walking up with heavy steps.
'This is unexpected.'
Yuria had not reached Grandmaster level, and he thought it was unlikely that he would come out because it was a disadvantage for a mage to fight in such a narrow space.
'But it's not bad.'
He had not fought with the Magic Tower even in the Six Kings duel tournament, so it was a good opportunity to learn about their techniques.
Raon smiled with satisfaction and approached Yuria.
"I'm ready, so please come in whenever you like."
As he nodded to say that he accepted the challenge, Yuria reached out from his robe.
'A surprise attack?'
He didn't think he would launch a surprise attack in a non-life-or-death duel, so he was about to back away, but what came out of his hand was not a weapon, but a thick piece of paper.
"S... sign please."
"Sign?"
"Sign please."
"……."
Raon relaxed his awkward posture and blinked his eyes.
"I... I'm a fan!"
Yuria bowed his head, twisting his body in a way that didn't suit his large frame.
"A fan?"
"Yes! I've been a fan of you since you got the nickname 'The Frostfire Sword of Valor'! It's an honor to meet you!"
He said that he couldn't speak when he saw him at the conference because he was nervous, and his hands were trembling.
"Oh...."
He remembered Yuria glaring at him when he came out of the conference room. Now that he thought about it, his expression was hardened not because he was picking a fight, but because he was nervous.
"Then why did you come up now...?"
"I'm sorry! I was just so moved right now...!"
Yuria said that he was so moved by seeing him cut down three peak Master level in one stroke that he came up without realizing it, and his eyes were glistening with tears.
Unlike his appearance, his personality seemed to match his name.
Click!
The sound of a camera shutter woke up the arena, which had once again fallen silent.
"Wow!"
Encia raised her head from her camera and waved to Yuria.
"You know the handsome sir Raon!"
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Rimmer sighed and sent an aura message to the small-built woman sitting behind.
[Did you see that?] [I did.]
Sheryl, wearing a wide-brimmed hat and a white dress that reached her ankles, replied with a frown.
She was writing something hard in a small notebook.
[What are you doing?] [I'm writing a report to the lord.] [A report? I'm the one who sends that.] [Mine is only related to Raon. This is data related to the Raon gospel.]
She kept her eyes on Raon as she moved her hands quickly.
"Sigh..."
Rimmer glanced back and shook his head.
[Today, a great line came out. 'You cannot reach my sky.' It's glorious.] Sheryl murmured, savoring Raon's line as she did a little earlier.
[My lord will probably like it. Perhaps, my lord might regret not witnessing what happened here for the rest of your life.] she said, smiling as she recalled Glenn's contorted expression.
[Are you still making the Raon Gospel?]
Rimmer scratched his head and sighed.
[I'm on the fourth volume now.]
[The fourth volume? Well, ugh, the trio of fanatics can't be stopped anymore at this point.]
He shook his head and looked up at the sky.
[Well, I shouldn't talk about others.]
At that words, Sheryl stopped her hand and looked at Rimmer's back.
[That guy is going to stand alone at the top of this continent. I can see it.]
Rimmer smiled with more excitement than when he won money at gambling, looking at Raon.
[Yeah. Raon is a guy who's hard to bring down with even under the name of Zieghart]
[In any case... the most important thing is my luck. It exploded more than ten times today! I'm rich again!] He chuckled, affectionately stroking the pouch filled with gold coins like it was his child.
[But it's not like you're going to spend that money.]
[I'll spend it. Who else will!]
Rimmer waved his hand at the people gathered at the gambling table, muttering that she was talking nonsense.
“Come on, people who bet on the favorite Raon, come quickly!”
Sheryl frowned as she looked at Rimmer's back.
“Fool.”
...
“Kughh!”
Demon Killing Spear sighed as he looked at Raon.
"That guy is truly an artist to the end! Strength, mental fortitude, personality, everything is appealing! He should have joined the Martial Spear Association!"
He didn't care that his disciple had been knocked unconscious and just clapped.
"Now, what should we do?"
Death Sword Master sighed briefly, as if he had predicted the result to some extent.
“There will be no one to challenge the White Sword Dragon anymore. Even if there is, it is meaningless.”
Raon not only defeated three peak Master level, but also broke the spirits of other warriors in this arena. No one will go up to that arena ground.
“That's right….”
Heukgeumje nodded, biting her whitened lips.
“There is no way now.”
Death Sword Master was right. After Yuria received his signed paper and gone down, no one came up to the arena.
Today's duel tournament was no different from Raon winning.
“Uhm….”
The referee trembled as he went up to the arena ground.
“F, from now on, I will count to five! If no one comes up by then, today's winner will be decided as Raon Zieghart!”
He counted the numbers while folding his fingers raised up.
“One, two, three, four….”
The warriors sitting in the VIP seats bowed their heads, and the spectators raised their hands to celebrate the winner.
“Five!”
“Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!”
“Raon! Raon! Raon!”
“White Sword Dragon! White Sword Dragon! White Sword Dragon!”
“Zieghart won! They are still part of the Six Kings!”
As soon as the referee shouted five, the spectators cheered at the top of their lungs.
“Huu….”
Heukgeumje sighed and closed her eyes tightly.
‘As expected, no one is coming.’
Even if someone had come up, it wouldn't have mattered. Unless it's a Grandmaster, no one can defeat Raon. It's over now.
'The damage is severe.'
They are going to lose the reputation that the Five Divine Rulers should have gained, as well as the top-grade elixir. Especially because it was an elixir that would be of great help to Raon, it made his stomach churn.
"Thank you for your support!"
Raon responded to the cheers of the people and looked up at the stage. It seemed like he was telling them to come down quickly and have the award ceremony.
"Huu...."
"Heukgeumje."
Just as Heukgeumje was about to sigh and go down from the stage, Death Sword Master approached him, who had been quietly standing by.
"Are you going to leave that guy alone like this?"
"What are you talking about now...?"
"Leave it to me."
Death Sword Master smiled bitterly and twisted his mouth.
"As you know better than anyone, Raon Zieghart has been mocking us using the people's attention and voices. Now, we can turn that around."
"...Please tell me more."
Heukgeumje nodded, pretending not to look at Death Sword Master.
"One of my martial arts has a technique to implant a poison in the opponent's heart. The poison absorbs the mana around it and grows without the owner of the body knowing, then stimulates the heart and cuts off the breath.”
Death Sword Master continued with a gloomy smile.
"I'll employ that technique while stating that I'm giving him a ‘guidance’, so let's keep the mood upbeat."
"Can you really do that?"
“Of course. Don't worry; I can even activate it after that guy returns to Zieghart. Just match the atmosphere; I'll take care of the rest.”
“Hmmm..”
Heukgeumje licked her lips as she looked at Death Sword Master's eyes, which were shining with confidence.
'There won't be any losses.'
Death Sword Master would not lie about his martial arts. And if his words were true, it would not be difficult for the plan to go according to plan if he used on the excited Raon and the spectators now.
‘If he reject here, He’ll look like a coward.'
If Death Sword Master fails, there won't be any losses. If he teaches a technique and Raon declines, this good atmosphere will be ruined.
Since he has gained great fame and knows how to use people's attention, he will not be able to refuse.
"I understand."
Heukgeumje nodded slowly and went down from the stage.
"Congratulations!"
She stood in front of Raon with a forced smile.
"When you first participated, your appearance was a bit odd, but you ultimately proved yourself with your skills."
"Thank you. There was nothing particularly odd about my appearance. It was a natural right."
Raon smiled faintly and responded to the greeting.
'This guy to until the end...'
Heukgeumje clenched her teeth at Raon's response but held back, breathing steadily.
"Then, let's prepare for the award ceremony..."
"Let's just do it here."
"Yes?"
"Isn't this a glorious place?"
He smiled as he said that the place where he had defeated the Five Divine Rulers's four disciples was the podium for the award ceremony.
"...You're right."
Heukgeumje glanced at Death Sword Master and opened a spatial rift.
As she took out the box containing Lavasiri's heart and the box containing the elixir of frost, Death Sword Master jumped down from the stage.
"Hoooooooooooooooooo!"
The spectators gasped as he stepped down the air like a staircase.
"Congratulations on your victory. Can I make a suggestion in celebration?"
He stood next to Heukgeumje with a kind smile, as if he was on good terms with Raon.
"What kind of suggestion?"
"You've given our foolish disciples a great lesson, haven't you? Those guys who were arrogant without knowing the subject must have come to their senses properly."
Death Sword Master nodded, thanking him for teaching his disciple.
"Having acted rudely before, I'd like to offer you a brief guidance, a potential clue to overcome the Grandmaster's wall."
He smiled softly, saying that he wanted to repay what he had received.
"Woooooooooooooooooo!"
"Death Sword Master is giving a guidance?"
"It's a better opportunity than the elixir!"
“He seems to be serious about challenging the Grandmaster wall, doesn't he?”
"It'll be a good show!"
The spectators cheered as they heard Death Sword Master's words, as if they were imagining the youngest Grandmaster in history. Everyone's eyes were filled with anticipation.
“It would also be a good gift for the spectators who have been here.”
Death Sword Master laughed lightly, saying that there was no need to think about it. It was a provocative look.
"Get ready."
He waved his hand as if to tell him to get into position.
Raon calmly observed the spectators before lifting his head.
"No, thank you."
"Well, then... what?"
Death Sword Master widened his eyes as if he had heard something he shouldn't have.
"What do you mean by that! You could become a Grandmaster if you learn from me...!"
"I just don't want to."
Raon spat out the words of rejection with a lightness that was in stark contrast to the courage he had shown so far.
"Are you scared? I'm just giving you a little guidance...?"
"Forget it. Give me the prize."
Raon reached out to Heukgeumje, expressing his unwillingness to engage with Death Sword Master any further.
"Wait a moment! There are so many people watching. If you refuse, you'll look like a coward in front of them!"
Raon quietly bit his lip as he looked at Death Sword Master, who was flustered.
"No, I won't do it."
