C772
The true power of Heaven’s Rift doesn’t lie solely in its increasing strength as martial prowess grows, but in the ability to adjust the flow and trajectory of the Sword Domain to match the battle situation.
While Raon fought the two Two-Headed Demons, he unleashed Heaven’s Rift toward the openings he had identified. The brilliant golden light spread outward, erasing any space they could dodge.
The great sword wielded by the old Two-Headed Demon shattered, while the young Two-Headed Demon’s wooden club was pulverized without leaving even dust. But the light of Heaven’s Rift hadn’t faded yet. Like the sun erasing the dawn, it grew ever brighter, enveloping the heavens and earth.
That noble radiance cleaved not only the two Two-Headed Demons but even the monsters behind them in two.
When Raon lowered the Heavenly Drive, the light faded, revealing a battlefield that seemed frozen in time. The thousands of monsters that had been there now lay motionless, their lives extinguished, as crimson blood pooled on the azure plains.
“Urgh…”
“Puaj…”
The two Two-Headed Demons barely clung to life, expending all their Fighting Spirit, but they had sustained wounds that could prove fatal at any moment.
“D-damn it…”
“Argh!”
The old Two-Headed Demon knelt down with both arms that had held the great sword now severed, while the young Two-Headed Demon had lost the right half of his lower body as he tried to flee after being hit by Heaven’s Rift, and was now dragging himself on the ground. Both trembled in agony, coughing up black blood.
“Haha…”
Raon frowned as he forcefully swallowed the blood rising in his throat.
“I’m at my limit.”
Having used the Sword Domain repeatedly, suffered severe internal injuries, and fought against two monsters who had reached the Grandmaster level, his entire body was in tatters. It was fortunate that the battle ended here; if it had continued a little longer, he would have collapsed first.
“But I can’t let my guard down yet.”
The Two-Headed Demons inherited Eden’s abilities, giving them troll-level regeneration. Now that they’re incapacitated, I must make sure to finish them off for good.
“Guilty!!”
As Raon struggled to move his legs, he heard an intense groan behind him. Turning his head, he saw Edgar kneeling on one knee, spitting out black blood from inside his helmet.
“Are you alright?”
He turned around and supported Edgar, who was about to collapse. He had a large hole in his back, probably from taking Rimmer and Sylvia’s sword blows head-on.
“You did well, Raon.”
Even while coughing up blood, Edgar smiled warmly as if to say he was grateful for having trusted him.
“No, I…”
Raon’s lips trembled before he frowned. He couldn’t think of what to say to Edgar at that moment.
-Edgar!
While thinking what words to use first, Sylvia ran over and cradled Edgar’s head on her knees.
“Idiot! If you regained consciousness, you should have said something!”
Sylvia yelled, demanding to know why he took the sword blows with his body.
“If I had, those two wouldn’t have fallen for the trap.”
Edgar wiped the blood from his mouth and smiled awkwardly.
“Mmm…”
Rimmer also seemed worried about Edgar, looking back while keeping the two Two-Headed Demons in check to prevent them from moving.
“Still…”
Sylvia bit her lip deeply, as if the entire situation was painful for her.
“Your Mystic Soul Sword movement was totally wrong, so your sword blows didn’t even hurt. I told you to extend your ankle forward for the second form, but you got it wrong again. For the third form, you need to draw a semi-circle with your wrist, but the angle was off. And…”
Edgar took Sylvia’s hand as he criticized the Mystic Soul Sword. It was hard to tell if this was a battlefield or a training ground.
“Actually…”
Sylvia’s eyes reddened as she observed Edgar’s endless chatter.
“How come you haven’t changed at all…?”
She shed tears as if she had missed Edgar’s talkative nature.
“You’re still as tearful as ever.”
Edgar raised his hand to wipe away Sylvia’s tears, but stopped. He looked at his blood-soaked hand before lowering it.
“But seeing you again, really… Kuhak!”
Edgar smiled awkwardly before bending over and coughing up more black blood.
“…Are you alright?”
Rimmer frowned, seemingly thinking Edgar was in pain because of his sword blows.
“N-no worries about that. This isn’t because of physical wounds.”
Edgar weakly waved his hand.
“What do you mean?”
Sylvia swallowed dryly as she looked at Edgar.
“Ugh…”
Edgar looked at Sylvia and Raon for a moment before letting out a dejected laugh.
-Well, it’s a bit awkward to say it like this.
He raised both hands to grip the Death Knight helmet.
“Arghhhh!”
Edgar let out a terrible scream as if his throat was being ripped out as he took off the helmet with his own strength. Raon narrowed his eyes as he looked at Edgar’s bare face.
‘Is this man my father?’
He had pale skin as if he had never seen sunlight, with a gentle impression suggesting he might enjoy books. Although he had a gentle demeanor, his eyes were firm, giving an impression of stubbornness.
“My soul is currently trapped by The Fallen. I can barely hold on, but I don’t know when I’ll lose control of my body again.”
Edgar exhaled heavily, explaining that even coughing up dead blood now was because he had rejected the orders of the Two-Headed Demon controlled by The Fallen.
“But it’s alright. This is much better than not being able to do anything.”
He smiled, calling it a pain that brought happiness.
“Edgar…”
Sylvia stroked Edgar’s face as she cried as if she were lamenting. Although she was generally emotional, this level of crying seemed unprecedented since she learned about the frost curse.
“I was too late, wasn’t I? I’m sorry.”
Edgar smiled awkwardly as he patted Sylvia’s back. However, even at that moment, his hand trembled, betraying the intense pain he was feeling.
“I don’t have words for all of you. I couldn’t protect Sia, nor you nor Raon. I said I would make you happy, but I haven’t accomplished anything. I’m a failure. All I wanted was for your family to live happily, but I only made you miserable. Still, I’m glad you lived well…”
He lowered his head as if he were displeased with himself and continued his endless flow of words.
“You say you don’t have words, but you talk so much.”
Sylvia wiped away her tears and chuckled.
—Raon, didn’t I tell you your dad talks a lot?
She nodded, as if telling Raon to greet Edgar.
“We’ve already shared our hearts.”
Edgar slowly raised his gaze to look at Raon.
“It was brief, but sincere.”
He smiled and said that fighting with his son had been fun.
-Brief? How is that brief when you talked so much?
Wrath waved her hand as if to say don’t talk nonsense.
“Certainly not brief.”
Even though this was an urgent situation, Edgar only moved after saying everything he wanted to say. He was as talkative as Wrath.
“Umm…”
“My God! Father-in-law!”
As Raon was about to call Edgar, Merlin waved her hand first.
“It’s been a while!”
Merlin smiled brightly as she immobilized the Green King with gravity magic.
“U-um, Raon.”
Sylvia looked at Merlin before leaning forward.
“You also called me ‘mother-in-law’ before. Did you get married without telling me?”
“M-married to Merlin?”
Edgar also opened his eyes in disbelief.
“I knew about that boy’s obsession, but marriage!”
He shook his head as he coughed up blood.
“No, not at all.”
Raon exhaled deeply before approaching Merlin and the Green King.
“Argh!”
The Green King seemed exhausted from the continuous fighting, only able to yell without exerting much strength. Raon moved behind the Green King using his barely recovered aura and struck the back of her head with the Heavenly Drive.
“Puaj…”
Unprepared for the sudden impact, the Green King collapsed.
“Raon! Be gentle with the lady… I mean, older sister… Anyway, don’t be so rough!”
Merlin frowned as if telling him to handle her carefully.
“It doesn’t matter. Just tie her up properly.”
Unlike Edgar, it wasn’t certain that Sia could be saved, so she needed to be restrained. When the Green King Sia fell, the monsters attacking the castle walls stopped moving. They looked around as if they had forgotten what they were doing, then fled into the forest without looking back at the numerous corpses.
“Haha!”
Dorian collapsed on the spot, letting out a long sigh.
“It’s finally over…”
He sobbed as he lay on the ground, as if relieved to be alive.
“It seems things were resolved well on that side too.”
Burren nodded as he looked at the battlefield where the war had ended.
“You really saved him.”
Martha clenched her fist as she watched Sylvia holding Edgar.
-Then I should be able to do it too.
Just as Raon had saved his father Edgar, she felt that the hope of being able to rescue her mother from the leader of the White Blood Religion was increasing. Although her body was exhausted to the point of collapsing, she felt she could do anything.
“Yes…”
Runaan bit her lip deeply as she looked at Raon’s back.
‘Why couldn’t I do that?’
Regret welled up in his throat, thinking that if he had shown courage like Raon, his brother wouldn’t have ended up like this, and his mother and father wouldn’t have suffered.
‘But…’
He couldn’t keep regretting forever. Runaan gripped her Snow Flower tightly and vowed to end Syria’s life with her own hands.
* * *
Raon stood in front of the two Two-Headed Demons, passing by Edgar and Sylvia. Thanks to Rimmer’s containment, they hadn’t been able to do anything and were only gnashing their teeth.
“Y-you bastard…”
As the old Two-Headed Demon tried to summon Fighting Spirit with his barely regenerated left arm, Raon brandished the Heavenly Drive. The Two-Headed Demon’s arm was severed again and fell to the ground.
“Argh!”
“Shut up.”
Raon reversed his control over the Heavenly Drive and plunged it into the old Two-Headed Demon’s neck.
“Quaker…”
The old Two-Headed Demon flailed his limbs as if he hadn’t expected to be killed so suddenly, then breathed his last.
“…Are you going to kill us right now?”
The young Two-Headed Demon let out a hollow laugh, as if he hadn’t expected to be killed so quickly.
“One mouth is enough.”
Raon pulled the Heavenly Drive from the old Two-Headed Demon’s neck and approached the younger one. Without hesitation, he plunged the Heavenly Drive into the young Two-Headed Demon’s shoulder.
“Argh!”
The young Two-Headed Demon screamed and struggled, but he seemed unable to move, having lost all his strength.
-Speak. What did you do to those two?
Raon pointed his chin at Edgar and Sia.
“Jejeje…”
The Two-Headed Demon didn’t lose his smile despite the pain.
“You just made a very good decision.”
“What?”
“If you had killed me first instead of that old man, everyone here would have died.”
Even in this situation, he raised his chin and sneered.
“Well, I guess it doesn’t matter much since everyone will die soon anyway.”
“What nonsense are you saying?”
“It’s the answer to your question.”
The Two-Headed Demon stuck out his long tongue as he looked at Raon.
“You asked what we did to them? Well, The Fallen…”
He smiled even wider as he moved his lips.
“Used your father as a lab rat.”
“What?”
“The Death Knight helmet could originally only be worn by the dead. It should be put on after creating a corpse, but The Fallen put it on your father while he was alive and even protected his soul. Why do you think he did that?”
The Two-Headed Demon continued to speak as if he didn’t want an answer.
“Your father’s soul gradually became dark due to the Death Knight’s demonic energy and the negative emotions it produced. And that darkness…”
He raised a finger to point at Edgar’s left chest.
“Created annihilation magic as it condensed into the jewel embedded in his heart. Just like the Devildom lords use the power of emotions! That guy is now a living bomb!”
The Two-Headed Demon smiled widely with open arms.
“You should know, right? The Fallen said it was complete.”
He tapped his temple as if telling him to remember.
“Ah…”
Edgar opened his trembling lips, unable to refute. His eyes glazed over as if the Two-Headed Demon’s words were true. Raon couldn’t hold back and punched him in the cheek.
“Stop right now!”
“Sorry, but it’s too late.”
The Two-Headed Demon licked the blood from his mouth and shook his head.
“The Fallen calculated even this situation. Now that the Severing Sword has moved of her own free will, the explosion can’t be stopped.”
He chuckled, saying the fuse was already lit.
“There’s no point in running. The complete annihilation magic can destroy this entire region.”
The Two-Headed Demon turned his gaze toward the Arianne House castle.
“Not only you, but everything in that castle will disappear too.”
-Shut up and tell me how to stop it!
Raon mercilessly pummeled the Two-Headed Demon’s face and body, but he only screamed without revealing how to stop it.
-The bastard’s telling the truth.
Wrath frowned as she stared intently at the Two-Headed Demon.
-Suddenly, enormous demonic energy is churning near your father’s heart!
She swallowed dryly and said that it looked like it was about to burst at any moment.
“That’s enough.”
Edgar waved his hand calmly as he stood up.
“He won’t know anything. This was all planned by The Fallen.”
He smiled slightly and said it was pointless.
“No…”
Raon turned his trembling head to look at Edgar. As Wrath had said, terrifying demonic energy was swirling around his chest. Although it wasn’t fully unleashed, it was already stronger than the Heaven’s Rift he had used before.
“E-Edgar?”
Sylvia trembled in disbelief at the situation. She wanted to follow Edgar, but her legs gave way, and she couldn’t stand.
“Don’t worry.”
Edgar smiled gently as he stroked Sylvia’s head.
“No one will die.”
He nodded as he looked at Sylvia, Raon, and Sia in turn.
“Tantrum…”
After taking a deep breath, Edgar stabbed his left chest with his outstretched hand.
“Argh!”
He let out a roar as he pulled out a blood-red jewel connected to his heart by blood vessels. Tremendous demonic energy churned within the pentagonal jewel.
-It’s a Soul Stone!
Wrath’s eyes widened as she looked at the jewel Edgar was holding.
-It’s originally a Devildom jewel used to store demon king-level demonic energy, but why is it here…?
She frowned and said she didn’t understand why the Soul Stone was there.
“What happens if that explodes?”
-Like that bastard said, this whole area will be erased.
Wrath shook her head, saying everything was in danger.
-Edgar!
-“S-stay back!”
Edgar pushed Sylvia, who had barely managed to stand up, away and walked toward the forest. Whether it was because of the pain or the Soul Gem’s energy, his steps were slower than an old man’s with a cane. However, Edgar never stopped moving, no matter how difficult each step was.
-He must be feeling pain as if his soul is being ripped apart…
Wrath let out a sigh, surprised by Edgar’s mental fortitude.
-Now I see where your resilience comes from.
She narrowed her eyes and said she had to acknowledge it.
“Jejeje!”
The Two-Headed Demon waved his hand with a sneer.
“It’s too late. You’ll all come with me.”
“I told you to shut up!”
Raon stomped on the Two-Headed Demon’s face and looked at Edgar’s back. Despite the terrible pain he must be feeling, Edgar smiled brightly, as if to tell him not to worry. Although he was his father, Raon had only seen him twice, but his chest ached strangely.
‘There’s a way.’
He raised the Blade of Requiem in reverse grip over his chest. Sword Domain: Demon King’s Descent. It was the only way to escape this situation. Although there were many eyes watching and his identity would be revealed, he couldn’t let the man who was his father go like this.
-If you use that Sword Domain, this monarch can help you. However…
Wrath’s blue eyes sank heavily.
-You won’t be able to reach transcendence.
‘What?’
-Because this monarch received the impact that should have been passed on to him in the second Demon King’s Descent, the impact that will be passed on to you if you use the third Demon King’s Descent will be much more severe than before.
She shook her head as if to say he had to think carefully.
“If I can’t reach transcendence…”
I won’t be able to take revenge either. Derus is so strong that no one but Glenn can face him. With him also receiving an Archangel’s support, not reaching transcendence meant failing in revenge.
-Edgar!
As Raon hesitated, Sylvia ran toward Edgar, gritting her teeth.
“Don’t come!”
Edgar raised his hand, and the veins on his forehead swelled.
“Don’t come at all!”
He clenched his jaw, and his veins burst as if he could barely contain the demonic energy in the Soul Stone.
“Please, stay behind me.”
Edgar forced a smile, asking for her cooperation. He continued his heavy steps, as if everything was alright, even if his soul was destroyed.
“Ah…”
Sylvia trembled all over, her hands clasped together, as if she couldn’t believe she was separating from Edgar like this after finally meeting him.
“Raon.”
Edgar forced a smile as he looked at Raon’s hardened expression.
“Children shouldn’t die before their parents. I’m sorry I have to leave like this, but please take care of your mother.”
He smiled and said Raon should live as he has until now, since he was never there. Raon gritted his teeth so hard that blood came out.
“I don’t care if I can’t reach transcendence.”
He didn’t want to see Sylvia grieving, nor did he want to see Edgar’s pained expression. Even if he failed in his revenge, his choice was now clear. Sword Domain: The Demon’s Descent…
“You’re finally saying something right.”
As Raon was about to stab his abdomen with the Blade of Requiem, a low voice, unsuitable for the situation, was heard behind him. The Rector Demon of the Sword, now the Leader of the Holy Sword Alliance, had somehow appeared behind him.
“Huh?”
Edgar stopped dead in his tracks and trembled as soon as he saw Rector.
“Father, why are you here…?”
“Foolish boy.”
Rector approached Edgar without hesitation.
-D-don’t come! Right now I’m…
-Didn’t you say it yourself?
He grabbed with his hand the soul stone connected to Edgar’s heart. At that moment, the surging demonic energy calmed down, and the ticking sound stopped abruptly.
“That a son should never go before his father.”
Rector placed his hand on Edgar’s head and nodded calmly.
“Live, Edgar.”
-
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