C785
—"Raon, don't just stand there, sit down."
Glenn lifted his sharp gaze while pointing to the seat next to him. His demeanor suggested he might drop his Azure Sky Sword on the table if Raon didn't obey immediately.
—"Raon, the food is getting cold."
The Rector patted the empty seat to his right, wearing a friendly smile. However, his eyes conveyed a threatening look, as if he would draw his sword if Raon didn't sit beside him.
—"Hahaha..."
Raon chuckled awkwardly as he quickly glanced around.
'Why are both of them acting like this...?'
Glenn and the Rector had been competing like sworn rivals every time they encountered each other. While previous sword training was one thing, now they were competing to see who would sit next to Raon. He wasn't sure how to handle this situation.
—"No, I’ll think about the reason later. Right now, what matters is where I sit."
While it was true that his relationship with his maternal grandfather Glenn had improved after many conversations, it was the Rector who had risen to become the Leader of the Holy Sword Alliance to protect him, and had watched over him like a shadow. He couldn't make a hasty decision.
—"What are you doing?! Sit anywhere and grab a fork already! Kelock!"
Wrath slapped Raon on the back, urging him to eat. It hurt quite a bit, perhaps because the demon's soul had grown stronger.
'Please, just stay still for a moment!'
Raon pushed away Wrath, who was scratching his back, and bit the inside of his cheek.
—"I can't decide. What should I do?"
He found it so difficult to make a decision that he almost wished he could fight the Fallen again.
—"Normally, I would sit next to the Rector. No, next to my paternal grandfather..."
The Glenn he knew was a magnanimous person who didn't care about such trivial matters. But since he felt competitive with the Rector, it wouldn't be a good choice this time.
—"Sitting next to my maternal grandfather is the same problem."
The Rector still hadn't recovered from his injuries. He had only just regained consciousness, and sitting next to Glenn might cause him emotional distress.
—"Ugh..."
As Raon held his forehead and frowned, he heard someone approaching from outside the dining room.
—"I've brought the stew."
That voice wasn't Helen's or any of the other maids', but it sounded very familiar.
—"Huh?"
When Raon turned around quickly, he saw Merlin entering the dining room, elegantly dressed in a maid's uniform and carrying a bowl of stew.
—"Hellooooo!"
Wrath shouted as he jumped away from Merlin.
—"T-This was it! That's why I felt a chill! It was because of that crazy woman!"
The demon hid behind Raon, claiming he finally understood.
—"M-Merlin? What are you doing here...?"
Raon exhaled sharply as he looked at Merlin.
—"I was just helping with a task."
Merlin said she had been preparing food with the maids because she had nothing else to do, while carefully placing the stew on the table.
—"I made it with your mother."
She smiled and said it would surely be delicious as she sat in an empty seat.
—"It seemed like you were having trouble deciding where to sit..."
Merlin slightly tilted her old woman’s mask to reveal her red lips.
—"Do you want to sit here?"
She smoothed the skirt of her maid uniform as if suggesting he sit on her lap.
—"Ahem!"
—"Mmm..."
Glenn and the Rector, who had been staring at Raon, simultaneously turned their heads as if they were embarrassed.
—"Eek!!"
Sylvia's cheeks turned red as she blinked rapidly.
—"Son! How on earth did you manage to captivate that crazy... I mean, Merlin?"
Edgar's eyes widened in disbelief.
—"I don't know either..."
Raon shook his head and sighed.
—"I'm just joking. Although you would have been welcome to sit here."
Merlin clicked her tongue as if disappointed and stood up.
—"Enjoy your time with your family."
Contrary to expectations, she left the dining room after saying those words. Raon squinted as he watched Merlin's somewhat lonely back.
'That girl…'
Although Merlin usually attacked unilaterally, she strangely kept her distance when it involved his family. Family seemed to hold a special meaning for her.
'Now that I think about it, I don't really know what happened to Merlin.'
Aside from what he had seen through Rokta's memories and publicly known information, he didn't know much about Merlin. Having received a lot of help from her, he wanted to hear her story if he had the chance.
—"Raon."
—"Raon."
As soon as Merlin disappeared, Glenn and the Rector called Raon again and pointed to the seats next to them. Neither appeared willing to back down.
—"P-Please! Sit wherever you want. This King feels like he’s going to die of old age. Kelock!"
Wrath also pleaded with Raon to sit anywhere as he held his stomach.
—"Mmm..."
Just as Raon was about to move his trembling feet while gritting his teeth…
—"Enough already, everyone! Why can't you behave according to your age and stop complicating things for the boy?"
Sylvia stood up boldly, slamming her hands on the table.
—"Raon! Enough! Sit next to me."
She called Raon while frowning at the Rector and Glenn.
—"Ahem..."
—"No, I was just..."
Glenn and the Rector lowered their gaze as if feeling embarrassed.
—"Huh? Where am I supposed to go then?"
Edgar, who was sitting next to Sylvia, blinked.
—"You should have intervened when you saw the boy struggling! How could you just sit there and watch?"
Sylvia kicked Edgar with her brows lowered.
—"Ugh..."
Unable to endure the sudden attack, Edgar was knocked from his chair and rolled on the floor.
—"Son, come sit with Mom."
Sylvia made a gentle gesture to Raon, calling him as she used to when he was a child.
—"As expected of our mother! Kelock!"
Wrath raised both arms triumphantly, saying everything was resolved.
—"Yes!"
Raon nodded with a sigh of relief. Although Sylvia's behavior like this usually made him feel uncomfortable, today it was the best and most ideal action.
—"Mmm..."
—"Ugh..."
As Raon sat down next to Sylvia, Glenn and the Rector clicked their tongues as if they were disappointed. Now that the difficult situation was resolved, their expressions only made him want to laugh.
—"Ay."
Edgar sat on the opposite side, massaging his waist where Sylvia had kicked him.
—"One moment before eating."
Sylvia took the bottle of alcohol that was in the center of the table. She poured drinks for Glenn, the Rector, Edgar, and Raon before returning to her seat.
—"I want Raon to serve mine."
—"Alright."
Raon nodded and took the bottle, filling Sylvia’s glass.
—"Since today is a joyful day, I would like everyone to say a few words. I'll start..."
Sylvia lifted the glass that Raon had served her and smiled slightly.
—"Our family has been through many hardships, so I hope that from now on we only have happy moments."
She said she hoped no one would have more wrinkles on their faces and then looked at Edgar.
—"M-Mmm!"
Realizing Sylvia’s intention, Edgar stood up from his chair.
—"I’ve been through painful moments and I’m still bearing that pain. Ah, but it’s not so bad. Compared to before, this is paradise. Even that bastard Death Knight is too scared to move properly, so things have become quite comfortable. Everything is thanks to everyone here. Now we just need Sia to wake up, and for the first time, the whole family will be..."
—"Edgar. Toasts are supposed to be brief..."
The Rector shook his head as if feeling embarrassed by his overly talkative son.
—"Ah, I’m sorry. I’ll start again. I think Sylvia, Raon, and Sia have had it even worse than I have. From now on, as a father, I want to always make those three smile."
Edgar clenched his fist as if to demonstrate his sincerity.
—"Of course, there’s more I want to say. I can’t stop thanking Dad and my father-in-law. It was also surprising that Dad showed up out of the blue..."
—"Dad should also say a few words."
Sylvia interrupted Edgar's words and passed the baton to the Rector.
—"Very well..."
The Rector nodded as he played with his glass.
—"All I wish for is one thing: may you all be happy."
He said that was all and then raised his cup towards Glenn.
—"I have many regrets in my life."
Glenn exhaled sharply as he looked at Sylvia and Raon.
—"You are a family that met under the most difficult circumstances, so I hope you don’t hurt each other and spend happy moments together without regrets."
He looked at Raon with firm eyes, as if telling him to make sure that happened.
—"Everyone talks about happiness, but there won't always be joyful and happy moments. However..."
Raon quietly stood up from his chair and turned his gaze to the head of the table.
—"With both my grandfathers here, I feel like we can overcome anything."
As he said this, he raised his cup for Glenn and the Rector.
—"Ahem!"
—"Hmm!"
The faces of Glenn and the Rector turned red as they cleared their throats, seemingly unprepared for their grandson's sudden praise.
—"Son! You’re learning to socialize!"
Edgar raised his thumb as if to say "well done."
—"Of course it’s my son!"
Sylvia hugged Raon tightly and told him he did well.
—"Eh...?"
Raon blinked. He was perplexed by her enthusiastic reaction, as he had spoken sincerely, not to flatter them. The four people sitting at the table seemed to find Raon's bewildered expression charming and smiled even more warmly.
—"I’m also glad the family gets along, but..."
Wrath clutched his swollen head and shouted.
—"Can we eat now, please?! Damn humans! This is torture!"
* * *
After finishing their meal, Glenn and the Rector headed to the Head of House training grounds for a walk.
—"I didn’t know Sylvia was such a good cook."
The Rector chuckled softly, saying he hadn’t eaten such a delicious meal in a long time.
—"I found out myself not long ago."
Glenn sighed silently as he looked at the darkening sky.
—"...It seems like we both have many regrets."
The Rector clicked his tongue as he looked at the fine sand of the training ground.
They say that as one grows old, they only think about things they regret.
Glenn shook his head and said it couldn’t be helped.
—"It seems so."
—"..."
The two men looked at the sky in silence for a while, as if admiring the sunset.
—"The moments I spent teaching Raon here were the happiest for me."
The Rector smiled slightly and said those were moments when he felt true happiness.
—"I thought I might live in hell for the rest of my life with those memories, but I never imagined I would experience even greater joy like this."
He looked at Glenn with a deeper smile.
—"It’s thanks to you, my father-in-law. Thank you. And I’m sorry."
The Rector bowed to Glenn as he apologized.
—"I understand. I would have done the same in your place."
Glenn calmly nodded, saying it was alright.
—"And I thank you too, my father-in-law."
He exhaled softly as he looked at the Rector.
—"Thank you for supporting the Five Demons and protecting Raon. It wasn’t an easy task; you worked hard."
Glenn also bowed his head to the Rector, expressing his gratitude. The two men looked into each other's eyes and smiled warmly.
—"If Sia wakes up now, I wouldn’t wish for anything more."
The tips of the Rector's fingers trembled as he said that was his last wish.
—"Don’t say that. We still have to see Raon and Sia get married."
Glenn shook his head and said they shouldn’t hurt the children again.
—"You’re right. I misspoke."
The Rector gave himself a light smack on the forehead, saying he had said something foolish.
—"But is the Holy Sword Alliance alright?"
Glenn looked at the Rector with worried eyes.
—"I received a response from my disciple stating that there are still no problems."
The Rector narrowed his eyes as he pulled a letter from his chest.
—"Since we didn’t tell the Fallen and the other Five Demons about the new location of the Holy Sword Alliance, it should be fine for a while."
He shook his head and said there was no need to worry for now.
—"Even so, problems could arise, so I plan to return as soon as Sia wakes up."
—"That would be best."
Glenn slightly lowered his brows, as if he agreed.
—"Then, there’s something I would like to propose to you, my father-in-law."
The Rector carefully raised his hand towards Glenn.
—"It’s about Raon..."
* * *
After finishing the meal, Raon returned to his room with the beaded ice cream box he had received as a gift from Helen.
—"Hurry, open it!"
Wrath licked his lips at the sight of the cold air seeping through the cracks of the box.
Are you going to eat more after all that?
Raon chuckled softly as he looked at Wrath. He had eaten almost all the food from the dining room, but it seemed his stomach had grown along with his body.
'Are you really a glutton?'
—"Don't compare me to such a voracious beast! Kelock!"
Wrath quickly shook his head, insisting it wasn't true.
—"Stop saying nonsense and open the box. I’m curious to know what kind of ice cream it is! Kelock!"
'No matter how I look at it, you are...'
Raon shook his head as he opened the ice cream box. A long layer of blue frost spread and revealed four scoops of ice cream inside. Two were mint chocolate and chocolate chip, while the other two were yellow, like banana.
—"Oooh!"
Wrath exclaimed as he examined all four ice creams at once.
—"Surviving is a reward! Kellok, let’s go! Eat! Kellok!"
'Which one first?'
—"Of course, the mint chocolate! Ah, no, should we try the new product first? But they say the old is gold, so maybe the mint chocolate..."
The demon waved his arms, unable to make a quick decision.
—"If you’re not going to choose, I will. We’ve eaten mint chocolate many times already."
Just as Raon was about to try the new product first...
[<Wrath> has achieved soul growth through a new emotion.]
[You have achieved a great accomplishment.]
[All skills increase by 30 points.]
[Trait...]
Suddenly, reward messages appeared before his eyes.
—"What the hell?! Why is this happening all of a sudden? Kelock!"
Wrath opened his eyes wide, saying he didn't understand.
—"Mmm..."
Raon squinted as he looked at the message.
'It seems like a reward for your soul growth this time?'
—"No, I mean why are they giving it to you?"
Wrath shouted, asking what the hell they were doing.
—"How am I supposed to know if you ask me that?"
—"Damn it! It’s clear they’re doing it on purpose!"
The demon gritted his teeth and said he would destroy them as soon as he returned to the Devildom.
'Now that I think about it, I haven’t checked the rewards I received before either.'
Raon chuckled softly as he remembered the reward messages he had received after the war ended.
—"Ugh..."
Wrath’s eyes trembled as the message windows appeared, blocking his view.
—"There are so many. Well, I did a lot... huh?"
Raon, who had been smiling while looking at the messages, suddenly opened his eyes.
'This reward is…'
-
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