C965
‘Damn it…’
Alice bit her lip hard as she felt her mana circuits, stiff as a statue.
“So it’s not working after all.”
She thought she was mentally and physically prepared when she began her cultivation, but the Dragon Heart mana was leaking out between her solidified and cursed mana circuits and her energy center.
“I haven’t lost much yet. But if this continues throughout cultivation…”
She would suffer a significant loss.
Due to the curse plaguing her body, for every 10 units of mana she absorbed from the Dragon Heart, 4 dissipated into the air.
If this was temporary, she could accept it, but if she continued to lose mana this way, the loss would be enormous.
‘The problem is…’
Alice shook her head as she felt the immense mana surging from the Dragon Heart.
“There’s no way around it.”
Both her mana circuits and her energy center had solidified, and since she had already started cultivating, she couldn’t stop or go back. Like words once spoken, the lost mana couldn’t be recovered.
-Raon, I’m sorry…
Knowing her own talent, she had been confident until she began cultivating, even with her power bound to that cursed sword. But it seems she rushed too much due to the frustration of being unable to do anything. After resting for so long and with the severity of her injuries, this was the result.
“If I’m not careful, I might not even reach Transcendence.”
If this continued, not only would she fail to reach her original level, but she might even stagnate at the Grand Master level.
-No. I need to focus now.
Alice exhaled slowly, forcing strength into the tips of her trembling fingers. The strain of losing mana was also affecting her concentration. She had to give it her all in cultivation now, or she might be truly ruined if she suffered more losses.
“If not for me, at least for Raon.”
Her nephew, who had given her the Dragon Heart, was comforting her and was now on guard, watching. She had to overcome this no matter what. Alice gritted her teeth and focused on her cultivation when she felt a hand on her back. A warmth like the sun. It was Raon’s hand.
-Raon? What are you…?
While she was bewildered by his sudden touch, a warm energy flowed from Raon’s hand. The mana Raon sent flowed smoothly through her cursed and solidified mana circuits and settled into her energy center as if it had always been hers.
‘This is…’
The mana I lost. Raon was gathering the Dragon Heart mana that had escaped and channeling it back to her, following the flow of her cultivation method to ensure she wouldn’t lose it again.
‘This is crazy!’
You’re putting yourself in danger too! Since Raon and she practiced different cultivation methods, interfering this way was risky for both of them. However, Raon was connecting the mana smoothly as if he was practicing the same method as her.
“Ah…”
Alice swallowed hard, tightening her grip on the Dragon Heart.
‘Is this even possible?’
Even my father would find it difficult. It wasn’t a healing technique or pre-coordinated. Adapting the mana flow to her needs would be a challenge even for Glenn.
“I can’t help but call this crazy.”
Alice couldn’t help but laugh in disbelief at Raon’s surprising ability to suddenly intervene and perfectly connect the mana.
‘How much more are you planning to surprise me?’
She was surprised when Raon killed the Blue Dragon, when he appeared bigger each time she saw him, and when he said he had defeated the Black Tower Master on his last mission. She thought nothing Raon did could surprise her anymore, but here she was, astonished once again.
‘Ugh.’
Alice bit the tip of her tongue and nodded slightly.
‘Enough with thinking. Time to focus.’
Raon was doing everything he could for her. Now was not the time to thank him. Whether it was to express gratitude for his help or to scold him for the risk, all of that could wait until she finished cultivating. Alice exhaled slowly, embracing the warm energy flowing from the tips of Raon’s fingers with all her being.
‘It’s warm.’
Both Raon’s hand and the mana he was transmitting were warm. It felt as if her frozen heart and body, pierced by Sif, were melting. It even felt as if the curse itself was lifting. Alice dived into a deep mental world, remembering her pleasant first encounter with Raon.
* * *
Raon nodded briefly as he watched Alice begin to properly absorb the Dragon Heart mana.
“Thankfully, it worked.”
Given Alice’s personality, he had thought she might refuse, saying it was dangerous for him. But she seemed to understand his intentions and calmly accepted his help.
-Even that troublemaker isn’t a complete fool.
Wrath snorted, implying that while Alice might be simple, she wasn’t an idiot.
‘Troublemaker, huh…?’
Raon smiled slightly as he accelerated the flow of mana circulating through Alice’s body. The natural mana began to spin rapidly, starting to melt her mana circuits that had been solidified by the curse.
“I’ve missed seeing her troublemaker side for a while. It would be nice if she went back to how she was before.”
If anyone asked who was the freest person in Zieghart, everyone would point to Alice. But after the incident with Sif, she had changed and only showed pessimism. Hoping she would regain some of her spirit, Raon cultivated her aura as if it was his own.
While Raon was deeply immersed in manipulating Alice’s aura, the Dragon Heart in his hand lost its light and crumbled into white dust.
All the mana that had sustained the Dragon Heart had been drained, leaving it unable to even maintain its bone form.
“Now it begins.”
Raon carefully removed his hand from Alice’s back. Now that the Dragon Heart mana had settled in her energy center and mana circuits, from that point onwards, the battle would be hers. Silently, he stepped back and returned to his original role as guardian.
‘However…’
Raon licked his lips as he felt the nine rings surrounding his heart.
“The Fire Ring becomes more fascinating the more I look at it.”
To be able to naturally interfere with another’s cultivation method, the Fire Ring was truly a versatile technique that could achieve the impossible. It seemed to be the main reason for his rapid growth.
It would have been nice if he had reached 10 stars.
He remembered how the tenth ring had scattered before it was completed in the Room of Being. He couldn’t help but feel regret for not achieving it before leaving.
-Greedy bastard!
Wrath frowned in disbelief.
-You’ve raised two cultivation methods to 10 stars, improved your swordsmanship, your body, and your soul, and you’re still not satisfied?!
He gritted his teeth and said even Greed would have been momentarily satisfied with so much progress.
“Aren’t I supposed to be the vessel of a demon god? I can’t be satisfied with that.”
Raon shrugged as he looked at Wrath.
-Ah, well, that’s true…
Wrath blinked, acknowledging his own absurd statement. He was still an adorable brat, no matter how you looked at it.
‘Of course, he was scary in the Room of Being, but…’
Facing the true Wrath, not the cotton candy version, required more courage than he had imagined. If it hadn’t been in the Room of Being, maybe he wouldn’t have been able to stand properly.
-You’re right. I’m still missing something.
Raon nodded calmly and slowly activated the Fire Ring.
‘I should make the most of this time too.’
As he cultivated, visualizing the tenth ring in his mind, Alice’s body began to float in the air.
Mana particles scattered throughout the cultivation room, no, throughout the main building, like waves, blooming into blue-tinged flowers. The vibrant flowers slowly faded as if their life cycle had ended, filtering throughout Alice’s entire body.
After absorbing all the blue petals, Alice descended back to the ground. She shed a clear tear before opening her eyes.
Alice looked him in the eye with eyes full of confidence and vibrancy, just like when he first saw her.
“Thank you…”
Alice bit her trembling lip as she expressed her gratitude.
“Who are you?”
Raon recited the words he had said to her when he first woke up on Alice’s pirate ship.
“What?”
“I asked you who you are.”
“I am…”
Alice, seemingly understanding his intention, exhaled silently and straightened her back.
“Alice Zieghart. That Alice Zieghart.”
She said her name calmly, similar to how she had answered him before.
“It seems you’ve finally returned.”
Alice Zieghart, who had been buried underground after being stabbed by Sif’s sword, had emerged from her own grave and was walking on her own two feet. Although she hadn’t fully recovered her martial prowess, it seemed the heaviness in her heart had finally been lifted.
“Welcome back, Aunt. No…”
Raon shook his head as he gently embraced Alice.
“The pirate king Alice Zieghart.”
* * *
After leaving the exhausted Alice in Federick’s care, Raon returned to the annex building. He was about to go straight to his room, tired of helping with cultivation for over two days, when he heard the sound of a swinging sword by the lake.
‘Older sister?’
As he approached, he saw Sia standing by the lake, practicing the Madness Fang technique he had taught her.
-She’s improved a lot.
Wrath clicked his lips, noticing Sia’s rapid progress.
-Yes, she’s faster than I expected.
It was natural for Sia to progress quickly, given that she had originally been a Grand Master, even if she had lost her memories. But even considering that, she was showing achievements beyond expectations.
“Could it be that her talent is even greater than I thought?”
It seemed Sia possessed even greater talent than his own, which wielded the Fire Ring. As Raon marveled at this, the annex door opened and Judiel came out, approaching him.
-She’s changed a lot, hasn’t she?
Judiel nodded gently as she watched Sia wielding her sword with intense concentration.
“She’s been practicing swordsmanship from morning to night, saying she wants to swing as beautifully as you, Lord Raon.”
She smiled slightly, suggesting Sia seemed to have fallen in love with the sword.
“From morning to night?”
If that was true, then it wasn’t just the result of talent, but the product of hard work. He had only taught her just in case it could help, but he never expected her to work this hard.
“Of course, Lord Edgar blames you for ruining Lady Sia.”
Judiel shook her head and explained that Edgar was simply in a bad mood because he couldn’t play with Sia anymore.
“I can understand that. He doesn’t have much time left to treat her like his little girl.”
Raon felt Sia had matured a lot lately. If she had seemed to be about 5 years old when he first saw her, she now looked like she was over 10.
“Since you’re here, why don’t you give her some advice?”
Judiel raised her hand and asked Raon to observe Sia’s swordsmanship.
“I think it’s better to do it later.”
Raon shook his head as he looked at Sia’s back.
“She’s in a state of deep concentration.”
At that moment, Sia was wielding her sword with complete focus, oblivious to the fact that Raon and Judiel were there. In moments like these, it was better not to interrupt and simply observe silently. Raon entered his room and listened to the refreshing sound of Sia’s sword wind.
-You shouldn’t sleep now!
Wrath raised both hands in front of the bed.
-If you’re going to sleep, eat first!
He wrinkled his nose, begging Raon to at least eat breakfast, as he had been hungry for over two days.
“I wasn’t planning on sleeping right now anyway. I still have something to do.”
-Oh! That’s good! Well, hurry up and…
‘I need to check the rewards.’
As Wrath smiled, Raon brought out the reward messages he had discarded in the cultivation room.
-Ugh…
Wrath froze mid-smile, seemingly having forgotten about the reward messages.
[You have achieved growth in the Room of Being.]
[You have experienced death 101 times.]
[All skills increase by 50 points.]
-Aaaargh!
Wrath let out a scream as if his throat was being ripped out as he saw the third reward message.
-Stop mentioning that!
“You didn’t check them properly.” (E/N: The fact that he’s seen those messages three times and still hasn’t seen the problem is insane)
Raon chuckled as he pressed Wrath’s trembling head.
-Damn it, my hands shake every time I see this! What did this brat do to deserve 50 points?
He gritted his teeth, wondering why Raon had been given 50 points when he hadn’t even killed a Transcendent like the Black Tower Master.
“Because I trained hard.”
-Everyone does that… huh?
Wrath’s eyes suddenly widened as he noticed something while he was ranting.
‘Why are you…?’
As Raon narrowed his eyes towards Wrath, a new message appeared.
[A new Trait has been created: <Crisis Detection>.]
‘Crisis Detection?’
<Crisis Detection> A special ability that can only be obtained by those who have experienced numerous deaths, allowing them to sense the proximity of death beforehand.
‘Eh…’
Raon let out a sigh as he checked the details of Crisis Detection.
“This is really useful, isn’t it?”
According to its description, it meant that even if he encountered a Transcendent stronger than him, he would rarely die in one blow. Of course, its effectiveness would increase with its rank, but its mere existence was satisfying.
-Crisis Detection? Why the hell was this created?
Wrath shouted, claiming that an enormous amount of authority must have been invested in creating the <Crisis Detection> trait. He seemed to have been thinking about something, but apparently forgot everything when he saw this trait.
‘You’re the one who created this for me.’
Raon gestured towards Wrath with his chin.
-Don’t talk nonsense! Why would I create something like that?
‘Read the description carefully. It’s a Trait that wouldn’t have arisen if you hadn’t killed me.’
Since it’s only given to those who have experienced numerous deaths, it was clear this Trait was born because Wrath had repeatedly killed him.
-Ah, ah. Aaaaaargh!
Wrath screamed, grabbing his head as if he had just realized that fact.
“This isn’t over yet. Please stay silent for a moment.”
Raon pushed aside the screaming Wrath and checked the next message.
[The rank of the Trait <Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation> has increased.]
[The rank of the Trait <Glacier> has increased.]
[The rank of the Trait <Water Resistance> has increased.]
[The rank of the Trait <Fire Resistance> has increased.]
[The rank of the Trait <Water Affinity> has increased.]
[The rank of the Trait <Fire Affinity> has increased.]
[The rank of the Trait <Spiral Power> has increased.]
[The rank of the Trait <Wrath Release> has increased.]
[The rank of the Trait <Flame Overcoming Death> has increased.]
[The rank of the Trait <Blade of Death> has increased.]
[The rank of the Trait <Authority Enhancement> has increased.]
[The rank of the Trait <Authority Manipulation> has increased.]
The next messages were about the rank increases of attributes. As the ranks of Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation and Glacier increased, resistance and affinity for both attributes increased simultaneously.
‘The Traits related to death have also improved.’
Perhaps due to dying 100 times, the ranks of <Flame Overcoming Death> and <Blade of Death>, which could fight against the aura of death, had also increased simultaneously.
In addition, thanks to constantly being with Wrath, the ranks of <Authority Enhancement> and <Authority Manipulation> had also increased.
-This is driving me crazy! Isn’t this too much?
Wrath waved his chubby fist in the air, demanding to know why there were so many increases. As Raon watched Wrath’s solo performance with amusement, the next message appeared.
[The rank of the Trait <Backstab> has increased.]
-Backstab?
Wrath lowered his eyebrows in disbelief.
-Why is this one increasing too?
-It seems this is your fault too.
Raon gestured dismissively with his hand.
-Eh? You’ve never ambushed me!
“You weren’t ambushed, I was.”
It seemed the experience points for Backstab had increased a lot because he died in Wrath’s ambushes every time they met. Whether he did it or was the one who suffered it, the experience gained was the same.
-Ah, I’m losing strength. I really won’t do anything from now on…
Wrath muttered that he was exhausted and collapsed onto the bed. But the surprises for him weren’t over yet.
[The Trait <Backstab> has evolved beyond its rank to a new Trait [Specter].]
-S-Specter? Specter?
Wrath slammed the bed as soon as he saw the message about Specter.
-Specter, my ass! I’ll become the Specter! I’ll kill everyone…
‘Aren’t you going to eat?’
-...I guess I should.
It seemed even a Specter couldn’t overcome the need for food.
-
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