C1026
"Puberty?"
Raon asked Helen, thinking he must have heard wrong.
"You heard correctly, Young Master."
Helen nodded calmly, confirming that it was indeed puberty.
"In fact, most children in their mid-adolescence go through puberty. Of course, you were so mature that this period passed quietly for you."
She smiled faintly, saying that children at that age often rebel against their parents or engage in delinquent behaviors.
"You said that Miss Sia is slowly returning to her original age, right? She has now gone through childhood and entered puberty."
Helen exhaled briefly, saying it didn’t seem particularly strange.
"Sia! I'm sorry, Dad! Please open the door!"
Edgar's eyes filled with tears, apparently unable to withstand Sia's anger.
"Go away! I said I don't want to see you, Dad!"
Sia shouted for him to go downstairs, insisting that she would never open the door.
"Sia..."
Edgar collapsed, clutching his chest, apparently shocked by the sudden change in his daughter.
"Is... this really right?"
Raon's eyes trembled as he saw Edgar drooling and scratching the floor with his nails.
"As I said, this is something most parents and children go through."
Helen shrugged, saying they would soon get used to it.
"When children reach mid-adolescence, they think they are adults and dislike being controlled."
She smiled, saying that puberty was part of the process of becoming an adult.
"Something that most children go through, huh..."
Raon nodded slightly.
"Well, I really wasn't a child."
In his past life, he could never have experienced puberty as he was only focused on survival, and in this life, it was his second time, with an adult mind, so going through puberty didn’t make sense.
"Now that I think about it, Burren and Martha also went through puberty."
He remembered that during their trainee days, Burren and Martha acted like adults despite being children, only to be brought back to reality by him. Remembering that time, Sia's condition didn’t seem particularly strange.
"Of course, Runaan..."
She was and still is oblivious. It seemed that only Runaan maintained the same childhood innocence even now.
"Anyway, you don’t need to worry too much."
"Alright. You're doing well."
As Helen lowered her hand, saying it would pass on its own, Evelyn approached from the side. She smiled brightly, looking at Sia's room, which remained closed despite Edgar's moans.
"...Are you okay?"
Raon squinted at Evelyn.
"Don't tell me you meddled with my sister?"
Reflecting on her words, it seemed she had done something with Sia.
"Yes! I told the young lady."
Evelyn nodded, clapping softly.
"That it’s not good to always agree. I said that sometimes you have to rebel to become an adult."
She proudly raised her soft, crescent-shaped nose, as if satisfied with herself.
"Ah..."
Raon's jaw trembled as he looked at Evelyn standing proudly.
'So she was the culprit?'
It seemed that Sia's puberty did not come naturally but was created by Evelyn.
-That’s really out of line!
Wrath hid behind Raon’s shoulder, still looking scared of Evelyn.
"It’s not a bad thing. Repressing emotions only leads to an explosion."
Evelyn waved her hand, saying it was actually helpful for Sia.
"The young lady has lost all memories of living as the Green King, so an adult body with a childlike mind has settled, preventing her from establishing her own identity. That’s also the reason her mental age is growing more slowly compared to her physical growth."
She twirled her finger, saying it would be better for Sia to go through puberty quickly.
"I agree."
Helen nodded slightly, looking at Evelyn.
"I noticed that Miss Sia was deliberately lowering her mental age to match the kindness of Lord Edgar and Lady Sylvia."
She let out a low groan, saying she could see Sia intentionally acting like a child.
"I think it’s time to break down that barrier."
Helen also agreed that it was right to prepare for the process of becoming an adult now, joining her hands in front of her.
"I see..."
Raon licked his lips while looking at Sia's door.
'Putting aside Dad, I'm worried about Mom...'
Sylvia was as tough as a wall when it came to external matters but softer than tofu when it came to family issues. He wasn't sure how she would take Sia's changes.
"I should have a talk first..."
Raon stopped just as he was about to head up to Sia's room.
'Her presence has disappeared. Did she go outside?'
Noticing that Sia's presence had vanished, it seemed she had left the mansion through the window.
'Did she run away?'
Raon frowned and immediately went out. However, he didn’t need to search much to find Sia. She was swinging her sword in front of the lake as usual.
"Si-Sis."
Raon cleared his throat before approaching Sia. He slightly opened his eyes, thinking he might receive a reprimand from her for going through puberty.
"Raon!"
But unlike with Edgar, Sia smiled brightly and took his hand.
"When did you get here?"
"Eh...?"
Raon's eyes widened at Sia's unexpectedly warm welcome.
"I've learned so much about the Fangs of Insanity! Look at me!"
Sia led him in front of the lake, saying she wanted him to see her Fangs of Insanity.
'What’s going on here?'
Raon blinked as he looked at Sia treating him affectionately.
'Why is she the same with me?'
-Why? Because you’re her brother, of course.
Wrath frowned as if asking why Raon was questioning something so obvious.
-For that girl, you’re a little brother who needs protection. Of course, it’s natural for her to treat you kindly.
He clicked his tongue as if telling Raon to think about it carefully.
'Ah, that’s true.'
Thinking it over, Sia had always prioritized and cared for him. No matter how strong or big he became, it seemed that he was still just a little brother to her.
"Kids!"
While Raon watched Sia demonstrate the Fangs of Insanity, Sylvia came out the back door of the annex. She was carrying a basket of snacks, apparently for him and Sia.
"Eat this before continuing. Mom baked cookies."
Sylvia placed the basket on the table, telling them to eat before continuing.
"I don’t want to."
Sia shook her head, saying she wasn’t in the mood for snacks.
"Come on, just eat one."
"I said I don’t want to! You’re in my way! Go away, Mom!"
She turned her head sharply, not even looking at Sylvia, who was trying to put a cookie in her mouth.
"Ah..."
Sylvia seemed surprised by Sia's behavior, her lips trembling as she lowered her head.
"Mom!"
Raon approached Sylvia, whose shoulders and arms were trembling, to support her. She seemed to be in great shock from experiencing her daughter's rebellion for the first time.
"Are you okay? Right now, Sia is going through puberty..."
"I'm more than fine!"
Just as Raon was about to explain, Sylvia lifted her head, not crying but laughing.
"Mother?"
Raon swallowed hard as he looked at Sylvia laughing, contrary to his expectations.
"Why are you laughing...?"
"Actually, I was grateful that you grew up so mature without causing me worries, but I also felt a bit sad. I’m so happy that Sia is rebelling. So this is puberty..."
Sylvia laughed with flushed cheeks, as if she were happy about Sia's change.
"Siaaaaaaa!"
On the contrary, Edgar, unable to accept the change in his daughter, cried out Sia's name in despair as if he had lost a lover.
"..."
Raon closed his eyes as he looked at Sylvia's laughter, Edgar's crying, and Sia's indifference.
'Is this family okay?'
Thinking of his grandfather causing earthquakes by stomping with excitement to show off to his grandchildren, Raon wondered if this Zieghart House was functioning correctly.
'This is too weird!'
-It doesn’t matter how weird it is...
Wrath shook his head firmly as if telling him not to talk nonsense.
-There’s no human being weirder than you!
***
"Hmm..."
Raon licked his lips as he watched the swordsmen meditating silently in the training ground.
'It’s finally taking shape.'
A month had passed since he acquired Spirit Transformation. During that time, most of the swordsmen of the Light Wind Palace had experienced a state of enlightenment through sparring with him and had ascended to a higher level.
'Of course...'
Some had not awakened. Swordsmen like Mark Goetun, who had barely broken their limits recently, did not awaken Spirit Transformation since the light did not bloom for them. Spirit Transformation seemed to have a greater effect on those who were trapped in a barrier or experiencing a fall in their heart sword, rather than applying to everyone.
-Still, it’s cheating.
Wrath twisted his lips as if he still couldn’t believe it.
-All those influenced by your soul have broken their barriers, and some kids even leveled up twice at once.
He nodded towards Yua and Julius, who were training with Runaan.
'Those kids’ talents are not inferior to Burren or Martha's.'
Yua and Julius, worthy of being the targets of Eden for the owner of the helm, had jumped over two walls at once as soon as they received Spirit Transformation. Although much younger, it wouldn’t be strange to call them masters now.
'If they keep breaking one or two more walls like this, we could really compete with the Five Demons just with the Light Wind Palace.'
Strengthening aura through torturous training methods, improving mental power through concentration training, and elevating martial arts level through Spirit Transformation.
Now that they could rapidly develop spirit, energy, and mind, if the Light Wind Palace continued to grow like this and he became strong enough to face the leader of the Five Demons, it didn’t seem impossible to defeat one of the Five Demons just with the martial prowess of the Light Wind Palace.
'Of course, the hardest part there is...'
His own growth.
Among the remaining leaders of the Five Demons, there was not a single easy opponent. Even with ten years of training, he might not be able to reach them.
'It’s true that my growth has slowed down.'
Raon recalled the reward message he had received yesterday.
[All skills increase by 10 points.]
[Your soul realm rises.]
[The grade of the trait <Spirit Transformation> increases.]
This was the message he received after awakening Krein, the last one remaining. Although the content was good, there was a difference from before.
'The grade of my Soul Sword didn’t increase.'
Unlike when he first awakened Martha and Runaan, there was no effect on the grade of his Soul Sword. It seemed that ordinary Spirit Transformation could no longer develop the Soul Sword.
'As expected, it’s the martial art of the absolute.'
It would be even more absurd if Glenn's transcendent martial art could grow through repeated Spirit Transformations. It seemed that the Soul Sword now needed to be developed in a different way.
'Should I focus exclusively on my personal training after handling the accumulated tasks?'
As Raon contemplated what kind of training to do, he noticed people passing outside the fifth training ground.
'Lord Lawaine?'
He saw Lawaine, Alice's subordinate and the self-proclaimed Pirate King, walking toward Federick's mansion with his pirate-clad subordinates.
'His expression doesn’t look good.'
Raon followed Lawaine after seeing his hardened gaze as he clicked his tongue.
***
"Stop."
Lawaine halted in front of the temporary lodging where Alice was staying.
"We will stay here for a while, so clean the inside and outside of the mansion."
He instructed them to tidy up the mansion, saying they didn’t know when Alice would return.
"Yes!"
"Understood!"
The pirates, despite their fierce appearances, responded orderly and dispersed to various parts of the mansion.
"Hmm..."
"Lord Lawaine."
As Lawaine let out a short sigh while looking at the darkening sky, Raon, who had followed him, called out.
"Eh? Lord Raon?"
Lawaine turned around with wide eyes, as if he hadn’t noticed Raon following him.
"W-What brings you here? Lady Alice is still..."
"I know."
Raon nodded, looking at the mansion that had lost its warmth.
"Is Aunt training with Karoon, right?"
He smiled faintly, saying he knew she wasn’t there.
"Ah, of course, you would know better than I."
Lawaine scratched his bald forehead as if embarrassed.
"I haven’t seen you in a while; where have you been?"
Lawaine and his pirates had stayed in Zieghart to take care of Alice and had disappeared after she awakened. Raon was curious about what they had been doing since they suddenly vanished.
"As you know, Lord Raon, there are ports and cities protected under our name as the Pirate King. We went to inspect those places on Lady Alice’s orders."
Lawaine nodded, saying they had gone to check the ports and cities they protect under Alice’s command. However, his expression didn’t seem good.
"Shall we talk for a while?"
Raon pointed to the distant annex, suggesting they go together. Alice’s temporary residence wasn’t far from the annex, as it was next to Federick’s mansion.
"Alright, I understand."
Lawaine nodded as if he couldn’t refuse and followed him.
"So you’ve come back to Zieghart to inform Lady Alice."
Raon only turned his eyes toward Lawaine as he walked ahead.
"Yes, for the report..."
Lawaine's lips trembled slightly as he said the word 'report.' Clearly, something was wrong.
"As far as I know, Aunt won’t come down for a while."
Raon squinted as he looked toward the direction of the main building. Alice and Karoon hadn’t even responded to Glenn’s call a while ago since they were focused on training. They probably wouldn’t come out for another month or two.
"I see."
Lawaine bit his lip slightly, as if he didn’t know much.
"Let’s go inside and have some tea..."
Just as Raon was about to open the door to the annex with Lawaine:
"Sia! I told you not to mix Dad's clothes with mine! Wash them separately!"
Sia’s cold voice burst from above.
"No, Dad isn’t that dirty! I shower once a day!"
Edgar pleaded with Sia, hands together, saying he wasn’t that dirty.
"You should do it twice! Morning and night!"
Sia shook her head fiercely, saying she still didn’t like it.
"Go away!"
She snatched the clothes from Edgar’s hands and slammed the door shut.
"Siaaaaaaa!"
Edgar fell to his knees on the ground, calling his daughter’s name in sadness as if he had lost a lover.
"Um..."
Lawaine’s eyes trembled, speechless at the unexpected scene.
"It’s almost over. Don’t worry."
Raon said it wasn’t something to worry about as he led Lawaine to the reception room.
"I’ve brought tea."
Judiel entered with the tea as if she had been waiting, serving it to him and Lawaine.
"Thank you."
"It’s nothing."
She bowed slightly before quietly leaving the reception room.
"Now, tell me."
Raon looked at Lawaine with his hands clasped in front of the steaming tea.
"Did something happen during your mission?"
"Hmm..."
Lawaine let out a long sigh before lifting his head.
"I really can’t hide anything from you, Lord Raon."
He let out a low groan as he stared at the cup of tea that rippled like waves.
"I mentioned earlier that there are towns and ports I protect under the name of the Pirate King, right?"
Lawaine clenched his darkened fist and bit his lip.
"Two of those towns were completely annihilated, leaving not a single survivor..."
-
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