Chapter 1195
The summit of North Grave Mountain stood tall, bathed in the brilliant glow of the ascending morning sun...
"Grrruuugh..."
"Aaaah!"
"K-kill me. No, please show some mercy..."
"I beg you, let it end..."
The warriors of the Light Wind Palace were draped across the ground like sodden, discarded rags, their earlier pleas for leniency now reduced to pathetic whimpers and pained cries.
"Huff! Huff! Huff!"
Burren was splayed out in a star shape, his chest heaving as he struggled for oxygen, looking as though he lacked the vitality to even form a syllable.
"That... that absolute lunatic..."
Martha was similarly incapacitated by fatigue, her body refusing to budge while her lips moved in a faint, trembling curse.
"Grrrr..."
Runaan had forced herself into a deep slumber to replenish her drained internal energy and physical strength; the exertion had been so brutal that she was snoring quite loudly, a rarity for her. With a crisp, metallic ring, Raon cleaned the grime and gore from the blade of Heavenly Drive. Looking as revitalized and polished as if he had just finished a refreshing soak, he surveyed the shattered remnants of the Light Wind Palace.
"Hiiieek!"
"Grrruuu..."
"Please, have a heart!"
The disciples of the Light Wind Palace, who had endured a night of pure agony, shrieked in pure dread at the mere sound of Raon tapping his scabbard, scrambling backward in instinctive fear.
"Is your goal truly to wipe us all out..."
Gambling Monster twisted his features in sheer revulsion. He shook his head slowly, reflecting on how he had joined the drills halfway through and had come dangerously close to collapsing from the sheer intensity.
"Certainly not."
A subtle smirk played on Raon’s lips as he secured the sheath of Heavenly Drive to his belt.
"I was merely engaging in a bit of recreation."
He wagged a finger playfully, suggesting that the ordeal was nothing more than a simple game of tag.
"Tag? If that qualifies as play, children would be extinct before reaching puberty!"
Gambling Monster gnashed his teeth, demanding to know how such lethal training could be labeled as a game.
"If we had proceeded with a standard focus-intensification regimen, it would have spanned three nights and four days."
Raon dismissed the concern with a wave of his hand, noting that the timeframe had been far too brief.
"Granted, because we condensed the schedule, the physical strain was likely quite severe. However..."
He turned his gaze toward the eastern peaks, where the golden light of dawn flickered, his mouth curling slightly upward.
"You must be able to withstand at least this much if you hope to survive the conflicts on the horizon."
Raon spoke with a firm, resonating tone, ensuring his words reached not just Gambling Monster but every member of the Light Wind Palace.
"I don't disagree with the sentiment, but the war isn't upon us just yet. Pushing too hard too fast could result in lasting damage."
Gambling Monster knit his brows, arguing that while improvement was vital, a moment of respite would be more beneficial at this stage.
"Gambling Monster speaks the truth!"
Krein wiped the mixture of perspiration and blood from his forehead as he looked up.
"We require recovery time!"
He grumbled, insisting that such disproportionate training would eventually break their spirits and bodies.
"Don't you agree?"
Krein nudged Dorian, who was slumped beside him, looking for a comrade in his dissent.
"M-me?"
Dorian’s jaw clattered as if he had been struck by a sudden chill.
"I-I'm perfectly fine! I actually find this invigorating!"
He shook his head frantically, paralyzed by the icy sharpness in Raon’s eyes.
"I-I didn't think it was so bad either?"
"E-exactly. This level of discipline is necessary from time to time!"
"Yeah. It’s not like we're actually dying!"
The rest of the Light Wind Palace swordsmen clearly sensed that agreeing with Krein was a death sentence, so they looked away and withdrew their support for his complaint.
"So, it appears Krein is the only one harboring grievances?"
Raon wore a predatory grin as he moved to stand directly over Krein.
"Ahh..."
The shadow of Raon, which had haunted his vision all through the night, loomed over Krein again, and his face drained of all color.
"S-sorry... Eh?"
He began to frantically rub his palms together in a desperate apology when he suddenly paused, confused.
"To be fair, it must have been grueling. We squeezed a four-day curriculum into a single evening."
Rather than striking Krein with his weapon, Raon placed a steadying hand on his shoulder.
"But I need you to hold on."
He exhaled softly, admitting that while he felt for them, the upcoming training would only grow more demanding.
"What? What are you saying..."
Krein’s eyes grew wide, caught off guard by Raon’s uncharacteristic change in demeanor.
"It appears the war will commence sooner than we anticipated."
Raon pressed his lips into a thin line, the hateful visage of Derus Robert surfacing in his mind.
"Something big must be happening."
Burren gave a solemn nod, finally grasping the urgency behind the brutal night they had just endured.
"If that is the reality, then this level of training is justified."
Martha tightened her grip into fists, agreeing that if the tides of war were shifting, they had to adapt or perish.
"I... can hold out..."
Runaan spoke through her drowsiness, her resolve manifesting as delicate frost flowers blooming across the earth beneath her.
"I-it's inevitable! I'll put in the work!"
Even Dorian bit his lip, vowing to give his all to the upcoming drills.
"You should have led with that!"
Krein waved a hand dismissively, acting as if he had never been worried.
"Just put your faith in Krein... Wait?"
He was laughing, playing the part of the confident leader, when his jaw began to rattle again.
"Um..."
Krein gestured toward his shoulder, which Raon was still firmly gripping, his voice trembling.
"I-it actually hurts?"
He blinked, realizing the pressure on his shoulder was becoming agonizing.
"In such a critical moment, our dear Krein seemed to have a great deal to say."
Raon’s smile turned bone-chilling as he brought up the complaints Krein had voiced just moments prior.
"N-no. Didn't we move past that?"
Krein gasped, unable to believe his ears.
"Past it? I merely tabled the discussion for a second."
Raon’s fingers dug deeper into Krein’s shoulder, his expression terrifyingly calm.
"There is only one solution for dissatisfaction. A greater application of force."
He invited Krein to a private tutoring session as he once again gripped the hilt of Heavenly Drive.
"Aaaaaaahhh! Gack!"
Krein tried to flee in a blind panic, but the scabbard of Heavenly Drive seemed to elongate like a living thing, cracking against the base of his skull.
"Uuuugh..."
"Gasp!"
"He's insane..."
Watching Krein slump to the ground, unconscious and foaming at the mouth, the rest of the Light Wind Palace held their collective breath. They squeezed their eyes shut, silently swearing never to question Raon again.
-What kind of human acts like this...
Wrath let out a weary sigh of disbelief.
-Even in the depths of the Devildom, there isn't a mind this warped! Will someone please haul this monster away!
Following the session with the Light Wind Palace, Raon made his way back to the annex. Glenn was positioned by the lake near the building, hands clasped behind his back, looking as though he had been waiting since breakfast.
"You've returned."
He offered a gentle welcome and a small smile, appearing very much like a permanent resident of the annex.
"The progress of the Light Wind Palace youngsters seems quite promising."
Glenn nodded with a serene air, clearly aware of Raon’s activities throughout the night.
"Yes. However, they still have quite a distance to go."
Raon rolled his wrist, noting that his subordinates required further tempering.
"Hmm, are you prepared to begin immediately?"
Glenn tilted his head, suggesting that a rest before their sparring match wouldn't be out of place.
"It’s fine. I haven't even broken a sweat yet."
Raon drew Heavenly Drive, confident in his readiness. Despite his lack of sleep, his endurance rivaled that of a demon king, leaving him feeling perfectly energetic.
"Excellent."
Glenn smiled, clearly pleased by Raon’s bold spirit, and lifted his simple tree branch.
"Whoo..."
Raon took a steadying breath as he watched Glenn raise the wooden switch.
'I really want to snap it this time.'
Since he had yet to even nick the branch since they began these sessions, a burning desire to shatter it surged within him. Even if it meant depleting every ounce of his energy to the point of collapse, he wanted to see that branch broken.
"Let us start."
Glenn gave a curt nod, inviting the attack, and lunged forward with the branch. With a low hum, Raon activated his Ring of Fire the moment Glenn’s wrist flicked, spinning his nine existing rings while beginning the construction of the tenth.
'What is this?'
The flow of heat required to forge the tenth ring felt more fluid and rapid than ever before. The new ring reached the halfway point much faster than he had anticipated.
'This feels right.'
As he synchronized the rings, Raon began to decipher the intricate sword logic contained within Glenn’s movement.
'The blunt, the subtle, the sharp, the heavy, the sweeping.'
Due to the enhanced vitality of his rings, he was able to read the profound depth of Glenn’s swordsmanship with unprecedented clarity and speed.
'But it's still not quite there...'
He knew Glenn always hid a deeper martial truth within his strikes, so he pushed his focus to its absolute limit. Through the intense concentration provided by his <Forever Unrippled Mind>, he began to grasp the secret hidden at the very tip of the advancing branch.
'If I can just see a bit more... Damn!'
Time had run out. Although his tenth Ring of Fire had expanded further than usual, it wasn't enough to fully decode Glenn’s technique. The branch was already inches from his throat.
'I don't care, I'll stop it anyway!'
Raon improvised a new counter-move on the spot, infusing it with the principles of the Precision Sword. There was a sharp crack, but Glenn’s hidden sword mystery wasn't countered. Instead, it overpowered his defense, knocking Heavenly Drive aside and striking him squarely in the neck.
"Guh!"
Raon clutched his throat where the wood had impacted and dropped to his knees, gasping for air.
-Hmph! That's what you get for bullying those kids all night!
Wrath snorted, sounding thoroughly satisfied by the turn of events.
-Though that might have been a bit much...
The demon glanced toward Glenn, who had just ruthlessly poked his own grandson. He continued to think that he was far too kind-hearted to truly be a king of demons.
"Hmm."
Glenn lowered his slightly vibrating branch and stepped toward Raon.
"Did you find some new insight?"
He peered at Raon, noting that he seemed to have evolved further in the span of a single night.
"It wasn't a sudden insight. What shifted was..."
Raon stood back up and struck his chest with his sword-hand.
"My resolve and my heart."
He nodded, explaining that his will had been forged by the desire to strike down Derus before the onset of the war.
"So it's related to that matter."
Glenn nodded understandingly, having likely received the report from Chad, the Leader of the Shadow Agents.
"Tempering your spirit is good, but haste is a dangerous master. One wrong step and you might fall into your own trap."
He offered the warning while casually shaking his branch.
"I know. That's why I'm checking every stone ten times before I step on it."
Raon gave a small smile, mentioning that he had discussed this very concern with Evelyn.
"Good. If you say it is so, I believe you."
Glenn showed total confidence in Raon and fell silent, tucking his hands behind his back once more.
"Sylvia has set aside a meal for you. Eat and then get some sleep."
With those words, he turned and began walking toward the main estate rather than the annex.
"You're going back to the main house?"
Raon blinked, watching his grandfather's retreating figure.
"I should probably visit my own home occasionally."
Glenn remarked that the place would get dusty otherwise, giving a casual wave over his shoulder.
-That old man is finally going to do some actual work.
Wrath grumbled, suggesting Glenn had been far too lazy for a family head.
'No, he worked every single day.'
Raon shook his head.
'Sheryl, Roenn, and the Shadow Leader visited every night.'
He pointed out that their visits were strictly for the purpose of handling the family’s affairs.
-Hm? Then why go to the main building now?
Wrath looked confused.
'I think he’s doing it for me.'
Raon watched Glenn’s back, his eyes softening.
-For you?
'He’s likely going to cross-reference everything from Evelyn, the Shadow Agents, and the Black Market to finalize Zieghart’s strategy.'
Glenn had clearly taken the information to heart and was now moving to prepare the entire family to back Raon up.
"Grandfather! Take care of yourself!"
Feeling the warmth of Glenn’s support, Raon called out a casual farewell rather than a stiff, formal one.
"Ah..."
Glenn halted in his tracks and turned around with a blank expression. He seemed genuinely shocked by the informal goodbye and stared at Raon for several moments.
"Right. I'll be back!"
Glenn resumed his walk toward the main house, wearing the most radiant smile Raon had ever seen from him.
-Why is that old man acting so strange again?
Wrath scowled, clearly unsettled by Glenn’s behavior.
'Saying "take care" is what you say to someone who belongs at home.'
Raon gestured toward the annex, where the atmosphere was light and filled with life.
'It’s an admission that he is part of the annex family. It made him happy.'
He smiled, remembering the way Glenn’s red eyes had widened in surprise.
'You're being a bit slow today, aren't you?'
Raon teased, suggesting the demon was becoming more relatable.
-Heheng! Stop talking trash!
Wrath shook his head violently.
-This king simply doesn't waste energy on such trivialities!
The demon looked annoyed at the suggestion of being human-like. He couldn't grasp why a lord of the abyss would want to be compared to a mortal.
'I should check in on the Fifth Training Ground occasionally.'
Raon mused as he returned Heavenly Drive to its sheath.
'A little variety in their suffering wouldn't be a bad thing.'
He was harboring thoughts that would have terrified the Light Wind Palace members as he turned toward the annex. Suddenly, a colossal surge of energy erupted from the summit of North Grave Mountain behind the building. With a powerful resonance, Raon’s eyes locked onto a pillar of sword-intent shooting from the peak, piercing the very clouds.
.."
"That is.
