Summer rain had fallen.
Swoosh!
Although the rain pouring in the forest wasn't torrential, it was enough to discourage outdoor activities.
Luna Artorious, clad in a raincoat, listened to the sound of impacts coming at regular intervals through the downpour.
Slowly, Luna approached the direction of the sound, cutting through the rain.
Crack!
And Luna saw a tree trunk breaking and falling to the ground.
Mechanically, the young man approached the fallen tree and resumed his axe work.
Chopping wood in the rain was dangerous.
The handle could slip from his grasp, and the blade might slip and twist, causing serious injury.
However, the young man seemed to ignore such dangers, repeatedly striking the axe down at regular intervals.
On the first day, it seemed like quite a struggle.
On the second day, the old axe handle finally broke, so he had to borrow one from another house to chop the wood.
Once Ronan inserted a new handle into the nearly-worn-out axe and provided a new one, the work sped up.
Since Reinhardt, who possessed extraordinary strength, had to transport the chopped wood to Rezaira alone, there was no helping the slow pace of his work.
Two weeks since Reinhardt began clearing the forest.
Luna could see that one side of the forest had been completely cleared.
There were still more trees to chop, but progress was undoubtedly being made.
Luna approached Reinhardt and spoke quietly.
"Reinhardt, it's raining. Take a break today."
Thud!
The sound of rain was abundant, but it wasn't enough to drown out Luna's voice.
However, Reinhardt kept striking his axe at regular intervals as if he hadn't heard anything.
Luna stared silently at his back.
His figure seemed to think of nothing else but swinging the axe.
Thud!
She watched him focus solely on splitting the chopped wood at regular intervals, as he could only accomplish the task with an axe.
"Reinhardt."
Although Luna called out again, Reinhardt continued his axe work, seemingly unaware of anything else.
"..."
It wasn't that he pretended not to hear.
He genuinely didn't hear her.
Luna silently watched Reinhardt's back, then turned and walked away.
Thud!
As Luna left, she heard the sound of the axe at regular intervals.
Late at night.
In the gray void, the council chamber.
"Lord, how long do you plan to let the boy stay in Rezaira?"
A white-haired elder leaned on his cane and asked Luna.
Ronan sat beside Luna, who was seated at the head of the table, with the residents of Rezaira in front of them.
None of their faces showed discomfort with Reinhardt's presence in Rezaira.
Just curiosity.
An unmistakable curiosity was etched on everyone's faces.
More than a month, almost two months.
Everyone was puzzled by the situation of the boy staying in Rezaira and the Lord's decision to allow it.
"Until the child gets what he wants."
The atmosphere in the council chamber became chaotic at Luna's calm words.
"Lord, if it's your decision... there must be a greater purpose we don't know about... but hasn't this never happened before...?"
An old man couldn't help but shake his head in confusion.
"Precedent..."
Luna lowered her eyes and remained silent for a moment.
For an incalculable length of time, there had never been such a precedent.
Luna gazed once more at the faces of those seated in the meeting room.
There were elders, those soon to enter old age, and those of middle age.
"It was also unprecedented that Ragan was able to leave for the world, knowing of the existence of the Sun and Moon clan."
As the leader herself mentioned her already deceased son, everyone's expressions turned ashen.
"My lord... Ragan could go out into the world because he did not learn the mysteries of the Sun and Moon clan... Just like Ellen..."
"I spoke of precedent, not mystery."
Luna quietly said so.
"Through Ragan's case, we have come to know that it is not unusual for a new precedent to be set in an unprecedented situation."
Everyone fell silent at Luna's words.
"So, there's no rule that says we absolutely mustn't have such a new precedent either."
"But, my lord, what if something goes wrong...?"
Luna interrupted the worried words of the elderly woman.
"I should be the one prepared for that, not you."
A silence settled over the room at Luna's composed words.
"Besides, even without me, will the Sun and Moon clan disappear? You all simply need to serve the Sun and Moon as you have learned thus far and live that way."
"My lord... You are the only leader of the Sun and Moon clan."
At the elder's teary words, Luna gently smiled.
"Is it not true that there doesn't necessarily have to be no precedent for choosing a new leader among you?"
Everyone wanted to say something to Luna's words, but no one could refute her decision.
After everyone left the meeting room, only Luna Artorious and Ronan Artorious remained.
"My lord, do you intend to teach the child the mysteries?"
At Ronan's words, Luna shook her head.
"No, doing so would bind the child to the constraints of the Sun and Moon clan. How could I do that?"
Luna quietly looked down at the floor.
"Whatever the child desires, he must realize it on his own."
"So, you will intervene with time instead?"
At those words, Luna silently gazed at Ronan.
"...You knew."
"I didn't know the details, but somehow I had a feeling you would do so."
"...Yes."
Luna quietly stared at the passage to the crypt.
"All I can give that child is time."
"..."
"Isn't meddling with the time of Rezaira interfering with the world? In the world where I intervened with time, outsiders arbitrarily entered."
At Luna's smile, Ronan awkwardly smiled back.
"It sounds like sophistry."
"Yes, it's sophistry."
"Would it not have been alright to tell Reinhardt that time flows differently here from the outside world?"
"I suppose."
Unknowing, Reinhardt must spend his time in anxiety and unease.
"If he knew that time flowed differently here, the child would gain leisure. He would gain peace and find mental tranquility sooner, and he would have had time to rest his exhausted body and mind."
"But an easily acquired peace would inevitably shatter just as easily."
"Only when peace is hard-won will its permanence also be steadfast."
"If he gains leisure and peace easily and mistakes it for his own strength, when true chaos and fear arrive, he will crumble."
Hearing Luna's words, Ronan slowly nodded.
"So you deliberately didn't tell him anything."
"Overcoming limits and achieving goals are different things."
Upon hearing Luna's words that Reinhardt needed to overcome his limits rather than achieve his goals, Ronan fell silent.
The sound of the axe chopping through the wood at regular intervals echoed in Luna's head.
"Ronan."
"Yes, my lord?"
"Do you think you would be sad if I were to disappear?"
At Luna's question, Ronan nodded with a solemn expression.
"Of course. I would be."
"…"
"You've always been a cheeky one, haven't you?"
"…"
"However, the life of a human being, forced to live because of you, hasn't been too bad. No, it's been quite good, actually."
Luna gazed silently down the corridor.
"Since I've been forced to live a human life, I've been having thoughts of wanting to experience the end of humanity – death."
"My lord."
"It's just something I've been pondering."
Seeing Ronan's serious expression, Luna let out a faint chuckle.
Time passed.
Reinhardt continued to chop wood.
In truth, if Reinhardt were to use his maximum magical output and divine artifacts, he could have cleared the entire forest in a single day.
However, he had to maintain an extremely refined Magic Body Strengthening and chop each tree one by one using an axe.
Thus, Reinhardt's work inevitably progressed at a slower pace, with more deliberate movements and using inferior tools than usual.
Maintaining a clear mind throughout the day was not an easy feat, of course.
Naturally, there were times when his focus waned, and he was often flustered when the axe blade detached from the handle, disrupting his concentration.
Nevertheless, there was no doubt that he was improving.
His concentration, which was once exhausted after only an hour, soon exceeded two hours, then three, and finally, four hours.
Eventually, he could maintain his focused state not only while chopping wood all day but also while taking a break and catching his breath.
Around two months after he first started chopping wood, Reinhardt had cut down all the trees in the forest.
"I can't believe you finished all of it."
Arta said, looking at the remains of the forest, now only a collection of tree stumps.
"But you got faster towards the end, didn't you? It was incredible."
At Lena's words, Reinhardt silently nodded.
He placed the worn-out axe, which had its handle replaced several times, onto the cart. As he stacked the last few logs onto the cart, Reinhardt clicked his tongue.
"If someone had told me back then that this kind of labor would help me attain mental clarity, I would have laughed in their face."
Grumbling, Reinhardt pulled the cart filled with logs.
"What annoys me the most is that it actually works."
The abyss-like darkness in Reinhardt's eyes hadn't completely disappeared.
However.
Those emotions were now utterly serene.
"You've finished chopping all the wood?"
"Yes."
"It took you quite some time."
"I'm not sure if two months is considered quick… but isn't it decent? I've never done anything like this in my life."
It took a full two months.
Luna looked puzzled upon hearing that Reinhardt had singlehandedly completed the enormous task of clearing the forest. Ronan simply nodded in agreement.
"Then, starting tomorrow, we'll have to remove the tree roots."
"…"
Really?
Couldn't they just say 'well done'?
Seeing Luna casually mention that there would be more work starting the next day, Reinhardt felt a sudden surge of frustration.
No.
Having been here for a while, he sometimes forgot who he was, even though he knew he shouldn't.
It was quite absurd to feel upset about not receiving praise for cutting down all the trees.
Could it be that I have become too accustomed to living in Rezaira...?
Honestly, there were times when I would suddenly wake up from sleep, fearing that I would eventually collapse from this aimless life.
Although I've put aside thoughts about the outside world for now, there are still occasions when I have nightmares.
However, I've noticed that my mind becomes clearer after repeating simple tasks throughout the day.
"Your expression has improved a lot."
That was what Ronan said.
"Is that... so?"
"Yes, definitely."
No matter what happens or how it happens.
Amidst anxiety and impatience swallowing me up, I was getting used to maintaining my composure and sustaining the highest efficiency of Magic Body Strengthening for long periods.
"Thanks to you, we seem to have enough firewood to last us until next year."
According to Luna's words, it seemed like I had only done good things for Rezaira.
And I don't see why that should be a problem. After all, it is true that I am living off Rezaira.
The villagers would often commend me for my hard work whenever they saw me piling firewood in the village center, and many of them would even leave some snacks for me.
Rather than remaining as a burden, I'm doing good deeds for myself while helping the village.
There's nothing wrong with that.
Before I knew it, I had become a part of a rural community called Rezaira.
As a result of cutting down all the trees in the forest, Rezaira no longer needed to worry about firewood.
Looking at the huge pile of firewood drying crisply under the sun, I felt an inexplicable sense of pride welling up within me.
If everything wraps up nicely...
If all matters are resolved, and the burden on my shoulders disappears...
I suddenly thought about trying something like farming.
The Demon King, farming.
Just thinking about it made me chuckle at the absurdity.
Anyway, after a long and arduous time, I had finally finished cutting down trees.
Of course, that didn't mean I was parting with my axe forever.
Instead, two more tools were added to my arsenal.
A shovel and a pickaxe.
The trees in the forest were diverse.
There were large Arem trees, medium-sized ones, and even small trees that would break just by me grabbing and shaking them with my bare hands.
Let's set the small ones aside.
"Honestly, even I find this challenging."
"Do you now?"
"Of course, this isn't an ordinary task."
Staring at the sturdy base of a tree, whose roots seemed to stretch indefinitely, my mind felt overwhelmed.
How on earth could I uproot this?
Don't I need heavy machinery for this? Isn't this a job for an excavator?
In order not to dig blindly into the ground like when I first started cutting trees, I even brought Arta along, but even he shook his head in disbelief.
Ignoring the gigantic Arem tree with an overwhelming base, I stood in front of a slightly smaller tree.
Upon consideration, I realized that this task was part of a series of processes.
The repetitive practice of cutting trees served to clear my mind of distractions and helped me become familiar with the optimal use of Magic Body Strengthening.
So now, I was quite accustomed to it.
This time, it's about that.
Increasing the output of the optimized Magic Body Strengthening itself.
Uprooting trees with deeply embedded roots doesn't require equipment; it requires technique.
But there's no way such tools would be available in this rural area.
So, I had to rely on my strength to accomplish tasks that required technique.
Maximizing the efficiency of magical power and increasing its output, I become accustomed to converting all of the magical power into my strength without releasing any of it externally.
When I think about it, there must have been a reason Luna asked me to create a field...
No way.
It's like interpreting a dream.
I'm simply assigned a task, and I'm the one giving it meaning.
"I've never done this before either, so I might need to call the adults for help."
"No."
This isn't a matter of technique; it requires raw strength.
"First, we do it crudely."
"...What?"
-Thud!
I thrust my shovel into the ground.
To create a groove deep enough to grip the tree's base.
-Thud! Thud Thud!
After a few digs, I expose the tree's roots to some extent.
"...I see what you're trying to do, but can you really do it?"
"If it doesn't work, we'll think of another way."
I squat down, standing on the tree stump.
Then, with my arms lowered, I grasp the battered part of the tree's base as if it were a handle.
Arta's expression wasn't very good.
"...This doesn't look good."
"We'll try, and if it doesn't work, we'll find another way."
Although I don't know how it'll turn out with maximum output Magic Body Strengthening, since this is also part of my training, I use Magic Body Strengthening with the highest efficiency and an output that won't let the magic leak out.
I can already feel my magical power efficiency has increased drastically.
From now on, the task is to increase the output itself while keeping the control of the magic entirely in my hands.
With overwhelming strength, I pull out the deeply rooted tree with my bare hands.
"I am a human excavator."
"Excavator...? What's that?"
"It's a thing."
Using self-suggestion and word magic as well.
"Ugh!"
Feeling the blood rush to my head, I attempt to pull out the tree stump with my bare hands.
Tensing my thighs, arms, and waist.
"Uuuggghhhh!"
"You're crazy..."
-Twitch
I'm not sure, but there's movement.
It's happening.
It's about to happen.
If there was no movement at all, I wouldn't know, but I have a feeling it's working, so I put even more strength into it.
I pour out enormous strength, feeling as if the veins throughout my body might burst.
Not pulling out the tree, but pushing the earth away with my legs and pulling up the world, that kind of concept.
With all my might.
And yet, I keep cramming the overflowing-with-rationality mana downward.
"Guh."
"Ah."
"Ah."
"Ah!"
Screaming, I exert a force I've never used before.
-Snap!
Something broke.
"Uh...ugh..."
"Hey... Are you okay?!"
Certainly, something did break.
It was my back.
