You can’t even properly analyze your opponent’s abilities…
Wrath frowned at his ridiculous behavior.
A second blade must’ve stabbed your brain.
He clicked his tongue, saying that Raon picked a fight against an opponent that was impossible to win against.
Raon ignored Wrath’s mockery and tightened his grip on Heavenly Drive.
Of course I know that.
He was obviously aware of the fact that he couldn’t possibly win against Roman. His action was a gamble. He was throwing a coin, which might allow everyone to survive.
Raon exhaled the murky breath filling his lungs, examining Roman. His eyes turned towards him for the first time.
‘He’s looking at my sword.’
He was looking at Glacier’s coldness on Heavenly Drive instead of Raon himself, who picked a fight with him. He must’ve been trying to analyze the Blue Rain that defeated all of the warriors from the South North Union a moment ago.
‘I knew he would do that.’
Considering that his aura was the first thing he was looking at despite the situation, Roman must’ve been as crazy about martial arts as the rumors said he was. His chance of survival became higher than 30%.
“Did you make them faint by incorporating aura to the sword resonance?”
Roman narrowed his eyes while looking at the unconscious pirates, foam coming from their mouths.
“You affected their nervous system by controlling your aura during the split second when the sound of friction and sword resonance spread out. You could’ve killed them already if you wanted.”
He analyzed Blue Rain’s function at a glance, then nodded in excitement.
“I’ve seen many people attacking with musical instruments before, but I’ve never seen anyone influence the nervous system with sword resonance. It’s creative and effective. However, the method is also extremely complicated. It must be difficult to imitate.”
Roman chuckled while caressing the blade of his axe.
“I feel enlightened. Since you showed me something nice, I’ll brush off what you just said as a mistake. Step back.”
He smiled in satisfaction and looked away.
“It wasn’t a mistake. I’ll be your opponent.”
Raon firmly shook his head.
Thud!
Roman slammed the ground with the axe he was holding. Roman was simply straining his eyes, but an incredible amount of pressure weighed down on Raon.
“Are you really trying to face me?”
“Yes.”
Raon resonated the Ring of Fire. He pulled out his soul level that Wrath had allowed to grow to push back Roman’s pressure.
“Not bad. You are a lot better than the rumors. However…”
Roman slowly nodded before spreading his pressure. The weight crushing Raon’s body was on a different level from before.
“You should know your place.”
Probably because he was interrupting his battle against Rimmer, crimson rage was emerging from his eyes.
“Someone like you can’t even take one hit from me.”
Roman raised his axe. An astral sphere appeared in front of the red blade of the axe, creating a powerful airflow.
“This is my last warning. Step back before I split your head in two.”
Even though it was a powerful warning, Raon neither withdrew nor lowered his sword.
“Raon.”
Rimmer, who’d been watching how the situation would unfold, blocked Raon’s way.
“He’s right. He’s not an opponent you can handle yet.”
“That’s true. I can’t win against him ‘right now’.”
Raon nodded and smiled faintly.
“Right now? Do you believe that you can win against me in the future? Brat, you really don’t know your place.”
Roman snorted and lowered his axe. The astral sphere that was gathering towards him dissipated like smoke. It was an expression of his complete disrespect for Raon.
“It looked like you wanted to fight a powerful martial art.”
Raon faced Roman’s scornful gaze and turned his chin.
“Of course. The more powerful the better. It’s even better if they can cut my head off.”
Roman’s cool smile implied that he was serious about that. Raon could confirm the rumors about the reason he was in the South-North Union being because of the spar against the Union’s leader.
He could finish the fight if everything went as he planned.
“I’ll show you then. I’ll become stronger than you and visit you with a martial art that can take your life away.”
Raon’s pressure emerged like a raging flame as he said that. The powerful pressure wriggling all around his body didn’t lose to even Roman and Rimmer.
“You must be crazy. There’s no point in you visiting me when I’m at death’s door.”
“Three years.”
Raon raised his left hand and stretched his fingers.
“I’ll visit you in three years to kill you with a martial art that you will be shocked to see.”
The deck completely fell silent when he said three years.
“Puhahahaha!”
Rimmer burst out into laughter despite the serious atmosphere.
“That’s right. Since it’s Raon we are talking about, three years are more than enough.”
He nodded, saying that it was plenty of time for him.
“The Light Wind squad must be full of lunatics.”
Roman scowled. A tremendous amount of pressure came out from him as his scowl expressed his disgust.
“Are you looking down on Grandmaster because you became a Master at a young age?”
The wavering black aura raging on the axe looked like it would explode at any moment.
“The age of becoming a Master is unrelated to reaching the Grandmaster level. If you never get the enlightenment you need, you won’t be able to reach that level for the rest of your life. It’s pointless to talk about a level that you won’t ever be able to reac…”
“Are you afraid?”
Raon smiled coldly.
“You said that you wanted to die from a powerful martial art, yet you are afraid of what I will become in three years?”
“You must’ve gone insane….”
“Three years is more than enough time to come up with a martial art that you will be satisfied with and cut off your head.”
“Fine! Let’s admit that it can possibly happen. Why should I let all of you go?”
Roman showed his teeth and smiled. The ferocious smile made him look like a beast.
“Wouldn’t you become even stronger in order to take revenge if I killed everyone here except for you?”
He raised his axe in a threatening manner, creating an astral sphere with condensed aura.
“Humans tend to become stronger when they crave revenge. If what you say is true, then I’d be better off killing everything except you.”
Roman raised his chin as if he had figured out all of Raon’s plans.
“You are gravely mistaken about one part.”
Raon rolled up the corners of his lips while watching the astral sphere waver in front of the axe.
“You are also going to die if we fight here.”
“What madness are you spoutin…”
“You must’ve realized that our squad leader can fight you equally. While our squad leader fends you off, I’ll defeat Raptor alongside the Light Wind members and join forces with him. You won’t be able to survive that.”
“Do you truly believe that’s possible?”
“Many of us will die. The squad leader might die, and all of our members might end up dying. However, everyone on your side is also going to die, and I’ll make sure to cut off your head with the simplest sword swing I know instead of your beloved martial art.”
Because Raon sounded like he was merely stating the truth, Roman and Raptor’s expressions turned stiff.
“Raptor. What do you think about what he said?”
Roman asked the question without even looking at Raptor.
“Hmm, that’s quite plausible.”
Raptor slowly nodded.
“What?”
“You must not be aware of it, big brother, but the reason why Raon Zieghart’s name is spread throughout the continent is because he’s always slaying someone more powerful than him as he grows. He’s even defeated a Master-level apostle in the past, despite being an Expert himself.”
He continued with a faint smile on his face.
“It’s true that I’m currently at a higher level than Raon, but considering how unscathed he is after defeating Tyler and the sword resonance technique he showed us before, he must be hiding another decisive move. If the Light Wind squad joined forces with him, it’s completely possible for me to lose.”
Raptor nonchalantly declared that he might lose to them.
“Tsk.”
Roman briefly clicked his tongue. He seemed to agree with Raptor.
“What a shitty way to beg for your lif…”
“You must be mistaken. I’m not begging for my life, nor making a request. I’m simply making a suggestion.”
Raon clenched his fist. Request meant reaching out his hand while kneeling down, while a suggestion meant reaching out his hand in an equal standing. He couldn’t allow himself to depreciate himself to a lower standing.
“I’m giving you a choice. You can die miserably here from a combined attack, or die in three years by a martial art that surpasses you.”
“Kuk! Kuhahahaha!”
Roman grasped his forehead and started to laugh like a madman. His crazy laughter continued for a while before he lowered his head.
“What’s the name of your martial art that you used to create the sword resonance?”
“Blue Rain.”
“Blue Rain. Yes. I certainly heard the sound of rain. It was elegant and silent at the same time.”
He closed his eyes for a moment to remember that sound before opening them again.
“I could feel your personality from that martial art. Did you create it by yourself?”
Raon didn’t respond.
“The reason I can’t simply scoff and claim that your bluff is a lie is because of that martial art, Blue Rain. I’ve never seen such a mysterious technique from anyone else, so it’s only natural for me to be interested in it.”
Roman nodded, pulling his axe back.
“Fine. I’ll accept your ‘suggestion’.”
It went according to his plan, but Raon didn’t relax. That was because Roman hadn’t finished talking.
“However, if it was a nasty lie in order to escape the situation, you’d better take it back right now. Because I’ll spread the rumor about your promise for a life and death battle in three years to the entire continent as soon as I return.”
“Unlike you, I don’t lie.”
Raon shook his head.
“I swear under Zieghart’s name—no, under the name of Frostfire Sword of Valor, Raon Zieghart. I’ll duel you in three years, at the intersection between Zieghart’s domain and the Rable River.”
“I like analyzing the sound of my opponent’s heartbeat.”
Roman chuckled, pounding on the left side of his chest.
“Your heartbeat is strangely calm. The fact that you believe from the bottom of your heart that you can win against me in three years is funny, yet it fills me with anticipation at the same time.”
He turned his gaze towards Rimmer, who was smiling next to Raon.
“Zieghart’s Sword of Light. Your life was spared thanks to your subordinate.”
“Do you still need to unclog your ears? Raon just said that you were the one whose life was spared.”
Rimmer giggled.
“What’s your opinion? Do you really believe that he can surpass me in three years?”
“No need to say more.”
He shook his hand, implying that it was too obvious.
“He’s my student and my subordinate at the same time. It’s only natural that he will be looking down on you from far above you in three years.”
“This is my first time witnessing the case of a student surpassing his teacher.”
Roman chuckled, supporting his axe on his shoulder.
“Raon Zieghart, I’ll be looking forward to three years from now. You will complete the Blue Rain by then.”
He grinned, kicking the deck to jump onto the Misfortune. The pirates climbed down the ropes soon after to take the unconscious warriors with them.
“It’s a relief that everything ended nicely.”
Raptor walked up to Raon and smiled after watching the pirates do their work.
“Why did you help us?”
Raon cautiously stared at Raptor. The matter wouldn’t have ended so easily if he’d said that he wanted to fight to the end.
“I figured it would be more interesting.”
“Interesting?”
“Yes. I’ve gotten curious about what kind of height you will reach in three years.”
He smiled while saying that he wanted to witness that future.
“Hmm…”
Raon narrowed his eyes.
‘I don’t understand him.’
Unlike Roman, who was crazy for martial arts, Raptor’s mind was difficult to understand. He couldn’t tell at all what he was thinking, nor what his intentions were.
“Ah, but you shouldn’t misunderstand. We aren’t overlooking this matter.”
“What do you mean?”
“We weren’t looking for the White Spear. We only happened to meet you on our way to a dungeon.”
“A dungeon?”
“We were going to a dungeon after hearing the rumors of a famous magician’s dungeon being discovered in the Norris region. We just dropped by here on the way there.”
Raptor murmured a few different names. He was apparently confused about the name.
“Ah! It’s Lohengreen!”
“Lohengreen…”
Raon had heard of that name before. That was the name of a person who lived in the same period as Merlin, the Witch of Betrayal. He was a magician whose name was passed down in history because of his excellent talent in astrology and alchemy in addition to magic.
“Yes. We happened to see you guys on our way to that magician’s dungeon. Of course, if they learn about everything you told me, no one in the South-North Union will try to attack you—though, there is one person who is an exception.”
“One person?”
“There’s an old monster who is Tyler’s grandfather and a senator of the Union. Actually, the reason Tyler became the leader’s disciple in the first place was because of his influence.”
Raptor’s smiling face stiffened.
“Since he might make his move, you should be careful.”
“Why are you telling me this?”
“Because it won’t be fun if you die within three years.”
The carefree smile returned to his face.
“Raptor! We are going to leave you behind if you don’t come!”
“Ah, I got it!”
Because of Roman’s voice calling him from behind, Raptor hurriedly kicked the ground and boarded the Misfortune.
“Let’s return to the Union!”
“Huh? Aren’t we going to the dungeon?”
“I got hyped up.”
Roman was looking down in Raon’s direction from the Misfortune’s deck.
“Since I have a new prey, I shall prepare to bite.”
He turned around after showing a frightening smile.
Vrrr!
The Misfortune left with a majestic sound, just like when it first arrived.
“Haa…”
Rimmer finally removed the Sword Field Creation after the Misfortune disappeared from his vision and sighed. He faltered for a moment, but he quickly regained his balance.
“Are you okay?”
“Of course I am.”
He shook his hand, telling him it wasn’t a big deal.
“Are you sure you are okay?”
“Do you not know me? It’s me. The Sword of Light of Zieghart! Sir Rimmer! I would’ve won against that axe murderer even if a fight broke out!”
“Well, I suppose.”
Raon felt relieved because Rimmer’s voice was the same as usual. He smiled at him and returned Heavenly Drive to its scabbard.
“Good job.”
When Raon was about to take care of the Light Wind squad, Rimmer came up to him and placed his hand on his head.
“Squad leader?”
“Everyone would’ve died just like you said if we fought them back then. My response was slow because blood rushed to my head. You’ve saved everyone.”
He pointed behind him with a smile on his face. The Light Wind squad and the villagers were staring at them.
“I’ve done what I must as the vice squad leader.”
Gratitude and joy seemed to be reflected in everyone’s eyes. Raon felt embarrassed for some reason and lowered his head.
“But are you really confident about it?”
“Confident?”
“Confident that you will be able to defeat Roman in three years.”
“Of course I am.”
Raon nonchalantly nodded. Since he had the giving doormat demon king with him, three years was a long enough time as he probably would reach the Grandmaster level even faster than that.
Hmm? Why are my ears tickling?
Wrath started picking his ears while wondering what happened.
‘You are imagining things.’
* * *
* * *
Raon was looking down while standing upstream on the Gazel River.
The Blue Lugh tribe’s chief lifted the Water God Stone and chanted a spell that sounded like a chirping bird. A strange pattern was engraved on the Water God Stone, and the white energy inside started to rotate.
“Krr.”
He nodded towards the others and entered the Gazel River, the other Blue Lughs following him while chanting the same spell as him.
Pssh!
The pattern engraved on the Water God Stone’s surface started to radiate blue light the moment it touched the river water. The tribe chief kept chanting the spell and completely submerged the Water God Stone.
Whir!
The flickering light of the Water God Stone spread out, following the flow of the river. Even though the light came from such a small sphere, it spread throughout the entire river in no time.
Whap!
The Blue Lugh tribe’s chief and the Blue Lughs said the word ‘solido’ at the end, and the light radiating from the Water God Stone intensified so much that it was difficult to open the eyes.
When Raon frowned because of the dazzling light, he could hear the clear sound of the flowing river, as if he were suddenly enlightened.
“Ah!”
Raon slowly opened his eyes. He could see the river. The river was so clear that it was difficult to believe he was in the same place as the muddy river he was before. Even the grains of sand covering the ground were clean to the point where he could count them.
‘It’s exactly what I saw in my previous life.’
Watching the clean river contrasting the dark muddy river from before, some kind of emotion burst from his heart.
“I-Is this really the Gazel River?”
“I’ve never seen such a clean river before.”
“It was really the cleanest river in the continent!”
The Light Wind swordsmen widened their mouths as they watched the Gazel river. They looked like they had never imagined the river could be so clean, even though they heard that it was supposed to be clean.
“Woaaah!”
“Haha! This is what the Gazel River should look like! Of course!”
“It’s back! It’s back!”
“Haa, finally…”
The villagers’ eyes welled up with tears with smiles around their mouths as they watched the transparent Gazel River.
“W-We connected the Water God Stone to the river. It will always stay clean from now on, just like before.”
Flumen returned after chanting the spell, scratching his cheek.
“By the way, Flumen.”
Raon was looking at Flumen and the Blue Lughs instead of the clean river.
“Is that really fine? People learned a lot of things about your race.”
Even though Roman and the pirates were still unaware of it, many people got to learn about the Water God Stone and the secret of the Blue Lugh tribe. Their decision to keep living in that place was rather unexpected.
“Yeah. I was also worried about it, but the chief said that we should stay here. It’s because…”
Flumen hesitated for a moment before pointing at Raon with his finger.
“Of Raon.”
“Me?”
“Yeah. I told him that you are the chief that protects this place, and he said that we should stay here because it’s a trustworthy tribe. I also mentioned that you were my… my…”
“My?”
“My friend, and he said that we should trust you even more.”
His face turned red in embarrassment as he dropped his head.
“I see.”
Raon smiled faintly and looked at the Blue Lugh chief. He put his hands together and lowered his head. He was apparently trying to copy people’s etiquette that he had observed. Raon bowed at him in return.
“Which means you are going to have lots of work in the future.”
“Huh? Me?”
“You are the only one who can speak both the Blue Lugh and human languages. You can be the passage that connects the humans and the Blue Lughs.”
“Ah…”
Flumen’s eyes turned round.
“What you’ve done before can’t be undone, no matter what you do. Some of your tribe members might even resent you for that.”
“Yeah…”
Flumen’s shoulders trembled. Raon was apparently right about that.
“But even if that’s the case, you can’t just let the guilty conscience take over your head and live like a sinner for the rest of your life. You should connect the passage so that the Blue Lughs can coexist with humans to lead a better life.”
“Passage…”
“The Gazel River and the river villages will be affiliated to Zieghart from today on. Since no one is going to attack you, you shouldn’t worry about it. Instead, find a way to make everyone happy.”
“Yeah!”
Flumen answered vigorously for the first time since Raon had met him as he nodded.
“Krrgh!”
“Ah!”
The Blue Lugh chief shouted and Flumen glanced at the back.
“He’s telling me to come because we need to settle down.”
“Come to the village once it’s over.”
“Yeah.”
Flumen smiled faintly and dove into the water with the other Blue Lughs. Even though the transparent river water allowed Raon to see below the surface, they quickly disappeared from his vision. It was apparently another bit of sorcery.
Raon stared at the area the Blue Lughs disappeared from for a while before turning around.
“We should return as well.”
His smile looked similar to Flumen's as he walked up to the Light Wind squad.
* * *
“Squad leader.”
Raon came up next to Rimmer on their way to the lodgings.
“Are you really okay?”
“I already said I’m okay. You saw how I deflected all of his light axe strikes.”
Rimmer shook his hand, telling him to stop worrying about it. Raon examined his condition through aura perception, and he couldn’t find any major problem. However, he had a bad feeling about it somehow, even though Rimmer’s expression was the same as usual.
“You should take this, at least.”
Raon took the medicine for internal injuries that the Saint gave him before from Dorian’s belly pocket.
“What is this?”
“It’s a medicine for internal injuries.”
“Is it bitter?”
“It should be, since it’s medicine.”
“Then I’m not eatin…”
“Shut up and take it!”
Raon forced the medicine into Rimmer’s mouth as he shook his head, making him swallow it.
“You shouldn’t pointlessly wander around. Go home to start cultivating instead.”
“Kuh, it’s so damn bitter. Do you have any candy?”
“Please!”
“Haa, you are really a demon…”
Rimmer frowned and waved his hand.
“Good job, everyone. Let’s rest for today and continue tomorro…”
“I’ll wrap it up, so please just go inside and rest.”
“Alright, alright.”
Rimmer chuckled and entered the lodging first.
“Hmm, everyone did a great job today. Since even a small injury can worsen if you ignore it, anyone who’s injured should make sure to treat their wounds before resting.”
“Yes!”
Since it was an order from the vice squad leader, everyone responded loud and clear. All of them had smiles on their faces because they’d completed the mission without losing anyone.
“You should rest now.”
He gave the order and turned around after looking at Rimmer’s room for a moment. As he was about to enter his room to treat his internal injuries, Wrath’s mumbling could be heard.
Damn it. It’s coming soon. It must be coming. There’s no way it’s not…
‘What are you talking about?’
Raon tilted his head while looking at Wrath’s wrinkled face. He looked terrified and enraged at the same time.
Do you really not know?
‘What are you talking about? Who is coming now?’
Raon became nervous because it reminded him of what Raptor had told him before.
That idiot that functions automatically without a brain is coming soon…
As soon as he said that, messages popped up in front of his eyes.
[You’ve achieved victory against a warrior…]
[The proficiency of Ring of Fire has…]
[You’ve created a new swords…]
Multiple messages appeared one after the other, covering his vision.
Raon’s jaw dropped. Wrath was apparently afraid of those messages.
I-I knew it!
Wrath screamed while looking at the messages.
I knew it would give you everything. It’s so inflexible!
“Huh…”
On top of giving all those stats, Wrath was even working as an alarm for when the messages were coming.
‘I really made a suitable nickname for him.’
No one in the world would be able to beat the name ‘giving Wrath’.
‘I should easily become a Grandmaster within three years since he is with me.’
The King of Essence can’t live like this! This is too much!
Raon smiled as he watched Wrath scream while flailing his limbs around.
‘I’m looking forward to your continued cooperation.’
