Raon narrowed his eyes as he looked at the confused Burren.
He got a lot out of it.
‘Yes, he’s successfully absorbed the elixir.’
No matter how great the elixir was, it was impossible to absorb all of the energy from it.
Impurities were bound to mix in while concentrating the energy of nature, and Burren looked like he’d managed to filter out the impurities while only absorbing high-purity mana.
His realm hadn’t increased too much, but his body had grown, and the quantity of his aura had drastically increased.
“What the hell did you do?”
Burren swallowed nervously while looking at the trembling Mark Goetten, who was still holding onto his ankle.
“We trained.”
Raon shrugged his shoulders.
“T-train? What kind of training destroys a person like this?!”
He gasped, saying that the steadfast knight had turned into a dog in the rain.
“It was a simple training method where I throw the daggers and Sir Mark fends them off.”
“Why would he be trembling like this if it was a simple training method?!”
“He must be excited because the training was so fun.”
“Do you really think that makes any sense?!”
Burren looked at Mark Goetten after hearing the ridiculous statement.
Mark Goetten was frantically denying it by shaking his head at a speed where his pupils couldn’t be seen anymore.
“See? He’s so energetic.”
Raon’s lips curved into a smile as he watched the sight. Mark Goetten started coughing like something went down the wrong pipe and hugged Burren’s leg even harder.
You have no shame…
Wrath looked back at Raon, his face pale.
Did you just call him energetic after you almost worked him to death?! The conscience in your soul must’ve become round a long time ago!
‘What are you even talking about?’
Conscience originally has a triangular shape, but it wears out whenever you do bad things and gradually turns round! And that’s exactly what you did just now!
‘This demon king believes in fairy tales…’
On top of being a glutton, he even started talking about a fairy tale aimed to teach morals to children. Wrath felt like a mystery at that point.
“Anyway, the training isn’t over yet. Sir Mark, please come this way.”
Raon called out to Mark Goetten while spinning the throwing daggers between his fingers.
“Let him rest a bit before you continue! He’s going to die at this rate!”
Burren frowned while patting Mark Goetten’s back as he trembled in fear.
“He already got enough res—hmm?”
Raon stopped waving his hand at Mark Goetten and looked at the cultivation rooms.
The energies inside the rooms were subsiding, and he could guess that most members had finished their cultivation.
Creak!
The creaking sound of doors that needed to be oiled could be heard as the Light Wind members came outside one after the other.
“Aaaaah! It feels so good!”
Martha stretched and shouted loudly towards the training ground.
“Yawn…”
Runaan came out after her and yawned while blinking her eyes.
“How have you been?”
Dorian smiled while eating a snack that he took out of his belly pocket.
“The Four Clouds Elixir is the signature elixir of the Beast Union for a good reason.”
“Indeed. Aura is one thing, and the change in my body is so noticeable.”
“I wonder how the reformation feels like when the Four Clouds Elixir is already amazing enough.”
“I heard your body changes into one that can master all kinds of martial arts.”
“I feel like I've gone through a reformation. I think I can win against anyone right now.”
The Light Wind members came out with bright expressions on their faces and smiled in excitement.
Whir.
Raon unleashed the Perception of the Snow Flower to examine the Light Wind members.
‘All of them have changed.’
Every single member of the Light Wind squad was completely different from when they entered the cultivation rooms. Raon could tell they’d focused on the cultivation even more than Burren.
A smile appeared on his face as he watched their growth.
“Ahem.”
The Gambling Monster was the last person to come out, and he walked towards Raon while clearing his throat. There was a bright atmosphere in his dark complexion.
The quantity of his aura had increased, but the most noticeable improvement was his physical strength.
“It’s been a long time since the last time someone gave me an elixir without losing a bet. Thank you.”
“It’s nothing.”
Raon smiled and shook his head.
“This is a cheap price to pay for everything you’ve done for us so far.”
The Gambling Monster was pretty much family to the Light Wind squad, and he didn’t regret giving an elixir to family.
“You will go far in the future.”
“What is this now?”
“Ahem!”
The Gambling Monster awkwardly cleared his throat and stepped back.
Raon looked at the cultivation room at the edge that still hadn’t opened.
‘It looks like the squad leader is going to take some more time.’
He could guess that Rimmer was taking longer than others because he’d been perfectly eliminating impurities from his body ever since he received an artificial energy center.
“Huh? What is this zombie? Why didn’t you kill him already?!”
Martha frowned while looking at Mark Goetten, who was holding onto Burren’s ankle.
“A zombie? Huh? Sir Mark?”
Dorian’s jaw dropped before he went towards Mark Goetten.
“Ho-how did you end up this way? Did something happen to you?”
“Ah, ab-about that…”
“What happened to the training ground?”
“Was there a bombardment?”
The Light Wind members’ eyes widened as they looked at the zombified Mark Goetten and the training ground in shambles.
“It’s because Raon…”
Burren gathered the Light Wind members and explained what he’d learned.
“Hey! Are you crazy? I know you love training, but you should let him rest at least!”
“That’s right! Sir Mark is limping like a dried radish leaf!”
“Are you trying to become a real demon? Please keep it in moderation!”
“Most people aren’t monsters like you, vice squad leader!”
Martha, Dorian, and the Light Wind members frowned while protecting Mark Goetten. They must’ve grown closer to him while he caught them when they fell from the cliff.
“Do you want to be his replacement then?”
Raon pointed his throwing daggers at the Light Wind members one after the other.
“It’s a very simple training method where you just need to defend against these throwing daggers.”
“Alright! I’ll do it!”
“Me too!”
“I’m also joining! This is nothing if I can help Sir Mark!”
“I’ll be different from the past!”
Burren and Martha clenched their fists, and Dorian bit his lip. The other Light Wind members also shouted and volunteered.
‘I think I can endure any training in my current state.’
‘Training like that isn’t a big deal since I’ve just absorbed the Four Clouds Elixir.’
‘I’ll show him how much I’ve changed.’
Their bodies had improved, and the quantity and quality of their auras had increased from cultivating for five days and nights. They felt as if they could overcome Raon’s intense training with how much stronger they’d become.
“I like your confidence.”
Raon nodded while looking at the passion brimming in their eyes.
“Follow me.”
He jumped onto the training ground’s wall, saying that they should move to the cliff where they’d previously trained.
“Gasp!”
Mark Goetten shook his head while watching the Light Wind members.
“D-don’t do it. Sir Raon is currently…”
“It’s okay. We’ve also gotten stronger.”
“We won’t be able to last five days like you, but we can last for a day at least.”
“Please wait here. We’ll be back after taking our vice squad leader down a peg.”
Since their confidence had reached the stratosphere after absorbing the Four Clouds Elixir, they didn’t listen to him and ran towards the training ground walls.
“Err…”
Mark Goetten grasped his chest while watching their backs.
‘No! You definitely can’t win against him!’
If their change after taking the elixir could be compared to a caterpillar turning into a butterfly, Raon’s dagger throw’s improvement was a larva turning into a wasp—more precisely a Lekill wasp that was capable of killing a human with a single sting.
“Don’t do it! Sir Raon’s dagger throw…”
He kept trying to stop them, but Raon turned around and raised his black dagger to his lips as a gesture to shut up.
“Gasp!”
He remembered how he’d been beaten up for the five previous days upon seeing the throwing dagger and became nauseous. Even though his mouth was open, he couldn’t say anything.
Mark Goetten’s lips were trembling as he watched the Light Wind members confidently leave the training ground.
“I-I really think I shouldn’t have come here…”
* * *
* * *
Raon smiled while looking at the Light Wind members standing in front of the cliff.
“The process will be the same as the last time. You win if a single one of you manages to reach the peak. You can rest tonight and all day tomorrow if that happens.”
“You aren’t about to randomly stop the training like last time, are you?”
Martha growled like an angry dog. She seemed to still be holding a grudge from what happened last time.
“Of course not. I’ll let you continue until you give up.”
Raon nodded nonchalantly.
“If we pass, Sir Mark Goetten is also going to rest with us, right?”
Burren included Mark Goetten’s rest in the terms. He must’ve felt bad when he saw him faltering like a zombie.
“Sure, I’ll allow it.”
“Alright.”
“Let’s do this!”
“We can win in our current state!”
The Light Wind members hit each other’s fists to harden their determinations.
“Get ready.”
Raon casually waved his hands and jumped onto the cliff. He reached the peak in no time like a soaring bird.
“Wait! You forgot to block our aur—”
“Shut up.”
When Burren was trying to call Raon back, Martha smacked his shoulder.
“Wh-why did you do that?!”
“Raon forgot about it. You don’t need to remind him.”
Martha smiled coldly and looked towards Raon at the peak.
“He always says that the one deceived is in the wrong. It’s our perfect chance to pay back all of the hardships we’ve had so far.”
“She’s right! We aren’t cheating because the vice squad leader forgot about it.”
Krein clenched his fist with his eyes sparkling in excitement.
“Let’s try like this. If he complains later, we can just tell him that it’s his fault for forgetting about it, just like the first team leader said.”
“Let’s climb in an instant and reach the peak!”
“I’m looking forward to the vice squad leader’s panicking face.”
“I could sleep so soundly if I saw that.”
The Light Wind members’ mouths curved into smiles as they looked forward to giving Raon a taste of defeat.
“Alright.”
Burren nodded while looking at everyone.
“Let’s go!”
Following his signal, the Light Wind members started to climb the cliff at the same time.
They weren’t using any footwork, but they were using aura to climb at a tremendous speed.
“It’s going to be over in no time at this rat—Ack!”
Krein was climbing right behind Burren, but his body leaned backward after he got hit by something on his forehead.
“Kuaaaah!”
He fell to the ground with a scream that sounded like a dying pig.
“Krein?”
“Wh-what?! What happened just now?!”
“I think the vice squad leader threw a dagger!”
“Wait, but why is he the first target again?!”
The Light Wind members swallowed nervously as they watched Krein fall to the ground.
“Ack!”
Burren reduced his speed and kept climbing the cliff while maintaining the tension, and a Light Wind member right next to him got smacked by a throwing dagger on his ribs and collapsed.
Smack! Whack!
Alongside violent hitting sounds, the Light Wind members—who were spread throughout the cliff—fell like chestnuts falling from a chestnut tree.
“Aaaah!”
“What’s happening?!”
“I couldn’t see it at all!”
“Aaah!”
The members fell towards the dark ground while leaving their screams behind every time they got shot down by an invisible throwing dagger.
“Hey.”
Martha came close to Burren and frowned like a fiend.
“Did you see it?”
“I-I couldn’t really see it.”
Burren shook his head. He’d only noticed a little flash, and the person next to him was gone. It was a truly terrifying situation.
“Keep your focus and look above you. You can’t be careless for an instant because the throwing dagger appears from the darkness.”
Burren unleashed as much aura as he could to spread his aura perception upon hearing her words.
Pssh!
Along with a weak sound like a vibrating string, the throwing dagger suddenly appeared and smacked Dorian—who was cowering on the right side—on the cheekbone.
“Quack!”
Dorian fell down from the cliff while making the sound that a duck would make upon being squeezed.
“Raon, you demoooon—Kyah!”
He got hit by another dagger on his way down and turned limp from losing consciousness.
“Ugh…”
Burren’s lips trembled as he watched Dorian’s hopeless fall.
‘What’s happening? How is such a dagger throw even possible?!’
On top of being stealthy, Raon’s dagger was as fast as a ray of light. He had the feeling he wouldn’t be able to dodge it even if he wasn’t clinging onto the cliff.
Smack! Smack!
The hitting sounds resounded consecutively, and all the Light Wind members fell in no time. The only ones left were Burren and Martha, who had stopped climbing in the middle of the cliff.
“We only need one person to reach the top.”
Martha bit her lip and looked upwards.
“I’ll be your shield, so you should use your footwork and climb in the meantime.”
“But…”
“You won’t last for long without me.”
She started dashing along the cliff, saying that she would defend him against the throwing daggers.
“Martha…”
“Shut up and follow me already.”
“A-alright!”
Burren ran after her while thinking that Martha had changed a lot.
Once they had almost reached the peak, Martha stopped running.
“Escape!”
Burren escaped to the right upon hearing her shout.
Whaam!
Martha wrapped her fist in all of her remaining Titan’s aura and punched Raon’s throwing dagger.
However, she was pushed back by the daggers and ended up falling from the cliff because her reaction was too late.
“You idiot! Keep climbing!”
She screamed to urge him to continue as she disappeared into the darkness.
“Damn it!”
Burren used his footwork to run as fast as he could instead of watching Martha’s fall.
The moment he was about to reach the peak, a crimson throwing dagger rushed towards his head.
“I’ve been waiting for this!”
Since he’d witnessed how Martha was defeated, he’d remained alert all along.
Cring!
Burren gritted his teeth and polished his hand into a blade. He unleashed the special technique of the Barren Wind Sword while using his hand as his sword.
The physical growth he’d attained from absorbing the Four Clouds Elixir worked in harmony with his aura to unleash a powerful strike. It was the Barren Wind Sword’s special technique, the Barren Barrier of Admonition.
Whaam!
The Barren Wind Sword unleashed with his hand clashed against Raon’s throwing dagger.
“This should do it… Huh?”
Even though he managed to react in time, his hand was getting pushed back. An unimaginable amount of power was dwelling inside Raon’s throwing dagger. His special technique was unleashed to the best of his ability, but it crumbled like a dry leaf, and the dagger’s blade appeared right under his nose.
Smack!
Burren’s forehead was hit by the dagger, and he started to fall towards the ground even though he could’ve reached the peak with one more step.
‘Martha wasn’t too late…The power of that throwing dagger is just too insane!’
“Damn it…”
Burren swore, and Raon’s face suddenly appeared over the edge of the peak. He waved his hand with a smile.
“You worked hard on climbing, but see you next time.”
“You damn bas—Grr!”
Burren lost consciousness and his neck went limp because of his anger towards Raon instead of the pain.
“Since Runaan didn’t climb, he was the last one.”
Raon landed below after he successfully shot down all of the Light Wind members.
“I-it hurts so damn much…”
“What did he even do to make the throwing dagger invisible?”
“That’s not even the problem. It’s too fast to defend against even if it was visible.”
“Even if you block it, it will push you back with sheer strength. What the hell is wrong with that dagger throw?”
The Light Wind members sighed deeply, discouraged by Raon’s Flawless Throw.
Raon went past them and walked up to Runaan, who was the only person who didn’t climb the cliff.
“Why did you not climb?”
“Because you didn’t block my aura.”
Runaan tilted her head, saying that it was obvious.
Wow!
Wrath exclaimed at Runaan.
That’s Ice Cream Girl for you! It’s an answer befitting the King of Essence’s subordinate! Her mindset in a whole different level than a shameless bastard like you!
‘Indeed.’
Raon chuckled and nodded.
“Alright, your honesty deserves a reward. Runaan can rest, and the other members will start climbing once again!”
“Argh!”
“God damn it!”
“I should’ve waited here!”
The Light Wind members slammed the ground and screamed in regret.
When Raon was about to jump onto the cliff once again, Krein came towards him and bowed.
“Vi-vice squad leader. You forgot to block our aura.”
Krein rubbed the bump on his forehead that was created by the throwing dagger with an obedient smile on his face.
“Yeah.”
Raon went on the cliff with an expression on his face that clearly said, ‘So what?’.
“Ugh…”
Krein shouted towards Raon with trembling fists.
“You demon! This is discrimination! And stop making me your first targe—Ack!”
A throwing dagger smacked his forehead as he spoke, and he fell unconscious.
Everyone was thinking the same thing at that moment.
‘I should’ve stayed in the cultivation room for a bit longer…’
* * *
The next day at noon, Raon returned to the fifth training ground with the Light Wind members, who kept falling down from the cliff without ever reaching the summit. Their faces were as pale as a dog with its tail between the legs from losing the battle.
“A-are you okay?”
Mark Goetten’s lips trembled as he witnessed the Light Wind members, who were bruised all over.
“Sir Mark.”
Raon grasped Mark Goetten’s shoulder tightly.
“It was really unfortunate, but the Light Wind squad lost. Your training must be resumed.”
“Gasp…”
Raon gently waved his hand, and Mark Goetten fell on his knees with a trembling chin. He almost looked like he was being taken away by a devil.
“Don’t worry, I’m not killing you.”
Raon smiled cheerfully and went above the platform.
“Ugh…”
“Damn it…”
“Shit!”
The Light Wind members lined up in front of the platform, and their narrowed shoulders were showing that their confidence—which used to be in the stratosphere—had been brought down to the ground.
“As you promised, we are going to practice all night long tonight. My goal is to turn the Light Wind squad into the Light Wind division before next year. That’s why we should do our best to prepare…”
As Raon declared his new objective, the door to the last cultivation room burst open. It was the only room that was still closed.
Wham!
Rimmer came out next to the staggering door. It almost looked like his untied long red hair was unleashing the wind and creating sparkles.
“I’ve already requested a promotion to the Light Wind division.”
Rimmer pointed at himself with his thumb with a grin on his face.
“Really?”
“Huh!”
“Now this is surprising, since our squad leader is a lazybone.”
Everyone widened their mouths upon hearing that Rimmer had already made the preparations.
“When is the trial?”
“There will be two trials total, and the first one is going to be pretty soon.”
He narrowed his eyes. He looked like he was trying to remember when it was.
“How long has it been since I went into the cultivation room?”
“It’s been six days.”
“Six days?”
Rimmer was bobbing his fingers and raised his head upon hearing the answer. A refreshing smile appeared on his lips.
“Which means it’s tomorrow.”
“……”
Everyone lost focus in their eyes as they stared at Rimmer.
‘That stupid elf did it again.’
