Chapter 288

Banging your head against a brick wall.

Feeling the evil energy knocking on his upper energy center's wall felt like the very picture of that saying.

Raon laughed bitterly.

'This is far too weak. Did she add the wrong amount of Soul Nullifying Water?'

Soul Nullifying Water was the only evil energy that would secretly hide upon entering his body, only to start attacking his upper energy center.

However, the Soul Nullifying Water was far too weak, to the point that Raon started thinking that Merlin must've made a mistake.

It was never going to manage to break through his willpower, just as it was meaningless to smack a steel shield thousands of times with a branch.

'It's even worse than Wrath when I first met him.'

The mental attack was even weaker than when Wrath tried to take over his body when he first met him, which left him dumbfounded.

That's simply obvious.

Wrath crawled up on the ice flower bracelet.

If you lost to such paltry energy when you've been enduring the King of Essence's wrath and coldness ever since you were a baby, the King of Essence would've bit his tongue to kill himself.

He sat on his arm and snorted.

'You are right.'

Raon nodded while looking at Wrath.

'It wasn't a problem with the Soul Nullifying Water… My willpower has become too strong.'

His willpower was already enhanced from his previous life, and the Ring of Fire was amplifying it. The encounters with Wrath made it develop even further.

There was probably no drug in the world capable of destroying his willpower.

'I can probably just sleep at this rate.'

He had the feeling that he could just fall asleep instead of using the Ring of Fire, and the Soul Nullifying Water's energy would still end up using up its power and disappearing before it managed to breach into his mind.

'But there's no reason to be so wasteful.'

Raon pointed to the door and looked at Merlin, who was leaning her shoulder against him.

"I need to cultivate now. Can you leave me alone?"

"Of course. I'm a woman who can wait."

With a strange passion dwelling in her eyes, Merlin stroked his shoulder before leaving the room.

'She should be waiting outside.'

He couldn't properly feel her presence because of the strangeness of the place they were in, but he guessed that she would be waiting outside when he considered Merlin's personality so far. Obviously, she wasn't trying to guard him—she was watching him.

"Haa."

Raon closed his eyes and resonated the rings of fire. The majestic resonance of the rings spread throughout his body, and the Soul Nullifying Water's energy flinched and stopped moving.

Whap!

When the Soul Nullifying Water's energy tried to sneak away, he used the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation to block the mana circuit it was trying to escape to.

'Let's see.'

He examined the Soul Nullifying Water's energy, which seemed to be trembling in fear. The outer covering was evil, but the mana it contained was extremely pure.

'I should be able to absorb it once I purify it.'

The resonance of seven rings of fire could easily erase the evil energy of the Soul Nullifying Water.

Since most of the elixir's energies were frost, converting the Soul Nullifying Water's pure energy with the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation would be perfect for the balance.

Raon smiled and rotated the Ring of Fire as fast as he could. The clean energy emerging from the seven rings started to cleanse the Soul Nullifying Water's evil energy.

Whir!

Each time the rings' resonance intensified, the dark shell of the Soul Nullifying Water was peeled off, and the pure mana inside was revealed.

'It's even better than I thought.'

The mana inside the Soul Nullifying Water's dark energy had an even higher purity than he expected. It was so pure that he could absorb it without further processing.

Rumble!

Raon nodded and guided the extracted mana into the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation's flow.

The mana that used to be completely evil until just a moment ago began to incorporate the auspicious heat, only to be absorbed into his energy center.

'Haa.'

Raon exhaled a heated breath. Since he managed to turn the Soul Nullifying Water's energy into the heat of the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation, the next step was to turn the frost from the large amount of elixirs into Glacier's energy.

'I don't need to absorb everything.'

Even though it combined the good parts of the different elixirs, the coldness still contained a lot of impurities. Absorbing all of them would end up being disadvantageous.

Whir!

He rotated the Ring of Fire once again. He peeled off the coldness, which was even bigger than his fist, multiple times until all of the impurities had melted down. The high purity coldness was the only thing left in the end.

The cold energy the size of a fist had been reduced to the size of a fingernail, but it was enough. That was because the small energy was even more powerful than the large coldness from before.

Raon smiled in satisfaction and controlled the refined coldness with Glacier's principles to settle it down in his energy center before opening his eyes.

"Haa…"

He raised his head to look out the window. The sun had already set, moonlight shining down. Although he didn't feel like he'd been cultivating for a while, more than half a day had passed.

You are slow. Too slow.

Wrath shoved his face into him and clicked his tongue.

The King of Essence would've absorbed such a paltry elixir in less than a minute, including all the impurities.

He shook his head, calling him pathetic.

He acknowledges your planning abilities, but your might is still way too weak.

'I know.'

Raon chuckled and nodded. Wrath was right that he still had a long way to go in terms of might.

Once again, he couldn't do anything when put between the two powerhouses last time. It was necessary to keep polishing his skills nonstop in order to achieve his objective.

'Thank you.'

It was thanks to Wrath that he managed to withstand Merlin's mental attacks, and he was also thankful for his objective advice, which was why he thanked him sincerely.

Wh-What?!

Wrath briskly stepped back in surprise with trembling shoulders.

The thing you just said! What do you mean by that?!

'What?'

Why did you curse the King of Essence?!

'Curse? I was really thankful to you…'

There was nothing like a curse. He only thanked him because he was truly thankful to him.

Cancel it! There's no way an evil demon like you would express his gratitude!

Wrath ground his teeth. He looked like he would start attacking him if he didn't cancel it.

Quick!

'Hah, I'm canceling it.'

Haa!

Wrath sighed deeply and nodded.

Even the King of Essence doesn't idle around all of the time. He's learned a lot from you, so a curse like that won't work against him.

Raon's eyes were brimming with sadness as he stared at Wrath. He got curious about what kind of creature he was in the Demon King's imagination.

'I was really…'

He was trying to tell Wrath that it was a misunderstanding.

[Ring of Fire's proficiency has increased.]

[Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation's proficiency has increased.]

[Glacier's proficiency has increased.]

[All stats have increased by five.]

The messages told him that the proficiencies of his cultivation techniques had increased from absorbing Merlin's elixir, and his stats had increased as a reward.

Th-The curse! You didn't cancel the curse that you cast on the King of Essence!

'...'

You even extorted the stats from your student, how cruel…

Wrath completely believed that everything was done according to Raon's plan. It was impossible to talk sense into him. Raon shook his head to the helpless situation and the door opened.

"Did you finish?"

Merlin entered while pulling up her sleeve slightly and smiled at him.

'She's been watching after all.'

Raon bit the inside of his cheek while looking at the excitement in her eyes. Considering the fact that she entered as soon as he finished his cultivation, she must've been waiting right outside the room as he'd expected.

"You even gave me such an elixir. What are you planning?"

Raon narrowed his eyes while hiding his real thoughts.

"I told you already. I will always care for you, and everything I do is for your sake."

Merlin said it in a seductive voice and clung to him. She started fiddling with the thread protruding from Raon's sleeve as she smiled.

"I feel dizzy. It's probably because I've been cultivating for a long time. Let me rest a bit."

Raon frowned and rubbed his forehead. Dizziness was a characteristic symptom of people affected by the Soul Nullifying Water. He pretended to be perfectly exposed to the mental attack, as if his upper energy center had been breached.

"Do you feel a bit dizzy?"

"Yes."

"It's understandable since I included plenty of elixirs of coldness."

Merlin came even closer and met his eyes. Raon relaxed his eyes like Runaan while looking into her narrowed eyes.

"Hmm…"

Merlin rubbed the lips on her mask slightly with her finger.

"You should have another one tomorrow."

"What? Again?"

Raon forcefully suppressed his pounding heart and raised his voice.

'How is everything going so well?'

He purposefully told her that his head was only slightly dizzy and relaxed his eyes only a little since she might end up giving him another elixir if he did that, and his plan had worked perfectly.

"Yes. Just one more. I'll adjust the amount this time."

Merlin shoved her face against him, and some unknown flower's fragrance wafted from her.

Are you really giving him another one?

Wrath widened his eyes at the ridiculous situation.

Why the hell are you giving him another one? Why would you ever give all of those elixirs to him when he's just a hostage?!

He shouted that he needed a lesson since he couldn't understand at all.

"Do you not want it?"

"Haa, alright."

Since accepting people's requests or obeying their orders was another characteristic of the Soul Nullifying Water, he nodded while frowning—pretending that he was accepting it reluctantly.

"You are so obedient. What a nice boy."

"I just understand the situation I'm in."

Raon pushed Merlin's hand away as she tried to pat his head and turned his head.

'She also looks like…'

'A doormat.'

Inside of a rectangular workshop that lacked even a single window, around twenty people were sitting in front of desks to craft accessories such as rings, bracelets, and necklaces under the dim lighting.

Even the sound of breathing couldn't be heard in their extremely focused state, and the white-haired old man sitting at the front stood up from his chair.

"I've finished."

He brought the red ring that he crafted to Denning Rose at the center of the workshop.

"Hmm!"

Denning Rose nodded in satisfaction after examining the ring through her monocle.

"The master artisan Carol is as skilled as before. Don't you think you retired too early?"

"Hmph, of course my skills are the same as before. I only retired because I figured I would end up dying before I spent the money I've earned."

"Thank you, mister."

"Don't say that. This isn't enough to make up for all the help you gave me."

Carol slowly shook his head.

"By the way, it must be an extremely urgent matter, right? Since you called all those people, after all."

He pointed at the crafters behind him. Every single one of them were famous artifact crafters, whose names he knew just from looking at their faces.

"Yes. I need to save someone no matter what."

Denning Rose nodded heavily.

'At all costs.'

Raon wasn't just a savior for Denning Rose, but a hero who saved the lives of everyone in Grand Seville.

He didn't even withdraw while facing the monsters called the tenth apostle and Merlin, instead trying to sacrifice himself until the end to save everyone else. If she could save that man, she was willing to give up on her position as the fourth successor of the Black Market.

'I need to save him no matter what.'

She'd witnessed and met countless heroes during her career as the Black Market's branch manager, but it was her first time seeing someone like Raon. It wasn't just about his prowess. It was because he was bound to have a positive influence on the world that she couldn't let him die like that.

'I can definitely save him.'

Since Zieghart mentioned that Raon had a necklace that would allow them to find his location, combining it with the tracking artifact would allow her to find him no matter where he was.

"Hmm, I guess I shouldn't leave yet."

Carol returned to his seat after noticing Denning Rose's trembling hands.

"I'll make the same one for you. Don't worry."

"Thank you. I'll give you enough rewards for your work."

"Of course you should. I wouldn't be working here for free."

He smiled faintly and started the second craft.

Denning Rose stood up with Carol's ring in her hand.

'I should tell them first.'

She left the workshop in order to meet with the people who were desperately waiting for the news about Raon. However, her secretary hurriedly came to her when she was about to go upstairs.

"We got a visitor."

"A visitor?"

* * *

The Light Wind squad was gathered in the lobby of the inn that Denning Rose reserved for them in a village near Grand Seville.

"How long is it going to take to be completed?"

Martha clenched the arm of the sofa with thick bandages covering her shoulder in multiple layers.

"Aren't they taking way too long?"

She was chewing on her lips anxiously.

"Lady Denning Rose must be making the preparations to the best of her abilities. You should calm down and wait."

Burren shook his head with his hands gathered together. However, his legs were trembling nervously despite what he said.

"..."

Runaan was still silently staring into the air in a corner. Her hand and fingers were still covered in blood because she didn't get treated, unlike the other swordsmen.

"Haa…"

"Have two days already passed…?"

"Damn it!"

"It feels so suffocating because there's nothing we can do."

The Light Wind swordsmen grasped their heads with bandages covering various parts of their bodies. They wanted to do something, but there was nothing they could do. The fact that they were powerless made them despair.

Thud!

As the Light Wind members started to fall silent, the door was opened, and Denning Rose entered the room.

"The tracking artifact has been completed!"

She ran up to the Light Wind members and showed them the ring in her hand.

"It took some time to amplify the Continent Chaser Fragrance's effect, but it should work now!"

Denning Rose's face was as pale as the Light Wind squad, showing how much inner struggle she'd been having.

"We can now start looking for hi…"

"I'm in."

Runaan raised her hand. Her bloody nail could be immediately noticed.

"I'm also going."

The powerful stare of her purple eyes seemed to express her determination to join the search.

"I'll join as well."

Martha stood in front of Denning Rose while grasping her punctured shoulder.

"I'm going to die over there if I have to."

Her heated voice expressed her unyielding resolution.

"You shouldn't push yourselves so much. I've already recruited the continent's best experts in the area. I'll make them depart right away, so you shouldn't worry about it so much and…"

"Please!"

"Let us join the search!"

"We can't leave Raon and Dorian like that. Even if we can't fight, please allow us to help find them!"

"Yes, please allow us to help!"

It wasn't just Runaan and Martha. Every single swordsman of the Light Wind squad stood up and bowed to Denning Rose.

"Hmm…"

Denning Rose bit her lip and stepped back.

'I understand their feelings, but…'

They were cursing themselves for doing nothing when Raon and Dorian were kidnapped. Since they were so disappointed in themselves, who were powerless at an important moment, she couldn't voice her refusal.

"Stop making it difficult for the branch manager."

Burren sighed and stopped the swordsmen.

"We are only going to be a hindrance since they've gathered tracking experts."

"But I can't stand here and do nothing when I don't even know how Raon and Dorian are doing!"

"I'm going with them."

"We are just a burden in our current state! And a heavy burden at that!"

"He's right about that."

Everyone turned their heads upon suddenly hearing a familiar cheerful voice.

"Huh…?'

"This voice…"

"S-Squad leader!"

"It's been a while."

Rimmer. With his red hair tied back, he was waving his hand while leaning his shoulder against the door.

"You are so badly hurt."

He briefly clicked his tongue and stood in front of the Light Wind squad.

"Wh-Why is the squad leader here…?"

"It's only natural that I would be here since you are all here. I got some motion sickness because I haven't used the dimensional door in a long time, but it's nice to see your faces."

Rimmer examined everyone's faces one after the other, starting from the three team leaders, before he nodded.

"Burren is right. The tracking should be left to the tracking experts. You aren't going to be helpful. It's a waste of time."

The Light Wind squad hung their heads upon hearing his sharp voice. The fact that they weren't helpful pierced deep inside their hearts.

"However, it's also true that you can't stay here doing nothing."

Rimmer's mouth curved into a smile. It was the usual warm smile they used to see at the training ground.

"Your job isn't to find him, but to wield your swords. Prepare yourselves to fight."

"P-Prepare to fight?"

"But we couldn't do anything against the tenth apostle."

"W-We couldn't interfere at all when Merlin and the tenth apostle fought against each other. Watching from afar was all we could do…"

"We left all of the burden to Raon!"

"We tried hard, so hard that we almost thought we were going to die, but there was nothing we could do…"

The Light Wind squad voiced their pent up emotions and bit their lips.

"You should prepare for your fight. The monster will be slain by a monster."

Rimmer's eyes turned dark like a bottomless pit.

"The Zieghart is moving."