Chapter 128

Habun Castle Headquarters.

The first scouting party leader Barty was standing straight in front of Commander Milland.

"Was there nothing again?"

"Yes! We've done two round trips between Stallin Mountain and the Northern Ocean, but we didn't find any ocean monsters coming up to the mountain or the forest."

Barty raised his gaze and responded.

"That means the shark moles were the first and the last of them."

Milland slowly closed his eyes.

'I had an ominous feeling, but was it a mistake?'

He sent a scouting party every week to check on the situation after Raon killed the ice troll warrior and shaman, but he hadn't discovered anything new.

Considering the fact that nothing had happened for over a month, it must've been a coincidence.

"Good job. You can retu…"

As he was about to tell him to rest, a loud shout of concentration could be heard from the soldiers' training ground.

"That's a nice shout of concentration."

Barty smiled, glancing out the window.

"What's nice about that? It's just noisy."

Even though he was saying it was noisy, Milland's mouth was smiling in satisfaction.

"Did you also visit them?"

"Yes, I go there often."

"He must be good at teaching."

"I can definitely feel that I'm getting stronger each time Raon checks my posture. There is a good reason the soldiers frequent it. Some of my guys even went to the training ground as soon as they returned from the mission today."

"Oh, wow."

Milland snickered and turned around.

'He is really eccentric.'

At some point, Raon had started teaching a better training method to the soldiers, correcting their postures with their swords and spears.

He wasn't really teaching them some special technique, he was just helping them with the martial arts they had already learned. But that was super effective, and many soldiers were following him.

Looking at the training ground as it filled with vigor, despite the fact that it used to be completely empty because the soldiers were exhausted from the repeated battles and missions, Milland felt like his body and mind were being reinvigorated.

"How shall I describe it? I think Raon has the power to change his surroundings, on top of himself. He isn't exactly cheerful, but Habun Castle has become lively since he came here."

"I see."

Milland's eyes sparkled.

'The qualities of a king.'

Earning everyone's favor in a single month on such a cruel battlefield wasn't something an average man could achieve. Just as he thought, Raon had the qualifications to reign over the others.

"Since I'm feeling under the weather, I'll also participate in training."

"Ah, wait."

As Barty turned around and was about to leave, Milland raised his hand.

"The 'wave' period is coming soon. Remember?"

"…Of course." 

Barty's expression, which had been a smile, stiffened in an instant.

"Since they can swarm in at any moment, properly announce it to the recruits."

Milland's gaze was directed at Stallin Mountain, hidden behind a gray mist.

"The reason that Habun Castle is called the hell of the battlefield is coming soon."

* * *

The soldier training ground, which used to be filled with only a cold wind a month ago, was now filled with scouts tempering their bodies.

That change was caused by a single person.

Raon.

Shocked by the sight of a powerful guy like him—who killed the ice troll warrior and shaman on his own—training from daybreak to night, the other scouts started coming to the training ground one by one.

Raon fixed their postures whenever he had the time and told them how to train, and the rumor spread about its effect. As a result, the training ground was now completely filled with the soldiers.

"Wow! It's true. I can use my sword a lot more easily by bending my knee a little bit more."

"How does he know everything?"

"He has godly eyes! He can tell what we are lacking at a single glance!"

"He pointed out my problem without even looking at me, and he was right. It was actually scary."

The scouts laughed, chatting about what they learned and how they changed.

Tsk. They are so noisy.

Wrath clicked his tongue in dissatisfaction.

I used to like how silent it was, but now my ears are hurting because of those guys.

'It can't be worse than your chatter."

Raon snickered after performing the Star Connecting Sword from the start to the end.

The King of Essence's experience is Devildom's treasure, one that you can't buy with a mountain of gold ingots. You should be honored you get to hear it.

'I don't know about honor, but Devildom feels more and more familiar.'

He heard too much about 'Back in Devildom' and 'The King of Essence in Devildom', to the point that he now felt like Devildom was his homeland.

The King of Essence can't understand you.

'Why?'

Why do you even care about those humans? You won't even meet them ever again after a year passes.

'I don't particularly care about them.'

You are fixing their postures one by one. Of course you do.

'Checking their postures is part of my training.'

It helps you with your training? When they are that sloppy?

'Yes.'

Raon smiled.

'They are very helpful.'

He'd been watching the scouts' movements with Glacier instead of his eyes.

Because he'd been analyzing many people's movements with the ocean of perception, the ocean was getting larger and larger—as if rain was falling into it.

And that was all thanks to the Monarch of Devildom that had sold him the principle of image being important for a pineapple pizza.

'And there's another reason.'

Raon turned around. The eyes of the soldiers that were swinging their swords and tempering their bodies in order to survive were similar to his previous life.

He remembered those times—when he wanted to survive and get stronger, yet he couldn't do anything. That was why he couldn't just leave them alone.

What is that?

'It's a secret.'

Not finishing what you were saying is one of Devildom's sins. I'll imprison your soul inside a glacier as soon as I get your body!

'Do it, if you can.'

Raon ignored Wrath's curse and looked at the scout behind him. His sword wasn't moving properly because of his rounded shoulder.

"Straightening your shoulder will help."

"Shoulder? I see!"

He bowed as if he'd heard a god's voice and immediately straightened his shoulder. His movement got better, and his expression became brighter by the same amount.

"Hey!"

As he was about to check the soldier next to him, Dorian's voice could be heard from the training ground's outer border.

"Not like that! Run faster!"

Dorian was running around the training ground along with the Snow Strikers swordsmen, who were still at the lowest rank of the scouts. Since he couldn't teach them swordsmanship, he was just training their stamina.

'He has great strength and legs, after all.'

Since Dorian had been running every day from when he became a trainee until now, his stamina was better than that of a decent swordsman.

"Who just made the sound of someone using aura?"

Dorian's eyes sparkled as he looked back. Just like Rimmer taught him, he forbade the use of aura and nagged the Snow Strikers to run with their body and stamina.

'They are running well.'

Raon narrowed his eyes, looking at the Snow Strikers leader Edquill running right behind Dorian. Even though his eyes were full of complaints, he was still properly following the orders. It seemed the commander was a good deterrent for him.

"Okay, stop!"

Dorian stopped running and caught his breath. Since the swordsmen were running at full speed without using aura, they couldn't hide their exhaustion.

"Next up is searching practice. Lie on your bellies!"

"Keuh!"

"D-damn it…"

"I hate this the most…"

The Snow Strikers swordsmen laid face down on all fours, until their noses reached the ground.

"Run around the training ground like that. This is a practice for finding traces on the ground, so do your best."

"Ugh…"

"Huff…"

The Snow Strikers swordsmen started crawling around the other border like turtles. It looked like he was bullying them, but that was actually the searching practice the scouts did.

But why is he teaching them about scouting? He himself can't even scout properly.

'That's actually true…'

Raon tilted his head. Dorian had somehow become their instructor, and the fun part was the fact that no one was complaining about it.

'No, that's probably normal.'

Even though they were now scouts, they were actually swordsmen that could use aura. They were too much for normal scouts to teach them, so Dorian was the perfect person for the job.

"Huhu."

Dorian approached him while laughing.

"You look like you are enjoying it."

"Enjoying it? It's really annoying."

Despite what he said, his face couldn't stop smiling. He was deadly pale when he first arrived at Habun Castle, but he had become chubby since then.

"But it's easier than I thought. I thought we'd have to keep fighting without having time to breathe."

Dorian murmured that rumors shouldn't be trusted.

"Hmm? Did you not know?"

Raon narrowed his eyes.

"What? Know what?"

"The reason why this place is called the battlefield of hell or hell of a battlefield is because of the wave that occurs twice a year."

"W…ave?"

"It's a phenomenon where the ground monsters from Stallin Mountain and forest, and ocean monsters from the Northern Ocean, swarm at us endlessly. I thought you'd know about it already."

"I-I didn't look into it because it's scarier if I know. Because ignorance is bliss!"

Dorian violently shook his head like a dog soaked with water.

"What the hell is a wave? That's scary!"

"The sign is going to appear soon. You are pretty much going to be unable to sleep for three to five days once it starts."

"Are you telling me I won't sleep because I'll be too busy fighting?"

"Mhm."

"Argh!"

His eyes shattered like sand facing a tidal wave as he bit his nails.

"It's okay. You will be fine as long as you do as you've learned."

"Is that so? I guess that would be the ca… Of course it wouldn't be!"

Dorian screamed and ran towards the scouts to ask about the wave. Since he got the same response, his face went pale.

"It's over! My life is over!"

He grabbed his head and started screaming towards the sky.

'Your first subordinate is really funny.'

Raon snickered and tapped on Wrath, who was floating in the air.

…The King of Essence doesn't know him.

"You crazy bastard! Are you telling me you let them go, just like that?"

The man in the blue robe showed his teeth. Cold air came from his teeth, which were as sharp as a sawtooth.

"I had no choice, since attacking them again would've been a bad decision."

The man in the black robe sighed lightly.

"That stupid plan, and that stupid decision! You just think too much!"

"It's better than you, who just charges in like an idiot."

They glared at each other, emanating savage combative energy that only existed from monsters.

"So, what are you going to do next? The plan of baiting out Milland is pretty much dead!"

"It's fine. I have a new plan."

The man in the black robe shook his head.

"A new plan?"

"During the wave that's about to start, we will mix a little bit of our power in there."

"Mix our power?"

"Yes. Use your power to make more ocean monsters participate in the wave."

"And what are you going to do?"

"I'll prepare something to break the wall."

He lifted his robe. A skull with long black hair was floating in the air. Black light was coming out of its empty eyes, as if it were alive.

"Bomb skull?"

"We can definitely destroy a castle wall like that using this guy."

"It will be shredded before getting close to the castle wall."

"It's fine. I modified it so it can be hidden behind shadows. Even a master won't be able to find it."

The man in the black robe confidently caressed the bomb skull.

"And then? Habun Castle won't collapse just from destroying the wall."

"Don't worry. The plan of baiting out Milland and the executives will begin then. They will have no choice but to come out once the wall is destroyed."

"Haa… This is the last time."

The man in the blue robe frowned and crossed his arms.

"Even though we have the same objective, we don't need to share the process. If you fail this time, I'll use my own method."

"That won't happen."

The man in the black robe smiled, fiddling with the green mask in his hand.

"I'll use the card that will force Habun Castle to take action."

* * *

In the training ground at daybreak, when darkness hadn't yet disappeared, Raon swung his sword. The heated wind coming from the sword melted the frozen ground, and the cold wind screamed.

He kicked the ground and lifted his blade. The vivid motion felt like he was facing a powerful enemy in front of him. He was in the middle of a life and death battle against an imaginary enemy.

"Haaa."

Ice came from Raon's mouth. His eyes froze, and the heat on the blade cooled down.

The glowing blue blade was thrust fiercely, like a beast's fang. The melted ground froze like a rock, and a flower of frost bloomed in the air.

The flower of ice dancing on the silver blade fluttered to the wind, spinning around him.

Clang!

Each one of the flower petals of frost became a sharp blade of ice, ripping apart Raon's imaginary enemy. It was only after they finished their job that they melted down like the morning dew.

"Haa."

Raon eased the frost and caught his breath.

Hmm…

Wrath groaned in dissatisfaction.

'What's up?'

You are growing abnormally fast.

'...'

Raon was dumbfounded as he stared at Wrath. That was a strange reaction to have when it was him that told him to practice with image. It looked like he forgot everything other than the taste of the pineapple pizza.

"Wow!"

While he was confused by Wrath's reaction, Dorian—who'd been standing at the outer border of the training ground—approached him.

"You can bloom six ice flowers now. It's insane how much it changes every time I see it."

Dorian was amazed by the rate he was getting stronger.

'I'm indeed growing faster than I thought.'

The combination of Wrath's advice and the experience from the mission allowed him to develop Glacier and the Fangs of Insanity at an extraordinary pace. The speed, which surpassed his expectations, even surprised himself.

"You can also get stronger quickly if you train from daybreak to night."

"Daybreak to night… The young master never changes, even though you are now sixteen years old."

"There's no reason to change."

Nothing changed even though he was away from home, and he was sixteen years old now. He just needed to train as much as possible using the time he had.

"Did you also train?"

"I didn't exactly train, but I ran around the castle."

Dorian nodded with a grin.

"Did you bring the Snow Strikers again?"

"Yes, it's my daily routine."

"You don't even have a month left now. Is that a shame?"

"Yes. Haaah…"

The Snow Strikers wouldn't be scouts anymore in less than a month. Dorian looked sad about it.

"But that's okay, since I have other juniors."

Dorian seemed to think he was a scout, rather than a guard for the scouts. Despite how he struggled in the beginning, he was now completely used to their new life.

"You look like you're used to it now."

"But the same goes for the young master."

"Well, I suppose."

Like he said, he grew attached to the scouts because he saw them every day in the training ground, sharing hardships and joy during missions.

"It would've been great if those shitty waves didn't exist. Ah! I just spoke that ominous word! Damn it!"

Dorian tore his hair out, since he didn't even want to think about it.

"Stop it. Let's go eat."

"Yes."

Dorian went limp and nodded.

Let's go to the Branch of Frost. The food from the soldier cafeteria is truly the worst.

Wrath waved his hand of ice, pleading with him to go to the Branch of Frost.

'Isn't the soldier cafeteria fine? I liked it.'

How can you like that hard piece of bread and soup? I had the feeling already, but your tongue isn't normal. I'm sure the stats that should've been in your tongue all went to your willpower.

'Maybe.'

Raon snickered. In his previous life's childhood, he only got a piece of bread for completing a mission. Since he was now given a meal three times a day, it was pretty much a heaven compared to that.

However, he didn't want to hear that from a guy that went crazy for mint chocolate and pineapple pizza.

'Maybe I should go there since it's been a long time.'

R-Really?

'Yes, I guess I should listen to you once in a while.'

Are you sure you don't have an ulterior motive?

'I don't.'

Raon snickered and turned around. Since he felt satisfied about the growth of his swordsmanship, aura, and frost, he decided to satisfy Wrath's taste as well.

"Dorian, let's go to the Branch of Frost this morning. I'll pay for you."

"What? What happened to you?"

"I figured we should eat something special once in a while."

"Oh! I see!"

He entered the Branch of Frost with Dorian, who was feeling better. Since it was time for breakfast, the tables were all occupied except for one.

"Oh! Instructor!"

"My greetings, instructors!"

"Did you come here to eat?"

"Yua! I'll pay for the instructor's meal!"

The soldiers that were eating breakfast stood up at once and bowed at Raon.

"I told you I'm not an instructor."

"Since you are checking our postures every day, you are the instructor!"

"Yes! You are my master!"

"That's enough, please keep eating."

Raon waved his hand and sat at the table in the center. He was almost annoyed, since so many people started calling him instructor and greeted him.

"You made a great decision by visiting us today!"

Yua ran out from the kitchen, swaying her twin tails.

"We got a new menu item! Will you try it?"

Yua smiled brightly and pointed at the newly added line on the menu.

"Apple meat pie?"

"Yes! It's a moist and sweet meat pie with ground apples in it."

"Hmm…"

It didn't sound that great.

Raon would have preferred just meat or just fruit. He didn't exactly like having a mixture of the two.

Eat it! Pick it! Choose it!

Wrath's ice surged like a flame pillar.

The King of Essence is interested in the apple meat pie!

His voice sounded like he was drooling.

"Then, I'll take that pie. What about you, Dorian?"

"Since I don't like experimenting, I'll just take the normal scout set menu and pineapple cookie!"

"Yes!"

He took out a pineapple from his belly pocket. Yua accepted the pineapple with an accustomed movement.

Add a pineapple cookie! The King of Essence also wants to feel that chewy sensation!

"Haah. I'll also take a pineapple cookie."

"Yes!"

Yua smiled cheerfully and went to the kitchen.

"How many pineapples do you even have?"

"I don't have that many left now."

He rubbed his belly pocket with a saddened expression. It was pretty scary how he said there weren't that many left.

That perfect preparedness is the King of Essence's first subordinate indeed. Order him to thoroughly pack the ingredients.

'But you said you didn't know him last time.'

...

Wrath turned his head, pretending he didn't hear Raon.

It didn't take long for Yua to come out with hot food, while Raon was chatting with Dorian.

"Oh, that's a nice fragrance."

"It's not just the fragrance, but it also tastes great. Why don't you taste it?"

Yua placed her hand on her waist and nodded firmly.

"Alright."

Raon smiled lightly and picked up the knife. He cut the pie, and the apple's sourness and the meat's strong fragrance spread out in a perfect harmony, making his mouth water.

F-Fast! Eat it already!

'Stop whining.'

As he was about to help himself, it became noisy from the outside of the pub.

Slam!

The door opened and Radin entered, his face completely red. It looked like there was an emergency since his gaze was urgent.

"Raon! You were here!"

Raon was the person he was looking for.

"What's the matter?"

"The commander summoned you!"

"At this hour?"

"It's an emergency."

Raon realized what was going on after hearing what he said.

"The sign of the wave has appeared."

"Wave…"

Raon frowned and stood up.

"Wave? Wave. Wave!"

Dorian shouted 'wave' three times, growing as stiff as a wooden doll.

"D-did he just say wave?"

"Damn it…"

"Hah, it was about time it happened."

The soldiers' eyes quivered. They anxiously put down their forks and bit their lips.

"Yua, I'll try the new item later. Don't worry."

"Ah, yes."

Raon tapped Yua's shoulder as she looked anxious, then followed Radin out of the pub.

W-Wait! Where are you going?

Wrath stuck to the pie dish, extending his body like a rubber band.

The King of Essence will solve the wave or whatever for you! One bite, just take a single bite before you go! Raon!

He tried grabbing the pie dish with his icy hand, but obviously he couldn't grab it. He was pulled back to Raon like an arrow that left the bowstring.

Why can the King of Essence never be happy? Why?

"Waveeee!"

The Branch of Frost was filled by the scream of despair of a coward, and a demon king that couldn't eat the pie.