Chapter 430

Raon turned around while heading towards the annex building with the Sword Demon.

'Did he already get started?'

Judging from the thunder trembling the entire sky and Rimmer's weak scream, Glenn must've already started the beatings.

'There's no way he would overlook this matter.'

Raon had learned that Rimmer was blatantly acting up against Glenn when he looked into the situation, and there was no way Glenn would leave him alone.

The beating had actually started later than normal thanks to the Sword Demon's visit.

'Rest in peace, squad leader. No, you are a division leader now.'

Raon weakly closed his eyes and prayed for the repose of Rimmer's soul since he could've died as soon as he became a division leader.

'He's going pretty hard today.'

Raon had already seen Glenn striking Rimmer with lightning, but he wasn't expecting such a powerful attack. It almost looked like Glenn was swinging his sword against his archenemy.

'He was definitely strange today.'

Rimmer had never looked normal before, but Glenn also looked slightly strange that day.

'It was envy, right?'

Indeed.

Wrath nodded in agreement.

It was faint, but the emotion of envy could be felt from your geezer and that geezer alike.

'So I wasn't imagining things.'

Glenn and the Sword Demon felt envy towards each other in the audience chamber earlier. It was faint, but it was definitely the emotion of envy.

Raon wrinkled his nose.

'I don't understand.'

The Sword Demon and Glenn both had unmatched martial arts. He couldn't understand why they were jealous of each other.

It was just interesting to learn that such great warriors also felt jealousy sometimes.

'People are really strange.'

Raon glanced sideways at the Sword Demon. He must've also felt the lightning from Glenn because he was gasping while looking behind him.

"Amazing. Such a tremendous power, even though he's not even being serious. This is why he was called the lightning god in the past."

The Sword Demon shook his head as he felt the lightning energy subside.

'What's going on?'

Raon tilted his head while looking at the Sword Demon.

'Why can't I feel any envy from him right now?'

The envy had appeared when he'd met Glenn in the audience chamber, but he was simply admiring him when he witnessed his might. Raon couldn't understand what was happening at all.

'Human emotion is so complicated.'

It's because you aren't even human anymore.

Wrath murmured that Raon wouldn't be able to understand human emotions for the rest of his life.

Just get ready to follow the King of Essence to Devildom. It's frustrating to admit, but you don't belong in the human realm.

'No, you return.'

Wrath kept clinging onto him. Raon pushed him away as he continued walking towards the annex building, and the Sword Demon came up next to him.

"I'm curious, has the Destructive King of the North ever taught you martial arts?"

"He gave me some advice before, but he's never been an official teacher to me."

Raon shook his head while looking forward.

'Telling him about the Supreme Harmony Steps should be unnecessary.'

The Sword Demon was trustworthy, but he didn't tell him about how Glenn personally taught him the Supreme Harmony Steps—just in case.

"I see."

The Sword Demon's bright expression almost looked like the sunlight was directly shining upon him. Even his mouth was curved into a smile as he nodded.

"However, that's even more ridiculous now that I think about it. How can you be so powerful even though the Destructive King of the North didn't teach you…?"

He lowered his eyebrows slightly, saying that Raon's realm was a complete mystery to him.

"I was lucky in various ways."

Raon rolled his eyes to the right. He smiled a little while looking at the cotton candy who was wriggling around because he was looking forward to eating the annex building's food.

'I was really lucky.'

If the demon king with a side job hadn't been with him, it would've taken him at least ten more years to reach his realm. Lucky was the only way to describe it.

"Luck, you say. Luck must've been a factor, however…"

The Sword Demon stroked his beard while lowering his blue eyes.

"From what I've seen, you've been making more efforts than any warrior I've seen before. You wake up before anyone else in the party to finish your own training, and even help the others afterwards. Yet are you really calling it luck? You are being too humble."

He patted Raon's shoulder, telling him to be prouder of it.

"Indeed. I'm also going to follow Sir Raon's example and do my best to improve!"

Mustan clenched his fist tightly with passionate eyes.

Raon still felt awkward to see those clear eyes because he knew about his past. Honestly, he almost wanted to try poking them with his finger.

"I have a suggestion for you."

The Sword Demon licked his lips while looking at Mustan before turning his gaze towards Raon.

"What would that suggestion be…?"

"Can I help you with your sword practice during my stay here?"

He rapidly blinked his eyes while saying that he wanted to give some small advice while teaching Mustan, just like he'd been doing.

"I'm just very thankful if you did."

Raon lowered his head politely. The Sword Demon's teachings were nice because they was easy to understand and he could quickly get used to them.

There was no reason for him to refuse an extremely powerful warrior's teaching.

"Me too! Me too!"

Yua briskly raised her hand and shouted that she also wanted to join the training.

"Yes, you can come with us, Yua."

The Sword Demon nodded while patting Yua's head.

"Ah, I also need to join since she's doing it…"

Yulius hung his head and rolled his eyes to stare at the Sword Demon.

"You can come too, Yulius."

"Thank you!"

The Sword Demon curved his lips into a slight smile. He seemed to think that Yulius's childish behavior was cute.

"Mustan, is that fine for you?"

"Of course! I don't mind it because they are both Sir Raon's important subordinates!"

Mustan shouted that it wasn't a problem at all, and that he would also help with their training.

'Hmm…'

Raon furrowed his brow while looking at Mustan's bright smile.

'I really can't get used to this.'

After the emotion of envy was purged and he became a servant from the contract, Mustan had become a completely different person—like dirty clothes becoming clean after washing. He cared for people around him with a nice personality, and the two children liked him as a result.

Most importantly, Mustan trusted Raon to the point where he would believe even if he said that the sun rises from the west, and it almost felt uncomfortable.

Take it easy.

Drool dripped from Wrath's mouth as he looked at the annex building that could be seen from afar.

If you feel uncomfortable having him as a slave, consider him as an obedient subordinate. It's fine as long as you don't try to take advantage of him, right?

'Yes, that would be for the best.'

Raon nodded while looking at Mustan.

'He's helpful sometimes.'

Raon smiled and patted Wrath's flabby shoulders as he kept thinking about food.

He kept walking while listening to the conversation between the Sword Demon and the two children, reaching the annex garden in no time.

"Woaah!"

Yua ran like the wind and opened the annex building's door.

"Ma'am! Everyone!"

The entire annex building trembled from her shout, and Sylvia, Helen, and the maids came out altogether.

"Yua!"

"Oh my, Yua! You look so skinny now!"

"You are so late!"

"You should've contacted us!"

The maids didn't even glance at Raon and examined Yua to see if she had any injury or sickness.

"Yulius!"

"You aren't injured anywhere, right?"

"Look, he's grown taller in the meantime!"

"He's in his growth period, after all. How have you been eating?"

Their next target was Yulius. Yulius also looked like he'd missed the annex building, since he nodded with teary eyes.

"Hmm…"

Raon scratched his cheek while looking at the maids surrounding Yua and Yulius.

'This is a bit awkward…'

He previously found their reaction annoying, but he was saddened because they weren't even glancing at him anymore as they were fully focused on the two children.

You are such an annoying guy.

Wrath shook his head, saying that he was being so difficult.

'I'm just saying.'

While Raon was feeling the bitterness in his tongue, Sylvia stood up after patting Yua's cheeks.

"Raon! You worked so hard! How have you been taking care of Yua and Yuli—Huh?"

Sylvia walked towards him with a smile but suddenly stopped. Her eyebrows started to tremble upon seeing the Sword Demon standing at Raon's right side. It was as if she'd witnessed something that should've never happened.

"Ah…"

Raon had never seen Sylvia make that expression before. He couldn't understand what kind of emotion was dwelling inside her trembling red eyes.

"…"

The Sword Demon also stared at Sylvia for a while before taking a step forward.

"Nice to meet you, I'm the swordsman named Rector."

He lowered his head at Sylvia before she did and was unexpectedly polite in his speech.

"Rector? The Sword Demon!"

Sylvia's eyes widened. She must've been aware of his name.

"Ah, excuse me. I was too surprised."

Her face was flushed from the panic, but she quickly bowed and apologized.

"Don't worry about it."

The Sword Demon shook his head, saying that it was fine.

"But why did one of the Five Great Swordmasters come to this place…?"

Sylvia tilted her head. She looked like she couldn't understand why the Sword Demon was visiting her.

"I wanted to ask about something."

"To me?"

"Yes."

The Sword Demon nodded and faced Sylvia.

"It's definitely rude to ask, but…"

Raon could see the bitterness in his eyes that he'd never seen before.

"Can you tell me the story?"

Balder was sitting inside the Central Martial Palace's reception room and glared at Karoon on the opposite side.

"Are you planning on leaving him alone?"

He clenched his fist while looking at a swordsman sculpture behind Karoon.

"Are you really going to do nothing about him when the collaterals and the mongrels from outside are getting full of themselves because of that shithead?"

"What else?"

Karoon asked back while raising his transparent glass.

"What do you want to do when he is the center of attention in Zieghart—no, in the entire continent? Do you want to attack him inside the house?"

"Center of attention? He is just a child!"

Balder ground his teeth in displeasure.

"The fact that he is a child is even more problematic."

Karoon exhaled heavily while putting down his glass.

"Do you know what the thing that the martial houses and the knight orders boast about the most is?"

"It's obviously their strongest member, isn't it?"

"It's only natural for those seniors to be powerful because of how long they've lived. Boasting about them would be seen as unsightly behavior."

"Which means…"

"Yes. The future of the house. The young ones that would eventually become the strongest in the house are the only people they can boast to the public."

He furrowed his brow while violently pouring his whiskey in his empty glass.

"And Raon Zieghart is the strongest among those current futures. He would've been called a genius if he reached his realm at thirty years old, yet he achieved it at twenty years of age. There's no way he wouldn't draw the entire continent's attention, including our father."

"Hmm…"

"The world is bound to cheer for the young hero who destroys evil. Once the rumor about this incident with Specter spreads, his name will resound throughout the continent even faster. Yet are you really asking me if we should get rid of him inside the house? Do you want to bury the Zieghart name in the ground?"

Karoon glared at Blader, telling him to stop being so stupid.

"Moreover, you and I have both been humiliated in the past while trying to target him with sloppy plans. If we do something recklessly and get caught, we might end up losing our positions as palace masters."

He shook his head, saying that it wasn't the right time to act.

"Is there really nothing I can do? Do I have to keep enduring this when he keeps intruding into the direct line's domain?"

"You are mistaken. I never said that I would do nothing about him."

Karoon twisted his lips while thinking about Burren's eyes as he looked down on him from the platform.

'Arrogant brat… You seem to believe in the ship you are boarding, but I'll show you how it sinks because of the rotten keel.'

He felt uncomfortable upon remembering the confident expression on the face of his youngest son, who started walking his own path even though he'd extended his hand beforehand.

"There are many people who would act against Raon even if we don't do anything. The Light Wind division has made far too many enemies."

"The Five Demons?"

"Yes. He's gotten lots of hatred from the people inside the house, but the biggest hatred comes from the Five Demons. Four out of the Five are targeting his life, after all."

Eden, the White Blood Religion, the South-North Union, and even the Black Tower. One would need to run away for the rest of their life if they made enemies with one of them, yet Raon had made trouble with four. That's why he was as good as dead.

"B-but calling them would be…"

Balder swallowed nervously because he felt uncomfortable about calling the Five Demons as a Zieghart.

"I never said that I would call them."

"Huh?"

"Why would I ever communicate with people like the Five Demons? All we need to do is to spread a little bit of information about Raon's location, how powerful he is, and what he's learned."

A frightening smile appeared on Karoon's face as he said that someone might overhear their conversation, and it wouldn't be their fault.

"Ah!"

Balder finally realized Karoon's plan and snapped his fingers.

"But it's difficult to obtain information about him. He's always inside the fifth training ground and the annex building."

"Don't worry about it."

Karoon's eyes sparkled in a deadly light as he raised his glass containing yellow liquor.

"It's time to take out the spike I've hammered a long time ago."

* * *

Raon was sitting at a table in the garden with the Sword Demon.

The lively and warm atmosphere in the garden revealed how carefully Sylvia and the maids had been tending to it.

"Thank you for waiting."

Sylvia walked inside the garden while personally carrying the tea and snacks.

"Let me do it."

Raon took Sylvia's tray and placed the tea and the snacks on the table.

"I feel better just from looking at this garden."

The Sword Demon nodded while looking around the garden. His eyes revealed a small amount of awe, showing that it wasn't flattery.

"It's because we tend it together."

A faint smile appeared on Sylvia's face. She seemed to be happy that the Sword Demon complimented her. However, she couldn't take her eyes off the Sword Demon. It was to the point where she looked strange.

A moment of silence followed after they drank their respective teas, then Sylvia's gaze moved upwards.

"What do you want to ask me? I'm not sure I know anything that Sir Rector would be curious about."

She briefly licked her lips, saying that she couldn't guess what he was about to ask.

"Only Lady Sylvia is capable of answering this question."

The Sword Demon's eyes became serious as he looked at Raon, who was reluctantly biting into a snack because Wrath kept urging him.

"I was impressed in various ways after watching the swordsman Raon."

"Impressed?"

As soon as Raon's name was mentioned, Sylvia leaned towards the table.

"Indeed. Young warriors can be powerful, but they usually lack either willpower or personality. And yet, this young man wasn't lacking in any of those aspects."

The Sword Demon repeated what he'd said to Glenn. The way he smoothly continued with the praise sounded like he'd prepared them in advance.

"Hmm…"

"I-is that so?"

Raon scratched his head in embarrassment, but Sylvia's expression brightened.

"I'm well aware of it because I'm raising a disciple myself. It's extremely painful and difficult to raise a child to have an upright personality and might at the same time."

The Sword Demon quietly sighed while looking at Mustan, who was watching the lake with Yua.

"That's why I came to see Lady Sylvia. I wanted to know how you raised the swordsman Raon."

The Sword Demon lowered his head to Sylvia as he made that request.

"Oh no! Please don't do this!"

Sylvia stood up from her seat and shook her hand. She forced the Sword Demon to stand before returning to her seat.

"Even though you are asking, Raon honestly grew up on his own."

"I heard the same from the Light Wind squad leader."

"And it's true. He always found what to do by himself, except for the sickness he had when he was a child."

"Hmm…"

Raon tightly sealed his lips. He even averted his gaze because he felt guilty that Sylvia had the impression that she was raising an adult instead of a child.

"What do you mean that he was sick?"

"He had a condition called the Curse of Frost when he was small. He has recovered perfectly now though."

Sylvia told him about the Curse of Frost that Raon was affected by during his childhood.

"Curse of Frost…"

The Sword Demon lowered his head, and his shoulders trembled faintly.

"If it's okay with you, can you tell me about how the swordsman Raon has grown up?"

"Gladly! I can tell you as much as you want!"

Sylvia smiled brightly as she nodded. Her mouth was apparently itching to talk all along.

"I'll take my leave and res—"

"You won't!"

Raon tried to run away before it got too embarrassing, but Sylvia caught his arm and didn't let him go.

"You can't run away in front of a guest! Spend some time with your mom since it's been a while!"

"Ah…"

"I'll start with when he was a baby. He didn't even cry when he was born…"

She smiled cheerfully with her arms crossed and started to talk about the past.

The King of Essence was also curious about it!

Wrath also went to the table and laid down while supporting his chin on his hands.

He wants to know what could've happened to turn a human being into a fiend!

He clamored that he was definitely going to find his weakness by listening to the story.

"I even felt like Raon was playing with me rather than I was playing with him because of how mature he was."

"Huh, so he's been different ever since his childhood."

That's understandable. He won against the King of Essence when he was a child!

It should've been impossible for the conversation between the two and the demon king to take place, but it still worked out somehow. Raon sighed while hanging his head.

'I want to rest. I'm desperate for some rest right now.'

* * *

Probably because it was a meeting between a mother who wanted to brag about her son and a master who wanted to guide his disciple to the right path, the conversation between Sylvia and the Sword Demon continued until evening.

The Sword Demon was especially enthusiastic because he either agreed or smiled as he listened to Raon's story of growth instead of getting bored. He was so passionate about it that Raon felt embarrassed just from watching him.

"…That's how he came to be the way he is now."

Sylvia smiled and brushed Raon's hair back.

"He looked cold-hearted, but he can now take care of people. I was the most worried about that part, but I'm glad that he learned it by himself."

Sylvia smiled brightly while saying that the righteous spirit he'd gained made her the happiest even though she wasn't sure how that happened.

"Of course you should know."

Raon sighed and shook his head.

"I changed because of what you told me."

"I did?"

Sylvia tilted her head, wondering what Raon was talking about.

"You told me that you wanted me to become a warrior who wields his sword like the Zieghart swordsmen in the past and my father. You also told me to become a swordsman who feels like a human."

Raon repeated what she'd told him in the past, back when she used to be taller than him.

'Yes, it was because of what she said.'

The reason he became the way he was, and the Light Wind division became the way they were, was all because of that line she'd spoken.

Thanks to her sincere words, Raon managed to become Raon Zieghart, the human, instead of an abandoned hunting dog.

"That's a nice thing to say."

The Sword Demon slowly nodded, his gaze fixated on Sylvia.

"Ah, I-I did say that."

Sylvia's face became flushed in embarrassment as they complimented her. It was a mystery to Raon that she was perfectly fine with talking about another person all day long, but she ended up like that from a single bit of praise.

"Actually, your mom didn't come up with that on her own. I learned it from your father."

She smiled, saying that Raon's father had taught her what it meant to be a swordsman who felt like a human.

"..."

The Sword Demon bit his lip and leaned forward as soon as he heard the mention of Raon's father.

"I heard that your husband perished. Can I learn what kind of person he was?"

The way he swallowed looked extremely nervous.

"It won't be a fun story. He was a righteous man without any other qualities, and he wasn't a famous warrior either."

Sylvia shook her head, saying that it would be a boring story.

"That's okay. There aren't many swordsmen in the world who think that way."

Raon noticed an extremely faint shaking in the Sword Demon's voice, similar to the harp string played with a pinky finger.

"Hmm…"

Sylvia stared at the Sword Demon's face for a while before she nodded.

"I understand. Then…"

As soon as she mentioned his father's name, the Sword Demon's pupils froze in the darkness.