Chapter 549

On top of extorting the money from the inspectors, Raon even used them as a labor force to restore the garden before he let them go.

The inspectors ran away without even looking back, their faces as pale as if they'd seen a ghost. They looked like they were never going to set foot in the annex building ever again, just like Balder.

"Raon."

Sylvia watched the inspectors run away as if their tails were on fire and stepped up next to Raon.

"What's going on?"

Her trembling head showed that she was still unable to understand the situation.

"Apparently, the True Martial Palace master was the general administrator's disciple. We managed to avoid their inspection thanks to that."

Raon smiled cheerfully while pointing at the Gambling Monster.

"Ah!" Sylvia exclaimed, her eyes wide.

She finally seemed to have remembered the relationship between the Gambling Monster and Balder.

"He's not even my disciple! How can I call him a disciple when he hasn't come to visit once since he became a palace master?"

The Gambling Monster furrowed his brow. It looked like he was still dissatisfied even though he'd been bullying Balder all day long.

"You were advising him seriously though."

"I just didn't want to see him being looked down upon by others since he used to be under my wing."

"I see."

Raon quietly laughed while watching the Gambling Monster briskly turn his head away.

'He is such a thoughtful person.'

Raon could tell from his experience that the Gambling Monster was an affectionate person. He was advising Balder so that he would walk the correct path—and better—path.

If Balder were wise, he would carry out his job as the special inspector excellently based on the Gambling Monster's advice, but Raon had the feeling that he would never see that.

"Raon."

Sylvia furrowed her brow and clenched Raon's shoulder.

"I understand the rest, but why did you destroy the house?"

"What are you talking about? The True Martial Palace master destroyed it."

Raon casually shrugged his shoulders.

"Are you even trying to deceive me now?"

Sylvia raised her chin, gesturing for him to try it if he could.

"Did you think your mom wouldn't notice that sly look on your face?"

She snickered while lifting the corners of Raon's lips with her finger.

"Ugh…"

Raon wrinkled his nose while stepping back.

I knew Mom would notice it!

Wrath's eyes sparkled in anticipation.

Take this opportunity to give this sly weasel a good beating!

He waved his fist and rooted for Sylvia.

'I told you, she isn't your mom…'

Raon shook his head towards Wrath and extended his hand towards Dorian.

"Dorian."

"Yes!"

Dorian immediately noticed the meaning of his gesture and took out the gold pouch he'd obtained in the annex building.

"I've been bothered by how narrow the left corridor was."

Raon delivered all of the money Dorian gave him to Slyvia.

"Since the special inspector voluntarily donated this to us, let's renovate the annex building. It's too cramped now because we have so many people."

"A-a voluntary donation? What does voluntary mean again?"

Dorian was dumbfounded, blinking as he watched the situation from behind.

"Seriously, you…"

Sylvia was also stupefied and laughed bitterly.

"Raon, you can't extort people's money like this. You should earn it properly…"

"This much compensation is child's play compared to how much the True Martial Palace master has been belittling and mocking us. Moreover, he really did destroy it."

Raon murmured that it was all Balder's fault while pointing at the destroyed house even though she'd completely seen through his lies.

"But it can't be helped if you don't want it. This much money would've allowed the maids to have personal rooms and enlarge the garden…"

He was about to take back the gold pouch when Sylvia hurriedly stopped his hand.

"Hmm, I guess it's probably alright since it's from Balder."

Sylvia furtively averted her gaze and took the gold coins.

"He does have a bad temper, and we need to repair the house, after all. Yep, this is the right thing to do."

Her face gleamed with a golden hue as she opened the pouch of gold coins.

Raon smiled faintly while watching Sylvia count the gold coins.

'It must be because of the maids and the children.'

Since the number of maids had increased and the children in the saint's mansion often came by to play, the annex building had started to feel cramped.

Sylvia must've been planning to renovate the annex building so that everyone—including the maids and the children—could live more comfortably, rather than just for her own benefit.

Watching Sylvia's bright expression, Raon could still understand why people usually said that giving pocket money to one's parents was the best way to be a good son.

"Mother."

Raon took a step towards Sylvia, who was already planning the renovation. He removed the playful atmosphere around him and asked with a serious expression on his face, "The True Martial Palace master isn't a big deal, is he?"

"Huh…?"

Sylvia was smiling while looking at the damaged annex building, but her expression stiffened upon hearing his question.

"What do you mean…?"

"I'm planning to restore your status as a member of the direct line within the next year."

Raon declared that he was going to make Sylvia a part of the direct line in front of many people in order to keep his resolution.

"A-a member of the direct line next year?"

"A-aren't you being too hasty? What if you fail…"

"Hmm…"

The expressions of the maids darkened. They seemed to be worried about the problems that might arise.

"It's definitely not an easy task…"

The Gambling Monster also furrowed his brow. He seemed to be surprised by Raon's sudden declaration as well.

"Raon, I…"

"If you become a member of the direct line, you are going to often encounter the ones who have humiliated us—not just the True Martial Palace master."

Raon took another step towards Sylvia and nodded heavily.

"You can't avoid them or pretend you didn't hear them whenever you face them."

"Hmm…"

"You could see from what happened today, but the direct lines and palace masters aren't such great people that you can't even look at them. Mother, you should know that fact even better than myself."

Raon leaned forward slightly as he spoke, meeting Sylvia's eyes.

"I'd like you to think about how Balder ran his ass off today and confidently face whoever picks a fight with you in the future."

"..."

Sylvia lowered her head and remained quiet for a long time.

"You've grown up so nicely, my son. Thank you."

She finally managed to raise her head with trembling lips.

"Your mom had to lean forward to meet your eyes in the past, but you are the one who has to lean now."

Sylvia smiled brightly. She seemed to be extremely glad about that fact.

"This won't do!"

Sylvia vigorously turned around. She gestured at the maids with her shoulders trembling faintly. She seemed to be doing her best to hold back her tears.

"Let's hold a party. Take out all the ingredients we have!"

"Yes!"

Helen and the maids seemed to be feeling the same as Sylvia. They responded even more cheerfully than usual and ran into the annex building.

Mom really knows how to host a great party!

Wrath gave a thankful nod to Sylvia before he rode on Yua's shoulder to go towards the annex building.

"..."

The Gambling Monster quietly turned around. Raon stood on his path as he was about to leave.

"Where are you going when you are the protagonist of the day?"

"It's bothersome."

"I didn't give you my gift yet, did I? I brought high-quality liquor from Aikar…"

Raon mimed pouring the liquor into a glass.

"I-is it the Relic of the Ocean?"

"You know about it?"

"There's no way I wouldn't know about the Relic of the Ocean! Its production supposedly decreased a lot because of Kaibar's rampage. Did you really bring that here?"

"Yes. There weren't that many, but I got one of them for you, Gambling Monster."

"Ahem!"

The Gambling Monster cleared his throat and turned around right away.

"I couldn't possibly refuse your heartfelt gift."

He started walking towards the annex building, pretending he was reluctant about it.

Rumble!

Raon was about to follow him with a smile when the North Grave Mountain suddenly trembled as if it were about to collapse.

"Hmm?"

Raon tilted his head while looking at the North Grave Mountain.

"An earthquake?"

* * *

Lushan Mountain

Underground Cavern

A large magic circle was engraved on the gravel-covered training ground, and the children lying on it were quietly groaning with their eyes closed as if they were having a nightmare.

"..."

Derus Robert was watching the children's suffering from outside the magic circle, his pupils not reflecting any light at all.

His apathetic expression made it look like he was watching mere pebbles on the ground.

"Welcome."

An old man wearing a night travel outfit landed behind the magic circle. He bowed with extreme courtesy, just like a priest greeting the god.

"How are things proceeding?"

"Thanks to the research about the Deathbringer Revenants, the brainwashing has further advanced to another level. Both the speed and intensity have increased, and I believe the material consumption will be reduced noticeably."

He smiled coldly while treating the children like goods in a marketplace.

"Excellent."

Derus's gaze glowed faintly for the first time.

"Keep up with your hard work."

"Of course."

The old man bowed politely before he returned to the magic circle.

Derus watched the magic circle and the children for a bit longer before he went upstairs, where he could see the entire cavern.

"My lord."

He sat on an unrefined chair with his glass raised, and Cubara appeared in her black dress, bowing to him.

"There's an issue."

A shadow crossed Cubara's brow. It was an unexpected sight because she'd always been so composed even during the most critical of situations.

"An issue?"

Derus slowly turned his gaze towards her.

"Raon Zieghart is apparently still alive."

"..."

Derus quietly put the glass on the table. He raised his gaze once again to look at the cavern.

"His boundary was destroyed during the clash against the Demonic Monarch of the Azure Flame, and he was teleported towards the Owen Kingdom. He met the Pirate King after that…"

Cubara told Derus about the story that the Black Market had spread.

"…He's slain the mad dragon Kaibar, and he returned to Zieghart a few days ago."

"Yes, I knew he would be alive."

Derus smiled while looking at the glove covering his hand. He looked excited for some reason.

"I told you, he's not the type of person who would die so easily."

He sipped from his glass without being surprised at all, as if he had already considered the possibility.

"…Are you alright?"

Cubara narrowed her eyes, trying to discern Derus's true intentions.

"I'm fine. No, I'm actually feeling better."

"What?"

"Of course I would be in a good mood. We found out who ruined the Deathbringer Revenant factory. He is the only one who could have."

Derus clutched his head and burst into laughter, saying that the mystery was finally solved.

"That shouldn't be the case, unfortunately."

Cubara firmly shook her head even though Derus's madness was unfolding right in front of her eyes.

"Raon Zieghart killed the mad dragon after the Deathbringer Revenant factory was destroyed. It's impossible for him to have reached that place considering the timeline."

"No, I'm right."

Derus tilted his chin while looking down on Cubara.

"The factory was destroyed after I sent the Deathbringer Revenants to Raon Zieghart, and he is still alive even though he was supposed to be dead—what do you think that means?"

He raised his glass once again. His twisted emotions were showing from the smile in his eyes.

"Raon Zieghart found out the location of the factory from Sirith and attacked it while leaking the information that he was at another location. It's not difficult for him to manipulate the information like that since he has close ties to the Black Market. Most importantly…"

Derus took off his glove. The blood flowing from his hand was as sticky as honey, and he dropped it into his glass. The liquor resembled the hue of the evening glow but turned into a deep bloody red.

"My instincts are shouting at me that it was his doing."

"Hmm…"

Cubara's lips trembled as she witnessed the madness surrounding Derus's eyes. He hated irrational things the most, but he became the most irrational person in the world whenever Raon Zieghart was involved.

"So Raon Zieghart is alive…"

Derus rolled his lips into a smile while drinking the bloody liquor.

"My youngest son will be happy."

* * *

Raon was standing on the annex building's lake with his eyes closed.

The wind of the winter that would soon come to an end was desperately breathing its last, but the surface of the lake was extremely calm, as if it were frozen.

It implied that Raon had improved even further at materializing his mental world into reality, and the space itself belonged to his will.

Raon calmly opened his eyes after polishing his will through meditation. He faced the world with a clear light in his eyes and unsheathed Heavenly Drive.

Whap!

Fire and ice burst out at the same time above the white spark of the blade.

The blazing auras of the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation and Glacier almost looked like they were competing against each other with the energy of wind in between.

With the three energies emerging from Heavenly Drive, Raon raised his sword and swung down vertically.

Since he was controlling the space with his will, the lake remained serene even though a tremendous amount of aura was concentrated on his blade.

"Haa."

Raon unleashed the basic techniques, Fangs of Insanity, and the Blizzard Sword Art's techniques before he finally lowered Heavenly Drive.

'Not bad.'

He was somewhat used to creating his own space with his will and drawing out his mental world. It was time to try out the new ability given to him by Wrath.

Raon clenched Heavenly Drive with both hands while exhaling the impure energy that accumulated from the training.

Rumble!

The simultaneous activation of the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation and Glacier's auras increased his soul level.

He accepted the energy of wrath stuck at the edge of his soul while feeling the polished sensation of becoming one with the world.

Zap!

It was an unpleasant feeling where he wasn't himself anymore and another existence was wearing his skin. Just as he started to feel like his vision was going dark and his thoughts couldn't continue, he activated Wrath Release.

Whaap!

The light returned to his narrow vision, and the excitement in his mind subsided.

Despite the serenity of his mind, the energy of wrath seeped into the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation and Glacier's auras to create a tremendous wave.

Raon swallowed nervously while feeling the demon king's energy that was making Heavenly Drive look distorted.

'Is this Wrath Release?'

Unlike during the fight against Syria, the energy of wrath was only granting him a tremendous amount of power without dominating his mind and body.

'However… I can't last for long.'

His mind wasn't being dominated by wrath, but it was still unstable. Raon had the feeling that the balance was going to break as soon as he unleashed more than 5% of the power.

'Let's see.'

Raon pulled Heavenly Drive backward. He held his breath and unleashed the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation's Flame Dragon Art, surrounding it with the energy of wrath.

Rumble!

The red dragon was blazing in blue and breathed out frost instead of fire.

It wouldn't be strange to call it the Ice Dragon Art. The sword strike soared like a kite, painting the sky around the annex building in a deep blue hue.

Whap!

It suddenly started to snow lightly, probably because of how powerful the Ice Dragon Art was.

Raon watched the falling snowflakes and furrowed his brow. This hand holding Heavenly Drive trembled uncontrollably.

'As expected, this isn't easy.'

Enduring wrath and controlling it were entirely different stories. He could guess that he would need to practice a lot.

Hmph! It's only natural!

Wrath nodded while supporting his chin on his hands.

Did you think that the King of Essence's energy was similar to some random energy? It's ten thousand years too early for you to control it!"

He shook his hand, telling him to stop being overconfident.

'That sounds about right.'

Raon smiled briefly and walked up to Wrath.

'It's the demon king's power, after all. It's too early for a weakling like me to use it.'

Ahem! That's true.

Wrath's expression brightened as he was complimented for once.

'How do you even control this energy of wrath so freely?'

It's simple. You have to follow the flow of the emotion without being devoured by it. In short, you have to tightly hold the reins of the horse called Wrath.

'Reins…'

Try to devour the wrath with the flame and frost that you can control. It's going to be impossible, though.

Wrath giggled, saying that it seriously wasn't an easy task.

'I see.'

Raon calmly nodded. It was simple advice, but he could clearly determine the direction of his training in the future. The giving Wrath still had more to give.

'Let's continue.'

He raised Heavenly Drive in order to resume his training when a large wave of mana occurred from the room at the end of the annex building.

Whaaam!

Black smoke covered the sky with the powerful sound of an explosion.

Thud!

Raon ran towards the place where the explosion had occurred. He was being cautious because he couldn't tell what happened, but it was Encia who walked out in a wobbly manner, her face smeared with soot.

"L-Lady Encia?"

"Sir Raon, damn handsome!"

Encia's exhausted face was suddenly filled with energy.

"I finally completed it!"

She raised her hand, saying that she managed to complete the artificial energy center for Sylvia. Raon could see a marble the size of a child's fist in her hand.

"Huh…"

Raon's eyes trembled as he looked at the marble.

'It holds a tremendous amount of mana.'

Even though it was a small marble, he could feel as much mana as a Master, or even a Grandmaster.

The dragon heart's mana originally had more mana than a transcender, but it was still amazing to maintain that much mana while making an artificial energy center out of it.

'My mother's realm should increase at once with that.'

He could guess that Sylvia would recover at once, without even needing any time to gather aura like Rimmer did.

Of course, it was still going to take a long time for her to recover her previous skills, since she hadn't held a sword in a long time.

"Amazing. I expected no less from you, Lady Enc… Huh?"

Raon started to walk towards Encia but stopped. The face engraved on the marble's surface looked familiar for some reason.

"E-erm, is that face engraved on the energy center…"

"I knew you would recognize it! It's you, Sir Raon! I had to work so hard to showcase your damn handsomeness!"

Encia smiled, complimenting his taste.

"Ah."

Raon's jaw dropped.

'How is this happening…?'

Encia had drawn his face on the artificial energy center. He couldn't close his mouth because it was too ridiculous.

"I was thinking about what would make an artificial energy center perfect, and I remembered your face, Sir Raon! Because you are perfectly damn handsome!"

Perfectly damn handsome. He gained another moniker.

"I actually finished making the energy center a long time ago, but it took me a while because I wasn't satisfied with this face all along."

Encia shook her head, saying that it took her four whole days to complete that face.

Cough.

Raon choked briefly while watching Encia brag about the face on the artificial energy center.

'Why is everyone around me so strange?'

Maybe because you are the craziest among them?

'...'