Chapter 571

 

Raon raised his trembling eyelids.

‘It wasn’t a dream after all.’

A raccoon with a few leaves stuck on its forehead stood proudly as if it were a person, looking this way.

‘Wrath, you were right.’

He poked Wrath, who had perfectly predicted this situation.

‘Wrath?’

-Grrrr…

As if stabbed by a sword, Wrath groaned and dropped to the ground. It seemed he had fainted from the shock of Merlin’s appearance.

‘A human who can knock out a Devil King…’

Shaking his head, Raon picked up Wrath and slung him over his shoulder.

“Come this way.”

Raon gestured to Merlin and entered deeper into the ruined main hall of the manor.

After ensuring they couldn’t be overheard, he sat down on a relatively intact chair.

“I really appreciate this gesture.”

Merlin smiled as she took a seat on the chair opposite him.

“Enough about that. Have you been here all this time?”

“Yeah. Why would I leave when you’re here?”

She brushed her hair back elegantly, seemingly forgetting she was currently a raccoon.

“I should start by thanking you, for stopping Rektor.”

Raon bowed his head to Merlin.

‘If it weren’t for Merlin, things would have been much tougher.’

Merlin’s appearance allowed the Holy Sword Alliance’s officer to suggest a retreat to Rektor. It wasn’t an exaggeration to say that she saved everyone.

“Why such formalities between us?”

Merlin waved her fluffy hand, dismissing the need for thanks.

‘Our relationship…’

Raon wanted to ask what exactly their relationship was, but there was something else he needed to address first.

“Are you sure you’re okay with this?”

Raon narrowed his eyes, caressing the armrest of the chair.

“Uh? What do you mean?”

“When you were in Balene, you interfered with the White Religion, and now you’ve confronted the Holy Sword Alliance. Isn’t this causing issues within Eden?”

“Not at all.”

She shook her head decisively, enough to puzzle the concerned.

“People will think the madwoman did something mad again and won’t make a big deal out of it.”

“Huh…”

“Ah, I love it. It gives me chills that you’re worried about me.”

Merlin rubbed her arms, a blush on her cheeks. Raon hadn’t expected to see a raccoon’s cheeks turn red.

“And if problems arise, I’ll just leave Eden. I’m here because it helps you.”

She shrugged, indicating her indifference to Eden’s mission of restoration.

“What I’m worried about isn’t that.”

Raon sighed and pointed at his head.

“Heavenly Demon or other officers of Eden might have placed restrictions on you.”

“Yeah. They did.”

Merlin nodded with a faint smile.

“But I’ve removed them.”

“Huh?”

Raon’s eyes widened at Merlin’s calm demeanor.

“Heavenly Demon placed it, right?”

“Yes. It was subtle and complex, hard to notice and took a while to undo, but I managed it.”

Merlin was proving to be a frustratingly laugh-inducing woman.

“Like brainwashing?”

“Not brainwashing, but a restriction that made it impossible to lie without realizing.”

She explained the method, which was magical and beyond Raon’s understanding.

‘To undo Heavenly Demon’s magic, impressive. But…’

Had Heavenly Demon only placed a single restriction?

Heavenly Demon, leader of Eden and one of the continent’s top magicians and sorcerers, likely had more tricks up his sleeve.

‘It smells like Derus.’

In his past life, Raon too had been content with merely undoing brainwashing, waiting for the day he would leave the Robert household.

But Derus, using a Rage Worm to read emotions, had preempted all his plans and moves.

Heavenly Demon was no simple man, and maximum caution was necessary.

“Besides that magic, check for other restrictions. Not just in your head, but your heart and organs. He might have implanted a Rage Worm.”

Raon shared the insights from his past life with Merlin.

‘Did I talk too much?’

He worried that his unnecessary advice might seem like meddling.

“Yeah. Got it!”

But Merlin seemed genuinely pleased and nodded enthusiastically.

“Be careful yourself. Three of your enemies are targeting you.”

Merlin tapped her hand in return.

“The White Religion, Holy Sword Alliance, and the Black Tower have joined forces, right?”

Raon mentioned the three forces she had named while tapping on the armrest.

“That sounds about right. I’m not sure about the White Religion, but I heard that the leaders of the Holy Sword Alliance and the Black Tower met separately.”

Merlin nodded calmly.

“So it was true.”

The alliance between the Holy Sword Alliance and the Black Tower was indeed real, likely shaking up the continental political landscape significantly.

“And Eden?”

“We’re not planning on allying with anyone else.”

Merlin slowly shook her head.

“Heavenly Demon and the other officers only care about restoration. That’s the same for the Heavenly Devils, so there’s no reason to ally with others. However…”

She paused to tap her cheek thoughtfully.

“We might participate in events others have started.”

“So, Eden needs to be cautious too.”

“Right. Heavenly Demon is waiting for the Six Yellow and White Religion to clash properly. He wants to seize that opportunity to execute his plans.”

“And those plans are?”

“I don’t know.”

Merlin shrugged, implying that only Heavenly Demon knew his own plans.

“Ah, right! I’m late, but congratulations on becoming a Grandmaster!”

Merlin suddenly clapped her hands and congratulated Raon on his new title, an unpredictable woman indeed.

“Th-thank you.”

Raon chuckled. Somehow, Merlin ended up being the first to congratulate him.

“You could even reach Transcendence.”

Merlin’s eyes sparkled sincerely, but she couldn’t resist scratching her belly, a raccoon’s instinct.

“Ah, why does good time pass so quickly? I have to go now.”

Raon swallowed dryly as he watched Merlin’s lips.

‘Is it food? Or fur grooming?’

Unsure of what the raccoon might demand, a tension like that of facing a battle rose in him.

“This little one wants to try a hot spring.”

“Oh, a hot spring…?”

The unexpected word stunned Raon.

“Give him a bath!”

“Wait!”

Raon tried to stop her, but Merlin had already disappeared, leaving behind the raccoon that moved on all fours.

“Grrr.”

The raccoon tapped its plump hand on his ankle, urging Raon to hurry and prepare the hot spring.

‘Am I to dig the ground and heat the water tonight…’

Raon closed his eyes tightly again.

Given the situation, the Light Wind Division returned to the manor immediately after an intense battle without proper rest.

Raon narrowed his eyes as he approached the wide-open gates of the Zieghart manor.

‘Why is the gate open?’

It was unusual for the gates of Zieghart to be open. Even family members had to be identified before entry, suggesting something had happened.

As he approached the gate, wondering about the incident, Chief Steward Ilyun burst out like lightning. His left cheek was darkly bruised.

“You’ve returned!”

Ilyun bowed deeply to Aris.

“Yes. Chief Steward. Well done.”

Aris patted Ilyun’s shoulder lightly as he smiled.

“Yep!”

Ilyun trembled under Aris’ touch but did not straighten up.

“Huh…”

Raon watched this and let out a sigh.

‘What’s going on?’

He hadn’t expected to see Chief Steward Ilyun, who never lost his composure even when powerful outsiders visited, shrink down like a bug.

“Don’t mind it. We had a little scuffle before.”

Aris read Raon’s puzzled look and chuckled.

“Wasn’t it more than a little? Didn’t you almost crush him?”

Rimmer rubbed his head with his left hand and shook it.

“Chief Steward was in the infirmary for over two months with broken arms and legs, if I remember right. And now his eye is as dark as night. You beat him up again.”

He detailed the old incident and clicked his tongue briefly.

“Shut up… Huh?”

Ilyun was about to scowl at Rimmer when his eyes widened.

“Your arm!”

He noticed Rimmer’s right sleeve was empty.

“Well, that happened.”

Rimmer lightly smiled, suggesting it was better than losing his life.

“You crazy! How can that be okay?”

“Never mind. The future is promising since everyone survived. One even managed to leap over walls.”

He closed his eyes, satisfied that Raon and the Light Wind Division had all survived.

“Uh.”

Ilyun trembled as he looked at Raon, standing behind Rimmer, and then faced Aris.

“Is he really a Grandmaster now?”

He was momentarily lost for words, disbelief apparent.

“I feel like it was just yesterday that he left through these doors as a trainee, and now he’s a Grandmaster. It’s beyond monstrous.”

“Luck played a part.”

“Luck might make a Master, but not a Grandmaster.”

Ilyun straightened up, his jaw set firm.

“You’ve done well to look after such a fool. Welcome back.”

He placed his hand on his chest and performed the Zieghart salute.

Raon gulped as he received Ilyun’s formal greeting.

“Chief Steward?”

Since becoming a battalion commander, Ilyun had shown him some respect, but this was the first time he had been so formally polite.

“Don’t be surprised.”

Rimmer lightly laughed, gripping Raon’s shoulder.

“It just shows the place you now stand.”

He murmured to expect many interesting developments ahead.

“But who’s the fool?”

At Rimmer’s question, both Raon and Ilyun looked at him.

“You, you damned fools! Why am I the fool!”

Just as he was about to erupt, Aris stomped heavily.

“Are you coming or not? The head of the family is waiting!”

Aris threatened to drag them if they didn’t hurry, raising her fist.

“Let’s go.”

“Grgrgr…”

Raon, his face reddening, led the red-faced Rimmer towards the central path to the main house.

“It’s Lady Aris…”

“Her presence is indeed different.”

“Not even former heads had such an aura…”

The Zieghart swordsmen along the path could only marvel at Aris. But she wasn’t the only one they were gasping at.

“That, that’s Raon Zieghart?”

“His aura has completely changed.”

“He really became a Grandmaster…”

“And he caught the Dragon Swordsmaster too!”

“A Grandmaster at 21? It’s unprecedented.”

“It’s good he’s from our family. If he were from another family or kingdom, it would be unbearable.”

Raon listened to the swordsmen’s intense reactions and narrowed his eyebrows.

‘The response is different from before.’

Although he had seen surprise and admiration from swordsmen when he returned from missions before, direct descendants and their followers always harbored jealousy and disdain. Now, none of that was evident.

-As it should be.

Wrath looked down at the swordsmen and nodded.

-To all, human or devil, overwhelming power and talent inspire not jealousy but awe. These people can no longer see you as a being of their own realm.

The creature gestured that the number of humans who would dare to confront him would significantly decrease.

‘I see.’

Realizing that much had changed not only within himself but also in the outside world, Raon continued towards the main house.

“You’ve arrived.”

Roen was waiting in front of the main house. He bowed to Aris, then paused as he saw Rimmer.

“You’ve had it tough.”

Roen nodded to Rimmer and Raon in turn and led them to the audience chamber.

The doors of the audience chamber, like the gates of the Zieghart manor, were wide open. Zieghart officials stood lined up along the red carpet spread through the center.

At the center, on the raised platform, Glenn Zieghart as always, supported his chin with his hand, his eyes reflecting emptiness.

“We have returned from the Light Wind Division mission.”

Due to Rimmer’s injuries, Raon knelt in front of the platform as the acting division leader.

Following his lead, all members of the Light Wind Division knelt and bowed their heads.

“Raise your heads.”

Glenn nodded calmly, then frowned as he saw Rimmer’s right sleeve.

“Light Wind Division leader. That arm?”

“My skills were lacking.”

Rimmer stated plainly in front of Glenn, offering no excuses, just acknowledging his own insufficiency.

“Light Wind Division Deputy.”

“Yes.”

Glenn called out to Raon, who raised his eyes.

“There are things not covered in the report.”

“I intended to report those in person.”

Raon recited his thoughts from when he was writing the report.

“Aris.”

“Yes.”

“You acted as though you could handle everything. How could you not prevent this?”

Glenn frowned at Aris this time.

“That’s…”

“It’s not Aunt’s fault.”

Raon stepped forward to cut off the criticism directed at Aris.

“Aunt?”

Karoon sharply pulled on the word.

“Uh…”

Raon bit his lip as he looked at Karoon.

‘Such a mistake…’

Aris had blackmailed him into calling her ‘aunt’ all the way back, and it had slipped out without him realizing.

“Did you just say ‘aunt’?”

Karoon smiled as if he had caught something.

“There are no aunts here! An impudent colt without a sense of place!”

“Hey.”

Just as Karoon was about to press his advantage, Aris stepped forward and lifted her chin.

“If you don’t want to die, shut your mouth.”

Aris glared at Karoon with the ferocity of a wild beast.

“I agreed to being called aunt, what’s your problem!”

“Uhm…”

Karoon trembled under the chilling aura emanating from Aris, unable to close his mouth.

“Lady.”

Denier spoke quietly, surveying the now silent audience chamber.

“We’re in front of the head of the family. Such vulgar language…”

“That’s why I said ‘mouth’ and not ‘trap’. If you’re upset, let’s fight!”

“…”

The audience chamber grew even quieter.