Chapter 826
“Haa….”
Raon let out a long sigh as he watched Aris standing alone in front of Giran Island.
‘You were right back then.’
– “Back then? What are you talking about?”
Wrath tilted his head, as if puzzled.
‘You said the women around me are all weird. You were right.’
There’s a saying: If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. It’s one of the fundamental military strategies known across the continent.
But Aris charged straight onto the island and declared war, without caring who the enemy was.
It was hard to believe that she was a direct descendant of Zieghart and Glenn’s first daughter.
– “Of course this monarch is the one speaking… I never speak nonsense!”
Wrath raised his chin proudly.
– “But those words shouldn’t be coming from your mouth!”
‘Me?’
Raon pointed at himself with his index finger, tilting his head.
‘Why not me?’
– “Because you’re the weirdest of them all! Madness attracts madness!”
Wrath narrowed his eyes in disbelief.
‘I’m not that bad.’
Raon shook his head as he watched Aris shouting for someone to come out.
‘If anything, I’m on the normal side—’
– “That’s bullcrap!”
Wrath slammed his hand down in dismissal.
– “In all the years I’ve roamed countless worlds, you’re the only one who tricked four Demon Kings!”
He snorted, urging Raon to reflect on himself a little.
‘Hmm…’
Raon narrowed his eyes, glancing at the five flower bracelets on his wrist.
‘It’s not four. It’s five.’
[Wrath], [Sloth], [Envy], [Gluttony], and the most recently acquired [Lust]. Five bracelets wrapped around his wrist.
– “I wasn’t tricked!”
Wrath yelled, his voice cracking.
– “I was scammed!”
He scowled, refusing to be lumped together with the other Demon Kings.
‘Yeah. You’re right.’
Raon chuckled, looking into Wrath’s curled-up pupils.
‘You just hand out rewards on your own without even being tricked.’
– “T-That’s not me! It’s that damned system!”
Wrath trembled, his cheeks flushing red with frustration.
“…I’m sorry.”
While Raon was teasing Wrath, Rabawin bowed deeply with a pale face.
“I apologize on behalf of Lady Aris.”
Rabawin’s shoulders drooped like a parent apologizing for a misbehaving child.
“It’s fine.”
Rimmer patted Rabawin on the shoulder and shook his chin.
“No one expected that delinquent to act normal anyway.”
He chuckled, saying there was no need to apologize.
“Still…”
Raon swallowed dryly, glancing between Rabawin and Aris.
“I didn’t think it would be this bad.”
Rabawin had mentioned that Giran Island was uninhabited.
For multiple uninhabited islands to be occupied during a time like this meant they were likely after the soul stones. But to just storm in and roar? That was beyond any common sense he knew.
“We should learn from her!”
“Yeah. She’s cool…”
Martha and Runaan clasped their hands, nodding in admiration at Aris’s bold demeanor.
“No way! That’s exactly what we shouldn’t learn!”
Burren waved his hands, insisting that such behavior was unacceptable for a commander.
‘Phew.’
Raon sighed quietly as he looked at Burren.
‘Only Burren is reliable.’
Although Rimmer held the official position of Light Wind Division vice-leader, the one actually fulfilling the role was Burren.
Raon had considered passing the position to Martha or Runaan since Burren had seemed exhausted lately, but it was clearly out of the question.
– “This monarch agrees.”
Even Wrath nodded. For him, who cherished Runaan and Martha, to say that meant it was a serious matter.
“What are you doing! Hurry up and get over here!”
Aris waved energetically, urging them to come over.
“…Let’s go.”
Raon gave a heavy nod and pushed off the sea, heading toward Giran Island, where Aris stood.
He didn’t know who the enemy was, but strangely enough, he didn’t feel anxious.
It must have been due to the trust and anticipation he had in the warrior known as Aris.
He hoped to become someone like Aris for the Light Wind Division as he set foot on Giran Island.
The outer island was full of gravel and rocks, and the interior was covered in thick trees and forest, making it hard to see inside.
“You’re late.”
Aris tilted her head, wondering what took him so long.
“I know you’re strong, Aunt, but this is reckless.”
“Life’s too short to waste gathering intel and making plans.”
Though her words were playful, her voice was calm as she placed her hand on her sword.
“Let’s finish this quickly and rescue Sia.”
With a serene gaze, Aris stared deep into the island, focused solely on rescuing Sia.
“You’re right…”
Raon bit his lip. If the people on the island found the soul stone first and fled, it would be difficult to track them.
As Aris said, even without information, fighting and seizing the target might be the right move.
“Rabawin.”
Aris called to Rabawin, who had just arrived behind Raon.
“You remember where you saw the soul stone, right?”
“Yes. The opposite shore from here.”
Rabawin answered immediately, startled by Aris’s serious tone.
“So we’ll have to go through the whole thing, huh.”
Aris smacked her lips as if it was welcome news.
Fwoooosh!
As the Light Wind Division and Azure Wind’s crew arrived at Giran Island, a black flame erupted from the forest as two figures walked out.
Vwooooom.
On the right stood a man clad head to toe in a black robe that burned like flames—likely an artifact.
On the left was a tall woman with bronze skin, as if she lived on this very coast. Her pupils gleamed like they had blades sharpened within them.
Both of them radiated overwhelming presence—stronger than Raon himself.
Ruuumble!
Behind the man in the black robe, demonic figures cloaked in darkness emerged. Around the bronze-skinned woman, monstrous figures in white robes leapt out. They were the fiends of the Black Tower and the White Blood Cult.
“Well, well. We’ve met before.”
Aris curled her lips as she looked at the bronze-skinned woman.
“Second Apostle. You managed to escape last time, huh?”
“The Zieghart encirclement was sloppy.”
The woman, called the Second Apostle, shrugged lightly as if it was nothing.
“But you all…”
She narrowed her eyes, scanning Aris and the Light Wind Division.
“Did you come here for the soul stone?”
From her words, it seemed like, just as Rabawin predicted, the Second Apostle had also seen the soul stone on this island.
“So what if we did?”
Aris tilted her head, as if lying wouldn’t work anyway.
“…Zieghart, huh.”
The man in the black robe turned his pitch-black gaze to the Second Apostle.
“Looks like your intel wasn’t false after all.”
“I told you it was accurate from the start!”
The Second Apostle frowned, frustrated he hadn’t believed her.
“And you are?”
Aris furrowed her brow as she looked at the man in the black robe.
“Judging from your creepy outfit, you’re a Black Tower freak, aren’t you?”
She hurled the taunt as if testing him.
“……”
The man in the black robe didn’t answer Aris, instead turning to the Second Apostle.
“Who is that woman?”
His tone was calm, as if he genuinely didn’t know who Aris was.
“Whaaat?”
Aris frowned, a vein bulging on her forehead in disbelief that he didn’t recognize her.
“Aris Zieghart.”
The Second Apostle spoke while keeping her eyes fixed on Aris’s hands.
“She’s a Transcendent of Zieghart.”
She let out a short sigh, sensing the situation wasn’t in their favor.
“Damn it! We should’ve found the stone and gotten out sooner!”
The Second Apostle scowled, blaming the delay on her allies.
“……”
Raon narrowed his eyes as he looked at the man in the black robe.
‘Something’s off.’
His life force is too faint.
Usually, the stronger the warrior, the more intense their vitality. But despite possessing a stronger aura than Raon, this man felt like he was on the verge of death.
“You’re strong, that’s for sure. Leaving you alone would be dangerous.”
The man in the black robe nodded, acknowledging Aris’s might.
“I’ll keep her occupied. You find the soul stone. Can you handle that?”
“Is that even possible?”
The Second Apostle’s eyes widened. She didn’t seem to know the full extent of the robed man’s power either.
“It’s enough.”
The man’s voice didn’t waver at all. He truly believed he could handle Aris.
“Hah.”
Aris brushed back her red hair and scoffed.
“Aris Zieghart has really hit rock bottom. Getting brushed off by some walking curtain.”
She bared her white teeth, dismissing the robed man like he was nothing.
“My little brother was foolish and caused some trouble, so let me show you what the sword of Zieghart truly means today.”
Aris flashed a chilling smile, declaring she’d personally crush both the man in the robe and the Second Apostle on Karoon’s behalf.
“While I tie her down, find the soul stones and get out.”
The man in the robe stepped forward, suggesting a rendezvous point.
“Got it.”
The Second Apostle nodded immediately.
“As long as Aris Zieghart is out of the picture, the rest are just insects. No problem.”
She raised her fingers confidently, saying she could wipe them all out.
“I don’t know who you think you’re tying down. And also…”
Aris rested a hand on Raon’s shoulder, her gaze turning icy.
“Insects? Sure, my kids are a bit rough around the edges, but my nephews are strong.”
With those words, she drew her sword, placing her trust in Raon and the Light Wind Division.
Shiiiiing!
The moment she unsheathed it, her spatial sword slashed through the air, cutting at the robed man’s neck.
Fwoooosh!
But the robed man turned his body into mist, slipping past Aris’s strike. He wasn’t a martial artist, but more like a mage or a warlock.
“You’re rather impatient.”
As the man reached out his hand, black mist surged around Aris, pulling at her ankles.
“Aunt!”
Raon tried to reach for her, but the mist blocked his path.
-That one’s a demon.
Wrath narrowed his eyes at the man in the robe.
-He hasn’t descended in his true body—he’s possessed a vessel. That body must’ve been constructed like an artifact.
He clicked his tongue, saying the man was a demon possessing a fabricated body.
“Ugh, this is disgusting.”
Aris grimaced as she looked at her lower half, trapped in the swirling black mist.
“No human can escape from that.”
The robed man, now part of the mist itself, shook his head as if to say she should give up.
“Sorry, but I’m not exactly an ordinary human!”
Aris raised her upper body, resisting the pull of the black mist that absorbed like a black hole.
She was crushing the mist made of strength, aura, and demonic energy through sheer force.
“Hm…”
Even the man in the robe let out a faint breath, seemingly surprised by Aris’s power.
“Raon. You can do it, right?”
Aris, forcing down the black mist, looked straight at Raon.
“You can win without sacrificing a single one of our kids, right?”
She nodded, telling him to speak up now if he couldn’t.
“……”
Raon didn’t answer immediately. He looked coldly at the Second Apostle, whose eyes were filled with venom.
“Yes. We can. We have a score to settle with them, after all.”
The Second Apostle had broken through Zieghart’s wall and tried to kill Sylvia.
Just thinking about it had boiled his insides for days, and now that the chance for revenge had come, he welcomed it.
“Then I’ll trust you.”
Aris smiled and relaxed her body. Her form melted into the earth along with the black mist.
“Hm?”
When Aris opened her eyes again, she was in a space dyed entirely black. The ceiling, walls, and ground all pulsed with thick demonic energy.
“A barrier?”
“Looks like I can’t beat you in that dimension.”
The ground rippled like mud as the man in the black robe rose up again.
He had a human form, but it felt more like he was made of smoke.
“So you think you can win here?”
Aris scoffed, clearly unimpressed.
“It doesn’t matter if I can’t. All I need to do is buy time.”
He shook his head as if saying it was enough just to keep her tied down.
“This is the problem with Black Tower bastards. Their heads are so filled with demonic energy, they can’t think straight.”
Aris lightly tapped her head as she glared at the man in the black robe.
“I won’t kill you here.”
She raised her sword with a mocking smile.
“Because I want to show you who’s standing outside.”
* * *
“A grudge, huh…”
The Second Apostle chuckled and shook her head.
“On a normal day, maybe I’d lose to you.”
She tilted her chin as she looked at Raon.
“But today isn’t one of those days.”
Powerful blood energy surged over her shoulders. It was the aura of a Transcendent, far beyond a Grandmaster.
“Light Wind Division.”
Raon held his ground against the Second Apostle’s aura and raised his hand.
“Cut them all down.”
“Yes, sir!”
Without hesitation, the Light Wind Division drew their swords and charged toward the fiends of the Black Tower and the cultists of the White Blood Cult.
“Kill them all!”
The Second Apostle stomped forward, issuing her own charge order.
The demons of the Black Tower and White Blood Cult behind her rushed at the Light Wind Division.
KWAANG!
The two forces clashed head-on, unleashing a massive shockwave.
But the gap in power was clear from the very first strike.
RUUUUMBLE!
With their sword formation in place and their aura surging, the Light Wind Division reduced the charging cultists and Black Tower fiends to lumps of blood in an instant.
The difference in strength was like heaven and earth.
“How dare you!”
Martha furrowed her brow and raised her sword.
“You should’ve trained more.”
Burren waved his hand dismissively, saying they should’ve spent time training instead of drinking blood.
“Pathetic…”
Runaan nodded briefly, as if unimpressed.
“Let’s press the attack and end this quickly—”
“You brats!”
Just as Martha stepped forward and was about to swing her sword—
A flash of white flew toward her face.
“Ah….”
It was the Second Apostle. She hadn’t moved until now, but suddenly hurled herself forward, aiming not at Raon but to cut off Martha at the front line.
CLAAANG!
Just before her strike could pierce Martha’s neck, a flame-cloaked blade violently deflected her palm strike.
“…Tch.”
The Second Apostle winced and retreated, clutching her trembling hand.
“Look at me.”
Raon tilted his chin as he glared down at the Second Apostle. His eyes began to burn with the flame of arrogance.
“The one who’s taking your head is right here.”
