Chapter 845

“…….”

Raon stared at Rimmer for a long while before lifting his right hand. He operated [Glacier], scattering silver frost from his palm.

Fwaaaaa.

The frost, spreading softly like powdery snow, wrapped around Rimmer’s body and began to rotate gently.

It was a measure to prevent bodily decay without causing frostbite to the skin.

-That’s enough.

Wrath waved his hand, signaling him to stop.

-With that, there will be no decay or frostbite.

Wrath nodded, saying Raon had controlled his power well.

“Is it done?”

Burren frowned as he looked at the frost surrounding Rimmer.

“Yeah. It’ll be fine for a while.”

Raon let out a short sigh.
Since he had set it up to be maintained even while he slept, there should be no problem during the transfer to Light Wind.

However, since he had squeezed out the cold while injured and exhausted, his head throbbed as if it would split apart.

“Um, hey….”

Burren scratched the back of his head, looking hesitant.

“What is it?”

“Ah, no, it’s just… I didn’t expect you to cry like that. I wanted to check if you were okay….”

He smacked his lips awkwardly, clearly embarrassed.

“Sorry. Not very fitting for a division leader, was it?”

Raon bowed his head and wiped the dried tear tracks from his cheeks.

“I wasn’t criticizing you. I said it because I was worried. Knowing your personality.”

Burren shook his head, saying he didn’t mean it as a reproach.

“In fact, it was good that you cried.”

Martha came over and pointed at the Light Wind Division.
The swordsmen, having let their emotions flow just as much, were still sobbing and tearing up.

“Thanks to you, they were able to express their grief properly.”

She muttered that bottling up such emotions would have only made them sick.

“Sounds like that applies to you too.”

Raon smiled faintly as he glanced at Martha’s reddened eyes and nose.

“What? You annoyed that I cried? Thought I wouldn’t shed tears?”

Martha bit her lip, displeased.

“The Rakshasa… cried just as much as Raon….”

Runaan came up beside Martha and shook her head.

“Hey! You were worse….”

“And me too….”

Runaan, lips pouting sorrowfully, continued to let tears fall.

“Haa….”

Martha sighed and hugged Runaan, who kept sobbing with her head down.
It was the first time seeing the two of them hugging each other so closely.

-……

Wrath stared at the faintly smiling Rimmer, his blue eyes crumpled.

‘What are you thinking?’

Raon flicked his fingers at Wrath.

-I was thinking of my own pathetic self.

Wrath slowly lifted his gaze, frowning.

-I never thought I’d feel the helplessness of being able to do nothing again.

Listening to Wrath, it seemed there had been a similar event in his past.

-I didn’t like that frivolous fool who always slacked off and messed around, but…
Still, I didn’t want to just leave him to die like this.

Wrath bit his lip in frustration.
He usually cried easily, but seeing him not shedding any tears now showed just how furious he truly was.

‘Thank you.’

Raon let out a short breath and patted Wrath’s head.

‘If only you and Master could have met….’

He had wanted to see Wrath, always angry, and Rimmer, slyly brushing it off, bickering.
But now that it could never happen, his heart ached even more—he felt like crying again.

“Um, young master….”

Yua, her eyes brimming with tears as she looked at Rimmer, tugged at Raon’s sleeve.

“Z-Zieghart has lots of treasures, right? If there’s something like an Elixir that can bring back the dead, couldn’t we revive our Division Vice Leader?”

Hope shimmered in her still-childlike eyes.

“A-And Mr. Dorian must have one!”

Yua’s hands trembled as if begging him to do something.

She had seemed fierce when stabbing Sif, but now, such things didn’t even cross her mind.

“I’m sorry….”

Dorian knelt down like a sinner and shook his head.

“T-Then in Zieghart….”

“That’s not it.”

Raon met Yua’s gaze and shook his head.

“An Elixir can save someone on the brink of death—but it can’t bring back someone who’s already died.”

He didn’t know whether Zieghart had an Elixir or a similar elixir, but even if they did, it couldn’t revive the already dead Rimmer.

“I see….”

Yua’s large eyes started pouring out tears again.

“So we can’t see the Division Vice Leader anymore….”

She finally broke down and cried loudly.

“I’m sorry.”

Raon wiped his own flowing tears and embraced Yua, patting her back.

The girl, overwhelmed with grief, sobbed herself unconscious.

“I’ll carry her….”

Burren, unable to watch any longer, let out a deep sigh and lifted Yua onto his back.

“But you said you met the Division Vice Leader in the Mental World earlier?”

As he carried Yua, Burren tilted his chin slightly.

“What did he say?”

“I want to know too….”

“Tell us….”

Not just Burren, Martha, and Runaan—other swordsmen also gathered around Raon with curious eyes.

“In the Mental World, Master didn’t say anything special.
He only pointed out what I lacked.”

Raon began to recount everything that had happened with Rimmer.

“The only thing he left for us was ‘be happy.’”

Rimmer hadn’t made any requests or issued any orders.

He hadn’t even said the usual nagging words about becoming the Zieghart head or getting closer to Glenn.
He had simply left a final wish for them to be happy.

Because it was so different from his usual self, it stabbed at Raon’s heart all the more.

“Guess he had no regrets.”

Martha chuckled, saying that was just like Rimmer.

“That guy was unbelievable to the end.
How did he even get into the Division Leader’s Mental World?”

Krein blinked in amazement, finding it unbelievable and yet somehow typical of Rimmer.

“It must’ve been thanks to the Soul Requiem Sword.”

Raon gently caressed the Soul Requiem Sword hanging from his waist.

Before he lost consciousness, he had seen the sword flicker with green light.
It seemed that the souls dwelling inside had guided Rimmer’s soul to help him.

‘Thank you.’

He didn’t know whether Rimmer’s soul still remained inside the Soul Requiem Sword, but he was simply grateful that he had been able to meet his master one last time thanks to it.

“I’m sorry. Truly….”

Dorian knelt and began banging his head against the ground.

“If only I had been a little stronger, I could’ve protected everyone….”

He blamed himself for becoming a burden, hitting his forehead hard enough to bleed.

“You heard Master’s final words too.”

Raon held Dorian’s head and shook his own.

“What he wished for was the happiness of everyone in the Light Wind Division.
He had no resentment or regrets.”

As he said this, he placed a hand on Dorian’s shoulder, just as Rimmer had done for him.

“Ugh….”

Dorian clutched his head and wept once more.

“More importantly, what did Sif say to you and the Division Vice Leader?”

Raon asked, recalling how Sif had mentioned he wasn’t acting alone.
He wanted to hear what conversations had taken place.

“Ah….”

Dorian wiped away the tears streaming like a faucet and took a deep breath.

“There were important things. First, Sif stole Lady Aris’s power because of Zieghart’s blood.”

“Blood?”

“Yes. Apparently, Zieghart’s blood contains the blood of Angels. He used the curse carved into the cavern to siphon the Angel’s blood….”

Dorian explained all the conversations between Rimmer and Sif, starting from the story of the Angels.

“Angels, huh….”

Burren’s pupils trembled in disbelief even after hearing it.

Given his pride in Zieghart, the shock seemed immense.

“No wonder! No matter how much we trained, we couldn’t manifest a Sword Field!”

Martha received the news more bluntly, furrowing her brow and grumbling that it was a realm only the chosen could access.

“Yeah. It’s so unfair….”

Runaan pouted, looking disappointed that all her Sword Field training had gone to waste.

‘Angels?’

-Angels?

Raon and Wrath locked eyes, jaws hanging open.

‘You didn’t know?’

-Why would I know!

‘Wouldn’t it be weirder if I knew! You’re the one who always said Angels were enemies! How could you not know?’

-How could I know if I didn’t drink your blood!

Raon and Wrath pressed their foreheads together, glaring at each other for not knowing.

-No wonder! There was a reason you could withstand my power from the beginning! It was that damn Angel blood!

Wrath ground his teeth, saying he finally understood Raon’s outrageous resilience.

‘So are you going to leave me now?’

Raon tapped Wrath’s head.

‘You said you couldn’t stand Angels.’

-Leave? Never!
I’ll cling to you until the end and take over your body!
The thought of making a body infused with Angel’s blood mine makes me drool!

Wrath gnashed his teeth, refusing to give up now.

‘Is that so.’

Raon smiled faintly at the growling Wrath.
It would’ve felt truly hollow if Wrath left—but now his heart warmed slightly.

-Stop smiling!
It’s not because of you—it’s because of me!

‘Yeah. Thanks.’

-Don’t thank me!

Wrath shook his head violently, refusing to accept the gratitude.

‘But….’

Raon narrowed his eyes as he looked at Sif’s shattered corpse.

‘How did that bastard plan to steal Grandfather’s power?’

Roenn was always at Glenn’s side.
Even if he wasn’t, with Sif’s skills alone, ambushing Glenn was impossible.

Today, they had managed to take down Aris only after completely draining her stamina and mental strength.
There was no way Sif could surprise Glenn under normal circumstances.

‘Is there another method?’

It occurred to him that perhaps Sif or Derus Robert had prepared some other way to even strike Glenn.

‘Regret—no.’

Raon exhaled a faint breath and shook his head.

‘Killing him was the right choice.’

If he had let Sif talk, he might have escaped.
Ending him here had been the best decision.

‘Still, I should run through the possibilities.’

Even if Sif alone wasn’t capable, if Derus was behind it, they might truly have found a way to seize Glenn’s strength.

It was better to prepare for every possibility.

“What should we do with this sword?”

Krein pointed at the black sword Sif had been wielding.

“…….”

Raon let out a heavy sigh as he looked at the black sword and Aris, still slung on Krein’s back.

‘If Aunt is to recover her strength, she’ll need that sword. But….’

Whether she could even stand up again was uncertain.

Aris had been ambushed by her own son and watched him kill Rimmer before her eyes.

And in the end, even her son had been killed by her nephew.
Even if she woke up, she likely wouldn’t be in her right mind.

Even someone as mentally strong as Aris would probably break under that.

“…We should take it.”

“I’ll carry it.”

Martha nodded and grabbed Sif’s black sword, wrapping her hand in aura.

“Let’s go back.”

Raon turned his body away from the collapsed dungeon and the pool of blood Sif had left behind.

He carried Rimmer on his back, walking through the dense forest leading toward the harbor.

“Honestly, I still don’t get it.”

Martha bit her lip as she looked at Rimmer.

“Why would he say his final words were to ‘be happy’?”

She questioned why he hadn’t said something else.

“That’s probably all he wanted to say to the Light Wind Division. Our Division Vice Leader was surprisingly considerate.”

Burren nodded, walking carefully so as not to wake Yua.

“I saw his notebook once during our trainee days. He had written down each of our strengths and weaknesses, one by one.”

Raon smiled faintly, recalling when he had first looked at Rimmer differently.

“Though he still spent half the day loafing around on the platform.”

“I honestly thought he was crazy. Just sitting there moving his fingers, doing nothing.”

Krein snorted, saying Rimmer had been a truly strange master.

-I didn’t like him either! If you’re a leader, you should set an example!

Wrath also grumbled like he was talking naturally with everyone.

“Remember when the Owen Kingdom delegation came? We fought against their knight trainees, won, and then Duke Tartan ran away without buying drinks, so Master got really mad and cried?”

Burren clicked his tongue, saying it was unbelievably pathetic.

“I can’t forget when that man got kicked out of a gambling den looking like a beggar, shouting for meal money.”

Martha shook her head, saying she had never seen anyone look so pathetic.

“He often suggested we have a party and then shoved the bill onto Raon….”

Runaan sighed, calling it pathetic.

“But when it came to the Blood Mad Demon, he was so reliable.”

Raon smiled faintly, feeling the lingering warmth left by Rimmer.

“Yeah. When he cut down an ogre with a single strike, it was honestly cool.”

Burren nodded in amazement.

“And when you were kidnapped by Eden, he didn’t sleep a wink searching for you.”

Martha said that when his students were in danger, he transformed into the wisest and bravest master.

“He always looked the coolest when feeling the wind….”

Runaan tightly clasped her hands at her chest, saying that serious Rimmer was as impressive as Raon.

“Master’s teachings only showed their worth later. Thinking back, I never even thanked him….”

Dorian bit his lip in regret.

“Enough with the gloomy talk. Let’s talk about his messes instead. Like when the tavern owners came to the training grounds to collect his tab!”

“And when he got caught digging up grass on a mountain because he had no money to eat!”

The Light Wind Division laughed as they reminisced about their time with Rimmer.

Though they walked for quite a long time until they reached the harbor, the conversations never ceased, continuing without end.
It was like they were keeping Rimmer company, so he wouldn’t get bored.

By the time Raon and the Light Wind Division arrived at the harbor, evening had already fallen.

“What… what is this….”

Rabawin was at a loss for words at the unexpected sight, only his jaw trembling.

“I’ll explain… later.”

Raon handed Rimmer over to him, exhaling a breath that smelled faintly of blood.

“Later….”

Maybe because he thought it was truly over, his vision blurred and the world split into two.

—

He could see Rimmer.
As always, Rimmer wore a boyish smile, wrapped in a refreshing breeze.

Next to him, Wrath floated in the form of cotton candy, his hair bristling.
He flailed his arms furiously as if something annoyed him.

Rimmer yawned lazily while speaking, and Wrath, turning into a bright red cotton candy, flailed harder.

Sheryl and Aris approached, looking like they couldn’t bear to watch, trying to stop them.
Glenn and Roenn watched the scene and chuckled warmly.

Sia, who had woken up at some point, was happily enjoying delicious food, and Edgar clung to her side, chattering non-stop.

Sylvia smacked Edgar’s back, telling him to leave the child alone.

It was a dream.

Not the Mental World, but his own wish, his longing.
A reality he wanted to see but couldn’t.
It unfolded now, in a dream.

Crack!

As soon as he realized it was a dream, the lively world shattered like it had been struck by a spatial blade, turning pitch black.

“Ah….”

When he opened his eyes, he realized he had been sleeping sideways.
He could see the door of the ship’s cabin.
Feeling the still, windless solitude, an unbearable sadness surged up.

‘But….’

Why did the pillow feel so soft?

Finding it strange, he reached out—only to touch not fabric but the sensation of human skin.

He rolled his eyes, and saw a thigh.

Startled, he sat up quickly—and there was Merlin, mask removed, gazing at him.

“If you’re sad, it’s okay to cry.”

Merlin, for once, nodded with an expression similar to his own, as if he were looking into a mirror.

* * * * * *

(T/N: Im back! Lol, kidding. I had a free time so I’m trying to do some TL work. Mind you, we are still not on the regular upload schedule!)