Chapter 858
After leaving True Martial Palace, Raon headed straight for the Fifth Training Ground.
‘Are they training?’
Even though the break period wasn’t over, he could hear shouts and the sound of swords cutting through the air from the Fifth Training Ground.
‘Well, this is the fun part of training.’
Now that they had become Masters and could fully express their movements, the swordsmen probably found training enjoyable too.
-The only human who finds training fun is you!
Wrath waved his hand dismissively, telling him not to spout nonsense.
‘Really? I’m still having fun right now.’
It wasn’t a lie. Every time he swung his sword, he could feel himself growing, so he genuinely looked forward to training.
-That’s why you’re crazy! Of all the humans I’ve seen, you’re the craziest!
Wrath frowned, saying it felt like half of Raon’s brain was made of swords.
‘That’s not true. There are plenty of other strange people. Like Balder, who I just saw.’
-Yeah, that iron head really is something….
‘There’s Merlin, too.’
-Ugh, that madwoman….
Wrath let out a low groan, unable to argue.
‘See?’
After convincing Wrath, Raon opened the training ground door and stepped inside.
Just as he sensed from outside, every Light Wind Division swordsman was training with their sword in their own spot.
“Oh? Division Leader! You’re finally here?”
Dorian ran up to Raon, grinning.
“Thanks for the meal yesterday!”
He bowed, saying it was really delicious.
“Showing up after lunchtime—Division Leader, you’re really starting to slack off. You need to stay sharp… Kek!”
Krein clicked his tongue, but Martha smacked him on the back of the head and he collapsed forward.
“Why did you hit me!”
Krein clutched his head, tearing up as if he was genuinely hurt.
“That’s you, isn’t it?”
Martha glared down at Krein, frowning.
“That guy gets up at dawn, trains, then comes here to train again—he’s a real freak!”
She shook her head, saying he’d already finished both early morning and regular morning training.
“Oh? You noticed all that. You really keep an eye on the Division Leader, don’t you? As expected…”
“Just drop dead!”
“Gaaah!”
Krein teased Martha with a giggle and got stomped by her boot.
“It’s obvious. Back when we were trainees, he was always the first to arrive and the last to leave.”
Burren said he almost died trying to match Raon’s pace, his shoulders trembling.
“I pride myself on my perseverance too, but that guy was on another level.”
He shook his head, saying just thinking about it still made him sweat.
“I just slept…”
Runaan stretched with her hands clasped, saying she always slept soundly.
“No one expected anything from you, sleepyhead.”
Martha wrinkled her nose, looking exasperated.
“Come to think of it, Runaan’s training time is short because she sleeps so much. But she’s still the strongest among the squad leaders. She must be incredibly talented.”
Dorian blinked in surprise at Runaan’s talent.
“Hm, when you put it that way, it’s true.”
Burren nodded, acknowledging Runaan’s talent.
“I’m a genius…?”
Runaan looked at Raon, making a V sign with her index and middle fingers.
“Well, you are a genius.”
Raon nodded, smiling at how cute Runaan looked boasting about herself.
“Even more of a genius than the Rakshasa Woman.”
Runaan glanced at Martha, curling her lips into a slight smile.
“Ugh…”
Seeing normally expressionless Runaan sneer, Martha’s face turned red.
“Genius, my foot! If we actually fought, I’d win!”
Martha drew her sword, saying they should settle it right now.
“Challenging a genius?”
“You’re not a genius!”
Runaan and Martha pressed their foreheads together and growled.
“Ooh! A duel between Martha and Runaan?”
“It’s been a while!”
“Lately Runaan’s always been winning, right? I wonder how it’ll go this time?”
The Light Wind Division swordsmen, expecting a good match, made a makeshift arena with smiles.
“……”
Raon smiled as he watched the Light Wind Division gather in groups and chat.
‘It feels like things are back to the way they were.’
With Martha and Runaan bickering, Krein getting beaten up and crawling on the ground, and Dorian handling supplies, it felt just like the Fifth Training Ground before Rimmer died, when everyone was laughing.
Rimmer valued this place so much, he even made the password to his personal safe the Fifth Training Ground.
It was comforting to see his favorite training ground return to its original form.
“Attention for a moment.”
Raon clapped his hands to gather the noisy swordsmen’s attention.
“You all know we need to go to Sephia to return our teacher’s sword, right?”
He looked around at the Light Wind Division.
“Yes, we’re ready.”
Burren said he’d finished preparing so they could leave anytime and lowered his hand.
“You said it’d be this week. When are we leaving?”
Martha rotated her shoulders, asking for the date.
“I was planning to go tomorrow…”
Raon glanced at the Light Wind Division, twisting his lips.
“But seeing your current state, I think you all need a bit of work.”
“A-a bit of work?”
Dorian’s lips trembled, as if his instincts sensed danger.
“You’ve all lost a lot of your edge. If you go see the Sword Saint looking as listless as you do now, our teacher will get scolded, so let’s have a little—no, let’s have a spar.”
Raon smiled dryly, tapping his sword sheath.
“Y-you were about to say ‘let’s have a beating’ and changed it to spar at the last second, weren’t you! You definitely meant to say—”
“Krein, you’re first, right?”
With a nod, Raon drew the Heavenly Drive, still in its sheath, and brought it down on Krein.
“Aaaargh!”
Krein, true to his Master rank, drew his sword immediately and tried to defend, but he couldn’t withstand the force of the Heavenly Drive in its sheath and collapsed to the floor.
“See? He’s completely out of it.”
“How am I supposed to block a Transcendent’s sword… Kek!”
He tried to protest, but Raon punched him and Krein rolled over, eyes white.
“That’s it for Krein.”
Raon crooked his finger, calling for the next person.
“T-this isn’t sparring, it’s just violence… hng!”
Dorian grumbled a complaint and rolled to the right.
“Oh, so you’re using Mind’s Eye?”
Raon smiled, unmoving.
“I—I was sure you’d hit my thigh…”
Dorian blinked, saying he saw it with his Mind’s Eye, so why didn’t Raon move?
“If you rely too much on your senses, it won’t work. Even Mind’s Eye can’t see everything. Just now, you flinched because you were scared of my killing intent.”
Raon gave him clear advice, then struck Dorian’s waist just as he tried to dodge left.
“Guhek!”
Dorian clutched his side, collapsed, and rolled on the ground.
“You really have gotten weaker. This won’t be fixed in a day or two. Next!”
Raon called for the third person, crooking his finger.
“Ah…”
“Ugh!”
All the Light Wind Division swordsmen looked at Raon’s beckoning finger and had the same thought.
The madman has returned.
They realized the sparring maniac, who’d been quiet for a while, was back. Their faces all turned pale.
-It seems this king’s first impression was correct…
Wrath shook his head at Raon.
-You really are the craziest human I’ve ever seen!
—
After wrapping up light sparring with the Light Wind Division, Raon went to the office.
“There you are.”
He bowed to The Gambling Monster, who had his feet up on the desk and was drinking.
“I just left you alone to kill the kids, so I could finally have a drink in peace.”
The Gambling Monster tossed a peanut into his mouth, saying it was a rare moment of relaxation.
“Should I drink with you, then?”
“You’re no fun.”
He waved his hand.
“That damned gambler was a good drinking buddy, though…”
He clicked his tongue and finished the last of his drink.
“Is that so? Then I guess I should take this back.”
Raon said it was a shame, pulling a golden liquor bottle from his dimensional pouch. He’d bought the fine alcohol as a gift for The Gambling Monster at a coastal city.
“Liquor? What kind… Huh? Ba—Barcian? How did you get your hands on something this rare!”
“I picked it up at a pub when I went to eat. It looked good.”
He shook the bottle, saying he thought The Gambling Monster would like it.
“R-right! Well, then hurry up and—”
“But you said you didn’t want to drink with me.”
Raon sighed, pulling the bottle away.
“Y-you just never get drunk!”
The Gambling Monster quickly shook his head, saying it wasn’t that he didn’t want it.
“If I collapse before you do, it’s just embarrassing!”
He admitted he was actually scared of losing in a drinking contest and bit his lip.
“I’m joking.”
Raon smiled and handed over the bottle.
“Oooh!”
The Gambling Monster immediately opened the bottle and sniffed the aroma.
“This is it…”
He took a long breath, as if the smell alone could get him drunk.
“Let’s see…”
The Gambling Monster tapped out the dust from his glass, poured the glowing, sunset-colored drink, and sipped slowly.
“…That’s good. Perfectly aged.”
He leaned back in his chair, looking satisfied, eyes closed.
“Could I have a glass, too?”
Raon pulled a glass from the cabinet and held it out.
“It’s a waste on someone who doesn’t get drunk.”
The Gambling Monster clicked his tongue but poured Raon a drink.
“Thank you.”
Raon smiled and downed it in one shot. The strong, burning taste made him scrunch his face.
“Here.”
The Gambling Monster pushed a dish of peanuts forward, telling Raon to eat.
“It’s bitter. I really don’t think I’m much of a drinking partner.”
Raon grinned and grabbed some peanuts. He still didn’t understand what was enjoyable about drinking, but right now, he just wanted to share a drink with The Gambling Monster.
“Don’t mind my jokes. For a drunk, just having someone there is enough.”
The Gambling Monster smiled faintly, saying just being together was good enough.
“Thank you.”
Raon put down his glass and bowed.
“Thanks to you being here, the kids seem to have found some stability.”
Even after Rimmer’s death, The Gambling Monster kept coming to the Fifth Training Ground and accepted the sadness of all the swordsmen who came.
He must’ve been struggling too, so Raon was grateful for how much he’d taken on.
“…Did that guy really leave with a smile?”
The Gambling Monster narrowed his brow, pouring another drink into his empty glass.
“Yes. He left with a bright smile, without any regrets. I think it’s because he trusted you.”
Raon nodded, smiling.
“…You and that guy—both of you are such a hassle.”
The Gambling Monster bit into peanuts, annoyed.
“Since you’re annoyed, I have another request.”
“A request?”
“Yes. It’s important.”
Raon looked The Gambling Monster in the eyes and bowed.
“From now on…”
—
“Sis, when you swing the sword, don’t grip it too tightly.”
Raon gently loosened Sia’s fingers wrapped around the wooden sword.
“Don’t use your whole hand, just your fingertips. That way you can move the sword how you want.”
“Okay!”
Following Raon’s advice, Sia relaxed her grip and brought the sword down.
Whooong!
Even though no aura moved, the sound of the air splitting burst out, and a sharp gust from her sword sliced across the lake.
It was possible because she still had the body of a Grandmaster.
“Wow! That feels good!”
Sia smiled, saying she liked it.
“Well done.”
Raon nodded, saying she did great.
“Now you’re the one protecting this house. Can you do it?”
“Yes!”
Sia nodded, saying to leave it to her.
“But aren’t you going to protect it, Raon?”
“I’m just going to see off my master for a bit.”
“Master?”
She blinked, not knowing what that meant.
“He’s the one who made me a better person. He also helped me meet you.”
“Then I want to say goodbye, too!”
Sia raised her hand, saying she wanted to greet him too.
“I’ll let you meet him someday.”
Raon smiled softly, saying now wasn’t the time.
“Okay, I understand.”
Sia didn’t really get it, but looking at Raon’s face, she nodded, sensing something from his expression.
“Then I’ll protect the house! Come back soon!”
She straightened her back confidently, declaring she would guard the annex herself.
“Thank you, Sia.”
Raon said he was counting on her, then walked over to Sylvia and Edgar, who were sitting at the garden table.
“I’ll be going now.”
“Alright. Always be careful.”
Sylvia squeezed his hand and nodded.
“Send him off well.”
Edgar looked down with a bitter gaze at Rimmer’s leaf sword tucked at his waist.
“It’s a shame I can’t go with you.”
Merlin, sipping tea between Sylvia and Edgar, let out a short sigh, sounding disappointed.
“Is that so…”
Raon gave a small laugh as he saw Merlin’s sparkling eyes.
-Nonsense!
Wrath furrowed his brow deeply.
-That madwoman is definitely going to follow you!
He grumbled, sure that Merlin would tag along, no matter what animal form she might use.
‘…I agree.’
Raon let out a short laugh and nodded. Even though Merlin said she’d rest because she was tired, she was definitely going to chase after him.
‘Come to think of it, where did Lust go?’
Since Lust still hadn’t shown up, he figured she must have gotten lost and gone off in a different direction.
‘Shouldn’t she be able to find me by sensing the energy in this bracelet?’
-No. She’s the type to sense it on the right but head off to the left anyway.
Wrath muttered that Merlin alone was enough trouble and not to worry about it.
‘That bad, huh…’
Still, since Lust hadn’t revealed her true identity and there were few who could beat her in terms of strength, it didn’t seem worth worrying over.
“Well then.”
Raon said goodbye to the three and left the annex, heading into the Fifth Training Ground.
The Light Wind Division swordsmen were already lined up in rows in front of the platform.
Step.
Raon walked with a steady stride and climbed onto the platform.
“This…”
Looking into the razor-sharp eyes of the swordsmen, he began to speak.
“This is our last journey with our teacher.”
He nodded as he grabbed Rimmer’s sword at his waist.
“It’s not just a farewell. Take this time to organize your hearts, hoping that you’ll meet again in another way someday.”
“Yes!”
“And remember, this is also a journey where we must show who we are to the one he left behind. Steel your minds as if you were going to the battlefield.”
“We will keep it in mind!”
The Light Wind Division swordsmen, just like him, placed their hands on their swords and answered in short, resolute voices.
“Then let’s move out.”
Raon stirred the air with powerful energy as he stepped down and passed through the center of the Light Wind Division.
Whoosh.
The Light Wind Division swordsmen, their sharp aura swirling around them, followed right behind him, determined not to fall behind.
