Chapter 682

A new Sword Field?

Wrath raised his round chin sharply.

I-it can’t be! Are you trying to imitate the King of Essence’s Flower in the Snow?!

“I wonder.”

Raon raised his finger and pushed Wrath’s nose away.

You bastard! That can’t be allowed to happen! The King of Essence worked so hard to come up with the Flower in the Snow! Cough!

Wrath frantically shook his head, saying that the Flower in the Snow was only meant for him. He looked like cotton candy shrinking from the sunlight melting it.

“I was just kidding.” Raon shook his hand with a faint smile on his face. “I couldn’t imitate the Flower in the Snow even if I wanted to in my current realm.”

Ahem! That’s obvious. The Flower in the Snow is the manifestation of the King of Essence’s realm…

“But I did get some ideas thanks to you.”

You got some ideas?

“Yes.” Raon raised his index finger while looking at Wrath’s blue eyes. “There are three types of Sword Fields I’ve seen so far. The first is a persistent type that allows an extended battle like my Divine and Demonic Harmony or the vice division leader’s Eye of the Storm.”

Raon continued while raising his middle finger, “The second type is an installation type, which consists of bringing the enemy into the caster’s space, like the Gambling Monster’s dark blades. And lastly…”

Raon pointed at Wrath with his ring finger extended, “The instantaneous type that allows you to annihilate an enemy in a single strike, like your Flower in the Snow and our head of house’s Seamless Perfection. It’s not an exaggeration to call them instant death techniques.”

Wrath’s Flower in the Snow froze everything in sight right after the activation, and Glenn’s Seamless Perfection shattered the enemy apart with the three strikes: Lightning Avatar, Land Slash, and Heavenly Blade.

Both of them were certain kill techniques that consisted of crushing an opponent by unleashing their full power.

Then the one you’re going to create…

Wrath narrowed his eyes, showing that he understood what he was talking about.

“Yes.” Raon smiled and folded his fingers except for one. “I’m planning to create an instantaneous Sword Field, just like yours and the head of house’s.”

The Divine and Demonic Harmony could use the Red-Blue Invincible Sword as a finisher, but it wasn’t as powerful as an instantaneous Sword Field that consisted of unleashing all the power at the moment of activation.

Raon wanted to create a new Sword Field to crush his opponent, just like Wrath had done against Greed.

Cough, that would be fine…

Wrath nodded nonchalantly, thinking that Raon wasn’t going to copy his Flower in the Snow.

“I never said that I wasn’t going to copy it, though.”

Wh-what do you mean?! Cough!

“I said I can’t imitate it, but I never said that I wasn’t going to copy it.” Raon smiled cheerfully at Wrath’s wide-eyed expression. “There’s no way I can hold back from copying such great teaching material.”

You’re seriously out of your mind!

Wrath violently ground his teeth, saying that he knew it.

However, he suddenly let out a hollow laugh for some reason.

Well, it should be fine. After all, it won’t be an easy path for you.

“It won’t be an easy path? Why?”

Because you’re hiding lots of things. Cough!

He shook his head as if he were laughing at him.

As the King of Essence told you before, trivial aspects like emotions become important after you reach transcendence. The reason the King of Essence’s Flower in the Snow is so powerful is because he shows everything he has.

Wrath put his hands together, just like when he was activating the Flower in the Snow. However, his hands looked like thick bread instead because he didn’t have any fingers, unlike the previous time.

You possess a frightening bloodlust and wrath, unbefitting for your age, but there are times when you are strangely soft-hearted. Honestly, the King of Essence still hasn’t managed to figure you out.

Wrath sighed heavily.

No, you probably don’t even know yourself what kind of person you are. Cough!

“Hmm…” Raon bit his lip slightly.

‘He’s right.’

His existence was completely empty if he excluded his desire to get vengeance by ruining Derus’s life and his wish for Sylvia, the annex building’s members, and the Light Wind Division’s wellbeing. Just as Wrath was saying, he didn’t fully know himself either.

The so-called instantaneous type Sword Field requires you to unleash all your emotions at the same time as your power. It won’t be easy to achieve in your current state.

“That sounds about right. However…” Raon smiled calmly. “I still have enough time left.”

There were still three months left until the duel to the death against the Axe King. It could be short or long, depending on the standard, but it was enough time for him to look into himself, as he was solely going to focus on training in that time.

E-enough time? It can’t be…

Wrath’s lips trembled in disbelief.

“Are you planning to stay in this cultivation room for three months straight? Cough!

“No, I should leave ten days before. It should be about two and a half months.”

Then what about food…?

“This.”

Raon took a large wrap that contained nothing but Nadine bread from his subspace pocket with a grin on his face.

Kyaaah!

Wrath screamed just like when he saw Merlin and moved away as soon as he saw the pile of Nadine bread.

Take it away! Just looking at it–cough!–Is disgusting! Cough!

“We have no other choice.” Raon smiled while throwing some Nadine bread into the air and catching it. “No food beats Nadine bread inside a cultivation room.”

Nadine bread didn’t have any scent, and a single one was enough to trigger Gluttony. That made it as important as water inside a cultivation room.

Cough, cough…

Wrath kept coughing while gasping.

“Are you okay? Why do you keep coughing like that…?” Raon lowered his eyebrows deeply as he looked at Wrath’s shrunken body.

It wasn’t like coughing was unprecedented for Wrath, but it wasn’t showing any sign of stopping. Raon was worried about him even though he’d witnessed his power.

The King of Essence has something to tell you about that. Cough.

Wrath slowly nodded.

The King of Essence’s soul was damaged when he took the backlash from manifesting in your body. It looks like he will need to sleep for a while.

“You already sleep every day, though.”

Raon tilted his head. He couldn’t understand what he was talking about because he was always either sleeping or eating, as if he were a combination of Sloth and Gluttony.

It’ll be a longer sleep than that.

Wrath shook his head, saying that it would take him a while to stabilize his soul.

The King of Essence was going to start preparing for it because he already enjoyed the festival and had enough home food and snacks. It looks like now is the perfect time. Cough!

He chuckled, telling Raon to eat as much Nadine bread as he wanted while he was unconscious.

“How much backlash did you even take from the Demon King’s Advent?”

Just a decent among. Cough!

Wrath smiled as he responded. Raon could guess that he’d taken a bit more of his burden than expected.

Don’t misunderstand! There’s no way the King of Essence would be worried about some paltry human! Ah, my good Ice Cream Girl, Pineapple Girl, and Beef Girl are exceptions, of course!

“So, how long are you going to sleep?” Raon frowned while watching Wrath’s grin.

He should wake up before your duel to the death so that he can take over your body before you die. Cough!

“That’s fine, then.”

It was fine since Wrath was coming back instead of leaving permanently. It was actually better that way because it allowed him to focus on cultivation.

‘Wait a second… Did I just say that was fine?’

Despite the fact that he used to hope for Wrath to leave, he was relieved to hear that he would be back after some sleep.

It wasn’t because of Wrath’s abilities or the system’s rewards. He’d developed a lot of affection for the cotton candy that kept babbling at his side. Raon understood that Wrath wasn’t an enemy anymore. He had become something else entirely, something that wasn’t a companion either.

“Hey.” Raon tapped on Wrath’s forehead, shaking off his mixed thoughts. “I’ll be going on a gourmet exploration on my own if you come back too late.”

Hmph! Rest assured! The King of Essence always makes sure to be on time for foo—Cough!

He didn’t sound trustworthy at all because of his coughs.

Still, there’s some anticipation. About how different you will be.

“Yes. I’ll make your jaw drop as soon as you wake up.”

Hmph, it’s not about you. There’s another thing.

Wrath shook his head, telling him to stop being mistaken.

It’s awkward to have a farewell with you, so he will be taking his leave now.

It was the last thing he said before he went into the bracelet. The ice flower bracelet sparkled faintly in silver before it stopped shining.

“Wrath.”

Raon called Wrath while tapping on the bracelet. There was no response.

“I actually brought an ice cream, too.”

…You should’ve said it earlier! Cough!

Wrath poked his head out of the bracelet.

“You were lying about being sick, weren’t you?”

St-stop your nonsense! The King of Essence never feigns sickness!

“How suspicious.” Raon shook his head and took out the bead ice cream that Sylvia had given to him from the subspace pocket. “Think of it as a final supper.”

It’s not the last! The King of Essence is going to taste all of the bead ice cream released throughout his entire life!

* * *

Wrath really did fall asleep after having the ice cream.

“I have another box of mint chocolate, though.” He wasn’t waking up even when he mentioned the mint chocolate, implying that he really was in a deep sleep. “It’s a strange feeling to have him fall quiet after how he’s been chatting nonstop.”

Raon shook off his wrists for no reason and took out the Sacred Illumination that the saintess had come to give him and the Holy Essence Pill that he received from Hopen.

‘These should be enough.’

He didn’t need to eat them separately because they were both based on holy power. They would likely be more than enough to fill the aura that he’d lost if he included Gluttony’s effect.

‘However… Aura isn’t what I want right now.’

It was necessary to reach the mental world in order to create a new Sword Field. Raon was planning to enter his mental world, which was calm and disorderly at the same time, by using the Sacred Illumination and the Holy Essence Pill to save time.

“Haa…”

Raon exhaled deeply and opened the wooden box containing the Holy Essence Pill. The fresh scent of autumn emanated from it instead of a medical herb’s bitter scent.

He opened the lid for the Sacred Illumination, and the appetizing scent of sweetness came out from it. Both elixirs had a nice fragrance to them, probably because of their holy power.

‘The cotton candy might have liked them.’

Raon chuckled and put the Holy Essence Pill and the Sacred Illumination in his mouth. The Holy Essence Pill melted like ice the moment it touched his tongue and went down his throat along with the Sacred Illumination.

Whap!

As soon as the two elixirs of divinity confirmed they weren’t foes, they harmonized and spread throughout his body. It felt like the faint heat of the holy water was flowing throughout his blood vessels and mana circuits. The small amount of injuries left in the mana circuits were healed in an instant, and the damage to his bones and muscles was removed. It was an outrageous healing power.

The holy energy wasn’t satisfied with healing him. It spread from his head to his toes, activating his body and senses. Raon could feel the smallest muscles and mana circuits as if he could touch them, and his five senses were heightened to a frightening extent. He could even hear the sound of an ant crawling at the cultivation room’s ceiling.

Just as he started to feel like he was shedding the shell of his body, the holy power subsided, and its mana burst from it.

Raon circulated the huge amount of mana that had emerged from the holy power’s shell through the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation, Glacier, and Garunua’s flows.

A new aura welled up inside his vacant energy center.

The energies piling inside his energy center had an extremely high purity, probably because his body was purified before cultivating the aura. Once the mana filled his energy center, their path shifted toward the middle energy center and even started to knock on the upper energy center’s door.

Whir!

The strong fragrance of mana and his senses polished to the extreme naturally opened up the door to the mental world.

Whap!

Along with a dazzling radiance, he could see the world of swords that he’d accumulated so far. The swordsmanship sprouting from the red and blue land was the same as before, and the wind that only occupied a small amount of land had extended its space a little.

However, a dark hole was boasting its presence at the center of the world as the backlash of the Demon King’s Advent, and the eight rings of fire floating in the sky were creaking like the pendulum of a broken clock.

“For now…”

Raon smiled faintly while looking at the twisted Ring of Fire.

“Let’s start with that.”

* * *

“That’s enough for today.” Rimmer clapped his hands when the moon started to show its distant smile. “It’s getting late, so wrap it up.”

He yawned so widely that his mouth looked like it was going to tear apart as he told them to finish training for the day.

“Yes.”

The Light Wind Division lowered their heads while giving a short response, showing that they were exhausted from the continued training.

“I’m exhausted.”

“I know, right? I feel like I’m going to die because the Gambling Monster pressures us during the day and the vice division leader at night.”

“Of course, it’s not as bad as when the division leader does it.”

“By the way, why is the vice division leader suddenly so motivated?”

As the swordsmen were chatting as they started to clean up the training ground, someone was thrusting her sword even more powerfully.

It was Runaan. A flower of ice bloomed from her blade as she slowly lifted her sword, reflecting the moonlight. The edge of her blade gradually accelerated and fell as beautifully as an artist’s brush, drawing dozens of snow flowers.

Cring!

Runaan lowered her sword, and the ice flowers floating in the air like a beautiful flower bed shattered apart in an instant. If she was using astral energy with that strike, a frost storm would’ve occurred and devastated the entire area.

“Hey!” Martha furrowed her brow, watching the frost shards subsiding onto the training ground. “Don’t be arrogant. I’m going to catch up to you soon. Stretch out your neck and wait.”

“Pfft.” Runaan laughed at Martha, her blank eyes directed at her.

“Argh!” Martha steamed from her nose as if she were going to attack her at any moment. “Your realm is higher, but I’m going to win if we fight! Try it if you want!”

“Can you please stop? Don’t you even get tired of fighting every day?” Burren shook his head, standing in front of Martha.

“That dimwit laughed at me! You saw it, too!”

“I saw that you were the one who started it, at least.”

“I only said that I’d catch up to her! She went ahead and got stronger before us. That’s foul play!” Martha raised her fist, calling her underhanded.

“Hmm, that’s true…” Burren briefly nodded and looked at Runaan. “Runaan, you suddenly improved a lot. Did something happen in Schper?”

“I’m not sure.” Runaan casually shook her head. “Training has been going a lot better ever since I woke up from there.”

Her amount of aura had increased, her body had become stronger, and even her swordsmanship had naturally improved ever since she’d fainted in Schper and woke up. She was also confused because all she’d done was sleep and wake up. It was similar to how she’d gotten stronger when she smelled the coldness emanating from Raon when they were trainees.

“Anyway! I’ll catch up to you, so wait right there!”

“Hmph.”

“Argh! That sneer is even more irritating because of how emotionless it is! Let me go!”

“Miss Rakshasa. See you tomorrow.”

Runaan waved her hand at Martha as Burren tried to stop her and left from the fifth training ground. She was headed to the Sullion mansion instead of her lodgings.

She casually returned to the house while watching the people on the main street, but she noticed something unusual.

“Hmm?”

‘What?’

The light at the main entrance was off even though it had always been on whenever she returned. She spread her aura perception just in case, but she didn’t find any noticeable issues from the movement of people inside the mansion.

Runaan furrowed her brow slightly, opened the door, and carefully entered.

“Oh, my! Lady!”

“When did you get here?”

The maids lowered their heads in surprise, probably because the light was off.

“I just came back.”

“Runaan!”

Rokan and Clara came from the dining room upon hearing Runaan’s voice.

“You are a bit late.”

“Mhm, but why…?” Runaan tilted her head, pointing at the entrance, where the light was off.

“Ah, I’m sorry. I was thinking about something.” Rokan rubbed the back of his head, and Clara smiled awkwardly. “Let’s start eating for now. It’s already late.”

He walked toward the large dining room, holding Runaan by the shoulder.

“......”

Runaan narrowed her eyes, watching Rokan and Clara’s backs.

Her mom and dad were acting awkwardly even though they would’ve usually tried to hug her. She could guess that something had happened. She feigned ignorance for the moment and took a seat at the table.

No one said anything during the dinner. The food was tasty, and she even got the mint chocolate ice cream that she liked. However, Rokan and Clara still had the same awkward expression on their faces. They were smiling on the outside, but their gazes were turning serious from time to time.

“Dad.” Runaan put down the unfinished bead ice cream. “Something happened, right?”

“Hmm…” Rokan furrowed his brow, unable to respond right away.

“Was it obvious?” Clara asked while sighing.

“Too obvious.” Runaan nodded, saying that there was no way she wouldn’t have noticed.

“Well, I guess you aren’t a child anymore.” Rokan nodded while scratching his forehead. “We were contemplating whether we should tell you about it or not, but I guess it’d be better to tell you so that you can be prepared.”

He exhaled deeply and continued. “A villain wearing Baphomet’s helmet and wielding a greatsword was witnessed in the south. It looks like Syria is still alive.”

Rokan bit his lip to the point of bleeding.

‘It must’ve become a trauma for her.’

Syria was more than an archenemy for Runaan. Runaan would be afraid if she was told that Syria was still alive, but he still decided to tell her because it was better than being caught off guard while she was unaware.

“B-but you don’t need to worry about it.” Rokan raised his fist. “Your dad will make sure that he won’t be able to lay a finger on you—”

“Is that it?” Runaan took the ice cream again, murmuring that ‘it wasn’t a big deal.’

“R-Runaan?” Clara widened her eyes in surprise.

“I knew that my brother was alive.” Runaan casually nodded, putting the ice cream in her mouth.

Baphomet’s symbol, the goat, had been called the animal of demons since ancient times. It could survive even with its neck twisted or snapped, so ever since hearing that Syria’s corpse had disappeared, she had expected him to be alive.

“You don’t need to worry about it either, Mom, Dad.”

Runaan’s lips curved into a faint smile. Her light purple eyes weren’t reflecting any fear towards Syria anymore.

“Because I’ll be the one to destroy my brother.”

* * *

“Haa…”

Raon lowered his gaze while letting out a sigh. The black rift that had been devastating his upper energy center was completely plugged up, and the land that used to be dark had a new swordsmanship sprouting from it. The rings of fire rotating in the sky were also completely restored, and the eight rings were spreading their dignified resonance.

‘It ended faster than I expected.’

It was a path that he’d already walked before, and Wrath had taken a large portion of the burden. That was why he was able to mend the wound in his upper energy center faster than he’d expected.

‘Then let’s make the new Sword Field… Hmm?’

It was as he was smiling while turning his wrist that he saw it. A few swords that he’d never seen before floated next to the slowly rotating rings of fire, creating a majestic trajectory.

“Wait, is that…?”

Raon’s lips trembled as he looked at a sword with a familiar shape among them.

“Heavenly Tremor?”

***

If you find any errors or have suggestions, please feel free to provide feedback.

Thank you for reading!

[Author – Writing Ant, 글개미]

[Translator – Anowa]

[Proofreader – Harley]