Chapter 525

Raon narrowed his eyes while looking at the floating longsword. Its transparency made it look like it was made of a water drop, and waves were spreading around in it like the ocean.

The appearance wasn’t the only peculiar part about it. Not only Kaibar’s mana but also Aries’s aura could be felt from the sword.

Cring!

The watery longsword slowly descended and embedded its blade into his mental world, just like the other swords.

Whaaap!

The fissures created because of the demon king’s advent were slowly refilled and returned to their former appearance.

The remnant of wrath left behind by Wrath disappeared, and his headache completely disappeared.

The mental world was recovered to the state it was before the demon king’s advent, but changes were still happening.

Whir!

His heart pounded to the point of bursting, and his mental world widened as new swords spouted from the land. The upper energy center had achieved growth.

‘It’s grown even further on top of recovering…’

Raon could guess that his Sword Field Creation should be more completed than before.

‘It’s not just about the Sword Field Creation.’

Raon smiled faintly while looking at the watery sword embedded in his mental world.

‘Because I’ve also learned the principles of the space sword.’

He could feel Aries's aura from the watery sword because he had come to understand its principles during the battle against Kaibar, even though it was only a small amount.

‘I should be able to utilize the space sword in my own way if I train to the death.’

Aries’s space sword was completely different from the ordinary principles. Thinking about learning it filled him with excitement.

Raon finished examining the mental world that had become even more lively than before and closed his eyes before opening them again.

He left his trance and could see the blue sky and Wrath’s frowning eyes.

Damn it!

Wrath barked as soon as he met his eyes.

Recovery should’ve been enough! Why did you even grow as well?!

He furrowed his brow. He seemed to have noticed the growth in Raon’s mental world.

Even the dragon heart is helping you! How come you are so lucky?! It’s seriously incomprehensible!

‘It’s not luck. It’s the result of my skills and efforts.’

Shut up! Are you seriously saying that after you witnessed the unreasonable things that happen to the King of Essence every single day?!

Wrath furiously ground his teeth, telling him to shut his mouth.

‘I get it, so get away from me please.’

Raon slapped Wrath, who was shoving his head towards him, away as Rabawin walked up to him.

“Sir Raon.”

He looked at him worriedly while injecting his aura into his body.

“Are you okay?”

“Yes, I’m fine.”

“You aren’t just fine.”

Aries’s eyes sparkled faintly.

“He’s completely recovered.”

Her bright smile implied that she’d also noticed the change inside Raon’s mental world.

“He might be even stronger than you now.”

“I’m really glad to hear that!”

Rabawin smiled, showing that he was happy about Raon’s recovery without caring about the competition.

Even though his bearded face and bald head looked exactly like a pirate’s, he seemed to be the most good-natured person among Zieghart’s warriors.

“Tsk, you are no fun.”

Aries briefly clicked her tongue, displeased by Rabawin’s response.

“Did you notice?”

Raon looked at Aries without standing up.

“I noticed the energy of water rampaging in your upper energy center, and that’s why I guessed you were going to recover. Of course…”

Aries’s heated gaze was directed at Raon.

“I didn’t expect that you would grow even further.”

“That was also unexpected for me. The dragon heart’s mana must’ve played an important part in it.”

Raon gave Aries the dragon heart, which he was still holding.

Even though a large amount of mana had helped him recover and grow, there was still an immeasurable amount of mana inside the dragon heart. It deserved to be called the best elixir in the world.

“Look at that instead.”

Aries gave the dragon heart to Rabawin before she made Raon stand.

She raised her finger and pointed at a warship approaching them.

“Whoaaa!”

“Raon! Raon! Raon! Raon!”

The sailors on the warships were still shouting their throats off.

Kuberad was also watching them with teary eyes while hugging the two children.

“You should wave at them or something.”

Aries went ahead and raised her hand with a cheerful smile.

“Everyone here is a hero, but you are the hero of the heroes.”

She turned around while saying such an embarrassing thing.

“Hmm…”

Raon looked at Kaibar’s severed head instead of the people.

Looking at the deep cut made with Heavenly Drive reminded him of the difficult battle and the moment he managed to prevail.

He would’ve never seen such a sight if he hadn’t hung onto it with the determination to die. He was glad that he didn’t give up until the very end.

‘The victory doesn’t only belong to me. It’s for everyone.’

The victory and whatnot doesn’t even matter!

Raon waved his hand at the sailors with a smile, and Wrath shoved his face onto him.

You are taking that lizard meat, right? You won’t even need to season it because it should be perfectly salty!

Wrath couldn’t help but salivate as he said that he had to take it no matter what.

‘Hmm, I wonder…’

The King of Essence is really going to cry if you ignore him once again! He’s seriously going to!

Raon just smiled because his threat wasn’t frightening at all.

‘Sure.’

* * *

Lushan Mountain

House Robert

Blocked Western Path

It was a splendid and picturesque mountain, and Derus Robert entered the underground.

He walked through the complete darkness of the corridor and went to the center of the cavern.

“Welcome.”

An old man in a black night traveling outfit with a sturdy body bowed to him.

Derus silently nodded and stood next to the old man. Under his cold eyes, small children who didn’t seem to be even ten years old were kneeling with their eyes covered with blindfolds.

“Sniff.”

“Wh-where are we?!”

“Mom! Dad!”

“Please send us back home!”

The children were shouting at him for mercy with trembling shoulders. They seemed to be aware that they’d been kidnapped.

“Are there around 210 of them?”

Derus stroked his chin and counted their numbers. He seemed completely unaffected by the children’s screams.

“Yes. There are exactly 213 of them.”

The old man bowed faintly and told him the exact number of the children.

“That’s more than usual.”

“Lots of children lost their parents because the Six Kings, Five Demons, Five Divine Orders, a demon king, and even a dragon appeared during the last incident. We could’ve acquired even more, but we filtered them out because lots of them weren’t in great condition.”

He furrowed his brow slightly while talking like he’d simply picked the better vegetables or fruits even though they were people.

“They do have nice physiques. They are the perfect material for assassins. Some of them could even be raised as warriors.”

Derus Robert smiled faintly while looking at the terrified children, whose lips had turned pale.

“Start by brainwashing them like always, and feed the rage worm to those who don’t have any issues.”

“Understood.”

The old man nodded, and the Shadow instructors appeared from the darkness and dragged the children away.

“I’m sorry I’m entrusting this to you once again.”

Derus watched the children being dragged away and patted the old man’s shoulder.

“Please don’t say that. It was my fault for offering those idiots.”

The old man bowed deeply, implying that he was honored to do the job. His eyes glowed fiercely when he said ‘idiots’.

“I’ll be counting on you.”

Derus turned around and climbed the stairs located next to a pillar. He entered a room that was neatly organized, just like his office, and sat on a dark chair.

Whir.

The shadow under the desk undulated and Cubara appeared. She was wearing a black dress instead of her usual maid uniform.

“Is there any news about Raon Zieghart?”

Derus asked without looking back.

“There’s still nothing.”

Cubara went down to her knees and raised her gaze.

“The same goes for Zieghart. They aren’t saying or doing anything.”

She shook her head, saying that Raon’s name had completely disappeared inside Zieghart’s domain.

“Is he really dead…?”

Derus looked down on the empty cavern for a while before he slowly looked around.

“How is the Deathbringer Revenant factory doing?”

“They are currently working on improving them based on the information we’ve obtained from Sirith’s failure. They are researching how to increase the Deathbringer Revenant’s intelligence and power of explosion.”

“Send them double the funds and personnel.”

“Double?”

“It might be excessive as an investment, but it will end up being a cheap price to pay.”

He raised his glass and took a drink.

“The flame of war will be reignited in the continent soon.”

Derus quietly put down the empty glass with a frightening smile on his face, one that would give goosebumps to anyone who watched it.

“The Deathbringer Revenants will be the biggest variable when that day comes.”

* * *

Raon returned to Aikar’s harbor, where he’d departed before, alongside the eight warships.

It took four days total to return because they were bringing the separated corpse of Kaibar.

It took a long time, but the sailors’ expressions were brighter than ever because the mad dragon was dead and the war was over.

Raon looked at the harbor while standing on the deck. In front of the wall that was being reconstructed, he could see the residents who’d stayed behind in Aikar.

The rumor about them slaying the dragon must’ve already spread, as they were waving their hands from outside the walls.

He couldn’t understand exactly what they were saying because they were too far away and the waves were too strong, but he could see that they were smiling and crying while cheering for them.

“Whoaaa!”

“We are at Aikar!”

“It’s all over now!”

The sailors on the Azure Wind and the other warships also started to cheer while waving their hands at the residents.

Whoaaa!

Wrath also jumped out from the bracelet and roared toward the harbor.

Grilled dragon! The days of beef jerky and Nadine bread are all over now!

Of course, his reason was different from the others.

“Whoaaa!”

The warships crept forward and eventually docked in the harbor. Ear-splitting cheers erupted from the residents of Aikar as they waved their hands in celebration.

“Take it out now!”

Aries clapped her hands after she jumped down from the warship before anyone else, and the magicians picked up Kaibar’s corpse, which was being pulled by the boat, and placed it on the harbor.

The reduction spell was undone and the huge body was revealed, causing the restored wall to collapse once again as the harbor’s entrance caved in.

“Ugh…”

“I-is this the mad dragon Kaibar?”

“What the hell…?”

“How can a creature be as big as an entire city?!”

Aikar’s residents were unable to recover their dropped jaws. Everyone was astonished because the dragon’s size was beyond imagination.

“D-did you really slay it?”

“Impossible…”

“I-it really must’ve been hard work.”

“He did everything.”

Aries pointed at Raon while standing on Kaibar’s head.

“All I did was open the path, and he cut off the dragon’s head.”

She started to applaud, telling them to praise Raon for it.

“Whoaaa!”

“Raon! Raon! Raon!”

“I knew it! White Sword Dragon!”

“Isn’t Sword Dragon too shabby as a title at this point? He’s even slain the mad dragon.”

“That’s right. I heard he even won against a Grandmaster before he came here. He’s going to need a new nickname.”

The sailors and the residents started to gather to discuss a new name for Raon.

“Save that for later. Let’s have a party today!”

Aries grinned and waved her hand. She knocked shoulders with the people in front of her and shouted for someone to bring out the drinks already.

Despite how she looked, she was a considerate person. She seemed to be planning to celebrate the victory and comfort the grief of losing their companions through the festival.

Raon disembarked from the Azure Wind and examined Kaibar’s corpse.

Its body was still firm even though it’d been submerged for four days straight. It must’ve been because of the mana of nature remaining inside the bones and flesh.

The King of Essence told you already! The meat is toothsome! We have to eat it right now since it should be perfectly pickled!

Wrath told him to grill the meat already while drooling from his mouth.

‘Okay, I’ll ask her.’

Raon started walking towards Aries to suggest grilling the dragon meat.

Whir!

Yellow light wavered above the harbor, and a blond-haired old man appeared. The elegance surrounding him felt as natural as a coat.

He was just floating in the air without using any spells, and the flow of mana sensed from him was unbelievably huge.

‘That’s…’

Raon couldn’t even feel how much mana he even had. It was greater than even a transcender’s.

He’s the one.

Wrath furrowed his brow while glaring at the old man.

‘The one?’

The sparkling dragon who fired a breath at the King of Essence. He has transformed into human form!

‘Ah…’

Raon could guess that Wrath was talking about the gold dragon who fired a breath without asking any questions when Wrath was fighting against the White Blood Religion’s leader and the Holy Sword Alliance master.

‘Why did he appear now of all time…?’

It wasn’t like he was unable to fight, but everyone except for himself, Aries, and Rabawin were going to die if a battle broke out. He was feeling a burning pain in his chest.

“So it ended up happening.”

The gold dragon quietly landed on the ground. He clicked his tongue while looking at Kaibar’s torn neck.

“Did you have to do this?”

The dragon’s dry gaze was directed at Aries. The atmosphere crushing their shoulders felt like it had gained weight. Even though the harbor was full of excitement for the festival, it suddenly became gloomy.

“What?”

Aries tilted her head after sending the people she was shouldering to the back. She seemed to be aware of the fact that the old man in front of her was a dragon.

“Did I have to do what?”

“You could’ve ended it in a better way.”

Dragon sighed quietly and tapped the ground with his staff.

“You should’ve said that to this crazy bastard beforehand.”

Aries lightly kicked Kaibar’s corpse with the tip of her toes.

“This wouldn’t even have happened if you stopped this one’s genocide.”

Her lips twisted into a smile. Her flushed face implied that she was angry.

“Dragons are independent beings. Even though I’m their lord, they are not obligated to follow my orders unless it involves the advent of a demon king or the preservation of balance.”

“That’s because you are incompetent.”

Aries snorted while looking at the dragon’s staff.

Raon swallowed nervously while looking at the old man.

‘Did he just say he’s the dragon lord?’

He’d thought he was powerful, but he didn’t expect him to be the dragon lord. The creeping sense of danger intensified its stench.

“Dragons are working hard for the preservation of the world. We don’t simply act out of emotions. Kaibar was a wise one who was about to become an ancient dragon. He must’ve had a good reason for it if he killed humans.”

The lord narrowed his eyes, saying that the dragons always thought about the great cause.

“Ahahahaha!”

Aries burst out in laughter while sweeping her hair back.

“Great cause? What great cause does it have when it’s just a crazy lizard that was filled with nothing but madness? Neutral observers of the continent? Protectors of the continent? Bullshit. You are just children with huge bodies who can’t even control your own power.”

Her expression turned cold and indifferent.

“It must be difficult to understand for humans who only live for an instant.”

“All you do is ramble on with bullshit.”

“I won’t avenge our kin since he’s already dead. After all, we are an independent race, as I mentioned earlier. However…”

The dragon lord sighed quietly and shook his head.

“I’ll be taking Kaibar’s dragon heart and corpse.”

He extended his hand, asking for Kaibar’s dragon heart.

What are you saying, you shitty lizard?! The meat prepared in salt belongs to the King of Essence!

Wrath’s chin trembled at his ridiculous statement.

Let the King of Essence manifest to the world! He will snap his neck right now!

He started to rampage, asking Raon to hand over his body.

Whir!

Raon lowered his posture and placed his hand on Heavenly Drive’s hilt so that he could act at any moment.

“Nonsense abounds.”

Aries sneered and bared her white teeth.

“Kaibar’s corpse is our loot. We have nothing to give you.”

“You leave me with no choice.”

The dragon lord raised his hand. An explosive wave of mana spread around, distorting the sky and the ocean.

“This isn’t revenge for our kin but a measure to prevent a crisis of the continent. Don’t resent me.”

The dragon lord was a proper ancient dragon, unlike Kaibar. His wave of mana engulfed Aikar.

Raon was unable to move his limbs because of the tremendous wave of power of the gold dragon, who was capable of controlling lightning and weather.

‘You are playing cheap, lizard…’

The dragon lord was definitely trying to take his revenge while calling it a measure to prevent a crisis. He was more like a snake than a dragon.

“This is the case of an adult coming to fight when their child is beaten up.”

Aries sneered while kicking Kaibar’s corpse once again.

“That’s not…”

“Then we also have to call our adult.”

“What do you mean?”

The dragon lord narrowed his eyes.

“Do you know who his grandfather is?”

Aries raised her finger and pointed at Raon.

“Hmm…”

“The Destructive King of the North, Glenn Zieghart.”

Aries continued when the dragon lord was narrowing his eyes while looking at Raon.

“You can keep going if you want to see your entire race annihilated by his grandfather!”

“Ah…”

Aries spread her arms, telling him to do whatever he wanted, and the dragon lord’s fingertips trembled.

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