Chapter 593

“What do you mean by that?”

Merlin narrowed her eyes and tilted her head.

‘Does he suspect me?’

The Fallen spoke to her as soon as Raon’s name was mentioned even though she’d only shown up to the conference. That implied that he was somewhat suspicious of her. She had to ask what he meant before claiming she wasn’t related to the matter.

“Because you are still interested in Raon Zieghart.” The Fallen continued with a calm voice, as if he didn’t mean anything special by it, “I’m asking what you know about his current state.”

“Am I interested in Raon Zieghart?”

Merlin twisted her lips, slightly lifting the edge of her mask.

“Are you not?”

“Yes, I am.”

Merlin nodded while giggling.

‘I should honestly admit it here. A sloppy lie isn’t going to work.’

She had disturbed the Five Demons so many times before to help Raon. There was no way the Fallen wouldn’t be aware of it.

“I resolved myself to crush Raon Zieghart’s neck because he devoured Loctar’s soul, but I couldn’t bring myself to attack him when I saw him because I could sense Loctar’s fragrance from him.”

Merlin furrowed her brow and skillfully mixed the truth and lies.

“Is that why you disturbed the event prepared by the Holy Sword Alliance, the Black Tower, and the White Blood religion?”

As expected, the Fallen was aware that she’d clashed against those three factions. Not lying to him was the correct move.

“Yes. I couldn’t let him die on my watch.”

“Is that all?”

“Yeah.”

Merlin covered her red lips with the old woman’s mask, saying that there was nothing more about it.

“I can somewhat understand you.”

The Fallen briefly nodded in acknowledgment.

“Then let me ask again. Do you know anything about how Raon Zieghart managed to take action so quickly in Seipia?”

“I don’t.”

Merlin firmly shook her hand and leaned her back against the sand again.

“I only saved Raon Zieghart because I happened to see him. I don’t really follow him around. Moreover…”

She raised her finger and shook it left and right.

“How am I supposed to know what he’s doing when I’m right here?”

“You should be able to use magic like that.”

“I told you, I don’t really care as long as he doesn’t die on my watch. I’m not that attached to him to the point where I would do such a thing.”

Merlin closed her eyes, saying that she wouldn’t do it with her personality.

“......”

The Fallen stared down at Merlin’s mask without saying anything.

“Indeed, that’s something you would do.”

He nodded and lightly raised his gaze again.

“This matter caused quite a lot of damage.”

Despite saying that they took a lot of damage, the Fallen’s voice wasn’t gloomy at all.

“The Red Demon Snake’s death is a good thing, but Cassandra and the Crimson Flame Demon… No, regardless of everything, the fact that the Crimson Flame Demon perished instead of regaining his power is the biggest issue.”

He weakly tapped on the desk with his long, thin finger.

“The Heavenly Demon’s faction is going to put pressure on us.”

The man wearing a troll shaman’s mask briefly clicked his tongue.

“Those damned things. I’m going to twist their necks if they come to us!”

The woman wearing a griffon’s mask already looked irritated, veins bulging on her neck.

“That’s not a big deal. I can nullify it.”

The Fallen shook his head and looked up to the sky.

“The problem is that someone is changing heaven’s flow.”

“Heaven’s flow…?”

“I read heaven’s flow before we started this incident. The world tree was supposed to burn, the spiritual realm should’ve collapsed, and I saw that the Crimson Flame Demon managed to reach transcendence. However…”

His peaceful gaze turned ice cold.

“The result is the complete opposite. The world tree managed to survive, two spirit kings were born, stabilizing the spiritual realm, and the Crimson Flame Demon perished. The heaven’s flow that I saw was perfectly reversed.”

The Fallen’s eyes became serious as he supported his chin with his fingers clasped together.

“There aren’t that many people who can change heaven’s flow. They have to be at transcendence, and the Ten Heavens on top of that, and they even have to sacrifice a lot to achieve it.”

“D-does that mean that Raon Zieghart has reached transcendence…?”

“That’s not true.”

He shook his head.

“According to the information left behind by the Red Demon Snake, or rather I should call him the Blue Lizard Snake, he is still at the entry level of Grandmaster. That’s why this is even more problematic.”

Deep dimples were carved at the lower part of the Fallen’s cheeks.

“Because it implies that Raon Zieghart can change heaven’s flow without reaching transcendence. I wasn’t going to pay much attention to him, but…”

His eyes dropped towards Merlin, a frightening heat emerging from them.

“I’ll have to change my mind a little.”

* * *

“…That’s what happened!”

The baby fox raised a hand energetically, as if asking to be praised.

“......”

Raon blinked while looking at the fox kit, which was possessed by Merlin.

“But you are under suspicion now!”

Judging from what the Fallen had said, he was pretty much saying that he would be watching Merlin, even though he hadn’t said it directly.

No, he might have already guessed Raon’s relationship with Merlin with as dangerous as he was.

“Yes, you’re right.”

“Why don’t you care when you know that fact?!”

“I’ve been telling you.”

Merlin gently waved her front paw.

“I don’t have any attachment to Eden. It was already the case in the past, and I really don’t care at all anymore.”

She shook her head, saying that she was only remaining in Eden in order to leak their information.

“That’s not even the issue. You’re in danger.”

“I love it whenever you worry about me. I want to record it.”

Merlin’s cheeks blushed and she twisted her back feet.

Haa, she is seriously insane…

Wrath escaped into the ice flower bracelet, saying that he couldn’t watch anymore.

“Take it more seriously. You are already in danger.”

“I know.”

Merlin casually nodded.

“But it was worth taking the risk.”

“What?”

“I ended up under suspicion, but I managed to save you in return. I’m satisfied with that.”

She smiled, saying that it was enough for her. Her bright smile showed that she was serious about it.

“Hah…”

Raon sighed, clutching his head. He couldn’t scold her anymore after what she said, but he still had to say this.

“You did manage to save me, and I’m thankful about it.”

“Oh my! There’s no need for thanks between us.”

“But you should care more about yourself now.”

Raon ignored Merlin and looked into her eyes.

“Don’t approach me anymore in your main body. You should never do that, even if I’m in danger.”

“Hmm, I’ll try.”

“Don’t just try. Do it no matter what. And…”

Raon raised his finger and pressed onto the nose of the baby fox.

“Make preparations to escape.”

Judging from the Fallen’s reaction, he might have already started to investigate her. It was extremely important for her to prepare an escape route.

“I’ve roughly prepared it, but I’ll make sure to think about it since you said it.”

Merlin caressed Raon’s hand with her front paw, telling him not to worry about her.

“That’s fine.”

Raon sighed and nodded.

“Haa, I’m feeling full at this point because you’re worried about me so much.”

Merlin laughed happily and let out a small burp. The fact that she looked cute because of her appearance as a baby fox made him irritated.

“I’ll be leaving now since I managed to confirm your safety.”

She looked up to the ceiling reflecting the sunlight, saying that the time was up.

“Hmm…”

Raon straightened his back and swallowed nervously.

‘What is it this time?’

He nervously waited for Merlin to continue, and she swept her front paw into the air.

“This one wants to be groomed.”

“Groomed?”

“Grooming refers to how animals use their tongue to tidy their fur. They sometimes groom each other as a way of bonding.”

“T-tongue?”

Raon’s jaw dropped as he looked at the baby fox.

“This one lost its parents recently, and it’s all alone now. It said that it wants to be groomed, even from a human.”

Merlin caressed herself, saying that it was a poor child.

“Ah…”

Raon couldn’t refuse after hearing the baby fox’s story. He would have to groom it with not just his tongue but even his heart.

Hup!

Wrath secretly crawled out and covered his mouth.

How pitiful…

He said it was pitiful, but Raon had the feeling his lips would be curved into a smile if he took off the hand covering his mouth.

“I'll leave it to you!”

Merlin waved her hand and left. The black eyes of the baby fox met his own.

“Ah…”

Raon swallowed nervously while looking at the baby fox. It was even more difficult to refuse after meeting its eyes.

“Let me mentally brace myself.”

Raon closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

‘Let’s just do it ten times. My tongue might get a bit sore, but…’

Raon opened his eyes after he prepared his mind, and the baby fox was smiling like a human being.

“Huhu.”

“Merlin!”

Raon pushed the baby fox away since Merlin’s voice was coming from it.

“You are definitely different from other people.”

Merlin smiled happily, saying that she knew he would do that.

“Grooming doesn’t have to be done with your tongue. You can just caress it with your hand.”

She grinned, saying that his behavior was interesting.

“I’ll really leave now.”

That was the last thing she said, and the baby fox’s eyes glowed with a light brown hue. She really must’ve left this time.

The baby fox chittered and approached his knee, rubbing its face against it.

“Yeah, I’ll do it as much as you want.”

Raon let the baby fox sit on his knee and carefully stroked it from head to tail.

Stroke it properly! Tidy every single strand of fur!

‘I get it, so be quiet please.’

Yip.

The baby fox wagged its tail happily, with smiling eyes.

‘It’s not only good for this guy.’

For some reason, he was also feeling at ease even though he was just caressing the baby fox.

Grooming must be giving him peace of mind.

Raon stroked the baby fox for a while, and the door was opened, letting Rimmer, Dorian, and Yua enter the room.

“Sir Raon! You woke up!”

Dorian came running, fell onto his knees, and lowered his head.

“Does it hurt anywhere?”

He sniffled, saying that he was worried a lot.

“Look at him, I told you there was no need to worry about him. He has a body of steel.”

Rimmer patted Raon’s shoulder with a grin.

“Young master!”

Yua ran towards Raon, carrying the tray she’d brought with two hands.

“Watch out.”

Raon caught Yua with the hand that was caressing the baby fox.

Grr.

The baby fox narrowed its eyes, asking what was going on.

“Huh? What is that fox?”

“It was next to me when I woke up.”

Since he couldn’t tell them that Merlin was possessing it, Raon simply pointed at the hole where the baby fox had come in from.

“It must’ve entered through there.”

“Wow…”

Yua looked at the fox with sparkling eyes.

“Do you want to pet it?”

“Yes!”

Raon nodded and picked up the baby fox to give it to Yua.

“Good boy.”

Yua held the baby fox in her arms and caressed it like it was something precious.

Raon watched Yua and the fox for a while, then shifted his gaze towards Rimmer.

“Is it over now?”

“Why are you asking me that? You dealt with everything.”

Rimmer smiled, saying that it was already over when the Crimson Flame Demon was defeated.

“I was asking just in case.”

“It ended nicely. Grandpa survived, and the world tree has also survived. Some of my kin have died, but it was inevitable.”

He murmured with a bitter voice that Raon shouldn’t worry about it.

“You should eat for now since you must be hungry.”

Dorian picked up a steamy yellow soup from Yua’s tray and handed it over.

It looked like a corn soup with small pieces of bread, and it had no scent whatsoever, which was rather interesting.

Ooh!

Wrath thoroughly licked his lips while looking at the soup.

Soup is great since you’ve been starving this whole time! Eat it right now!

‘I guess I’m hungry.’

Raon nodded and ate a spoonful of the soup. Even though it had no scent, the taste of rubber spread all around his mouth as soon as he put it in his mouth.

Kuaah…

“Is this…?”

“The soup is made with Nadine bread.”

Rimmer smiled while pointing at the soup.

“I prepared something that would fill you with a single bite because I figured you wouldn’t be able to eat that much, as your stomach shouldn’t be in good condition.”

“I see…”

Raon briefly responded and looked at Wrath. His plump body started to shine red.

You damn Eden bastards! Don’t worry!

Wrath raised his fists and violently ground his teeth.

The King of Essence will annihilate all the shitty ears in your stead!

‘This is pretty good.’

Raon ignored Wrath’s wrath and continued to eat the Nadine bread soup.

Gueeh…

As soon as the rubber taste seeped into his tongue, Wrath’s wrath was naturally extinguished.

This damned land! He’s never coming back here!

* * *

“Haa…”

Sterin slowly lifted his eyelids. An intense exhaustion and pain were spreading in his serious eyes.

“Protector!”

“You are awake!”

The guardians guarding the world tree came running at him.

“I did wake up, but I must be too late.”

Sterin sighed while looking at the scorched roots and trunk of the world tree.

“Do you already know what happened?”

The head elder, who was running the temporary barrier, walked up to Sterin and lowered his head.

“I don’t know the details since I was in resonance. All I could tell was that the word tree was in intense pain.”

Sterin furrowed his brow, saying that he could feel the burning pain when he was inside the world tree.

“Then please allow me to explain.”

The head elder sighed briefly and sat next to Sterin.

“It started with Raon Zieghart. He suggested that we scout the world tree, saying that he had a bad feeling…”

He explained everything that had happened so far to Sterin.

“I see, so that’s what happened. The spirit kings…”

Sterin wasn’t too surprised even when he’d heard that Raon and Siyan controlled the spirit kings, implying that he’d somewhat guessed the situation.

“We are largely indebted to that youngster.”

“Indeed. If we take into account Lady Siyan’s awakening as well, it will be difficult to repay the debt.”

The head elder nodded in agreement.

“You look different somehow.”

Sterin narrowed his eyes while looking at the head elder.

“Because I couldn’t stay the way I was before after what I witnessed.”

“I see.”

Sterin’s lips curved into a faint smile and he stood up. He almost sank back to the ground, but the head elder supported him.

“What is Siyan doing?”

“She is patrolling around the Seipia instead of the protector to remake the world tree’s barrier.”

“That’s something I wanted to teach her.”

He briefly clicked his tongue, indicating his genuine regret about it.

“Would you like to check on her?”

“I would, but I have a task that needs to be done beforehand.”

“Indeed.”

The head elder nodded with a gentle smile on his face, implying that he knew what he meant.

“That task has the highest priority.”

* * *

Raon left his room upon hearing that Sterin had awakened.

“Is the protector alright?”

“You’ll be surprised to see how fine he is.”

Rimmer nodded with a grin.

“I don’t even know how long my grandpa is going to continue being the protector.”

He clicked his tongue, saying that he was so tough. Despite what he was saying, Raon could guess that he couldn’t even sleep at night with his worry.

“Hmm…”

Raon furrowed his brow while walking the path leading towards the world tree.

‘So much has been burnt.’

The path between Seipia and the world tree was full of ash.

Even for the elves, it would take a long time to restore the forest.

“Don’t worry about it.”

Rimmer shook his hand, noticing his thoughts.

“The forest will be revived as long as the elves are here. This much isn’t that difficult to revive.”

He smiled, saying that he could say that for sure.

“You should mind yourself instead. Have you tried the Dancing Sword again?”

“I did, but it didn’t work. It must’ve been a coincidence after all.”

“I’m glad to hear that. If you could do it right away, I would’ve given up on wielding a sword and opened a gambling house instead.”

“Didn’t you already open it at this point? You usually commute to it all week long.”

“You’re exaggerating!”

Raon walked while joking with Rimmer, and he reached the world tree before he knew it.

However, most of the elves living in Seipia were gathered, instead of just having Sterin there.

‘What?’

Raon stopped walking, thinking that it was strange.

“We aren’t there yet.”

Rimmer caught Raon’s wrist and dragged him to the center of the world tree.

“I’ve brought… I’ve guided him here.”

He went next to Sterin and grinned at Raon.

“You’ve awakened. I’m glad to see that.”

Raon awkwardly lowered his head to Sterin.

“It’s all thanks to a certain person.”

Sterin smiled faintly and looked up to the world tree. Even though more than half of the trunk was burnt, it wasn’t enough to truly harm the huge tree.

“I felt the burning pain when I was united with the world tree. I was aware that it was caused by an attack from the outside, but it was impossible to get out of the resonance.”

He briefly clicked his tongue while touching the part that was burnt.

“I thought it was all over since even the world tree was being attacked, but I suddenly sensed pure energies of fire and water. They were noticeable even though I was in resonance. It allowed me to grasp onto a faint hope.”

Sterin’s gaze shifted. It was different from before.

He used to see him as a praiseworthy grandson, but his gaze now incorporated his respect directed at someone standing on the same rank as him.

He wasn’t the only one. Every elf was looking at him the same way, including the head elder and Erian.

“Let me be the first.”

Rimmer walked up to Raon. He put his left hand onto his right shoulder and went on one knee.

“The Blossom Branch Clan greets our benefactor.”

“D-division leader?”

Before Raon could even question him, Erian stepped forward from the left and made the same posture as Rimmer.

“The Cotton Branch Clan greets our benefactor.”

“The Shiwa Branch Clan greets our benefactor.”

“The Maran Flower Clan greets…”

“The Karan Stem Clan…”

The clan chiefs weren’t simply shouting their words. Their sincerity transferred through their wills and tickled Raon’s heart.

“Seipia’s protector greets the benefactor of our tribe.”

Sterin stepped forward in the end. He also went on his knee and politely lowered his head. His solemn attitude was the same as when he was facing the world tree.

The head elders, elders, and every elf standing behind Sterin placed their right hand onto their left shoulder and went on their knees.

It was an elven courtesy, only done when they were showing their sincerity. They revealed themselves in a posture as straight as a branch to deliver their honest intentions.

The minds of every elf were resonating. The world tree spread its bent branches like wings, scattering transparent leaves into the air.

The hundreds of elves raised their voices under the dappling sunlight.

“Greetings to the benefactor of our tribe!”

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