Episode 432.

Raon broke off the conversation and escorted Rectar and Muston to a guest room in the annex.

“Thank you.”

Rectar jerked his chin, grateful for the hospitality of an uninvited visitor with nothing.

“I have much more than that.”

He had captured the fleeing Aryan officials and taught him swordsmanship out of the goodness of his heart.

For a man who says he gave nothing, what he received was immeasurable.

“It was the duel that helped me the most.

Rectar’s killing blow taught him a lesson and allowed him to survive Envy’s blow.

If it hadn’t been for that, he would have been a corpse atop Mount Sturin.

“You’ve helped me so much, don’t say that, and….”

Raon interrupted, seeing the frustration in Rectar’s eyes.

“Now let the horse go. We’ve been together for well over an hour, and I’m not uncomfortable with you helping me with my training.”

“Um….”

Rectar’s lips moved in a thin line. He seemed to be weighing his options.

“I suppose that’s right. I see. No, I see.”

He nodded, indicating that he would be more relaxed in the future.

“I’ll be more comfortable now, thank you.”

Raon smiled weakly and clenched his lowered hand into a fist.

“I still don’t know what’s right.

I don’t sense the slightest bit of malice from Rectar, so I’m not sure if I should force myself to dig behind his back, or wait for him to tell me.

With someone like Muston, I’d do whatever it took to get the information out of him, but with Rectar, there’s nothing but bitterness and pity, and I’m not sure I can do anything about it.

“Then rest.”

“Wait.”

I sighed inwardly and turned to leave, but Rectar held up a hand.

“I know you’re thinking strange things. Sooner or later, the time will come when I will tell you everything, and I want you to be patient.”

Rectar’s eyes glowed calmly, as if he knew what you were thinking.

“I remember you saying ‘not yet’ before. We’ll wait until you’re ready.”

I recited the words off the top of my head, as I thought a normal person without an assassin’s memory would say them.

“…….”

Rectar stared at it wordlessly, then nodded.

“Thank you.”

“I’ll leave you to it.”

“One more thing.”

As Raon closed the door and turned to leave, Rectar held out his arm.

“Do you still intend to train tomorrow?”

“I see no reason to rest, so I’ll be practicing at dawn in the training hall.”

“No reason to rest. I see.”

Rectar nodded slowly and went back into his room.

Raon stood in front of Rectar’s visit, eyes downcast.

“I didn’t expect you to tell me first, but I guess I should have known.

It was clear now. Rectar was obviously related to his late father, though for some reason he couldn’t say so.

Raon returned to his room, organizing the information about Rectar in his mind. The maids had cleaned up, and the room looked no different than it had before he left.

“Whoa….”

I sighed and took off my black dragoncloth. I could see why they say home is the best place to be.

-What a lot of talk!

Rath frowned, wondering why everyone talked so much.

-Men are as light-tongued as they are weak. King Vaughn has been known for his reticence and heavy lips ever since he was in the Demon Realm. He never spoke unless it was necessary, hence his name, the Silent Demon King. The other demons feared him. ….

“…….”

Raon frowned as he watched Rath tease his mouth like a rapid-fire cannon. I don’t know how he’s supposed to be a silent demon when he never stops talking.

“Didn’t they call you the Silence Demon to shut you up?”

-No!

Rath frowned at the nonsense.

“I can see you’re excited, yes.

-The Bone King is the heaviest demon in the Demon Realm….

‘He’s heavy because he ate.

-Snicker! What an arrogant bastard….

As I was poking fun at his reddened face, there were three knocks on the door. It was Judiel’s signal.

“Come in.”

The door opened softly before he could finish, and Judiel stepped into the room.

“Long time no see.”

Judiel knelt, head bowed. It was a submissive greeting, not of a maid, but of a master.

“You don’t have to do that.”

“I’m doing it because I want to.”

I waved my hand, but she told me not to mind, that it was her will.

“How have you been?”

“Yes. The annex feels like home now.”

Judith nodded, speaking in a low tone.

“Speaking of home….”

Raon smiled faintly at Judiel’s carefree face. Like her former self, she hadn’t found a place to settle down, and it was comforting to see that she seemed to have settled into the annex.

“Did anything happen?”

“Nothing special has happened so far.”

“Then there will be in the future.”

“What’s that….”

Judiel tilted her head as if she didn’t know what he meant.

“Because in the Realm of Reality, Gaju and Rectar have had nothing but praise for me.”

“That’s understandable, you defeated the Wraith of Eden.”

She nodded, as if it were a given.

“Yes. It is. You even got a golden plaque.”

Raon held up the gold plaque he’d received from Glenn. Oddly, it felt a little heavier than the one he’d gotten before.

“It’s just that you two are quiet when you shouldn’t be.”

“Are you referring to Zhong Mu Zhen and Jin Mu Zhen?”

Judiel understood the meaning of the words at once, and brought up Karun and Valder’s names. This was why it was so easy to talk to her.

“In the old days, Karun and Valder would have been the first to ask if a gold plaque was too much, but they kept their mouths shut.”

It would have been fair enough to ask them if a silver plaque would be too much for them, but today they were more than quiet, they were silent.

“You should know better, they’re not the ones.”

Karun and Valder would hate to see their influence diminished, so they should have made a tackle today. Given how quiet they’ve been, they must be up to something.

“Then there’s a chance they’ll contact me.”

Judiel’s eyes narrowed as he considered the implications.

“Yes. I’m sure they’ll have me gather my latest information.”

I had a feeling he’d ask for at least a few details about her new martial arts, what rank she’d attained, and her favorite methods of attack.

“Then I’ll have some fake information ready.”

Judielle clapped her hands together, indicating that she would fabricate the information, mixing three percent truth with seven percent lies.

“Do that.”

Raon nodded in satisfaction, then raised his gaze.

“Oh, by the way, have you ever heard of a man named Xin Zhuoling?”

“You’ve heard of them?”

There was a hint of surprise in Judiel’s eyes.

“No, I didn’t, but the patriarch told me about them.”

“The New Five Orders are the five new organizations on the continent.”

Judiel nodded, her eyes lifting slightly.

“Do you remember the Pirate King I told you about before you left for House Aryan?”

“The Pirate King….”

He used the title of king for a pirate topic, so of course I remembered.

“Is he also one of the heads of the Xinzhuo Clan?”

“Yes. The Pirate King, the Evil Swordsman, the Deadly Swordsman, the Guisalchang, and the Comedy King. These five have created a neutral force that belongs to neither the Yuehuang nor the Oma. Each of them is a great power, and their strength and numbers can even reach the Yuehuang Oma, so the entire continent is in turmoil.”

Judiel pursed her lips, realizing that Xin Zhuoling must have been preparing underground for quite some time.

“If that’s the case, then even the Sixth Huang Ma won’t be able to move easily.”

“That’s right. Even if the position we’ve set up is sandwiched between the boundaries of the Yixinghuang and Oma, it’s unlikely that either will be able to move.”

“That’s true. If Oma invades while we’re at war with Hsinchu, we’ll suffer great losses.”

To deal with a powerhouse with a name like that, Yuehuang would have to send quite a few troops, and they wouldn’t be able to make any moves because Omar might take advantage of the gap and attack.

“You’re quick on the uptake.”

Judiel’s eyes narrowed in wonder at the fact that he had just heard of the Xin Zhuo Clan and had immediately recognized their movements and intentions.

“It shouldn’t be too difficult. In any case, the situation on the continent is about to get even more complicated.”

Raon’s eyes lowered as he memorized the names of the leaders of the Xin Zhuo Clan, one by one.

“Nansera…. Maybe it is what it says.”

It occurred to Raon that the Nanshe would soon be as Glenn had said.

“Huh….”

Raon hissed under his breath, balling his fists tightly.

“There’s a guy I want you to look into.”

“Go ahead.”

Judiel nodded as if to say it.

“The Twinhead of Eden. I want you to find out everything you can about his past and his current behavior. You can even use information from the black market.”

“Why is the Two-Headed One suddenly….”

“Because there’s something I need to do.”

Raon’s eyes narrowed and opened. His pupils glowed like they were on fire.

“My father and sister, I don’t even know their faces….

I’ll get my revenge.

* * *

Glenn panned Limer to the point of death, then returned to the real world and sat down on the throne.

“Ugh….”

He let out a low groan as he looked at the ruined armrests of the throne.

“Heh heh heh.”

Roen smiled softly at the river of color on Glenn’s forehead.

“You look troubled about something.”

“Nothing.”

Glenn snorted as if it were no big deal, but he quickly lowered his gaze to Roen as if he had something on his mind.

“How did you see the man with the black ears?”

“I didn’t sense any malice toward Siegfried, and he seemed to have more character than I’d heard.”

Roen smiled faintly, remembering the first Gumgui he’d seen today.

“I see…..”

Glenn nodded, unable to argue that he had thought similarly.

“He seemed to get along with everyone, especially Master Raon, when he was teaching the Berserkers how to use the sword.”

Roen’s casual comment caused Glenn to tense his left arm involuntarily.

Puddle.

The barely remaining left armrest crumbled into powder.

“Heh heh heh.”

Roen muttered something about having to fix it again and smiled weakly.

“Go, do you think it’s close?”

Glenn bit his lip hard, looking out the window, seemingly unconcerned about the broken armrest.

“We must be close, actually, because I’m sure we spent a lot of time teaching swordsmanship.”

Roen, seemingly oblivious to Glenn’s expression, said something that was sure to irritate him even more.

“I can see why the Berserker Lord said you were like a grandfather to him.”

“Bullshit!”

Glenn arched an eyebrow.

“You don’t get to be a grandfather that easily, it takes blood, blood, blood to be called a real grandfather!”

He gritted his teeth, realizing that no matter how close they became, no matter how much time they spent together, the power of blood could not be defeated.

“Why not….”

Limer, tanned and shoved into the corner, raised a trembling head.

“Well, then you cry after your grandson is taken from you, and no one helps you.”

He looked up at Glenn in the throne room and stuck his tongue out mockingly.

“You stay in a cave for the rest of your life and die an old man, never getting to have a drink with Raon.”

“That asshole….”

Glenn’s forehead twitched, and he snapped his fingers, and a bolt of lightning shot out of thin air and struck Limer in the head.

“Eek!”

Remer let out a squeal like a pig being slaughtered and collapsed, steam rising from his crown.

“Ew!”

Glenn frowned as he watched Remer collapse in a ball of foam.

“It’s frustrating. It’s really frustrating….

He wasn’t wrong.

There are many instances in which a relationship made of righteousness is made deeper by the fact that blood relations do not get along.

There was no law that said Raon and the swordsman couldn’t be more like grandfather and grandson, as Limerna Roen had said.

‘The good news is….

He hadn’t injured Raon yet.

He had originally planned to give Raon a martial arts book like the other clown swordsmen, but when he saw the look in the sword ghost’s eyes, he changed his mind and decided to teach Raon himself.

“This is the only way.

Just as Gum Gui had built a relationship with Raon by watching his swordsmanship, he had no choice but to grow close to his grandson in the same way.

“Roen. I’ll be at the fifth dance hall at dawn tomorrow.”

Glenn told Roen to cancel all plans for tomorrow and sat down on the jade throne.

“I’ll teach you myself.

Raon was the one who had saved House Aryan and captured the Wraith, so it was not unreasonable for him to teach her martial arts himself.

“Wait.

I’ll give you a proper lesson, not some sword ghost.

Glenn was muttering to himself as he smashed the right armrest as well, when Limer spewed black steam from his mouth and narrowed his eyes.

“Why did I get hit….”

“Heh heh heh.”

* * *

Dawn the next day.

Raon made his way through the dimly lit gardens of the annex to the fifth dance hall. The cool, sunless air rushed into his lungs, shaking him out of his dawn lethargy.

-C’mon!

Rath frowned as he looked up from his bracelet.

-Dawn training again as soon as I get back, you bastard…..

“It’s about time you got used to it.

-You may not be sleepy, but I am! Why the hell doesn’t he rest!

He screamed that his slothfulness level had risen, and why wasn’t it changing?

‘It does change, because sloth makes it harder to get out of bed.’

As his slothfulness level increased, his annoyance increased. The desire to sleep a little longer was unmistakably strong.

“Of course, it’s not hard to overcome.

Having spent a lifetime as an assassin in a previous life, I could deal with this level of sloth without a ring of fire.

-I am tired of this. You, and that smokestack!

Rath slipped back into the bracelet, hoping to get some more sleep.

“I miss you.

Raon smirked and stepped onto the fine sand of the deserted stage.

Despite being deserted for a while, the training grounds were neatly organized. It was as if the titan had taken care of it while he was gone.

“You say it’s a bother, but you do everything you can.

Thinking that I’d gotten a good deal on a general, I relaxed lightly in the center of the stage.

“Let’s get started.

Raon unsheathed his Heavenly Sword as he went through the basic sword techniques, starting with horizontal slashes, vertical slashes, diagonal slashes, and stabs, and moving on to the broadsword and snowy sword techniques he’d developed with the advice of the Sword Demon.

As he concentrated, the fog cleared and the sun began to shine through.

‘This place is so comfortable.

Perhaps it was because this was the space he had been training in since he was a child, but it felt much better than outside, and his sword seemed to be energized.

‘Now I need to fill in the gaps….’

Raon had written a description of a cutting sword that hadn’t yet been mastered.

It looked gorgeous, and there was a sense of discipline to it, but the natural connection that had been there before vanished like smoke.

“Not good enough.

He laughed bitterly and tried to unfurl his broadsword again.

Whoosh!

From the walls on the right and left sides of the training center, the sound of the hem of a robe brushing against the walls could be heard, accompanied by a fierce gust of wind.

“That’s not how swordsmanship works….”

“Swordsmanship is not like that….”

The two zen practitioners who had just crossed the wall of the training center stopped as they spat out similar words.

“Hmm?”

“Ah.”

Glenn and Rectarda. They looked at each other and frowned.

“Uh…?”

Raon’s mouth dropped open as he watched Glenn and Rectar glare at each other from the far end of the stage.

“What are they doing here?