Raon held his breath, his gaze fixed on Ogram's back.
'Why has he appeared in my mental world?'
Even though Ogram taught me the Fierce Wave Arts, only swordsmanship is embedded in my mental world.
Even the fist techniques I perfectly mastered as a child don't exist here, so I don't understand why he has appeared.
Whoosh!
Ogram thrust his fist into the air, seemingly unaware that I was watching from behind.
A vast freedom could be felt in his refined movements. It seemed he was using his full power to display his fist techniques.
Raon swallowed dryly and approached Ogram.
'What...'
Ogram looked the same as when I saw him in the Siran Tribe Village. Except for one thing.
His eyes.
His eyes were desperate, as if fighting a mortal enemy.
A desperation I had never seen before could be felt from Ogram, who always exuded composure and confidence.
"Hmm."
Raon bit his lip as he looked at Ogram's desperate eyes.
'Now is not the time to think about why he's here.'
The instinct that had saved me countless times spoke. If I missed this chance now, I would never see this sight again.
I operated the Ring of Fire at its peak. The eight rings slowly rotating in the air suddenly resonated, drawing out a focus that could reach the realm of transcendence.
Whoosh!
The fist wind from Ogram's left fist led the wind of the Gale Wind Style, and the shockwave from his right fist amplified the heat of the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation.
He wasn't simply displaying his martial arts, but showing how to efficiently utilize the energy he possessed.
Boom!
Every time Ogram's fist rose, the mental world twisted. What formed that massive flow was neither the destructive power of his fist techniques nor the purity of his aura.
It was the Fierce Wave Arts permeating the edge of his fist strikes.
'Is this the true Fierce Wave Arts?'
The more I watch, the more amazing it seems.
The Fierce Wave Arts I learned from Ogram was a martial art that pierced through the enemy's aura and delivered a shock to their body.
But the Fierce Wave Arts Ogram was displaying now seemed to penetrate not just the aura, but the opponent's body as well.
In other words, it seemed there was no limit to what it could pass through.
Raon watched Ogram's fist techniques without missing a single moment, hoping to someday reach the ultimate level of the Fierce Wave Arts.
After a time that felt both fleeting and as long as a year, Ogram's movements suddenly changed.
Boom!
Ogram began to pour out fist strikes while using footwork as if an enemy had truly appeared before him.
'Dodge to the right, then Hundred Steps Piercing Fist. This time, a frontal breakthrough with the Bear Roaring Fist?'
He's not just fighting as if an enemy appeared.
'He's really fighting an enemy.'
I don't know who he's fighting, but Ogram's movements were different from when he was just demonstrating fist strikes. He was fighting one-on-one with someone.
Ogram clenched his fists and bent his waist, as if an invisible enemy had launched a tremendous offensive.
He extended his fist, using the Fierce Wave Arts at its peak. The flow of aura that pierced through everything split the heavens and earth.
Boom!
Despite being certain of victory, Ogram didn't let his guard down and focused all his attention on the enemy.
'This is a win.'
It was when even I thought it was all over. A pitch-black blade shot up from Ogram's left side, tearing off his arm.
'Demonic energy...?'
The black energy imbued in the dark blade was not unfamiliar.
'No, that's the Death Aura.'
What cut off Ogram's arm wasn't demonic energy, but the Death Aura I felt in front of the Sword Saint's Tomb.
It was clearly the aura that Derus Robert was hiding.
Although surprised by the sudden attack, Ogram didn't stop fighting. He minimized his evasion and began a one-on-one battle.
He was a strong martial artist even among Transcendent Warriors, but he couldn't withstand the offensive of two opponents.
In the end, the Death Aura spread like a spider web, trapping Ogram.
Raon's lips trembled as he watched Ogram sink into the darkness.
'What on earth...'
As he struggled to understand the situation, the mental world began to collapse.
It meant that the time he could stay here was up.
'No way...'
Raon bit his lip, looking not at the collapsing mental world, but at the space where Ogram had disappeared.
'Has something happened to the real Ogram?'
* * *
"Huff..."
Garona moved forward, exhaling rough breaths. He was carrying the Siran Tribe Chief on his back, and despite having sustained severe injuries himself and coughing up blood, he didn't stop walking.
'I must keep going...'
If I stop even once, I won't be able to walk again.
The strange man in the red robe who blocked the path was strong. Despite not being an apostle, he possessed power beyond that of an apostle, so every time their fists clashed, Garona had countless brushes with death.
If it weren't for the insight into the Fierce Wave Arts gained from his determination to help his master, his heart would have been pierced long ago, and he would have fallen on the cold ground.
"Ugh..."
The Siran Tribe Chief, carried on his back, groaned and patted his shoulder.
"Garona. Leave me behind. At least you should survive..."
The Siran Tribe Chief, pale from severe blood loss, told him with blue-tinged lips to leave him behind.
"I can't do that."
Having already left Ogram behind, if he were to abandon the Siran Tribe Chief as well, he would lose the right to face himself in the future.
It would be better to fall and die here than to do something absolutely forbidden for a martial artist of the Beast Union.
The communication crystal was broken, and the warriors and shamans following behind were also severely injured, so he was the only one who could carry the Siran Tribe Chief.
"W-why isn't the Union Leader coming?"
"Could it be that he was defeated by the Leader of the White Blood Religion..."
"Hmm, at this point, that's the only..."
The warriors of the Siran Tribe looked for Ogram with their heads bowed. It was natural for them to think this way, as he hadn't come even though a long time had passed since the battle ended.
"Nonsense!"
The dying Siran Tribe Chief turned his head and shouted.
"Do you think our Union Leader would be defeated by such a vampire! He must have retreated in another direction to avoid drawing attention here!"
He spoke with force in his voice, as if his faith in Ogram was unshakeable.
Garona bit his lip hard and nodded.
'Yes. I must believe...'
If we of the Beast Union don't believe in Union Leader Ogram, who will?
Garona continued to move forward, strength in his steps.
How much time had passed? Just as his breath was at its limit, numerous shadows appeared over the dim prairie.
At the center, riding a horse, was a young handsome man dressed as a scholar, looking out of place in this prairie.
"Vice Union Leader..."
Usually, he would frown at the sight of him, but today, he was overjoyed to see him.
"Vice Union Leader!"
Garona stopped in his tracks and let out a scream that was also a roar.
Swish!
The moment he heard that sound, the Vice Union Leader vanished from his horse and appeared before Garona's eyes. It was like a flash of lightning.
"Garona!"
"Why are you so late?"
As Garona was about to fall to his knees, the Vice Union Leader grabbed his waist to support him.
"What on earth happened!"
"Please contact all of the Six Kings immediately..."
Garona's eyes reddened as he burst out with the emotions he had been holding back.
"Master is in danger!"
* * *
"Are you expecting me to believe that now?"
Glenn Zieghart frowned as he glared at the communication crystal.
[Ah, how frustrating.]
The Archmage Chamber of Eternal Flame, reflected in the crystal, nodded her head.
[No matter how much I like pranks, do you think I'd lie about something like this? Huh?]
Chamber frowned her delicate brow, asking to be believed.
She had dropped her usual pretense and revealed her true personality.
"..."
Glenn stared intently at Chamber in the crystal before nodding.
"Then let's continue."
[I'm not your subordinate! You know that, right?]
"I know. Explain from the beginning."
[Geez! I swear, there's no one I like in your family except Raon!]
Chamber glared at Glenn and let out a long sigh.
[This is the last time, so listen carefully. After hearing that the Leader of the White Blood Religion attacked the Chiran Tribe, Ogram rushed there alone. After that, Garona and...]
She relayed to Glenn exactly what she had heard from Garona and the Siran Tribe Chief.
[...That's how the news reached me. Of course, I only know what Garona told me, so I don't know what happened inside the curtain.]
"Garona..."
Glenn repeated Garona's name. He remembered Ogram introducing Garona as someone who might become his successor one day.
"So Ogram still hasn't shown himself?"
[That's why I contacted you too.]
"Hmm..."
Glenn frowned. Normally, Ogram would have confidently invited others to come and watch, regardless of who his opponent was.
Since he told them to run away and hasn't shown himself until now, it was correct to think he might be dead.
'No, he might still be alive, barely clinging to life.'
The Leader of the White Blood Religion only drinks the blood of living people to grow their bloody energy.
Ogram would be a great delicacy that she hasn't been able to taste yet, so she would definitely keep him alive.
"Did you go to the site?"
[Yes. It was full of the waves left by Transcendent Warriors. Traces of Ogram's Fierce Wave Arts and the Leader of the White Blood Religion's Godly Blood Summoning Ritual remained intact. However, the black curtain Garona mentioned wasn't anything special. It was just one of the ordinary silver curtain spells.]
Chamber nodded calmly.
"The outcome?"
[There's no definitive evidence. But the last thing that remained was bloody energy.]
"I see..."
[This story is spreading faster than any rumor right now.]
Her eyes flashed with a cold light like a blade.
[You know what that means, right?]
"...It means the balance of power will be disrupted."
[Yes. This is quite serious. No, not just quite, it's damn serious.]
Chamber clicked her tongue at length.
[The Six Kings Conference will be held in a few days, so you must attend. And...]
She slightly lowered her eyebrows.
[Raon's life-or-death duel. You should also think about how to handle it.]
"..."
[See you at the conference then.]
Chamber waved her hand lightly and ended the communication.
"Hmm..."
Sheryl leaned against a pillar and let out a sigh.
"I can't believe the Beast King was defeated by the Leader of the White Blood Religion."
Her lips trembled as if she couldn't have imagined such a thing happening.
"There might be a difference in power, but in terms of compatibility, Lord Ogram should have had the advantage..."
Roenn also frowned, seemingly sharing the same thought.
"Nothing has been confirmed yet."
Glenn calmly shook his head. It was too early to draw conclusions about something that had happened just hours ago.
To be honest, he couldn't believe, and didn't want to believe, that Ogram had been defeated by the Leader of the White Blood Religion.
However, since the incident had already occurred, he had to think about what to do next.
"Is Raon still in training?"
Glenn turned his gaze to Rimmer, who was sitting silently.
"...Yes."
Rimmer was also frowning deeply, seemingly thinking about Raon's life-or-death duel.
"Sigh..."
Glenn nodded while letting out a low sigh.
"Call him as soon as his training is finished."
* * *
Raon roughly opened his eyelids. He had trained in the mental world many times before, but this was the first time he woke up as if from a nightmare.
'What has happened?'
Everything was questionable - Ogram appearing in the mental world, him displaying his fist techniques to teach, and being dragged away by the Death Aura while fighting someone.
However, it seemed clear that some problem had occurred with Ogram.
'It seemed like he really wanted me to know.'
The Ogram in the mental world seemed to be asking for understanding of the situation rather than asking to be saved.
[You have gained new insight from the mental world.]
[The level of all swordsmanship has increased.]
[All abilities have increased by 10 points.]
[The level of Fierce Wave Arts has greatly increased.]
As he tried to get up, messages appeared before his eyes. These were rewards gained from his experience in the mental world.
'Wrath hasn't woken up yet.'
If Wrath had woken up, he would have gone wild upon seeing these messages, but it was quiet, so he seemed to still be asleep.
'An increase in the level of all swordsmanship...'
This seemed like a reward for training according to the swords of the Transcendent Warriors.
It was equivalent to saying that the level of Ten Thousand Swords had risen, making it the most significant growth.
'And the Fierce Wave Arts...'
Thanks to focusing all his attention on Ogram's fist techniques as he fought an enemy, the level of Fierce Wave Arts seemed to have naturally increased.
However, more than the increase in achievement, the bigger gain was discovering that the Fierce Wave Arts could penetrate more than just aura.
It seemed possible to incorporate the flow of the Fierce Wave Arts into the new Sword Domain he would create.
'No. Now is not the time to think about this.'
They were certainly great rewards, but there were more important matters at hand now.
Raon immediately opened the door of the training ground and went outside.
'Is it dawn?'
No one was visible in the training ground where the cool dawn air lingered.
'Of all times...'
As he frowned, thinking he had chosen the wrong time, a rustling sound came from above the ceiling.
"Are you up now?"
Along with a voice slightly muffled as if from sleep, Rimmer's face suddenly popped out.
"Vice Leader?"
Raon blinked his eyes as he looked at Rimmer. He couldn't believe that someone who wasn't around even during the day was here at dawn.
"Why are you here?"
"Just because."
Rimmer shrugged as if it was nothing and stepped down to the ground.
"Actually, I've been waiting because I have something to tell you."
He let out a long sigh and raised his gaze.
"Something to tell me..."
Raon instinctively realized that what Rimmer had to say was the same as what he needed to ask now.
"Lord Ogram was defeated by the Leader of the White Blood Religion."
"Ah..."
His hands trembled involuntarily. If that was true, then the Ogram he saw in the mental world was a direct reflection of reality.
"No one knows the exact circumstances yet. But it's certain that Lord Ogram is missing."
Rimmer said this while explaining how the Leader of the White Blood Religion and Ogram had clashed.
"Is there any indication that someone else intervened?"
Raon asked, remembering the Death Aura that had blocked Ogram's fist strike.
"According to Lady Chamber, there were no traces of a third party."
"..."
The lack of traces made it even more suspicious. If it was Derus, he would certainly not leave any traces of himself.
"So, about that..."
"Vice Leader!"
Raon raised his gaze, interrupting Rimmer's words.
"We need to go there."
"There?"
"The place where Lord Ogram and the Leader of the White Blood Religion fought!"
The Ogram in the mental image seemed to look at me as if he desperately wanted me to know something. There was a high possibility that some trace remained at the place where he fought with the Leader of the White Blood Religion.
"Right now!"
A crimson lightning flashed in Raon's eyes.