Raon swallowed hard as he watched the dragon with its
head blown off and the Dragon Lord coughing blood as it
fell.
'Has he grown even stronger?'
To kill two ancient dragons with a single casual swing and
inflict a fatal wound on the Dragon Lord seemed beyond
human martial arts.
-It's not just casual.
Wrath shook his head as he looked at Glenn.
-That old geezer is serious.
He frowned, saying Glenn's emotions were filled with rage.
'He must have seen everything on his way here... Ugh!'
Raon collapsed as he turned to look towards House Arianne.
"Kuhak!"
Thanks to Glenn's appearance, he had momentarily
forgotten the pain, but Wrath's descent was not yet over.
Uncontrollable anger consumed his mind, and black, dead
blood spurted from his mouth.
"Raon!"
Glenn was about to launch a second sword strike at the
Dragon Lord but turned around and rushed to Raon instead.
"He-Head of House. Everything I'm about to say is the
truth."
Raon, knowing time was short, grabbed Glenn's hand to
prevent him from interrupting and insisted that everything
he was about to say was true.
"Don't speak! Your condition..."
"I-I must say this."
He shook his head firmly. He had to tell everything before
Wrath went berserk, as Glenn might kill Edgar and Sia
thinking they were Eden's leaders.
"The man wearing the Death Knight's armor over there is
my father Edgar, who was thought to be dead, and the
woman wearing the black orc's helmet is my sister Sia."
Raon revealed Edgar and Sia's identities, forcing his
stiffening tongue to move.
"Wh-What are you..."
Glenn, who seemed to have never imagined his son-in-law
and granddaughter could be alive, hurriedly turned his gaze.
His lips trembled as he examined Edgar and Sia.
"And Re-Rector was my grandfather. He became the Leader
of the Holy Sword Alliance to help me and my mother...
Kuhak!"
Raon coughed up more blood after looking at Rector, whose
breathing was now inaudible.
"Pl-Please save Rector and my mother."
Though it might be impossible even for Glenn, Raon cried
out to save them, clinging to his last hope as there was no
one else to ask.
"And..."
He looked up at Glenn, biting his lip until it turned white.
"So-Soon, another being will enter my body."
Raon moved his lips, suppressing his heart that was
pounding as if it would burst.
"The demon king, I suppose."
Glenn narrowed his eyes, looking at the black horns
protruding from his own forehead.
"The demon king, and my first friend I mentioned before."
"Hmm..."
He let out a low groan, seemingly recalling when Raon had
introduced Wrath as a friend after the war. His expression
showed he had thought of him as a special friend but never
imagined he was the demon king.
"He-He has saved me countless times and saved everyone
today. Please don't kill him, and stop his rampage."
-Who are you worrying about! I-I am the lord of Devildom! I
will never die, so worry about your own survival!
Wrath shook his head, telling Raon not to worry about him
while sweating as he tried to control the anger surging
within him.
"Gr-Grandfather. I beg you. Please..."
Raon bowed his head, making an incredibly difficult request
to Glenn. As the last feather attached to the Ring of Fire fell,
his mind turned pitch black as if the lights had gone out.
-You're asking the wrong person...
Wrath gritted his teeth, grasping the ice flower bracelet to
prevent being sucked into Raon's body.
-This king will never yield!
* * *
Kraaaaaaah! Raon, enveloped in blue frost, let out a
demonic roar towards the sky. The black horns sprouting
from his forehead called forth even darker demonic energy,
and the ends of his brilliant golden hair began to turn blue.
"Hmm..."
Glenn's hand holding the Heavenly Tremor trembled as he
watched Raon emitting terrifyingly intense demonic energy.
'Did he capture The Fallen with that power?'
The Fallen's presence had disappeared just before he
arrived here. It meant Raon and the demon king had caught
him together, but the fearsome demonic energy was still
burning endlessly as if there was power left. It seemed like a
being that surpassed the level of an ordinary demon king.
'It won't be an easy request.'
If that demon king were to go berserk in Raon's body, it
would be difficult even for him to subdue without killing.
'However...'
Having been called grandfather by his grandson, he had to
accomplish it no matter what.
"Hmm?"
As he raised the Heavenly Tremor, contemplating how to
subdue Raon possessed by the demon king, his grandson's
body was only emitting demonic energy while his soul
seemed empty.
'What's this?'
Maximizing his Aura Perception, he sensed something
massive writhing near Raon's wrist.
'Could it be...'
Is he enduring from the outside? It seemed that just as Raon
thought of the demon king as a friend, the demon king also
considered Raon a friend and was enduring from the outside
to prevent going berserk.
'Then there's a way.'
If the demon king had descended into Raon's body and gone
berserk, it would be difficult to separate them, but if he was
enduring from the outside, it was possible to split them
apart.
"Bear with it for a moment."
Glenn lowered the Heavenly Tremor and slowly closed his
eyes. With a sharp sound, he opened his mind's eye and
sensed something like a blue cloud being sucked into Raon's
upper dantian. That seemed to be the demon king's soul.
Despite its small size, the scale of the soul was even greater
than his own.
'So that no one dies...'
He could kill that demon king now, but Raon had asked to
save his friend. He couldn't ignore his grandson's wish. With
a resonant hum, Glenn raised his mind's sword. Reflected on
the transparent blade were regrets about the past and a
desperate resolve not to repeat that past.
A sword advancing without hesitation. The Soul Sword,
imbued with kindness and sharpness, cut through the ring
of anger filling the blue demon king and Raon's body.
With a sharp ripping sound, as if the threads of anger were
being cut, Raon, who had been emitting intense frost as if
about to go berserk, fell to his knees like a puppet with its
strings cut. With a whoosh, the blue demon king also fell
onto Raon's head as if the tension had been released.
"Phew..."
Glenn wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and let out a
long sigh. Because his grandson's life was at stake, he felt
more mental fatigue than when facing several Five Demons.
"Thank you for becoming friends with my grandson."
He gave a faint smile to the blue demon king writhing on
top of Raon's head.
-!!!
The blue demon king puffed up as if to protest but then
disappeared. The demon king's presence was no longer felt,
perhaps because the anger that had dominated Raon's body
had been erased.
Glenn carried the unconscious Raon on his back and headed
towards House Arianne. Perhaps due to the frost wave Raon
had unleashed earlier, Edgar, wearing the Death Knight's
armor, was awake.
"I greet you, father-in-law."
Edgar recognized Glenn and immediately bowed his head.
"So you're Edgar."
Glenn's fingertips trembled as he silently looked down at
Edgar. That the place where he first met his son-in-law was
such a battlefield made him feel once again how great his
transgressions were.
"I apologize for greeting you so late. I want to ask for
forgiveness, but there's no time now."
Edgar pointed at Sylvia and Rector, biting his lip tightly.
"Hmm..."
Glenn's jaw trembled as he examined Sylvia and Rector's
condition. He hadn't paid attention because of Raon, but
they were truly on the brink of death. No, it wouldn't be
strange if they died right now.
He pushed aura into Sylvia and Rector's bodies. But their
internal and external injuries were too severe, and demonic
energy had penetrated every wound, rendering it
ineffective.
'Federick.'
Glenn picked up Sylvia and Rector, whose complexions had
turned black. The only one he could rely on now was the
Ragged Saint, Federick. They might be too late, but they
had no choice but to try.
"It will be too late if we go."
Edgar shook his head, not letting go of Sylvia's hand.
"Are you saying we should let them die here!"
Glenn gritted his teeth, looking down at Edgar.
"I can save them."
Edgar nodded, showing a faint smile.
"What?"
"I have the ability of a Death Knight. Special demonic
energy that brings death to the living and absorbs vitality. In
other words, I can also transfer vitality to others."
He nodded heavily, looking at his wife and Rector in turn.
"The two of them have less than a minute left to live."
Edgar slowly lowered his hands, asking Glenn to put them
down.
"..."
Glenn bit his lip, reading the emotion in Edgar's eyes. He
eventually didn't leave and put Sylvia and Rector down.
Edgar placed his hands on Sylvia and Rector's chests and
uttered the language of the dead.
As the bizarre language incomprehensible to humans rang
out, color began to return to Sylvia and Rector's
complexions, which had been turning black as they were
dying.
On the other hand, black, dead blood vessels appeared on
Edgar's pale face.
"Wait! Don't tell me that's..."
Glenn's eyes widened as if he had just realized what Edgar
was doing.
"I'm already someone who died once. No, it's ambiguous to
even call me a person now."
Edgar looked at the collapsed Raon with a faint smile.
"It's enough that I saw my son at the end and saved my
daughter."
He nodded, saying he was satisfied.
"Your soul will continue to suffer the pain of being torn
apart."
Glenn lowered his eyebrows, saying he wouldn't be able to
endure it.
"Father-in-law, my life has been a series of pain. I'm just
happy to see my wife, son, and daughter like this."
Edgar caressed Sylvia's cheek, which had regained its color,
with a small smile.
"You would have made the same choice if you were in my
situation, father-in-law."
"..."
Glenn tried to speak several times but eventually remained
silent. After living as Eden's captive for decades and barely
finding freedom, sacrificing his life for his loved ones was
not an easy decision.
That's why he regretted his past even more. If he had
accepted Sylvia then, this tragedy wouldn't have happened.
Glenn gritted his molars as he looked at Edgar and placed
his hand on Raon's forehead.
"Are you planning to wake Raon?"
"Shouldn't a son see his father's last moments?"
"Ah, then just a moment..."
Edgar put on the Death Knight's helmet he had discarded.
He awkwardly smiled and touched his chin.
"It's embarrassing."
* * *
"Huk!"
Raon opened his eyes with a violent groan. It wasn't a
natural awakening, but as if someone had forcibly woken
him up, a headache remained.
'What happened?'
Not knowing how much time had passed or what had
happened, he immediately raised his head to see Glenn
standing in front of him.
"Gr-Grandfather. The situation..."
"It's over. How do you feel?"
Glenn nodded briefly and asked about his well-being first.
"Huh? Oh, I think I'm fine."
All the anger that had dominated his mind and spirit was
gone. Though he didn't know how, it seemed the rampage
had been stopped before Wrath descended.
"And your friend?"
"Yes."
Though Wrath's form wasn't visible, he could feel his
presence from the ice flower bracelet. He seemed to have
fainted from exhaustion.
"It, it was a very difficult request, but thank you for granting
it."
"We'll leave the thanks for later..."
Glenn sighed and pointed to the right. As he turned his
head, he saw Edgar with his hands on Sylvia and Rector's
chests.
"Ah!"
Being weak, he used the Heavenly Drive that had fallen to
the ground as a cane and approached Edgar.
"Are Mom and Rector alright?"
Though he couldn't spread his Aura Perception as his aura
was completely depleted and his upper dantian greatly
stimulated, he could feel that the two's breathing had
stabilized.
"Yes. You can rest easy now."
Edgar nodded with a gentle smile, as if telling him not to
worry.
"I didn't know you could heal too."
Though he couldn't tell exactly what he was doing without
his aura, it was certainly being healed as he said.
"This dad is better at odd jobs than swordsmanship.
Medicine, civil engineering, welding, construction, animal
husbandry, piloting. There's nothing I can't do. But the best
is this mouth. Your mom fell for me because I talk so well."
Edgar laughed as if enjoying himself, stretching out his
words.
"But you still call her mom, I see."
"Ah, when I'm flustered, I unconsciously..."
Raon blinked his eyes, his face turning red.
"That's good. It means you're close."
Edgar nodded, chuckling.
"From now on, don't call Rector 'sir', call him grandfather.
He'll really like it."
He giggled while patting Rector's forehead.
"I know, but it still doesn't come out easily."
Raon lowered his gaze, saying it took him a long time to call Glenn grandfather too.
"I see. Then why don't you try with me first? Say 'Dad'!"
"Umm..."
He trembled his lips, unable to speak right away. He was
about to say he couldn't, but Edgar's eyes inside the helmet
looked so desperate that he nodded.
"F-Father."
"Keu..."
Edgar staggered as if hit by an arrow, letting out an
exclamation.
"That's nice! So this is how it feels! Though I wanted to hear
'Dad' first, that's a bit disappointing."
He smacked his lips, saying he wanted to hear the word
'Dad' when he was a child.
"Want to try again?"
"I-I'll do it later. It's a bit embarrassing."
"Disappointing, but can't be helped."
Edgar said he'd definitely hear it, grabbing Raon's shoulder.
"The treatment will take a while, so why don't you tell me
how you've been living in the meantime? There's nothing
better than conversation for people to get close."
"Umm..."
Raon looked back. Glenn nodded heavily as if telling him to
do so.
"I stayed in the annex building of Zieghart. When Mother
returned to the family, she was demoted to the branch
family, so I received glares whenever I went to the main
building."
"Ah, so that's what happened."
Edgar bowed his head to Glenn as if he understood
immediately.
"It must have been a measure to protect them from other
direct lineage members. Thank you for your consideration."
He smiled as if he had instantly grasped Glenn's intentions.
"..."
Glenn waved his hand silently as if telling him to continue.
"Then, briefly."
Raon nodded and began to share his life so far.
"At 12, I participated in the basic training of the Fifth
Training Ground. All those guys passed out up there are my
peers."
"You mean the kids who defended the walls like an iron wall.
It was completely different from when they invaded the
branch earlier, I didn't know they'd all reach Master. Is it
true you raised them all?"
"...In the second mission, we encountered a Blood Demon. If
the Vice Leader hadn't come, we probably all would have
died."
"He protected you first earlier too. I was truly surprised to
see him blocking the front, risking his own life. Keep trusting
and following him from now on."
"The life-or-death battle with the Axe King was harder than I
thought. But I have no regrets because it was a fair fight.
The Axe King was the most martial artist-like person I've
seen among the Five Demons."
"That guy never keeps his promises, but he fights fair, huh.
Interesting fellow. You were his last opponent, so he must
have been satisfied even in death. Did he name your final
sword technique? You mean that last sword?"
Every time Raon mentioned what he had done so far, Edgar
reacted excessively. It was fun to talk as it felt like watching
Glenn receiving mission reports in the audience chamber.
However, as he continued speaking, he noticed something
strange.
"By the way..."
Raon swallowed dryly as he was about to reveal Derus's
identity.
"Wh-Why is Father's vitality decreasing as Mom and
Grandfather recover?"
As his aura gradually recovered, he could sense Edgar's
vitality rapidly declining. His voice also became hoarse as if
drying up.
"It's part of the treatment. Don't worry."
Edgar shook his head as if it was nothing. His voice broke off
as if he was about to die.
"Ca-Can I take off your helmet?"
Raon raised his trembling hand and removed Edgar's
helmet.
"Ah..."
Edgar had become as bony as someone who hadn't eaten
for a month, and thick blood vessels like ropes had
appeared on his face. All that could be felt from his body,
which had turned into a mummy, was eerie death.
"Ah, I've been found out."
Edgar clapped his hands lightly as if disappointed.
"What is this..."
"It couldn't be helped."
He shook his head calmly.
"It was the only way."
Edgar smiled, saying that to save Sylvia and Rector, he had
no choice but to absorb the death energy and share his own
vitality.
"Bu-But you have to live too! After enduring that hell all this
time, why!"
Raon gritted his teeth. Knowing what kind of life Edgar had
lived, his anger that had subsided reignited.
"I met you."
Edgar raised his withered hand to pat Raon's head. The lack
of strength in his grip made Raon's heart sink.
"I fought alongside my son, saved my daughter whom I
could only watch, and saved my dying wife. What more do I
need?"
He showed a genuine smile, saying that was enough.
"And even if it wasn't my intention, I killed many people.
Now I'm receiving my punishment."
"What punishment!"
Raon shouted at Edgar. He couldn't accept those words
because his past life, controlled by Derus, was exactly the
same.
"Raon. Sit down. There's not much time left."
Edgar waved his hand calmly, seeming to accept his own
death.
"Kuk..."
Raon bowed his head, looking at his father's powerless hand
sinking.
"You know, I wanted to teach you and Sia my
swordsmanship. I gave up because it was impossible, but
when I saw you fighting with the Mystic Soul Sword, I
thought our fates were connected."
Edgar hugged Raon, stroking his head.
"It was an honor and I was happy to have my last fight
together with my son."
"No, that's..."
"Take care of your mom, sister, and grandfather."
He closed his mouth as if that was his last words and
hugged Raon tightly. It was a very different image from the
chatterbox he had been until now.
"Father..."
"Now you're calling me sincerely."
Edgar smiled brightly as if all his wishes had been fulfilled
and bent his body. His dried-up body began to scatter into
black powder.
"Please!"
Raon tried to transfer the aura he had barely recovered, but
Edgar's body disintegration didn't stop.
"Hmm?"
Glenn, who had been biting his lips while watching Edgar,
suddenly moved to Raon's left.
"Who's there."
He pointed the Heavenly Tremor towards the darkness with
a more tense look than when he met the leader of the Five
Demons.
"Me..."
Along with a somewhat naive voice, a child with white hair and jade-like skin walked out.
"I'm out of money...