The vice-squad leader of the Golden Crest, Techly, swallowed nervously as he took in the sight of Raon standing right in front of him.
He stood up to hit Raon, but his limbs were faltering. He felt like his entire body was completely tied up by some unknown ominous power.
Raon’s face was filled with mockery, telling him to hit him if he wanted to. There was no way that someone with such an expression on their face would use aura to stop a person from hitting them.
Grit.
Techly ground his teeth, gathering his aura. He pushed away the energy pressing upon his body and raised his hand. Although he could move his body properly, the ominous feeling became so strong that he could now smell it.
He silently gasped. He finally recognized it. It was from inside, rather than from an outside influence. The ominous feeling that he got, the one that stopped him from raising his hand, wasn’t from Raon… It was his own instincts.
The battle instinct that he’d raised from his training and battles was whispering to him, telling him that he shouldn’t fight against Raon.
“V-Vice leader!”
“What are you doing right now?”
“That bastard is looking down on us!”
The Golden Crest swordsmen behind him were waving their hands and shouting at him to punish Raon.
“Are you not going to hit me?”
Raon smiled arrogantly, shoving his face in front of him to urge him to hit him.
“Are you overlooking this when your subordinates are watching you?”
“You bastard…”
People tended to gain strength and courage when their loved ones and subordinates were watching them. Techly ignored his instincts and clenched his fist.
“Arrgh!”
Techly surrounded his fist with a thin layer of aura and thrust it. The blue aura twisted like a snake, forming a spear in front of his fist. It was the secret technique of the , which he had learned after joining the Golden Crest.
Pssh!
The fist was extended like a flash of light, striking Raon’s left cheek.
Despite his anxiety, Raon didn’t manage to dodge the . Techly smiled and finished extending his arm.
“Huh?”
However, he felt nothing against his fist. Emptiness was all he could feel, as if he hit a cloth fluttering in the air.
Cring!
Just as he noticed something was strange, he met Raon’s eyes. His red eyes were blazing like the sun. Goosebumps appeared all over his body, as if his head were inside a beast’s mouth.
Whoosh!
Raon perfectly deflected his by turning his neck, then punched with his right hand. The tremendous amount of energy imbued in his fist was approaching him, exploding the atmosphere.
“Huff!”
Techly lowered his head, quickly using his footwork to step back.
He raised his head once he reached a safe place, but the fist was still there. Raon’s fist had followed him, as he had read his escape route. He couldn’t see any way to dodge the fist filling his vision.
“Did you think you could get me… Gasp!”
He hurriedly tried to create a defensive barrier with aura, but his energy center didn’t react. It wasn’t just his energy center—his entire body wouldn’t move. It was as if he were tied up by a rope.
It was the aura suppression that he used against Dorian to make him trip. Raon wanted him to be beaten up the exact same way Dorian was framed.
“D-damn i… Kueh!”
Unable to finish swearing, Techly had to allow a direct hit to his face. He couldn’t even deflect the blow from the tremendous shockwave that struck his head.
Crack!
Hearing the sound of his face getting smashed, Techly lost consciousness.
* * *
Slaam!
Alongside the explosive sound of impact, Techly slammed into the restaurant’s wall on the right.
“Ah, excuse me.”
Raon smiled slightly, while dusting off his hand.
“It was an unintentional reaction.”
After saying that, Raon touched the cheek that Techly’s fist had brushed past.
“O-Oh no!”
“What’s going on?”
“Vice-squad leader!”
“Stop.”
As the Golden Crest swordsmen were about to run towards Techly, who had slammed into the wall, Raon raised his hand. That single word was enough to make the swordsmen stop like wooden dummies.
“The one with sky-blue hair in the middle, come over here.”
“Wh-Why…”
The swordsman with sky-blue hair awkwardly came up to him.
“What’s your name?”
“I-I’m Dollan.”
“You must be the next in rank after him, right? Are you a team leader?”
“Gasp…”
Dollan’s face hardened when Raon asked whether he was a team leader. He apparently didn’t expect him to determine his rank just by looking at him.
Raon chuckled. He just guessed it because his energy was the strongest after Techly’s, and he was right.
“Dollan, you know who I am, right?”
“I-I do.”
“Then what’s wrong with that manner of speech? I’m a vice-squad leader, and you are a team leader.”
“Ugh!”
Raon bobbed his fingers in a way that suggested he could turn them into a fist any time he wanted, and Dollan’s face turned pale.
“P-Please excuse me, Sir.”
Dollan bowed, addressing him politely with a trembling voice.
“Since your vice-squad leader unfortunately turned out that way, I’m going to need to talk to you about the duels.”
Raon sat on the chair Techly had been sitting in, and Dollan could only swallow nervously without saying anything.
“First of all, the duel will take place in three months.”
“Three months? That’s too long!”
Dollan’s eyes widened in anger. Garon had told them to appoint the date for the duel in two weeks at the latest. Dollan was bound to get in big trouble if he told him the duel would happen in three months.
“This is our consideration for you guys, though.”
“What?”
“Do you think that thing will wake up within a month?”
Raon snickered, pointing at Techly.
“Ah…”
Dollan vacantly stared at Techly. Judging from the strange shape his body was taking inside the wall, it looked like bones all over his body were broken despite being smacked into his face. Factoring in time for his rehabilitation, it was impossible for him to recover in a single month.
“What do you think?”
“I-It is indeed impossible for him to recover. Then, let’s make it three months…”
“Shouldn’t you be thanking us at least for our consideration?”
“Sorry?”
“It was my consideration for you guys. It’s only natural for you to thank me.”
“Ah, th-thank you!”
Dollan bowed, rolling his eyes while his head was lowered. Raon was the reason for Techly’s state, so he was confused why he needed to feel grateful to him.
“That’s it for the date. As for the method, let’s make it a group duel where thirty-five participants duel in 1vs1 matches, and the team with more victories wins.”
“Alright.”
“I guess you want Light Wind to cease their activities if you win, right?”
“Gasp!”
Dollan’s face turned pale, revealing that Raon was right.
“You really failed to impress me.”
Raon chuckled. Just as he suspected, the reason Golden Crest had picked a fight was revenge for the suspension of the True Martial Palace’s activities.
“And the duration should be about two years.”“…You are correct.”
“I guess he told you to accept any condition from us, right?”
“Y-You are right about that, as well.”
Dollan looked like he had lost his mind from the accuracy of Raon’s guesses as he nodded.
“Then we will leave our condition blank for now. I’ll decide on it once we win.”
“Y-Yes…”
Dollan kept repeating the word ‘yes’ with unfocused eyes. It looked like he had either lost his mind or was unable to reason anymore.
“Next up is… We need a notary for the duels.”
“I’ll call someon…”
“I’ll be the notary.”
As Dollan was about to move, the restaurant’s door opened, and a purple-haired woman entered. She was a small yet beautiful woman with white skin and thin eyes.
However, she was carrying a gray sword diagonally on her back, and a tremendous energy wave was spreading out from her, despite her appearance. There was only one swordswoman in Zieghart that had such an appearance and prowess.
She was the heroine that had been in charge of the Heavenly Blade Division, directly affiliated to Glenn Zieghart, for dozens of years. She was also a powerhouse at the level of Grandmaster—the Heavenly Blade’s leader Sheryl.
Sheryl’s pressure felt familiar to him. It was the energy he could faintly feel when he entered the trance that day, and when he was focused in the past.
“Wh-Why is the Heavenly Blade’s leader here…?”
Dollan’s shoulders trembled as he sank on the ground in fear.
“Because you guys made everyone unable to enter the restaurant.”
She pointed at the open door. The technicians and swordsmen, who usually visit the restaurant, left the place once they realized the situation.
“You should decide quickly and disappear. Are you going to duel or not?”
“We will.”
“S-Same goes for us.”
“The Sword Duels will take place in the great training ground in three months. The method is 1v1 spars between thirty-five members on each side. The Golden Crest wants the Light Wind to cease their activities for two years upon their victory, and the Light Wind will decide on their condition after they win. Am I correct?”
“Yes.”
Raon and Dollan nodded at the same time.
“I’ll be the notary for this duel between the Light Wind and Golden Crest, under the name of Sheryl, the leader of Heavenly Blade.”
“Thank you.”
“Then both of you shall disappear.”
Sherly shook her hand to urge them to leave, without even accepting their gratitude.
“Ah, yes!”
Dollan pulled Techly from the wall, then left the restaurant with the Golden Crest swordsmen.
“Are you not leaving?”
“I have something to do. Dorian.”
Raon called out to Dorian, who was standing far away with his mouth wide open.
“Can you give me the cleaning tools?”
“What? O-Okay.”
Dorian was surprised, but took out a broom, mop, and a water bucket from his belly pocket and handed them over.
You will be visited with Heaven’s judgment for throwing food away.
Shut up! You are just a youngster that doesn’t know how precious food is because you grew up in a sheltered environment!
Ooh!
Raon immediately apologized, and Wrath exclaimed with a strange sound.
D-Did you seriously apologize just now? Is the sun going to rise in the west tomorrow?
Raon shook his head. He knew better than anyone how important food was, because he had always been hungry in his previous life. However, he wanted to repay them the same way Dorian was beaten up this time.
“L-Let me do it, too!”
“I’m also going to help.”
Raon cleaned up the floor and destroyed tables and chairs with Dorian and Burren. After that, he went to the confused staff behind them.
“Although I had a reason for doing this, I’m sorry for throwing away food. I’ll make sure this won’t happen ever again.”
“Th-That’s not a problem!”
“P-Please don’t do this! The food fell on the ground anyway…”
The restaurant staff’s hands waved.
“Those guys won’t return anymore. We will pay for the restaurant’s repairs, so please use the best materials.”
After telling the restaurant staff what to do in the future, Raon stood in front of Sheryl.
“Thank you for being our notary. I’ll get going now.”
“……”
She didn’t respond, just narrowed her eyes and examined him, as if she were trying to read his thoughts.
“And please relax your face a little when you follow me in the future. It’s difficult for me to train if you look so scary.”
“Wh-What?!”
Sheryl’s eyes widened.
Raon was trying to sound her out because he wasn’t sure, but it was her, after all. The energy that he rarely felt during his trance came from Sheryl.
“You, how did you…?”
Raon waved his hand at the confused Sheryl, then left the restaurant.
“Huh…”
Sherly bit her lips with a visibly unsettled expression.
“Did he really manage to notice my presence?”
* * *
* * *
“So, you are telling me…”
Garon ground his teeth while looking down on Dollan. His threatening pressure caused the blades decorating the squad leader’s room to resonate in a grotesque sound.
“That Techly turned into that piece of shit from a single punch from Raon, and the duel has been postponed for three months, right?”
“Th-That’s right.”
Dollan nodded while trembling in fear.
“Are you nuts? Did you get a hole in your brain or something?”
Garon’s eyes glowed savagely, like a fiend.
“You are a mere team leader! Why did you decide on the duel on your own accord? And you didn’t even do a good job! Three months later? Do I seriously have to watch those damn bastards stay free for the whole three months? Huh?”
“P-Please excuse…”
“Moreover, our vice-squad leader got completely fucked up, yet I’m supposed to do nothing about it? How did this even happen?”
“He said it was a reflex…”
“Reflex? Shall I pluck your eyes out and turn them into a reflex?”
“I mean, wh-when we were in the restaurant…”
Dollan described the fight between Raon and Techly in the restaurant.
“So. You're telling me that he turned into this marionette with broken strings from Raon’s single punch.”
“Y-Yes.”
“Screw this shit.”
Garon slapped the unconscious Techly’s cheeks, but that couldn’t wake him up in his critical state.
“Haa, let’s go. I can’t accept those stupid conditions for the duel. More than anything, three months are too long.”
“But we need time to heal and rehabilitate Sir Techly…”
“We don’t need that idiot to win against them. Since the notary is on our side, we can change the terms whenever we want.”
“A-Actually, we have a different notary than the one we’ve prepared.”
“What? What kind of dogshit is that?”
“The Heavenly Blade’s leader became the duel’s notary.”
Dollan continued, with a suffocating expression.
“The Heavenly Blade division leader suddenly appeared and became the notary before I could call the notary we were supposed to have.”
“That damn witch that doesn’t even age!”
Garon ground his teeth. He couldn’t understand why she suddenly appeared to volunteer as a stupid notary when she usually just passed by without showing any interest.
“Damn it. She’s a stubborn bitch. She’s never going to let us change things.”
The Heavenly Blade leader was infamous for being the strictest person in the house. Since she was as old as Glenn despite her young appearance, tricks and pressure didn’t work against her either.
“It can’t be helped. Increase the training intensity for the squad members for the next three months.”
Garon clenched his fist, glaring at the unconscious Techly.
“So that they won’t turn into a piece of shit like him.”* * *
The Heavenly Blade’s leader went to Glenn right after she left the restaurant to report what happened.
“I see. Golden Crest and the Light Wind are fighting.”
Glenn nodded slowly, without showing any interest on the outside.
“I’m not sure whether Balder was involved or not, but the True Martial Palace was the one that picked this fight for sure. They used a pretty nasty method so that the department of justice won’t be able to interfere.”
“He must’ve figured he needed a pretext for his actions after he saw Raden being defeated. His method is dirty, but that’s a good method to pressure someone.”
He chuckled, showing that he didn’t mind it.
“Rather than that, did you mention that Raon hit the Golden Crest’s vice leader with a food tray?”
“Yes. I never imagined a food tray could produce that kind of sound.”
Sheryl exclaimed, recalling that ridiculous scene.
“He made Techly faint with a single punch when he’s a highest-level Expert. Raon’s strength, agility, and aura control were pretty much at Master level.”
“Ahem.”
Glenn made an ambiguous expression between laughing and frowning, before covering his mouth.
“But why did you suddenly volunteer as a notary? I thought you didn’t like doing such things.”
“I stepped in because I thought the restaurant staff, technicians, and other swordsmen would fall victim if they continued.”
“I see.”
Glenn slowly nodded.
“However, I doubt there’s any point in this duel.”
“What do you mean?”
“I understood why my lord asked me to watch Raon. On top of his exceptional talent that I’ve never seen before, he was diligent and persistent. He should be able to reach my level, or even surpass me to reach the sky one day. However…”
Sheryl furrowed her brows and continued.
“Raon isn’t the only one fighting in this duel. It is a group fight. A duel between Light Wind and Golden Crest. Everyone from Light Wind except for Raon, Rimmer, and the three team leaders are going to lose.”
She shook her head, telling him that the result was already decided.
“Do you remember what Rimmer said?”
“Which statement do you mean…?”
“About Raon having the qualities of a king.”
“Of course, I remember. I’ve grown tired of it, since he keeps saying that whenever I see him.”
Sheryl frowned. Rimmer had started constantly murmuring that Raon had the qualities of a king, as if he were trying to brainwash people.
“However, I believe a king needs more than just talents in martial arts.”
“I agree. I acknowledge his unprecedented talent, but becoming a king, the master of this house, is a different story.”
Glenn raised his hand with a cold smile.
“Becoming a king requires excellent vassals. If Light Wind really ends up winning against Golden Crest this time, Raon might really have the qualities of a king.”
“That’s…”
Sheryl closed her mouth tightly without responding. She couldn’t say anything because she suddenly remembered that Raon had found out about her secretly observing him.
She didn’t do her best in concealing herself, but the fact that she was found out hurt her pride.
“It looks like you still don’t believe me. Then, let’s make a bet.”
“D-Did you just say a bet?”
Sheryl’s eyes widened. Glenn wasn’t the type of person to say such a thing, unlike the gambling addict Rimmer.
* * *
Before the afternoon training started, Raon gathered every member of Light Wind and stood on the platform.
“Attention.”
He slowly opened his mouth after meeting the eyes of the swordsmen looking up on the platform.
“I’m sure everyone is aware that Golden Crest picked a fight with us. They wanted to challenge us to a duel. The squad leader and I decided to accept the duel.”
“Hmm…”
“Huu!”
The swordsmen either anxiously bit their lips or clenched their fists.
“A group duel will be held in the great training ground in three months. Thirty-five people will participate from each side, and the team with the most victories will become the winner.”
“E-Erm…”
One of the third team’s swordsmen raised his hand.
“What happens if we lose?”
“Our activities will be suspended for two years.”
“Gasp!”
“A-Activity suspension? And two whole years, on top of that?”
The swordsmen dropped their jaws from learning that their activities might get suspended for two years.
“I’m fine with a group duel, but isn’t it difficult for us to win against the Golden Crest?”
“They don’t have any novice swordsmen like us.”
“Two years of suspension…”
“We are only getting started, but it’s already over for us!”
“Damn it…”
Their expressions turned gloomy, as if they had already lost the fight.
“You idiots! Why are you barking like lost dogs already? You need to shut up!”
Martha turned back to look at them and ground her teeth.
“She’s right. We haven’t even started yet, so why are you already talking about the results?”
Burren nodded in agreement with Martha.
“……”
Runaan was… the same as always.
“Thank you for backing me up, but you are wrong, unfortunately.”
Raon shook his head at Martha and Burren.
“We will definitely lose if we fought them right now, and we will also lose in three months if we keep training like we do right now.”
“What?”
“Wh-What!”
“Argh!”
“Why did you accept the fight, then?”
All the swordsmen, including Burren and Martha, started shouting. Their eyes were wide.
“Because we can win.”
Raon nonchalantly looked down on everyone.
“We will definitely lose at this rate, but if we train according to the plan that the squad leader and I have devised, every single one of you are going to be able to defeat the Golden Crest wimps in three months.”
“Plan?”
“S-Seriously?”
“Can we really win against the Golden Crest guys in three months?”
“Yes. I’ll make you capable of winning, as long as you properly follow our systematic plan.”
Raon affirmed, and cheerfulness returned to the swordsmen’s faces. It was a natural course of action, since they all trusted Raon, who had never lied or failed before.
“What are we doing then? Let’s start training already.”
“What is that systematic plan?”
“Vice leader!”
The swordsmen were brimming with smiles as they called for Raon, since they thought they could quickly get stronger.
“Can I assume that everyone agrees to follow my plan?”
“Yes!”
The swordsmen’s loud and clear response resounded throughout the training ground.
“I like how you are smiling. Let’s start immediately.”
Raon smiled gently and walked down the platform.
Shring.
He immediately drew his sword, then pointed at Burren, who was in the front row.
“Ugh?”
“Wh-What are you doing?”
“What did you draw your sword after saying that we were going to train…?”
It wasn’t just Burren—everyone was clearly confused.
“For your training, you are going to spar against me. Since you are going to fight every day and every hour from now on, you’d better brace yourselves.”
“Huh? Huuh?”
“S-Spar? With the vice-squad leader?”
“Are you crazy? How am I supposed to spar against someone that defeated an apostle?”
The swordsmen protested with trembling lips, saying that it was absolutely ridiculous.
“Moreover, how dare you call this a systematic plan? It’s just stupid sparring every day!”
“The more you fight, the stronger you get. This is the most systematic plan in the world.”
“Th-That’s not what systematic means…”
“Moreover, you already admitted that you agreed to my plan. There’s no escape for you.”
The Light Wind members turned pale in the face of Raon’s scary smile. They finally realized they had fallen into a trap that they couldn’t escape from.
“Come at me.”
Didn’t you just say you will kill them?