As the dust settled, Derus Robert emerged from the sea, which had returned to its emerald color.
His face, stained with mud, was filled with eeriness and sadness unlike usual.
“Kaaaaaa!”
As Derus Robert looked up at the sky and screamed, the entire sea trembled and dozens of waterspouts rose up.
The waterspouts collided with each other, coalesced, and became a black storm that swept the entire sea.
Kuwaaaa!
The huge storm gradually stopped after uprooting and plowing up the fish and monsters in the nearby sea and the trees on land.
Hood!
Delus Robert came down to the beach amidst pouring blood and flesh.
Even though red blood rain was falling from the sky, not a single drop of blood touched his body or face.
Even after turning the land and sea into ruins, Derus’ stern expression did not loosen. A coldness that was hard to look at shone in his eyes.
Derus gritted his teeth as he looked back at the sea where a huge tsunami had risen.
“Damn… .”
I went down to the depths of the sea and looked at the remains of the dungeon, but there was no sign of the relics or spiritual objects I had felt before anywhere.
We looked for the bodies later, but in that short moment, only the bones remained as they had been bitten by deep-sea fish and monsters. Let alone being identified, it was impossible to know how he died.
There was at least one body that was still intact, but it only had scars where the bones and flesh had been crushed, as if the person had died due to the dungeon collapsing.
‘I didn’t get anything.’
Mattio, Cosini and other shadows were lost, relics and spirits disappeared, and it was impossible to even figure out what had happened.
It was the worst outcome I could have ever imagined.
‘But one thing is certain.’
This is a human thing.
Maybe it’s Matio who has a strong sense of responsibility. There is no way Kosini, who specializes in mind manipulation, would be killed by a spirit being. If you thought you couldn’t catch him, he would have somehow escaped.
Considering that all traces of relics and spiritual objects had disappeared, it was clear that another human or force had intervened.
‘What kind of guy is this?’
If you are enough to kill everyone and take spiritual objects and relics while avoiding Mattio and Cosini’s senses, you are not an average expert. It was clear that he would be at least Grand Master level.
“Come out.”
At Derus’s call, the shadows hiding in the sand urgently came out and knelt down.
“Has anyone passed by here?”
“Only residents from nearby villages came.”
The shadows bowed their heads and told the names and expressions of the residents who passed by.
“Useless things.”
“ah… .”
“eww… .”
The bodies of the shadows suddenly stopped due to Derus’ rough hand gestures.
Without even being able to scream, they turned into red powder and scattered across the sand.
“Matriarch.”
Rezel, who came late and was waiting, bowed his head and handed me a pure white towel.
Derus took off his jacket and gloves and wiped the mud from his face and body with a towel.
“Go, matriarch! Blood… .”
Rezel’s chin trembled when he saw red blood on the towel Derus used.
“I’m not hurt.”
Derus narrowed his eyes as he looked at the blood dripping from the sword mark on the back of his hand.
‘Should I say it’s fascinating?’
When damage occurred to oneself or a problem occurred, blood would gush out from these old wounds, causing intense pain.
Whether it was coincidence or necessity, it was truly a strange thing.
“Lezel.”
“yes.”
“Research the surrounding villages. No, search the entire Robert area and look for people whose behavior is even slightly strange.”
“All right.”
Even though it was almost impossible, Legel calmly nodded.
Derus sucked the blood soaking the back of his hand into his mouth and smiled coolly. A dark aura bloomed in his eyeballs.
‘Even if you run away to the end of the continent, I will find you.’
Never miss it.
* * *
A forest near Motrun City.
A strong wind cuts through the early morning air.
The origin of the wind is Dorian. He was slashing his sword in a small clearing in the forest.
Whoa!
Every time he swings the sword, cold sweat flows down Dorian’s forehead. It was a training called Ilgeomjung, in which the swordsmanship was performed with extreme concentration on each attack, as when fighting an enemy.
The sound of Dorian’s sword wind began at dawn and stopped only after the sun rose to the center of the sky.
“Whoa… .”
Dorian sighed and lowered his sword.
‘It’s just as Lord Budan said.’
The stronger you become, the more difficult your swordsmanship becomes.
The swordsmanship, which should have been easier and simpler as he became stronger, created another wall as he grew. This seems to be why the saying that there is no end to martial arts came about.
‘When will I grow up?’
In order to keep up with the other swordsmen in the family, I continued to practice swordsmanship while I was here, but the more I practiced, the less I understood what swordsmanship was.
It’s clear that he’s growing, but his head has become more and more complicated.
‘Let’s eat first.’
Because I trained from dawn to noon, I could hear thunder from the ship. After eating the packed lunch I brought from my dorm, I leaned my back against the tree.
‘When is Lord Budan coming?’
Even though it had been a while since he left, Raon had no intention of returning.
I was a little worried because they didn’t even tell me where I was going. Of course, not Raon, but other people involved with him.
Dorian swallowed dryly as he looked at the sky with sunlight falling down on it.
‘no way… .’
You’re not coming to pick a fight with Yukwanggoma, are you?
Raon, whom I have seen so far, is a person to whom the word ruthless fits better than anyone else.
I thought it might be because he went into an auction house and stole things, threatened a princess from a foreign country, jumped over a castle wall and wiped out a monster, and gained weight after being kidnapped by Oma.
“Eh, ay! “Probably not.”
Dorian shook his head and stood up, holding his sword.
‘Let’s do some training.’
To erase any distracting thoughts, I focused my entire mind on using my newly learned meteor sword technique.
…
Dorian swung his sword until the sun set, using his sword training method, and then sat down on the floor.
“ha… .”
I guess this is enough, right?
In fact, the reason I’m practicing swordsmanship now is not because I want to keep up, but because I’m scared of Raon.
‘Because I don’t know what they’ll say when they come back.’
They might tell me that my skills are the same and ask me to do concentration training or spar, so I trained with all my might.
‘At this level, even the devil wouldn’t be able to say anything.’
Since coming here, I have been training from before the sun rises until night, so my skills have improved noticeably.
If he had grown to this level, it was clear that even Raon, a training fanatic, would praise him.
‘That’s all for today.’
Dorian put away his sword and stood up with a satisfied smile.
Clap clap!
After cleaning up the surroundings, I was about to return to my dorm when I heard a cool applause.
“W-Who are you!”
The moment Dorian trembled and drew his sword, a tall red-haired man fell from the tree.
“uh?”
Dorian gaped. Although he had different hair and eye colors, he was an unrecognizable person.
“Lord Budan!”
“You recognized it right away?”
“of course!”
I had seen it so many times that I couldn’t recognize it even if I disguised myself.
“Did your work end well?”
“okay. “Thanks to you, it ended well.”
Raon shook his subspace pouch and nodded.
“thank god. But where have you been… .”
“More than that.”
He stopped talking and looked over his entire body.
“I’m moved right now.”
“yes?”
I opened my mouth wide, not knowing what he was saying.
“What happened all of a sudden…” .”
“I thought you were just going to hang out and eat here, but I didn’t know you were training so hard.”
Raon smiled softly, saying it was amazing.
“ah… .”
Dorian scratched the back of his head and lowered his head.
‘Were you watching?’
it’s okay!
Today, except during eating time, I continued to swing my sword. If you saw that, you would have no choice but to recognize it as Raon, the king of demons.
“Seeing that your skills have improved considerably, it looks like you have been training consistently and not just today. “There is power and skill in swordsmanship.”
“Oh, no.”
Dorian smiled at the joy of being recognized and the relief of not having to undergo additional training from Raon.
“As Master Budan said, the stronger the sword becomes, the more difficult it becomes. “It’s still far from enough.”
“Keuuu!”
Raon let out an exclamation as if he had taken a sip of beer.
“That’s cool.”
Looking at his big smile, it seemed like the plan was working.
“I will continue to practice to my best!”
“It’s a good mindset. “I guess I should give you a gift?”
“Is it a souvenir? Then let’s go. Today, let’s unpack… .”
“hmm? “Where are you going?”
Dorian smiled excitedly and was about to turn away when Raon grabbed his shoulder.
“Soo, we should go to the dorm. “It was late.”
“No. “You said you were giving me a gift.”
“You can give gifts at the hotel… .”
“no. “It’s a gift that can only be given here.”
“Sir, what’s the gift?”
Raon grinned and pointed at himself with his finger.
“Sparring with me.”
“crazy… .”
Dorian’s mouth opened and an expletive came out.
“Why are you sparring all of a sudden…” .”
“The way you trained so hard on your own is so amazing that I can’t leave you alone. “I will help you break through the blocked wall.”
“it’s okay! I woke up on my own… .”
“no. If it’s just a little bit right. No, it will get better as you spar.”
Raon pulled out his sword as if he wanted to start quickly.
“You said a little while ago that you would work hard from now on, right? “Let’s work hard from now on, not from now on.”
“… “I trained all day.”
“Then now is the time to show off your real skills. Quickly raise your sword.”
“Oh, no… .”
Things were going in the complete opposite direction to my plan to improve my skills and not engage in sparring or concentration training.
‘why. ‘Why did this happen!’
Dorian raised his head, his lips quivering, and looked into Raon’s eyes. When I saw the eyes shining with red madness, I understood.
‘Oh, that’s right.’
This person was crazy… .
* * *
Raon’s training and beating, moved by Dorian’s passion, did not end until the next morning.
“Huhhh… .”
Dorian lay limp on the floor like a wet towel, panting.
“Lord, I’m dying… .”
He said he couldn’t do it and put down the sword in his hand.
“It’s a pear. “Now I don’t even have the strength to lift a finger.”
Raon chuckled as he looked at Dorian, whose stomach was swollen like a frog.
“I was already trying to stop.”
He nodded and sharpened his sword. I trained all day and sparred all night, so I was exhausted.
“Good work.”
“… “I thought you would ask us to do more.”
“Shall we add more?”
“no! never!”
Dorian jumped up and shook his head so quickly that he couldn’t be seen.
“If this happens, there is a risk of injury. But you still look full of energy?”
“Oh, no!”
He lay down again and panted.
-That’s pathetic.
Lars looked at Dorian and shook his head.
-A guy like that is the King’s subordinate… .
‘Still, I’m proud that I trained on my own.’
Raon let out a faint smile as he sensed Dorian’s growth.
I didn’t want to put pressure on him as he was returning home to a home where he was always treated badly, so I told him to just play, but I was amazed that he had trained so far.
Originally, he was going to eat Naedan and Haeryeonghwa and do the exercises, but Dorian’s achievements were so surprising that he created a foundation for further growth through sparring.
‘Can I help you a little more?’
I put my hand in my subspace pocket. I ripped off one of the leaves of the seaweed flower and handed it to Dorian.
“What is this?”
“Eat and practice.”
“Transparent leaves? “You brought something strange again.”
Dorian was weak and took the leaf with trembling hands. He didn’t ask any more whether he believed him or not, and just stuffed it into his mouth.
“Wow, it’s delicious. and… uh?”
The guy who ate the leaf made a noise and sat down on the floor and started practicing.
-They say it’s delicious? Let’s try one!
Lars jumped up and pointed at the leaf that Dorian had eaten.
‘ha… .’
Raon rolled his eyes at Lars.
‘It doesn’t change.’
This gluttonous devil is now looking for a taste in elixirs. People said they thought Dorian was pathetic, but they made it even worse.
-Don’t do that, just one… .
‘I’ll eat it later. ‘Wait a moment.’
He pushed Lars away, saying he would eat all the leaves and flowers.
Gooooooo!
Black energy flows out through Dorian’s pores. The detoxifying ability of the leaves of the Haeryeonghwa removes internal toxins.
‘It’s just the beginning.’
Raon put his hand on Dorian’s back and pushed the Auror in.
He helped me practice with Manhwagong so that I could absorb all the energy of Haeryeonghwa and remove waste products better.
When the practice that started at dawn reached daylight, Dorian’s eyes brightened.
“Wow… .”
He looked at his hands and swallowed dry saliva.
“Well, what did you give me? The amount of aurors has increased, and why is my body so light?”
“The leaves of the sea lily flower.”
“Sea ryeonghwa? What was Haeryeonghwa… “Whoa!”
Dorian was startled and jumped up.
“Sea ryeonghwa? “The legendary Hairyeonghwa?”
His eyes swelled to the point of popping out.
“okay.”
Raon nodded lightly. Dorian was a guy who talked a lot but was good at keeping secrets, so it didn’t matter if I told him.
“Well, that’s the elixir from the story! “Where did you get such a treasure?”
“I went to the sea and picked it.”
“uh… . uh?”
Dorian was speechless and his mouth fell open.
‘Of course I got it.’
But that’s it!
When I heard that it wasn’t just any kind of oyster and that I went to the sea to catch it, I burst into laughter.
“… “Is that it?”
“huh.”
Raon took out a flower from his subspace pocket. Blue petals that sparkle like the sea, smooth stems, and transparent leaves. The Haeryeonghwa that I had only heard about in legends was clear.
“It’s Haeryeonghwa… .”
But was this something that humans could save?
It was hard to believe that Haeryeonghwa, which even his own company, one of the continent’s top five merchants, had decided did not exist anymore, was in the hands of someone less than 20 years old.
“I have this too.”
Raon put his hand into his subspace pocket again and took out a round bead. A suffocating poison bubbled up to the point that it made me feel uncomfortable.
“What is this?”
“Naedan.”
“Naedan? Where else is that?”
“I caught the spirit and pulled it out.”
“… … .”
Dorian closed his eyes tightly.
‘I caught and pulled out a spirit creature… .’
I can’t keep up. I really don’t know!
It is common knowledge that spiritual substances are attached to naturally occurring elixirs. However, if it was a Naedan that spewed out that much poison, it would have been a spirit creature of a level that could not be compared to monsters, so I was shocked that it came back without a single wound. In particular, the relaxed tone of Raon, who spoke as if he had just gone to the village and picked an apple, was very scary.
“iced coffee… .”
Dorian trembled his shoulders, afraid of what would happen to Raon when he turned 20.
‘Aren’t we going to destroy one of the Six Emperor Five Demons?’ .’
* * *
Raon smiled as he looked around the vacant lot where Dorian was training.
“You’ve settled in well. “It was difficult to practice at the dorm because of Naedan.”
The venom in the ghost jellyfish’s inner layer was so strong that it was impossible to practice in the dormitory. This was a perfect space for practicing because it was spacious and had a blocked view.
After setting up a fantasy circle to prevent monsters or people from coming, I returned to the vacant lot.
“Now it’s your turn. “Watch it carefully.”
“You can keep it, but can you really eat it?”
Dorian swallowed dry saliva as he saw the inner altar burning with poison.
“okay.”
I tore off a petal and a leaf of the Haeryeonghwa and nodded. The petals of the sea lily contain mana, a concentrated energy of the sea, and the leaves contain pure mana and the ability to detoxify. It was also through the power of the seaweed leaves that the waste was removed from Dorian’s body.
“I’m starting to feel like I can’t handle Lord Budan anymore.”
“When did you get the hang of it?”
“Well, that’s true too… .”
Dorian scratched the back of his head and nodded.
“Take care. “I’ll finish it soon.”
“I will protect you with my life!”
He nodded with his hand on his forehead.
“There is no need for that.”
Raon laughed and put a Haeryunghwa petal into his mouth. The five petals melt on the tongue and naturally pass down the throat. With the smell of the sea, my whole body was filled with a pure energy.
-that… .
Next, when Dokdan and Haeryeonghwa were about to eat the leaves, Lars raised his hand.
-It would be delicious to eat meat wrapped in those leaves… .
‘Go away.’
-Ugh!
I swatted Lars away with the back of my hand like I was swatting away a fly.
‘Let’s focus.’
If you get your attention on that guy, you’re just wasting your mental energy. I regained my concentration and put the inner end of the ghost jellyfish in my mouth. This may also be because the mana was lumped together, but as soon as I put it in my mouth, its shape loosened and flowed out. The hot poison that had filled my inner dan spread out, causing pain as if my mouth was melting.
-Keueeeeek!
Lars rolled around on the floor, his whole body shaking.
-No, it’s not delicious! I’m going to die!
‘Hang in there just a little while.’
Raon chewed the leaves of the Haeryeonghwa and pushed the poisonous energy of Naedan into his stomach along with the clean energy.
-hey! If you eat it like that, you won’t be able to taste it!
‘Be quiet.’
The petals of the Haeryeonghwa, the poison of the ghost jellyfish, and the leaves of the Haeryeonghwa came together to explode a huge energy that seemed to tear apart the entire body.
The ocean energy of Haeryeonghwa and the venom of the ghost jellyfish clashed fiercely against each other, pushing back against the currents of Mangagong and Glacia.
‘are you okay.’
The petals, inner stem, and leaves of the Haeryunghwa are a combination that I kept thinking about when I came here. It is completely acceptable.
Wooooow!
Raon swallowed the shock that made him vomit blood and resonated with the ring of fire. He suppressed the two turbulent energies and raised his trembling mouth.
‘I like it rough too, so it’s good.’
I’ll make it all mine.
