Chapter 511

From the twentieth count, I stopped counting. I couldn't overpower Eren even once. The amplified pain in my dream was more painful than the actual wounds, but I didn't wake up because Armin was controlling it artificially. When I woke up, I could see the cloudy morning sky with ominous thunder. I could still feel Armin's hand on me from before I fell asleep. Armin must have been unable to sleep either because he had to focus on my dream. I had been dreaming of dying miserably, so Armin's expression wasn't good either. Regardless of whether this method was good or not, I found out one clear side effect in the morning. I'm tired even though I slept and woke up. Dreaming isn't just a few hours long. But since I had nightmares all the time while I was asleep, my brain was overloaded and I felt numb. It's like a side effect that occurs when the brain works harder while sleeping. If I keep doing this, not only me but also Armin will get tired and won't be able to exert enough strength when needed. It seemed like I should take a break every other day or so. Across the bed, I saw Eren sleeping while hugging a big pillow. Armin didn't even touch Eren's dream, but he was pulling the pillow tightly, muttering something. Our stubbornness sometimes makes me want to bite him because it's cute. "Will this work?" Armin asked in a low voice so as not to wake up Eren. I was killed dozens of times overnight. And the pain I experienced in my dream was more terrible than actual pain, almost being swallowed up by the soul, experiencing a different spiritual pain. It's not that a small pain doesn't hurt just because you've experienced a big pain. Luna said that if you can easily get better, you can easily get hurt. From Luna's perspective, trying to endure this kind of pain without any problem is probably a wrong behavior. I know that I can't live a happy life with this pain. I know it for sure. But no other way comes to mind. To avoid seeing the future where Eren kills me and Eren himself commits suicide. "I think it's necessary." "I see." I'm trying to die a lot right now. "By the way, sleep a little more." "Huh?" "Still, you need to get some proper sleep." Armin puts his hand on my forehead again. Since I didn't feel like I slept at all, I guess I need to get some proper sleep. Armin said it's painful to intentionally make someone have a nightmare. "I surrendered to that touch."

"I'll make sure you don't dream at all this time."

In fact, both I and Ailee knew that not dreaming at all was the best sleep.

* * *

The elite troops of the demon king's forces began to gather.

The vampire council's nobles and their vampire subordinates.

Priests and holy knights of the Holy See.

And an army including some of the strongest demons.

Although the number was not large because they had to maximize their mobility due to mass teleportation, an elite unit composed of very strong individuals began to be organized.

The noble families of the Lord Vampire and the Holy See's leader, Olivia Lanche, and the subordinates of the Charlotte were selecting elite soldiers.

The demon king will lead them and break through the marching route for the human army.

Even the vanguard of them, which even humans do not know, was being organized.

-Rumble

An unexpected storm hit Lazark.

The waves were high and it was difficult to operate the ship.

People were busy going back and forth on the beach to anchor the ship more firmly so that the fleet would not be swept away, and the mermaids who supplied marine resources were also inactive.

At a certain villa in the outskirts of Lazark.

The beach in front of it.

"Daughter, why are you getting wet in the rain like this?"

Yelena de Grants, the Duchess of Grants.

No, the woman who is now just Yelena de Grants, not the Duchess, approached her daughter, who was sitting on the beach, getting wet in the rain, and asked her.

"......"

Her daughter, who is more famous as the Brainwave King, just stared blankly at the waves that were rippling in the distance without saying a word.

She rarely had the opportunity to see her mother because of her mission in Fort Mocna.

And at this point, organizing the army was not under Rihanna's jurisdiction, so Rihanna had nothing to do until there was an additional order from the demon king.

So Rihanna was spending a non-vacation vacation at a mansion in the outskirts of Lazark, one of the many mansions owned by the Grants family throughout the continent.

The first summer vacation she had at the temple. Rihanna spent a few days at this mansion with her friends.

But she can't go back to that time. Everything has changed too much.

The word vacation is unfamiliar to Rihanna.

She can't remember when she properly rested.

She worked hard.

She tried to work hard on anything. She thought she had to do something, there was no time to rest.

There were many moments when she stood at the crossroads of important choices, and Rihanna made a choice.

And the result of that choice.

Rihanna created another huge disaster in an already sad world, and she couldn't take responsibility for it.

Yelena looks at her daughter, who is just staring at the beach. "She doesn't have any title or authority in Edina. However, under the demon king's orders, she maintained a certain standard of living and had security, although not to the extent of her noblewoman days. Of course, Yelena knows what her daughter does and how important her role is. Rihanna, who was difficult to face, stares blankly at the beach as soon as she returns home. Despite the heavy rain, she stands there, lost in thought. It is unclear how much guilt is in her gaze, but her mother eventually puts down the umbrella she was holding and sits next to her daughter. 'Rihanna.' '...Yes.' 'Are you having a hard time?' '...' At her mother's question, Rihanna turns her head slightly to look at her. 'I don't have the right to be tired.' '...' 'I can't say that I'm tired.' Rihanna says this and looks back at the beach. Yelena gently places her hand on her daughter's wet shoulder. 'It's so hard for you.' '...' 'If it's hard, you can cry.' It's so hard that she doesn't have the right to say it's hard. If it's hard, she can cry. Rihanna nods at her mother's words. 'You can say that because you're my mom.' 'I can say that because I'm your mom.' 'If it were someone else...they wouldn't be able to say that.' 'I don't have the right to cry.' The relationship between the mother and daughter was once terrible. However, after the death of Duke Grants and the Gate incident, many things changed. They are the only family left in the world. How sad that is. How fortunate that is. They both know that fact well enough to be sad. Yelena doesn't know why her daughter is so upset. But she can read one thing from her gaze. An unforgivable guilt. 'So, even if you did something unforgivable, even if you did something that can't be forgiven...even if you did something really wrong...' 'I'm your mom.' 'You're my daughter.' 'You can cry in front of me.' 'Even if you can't forgive yourself.' 'Even if you think you don't have the right to cry.' 'You can cry in front of me.' 'That's why we're family.' At those words, Rihanna looks at Yelena. She, who didn't even allow herself to cry because she thought she didn't have the right to shed tears, finally breaks down in front of her mother's smile. 'Mom...' 'Yes.' 'I committed an unforgivable...sin.' 'I see.' 'I thought it was unforgivable, but...it was worse than what I thought...more than what I wanted...so many terrible things happened.' " Yelena hugged her daughter tightly as she began to sob with a twisted face. Yelena couldn't give her daughter an answer. Rihanna admitted to committing an unforgivable sin and feeling guilty. Despite not having any title or authority in Edina, Rihanna has an important role under the demon king's orders and Yelena ensures that she has a certain standard of living and security. In the previous chapter, there was a storm that suddenly stopped, and Rihanna believes it was because of her. She explains to the protagonist that she feels guilty and doesn't know what to do. "Uh, really... I know it's a really weird thing to say, but the timing is just... what am I supposed to do about that!" Rihanna burst out crying, her eyes and face turning red. Then she suddenly shrunk back after shouting.

"T-that... it's not something I should be angry about. Sorry..."

"Just act like you usually do. I don't want to blame you or see you change."

It's more annoying to see Rihanna like this, completely beaten down.

"Hmm... so we need to verify whether you can really control the weather or if you're just a delusional person who thinks they can control the weather."

"What...! How can you say that?"

"At least you're not completely sane in the way you're about to get angry and then stop yourself."

Seeing her anger rise and then ultimately not being able to even make a sound because she's sorry to me, I can definitely tell that Rihanna is not normal.

"Come on, we need to check it out."

I grab Rihanna's arm and lead her.

"If you can really control the weather, can't you do it here?"

People will go crazy if the sky goes crazy.

* * *

There's a possibility that Rihanna's thoughts are just a delusion.

The repressed anger she held inside manifested as a storm, and the moment it was released, the weather cleared up.

If someone told me that, I would introduce them to a therapist because it's clear that they have mental issues.

But the person who said that wasn't just anyone, it was Rihanna de Grants.

In the original work, she had the ability to specialize in lightning, but due to the different development in this story, Rihanna's ability has become something that surpasses just lightning itself.

It became possible to strike a lightning bolt into a dry sky.

Lightning.

A bolt of lightning that comes down from the sky.

Soon, the sky.

There is a possibility that Rihanna's ability related to the weather could evolve.

If Rihanna's ability has really evolved to the point where she can cause weather changes, it's unknown how she will be able to use it later.

But we need to check it out first.

We need to know if she can cause weather changes and how far she can go.

Since we can't do it in Lazark, we need to move to a place where there are no people.

"A deserted island?"

"Yes, I have something to check."

So I took Rihanna and found Lucynil.

* * *

Since the Edina Archipelago is a place with many islands, there are plenty of uninhabited islands.

Among them, one of the nameless islands that is quite far from the islands where people reside.

Lucynil obtained information about the uninhabited island from the mermaids and confirmed the coordinates, then cast Mass Teleport to move together.

"It's a nice view."

This area is originally a place where the emerald sea shines.

I've even come here for summer vacation during my time at the Temple.

Whenever I think about this scenery that makes my heart feel peaceful just by looking at it, the dissonance I feel about the things I really need to do and the things happening on the continent feels strange every time.

"But what are we going to do on a deserted island?"

Lucynil came with me when I said we need to go, but she tilted her head as if asking what we're going to do. "I am looking at Rihanna. 'Rihanna's ability may have evolved, so let's find out now.' 'Evolved?' Lucynil tilted her head as if to say, 'Summoning lightning is already an incredible ability, is there something more to evolve from there?' 'Yeah, I'm curious about that too.' We found an uninhabited island, but it was just like any other resort with a sunny beach. 'Whatever happens, let's try it now.' Rihanna scratches her head with a vague expression. 'Well, you know...before I tell you...didn't you want to try it yourself?' 'What's that?' 'No, it's just that...I'm not sure how to use it yet.' Rihanna has some awareness that her ability has evolved, but she still doesn't know how to use it properly. 'Something...I feel like I can do something, but it doesn't seem to work at all...it's a really strange feeling.' The origin and effects of superpowers are unknown even to the superpower holders themselves. So Rihanna was in a state where she felt like she could do something, but couldn't grasp it at all. Lucynil is also a great wizard, but knows nothing about superpowers, so she just tilts her head. Eventually, Rihanna struggled for a long time and struck lightning on the sea. She seemed to want to summon something other than lightning, but no matter how hard she tried, there was no sign of anything other than lightning appearing. But when lightning struck the sea, it didn't cause any major problems, but what if a mermaid was electrocuted while sticking her head out? There is always a chance. In the end, the three of us, including Rihanna, sat on the beach. 'Was it just a delusion?' Rihanna began to seriously wonder if she was a mental patient who believed she could cause weather changes. Lucynil was naturally clueless. 'But when you were able to summon lightning...' 'Oh, yeah...yeah.'" Translation: Rihanna was able to summon lightning after her father's death. If she really awakened a new ability, it would be a new power triggered by some emotional state. Lucynil suggests that if superpowers respond to emotions, then Rihanna should try to recreate the emotional state she was in when she summoned the lightning. However, Rihanna is hesitant to purposely put herself in a negative mental state. She feels like she was already in a depressed state and doesn't want to worsen it. After some time, Rihanna asks for help, but she doesn't understand what the speaker is asking for. The speaker clarifies that they want to help Rihanna and their words are not sincere. Rihanna breaks down.