Chapter 52

Runan watched Laon, who was tidying up the training ground, fidgeting with his hands.

'It was tough.'

Even after listening to Laon's advice, he couldn't bring himself to stab the orc. Even knowing it wasn't human but a monster, his hand wouldn't move.

'I felt like I was going to vomit.'

Every time he stepped on the blood-soaked floor, his limbs trembled as if his brother was watching, and his stomach churned.

Unable to attack directly, he could only keep emitting frost, which drained his aura severely.

He knew people were shouting and yelling around him, but he couldn't hear them.

His vision gradually filled with darkness. Not just his hearing, but his sight also turned dark, leaving him unsure of what to do, barely managing to hold on.

Runan!

Laon's clear voice pierced through the darkness that enveloped him.

Even as the orc charged at him, he immediately turned to look at Laon.

When their eyes met, the chaotic emotions and sensations that had been overwhelming him like waves calmed down, as if nothing had ever happened.

Hearing Laon say, "It's okay," the darkness that had filled his vision completely disappeared, and the memory of his brother that had been haunting him became hazy.

Yes, it's okay. As he muttered these words, the heavy feeling in his arms, as if they were weighed down by lead, began to move freely.

Just as the orc was about to bring down its axe, he released a condensed burst of energy.

The axe handle was severed, and the orc's heart exploded, but he wasn't afraid anymore.

The orc's blood splattered onto the back of his hand. As Laon had said, nothing happened when the blood touched him.

Kyaah!

At that moment, a sound like a thick chain being crushed enveloped his entire body.

The face of his brother, which had been obscured by blood and shadows, completely disappeared. It felt as if the world, which had been dark, was now filled with light again.

"Rip up the training ground floor and move it to the right warehouse! Be careful when you carry it, we'll need it again! Ah, where did that scoundrel instructor run off to without cleaning up?"

He lifted his head at the sound of Baren's voice from the front. Baren was giving instructions to the collateral trainees and tidying up the training ground.

'He's changed.'

He had met Baren frequently since they were young. Baren was always arrogant and self-centered, so he never paid him any attention, but now he couldn't find a trace of arrogance in him.

It wasn't Baren himself who brought about this change, but Laon. After losing to Laon, he had become a disciplined knight like this.

'I'm the same.'

Thanks to meeting Laon, his heart, which had been locked away, opened up, and he could build relationships with people again.

Every day was a joyful time, and today marked the peak of this change.

Thanks to Laon's advice and reassurance, he no longer heard his brother's voice or saw his shadow.

It felt as if something that had been stuck in his head had finally been removed, leaving him feeling free.

Runan nodded at Laon.

'I need to thank him. Really, I need to thank him.'

It was time to express his gratitude, as his mother had taught him.

* * *

The Grand Hall, shrouded in darkness. Jake, wearing a tattered robe, knelt down.

"I, I failed."

He bowed his head, his voice trembling.

"Failed? Was Rimer involved?"

Karun frowned and looked down at the kneeling Jake.

"No, no."

Jake's condition was abnormal. His eyes were dull, as if his soul had left, and his jaw was slack, drooling.

"Then how did you fail?"

"Laon Zighart cut down the orc, which had been enhanced with all kinds of magic and made berserk, with a single strike."

"Words are just words. Are you telling me to believe that now?"

Karun's voice sounded like a growl.

"It's true! The flames that burst from his sword cleanly severed the orc's neck!"

"Flames?"

"Yes! The orc couldn't do anything against the golden flames that glowed in the sunset. Moreover…"

Driven by the desire to survive, Jake recounted everything he had seen at the 5th training ground.

"Rimer knew all our thoughts. He warned me that if I harmed the trainees, he would kill me."

He told Karun about Rimer's warning, sensing his interest.

"Indeed, it was because of him."

Karun snorted and smiled.

'Even a rotten eel has its uses.'

The balance of Rimer's body and mind, which he had met before, was broken. He was so lazy and unpredictable that Karun thought he wouldn't notice any tricks, but it seems he was wrong.

"Will it be okay? Rimer even mentioned your name…"

"It doesn't matter. That insect can't do anything."

Karun waved his hand. In the past, Rimer might have been a threat, but now he was just a weed that couldn't affect anything.

"Go back. I'll call you again later."

"Yes, I understand. I'm sorry."

Jake bowed repeatedly and left the room.

"If he could cut the orc and its weapon with a single strike, it wouldn't be strange to assume he has mastered an advanced training method."

"The information from the spy we had before also mentioned that he caused a very strong mana fluctuation."

"Is that the spy in the annex?"

"Yes."

"He's useful."

"There wasn't a single piece of incorrect information in what she brought."

Karun's butler answered, closing his eyes.

"Give her a bit more support. Investigate Rimer's movements from now on. And…"

Karun finished speaking, looking at the door Jake had left through and drawing a line across his throat with his finger.

"Take care of him. He's quick to talk and has already been influenced by Rimer's aura."

"Yes."

The butler nodded and disappeared like smoke.

"Laon Zighart and Rimer."

From his position, they were just dust that needed to be kept in check, but for some reason, they kept getting in his way.

"It would be best to deal with both of them at once."

Karun's cold gaze made the atmosphere in the Grand Hall heavy.

* * *

Marta leaned against a tree at the edge of the training ground. Her gaze was fixed on Laon, who was tidying up the training ground.

Tsk.

She clicked her tongue and frowned. No matter how she thought about it, she couldn't understand.

'What is he, really?'

How could he wield his sword so decisively?

She knew today's training involved killing a monster, one that looked like a human. She had clenched her fists, thinking she could show a better performance than Laon Zighart this time.

As expected, Baren and the other trainees couldn't properly strike the monster. They only managed to kill it with Rimer's or the instructor's help.

But Marta was different.

The moment the monster showed a weakness, she plunged her sword into its neck without a moment's hesitation.

It was only natural that she was different from others.

'I've done it before.'

Before coming to Zighart.

When she infiltrated the White Blood Sect alone to find her mother, she had stabbed the guards with her sword.

Thanks to that experience, striking a monster that looked like a human was not a difficult task.

'But how did he…'

Laon was different from her.

He was born behind a safe wall and grew up as a pampered young master because of his weak body.

A boy who grew up like a flower in a greenhouse, yet he cut the orc's neck, which looked like a human, without hesitation, and did it faster and stronger than she did.

Honestly, it was so beautiful that she was momentarily stunned.

'I couldn't believe it.'

Even now, she wasn't sure if what she saw with her own eyes was real.

"Damn…"

Marta punched the tree she was leaning against.

'I should have won this.'

She had lost to Laon in the sparring and agreed to follow his orders, but her heart hadn't surrendered.

The thought of losing in an area where she was sure to win made her teeth grind.

However, amidst this, a small resonance stirred in her heart.

It was a sense of kinship. The feeling that she and Laon might have something in common.

It seemed that Laon wasn't just a pampered child as she had thought. There must have been a reason for him to have such a ruthless mindset.

"Hmm?"

While thinking about Laon's past, their eyes met.

"Hmph."

Marta looked at Laon's calm eyes and turned her head, snorting. She then left the training ground.

Her stiff gait became a bit softer, though she didn't realize it.

* * *

As Laon finished tidying up the training ground and was about to head to the indoor training room, Runan approached him.

"Laon."

She bowed her head, her purple eyes shining.

"Thank you."

"It's nothing."

He shook his head. While he did help, the main role was played by her. It wasn't enough to warrant her gratitude.

"Still, thank you."

"It's not that big of a deal."

"Thank you."

"Really, it's nothing…"

"Thank you."

"Fine, I get it."

"Okay."

She nodded, as if conceding defeat. Runan then looked at Laon's eyes and hands, checking if she was okay. The mind control from Syria seemed to be lifted, but he asked just in case.

"Are you okay?"

Runan smiled faintly. A smile without a wrinkle. It seemed to be going well for now.

"If your brother causes you trouble again, let me know. I'll help if I can."

"I'm okay."

Runan nodded but then shook her head.

"I need to do it myself."

Her eyes sparkled. It seemed her wounded heart was healing and becoming stronger.

"Okay."

Laon smiled. Runan thanked him again and left the training ground.

-You're not going to help the ice cream girl?

'She said she'll do it herself. I don't usually get involved in other people's family matters.'

-Hmm, but from my perspective, the ice cream girl can't handle it alone.

'If she asks for help, she will. If she doesn't…'

Laon nodded. A red light flashed in his deeply set eyes.

'I have a way to handle it.'

* * *

Runan returned to her dorm and placed the squirrel figurine she received from Laon on the table.

"Hmm."

After a moment of thought, she took out the ice cream box she had hidden under her bed. It wasn't from her brother, but ice cream her mother had bought.

Whoosh.

When she opened the lid, a cold chill flowed out, refreshing her tired face from training.

She thought she wouldn't be able to eat ice cream anymore. Just looking at it would remind her of her brother.

But Laon had erased the shadow of her brother that had been binding her mind and heart.

Her brother was no longer scary, and ice cream was no longer hateful.

'No.'

Runan closed the lid without touching the ice cream.

'I'll eat it tomorrow.'

She decided to eat it with Laon the next day and pushed the ice cream box back under the bed.

Runan smiled faintly at the red-eyed squirrel on the table.

* * *

Laon returned to his dorm after finishing the training ground cleanup, as Rimer had disappeared somewhere.

Whoosh!

As he was taking off his sweat-soaked training clothes, the quiet Lars suddenly appeared.

-I didn't say anything earlier.

Lars emitted a cold flame and glared at Laon.

-You've killed a human.

"What?"

-You don't have the ability to break the illusion of that mediocre mage. Even though you knew it was an orc, it looked like a human. Cutting it down decisively is not something an inexperienced kid can do.

"It was easy."

Laon waved his hand to push Lars, who had approached, away.

-What?

"Because my sensory stats are high, I could feel that it wasn't human. Cutting down a monster isn't difficult."

-Sensory?

"Yes. Magic can deceive the appearance, but not the aura."

-Grr, sensory…

Lars groaned, completely fooled by Laon's calm act.

'I can't tell him about my past life or the Ring of Fire.'

Even a clearly hostile Lars can't be given any small piece of information.

-Even if that's true, not hesitating to kill is strange. What are you, really? How can you have such mental strength at your age?

Lars muttered, seemingly more amazed by Laon's strong mental fortitude than his abnormal physical strength.

"What do you want to know for?"

-Grr, there's not a single thing about you that I like.

"I'm not here to please you."

Laon flicked his finger at Lars.

"You're cold every time you talk. Shut up and give me my bet reward."

-This is a scam. I didn't know you were such a ruthless person.

"I didn't suggest the bet first. You did. A king is becoming a nuisance again."

-Nuisance….

Lars's voice trembled as if he had just heard the word "nuisance" for the first time.

"Is this your third win? A demon lord is nothing special."

-Be quiet! If only I had the power of my true form….

"Your true form, true form. When are you going to find it? And this has nothing to do with your true form abilities."

-Grr….

Lars's blue coldness surged, and he made a sound like he was foaming at the mouth, seemingly unable to recover from the shock of losing and being mocked.

-This is a scam. A scam!

As the boy made his final protest, a message appeared before his eyes.

[You have won the bet against <Wrath>.]

[All your stats increase by 2 points.]

[You have achieved your third victory against <Wrath>.]

[Your consecutive wins grant additional stat increases.]

[Strength increases by 1 point.]

[Agility increases by 1 point.]

[Stamina increases by 1 point.]

"Huh!"

Laon let out a hollow laugh. The sensation of his muscles surging as his strength and agility increased simultaneously filled him with exhilaration.

-Three times to a human….

Lars muttered, freezing the message with his coldness.

"There's still more."

-Grr!

Laon pushed the annoying Lars aside and waited for the next message to appear.

[As the second reward for the bet, a special ability of <Wrath> is created.]

[The special ability has been determined.]

[You have gained the special ability <Bleeding Curse>.]