Chapter 70

Swoosh!

Raon cut the throat of the goblin that was about to throw a poisoned dart at the guide. He then split the kobold that charged at him with a club.

“T-Thank you.”

He nodded at Kanbar’s gratitude and spread his senses even more finely.

‘This time, it’s from the east.’

The gaze that observed all the trainees was felt from the east this time. It seemed to have moved from the west to the east.

‘Now I understand. Where I felt that gaze before.’

Raon wiped the blood off his sword and tightly closed his lips.

‘It was Eden.’

Eden, one of the pillars of darkness known as Oma on the continent, is a group of madmen who vie for the top spot in terms of insanity among the many forces in the world.

Their goal is restoration (還元).

They view the era a thousand years ago, when humans were hunted by monsters and shunned by other races, as a paradise and wish to return to that time to revive the god of monsters.

Eden is indeed a group of madmen, but unfortunately, they are not all insane. They possess formidable military power that rivals Zighart’s.

They handle monsters like tamers and also use the abilities of monsters while in human form.

The method of handling such bizarre powers is a secret that even the noble families of the continent do not know.

‘However…’

Raon knew Eden’s secret.

‘Thanks to Delus Robert.’

Due to the task of stealing magic stones given by Delus, he clashed with Eden, and 90 members of the Shadow 10th Squad were wiped out. He was the only one to survive that hell.

‘But how did he know about it?’

Thinking about it now, the Delus guy knew from the beginning that Eden used the magic stones of monsters.

I don’t know how he knew that or why he didn’t reveal the fact.

-You. What are you thinking about? I can feel deep and intense anger.

Ras rose up from the bracelet, emitting a thick cold.

“Hmm…”

Raon frowned. When he thought about Delus Robert, he wasn’t sure if it was fortunate or not that his anger boiled up.

“Sigh…”

He let out a sigh to release his anger and sensed the gaze that was still being cast at him.

‘They are probably looking for the goblin king’s magic stone.’

According to Kanbar, there should be a magic stone formed after the goblin king died in this mountain.

There are various types of magic stones, but Eden is only looking for the magic stones of named-level monsters.

‘Now I understand why the monsters are just standing there.’

Eden is letting the monsters go so that he and the trainees can return quickly.

‘They don’t intend to attack us.’

Eden seems to be trying to avoid revealing their identity, either to avoid Zighart’s gaze or to prepare for any instructors or knights who might follow us.

‘Given how much they are doing, it seems to be an important item.’

The magic stone of the goblin king buried here is definitely a very important item for Eden.

‘For now…’

Raon narrowed his eyes as he cut the neck of an orc approaching him.

‘I have no choice but to just go.’

If he touches the magic stone in this mountain, the Eden members nearby will swarm like bees.

Even if he survives, the trainees and the villagers will all die, so he shouldn’t do something as foolish as disturbing a beehive.

The best course of action here is to pretend not to know and just kill the monsters and return.

“Monsters are running away! Chase them to the end!”

Baren’s powerful voice made him look up.

“Let’s go. It will be over soon.”

Raon gave a fake smile to the now calm Kanbar. A slight bitterness rose to the tip of his tongue, as if he had chewed on a tree root.

* * *

The monster extermination that began at dawn proceeded smoothly, and they reached the top of the mountain before sunset.

“Keeek!”

At the call of the orc shaman who had taken a position at the top of the mountain, orcs, kobolds, and goblins charged. It was as if a green swarm of bees was rushing at them.

“This is the last one!”

Baren raised his blood-soaked sword to the sky.

“A cornered rat will bite a cat. Don’t let your guard down and fight to the end!”

“Roar!”

Baren, enveloped in green aura, charged forward, and the trainees roared and kicked the ground.

“Huff!”

Raon, with Kanbar behind him, charged forward and cut the monsters. He moved in a way that his sword skills were no different from the other trainees by lowering his proficiency.

‘Keep watching.’

Now he knew the identity of the gaze. It was an Eden scout called the ‘Red-Eyed Demon,’ a monster called ‘Search Eye’ with the ability to scout, which has only eyeballs the size of a sparrow.

“Not much left!”

Baren cut through the flames spewed by the orc shaman and shouted. As he charged at the orc shaman, a giant sword fell from the sky.

Boom!

A heavy explosion and dust spread as if the mountain was shaking.

Huff.

When the dust cleared, the orc shaman was impaled, and Marta stood with her sword planted in the ground.

“Mine, right?”

“Tsk.”

Baren frowned but quickly assessed the situation and turned around.

“The orc shaman is dead! Only the small fry are left, so finish them off properly!”

“Wooaaah!”

The trainees, filled with the expectation of successfully completing their first battle, drew all their remaining aura and swung their swords.

Swoosh!

Raon easily cut the orcs around him and returned to Kanbar’s side. He cast a barrier so that no one could hear and called him.

“About the story of the goblin king earlier.”

“Oh, yes.”

Kanbar bowed and answered.

“Has there ever been a gem or treasure found in the mountain after the goblin king was killed?”

“Oh, that….”

Kanbar hesitated and didn’t answer immediately.

“It was found.”

“Yes, that’s right. I shouldn’t deceive my benefactor. When I was young, the village chief found a red gem at the top of the mountain.”

“Where is it now?”

“It’s buried in the village chief’s house. After that, the village became warmer. Most people don’t know about it.”

“Such….”

Raon bit his lip.

‘This changes everything…’

If Eden doesn’t find the gem here and realizes it’s in the village, they will definitely attack Subu Village. Those madmen don’t have much patience.

“We won!”

“First mission completed!”

“Wooaaah!”

The trainees, who had taken the top of the mountain and cut down the monsters, shouted in triumph.

“Hmm!”

Baren, with his sword in hand, looked at him. His expression indicated that he had successfully completed the role you gave him.

“…”

Raon narrowed his eyes without responding to Baren’s gaze. His mind was too complicated.

“Yaaah!”

Baren, thinking it was an acknowledgment, shouted louder than anyone else.

Lunan also nodded slightly, seemingly pleased with the victory.

“It’s noisy.”

Marta, as if it was nothing, scratched her ear and looked at him.

Raon, looking at the cheering trainees, looked down at Subu Village. Seeing the smoke rising from the colorful roofs made his heart even heavier.

‘If they realize the magic stone is in the village, not this mountain…’

The village will be left in ruins.

* * *

As soon as they returned to the village, a festival began.

The villagers, relieved that they wouldn’t have to worry about monsters for a while, had smiles on their faces.

“Thank you for your hard work.”

“Thank you!”

The village chief and the villagers bowed to each trainee, expressing their gratitude.

“It’s just our duty.”

Baren smiled and waved his hand. His face was as bright as if a magic lamp had been turned on, thanks to the perfect completion of the mission without any casualties.

“Thank you for your efforts for the village.”

The village chief also bowed to Raon, who was behind him.

“This young man said that the knight was really amazing. Thank you for protecting him.”

“To be honest, I was a bit doubtful at first, but he really has amazing sword skills.”

The village chief pointed to Kanbar and smiled. Kanbar also smiled.

“No, it’s nothing.”

Raon smiled calmly. The village chief and Kanbar said thank you again and went to greet the other trainees.

“Sigh…”

Seeing their gazes, his chest felt heavy. He wanted to tell them, but the whole village was being watched. One wrong move, and they could all be wiped out.

“Not feeling well?”

Lunan, sitting next to him, tilted her head.

“Want some ice cream?”

She tried to take out the square box she had hidden in her arms.

“No.”

Raon smiled and shook his head.

“Okay.”

Lunan, with a somewhat disappointed look, put the box back. She probably wanted to share the joy of eating ice cream together.

Her thought was so cute that he couldn’t help but laugh.

-What are you doing! Why are you missing the chance to eat ice cream!

‘That’s not important right now.’

-Ice cream is more important than anything! Call the girl right now!

‘Oh, come on.’

Raon forced the overly excited Ras back into the bracelet.

“So.”

He looked up at a voice from the tree. Marta was looking down, holding an apple.

“Did things go as you thought? I don’t know what you wanted.”

“I’m not sure either.”

Raon shook his head. Now was not the time to talk, nor did he have anything to say.

“Don’t worry. No matter what happens, I’ll follow your instructions until the mission is over.”

Marta met his eyes once and then went down.

“Move!”

She took the center of the table where the food was being set up. It was a typical move for her.

“Let’s go.”

Raon stood up and nodded to Lunan.

“Okay.”

Lunan bowed and walked to the table.

The table was filled with delicious and varied dishes, as if the villagers had gone to great lengths to prepare them.

“The food prepared for you is still plentiful. Please enjoy it!”

“Thank you!”

“Enjoy!”

The trainees, responding to the cheers of the village chief and the villagers, raised their hands and started eating.

Sigh-

Raon let out a small sigh. The laughter of the people and the smell of the food felt uncomfortable.

‘Tomorrow is important.’

* * *

The next morning.

Baren led the trainees out of Subu Village. The villagers followed them for over 20 minutes, waving their hands.

‘It seems to have gone well.’

Baren smiled as he climbed the hill where the village could be seen.

‘It was perfect.’

They had perfectly dealt with the monsters in Subu Mountain, with no deaths or serious injuries. With only a few minor injuries, it could be considered a perfect mission for a first time.

He glanced back.

Raon was walking with a deep, thoughtful look, his eyes on the ground. He didn’t ask for command again and quietly followed behind.

‘Of course.’

His command was flawless. The only flaw was Marta cutting the orc shaman’s head at the end, but it was a perfect operation.

‘I don’t know what he was trying to see, but he must be satisfied.’

Raon, who had been given command to show a Zighart-like appearance, wouldn’t complain no matter what he wanted.

“Speed up!”

Baren and the trainees, filled with a sense of satisfaction, walked north toward Zighart’s territory.

After walking for over 5 hours, when the sun was slightly lower in the sky, the quiet Raon Zighart stepped forward.

“Everyone, stop.”

“What….”

Baren closed his mouth the moment he saw Raon’s eyes. The blood-red eyes made it hard to breathe.

“The real mission starts now.”