Chapter 9

The sky had brightened.

Raon gathered the luggage he had prepared in advance and left the annex. Sylvia and the maids were lined up in front of the garden, waiting for him.

“I’ll be back.”

Raon waved to the people looking at him with worried eyes. Sylvia's eyes moistened.

‘It’s a good thing I’m going alone.’

Only trainees could enter the training ground, which was fortunate. If Sylvia had come with him, they wouldn’t have made it to the training ground today.

“Lady Sylvia. Are you going to send Young Master off with that expression?”

“Umm….”

Helen’s light scolding made Sylvia’s stern face gradually soften.

“Raon.”

Sylvia stood in front of Raon, fidgeting with her clasped hands. Although she was still worried, she couldn’t bring herself to say the word "give up."

‘I’ve seen what kind of child this is.’

Over the past month, Raon had endured the cold emanating from the mana circuit without missing a single day of training.

He panted in pain and ran day after day. He couldn’t send such a child off with a gloomy face.

“Raon. Come back well.”

Sylvia suppressed her worried emotions and smiled.

“Yeah.”

Raon nodded vigorously and turned around. He walked in the direction of the 5th training ground.

“Will he be okay?”

“He’s much better now. If he does well, he might pass the training and come back.”

“I don’t even hope for that. I just hope he doesn’t get hurt.”

“That’s the best outcome.”

Sylvia and Helen watched Raon’s back until he was out of sight, praying that he would return safely, regardless of whether he passed the training.

* * *

The 5th training ground was enclosed by walls so high that they couldn’t be seen from the outside, forming a rectangular shape that looked like a long box.

On the right side of the entrance was an outdoor training area with finely tilled soil, and on the left was an indoor training hall with a roof.

Raon looked around the training ground and then scanned the children standing in the center.

‘There are as many as I heard.’

Even though it wasn’t time yet, over a hundred children were warming up in various parts of the training ground.

Not only the direct and collateral descendants of Sieghart, but also the descendants of the noble families and recommended students from outside, gathered here every time.

‘They said there would be more this time.’

Helen had mentioned that there were so many people this year that the 6th training ground was also being used.

Crack.

He turned his head at the sound of something breaking. A child with green hair and a round face was eating a snack from a pouch on his stomach.

“Do you want some?”

Raon, who was staring blankly, was offered another snack from the pouch.

“No, it’s fine.”

“Okay.”

He nodded and put his hand back into the pouch. This time, a square bread popped out.

While thinking it was interesting, he was about to warm up when a cold voice came from behind.

“Is that you? Look at those weak limbs. A light tap and they’d break. Can you even train?”

“If he’s sick, he’ll pretend to train and then run away. I don’t understand why he’s causing trouble.”

“I closed my eyes when I saw him argue with the head of the family. He doesn’t know his place. He thinks he’s a direct descendant.”

The collateral descendants criticized him loudly, as if to make sure everyone could hear. Many children were glaring at Raon, as if the rumor had already spread.

“What’s that bracelet for?”

“A flower-patterned bracelet?”

“He can’t even act his age.”

The collateral descendants sneered at the bracelet on his wrist, which was visible to others.

-Is that brat talking about me?

The quiet Las, who seemed to be asleep, trembled.

‘I told you to change the bracelet’s shape.’

-These scoundrels don’t even know what nobility is. What are you doing? Smash their heads right now.

Las’s voice sizzled like boiling water.

‘Why would I do that?’

-It’s not just me they’re bothering; they’re also picking a fight with you. Are you going to just stand there?

‘You don’t even know what’s happening.’

-That doesn’t matter! If they look at me directly, I’ll pluck out their eyes….

‘I’m not as crazy as you.’

It was really fortunate that he didn’t let this lunatic take control of his body.

“Hmm.”

Raon turned his head to look at the collateral descendants who had just been talking. They were momentarily taken aback but then stuck out their chins as if to say, "What are you going to do about it?"

‘In my past life, I would have ignored it.’

In his past life, he would have pretended not to hear and turned away. An assassin didn’t need to draw attention.

But in this life, he decided to live as Raon Sieghart, not as an assassin. There was no reason to ignore them.

“What did you just say?”

Raon approached the children who had been talking, his eyes cold. They looked flustered, as if they hadn’t expected him to come over.

“Huh?”

“What, what did you say….”

“Stop buzzing like mosquitoes and speak clearly.”

“Umm.”

“What, what….”

The collateral descendants looked at each other, unsure of what to do.

‘As expected.’

These children were just following what their parents did. They had no idea how to handle this situation.

“Don’t say things behind someone’s back that you can’t say to their face.”

“Shut up!”

“Living in the annex after the family’s decline, you have the nerve!”

“You’re not a direct descendant but a collateral one!”

“You’re collateral too. ‘You have the nerve’ is something you say to someone below you. You don’t have the right to say that to me.”

Raon’s voice neither rose nor fell. It was a simple, matter-of-fact tone.

“Grr!”

The three collateral descendants spread their legs and clenched their fists, as if ready to attack at any moment.

Snap.

Raon cracked his fingers. Warming up before the training started and drawing attention wasn’t a bad idea.

“You….”

“Stop!”

Just as the collateral descendants were about to attack, a voice like a frosty wind came from the right. A young man with blue hair, who looked to be in his early teens, stood there.

-What is that brat doing, interfering? Crush his head.

‘Wasn’t he called Baren?’

He was a direct descendant who showed the highest talent in the aptitude test.

“Are you going to start fighting just before the training? Do you plan to disgrace the Sieghart name in front of the outsiders?”

To their surprise, he didn’t defend the three but scolded everyone.

“B, Baren-sama!”

“I’m sorry!”

The collateral descendants who were about to attack Raon bowed their heads like mice in front of a cat at Baren’s words.

“You still don’t understand your place.”

Baren, having accepted the apologies of the collateral descendants, approached Raon.

“You’re just a speck of dust that can be swept away at any time. If you don’t want to be kicked out of the annex, live quietly like a dead mouse.”

Baren revealed his overt disdain and frowned.

‘You little rat!’

The dim-witted brat in front of him had monopolized the head of the family’s attention a month ago. And not because of his own abilities, but by taking advantage of the situation.

What he hated most was people without talent, and what he hated second most was people who didn’t know their place and were arrogant.

Raon Sieghart was both.

The mere fact that a dropout who couldn’t even train properly had caught the head of the family’s attention made him furious.

“If you don’t plan to participate in the training, get out now. No, just leave. You have no chance of passing the training.”

Baren’s criticism made the collateral descendants laugh. Just as they were about to leave with satisfied faces, Raon stepped forward.

“Your barking is really tasteless.”

Raon turned his head to the side and met Baren’s eyes with a crooked smile.

“What are you, anyway?”

“What?”

“You’re just a direct descendant with no position. Think you can kick me out of the annex? Can you do that with your status as a trainee? Oh, maybe if you go to your father, there’s a chance.”

“Collateral brat, how dare you….”

Baren’s fist was filled with green wind. As he approached with a murderous look, the training ground’s door burst open.

Bang!

A red-haired man entered, stepping over the trembling door. He had pointed ears and a non-human appearance, exuding a mysterious and lively aura.

“Already fighting? You’re young and reckless.”

He grinned and walked to the center of the training ground.

‘Was he here?’

Raon narrowed his eyes. A man so famous that he couldn’t be unknown. The elf swordsman Rimer, known as the Sieghart’s Light Sword.

‘I heard he retired….’

He had heard that Rimer had retired due to an injury in his dantian, but he didn’t expect to meet him here.

“Hmph!”

Rimer glanced at Raon and Baren before climbing up to the platform that overlooked the entire training ground.

“Hmm….”

Baren bit his lip slightly and turned around. It seemed like he was reluctantly letting it go but warning Raon to be careful in the future.

“Welcome.”

Rimer, standing at the center of the platform, smiled.

“I’m Rimer, the chief instructor who will oversee your training.”

His voice was light, more lively than frivolous, and he continued with a relaxed smile.

“There are 160 participants and 8 instructors. It’s a bit too many to teach all of you, so it’s better to reduce the number. To exactly one-fourth.”

Rimer’s relaxed smile now had a concentrated mischievousness.

“R, reduce?”

“To one-fourth?”

“What do you mean….”

The children’s faces turned pale. It was the first time they had heard of screening participants for basic training.

“To separate the wheat from the chaff, I want to train a few good swordsmen, even if it’s a small number.”

Rimer looked at the children as if selecting items and waved his finger.

“Eek, I, I was told to come….”

The green-haired child who had offered the snack dropped the bread he was holding.

“I’m a collateral descendant of Sieghart! It’s absurd to screen us before we even become trainees!”

“That’s right! We all came because our families told us to!”

“Ah, I’m ignorant, so I don’t know about direct and collateral descendants.”

Rimer frowned and scratched his ear with his pinky finger.

“In this training ground, I’m the rule. If you have complaints, take them to the head of the family who gave me authority.”

He looked like a street thug, but with his good looks, he seemed cool.

‘Screen….’

Raon scratched his chin. Rimer could sense a person’s temperament and potential. He had heard that Rimer had a remarkable talent for this and was using it to select the children.

-What is that arrogant brat?

‘What?’

-How dare he look down on me, it’s unacceptable. Rip off that elf’s ears.

‘Is there anyone you like?’

Las was angry at everything, as his name suggested. He seemed to like nothing.

-When I was in the Demon Realm, no one could look me in the eye. The true ruler revered by demons… this, this brat!

‘Shut up.’

Las’s tongue started to lengthen, and Raon tapped the bracelet.

“Then let’s start the test.”

Rimer blew the earwax off his pinky finger.

“What do you think is the most important thing in learning martial arts?”

“Talent!”

“A strong and flexible body!”

“A solid dantian!”

“Swordsmanship and aura cultivation techniques are the most important!”

The children, thinking the test had already started, raised their hands and shouted out what they thought were the most important elements.

“Talent, body, dantian,