Chapter 697

Raon finished his preparations for the duel to the death and left his room.

Seeing no one inside the annex building, he went outside and found Sylvia and the maids standing shoulder to shoulder in front of the garden.

“Sigh….”

He exhaled lightly, feeling burdened by their moist, penetrating gazes, and descended the stairs.

“Mother, please don’t worry…”

“Why do you look so down!”

As he stood before Sylvia to greet her, she raised her hand and struck his shoulder forcefully. With a thud, his black dragon coat shook slightly.

“If you’re a swordsman of Zieghart, you should at least say you’ll win and come back!”

Sylvia nodded her chin, urging him to speak quickly.

“Uh, Mom?”

Raon blinked at Sylvia. The unexpected reaction caused him to call her “Mom” without thinking.

“Madam is right! Please say you’ll crush everything, be it the Axe King or the kitchen!”

Helen, standing beside Sylvia, raised a small fist.

“Young master!”

“We want to hear from your own lips that you’ll return safely!”

"Please say it!"

The other maids also bowed their heads, asking him to say he would come back victorious.

“Please.”

Even Judiel, who usually kept her mouth shut except for necessary words, stepped forward.

“Hmm….”

Raon let out a low groan, looking at the eyes of Sylvia and the maids that seemed to be glowing like a mirage.

‘I thought it would feel like a funeral.’

But everyone seemed bright.

Whenever he went out on a dangerous mission or fought in a sword duel, Sylvia and the maids always filled the place with their tears and worries, but today, everyone’s expressions looked unexpectedly calm.

It felt as if the worries were being washed away.

“Alright.”

He straightened his shoulders, still warm from Sylvia’s touch, and looked at everyone.

“I’ll crush the South-North Union, so just prepare dinner.”

Raon raised his hand and high-fived the maids.

“Words have power.”

Sylvia smiled, holding her right arm with her left hand.

“You’ve always kept your promises. I’ll trust you again this time. Son.”

“Yes. Don’t worry.”

Raon hugged Sylvia tightly one last time and left the garden.

“Oh, Mother, about what I mentioned earlier…”

He turned back because there was something he hadn’t said yet, but Sylvia and the maids, who had been smiling kindly, now looked like frightened animals, their shoulders trembling as they clasped their hands together.

‘…As I thought.’

The smiles and laughter earlier were likely an act to avoid burdening him.

They all looked as if a touch would bring them to tears.

“I’ll be back.”

Raon bowed to Sylvia and the maids, whose eyes had turned red, and then turned his back.

‘If Wrath saw this, he would have scolded me for making Mother cry.’

He gently touched the ice flower bracelet and headed towards the main gate.

* * *

“You look good.”

As he neared the fifth training ground, Rimmer approached with a yawn, followed by the entire Light Wind division members.

“I couldn’t sleep because of someone.”

“I slept like a log.”

Raon waved his hand teasingly at Rimmer.

“Ah, suddenly I feel irritated.”

Rimmer let out a small laugh despite claiming to be irritated.

"You shouldn't be mad! It would be worse if the person fighting today didn't sleep well!"

Martha bumped Rimmer’s shoulder, frowning.

“I slept well, too.”

Runaan, stroking her transparent skin glowing under the sunlight, nodded.

“I wasn’t asking you!”

“Rakshasa woman. Narrow-minded.”

“You’re really!”

Martha and Runaan started growling at each other, pressing their foreheads together just like they did in the fifth training ground.

“Doesn’t watching that childish fight help you relax?”

Burren chuckled at Martha and Runaan.

“It feels like it creates tension instead.”

Raon smiled faintly as he looked at the division captains one by one.

“Ugh….”

Hearing a retching sound behind him, he turned to see Dorian with his tongue out, looking very anxious.

“I, I feel like I’m going to die from nervousness….”

He looked pale, as if he might collapse any moment.

“How pathetic.”

Krein clicked his tongue at Dorian. But he, too, had dark circles under his eyes from lack of sleep.

“I can’t take it anymore….”

Muttering that he couldn’t take it anymore, Dorian began stuffing round biscuits into his mouth from his belly pocket.

Oddly enough, the retching stopped as soon as he ate the biscuits.

“These are tasty.”

Runaan, who had been fighting with Martha, was now beside Dorian, munching on biscuits together.

"How about I sing a song?"

Yua grinned and moved to the front of the Light Wind members, starting to sing.

It was the military song of Habun Castle that honored the northern wind, which, when imbued with Yua’s voice, softened the rough emotions and turned into a song that awaited spring.

“Division leader.”

Mark Goetten approached quietly, bowing his head as if to say he trusted him.

Raon slowed his steps, watching Rimmer and the Light Wind swordsmen’s backs.

Seeing his comrades, who were chaotic yet oddly orderly, made the trembling in his heart subside.

"You guys are always noisy."

The Warring Steel leader Trevin approached with the Warring Steel swordsmen, laughing heartily.

“Warring Steel division leader.”

He bowed to Trevin and his subordinates, who were assigned as today's escorts.

“Please take care of us today.”

Trevin nodded, extending his fist.

“I should be the one asking that.”

Raon smiled, bumping fists with Trevin.

“What’s that? Is that how young people greet each other these days?”

With a flutter of her long robe, Sheryl descended from the sky. She, with an appearance as young as Yua, used the term "young people."

“Heavenly Blade division leader.”

Raon bowed deeply to Sheryl, who was in charge of today’s duel to the death.

"Let's do that greeting with me too."

Sheryl said she liked it, extending her fist like Trevin.

“Yes. Please take care of me.”

Raon smiled lightly, bumping fists with Sheryl.

“When it comes to young things, she can’t resist. She may look young, but her behavior is like that of an old geezer….”

“Shut up.”

Sheryl slapped Rimmer's mouth with the back of her hand.

“Ouch….”

She kicked Rimmer's trembling buttocks and stood in front of Raon again.

“You’ll win today, right?”

“Of course.”

“Good. I believe in you.”

Sheryl smiled faintly before leading the Heavenly Blade division swordsmen forward.

Raon took a deep breath, looking at the fist he had bumped with Trevin and Sheryl.

‘I think I can do it.’

Sylvia and the maids had strengthened his resolve to return victorious, Rimmer and the Light Wind swordsmen had eased his tension with their usual antics, and Sheryl and Trevin had given him a sense of reassurance that whatever he did would be fine.

He didn't feel like he would lose, no matter who came, even if it wasn't the Axe King.

“Aren’t you coming?”

Rimmer waved, urging him to hurry. Everyone else had stopped and was curiously tilting their heads.

“I’m coming.”

Raon released the tension from his fists and walked towards them.

‘I still have a lot to do in Zieghart.’

He nodded as he met their trusting gazes.

‘Today, I’ll defeat the Axe King.’

* * *

In the middle reaches of the Rable River, where rough waves rose like the open sea.

“Such a pity.”

Sheryl clicked her tongue, looking at the surging river waves.

"If we had eliminated them earlier, things would have been easier. I didn't expect the duel to death date to come so soon."

She frowned, as if irritated by the situation that posed a threat to Raon.

"Let's save the jokes for later…."

"Joke?"

"It, it wasn't a joke?"

Rimmer shook his head, cold sweat trickling down.

“Sir Roenn himself came up with an assassination plan. How is that a joke?”

Sheryl's eyes glinted coldly as she spoke seriously about the plan.

"Those, those fools are really...."

Rimmer shook his head, thinking everyone in the audience chamber was out of their minds.

“Since that's already in the past, let's move on. What do you think of the duel to death?”

Sheryl crossed her arms and gestured with her chin.

“Well….”

Rimmer sighed briefly.

“Based on the level of the Axe King we saw during the sea market auction, Raon should be able to win. However….”

He continued, looking at the turbulent river.

“If the Axe King has grown stronger in the meantime, it’ll be difficult. A Grandmaster can stay stagnant for ten years or undergo a complete transformation in a single day.”

“I think the same.”

Sheryl nodded at Rimmer.

“If he’s the same Roman I last observed, Raon can defeat him. But if he’s changed, it won’t be easy. Ultimately, it depends on the Axe King.”

She trembled slightly, as if worried.

“Not only the Shadow Agents but I also checked the Black Market, and there was no information about the current Axe King.”

The Warring Steel leader Trevin approached Sheryl and Rimmer, shaking his head.

“It seems he hasn’t moved from headquarters for the past year.”

“This is just my hunch..."

Sheryl twisted her lips, rotating her wrist.

“I think the Axe King has grown quite a bit.”

“How do you know that?”

“Look at them.”

She pointed at the warriors of the South-North Union who were already waiting, frowning.

“There’s no wavering in their eyes. It seems they don’t even consider the possibility of the Axe King losing.”

“The Axe King Roman is practically the god of the Rable River. Isn't it because of their faith in him, regardless of his strength?"

Trevin swallowed dryly, as if he didn’t want to believe it.

“That applies to the locals. Those warriors are fanatics who follow only strength. With that level of trust, the Axe King must have become stronger.”

Rimmer nodded, agreeing with Sheryl.

“But I don’t like their hostile atmosphere.”

He frowned, looking at the South-North Union warriors glaring at them.

“Five. No, six?”

Rimmer counted the strong-looking warriors of the South-North Union on his fingers.

“Six of them. Should we have brought one more?”

“No need.”

Sheryl waved lightly.

“The problem isn’t them.”

She brushed back her purple hair, carried by the wind, saying the real threat hadn’t arrived yet.

“Vice division leader.”

While the three silently watched the Rable River, Burren approached from behind.

“We’ve finished our preparations.”

“What about Raon?”

“He’s resting in the black tent.”

Burren pointed to the black tent set up at the far left.

“Well done. Just in case, scout the surroundings once more.”

“Understood.”

He nodded and moved to the riverbank with the third team.

“Raon has grown a lot, hasn’t he?”

Sheryl smiled softly, looking at the black tent where Raon was resting.

“Yes. To think that the kid who couldn’t run properly has become a Grandmaster and is about to have a duel to the death against the Axe King—it’s unimaginable.”

Rimmer nodded, chuckling.

“Thinking about it, this is also a fight between the old and new eras.”

Sheryl narrowed her eyes, looking at her own hand.

“Old and new eras?”

Trevin tilted his head, puzzled.

“Raon has overcome countless hardships, but this time it’s different.”

Sheryl clenched her fist and looked up at the sky.

“The warriors Raon has fought so far grew up under the rules of the New Era, like the Six Kings and Five Demons. But the Axe King is different.”

“Right. He’s a monster from the old era, like us, who created the era of the Six Kings and Five Demons.”

Rimmer agreed, nodding.

“There were many young warriors who gained fame, like the Twelve Stars of the Continent, but they all crumbled before the monsters of the old era. This duel to death isn’t just a battle between Zieghart and the South-North Union, it’s a clash between the old and new eras.”

The duel between Raon, the young warrior representing the new era, and the seasoned Axe King, a pillar of the old era, symbolized the confrontation between the old and new eras.

If Raon won, it would signify the dawn of a new era. If the Axe King won, it would mean the old era remained an unattainable sky.

“That’s true. There hasn’t been a single case where a senior member of the Six Kings and Five Demons has been defeated by the young….”

“They’re coming.”

As Trevin swallowed nervously, Sheryl raised her finger. A small black ship appeared at the tip of her slender finger.

Rumble!

The black ship swiftly cut through the rough waves of the Rable River, revealing its immense presence. The second warship of the South-North Union, and the Axe King's Misfortune.

“Misfortune….”

Misfortune approached the riverbank, emanating a chilling aura that lived up to its name.

"I, I'll go get Raon."

"No, there's no need for that."

Rimmer pointed to Raon, who was stepping out of the tent alone.

“What a fitting atmosphere.”

Draped in a cloak with black dragon scales, and the sword at his waist gleamed with the light of the red sun.

His blond hair fluttered in the river breeze, and his calm red eyes conveyed the nobility of a hero and the determination of a warrior.

With each step he took towards the river, a domineering aura emanated from him. His extraordinary handsomeness and supreme confidence created an overwhelming presence, as if Glenn Zieghart, known as the lightning god, had merged into his dark blue shadow.

“Somehow….”

Rimmer smirked, looking at Raon’s broad back.

“It doesn’t seem like he’ll lose.”

* * *

Even without spreading his aura perception, Raon could feel the Axe King approaching.

Standing tall at the edge of the riverbank, Raon watched as a sinister energy, capable of twisting the river, emanated from the approaching warship, the Misfortune.

Boom!

With a sound like a cannon exploding on the deck of the Misfortune, the sky darkened.

It was the Axe King. With an energy as fiery as the cold air was chilling, the Axe King Roman descended onto the river.

‘He’s changed.’

Unlike the past, when his power was uncontrollable, there wasn’t even a ripple beneath the Axe King’s feet. It meant he had perfect control over his strength.

The mere presence of the Axe King made Raon’s heartbeat pound in his ears like thunder.

“Dragon Slayer, Raon Zieghart.”

The Axe King Roman, with the Red Dragon Axe slung over his shoulder, smiled coolly, just like three years ago.

“Axe King, Roman Reycal.”

Raon relaxed his fingers as he called out the Axe King’s name.

His fiercely beating heart told him how strong his opponent had been and how much stronger he had become upon returning to this river.

“You’ve become stronger.”

Roman nodded in satisfaction.

“You can raise me to a higher place.”

The heavy energy on his axe blazed fiercely.

“Three years ago, you spared me and the Light Wind after the three-strike duel against our squad leader.”

Raon stepped onto the river, facing the Axe King, with concentric waves dancing around his feet.

“I’ll give you three strikes.”

Raon raised Heavenly Drive, performing a sword salute. He lifted his head confidently, his red eyes gleaming with a brilliance that outshone the sun's reflection on the river.

“Come.”

***

If you find any errors or have suggestions, please feel free to provide feedback.

Thank you for reading!

[Author – Writing Ant, 글개미]

[Translator – Irving]

[Proofreader – Mayank]