Chapter 776

Gluttony?

Raon's jaw dropped as he looked at the white-haired boy with ruby-red eyes.
That bunny-like kid... was Gluttony—the Gluttony Monarch he had met before.

Why is that guy here...?

He couldn’t wrap his head around it.
Gluttony, who was usually obsessed with finding ice cream, had suddenly appeared in the middle of this chaos.

"Stay back. That one is dangerous."

Glenn stood in front of Gluttony to protect himself and the others.

"Wrath. I've run out of shiny things..."

Gluttony lowered his head like a child who had dropped his candy, murmuring that he had no more gold coins.

"Shiny things...?"
Glenn frowned, unable to comprehend why someone with a presence stronger than most Transcendent Warriors of the Five Demons was acting like a sulking child.

"Ah..."
Raon let out a sigh as he looked at Gluttony.

He must’ve run out of money to buy ice cream.

He remembered giving Gluttony a pile of gold coins the last time they parted—telling him to come back when he ran out.
Apparently… that time had come.

Of all the times to come… huh?

Just as Raon was about to ignore Gluttony and resume transferring aura to the fallen Edgar, a spark of realization flashed through his mind.

If it’s Gluttony… maybe…?

Right now, Edgar was dying—having absorbed the aura of death from Sylvia and Rector, and transferring his own life force to save them.
Raon suddenly had a thought.
Maybe Gluttony’s <Gluttony> ability could devour the death aura Edgar had absorbed...

"If you don't want to die, stay back."
Glenn radiated a chilling killing intent, as if he were seriously considering striking Gluttony down.

[He's not an enemy!]
Raon urgently sent an aura message to Glenn, who was bearing down on Gluttony.

[Please trust me and wait—just for now!]

"Mmm..."
Though Glenn didn’t hide the suspicion in his eyes, he took a step back—choosing to trust Raon for now.

"Gluttony, come here."
Raon called out, mimicking Wrath’s tone.

"Okay..."
Gluttony hopped over like a rabbit.
Perhaps remembering how he'd once been tricked and had his power drained, he now fully believed that Raon was Wrath.

"Can you save this human?"

Raon pointed at Edgar, who was unconscious and slowly turning into black smoke.

"Mmm..."
Gluttony licked his lips briefly as he stared at Edgar.

"He ate death. It tastes bad..."
He shook his head, as if baffled why someone would willingly consume the aura of death.

"So, can you save him or not?"

"It's difficult..."
Gluttony slowly lowered his gaze.

"I can eat death… but his life force is already gone."
He shook his head, saying that even he couldn’t bring a dead human back.

"What if I use my life force?"
Raon pointed at himself.

"You're weak right now..."
Gluttony lowered his hand, his voice uncertain.

"It's okay. This king will never die."

Raon shook his head calmly.
His life force—bolstered by the Ring of Fire—had reached the level of a Transcendent Warrior.
Even if his body and mind were exhausted, he believed he could endure it.

"Eh?"
Glenn's eyes widened slightly in surprise, clearly caught off guard by Raon referring to himself as this king.

"Still, it’s not possible..."
Gluttony shook his head, saying there wasn’t enough life force.

"Will you really be able to save him?"
Glenn stepped closer from behind Gluttony, giving him a cold, scrutinizing gaze.

"If life force can be transferred… then there’s a possibility..."

Gluttony blinked, saying there was a possibility of saving him, although he couldn't be sure.

"Then I'll add my life force too."
Glenn stepped forward and said that he would join too.

[Head of House!]
Raon quickly shook his head, telling Glenn not to do it through an aura message.

[Don't worry. I just have a few words I want to share with the bastard who took my daughter.]
Glenn waved his hand slightly, telling Raon to focus on himself first.

"You're strong, so you’ll be fine. But you’re old, so you’ll suffer a little..."
Gluttony nodded bluntly, casually stating that Glenn was old.

"Then let’s begin."
Knowing he couldn’t stop Glenn, Raon gave the order for Gluttony to start immediately.

“Okay, but I need money...”

Gluttony twisted his hands, saying he needed money.

"Understood. If you save this human, I’ll give you enough money to buy all the bead ice cream you want."
Raon nodded and promised to give him even more gold coins than before.

"Okay!"
Gluttony nodded enthusiastically. It was the first clear response he had given since he arrived here.

–Bead ice cream?

However, Gluttony wasn’t the only one who reacted to the words bead ice cream.
Wrath, who had been napping inside the Ice Flower Bracelet, suddenly burst out.

–Where is the bead ice cream?! Who dares to…? Eh? Why is that glutton here? Cough!

Wrath’s eyes widened in shock as he spotted Gluttony—right after licking his lips in anticipation.

"I'm starting right now."

Gluttony extended his hand and placed it on Edgar’s forehead.
From his palm, black lips sprouted and began to suck out the aura of death that was turning Edgar into dust.

"It tastes bad..."
Gluttony furrowed his brows slightly, as if bead ice cream had spoiled his taste for anything else.

But it was clear—he was devouring the demonic energy.
The disintegration of Edgar’s body, which had been scattering into dust, halted.

"I can’t believe it’s actually disappearing..."
Glenn’s eyes widened, clearly stunned by Gluttony’s power.

–D-Don’t tell me that skeleton man is absorbing the demonic energy that killed Mother and the old man?

Wrath’s eyes widened, as if he had instantly grasped the situation.

Yes. He tried to take it all on himself.

Raon nodded heavily.

–How crazy...

Wrath sighed, staring at Edgar, whose eyelids were now trembling.

–Not only his body… he must’ve felt pain as if his soul was being torn apart. How did he endure it?

He frowned deeply, unable to comprehend it.

–It seems he really is your father after all.

Yes...
Raon bit his lip as he held Edgar’s hand, which was trembling more and more.

–To think Gluttony could actually be useful... I’ve lived long enough to see it all.

Wrath shook his head as he watched Gluttony devour the aura of death.

I was lucky to have established a relationship with him.

–Relationship? That’s fraud! And a fraud using this king! Cough!

He shouted in protest, baffled that Gluttony still didn’t recognize him.

Well, all’s well that ends well, right?

–It’s not going well for this king! Cough!

Wrath let out another dry cough, as if he had overexerted himself again.
Now that Raon looked at him closely, his complexion seemed unusually pale.

You…

"A lot of the death has been removed. Now we have to add the life force."

Just as Raon was about to ask about Wrath’s condition, Gluttony tilted his chin and spoke matter-of-factly—it was time to begin.

"Understood."
Raon exhaled lightly and placed his hand on Edgar’s chest.

"Let’s begin."
After locking eyes with Glenn, he began to transfer his life force into Edgar’s body.

Ugh...
The moment he began pouring out his life force, a sharp headache and cold chills attacked him—but he endured it, biting down on his tongue.

"Nothing is ever easy..."

Life force was different from aura.
It was the energy every being was born with, and unlike aura, once it was used, it took a long time to recover—or might never recover at all.

Even though his own life force was more abundant than anyone else’s thanks to the Ring of Fire, just extracting it in his current state—after countless battles—brought unbearable pain.

"Are you alright?"
Glenn’s face showed concern, his brow furrowed with worry, even as sweat dripped down his own face.

[Yes, I can endure it.]

As Raon forced a smile while enduring the pain that made him feel like he was going to faint, a clear sword chant emerged from his waist.

It was the Blade of Requiem.
The blade vibrated intensely, as if urging him to grab it.

Why suddenly...?

When Raon extended his left hand and drew the Blade of Requiem, a blue-tinged life force surged from the crimson blade.

This is...

He immediately recognized the energy.

It was the Soul-Cutting Orb—the cursed artifact imbued with the blood and resentment of the dying children, which he had obtained after capturing the Phantom King in the underground cavern where Derus had been raising them.

That ominous power had been purified by the Blade of Requiem and transformed into life force.

The Blade of Requiem rang out with another clear resonance, as if urging him to use the purified life force to save Edgar.

...Thank you.

Raon injected the life force provided by the Blade of Requiem into Edgar’s body.
Since it was an even purer energy than his own, the black veins that had risen across Edgar’s face gradually began to subside.

–This king will help too! Cough!

Wrath placed his hand on Raon’s shoulder, coughing violently but insisting he would help.

What? Why are you…?

–Didn’t this human save my mother? I must pay him back for that! Cough!

He gave a short nod and began transferring his life force—an action that carried genuine gratitude for Sylvia.
Wrath was clearly exhausted, but the sheer scale of his soul was so vast that Edgar’s condition improved even faster.

–Cough! Cough!

Enough!

–This king is the Monarch of Devildom. Debts must always be repaid!

Wrath, as always, remembered only what he had received—not what he had given.
Though he could be petty when it came to food, the size of his heart was larger than anyone else's.

"Hm? Has the energy returned...?"
Gluttony tilted his head, as if he had sensed Wrath’s life force.

"This king has always been strong."
Raon spoke the line with conviction—something Wrath himself would absolutely say—
and continued pouring out his life force.

–That’s a line I like!

Wrath nodded slightly, as if giving his seal of approval.

At that moment—when two people, a Demon King, and finally, a blade—were united by a single will,
the death energy that had shrouded Edgar’s entire body disappeared.

A soft, colorless radiance spread outward.

"It’s done..."
Gluttony clapped softly as he looked at Edgar, whose skin had turned pale but no longer lifeless.

"You can stop now. He can survive on his own life force from here..."
He blinked, eyes widening slightly, as if surprised by his own achievement.

"Ah..."
Raon’s lips trembled as he kept his hand on Edgar’s chest.

"He… really survived..."

Indeed.
Edgar had regained his breath, which had completely stopped.
Though he still struggled to breathe, he was now doing so on his own.

Raon’s legs gave out beneath him, and he collapsed to the ground.

Mom… he survived.

He bit his lip as he looked at Sylvia.
Joy threatened to overflow—he wanted to cry from the sheer relief of not having to deliver another tragedy.
But he held it back, staying in character… because he was still pretending to be Wrath.

"Remarkable."
Glenn let out a sigh, as if he genuinely hadn’t expected Edgar to survive.

"I always thought Demon Kings only descended upon the continent to massacre humans—not to save them."
He looked at Gluttony with calm, reflective eyes, as if his long-held beliefs about Demon Kings had just been overturned.

"What’s the point of massacring humans...?"
Gluttony shook his head.
"Humans don’t even taste that good."

"And you’re incredible too... It’s been a long time since I’ve seen a human this strong..."
His eyes narrowed, glinting with intrigue as he looked at Glenn.

"I thought I was seeing Wrath... or maybe even Pride..."

–What nonsense! How dare you compare me! This king is definitely stronger...Stronger...?

Wrath couldn’t confidently claim that he’d definitely win—so he added a hesitant question mark to stronger.
Seeing him joke like that, Raon finally felt a bit of relief settle in.

"Then..."
Gluttony approached Raon with expectant, sparkling eyes and held out his small hand.

"Give me shiny things..."

"Ah, right."
Raon smiled faintly as he opened his subspace bag.
He pulled out a pile of gold coins—even larger than last time—and placed them in front of Gluttony.

"Hehe!"
Gluttony hugged the pile of gold coins tightly, grinning as if he'd just reunited with a long-lost love.

Hm? Wait a minute...
Raon’s mouth formed a perfect circle as he stared at Gluttony, who was gleefully hugging the pile of gold coins.

He’s a Demon King.

It was all so absurd when he thought about it.
A Demon King who ran out of money, traveled all the way to the edge of the continent, saved Edgar at his request… and was now smiling like a child over a mountain of gold coins.

–Urgh!

Wrath’s fists trembled.

–This is a disgrace to Demon Kings! To be domesticated by a mere human!

He shook his head violently, as if he were ashamed on Gluttony’s behalf.

...I don’t think he’s the only one.

Raon clicked his tongue softly and approached Gluttony, who was happily putting gold coins into his mouth.

"Gluttony. You haven’t killed anyone, have you?"

"If I kill them, I can’t eat bead ice cream.
They make new flavors every month, so I can’t kill them."

Gluttony shook his head firmly, adding that there were plenty of other delicious things out there too.

–I see you understand it well.

It really did seem like Raon had trained him—just as Wrath had claimed.

–New flavors every month? This king has never eaten anything like that!

Wrath lunged forward and grabbed Gluttony by the neck.

–Cough! Bring them to this king right now! Cough!

As expected...

Raon chuckled as he watched Wrath shouting and coughing at the same time.

There are two of them.

Though Wrath would never admit it, the truth was clear—he hadn’t domesticated just one Demon King, but two.

"Come back when you run out of money."
Raon gave Gluttony a casual wave, effectively renewing the insurance policy named Gluttony.

"Okay."
Gluttony turned and vanished without a trace, showing no lingering attachment.

"As much as I think about it… I can’t understand it."
Glenn sighed deeply, still unable to grasp why a being like Gluttony would be obsessed with something as mundane as gold coins.

"It’s a long story, so I’ll tell you later. But most importantly..."
Raon bit his lip as he looked up at Glenn.

"I’m sorry. Because of me, you could become a public enemy of the continent..."

"It’s not because of you. This is the path I chose."
Glenn smiled faintly and placed a firm hand on Raon’s shoulder.

"What’s the point of being Head of House if I don’t protect my family?"

The thing he regretted most in his life wasn’t failing to conquer the continent—
It was losing his way… falling into darkness, and destroying his family.

Now, he had made a decision.
Even if the entire continent—not just the dragons or the Five Demons—stood against Zieghart,
he would protect Raon.
He would protect all of them.

"...Thank you."

Raon bowed his head and brought his hands to his chest.
Hearing Glenn's words about protecting them filled his heart with warmth—
as if his deepest feelings had finally been acknowledged.

–Now the old man is finally saying something I like!

Wrath nodded firmly, declaring that a Head of House should protect his family.

"I’m so glad everyone survived."
Raon clasped his hands together and looked at Sylvia, Rector, and Edgar one by one.
Thinking about how a family separated for a lifetime had been reunited,
a smile naturally rose to his lips.

"It’s not everyone yet."
Merlin slowly shook her head as she stood up.

"You..."
Glenn frowned as he turned to look at Merlin.

“Ah, let this girl greet you, Grandpa.”

Merlin smiled brightly as she lifted her blood-soaked skirt.

"Gr-Grandpa...?"

Glenn froze.
It was as if he’d just heard a word he never imagined would be directed at him.

“Raon, we still have the young lady.”

Merlin pointed toward the fallen Sia.

"Mmm..."
Raon bit his lip as he looked at her.

"I’m not sure about her."

Unlike Edgar, Sia had only shown the form of a Monster King—not a human.
He wasn’t sure if her soul had survived.

"I’m not sure if Sister’s soul is still alive..."

"Then we should check."

Merlin confidently pointed at herself with her thumb.

"I can do it. No—we can do it."

***

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

Thank you for reading!

[Author – Writing Ant, 글개미]

[Translator – MurimTang]

[Proofreader – Mayank]