Raon's lips trembled as he looked at his wrist held by the Sword Saint.
'W-What is this!'
He was genuinely shocked. They say when people are too surprised, they can't even speak, and that's exactly how he felt.
Who wouldn't be surprised if a corpse they were about to burn suddenly came back to life?
-Keeeeek!
Wrath, seemingly startled as well, let out a monkey-like scream and floated up into the air. It looked like cotton candy being blown by the wind.
"You're not flustered at all."
The Sword Saint nodded with satisfaction.
"This is the demeanor befitting his descendant."
"..."
It was a huge misunderstanding. Even now, his heart was pounding as if it would burst, and cold sweat was running down his spine.
If the Sword Saint's eyes were still distorted, he would have struck his neck immediately.
"D-Dangerous!"
"Step back!"
"Division Leader…!"
Burren, Martha, and Runaan came running, swallowing hard. The three drew their swords as if they were about to strike the Sword Saint.
"Oh! Is it starting again?"
"Division Leader!"
Rimmer and Mark Goetun also raised their weapons with wide eyes.
"It's okay."
Raon waved his hand at everyone while pressing down on his trembling chest.
"He's different from before."
The current Sword Saint showed none of the malice and hostility seen when first encountered. It was like looking into the eyes of a monk who had spent a lifetime in training and good deeds.
"You've read my soul, haven't you? Better than expected."
"..."
The Sword Saint was making another misunderstanding. He had merely read his disposition. However, he kept his mouth shut, thinking it would be troublesome to tell the truth.
"May I hear your name?"
"My name is Raon Zieghart."
"The more I see, the more impressed I am. I'd like to hear about your life, but we don't have time, so let's get straight to the point."
The Sword Saint let out a short sigh. He raised his calm gaze.
"The first thing I need to tell you is the identity of this place. You may not know, but originally this area was Zieghart's land."
He lowered his voice as if telling a great secret.
"I know."
Raon calmly closed and opened his eyes.
"Huh...?"
The Sword Saint opened his mouth in a round shape, as if he hadn't expected Raon to know.
"Oh, you knew?"
"Yes."
Raon nodded lightly. He knew that this place was originally Zieghart's land through the First Patriarch's memories, Delphros's actions, and the Sword Saint's corpse.
"I-If you knew that, this will go faster."
The Sword Saint awkwardly scratched his head.
"Then you probably don't know why this land was created. This is..."
"It's Zieghart's training ground, right?"
"Y-You knew that too?"
He blinked, stopping mid-sentence.
"Yes."
It was information he naturally knew from seeing the memories of the Zieghart ancestor and the data in the control room.
"I didn't know at all?"
Martha shook her head, saying she hadn't thought about it at all.
"Raon kept saying it. That this place seemed like a training ground. Of course, I didn't know it was Zieghart's land either."
Burren let out a sigh as if in disbelief.
"I knew it all along."
Runaan raised her chin proudly with her hands on her hips.
"You?"
"How?"
Burren and Martha looked at Runaan with wide eyes.
"Raon said it as soon as he got here. That this land is Zieghart's land."
Runaan nodded, referring to when Raon had declared this cavern as Zieghart's land upon arriving on the 5th floor.
"That's not it! You idiot!"
Martha shook her head in disbelief.
"If the Division Leader said the sun rises from the ground, you'd believe it!"
"Doesn't the sun originally rise from the ground?"
Runaan tilted her head.
"...Nevermind."
Martha raised her hands, admitting defeat.
"Ahem."
The Sword Saint cleared his throat, pretending not to have heard the strange conversation behind him.
"Your insight is remarkable. What an amazing mental state!"
"..."
Raon let out a short sigh as he saw the Sword Saint's eyelids trembling.
'He's misunderstanding again.'
He knew the information the Sword Saint was telling him because he had seen the First Patriarch's memories.
If it weren't for that, I would have been just as surprised as everyone else.
"However, you probably don't know this. The person who created this training ground is..."
"It would be the First Patriarch of Zieghart, right?"
"T-To have reached even that conclusion!"
The Sword Saint clapped his hands loudly with wide eyes.
"To know everything as if you've seen it directly! His true descendant is indeed different!"
"..."
It wasn't 'as if' he had seen it, he had seen it. He had actually seen the scene of this training ground being created, so the Sword Saint's words weren't wrong.
However, he stayed silent because he couldn't say that.
Raon narrowed his eyes as he looked at the Sword Saint, who seemed to be feeling both flustered and joyful at the same time.
'He gives a doormat aura….'
Unlike when fighting without reason, the Sword Saint now felt incredibly familiar.
"T-Then, did you know that I belonged to Zieghart?"
The Sword Saint now threw questions as if he had moved on to a riddle contest rather than providing information.
"No."
"As I thought, you didn't know..."
"However, I did suspect it."
"Y-You suspected it?"
"Yes."
Raon nodded calmly.
"There was almost no information left about you, Sword Saint, but I predicted it based on the respect you showed for Zieghart's First Patriarch, and the old Zieghart emblem engraved on the inside of the martial uniform you're wearing now."
"Ha, it seems your quick-wittedness surpasses even his."
The Sword Saint let out a hollow laugh as if dumbfounded. He nodded gently after collecting his thoughts for a moment.
"I belonged to Zieghart, but I wasn't part of the inner circle. I took on the role of protecting Zieghart from the outside."
"Huh..."
"T-The Sword Saint belonged to Zieghart?"
Rimmer and Burren let out a sigh as they looked at the Sword Saint.
"Well, they say Zieghart was even more powerful back then than it is now."
"I thought it was just a legend since there were no records from that time."
"The Sword Saint as an external guardian, that's insane..."
The others also gaped at hearing this secret history they had known nothing about.
"That was a path I chose for myself to repay the kindness I received from Zieghart's First Patriarch."
The Sword Saint drew a faint smile as if recalling those times.
"You say you received kindness, but weren't you and the First Patriarch active in different periods?"
"Even after stepping down from his position, the First Patriarch worked for the good of the continent. I received his help at that time."
"Ah..."
"After retiring, I came here to leave my martial arts to Zieghart one last time, but I never expected things to get so complicated. I'm truly sorry."
He bit his lip, seemingly saddened by the fact that he had attacked Zieghart's descendant with his own hands.
"It's alright."
Raon shook his head with a faint smile.
"It's not your fault, senior."
The Sword Saint was exactly the person I had thought him to be. The one at fault wasn't him, but Derus Robert who had planned all of this.
"One more thing."
The Sword Saint raised his hand with a faint smile.
"Unlike what that fellow said, I left behind two successors. Each inherited my sword and my way."
He shook his head, pointing at the lifeless Delphros.
"They were such rascals that I didn't tell them about Zieghart, but my martial arts should have been passed down. Find their descendants and make them your strength."
"I appreciate your words, but there's no way to find..."
"I'll tell you how from now on."
The Sword Saint reached out his hand towards Raon's forehead.
Raon was about to step back but met the Sword Saint's eyes. Seeing the pure gaze that seemed like dewdrops, his body naturally relaxed.
"Thank you."
The Sword Saint smiled slightly as if grateful for the understanding.
His hand touching my forehead was cold, but strangely, I could also feel warmth.
"I agonized a lot. Whether it would be good to leave my martial arts behind even after experiencing this, or if it would be better to let them die out. But seeing you, those worries fly away."
The moment his voice stopped, a heavy aura seeped into my mind.
'Aura?'
The weighty aura that the Sword Saint possessed spread throughout my body through my head. It was the aura of solid and firm earth.
The Sword Saint's disposition, which seemed impenetrable to anything, was infused within it.
However, what the Sword Saint was passing on wasn't just simple aura. The martial arts he had mastered. The Demon Soldier Swordsmanship and True Demonic Sword Technique seeped into my mind along with the aura.
The Sword Saint had been dead for a long time, and because his core was broken, there wasn't much aura left. It seemed that what he really wanted to pass on wasn't the aura, but the martial arts.
Both the True Demonic Sword Technique and Demon Soldier Swordsmanship were complex martial arts, but perhaps because I had faced the Sword Saint directly, they strangely felt familiar.
Raon slowly closed his eyelids, feeling the newly blooming flower of martial arts in his mental image.
***
The Sword Saint drew a faint smile as he looked at Raon, who had fallen into a state of enlightenment.
'What an incredible child.'
After being awakened by villains, my mind was intact, but my body was beyond my control.
Living through a hellish second life, I realized that times had changed.
Much of the information was out of sync. I feared that many secrets would be buried with the land, but it seems it was a meaningless worry.
This child named Raon Zieghart had figured out everything I hadn't told him on his own.
'The more I look, the more alike they are.'
The brilliant golden hair like melted sun, and the red fiery eyes that seemed able to burn away any malice, reminded him of his master, the First Patriarch of Zieghart.
'Of course, what resembles the most is the personality.'
Raon thought of the weak even when he himself was in danger. The act of saving people first even at his own expense was the very essence of Zieghart.
It's not that difficult for martial arts and family lineage to continue. What's truly challenging is for the original spirit to be passed down.
This child named Raon had inherited the exact spirit and heart that the First Patriarch had pledged when establishing Zieghart.
The reason for changing his mind about not passing on his martial arts through this incident was also because of Raon.
The Sword Saint smiled deeply, greatly misunderstanding the human called Raon.
'Everything is similar to the Head of House, but...'
This face is better. He is more handsome!
'Head of House. Your descendant seems to shine even brighter than you. And that...'
He nodded with satisfaction, looking without hesitation at the Light Wind division and Void Sword division guarding Raon.
'All of them.'
The Sword Saint smiled faintly, watching the golden warmth blossoming from Raon's chest.
'I think you don't need to worry anymore.'
Your flame remains here.
***
When Raon opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was the smiling Sword Saint.
"Why did you do this for me..."
The Sword Saint had suffered the tragedy of falling victim to necromancy while trying to leave his martial arts for his successors.
It wouldn't have been strange if he had just disappeared, but I never imagined he would pass on his martial arts to me.
"I felt I could trust you."
The Sword Saint nodded with a subtle smile.
"Um, I..."
"No need to say anything."
When Raon was about to say it was all a misunderstanding, the Sword Saint slowly but firmly waved his hand.
"I watched you while my soul was bound in chains."
A transparent radiance bloomed over the Sword Saint's black pupils.
"At first, I wanted to die. The thought that my small greed had caused you trouble. I wanted to die even though I was already dead. However..."
He clutched his chest painfully as if those words were sincere.
"When I saw you, I was just happy. I was moved to see you fighting without backing down before me with his martial arts and swordsmanship. I was grateful that I still had eyes to see."
The Sword Saint raised his head with a slightly lighter look in his eyes.
"The moment I saw you moving to save people even while fighting me, I clearly realized that you were his true descendant."
"..."
Unfortunately, that's also a misunderstanding. Saving people was just to ruin Derus's plan.
Normally, I wouldn't have bothered to save people who came here for their own greed.
"I'm just happy that his martial arts, sword, and spirit are being continued."
The Sword Saint stroked Raon's head while making eye contact.
"And your face is better."
"..."
He probably said it to make him laugh, but Raon didn't feel like laughing.
"Indeed, Handsome Raon."
But he almost burst out laughing at Runaan's sudden voice from behind.
"Lastly, I have something to tell you."
The Sword Saint lowered his voice while spreading an aura barrier.
"Zieghart has a true enemy."
"Enemy?"
"I thought the Head of House had destroyed them all, but their lineage still continues."
He sighed and pointed to his own eyes.
"You remember my eyes with black and white reversed, right?"
"Yes."
I was confused when I first saw it. Those eyes were like the monsters I had seen in the First Patriarch of Zieghart's memories.
"That's their characteristic. The eyes of demons."
-Why demons again! You're more evil!
Wrath shook his head, saying they were more vicious.
"What is their identity?"
"In my time they were called 'Anima', but I'm not sure what they're called now. They're the type to change names frequently."
"Anima..."
It's clearly related to Derus, but it was a name I hadn't heard when I was under him.
'It's a bitter fate among bitter fates.'
It seemed that the ill fate between Derus and me wasn't just continued from the past life.
"But... huh?"
Raon was about to speak to the Sword Saint but widened his eyes. The Sword Saint's body began to scatter into powder.
"Hmm..."
The Sword Saint smiled faintly as he looked at his own hand scattering like puzzle pieces.
"It seems my time is up."
"Ah..."
"I've passed on what little aura I had left to you, so it seems I've reached my limit."
He shook his head as if to say not to worry.
"Still, I'm relieved. Seeing you, all my worries have disappeared."
The Sword Saint took my hand with his remaining left hand.
"If the current Zieghart successor is this capable, I don't need to worry about the Head of House. Use what I've left behind as you see fit."
"Sword Saint. I'm not the successor of Zieghart."
"You're not? Well, you are young. But soon..."
"That's not it."
Raon shook his head briefly. For the last moment, he wanted to tell the truth so there would be no misunderstanding.
"I'm still from a branch family."
"Huh...?"
The Sword Saint's eyes widened.
"B-Branch family? You?"
"Yes."
"No! That's impossible! How could someone from a branch family master the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation and the Ring of Fire!"
He reached out his hand in disbelief. However, his hand turned to dust and disappeared before it could touch me.
"Well..."
"W-Wait! Wait a moment! I can't leave like this! Why are you from a branch family! Are there only idiots in Zieghart now? Why are you from a branch..."
The Sword Saint screamed, but his body continued to disappear.
His last dissolving pupils seemed to distort just like when I first saw them.
"..."
Raon blinked as he looked at the ground where the Sword Saint had disappeared.
"Maybe I shouldn't have said anything?"
I was honest because it was the last moment, but it seemed to have become poison instead.
-Sigh.
Wrath let out a deep sigh while holding his head.
-Sometimes there are things that don't need to be said...
He sighed once more and frowned.
-Wait, is it right for a demon to teach humans about being a decent human?
***
Raon dusted off his hands. What could he do about something that had already passed? He shook his head to forget it all and turned back to the Light Wind division.
"A-Are you alright?"
Burren approached, blinking his eyes.
"The Sword Saint seemed to be screaming at the end..."
"It looked like he was struggling. What on earth did you say?"
Martha also tilted her head curiously.
"...It's nothing. He just told me to take care."
He shook his head, thinking they would also be bewildered if he told the truth.
"To think the Sword Saint was our ancestor, what a strange turn of events."
Serena, having regained her composure, let out a hollow laugh.
"What you said when you first came wasn't wrong after all."
"Indeed."
Raon smirked as he looked at Serena.
"Are you feeling alright?"
"Thanks to you."
Despite being severely injured, Serena nodded as if it were nothing. She was a true warrior.
"Then let's head out now."
Raon nodded, looking at the Light Wind division, the Void Sword division, and the surviving neutral forces.
Even excluding Zieghart's martial artists, the numbers were considerable. It was enough people to serve as witnesses.
"It's going to be tough going back up again."
"You don't need to worry about that."
He shook his head and pointed at the ceiling.
"I found the control room that manages this training ground. We can quickly get to the surface using that."
"Great! Let's go right away!"
Rimmer nodded, saying he was thirsty for alcohol.
"I'm sleepy."
Runaan yawned sleepily, blinking her eyes.
"But we can't all leave at once. Someone needs to stay behind to control it."
Serena narrowed her eyes as she looked around.
"We can't entrust it to others. We should leave one person behind..."
"There's no person to control it, but there is a chicken to control it."
"Chicken?"
"This guy."
Raon smirked, pointing at the phoenix Kaiyan floating in the air.
"Chirpy will manage it."
[W-Who are you calling a chicken! And why me! I won't do anything!]
Kaiyan shook his head, saying he wouldn't listen to humans anymore.
"I'm leaving too, you know?"
[Huh...?]
"If I leave, you can live comfortably too. Are you saying you'll kick away that chance?"
Raon grinned as he tapped Kaiyan's wings.
"If you like being with me that much, I guess I have no choice..."
[I'll do it! Right now! I'll send you up at ultra-high speed!]
Kaiyan flapped his wings rapidly as if not to miss this opportunity. The sand on the ground flew up in a storm.
-This demon isn't leaving forever, you know.
Wrath shook his head watching this scene.
-Can't help a bird brain...
***
A light red platform slowly rose towards the sky. It was a secret passage that only those who controlled this training ground could use.
"There will be humans everywhere when we get out, right?"
Rimmer sighed as he looked up at the ceiling.
"It would be stranger if there weren't."
Serena nodded as if it were obvious.
"Ah, I'm tired of fighting now."
"No, they must be there."
Raon shook his chin at Rimmer.
"Because they need to be witnesses."
"That's true, but it's tough."
Rimmer nodded gently as if understanding what 'witnesses' meant.
"To think we actually met the real Sword Saint, I still can't believe it."
Burren touched his chest as if his heart was still racing.
"I never imagined things would turn out like this either."
Martha scratched the bridge of her nose in agreement.
"Right. I'm sleepy."
Runaan blinked her eyes, saying she was tired. She seemed to have lost interest in the Sword Saint or anything else now.
Raon looked slowly around at the relaxed Light Wind division members and nodded slightly.
'They fought well.'
But they're still a bit lacking.
If it weren't for several coincidences this time too, it would have been quite dangerous.
It seemed he would need to definitely raise the martial prowess of each individual swordsman.
'The materials for that are already in my hands.'
If he combined the Sword Saint's martial arts well, he could create new martial arts for those guys.
As he was formulating a plan for everyone to become a bit stronger, Kaiyan's voice came from the control room.
[Chirp! We're almost there!]
'Well, before that...'
Raon nodded as he looked at the light that seemed to scatter like sunbeams.
'There's something I need to do first.'
Along with the sensation of the floor suddenly rising, the dark night sky came into view. The ground he stepped on after so long felt soft like cotton.
"There are many."
"Yes. It's completely full."
Rimmer and Serena frowned as they looked around the forest.
As the two said, the surrounding area was full of hyena-like groups waiting to snatch the Sword Saint's legacy.
"Alert stance."
As Burren shook his head briefly, the Light Wind division spread out to the left and right to form a formation.
"I'll resolve this with words."
Raon walked forward, leaving the formation the Light Wind division was setting up. He stood alone in the center of the forest and stomped his foot.
Kuwoong!
A massive shockwave that seemed to resonate not just through the earth but up to the sky spread out in all directions.
The bushes and trees swayed, revealing the pale faces of the martial artists who had been hiding.
"From now on, this land is Zieghart's territory."
Raon looked down at the thousands of eyes flowing with desire and declared.
"I'll give you 10 seconds. Either put down your weapons, or get lost. Choose one of the two."