"Master still hasn't come out?"
The first news Raon heard after regaining consciousness was that Rimmer's soul was still trapped in the Blade of Requiem.
"No. Lady Siyana tried to pull him out, but he refused to leave the Blade of Requiem until the end."
Erian shook his head in disbelief.
"She got so frustrated that she ended up throwing the Blade of Requiem."
He lowered his voice as he mentioned Siyana throwing the sword on the ground.
"I-I'm sorry. I was just so frustrated..."
Siyana's eyes trembled as she hid her face under a thick blanket.
"I think my brother has taken a liking to that sword..."
She let out a small sigh, saying that it seemed Rimmer wouldn't come out unless he wanted to.
"Sigh, he's changed so much since he was here that I don't know what that boy is trying to do anymore."
Sterin clicked his tongue while adjusting the bandages wrapped around his body. He seemed frustrated that he couldn't understand the grandson he had raised himself.
"Haha..."
Raon let out a hollow laugh as he looked at the Blade of Requiem lying on the table.
'He must have his reasons.'
Rimmer wasn't just someone who acted carelessly. Seeing how determined he was to stay in the Blade of Requiem, he must have had something else in mind.
"Thanks to the World Tree, some of the negative energy in the Blade of Requiem has dissipated, so it might be best to leave it alone for now."
Raon shook his head calmly.
"I'm going to stop worrying about it too. I have too many aches to think about a grandson who disappeared for a long time and then suddenly died."
Sterin snorted as he looked at the Blade of Requiem.
"R-Raon, are you alright?"
Siyana lifted the blanket slightly, revealing eyes full of concern.
"I still have some internal injuries, but they're not severe enough to leave any lasting effects."
Raon smiled as he slowly rotated his shoulders. Thanks to his various traits, his recovery ability was arguably the strongest among humans. He felt he would recover naturally in just a few more days.
"Th-That's a relief..."
Siyana let out a sigh of relief, saying she had been very worried.
"It's all thanks to you, Lady Siyana."
Raon bowed his head to Siyana. He had heard that she had helped his recovery with water spirits, so he wanted to express his gratitude.
"And you did a great job."
"What? But I didn't do anything..."
"While I was fighting the dragon, you encouraged the elves to protect the World Tree. You've really changed a lot, Lady Siyana. Master would have been so proud if he had seen you."
Siyana had thrown off the blanket she was hiding under and stepped forward to protect the World Tree, rallying the elves who had given up on life. It was behavior befitting the next Guardian and had been a great inspiration to him as well.
"I saw it too. You were impressive."
Sterin patted Siyana's shoulder, saying he was proud of her.
"Ugh..."
Siyana slumped to the floor, grinning sheepishly as if she hadn't expected such sudden praise.
"No, really, it wasn't anything special. Hehehe..."
Strange laughter could be heard from under the blanket covering her head. She seemed to have changed, yet remained the same in some ways.
"Ah, and there's one more thing I need to tell you."
Raon let out a small sigh as he looked at the three of them.
"It's about Master..."
He explained that Rimmer hadn't just become an idle person when he came to Zieghart, but had helped many people and consistently supported the orphanage.
"Hmm, that boy..."
Sterin smiled faintly, seemingly pleased to learn of his grandson's true intentions.
"That guy thought he was being elf-like when he was in Sepia, but from my perspective, he was as meddlesome as a human. He hasn't changed."
Erian chuckled softly, saying it was just like Rimmer.
"Ah!"
Siyana's eyes lit up as if struck by inspiration, and she began writing something in a book from under her blanket.
'Is it about Master?'
Raon lowered his gaze, thinking she might be writing about Rimmer, but he quickly looked away when he saw only the words "Handsome Raon" repeatedly written.
"Ahem, you should rest now too."
Sterin also seemed embarrassed by the "Handsome Raon" writing, and gently grabbed Siyana by the waist as she furiously scribbled, giving a slight nod.
"You've worked hard. Please rest."
Erian also bowed his head and left the quarters with the other two.
"Haa..."
As soon as he was alone, Raon sprawled out on the bed, spreading his arms.
'I survived.'
Now that it was quiet, he felt the reality of his survival sink in, and a light laugh escaped him.
-This time was truly dangerous.
Wrath peeked his eyes out over the bracelet.
-If that lizard had fought properly, you would have been the one buried in that ground.
'Yeah...'
Raon nodded.
'I know.'
As Wrath said, Matirus's combat power was far above his own. If he hadn't taken advantage of the dragon's carelessness, it would have been him who died.
-Why didn't you accept this king's power?
Wrath narrowed his eyes, still seeming puzzled.
-Have you become arrogant just because you've reached Transcendence...
'I didn't want to see you coughing anymore.'
Raon shook his head with a faint smile.
-Wh-What?
'You've just recovered enough that your coughing has subsided. I didn't want to make you start coughing again.'
Wrath had helped him and the Light Wind division even at the cost of consuming his own soul. Raon didn't want to force more sacrifices on someone he considered a friend, so he wanted to resolve it with his own power.
-Uh...
Wrath blinked blankly, as if he had heard an answer completely different from what he expected.
-Y-You brat, how dare you worry about this king! You still have a long way to go!
Despite his loud words, Wrath's eyes softened, and his cheeks turned crimson. He seemed to be in a very good mood.
-W-Well, it's not a bad thought. It's right to protect what's yours! Yes, that's right!
'Sure.'
Raon chuckled as he watched the embarrassed Wrath.
-Ahem, I suppose it's time I acknowledge you a little. It seems the time has come.
'To receive your acknowledgment, the sun must be rising in the west.'
Raon lightly patted Wrath's head as he wagged his tail.
'Well then, shall I get started?'
-Start what? Ah! Are you preparing dragon barbecue? I've been waiting so long my neck almost fell off!
Wrath licked his lips in anticipation.
'No, not that.'
Raon shook his head vigorously and called up the messages he had been ignoring until now. So many messages appeared at once that his entire field of vision was covered with blue windows.
-Gaaah!
Wrath's smile froze, his mouth hanging open as if he hadn't expected so many messages to be piled up.
-Wh-What is this! Why are there so many!
'It makes sense, doesn't it?'
Although he hadn't paid attention until now, he had reached Transcendence and consecutively defeated a Transcendent and a few ancient dragon. It wasn't strange to have rewards that covered his entire field of vision.
'Well then, first...'
He first checked the rewards he had received for reaching Transcendence.
[You have reached the realm of Transcendence!]
[
[
[
[All abilities increase by 70 points.]
[The level of trait
[The level of trait
[The level of trait
[The level of trait
[The level of trait
[The level of trait
[The level of trait
There were so many lines that just checking the rewards for reaching Transcendence was enough to make his eyes hurt.
'Wait, is that 70 points?'
He had received 50 point increases as rewards before, but this was the first time he had gotten 70 at once. He felt a pleasant sensation, as if his body was subtly twisting, from the unbelievably large increase in abilities.
'And seven traits have increased too.'
Not only the traits related to Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation and Glacier, but also the traits he had used in the dungeon had increased in level. A series of euphoric sensations rushed through him, almost making him dizzy.
-Huh?
Wrath's jaw dropped as he looked at the messages.
-A-Are this king's eyes deceiving him? Is it really 70?
He rubbed his eyes as if he thought he had seen wrong.
-H-How is this possible? 70 at once, are you trying to drive me crazy!
'It's too early to be surprised.'
Pushing aside the flailing Wrath, he checked the rewards he had received for killing Beorn and Bardiel.
[You have slain two Transcendents.]
[You have killed an Angel for the first time in a thousand years.]
[You have achieved an impossible feat.]
[All abilities increase by 50 points.]
[New trait
[New title
Perhaps because he had slain two Transcendents at once, his abilities increased by 50 points. Even he, who was receiving a total of 120, felt like he was losing his mind at these numbers.
'Now, about Angel Slayer...'
Setting aside the ability increases for now, he checked the new trait Angel Slayer.
'This is pretty good.'
Reading the description, it was an ability that reduced the aura resistance of Angels. It seemed like it would be a great help, as he was bound to clash with them more in the future.
'And...'
Finally, he checked the contents of the title.
'Is this for real?'
A title that enhanced the achievement of mastered martial arts was even more important to him, who was learning the Ten Thousand Swords, than ability points or traits. It was hard to believe even as he saw it with his own eyes.
-Gu-gu-guh...
Wrath was drooling as if he had eaten dragon barbecue to his heart's content. His eyes looked like they might roll back any moment if he was surprised any more.
'J-Just hang in there! This is the last one.'
Raon patted Wrath's back as he checked the rewards he had received this time.
[You have achieved an impossible feat.]
[All abilities increase by 40 points.]
[New trait
[The level of trait
[The level of trait
[The level of trait
[The level of trait
Of course, the rewards for defeating the dragons were not small either. All abilities increased by 40 points, and a new trait was created.
'Authority Enhancement?'
Just from the name of the trait, he could roughly guess its contents.
It seemed to be a reward for harmonizing the authorities of the demon kings when using the final Sword Domain.
-Kyaaaaaaah!
Wrath's piercing scream rang out after a long time.
-Today is really too much! It's like this king's entire spine has been pulled out!
Wrath dry-heaved, saying he felt dizzy from losing so much.
-A total of 160 points, 2 new traits, 1 new title, and 11 trait enhancements! How is this possible!
'Well, it's not all at once, but accumulated from 3 rewards...'
-Shut up!
Wrath smacked Raon on the head.
-You said you wouldn't ask for this king's help, but you're sucking out my very marrow!
'It-It's not me, it's the system that gave these...'
Raon shook his head, rubbing the back of his head.
-Then try telling it to stop!
Wrath lowered his eyebrows, saying it might listen if he asked.
'Hmm, is there any need for that...?'
Raon tilted his head slightly. He didn't see any reason to refuse if it was giving them freely.
-You ungrateful brat!
Wrath shouted.
-I take back what I said about acknowledging you! This king will call you a brat forever...
"So cute!"
A small hamster that had slipped through a crack in the wooden house grinned brightly while Wrath was pouring out his complaints.
"Why are you laughing to yourself like that?"
-Kyaaaaaaah!
Startled by Merlin's sudden appearance, Wrath fell backwards with a shriek. He rolled his eyes and coughed, seemingly in shock.
"M-Merlin?"
Raon exhaled roughly as he looked at Merlin transformed into a hamster.
"I was watching to see when you'd wake up, and you were nodding and smiling to yourself. It was so cute."
Merlin laughed, saying she came out because it was too adorable to just watch.
"No, why did you come as a hamster when your main body is here?"
"Coming with my main body is embarrassing."
She clasped her hands together and swayed her shoulders from side to side.
"Em-Embarrassing?"
Raon blinked blankly.
'You? How? Why?'
* * *
Fortunately, Wrath's mood improved the very next day.
-Yay! It's so sweet and delicious!
Thanks to the small feast Sterin held to celebrate overcoming Sepia's crisis, Wrath was able to enjoy dishes made with sweet fruits to his heart's content.
'The fruits here must be a different species from ours.'
Raon tilted his head as he ate an apple pie overflowing with juice. While Zieghart's pie-making skills were superior, the taste of the fruit was incomparable.
-The elves' energy makes the fruits grow more delicious and sweet.
Wrath shook his head, saying it was a natural difference.
-Now, let's go eat the main course! It should be ready soon!
He tugged at Raon's shoulder, urging him to go eat the meat.
'Alright.'
Raon smiled lightly and headed towards the outskirts of Sepia. Thick slabs of meat were cooking in a large stone oven.
"D-Division Leader, can we really eat this?"
Dorian, who had built this oven with Merlin, trembled as he looked at the dragon meat.
"Can I not eat it? Gold and Red are fine, but Black is a bit..."
Krein shook his head, saying he didn't want to be poisoned.
"No, there's so much to eat, why specifically..."
Burren furrowed his brow, seemingly not understanding.
"You precious little brats are so talkative! When you hunt a beast, you eat the meat first!"
Martha smacked Krein and Dorian on the back of their heads, telling them not to complain.
"Yeah. I'm looking forward to it."
Runaan waved her fork and knife, her cheeks flushed pink, apparently in a good mood from the fruit wine.
-As expected of my ice cream girl and beef girl!
Wrath nodded with satisfaction, saying he liked their attitude.
-I'm so excited. Even this king has never eaten three types of dragon barbecue at once!
He grinned, flaring his nostrils at the increasingly appetizing aroma.
"So you're really going to eat it."
Sterin approached from behind, letting out a hollow laugh.
"Ah, I'm sorry. Elves must be sensitive about this kind of thing..."
"No, not really. Survival of the fittest is also a law of nature, so we don't particularly mind."
He shook his head, saying it didn't matter.
"It's just surprising to see someone eating dragon."
Sterin laughed, saying he hadn't thought about it that way.
"Ah..."
"It's actually worked out well, since we had too many spoils to deal with. We got three Dragon Hearts, and countless valuable teeth and bones."
He smacked his lips, saying it would take ages to sort through the rewards from killing the dragons.
"I'm thinking of making swords and armor from the teeth and bones, but it will probably take quite a long time."
"Then shall I introduce you to someone?"
Sterin lightly wiggled his hand as if making a suggestion.
"An introduction?"
"Yes. A dwarf named Borgos. He's quite renowned as a master craftsman."
"Ah, I know him."
Raon nodded immediately.
"He's the one who made my dagger."
Raon had already met Borgos, the master of the Gray Hammer Guild, when he visited Dorian's house.
"Well, that works out nicely then. I'll contact him for you."
"But I heard elves and dwarves don't get along well..."
"That depends on the individual."
Sterin shook his head, saying he was friends with Borgos.
"Thank you."
Raon bowed to Sterin.
"I should be the one thanking you. Thanks to you all, Sepia was able to survive."
Sterin lowered his hand, saying no thanks were necessary.
"Sigh, honestly, Matirus was just a quiet neighbor living nearby. I never expected things to turn out like this."
He let out a long sigh as he looked at Matirus's meat cooking well.
"Did Matirus live around here?"
"Yes. His lair was less than two days away."
Sterin pointed north, saying the elves couldn't have missed it.
"Ah, I see."
Raon licked his lips slowly.
-Hmm?
Wrath furrowed his brow as he looked at Raon.
-Th-That's the look in your eyes when you're full of desire?
He shuddered, saying it was the same expression Raon had when he was about to suck out his abilities.
"It looks like...'
Raon stretched out his long fingers as he looked north.
"We're going to have a lot more spoils."