"The secret of the holy ground?"
Raon narrowed his eyes intently.
"Which holy ground are you talking about?"
"Obviously, I'm talking about the Holy Sword Alliance's holy ground."
Darkan raised both arms as if asking if there were any other holy grounds besides the Holy Sword Alliance's.
"That's where you and I met again, isn't it?"
He nudged his chin, telling Raon to remember.
"I remember. However..."
Raon looked at Darkan's eye patch fluttering in the wind.
"Why are you asking me about the secret of the Holy Sword Alliance's holy ground?"
Through his past memories, he knew that the First Patriarch of Zieghart and his companions had created the Holy Sword Alliance's holy ground, but he didn't want to reveal this.
"Hmm?"
Darkan stroked his eye patch while looking at Raon.
"That sounds like a lie somehow."
"Why do you think that?"
"Just my intuition."
He smiled, saying his senses were screaming that it was a lie.
'Huh...'
Raon swallowed dryly as he watched Darkan tilt his head.
'He's like a ghost.'
They said his sixth sense had become unnaturally sharp after losing his eyes, and it seemed he possessed an even more powerful Mind's Eye than Dorian.
"Stop with the useless talk, what about the holy ground?"
Raon reminded Darkan of his purpose to change the subject.
"Well, it doesn't matter anyway."
Darkan waved his hand dismissively.
"Because it's you."
He curled his lips upward as if to show he trusted Raon regardless of what he thought.
"Hmm..."
Raon let out a soft groan.
'He's serious.'
There wasn't even the slightest tremor in Darkan's voice. It meant he truly trusted him. Raon was a bit taken aback, not expecting to receive such trust from the Dark Night Sword God.
"The Holy Sword Alliance's holy ground exists to protect."
Darkan drew a small circle with the finger that held his dark sword.
"Isn't that obvious?"
Raon let out a hollow laugh.
"It's so obvious it doesn't need saying - they installed the highest-level barrier and hid its location to protect the inside from external threats."
He snorted, saying if that was a secret, then the annex building's breakfast menu was a secret too.
"You don't understand."
Darkan clicked his tongue briefly.
"That land wasn't created to keep outsiders out. It's a prison designed to prevent something inside from getting out."
He shook his head, indicating that Raon's entire thought process was wrong.
"What...?"
Raon's lips trembled slightly.
"You're saying it's not about keeping external enemies out, but preventing someone inside from getting out?"
"The barrier erected in the sky and the transportation formation behind the rocky mountain. All of it proves what I'm saying. That place is meant to contain something."
Darkan nodded, saying he could clearly sense the difference because he had lost his eyes.
'Wrath.'
Raon turned his gaze to look at Wrath.
-I, I don't know anything about this?
Wrath blinked his large eyes as if completely clueless.
-As I always say, I don't consider barriers and formations as martial prowess!
He rolled his eyes, saying he wasn't interested in such trivial matters.
'You're never any help.'
-Y-you rotten bastard!
'Move aside.'
Raon left the grinding Wrath aside and looked back at Darkan.
"I barely figured it out myself, so your grandfather probably doesn't know."
Darkan smirked, saying Rector wouldn't know anything about it.
"Then who was the being they tried to seal away by establishing the holy ground?"
Raon asked the most crucial question.
"I don't know that either."
Darkan calmly shook his head.
"You don't know?"
"Right. I have no idea where or how it appears. In fact, since it's been nearly a thousand years, whatever needed to be contained might already be dead or gone."
He shook his head, saying he had searched the entire holy ground but couldn't find any special being anywhere.
-I couldn't sense anything there either.
Wrath dusted off his hands, saying that while he didn't understand barriers, he hadn't sensed any presence there.
"Then why tell me about something that's already gone?"
Raon frowned as he looked at Darkan.
"Actually, I wasn't planning to mention it. As you said, it's certainly gone already. However..."
Darkan twisted his lips into a smile while looking at Raon.
"I wanted to tell you because I noticed something while looking around Zieghart."
"What did you notice?"
"This Zieghart..."
He turned his gaze to survey the entirety of Zieghart.
"It has many similarities to the Holy Sword Alliance's holy ground."
"What...?"
Raon stared at Darkan with wide eyes.
"I can't sense anything from the newer constructions, but..."
Darkan raised his finger to point at the Lord's Manor in the main building and North Grave Mountain behind it.
"Those old structures emit a scent similar to the holy ground. The training hall, the head of house's training ground, and the thousand-year-old trees particularly have a strong aura. I think..."
He tapped his temple as if pointing to his thoughts.
"There's a high possibility that the person who created Zieghart and the one who created the Holy Sword Alliance's holy ground are connected. They might even be the same person."
Darkan nodded, indicating he was almost certain of this.
"..."
Raon forcibly calmed his rapidly beating heart.
'Was he this obsessed with this kind of thing too?'
To track the Zieghart ancestor using only his senses - it was an astonishing ability.
"Well, I could be wrong."
Darkan licked his lips, saying not to believe his words unconditionally.
"If I'm wrong it would be embarrassing, so keep this between us. I'll see you around."
He waved his hand as if he had said everything he needed to and walked toward the main building.
"..."
Raon bit his lip slightly as he watched Darkan's retreating back.
'I should tell grandfather about this first.'
Though he wasn't sure exactly what was going on, he felt it would be good to relay Darkan's words to Rector.
"Is it over?"
Evelyn approached with furrowed brows.
"Yeah. It's over."
Raon nodded.
"Heuugh!"
Dorian arrived late, exhaling heavily. Sweat beaded on his forehead as if he had run at full speed.
"I-I'm sorry for being late."
"Why do something you need to apologize for?"
Raon tapped his wrist, saying they should definitely keep their appointed times.
"S-sorry! Since we're leaving suddenly, I had a lot to pack."
Dorian wiped the sweat flowing from his forehead, implying someone had made him work hard preparing supplies.
"That someone isn't me, right?"
"...N-not at all."
"Right."
Raon turned his gaze away, pretending not to know.
-You crazy, filthy bastard...
Wrath squeezed his eyes shut in disgust.
"Since Dorian is here too, I'll ask the external commander to open the gate!"
Yua ran towards the outer wall, saying she would call Illiune herself.
"M-me too!"
Julius blinked his eyes and matched his pace with Yua.
"The conversation took long, didn't it? Sorry."
Raon waved his hand at Evelyn.
"It's fine. I heard everything anyway."
Evelyn chuckled, saying she had heard everything through Darkan's aura barrier.
"Uh... huh?"
Raon stared at Evelyn, his mouth hanging open.
"You heard everything?"
He couldn't understand how she had heard through a barrier set up by a Transcendent. The real monster was right here.
"I'll relay the news to grandfather."
Evelyn said she knew everything, so leave it to her, and sent a letter directly to Rector.
"Ah..."
Raon blinked blankly.
'How did she know about that too?'
Only Wrath knew about the exchange of letters with Rector, and he couldn't understand how Evelyn had figured it out. A chilling shiver ran up his spine.
-Didn't I tell you! That one's the world's greatest stalker! Even your grandfather can't keep up with her!
Wrath tapped his shoulder, telling him to run away immediately.
'How do you run away from the world's greatest stalker...'
He shook his head, saying they'd be caught anyway.
'But more than that…'
Raon narrowed his eyes as he recalled what Darkan had said about the Holy Sword Alliance's holy ground.
'I wonder what the First Patriarch was trying to contain when he created the Holy Sword Alliance's holy ground.'
***
"I'm here!"
Darkan opened the door to the audience chamber, his booming voice serving in place of a knock.
"..."
Glenn lowered the hand that had been supporting his chin as he watched Darkan approach across the red carpet.
"Are you leaving?"
He revealed a dignified look in his eyes, as if he knew why Darkan had come.
"You knew right away, as expected of the head of house."
Darkan nodded, confirming Glenn was correct.
"I think it's time to organize what I've learned here."
He smiled, saying he might be able to recover the martial prowess he lost to Derus.
"Wasn't it a permanent loss?"
Glenn narrowed his eyes slightly.
"It is a permanent loss. My upper dantian and Soul Sword still have holes in them. However..."
Darkan curled his lips as he looked at Glenn.
"Thanks to you, Raon, and the swordsmen of this family, I think I can fill those holes. No, more than recovery - I can grow stronger than before."
He nodded, saying his senses were telling him this.
"Even the regular swordsmen?"
Glenn lowered his eyebrows in surprise.
"Yes. Though Zieghart's swordsmen are weak, they each have their own unique swordsmanship and breathing techniques. My heart races when I see such things."
Darkan curled his lips, saying he was glad to have trained with swordsmen whose swords were alive.
"You truly love the sword."
Glenn smiled faintly.
'It wasn't a lie.'
Seeing Darkan again, he was simply a madman who loved the sword. Of course, the sword also blessed and loved him in return.
"Thank you to you and Raon as well. Thanks to a month of training, I've once again realized the path I must take."
Darkan extended his thanks to Raon who wasn't present.
"We helped each other, that's all. No need for such thanks."
Glenn calmly shook his head.
"There's a big difference between saying something and not saying it."
Darkan tapped his lips with his finger as if telling Glenn to remember that.
"Now that I think about it, Darkan. If we had met differently..."
Glenn drew a faint smile.
"We might have had a better relationship."
"You mean as friends?"
Darkan showed a smile similar to Glenn's.
"The meaning of friend that I know is someone who can share their heart. Haven't we already achieved that?"
He shrugged his shoulders as if to say they had already shared their hearts through their Soul Swords.
"If you think of it that way, you're not wrong."
Glenn nodded calmly. He felt his goodwill toward Darkan growing a bit more. He even felt the regret of sending off a true friend.
"Next time we meet, we'll settle things. Until then, don't ascend to heaven, don't die to anyone, just wait."
Darkan spread a cold smile, suggesting their next meeting would be a fight to the death.
"You're the one who shouldn't die."
Glenn chuckled and shook his head.
"I won't die. I survived your Soul Sword, didn't I?"
Darkan waved his hand as if saying not to worry and turned around.
"I'm going."
Despite having no eyes, he left the audience chamber with a clear smile as if he had seen Glenn's expression.
"Well then..."
In the blink of an eye, Darkan climbed to the peak of North Grave Mountain and felt the wind from the distant Northern Sea.
"Where should I go?"
***
"Habun Castle..."
Raon exhaled white breath as he looked at the white castle walls where red blood had frozen.
"Still the same."
Habun Castle still exuded an imposing presence that seemed impenetrable. Seeing the walls he had defended alongside the knights, a smile naturally formed on his face.
"This is where we first met, isn't it?"
Evelyn took out a doll wearing a witch's mask and shook it.
"Those were good times. I was really happy then..."
She licked her lips as if reminiscing about that time.
"I-it couldn't have been that good..."
Raon turned his trembling eyes away. This place remained only as terror in his memory, as it was where Evelyn's obsession began.
"Who goes there!"
Rangers who spotted Raon and his companions from atop the walls shouted warnings while aiming their arrows. Unlike expected, security was extremely tight.
"Everyone! It's me! Yua!"
Yua stepped forward and waved her hand.
"Huh? Yua?"
"It really is Yua!"
"W-wait! That person!"
"It's Lord Raon Zieghart! The Light Wind Palace Master has come!"
The rangers cried out in shock at Raon's appearance.
"Raon has come? Who's talking nonsense... huh!"
Terian, the vice-commander of Habun Castle, who was on the wall, widened his eyes.
"I-it really is him! Open the gate quickly!"
At his shout, Habun Castle's seemingly impregnable gate opened.
"We greet the Light Wind Palace Master!"
The rangers and knights of Habun Castle bowed to Raon.
"I didn't come as the Light Wind Palace Master, please rise."
Raon quickly turned his gaze away, telling them not to feel burdened.
'What's this?'
The atmosphere didn't look good. Although fights at Habun Castle had clearly decreased after entrusting monster management to Sloth, the Monarch of Sloth, most of the people he could see now were wounded.
"Raon!"
Terian waved his hand toward him.
"Ah, now that you've become the Light Wind Palace Master, I should speak more formally."
He bowed his head as if he had made a mistake.
"No, please be comfortable with me."
Raon smiled, asking to be treated as before.
"Is that really okay?"
Terian smiled with exhausted eyes.
"Yes, that's more comfortable. But what has happened lately..."
"Grandfather!"
Just as Raon was about to ask Terian a question, Yua ran inside the castle.
"Oh my dear granddaughter!"
The owner of the tavern "Frost Branch," Yua's grandfather, spread his arms and embraced her.
"I can't even lift you anymore!"
He smiled brightly as he lifted Yua slightly.
"It's been a while."
Raon bowed to Yua's grandfather.
"Please don't do this, Benefactor!"
Yua's grandfather cried out that it was too much and bowed even deeper than Raon.
"Oh my..."
He stumbled backward as if losing his balance while straightening up.
"B-be careful!"
Julius quickly ran to support Yua's grandfather.
"You are..."
"My friend!"
Yua smiled while pointing at Julius.
"F-friend..."
Julius's expression froze like dried plaster.
"Yes. A friend who can do anything for me!"
Yua smiled, saying he wasn't just any friend.
"Oh..."
The moment Julius heard Yua's words, his chin trembled and his face turned red again. He was an honest fellow whose feelings showed plainly on his face.
"I see. Thank you."
Yua's grandfather thanked Julius and patted his shoulder.
"Come this way. I'll prepare a meal quickly."
He rolled up his sleeves, saying he would prepare a feast.
-Whooaaah!
Wrath whistled and lifted his head.
-It's been a while since we've eaten at the Frost Branch!
He licked his lips in anticipation.
"I'll go see the castle lord first."
Raon bowed, saying he would visit after meeting Milland, the lord of Habun Castle.
"Ah, that's right. I understand. Then I'll start preparing."
Yua's grandfather nodded and headed to the Frost Branch with Yua and Julius.
"I'll guide you to father."
Terian nudged his chin, telling them to follow.
"Let's go too."
Raon gestured to Dorian and Evelyn before following Terian.
"Um..."
Raon turned only his eyes to the right while walking shoulder to shoulder with Terian.
"It looks like there was a battle recently. Was it serious?"
He slightly frowned as he sensed the smell of blood and burnt corpses from various places.
"Father will tell you, but the situation isn't good."
Terian wrinkled his eyes as he looked at him.
"It's not just recently - monsters are appearing every day. And..."
He bit his lip until it bled, as if to show how bad the situation was.
"They're stronger and more numerous than when you were here."
"Ah..."
Raon's fingertips trembled as he looked at the mountains of the Northern Sea in the distance.
'Could it be Sloth?'