Rain continued falling softly beyond the Asheville Estate.
The cold western night wrapped itself around the enormous mansion while distant thunder echoed quietly across the forests surrounding Citadel's outskirts. Inside the great dining hall however—
Warm golden mana lamps still illuminated the long noble table gently.
The atmosphere had changed now.
Not tense.
Not heavy.
Only quiet.
A strange quietness that often arrived before separation.
Reina silently sat across from Kel while untouched portions of dinner remained forgotten between them. The silver-haired matriarch quietly observed him beneath the soft golden light while rain reflected against the crystal windows surrounding the chamber.
Meanwhile—
Kel remained calm as always.
Yet tonight—
Something about him felt distant.
Not emotionally.
But temporally.
Like someone already preparing to leave long before saying goodbye.
Inside his mind—
Sairen softly muttered:
"You finally plan to tell her."
Kel quietly leaned back against the chair.
"I was always going to."
"You delayed it."
Kel remained silent.
Because she wasn't wrong.
The past several days—
Training together.
Walking through Citadel.
Watching sunsets from the balcony.
Handling war beside one another.
Somewhere along the way—
The idea of leaving became strangely uncomfortable.
And Kel disliked uncomfortable emotions.
Meanwhile—
Across from him—
Reina quietly noticed his silence again.
The silver-haired matriarch slowly lowered her gaze briefly before eventually speaking softly:
"…You're thinking too much again."
Kel slightly blinked afterward.
Then faintly smiled.
"…Probably."
The rain outside intensified slightly.
Then finally—
Kel slowly reached beside himself afterward.
And placed something atop the dining table.
THUD.
A thick black-bound manuscript rested between them beneath the warm candlelight.
Reina's silver eyes shifted toward it immediately.
The cover itself looked simple.
No noble insignia.
No title.
Only ancient dark leather reinforced with silver-thread binding.
Yet despite its ordinary appearance—
The moment Reina sensed the aura lingering from it…
Her expression subtly changed.
Because she immediately recognized it.
Sword arts.
No—
Something far more dangerous.
Kel calmly slid the manuscript toward her afterward.
"This is for you."
Reina quietly looked toward him.
Then slowly—
She reached for the manuscript.
The moment her fingers touched the cover—
She felt countless layered aura circulation formulas hidden beneath the pages themselves.
Complex.
Adaptive.
Evolving.
Like the manual itself had been written by someone continuously redefining combat theory while creating it.
Then finally—
She opened the first page.
And froze.
Because inside—
Were detailed principles explaining the very technique she had witnessed countless times already.
Multi Aura Sword Arts.
The floating aura blades.
Leakage manipulation.
Condensation structures.
Aura synchronization.
Layered offensive variations.
Defensive rotational formations.
Adaptive circulation paths.
The entire foundation of Kel's evolving combat style.
Reina slowly looked upward afterward.
"…Kel…"
Her voice sounded quieter now.
Meanwhile—
Kel calmly explained:
"I completed the foundational structure."
Another pause.
"And made it usable for ordinary swordsmen."
Inside his mind—
Sairen softly laughed.
"Ordinary according to you still means monstrous for everyone else."
Kel ignored her.
Meanwhile—
Reina quietly turned more pages afterward.
The deeper she read—
The more terrifying the manual became.
Because it wasn't merely teaching fixed techniques.
It taught principles.
Freedom.
Evolution.
The manual itself encouraged swordsmen to create their own variations endlessly.
And that—
Was far more frightening than ordinary martial arts.
Kel calmly continued:
"There's no fixed limit inside it."
Another pause.
"Anyone who studies it deeply enough can develop their own styles."
Reina's silver eyes widened slightly.
Because that meant this wasn't simply a sword technique.
It was a growing combat system.
A martial foundation capable of evolving differently depending on the swordsman themselves.
Meanwhile—
Kel calmly folded one hand behind his back while remaining seated.
"Teach it to the Asheville knights."
Another pause.
"Publish it under your name."
Reina immediately looked up sharply afterward.
"…What?"
Kel remained calm.
"I have no use for recognition here."
The rain echoed softly around the dining hall.
"And this manual will strengthen your authority."
Another pause.
"Once your knights begin developing unique variations…"
"…House Asheville's military identity itself will evolve."
The silver-haired matriarch quietly stared at him afterward.
Because she understood what he was truly giving her.
Not merely a sword style.
A legacy.
A military foundation.
Something capable of becoming House Asheville's signature art for generations.
And yet—
He offered it so casually.
Meanwhile—
Reina softly asked:
"Why are you giving me this now?"
Her fingers tightened slightly around the manuscript.
Another pause.
"It's not like you're leaving immediately…"
Then slowly—
Her silver eyes narrowed faintly.
"…Are you?"
Silence filled the dining hall afterward.
Only rain remained audible.
Kel quietly looked toward the darkened windows beside them.
Then finally—
He answered calmly.
"Tomorrow."
The word landed heavily.
"I'm leaving tomorrow for the Rosenfeld Main Estate."
The atmosphere changed instantly afterward.
Not dramatically.
Not loudly.
But quietly.
Painfully quietly.
Inside his mind—
Even Sairen remained silent briefly.
Meanwhile—
Reina slowly lowered her gaze toward the manuscript again.
The silver-haired matriarch already knew this moment would come eventually.
His anonymous journey had always carried an ending.
Two years.
That was the agreement from the beginning.
And yet—
Hearing it directly still hurt more than expected.
Kel meanwhile calmly continued speaking:
"I wanted to give you the manual before leaving."
Another pause.
"Especially after watching you repeatedly attempt copying the technique directly."
A faint amused smile appeared.
"Even while I still hadn't fully understood its essence myself."
Reina quietly laughed once afterward.
Softly.
Sadly.
Because it was true.
During training—
She constantly tried replicating his sword style despite how unstable and incomplete it originally appeared.
And somehow—
Kel noticed every attempt.
The silver-haired matriarch slowly turned another page of the manual afterward.
Detailed aura diagrams filled the parchment beautifully beneath candlelight.
Then quietly—
She asked:
"…Why trust me with something this dangerous?"
Kel calmly looked toward her.
"Because you won't abuse it."
No hesitation.
No doubt.
The answer arrived instantly.
And strangely—
That simple certainty affected Reina more deeply than any grand emotional speech ever could.
Inside his mind—
Sairen softly muttered:
"You really say dangerous things casually."
Kel ignored her again.
Meanwhile—
Reina slowly closed the manuscript afterward.
Then gently—
She held it against her chest briefly.
The rain outside continued endlessly.
Finally—
She quietly asked:
"…Does House Rosenfeld know what you became during these two years?"
Kel faintly smiled afterward.
"…No."
Another pause.
"And honestly…"
His dark eyes reflected softly beneath candlelight.
"…I'm not sure they're prepared for it."
The silver-haired matriarch stared at him silently afterward.
Because she understood something terrifying.
The young man sitting before her tonight—
The one casually handing over revolutionary sword arts and conquering territories beside her—
Would soon return to the Empire's greatest noble house.
And the world itself still believed Kel von Rosenfeld remained a cursed heir broken by fate.
None of them knew.
None of them understood.
The boy they abandoned to despair…
Was returning as something entirely different now.
Meanwhile—
Kel slowly stood afterward.
The chair shifted softly against the marble floor beneath him.
Then quietly—
He spoke once more.
"Name the sword art yourself."
Reina blinked slightly.
Kel calmly added:
"Something worthy of House Asheville."
The silver-haired matriarch quietly looked down at the black manuscript resting within her hands afterward.
Then slowly—
A faint smile appeared.
Because even while preparing to leave—
Kel still continued building futures for the people beside him.
And perhaps—
That was exactly why leaving him felt so difficult