"Argh!"
Martha screamed at the sky after reaching the summit of the sand mountain.
"This damned heat!"
She brushed off the sand clinging to her arms and legs, feeling as if she'd stepped into a boiling cauldron.
"I can't get used to this cursed sand hill."
Burren sighed heavily as he stood beside Martha.
"It feels like my flesh is cooking."
He muttered wearily, shaking his reddened hands.
"Help... me..."
Runaan swayed like a reed in the wind, her eyes drooping.
"Here, have some water."
Dorian pulled out a cool water bottle from his pouch and handed it to Runaan.
"Thank..."
Runaan couldn't even finish her thanks before latching onto the bottle like a baby.
"Me too! Give me some!"
The Gambling Monster snatched the water bottle from Dorian's hand as if stealing it. His sweat had noticeably decreased, as if much of the alcohol had left his system.
"Drink slowly."
Mark Goetun wiped the sweat from The Gambling Monster's forehead with a pitying look.
"No way..."
Krein stomped his foot and twisted his mouth.
"How does that guy finish the treatment so quickly and come out!"
He shouted, unable to understand Raon.
"I heard Alice ascended to Transcendence again, but how did he achieve that in just three days without even lifting the curse! I thought it would take at least a week!"
Krein yelled that Raon had come out of the training room too quickly, kicking the sand beneath his feet.
"Are you still doubting that monster?"
Trevin lightly tapped Krein's head, calling him a fool.
"I knew from the moment I first saw Raon. I immediately realized, 'Ah, this one is different from us.'"
He smiled faintly, saying he could sense Raon's extraordinary nature from their first duel.
"That guy knows too."
Burren shook his head, watching Krein wave his fists.
"Right. He's just throwing a tantrum because it's tough."
Martha snorted and slapped Krein's back.
"Oof!"
Suddenly struck, Krein sprawled onto the hot sand with a cry.
"I want bead ice cream..."
Runaan whined, seemingly struggling more than usual.
"Is this ice cream?"
She brought her mouth to the ground, her mind hazy as she mistook the golden sand for lemon-flavored ice cream.
"Are you out of your mind?"
Martha quickly reached out to stop Runaan from eating the sand.
"Snap out of it, you sleepyhead!"
She gently brushed the sand off Runaan's face, despite her frown.
"Heck, heck!"
"Ugh..."
Yua and Julius were the last to climb the sand hill, completing the ascent for all the Light Wind Palace swordsmen.
"Here, drink some water..."
Dorian, who had indirectly helped create this sand hill, nervously offered water.
"Where did our Palace Master go this time?"
Martha narrowed her eyes, looking around for Raon.
"He's probably watching us from some gloomy place, just like his personality..."
"I'm right behind you."
Raon's voice came from behind Krein as he was clicking his tongue.
"Eek!"
"Gah!"
Krein and Dorian, who was next to him, jumped like startled rabbits.
"I watched how you all climbed from behind."
Raon nodded, examining the Light Wind Palace swordsmen from Burren to Yua.
"You seem to have adapted to the sand, climbing quite well now."
He smiled with satisfaction, saying their movements were good.
"Can't we stop this already?"
The Gambling Monster sighed deeply with eyes like those of a rotten fish.
"I really feel like I'm going to die, I can't breathe..."
He shook his head, asking them to consider his age.
"Exactly!"
Krein stepped forward, nodding.
"Training is good, but no matter how many times we climb, we can't adapt to this. It's always tough!"
He lowered his eyebrows, suggesting it might be better to change the method.
"You all seem fine despite saying you're dying."
Raon shrugged, looking at the Light Wind Palace swordsmen.
"And not just you, but everyone."
"Huh?"
Krein blinked and looked back.
"Hmm..."
"Come to think of it, we do seem better than before..."
"It's tough, but it feels like we can endure it now."
The Light Wind Palace swordsmen tilted their heads, observing that they were still standing upright.
"On the first day, you all collapsed after climbing this sand hill twice. But..."
Raon pointed at the sand hill they had all climbed, holding up a finger.
"Today, you're still standing even after climbing it three times."
During the first training session, the Light Wind Palace swordsmen had collapsed as if fainting after the second climb. Their physical and mental strength had been so depleted that he couldn't push them any further. But now, they were standing before him, perfectly fine even after the third climb.
"Not me, though...?"
Runaan barely wiggled her finger, tilted on the sand like melted ice cream.
"..."
Raon slightly turned his head.
-Are you ignoring her?
Wrath rolled his eyes, seemingly incredulous.
"Moreover, I've been gradually increasing the heat in the sand every day. The fire imbued in this sand today is about twice as strong as on the first day."
Raon touched the sand and nodded.
"You increased the heat?"
"We had no idea..."
"So that's why we couldn't adapt."
Burren, Martha, and Trevin chuckled dryly, now understanding why they couldn't get used to the heat.
"You've all made great progress. Your mental strength has been honed like a blade, and your physical abilities have greatly improved."
Raon spoke with certainty as he removed the restrictions he had placed on the Light Wind Palace swordsmen's bodies and energy centers.
"Ah..."
"I feel power surging from my toes."
"My body feels light, as if all the weight has disappeared."
The Light Wind Palace swordsmen trembled all over, seemingly feeling their changes through their revived aura and physical abilities. It felt similar to the elation one experiences after gaining a large amount of stats.
"That's not all."
Raon held up a finger towards the Light Wind Palace swordsmen.
"You've also gained Fire Resistance while climbing the sand hill. You should be able to ignore low-level fire magic now."
The heat he had imbued in the sand today was stronger than 3rd circle fire magic. Now the Light Wind Palace swordsmen should be able to ignore fire magic below the 3rd circle.
"To think we've achieved such growth just by climbing a hill..."
Burren chuckled in disbelief, looking at his own hands.
"No wonder the Head of House praised him so highly."
Martha nodded, saying she now understood Glenn and Karoon's expressions after coming out of the Room of Self.
"Raon, you jerk..."
Runaan called him a jerk, seemingly resentful of being pushed into such heat regardless of getting stronger. It was admirable that she had followed through to the end despite her cold nature, which must have made it difficult.
-This king followed along too!
Wrath wiggled his hand, saying even his soul was made of ice.
-For enduring such heat, let's eat bead ice cream today!
'...'
He ignored him immediately.
-Hey! Don't ignore this king!
Raon let Wrath's shouts go in one ear and out the other as he checked the condition of the Light Wind Palace swordsmen again. Seeing that they still had energy left, it seemed they could move on to the next stage right away.
"I feel like we could do anything now!"
Krein grinned, doing a backflip in the air, seemingly pleased with the rapid growth.
"Hey! You shouldn't say things like that..."
Burren tried to stop him, but it was already too late.
"You feel like you could do anything?"
Raon grinned, covering Burren's mouth. He had been wondering how to start the second training right away, but thanks to those words, it seemed he could begin immediately.
"Uh...?"
Krein swallowed hard, realizing he had made a mistake.
"Wait a moment. That's not what I meant..."
"Good. Since our dear Krein has given permission, we can go right away."
Raon told everyone to follow him and descended the sand hill.
"Krein..."
"I knew that mouth of yours would cause trouble."
"You and I are going to have a talk after training today..."
The swordsmen cursed Krein under their breath as they went down the sand hill.
"Urgh!"
Krein grimaced, clutching his head as if imagining what was to come.
"In the end, you're the one who does it."
At that moment, Dorian grinned, grabbing Krein's shoulder.
"I'm done!"
He hummed a tune as he went down the hill, saying he was finally free from being scolded because of the sand hill.
"Damn it!"
Krein screamed, hitting his own mouth.
* * *
Raon stood in the fifth training ground, looking at the Light Wind Palace swordsmen.
"This is scary..."
Krein swallowed audibly and lowered his gaze.
"There's no need to be afraid! We've overcome that hellish sand mountain!"
Martha shouted for him to have confidence and slapped Krein's back.
"That's right. Cheer up."
"We'll endure it together."
Burren and Trevin also nodded, saying it would be fine.
"That's not it..."
Krein bit his lip and rolled his eyes.
"It's obvious that the Palace Master will call me first!"
He sniffled, saying it was clear that Raon would summon him first, calling him "dear Krein" or whatever.
"Ah..."
"That's true."
Burren and Martha nodded, understanding Krein's fear.
"Rest in peace..."
Dorian took out a goddess statue from his pouch and started praying, as if Krein had already died.
"You crazy bastard!"
As Krein gritted his teeth and swung his fist at Dorian, Raon struck the ground with his Heavenly Drive, drawing everyone's attention.
"We'll now begin the second training. As you've felt, it's sparring with me. The first opponent is..."
"Urgh!"
Krein stepped forward even before Raon called him.
"Martha. Come forward,"
However, Raon called Martha first, not Krein.
"Huh? Me?"
Martha came forward with round eyes, as if surprised.
"Huh? Huuuh!"
Krein shouted that he was saved and retreated, hunching his shoulders. Color returned to his face, which had been turning black with dread.
"Draw your sword and come at me with full force."
Raon nodded, telling her to try anything.
"Alright. Don't blame me if you die."
Martha charged in, grinding her molars. She struck with heavy sword blows, raising her completed Astral Ring. Whoosh! Martha's sword strike, seemingly carrying the weight of the earth, fell, but Raon easily deflected it with his thin blade.
"Ugh!"
Martha was pushed back, unable to withstand the recoil from Raon's sword. Raon didn't miss this opportunity and followed up, striking Martha's waist.
"Urgh..."
Martha rolled on the ground, unable to withstand the sudden impact.
"You're unable to endure even that much."
Raon waved his hand, telling her to give up if she couldn't get up.
"Who are you saying that to!"
Martha gritted her teeth and stood up, swinging her sword at Raon again with the weight of the sky. Whoosh! Raon resonated the Ring of Fire. He mimicked Martha's swordsmanship to show her a path to become stronger. Clang!
Despite clashing with the same swordsmanship, Martha was obviously pushed back, leaving deep footprints on the training ground floor as she was forced backward.
"Damn it!"
Martha screamed and charged in, her pride seemingly hurt from being overwhelmed by her own swordsmanship. Clang! Raon lightly pushed away the enraged Martha and shook his head.
"Think. Consider what's different between my sword and yours."
He pressured Martha with her own swordsmanship while giving her the most important advice.
'What's lacking in me?'
Martha narrowed her eyes like a thread, looking at Raon's sword.
'Come to think of it...'
Raon was swinging his sword with similar strength and speed to her, without using his full power.
'What's this? Why am I being pushed back when it's the same swordsmanship?'
She couldn't understand why she alone was being pushed back when the strength, aura, and swordsmanship were similar.
"If you don't understand, you'll just have to keep getting hit."
Raon smiled brightly, contrary to his harsh words, and struck Martha's entire body.
-Isn't this just stress relief?
Wrath chuckled incredulously.
'Absolutely not.'
Raon curled his lips, watching Martha stand up despite being hit like that.
'Look at those eyes.'
Despite her body being covered in bruises, Martha's eyes weren't dead. She looked as if she would bite with her teeth if she didn't have a sword.
"Argh!"
Martha screamed and charged at Raon. If she was pushed back, she would run in again, and if she was repelled, she would charge once more. By now, she had been hit so many times it was uncountable.
'What's the difference!'
Martha gritted her teeth as she blocked Raon's sword strikes with her body.
'That guy's sword and my sword are completely the same... Wait a minute!'
Why did he gather aura near the sword's edge? Unlike her, who had aura wrapped around the entire blade, Raon had concentrated a lot of aura around the edge of his sword.
'Could it be!'
Martha bit her tongue and stomped the ground. She swung her sword, concentrating aura on the edge like Raon. Boom! A massive explosion occurred as her aura-concentrated sword edge clashed with Raon's. Unlike before, Martha didn't immediately bounce back but stood her ground, swords locked with Raon.
"To think concentrating aura on the sword's edge to add weight makes such a big difference?"
Martha's shoulders trembled as if she had gained a profound realization.
"I never thought it would be this simple..."
"Changes and growth often come from the smallest things."
Raon patted Martha's bleeding shoulder, saying he was glad she figured it out.
"No, if it was something like this, you could have just told me..."
"It's only meaningful if you realize it yourself."
A martial artist must be able to recognize their own problems to ascend higher. The First Patriarch must have wanted to teach him this as well.
"Next, Burren."
Raon gestured for Martha to step back and called Burren.
"I'm in your care!"
Burren bowed politely and approached the center of the training ground.
"Phew..."
Krein let out a sigh of relief.
'Thank goodness.'
He had been tense watching Martha roll around like she was dying, but fortunately, his name wasn't called. It seemed Raon would finish sparring with all the senior members before moving on to the regular swordsmen.
'If I'm lucky, I might not have to do it today?'
Raon sparred with Burren for over two hours. At this rate, it seemed he wouldn't have to spar until the day after tomorrow.
'Should I take sick leave?'
As he was contemplating how to avoid it, Raon turned around.
"Martha. Just as I enlightened you, now it's your turn to teach the others."
Raon gestured for Martha not to rest but to take care of the junior swordsmen.
"For the first one..."
Raon looked at Krein with a chilling smile.
"You know who it is, right? You can pay him back just as you were treated."
He told her she could do as she pleased, then turned his back again.
"Huh? Huuuh!"
Krein trembled all over as if struck by lightning.
"Good. Very good."
Martha grabbed Krein's shoulder with a vicious smile.
"Come with me. This big sister will kindly teach you."
She flashed cold eyes as if intending to repay everything Raon had done to her.
"Wait a moment! I'll learn from the Palace Master! Please spare me!"
Krein fell to his knees, saying he absolutely didn't want to face Martha.
"Sure. Don't worry. You'll learn from me too."
Raon smiled and shook his head.
"No!"
"Yes!"
Martha dragged Krein to a corner, holding him by the scruff of his neck.
"Aaaaargh!"
"Of course, we start with dear Krein."
Raon nodded with satisfaction, listening to Krein's screams.
-You're insane...
Wrath shook his head as if thoroughly disgusted.
* * *
Raon returned to the annex building at dawn after finishing the Light Wind Palace's training. He was about to go straight to his room, too exhausted to appreciate the garden, when he noticed someone standing in front of the lake. It was a familiar back.
'Why are you here?'
Raon immediately approached the lake and bowed.
"I greet the Head of House!"
"Don't raise your voice. Others are sleeping."
Glenn slowly turned around. He covered his mouth with his finger, signaling not to speak loudly.
"I apologize."
"How is the swordsmen's training progressing?"
"They're following well and growing faster than I expected."
He told Glenn that if things continued smoothly, he could help everyone grow at least one level soon.
"To think you're applying the training methods you gained in the Room of Self directly to your subordinates, you're quite an unusual fellow."
Glenn looked at Raon with eyes tinged with admiration.
"Most martial artists tend to keep their most important training methods secret."
"I prefer for everyone to grow stronger together."
Raon said without hesitation that he wanted to become stronger along with everyone in the Light Wind Palace.
"Is that so."
Glenn nodded, drawing a thin smile on his lips.
"I'm sorry to ask when things are going well, but I have a favor to ask of you."
He licked his lips, saying Raon might not be able to train the Light Wind Palace swordsmen for a while.
"Is it a mission?"
Raon narrowed his eyes, taking a short breath.
"It's a mission, but it will be more important than that."
Glenn took out a white envelope from his chest. Five stars were drawn on the envelope's exterior.
"The Five Kings Conference."
He handed the noble-looking letter to Raon.
"I'd like you to participate as the hero who killed the Black Tower Master."