NOVGO.NET Chapter 1018:
“Hmm…”
Raon rotated his wrist, surveying the Thespian Emperor’s training ground.
‘Not bad?’
The floor was tightly packed, and the equipment was neatly maintained, as if it had never been neglected.
Unlike the Thespian Emperor’s residence, which looked shabbier than an ordinary noble’s mansion, the training ground was in top condition—comparable to Zieghart’s.
The Thespian Emperor hadn’t forgotten what mattered for the Five Divine Orders’ image and had tended to it with meticulous care.
‘It’s all because she’s worried about how others see her and what they’ll say. However…’
Raon frowned as he watched the Thespian Emperor anxiously biting her nails.
‘The person herself has become strange.’
The Thespian Emperor he knew was like a loach, always maintaining cold rationality to secure her own gains.
But she had lost her greatest strength when she lost the ability to read the Celestial Omen.
Now, she seemed unable to judge what she could do and what she should do.
It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say her soul had been consumed by the Celestial Omen.
– “That’s right.”
Wrath nodded, looking at the Thespian Emperor.
– “Knowing the future is a great Authority. It’s no wonder that wench is falling apart.”
He scoffed, saying there were Demon race in the Demon Realm who had fallen because they overestimated their ability to read the Celestial Omen.
– “But to be satisfied with an already determined future, how frustrating! Fate only has meaning when you forge it yourself!”
Wrath clicked his tongue in disgust.
‘Hmm…’
Raon narrowed his eyes, watching Wrath get angry at the Thespian Emperor’s helplessness.
‘Is it because of this guy that I’m not affected by the Celestial Omen?’
In his past life, he didn’t have the ability to change fate.
Seeing that the title [One Who Turns the Wheel of Fate] had been created, it seemed clear he had gained the power to change the future because of the Ring of Fire or Wrath.
– “For a supreme being like this King, who shattered fate with his own strength and ascended to the throne of a Monarch—”
While Raon killed time listening to Wrath’s boastful speech, the door to the training ground opened, and the Evil Sword Marquis, Bridget, entered.
She wore an irritated expression, as if something displeased her.
‘Come to think of it, that person is a bit strange too.’
She wouldn’t have shown her emotions so openly before.
Perhaps because she’d been influenced by the Thespian Emperor, whose mind had collapsed, the Evil Sword Marquis also seemed different than before.
– “What nonsense! You’re the strangest one!”
Wrath waved his hand, telling him to reflect on himself.
– “You’re more arrogant and impatient than usual!”
‘That’s on purpose.’
Raon brushed off Wrath’s hand and smiled faintly.
– “On purpose?”
‘I wanted to draw out the hidden power of the Evil Sword Marquis.’
The Evil Sword Marquis he had seen before was taciturn and disliked rude people. He had deliberately used an arrogant, condescending tone to provoke her.
– “Considering that, you’re using more polite language than before?”
‘It’s more infuriating to be condescending with polite language.’
– “Ha, you thought all of that through?”
Wrath let out a hollow laugh, as if dumbfounded.
– “You don’t let anything pass you by.”
He shook his head, saying he was tired of his scheming.
“It seems you’re ready, so let’s begin.”
The Evil Sword Marquis placed her hand on the hilt of her sword, as if to start the sparring.
Swish.
Raon drew the Heavenly Drive from its sheath, narrowing his eyes into slits.
‘There’s nothing particularly different?’
Even in a battle stance, she didn’t seem much different from when he’d seen her in the conference hall. She was still at a level not much different from the Demon Slayer Spear.
‘Well, I’ll know once I fight her.’
He couldn’t know more without directly clashing swords with her, so he raised the Heavenly Drive.
“Come.”
Raon beckoned with the finger holding the Heavenly Drive, telling her to strike first.
Kuuuuung!
The Evil Sword Marquis charged forward, shattering the training ground’s calm as if she didn’t need words. As her fingertips flashed like lightning, silver sword energy reached him in an instant.
An extreme draw. It felt as if a sword were rising from a split dimension.
‘Fast and sharp. A strike from a supreme expert. But…’
‘I can see it.’
The Evil Sword Marquis unleashed swordsmanship imbued with transcendence, but it didn’t exceed what he had expected.
Uuuuuung!
Raon resonated the nine Rings of Fire. As if time had slowed, the flow of Aura and Mana dulled, and he could feel her sword strike rushing toward him as if it had brushed his skin.
Kuang!
Operating the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation to its extreme, Raon drew two circles with the Heavenly Drive. Flames rose from the blade in a curved wave, blocking her sword strike.
Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation – Heavenly Flame: Perfect Sea of Flames.
The Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation’s swordsmanship, which perfectly harmonized offense and defense, effortlessly shattered the Evil Sword Marquis’s sword strike.
Cheeeeeeeek!
The Evil Sword Marquis retreated ten steps, thrusting her sword elegantly as she withdrew.
Her footprints, deeply imprinted in the floor, showed she hadn’t properly dispersed the impact of the Perfect Sea of Flames. It was a clear gap in power.
‘Her strength isn’t much different from what I saw.’
She was a Transcendent who had honed countless sword techniques to their limits, but she wasn’t a difficult opponent for him, who had mastered Thousands Manifestations.
Rather, the Thespian Emperor was much more dangerous. Her attacks, imbued with sorcery, would definitely work on him.
“Will you continue?”
“Of course!”
The Evil Sword Marquis, as if provoked, shouted that she hadn’t even started and fired a sword strike from where she stood.
Piaaaaaang!
A tiny circle extended from the sword energy. Within a point thinner than a strand of hair, the essence of everything she had built as a swordsman was compressed.
‘A different level of swordsmanship. However…’
‘I can feel this too.’
Her swordsmanship shot toward his chest faster than sound, but its flow had already been caught by his senses.
Chiaaaaaang!
Raon flicked his wrist forward, unleashing the same thrust.
The thrust, repeated countless times since childhood, drew a red line through the air without the slightest tremor—like the brushstroke of a painter who had dominated an era.
Sky Piercing Thunder: Crimson Single Flash.
Point and line collided, and a red fissure that seemed to cut through space split open.
But the contest didn’t last long. The Crimson Single Flash, linked by a single bolt of lightning, shattered her sword strike despite being born late and lightly grazed her waist.
“Ugh…”
The Evil Sword Marquis bit her lip in surprise, staring at her waist where her clothes and skin had been seared.
“Didn’t you say I might die?”
Raon smiled, looking at the ground beneath his feet, which didn’t bear a single mark.
“This is boring. Show me some power.”
“Don’t rush me. My heat hasn’t risen yet.”
The Evil Sword Marquis twisted her lips and grabbed the end of her sword hilt. She charged, drawing her arm far back as if a cavalry unit were thrusting a lance.
Hwaaaaaaa!
A shimmering black light, as if containing the universe, rose above her sword. It was the ultimate technique of the Wizegre Sword, expressing the universe with a blade.
“Sigh.”
Raon took a breath and pushed the Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation to its extreme. The flames rising from the blade burned a deep golden, taking the shape of a mysterious sword.
Raon Zieghart Swordsmanship – Form Seven: Void Slash.
The golden flames burned away the Evil Sword Marquis’s sword strike that sought to form a universe, brilliant as a star’s explosion, then fell toward her neck.
Kyaaaaang!
As expected of a high-level Transcendent, the Evil Sword Marquis read the Void Slash’s movement in the middle of it all and tried to defend as she retreated.
But his eyes and hands were already reading her.
Chiiiing!
Following her with the flexibility of the Supreme Harmony Steps, he shattered her defense with the sharpness of the Fangs of Insanity Sword Art.
“Keuk!”
The Evil Sword Marquis bent her knees and waist just enough to deflect the strike aimed at her chest, then used that momentum to unleash an extremely fast thrust toward his heart.
That swordsmanship also seemed to be Wizegre Sword, with beautiful black light rippling over the sword energy.
Chiaaaang!
Raon stepped forward with his left foot. From a distance so close he could feel her breath, he unleashed the Frost Pond at full power.
Kuwahhhhh!
Two blades, imbued with the Demon King’s frost, cut through the black glow and came to a calm stop before the Evil Sword Marquis’s neck.
Five moves.
That was how many sword techniques Raon used to subdue the Evil Sword Marquis, Bridget.
“Haa…?”
The Thespian Emperor’s eyes widened, as if she hadn’t expected the Evil Sword Marquis to be subdued in five moves.
“The Evil Sword Marquis…?”
“No way! Only five moves!”
“The difference is too big…”
The swordsmen of the Swordless Pavilion and the warriors of the White Whale Theater trembled, horrified by the result.
“The Evil Sword Marquis in five moves?”
“Five moves is generous. If that guy were serious, it would have ended in one strike.”
“Damn monster…”
Burren, Martha, and Runaan also swallowed hard, as if they hadn’t expected it to end in five moves.
“This is…”
Raon frowned, slightly lifting the Evil Sword Marquis’s chin with the sword energy of the Heavenly Drive.
“Is this all you’ve got?”
“Of course not!”
The Evil Sword Marquis bit her lip and shook her head.
“Let me be honest. In your current state, you can’t beat me no matter what you do.”
Raon shook his head firmly. She might have more swordsmanship and techniques left, but she could never beat him at her current level.
“You warned me I might die, but you’re not showing me enough.”
He wasn’t mocking her. He genuinely didn’t understand what she had meant, so he wanted an answer.
‘Did the Head Of House misjudge her?’
He trusted Glenn more than anyone when it came to martial arts, but he couldn’t help thinking it this time.
“I want to show you properly too, but it’s not coming out now…”
The Evil Sword Marquis muttered words he couldn’t understand and lowered her head.
“This is my current power.”
She ground her teeth until they scraped, as if furious with herself.
“Hm…”
Raon’s eyes widened as he looked at the Evil Sword Marquis, who was openly showing irritation.
‘What…?’
“That’s enough.”
The Thespian Emperor sighed and stepped forward.
“Bridget, step back. If you think about it properly, that’s not your power.”
She shook her head, saying it was time to stop.
“Ugh…”
The Evil Sword Marquis let out a low groan and raised her head. Judging by her furrowed brow, she was stepping back because of the Thespian Emperor, but she clearly wasn’t satisfied.
“Light Wind Palace Lord. I acknowledge it. We, the Five Divine Orders, will walk the path of the Five Kings together…”
The Thespian Emperor nodded, saying she would follow the Five Kings.
“No.”
Raon interrupted her and raised the Heavenly Drive.
“Now it’s your turn to fight.”
“What do you mean…?”
“Are you going to sign an alliance without even checking what kind of person your future ally is, and how much strength they have?”
He lowered his eyebrows, asking if that wasn’t too passive.
“…I never intended to test you from the beginning.”
The Thespian Emperor hesitated for a long time before parting her lips.
“Actually, I should have made a decision when the Demonblade died and the Black Tower fell.”
She shook her head, saying she had missed that moment because she couldn’t read the Celestial Omen.
“I don’t have the right to test you…”
“How long has it been since you came to this training ground?”
Raon pointed to the packed floor.
“Yes?”
“Have you ever fought or sparred with anyone?”
“…”
The Thespian Emperor’s lips trembled as she stared at the ground.
“It’s been a long time since you trained, let alone sparred, hasn’t it?”
“Ugh…”
She didn’t answer, as if his guess was right.
“You’re both a sorcerer and a martial artist. But you’ve only been sitting at your desk, using your head. That’s why you’re falling apart like this.”
Raon scoffed and shook his head.
“Don’t speak ill of her!”
The Evil Sword Marquis grit her teeth, telling him not to mock the Thespian Emperor. There seemed to be something special between them.
“Come at me.”
Raon ignored the Evil Sword Marquis and beckoned to the Thespian Emperor.
“I’ll break the rock that’s crushing your soul.”
“Are you serious?”
“I’m always serious.”
He cocked his chin, saying this was her last chance to overcome herself.
– “Why are you trying to fight that wench?”
Wrath narrowed his eyes, as if baffled.
‘What we need is a wise fox, not a broken puppy.’
There was no point in taking the Thespian Emperor in this state. Right now, she had no value as a martial artist or as a strategist.
Now that the Five Divine Orders had entered the embrace of the Five Kings, he had to awaken her shattered mind so she could return to her original self.
“Alright. Actually, I too…”
The Thespian Emperor bit her lip until it bled.
“I wanted to relieve this frustration.”
She stomped her foot roughly, as if she’d finally decided.
“I’ll concede the first move.”
Raon aimed the Heavenly Drive at the Thespian Emperor’s neck, telling her to come at him with everything.
“Haaaa…”
As the Thespian Emperor formed a Formula with both hands and chanted an incantation, her entire body was dyed in colorless light.
Kwaaang!
When she kicked off the ground and surged forward, a massive wave of Mana rushed in as if to swallow him whole.
Kugugugugugu!
She threw a rough fist wreathed in colorless Mana. It was simple and crude—completely unlike her usual intellectual demeanor.
Kuwahhhhh!
But its power wasn’t simple. The Thespian Emperor’s fist broke through the Heavenly Drive’s defense and scraped his skin as it drove in.
“I’ll take it.”
Raon smiled, showing his teeth, and raised a sword that wouldn’t be pushed back by her fist.
The powerful sword and powerful fist collided head-on, drawing a vermilion line that seemed to split heaven and earth.
Jjeoooooooong!
…
Kugugugugugu!
The Thespian Emperor gritted her teeth, relentlessly pouring out fist strikes that held both sorcery and Aura.
‘He’s blocking all of this?’
Raon received the onslaught—strong enough to be mistaken for his full power—without taking a single step back. It was as if he meant to meet strength with strength until the end.
‘Is this man that child from back then?’
The young swordsman who had toyed with her with his tongue had become a great swordsman who stood behind her—no, stood side by side with her.
‘He was a Master when I first saw him.’
It hadn’t even been a few years since then, and he was already at the same level as her.
‘A genius. No, this isn’t a monster. It’s a Demon King.’
The Thespian Emperor’s chin trembled as she watched Raon burn away her sorcery with flame and push back her Aura with cold.
‘What was I doing while this child was transcending?’
She had vowed to gain profits among the Six Kings and Five Demons and create a great power that wouldn’t lose to them, but in truth, she hadn’t achieved anything.
She had only watched, picking up even the scraps like a rat.
‘On top of that…’
After losing the ability to see the Celestial Omen, she had only breathed and stood still.
Every day, she holed up in her office like a hermit, brainwashing herself. ‘I’m just waiting.’ ‘I’m waiting for a better opportunity.’
But the child in front of her had risked his life, endured countless hardships, and gained power and experience that wouldn’t lose to her.
Feeling that difference on her skin made her want to vomit, as if she’d seen her ugliness reflected in a mirror.
“Kuaaaaaaa!”
The Thespian Emperor screamed—not shouted—and threw a fist with all her might. A blow packed with emotion she would never normally allow.
It was an attack easy to counter or avoid, but Raon smiled coolly, blood on his lips, and received it head-on.
“Come on.”
Raon’s smile didn’t fade, as if it still wasn’t enough, and he cocked his chin.
‘Celestial Omen…’
Watching Raon—far clearer and steadier than herself—she remembered the day she read his Celestial Omen.
The sight of blood that should have represented the future spilling from the Sun and Moon Star Scripture on its own was terrifying.
But facing Raon’s unwavering eyes now, the terror of that day began to look like a will to forge his own destiny.
‘Celestial Omen… No. Is the future not what matters?’
The thought flashed through her shattered mind like a spark.
That the Celestial Omen was only one path, and that what truly mattered was the will of the one walking it.
‘That’s right. That was right.’
I was too deeply immersed in the ability of Celestial Omen.
Until now, she had valued the predetermined future more than her own will or beliefs. That was no different from throwing her soul into a sewer.
Gooooooo!
The Thespian Emperor felt the headache that had plagued her wash away as she endlessly swung her fists.
The chaotic flow of her fist strikes and spells began to subside quietly, like the waves of a vast ocean.
===
Thud!
Raon stopped her rough punches and let out a dry breath as he looked at the Thespian Emperor, who had frozen like a stone statue.
‘Enlightenment, is it?’
The Thespian Emperor seemed to have gained enlightenment while unleashing her fists on him.
‘I was just trying to help her vent, not give her enlightenment…’
He had only intended to pull her out of the sewer, but the moment she took his hand, it felt like she rushed into a clothing store and started buying new clothes, bags, and shoes. Frankly, it was absurd.
However, it wasn’t bad. The Thespian Emperor was someone who knew what gratitude was, so there would be more ways to use her later.
‘I need to get a big reward for this.’
As Raon quietly smiled and tried to step away from the Thespian Emperor, he met eyes with the Evil Sword Marquis, who was leaning against the wall of the training hall.
“Uh…?”
Raon swallowed hard as he looked into the Evil Sword Marquis’s strange eyes.
‘What is that?’
The same face, the same body, the same Aura—but this woman wasn’t the same person he had crossed swords with a moment ago. He felt a completely different aura from her.
“You….”
Raon stepped in front of the Thespian Emperor as if to protect her, lost in thought, and pointed his sword at the Evil Sword Marquis.
“Who are you?”