Chapter 255
Chapter 255
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 255
Chapter Title: Fading Away, and the Rising Sun
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Sigrin's curses.
Even Sizli froze in shock at Sigrin's sudden outburst.
"You're saying you'll gobble everything up while I'm taking a break!"
Sigrin unleashed her raw fury at Krash without a hint of respect.
With that, the aura of the White Dragon began to surge around her.
The aura instantly engulfed Krash and Sizli, and Krash pulled Sizli into his arms.
At that moment, the same White Dragon aura rose from Krash's body.
Kagagagagang!
The two auras clashed and vanished simultaneously.
Sigrin's eyes widened slowly as she watched the scene.
"Wh-what."
Sigrin had never even dreamed that Krash could wield the White Dragon's aura.
Now, seeing him do it right before her eyes, she froze as if struck on the head with a rock.
H-how... how can a wretch like you!?"
"Oh, this?"
In response to Sigrin's question, Krash acted as if there was nothing surprising about it.
"It came naturally after I treated His Majesty."
And with that, Krash smiled casually.
Sigrin stood rooted to the spot, rigid.
Her mind raced to piece together the situation.
Krash had been kidnapped into the Giant's Forest en route from the Empire.
And after his return, word reached her that the Emperor's condition had dramatically improved.
Especially since Krash had already cured her own White Stone Disease before.
Putting the pieces together, Sigrin had suspected that Krash might have cured the Emperor's White Stone Disease.
And now.
Krash had confirmed it straight from his own mouth.
That much she could handle.
It made succeeding the throne even trickier, sure, a damn frustrating situation.
But it was still within the realm of what she could anticipate.
However, an entirely new problem loomed before her now.
Back when she was cursed, Krash had only suffered from White Stone Disease—he hadn't wielded the White Dragon's aura.
But now, Krash was wielding the White Dragon's aura.
As Sigrin stared blankly, unable to process it, Krash's eyes sharpened.
"More importantly, my little sister Sizli is right here."
The White Dragon's aura flowed from Krash's body once more, surging toward Sigrin.
Seeing it, Sigrin snapped to her senses and raised her own aura.
The moment the two auras collided again.
Kagagagagang!
She watched her own aura get suppressed by Krash's.
Krash's White Dragon aura came directly from the White Dragon King himself.
Whereas Sigrin's was power extracted from a husk.
The outcome was inevitable.
"What were you thinking, attacking like that?"
"Ghk, urk!"
Sigrin groaned under the pressure of Krash's aura.
Her legs buckled, and she dropped to her knees on the ground.
Krash's aura was simply too overwhelming.
Sigrin felt like she was suffocating.
If she held out like this, her body would be crushed.
"That's enough."
In that instant, Krash's aura vanished.
"Cough, kehuk!"
Finally able to breathe, she clutched her throat, drool spilling from her mouth.
At the same time, her face flushed crimson.
She was on her knees before Krash.
Sigrin wanted to jump up and punch him, but her already exhausted body refused to obey after being crushed by the aura.
"I don't know why you're so worked up all of a sudden, but if you have grievances, cool your head and let's talk."
Krash patted Sizli's shoulder as he spoke.
Sizli, sensing there was nothing good to come from tangling with Sigrin now, turned away naturally.
"Ha, hahaha."
Suddenly left alone, Sigrin began to laugh.
It was a broken laugh, one that dragged her into the abyss.
After the encounter with Sigrin.
Krash released the hand he had been clenching.
When facing Sigrin.
Krash had activated Black Hood without her noticing.
What he targeted was Sigrin's original secret technique from the Sword Emperor: Sword Radiance.
'Three.'
And there were three locks in total.
Two of them were already unlocked.
The first lock: to plunge Sigrin into confusion.
The second lock: to make Sigrin belittle herself.
Two of her locks had already been undone.
Only one remained.
'To put Sigrin in a state where she can never rise again.'
Krash clenched his fist tightly.
The moment that single trigger aligned, Sigrin would completely crumble.
And to make that happen, Krash needed to grow even stronger than now.
The Sealed Retreat Training Chamber appeared before Krash.
This would be his second time entering since mastering the Poison Blood Battle secret art not long ago.
This retreat might last longer than expected.
'Wait for it, Sigrin.'
Soon, he'd make her face the day she fully collapsed.
Kiiik-
Krash entered the Sealed Retreat Training Chamber as the door opened.
After Krash entered his sealed retreat.
Raheln Academy underwent several changes.
It stemmed from the Student Squad Tournament.
The students had felt their shortcomings to the bone during the tournament.
The regular students, realizing the gap with the top ranks, threw themselves even harder into training. The top students did the same.
Everyone except the victorious Lion Squad felt a bitter sting of defeat.
And so, every student devoted themselves endlessly to training.
As a result, even in winter, Raheln Academy buzzed with the hottest fervor imaginable.
Atmosphere matters more than one might think.
It even motivated the weary trainees: if everyone's doing it, maybe I should push a bit more.
Amid this unexpected training boom at Raheln Academy, the training grounds teemed even in the biting winter cold.
While everyone immersed themselves in training.
One person walked into the second-years' training ground.
A boy with black hair.
Glen Diana, cousin to the former Divine Spear, Mary Diana.
He scanned the training ground with a slightly awkward expression.
The others in the training ground gradually noticed his arrival.
After the Diana Family's fall, Glen had swung his spear at Sigrin's side.
The second-years centered around Krash.
So Glen had kept his distance from them for a while.
That's why he felt awkward returning to the second-years' training ground after so long.
"Glen."
The first to approach was none other than Karandis Poseus.
The ninth princess of the Poseus Kingdom, she had faced Glen in the Student Squad Tournament.
Glen had even used his Demonic Core, so Karandis had suffered a crushing defeat.
As she approached first, Glen tensed.
He had wronged her, so he had no defense against any scolding.
But there was no blame in her demeanor.
"Welcome back! I heard about the Diana Family."
If anything, her face lit up brighter than usual.
Glen's expression turned awkward at her warm smile.
But he soon realized Karandis had stepped forward deliberately for his sake.
"Whoa, it's Glen!"
Then Ballak Hogma popped up from behind her.
Still short in stature, he greeted Glen with an innocent, beaming face.
"You're here."
Even Haring, who was sharpening his daggers in the distance, glanced over as if to say about time.
All the members of the second-year elite class welcomed Glen's return.
Glen felt a lump in his throat.
"...Thanks."
As Glen expressed his gratitude, the three exchanged looks and chuckled briefly.
"Let's train together. Everyone's been crazy busy with it lately."
Glen nodded at Karandis's words.
He had resolved to wield his spear for himself from now on, so he had to keep growing stronger.
"Where's Krash?"
"In sealed retreat."
Haring answered Glen's question about Krash.
Haring seemed a bit disappointed not to see Krash.
"I see."
Coming out even stronger, huh.
Glen pinned his hopes on the next time he'd meet Krash.
He planned to match that growth with his own efforts.
He owed Krash an unprecedented debt.
'Never imagined he'd actually follow through on that promise.'
During the Student Squad Tournament, Krash had said this to the overexerting Glen:
"If you lose to me, don't use that thing in your heart anymore until the Diana Family is restored."
A promise to put the Diana Family back on the table in dealings with the Empire.
It had sounded utterly absurd at the time, but on the day Krash was supposedly kidnapped.
He had definitely been in the Empire.
After that day, the Diana Family returned to politics.
The Emperor himself had supported their reinstatement.
No one dared oppose the Emperor, who had returned to his former vigor despite his sickbed.
Especially since it was Sizli herself—who had nearly been assassinated by Mary, daughter of the Diana Family—who had petitioned for it.
To avoid offending the imperial family, the nobles acknowledged the Diana Family's return.
The Diana Family's political comeback meant Glen no longer had reason to be bound to the White Lamb Squad.
So he bowed politely to Sigrin and said:
"I will leave the White Lamb Squad to follow my spear's conviction."
Sigrin, listening, looked dazed for some reason.
She had been unusually spaced out since the Student Squad Tournament.
Lately, it had gotten even worse.
Her eyes seemed anxious, and her insomnia appeared more severe.
Perhaps because of that, Sigrin said little to the departing Glen.
"...Do as you please."
As if she had no time to worry about such things.
Sigrin readily allowed Glen to leave.
Still, he had once served her as her subordinate.
Glen thanked her again and quietly left the White Lamb Squad.
As he departed the White Lamb Squad building, Glen overheard the main members chatting.
"Sigrin's been looking even worse lately."
"Arshoulder, you noticed that?"
There were Arshoulder Freya and Molgrid Panrea, the man who despised all filth touching his body.
"Was it Arthur? She visits him often. She comes back looking more haggard each time. Pretty, though."
Hyzen Hendrickson, with his vulgar smirk.
"Lady Sigrin's face keeps paling. I'm worried."
And Zodiac Gloria, the cute, petite one, chimed in.
"Something happened recently too, right? Didn't she say she was going to meet Lord Krash? What was that about?"
The secretary, Mayri, nodded in agreement.
The White Lamb Squad gathered around Sigrin.
As she began to waver, it affected the rest.
"The White Lamb Squad is fading."
Finally, even Yul Topaz—the silent man with his eyes covered by bandages—spoke.
These were the core members who would later join the Generation of the Sky, the White Lamb Squad's main force.
They all sensed the squad's collapse.
Yet none among them called to change the White Lamb Squad.
The individualistic squad had always failed to unite.
They didn't share deep camaraderie with each other.
Gathered selfishly by Sigrin, they were connected only by her.
Glen glanced back at the crumbling White Lamb Squad before leaving for good.
Once away, he felt a sense of relief.
Being in the elite class reminded him this was where he belonged.
'Lion Squad, was it.'
Glen recalled the Lion Squad, Krash's group.
He'd knock on their door.
And at the same time.
Another who had unwittingly received Krash's grace, just like Glen.
"Ah, ahh, Lord Krash."
It was none other than Mary Diana.
The former Divine Spear who had once made a name for herself.
She had collapsed miserably after losing even Excel to Krash, but thanks to him, she rose again—and now honed her spear daily for his sake.
Then one day.
She heard the Diana Family had returned to politics.
Truth be told, to Mary, the Diana Family had abandoned her.
So she didn't care what happened to them.
But what came next was the issue.
Sizli had forgiven her, pardoning all of Mary Diana's crimes.
This was merely a step for the Diana Family's political return.
But Mary interpreted it entirely her way.
Krash had gone to the Empire to save her, securing her pardon.
"For my sake..."
In her room, Mary clasped her hands over her chest, tears streaming down in emotion.
Where in this world was someone who would do so much for her?
Even during her time as Arthur's lover, she had never felt such profound warmth.
She gripped her spear tightly.
"I will definitely repay this grace."
By ascending to heights beyond her Divine Spear days.
Mary vowed firmly to repay her debt to Krash.
Thus, as two wielded their spears for Krash.
Spring arrived before long.
When the world tree's leaves dyed pink once more, like last year, coloring Raheln Academy.
A banner hung at Raheln Academy's entrance.
[Raheln Academy Entrance Exam, Round 3.]
The time had come for new talents to enter Raheln Academy.