Omen of the Wave
Habun Castle Command.
Captain Barti of the 1st Scout Squad stood at attention before Commander Milland.
"Nothing this time either?"
"No, sir! We made two round trips from Sterin Mountain to the waters near the North Sea, but we found no marine monsters coming up into the mountains or the forests." Barti lifted his gaze as he answered.
"Then the Sharkmaw was the first and last of it."
Milland slowly closed his eyes.
I had an ominous feeling about this. Was it just my imagination?
Ever since Raon had returned from killing the Ice Troll Warrior and the Shaman, they had sent scout units out every week to survey the situation. No particular changes had been observed. If nothing had happened for over a month, it must have been a coincidence after all.
"Good work. Go back and—"
He was about to order rest when a booming battle cry rang out from the soldiers' training ground.
"That's a fine shout." Barti glanced out the window and smiled.
"Fine, my ass. It's so loud I could die."
Despite the complaint, a pleased smile played at the corners of Milland's mouth.
"Have you been over there too?"
"Yes, sir. I go often."
"He teaches well, I take it."
"Every time Raon corrects their form, you can actually feel their skill improving. The soldiers aren't going for nothing. Some of them headed straight to the training ground the moment we got back today."
"Well, I'll be damned." Milland snorted a laugh and turned away.
What a peculiar thing to do.
At some point, Raon had started teaching training methods to the soldiers practicing at the training ground, or correcting their sword and spear forms. He wasn't handing out any special techniques — just refining the basic martial arts they already knew. But the effect was so remarkable that a great many soldiers now followed him.
Watching the training ground — which had sat empty and lifeless from the endless cycle of combat and missions — now buzzing with energy, Milland felt a warmth settle through both body and heart.
"How should I put it. Raon seems like someone who has the power to change not just himself, but everyone around him. He's not even a particularly cheerful fellow, and yet ever since he arrived, Habun Castle feels more alive."
"Is that so." Milland's eyes gleamed.
The makings of a king.
To win people over in a single month on a battlefield this brutal was not something an ordinary human could do. As expected, Raon possessed the qualities to stand above others.
"I'm feeling a bit stiff myself. Think I'll join the training."
"Ah, wait."
As Barti started to leave, rolling his shoulders, Milland raised a hand.
"The Wave period is coming soon. You know that, don't you?"
"…Of course, sir."
The smile on Barti's face vanished in an instant.
"We don't know when it'll hit, so make sure the new recruits are thoroughly informed as well."
Milland's gaze turned toward Sterin Mountain, veiled in gray mist.
A month ago, the soldiers' training ground had been nothing but cold wind. Now it was packed with scouts tempering their bodies.
The change was all because of one person.
Raon.
Shocked by the sight of a man strong enough to kill an Ice Troll Warrior and a Shaman by himself training from dawn until night, the other scouts had begun showing up one by one to train. Whenever he had time, Raon corrected their forms and taught them conditioning methods, and once word spread that it actually worked, the training ground filled to bursting with soldiers.
"Whoa! It's real. The moment I bent my knees a little, the swordwork got so much easier."
"How does he even know all that?"
"It's Divine Eyes. Divine Eyes! He takes one look at your stance and he can see exactly what's missing."
"He didn't even look at me and still pointed out the problem — and he was dead on. It's actually scary."
The scouts laughed among themselves, chattering about what they had learned today and how they had changed.
"Tsk. How noisy."
Wrath clicked his tongue, clearly displeased.
"It was nice and quiet, and now those lot are making This King's ears ring."
As if your rambling is any quieter.
Raon unfolded the Yeonseong Sword Art from start to finish, then snorted a laugh.
"This King's tales of experience are treasures of the Demon Realm that even a mountain of gold bars could not buy. Consider it an honor that you get to hear them."
Honor, I don't know about. But the Demon Realm is starting to feel like home.
Hearing "when This King was in the Demon Realm" and "back in the Demon Realm" so often, the place had begun to feel like a hometown.
"This King does not understand you."
Understand what?
"Why do you bother with those humans? In a year you will never see them again."
I wasn't particularly bothering with them.
"You correct their forms one by one and you still say that?"
Correcting their forms is part of my own training.
"Training? From those sloppy movements?"
That's right.
Raon smiled faintly.
It's helping me. Very clearly.
He wasn't watching the scouts' movements with his eyes. He was watching them through Glacia. Reading so many people's motions through the Sea of Senses, the sea itself was widening even now, the way a body of water takes in the rain.
All of it was thanks to a certain monarch of the Demon Realm, who had traded away the truth that imagery mattered above all else — in exchange for pineapple pizza.
There's another reason, too.
Raon turned around. The look in the soldiers' eyes as they tempered their bodies and swung their swords just to survive was the same look he had worn in his previous life. He remembered that time — wanting to live, wanting to grow stronger, and being able to do nothing at all. He couldn't just leave them be.
"And what is that reason?"
It's a secret.
"Leaving a sentence unfinished is one of the Demon Realm's gravest sins. The moment This King claims your body, I shall imprison that soul of yours in a glacier!"
Do it if you can.
Raon ignored Wrath's curse and looked at the scout behind him. Folded shoulders were keeping the man's sword from moving properly.
"It'd be better if you opened your shoulders a little."
"My shoulders? Understood!"
The man bowed as if he had just heard the voice of a god and immediately squared his shoulders. As his movement changed, his expression brightened with it.
"Hey!"
He was about to look at the next soldier when Dorian's voice carried in from the edge of the training ground.
"That's not it! Run faster!"
Dorian was still circling the training ground with the Snow Strike Squad swordsmen, who had yet to escape their status as the lowest-ranking scouts. He couldn't teach them swordsmanship, so he was putting them through stamina drills instead.
His strength and his legs are the one thing he's good at, at least.
Dorian had been running every single day since the earliest days of his training. His stamina had reached a point that most swordsmen couldn't match.
"Who just used aura?!"
Dorian's eyes flashed as he spun around. Just as he had learned from Rimer, he forbade the use of aura and hounded the Snow Strike Squad into running on nothing but flesh and stamina.
He's running well.
Raon narrowed his eyes at Edquil, leader of the Snow Strike Squad, pounding along right behind Dorian. The Commander must have been genuinely terrifying — the man's gaze was full of resentment, but he was following orders to the letter.
"All right, stop!"
Dorian halted, catching his breath. They had sprinted at full power without using aura, and exhaustion was written plainly across every swordsman's face.
"Next is search practice. On the ground!"
"Guh!"
"D-damn it…"
"I hate this the most…"
The Snow Strike Squad swordsmen dropped onto all fours, their noses nearly touching the dirt.
"Now circle the training ground like that. This is practice for reading tracks on the ground, so give it everything you've got."
"Nngh…"
"Hah… hah…"
The Snow Strike Squad swordsmen began crawling around the edge of the training ground like turtles. It looked like mockery, but it was one of the search drills the scouts actually used.
"Why is that one in charge of scout training, anyway? He barely knows scouting himself."
Now that you mention it…
Raon tilted his head. Somehow, Dorian had ended up as their training officer. The funny part was that nobody complained.
No — maybe that's only natural.
Even if they were scouts on paper right now, they were still swordsmen who could use aura. Ordinary scouts would have a hard time training them, which made Dorian a perfect fit.
"Heh heh." Dorian sidled over with a sly grin. "Looking good, huh?"
"Good? I'm dying of annoyance."
Despite his words, the smile never left his face. When they had first arrived at Habun Castle he had been pale as a corpse, but now he had put on a healthy layer of flesh.
"Still, it's more comfortable than I expected. I really thought we'd be fighting without a chance to breathe." Dorian muttered that rumors really couldn't be trusted.
"Hmm? You don't know?" Raon narrowed his eyes.
"Sir? Know what?"
"The reason this place is called a battlefield of hell — or hell's battlefield — is the Wave that hits twice a year."
"The W…ave?"
"It's a phenomenon where land monsters from Sterin Mountain and the forests, and marine monsters coming up from the North Sea, pour in without end. I thought you'd know."
"Ah — the more you know, the scarier it gets, so I didn't even look it up! Ignorance is bliss, right?!" Dorian shook his head furiously, like a soaked dog.
"A Wave? What even is that! That's terrifying!"
"There'll be signs of it soon. Once it starts, figure you won't sleep for three to five days."
"We can't sleep because we'll be fighting?"
"Yeah."
"Uwaaaaagh!"
Dorian's eyes crumbled like sand hit by a wave as he chewed on his fingernails.
"It's fine. If you just move the way you were taught, you'll get through it in one piece."
"Right? We can do th— no we can't!"
Dorian let out a strangled cry and ran over to the scouts to ask about the Wave. When the answers that came back matched Raon's, his face gradually took on the color of dirt.
"It's over! My life is over!"
Now he was clutching his head and screaming at the sky.
Your number one subordinate is a real piece of work.
Raon snorted a laugh and poked the blankly floating Wrath.
"…This King does not know that one."
"You lunatic! So you just let him go?"
The man in the blue robe bared his teeth. A chill rose from fangs as sharp as saw blades.
"I had no choice. Attacking again there would have been a blunder." The man in the black robe let out a faint sigh.
"Your plans, your moves — you think too damn much!"
"Better than a brute who just charges in mindlessly."
The two men glared at each other, pouring out a beastly Battle Qi of the kind you'd expect from monsters.
"So what's next, then? The plan to draw Milland out is as good as wrecked!"
"It's fine. I've already drawn up a new one." The man in the black robe shook his head.
"A new plan?"
"The Wave that's about to start. We mix a little of your power and mine into it."
"Mix?"
"That's right. You put your strength into getting more marine monsters to join the Wave."
"And what are you going to do?"
"I'll prepare something to bring down the wall."
He swept his robe aside. A skull covered in long black fur floated in the empty air. Black light spilled from its hollow eye sockets, as if the thing were alive.
"A Boom Skull?"
"With this, I can smash a wall of that size for certain."
"Milland will tear it apart before it even gets near the wall."
"It's fine. I modified it so it can hide in the shadows. Even a Master won't be able to detect it."
The man in the black robe stroked the Boom Skull with a confident hand.
"And after that? Even if you bring down a wall, Habun Castle won't fall."
"Don't worry. The plan to draw Milland and his officers out starts after that. Once the wall comes down, they'll have no choice but to come out."
"Hah. This is the last time." The man in the blue robe frowned and crossed his arms. "Even if you and I share the same goal, the process doesn't have to be the same. If this fails too, I'll move my own way."
"That won't happen."
The man in the black robe toyed with the green mask in his hand and smiled thinly.
The training ground before dawn, the dark still unlifted.
Raon brought his sword down. The frozen earth melted beneath a sword wind laced with heat, and the cold air screamed. He stamped his foot and swept the blade up. Movements so alive it was as if a formidable enemy stood before him. He was fighting a life-and-death battle against an opponent born of his own imagery.
A long, white breath poured from Raon's lips. His gaze froze over, and the heat in his blade went cold.
The sword, gleaming a vicious blue, shot forward as savagely as a beast's fangs. The ground that had melted in the flames hardened like stone, and frost flowers bloomed in the empty air.
Ice blossoms that had been dancing upon the silver blade scattered on the wind and circled around him.
Shiiing! Each frost petal became a blade of cold and killing intent. Only after they had shredded the enemy Raon had painted in his mind did they melt away like dew.
"Hoo." Raon settled the frost energy and caught his breath.
"Mmh…"
Wrath let out a groan, as if something about it didn't sit right.
What?
"Your growth is strangely fast."
Raon stared at Wrath, dumbfounded. Wrath was the one who had told him to practice imagery, and now he was reacting like this. He had forgotten everything except the taste of pineapple pizza.
"Whoa!"
While Raon was still at a loss over Wrath's reaction, Dorian came over from the edge of the training ground.
"Now even six frost flowers are blooming. It changes every time I look — I can't keep up." Dorian stuck out his tongue, asking how anyone got stronger that fast.
The growth rate is definitely faster than I expected.
Harmonizing Wrath's advice with the experience gained on missions, the growth of both Glacia and the Mad Fang Sword had been dazzling. Even he was startled by a pace that had outstripped his own predictions.
"You'd get stronger fast too if you trained from dawn until night."
"From dawn until night… Young Master, you haven't changed a bit even at sixteen."
"No reason to."
Leaving home hadn't changed anything. Turning sixteen hadn't changed anything. He simply used every hour he was given to train to the fullest.
"You came from training too?"
"Not quite training. I just did a lap around the castle." Dorian grinned and nodded.
"You took the Snow Strike Squad kids again?"
"Yes. It's part of the daily routine. Daily routine."
"There's less than a month left. You'll miss it, huh?"
"I know. Hah…"
The Snow Strike Squad had less than a month remaining as scouts. A hint of regret showed on Dorian's face.
"It's fine, though. There are other juniors."
Dorian no longer thought of himself as the scouts' escort. He thought of himself as one of the scouts. He had started out saying he was going to die, and now he had adapted completely.
"Looks like you've settled in."
"So have you, Young Master."
"Well. True enough."
As Dorian said, sharing hardship on patrols and missions, seeing them every day at the training ground — he had grown rather fond of the scouts himself.
"If it weren't for that Wave, this place would be great. Hrk! I said that unlucky word out loud! Damn it!" Dorian clawed at his hair, as if he couldn't even stand to think about it.
"That's enough. Let's go eat."
"Yes, sir." Dorian nodded, all the strength gone out of him.
"Let us go to Frost Branch. The food at the soldiers' mess is, quite frankly, the worst."
Wrath waved a hand made of frost, begging to go to Frost Branch.
The mess hall isn't that bad, is it? I think it tastes fine.
"You find those hard scraps of bread and that soup delicious? This King has thought it for a long time, but your tongue is not normal. The stats that should have gone to your tongue clearly all went into willpower instead."
Maybe so.
Raon snorted a laugh. In his previous life, as a child, he had received a single piece of bread only after completing a mission. A place that put a meal in front of him at every sitting was no different from heaven.
That said, it wasn't something he wanted to hear from a creature whose mind had been ruined by mint chocolate and pineapple pizza.
It's been a while. Maybe we should go.
"R-really?"
Yeah. I should listen to you every now and then.
"You aren't plotting something, are you?"
I'm not.
Raon snorted a laugh and turned. With the pleasant feeling that his swordsmanship, his aura, and his frost energy had all grown, he decided to satisfy Wrath's tongue for the first time in a while.
"Dorian. Let's do breakfast at Frost Branch today. My treat."
"Sir? What's the occasion?"
"Every now and then you have to eat something special."
"Oh! Understood!"
In better spirits, Dorian went with him into Frost Branch. It was morning, and every table was full except one.
"Oh! Instructor!"
"Instructor! Saluting!"
"Here for a meal, sir?"
"Yua! Put the Instructor's meal on my tab!"
The soldiers who had been eating breakfast surged to their feet and bowed to Raon.
"I'm not an instructor."
"You correct our forms every day — of course you're our instructor!"
"Yes! We'll take you as our teacher!"
"That's enough. Eat your food."
Raon waved them off and sat at the center table. These days so many people called him instructor and came over to greet him that it was getting tiresome.
"You came at the perfect time today!"
Yua came running out of the kitchen, her twintails swaying.
"There's a new menu item! Would you try it?" She beamed and pointed to the newly added section of the menu.
"Apple Meat Pie?"
"Yes! It's a moist, sweet meat pie made with grated apple!"
"Hmm…"
Not really appealing.
Meat should be meat. Fruit should be fruit. He wasn't particularly fond of mixing them.
"Eat it! Pick it! Choose it!"
Wrath's frost energy shot up like a pillar of fire.
"This King is drawn to the Apple Meat Pie!"
His voice was thick with drool.
"Then one of those pies. Dorian, what about you?"
"I'm not the adventurous type, so I'll go with the regular scout's set meal, plus pineapple cookies!"
"Yes!"
Dorian pulled a pineapple from his Belly Pouch. Yua took it with practiced hands.
"Add pineapple cookies! This King wishes to feel that chewy texture as well!"
"Hah. Pineapple cookies for me too."
"Yes!" Yua smiled brightly and went back into the kitchen.
"Just how many pineapples do you even have?"
"There aren't many left now." Dorian stroked his Belly Pouch with a look of regret. The words "not many left" were a little frightening.
"Such thorough preparedness. As expected of This King's number one subordinate. Order him to stock food ingredients with the same thoroughness."
You said he was a stranger not too long ago.
"……"
Wrath turned his head, pretending not to hear.
They were chatting when, before long, Yua brought out steaming dishes.
"Oh, that smells good."
"It's not just the smell — it tastes good too. Please try it!" Yua planted her hands on her hips and nodded firmly.
"All right."
Raon smiled faintly and picked up a knife. When he cut into the pie, the tartness of apple and the deep aroma of meat spread in harmony. His mouth watered on its own.
"H-hurry! Eat it already."
Stop rushing me.
He was about to serve himself a piece of pie when a commotion rose outside the restaurant.
Bang!
The door flew open, and Radin came in with a flushed face. His eyes were urgent — something was wrong.
"Raon! So this is where you were!"
The person he had been looking for was Raon.
"What's going on?"
"The Commander is summoning you!"
"At this hour?"
"It's urgent."
Hearing that, Raon already knew what had happened.
"Signs of the Wave have appeared."
"The Wave…"
Raon frowned and stood up.
"The Wave? The Wave. The Wave!"
Dorian shouted it three times and froze like a wooden doll.
"Th-the Wave?"
"Fuck…"
"Hah. It was about time."
The soldiers' eyes trembled. They set down their forks, uneasy, and bit their lips.
"Yua. I'll have to try the new menu later. Don't worry."
"Ah, yes."
Raon patted Yua's anxious shoulder and followed Radin out of the restaurant.
"W-wait! Where do you think you're going!"
Wrath stretched his body like a rubber band and clung desperately to the pie dish.
"Whatever this Wave is, This King shall resolve it all! One bite. Just one bite and then you can go! Raon!"
He tried to grab the pie dish with a hand of frost, but of course it didn't catch. He was dragged after Raon like an arrow leaving the string.
"Why can This King never know happiness! Why!"
"Waaaaave!"
Frost Branch filled with the wails of a Demon King who had not gotten his pie, and of a coward.