King of Destruction
Burren Zieghart rubbed his eyes hard as he stared at Raon, who stood there with his hand raised as if it were the most natural thing in the world. I must have seen that wrong. Raon wasn't a fool. There was no way he would volunteer for training at the Heavy Martial Palace, a place that so obviously despised him. Convinced he'd been mistaken, Burren opened his eyes again. Nothing had changed. Raon still had his hand in the air, bold as ever.
"What the hell are you—"
He was about to demand an explanation when Runaan and Marta slammed into him from the side and shoved him to the floor yet again.
"Raon. You can't go there."
"Have you lost your mind? Do you even know what that place is?"
The two of them yanked Raon's hand down, trying to stop him.
"You lunatics! Am I invisible to you?!"
Burren lost his temper for the first time since returning to the family. After getting knocked aside three times since yesterday, the composed mindset he'd learned from Reniton, head of the Maiko Merchant Group, had scattered like dust.
"Get off!"
He roared and shoved Runaan and Marta off Raon's shoulders.
"Huh?"
"Have you gone insane?!"
"You're the ones who've gone insane! You're not wild boars, so why do you keep charging in?!"
"You're the boar."
"The hell? You wanna die?"
"You damn bastards!"
The three of them glared at each other, grinding their teeth.
"Raon."
Rimer tilted his head and came down from the platform.
"Are you really going to the Heavy Martial Palace?"
"Yes."
Raon nodded at once, with no intention of changing his mind.
"Hmm. This should be interesting."
Rimer wore a sly smile as he wrote Raon's name on the paper.
"W-wait, stop!"
Burren squeezed out from between the still-growling Runaan and Marta and grabbed Raon's shoulder.
"I don't love saying this, but think it over. The Heavy Martial Palace isn't going to welcome you."
It was genuine advice. His father made no secret of how much he disliked Raon. If Raon went there, nothing good would come of it.
"Raon. Come with me."
"Don't go get yourself beaten to a pulp. Come this way instead."
Runaan and Marta reached out as well, clearly worried.
"I appreciate it, but I'll be fine."
Raon waved them off.
"And hearing that from you is pretty funny, actually."
He turned to the stunned Burren and let out a quiet chuckle.
"I'm not joking! You might not even get to train—you could just get hazed the whole time!"
"Don't worry."
The corner of Raon's mouth curved into a gentle arc.
"Palace Master!"
Urek, the Chief Administrator who ran the Heavy Martial Palace's affairs, burst into Karoon's office in a flustered rush.
"I believe I told you not to come in for a while."
Karoon Zieghart's voice rolled out low and cold. Yesterday's humiliation at the hands of Rimer and Raon still clung to him; his face was badly crumpled with irritation.
"Forgive me, but this is important."
Urek swallowed dryly and set the documents he'd brought on Karoon's desk.
"New swordsman training papers? And this is supposed to matter?"
"Look here. Raon Zieghart has chosen our Heavy Martial Palace as his training site. The boy has lost his mind!"
"…That son of a bitch."
Karoon clenched his fist, and the paper in his hand crumbled into gray ash and scattered on the air. The entire Heavy Martial Palace shuddered as if an earthquake had struck.
"This brat is clearly looking down on us. There's no other reason he'd choose the Heavy Martial Palace!"
Urek ground his teeth. Karoon had made his dislike obvious more than once, and the fact that Raon had still picked this place as his training ground could only mean contempt.
"What should we do? Rather than keep wasting your attention on him, we could just take this chance to…"
Urek turned his hand into a blade and drew it across his own wrist—a gesture asking whether they should cripple Raon and be done with it.
"You imbecile."
Karoon snorted as he looked at him.
"That rat is currently the focus of the entire family. Father even summoned him separately. And you want to cripple him here? Have you even considered what the public reaction would be?"
"I-I'm sorry. I didn't think it through."
Urek's shoulders flinched, and he bowed his head in a hurry.
He really is remarkable.
Even in the midst of his fury, Karoon hadn't looked at the situation from only one angle. He had turned it over from every side. He was a man fit to command the Heavy Martial Palace, one of Zieghart's great powers.
"Then what should we do? If we train him like everyone else, the other swordsmen's morale will drop."
"There isn't only one way to kill a man, and it doesn't have to involve a blade."
"Ah!"
"Teach him the terror of Heavy Martial Palace training. Humiliate him openly. Spread the word that he's nothing special."
"Understood."
"And gather information on him. How well he can fight without aura, where the current limits of his martial power lie, what his weaknesses are—I want all of it."
Karoon's eyes flashed with a chilling light.
"Yes, sir! But as for the method… hup!"
"Do I have to spell that out for you as well?"
His throat growled like a beast's.
"N-no, sir! I'll take care of everything myself!"
He bent at the waist until it seemed his back might snap, then fled the office.
"Huuuh…"
"Chief Administrator."
Urek was wiping the cold sweat streaming down his forehead as he stepped into the corridor when a middle-aged man with a clean-shaven scalp approached from the side. It was Leff, the training instructor in charge of the Heavy Martial Palace's drills.
"How did it go?"
"He said to show that damn brat the terror of the Heavy Martial Palace. Humiliate him so thoroughly he never dares look this way again, and gather information on his martial arts."
"Understood!"
Leff nodded at once.
"But as for the method…"
"Do I have to tell you that too? That's your job to figure out! What, you want me to spoon-feed you as well?"
Urek recited the exact words Karoon had thrown at him.
"N-no, sir! I'll handle it myself!"
Leff threw up a hand as if saluting and sprinted outside.
"Look at the mess that damn brat has caused."
Having dumped the work on his subordinate, Urek ground his teeth, his face thick with irritation.
"Just wait till I get my hands on him. I'll pound him into paste."
Three days later, the new swordsman training began, and Raon stepped into the Jungmu Training Ground.
It's big.
The Jungmu Training Ground wasn't quite the Great Training Ground, but it was easily twice the size of the 5th Training Ground. It held not only private training areas and cultivation chambers, but the latest training equipment as well—a place that looked genuinely good for honing oneself.
The level of the swordsmen drilling across the grounds was high. Even with the Magical Combat Corps and the Thunderbolt Squad absent, every last one of them had outstanding achievements. It was no empty boast that this was called the most valiant martial force in the family.
"So you came after all."
Burren approached from behind and let out a low sigh.
"I was hoping I wouldn't see you here."
His eyes had sunk, as if he were genuinely worried. He still exploded now and then, but his temperament itself had grown remarkably gentle.
"They're not going to kill me."
"They won't go that far. But they will make your life miserable in every way they can."
"I figured."
That's exactly why I came.
Raon nodded with a faint smile.
"I know better than anyone how strong you are, but…"
"Everyone, fall in!"
Burren was about to speak again when a burly, bald middle-aged man climbed onto the platform. The Heavy Martial Palace swordsmen who had been swinging their blades stopped training and gathered at the center.
"We greet the Training Instructor!"
The middle-aged man accepted their salute with a wave of his hand and looked down at Raon and Burren.
"Welcome to the Heavy Martial Palace, new swordsmen."
A cold light gathered in his eyes as he went on.
"My name is Leff. I'm the training instructor of the Heavy Martial Palace. Status means nothing here. Even if you're the Palace Master's disciple or his own son, there are no exceptions. Prepare yourselves."
The words sounded fair. The icy gaze that accompanied them, however, was aimed at Raon alone.
"We'll start with introductions."
"Yes, sir!"
Burren stepped forward first.
"I am Burren Zieghart. For the duration of this training, I will set aside the title of the Palace Master's son and give my all as a new swordsman. I look forward to your guidance!"
"Ooooh!"
"Waaaah!"
The swordsmen gathered around them burst into applause and cheers.
"Next."
"Yes."
Raon nodded and took Burren's place.
"I am Raon Zieghart. I heard the Heavy Martial Palace is the most valiant of Zieghart's martial forces. I volunteered because I wanted to experience that valor for myself. I look forward to working with you."
It was an ordinary greeting, but instead of cheers, an uncomfortable energy crept through the air. After clashing with Palace Master Karoon more than once, they seemed to hate Raon's very existence.
So it's enemy territory through and through.
Wrath snickered, finding the atmosphere to his liking.
It'd be even more satisfying if you got beaten down for that attitude.
Unfortunately, that's not going to happen.
Raon took in the swordsmen's savage killing intent without a ripple. Compared to Sloth's overwhelming presence, this was less than kindling.
"Hmph."
"This is…"
"It's not working on him at all?"
The Heavy Martial Palace swordsmen frowned or narrowed their eyes as they watched Raon stand there, perfectly calm.
"Then we'll begin training."
Leff came down from the platform and opened a large crate at his feet. It was packed with manacles that gleamed with a blue sheen.
"These manacles control the wearer's aura. Originally they were made to restrain dangerous criminals, but we use them for physical conditioning. We're the only ones who put such precious items to use in training, so consider it an honor."
He brought a pair over and fastened them around Raon's wrists himself.
"They're forged from azure tin, a metal so hard that even a martial artist couldn't shatter them with bare hands, so don't bother trying anything foolish—"
Kyaaang!
A clean, ringing crack of breaking metal cut Leff off mid-explanation.
"Huh?"
He turned. The manacles he had just locked around Raon's wrists had split cleanly in two.
"W-what? Why did they break?!"
"I just kind of touched them and they came apart."
Raon shrugged, as if it were nothing.
"That doesn't make any sense! Those are solid chunks of azure tin!"
"How am I supposed to help that?"
"Kkugh…"
Leff's jaw trembled. Azure tin was a mineral hard enough to be used in forging swords. Shattering a lump of metal that thick with bare hands, while one's aura was locked down, was not something that should have been possible.
"Again. Do it again."
He swallowed dryly and fastened a second pair of azure tin manacles around Raon's wrists. Unless the boy had the strength of a troll or an ogre, he wouldn't be breaking these.
"Hmm."
Raon gave the manacles a casual rub, then simply clenched his fist. The joint crumpled like paper and shattered, dropping to the ground. He crushed the pair on his left wrist the same way and tossed the wreckage at his feet.
"Uh…"
Leff's mouth fell open.
Th-this can't be real.
Raon had the long, lean build of a typical swordsman. Leff could not begin to understand how he had smashed manacles that even a martial artist couldn't break with bare hands.
"Still don't believe it? Shall I do a few more?"
Grinning, Raon walked over to the crate and started crushing manacles with both hands.
"S-stop!"
Leff rushed over in a panic, but the manacles had already lived out their last moments in Raon's grip and lain in pieces.
"Those things are filthy expensive!"
Raon looked down at the newly fastened azure tin manacles and smiled faintly.
They block aura, but they can't block raw strength.
The azure tin manacles rendered the aura in his core immovable, but they did nothing to suppress the physical power he already possessed. His strength and agility were so far outside ordinary measure that even Milland, a Master, had acknowledged them.
He had trained steadily even after the duel, and the Sloth trait—which made him stronger even in his sleep—had been running without pause. At this point, his power wouldn't lose to a large monster. No matter how hard azure tin was, if he crushed the joints, he could shatter the manacles as he pleased.
"Kkugh!"
"Insane…"
"What the hell is this guy?"
The Heavy Martial Palace swordsmen stole glances at their own hands, their eyes wide with shock.
"D-damn it…"
Training Instructor Leff stared at the three shattered pairs of azure tin manacles with a vacant face. Expensive, he'd said—and it seemed he'd meant it.
"There's no way he broke them with raw strength."
"Must be some kind of hand technique."
"Did he pick up grappling tricks at Habun Castle?"
Leff and the swordsmen, however, seemed convinced he hadn't broken the manacles with power at all—that he'd used some kind of technique.
Of course they would! How could a human smash a lump of metal with nothing but the strength of a body whose aura has been sealed?
Wrath ground his teeth, apparently displeased that the power of the stats was drawing all the attention.
The power of those stats really is something else.
Hmph! In truth, This King's power is far beyond this paltry display. Back when This King resided in the Demon Realm, a mere touch was enough to bring down the greatest mountain in—
I wonder what the training will be.
You brat! Listen to This King! That precious strength of yours exists entirely because of This King!
Raon ignored Wrath's shrieking, let out a long sigh, and watched Leff rise to his feet.
"Hah. Training continues. For a warm-up, you'll run the training ground. Everyone except the first twenty to finish will be doing penalty drills, so you'd better run like your life depends on it."
He swept his gaze over the swordsmen in turn, as if telling them to get ready, then stopped on Raon.
"You. Do not break those manacles. Absolutely not."
"Sure."
Raon smiled and nodded.
"Kkugh. Run!"
Leff bit his lip, glared at him, and threw up a hand. The gathered swordsmen thundered forward like a herd of buffalo.
"Hm?"
Raon took the signal and started running as well, but burly swordsmen boxed him in from front, back, and both sides, leaving him nowhere to go.
Thud! Thwack! Crack!
Pretending to run, they started hammering his body with their shoulders, arms, and elbows.
"Ah, sorry."
"You're so small I didn't see you."
"You shouldn't say things like that."
The swordsmen snickered and jeered as they kept pounding him from every angle. Even without aura, the tempered bodies of trained swordsmen slamming into him one after another made him stagger, and the pain was considerable.
"Oops, my bad."
A green-haired swordsman drove an elbow hard into Raon's neck and grinned. When Raon glared at him, the man shrugged and fled toward the lead group as if running for his life.
"Hey…"
Burren, who had been running up front, looked back with his eyes wide. He clearly hadn't expected them to stoop to something this petty.
"I'm fine. Go on ahead."
If this is all they've got, there's no way I lose.
Raon gave Burren a chilly smile and dropped his pace. The red-haired swordsman coming in with an elbow aimed at his waist met Raon's shoulder instead, driven into his chest like a spike.
"Ghhhk!"
The red-haired swordsman flew as if he'd been struck by a war hammer and slammed into the ground.
"Wh-what…"
"Wait, what just…"
The swordsmen blocking his flanks and rear stared, their pupils shaking at a sight that made no sense. It was a fair reaction. Even with the gains in his height and build, Raon was still smaller than the man he'd just sent flying. With the correction of his status window stats, though, this much was well within reach.
"Tch!"
The dark-skinned swordsman on his right tried to crush him with sheer bulk, shoving in with his shoulder.
"That's not going to be enough."
"Khuhk!"
Raon smiled coldly and met the shoulder with his own. Strength erupted in a single burst, and the dark-skinned swordsman crumpled like a sparrow that had hit a wall, his head planting into the dirt.
"Not hitting me anymore?"
Raon swept a mocking look over the ones who had been needling him all this time.
"Ugh…"
"H-hitting? What are you talking about…"
With two of their own already down, the swordsmen's eyes trembled like sailboats caught in a typhoon. They couldn't make sense of what they were seeing; their gazes had gone slack.
"If you won't come to me, I'll come to you."
Raon picked up speed and hammered the swordsmen who had been targeting him with his shoulders and elbows.
Thud-thud-thud-thud!
The physical ability a Master had acknowledged exploded like wildfire, sweeping through every swordsman around him. Expert-level swordsmen who had tempered their bodies without rest dropped like autumn leaves in a gale.
Even after flattening the ones who had picked the fight, Raon didn't stop. He blew through the swordsmen blocking the path as well, every last one of them.
"I told you."
Raon grinned at Burren, who was still moving his legs in a daze.
"I'm fine."
"Ah…"
Leff stared at the twenty swordsmen crumpled on the ground, his mouth hanging open wide enough to unhinge his jaw.
Wh-what is that monster?
The information they'd had said Raon's constitution had forced him to consume a great many elixirs from a young age, which was why the quality and quantity of his aura were outstanding. They had given him the azure tin manacles believing that locking down his aura would leave him helpless. Instead, even wearing them, the boy had overpowered swordsmen far larger than himself with raw strength.
Watching swordsmen standing around six-foot-three get bounced around like balls by Raon, who was just under five-foot-ten, made the whole scene feel unreal.
"Insane…"
In the end, Raon hadn't stopped at the swordsmen around him. He had beaten through the ones blocking the path as well and carved his way into the lead group. It was so absurd that a curse slipped out of Leff's mouth before he knew it.
"S-stop! Stop running! Raon!"
Leff called out just as Raon was about to drive an elbow into the green-haired swordsman running ahead of him.
Thwaaaack!
Raon pretended not to hear and followed through. The elbow buried itself in the back of the green-haired swordsman's skull; the man let out a strangled cry and collapsed on the spot.
"Ah, this is fun. First time I've enjoyed a jog this much."
Raon grinned as he looked over the swordsmen slumped across the ground like fallen leaves on a snowfield.
"We're done, right? What's next?"
He looked this way with bright, eager eyes, as if nothing at all had happened.
"Kkugh. Over here."
Leff chewed his lip and led the swordsmen and Raon to the right side of the training ground. Eight humanoid dummies, each gripping a sword, stood arranged in a circle.
"This is combat training for when you have to fight multiple opponents. I'll demonstrate."
He pressed the button in the center and stepped in among the dummies.
Krrrk-krrrk.
The dummies began to move with a warped, grinding sound. Their motion, unlike the noise, was as smooth as if they'd been oiled.
Chiiing!
The dummies' sword-hands snapped into motion. These were not ordinary swings. Real swordsmanship flowed through every cut.
Whoooosh!
All eight dummies moved at once, yet never once interfered with each other, every blade angling for Leff's vitals.
"Hmph."
Leff met them with swordsmanship as solid as bedrock and footwork as heavy as stone, turning aside each strike in turn. After about ten minutes, the dummies halted of their own accord and returned to their original positions.
"That's the idea—defending against attacks coming from every direction. Raon. Think you can handle it?"
"Yes."
Raon nodded calmly, took Leff's place at the center of the dummies, and drew a training sword.
Idiot.
Leff smiled coldly and cranked the dummies' difficulty to the maximum. Even an Expert, without aura, would have no choice but to take hits at that level.
"Begin."
He pressed the last button, and the dummies moved far faster than before, thrusting their swords at Raon.
"This'll be fun too."
Raon's eyes ignited a blazing scarlet as he brought his sword down. A bone-chilling crack split the air, and the dummy's blade and skull shattered together.
"Urgh…"
That was only the beginning. Every time Raon swung, another dummy came apart. Each one was a custom-made piece worth more than two hundred gold coins, and they were bursting like cheap pottery. Raising the difficulty meant nothing when they died in a single blow.
Crrrk!
The second dummy's torso snapped like a reed. The third split cleanly in half.
"S-sto—"
He needed to tell him to stop, but shock had locked his jaw. In that brief, speechless instant, Raon finished off all eight dummies and casually wiped his brow.
"This is pretty fun."
He looked at Leff with an easy smile.
"Got any more?"
"Kkugh!"
Leff wanted to punch that handsome face.
Urek, Chief Administrator of the Heavy Martial Palace, was trimming flowers at the desk in his spacious office. It didn't match his bulk or his face, but flower arranging was his hobby.
Looking at a beautifully balanced bouquet made him forget all of it—the Palace Master's endless abuse, the stress rising off his incompetent subordinates. And this was the precious stretch of time just before lunch, when no one interrupted him. He cherished the moment, delicately trimming each stem and setting it in the vase.
"This one's rather…"
"Chief Administrator!"
Urek had just begun to smile, thinking he'd achieved a rare and beautiful harmony, when the office door slammed open.
"Tch…"
His hand jerked at the noise, and the arrangement he had so carefully balanced fell into disarray.
"Leff! You madman! You're supposed to knock before you open a door!"
"I-I'm sorry! But it's extremely urgent, so…"
Leff bowed his head, wiping cold sweat.
"Urgent? What's so urgent? If this is nothing, you're a dead man."
Urek clicked his tongue and perched on the edge of the desk.
"It's about that Raon you mentioned."
"What about him? You didn't go too hard on him, did you?"
The family head and the other palace masters all had their eyes on Raon, so beating him too badly would be a problem. Moderate humiliation was enough for now.
The answer that came back, however, was far beyond anything he had imagined.
Leff's lips trembled.
"He's smashing everything in sight!"