Pierce Through My Presence

Raon finished washing his face and gazed out the sunlit window with still-damp eyes.

"So it's today."

Six months had passed, and morning had dawned on the day the Fifth Training Ground would select its trainees.

Ordinarily this would have been the hour he spent running the grounds, choking on dust. But because it was exam day, he could afford a leisurely morning.

Raon Zieghart.

Wrath spoke up as Raon toweled his wet face and changed clothes.

"What?"

"You remember the wager you made with This King, do you not?"

"Of course."

Raon nodded as he pulled on his training uniform. As if he could forget a bet where Wrath had volunteered to be the sucker.

"This King will concede that your growth has been swift, for a human. But you have yet to catch those two. Are you prepared to accept This King's emotions?"

Wrath wasn't wrong. Even after three months of running, he still hadn't overtaken Runaan and Burren.

But an exam was different. Whether it came down to sparring with them or demonstrating the stamina he'd forged, it didn't matter. With his previous life's experience and the Ring of Fire, he was confident he could win no matter what the test turned out to be.

"You never know until you measure them."

"Bluster all you ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠like. It will avail you nothing. The day This King claims your body and soul is not far off."

Then tell me when it actually happens.

"This King shall look forward to watching that confidence of yours gutter out."

That won't happen.

Raon waved a dismissive hand.

Living with an enemy isn't exactly easy.

Lately, Wrath's constant chatter had become more annoying than the bursts of rage he triggered during training. Why a so-called monarch of the Demon Realm talked this much, Raon had no idea.

There are upsides, of course.

Overcoming Wrath's interference had earned him a considerable number of stat points. It hurt, sure — but Wrath was basically a goose that laid golden eggs.

It wasn't just the numbers on the status window that had risen. His actual physical capabilities had grown so dramatically that his current movements were incomparable to what they'd once been.

"Nngh... This King's status window..."

Unlike Wrath, who let out a groan, Raon smiled in satisfaction and headed out to the lobby.

"Those faces look ready for the grave."

They really do.

Just as Wrath said, the children in the lobby wore expressions as anxious as soldiers being marched to the battlefield.

It's because of today's exam, no doubt.

Rimer hadn't explained a thing — not what the test would be, not how difficult, not how many would pass. He'd only said that giving it their all would be enough to get through. Of course the kids were this worried.

If Raon hadn't been a reincarnator, if he hadn't possessed the Ring of Fire, he would have been sitting there just as gloomily as the rest of them.

"To ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠wear the faces of defeated chickens before even setting foot on the battlefield. Pathetic."

They're kids.

Raon glanced over the gloomy children and headed outside.

"You are a child as well, are you not?"

I'm different.

"Hmph. Humans always fancy themselves the special one."

...

Raon didn't rise to the bait. There was no need to reveal the secret of his reincarnation.

A faint rustle. As he walked toward the Fifth Training Ground adjoining the dormitory, light footsteps sounded behind him.

"She never tires of this, does she."

"Hmm..."

Raon narrowed his eyes and turned. A girl with silver hair spilling over her shoulders and violet eyes was following him.

"Runaan."

It was Runaan Sullion. As if tagging along during free training weren't enough, she was now trailing him from the dormitory as well.

"Did you need something?"

"No."

Runaan shook her head with a vacant expression. Hands clasped behind her back, she awkwardly rolled her eyes.

"Hah."

Raon sighed and turned fully around. Runaan was the same as ever. She would silently attach herself to him, then mimic his training with that blank look on her face.

Why does she even follow me around?

In terms of demonstrated ability, Burren was clearly above him. Flashy swordsmanship, outstanding physical talent, and a decent measure of leadership besides. But Runaan showed not the slightest interest in Burren and chased after Raon alone. It felt like watching a stray alley cat that kept coming back after being fed.

Except I never even fed her.

He'd given her snacks, sure, but those belonged to Dorian. He hadn't done a thing for her, so why she followed him around like a duckling trailing its mother was beyond him.

She's a strange one.

Raon shook his head and headed for the training ground. When he arrived at the entrance, a green-haired boy waved.

"Y-Young Master..."

It was Dorian, the second person to attach himself to Raon's side after Runaan. He was trembling from head to toe as if he'd caught a chill.

"What's with you now? Are you sick?"

"N-no, that's not it. Today's the exam, isn't it? I was so worried I didn't sleep a wink. Ugh..."

The skin beneath Dorian's eyes was black as if he'd smeared charcoal there. The word exhausted itself seemed stamped under his eyes.

"Someone like you should be more than fine."

Raon looked Dorian up and down. The boy was always shaking with fear, but his talent and tenacity ranked among the top ten. If he just used what he had, there was no way he'd fail.

"But I don't even know what the exam is, and I'm ridiculously weak! There's nothing I can do! Bleh!"

Dorian chewed his nails, his pupils trembling. He even dry-heaved. This wasn't an act — he was genuinely terrified.

"The lowest of the low. Crush that one's skull at once."

You said you liked him before.

"This King has no need of cowards."

"You'll be fine."

It wasn't encouragement — it was a statement of fact. Raon walked past him. For all his timid nature, Dorian had completed every training session even while throwing up. He'd get through whatever the exam threw at him.

"R-Rimer keeps his word. He said he'd separate the wheat from the chaff, so a pebble like me will get tossed right out."

"Then fail."

"Eek! Raon!"

Raon waved without looking back. Dorian was a stranger, in the end. There was no need to offer more advice than necessary, and talking to the boy was starting to make that gloom contagious.

"Hm."

As he was about to open the training ground door, his eyes met Burren's, approaching from the side. Burren looked at Raon, Runaan, and Dorian, and sparks flared in his eyes. It was the look of a man staring at his mortal enemy.

"Haaah."

Raon let out a heavy sigh.

There's not a single normal ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠person around me.

His previous life had been full of lunatics, and this one didn't seem much different.

"Gouge that one's eyes out."

Including you...

"Raon!"

"Young Master Raon!"

Raon was loosening up on the training ground when familiar voices called from the right.

"Mom? Helen?"

Sylvia, Helen, and the maids from the Annex were running toward him.

"Raon!"

The moment she reached him, Sylvia wrapped him in a fierce embrace, as if a bird folding itself over its egg.

"Good heavens! You must have had such a hard time — your face is half of what it was! Are you all right? Does anything hurt?"

Round tears welled in her narrow eyes. Contrary to her words, though, he'd packed on muscle and flesh if anything — he certainly hadn't wasted away.

"No, Mom, I—"

"It must have been so hard! You've been through so much. Hic!"

Even after six months, Sylvia hadn't changed. She didn't listen to a word he said and worried only about his body.

"In front of your mother, even you become a child."

Shut up.

Wrath cackled, clearly enjoying the show.

"Young Master. You've worked so hard."

Helen offered a gentle smile and bowed her head. The maids behind her beamed as well, murmuring that it was remarkable.

"I haven't even passed the exam yet."

Raon scratched his cheek. Being praised for something so ordinary made his face itch with embarrassment.

"You lasted six whole months."

"That's incredible!"

"That's right. You've accomplished something amazing."

Helen and the maids piled on the praise without pause. They'd probably expected him to wash out immediately and come home, so the reaction was only natural.

"How did you even get in here?"

Raon pushed away Sylvia, who was still nuzzling his face, and turned to Helen.

"Guardians were granted permission to observe today's exam. It isn't just us — others have come as well."

Raon followed Helen's gesture and looked around. Sure enough, children and parents were reuniting all across the training ground.

"And this child is...?"

Sylvia's eyes went round as she noticed Runaan standing behind Raon. Runaan dipped her head toward Sylvia.

She's something else, I'll give her that.

Even in front of Sylvia and Helen, Runaan hadn't stopped trailing him. That personality of hers was more impressive than her talent.

"Runaan!"

While Runaan and Sylvia's eyes were still locked, a deep voice rang out from the left. A middle-aged man with cold-looking silver hair swept back.

Lokan Sullion.

Head of the vassal house of Sullion, and Runaan's father.

"That vacant little one's expression never changes, does it."

Just as Wrath said, Runaan's eyes remained blank even upon seeing her father for the first time in six months.

"Dad?"

"What are you doing here? Come!"

Lokan Sullion glared at Raon and Sylvia, then took Runaan's hand and led her away.

"...This King has seen many humans, but that one is truly peculiar."

Yeah.

A dry laugh escaped Raon at the sight of Runaan still looking back at him even as she was dragged away.

"If that's Runaan, she's the youngest of House Sullion, right? The one who went through the discernment ceremony with you."

"That's right."

"So you've become friends?"

Sylvia beamed. She leaned in again, wanting to know how they'd gotten close.

"We're not friends."

Raon shook his head firmly.

"Not friends? Then what are you?"

"Well..."

Honestly, he didn't know what his relationship with Runaan was. He wasn't even sure he knew what a friend was.

"Son. Be kind to the people who come ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to you. Don't try to push them away."

Sylvia pouted.

"I haven't."

Whether people approached him or not, he simply didn't pay them any mind.

"Don't be like that. Bring her to the Annex sometime. Mom will make something delicious."

"I told you, it's not like that."

"Oh, you're going to be the death of me... Huh? Are you Young Master Raon's mother?"

Just as Raon was trying to let the subject drop, Dorian — who'd been dry-heaving — approached with his eyes gone round.

"That's right. And you are?"

"I-I'm Dorian! I've received a great deal of help from the Young Master! Allow me to greet you properly!"

Dorian bowed so low his head nearly touched the ground.

"Oh my!"

"Oh, Young Master!"

Sylvia and Helen broke into wide grins. They seemed delighted that there was a child who'd received Raon's help.

"I was wondering why Young Master Raon was so handsome — he takes after his mother! You're truly beautiful!"

Dorian pulled a flower from his Belly Pouch and held it out to Sylvia. When he was scared he couldn't get a word out, but in moments like this his speech and manners flowed like water. Raon had no idea what to make of this kid.

"Hoho, thank you."

Sylvia accepted the flower with a smile. Her eyes had curved into crescents — she was genuinely pleased.

"That's enough. Go."

"What's the matter?"

Raon tried to shoo Dorian away with a few taps, but Sylvia intervened.

"Dorian. Could you tell me how Raon's been doing?"

"O-of course. Young Master Raon rose from the lowest group all the way to the highest, rewriting the history of the Fifth Training Ground. Anyone who watched would be moved..."

"Hooo..."

Apparently intending to bleed off his exam nerves through chatter, Dorian wouldn't stop talking. The exam hadn't even started, and Raon was already exhausted.

"What a filthy chatterbox of a human."

Not as bad as you.

"...And that's how the recommended trainees from the lower group, myself included, were able to climb to the mid-upper ranks thanks to Young Master Raon teaching us the proper forms. I-I'll tell you the rest later! I'm in a bit of a hurry right now!"

Dorian bobbed his head and bolted toward the latrines.

"Good heavens..."

"Young Master Raon!"

Helen and the maids clasped their hands together, faces overflowing with emotion. A little more and they would have been in tears.

"Helping the other children is wonderful, but are you all right? You still feel the cold so badly. Is the dormitory warm? Does anything hurt?"

But worry showed more clearly in Sylvia's eyes than emotion. She was a person who lived entirely by her feelings.

"I'm healthy."

Raon grinned and thumped his chest. Even so, the worry in Sylvia's gaze didn't fade.

"I'll say it again. If it gets too hard, you can quit anytime. Don't worry about anyone else — follow your own heart. All right?"

"Yeah."

He nodded firmly, and a little of the worry on Sylvia's face eased. She hadn't changed. She was still a mother who worried only about her son's well-being.

"But Helen."

Sylvia tilted her head slightly, a hint of mischief sparkling in her eyes.

"Yes, Lady Sylvia."

"About Raon. Doesn't he seem even cuter than the last time we saw him?"

"Of course. Whose son is he, after all?"

"Right? Raon! Let Mom hug you just one more—"

"Ugh! W-wait a second!"

Just as Raon was trying to back away from the approaching Sylvia, an immense wave of presence erupted from the training ground's entrance.

This energy...

Raon clenched his teeth and looked toward the main gate. A terrifying aura was radiating from behind the brown doors.

BOOM!

The training ground doors swung wide, and a man who should never have appeared here stepped through.

"W-we greet the Family Head!"

"We greet the Family Head!"

It was Glenn. Everyone who faced the lord of House Zieghart dropped to their knees.

Why is he here?

"Father?"

"Mmh!"

Sylvia and Helen also dropped to their knees and bowed their heads.

"So that presence This King sensed from afar belonged to that human. To think such a one exists even in this era..."

For the first time since awakening, Wrath let out a sound of genuine admiration. Even to him, Glenn's martial power was apparently astonishing.

"That is power of an entirely different caliber. He has surpassed the extreme and the transcendent. There may not be much time left."

Time? What does that mean?

...

Wrath didn't answer. He simply stared at Glenn.

"Hm."

Raon turned his gaze back to Glenn. The man slowly surveyed the children and parents, then climbed onto the platform and sat in the chair Rimer usually occupied.

"Eh?"

Rimer, who had been climbing over the training ground wall, saw the scene and his mouth fell open.

"Why is the Family Head here...?"

Glenn glared at Rimer as if something about him were deeply displeasing.

"This is the event that selects the future of the family. Have I come somewhere I should not?"

"Of course not. You're most welcome."

Rimer smiled awkwardly as he hopped down from the wall. He bowed to Glenn, then hurried up onto the platform with short, quick steps.

"I was hoping to ease into things, but with the Family Head here, there's no time to dawdle. We'll begin the trainee selection exam immediately."

Scratching the back of his head, he told the children's parents to step back. The parents offered their children a few words of encouragement, then withdrew to a distance.

"Raon."

At Sylvia's call, Raon turned.

"Don't get hurt."

"Young Master. Please don't overdo it."

Sylvia and Helen still didn't tell him to do well. They left him with worries about his body, then withdrew.

"Utterly weak. They do not suit you."

Raon nodded. Those two didn't want him to put on a dazzling display. They worried only about his health.

I still can't get used to it.

It was so different from the handlers of his previous life, who had cared only about results, that he still hadn't adapted.

He watched the two receding figures, then turned his head. Rimer was looking at him with a grin.

"Then, ladies and gentlemen of all ages — I shall now reveal the contents of the trainee selection exam that all of House Zieghart has been curious about."

Rimer stood on the platform and dusted off his hands. His manner was as casual as ever, but the faint presence rising from him unfurled into vast wings.

RUMBLE!

It wasn't on Glenn Zieghart's level, but the overwhelming presence that wrapped the entire training ground made the parents frown and the children flinch.

THUD.

Rimer walked to the center of the training ground with steps that were at once light and magnificent.

He looked down at the children standing right before him, a cold light gleaming in his eyes.