The Untouched Path

Raon quieted his presence even further, letting his breath thin to a thread. After erasing himself down to the existence of a pebble, he studied the Shadows on the beach one by one.

"You can't even see their faces. How are you telling them apart?"

Wrath clicked his tongue, wondering what on earth Raon was looking at.

By their builds and their auras.

Even with their entire bodies covered, differences in height and shoulder width couldn't be hidden. Auras, too, carried a grain unique to each person, so telling them apart was hardly difficult.

"Hmph. To This King they ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠aren't even worth a single punch. No need to distinguish them."

I suppose not.

The true form of Wrath that Raon had met in the mental world had possessed both beauty and strength. So long as he wasn't losing his mind over food, he was a Demon King with every right to talk like that.

I'm the weak one. I need to gather information and think about how to move.

"Huh? What's this? Since when do you admit your own weakness?"

I'm tired of being on the receiving end.

Ever since Merlin had kidnapped him, Raon had thought a great deal about what had happened then. It had been a difficult situation in many ways, true—but if he had moved just a little more wisely, he might never have been kidnapped at all.

"Hmmm..."

Wrath smacked his lips as he looked at Raon.

Has he grown?

Humans came in two kinds: those who learned from failure, and those who consoled themselves that failure was merely bad luck. Which of the two would climb higher and farther was as obvious as fire.

Raon was the kind of creature who had no choice but to rise higher than anyone else—in martial power and in spirit alike.

There's just one thing that pisses me off, though...

"Didn't you gain a great deal from that incident?!"

Wrath's face crumpled as he glared at Raon.

"You stole every last one of This King's stats and now you dare run your mouth like that! You shameless bastard!"

No.

Raon waved a hand.

That was just luck.

Being kidnapped had made him stronger, and it had taught him what a family truly was—but he never wanted to leave his life in an enemy's hands again. He needed to grasp the information, predict the outcome, and dominate the situation himself.

Information is especially important this time.

He had no information on the dungeon at all, so before going in, he needed to read the situation through their movements and their conversations.

"How long until we reach the end?"

Matio turned his head toward the mage.

"Hmm, at this rate... about a week?"

The mage pulled off her mask as she answered. The face of a young woman with water-soaked pink hair was revealed.

Cosini Sion...

The mage's identity was Cosini Sion, vice-commander of the mage corps belonging to the Shadows. Her face hadn't changed in the slightest from twenty years ago, so recognizing her wasn't difficult.

She's speaking casually to him.

Even if Cosini had become commander of the mage corps, Matio's rank should still have been higher. The fact that she was using informal speech was somehow odd.

"Can't you make it faster?"

Matio turned his gaze toward the sea and gestured.

"I could, but the odds of a collapse would be high. This place wasn't built as a dungeon to begin with—the ground is weak. If we handle it wrong..."

Cosini lifted a finger, and the sand beneath her feet caved in with a dull slump.

"It'd end up like that. If you want to get buried alive, I won't stop you."

Raon smacked his lips as he listened.

It wasn't built as a dungeon?

It sounded as though some incident had occurred, and only afterward had the place been converted into one.

"Haa..."

Matio pulled off his own mask and let out a long breath. Frustration sat thick on his face.

"A week means we'll have to come back twice more."

"Well, yeah."

Cosini nodded and lifted her gaze.

"Your injuries aren't even fully healed. Why the rush? There's definitely a high-rank monster or worse down there."

Raon's fist tightened slightly at her words.

That's the most important piece of all.

That Matio was still recovering was the most valuable information he had heard so far. The odds of killing the man inside the dungeon had just risen considerably.

"I merely wish to deliver good news to Him as soon as possible."

Matio looked toward House Robert and exhaled.

"Is it because of the kennel? I follow Him too, but I can't keep up with you. There's a reason you're trusted even though you fell behind in skill."

"Shut your mouth."

"What about rest?"

"One day, of course."

"Haa, that's way too short."

Cosini sighed and started toward House Robert.

"Come out."

Matio did not follow her. He gestured toward the sand instead.

Four Shadows who had been hidden among the sand and trees rushed forward and dropped to their knees.

"Three days ago, two villagers approached. Two days ago..."

They reported everyone who had come near or passed by. Raon's name, of course, was not among them.

"Keep watch."

"Yes, sir."

The Shadows answered and melted back into their original positions.

"Let's go."

At Matio's order, the Shadows who had come out of the sea followed him and vanished.

"Going in right now, are you?"

No.

Raon shook his head.

I don't have just one objective.

If all he wanted was to collapse the dungeon, he could do it this instant. What he truly wanted was to kill Matio and take the dungeon's treasure.

To accomplish both, he had to wait until the man went back inside.

There will be Shadows inside the dungeon as well.

Given Matio's nature, he would certainly have stationed Shadows within. Entering now was out of the question.

Still, I got a lot of information.

A faint smile touched Raon's mouth. Rest period, the start of the dungeon raid, enemy numbers, and their level of force—he had all of it. He could build a plan from here.

"Then let's go eat. You haven't had a single thing in two days."

Ah. Right.

He nodded, rose with care, and withdrew. Only after putting enough distance between himself and the Shadows that they would struggle to sense him did he draw a piece of Nadin Bread from his Subspace Pouch.

"Yaaaaaah!"

Bear with it.

"He said they rest for a day! Go somewhere else, eat, and come back!"

If it's Matio, he'll definitely come back in the middle.

Matio was as suspicious as Derus. He would never leave everything to his subordinates. He might return at any moment and leak more information, so Raon had to wait.

Raon smiled and put the Nadin Bread in his mouth. A rubbery chew and a dryness that went well past bitter filled his mouth. It was a taste that seemed to clamp down on his throat.

"Ueeeeeegh!"

Wrath's mouth stretched wide as if he were about to vomit.

"Th-this is filthy. If the wretch who made this ever falls into This King's hands, This King will tear his limbs off!"

He clutched his cheeks as though he were dying.

Is it that bad?

Raon tilted his head at the display.

It's edible enough.

The flavor was admittedly dubious, but the fact that a single piece kept him from getting hungry all day was more convenient than anything.

"I-I've always thought you were insane, but of all the insane parts of you, that tongue is the worst! That tongue of yours was clearly forged from steel!"

Maybe.

After filling his stomach, Raon entered the sea and circulated the Dolin Breathing Method he had learned in his previous life.

It's been a while.

The Dolin Breathing Method was a technique that let a person breathe underwater like a fish. No bubbles rose to the surface, and no presence leaked out, which made it an art perfectly suited to assassination.

He exhaled slowly through the breathing method, sank his presence, and dove toward the dungeon. After swimming a long way along the horizon, a fissure like an earthquake's crack came into view.

Found it.

Beneath a magnificent gorge where two cliffs stood as if crossing each other, a trapezoidal gap jutted out. A powerful current of mana was pouring from within.

They must have had a miserable time opening this.

Originally, not only that entrance but the gorge itself had been sealed. To bore all of it open without letting it collapse—the man's obsession, at least, was first on the continent.

Hnn...

Raon descended along the opposite cliff, eyes narrowing.

They left them, as expected.

Nothing had changed.

Just as he had predicted, Shadows were waiting inside the gap. Judging by the ones he could see, there seemed to be a space within the fissure where they could breathe.

Shall we begin.

He spread Glacia's energy and let it flow into the dungeon. Past the two Shadows standing ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠watch just behind the entrance, he examined what lay below.

They dug quite deep.

As Cosini had said, they already appeared to have gone down a considerable distance.

Here and there he felt the chilled corpses of monsters and Shadows. He slowly mapped the dungeon, committing the paths and the traps to memory.

"W-wait! Don't tell me you mean to stay here the whole time?"

Wrath's chin trembled as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing.

That's right. I won't move for four days.

"You lunatic! You're going to starve again?"

There's a good diet method going around these days. You know it?

"A-a diet method?"

Yeah. Intermittent fasting. You go a set amount of time without eating.

Raon smiled faintly and continued surveying the inside of the dungeon.

"You deranged..."

Wrath dragged up his rage and ground his teeth.

"What kind of madman does intermittent fasting for four days?!"

"It didn't seem as though Raon would go straight to the Sepia Merchant Guild. Will that be all right?"

Sheryl set down her teacup and clicked her tongue.

"Thinking about it now, I should have gone with him."

She let out a short, regretful breath.

"I think the same. Even with that ring, something unforeseen could always happen..."

Roen nodded as he refilled Sheryl's cup.

"A waste."

Glenn, seated across from Sheryl, shook his head.

"That boy is the vice-captain of the Light Wind Squad. He is not a child who needs to be protected. He is a martial artist who ought to be protecting others."

Glenn lifted his teacup, a cold smile touching his mouth.

"Mm..."

"Well, that's true, but..."

Roen and Sheryl narrowed their eyes at him, as if the words had been unexpected.

"Hmph."

Glenn held the tea in his mouth and smiled faintly. Behind the cup, the line of his lips trembled.

He'll be fine. He will.

If it was worry for Raon, no one here felt it more deeply than he did—but a child who was only ever protected could not grow.

Sometimes trust was what was needed. He had decided to believe in the extraordinariness Raon had shown in the Six Kings duel, and to wait.

"Hoo..."

He was letting out a thin breath, settling his heart, when the door slammed open as if it would come off its hinges.

"You've got to be kidding me!"

Rimer stormed in with pounding steps, his face twisted.

"Sending our family's greatest genius—our treasure—out with no escort? Are you in your right mind or aren't you?!"

He jabbed a finger at Sheryl and kept going.

"You should have sent that muscle-brained idiot along, obviously!"

"T-treasure?"

"M-muscle-brained idiot?"

Roen and Sheryl stared at Rimer with their mouths hanging open.

"He crushed Borini Kitten, Garona, and Cadis in the Six Kings duel, won the whole thing, and proved his martial power! He saved the spectators from Fallen Heaven and piled up popularity and goodwill on top of it! And you're not even looking after our White Sword Dragon, Lord Raon?!"

Rimer shook his head as if the whole thing were absurd. A dozen glittering necklaces swung with the motion.

"Forget Sheryl—sending the entire Heavenly Sword Squad as escort still wouldn't be enough, and you sent him alone! I cannot understand this!"

He spread both hands, heavy with gemstone rings, and scowled.

"...Lord Raon? What's gotten into him?"

Glenn frowned at Rimer, whose eyes had clearly gone somewhere else.

"Looks like he cashed in those burned betting slips."

Sheryl clicked her tongue at the jewels covering Rimer's hands and throat.

"Judging by the look of things, young master Raon must have helped him recover the money."

Roen chuckled, clearly amused.

"Kh, you're too sharp for your own good."

Rimer approached with his face still drawn. Now that they looked, there was even a platinum pin stuck in his hair.

"A-anyway, I'm not telling you to look after Raon because of the money. Truly."

"Then?"

"Raon is my god of wealth, my lantern, my light and salt, yes—but what he really is, is that genius of his. Martial power and growth that crushed the mid-ranks of the Continental Twelve Stars is prey any faction would hunt! We need to send an escort right now! We have to protect our treasure!"

He raised a hand, shouting that they needed to invest heavily in Raon.

"What escort does a vice-captain need. I have no interest."

"Says the man who hopped a dimensional gate straight back to the house the moment the trip with Raon ended."

"Kh..."

Rimer's words struck the mark, and Glenn's hand trembled.

"If you like Raon, express it like I do! Laughing in the back like that just makes you a sneaky old man in the back room—"

"Seize him."

At Glenn's word, Sheryl and Roen flashed into motion and seized Rimer by both arms.

"Urgh..."

Only then did Rimer come back to himself. His lips quivered.

"Ahaha, I was only worried about Raon, whom the Head of House cherishes and loves most..."

"From now on, you would do well to worry about yourself."

At Glenn's gesture, a vast coil of lightning writhed into being above Rimer's head.

"Die."

"Dying is a bit mu—KRAAAAAAH!"

"This should be the last time."

Cosini stood on the beach with a hand on her hip, smiling faintly.

"You prepared properly so nothing goes wrong?"

Matio frowned at the question.

"If you just do your own job, nothing will go wrong."

"You came back injured because you couldn't even watch the matches properly, and you've still got a mouth on you."

"That snout of yours never rests, does it."

"That's what it's there for."

Cosini flicked her hand as if teasing him, then went into the sea.

"Haa..."

Matio let out a long breath and jerked his chin. The Shadows behind him all submerged in silence and followed Cosini. He scanned the surroundings, then walked down into the water last.

About an hour after they had all moved, Raon appeared from beneath the trees behind the beach.

Now it begins.

"Hnnnngh..."

Wrath turned to Raon with tears welling in his eyes.

"You psychopath..."

What?

"How does a human stay jammed underwater for three days and jammed in the dirt for two?! Are you a mole? A tuna?!"

Raon had, in fact, lasted three days underwater, mapping the dungeon's interior with his senses and reading how the enemies moved.

After that he had come back onto land and pulled still more information from their conversations. Nearly five days of being buried in water and earth, eating nothing but Nadin Bread, had been enough to drive a person out of their mind.

Raon shrugged at Wrath.

Isn't this about average?

It was much better than before.

In the past, he had once lasted more than a week at the bottom of a pond or under the earth just to kill an assassination target. Five days—and eating while he did it—was hardly difficult.

"...This King was wrong. You're a lunatic perfectly matched to that madwoman!"

Don't make jokes like that.

Raon shook his head quickly. That last remark was more frightening than being cursed at.

"A-a joke? What joke! This King is serious! Monsters ought to be with monsters—"

Enough.

He pushed Wrath aside and rose slowly. Moving without a sound, he approached the trees, then leapt and drove a blade through the heart of the Shadow hidden in the branches.

A muffled catch of breath.

He clamped the man's mouth so that not even a small sound escaped, laid him on the ground, then shifted sideways and stabbed the throat of the Shadow buried in the sand.

A dull puncture.

With a sound like sand lifting on the wind, the Shadow's life went out.

Leaving not a single trace, Raon moved along the shore and put down all four Shadows who had been hiding there.

Stage one is done.

After more than five days of watching their every movement, assassinating them had not been difficult.

He erased every trace of himself and of the enemy, then stood before the sea.

"You didn't have to kill them all, did you? If you're going to collapse the dungeon, leaving them would have been more natural."

It would have been more natural, yes. But...

Raon curled the corner of his mouth and looked toward the mansion of House Robert.

This is better if I want to make him furious.

A dungeon collapsing on its own would sting far less than having what he wanted stolen by some unknown someone. That would enrage Derus far more.

What Raon wanted was to keep needling Derus until that hard mask cracked. He had to strike Derus without revealing his identity.

"Hnn. As expected..."

Wrath lowered his eyes as if sinking into thought.

Raon looked at him for a moment, then went into the sea.

He swam as if walking on water, slow and even, toward the dungeon. He threw himself at the entrance he had only watched from the opposite side three days before.

The moment he entered and the water fell away, he thrust the Heavenly Sky Sword twice into empty air.

A wet puncture.

Two Shadows who had been using concealment arts collapsed, blood running from their hearts. He had locked their positions with his senses, so he could pierce the vital points without the slightest error.

"Hoo."

Raon climbed up into the dungeon and let out a breath. As he had felt before, the interior was structured so that a person could breathe.

Strange.

The inside of the dungeon was riddled with bizarre fissures, as if a child had scribbled them. They looked old. Matio and Cosini did not seem to have ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠made them.

I should head down first and—hm?

He was taking in the traces, about to follow the path Matio had bored, when he stopped cold.

What is that?

The instant he looked at the fissure right beside the stairs Matio had made, the Ring of Fire and the Cultivation of Ten Thousand Flames rose at once.

Don't tell me...

Had he come here as well?

Raon swallowed dryly.

This isn't just a fissure. It's a sword mark.

He laid a hand on the sword scar that had shown him the image and raised the Cultivation of Ten Thousand Flames.

"Huh?"

"Ah!"

Raon looked at the gray passage that no foot had ever touched, and smiled.

Now you're even showing me the way?