Chapter 210
Chapter 210
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 210
Chapter Title: The Rune of Descent
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Yong-un returned to his family home with the Mercenary King in tow.
Now that he'd heard the man was the one the Royal Classes were searching for...
Considering the possible connection between Seong-min and Man, he couldn't risk having that conversation anywhere else.
'It's still a shock. That the Royal Classes were created because of demons... And that Man was behind it all...'
A faint regret lingered in Yong-un's chest—what if he'd known sooner?
But he quickly shook his head, brushing it aside, and focused on the reality at hand.
'How did the Royal Classes know about that rune? The one buried in Count Ratlin's memories.'
Yong-un stared intently at the rune letters on the table and broke the silence.
"Why are you trying to uncover the meaning of these runes?"
"It's a long story..."
For the first time, the Mercenary King—who'd been spilling information freely—looked troubled.
But only for a moment.
"Eh, whatever. Truth is, I've known about these runes for quite a while. But explaining why... that means diving into some very important matters."
"If it's too sensitive, don't say it. Then we won't figure out the meaning either."
"You've met that guy, right? Makes you no different from a Royal Class. I really don't know! Fine, I'll tell you."
Having made up his mind, the Mercenary King poured out a torrent of stories.
There were six Royal Classes in total.
1st Royal Class: Light of the Sky.
2nd Royal Class: Light of Dreams.
3rd Royal Class: Light of Darkness.
4th Royal Class: Light of Ice.
5th Royal Class: Light of Fire.
6th Royal Class: Light of Earth.
And it was around the time these six Royal Classes were complete.
The Light of Dreams—the 2nd Royal Class—approached the Mercenary King, who had become the Light of Earth, the final one.
'Won't you join us in seeking the truth?'
At first, the Mercenary King outright ignored the Light of Dreams.
He'd long since learned that this harsh world couldn't be trusted or followed lightly unless it was family.
But as he tried to brush past, those words stopped him.
'You've met him too, haven't you? The one who passed that power on to you.'
The moment he heard that, the Mercenary King grabbed the outstretched hand of the Light of Dreams.
He was curious.
Just what kind of being had dragged a nobody like him to this point?
And what was the source of this power, so akin to demonic energy, that he wielded without even realizing?
There was so much he wanted to know.
"Right when we were about to investigate all that, the Light of Dreams gathered all the Royal Classes whose meanings aligned."
Exactly two years after the Mercenary King joined their party to uncover the truth.
On the day of an urgent summons from the Light of Dreams, the Lights of Ice, Fire, and Earth gathered in one place.
Four Royal Classes total.
And there, the Light of Dreams revealed why they'd called everyone.
"The Light of Dreams spoke of a skill they possessed—one that let them visit their own past or someone else's."
Yong-un's brow twitched at the words.
If true, it meant the Light of Dreams' skill produced the same power as Yong-un's Soul Subjugation Art at its extreme.
'Is that how they learned of the rune?'
Just as his curiosity began to ease...
The Mercenary King dropped a bombshell on Yong-un.
"Don't tell anyone I said this. Everything from here is a secret. The Light of Dreams captured a demon, read its past, and sketched out all sorts of runes like the ones we have now to share with us. And then... the Light of Dreams vanished right there."
"Vanished...?"
A Royal Class had disappeared?
"It's a real secret. The 2nd Royal Class spot has been empty ever since. No one's seen them since that day."
It was shocking.
The Soul Subjugation Art read the target's memories.
But that was only with the Crimson Demon Flag.
At extreme, Yong-un could slip into another demon's past and out again, just like the Light of Dreams described.
"Impossible."
But to vanish inside it?
That couldn't happen.
"What's so impossible?"
"The past is time that's already gone. The skill the Light of Dreams used just dips into that vanished time and comes back out. How could anyone disappear in there?"
It was impossible.
No communication was possible in time that had already scattered.
It simply didn't exist anymore.
"You talk like you know the skill the Light of Dreams used inside out."
But Yong-un's face hardened the moment he heard the Mercenary King's words.
A skill that walked through scattered time.
The ability to delve into another's past, extract desired information.
And to converse and exist within events that had already vanished.
"Sheiks!"
Perhaps...
The reason the Light of Dreams vanished...
Was connected to that guy linked to the rune on the table.
The thought hit him hard—that Sheiks might exist there.
"What are you doing?"
Yong-un, who had agreed to reveal the rune's meaning, sat cross-legged on the sofa without a word.
Then, stirring his extreme energy, he finally spoke.
"To learn its meaning, I have to go there myself."
"There?"
"Where the Light of Dreams uncovered this rune. Where they vanished. That's where the meaning lies."
"The place where the 2nd Royal Class disappeared..."
The Mercenary King quietly picked up the paper with the rune from the table.
The time when the Light of Dreams vanished.
An unknown darkness that had swallowed a Royal Class whole.
Instead of stopping Yong-un as he prepared to enter, the Mercenary King turned his back, offering silent support.
"Need any help from me?"
"Guard this place. Let me focus entirely on that realm. And be ready if I have to fight whoever's inside."
He tucked the paper back into his pocket.
The Mercenary King then quietly unleashed his battle god aura.
Yellowish-black, darker than a battle god's yet carrying the same aura, laced with an enigmatic demonic energy.
It began enveloping the space around the seated Yong-un.
"Trust me and go. If you can't, call some of your men."
Ready to plunge into Count Ratlin's memories, Yong-un gazed silently at the Mercenary King.
Confirming his words rang true, Yong-un closed his eyes without further ado.
"I'll trust you as much as you've trusted me."
In life, nothing guarded you like suspicion.
But you couldn't live by suspicion alone.
That was what made the world so tough.
Humans were social creatures, unable to survive in isolation.
They had to weave trust amid doubt to build allies and fences.
That was the fragility of humanity.
'I'm human too.'
As Yong-un spread his extreme energy everywhere, he offered a sliver of trust to this man called the Mercenary King and boldly focused his entire mind on Count Ratlin's memories without hesitation.
Whoosh.
His head drooped.
And in the pitch-black void behind his closed eyes, within Count Ratlin's memories where Sheiks awaited their reunion, Yong-un opened them.
"You've come."
There sat the one who'd been waiting in the chair for Yong-un's arrival.
Sheiks.
This was his third time in this space.
Sheiks' domain within Count Ratlin's memories.
Dark blue light enveloped everything, with Sheiks' desk at the center.
Sheiks sat in an old wooden chair, staring straight at Yong-un.
A vanished memory, a fragment of time—yet Sheiks faced him head-on.
And above Sheiks' head floated the rune the Mercenary King had puzzled over.
"I knew you'd come back."
"Must've been frustrating last time."
"It was. Sometimes infuriating. I swore I'd never let you slip away again. You ruined all my plans, after all."
Ignoring Sheiks' words with a nod, Yong-un turned to etch the wall's runes into his mind one by one.
The rune letters the Mercenary King sought, and others like them.
Meanings absent even from deep dives into Count Ratlin's memories.
Yong-un pulled a wooden chair from beside him, placed it opposite Sheiks, and sat.
"I've come to talk."
"Our relationship isn't one for mere talk."
Swipe.
Riiip.
Sheiks flicked his hand.
A chunk of the surrounding space—born of Count Ratlin's memories—tore away like ripped fabric.
Revealing an endless violet void beyond.
Yong-un glanced inside briefly and understood.
Step in there, and like the vanished Light of Dreams, he'd cease to exist alongside this world.
But without a flicker of expression, Yong-un shifted his gaze from the gaping void to Sheiks.
"What does the rune above your head mean?"
Swipe.
Sheiks looked up at the fluttering rune.
And stated clearly.
"Descent."
Swipe.
Riiip.
With his answer, Sheiks' hand moved, tearing the space wider, expanding the empty violet expanse.
Yet Yong-un asked on, face unchanged.
"How can you wield such power here?"
"It's a gift from the Demon King."
Swipe. Riiip.
Another answer, another tear.
"This is Count Ratlin's memory. Why can you even be here?"
"That too relates to the Demon King's gift."
Swipe. Riiip.
Half the space was gone now.
Meaning maybe three questions left.
"Is this space tied to the runes drawn around us?"
"Yes. And it's why I speak only truth."
Riiip.
"Which of these runes is it?"
"Heh, clever, but knowing won't help you."
Riiip.
Sheiks pointed to the last remaining rune, floating in the sole intact space.
Where Yong-un's chair sat—the rune above his head.
Yong-un looked up at it and nodded silently.
"If this space vanishes, you'll be trapped in eternal bonds like that human who came before. Aren't you afraid?"
A victorious smile crept across Sheiks' face.
He expected terror on Yong-un's.
But instead, Yong-un mirrored the smile.
"Not afraid. Hope that's answer enough."
Yong-un swung his hand.
Just like Sheiks when tearing space.
And it wrought the impossible.
Rumble rumble rumble.
The vanished chunks surged back from the violet void, restoring the space!
"Next question?"
Questioner and answerer.
The power dynamic over this space had flipped.
Sheiks' face hardened at the unexpected move.
"How... did you figure it out?"
"Did I say this place demands only truth? Think about where we are and how I entered."
Rumble rumble rumble.
As the rules took hold—question and answer—Yong-un's gesture restored the rune-drawn space.
Exactly half returned, and Yong-un tilted his head up.
Above him fluttered a rune matching the one on his hand.
Precisely the mirror image of Sheiks' rune—reversed 180 degrees, as if reflected.
"Thought I had you..."
Sheiks gave a hollow smile as space steadily reformed.
The game was lost.
With roles reversed, until the answerer refused to respond to the questioner—as Sheiks might—this space would bend to Yong-un's will.
"No helping it."
But Sheiks had nothing to lose.
Just the catch he'd snared—Yong-un.
He wouldn't be trapped in the tearing void.
Sheiks showed only regret, no fear.
That was when it happened.
"Ever heard of the Heavenly Brain Master?"
Yong-un, holding all the cards, tossed out a question—relinquishing his advantage.
"Thought you were clever... but humans are just humans, huh?"
Sheiks' stiff lips curled into a grin.
No one could be this stupid.
Kicking away luck served on a platter?
How could he not laugh?
Sheiks answered instantly, to prevent any dodge.
"No."
Swipe. Riiip.
Power flipped back.
Sheiks' gesture shredded the hard-won space anew.
But Yong-un's face showed no regret—only seriousness—as he asked again.
"Wrong phrasing. Should've used the demonic tongue. Let me reask."
Humans couldn't know demon language.
Yet Yong-un, eyes briefly closed then open, spoke it fluently enough to stun Sheiks.
"Cheonnoeja. The being with the supreme intellect bestowed by the heavens. Do you know of Cheonnoeja?"
The grin froze on Sheiks' face, cracking.
"How do you know demon tongue...? Wait, Heavenly... Brain... Master?"
Struggling for a reply?
Or did he truly know Cheonnoeja?
Sheiks pondered the name in Yong-un's question, face troubled.
'Cheonnoeja.'
Just who are you?
Watching Sheiks closely, Yong-un bit his lip.
Sheiks couldn't—or wouldn't—answer.
He definitely knew of Cheonnoeja.
This name from the martial world, utterly disconnected from demons.
"Answer me. Do you know Cheonnoeja?"
At Yong-un's shout, Sheiks only looked flustered and troubled.
Unable to respond for a long while.