Chapter 300: While He's Away (5)

The atmosphere within the Great Wall was almost giddy, as if it were hard to believe they had just fought a major war.

This was evident from the expressions of the soldiers moving about within the walls.

Felix, sensing the unfamiliar atmosphere, glanced around and nodded.

That makes sense… This is our first victory of this magnitude.

For over seven years, he had followed the Sword Saint and Power Star, considering them his inner gurus, and had blindly followed them across countless battlefields.

But today’s flawless victory was unprecedented.

Moreover, this intense experience was also unprecedented.

That was truly…

The scene was so astonishing that it seemed like a lifetime’s fiery imprint, impossible to forget. Recalling it, Felix quickened his pace.

He met a man and a woman at his destination: Amy and Owen, close friends with whom he had traversed battlefields for years.

They greeted him eagerly:

“You’re here?”

“When did you arrive?”

“We just got here ourselves.”

”…And them?”

“They said they were here, so we rushed over immediately.”

Felix and the others looked strangely tense. They all considered the Sword Saint and Power Star their spiritual gurus. The prospect of meeting the guru of their gurus inevitably made them nervous.

Having already witnessed the divine presence of That Person firsthand, a deep sense of admiration had taken root in their hearts.

“Let’s go in.”

“Yeah.”

“R-right.”

The trio cautiously stepped inside the tent.

At the same time, their eyes widened in disbelief.

”…?!”

“Th-this is…”

”…What the hell?!”

From the outside, it appeared to be an ordinary tent. Yet the scene unfolding before them boasted a staggering expanse, rivaling that of a grand mansion.

But what truly astonished them was the spectacle unfolding at the tent’s center.

“Hmm? Your posture is wavering.”

“Gah…”

Kendrick the Sword Star.

In the Winter Continent, there was no one who didn’t know his name and reputation.

Kendrick the Sword Star was a prodigious kenpo who stood on the precipice of the Wall of Zero at a remarkably young age. The heroic myths he had forged with a single sword were the stuff of dreams for those who walked the Path of the Sword. Moreover, his character was unmatched in bravery and justice. Even the haughty nobles, whose dignity commanded respect, dared not treat him with disrespect.

That was the Kendrick the Sword Star the trio had always known: an idol for all swordsmen.

But now, that same Kendrick…

“Ugh!”

He lay prostrate on the ground, his head buried in the floor—a posture commonly known as the “Headbutt Bomb.” Beside him stood Louis, his stance askew.

“Huh?”

As Kendrick writhed on the ground, Dan abruptly kicked him in the ribs.

Thud!

“Ugh!”

“Reset!”

“W-Reset!”

Kendrick scrambled back to his feet and lowered his head again.

”…”

The three men who had just entered the tent, having witnessed the collapse of the idol’s authority, froze in their tracks.

Then, Felix’s heart skipped a beat as he glanced away from Kendrick and saw another unbelievable sight.

“Hehehe.”

Standing close to Louis, chuckling repeatedly, was a woman.

It was Tania, her smile more radiant than any in the world.

Her completely transformed aura made him wonder if this was truly the same Tania they knew.

“Teacher, that idiot…”

Seeing Tania, who had been by Louis’s side for seven years, chattering away about their past misdeeds, who could call her a cold-hearted woman?

Meanwhile, Louis’s face twisted again at Tania’s tattling.

“That bastard Kendrick… Why? Is he trying to kill me? Did he bring out my coffin and light the incense yet? Huh?”

Kendrick frantically defended himself against Louis’s irritated question.

“I-I naturally assumed you were still alive, Teacher!”

“Really?”

“O-of course!”

“Is that true, Tania?”

“N-no, he told me to give up, saying you were dead!”

“You bastard…”

Crack!

As Louis snapped his fingers, a heavy pressure descended around Kendrick.

“Gah! T-Teacher! My neck! My neck’s going to snap! My neck’s breaking! No, please believe me!”

Kendrick’s face flushed crimson as he writhed in agony.

Behind him, Tania watched with an eerie smile.

Meanwhile, Abel and Jerome stood a distance away, pacing anxiously.

Lavina approached Felix’s travel party, who stood frozen in the awkward situation.

“You’re here?” she asked.

Among the three companions, Amy whispered softly, “That’s… Lady Lavina.”

“What is it?”

“Can… can we really let him stay like that?”

“What do you mean?”

Only then did Lavina notice their gazes fixed on Kendrick, and she chuckled.

“It’s fine. He’s always been like this.”

”…”

“Ah, it feels like he’s finally returning to his original self. He’s been too stiff lately, ah, you know!”

”…”

The three companions were speechless as Lavina nodded contentedly. Their worried gazes turned to Kendrick.

Aah, Kendrick…

What on earth…

…What kind of life have you lived?

To think she could tolerate even her brother being humiliated so casually.

Though he couldn’t be certain, Kendrick felt as if he were glimpsing fragments of Louis’s past.

The interrogation continued for some time.

A moment later…

“Ugh… my head… I’m not going bald, am I?”

Kendrick, barely escaped from the interrogation hell, was massaging his scalp when…

Swish.

The tent flap opened, and Elvis and Lokan VII entered.

Lokan VII approached Louis with a smile. “It’s been a while, Priest.”

“You’ve become my grandfather now, haven’t you?”

“Time flies. But you’re still the same, Priest.”

“Well, things just sort of happened.”

This time, Elvis gave a stiff nod with a slightly sour expression. ”…It’s been a while.”

“Yeah, sure.”

Louis waved slightly in response to Elvis’s greeting and scanned his surroundings.

Lokan VII wasn’t the only one who had aged. Kendrick, Tania, Lavina, and Elvis had all grown older as well. Louis sighed softly at their changed appearances and matured demeanors.

Seven years…

To be precise, it had been six years and eleven months. That’s how much time had passed in Evan while Louis spent mere days on Earth.

I kind of expected this, but…

Despite his expectations, he couldn’t help feeling bewildered by the passage of time.

Scratching his cheek, Louis’s gaze landed on a boy and girl standing to the side.

Mother of the Stars Abel and God’s Temple Jerome.

Abel and Jerome had joined Kendrick’s travel party.

And there were Lavina and Elvis too.

Has the entire Dragon Slayer Party from the original work gathered here?

Jerome stiffened slightly as Louis’s gaze fell upon them, stepping protectively in front of Abel.

“Jerome…?”

Abel tilted her head, noticing Jerome’s trembling shoulders. The man who had never retreated in the face of any enemy now feared and warily watched the guru of the Flame siblings. Abel found this puzzling.

Meanwhile, Louis stared intently at the pure white bow slung over Jerome’s shoulder before gesturing to its owner.

“Bring that here,” he commanded in a low, authoritative voice.

Normally, Jerome would never comply with such an order, but this time he wordlessly handed the bow to Louis.

Louis took the bow and examined it. Its material was enigmatic, resembling both horn and wood, yet also stone-like. The carving evoked waves, and its form was more akin to a work of art than a practical weapon. A faintly perceptible holy aura emanated from it.

This is the Sea God Palace Atelierize.

He recalled the mission he had entrusted to Elvis and the Flame siblings before leaving for Earth. Despite his own doubts, they had carried it out flawlessly.

After scrutinizing the bow, Louis turned his gaze to Jerome. Meeting his eyes, Louis discerned the primal fear deeply etched within them.

He seems to have roughly grasped the situation.

Jerome is an Elf.

Being a race sensitive to energy, Jerome seemed to have at least partially discerned Louis’s true nature.

Louis turned to him and asked, “Why didn’t you unleash the full power of the Sea God’s Bow earlier?”

The Sea God’s Bow was the very bow that had broken the Mad Dragon’s wings. Even though Waldoking was strong, the combined strength of the Sea God’s Bow and the Flame siblings should have been sufficient to handle the situation.

Yet, even in the midst of crisis, Jerome had refrained from revealing the bow’s true power.

Jerome’s eyes widened slightly at Louis’s question, as if surprised that Louis already knew everything. He answered calmly, ”…I can only truly draw the True God of Sea once. After that, I’ll be incapacitated for days.”

Understanding Jerome’s predicament, Louis sneered, “How foolish.”

”…”

“I understand your desire to protect someone dear to you, but do you think that woman would be happy if you survived alone after everyone else died?”

Louis pointed his chin at Abel.

Jerome shrugged his shoulders, and Louis’s sneer widened.

“With that kind of mindset, you don’t deserve to be the owner of this bow.”

”…”

Anyone could see that the war they had just fought was a lost cause.

In such a battle, if Jerome had been incapacitated, he would have been unable to protect Abel.

That’s why Jerome had hesitated to draw the True God of Sea.

As the situation unfolded, Abel realized the meaning behind Louis’s words, and her expression hardened.

“Jerome… is that… true?”

”…”

“You were willing to abandon your other comrades just to protect me?”

“That…”

Jerome hesitated, unable to answer immediately, and Abel’s face paled. She abruptly bolted out of the tent.

“Abel!”

Jerome chased after her.

As everyone stared wide-eyed at the sudden turn of events, Elvis sighed inwardly.

Well, that’s…

Elvis was well aware of the tension between Jerome and Abel.

Abel had seamlessly integrated into Kendrick’s group, regarding them all as her comrades. Jerome, however, was different. Though he appeared to share camaraderie with them at first glance, he never truly considered them his own comrades. He was merely Abel’s companion.

This dynamic inevitably made the entire group feel that Jerome was somehow detached from them.

He’s stirring up trouble with our weak points to an infuriating degree.

Elvis had been racking his brain, trying to figure out how to handle the issues with Abel and Jerome without damaging the group’s cohesion. But during their first meeting today, Louis had pinpointed the problem and brought it to the forefront, like popping a long-festering boil.

Now it’s one or the other: the wound will either fester and grow, or new flesh will form.

As Elvis sighed inwardly, Louis tossed the bow to Tania.

”…Teacher?”

Tania caught the Sea God’s Bow, her eyes widening.

“Hold onto it.”

“Me?”

“Yeah, and if that bow-wielding bastard ever comes back with a straight face and asks for it, slap him across the face and then hand it over.”

“A… a slap?”

“He tried to throw his comrade under the bus. I couldn’t just hand it over that easily.”

“Ah!”

“Give him a good slap, but not so hard he dies. If he gets angry after that, don’t give it to him.”

“Yes!”

Tania took the bow and nodded vigorously.

Kendrick admired Louis’s ability to swiftly resolve visible problems. He cautiously spoke up.

“By the way, Teacher…”

“What?”

“What happened to you? Where have you been for seven years? The Twin Lords even claimed you were dead…”

“Oh, I was just… retrieving that.”

“That?”

At the mention of “that,” all eyes turned to Wang Cheolsoo, slumped in a corner like a discarded doll.

As the eyes of the assembled crowd alternated between Louis and Wang Cheolsoo, Louis waved his hand dismissively.

“I was a bit late because ‘that’ was quite far away and took some time to retrieve.”

”…”

“Roughly speaking, that’s what happened. Now, tell me what’s been going on these past seven years.”

“Oh! That…”

Kendrick briefly explained the events of the past seven years in response to Louis’s question.

Their return after completing the mission given by Louis.

Hearing of Louis’s death from the Twins.

Crossing to the Winter Continent and fighting across the Death Line.

And finally, the loss of contact with the Twins.

After hearing the entire story, Louis stroked his chin.

Considering seven years have passed, things seem surprisingly peaceful…

By now, Kaiders would have conquered the world two or three times over. Though the world still suffered from an overabundance of demons, the situation was still surprisingly manageable compared to Louis’s worst-case scenarios.

The fact that things are this calm… must mean the Elder Council has been intervening somehow.

To understand the full extent of what had transpired, Louis decided he needed to contact the dragons.

So much to do, so little time.

He’d barely returned from a short vacation on Earth, yet a mountain of tasks awaited him. Maha, Kaiders, Wang Cheolsoo, the Honcheon Sword… the list went on. But above all, what worried him most was Genelocer.

If word has spread that I’m dead…

Louis didn’t know what had happened to his father, Genelocer. He was about to pull out his communication stone when he changed his mind.

“I’m… I’m going out for a bit.”

“Huh? Again?”

“Where are you going?”

“Home.”

“Oh…”

Tania and Kendrick, who had flinched at the news that Louis was leaving again, nodded in understanding when they heard he was going “home.” After all, there must be someone waiting for Louis’s return as anxiously as they were.

They couldn’t bring themselves to stop him.

As Louis stood up, he pointed at Wang Cheolsoo.

“Keep an eye on him while I’m gone. If that bastard tries anything funny, deal with him yourself.”

“Kill him?”

”…Don’t kill him. Just knock some sense into him.”

“Understood!”

Kendrick and Tania nodded vigorously, as if begging him to take charge.

Then I should probably go soothe my startled father.

With a faint smile, Louis vanished from the spot.