Raising the Elf’s Genius Slayer

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Chapter

A space that looked like an ordinary household. A man walked leisurely. With his handsome appearance and the cloak gently draping over him, he resembled a deity. He stared intently at the crystal ball on the table for a moment before placing his hand on it.

[Swoosh──────]

With a strange sensation, his vision flipped. The space he opened his eyes to was a vast conference room. A dim figure sitting in a chair clicked their tongue.

“You’re here quickly.”

“I had some business.”

It wasn’t a proper explanation, but no complaints were voiced. There was hardly anyone on this occasion who could complain to him.

“So, what’s the matter? A sudden summons?”

“What? Didn’t you hear?”

Despite being a dim figure, the woman had distinct curves and chuckled.

“Adolf and Gray are dead. Kenghu’s disciple did it.”

“Oh.”

The man’s eyes sparkled.

“I’ll take it.”

“You haven’t even heard what it’s about?”

“No need to bother hearing something so obvious.”

It was bound to be a Piercing Kill. And the man found it interesting. That was enough.

“Seems like a waste. Do we really need to use a dragon-slaying sword to catch a chicken? No, not even a chicken, a dragon-slaying sword?”

“I’ve wanted to challenge Kenghu at least once.”

“Not Kenghu, but Kenghu’s disciple, you know?”

At the woman’s words, the man began fiddling with the sword at his waist. His beloved blade, one he had been with for half a lifetime. Would it truly reach that old beast?

“If you kill Kenghu’s disciple, Kenghu will surely come out. After all, that’s quite the proclamation.”

Unbreakable Heaven Promise. The solemn vow sworn across the continent. It was a rare opportunity to share a duel with a swordsman of such caliber.

“Well, if that’s the case…”

With that statement, the woman leaned back in her chair. It was a long-awaited meeting, yet it was about to end in just a few minutes.

Without even sitting down, the man turned away from the woman, his voice flowing out between the fluttering cloak.

“Then, consider it understood. Report once you ascertain the location.”

The man opened his eyes. Once more, an ordinary household greeted his vision. Stepping outside, he pushed aside the corpse at his feet. After taking a few steps and looking up at the sky, the familiar blood-red sky welcomed him.

“Looks like I’m finally going outside the Magic Region again.”

Surrounding the man stood a mountain of corpses. All of them were monster remains. Among them, half reached Master-level. He was getting tired of these creatures, so this was convenient.

“Kenghu, huh…”

The man smirked and lightly launched himself into the air.

Second in command of Haken Welt, the Sword Demon Nameless. He had returned to the world after several decades.

*

Enok and Yonia left the Magic Tower after staying there for nearly a month. Beyond the castle gates, a pure white tower peeked. After a brief gaze at it, Enok took his next step.

“Are we really okay? It sounds dangerous.”

Yonia grumbled as she followed Enok. Enok balanced the Plasma he still struggled to control on his hand while examining the map.

“It’ll be fine.”

Enok was more worried about something different than Haken Welt. Shanak Magicion, also known as the God of Life and Death. An elf who went mad for love of humans, and according to Iris, was seen as a kind of disaster god.

A fanatic wandering the endless desert, leading millions of specters behind him. Somehow, he wanted to meet him at least once.

“Was it around here?”

Enok pointed to a spot on the map with his finger.

“Desert? Ah, the God of Life and Death? Yeah. Quite far from the Elf Union.”

“What a pity.”

As Enok licked his lips, Yonia glared at him.

“Don’t even think about it while your rationality is asleep. Before you even get close, you’ll become part of the specter army.”

“Got it.”

There’s no need to go that far.

Enok and Yonia traveled along the map for several days. Nothing special happened. Just a few encounters with monsters here and there, which made Yonia tilt her head slightly.

“Why are there so many monsters?”

Without a way to know the reason, they just passed by. After repeating the cycle of camping out and staying in nearby cities, they finally arrived at a large city.

[Wow…! The city is enormous!]

Eri exclaimed as she looked around in amazement. Enok headed to the market to refill dwindling supplies and food.

“Oh.”

So, this is what a big city really looks like? After a bit of wandering, he found a completely independent commercial district.

While he was busy buying necessary items and stuffing them into his bundle, Yonia burst into a quiet giggle.

“Look at that, those kids are having so much fun.”

When he looked where she pointed, he saw several children with sticks engaged in some sort of shouting game. It seemed like a version of pretend play.

“………”

As he watched quietly, one of the parents resembling the kids came to greet them. The child waved his arms excitedly, explaining how he played, and the parents smiled warmly, encouraging their child’s story.

Thud, thud, thud, thud. Enok, who had been tapping the sword at his waist, turned away.

“Let’s go.”

Feeling an odd atmosphere, Yonia silently followed Enok. But it was just a moment before Enok suddenly stopped, causing Yonia to hurriedly tilt her head.

“Hey! What are you doing? Almost bumped into you!”

Enok was focused intently on one spot. A boy who seemed to be about his age. Blonde hair, blue eyes. Looks like a noble. But that wasn’t what mattered.

“What is that?”

A strange sensation. He felt something, but he wasn’t sure what it was.

It seemed the boy was feeling the same way as he stared intently at Enok.

“What? Do you know him?”

At Yonia’s question, Enok shook his head.

“No, just a feeling. Let’s go.”

Enok shrugged it off. He didn’t want to think too deeply about it. But the boy was a bit different. As he watched Enok’s receding back, he narrowed his eyes.

‘Heavenly Death….’

He was someone born with the name of Heavenly Death. The boy instinctively felt this. Of course, the Heavenly Death hadn’t been spurned after the current emperor, but that didn’t make it any less irritating.

That was understandable, as the boy was born with the opposing name of Ziwei Star. The greatest star, the name of a ruler who would stand above all.

To prove this, the boy had achieved an incredible feat: he was already an upper Expert at not even twenty years old.

Thus, he was confident. No matter how talented someone was with the name of Heavenly Death, they could not measure up to him.

“My Lord?”

The boy whispered softly to the knight following him.

“Let’s follow.”

“Yes? No, you can’t cause trouble again.”

“Shut it!”

Just look at that figure of Heavenly Death. Clad in a black hood and a white mask! Anyone could tell that trouble was bound to happen.

With confident steps, the boy pursued the figure of Heavenly Death.

*

“Enok, I think someone’s following us?”

At Yonia’s words, Enok nodded. He’d known from the start.

“Ignore it.”

“Well, if that’s the case…”

Regardless of their character, Yonia trusted Enok’s skills. With his level of skill at that age, if it weren’t for Lady Rionne, one might think he was lying about his age.

“Huh…?”

Yonia’s eyebrows perked up. At not even twenty, achieving the position of Master is remarkable. It didn’t feel like he just became a Master; he seemed very adept at wielding power.

Could it all really just be a miracle of talent? Was there no painstaking effort behind it?

Thinking this way, it was a bit easier to understand why Enok continued taking reckless actions without caring for his own life. Without such extreme measures, he wouldn’t be able to achieve that level.

‘Was all this for Lady Rionne…?’

Enok’s reckless acts. His interest in the affairs of the God of Life and Death. His reactions when discussing the lifespan issues between elves and humans.

Now, it felt like she understood a little. Yonia was convinced. To be with Lady Rionne, to not make her sad, he was desperately pushing himself.

For Lady Rionne, who had lived close to a thousand years, a human’s lifespan would seem like just a blip in time. Enok knew that.

If he wanted a normal, equal relationship with Rionne, he must at least reach Grandmaster. But that lofty height was not a place one could ascend merely with willpower. Then, what difference would it make if he aged and died or if he died trying to reach that level? If he got into an ambiguous relationship and died of old age, it would leave an irreparable scar on Rionne.

He must have thought along those lines. That’s why he understood the question of whether he loved Rionne as a question in return.

‘What is love?’

That short question was actually a lament that he didn’t deserve to claim he loved Rionne yet! Until the day he could proudly step beyond that level, he wouldn’t be able to call his feelings love.

“You… actually weren’t so bad after all?”

“What? What’s with the sudden nonsense? Did you catch something from Iris?”

Enok was puzzled by Yonia’s sudden strange reaction. He’d always thought she was a bit weird, but lately, he was more convinced of that.

At times like these, ignoring it was the way to go. Embracing this realization, Enok continued walking in silence.

*

Enok stopped by the Mercenary Guild to check for requests heading towards the Elf Union. Initially, he thought he’d just look to earn some pocket money, but to his surprise, there was actually something available and he promptly signed up.

The request was to escort a merchant caravan to Silver Lake. It was a good opportunity to earn some money on the way.

“Won’t it be inconvenient?”

Yonia pressed her hood down, being unnecessarily aware of her ears. That was true; if she had to keep hiding it, it would be uncomfortable. But Enok had his own thoughts.

“You don’t have to hide it.”

“Eh?”

“Once we head out of the city, don’t worry about it.”

It didn’t seem like that significant of a caravan, so if someone bothered them, they would simply deal with it.

“How?”

“Physically.”

Swoosh—Enok drew his sword after a long time. Yonia, having understood, frowned.

“…You crazy kid.”

He was definitely a great guy, but absolutely crazy for sure.