The silence that followed was heavy.

Her mind wasn’t working properly.

Helio Reynolds?

Helio Reynolds, the second son of the Reynolds family?

‘I’ve seen him on TV a few times.’

He was quite a well-known figure.

But not for his martial prowess.

In fact, he was a commoner who hadn’t even awakened.

He was famous for his innate intelligence.

And that man was the Second Cardinal?

The ‘False Holy Swordsman’ known for wielding a sword?

“I recently learned something,” Raven said in a grave voice.

Ha-yeon, clearing her mind of the thoughts that filled it, looked directly at him.

“Helio has been coming home late.”

And she could sense impure mana.

At first, he thought nothing of it.

It could have been attached to another special type Hunter.

But that wasn’t the case.

For days, weeks, Helio came home late at night.

And each time, the intensity of the impure mana grew stronger.

Moreover, he had seen it somewhere before.

Unfortunately.

“It reminded me of the boss of the SS-class gate where you and I first met…”

Abyssal Aether.

He could feel the tainted energy.

He couldn’t help but be confused, but he started investigating.

He wanted to find out that Helio had nothing to do with the New King Church.

But the results were completely different.

The worst.

His identity, which he had uncovered over half a year, was the Second Cardinal of the New King Church.

In the end, he couldn’t deny it.

But even so, he couldn’t make a decision.

At least when it came to family.

Raven was more vulnerable than anyone else.

At that moment, there was no position of World Master.

Nor was there the Sword Demon of Iron Blood.

And as he hesitated, things eventually blew up.

Helio disappeared a while ago.

The Reynolds family was turned upside down, but the matter didn’t leak out thanks to Raven’s control.

“I will not look for him.”

If.

If he found him and met him, he felt like he would cross a river from which there was no return.

Ha-yeon could only remain silent at those words.

At the same time, a question arose.

“But why are you telling me this…?”

Why was he telling her this?

Even if she was close to him, Ha-jeong was closer.

If it was just a simple concern, there was no need for her to hear it.

“I have a favor to ask, though you don’t have to act directly.”

Raven said, sipping the tea in front of him.

“If you ever meet Helio…”

Kill him.

Ha-yeon felt heavy-hearted as she returned to her lodgings.

Not only had she heard something completely unexpected.

But she had also received an unimaginable request regarding it.

“I don’t know…”

If she met him, she would fight him as a Cardinal.

She was a little confused.

‘Still… let’s just move on for now.’

It was something that wouldn’t happen right away.

So there was no need to do it right away.

Anyway, she fell asleep and woke up in the morning to find all the headaches gone.

It wasn’t for nothing that they said sleep is the best medicine.

“…Huh? It’s already 3 PM?”

It was 12 PM when she arrived at the mansion, went to her lodgings, and talked to her grandfather.

She fell asleep at 1 AM.

She had slept for about 14 hours.

Why did I sleep so much?

Ha-yeon got out of bed, changed into some casual clothes, went down to the first floor, and grabbed a quick bite to eat.

“I should start wearing the dress soon.”

The dress was in the subspace artifact next to her.

As she thought about it, the doorbell of her lodgings rang again, just like last time.

Ding-dong.

“Who is it?”

Was anyone supposed to come?

Thinking that, she cleared the dishes and opened the door.

“Hello, Sword Demon, I’m here to help you prepare.”

Standing there was a woman.

A person dressed as a maid bowed her head as she said that.

“Prepare?”

Wasn’t it enough to just wear the dress?

Ha-yeon said, and the maid replied with a surprised look.

“What are you talking about? It takes a long time just to get ready. We’ll help you, so let’s go together.”

“Ah… okay.”

Ha-yeon, taking her subspace artifact, left her lodgings without a word and followed the maid.

But what were they going to do that required them to go so early?

Thinking that, they arrived at none other than the annex.

Ha-yeon entered one of the rooms there and was seated in front of a large mirror.

“Did you bring the dress?”

“Yes, here.”

Ha-yeon used the subspace artifact to hand the dress to the maid, who took it with a slight admiration and hung it next to her.

“It’s very high-end… We don’t have anything this high-end on our side.”

“You’re too kind.”

The maid seemed to be calculating something as she said that.

And after a while, she spoke to Ha-yeon.

“Looking at the dress, it doesn’t seem like it will ruin your face when you put it on… Let’s start with basic makeup first, then put on the dress and start in earnest, shall we?”

There were clearly three steps.

But why did she feel so uneasy?

Anyway, the maid said something to the outside, and two more maids entered behind her.

“First of all, Sword Demon, your personality and appearance have a bright feel… Hmm, this way.”

The maid said, starting to apply the base.

Ha-yeon asked her.

“What’s your name, by the way?”

“It’s better not to open your mouth if you don’t want to make the makeup difficult, and my name is Lua.”

Even though she seemed to be applying the makeup quickly with her skillful hands, it took 30 minutes.

“…But this is basic makeup?”

She had clearly heard it was basic makeup.

It was more complicated than the makeup she did.

This is… basic makeup?

Her appearance was truly radiant.

Since the original was beautiful, to put it simply.

It felt like she had gone from top-tier to.

Super-duper top-tier?

“Now, let’s put on the dress!”

Lua clapped her hands and said.

At that, the other maids next to her brought the dress to Ha-yeon.

She also changed out of her clothes and into the dress.

The feel of the soft fabric.

The blue color, resembling Ha-yeon’s blue eyes, with luxurious white fabrics decorating the top.

Although there were only those two colors.

The extravagant design made this dress stand out from anything else.

Anyway, as she finally pulled up the hook on the back, her reflection in the mirror came into view.

It was like a goddess of beauty from mythology.

“Wow…”

She had dressed up a bit when she went on dates with Ha-jeong.

But she had never received professional makeup like this.

It was a new experience.

‘This isn’t the end, is it?’

What would it feel like when it was finished?

The initial annoyance was gone, and she became a little curious.

And so, the makeup started again.

It wasn’t as fast as before, but it was a more precise and detailed application.

Her face was itchy, but she endured it.

How long had it been?

About an hour had passed when she finished the makeup.

And she opened her eyes, which had been closed.

The appearance she saw.

“……”

She was speechless.

How should she describe it?

It might be conceited to say, but even from an objective point of view, she was truly stunning.

“You’re so beautiful! I’ve heard rumors, but you’re even more beautiful in person when you’re all dolled up!”

Lua said from the side.

It wasn’t flattery or pretense, but a sincere compliment.

Ha-yeon, feeling a little better, said to them.

“Am I done now?”

“Yes, you’re ready, and now you can go to the banquet hall.”

Considering the travel time and the time to wait there, there was a reasonable amount of time left.

Ha-yeon left the annex and headed straight for the banquet hall, following the guidance, and soon a magnificent building came into view.

Was this really the Middle Ages?

The exterior was so extravagant that she couldn’t help but think that.

As she entered the building, which felt like a lot of effort had been put into it, she saw a vast banquet hall.

And there were already many people bustling about.

‘I recognize some of the faces.’

There were quite a few famous people.

Executives from the government and the Guild Association, and occasionally guild leaders.

Children from high-ranking Hunter families and high-ranking Hunters.

Those she had never seen before were probably famous in some way.

Anyway, as she entered, everyone’s eyes turned to Ha-yeon.

“Is that the Sword Demon…”

“Wow… she’s really beautiful.”

“The pictures floating around on the internet weren’t edited…”

A beauty that could overthrow a kingdom.

An unparalleled beauty.

A beauty for all time.

These were all words that could be used to describe her.

‘Ugh…’

She tried to avoid and ignore the gazes as she headed for a secluded spot.

It was a bit difficult to be in a place like this without any acquaintances.

It was best to hide in a corner.

Even so, her appearance and presence wouldn’t disappear, but wouldn’t it be possible to suppress it a little?

‘…Still, it’s a relief that they’re not approaching.’

A celestial being.

It felt like someone you shouldn’t touch.

She felt like she was being a bit too conceited today, but she thought it was just her imagination.

It was a fact.

“I should eat something.”

Soon, she shook off most of the surrounding gazes and began to eat the food spread out on the table.

And before long, the host of this banquet entered.

“Sword Demon, Raven Reynolds, is entering!”

The doors opened, and her grandfather came out from behind them.

And next to him, his wife, eldest daughter, eldest son, and second daughter appeared.

‘Helio isn’t here, as expected.’

The second son, Helio, was nowhere to be seen.

She couldn’t help but realize that what he had said was true.