Ch.9797. One Year Wasn’t Even Needed

“In a mountainous area with no village, groups of men wandering around are obviously one of two things: mercenaries or bandits. Though really, they’re practically the same.”

“Oh, there’s a misunderstanding!”

One of the men kneeling before Charlotte shouted with an aggrieved voice. His face was covered in fresh bruises, as if he’d just been beaten.

“We’re honest people. We were just passing through!”

“Honest? That’s what suspicious characters typically claim. Besides, don’t travelers usually welcome encounters with other travelers? Rather than avoiding each other, you showed yourselves—what a coincidence.”

“…We didn’t even know you were staying here in the first place. We had no intention of coming here.”

Rex looked at the men with a skeptical expression. It didn’t sound particularly like a lie. Their only weapons were short machetes and daggers—tools that ordinary travelers often carried for practical use. The fact that there were five men was unusual, but it seemed a stretch to definitively label them as bandits.

“Please! I have a family and an elderly mother to support. I’ll give you everything I have, just spare my life…”

One man suddenly pressed his face to the ground and began to weep. The others followed suit, breaking into collective wailing. At this point, it became unclear who were the thieves and who were the victims. Rex carefully spoke up.

“Lady Charlotte.”

“Don’t be fooled. Wicked men will grovel when they realize they’re facing someone stronger. They may say one thing while plotting something else entirely. You there, raise your head.”

Charlotte narrowed her brow and snapped. The man she pointed at sniffled and lifted his head from the ground.

“…Yes?”

“If you’re not bandits, why haven’t you explained yourselves until now? Is it because you have something to hide?”

The man retorted with an incredulous expression.

“Even if we wanted to explain, how could we when you started beating us without warning…”

“……”

“We-we’re couriers. We deliver letters and packages to other regions. Since taking up this profession, I’ve never once done anything I’d be ashamed of. This time too, we gathered colleagues heading to similar destinations to travel to Lindvale. As you know, it’s dangerous to travel alone outside.”

The man pulled several letters from his backpack and held them out. The seal stamps appeared to be officially certified.

“Hmm.”

Charlotte crossed her arms with a serious face, then suddenly turned her back. Rex asked with a puzzled expression.

“Where are you going all of a sudden?”

Charlotte didn’t answer. She trudged into the cave and simply sat down on the ground. Then, with an expressionless face, she abruptly said:

“Who are these people?”

“Pardon?”

“Strangers, I see. Tell them to leave promptly if they have no business here. Unfortunately, this cave is small and can’t accommodate anyone beyond the three of us.”

“……”

The men’s mouths fell open. Chloe and Elin were just watching from a distance. So it had been a wild goose chase after all. Rex turned around with a small sigh.

“I… apologize for the misunderstanding.”

***

In the end, the recent situation concluded as a rather pointless incident.

Of course, from the men’s perspective, it must have been quite unfair. They were simply walking along when they were suddenly seized and harassed for no reason. Feeling sorry about just sending them away, Rex handed over a few silver coins as an apology. Judging by their broad smiles, they seemed quite satisfied.

Rex watched the men’s retreating figures with an awkward expression before turning away.

“Even a Sado can’t be perfect all the time.”

Charlotte cleared her throat and poked at the campfire with a stick in her hand. With a crackling sound, sparks flew upward and slowly dispersed.

“Like a monkey falling from a tree, I make mistakes occasionally.”

Though no one had said anything, she seemed to feel somewhat guilty inside. Her expression remained shameless, however. When Rex let out a small laugh, Charlotte tapped the ground beside her with a sulky face.

“Don’t just stand there staring. Sit down.”

“Yes.”

While Rex was sending the men away, Elin and Chloe had been preparing dinner. A fragrant aroma wafted from the pot fixed above the campfire. Charlotte was a woman with a meticulous personality in many ways. This trait manifested even when camping outdoors. Meals always had to be prepared with premium ingredients, and meat was a must. Even now, the stew contained ingredients too good for simple outdoor cooking.

‘At least that’s a good thing.’

Rex accepted the plate Chloe handed him with a wry smile. Thanks to the generous use of expensive spices, the food looked quite appetizing.

“Listen while you eat.”

In the middle of the meal, Charlotte set down her plate and spoke. Though she had taken the largest portion, her plate was already clean.

“Edenhar is located on the empire’s frontier. It took me about a month to ride to Lindvale, so the return journey should take about the same. There are several domains on the way… but I won’t be stopping at any of them.”

“Why not?”

“Because they’ll cause all sorts of trouble. I detest the pomp and ceremony of nobles. They say they want you to rest comfortably, but they quickly bring their children and thrust them in your face. Even if I don’t want to know what they’re thinking, I can see the desire dripping from their eye sockets.”

Charlotte clicked her tongue and filled her empty plate with more stew.

“They hope their children have the talent to become Seongakja. Unfortunately, not everyone can achieve greatness as a Seongakja just because they’re nobles. Very few become useful seeds, let alone knights. Do you know how awkward it is to face expectant fathers and children looking at you with the same hopeful eyes?”

Charlotte wore an irritated expression as she gulped down the stew. The steaming hot stew disappeared in an instant. Does one’s palate harden upon becoming a Sado? No, that’s not the point. Rex stammered a question.

“I didn’t realize you cared about such things.”

In short, the reason for not stopping at domains and heading straight to the Adenborn Marquis’s estate was… because clingy nobles were bothersome.

That was quite unexpected. Though their time together had been brief, the Charlotte he’d seen so far was far from being a considerate, caring person. Couldn’t she just ignore requests to evaluate talent, and if asked for favors, ignore those too?

“…What exactly do you think I am?”

Charlotte retorted with an exasperated face.

“When you receive something, you must return the favor—that’s how the world works. If I visit a nearby domain, the lord will surely welcome me. They’ll provide a good room and serve feasts. Then I’ll be obligated to repay their kindness. I want to avoid such situations altogether.”

Rex scratched the back of his head and nodded.

“I should correct your perception of me. I don’t know what Berger has told you, but I need to establish my authority.”

“…I think you’re amazing, Lady Charlotte.”

“That goes without saying. Anyway, if you’re done eating, follow me. I’ll give you a brief lesson before bedtime.”

As Charlotte stood up, she added:

“You two, once you’ve cleaned up, amuse yourselves. I’ll be back shortly.”

Elin and Chloe silently spread out blankets and lay down.

***

The Kaiserion Style.

It consists of four basic movements. Since first learning it from Berger, Rex had practiced daily and now had enough skill to perform it with his eyes closed.

“Extreme Light Single Flash, Heavenly Thunder Soul Severance, Fierce Tiger Killing Strike, Soul-Burning Heaven Reversal.”

Charlotte counted off the technique names, extending one finger at a time.

“Grandiose names, aren’t they? For example, Extreme Light Single Flash means piercing the high sun at a single point and making it fall. But no one can actually do that. Even I, who has reached the level of Sado, cannot stab the sun and make it fall.”

Whoosh! In an instant, the longsword thrust past Rex’s side. He hadn’t even seen it. Only after the blade was withdrawn did Rex realize the technique just used was Extreme Light Single Flash. Simultaneously, a tree in the distance fell, cut in half.

“I cannot make the sun fall, but I can collapse mountains. Do you know why?”

“…Because of sacred power.”

“Correct.”

Charlotte lowered her longsword with a slight smile.

“The sacred power dwelling within a Seongakja enables actions that transcend human capability. No matter how excellent your swordsmanship, without sacred power… the movements, or forms, are merely ridiculous dance steps. So here’s a question: what exactly is sacred power?”

Rex remained silent. Charlotte probably wasn’t expecting textbook answers like “energy bestowed by the gods.” Instinctively, Rex sensed that this question touched upon the realm of Sado.

Suddenly, the image of Shaharon performing Divine Position Release flashed in his mind. The separate dimension of Divine Position Release is a sacred realm that manifests the Sado’s mental world—an ideal space where all principles are designed to favor the Sado.

“Is it… the power to make wishes come true?”

Even to himself, the forced answer sounded inadequate. If only he’d had a little more time to organize his thoughts. However, Charlotte smiled contentedly at his response.

“You’re half right. More precisely, it’s the power to manifest mental imagery. The desire to become stronger, the desire to become faster than anyone else, the desire not to be cut… All Seongakja have similar desires. Until the Radiance level, such mental imagery is sufficient for growth, but to advance to higher realms, one must know how to unfold more sophisticated mental imagery.”

Charlotte closed her eyes while holding her longsword vertically. —Whoosh! The space grew hot. Rex saw flames on the cold blade. Not sacred fire. No ability had been manifested, yet he saw flames large enough to devour the world. It was an illusion created by Charlotte’s mental imagery. When Charlotte opened her eyes again, the flames vanished in the blink of an eye.

“The Kaiserion Style was created on the premise that one can freely manipulate mental imagery. What you’ve been using until now probably hasn’t even reached half of its true power.”

The illusion covering the sword transformed—sharp beast fangs, lightning that dazzled the eyes… After changing into numerous forms, the illusion eventually returned to an ordinary longsword.

“Once you become accustomed to mental imagery, you can not only affect your own body but also directly intervene in reality. This is called Divine Position Release. The criteria for distinguishing Sado levels may be vague, but one thing is certain… all Sado can use Divine Position Release.”

“…How does one train mental imagery?”

“Sacred power strong enough to twist reality, consistent effort, and most importantly, imagination. You must recognize your fundamental desires and imagine how you want to twist the world.”

Charlotte smiled gently as she sheathed her longsword.

“It’s probably too much for you right now. I’ll give you your first task. First, infuse mental imagery into the Kaiserion Style. Even if you can’t do it like me, you need to move beyond swinging aimlessly to see the path forward.”

When Rex drew his zweihander with a serious face, Charlotte chuckled mockingly.

“Don’t be impatient. You have talent, so you should see results within a year. It’s not too late to start after we arrive at the Marquis’s estate.”

“A year.”

Rex gripped his zweihander and said:

“I’ll try to do it within that time.”

“Well, no matter how talented you are, that would be difficult. Even I took a full three years to freely manipulate mental imagery.”

Charlotte looked Rex over with eyes that found him adorable. There were countless Seongakja who never grasped even a fragment of mental imagery in their entire lives. Even the one-year timeframe was an estimate based on Rex’s monstrous talent.

‘I hope he won’t be disappointed.’

While his eagerness to try was endearing, there are things in this world that are impossible through effort alone.

As Rex swung his zweihander, he heard Charlotte returning to the cave.

A year wasn’t necessary.

“…What is this?”

A month later, as they approached the Edenhar Marquis’s estate.

Lightning had manifested on Rex’s sword.