Chapter 161
A few days later, the Lion Order returned to the Rahelrn Academy.
The situation at the Hardenhartz had been resolved, and they couldn't stay there forever.
Thus, the Rahelrn Academy they returned to was in chaos.
It was none other than Charlotte's Lion Order and Felray's Geohaedan who had successfully completed a mission related to the World Erosion Beings.
Naturally, the names of the two groups gained immense fame, as if piercing the heavens.
It was to the extent that most of the noble second-year students chose the Lion Order as their first choice, while the commoners chose the Geohaedan.
However, Kraush's name wasn't mentioned much.
Although Rai, Sena, and Haring knew well about Kraush's contributions.
This was because there were few who had directly witnessed his contributions with their own two eyes.
Besides, Kraush also had no intention of amplifying the matter this time.
'Not yet.'
This incident involved far too many groups.
Starting from the Empire and Starlon to the World Erosion Being, Ixion.
Moreover, many people related to Kraush were also heavily involved.
So Kraush just left vague hints to those around him.
Fortunately, none of them were the type to go around blabbering.
Thus, while the matter of Hardenhartz was concluded for now.
Kraush was faced with yet another colossal issue.
"How on earth did things end up like this?"
"I-I'm sorry. I accidentally submitted a report..."
Kraush was currently sitting in the guest waiting room of Rahelrn Academy with Haring.
The reason was simple.
It was because the Poison King, who had been grievously injured by the Mad Blade Emperor, decided to come visit Kraush personally.
A situation where one of the Ten Strongest Under the Heavens was making a direct appearance.
Due to his name and reputation, the Poison King couldn't come secretly, so he announced he would visit Rahelrn Academy on behalf of the Ragren Family.
Thanks to this, Rahelrn Academy turned into a commotion.
And the one at the center of this commotion, Kraush, looked somewhat tired.
Things just never seemed to end.
'It's only been a month since I enrolled.'
Just how many things had happened in that time?
Originally, it was expected to take quite some time for Ebelasque to turn the Mad Blade Emperor into a corpse.
During that time, he planned to prepare methods to block the Black Witch's approach and focus on training in preparation for the upcoming midterm evaluation.
But then suddenly, the Poison King announced his visit.
With issues piling on one after another, it was utterly exhausting.
[ Isn't this all the price of your actions? ]
"Squeak squeak."
Both Crimson Garden and Ebelasque's Corpse Rat nodded in agreement.
One more creature had joined the chorus of critiquing him.
"...It was something you naturally had to report. Don't worry about it. It doesn't matter."
So Kraush gently spoke to the dejected Haring.
He had defeated the Mad Blade Emperor, who was the enemy of the Ragren Family.
For his father, the Poison King, it must have been a long-standing grudge as well, so he would have wanted to inform him.
'But even so, why is he coming to meet me?'
To be honest, the one who defeated the Mad Blade Emperor wasn't Kraush—it was Rai.
Kraush alone still couldn't handle a World Erosion Being.
Even after hitting the Mad Blade Emperor with Annihilation Sky Moon Fire, he was still functioning perfectly fine, which made Kraush feel the limit of his strength.
He still had a long way to go.
In any case, the one who contributed the most to defeating the Mad Blade Emperor was none other than the Sword King, Rai Balheim.
'If he were meeting my brother to express his gratitude, I could understand.'
But why was he coming to meet me?
Kraush had been pondering this question for a while.
'I barely know anything about the Poison King.'
During the time Kraush was active, the Poison King had already been killed by Bianca, the White Ghost.
Perhaps because of this, he felt more nervous than usual.
He thought that whatever happened here would undoubtedly alter the future.
So, with a slightly tense expression, he waited.
Creak-
The door to the guest greeting room opened.
Kraush and Haring's gazes simultaneously turned toward the door.
What walked in was a middle-aged man of moderate build.
He had black hair with a hint of purple, just like Haring.
His piercing eye shape was just as cold as Haring's.
Moreover, the faint fragrance emanating from his body was a mixture of various poisons.
The Poison King.
Hauran Ragren.
Another member of the Ten Strongest Under the Heavens had appeared here.
Beneath his thick eyebrows, Hauran's gaze slowly swept across the room.
And the first place his eyes landed was on Haring.
Soon, his steps moved toward Haring.
With each step, even though he wasn't coming toward him, Kraush felt an overwhelming presence.
"Haring."
Hauran's cold gaze caused Haring to shrink back.
This was because she feared what was about to happen next.
Hauran's eyebrows slowly furrowed.
"I distinctly told you to stay put and not go anywhere, didn't I?"
His sinister voice filled the room.
Just from that, both Haring and Kraush felt as if their breath had suddenly been stolen.
As expected, one of the Ten Strongest Under the Heavens.
The aura emanating from his body was on a completely different level.
Under the oppressive atmosphere, Haring lowered her head.
Watching her quietly, Hauran let out a deep, deep sigh.
"Do you know how worried your father was, thinking you might be in big trouble?"
And with those words, Kraush blinked.
Because with those words, the oppressive aura pouring out of his body vanished in an instant.
His previously icy-cold face had softened remarkably.
He had merely been angry that his daughter had ventured into a dangerous place.
He didn't seem to have any intention of scolding Haring further.
"Are you hurt anywhere?"
"No, I'm sorry."
"As long as you're not hurt, that's all that matters."
At some point, Hauran approached Haring and began to pat her head.
Haring also seemed very familiar with his touch.
'Was the Poison King this kind of person?'
Kraush, who didn't know much about Haring's family history.
Perhaps because of that, Kraush found it surprising.
And somehow, he thought he understood why Haring risked her life to seek revenge on Bianca, even though she could lose her life to the White Ghost.
'Their family relationship was good from the start.'
By Kraush's standards, families were always tearing each other apart.
He couldn't even imagine such a harmonious household.
Finally, Hauran's gaze turned to Kraush.
"And you."
"Ah, I'm Kraush Balheim."
It was the moment when Kraush hurriedly introduced himself.
Zzzt!
Kraush's Sixth Sense reacted, signaling him to flee from this place immediately.
Before Kraush could even make a puzzled expression at the signal.
Kraush felt the touch of death pressing against his neck.
Whoosh!
Then, reflexively, the aura of Annihilation Erosion surged from Kraush's body.
His body, heated in an instant, moved reflexively as Kraush reached out toward Rain Thunder Prime, but then he hesitated.
'I've been caught.'
As that thought crossed his mind, Hauran's half-closed eyes widened slightly.
"As I've heard, you're not at the level of a run-of-the-mill late-stage user."
This was Hauran deliberately releasing killing intent to test him.
Perhaps because he had sharpened himself on the battlefield for so long.
He had reacted too easily to the killing intent.
However, Hauran did not withdraw his killing intent.
On the contrary, he was blatantly sending his killing intent toward Kraush.
Kraush, with cold sweat trickling down, expressed doubt.
'Wasn't he just testing me?'
He thought Hauran had released his killing intent to test him earlier.
But for some reason, Hauran still hadn't withdrawn his killing intent.
What is he thinking?
At that moment, while feeling doubtful, Haring belatedly noticed this.
"Father, what are you doing to Kraush right now?"
Haring's gaze sharpened.
Then, belatedly, Hauran hesitated and withdrew his killing intent.
"Ah, ahem, it's nothing."
As Hauran feigned innocence, Haring looked at him strangely.
Then she subtly moved away from her father and sat as if to shield Kraush.
She had subtly realized that her father wasn't pleased with Kraush.
But because of that, Hauran's eyes became even sharper.
For some reason, Kraush felt as if he might be poisoned to death before the day was over.
"Father?"
As Haring called him again, Hauran forcibly adjusted his expression.
Seeing that, Kraush understood his personality.
'This man.'
He's overly doting.
To a rather extreme degree.
"......I came here today to talk about the aftermath of this matter."
Clearing his throat, Hauran decided to get to the main point.
"The Ragren Family has decided to take responsibility for this matter and temporarily step down from the Central Nobility."
"What?"
Haring's eyes widened hugely.
It was because words she couldn't even imagine had come out of Hauran's mouth.
"That's ridiculous! We successfully wrapped things up!"
Haring exclaimed, as if she couldn't accept it.
But Hauran had already returned to the face he wore when at work.
It was the face of a Patriarch.
"While pursuing the Night Ravens Commander, I sustained serious injuries and lost the Commander. In the end, it's equivalent to failing the mission."
Haring pursed her lips.
Because of this, she couldn't understand why the Empire had cast them out.
The Ragren Family had been loyal to the Empire and even had the Poison King among the Ten Strongest Under the Heavens.
To expel such a family from the position of Central Nobility.
It was simply unacceptable.
However, as soon as Kraush heard those words, he immediately realized the real reason.
"......So this is the price for acting on your own?"
That was nothing more than an outward reason.
The real reason why the Empire cast out the Ragren Family lay elsewhere.
When Kraush asked, Hauran remained silent.
Only Haring looked back and forth between Kraush and Hauran with a bewildered expression.
Kraush clicked his tongue.
"How typical of the Empire."
In this matter, there were two individuals who acted independently.
One was Sizelry Ephania.
And the other was Haring Lagrain.
The Empire had intended to capture Ebelasque through this incident.
Because they had lost the Night Ravens, their long-used hounds.
To them, capturing Ebelasque was their top priority.
However, because of the actions of these two, the Empire lost the justification to intervene with Hardenhartz.
And as a result.
They ended up capturing only the Mad Blade Emperor, failing to capture Ebelasque.
Of course, the Empire could still create another justification to intervene.
But due to the involvement of the Ragren incident and the Mad Blade Emperor, Haring's name became widely recognized.
Currently, the world was abuzz with the story of Haring avenging the Ragren Family,
and of Sword King Rai, who had gravely injured the Poison King and defeated the World Erosion Beings.
As a result, the story of the Night Ravens Commander was entirely buried.
It was revealed that the one who gravely injured the Poison King was not the Night Ravens Commander, but the Mad Blade Emperor.
Thus, the Empire lost the justification to officially conduct a search operation for the Night Ravens Commander.
To the Empire, it was infuriating.
The Empire's nobility wouldn't be unaware of these internal affairs.
This incident could even damage the prestige of the Royal Family.
For the Royal Family, which values prestige above all, this matter couldn't simply be overlooked.
However, they couldn't hold the Princess Sizelry responsible, either.
So naturally, their target was decided to be the Ragren Family.
'If Poison King Hauran Ragren had not been gravely injured from the start and had captured them, things would have ended well.'
Using this narrative, they expelled them from the Central Nobility.
To make them an example of what happens when the Royal Family's orders are not properly carried out.
In other words, it was merely a petty internal power struggle.
"Because of this incident, Haring is now out of favor with the Royal Family."
Due to Haring's independent actions, which held the strongest justification, everything had been ruined.
Naturally, the Royal Family could never look kindly upon Haring.
Kraush furrowed his brows.
It was none other than him who had involved Haring in this matter.
Although it was Haring's choice, it was he who had encouraged her.
Beyond the reason to stop the war, he also bore responsibility.
"If things remain as they are, Haring won't be able to wield any influence in the political world in the future."
Being out of favor with the Royal Family naturally led to such an outcome.
Haring, hearing the conversation proceeding without her input, was flustered.
Thanks to his life experiences and memory, Kraush had quickly assessed the situation.
Haring, who was only 15 years old, lacked such judgment.
Even Hauran found Kraush's behavior fascinating.
It was because he hadn't expected someone to grasp the Empire's situation after just a few words.
But because of that, it worked out well.
"I am thankful for avenging my son. I also deeply appreciate you resolving my daughter's resentment. However, apart from that, if you've heard this story, I believe you would feel a sense of responsibility to some extent."
Kraush sensed that Hauran was forcibly restraining the aura flowing out of his body.
Meanwhile, his teeth ground audibly.
It was perhaps natural, as his daughter's future had become uncertain.
Hauran surely must have noticed that Kraush was the one who initially proposed joining the Lion Order.
Kraush also hadn't acted purely out of goodwill just to help Haring.
"Yes."
Therefore, Kraush offered no excuses.
If he had to take responsibility, he would.
After all, the Empire was already destined to be overturned once.
It was ultimately because of the event that would bring down the Empire.
'At that time, there might be an opportunity to restore the Ragren Family to the Central Nobility.'
Besides, if Haring were to excel within the Skyborne Generation, the Empire would inevitably have to accept her again.
"Then, take responsibility by getting engaged to my daughter."
However, Hauran's next words were like a blow to the back of Kraush's head.
Engagement.
An absurd proposal was thrust before his eyes.