TRSDICI 04

Chapter 4

This Is…

As expected, the mansion was not burning and remained perfectly fine.

There was no blood or corpses scattered across the ground, and instead of the smell of death, a warm scent filled the air.

After looking around the mansion again and washing up to change my clothes, Mother and my younger sibling returned.

“Kael!”

The moment the woman with long black hair saw me at the entrance, she rushed toward me.

It was Lilian Luminar, my mother.

“I’m glad you’re safe.”

Mother tightly hugged my body.

“It’s been a long time, Mother.”

“Yes, half a year.”

Half a year…

To them, it must feel that way.

“Brother…”

At that moment, a boy who had not yet become an adult looked up at me with round eyes.

His gaze held equal amounts of happiness and sadness.

It was my younger brother, Aren.

“You’ve returned.”

“Yes.”

“But why…?”

I walked toward Aren as he bit his lip.

‘Back then, the reason I decided to return home was because of this brat’s letter.’

The letter Aren sent had already burned away, but its contents still remained in my mind.

“Brother, it’s Aren. Have you been doing well?
It has already been nearly half a year since you left the family.
If you read this letter, please send a reply at least once. Mother and Father are worried.”

The handwriting was neat and round, just like Aren himself.

“Brother said you left for a pilgrimage, but honestly, I knew from the beginning that it was just running away from home.
You often complained to me about the teachings of the Church of Ella.”

In this place that felt like a cozy birdcage to me, Aren was the only person I could complain to.

Whenever I talked, Aren would quietly listen with bright eyes.

“I do not want you to force yourself to live inside a mold.
From now on, I will fulfill my duties as a member of the family and as a believer, so please live the life you want.
But at least once a year, please return home. Come back and tell me stories about the outside world.”

After reading that letter, I had no choice but to return home immediately.

I was always the one talking, so I rarely listened to Aren’s own thoughts.

When the mansion burned in my previous life, how much must Aren have hated and pitied me?

The eldest son of the family never even showed his face when disaster struck the house.

“Aren.”

“Yes, Brother.”

“I returned to the family by my own choice. After wandering the world, I realized that what I truly wanted was here.”

“…Is that so?”

“Yes.”

“Then I’m relieved.”

Aren smiled softly.

I also smiled faintly and gently patted his head.

Of course, even if I stayed with the family, I had no intention of living as a servant of Ella.

I simply could not leave them behind here again like in my previous life.

“Then let’s eat together after such a long time.”

“Yes, Brother.”

Although it was our first meal together in a long time, there was not much conversation.

Because now, I knew there would be many more chances to talk later.

So this alone was enough for me.

After finishing the meal, I brought out the sword I used back when I lived with the family and stepped into the garden.

‘To stop the destruction of the family, I first need to wipe out the insects inside the territory.’

Half a year ago, gambling dens and pleasure districts had begun appearing throughout the territory.

Considering that the Luminar family were faithful followers of Ella, it was absurd.

I did not know it back then, but now I knew those places were advance bases created by Baron Scalen.

‘But attacking them in my current condition is still a little risky.’

Of course, even in my current state, I could beat most people.

But like this, victory was uncertain.

Most importantly, after wandering the world, I learned that the stronger person does not always win.

‘So first, I need to raise the level of my swordsmanship.’

The stages of my swordsmanship were divided into:

Joy.
Rage.
Sorrow.
Pleasure.

I had also thought about a higher stage called “Swordless,” but in my previous life, I stopped at Pleasure.

‘In this life, I must somehow reach the realm of Swordless.’

Only then could I defeat the Demon God with a human body.

‘Still, for now, reaching the stage of Joy is enough.’

The method for reaching the stage of Joy was very simple.

After gaining the physical ability and Holy Power needed to handle it, one only needed to feel pure joy.

‘In my previous life, I reached the stage of Joy after killing Baron Scalen, the root of all my misery, six months after my family fell.’

That was when I began wandering the world as the Sword Demon.

Even after I killed Baron Scalen, he was still remembered by the world as a good man.

‘Compared to then, my body is weaker now, but it’s still enough to reach the stage of Joy.’

I drew my sword and poured Holy Power into it.

Then I closed my eyes and began swinging the sword according to my body’s instincts.

Swish— Swish—

Right now, I was truly happy.

I thought everything had ended after the Demon God cut off my head, but I was given another chance to live.

And not only that.

I safely returned to my family and saw a mansion that had not yet burned… and family members who had not yet become corpses.

Swish!

Wasn’t this joyful?

All the fates that could never be changed before could now be twisted by my sword.

The wandering Sword Demon of the past was now once again called Kael.

So naturally, I could once again swing my sword while holding joy inside my heart.

“……”

After finishing a horizontal slash, I lowered my sword.

Only the red glow of the sunset reflected on the white blade.

I had failed to reach the stage of Joy.

‘Why?’

I was clearly feeling joy right now.

My physical condition and Holy Power were not lacking.

I created this swordsmanship myself, so nobody understood it better than I did.

‘Then why?’

I did not know the reason, but my sword was more honest than my own head.

If I failed to reach the stage of Joy, then it meant I had not fulfilled the necessary condition.

In that case, I would have to move while staying at this level for now.

“Brother.”

At that moment, Aren approached while holding a scripture and a sword.

I sheathed my sword and asked,

“What is it?”

“You seem even stronger than before, Brother. I cannot fall behind, so please teach me some swordsmanship.”

Aren was nowhere near my level, but he occasionally practiced with the sword.

When Aren read scriptures, I held a blade instead.

“Alright.”

“Thank you.”

Aren smiled lightly before carefully placing the scripture and scabbard on the ground.

Then he stood before me while gripping his sword.

“First, swing freely. Then I’ll point out your flaws.”

“Yes.”

Aren nodded and calmed his breathing with closed eyes.

When he finally relaxed, he suddenly opened his eyes and began drawing sword strikes through the air.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Simple and textbook-like.

Aren swung his sword exactly as the books taught him.

His talent was excellent, but his biggest problem was that his sword lacked sharpness.

Soon he stopped swinging and let out a deep breath before looking back at me.

I evaluated him coldly.

“You look like a sparrow pecking with its beak. Are you planning to cut grain with that sword?”

“……”

“If your dream is to become a farmer, then your talent is truly genius-level. And after cutting grain, you’ll probably ask the bug that fell to the ground, ‘Are you okay, little bug? Are you hurt anywhere?’”

“……”

“A saint has appeared. Amazing. Aren, you’ll become the greatest priest among farmers.”

Aren could not answer for a while before glaring at me.

“You’re too harsh, Brother.”

“It’s the truth. A sword exists to protect you, but if you swing it like that, it’s useless.”

“I can just hit enemies with the flat side and knock them unconscious.”

“And what if they pretend to faint and attack you afterward?”

“Then I’ll hit them again.”

“Then their head will burst open and they’ll die. Well done. You’ve learned enough. Leave the mountain.”

Aren glared at me again, so I stared back without avoiding his eyes.

After a while, Aren began laughing quietly.

“Why are you laughing?”

“No… you still seem the same.”

Still unable to erase his smile, Aren looked at me.

“To be honest, I had strange thoughts. I wondered if you changed too much because of my letter.”

“I am still myself.”

“I see.”

Aren nodded.

Then, following a ray of light, he suddenly looked up at the sky.

I raised my head as well.

Before we noticed, the sky had become covered in a red sunset.

“It’s beautiful.”

“Yes.”

While we stared at the same sky together, a cool wind suddenly blew past us.

I closed my eyes and enjoyed the sensation before drawing my sword as my body naturally moved.

“Brother?”

“Watch carefully.”

I opened my eyes and took my stance.

“Watch how I swing my sword.”

The next moment, my blade moved smoothly as if riding the wind itself.

I cut through the wind and sliced apart the pouring sunset light.

Swish!

Then suddenly, I remembered Aren’s swordsmanship and began swinging like a sparrow.

Pecking grains. Flapping its wings in panic at a sudden gust of wind…

The image was so pitiful that I unknowingly laughed.

Slash! Slash!

Then I unleashed sword strikes in my own style.

I deflected invisible attacks, cut off limbs, and pierced through imaginary hearts.

Like a violent storm, my sword moved without hesitation.

And when I finally swung the blade horizontally—

Whoooosh!

A fierce wind exploded in every direction.

The grass in the garden scattered everywhere, and Aren’s bangs were blown backward.

When the storm finally calmed, Aren opened his mouth in shock.

“Waaah…”

I relaxed my stance and looked at the sword standing straight before me.

Then I smiled faintly.

Sss—

Sharp wind wrapped around the blade.

It looked as though it could cut apart everything before it.

Normally, magic power carried a blue light while Holy Power shone white.

But when combined with my swordsmanship, they could gain attributes like this.

While fixing his messy hair, Aren asked with shocked eyes,

“Brother, that is…?”

How should I explain this?

I could give a long explanation, but right now I only wanted to answer simply.

“This is…”

A feeling I had never experienced again after becoming the Sword Demon.

An emotion like wind blowing beneath warm sunlight.

“Joy.”

Aren tilted his head.

“Joy?”

“Yes.”

Only now did I understand why I failed to reach the stage of Joy earlier.

The joy I felt before came from changing the tragedy of my previous life.

But the joy I felt now was something I could experience simply from living in the present.

That realization would not disrupt my plans at all.

I intended to fill my sword with this joy and deliver it to my enemies.

I sheathed my sword and began walking away.

“Brother, where are you suddenly going?”

“On a pilgrimage.”

“But it’s already getting dark.”

I stopped at the entrance and grinned at Aren.

“That’s exactly why I’m going.”

“Huh?”

Showing my back to Aren, I left the mansion while lightly waving one hand.

“I’ll return before tomorrow morning.”

The village located at the far western edge of the Luminar territory.

The territory was unusually large for a barony, and since I rode my horse slowly, it was already late at night by the time I arrived.

I was not hungry because I had eaten fruits from the roadside during the journey.

“Hm.”

All the lights in the village were off, and nobody walked the streets.

The Luminar territory usually had good security, so shops normally stayed open even at this hour.

But here, even the windows were tightly shut.

“……!”

At that moment, a man looking through a window made eye contact with me and quickly slammed it shut in shock.

It was an understandable reaction.

Right now, I was carrying a sword while wearing a straw hat and an old straw cloak.

“Y-You can take them if you need them.”

On the way here, I had been staring at a scarecrow wearing the straw hat and cloak when a villager came outside and told me to take them.

That was how popular I was.

I planned to return them after using them.

No matter how much of a delinquent I had been, I never forcibly stole property from hardworking villagers.

‘Probably.’

By the time I entered a dark alleyway—

A red glow flowed out from deeper inside.

Like a firefly drawn toward light, I slowly wandered down the alley.

Soon, I found myself facing a three-story wooden building.

‘They built it openly without even hiding it.’

This place was called the “Pleasure Village,” where prostitution and gambling took place.

At first, I wondered how such a place could operate without the family head hearing about it.

But now I guessed the nearby villagers simply never reported it.

After all, they could get dragged into trouble if they became involved.

And some villagers probably used the place themselves.

‘Since the territory is so large, many insects have gathered here.’

This was all because the family lacked strength and capable people.

The territory was too valuable for its noble rank, so naturally others grew greedy.

‘This place is their main forward base.’

The reason I knew all this was because I investigated many things while hunting down Baron Scalen in my previous life.

Including the one who managed this place and the people under him.

Of course, I did not know their appearances or exact strength.

But now that I had obtained the Sword of Joy, they would not be able to oppose me anyway.

And the rest could be learned from now on.

“……”

Faint laughter and loud voices echoed from inside the building.

‘Are you happy too? I’m happy as well. Let’s see who’s happier tonight.’

After finishing my thoughts, I kicked the door with all my strength.

KWAANG!

One side of the door flew away instantly.

Then I proudly walked through the wide-open entrance and spoke.

“A customer has arrived.”

After all, this was originally our land.

So there was no reason for me to hesitate.

(To be continued)