The Heavenly Demon Can’t Live A Normal Life [EN]: Chapter 457

Deep inside a damp, dark cave, where no one had ever walked before, a man practiced with his sword. A single beam of sunlight found its way through a crack in the rocks, lighting up his sweaty back.

“Whoosh.” The sword cut through the air.

“Whoosh, whoosh.” Again and again.

Sweat dripped from Valon’s face as he swung. Muscles in his arms and back stood out with each powerful movement. He was a man getting older, with lines around his eyes and a thick, gray beard. Ten years had passed since anyone in the Cairo Kingdom had seen Valon. If they knew he was still alive, they would be shocked.

Valon.

That was his name. A name once known and respected.

People called him ‘Valon the Next Nicholas.’ Nicholas was the best swordsman in Cairo, and Valon was becoming just as good.

Ten years ago, a 4-star swordsman vanished without a trace.

People thought he must have died, but Valon had been in the cave all this time.

Rumble.

Aura flowed from the sword.

Valon watched the light grow brighter and thought about why he was suffering.

‘Chronos. I will never forgive you.’

Ten years ago, on the western front, he lost his brother.

Valon watched his brother die in Chronos’ attack, and it felt like the world was ending.

From that moment, he promised to get revenge on Chronos.

He couldn’t depend on Cairo, a weak country. The only way was to make himself strong and kill the Emperor.

So, he began training in secret.

He stored enough food in a hidden part of the cave to last for years and trained like crazy from that day ten years ago until now.

Finally, it worked.

He became a 5-star swordsman, which had seemed impossible before. A few days ago, he reached an even higher level.

It was Count Nicholas’ advice.

To defeat Chronos, you had to be at least a 6-star Aura Swordsman. Valon made that his goal for revenge.

Rumble!

The aura grew stronger.

A 6-star aura.

It was amazing.

The cave was filled with light. Valon held his sword tightly, his face full of anger.

‘I have trained every day for the past 10 years for this day. I may not be able to defeat all the monsters of the Chronos Empire as a 6-star swordsman, but I have waited for 10 years, and now I will destroy everything of Chronos, one by one. And when I finally reach the Emperor, I will make him understand how important even the smallest life is, a life he destroyed without even thinking!’

He was consumed by revenge.

The time had come.

Now it was time to go out into the world and let out the anger he had held back for so long.

“Wait for me, Chronos.”

Boom!

Rumble!

The cave collapsed.

In that space, there was no sign of the man driven mad by revenge.

“…Excuse me?”

Valon was confused.

They say ten years can change the world, but he couldn’t believe what the restaurant owner was saying.

“Hey, mister. Have you been living away from the world for about 10 years? The Chronos Empire you’re talking about collapsed a long time ago. In the war with Dimitri, the Emperors of Chronos and Valhalla died, and now Dimitri has taken over. You’re funny. Especially since Emperor Roman Dimitri conquered the Demon World three years ago, all the countries and people on the continent think he’s the real leader.”

His head was spinning.

Conquest of the continent.

Conquest of the Demon World.

He couldn’t believe any of it.

When Valon was still around, Chronos and Valhalla were the two strongest powers on the continent, and Dimitri was just a small territory.

And who was Roman Dimitri?

He knew that Roman Dimitri was from Dimitri, but he couldn’t understand how he had become the Emperor.

For now, he stayed quiet.

He listened to the restaurant owner, who said that the world had changed a lot since the conquest of the Demon World.

“It was really amazing. Emperor Roman Dimitri went to a world that no one had ever dared to go to and conquered the Demon World. But what’s even more amazing is what he did after that. The Emperor didn’t rule like a dictator like Chronos, but he made rules that allowed people from all countries to live together peacefully. Of course, anyone who broke the laws was punished, no matter who they were. And look over there, do you see that man?”

Valon looked where he was pointing.

He saw a man with a big belly, raising his glass and talking loudly.

“He’s a soldier who fought in the Demon World. He didn’t have any money before, but he got a big reward from the war and now he’s living like that, having fun and eating good food. That’s what Dimitri’s world is like. Fair rewards. A world where people who work hard get what they deserve. I don’t know what you’ve been doing all this time, but I’ve never lived in a better world than this.”

The more Valon listened, the more serious he became.

The past 10 years.

He had struggled so hard for revenge.

But when he came out into the world, his revenge had already happened, and the world was a better place.

The restaurant owner might not be telling the whole truth.

But the busy city he had seen on the way to the restaurant and the happy faces of the people showed him that Roman Dimitri was ruling well.

He felt confused. The world Valon remembered was unfair, and no matter how hard you worked, you didn’t get anything back.

Especially Chronos, who would hurt others without a second thought.

The world had changed.

The happy faces of the people.

The sounds of laughter and chatter.

He had lost his reason for revenge.

Valon was confused and couldn’t accept what was happening. Then, he heard the restaurant owner’s voice.

“That man over there just joined the Dimitri Imperial Guard. He’s from Cairo, but he finally got into the Imperial Guard, which he always wanted. It’s really amazing. You might not know what that means since you didn’t even know that Chronos had fallen, but the Dimitri Imperial Guard is what all swordsmen on the continent want more than anything. Getting in there means you have money, fame, and skills that everyone knows are real. And… oh, where are you going?”

He stood up quickly.

He ignored the restaurant owner. Valon needed to clear his head.

If what he had heard was true, then the person who joined the Dimitri Imperial Guard must be very skilled.

And no matter how strong the other person was, he didn’t think that he, who had trained for revenge, would lose.

He stopped walking.

The other man looked at him, confused. Valon threw the pouch of gold coins he had been saving onto the table.

Thud.

“Let’s fight. If I win, I’ll give you all this gold.”

He went outside.

The man who had joined the Imperial Guard agreed to the duel. People gathered around, and Valon and the man faced each other.

There were no rules.

They agreed to fight without trying to kill each other. Valon immediately charged at his opponent.

‘End it quickly.’

Clang!

Rumble!

Quick fight, quick win.

He didn’t want to waste time.

A 6-star aura was at the level of a top fighter on the continent. He didn’t think that a regular Imperial Guard swordsman could stop him.

One strike would be enough.

Valon quickly closed the distance and was about to attack when he saw something he couldn’t believe.

Flash!

Wham!

He was pushed back.

Even though he had a 6-star aura, he felt like he was being forced back.

‘What is this?!’

He was confused.

He didn’t have time to think.

The Imperial Guard man smiled and pushed Valon hard before he could react.

Clang!

Clang! Clang! Clang!

He was being pushed back helplessly.

It wasn’t because of aura or skill.

But it was strange.

The man’s swordsmanship had a clear system. If he reacted to it, he would be forced to make a mistake.

He felt annoyed. He hadn’t trained to be defeated by a regular swordsman.

He kept blocking the man’s attacks. Then, he saw an opening and released his magic power.

‘This is it.’

Rumble!

One strike.

He was going to end it.

Just as he was about to defeat his opponent, Valon felt like the world was turning upside down.

Stumble.

Whoosh.

He was hit in the leg and fell to the ground.

Thud!

“…Ugh.”

It was a disaster.

Valon couldn’t believe he had lost so easily. It was more painful than anything he had ever felt.

What was strange was that the other man wasn’t that strong.

He knew he could have won, but he ended up on the ground before he could do anything.

He heard the man’s voice above him.

“There are still people who use those old ways of fighting. Thank you for your hard work. If you knew anything about Dimitri’s methods, I wouldn’t have won so easily.”

At that moment, he had to admit it.

Dimitri’s method.

The world had changed.

Completely.

The day was ending.

Valon arrived at the cemetery and looked at the well-kept graves with mixed feelings.

[Count Nicholas]

“…Count. What happened?”

Now he understood a little better.

A great hero named Roman Dimitri had appeared, created the Dimitri Empire, and brought peace to the world.

He had mixed feelings. He couldn’t be happy that the revenge he should have taken had already happened, and he couldn’t be sad.

What was certain was that the revenge was over.

His goal was gone. Count Nicholas, who had been his friend, was no longer alive.

“I still can’t believe it. The two great powers of the continent, which seemed like they would never fall, had surrendered in just a few years. And a human had conquered the Demon World. If everyone I met hadn’t said the same thing, I would have thought that Cairo had joined a cult. The day my brother died, Count Nicholas told me, ‘Never give up. Nothing lasts forever, and Chronos won’t last forever either.'”

He smiled sadly.

Now that he had lost his purpose in life, all he could do was complain.

“Count was right. Chronos couldn’t handle the bad things they had done and collapsed. Even though I didn’t do anything, the world destroyed Chronos. How am I supposed to live now? There’s no reason to live in a world where I have no family or revenge to take.”

He felt empty.

He had lived for 10 years with only one thing in mind, but his efforts were useless.

Just the fact that Chronos had been destroyed couldn’t fill the emptiness he felt.

Then, he heard someone behind him.

He turned around and saw a group approaching the cemetery. His eyes widened.

“…Valon?”

He didn’t remember it this way.

Daniel Cairo, who was just a boy 10 years ago, now stood before him, looking like a king.