The Heavenly Demon Can’t Live A Normal Life [EN]: Chapter 69

Thirty new soldiers, all starting as privates, had joined. None of them could use Aura, a special energy some people can control. Pooky, a mercenary of C-grade – meaning he was less skilled than Lucas – remembered his first day of training with Roman. Roman had said something Pooky didn’t understand at the time: “You were born with a warrior’s spirit.”

Back then, Pooky had no idea what those words meant.

After a war, Roman taught his personal soldiers a special training method called the Asura mental cultivation technique. For Pooky, it was like entering a new world, and he learned incredibly fast. Unlike the other soldiers who struggled to even feel mana (a kind of energy), Pooky easily felt it and even learned to control it. Showing mana, which is called ‘manifesting Aura,’ usually takes years for most people, and many never succeed. But Pooky did it in less than a month. It was truly amazing.

At first, like Lucas, many people doubted the Asura mental cultivation technique. Even knowing how rich the Dmitry family was, they didn’t believe Roman would share such a powerful training method with regular soldiers. It just didn’t seem likely.

But when they tried the Asura mental cultivation technique themselves and saw how well Pooky was doing, they started to believe. ‘The Asura mental cultivation technique really works!’ they thought. Roman had given them something truly special, worth more than a fortune. Maybe Pooky was talented, but they knew the training method itself was the real reason for his success. It was unbelievable! The technique helped them feel the mana around them, making the hardest part of becoming an Aura user much easier.

Everything changed. Now they knew if they trained hard enough, they could become Aura users like Pooky. And seeing Kevin also succeed made them even more determined. From that moment on, the soldiers trained with all their energy, pushing themselves to their limits to become stronger and break through their limits.

The intense training created a strong rivalry, especially between Kevin and Pooky. *Clang! Rumble!* The sound of their Aura clashing was different from normal sword fights. It was a deeper, heavier sound. When the air around them seemed to tighten and then explode outwards, the other soldiers stopped their own practice and stared.

“Try to block this!” Pooky yelled. *Wham!* He attacked powerfully, taking advantage of the moment. Kevin had learned to use Aura faster, but Pooky was stronger physically. He was huge and muscular, like a walking wall of armor. His powerful attacks combined with his Aura, pushing Kevin back.

Despite the force of the blows, Kevin’s face stayed calm. Even though one wrong move could mean defeat, his eyes never left Pooky.

Someone muttered, “He never gives up.”

Among the soldiers, Kevin was known as ‘the Ghost.’ There were many reasons for this nickname. His movements were hard to predict, and his sword style was strange and unusual, like nothing they had seen before. But the main reason was his fearlessness. He fought as if he had nothing to lose. In all their sparring matches, Roman’s soldiers had never seen Kevin show any fear, not even a step back. Kevin had even cut off his own arm in the past (perhaps explain why here if needed). Enduring terrible pain, he seemed to have lost all sense of fear.

“I have to win,” Kevin thought. Losing was not an option. Even without the fight against Pooky, Kevin was jealous that Chris seemed to be favored more. But losing to someone like Pooky? He couldn’t even think about it. He would hate himself. Roman had saved him when his life was terrible and unfair. To thank Roman, Kevin pushed himself harder than anyone to become stronger.

*Clack.* He blocked Pooky’s attack with the flat side of his sword. Immediately, Kevin moved forward, and Pooky quickly brought his sword back up, attacking as if he knew exactly what Kevin would do.

Pooky’s counterattack was lightning fast. At this speed, Kevin’s head would be split open in a second. It was a dangerous moment. Even with his life on the line, Kevin didn’t try to dodge. Instead, he moved forward. *Whoosh!* He thrust his sword out, aiming for just under Pooky’s chin, a very dangerous spot. Pooky’s eyes widened in shock. He had to decide quickly: attack Kevin and try to win, or block Kevin’s attack and give up his own attack. In a real fight, Pooky might have risked it all and attacked, but this was just practice. He didn’t want to get seriously hurt for a sparring match.

“Damn!” Pooky cursed. *Clang!* He blocked Kevin’s sword. But he was off balance, and Kevin used this chance to jump on Pooky, knocking the big man to the ground.

The fight was finished. When Pooky woke up a bit and looked up, he felt a cold feeling near his neck where Kevin’s sword had been.

“…Do you really have to fight so hard?” Pooky asked, annoyed.

“You should fight like your life depends on it too,” Kevin replied. “Then you’ll understand why I did what I did.”

Pooky just glared at him, looking disgusted. Kevin calmly picked up his sword and stood up. The sparring was over. Willas, who had been watching from a distance, was stunned. At first, he was just curious. He wanted to see what kind of training these frontier soldiers did, just for something to watch. But from the beginning, the training was shocking. *What am I even watching?* he thought. The soldiers sparring were moving in ways he’d never seen before. Normal soldiers just learn to poke with spears and block attacks. But Roman’s soldiers were different. They aimed for deadly spots, like experienced fighters. They dodged attacks quickly and smoothly. Willas found himself clenching his fist, impressed by how fast and aggressively they fought. He was especially amazed by how well they used their swords. Their sword fighting was organized and effective, pushing their opponents back. He couldn’t believe these were just frontier soldiers.

*They all use the same sword style, and it’s incredibly well-practiced. And they train so fiercely, like it’s a real battle. How can a small family from the edge of the kingdom have soldiers like this? It’s like a small version of the Valhalla Empire!*

The Valhalla Empire was known for the same thing: its people loved war and fought as if their lives depended on it. Just like them, Roman’s soldiers fought with everything they had, never backing down. Then, Kevin and Pooky faced each other again. Their fight became even more intense, and suddenly, Aura appeared around their swords. It was truly shocking. Even more than seeing a young soldier use Aura, Willas was surprised by the *kind* of Aura it was.

*No way,* he thought. Their Aura was not normal. Usually, Aura is used for quick bursts of power, but Kevin and Pooky’s Aura was so faint, he almost couldn’t believe it was Aura at all. At first, he thought they were tricking him, maybe using magical items. But when their Auras crashed together, Willas was speechless. *Wham! Rumble!* The wind rushed past him. Even from far away, he could feel the force of their clash on his skin. He realized the Aura was much stronger than it looked. It was completely unexpected. His mind raced. From the skill of the soldiers to this strange Aura, Willas was completely bewildered.

*These are not just ordinary soldiers. Maybe they are a special group of knights that the Dmitry family has trained with all their resources. But when did the Dmitry family become so strong? I looked into Roman Dmitry and found out Dmitry is important in the northeast, but even so, this is too much for a family from the edge of the kingdom. Even powerful people in the capital don’t have this kind of force. I heard Dmitry is famous for its mines, but what am I seeing right now?* He turned to the priest beside him.

“…Priest, is Dmitry really just a mining town?”

The priest spoke, sounding just as surprised as Willas. He had also looked into the Dmitry family, but now he was confused by what he was seeing. Willas replied, “I can’t believe my eyes either. One thing is for sure, these are not normal soldiers. I heard that Dmitry has a knight group named after Dmitry, maybe they are from that group?” It seemed like a reasonable guess. He couldn’t imagine them being just regular soldiers.

But then Hans, who had been listening nearby, spoke up. “No, they are not the Dmitry Knights. The Dmitry Knights are different. These men you are watching are Roman Dmitry’s personal soldiers. They don’t belong to the family, they only follow Roman Dmitry.”

Hearing this, Willas was shocked again. Valhalla, the empire of warriors, known for having the strongest soldiers in the world, didn’t have soldiers this skilled. *Are they really just soldiers?* he thought. *Anyone would laugh at that.* Soldiers were supposed to be like small parts in a machine, easily replaced in war. They weren’t supposed to be amazing fighters who could battle like this. Usually, soldiers just screamed and fell after one or two hits. Even in Valhalla, while their soldiers were stronger than in other countries, they weren’t as skilled as these soldiers of Roman. He was speechless. Dmitry was just a place on the edge of the kingdom, not a famous family from a big empire. Yet, Dmitry was training soldiers like this. Everything he thought he knew was wrong.

While he was still trying to understand, the training ended. Willas had to go back to his room. As Hans led the way, Willas asked, “Where did you find these soldiers? They are all so skilled. Did you pay a lot of money for them, or are they training to be knights? Otherwise, it makes no sense to use Aura users as normal soldiers.” He assumed there must be a logical explanation.

But Hans once again proved Willas wrong. “I don’t know why you are asking, but if you mean Kevin and Pooky, they couldn’t use Aura until recently. Kevin was from the slums, but Roman took him in. Pooky was a mercenary, but he saw the notice for Roman’s soldiers and joined. Roman taught them everything they know. Isn’t it amazing? Roman, as the next leader of the Dmitry family, is naturally good at seeing talent in people. It’s a real gift for Dmitry.”

Hans sounded very excited, clearly proud of Roman Dmitry. Willas stopped walking as Hans praised Roman. He looked around. The area was plain and rough, like you’d expect on the edge of the kingdom. It was hard to believe someone who could beat Homerus could come from this mining town. But now, he wasn’t so sure.

*Roman Dmitry, who is this guy?* The meeting was moved to tomorrow. He had told Baron Romero one day wouldn’t matter, but now he wanted to meet Roman as soon as possible. He felt uneasy. This person everyone was talking about… What kind of man was Roman Dmitry? The only way to know the truth about this man who had turned everything upside down was to see him for himself.