'Stay calm.'
Raon stopped walking and slowly caught his breath.
'I can't kill that bastard.'
Because of Derus Robert, hatred for the Angel race filled his head, so he calmed the violent beating of his heart to avoid drawing his sword and swinging it. The sound of flowing light could be heard. Brilliant golden radiance poured down from the temple ceiling as if a small sun had been created and attached there.
Under the intensely dazzling golden light stood a man with even more splendid golden hair.
His flawless white skin, nose bridge as sharp as a crescent moon, and deep blue eyes like a lake made him appear as mysterious as a god of this world.
'As expected.'
Raon pressed his lips together as he approached the golden-haired man who was smiling kindly.
'This bastard is definitely an Angel.'
The closer he got to the golden-haired man, the more he could feel the distinctive holy power of the Angels. It was a feeling of his legs losing strength against the powerful realm of the soul that humans could not possess.
-What do you mean your legs are losing strength!
Wrath let out a hollow laugh as if he found it absurd.
-You could kill an Angel of that level not with a sword, but with your bare hands!
He snorted, telling him to stop talking nonsense.
'He is weak though.'
That golden-haired Angel didn't look that strong despite his splendid appearance. As Wrath said, it seemed he could win without a sword.
-He's not weak. It's just...
Wrath slightly frowned.
-You've become strong.
He shook his head, saying that other humans would struggle just from facing that Angel.
'You're complimenting me again.'
Raon smiled faintly, saying thank you.
-It's not a compliment, it's a fact...
'Anyway, if what you say is true, I'll have to act more oppressed by his power.'
Raon said he needed to show weakness since he was just an Expert-level human, and kept his whole body trembling.
'The others are already completely entranced.'
There were other people in the temple besides himself, and they seemed already bewitched by the golden-haired man's appearance and mysterious aura, kneeling in prayer as if receiving a god. He almost burst out laughing at the sight of them offering earnest prayers while covered in jewels and expensive clothes.
'My prediction was correct.'
All those summoned to the temple now were people who had been more faithful to their desires than others.
As he had thought, it seemed one could reach the place called 'heaven' by accumulating negative emotions through showing much desire and ugliness.
'However...'
Raon frowned as he watched people drooling, shedding tears, or grinding their teeth as if in anger.
'They seem even stranger than when I saw them outside?'
No matter how this was their first time facing an Angel, people's reactions were too extreme. They didn't just seem entranced, but completely mad. He couldn't understand why the humans who had merely been excessive in their desires outside the temple had changed like this.
"Uh, uh..."
Raon walked with timid steps like when he first came to the Land of Clouds and stood before the golden-haired man. Like the others beside him, he knelt with tears glistening as if moved by holiness.
"Just as Kuanyu said, you're an exceptional talent."
The golden-haired man sensed the negative emotions he wore like a hide and let out a low exclamation of surprise.
"You'll be able to play your role excellently even in heaven."
He gently touched his shoulder as if trusting him. Warm holy power descended from the golden-haired man and permeated his entire body. The physical fatigue that had accumulated from focusing only on desires disappeared as if washed away. However, the mental fatigue seemed to have become even stronger.
'No, it's not just mental fatigue that's accumulated.'
The desires he wore outwardly began boiling up as if they would explode. If he hadn't been a Transcendent hiding his power, he would have shown a beastly appearance like the others.
'Are they trying to completely destroy humans?'
He had thought the reactions of the other people beside him were strangely intense, but it seemed to be because of the holy power the golden-haired man had bestowed like grace.
"Grrrrrr."
Raon acted like the others, relaxing the strength in his eyes and letting saliva and foam flow from his mouth.
'Here...'
Raon subtly drew up Wrath's anger that he hadn't brought out until now, expressing even more intense negative emotions.
"Hooh."
The golden-haired man looked down at him and briefly smacked his lips.
"You're definitely different. There's a reason to bring you to heaven in just two weeks."
He smirked, as if he had caught something worthwhile.
'It worked.'
Raon inwardly let out a sigh of relief seeing the golden-haired man's reaction.
'I'm glad I didn't operate the Ring of Fire.'
If Ten Thousand Flames Cultivation had been intact or if he had been strongly operating the Ring of Fire, holy power of this level wouldn't have been able to come near him, but it seemed he hadn't been discovered thanks to completely hiding his power.
"Ten heads. A perfect number."
The golden-haired man counted numbers, calling humans not by 'people' but by 'heads' as if it didn't matter if they heard now.
"Kuanyu, well done."
He nodded looking back as if saying well done.
"Not at all. It's what I should do."
Kuanyu stepped forward with a gentle smile.
"You always have more hardships, Lord Vayph."
He called the golden-haired man Vayph and bowed his head.
"Hmph. Flattery."
The Angel man called Vayph briefly wrinkled his nose.
"When we return this time, I'll tell those above about your achievements too. You'll be able to come back next time."
He nodded, suggesting Kuanyu could join him next time.
"Thank you! I'll trust only you, Lord Vayph."
Kuanyu bowed, expressing gratitude to Vayph.
"Then let's go."
As Vayph lowered his chin and raised his finger, pitch-black darkness rose behind him. The intense golden light pouring from the ceiling also sank to gray, and the gentle radiance blooming around the temple began to fade.
'Hmm...'
Raon narrowed his eyes as he watched Vayph wrapped in darkness, not light.
'Is that bastard really an Angel?'
Just a moment ago, he had naturally thought he was an Angel because he wielded intense holy power, but seeing him manipulate such sinister darkness, he seemed like a Demon too.
-He's mixed.
Wrath frowned as he watched the darkness blooming from Vayph's body.
'Mixed?'
Raon turned his gaze to Wrath.
-He must be that damned bastard's subordinate.
Wrath had always ignored Angels too, but this time seemed different as he let out a voice tinged with tension.
'Who is that damned bastard?'
Raon swallowed dry saliva and asked about the identity of that damned bastard.
-It's not time to tell you yet.
Wrath closed his mouth as if he would know soon.
'But...'
When Raon was about to ask again, Vayph split the dimension that rippled blackly. Inside the black dimension was mysteriously sparkling white like the Land of Clouds.
"Go in, livestock."
Vayph elegantly raised his hand and pointed to the black dimensional gate.
"Inside here is the heaven you've longed and longed for."
He arrogantly jutted his chin as if telling them to hurry and enter.
"Kraaaaa!"
"I'm first!"
"Everyone move!"
The nine humans in the temple had their eyes stained with madness as they pushed or struck others while running toward the black dimensional gate.
"Krrrrr!"
Raon also couldn't resolve his questions about Wrath as he followed the others and leaped into the black dimensional gate. As he crossed the black dimensional gate and reached the white space where holy power could be felt, he felt the sensation of his body rising roughly.
The black energy that Vayph had been wielding completely disappeared, and white waves rushed before his eyes, coloring everything white.
'What is this?'
Raon looked around and slightly narrowed his brow.
'This is heaven?'
Looking right was white, looking left was white. Only a purely white space surrounded him.
'Where are the other people?'
The nine humans who had leaped into the black dimensional gate with him were nowhere to be seen. Only he was here now.
'Wrath. Wrath?'
He called for Wrath, but there was no response from him either.
'What the hell is...'
It was when Raon was blinking in disbelief. A single thread of darkness rose from the white space. The darkness that burned like embers devoured the surrounding light and gradually grew larger, beginning to take the shape of a person. No, the shape of an angel.
The black angel wrapped in shadow-like darkness strangely had wings that sparkled white. Not satisfied with devouring the surrounding light, he began to consume the light of the entire world.
Now with little light remaining and the world filled with darkness, golden flames rose up. The flames were forged into a sword that cut through darkness while held in a man's hand.
A too-familiar back came into view. The First Patriarch of Zieghart. The golden-haired swordsman more brilliant than sunlight cut through the darkness and brought light back to this world again.
The black angel seemed displeased with that sight and charged while wrapped in all the world's darkness, and the First Patriarch of Zieghart raised his flame sword to face him head-on as if he would never lose. The golden flames and black light collided, and everything that existed before his eyes disappeared.
Raon clenched his fists as he felt the sensation of his body sinking into the ground.
'Could what the First Patriarch cut be...'
***
Raon opened his eyes again, and he could see someone else's back. It was the man who had been beside him in the temple just before.
'Have I returned to reality?'
It seemed the First Patriarch's arrangements had remained even beyond the continent to the heavenly realm.
-Where the hell do you keep wandering off to!
Wrath frowned, telling him to stay still for once.
-When you disappear, this king has to protect that body!
He snorted, saying it was bothersome.
'Sorry.'
Raon clasped his hands together toward Wrath.
'Anyway, this guy.'
In the past, he would have said he'd steal his body or something, but now he was talking about protecting him. He realized again that Wrath had become a friend rather than an annoying demon king.
'This is supposed to be heaven.'
Raon got up and looked around.
'Hm? What is this place...?'
A huge city spread out before his eyes, but its appearance was completely different from his expectations. The right area had massive mansions and splendid buildings constructed like those in the Land of Clouds, while the left side was scattered with shabby structures that seemed roughly made by connecting planks and stones.
Not only the buildings, but the people's appearances also differed extremely.
A few people wore smoothly gleaming leather coats or luxurious clothing that seemed made of silk, while others weren't wearing clothes but roughly draped rag-like tatters and crawled on the ground like beggars.
"Huh?"
"Th-this is heaven?"
"Wh-what's going on..."
The people who had been captivated by the madness called holy power also trembled their lips, seemingly flustered by the unexpected appearance of heaven.
"That's right."
Vayph curled up the corners of his mouth while wrapped in darkness.
"This is heaven. A place where you can know how expensive your desires are."
He giggled, saying that real heavenly life would begin from now.
"..."
Raon pretended to be flustered like the others, clutching his head and bowing it.
'I roughly understand. What kind of system this is.'
Though he wore a shocked expression outwardly, he wasn't particularly surprised. He felt he now understood what Derus was doing.
'Evelyn.'
Raon inwardly called Evelyn's name and slightly moved his chin.
'Now let's begin.'