I Killed the Demon Lord. It Was a Mistake.
Chapter 35
Sean and Caesar began to read the materials diligently.
The books were so old that the pages seemed like they would tear off with just a little force, and the reports showed signs of being handled by many people, with visible wear and tear.
The amount of material was so vast that it couldn’t be read in just a day or two.
However, Caesar had psychometry.
Caesar placed his hand on the report of Bernard, the holy knight who had hunted the ‘Disease Eaters’ with Besum, and used psychometry.
Then, the image of Besum that Bernard had seen appeared before Caesar’s eyes.
-“Wooriaaaaaaaa!”
Besum threw a small axe with a loud battle cry.
The small axe swept through the spines of all the demons surrounding them.
As Bernard crushed the fallen demons’ heads with a mace, Besum leaped high into the air with a large axe and brought it down towards the demons.
Then, with a tremendous gust of wind, all the trees were blown away, and Bernard was sent rolling.
-“Besum! I told you to be careful not to get me caught up in it!”
As if Bernard’s words weren’t heard, Besum, with blood-red eyes, smashed all the demons’ heads.
The demons that had filled the surroundings were all dead and scattered, and Besum shouted loudly.
-“Wooriaaaaa!”
-“Oh, for goodness sake…”
As the psychometry ended, Caesar chuckled.
‘Incredible.’
Whether it was destructive power or precision, it had everything.
It was an axe technique that had it all.
The small axe, the Gentle Breeze, had slightly lower destructive power but possessed precision and sharpness.
The large axe, the Sweeping Wind, crushed all the demons with tremendous destructive power.
‘But it’s difficult to fight cooperatively.’
If only using the Gentle Breeze, it would be fine, but using the Sweeping Wind as well had too wide a range of effect and could harm allies.
Of course, it was partly because Besum fought without considering his surroundings at all, but the destructive power of this axe technique was undeniably impressive.
‘Not bad at all.’
Whatever it was, Caesar really liked this axe technique.
Should he say it was beyond what he had imagined?
Caesar diligently searched through the documents.
“Lord Caesar… Aren’t you hungry?”
“Huh? Why?”
“It’s already 6 PM.”
“Already?”
Caesar checked his pocket watch.
They had entered this library at 10 AM.
That means they had been here for over 8 hours.
“You go and eat. I’m fine.”
“How could I leave you behind, Lord Caesar?”
“Just send down some bread or something. I’ll probably be staying here for meals and sleep, so keep that in mind.”
Sean rolled his eyes and then nodded.
“Understood.”
“Go on now.”
Caesar waved his hand to send Sean away and focused on reading again.
***
Recently, a famous person appeared at the Shalibi Library.
His name was Caesar Sylvatil.
Caesar thoroughly studied all the literature related to Besum in the ancient document repository on the second basement floor for four days and nights, then came up to the first basement floor to debate with young priests about materials related to Besum.
“Lord Besum lacked the dignity to be called a holy knight. At that time, due to the demon of plague, there was a shortage of talent, so they had no choice but to recruit a barbarian.”
“What’s the standard for dignity? Is it having dignity to use utensils when eating and drinking wine from a glass? In places where the demon realm war is currently raging, people are tearing meat with their hands because there are no forks and drinking water by cupping their hands. Can you say those knights lack dignity?”
“The dignity I’m referring to is about everyday conduct, not such urgent situations. According to the records, Besum disrespected other knights and used rough language. Look at this record by Holy Knight Sion.”
“Sion’s records are not reliable. Sion has disparaged all other knights in his records as well. Even in the battle report with Lord Siegmaier, whom you said you respect, he wrote that Siegmaier was not active in battle and was like a hyena eyeing hunted prey. While Knight Sion was a strong holy knight, I think it’s a bit disappointing to say he was a dignified knight who set an example for others.”
“Umm… Well, that…”
As Caesar verbally knocked down all the apprentice priests who came at him, the teachers who were observing from behind approached, pushing up their glasses.
“First, thank you for presenting a different perspective on Lord Besum. However, Lord Besum did not at all follow the ‘sturdy armor’ that Goddess Dre always said to wear, and went around bare-bodied. What do you think about that?”
“What’s the standard for sturdy armor? Are you talking about armor made of steel, or firm faith towards Goddess Dre?”
“It’s often expressed ambiguously, with firm faith towards the goddess also being described as sturdy armor. But Besum was a holy knight. Shouldn’t he have followed both faith and armor?”
“The first holy knights couldn’t wear armor. It was a time when steel was scarce, and body strengthening techniques hadn’t developed yet. But they hunted demons wearing armor made of faith and courage. Do you think they betrayed their faith in Goddess Dre?”
“No. That’s why we still consider Besum a holy knight. Hahaha.”
The teacher approached Caesar, looking satisfied.
“It was a good opportunity to hear the perspective of a wandering knight on Besum. Could you give a lecture about Besum at the Night of Wisdom the day after tomorrow?”
What?
You’re asking me, a demon, to give a lecture about Besum in front of priests?
I can’t miss such an incredibly fun opportunity.
“I’d be glad to. If I can increase the number of people who know about Lord Besum, whom I respect, what wouldn’t I do?”
“It seems you sincerely respect Lord Besum?”
“Of course! Naturally.”
“Then we’ll see you next Friday. I’m really looking forward to it.”
***
Friday evening.
Countless people flocked to the Shalibi Library.
Not only people from Shalibi, but scholars, priests, and aspiring knights studying in Sanctus Lumen all gathered to hear the vivid stories of a wandering knight who had participated in the demon realm war for the past 3 years, along with stories about a holy knight from a barbarian background.
Caesar gave the lecture in a loud, knightly voice.
“Do you know what’s the hardest thing in the demon realm war? Most would think it’s fighting the demons, but that’s not it at all. It’s eating and excreting. The most common cause of non-combat casualties during war is stomach upset. And that’s because of improper eating and excreting.”
“So we need to look at Lord Besum’s wisdom. The land where Lord Besum grew up was a wilderness. There were no water supply or sewage facilities, and it was barren. However, because they lived in such harsh conditions, they knew very well how to eat and excrete.”
“When eating, they eat with bare hands, but always after washing their hands with clean sand or water. When excreting, they create temporary toilets for each tribal unit. But they bury it as far away as possible from water wells. This is to prevent feces from contaminating the wells.”
“Hygiene! Nothing prevents non-combat casualties more than hygiene. The importance of this hygiene is recorded in the scripture as well. You faithful ones! Don’t you separate where you eat and where you excrete? That is…”
People stared at Caesar’s lecture as if bewitched.
Some priests were busy typing on typewriters to record Caesar’s lecture, and reporters were constantly flashing their cameras.
The reporters huddled together and muttered.
“Didn’t the Sylvatil family say not to write about knights at all?”
“…But how can we not publish this? Even if we don’t write it, it will definitely appear in the newspapers distributed within the Dre Province.”
“Damn, how do we explain this to the editor-in-chief?”
“Ah, I don’t know, just publish it. We’ll lose out if we don’t publish this.”
***
The next day.
Caesar’s face appeared prominently in all the newspapers in Dre Province.
[Young people, will you stand still? The demon realm is still at war.]
[The demon realm war is not over yet! Rise up with guns and swords, you faithful ones.]
[What prevents non-combat casualties is hygiene! What’s the current hygiene situation in the demon realm war?!]
[The most necessary thing for hygiene is soap. How to make soap?]
Caesar shook hands with the bishop of the Shalibi Church.
“I listened well to the lecture related to Lord Besum. Thanks to that, I hear the funds going towards the demon realm have greatly increased.”
-And it’s all going in the name of the Dre Province.
-The Pope was very pleased.
Is this something that should reach the Pope’s ears?
Caesar was puzzled but decided to let it go, thinking what’s good is good.
There was something more important than that.
“As a token of gratitude, the Pope said to give this as a gift to Sir Caesar.”
Caesar opened the box the bishop had gifted him.
Inside was a wind stone emitting a beautiful emerald light.
‘Just for running my mouth, I get a wind stone?!’
Caesar smiled with an extremely satisfied expression.
“I sincerely thank you. I won’t forget this grace.”
“Then, would you consider applying to become a holy knight?”
“That’s a bit…”
Ah, but that’s a bit too much.
***
There was nothing more to gain from the Shalibi Library.
Caesar headed to the Hero’s Graveyard.
“Sean. You rest for a while. I’ll call you when I need you.”
“What are you going to do here?”
“Training.”
Sean thought for a moment and then spoke.
“Then, can’t I just stay beside you? I didn’t help you much when you were in the library either, did I?”
“Then don’t be a nuisance.”
“Yes, understood! I’ll even hold my breath!”
Caesar approached Besum’s grave.
The area in front of Besum’s grave had changed a bit from a few days ago, with many flowers scattered around.
It seems people who were impressed by Caesar’s lecture had laid flowers in front of Besum’s grave.
Caesar moved the flowers aside, sat right in front of the axe, and leaned back.
Then he closed his eyes and used psychometry based on Besum’s documents and the memories of observers contained in those documents.
“This is the way.”
The Gentle Breeze that extended from Besum’s left hand glided along a predetermined path.
The sharp wind that emanated from the Gentle Breeze cut through all the demons’ spines and settled in Besum’s left hand.
Then, Besum pushed aura into the axes held in both hands, drawing in the wind.
The small wind streams gathering at the axes became fierce gusts, turning into blades that tore apart all the demons.
All that remained was to release these wind blades.
Kwaaaang!
The winds wrapped around the axes scattered in all directions, engulfing the demons.
The limbs of fleeing demons were severed, and blood droplets were carried by the wind, spreading a fishy smell.
Besum hated this smell of blood intensely.
It was similar to the scent left behind in the wilderness by those cursed demons who had killed Besum’s son, daughter, wife, and all his neighbors.
The scream of a demon fleeing with one foot lost carried on the wind.
Besum chased after that weak scream like a madman.
He couldn’t bear this rising anger otherwise.
Caesar opened his eyes.
His heart was pounding wildly, and his breathing became rough.
Besum’s anger had infected him.
Caesar calmed his agitated mind with deep breaths.
‘The impact is greater than I thought.‘
This is why Caesar only tries to skim the memories contained in objects.
If he delves too deeply, he loses himself in others’ emotions and memories.
Caesar picked up the axe after calming his mind through meditation.
‘Was this how to hold it?’
Besum’s sensation flowed through Caesar’s left hand.
It feels strangely uncomfortable.
There are various reasons.
The shape of the axe is different, there’s a difference between Caesar’s developed muscles and Besum’s, and even the size of their hands is different in many ways.
In other words, even if he’s learned Besum’s sensations, applying them is Caesar’s domain.
Caesar put down the axe and concentrated.
He recalled Besum’s breathing method and the aura’s path.
If we were to categorize Besum, he’s a knight that combines the technique knight and classic knight.
To be precise, should we say he was a classic knight who transformed into a technique knight?
Records show that at some point, he suddenly grasped the aura manipulation technique for handling wind and shifted in that direction.
The problem is the physical fatigue that arose from this.
‘He damaged his body a lot by pushing his aura too intensely in an instant.’
Every time Besum used his aura, he felt pain as if his magic circuits were being torn apart.
But he didn’t stop despite that.
Rather, he used that pain and anger as an energy source to exert even greater power.
In other words, it was a technique created based on the authentic barbarian technical principles, like the ‘Berserk’ that Caesar often uses.
The problem is that to use such techniques, the body’s durability needs to support it to some extent, but he started to damage his body extremely because he didn’t train that aspect at all.
‘So this aligns with the direction I’m pursuing.‘
Caesar is a hybrid knight combining tank and technique knights.
A structure that protects the body from excessive aura flow with a sturdy physique.
This is the ultimate technique for the hybrid knight.
The problem is mastering the path of the wind.
Caesar closed his eyes and slowly inhaled and exhaled.
It’s similar to practicing Noisy Silence, but he focused his sensory ability entirely on hearing.
The basics of the wind’s path is feeling the flow of the wind.
The next step is using the wind’s flow, and the final stage is creating wind.
Right now, he hasn’t even refined the basics yet.
Just as Caesar built his body to use Noisy Silence, he had to go through a similar process.
How much time has passed since he started concentrating?
Caesar began to distinguish the passing winds.
The sound of wind tickling the grass, the sound of that wind scattering against tombstones and rusty weapons, even the sound of wind gently brushing through Caesar’s hair.
There are different sounds, and it starts with distinguishing these sounds.
‘It’s difficult.’
Of course it is.
Traditional technique knights usually start training in swordsmanship from a very young age.
Look at Mitchell, he picked up a sword at the age of 6 and hasn’t missed a day of sword training until he turned 30 this year.
As a result, he reached a level where he could participate in the Demon Lord Slayer expedition.
What about Hero Yan?
That guy is crazy.
He held sickles and hoes instead of swords until he was 18.
After losing all his family to demons, he first picked up a sword at 18, and in just 10 years, he surpassed Mitchell.
So he’s an exception.
Anyway, Caesar decided to take it easy.
He doesn’t think he can master the Path of the Wind right away anyway.
Let’s just be satisfied with translating Besum’s sensations into Caesar’s own.
***
Sean blankly watched Caesar.
Caesar’s concentration was incredibly high, which Sean had felt even in the library.
‘It’s been 3 hours already.’
Sean, who’s just watching, feels like he might get more tired.
Just as he was thinking about sitting down and reading a book, Sean felt something strange.
‘…The wind?’
The wind swirled around Caesar.
Then, fallen flower petals nearby were carried by the wind, enveloping Caesar.
Sean held his breath at this mystical sight.
They say knights sometimes gain ‘enlightenment’ while training.
Sean was certain that Caesar was experiencing that moment right now.
At that moment, people approached.
They were the gravekeepers.
“What’s going on here?”
“He said he was training. But from what I can see…”
Sean explained exactly what he was feeling.
“It seems he has become one with Lord Besum.”
TL NOTE:
Schedule: Every {Wed-Sat}
Hope you enjoyed the chapter! If you would like to support me or read up to 30 chapters ahead, you can do so via patreon.com/ChibiGiant. OR by unlocking chapters.
You can also Rate this series in your free time @NovelUpdate.