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It was then that he sensed someone outside the door. It was a familiar presence.

Soon after, a knock sounded, followed by a delicate voice.

“Teslon, may I come in?”

Teslon responded with a bright smile.

“Come in, Philanence.”

The door opened, and a woman dressed in a reddish-brown robe entered. Her blonde hair, tinged with red and not quite free of freckles, belonged to a woman in her early twenties. She might not have been considered a beauty, but she had a rather cute appearance. This was Philanence Raigrim, a sorceress who had left the tower of Delphia with Teslon.

As Philanence stepped into the room, she tilted her head.

“Are you looking at that again?”

She looked at Teslon with eyes full of fresh incomprehension. Teslon chuckled lightly.

“Haven’t we agreed not to ask about the trivial things?”

His voice was gentle, but the strictness in it stopped any further questions. Philanence shrugged her shoulders and nodded.

“Uh, uh-huh.”

Teslon looked at her with solemn eyes.

This woman had been a classmate and childhood friend of Repenhardt since they were young, studying magic together. Even when Teslon was revived in this era and treated like a madman, she consistently defended him, one of the few reliable people he had in this time. Without her help, he would not have had the time to awaken his aura within the strict confines of the tower.

‘It would have been Repenhardt’s friend in the original timeline…’

After all, every moment had been turned upside down. Just as Gerard of this time was no longer his master, this woman was no longer the childhood friend of Repenhardt.

As Philanence rolled her innocent eyes, looking intently at Teslon, he smiled inwardly.

‘Demon King Repenhardt. As much as you have taken from me, I have also taken from you. And eventually, I will take everything. The future will not change!’

A cold smile spread across Teslon’s face. Suddenly, Philanence broke into a broad smile.

“Teslon, when you smile like that, you look just like you used to.”

“Used to?”

“Yes, when your name was Repenhardt…”

“You speak strangely.”

Teslon clicked his tongue and extended his hand.

“How did the thing I asked for go?”

As if just remembering her errand, Philanence pulled a bundle of papers from her sleeve and handed them to Teslon, saying,

“Indeed, the reputation of Fist King Repenhardt seems to have spread widely among the people. Isn’t it fascinating? The same name as you when you were young…”

“My name is no longer Repenhardt.”

“Yes, I know. But it’s an interesting coincidence, isn’t it?”

“…Not really amusing.”

Shaking his head, Teslon took the documents.

It had been about a month since the Golden Knight Eusus had explored the ruins of Elucion. In the Kingdom of Graim, new rumors were rampant. It was whispered that the Golden Knight, who was believed to have achieved a great feat, had in fact suffered a near-humiliating defeat at the hands of a new Aura wielder.

The rumor, although spread deliberately by other families envious of the growth of the House of Eusus von Tenes, could not be stopped by them either. After all, it wasn’t just a false rumor but the truth itself. The fact that the magical armor Eldrad was shattered and witnessed by more than a few people meant that it couldn’t be silenced just by keeping mouths shut.

People who love rumors are always thrilled by the emergence of a new hero. As high as the reputation of the Golden Knight Eusus had been, so too was the reputation of Repenhardt bound to rise. People were already calling him the new Fist King, succeeding Gerard, and praising him.

As Teslon examined the documents, Philanence Raigrim pursed her lips.

“Honestly, I don’t understand why this new Fist King is gaining such a reputation for what he did.”

When you think about it, he’s just someone who barged into someone else’s house and when he couldn’t steal, he destroyed everything. I really can’t see where there’s anything in that behavior to praise.

But Teslon’s response was as if it were natural.

“Strength alone has a way of captivating people.”

In fact, the sect of Gym Unbreakable had a history of foolishly building up a reputation, so everyone just accepted it. In his previous life, Teslon too had gained a reputation by beating everyone he faced, not that he intended to kill them, but they often ended up dead as a result of the fights… Anyway, Teslon did not live morally to earn his reputation. And people tend not to care when the strong are unjustly treated, but they criticize when the weak are wronged.

“Ah, and have you met Sir Eusus?”

“Yes, as you instructed, I delivered the letter and he agreed to meet immediately.”

“And the response?”

Philanence pulled out another letter from her possession and smiled as she handed it over.

“Just as Teslon expected.”

“Of course.”

With a triumphant smile, Teslon received the letter.

‘A knight could not live without washing away such humiliation.’

To wash away the disgraceful dishonor, Eusus saw no other way than to have a rematch with Repenhardt and bring him to his knees. However, Eusus’s current strength, the magical armor Eldrad, while quick to gain power, also had clear limits. Having wielded the power of Eldrad to its limits and still lost, there was no way for Eusus to face Repenhardt again.

The letter Teslon sent to Eusus was simple.

-If you want to defeat him, follow me.

As the letter unfolded, a single phrase was neatly written.

-I will follow.

Philanence cautiously continued speaking.

“I did as you asked, gave him the location. He said he’d sort out his affairs and come by soon.”

“Yes, good work, thank you.”

“Uh, uhh.”

Her face flushed with the praise. The light brimming in her eyes clearly showed the affection Philanence held for Teslon.

Teslon felt a slight pang of guilt.

‘Philanence…’

His soul was far from young. He was old enough to recognize that this young woman was in love with him. However, Teslon knew he did not deserve to return that love.

The person she loved was this body, Repenhardt, not Teslon who had traveled back in time and taken over the body… It wasn’t for any romantic reasons, of course.

Although Teslon had become quite intelligent recently, he was fundamentally a disciple of Gym Unbreakable. He was the rightful successor to the sect known for being the strongest, the best, and the most foolishly powerful. How could someone like him entertain such sweet thoughts?

To Teslon, love meant ‘an act of gloriously pressing with one’s hot muscles and sowing excellent seeds to produce strong offspring!’ Marriage? He did not entertain such a conventional concept. Why restrict his excellent seeds to one woman when he could spread them among many? That would be a sin against humanity!

It’s a mindset that might appall many women, but in his past life, Teslon could quite easily sway many with such a philosophy. Surprisingly, there seemed to be plenty of women in the world who didn’t care about what was inside a man’s head as long as he had a thick chest and clear six-pack abs.

Normally, Teslon would have taken Philanence by now…

‘I’m sorry, Philanence. If it were my true body, I would have sown my seeds without hesitation, but to do so in this feeble body would be an insult to you.’

Indeed, Teslon was sincerely feeling sorry for Philanence. Perhaps even a macho man has his own kind of conscience? It was a way of thinking completely detached from understanding the emotions of women. Everything in the world has its reasons, and this is why he was known as a macho man.

Regardless of his true feelings, Teslon’s outward demeanor was quite gentlemanly. With a somewhat regretful expression, Philanence suddenly seemed to remember something and spoke up.

“Ah, and there was someone who fits the description Teslon was talking about.”

Besides the recent report, Teslon had given Philanence another task. He had asked her to find someone who held a grudge against Repenhardt and had enough influence and martial power to potentially become an ally. Although he had formed connections with various ‘strong reserve forces,’ none were suitable allies to kill Repenhardt due to a lack of justification. Claiming that one should kill him because he would become a demon lord in the future would certainly make one seem mad…

Teslon’s eyes lit up.

“Really? Who?”

“Stefan von Altion. The second son of the Altion family of the Vasily Kingdom.”

“Never heard of him.”

Teslon frowned slightly. In the future he remembered, there was no one named Stefan among the powerful. This meant, in essence, he was worthless (or so he thought). However, since there were no suitable candidates currently to face the demon lord…

‘If he’s not suitable, I’ll make him suitable.’

Deciding firmly, Teslon asked,

“Where is this Stefan now?”

* * *

The harsh sun relentlessly scorched the earth.

Endless expanses of sand and rock, heated by the midday sun, caused the air itself to boil and shimmer. Looking around, nothing could be seen but the vast, heat-stricken landscape. In the midst of this majestic desert, there was a single shade.

A large rock, shaped strangely by the weathering of ages, and from its dark shadow, suddenly, a loud explosion echoed.

Boom!

Smoke rose, and fragments of rock scattered in all directions. Soon after, shadows of people emerged from within the shade. A young man with a sturdy physique and a slender woman walked out.

The woman looked around with a face of disbelief and muttered,

“…Really… this is indeed the land of lamentation…”

The young man shrugged his shoulders and spoke with an air of arrogance.

“Didn’t I tell you I’d be here soon?”

As soon as Repenhardt had resolved to take Siris back to her homeland, he immediately gathered water and food and headed to the temple at Al Fort, located to the west of Grand Forge. It was there, amidst the semi-ruined temple, that Siris wore a face of utter incomprehension.

Suddenly, Repenhardt clasped his hands together and began to chant a long spell.

“Haji home zigor hutovatia, I am the bound one, granted rights by the marks, receiving the name of the worthy to control the flows…”

It was an exceedingly long spell. Siris began to feel bored by its length when suddenly, Repenhardt formed complex hand signs and shouted the activation word.

“Before me, open the void! Althas Daiman Portal Vitality!”

A sudden whirlwind of light emerged, and while Siris wore a dazed expression, Repenhardt quickly grabbed her hand and jumped into the vortex. When she regained her senses, Siris realized she was no longer in Grand Forge. They were in a vast black chamber lined with countless pillars, the ruins of Daiman itself.

Siris quickly understood what had happened. Just as they had headed to Grand Forge, Repenhardt had used the relics of the Silver Age in reverse to return to this place, the Daiman Dungeon. Siris turned to Repenhardt, her voice filled with surprise.

“Is this portal capable of two-way travel?”

“Not all of them. Only a few can be activated for travel.”

Repenhardt replied nonchalantly as he walked on. He paused, closely examining the ancient script on a pillar, then suddenly waved to Siris with excitement.

“Found it, the Tidaen Daiman Portal.”

Originally, the Daiman Dungeon was used during the Silver Age as a sort of station. Magical portals were installed across the continent, allowing for travel to desired locations via this unique transportation method of the era. While most of the system was in ruins, a few portals still maintained their functionality in a deactivated state.

‘I researched them extensively, but in the end, only seven portals could be activated.’

Reflecting on the past, Repenhardt caressed the pillar marked ‘Tidaen’ with a nostalgic look. How many different races had he been able to transport to the Antares Empire using this ancient relic that could instantaneously shift spaces?

Most of the portals at the opposite destinations had been destroyed over the years by human hands, and the surviving portals all led to remote areas untouched by humans. Most of the different races hiding from slavery lived in such remote places, and it was almost inevitable that the portal leading to the Spelrat Desert, where the Dahnhaim clan was hiding, remained intact.