Chapter 49: Training the Condemned

It was roundabout.

But it was acceptance.

Ethan rose abruptly, voice ringing with sincerity.

“Thank you, Sir!”

He instinctively slipped back into formal respect.

Asterion scowled.

“Sit down, fool. We haven’t finished drinking.”

“Ah… right.”

Ethan sat once more, studying the drunken legend before him.

“When do we begin?”

“Soon,” Asterion replied casually, finishing yet another bottle.

Ethan repeated the word internally.

“Soon…”

His gaze drifted toward the mountains of empty bottles already consumed ..

And the fresh ones still waiting.

“How soon… exactly?”

He wondered.

But Asterion ignored the question entirely.

Instead, he shifted topics.

“Tell me, Ethan… what do you think of this world?”

The question caught him off guard.

“What do you mean?”

“You’ve seen them yourself, haven’t you? The creatures you hunt in the cursed lands.”

Asterion’s voice deepened.

“In case you fail to realize, the things you hunt, they’re not beasts… they’re people.”

“Humans. Like you and me.”

Ethan stiffened slightly.

“Men and women who lost their humanity… who became beasts wandering like mindless animals, attacking anything alive.”

The subject grew heavy.

Ethan nodded slowly.

“I know.”

Asterion smiled faintly.

“Then tell me… have you ever wondered what stands behind that curse?”

“And the great Night Lords who arrived with it?”

Ethan remained silent.

Asterion did not wait for an answer.

“These grotesque abominations… creatures whose power exceeds human comprehension.”

“Isn’t their very existence proof that something vast watches us from afar?”

“Entities beyond our understanding.”

He paused.

“Beings… akin to gods.”

Ethan frowned.

“More like… demons.”

Asterion smiled.

“Who knows … Is there any deference?”

Ethan’s frown deepened.

He was about to respond ..

When a faint sound of approaching footsteps echoed through the training hall.

He turned his head in surprise.

He had not expected a second visitor.

Across from him, however .

Asterion’s face lit up with unmistakable delight.

“They’ve finally arrived…”

“Who?” Ethan asked, his eyes fixed on the doorway connected to the corridor that led to their hall.

From the rhythm of the footsteps alone, he knew ..

The one approaching was a woman.

Moments later, his eyes widened.

Short crimson hair.

Cold, sculpted features.

A slender, balanced frame.

A thin blade resting at her waist.

She stared at him as he stared at her.

Neither spoke at first.

Then he did.

“Moon?” he said, stunned, unable to comprehend what his squad leader was doing here.

She advanced until she stood before him and Asterion, her gaze chillingly cold.

“I came here under the impression that this was a training ground devoted to the sword,” she began evenly. “And that the men I would accompany were true warriors who shared my devotion to the blade.”

Her voice deepened.

“Instead, I walk into a tavern of filth—run by a disgraceful old man and a youth rotting beside him.”

Without realizing it, Ethan swallowed and took a small step back.

She’s furious…

And Moon was terrifying when she was angry.

So terrifying, in fact, that he instinctively turned toward Asterion .. the man who had dragged him into this drinking party—hoping the so-called Uncrowned Emperor would handle it.

’He’s the Uncrowned Emperor… he can deal with her. Surely…?’

Ethan’s jaw dropped.

Asterion had retreated just as he had, sweat forming on his brow .. fear unmistakable in his expression.

“Seriously?”

In that moment, Ethan’s already dwindling internal respect for the old man sank to absolute zero.

“Stop fooling around and stand properly!” Moon snapped.

Both men immediately straightened.

Facing her, Ethan gathered what courage he could.

“Um… Moon. What are you doing here?”

“Ask him,” she replied coldly. “That damned old man summoned me.”

She pointed at Asterion.

The Uncrowned Emperor glanced between them, cleared his throat, and spoke.

“You know Moon Heart is my granddaughter. I’ve already taught her my sword style. I thought it best that she pass it on to you.”

Ethan frowned.

“Why not teach me yourself?!”

Asterion shook his head.

“I cannot. If I am to teach you, our swords must cross. And given how weak you are… I might kill you by accident in the first exchange.”

His tone was serious.

Ethan’s expression darkened with every word.

’You lying old bastard. You’re High King rank. Over level 70!. You can control your strength well enough not to kill me!’

His fist clenched, but he held his tongue.

There was no point arguing.

Moon was already here.

She studied him for a long moment before speaking again.

“Ethan… I don’t understand you lately. You told us to trust you. You said you would find a way to win on your own. Yet I heard you spent the entire day digging outside the city.”

They held each other’s gaze.

Ethan did not know how to answer.

Their relationship was strange.

Uncomfortable.

Moon saw it clearly and did not press him further.

“I will teach you how to hold a sword,” she said, stepping forward.

“But in return… please don’t abandon yourself. Or the title of hunter. Fight, Ethan—like you always have.”

For reasons he could not articulate, bitterness tightened in his chest whenever moments like this occurred.

’Again… you offer so much to me. All this concern that should not be directed at someone like me…’

His fist tightened unconsciously, but he steadied himself before either of them could notice.

He nodded.

“I’m counting on you.”

There was no reason to refuse.

Asterion had never intended to teach him personally anyway.

Moon nodded once.

“Then we begin immediately. But first…”

The icy tone returned.

“I will not remain here a second longer unless you clean this garbage.”

A shiver ran down both men’s spines.

“My dear Moon… I am the Uncrowned Emperor. It is hardly fitting for you to make me do something like this…” Asterion said, tension plain in his voice.

He was weak before his granddaughter.

Powerless before the chaos around him.

Waging war had always been easier than cleaning for him.

But Moon was unmoved.

“I do not care whether you are the Uncrowned Emperor… or the Sword God himself. You will clean the mess you made today.”

She then turned toward Ethan.

“Both of you.”

The two men looked at each other.

Each saw the exact same expression reflected back.

They tried to stall.

It was useless.

And so, under Moon’s merciless supervision, they cleaned.

Bottle by bottle.

Sweeping, scrubbing, restoring.

Until the decaying hall transformed into a proper training ground fit for blades.

Instead of swords ..

The Uncrowned Emperor and the last chosen hero wielded brooms.

It was, without question, a truly tragic sight.

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