### Chapter 378
After the fight with Charlotte, Kraush returned to the frontline.
And he got scolded by Aria.
“It’s already hectic enough out here! Don’t bring back more trouble!”
No arguments there.
Kraush lowered his head in apology.
Then, Charlotte, who had received treatment from Aria, waved her hand at her and spoke up.
“Sorry, sis, I asked for it.”
“Yes, wait, what? Oh, sis?”
“Wait, wasn’t that right?”
With an incredibly flustered expression, Aria’s big eyes blinked in surprise.
Then, her face quickly turned bright red, and she nodded slowly.
“…Right. Because I’m your sister.”
It was so typical of Aria to feel bashful yet still say everything that needed saying.
She puffed out her chest, looking a tad proud.
Seeing this, Charlotte rubbed her chin and slowly turned to Kraush.
“Looking at this makes me reconsider my little brother’s taste.”
“It’s not like that!” Kraush insisted, shaking his head earnestly.
Only Aria was left confused, looking completely lost.
“Well, there was a little one too.”
Charlotte seemed to have understood something else completely.
Aria, realizing it a bit late, quickly covered her chest with a swift motion.
Then, she shot a glare at Kraush.
Charlotte was the one who had mentioned it; why was she glaring at him?
How is that fair?
“…You like big ones, don’t you?”
Aria asked, a little worried.
She had quite the size to draw attention; being different could definitely make someone self-conscious.
And so, Kraush nodded quietly.
“…Yeah.”
What kind of otherworldly conversation was this?
But seeing Aria quietly pleased and relieved, Kraush thought he had said the right thing.
“What kind of discussion is this in front of your sister?”
Charlotte appeared a bit perplexed.
After Charlotte received treatment from Aria, the two joined the breakthrough squad immediately.
While Kraush was in battle, the Guardian Sword and the Swordmaster finalized the composition of the breakthrough squad.
They seemed ready to break through more smoothly than ever.
After all, the Sword King Balok Balheim had personally decided to lead the charge.
“The Magic Bastion isn’t at a level you can just charge in and break through.”
True to his words, the Magic Bastion was currently generating demonic erosion creatures in endless supply.
The likes of Agares, whom Kraush had encountered before, were now casually roaming around.
It was truly hellish in there.
There was a reason the Sanctuary of Stars couldn’t step out of the Kingdom of Jeblam.
If such things were released into the world, it would indeed spell disaster.
“So, the frontline is currently left to other Ten Great Lords, and I’ll be breaking through with one of them, the Arrow King.”
At the mention of the Arrow King, Kraush’s eyes widened a bit.
He was rumored to be the hardest to track down of all the Ten Great Lords.
He had maintained the frontline since the Kingdom broke free from the Magic Bastion.
So, even though the world had come to know many of the Ten Great Lords, Kraush had never actually seen him face-to-face.
“Our target is the Demonic Bastion. The most dangerous seed is taking root at its center. The Demonic Emperor, Argol, is guarding the front.”
“If we can’t take down Argol, we won’t be able to approach the seed.”
Kraush nodded at the words of the Swordmaster.
“Our goal is to defeat the master while preserving your powers as much as possible. Moreover…”
Balok turned to Kraush.
“Kraush, dealing with that seed is taking more time than before.”
At his question, Kraush affirmed.
“Yes, it takes longer now that the scale has increased.”
Kraush had learned some tricks for absorbing the most dangerous seeds.
However, the expansion of the Kingdom of Jeblam outpaced his growing skills, so handling the seeds was taking far longer than before.
The Magic Bastion was already one of the largest places within the Kingdom.
Naturally, the most dangerous seed was among the world’s largest as well.
“We’ll have to hold on to the most dangerous seed for at least two days, if not more.”
What on earth did that mean?
Even if the master were defeated, countless demonic erosion creatures would remain in the Magic Bastion.
They’d have to face those creatures in their own domain, not letting a single one reach Kraush for two days.
Of course, that would be an incredibly challenging task even with a Ten Great Lord there.
Considering the immense scale and power of the Magic Bastion, it wasn’t something to take lightly.
But nobody opposed this notion.
Because this was a task that absolutely had to be accomplished.
If they failed, the most dangerous seed would fully awake and cover the world in its chaos.
Now everyone, including Kraush, was aware of this.
No one would express fear of failing when faced with something that had to be achieved.
Those people had either fled or met their end long ago when facing other kingdoms.
“Yawn, I’m a bit late.”
At that moment, another person stepped into the meeting chamber.
There was a man with hair that mixed black and red in a haphazardly wild manner.
He looked exhausted, and on his back was a bow that would be shockingly large for anyone to see.
Everyone knew his name.
The Arrow King.
Leo Pinedra.
In the past, he was part of the Lion’s Order created by Charlotte, a member of the Triad, and the uncle of Chelberi Pinedra who specializes in bows.
Even now, members of the Triad were with Charlotte.
All of them followed her even after graduating from Rahern Academy.
When Kraush turned his gaze, the ones who were once known as the Triad — Cromos, Chelberi, and Kaya — gave him a nod.
Quite some time had passed, yet they all remained the same.
“Right, as long as you’re not late, it’s all good.”
Despite Leo’s lackadaisical tardiness, Balok didn’t comment on it.
He knew perfectly well Leo’s situation behind his lateness.
“How many have piled up?”
Instead, Balok asked him that.
Upon hearing the question, Leo extended his hand and began counting them one by one.
“Since you arrived, I’ve only fired regular arrows. So I’d say I’ve at least cracked the Demonic Emperor’s skull at least once.”
He smiled sleepily while showing off his teeth.
Kraush, understanding what that smile meant, felt assured.
He believed this time, they could definitely take down the Demonic Emperor for good.
“Yawn, then wake me up again when we head out. I’ll just be listening to the meeting in my sleep.”
He said that and casually went to sit in a corner, closing his eyes nonchalantly.
While some were a bit taken aback by his blatant sleeping, those who knew him well didn’t disturb him.
After all, his casual sleep warranted skipping even the Ten Great Lords’ meeting.
“Ugh…”
While Leo mumbled in his sleep, the meeting continued.
Once all discussions wrapped up, the breakthrough squad finalized their preparations to depart.
Only then did Leo wake up, stretch his arms, and walk toward the center of the unit.
“Kraush, the Arrow King has arrived.”
At that, Haring, who was beside him, subtly spoke to Kraush.
The Sky Generation had now become an elite squad in Icarus.
Thus, Haring also participated in this breakthrough.
Her ability called Invisible was very useful in various situations, so it was primarily her job to guard Kraush.
She seemed pretty proud of that.
“Well, since no one over in the breakthrough squad has much power, he’s just coming here.”
In response to Haring’s inquiry, Kraush briefly explained.
Then, Haring tilted her head in confusion.
That was understandable since the Arrow King wasn’t a widely discussed topic among the other Ten Great Lords.
People only knew he had become one at a rather young age.
“I’ve heard a little about him.”
Responding to Haring’s confused head tilt was Bianca.
She glanced toward the Arrow King and continued speaking.
“Among the Ten Great Lords, he’s known for being the absolute best in pure power.”
Haring’s eyes widened in surprise.
The Ten Great Lords were the finest of the finest in the world.
To claim one of them was the best when it came to raw power was astonishing.
“That’s downright absurd!”
“What about Kraush then?”
Kraush, who had shared countless experiences with the students at Rahern Academy, firmly remained in everyone’s minds.
He had already shattered what once felt like an insurmountable wall with his overwhelming power.
Seeing this, Bianca tilted her head as if unsure about that point.
“True.”
Kraush watched as the two chatted like a couple of curious kittens.
“If the situation is right, I might just surpass him.”
“Wow, thanks for the compliment!”
At that moment, the Arrow King’s voice cut through.
Bianca and Haring, who had been too wrapped up in their conversation to notice him approach, quickly closed their mouths.
In that time, the Arrow King smiled at Kraush.
“I’ve heard a lot about you, Dragon King. Nice to finally meet you.”
He greeted Kraush with that sleepy look on his face.
Kraush bowed his head in response.
“Yes, Arrow King, it’s a pleasure to meet you for the first time.”
“Don’t be too formal. There’s no need to be all stiff among fellow Ten Great Lords. Plus, it’s not every day a global hero bows his head like that.”
He let out a hearty laugh.
Seeing him act like a silly local uncle, both Charlotte and Haring tilted their heads.
That was because the aura he emitted didn’t feel as grand as Kraush described.
But Kraush understood the reality behind it.
He had a unique skill.
“Thanks for your high praise.”
“I’m just repeating what others say. I heard the Emperor’s Empress is considering giving you the position of Dragon King just as she’s about to wrap up her own tenure.”
“I haven’t heard anything specific about that.”
The Empress was currently focusing her efforts on blocking the Forest of Giants along with the Emperor.
She had been using so much of her energy that she’s often heard repeating, “It’s about time for the old folks to step aside.”
It seemed she truly planned to retire after finishing with the Forest of Giants.
And so, discussions were already underway regarding who would take her place.
While many great figures surrounded the Ten Great Lords, the matter of naming a new Emperor was a bit ambiguous.
In contrast, Kraush was different.
His name was widely known all across the world.
So much so that even the World Eroder knew his name.
Kraush was followed by numerous accolades and titles.
The first wing of a new generation.
A hero born in Balheim.
The pinnacle of the Sky Generation.
Countless phrases and titles attached themselves to him.
He was tasked with closing off the Magic Kingdom that was spreading across the world.
Such a significant achievement no one else could quite contest against.
His accolades had indeed surpassed those of the Ten Great Lords.
People invoked his name with such reverence.
“Hmm, I don’t think that’s a bad assessment.”
The Arrow King was looking quite favorably at Kraush.
“To open a new era, the right person needs to rise as well.”
A world without the Kingdom of Jeblam.
Of course, they couldn’t completely eradicate the roots of World Erosion.
However, many things would surely change.
And thus, the Arrow King was considering whether it would be acceptable for someone like Kraush to assume a throne among the Ten Great Lords in this new era.
“That’s not the only reason one can rise to the position of Ten Great Lord, right?”
Kraush genuinely didn’t have any ambitions regarding that position at this point.
More than anything, he vaguely knew what his future held.
A position he wouldn’t even be able to sit in for long wasn’t something he wished to grab.
“Right, I’d say think it over later.”
The Arrow King said that and waved his hand, heading back to his place.
“Let’s roll out.”
In the meantime, Balok signaled the start and the breakthrough squad began moving ahead.
Among them, Kraush briefly recalled the Ten Great Lords before dismissing the thought.
