The Bookkeeper-Chapter 67: The Final Battle

The morning was anything but ordinary. Raiden wiped away the sweat streaming down his body from training while Levi, Freya, and Speed worked through their own routines outside.

Two days had passed since they heard from Aeris, and still, there was no official word from King Hannes about the looming war. Yet they couldn’t simply wait for such a message before training.

Though they all lagged behind Freya in mana control, Raiden was closest to matching her.

Drawing on his universal understanding of mana and everything Freya had taught him before she recovered her memories, he had learned to scatter his mana throughout his body like air, infusing it into his flesh, blood, and bones.

Though the technique remained unstable, he was beginning to master it.

The moment he finished wiping away the sweat, he began stretching his body as he made his way from the training room to Soul’s room. He had to check on her.

He began to reconsider his decision to see her. With the enchanted stickers covering the walls, entering her room was nearly impossible—even her meals were left outside until she opened the door herself to retrieve them.

Raiden kept hesitating and reconsidering, but before he knew it, he found himself standing outside her door. With a deep sigh, he decided to check on her anyway.

The moment he reached her door, he placed his hand firmly on the handle and gripped the door frame with his other hand. He braced himself to open it, knowing that if he wasn’t careful, the concentrated aura trapped within the room could send him flying.

The moment he opened the door, the aura burst out like pressurized wind, sending a shockwave through the corridor. It lashed against his bare chest while the force invaded his mouth, nose, and eyes, making them water as it slowly pulled him backward.

He tried to push forward, but it was like fighting the inevitable. Every step he managed only brought him back to where he started as the relentless wind pulled him backward.

Before he could be blown away entirely, he glimpsed Soul’s golden eyes piercing through the darkness as she approached.

When she saw him, she paused, watching his struggle for a brief moment before stepping out of the room and sealing the door behind her.

Raiden dropped to his knees, struggling to catch his breath. When he raised his head toward Soul, he saw that she wore her partially torn black turtleneck that barely reached beneath her chest and black trousers.

Her hair had grown along with her height, cascading down to cover most of her upper body, leaving only her golden eyes visible through the dark curtain.

She crouched down next to Raiden and began examining him, clearly unsure of what to do. "Are you okay?" she asked, guilt heavy in her voice.

"Why are you outside?" Raiden muttered, coughing as he finally got a proper look at her. His eyes widened in surprise while Soul offered him a warm smile.

"You... your aura is normal now."

Soul nodded excitedly. "Yes, I’ve been working on it and I can control it now."

She offered her hand to help Raiden up. He hesitated, about to refuse, but not wanting to be rude, he reached out and took her hand.

"That’s great, Soul."

"Sorry, I had to release a lot of energy from my body this time. That’s why you had such a hard time," she said, concern evident in her voice.

Raiden shrugged. "Don’t worry about it."

At that moment he couldn’t help but smirk as he rolled his shoulders. With Soul finally comfortable being outside, if the war reached their area, he wouldn’t have much to worry about.

"Your brother is outside. He’s been dying to see you," he said with a smile. Soul’s face lit up with a soft smile before she began running outside.

Raiden stood there for a moment and sighed. Being caring and understanding around Soul hadn’t been easy, but he knew it would pay off in the long run.

Once he built enough trust with his comrades, they wouldn’t hesitate to sacrifice their lives for him. He was prepared to die again if necessary—he had to return to his world, and if this was the cost of achieving that goal, so be it.

He then took a deep breath and headed outside to join them, putting on a show of happiness for Soul’s reunion with her brother, Speed.

The moment he stepped outside, he squinted against the sun’s glare, but his attention quickly shifted left to where the others had gathered.

Freya was teaching Levi mana control, shouting instructions while his face twitched with barely contained irritation behind a forced smile.

Nearby, Soul and Speed were reuniting, Speed’s eyes sparkling as he chattered endlessly about things his sister obviously had no interest in hearing.

But at that very moment, an enormous teleportation circle materialized on the ground some distance away. Raiden’s heart skipped a beat, his eyes widening as the circle pulsed with blue light.

The others reacted similarly, all dropping into defensive positions as they watched the glowing circle.

Before any of them could act on their impulses, over a hundred figures materialized in an instant. Raiden’s pounding heart began to slow as he narrowed his eyes and activated his gaze beyond to get a better look.

A wave of relief washed over him, and he exhaled slowly. It was King Hannes, his crown gleaming atop his grey hair as he radiated his royal yellow aura. He was flanked by his daughter Alora and a Star June, both emanating the same golden glow.

Four black-robed elders stood nearby, their yellow auras pulsing in unison, while behind them all stood over a hundred knights in pristine white armor.

Obviously they had come to protect Raiden in case he too became a target, but their unexpected arrival left him uneasy.

He started walking toward them, and the others immediately moved to flank him while King Hannes and his entourage stayed where they were.

"Don’t you have any manners?" Alora called out, her smile clearly forced as Raiden and his comrades approached. "How can you appear shirtless before the king?"

Raiden barely registered what she said. His fury was directed at the king, not the peasants surrounding him.

"Don’t you think it would have been wise to inform me of your visit?" he asked, his anger reverberating through the air.

Before King Hannes could respond, one of the elders quickly interjected. "How dare you speak to the king that way?"

"Is that the book’s key around your neck?" another elder asked, but Raiden ignored them all, his gray eyes boring straight into King Hannes’.

"It doesn’t matter who you are... this is my territory, and here, I’m the one in charge."

Hannes finally smiled softly. "I understand your concern, Raiden. This reaction was to be expected from you as the bookkeeper."

He paused and glanced at Alora. "However, I left the communication in Alora’s hands, so I assumed you had already been informed."

Raiden’s eyes shifted to Alora as she put on a nonchalant smile. "I wanted to give him a surprise visit... we could have caught him red-handed if he were a traitor."

Raiden stared fiercely into her eyes. From their first encounter, he’d known she would be trouble, but he hadn’t expected her to treat such important matters so carelessly.

But he knew it wasn’t worth dwelling on someone like her; she was nothing but trouble. He sighed, and his expression softened.

"Do you want to come in?"

"No, son," King Hannes said, and Raiden’s eyebrow shot up in surprise.

Ever since his father’s death, when Hannes had stepped into a paternal role, he’d used that term, but hearing it now made Raiden unexpectedly uncomfortable.

"Captain Kai recently passed away, and we suspect it was the assassins’ doing."

Raiden felt a surge of pride for Leo’s success in killing Captain Kai, allowing himself a brief internal smile, but his expression quickly darkened. If Leo had completed his mission, why hadn’t he returned?

"This remains a secret among a select few within this kingdom because we didn’t want to cause panic, but the assassins are waging war on the Kingdom of Aurelia."

He paused for a moment. "I suspect it’s all a ruse so they can turn their attention to us. That’s why they’re eliminating our strongest soldiers like Captain Kai."

Raiden had the same realization, but it was such an obvious strategy that even a child could figure it out. Something felt off about the entire war, but since his only responsibility was protecting his book, he didn’t particularly care.

"Well, we can’t be certain, but we must remain cautious." He gestured toward the knights behind him. "These knights will establish a camp here and stay until the war ends."

Raiden gave him a firm nod.

"As will Alora and June."

They both started walking toward them, cocky smiles plastered on their faces. But that only made Raiden smile inwardly—they had no clue he was already living with some of the most dangerous people alive.

"The knights are yours to command," Hannes said with a smile.

Raiden stayed silent for a moment, looking uncertain. He had no experience commanding an army and knew this would be challenging.

In an instant, the four elders stepped to the left, arranged themselves in a circle, and began chanting incantations. Soon, a glowing magic circle materialized on the ground.

"I will be leaving now..." He approached Raiden and drew him into a brief embrace, patting his shoulder. "You are growing stronger, son. Keep it up."

A sudden wave of familiarity washed over Raiden, making his body twitch involuntarily as he watched King Hannes step into the teleportation circle and vanish.

Raiden stood frozen for quite a while, his mind spinning as he touched his shoulder. That embrace felt familiar. When he searched through his memories, he had hugged King Hannes countless times, but this... this was different.

He stood motionless for a moment before sighing. He was probably overthinking things since he didn’t trust anyone from the palace, so he pushed the feeling aside. But even so, a fragment of unease lingered.

He faced the knights standing before him, waiting for his orders, and a subtle smile played on his lips. He had no desire to command them directly, so he would simply demonstrate his authority and delegate them to someone else.

He took a deep breath. "I know some of you are honored to be here serving the bookkeeper, while others see me as nothing more than a child."

He stepped closer, hands in his pockets. "Whatever you think, you’re right... I mean, you’re entitled to your opinions."

His face hardened into something arctic, eyes sharpening to daggers that made the knights shuffle nervously, their hushed voices betraying their discomfort. "Here, I hold authority."

His commanding tone cut through the air, extinguishing the soft chuckles and murmurs in an instant. "And the last thing any of you want to do is cross me."

The menace in his voice deepened, turning deadly. "Disrespect me, and it will be the last mistake you ever make."

A sudden shift crossed his features as he smiled, the expression more chilling than reassuring. "Trust me, I will get away with it."

The moment the words left his lips, it seemed the knights were determined to test his limits. One of them let out a stifled giggle from within the group, but his luck had run out—Raiden pinpointed exactly where the sound originated.

Raiden raised an eyebrow as a devilish smile curved his lips. He moved with calculated calm through the crowd, and the moment he reached his target, his hand shot out to seize the knight by his armor’s collar.

When he moved to drag the man forward, the knight proved foolishly stubborn—struggling against Raiden’s grip, thrashing in a desperate attempt to break free. The resistance only served to fuel Raiden’s irritation further.

Without bothering to look at him, Raiden drove his fist into the knight’s chest with devastating force. The impact tore through armor and flesh alike, the sound of shattering metal ringing out across the distance.

Terror gripped the remaining knights as they watched their comrade cough up blood and collapse to the ground.

"In this place, we live in constant warfare. You cannot predict when an attack will come, or from whom." Without bothering to confirm whether the knight still breathed, he walked back to address the others.

"To make it out of this place alive, we must rely on each other. I need you, and you need me... but disrespect? That will only ensure your death."

He turned back and motioned for Freya to come forward.

"I won’t tolerate any more incidents like this." As Freya reached his side, he gestured toward her. "This is Freya—you will call her Commander Freya."

"She will be the one giving you orders, but don’t expect any mercy from her either."

The knights remained frozen in place as blood seeped from the crumpled figure’s chest and lips, forming a growing puddle on the ground.

"I’ll handle them from here," Freya said quietly. "Am I allowed to kill them as well?"

With a smile and an indifferent shrug, Raiden started walking back to the others. As he closed the distance, Alora fixed him with a smile that was clearly forced.

"So you kill your own people without a second thought." Raiden brushed past her without so much as a glance. "Tell me, your apprentice Leo... he was the one who killed Captain Kai, correct?"

Raiden froze mid-step, still avoiding her gaze, as Alora walked past him with deliberate calm.

"He’s a prisoner of the Dawnbringers, and frankly, I doubt he’s still breathing."

Raiden felt a jolt of surprise, instantly recognizing the urgency of the situation. He turned toward Levi, who had been listening intently, and delivered a firm nod. Levi’s arrogant grin told him everything he needed to know.

For a moment, Raiden stood motionless, torn between conflicting thoughts. Leo’s predicament barely registered—though he was the sole comrade Raiden could depend on.

What truly unsettled him were these recent disturbances: vivid dreams that vanished from memory, and this strange, nagging familiarity surrounding King Hannes.

What was this feeling?

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