Chapter 9

Chapter 9

"Young Master, how are you feeling?"

"I'm feeling great. Thanks to you, Cecil."

"That's a relief."

Cecil smiled.

Just as I said, my physical condition now was better than ever. Of course, compared to ordinary people, I still fell short in many ways, but even so, I was more than satisfied.

‘Yeah. At this level…….’

It had been worth enduring that horrific time.

A time like hell.

No, even hell probably wouldn’t be that painful.

But in the end, I had endured it.

Having finally gained a new opportunity, this much was the least I could do.

【You already know this, but don’t let your guard down. I’ve seen countless humans so far, and no matter how strong they were, they ended up dying in vain because they overestimated their own strength. Often to someone much weaker than themselves.】

Yeah.

I know.

Arrogance was the most dangerous thing of all.

Don’t worry.

I was fully aware that I was weaker than anyone right now.

【Good. That’s enough. Whatever happens, since you’re the one who now possesses me, I won’t let you die in vain.】

"Young Master, shall we go?"

"Yeah."

I left the annex with Cecil and headed for the training grounds.

It was the first time in ten whole years.

---

From the entrance of the training grounds, countless gazes greeted me.

“So the rumor about the youngest son applying for the ranking match was true? My word... What could someone who can’t even move his legs possibly be thinking, pulling something like this?”

“I know, right? I heard a rumor that the youngest master made a deal with a demon and learned black magic… Could it actually be true?”

“He sold his soul to a demon and regained use of his body? Even so, there’s no way he can beat Young Master Ron Winterbell! We’re talking about that Ran Winterbell! The disgrace of the Winterbell Family! The exile of the annex! That coward, of all people…”

“Exactly. Even if he really did learn black magic, there’s no way the youngest master could win a ranking match. I don’t get it. Why would he do something like this?”

“You seriously think he sold his soul to a demon? Come on. You know what the Head is like. If he did something like that, dying peacefully wouldn’t even be an option. And if he had, the Head would’ve already known. There’s nothing in this mansion that doesn’t reach his ears.”

“…That’s true.”

The servants on Ron Winterbell’s side whispered among themselves, glancing around nervously.

“Puhahaha! Is he seriously planning to compete in a ranking match looking like that? That’s basically asking someone else to kill him for him, isn’t it? I can’t believe that coward carries the Winterbell blood!”

“…Sis, you’re being too loud.”

“So what? I want him to hear! Go get ‘em, baby brother!”

“……”

It seemed Lin Winterbell and Marian Winterbell had come after hearing the rumors, and they were making a loud fuss.

And far off in the distance, Lux Winterbell was watching me. He mouthed the words:

“You’ve stirred up something amusing, little brother. I’m looking forward to what you’ll show us.”

Ignoring all the gazes directed at me, I sat in the wheelchair Cecil was pushing and arrived at the training ground.

My eyes met Ron Winterbell’s, who stood across from me.

Perhaps he had done some kind of mental training—he looked far more composed than usual.

‘So he hasn’t just been fooling around for the past month.’

Naturally, the head of the house, Arkan Winterbell, was nowhere to be seen.

He must have been informed that Ron Winterbell and I would be holding a ranking match, but there was no way someone like him would bother to drag his heavy self here over something so trivial.

‘As for the overseer…’

Step. Step.

“I suppose I’ll be the one overseeing this ranking match. That alright with everyone?”

‘So it’s Lux Winterbell after all. Well, he is the most fitting choice.’

The purpose of the overseer was to act as both witness and referee.

Of course, no one within the Winterbell Family would dare try to manipulate the results of a duel, but unforeseen variables always existed—hence the need for an overseer.

Traditionally, the overseer was someone of higher rank than the two participants.

And since this was a ranking match between direct blood relatives, it made the most sense for another direct family member to act as overseer.

“Are both sides ready?”

Ron Winterbell, who had been watching me from afar, gave a nod. Lux Winterbell turned his gaze to me. I also nodded in response.

I could feel many eyes fixed on me.

They were probably curious.

How someone in a wheelchair was going to fight in a ranking match.

Whether I had truly sold my soul to a demon to heal my legs.

Or perhaps, if I simply didn’t have the courage to end my own life, and so wanted one of my siblings to do it for me.

“Young Master, I’ll be waiting.”

“Thanks, Cecil.”

But all of them were wrong.

I had come here to prove myself.

Finally, Cecil and Lux Winterbell descended from the platform.

Now, only Ron Winterbell and I stood upon the training grounds.

“You still haven’t let go of that damned wheelchair? I really don’t get it. Why on earth would you choose this place as your grave? Even if your body were in perfect condition, you’d never be able to defeat me—so what kind of delusion brought you here today?”

The guy who hadn’t spoken a word until now suddenly opened his mouth.

Judging by his expression, he really did seem unable to understand my actions.

It was the kind of thing someone would say only if they were utterly convinced of their victory.

“Everyone seems to think I came here to die.”

“No one here believes you can defeat me.”

“Well, you never know until you try, do you? Brother. I’m going to become the head of this house.”

“……”

The moment I said that, the crowd went completely silent.

The mood chilled like a bucket of cold water had been poured over it.

“Pfft! Hey, did you hear that? Our dear little brother says he’s going to become the head! Puhahaha! A guy who can’t even take care of his own body wants to become the King of the North? That’s absolutely hilarious.”

Lin Winterbell didn’t even try to hide her laughter as she burst out loud.

“What’s with him? Has he gone crazy or something from being locked up in the annex for so long?”

“S-Sir Maxim! Regardless, how could you say that about someone who carries the blood of the Head?”

“Why not? It’s already an open secret in the family that he’s been treated like he was thrown away. Honestly, even if the Head himself found out I said this, nothing would change.”

“T-That… might be true, but still…”

“Still what? Why should I acknowledge a man who carries the great Winterbell blood but tucked his tail and ran away in fear, without an ounce of pride? As a knight of Winterbell, I’ll be honest—I find the youngest master’s very existence disgraceful. Just the fact that he’s alive and breathing feels like it stains my honor.”

“…Is… is it really that bad? I suppose I can see why you’d feel that way, Sir Maxim. I just think the young master is a little pitiful… but yeah, me saying that won’t change anything either. In a body like that, unable to move his legs, he couldn’t possibly survive in this place.”

“Exactly. Even if the sky falls, Young Master Ron won’t lose.”

Among the bodily enhancements granted by the Basilisk Blood was heightened hearing. So, as long as I focused, even the whispers of knights and servants were easy to pick up.

And in turn, I could all the more vividly sense how they truly saw me.

Most held pessimistic views.

But I couldn’t say their thoughts were unreasonable.

From their perspective, it made sense.

They were working with limited information.

A tightly controlled flow of facts blinds the eye to the truth.

Why I ended up in this condition…

Why I had once withdrawn from the ranking wars…

None of that mattered to them anymore.

To them, I was just a coward, a cripple, the shame of the family.

That’s why—rather than blaming the ignorant—I had to prove myself here and now, shattering the prejudice they clung to.

And then, claim power and open their blinded eyes to the truth.

To do that, first...

“Let’s begin.”

“You lunatic.”

I had to destroy him.

Lux Winterbell gave me a quick glance, then called out in a sharp, serious tone. His mana-infused voice rang through the arena.

“Now then, I declare the start of the ranking match between Ron Winterbell and Ran Winterbell.”

At the sound of his voice, I slowly rose from the wheelchair.

Then, I took a step forward.

Step.

All eyes in the arena turned to me.

Even without looking, I could feel it.

Their expressions—wide-eyed as if they’d just seen a dead man rise.

Then came a second step.

Step.

The movement was so natural that the hall, which had been loud and chaotic only moments ago, now hung in a heavy silence.

“…So that’s what you were relying on. You fixed those crippled legs? You're walking without using mana, huh? What the hell did you do?”

Ron Winterbell tried to maintain his composure, but the surprise on his face was clear.

And it wasn’t just him. Everyone watching me wore the same expression of disbelief.

“Marian, look at that guy. He’s walking on his own two legs, right? And it doesn’t look like he’s using mana this time either. I’m not seeing things, am I? Huh?”

“I think you’re right, Sis. I don’t see any signs of mana movement either.”

“Ha… what the hell. What the hell is going on? How is that bastard walking just fine like that?”

“…I don’t know. According to the doctor at the time of the accident, Ran’s lower body was supposed to be completely immobile—unless a miracle happened.”

“Well, he’s walking just fine in front of us now. So that must mean the miracle happened.”

“……”

“Persistent bastard.”

Just as they suspected, I wasn’t using mana to move my body—I was walking entirely with the strength of my own two legs.

However, there was something they didn’t know: I could only move for a maximum of thirty minutes.

In other words, at present, I could walk or stand no more than thirty minutes a day.

The fact that a body once doomed to permanent paralysis had come this far was an immense improvement in itself…

But it was still utterly inadequate for a real fight.

If my opponent simply stalled and avoided battle for thirty minutes, then my defeat would be a foregone conclusion.

No matter how powerful the sword may be, it’s useless in the hands of a cripple who can’t move.

‘But you don’t know that, do you?’

Of course, I had no intention of telling them.

The Ran Winterbell of today wasn’t foolish enough to hand over his weaknesses.

‘Exactly thirty minutes. I’ll end this duel within that time.’

I drew the old sword from my waist and turned toward Ron Winterbell.

The moment his eyes fell on the worn blade with its broken edges, Ron’s face twisted like a demon’s. He must’ve thought I was mocking him.

“You think just because you can toddle around a bit now, you can defeat Ron Winterbell with that piece-of-trash sword!?”

Ron charged at me, his aura flaring with explosive force.

‘Behemoth, he just called you trash. You okay with that?’

【That bloodbag dares...】

“Partial enhancement.”

Mana surged into both my arms, swirling in the air around me.

“Stack.”

With my magically enhanced strength roaring to life, I lunged and thrust my sword toward Ron Winterbell, who had already closed the distance in a flash.

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