Chapter 75 : Chapter 75

Chapter 75. Still Can't Get a Feel for It (2)

Originally, Red had opened a tavern and advanced into the capital at Patrick's request.

Patrick, who knew well the importance of information gathering, wanted to keep Red by his side and grasp what was happening back home even while in the capital.

And if something really big happened, he would ditch the Academy and everything else and run straight there.

“First, the latest information.”

“Tell me.”

“It is said that a ridiculous scoundrel has appeared in the Knight Faculty of the Academy.”

“Really?”

“Yes. As soon as he appeared, he is said to have thrown a 2-dan flying kick at the son of Marquis Panola, who was training diligently.”

“……”

“Furthermore, he is said to have beaten up the third son of the Marquis Panola family and his friends. The scene of the assault was so brutal and wicked that those who saw it were said to have shuddered.”

“……”

“If such a violent scoundrel were to become a knight, he would surely bring misfortune and tragedy to the entire continent…. Woah woah. Let's calm down. Calm down.”

“Hehehe. Calm down? Good. How about you calm down and take a beating.”

“Next is the news from the Schneider fiefdom in the East.”

Before Patrick's fist could move, Red's tongue moved first.

“It is said that the number of nobles in the East who wish to foster friendship with Baron Schneider has increased.”

“…Why?”

“It's obvious. Didn't you openly show off the skills of your soldiers in the previous subjugation?”

“Aaaah…. Right.”

It made sense at once.

Originally, the Baron Schneider family was a minor family even in the barren East.

But the moment it was revealed that the family had raised 200 aura swordsmen, there was no idiot who would treat this family as a minor one anymore.

At this point, they were not just soldiers, but it was as if they had several knightly orders, wasn't it?

“If you live next to the strong, getting close is the best way.”

“That's true. So what's my father's response?”

“The Baron is just laughing heartily, saying it's good.”

“Ugh…. He shouldn't just do that.”

If things went wrong, his father's pushover nature could be used as a weakness by the surrounding nobles.

“The fortunate thing is that the Baroness is complementing him well.”

“My mother?”

“Yes. She has suddenly become a celebrity among the noble ladies of the East.”

“How did my mother?”

Ava was a baroness of commoner origin.

Normally, she should be shunned by the nobles.

But with Red's following words, everything made sense.

“Well, the lady's beauty is quite…”

“Aaaah. Right. That's right.”

It made sense at once.

Until now, Ava had been carefully hidden within the fiefdom and had not engaged in external activities.

But if she started to engage in external activities, the situation would change.

A woman's beauty is a powerful weapon even in diplomacy.

If she were a maiden, it could be a cause for conflict, but the position of a beautiful noble lady was very different.

Furthermore, she was also wise.

She was building friendships with the nobles of the East, maintaining an appropriate line depending on the opponent's purpose and status.

When Patrick returned to his hometown, the Baron Schneider family, which had been treated as an outcast at banquets, would be gone.

“I didn't think my mother would step up, though.”

“Hmph, a woman's beauty is a powerful weapon. Is there any reason not to use it?”

Saying so, Red flicked his hair to the side and put on a haughty expression.

Looking at that….

“It's pissing me off.”

“Yes?”

“Enough of that, if my mother has stepped up, then I can be at ease to some extent.”

“I think so too. She's a very sharp person.”

“Of course. She's my mother.”

As Patrick puffed out his shoulders and boasted, Red smirked.

What a strange person.

Red was the master of the Thieves' Guild.

The environment he grew up in was harsh, and he had seen all sorts of people.

But he had never met a person like Patrick.

Usually, he was just a scumbag with a broken personality, but sometimes he would show the proficiency of a veteran mercenary with accumulated experience, and at times like this, he seemed like a child who had not yet had his coming-of-age ceremony.

Watching Patrick, who showed various faces from moment to moment, was certainly not boring.

Where would this person go?

What would he accomplish? He wanted to see it to the end.

That's why he had accepted Patrick's request and even personally opened a tavern in the capital and came up.

“How are the guys? Are they slacking off in their training just because I'm not there?”

“I heard they're groaning as if they're dying.”

At those words, Patrick's expression crumpled.

“Those lazy bums.”

“Yes?”

To Red, who was asking what he meant, Patrick said with a frown.

“It means they still have the energy to groan, right?”

“……”

“If you train properly, you shouldn't be able to lift a finger other than breathing. But to leave them with energy.”

“Ha…. Haha…”

“Tsk, Sanson is too soft. If it were me, I'd just…. You know, right? I even gave you some special attention.”

“How could I forget!”

Red recalled the past few years with a nauseated expression.

A few times a year, Patrick would call him to train him and put him through the wringer.

When he asked why he had to do this, he would say that he was too weak and might die, so they should just do some minimal training, but…

‘I should have known what this bastard's ‘minimal’ meant.’

He really thought he was going to die.

Not kidding, he really did.

It was amazing that he didn't die when he thought he would, and it was even more amazing that the torture disguised as training was effective.

As a result, thanks to Patrick's guidance, Red reached the 4-star realm.

But he said he wasn't grateful at all.

Patrick said, as if it had just occurred to him.

“Are you still 4-star?”

“Yes. Well…”

“Tsk tsk, so weak.”

“……”

“Should I give you another look? You should be at least 6-star to live without getting beaten up somewhere. Right?”

At Patrick's words, Red gritted his teeth and said.

Geudeudeuk.

“4-star is enough.”

“Eh, you'll get beaten up with that.”

“Is 4-star some neighborhood thug?”

“It's true. Even a 4-star can get beaten up. Want me to show you?”

“If you're the opponent, I'll get beaten up even if I get stronger than I am now, won't I?”

“Tsk, he's not taking the bait.”

Seeing Patrick's disappointed expression for not being able to beat him up, Red gritted his teeth.

What kind of human personality is this?

You be the thief. I'll be the knight.

“Ahem, can you just raise your realm like that in the first place? It needs time and maturation. Does everyone get stronger just because you take them in hand?”

“No. If you do it, you can do it. I recently raised someone to 7-star.”

“You're lyi…”

“Wow, look at this bastard not believing me.”

“You have to believe someone who's believable.”

Although Patrick had nonchalantly leaked a top-secret piece of information, Red couldn't catch it.

‘Well, it's his own luck.’

And so, Patrick heard some information about his hometown from Red, decided on a contact method for their next meeting, and then left after drinking a lot of alcohol.

What a leisurely life for someone in detention.

* * *

“Ugh…. uuu…”

A man was cowering in the corner of his room, with a blanket pulled over his head, trembling.

It was Roist Panola, who had recently tried to retaliate against Patrick and was instead shattered.

In fact, the wounds on his body had already healed.

Although Patrick had carefully shattered both his arms, in this world, there was such a thing as holy power, and if you paid for it, it would heal you completely.

So, in terms of physical trauma, almost perfect healing was possible. But….

“Ugh…. uwaaaaaaaah!”

The mental problem was a separate issue.

The fear that Patrick had engraved in Roist's mind had taken deep root.

That absolute fear.

The misery of being violated by an overwhelming being.

It was something Roist, who had grown up pampered as the son of a prestigious noble family, had never experienced before.

A hothouse flower had gone outside for the first time and was hit by a cold, sharp wind.

Even if you hurriedly move it back to the hothouse, the cold has already seeped through the stem to the roots. Can it go back to how it was before?

Absolutely impossible.

If he could overcome it, he wouldn't have been a hothouse flower in the first place.

Roist was broken.

He couldn't take a single step out of his room, just stayed cooped up, occasionally screaming and throwing tantrums.

He probably wouldn't be able to return to the Academy even after his detention period was over.

* * *

“Who is it?”

A blond man with a distinguished mustache gritted his teeth and said.

Although he was past middle age and approaching old age, his muscles, which seemed to be tearing through his clothes, defied his age.

This man was none other than Marquis Antonio Panola, one of the top knights and powerful figures in the kingdom.

A 6-star knight.

The captain of the Royal Knights.

The head of the Marquis Panola family.

He, one of the most powerful figures in the Kingdom of Atronia, was now furious to the point of his hair standing on end.

How could he not be, when his youngest son had been broken into such a state?

To him, the butler of the Panola family approached and laid out the information he had gathered beforehand.

“He is a student who entered the 1st grade mid-term. His name is Patrick Schneider, the son of a baron, and he is from the East.”

“Mid-term admission?”

“Yes. It is said that he was admitted on the recommendation of the Eastern Margrave, Count Parmas.”

“So that punk did that to my son?”

“Yes. That is correct.”

“The Academy's internal response?”

“It seems they plan to conclude it as a mutual detention. We tried to put pressure on the professors who are influenced by the family, but…”

“Hmph, it's obvious that Leyte would have opposed it.”

“……”

The butler silently bowed his head.

His master, Marquis Panola, and Professor Leyte of the Academy were famous rivals in the kingdom.

“As long as that punk opposes it, it will be impossible to deal with that brat through the Academy's punishment.”

“Yes. That is correct.”

No matter how powerful Marquis Panola was, there was a limit to the influence he could exert within the Academy.

In that case, it meant he had to wait until Patrick graduated from the Academy…

‘That's not happening.’

For the impatient Marquis Panola, that was an impossible option. So he chose another method.

“Where is Zordic now?”

“He happens to be staying at home.”

“Good. Bring him here immediately.”

“Yes. My lord.”

And after a while, the butler brought a young man.

Blond hair, a square face, and a muscular body.

This young man, who was clearly the son of Marquis Panola, was named Zordic Panola.

He was the second son of the Marquis Panola family and a student in the 3rd grade of the Academy.

“I heard you called for me. Father.”

“Yes. Have you heard about your younger brother?”

“Yes. I know.”

“So you know, but you didn't care.”

“He was beaten because he was weak, why should I care?”

At his second son's somewhat arrogant words, Marquis Panola smirked.

‘Right. This is how a man of the Panola family should be.’

Marquis Panola had three sons, but among them, he cherished the second the most.

The first was frail like his wife and could not live as a knight.

Fortunately, the second and third had some talent, but among them, the second was more like him in many ways.

Arrogance, confidence, and even tenacity.

“Your thoughts have a point, but if you want to lead the family, you must be able to take care of not only yourself but also your blood relatives.”

“Hmm…”

“If that punk is left alone after your younger brother has become like that, what will the world think of the Marquis Panola family?”

“They might see us as a joke.”

“Exactly.”

“…I understand. In that case, I will take care of that 1st-grade brat.”

The confident and arrogant words of his second son were very reassuring. But….

“What is your current realm?”

“I am on the verge of 4-star.”

“So you are still at 3-star.”

“……”

Displeasure appeared on Zordic's face.

In fact, at his age, being on the verge of 4-star was a great achievement.

Among the 3rd graders of the Academy, there was only one person who was above Zordic.

Marquis Panola looked at his son and said.

“I am not criticizing your talent. At your level, it would not be strange to be called a genius anywhere.”

“……”

“But that doesn't mean there aren't geniuses who are superior to you. As you know, your younger brother is at the same 3-star realm as you.”

“Are you saying you see me and Roist as being in the same realm?”

“Strictly speaking, yes.”

Of course, Marquis Panola knew that his second son was much stronger than his third.

Although his third son had reached the 3-star realm, that was only because he was able to barely draw out his aura due to the excellence of the family's secret Aura Blessing.

Comparing him to the second son, who was at the end of 3-star and looking at 4-star, was like seeing a wildcat and a leopard as the same feline creature.

There was a clear difference between the two. However….

“I heard that the 1st grader defeated your younger brother and more than a dozen other 1st graders combined.”

In fact, it wasn't just a defeat; it was a scene that should be called a one-sided assault.

But Marquis Panola did not know that part.

Anyway, in Marquis Panola's eyes, that 1st grader named Patrick Schneider was clearly stronger than his third son, and perhaps as strong as or even stronger than his second son.

He didn't think it was likely, but wasn't it an adult's habit to prepare for the one-in-a-million chance?

“Butler. Bring that.”

“Yes. My lord.”

Following Marquis Panola's words, the butler brought a luxurious wooden box.

“Father, this is?”

“Open it.”

When Zordic opened the box, there was a sword inside.

The hilt was embedded with a blue sapphire, and the blade was so sharp it seemed it would cut with just a touch. It was an item Zordic knew well.

“Father, this is?”

“Take it.”

“But Father, this…”

“I am not giving it to you to fight a 1st-grade brat. I am giving it to you to be yours from today.”

“Really?”

A clear smile appeared on Zordic's lips.

He was genuinely happy about this.

What Marquis Panola had just given him was one of the top artifacts in the Marquis Panola family.

The Ice Sword, Isis.

It was an ancient artifact with an ice spirit sealed within it, something that could not be made even if one tried now.

“Ha…. Hahahaha…”

Would a young boy who had received the toy he wanted most on his birthday have this expression?

Zordic held Isis in his hand and looked at it with an enraptured gaze.

“Do you like it?”

“Yes. Of course. Father.”

“Right. You know the reason why I am passing Isis down to you, don't you?”

“……?”

What reason is that?

Looking at his second son, who was sending him such a gaze, Marquis Panola sighed inwardly.

‘It's good that he's brave, but he's a bit slow…. No. This is boldness.’

Marquis Panola, who had tried to package his son in a positive light, said again.

“It means that you are the only one to inherit our family in the future.”

“Ah…”

“As you know, your older brother is frail. I was thinking that either you or your younger brother would have to inherit the family, but your younger brother is…”

Marquis Panola sighed.

It's okay to lose.

How can one live only winning?

He himself had reached this position after swallowing the bitter cup of defeat several times since his youth. But….

‘If he's going to break down after a single defeat, then his vessel was small from the start.’

Well, it was a thought he could have.

If he didn't know the full story of being caught by a guy who breaks all vessels, big or small, with equal fairness.

In the end, thanks to Patrick, Marquis Panola's intention was decided on the second son.

“If you want to inherit the family, you must be able to protect the family's honor and blood relatives. Can you prove that?”

“Yes. I will take care of that 1st-grade brat.”

“You must not attack him recklessly. I will first make some arrangements to create a natural opportunity, so take care of him there.”

“Yes. Father.”

And so, Marquis Panola gave the family's treasured sword to his second son and aimed the blade of revenge at Patrick.

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