Chapter 15: Second Round - 5
Chapter 15: Second Round - 5
The next afternoon.
Jiha left the barracks.
The gate guard, a Normal Grade man, questioned him in a disrespectful tone.
"Halt. Where are you going?"
"Do I have to report to you too?"
"......."
As Jiha copped an attitude, the soldier's face twisted with irritation.
Commons were the absolute lowest rung of society, but since summoning them from other worlds consumed resources, they couldn't be handled carelessly. Even Enril, a Unique Grade, couldn't do whatever she wanted with Jiha's life, so a mere Normal Grade couldn't even touch him.
"Your exit permit?"
"Don't have one."
The soldier looked at him like he was crazy. A Common leaving the base without an exit permit was a violation of regulations. It was grounds for desertion and summary execution.
But Jiha was unabashed.
"I'm on my way to see my supervisor, Enril. She called for me. Do I need to explain further?"
"In principle, without an exit permit, passage is......."
"I said Enril called for me. If that bitch gets pissed and throws a fit, are you going to take responsibility?"
"......."
The soldier's face hardened at Jiha's words. If a Unique Grade like Enril made up her mind, a Normal Grade was nothing more than a candle before the wind.
"If Enril shows up looking for me, should I tell her you wouldn't let me through?"
"......."
"I clearly tried to leave."
As Jiha turned to leave, the soldier urgently shouted.
"P-Pass! You can pass!"
"If you were going to do that anyway, why put up a fuss?"
Jiha crossed the barracks gate with a cynical smirk.
Having secured his freedom, Jiha walked at a leisurely pace.
The claim that Enril had called for him was naturally a lie, and if it were exposed, a heavy sentence would be handed down to Jiha. On top of that, today was a day Jiha was supposed to participate in the Summoning War. He'd submitted a medical certificate, but whether it was properly approved was ambiguous. If things went badly, he could even face a disciplinary ruling.
"Now, then......."
But Jiha had calculated everything.
Having freely left the barracks, Jiha headed straight for Enril's residence.
He knocked on the door of the grand mansion—far too large for one person to live in alone—and a voice answered from within.
"Who is it?"
A calm voice. A woman in a maid's uniform came out and asked.
'......Isn't she a dog?'
Jiha's gaze moved toward the woman's head. A strikingly beautiful woman with a composed air, her shoulder-length hair falling neatly. At first glance she appeared human, but dog ears perched on her head.
'A beastman, huh.......'
One of the many species in Warsland.
Her attitude was polite but guarded, poised to use force if necessary.
"Are you Rare Grade?"
"Those in close service to a Unique are treated separately as a Super Rare."
"Is that so? I remember it being Rare, then Unique as the next rank."
"A Super Rare is a temporary grade appointed by a Unique Grade. If the appointing Unique steps down for various reasons or other circumstances arise, they can be demoted back to Rare Grade."
As the beastman woman gave her dispassionate explanation, Jiha stated his business.
"I'm here to see Enril."
"So you are a guest who has come to find my mistress. Whom shall I say is calling?"
She was being respectful even though she surely knew he was Common Grade. It seemed less about respecting Jiha personally and more just her default manner toward everyone.
"Looks like she's home. Show me in."
"......."
When the woman stood still, Jiha repeated himself.
"Do I have to say it twice? Lead the way."
"Understood. This way."
The woman replied without any fuss and took the lead.
Jiha followed her into the house. Starting with a lounge laid with a red carpet, lavish interior decorations welcomed him. It wasn't his first time here, but it was still dizzying.
As he walked along, admiring the corridor, he looked straight ahead and gave a start. A plush tail poked out from the woman's maid uniform. A slightly upturned dog tail. Jiha spoke to the woman guiding him in silence.
"Are you Enril's handmaiden?"
"I am the young lady's maid."
"......."
Wasn't that the same thing?
But it was surprising that Enril, whose hobby seemed to be killing people, kept a servant. Though naturally she'd need help maintaining a mansion this size.
As Jiha was lost in thought, the maid stopped and knocked on a door.
"Mistress, a guest has arrived."
"Enter."
A cold voice. It was Enril's voice, one he hadn't heard in a while.
The maid opened the door, and Jiha stepped inside.
Sitting alone on a large sofa reviewing documents, Enril looked up at the entering Jiha and her eyes flew wide open. Her shock was brief; soon a look of revulsion filled her face, as if she'd just laid eyes on an insect.
"How dare you......."
"Is he an uninvited guest?" The maid who had guided him asked coolly. "Shall I kill him?"
"......."
When Jiha glanced back, a dagger the size of a man's forearm had appeared in the maid's hand before he'd even noticed. Her expression remained as composed as ever. She had the air of someone about to start cooking, but the subject at hand was Jiha's life.
Enril seemed to hesitate for a moment, then sighed.
"......No, leave us."
"Understood. Shall I serve him anything?"
"Not worth it."
Enril spat out the words as she fixed Jiha with a murderous glare. The maid bowed her head and then withdrew. She left without a single footstep, and closed the door without a single sound.
A quiet stillness fell. As Enril glared daggers at him, Jiha smirked and seated himself across from her.
Sitting with his legs leisurely crossed, Jiha raised both hands.
"You've got a face that screams you want to kill someone."
"......How did you get out of the barracks?"
Enril might be his supervisor, but that link was strictly one-way. Without Enril's permission, Jiha couldn't even step outside.
"I bullshitted them by saying you called for me. Got a free pass. Does everyone just know you've got a shit personality?"
"You crazy bastard......."
At the news that Jiha had freely misused her name, Enril looked dumbfounded before her fury finally erupted. Seeing her suddenly snatch up the sword she'd set aside next to her, Jiha tensed inwardly. Even if his face stayed smirk-laden, he couldn't let his guard down. Depending on how the conversation went, Enril could try to kill him. The odds were about fifty-fifty.
'......If I bite her, I win, though.'
If he just bit her, the same thing as last time would unfold, and Enril would be left helpless against whatever Jiha did.
But even after drawing her sword, Enril didn't swing it.
Before they'd ever tangled bodies, Jiha's head would have already been sent flying, and then some. She had learned firsthand that Jiha possessed a Special Ability, so Enril, too, was acting with caution.
"Your arm must be sore. Put the sword down."
"......."
"If you don't want to, just keep holding it while you listen."
Sinking deep into the sofa, Jiha placed his clasped hands atop his knee. As Jiha acted with such infuriating ease, a complicated expression played across Enril's face before she lowered her sword. Exactly as Jiha had calculated. Having been dealt a harsh blow before, Enril was acting prudently.
"......What the hell are you thinking?"
Even putting aside her personal feelings, she couldn't understand why he'd act this recklessly, no matter what hidden ability he might possess.
"Aren't you scheduled to participate in the Summoning War soon? And yet, unauthorized departure from the barracks? If I make this an official problem, you wouldn't have enough necks to pay with, even if you had ten."
"It isn't an unauthorized departure, though?" Jiha shot back cynically. "I came here because you called for me. I'm injured enough that I have to be pulled from the Summoning War, and you called me all the way to your house to confirm it yourself because coming to me was too much trouble. I clearly submitted the medical certificate yesterday, but you dragged your feet and only got to it today."
Jiha tapped his bandaged head with a thump-thump. It had already healed completely, but it was just for show.
"You claim you'll skip the Summoning War with an injury that minor? What an overreaction!"
"Are you crazy? Fight every single day?" Jiha snapped back irritably. "Not even the ROK Army runs people this hard. You're openly showing me your true colors—to just fight and die—am I a fucking moron?"
"......."
At Jiha's point, Enril hesitated briefly. It seemed even she felt a twinge of conscience over how unreasonably she'd worked Jiha.
"I won't accept malingering. It's me who sets your fight schedule."
"Cut the bullshit. I'm pulling out of the rotation to rest for the time being. Process it fast."
"......."
"There's what, an hour left? You must be scrambling to fill that rotation slot on short notice."
Enril looked utterly flabbergasted.
"What are you so confident about to throw your weight around like this? What makes you so sure I'll go along with what you say?"
Then Enril sneered coldly.
"I've heard the rumors too. I don't know the details, but it seems you've gotten your hands on some Mana somehow. But that's a paltry power, Rare Grade at best. You think that's enough to beat me?"
"I'm a celebrity now, you know......."
Jiha, hands still clasped, lowered his voice.
"The first Common to ever gain Mana. Everyone's dying of curiosity about how that's even possible."
"......."
"If someone like me suddenly dies, there'll be a massive investigation into the circumstances, won't there? If they investigate who did it and what their twisted motive was, all sorts of things would come to light."
"You little......."
"Even things that only two people knew about."
At Jiha's words, Enril bit her lower lip.
As long as Jiha was in the public eye, it was impossible for Enril to secretly ambush and kill him. That blocked the unofficial route.
"And what? Put me back into the Summoning War? If I, an unprecedented Common, get worked to death under a brutal schedule, who takes the blame for that?"
"......."
"I clearly submitted a medical certificate saying I'd sustained a head injury and needed rest, didn't I? So which idiot stubbornly forced me back into battle and caused a major incident? Their personnel evaluation would be torn to shreds, wouldn't it?"
Enril's face flushed red, then paled, but she couldn't retort.
Jiha had come to meet Enril after laying traps upon traps.
"So, even so, should I still participate in the Summoning War today?"
"......."
Enril bit her lower lip furiously.
From her perspective, she wanted nothing more than to kill Jiha somehow, but the circumstances wouldn't allow it. Jiha leisurely savored the sight of the dark elf gnashing her teeth. Watching a cold-hearted, peerless beauty suppress her rage while practically seething was a sight worth seeing. Even more so when that woman had openly disdained him from start to finish.
Jiha chuckled softly.
"Now you understand the situation, right? Right down to the fact that you have to do every single thing I say?"
"Even if I can't kill you, that doesn't mean I have any reason to follow your prattling."
Just as Enril snapped back defiantly, a knock came at the door from outside.
"Mistress, another guest has arrived. They are Rare Grade."
"What?"
"How shall I handle it?"
"They timed that perfectly," Jiha said.
At the tone suggesting Jiha was the one who'd summoned them, Enril furrowed her brow.
"Suddenly your tongue is threatening to run loose. The haughty Dark Elf, in truth, acts adorable and coquettish at night and......."
"Stop!"
Enril shouted, almost a scream. Jiha called out toward the door.
"Tell them to wait."
"......."
As the coldly beautiful woman sent him a glare sharp as a blade, Jiha smiled at his leisure.
"Even with a Unique Grade, you can't just kill a Rare without consequences, right? And rumor spreads like wildfire among women."
If Jiha were to let slip even a word about his bedroom affairs with Enril to a Rare Grade woman, it would become unstoppable. She'd rather commit suicide than let rumors spread that she'd bedded a lowly human. But she couldn't touch Jiha.
Enril now had no choice but to do as Jiha said.
"......F-Fine. I'll take care of it."
"What's that? Can't quite hear you."
"......."
Enril glared at him as if she wanted to kill him. In her mind, Jiha must have died a hundred times over.
"Say it properly. So that a lowly Common man like me can fully understand. What should a high-and-mighty Unique Grade Dark Elf like Miss Enril Woniak do now?"
"......I'll acknowledge that you'll be absent from the Summoning War for the time being due to injury. I'll alter today's rotation."
Spitting the words out, Enril let out a weary sigh.
"Does that settle it?"
Having admitted defeat, Enril looked utterly exhausted.
But Jiha had no intention of ending things with just this.
"The negotiation's only starting, so who gave you the right to decide it's over?"
"Enough, Common. I've been putting up with a lot right now."
When Enril turned dead serious, Jiha let out a scoff.
"While you're at it, put up with a little more. People have to learn to endure. You can't just go through life doing whatever you want, whenever you want. Have you only been in society for a day or two?"
"......."
Enril's face burned bright red with rage. But with Jiha already having intricately woven the situation, there was nothing she could do.
"......What is it you want?"
Enril loosened the grip on her sword. For Enril, who had lived by the logic of power and despised weak men, a situation like this was a first.
At her virtual declaration of surrender, Jiha smiled calmly.
The venomous leopard had finally been pacified.
Now it was time to take what he wanted.