Chapter 73
Chapter 73
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 73
Chapter Title: Hero's Training (4)
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The cycle of thirty days of extreme training followed by ten days of rest was what Azel considered the optimal regimen, but there was no need to stick to it rigidly. What mattered was the ratio, so when the overall period was short, he would sometimes do three days of extreme training followed by one day of rest.
Through this training, Azel stimulated every corner of his body. Not just bones and muscles, but his nerves and capillaries throughout his entire body... He stimulated every single cell to draw out movement. This allowed him to grasp his own body more precisely and bring it under his control.
At the same time, he infused mana force into the gaps created by this stimulation, expanding his spirit veins. As a result, mana force permeated every nook and cranny of his body, strengthening his flesh.
Even sustaining injuries and recovering from them was part of the process. An injured body behaved differently from normal, and Azel made use of even that phenomenon.
This was the essence of the body strengthening method that Riglen had passed down to Azel. Just as one dissects the fundamental structure of the mind to refine the spirit, it was the process of grasping and controlling every part of the body that one normally used without question.
‘Half a year... That’s plenty of time.’
He could never thank Kairen enough.
Suddenly, Azel asked,
“I have a question for you too, Hasban.”
“What is it?”
“About your grandfather. Duke Lugen Ardin, the Dragon Demon who fought alongside Azel Karzark.”
He had lied to Kairen about seeing Lugen’s portrait. The books Azel had read only briefly mentioned Lugen as one of the heroes of that era.
That was why he wanted to hear about him from his descendant. What kind of life Lugen had lived after the Dragon Emperor War ended...
“You never met him in person, right, Hasban?”
“No. He passed away long ago. Long before Sir Azel was even born...”
“Hahaha.”
Of course not. Azel gave a wry smile inwardly.
Hasban asked,
“How old do you think I am?”
“Hmm. Hard to say. I’d guess early sixties.”
Hasban looked surprised at those words.
“Impressive. You’re the first to guess correctly at first glance. Even Dragon Demons and Dragon Demon Hybrids get it wrong.”
“Dragon Demon Hybrid ages are definitely hard to gauge at a glance. I took a shot based on your position. No matter how capable, someone receiving head butler training around ten years ago would have to be about that age. But I didn’t think you were much older than early sixties.”
“Sir Azel, sometimes you don’t seem young at all. You have remarkable insight.”
Hasban chuckled softly and continued.
“My father told me that Grandfather lived over three hundred years, truly like a living history book. Not just Father, but all the elders in the family loved telling me stories about him when I was young, so I heard many.”
“For example?”
“Like the time after the Dragon Emperor War when he tried his hand at business and went completely bankrupt.”
“...Huh?”
Azel’s eyes went wide. Lugen was sharp with numbers, adept at calculating profits and losses, and highly efficient at managing military supplies. For such a man to fail in business?
Hasban said,
“Grandfather said that when he first started his business after the Dragon Emperor War, it felt like the whole world was his, but it turned out not to be... Due to the aftermath of the war, resentment toward Dragon Demons was widespread among people, and even though he had fought for humans, he couldn’t escape those gazes.”
“Oh...”
“And unlike managing an organization during the war, in business, sometimes you have to be ruthless, even demonic, toward trading partners, and that wasn’t easy... Plus, there were those who took advantage of Grandfather being a Dragon Demon and the public’s ill view of them, so in the end, he lost all his savings and ended up in debt. At that time, he said the world went dark before his eyes, and he hated humans so much he wanted to kill them all. Even though he had risked his life to protect them during the Dragon Emperor War, if another one broke out, he felt he could just as easily fight on the other side...”
“......”
Azel was at a loss for words, feeling a pang of sorrow. One would think a hero of the Dragon Emperor War would live prosperously afterward, but reality was far from kind. It was common for wartime heroes to fade into irrelevance in peacetime, and Lugen carried too many risk factors.
Hasban continued.
“But it was a human who saved him in the end. Even in those hard times, Grandmother stayed by his side without leaving... And the human friends he made during the war, the people who owed him favors, helped him get back on his feet. After that, he came to a realization.”
“What?”
“If you’re not prepared to become a demon, don’t dream of being a merchant.”
“That means... he couldn’t become a demon.”
“Yes. I agree. Once you’re in a position to run an organization, don’t you start seeing members not as individuals to empathize with, but as parts of the machine or mere numbers? If you can’t do that, stay away from business and find another path. Grandfather found his, entrusting the family business to his children to manage adequately. After Grandmother passed, he kept himself busy.”
“Busy?”
“Yes. He served as tutor to our Duke, and traveled the lands playing vigilante.”
“Vigilante?”
“That’s how Grandfather himself put it. Rather than hating humans for getting them into trouble, he preferred saving those in distress and hearing their thanks, so he made that his hobby. He was so active everywhere that you could hear stories about him in various places.”
“Hahaha.”
Azel couldn’t help but burst into laughter.
It was so very Lugen. The Lugen Azel knew was gifted at running organizations but was too soft-hearted. In a shortage of supplies, upon encountering a group of refugees, he had given his own rations to the children, saying he could starve for a while. How could such a man become a cold, demonic merchant?
‘He lived happily, Lugen.’
It was regrettable they couldn’t meet again, but knowing he had lived a good life was consolation enough. He was the comrade Azel trusted with his back in battle, the friend with whom he shared pointless talk over drinks... and the benefactor who had staked his life for Azel’s future at his master’s deathbed.
‘Don’t act like a kid, you human pup. A man like that entrusted his future to you. No matter how dirty it feels, live and become a hero. Otherwise, I’ll despise you.’
Azel remembered him breaking through a hail of arrows and magic spells, shielding him.
After that day, Azel often asked Hasban for stories about Lugen. To bury the Lugen in his memories as nostalgia, until he could recall that smile again.
6
Burein said wearily,
“The vessel’s shape is finally coming together, more or less.”
He had been devoted to forging the Dragon Sword for three months now.
The process of creating Dragon Demon Armaments was done entirely through magic. Even sculpting dragon bones into the desired weapon form was achieved not by a craftsman’s hands, but by magic.
Kairen said,
“It’s definitely smoother than the first time.”
“That was ages ago. Of course I’ve refined the process. Above all, having a Dragon Demon Armament as the creator makes the work far easier.”
“You have to pour in Dragon Demon power like water, right?”
Dragon Demon Armaments were imbued with Dragon Soul, allowing even humans to wield it. Thus, from the forging stage, Dragon Demons or Dragon Demon Hybrids had to infuse massive amounts of Dragon Soul.
The Dragon Sword for Azel was progressing smoothly, now entering the midway point. But the incomplete Dragon Demon Armament floating above the magic circle-engraved forging facility didn’t look like a sword at all. It was crude, like a roughly chipped stone vaguely resembling a blade.
Kairen asked,
“But is it really okay for you to be away this long? I thought you’d go back a few times midway.”
“Hey, you’re asking that now?”
“Well, I admit I’m a bit late in asking.”
“Anyway. No problem.”
Burein had appointed a successor to lead the Mirkel County and built a system that ran flawlessly even in his absence. He added,
“As lord, and as a Guardian Shadow.”
“Hm. You took your disciples into the Guardian Shadows?”
“Yes. That greatly bolsters our domestic Guardian Shadow members.”
The great mage Burein had seven disciples aside from his blood heirs. He had inducted four reliable, skilled ones into the Guardian Shadows, which he believed would alleviate their manpower shortage.
Burein said,
“It took a long time. Truly...”
It was unusual for him to still be active as lord without passing the countship to his heirs. Dragon Demon Hybrids lived longer than humans but not as long as Dragon Demons, and Burein was of an age to have retired from lordly duties long ago. Even Dragon Demon nobles, unless a special case like Kairen, married a bit later than humans and passed the title to their children after a suitable time.
There was always a reason for anomalies. Thirty years prior, Burein had lost the children who should have inherited the title, as well as grandchildren, all to Dragon Demon Worshippers. After a brief mourning, relatives vied for the next count, plunging family and territory into chaos.
At the time, Burein didn’t even know who to resent. Not even that the Dragon Demon Worshippers targeted him in his grief.
The Guardian Shadows had come to him then. After repelling their assassins, Burein gladly joined them. Over a long time, he stabilized the territory and raised a successor.
Lost in old memories for a moment, Burein said,
“Setting aside marriage, you should work harder at recruiting more Guardian Shadow members.”
“I’ve been eyeing usable subordinates. Even thinking of inducting Arieta or Seiga.”
“The Dragon Demon Queen would oppose it. She bears too much already. Above all, we need people who can move freely, so Princess Arieta and Prince Seiga, tied to the palace, aren’t suitable.”
“That’s true.”
Unknown to the king or his children, the Dragon Demon Queen was a Guardian Shadow member. But upon entering the palace as queen, she had effectively retired.
Burein asked,
“But do you really trust that Azel fellow?”
“Hey, you’re asking that now?”
“I’m just getting it thrown back at me.”
“I trust him. I admit there are many suspicious parts. But I trust him.”
“You’re totally smitten. Tsk tsk. No wonder you’re still single.”
“What’s that got to do with anything?”
“I’ve never seen you head over heels for anyone. With tastes like yours, how hard is it to find ‘the one’ to spend your life with? If Sir Azel had an older or younger sister, that’d be perfect.”
“......”
Burein smirked and changed the subject.
“Fine. Human judgment aside, you do seem a bit blinded, but I trust your eye. Anyway, as a mage, he’s endlessly fascinating.”
Burein too marveled at the bizarre techniques Azel had shown. Just from the all-night conversation that day, he had gained so much.
“If he really is Azel Karzark’s descendant... I’m truly curious.”
“About what?”
“Azel Karzark vanishing in his later years, passing down his true techniques forgotten in this era to a descendant—it seems like there’s some purpose. Can’t help but wonder why.”
“Maybe he foresaw a danger to come in the future.”
“Preparing a descendant for his role in a future calamity?”
“Something like that?”
“I hope not. But if so, is that kid really up to it?”
“I believe he is. Somehow, watching him gives me faith that he can blaze a trail no matter what future comes.”
Azel had never once tried to deceive Kairen with words. Believe him or not, it didn’t matter. He would prove his worth through actions. That attitude had swayed Kairen’s heart.
Burein chuckled.
“You’re still young as a Dragon Demon, but you’re getting old. Talking about entrusting the future to the young.”
“That did sound like an old man. Damn.”
Kairen grimaced.