Chapter 104: Aftermath (3)
Chapter 104: Aftermath (3)
Fay forgot how to breathe for a moment.
She was so startled that it felt as if her heart had stopped.
Why was Yandel here? Where had he come from? And just how much had he heard?
Fay didn't know any of it.
However...
"What did you just say?"
"Guh... ack..."
"Say it again."
"Kek! Keheck..."
She understood perfectly well the reason behind the low growl vibrating in Yandel’s throat and the vivid light of mana radiating from his violet eyes.
Right now, Yandel was furious, exerting his full pressure on his opponent.
And for what purpose?
The reason for that wasn't particularly difficult to guess either.
"Ah."
Fay forgot how to breathe once again.
*
I continued to apply pressure to the blonde bastard, who was gasping and struggling to draw air.
"You, you piece of shit. Why aren't you answering?"
"Ggggh...!"
"Do I look like a joke to you? Huh?"
"Cough... wheeze..."
"You like Senior Fay's breasts, but you hate my pecs?"
"Why... a man's chest..."
Wait, look at this son of a bitch. He couldn't squeeze out a single word before, but he manages to answer when I mention my pecs?
Feeling spiteful, I increased the output of my magic.
"S-spare... ack!"
I kept tightening the grip on his throat with telekinesis, tossing out whatever random words came to mind. How long did this go on?
"Calm down, Master! You're going to kill him!"
"She's right. Can't you feel your mana leaking everywhere? What if you cause a mana backflow or something?"
"......"
Carla and Elisha, who had initially watched with refreshed expressions, hurriedly grabbed my arms after I maintained the telekinesis for several minutes.
At their words, I looked back at the blonde guy and the female student who seemed to be his subordinate.
"Gurgle..."
"......"
The blonde guy was foaming at the mouth, and the girl had already fainted.
As Carla said, he really might die at this rate.
...The thought that maybe I should just kill him crossed my mind for a fleeting second, but I somehow managed to suppress my surging rage.
"Tsk."
Thud.
The moment I clicked my tongue and released the telekinesis, the two of them collapsed onto the ground like wet rags.
"Cough... hack."
"...Haaah!"
Perhaps the shock of hitting the floor woke her up; the female student began looking around with a dazed expression.
Seeing her trembling, she seemed properly terrified.
However, unlike her, the blonde guy glared at me even as he clutched his throat and panted for air.
"You... you bastard. Do you have any idea who I am?"
"And do you have any idea who I am?"
"Yandel! You're just a damn commoner! Did that measly talent and a single achievement make you think the world is your oyster?"
"Huh?"
He clearly knew he had just escaped death, yet he still had the nerve to act like this.
Did he mistake my look of disbelief for hesitation?
His confidence returned in an instant, and the corners of his mouth curled into a smirk.
"How dare you against the great Bron—"
"Shut up for a second."
I hated seeing him start his bullshit the moment I let him go, so I used my fist to shut his trap.
Thwack!
"Aaargh!"
He rolled on the ground again, screaming in pain.
If they said I shouldn't kill him, didn't that mean it was fine to beat him to within an inch of his life?
The moment I reached that conclusion, I moved to stomp on the fallen blonde bastard.
"That's enough, Yandel."
Elisha stopped me again.
"Move, Elisha. I can't let this guy go unpunished."
"I'm blocking you precisely so you don't do that."
Elisha let out a deep sigh and pointed behind me. Following her finger, I turned my head.
"Hehe..."
Carla was smiling awkwardly, holding a magic crystal orb just as I had instructed.
"...Did you get it?"
"Of course, I turned it off the moment you stepped in, Master. But if you're planning to submit this as evidence..."
"If I injure him too much, I'll be the one in trouble?"
"Most likely. It's very clear who did the hitting."
"What if I heal him afterward?"
Perhaps because he had been beaten without any regard for his status, the blonde guy had finally quieted down.
Seeing how arrogant he acted even after being caught in telekinesis, he seemed like the type who lacked fear in the worst way possible.
If I only dealt with him halfway, he’d surely hold a grudge and cause trouble somewhere else.
I needed to crush him completely while I had the chance.
"Ha! Th-that won't mean much either."
Fay, who had finally come to her senses, spoke as she clung to my back as if hiding.
"Are you okay, Senior? No, of course you're not. Let me see your face."
"H-huh?!"
I grabbed Fay's chin and inspected her face.
For some reason, she kept her eyes tightly shut and was trembling, but she stood on her tiptoes and obediently let me examine her.
One side of her face was swollen red, showing she had been hit quite hard.
"......"
Fay was a character I liked quite a bit back in H&A. Of course, since she wasn't just a "character" now, this was just my one-sided goodwill...
Regardless, it was a fact that I liked Fay and her story.
A story of human triumph—someone who was almost broken by a harsh reality but worked and worked for the sake of the one person who recognized her, eventually forcing her potential to bloom.
How could anyone hate that?
Yet, such a person had been slapped while being subjected to an absurd demand.
To make matters worse, the rumors I had neglected to address had acted as the catalyst.
"Sigh..."
Letting out a long breath, I pulled a high-grade potion from my inventory.
Fay flinched and tried to back away.
"Uh... it's not worth using such an expensive potion for this..."
"You're worth much more than a potion, Senior, so just stay still and get treated."
"Hieee!"
For some reason, Fay froze up like a statue. Taking advantage of the opening, I spread the potion over her cheek and made her drink the rest.
Being a high-grade potion, the swelling subsided rapidly.
Thank goodness.
My relief was short-lived.
The sight of the blonde bastard trying to sneak away in the corner of my vision made my suppressed anger flare up again.
Whack!
"Gah!"
I threw the empty bottle at the back of his head, and he face-planted into the dirt.
Did they say high-grade potion bottles were specially treated to be hard so they wouldn't break during combat?
It seemed to be true.
"Uuuugh..."
As he lay there groaning, I watched the female student hesitantly approach him and spoke up.
"You said treating him with a potion wouldn't mean much? Why?"
"Ah, right. Potion poisoning exists for a reason. Every potion has its own unique toxicity. By tracing those residues, people can easily find out where and how severe the injuries were."
"Even if I use a top-grade potion?"
"The fact that you even thought about using a top-grade potion for this shows how serious you are, Junior... but no matter the quality, you can't completely eliminate the toxicity."
"Uh... then what about healing magic or a priest's divine arts?"
"Magic leaves mana residues, and while divine arts return the body to its natural state without leaving a trace... I don't think priests would help with something like this."
"Tsk..."
She was right.
Then what should I do with this guy?
The footage in the crystal orb should be enough to get him disciplined.
It was fine that I choked him with telekinesis or punched him a few times.
The Eurelia continent was quite lenient regarding self-defense, especially since it placed a high value on honor.
At this level, it could be brushed off as a justifiable reaction to defamation.
Even for a commoner, the perception in this world was that honor held significant weight, even if it was less than a noble's.
Furthermore, providing sponsorship meant one intended to raise that person as their own.
During the sponsorship period, the sponsored person doesn't just receive money; they receive protection from the sponsor in various ways.
Knowing that, he still tried to pull something on Fay and even slapped her?
And he even brought up the false rumors about me being her "sugar daddy" in a sexual sense?
That was no ordinary insult.
But to put it another way, if I touched him any further, I would have to be prepared for disciplinary action myself.
Did the blonde guy think he was safe now after hearing our conversation?
Supported by the brown-haired girl, he began to snicker.
"Hahaha! To think you'd subject me to such humiliation! Are you finally realizing the weight of what you've done?"
"No. Not really. I don't even know your name."
"......"
He never appeared in H&A, so I didn't know his name.
That meant he wasn't a major figure in this world.
Though I would have acted the same even if he were.
"Hmm..."
I couldn't beat him further, and even if he were disciplined, he wouldn't be expelled. But if I left him alone, he would definitely cause trouble again.
What should I do?
After agonizing over it while watching the blonde guy tremble with rage, I grabbed him by the collar.
Then, I began dragging him out of the alley.
"Let—let go! You commoner! Do you have any idea who I am?!"
Was he the type who couldn't drop his habits from his own territory even after becoming a second-year?
I tilted my head toward the anxious brown-haired girl, and Carla and Elisha grabbed her from both sides.
"You. What did you say your name was? Pel... something."
"...Ha! I am Pelop Brondel, the rightful heir to the Brondel Territory!"
"Right. Pelop Brondel."
A tattered second-year suddenly emerging from an alleyway, held by the collar by a first-year.
Not to mention, wasn't I the subject of the hottest rumors lately?
The bustling market street fell silent in an instant, and all eyes began to fixate on me.
Under the gaze of everyone around, I slowly raised my hand.
And then.
Slap!
"Aaargh!"
Just as he had done to Fay, I struck Pelop across the cheek with all my might.
Then, I made a declaration loud enough for the entire market street to hear.
"I, Yandel, challenge Pelop Brondel to a duel!"
At my declaration, the silence vanished as the surroundings erupted into a noisy frenzy.
But I wasn't finished yet.
"And! I also challenge Frank Miller, who has been spreading false rumors about me lately, to a duel!"
Since I was already making a scene, I might as well crush that minion of the Boiling Silence while I was at it.