Chapter 78
Chapter 78
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 78
Chapter Title: Home
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“...Hmm.”
Breathing in the crisp morning air, Vice Captain Schumacher slowly raised his sword.
He steadied his breath, circulating the mana within his body, then flashed his eyes and thrust the blade forward nimbly.
Whoosh!
Swish!
“Hah!
Haah!”
He stabbed, slashed, lifted, swept horizontally, slashed diagonally, and thrust once more at his opponent.
Defense was the quickest path to building momentum—when wielding a sword, nothing was more important than attack after attack.
“...!”
In that fleeting moment, Schumacher sensed an unidentified gaze fixed on him.
Though his sword couldn’t reach it, with the intent of a show of force, he thrust straight toward that direction.
Fwoosh!
...Clap clap clap!
What came from that direction was none other than the sound of applause.
Sheathing his sword, Schumacher finally confirmed who was standing there.
“...Young Lord Sion Klauzen?”
“You’re training diligently from the early morning.
Impressive, Vice Captain Schumacher.”
It was an unexpected figure.
He had assumed it would be one of his subordinate knights, or perhaps a member of the royal castle guard.
If not, then a knight or soldier from the viscounty—but it was Sion Klauzen who had appeared.
“It’s still early morning, so I didn’t expect you to be out already.”
“Isn’t the vice captain training with his sword at this early hour?”
“Hahaha... For me, this has become routine.”
As a knight—and not just any noble house knight, but the vice captain of the Royal Knights tasked with protecting the palace—Schumacher couldn’t afford to waste even a single day.
He knew well that his sword was the spear and shield guarding the royal family, and even daily effort felt insufficient.
“But what brings you here, Young Lord Sion...”
“Vice Captain Schumacher.
If it’s not too much trouble, could you teach me a move or two?”
“...Pardon?”
“I’m asking for some guidance, Vice Captain.”
“Y-Young Lord Sion.
That could be dangerous for you...”
Realizing too late how rude his words could sound, Schumacher quickly shut his mouth.
For someone who couldn’t handle mana at all to challenge a knight who wielded it freely was like running barefoot across a field full of blades.
But Schumacher knew voicing it outright could imply open disdain and insult.
“My apologies, Young Lord Sion.
I didn’t mean...”
“No.
It’s fine.
I understand your intent better than anyone.
You’re worried I might get hurt, right?”
“Thank you.”
“But I’m a son of the Klauzen family.
I can’t always hide behind soldiers and knights, nor do I intend to.
You know well that I charged into battle with nothing but this body of mine, don’t you?”
Schumacher nodded at Sion’s question.
That very point was one reason why he and most of the Royal Knights held Sion Klauzen in such high regard.
The battlefield was a brutal game where hundreds, thousands of soldiers and knights clashed, blood and lives exchanged.
No braggart or liar kept their masks there—they all shed them, writhing desperately just to survive in their ugly forms.
But Sion Klauzen was different.
With nothing to his name, he stepped onto the field without hesitation.
He accomplished everything he could, led them to a great victory, and earned the deep trust of the soldiers.
‘And that’s not all.
He’s done countless other things.
A man who rose that far relying solely on his own abilities, without mana’s aid!’
Among the Royal Knights, not one dismissed or pitied Sion Klauzen for his zero mana affinity.
Some even took him as a life goal, striving even harder because of it.
“Because I can’t wield mana, I’m weak.
But because I can’t wield mana, I made it this far.
By never getting arrogant, always preparing and bracing myself.”
“Quite right.
Wise words.”
“So I’ll learn and explore anything to make it my own.
Whether it’s difficult or impossible, it doesn’t matter.
If I try and it doesn’t work, I stop.
But I don’t think you should decide against it before even starting.”
“...”
“So, I humbly request your guidance.”
Schumacher couldn’t help but let out a sigh of admiration at Sion’s demeanor.
Wasn’t that the true posture of a knight?
Not overconfident, not despairing, just steadily pressing forward.
Thinking of this young man as the future Count of Klauzen made it feel like a blessing for the kingdom.
‘The king’s judgment was spot on!’
With that thought, Schumacher nodded, as if permitting the spar.
Sion flashed a bright smile, handed one of the two wooden swords he’d brought to Schumacher, gripped the remaining one, and stood before him.
Gazing at the smile on Sion’s lips, Schumacher felt an inexplicable swell of pride in his chest.
Of course, the reason for Sion’s smile wasn’t joy at receiving instruction.
‘Nice.
Come at me.
I’ll win!’
Handling a sword?
One of the things he absolutely wanted to avoid.
Even now, sparring with Schumacher and a wooden sword was barely manageable through muscle memory alone—he was at his limit, enduring and enduring.
Direct combat had become his absolute number one thing to avoid from now on.
So why step up to Schumacher and challenge him to a spar?
‘Because that man’s a knight, after all.
Not some scheming noble busy plotting—he admires honest sword-swingers, warriors who charge ahead without fleeing the battlefield.’
The way to win over those who revered martial prowess was simple.
One action, one resolve proved more than a thousand words.
And once that bond formed, they didn’t break it easily.
With clear lines between enemy and ally, they stuck by those they trusted to the end.
‘There’s also the chance Viscount Konean gets dragged to the palace and spouts nonsense.
If that happens, I need Vice Captain Schumacher to step up, vouch that the man’s words are all lies, and even offer himself as a witness—we need that level of camaraderie!’
Schumacher had already reported that Count Sefer Kashugar had screamed he was innocent of treason, claiming the glass bottle was given to him by Sion Klauzen.
By rights, suspicion should have fallen on Sion too, but most nobles—especially Princess Vanessa—defended him vigorously, so King Edgar IV let it pass without issue.
Once again feeling how much easier life was with reliable allies, Sion had set this stage to pull even the Royal Knights to his side if possible.
“Here I come, Young Lord Sion.”
“Please, one move.”
So yeah.
Fuck.
No choice.
Just this once more.
Body, hang in there.
―
“Princess.
Are you sure you’re okay with this?”
“Yeah.
I plan to stay by that man’s side a little longer.”
“But the Great King will worry.”
“I’ll explain it well to Dad.
Tell him I’m fine.”
“Eek... But still...”
“You wouldn’t think of breaking the tribe’s ancient custom, right?
We all owe that human man a debt.”
“Th-then why not have us all escort you together...”
Wini shook her head at her three escort warriors.
Her father must be searching desperately for his suddenly missing daughter, so she needed to let him know she was safe. More importantly, they had no idea that terrifying demon woman was still by the man’s side.
‘I only just learned thanks to this token.’
Stroking the mark on her forehead, Wini shook her head again, signaling no more objections.
As their charge showed firm resolve, the three cat women drooped their ears and let out feeble whimpers.
Wini hurriedly spoke up, as if telling them to cut it out.
“You guys going to keep this up?
Stop it, okay?
Snap out of it!”
“Y-yes.
Okay!”
“Haa...
Don’t worry, head back.
You’ve all worked too hard.
No need to go through more trouble because of me.
I’m really fine, so all three of you, go home.
Once I’ve repaid the full favor, I’ll return without delay.”
“You really have to?”
“If the Great King hears you ran off again, it’ll be chaos!”
“I know.
I know my dad’s temper better than anyone.”
With that, Wini flicked her tail and lightly rubbed her cheek against each of theirs.
After the Catfolk tribe’s customary greeting, she turned without regret and dashed off somewhere with a ‘thud thud thud!’
‘Human man.
My benefactor’s scent is around here somewhere?’
Not as keen as the Wolrang tribe, but the Catfolk excelled at tracking by smell.
Wini hopped along and soon reached the second-floor balcony overlooking the training grounds.
And there, a young man was in the midst of exchanging blows with a middle-aged one.
“Watch the feet, not the sword!
Without proper footwork, your attacks won’t land properly!
Just like that!”
“Urk!”
At first, seeing the youth getting pushed back so much, Wini wondered if the middle-aged human was attacking her benefactor and nearly intervened.
But hearing Sion shout, “How about this!”, and the man effortlessly block while praising, “That was a fine attack,” she quietly sat on the balcony to observe.
The prolonged spar ended with Sion’s defeat.
Yet winner and loser alike smiled in satisfaction.
“As expected, the Royal Knights are too strong.
Can’t even compare to Nudia’s troops.”
“Ahaha!
Glad to hear it.”
Even then, Sion slipped in a subtle compliment.
Watching Schumacher burst into hearty laughter, Wini flicked her tail in interest.
“More than that, I’m surprised.
To hone your swordsmanship like this without wielding mana.
If you could use mana, you’d have been an outstanding knight.
The heavens are truly indifferent.”
“It might be for the best.
If I could wield mana, I might’ve grown arrogant and never become who I am.”
“Ahaha!
You’re too humble, Young Lord!
Sometimes you should boast a little!”
“What’s there to boast about for a guy like me?”
Sion bowed himself to the end.
Wini didn’t like seeing her benefactor act so subservient, but catching the part about not wielding mana, she let out a low growl.
‘Can’t wield mana?
That means he’s super weak.
Yet that terrifying demon woman sticks by him.
Weird.
Super weird!’
Lily had already explained she wasn’t up to mischief and was just staying quietly by Sion for reasons hard to describe, but Wini didn’t buy it.
She was certain the wicked demon woman was plotting something shady again.
‘My benefactor can’t wield mana—he’s a weakling.
Yet he saved me, saved my kin, saved everyone!
And that wicked demon woman clings to him, trying to lead him astray!
I have to step in and stop this.
If I can’t drive her off, at least keep her from getting close to my benefactor!’
With that thought, Wini saw the path to repaying her immense debt.
Nyaaang!
With a cry of resolve, the cat girl clenched her fists tightly.
She was pumping herself up with a “Let’s do this!” in her own way, but anyone else seeing it would’ve cooed over how adorable she was.
“Anyway, please handle Viscount Konean’s escort properly.
If he says anything strange...”
“No worries.
I saw with my own eyes how wicked he is.
If he spouts nonsense, I’ll seek His Majesty’s permission and cut out his tongue first.
No need to fret, Young Lord Sion Klauzen.”
“That’s reassuring.
Haha!”
Sion Klauzen, Sion Klauzen.
Wini etched her benefactor’s name firmly in her mind.
She closed her eyes softly, thought for a moment, then slowly opened them—her golden pupils now gleaming brilliantly.
The Catfolk’s quirky trait, Imprint, had activated.
‘Hah!
Sion Klauzen!
My benefactor!
Coming to repay the favor!
Nyaaang!’
“Achoo!”
“Young Lord, are you alright?”
“Y-yeah.
Just felt a sudden chill.”
“You sweated too much this early morning, and now it’s cooling off.
Wouldn’t want you catching a cold—let’s head inside.”
Sion nodded at Schumacher’s words.
It didn’t feel like sweat cooling—he had no idea what it was, which made it all the more unsettling.
