Chapter 37
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 37
Chapter Title: Between Coincidence and Bad Fate
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Hmm. So.
Those thugs who look like gangsters are supposed to be the elite knights?
"…Elite knights?"
"Yeah."
"…For real?"
As if it was absurd, the words slipped out of me unwittingly. Jotkis must have taken them differently.
Arrogance filled his face to the brim.
"That's right! They're the elites we've carefully raised in House Fernan. What, finally realizing reality?"
From my perspective, it seemed like he was the one who needed a reality check.
It was so ridiculous that a chuckle escaped me.
[My liege. Shall I step in? I could handle them all with one hand.]
"No need. They'll make for perfect stress relief."
I hadn't said it for anyone to hear.
Unfortunately, my conversation with Tundra must have reached his ears anyway.
"Finally lost your mind, have you? You bribed the professor to get into S-Class and thought that made you skilled?"
"…What?"
"Struck a nerve with the truth, eh?"
What nonsense. I have the skills.
Jotkis seemed convinced I'd bought my way into S-Class with money or something.
But in an academy that valued pure skill, that wouldn't fly.
Even if it did somehow, you wouldn't last long.
Classes were divided strictly by ability.
The only real privilege for high nobles' children was skipping the entrance exam for a simple placement test.
But even that test wasn't easy, so it hardly made a difference.
Anyone with a brain could see how illogical his story was with a moment's thought.
…Not that bribes would work on Ingrid anyway.
"Young Master. Do you really need to get your hands dirty?"
"Exactly! Let us handle it. The family doesn't care about them anyway, right?"
The burly men behind Jotkis scowled and snickered among themselves.
They cracked their callused knuckles threateningly as they closed in, looking every bit the neighborhood thugs.
"Young Master, how rough should we get? One arm enough?"
Mocking sneers shattered the forest's silence, echoing around.
Jotkis's face was already smug, chin raised high, gesturing as if I'd be groveling at his feet.
"Hear that? Lick my boots now, and I'll forgive you."
"Oh, and bring that impudent maid of yours. I'll play with her for a week and send her back."
"Kya. How pretty must she be for you to say that, Young Master."
"Heard she's a stunning beauty. Guess we get to enjoy it too."
[My liege. Shall I handle it after all? That pup's climbing without fearing the tiger.]
Ha.
Hearing that, even a hollow laugh wouldn't come.
Still clueless, babbling away.
Stuff like faking his way into S-Class, doubting my skills.
Pure drivel.
"Hey. Jotkis."
"You bastard! Don't call me tha—!"
Cutting off his enraged shout without mercy.
"I was going to ignore you since you're just trash anyway."
No point wasting energy on a game mob with zero relevance.
My current life wasn't leisurely enough for that.
Let him badmouth me behind my back all he wanted; it didn't matter. Honestly, it suited me fine.
Passive negativity gain without lifting a finger.
"But."
Step.
'Showing him fear isn't hard.'
A forgotten voice echoed in my mind again.
Whoosh.
"You're the one crossing lines."
I wouldn't have cared what he spewed if I hadn't taken her in.
But now she's mine, my possession.
Not something a fool like him can covet.
"I let it slide once. My past is infamous, after all."
Before I possessed Evan, this guy's flashy misdeeds had everyone in the academy hostile toward me.
I'd gotten used to it. Irreversible past; nothing to be done.
Step.
I took another step toward him.
"No second chances."
"…You mad bastard! B-break his legs!"
"Yes, Young Master!"
At their master's command, the thugs—knights in name only—charged like rabid dogs, grinning viciously.
How lightly did they take me? Not even drawing swords, relying on raw strength with clumsy punches.
But those sluggish moves looked like a paused screen to me.
'Pathetic.'
Not fit to be called knights; mere vermin.
In that stretched sense of time, the first one's fist arced clearly toward my face.
Instead of dodging, I stepped in.
Boom!
My fist slamming into the sneering thug's jaw produced not a dull thud, but an explosion.
"…Guhk!"
Not even a proper scream.
The hulking brute flew back several meters, feet dangling midair as if struck by an invisible giant.
Impossible airtime.
Thud! He crashed into the ground, foaming at the mouth, out cold.
"Huh?"
It hadn't even been seconds.
The sudden turn halted the others.
Halfwits they might be, but still called knights. Even they could tell from one exchange: this opponent was no ordinary man.
"What are you idiots doing?! Grab him!"
That their superior was subhuman trash like Jotkis was their sole misfortune.
"…Kuh."
"D-draw swords!"
Shing.
Startled by his furious roar laced with rage and fear, they finally drew blades.
No longer sneering; now cautious, faces set against a superior foe.
'Won't change the outcome.'
"Kill him!"
Whoosh!
Blades thrusting from all sides.
A encirclement seemingly inescapable, but ultimately crude.
I evaded the sloppy swings with minimal motion.
Exploiting gaps: solar plexus strike, knee kick.
Thwack! Crack!
"Gaaahk!"
"M-my leg! My leg!"
[Absorbing negative emotion 'Confusion'.]
[Absorbing negative emotion 'Fear'.]
A few blows and screams later.
The so-called elites were writhing on the ground, bleeding, in under a minute.
"W-what... What the hell are you worthless shits doing?!"
Muttering impossibilities, Jotkis went pale when our eyes met.
"Hey. Elite knights, right? That's all you got?"
"D-don't come closer! Do you know who I am? House Fernan, the counts—"
I'm sick of that crap.
"The c-counts..."
Step.
I stood before him silently, looking down.
His shouting voice dwindled to nothing.
"W-wait..."
Punch first.
Boom!
Before his worthless words ended, my fist buried into his gut.
"…Guhk! Cough! Cough!"
"Hey."
Grabbing his collar as he retched and collapsed, I hoisted him up.
"I know. I know who you are."
[Absorbing negative emotion 'Fear'.]
[Absorbing negative emotion 'Despair'.]
Staring straight into his fear-ridden, trembling eyes, I raised my fist again.
"Y-you know and still do this...! Y-you'll get away with—"
Thinking you'll be fine?
I can say with certainty: I will be.
What I fear are the heroines like Iris, not these small fries unworthy of notice.
Well, royalty ties would complicate things a bit.
But Jotkis and his house lack that pull.
"So what?"
"W-what...?"
At my sneering remark, Jotkis's pupils shrank to pinpricks.
The family backing he'd trusted, the petty power he'd wielded ignorantly—
All meaningless to the man before him. That realization hit.
"Bite down. Or you'll lose all your teeth."
"W-wait...!"
Nothing could save him here, now.
Slap! Slap!
Crisp slaps echoed through the trees, sharp cracks resounding with each swing.
"…Guhk! Kyaak!"
His head snapped side to side mercilessly.
Each blow rolled his eyes back; blood sprayed from his mouth.
"Slr... slrrz...!"
Arrogance gone, his tear- and blood-smeared face twisted pathetically.
Terrified by the violence inches away, he tried mumbling excuses.
But I had no intention of granting mercy.
No more chances for someone who'd already crossed the line.
I wasn't fool enough to forgive lightly those who touched my possessions.
"Pay for flapping that filthy mouth."
"H-heek! St-stop!"
Still gripping his collar, I raised my bloodied fist.
Seeing his utterly terrified face eased some of today's stress, but I wasn't stopping.
Time to properly educate trash like Jotkis.
Forgiving overt malice half-heartedly would just invite him back bolder.
"Wait!"
Just before my fist met his wailing face, an urgent shout rang out.
"…?"
I instinctively turned toward the voice. There stood a figure.
Blond hair, blue eyes, pristine white robes. The picture of 'I'm a good guy'.
[My liege. That guy's giving off a revolting stench.]
"Agreed."
That nagging displeasure earlier made sense now.
Holy knight.
To me, inheritor of the Black King's power,
Holy knights' distinctive aura was unmistakable, try as I might to ignore it.
'…Was there a guy like that?'
Racking my memory yielded no match.
Stronger ones existed, but none with that face.
[My liege. Be careful. That bastard's strong.]
Not the type to flaunt power; his concealed strength was hard to gauge.
But that refined, heavy presence was beyond an ordinary holy knight.
At least master-class caliber.
"Please stop. Private violence between academy students is forbidden, isn't it?"
His gentle smile was likable to anyone.
But his eyes gleamed sharply as he approached.
"Seems you've got the wrong idea."
To keep the blood from his mouth staining my clothes, I tossed Jotkis to the dirt and shook off my hands.
"This is self-defense. They came at me with their goons to kill me; had no choice."
"Even so, this is excessive. He can't resist anymore, can he?"
His logical, holier-than-thou tone twisted my gut.
Can't resist?
What if I had been powerless?
I'd be trampled, my maid stolen, reduced to misery.
Would he have shown then, preaching 'excessive'?
Doubt it.
"Funny logic. Ignore the weak suffering, but cry justice when they hit back."
My barbed sarcasm—telling him to shut up with the nonsense—
The holy knight took negatively, sadly.
His troubled smile twitched faintly at the brow.
"I... didn't know the situation. But I can't ignore excessive violence right in front of me."
Indeed. Can't just watch.
"…So?"
Crack.
"Aak!"
I grabbed Jotkis's hair, yanking hard as he tried crawling away.
"If you can't watch, close your eyes. I still have business."
Matters need closure. As I reared back for another punch.
"Enough! I've said it's sufficient!"
Closer than expected, faster than anticipated.
He closed the gap in an instant, grabbing my arm.
"Let go?"
My chilling tone made his eyes flicker.
"Young lord. Stop. This won't end well for you."
Still smiling leisurely, he tightened his grip.
Soft words, heavy warning.
The man I'd downed was noble trash, sure—but House Fernan nobility.
More damage wouldn't bode well for me or my house.
'Not that I care.'
Our ties were already severed in practice.
House Fernan bringing private forces into the academy? Impossible.
At least for my three years till graduation. No real harm possible.
Grip.
"…"
'…Not bad.'
Not brute force; precise mana-infused pressure on muscles and joints. Advanced technique.
A normal student would've had their arm crushed, screaming.
Yet restrained with minimal mercy. Confidence in his skill.
But.
"No need to go easy."
I'm not frail enough to buckle here.
I shook off his hand effortlessly.
Whoosh!
"…!"
For the first time, the ever-smiling man's eyes widened hugely.
Staring at his hand and me in disbelief.
"Who... are you?"
Leisure gone; guarded stare.
Holy knight or not, still human.
Most would've panicked or frozen.
He seamlessly shifted to combat stance, flawlessly natural.
'Definitely not ordinary.'
"Who? What if you knew?"
I crossed my arms, leaning mockingly, savoring his reaction.
"And isn't it polite to give your name before meddling?"
Biting his lip at my taunt, he cleared his throat and straightened his robes.
"My apologies. I'm Leon, third-year S-Class."
Leon.
That name faintly rang a bell.
'Leon... Leon...'
Ah, right.
A tiny note in The Glory's setting book corner.
Barely appears outside specific Iris routes; forgotten.
Never expected to meet here.
'But why's this guy here?'