Chapter 106
Chapter 106
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 106
Chapter Title: Kaljak's Return
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“…”
After the young man calling himself Kaljak shouted, a brief silence fell over the room.
I looked at the brown-haired man and said, “The Kaljak I knew had a much thicker beard…”
“That was when I was cooped up in the mountains! Now that I’m back in civilized society, of course I have to take care of my appearance!”
“Hm. Alright. I’ll admit your voice is similar to Kaljak’s, and that such a smooth face was hidden beneath that beard.”
He looked at least twenty years younger than I remembered, but considering my own father was the epitome of a youthful face, it wasn’t entirely unbelievable.
However, there was still something I couldn't accept.
“Sir Walter, could you give us a moment?”
“Pardon? But…”
“Understood.”
Walter nodded to a fellow knight, and they left the room.
Watching them leave, the young man whistled.
“What’s this? I thought you’d be an outcast in the family, but you seem to be quite respected.”
“It’s a family that values skill, isn’t it?”
“Oho. So you’ve earned their recognition.”
I sat down in front of the self-proclaimed Kaljak.
Then I slowly studied his face.
On closer inspection, his hair and eye color were similar, and the placement of his features was correct.
His excessive youthfulness was puzzling, but… I asked about something far more important.
“What’s with that arm?”
I asked, pointing to the man’s right arm.
The Kaljak I saw in the mountains was one-armed. He had lost it in the battle with the Sapphire Snake.
“This? Heh heh…”
Far from being flustered, Kaljak burst into a pleased laugh.
“To put it simply, Ruan. It’s all thanks to you.”
“What?”
“So, what happened was…”
Kaljak explained the situation.
After he sent Arjan and me ahead, the cave’s collapse had accelerated.
A falling rock had conveniently separated him from the High Priest.
Having no strength left to fight, Kaljak had collapsed on the spot. When he came to, he was surrounded by rock on all sides.
“I don’t know how many days passed like that. At some point, I was so hungry I thought I’d lose my mind. So, I ate.”
“Ate what?”
“The Jewel Beast.”
I blinked, then asked, “You ate the Sapphire Snake?”
“Yep.”
“…Is that thing even edible?”
“Doesn’t seem like it. Nearly broke all my teeth. But what could I do? I had to eat to live.”
In any case, as he sustained himself by eating the Jewel Beast’s corpse, he realized his body was changing.
And the moment he finally ate the Sapphire Snake’s core, which was in the deepest part…
“I felt an incredible cold and thought I was a goner for sure, but when I opened my eyes, I’d become like this.”
“Aha…”
“I always looked young for my age, but this made me twenty years younger. And look at this.”
Kaljak waved his right hand for me to see.
“My severed right arm grew back, can you believe it?”
I narrowed my eyes slightly.
From his words, it sounded like Kaljak had experienced what’s commonly called a metamorphosis…
But it didn’t seem like he’d reached such a lofty realm.
Could it be that his body was reconstructed by consuming the Jewel Beast’s flesh and core?
If so, a new arm growing back wasn't entirely out of the question.
It was hard to believe, but with the living proof right in front of me, I couldn't outright deny it.
“The problem is, because of this handsome face, nobody believes I am who I say I am. At the entrance, they treated me like a madman. I was honestly disappointed. How could not a single one of them remember my past—”
Was Kaljak always this talkative?
He had seemed a bit chatty before, but now my ears were starting to hurt.
It seemed his confinement here for the past few days had taken a toll on him.
“…If there was at least one person who knew me, it might have been different, but Delac and all the Grand Master Teachers were gone.”
“There was a training retreat.”
“Right. The timing was just damned awful. Anyway, after being held at the main estate for a few days, I was finally released. I tried to enter the forest, but it seems these bastards didn’t share information properly, and I got caught again.”
“And that’s how you ended up in this situation?”
Kaljak nodded.
“That’s right. But they’re Bednicker knights, so I couldn’t just cause a scene… I was about to die of frustration.”
Realizing the truth of the matter, I felt a sense of absurdity.
Kaljak couldn’t join the camp for such a reason?
A few minor incidents had overlapped, leading to this ridiculous outcome.
‘When things are meant to go wrong, they really go wrong…’
If only Kaljak had been there before I regressed, the entire situation would have been completely different.
A bitter feeling welled up inside me, but it was all in the past, so I decided not to dwell on it.
“Anyway, I now possess power greater than my prime, Ruan. I couldn't have taken down the Sapphire Snake without you. Since I basically monopolized its remains, I owe you a debt I’ll have to repay for the rest of my life.”
Kaljak said with a confident smile.
“From now on, I’ll be your backer. If anyone gives you trouble, just tell me. I’ll beat them all to a pulp.”
“Oho.”
That was welcome news.
“Alright. Then let’s risk our lives together.”
“What are you talking about now?”
I then gave Kaljak a rough summary of what I had discovered.
With each part of the story, Kaljak’s expression changed, and at the words “Demon King’s advent ceremony,” it turned bizarre.
“…In Bednicker territory, a Demon King’s advent ceremony?”
“Why are you so surprised? Didn’t you hear everything from Sir Asad?”
“No. I didn’t hear anything.”
Kaljak said with a bewildered look.
“Sir Asad just told me the training retreat had started and to hurry up and join. I thought I was going to act as a Grand Master Teacher.”
“…Hm.”
So he hadn't told Kaljak everything either.
‘Then again.’
If Kaljak had known about the Demon King’s advent ceremony, his personality was such that he would have torn this place apart to get there.
Did the family not consider even Kaljak to be completely innocent?
Considering they hid it from Junian too, it wasn’t that strange.
“So, do you know who the High Priest is?”
“Yes.”
“Who is it?”
“The Martial Arts Teacher.”
“…”
For a moment, Kaljak seemed at a loss for words.
“…That bastard Huan? Really?”
He seemed much more shocked than I expected.
“I’m almost certain.”
“I see.”
I watched Kaljak’s face for a moment before asking.
“What’s wrong?”
“…It’s nothing. Right. In any case, if that’s what’s happening, then of course I have to help. What’s the plan now?”
“For now, let’s move together. Of course, I think it would be best if you don’t join the camp right away, but hide in the forest and bide your time.”
I wanted to keep Kaljak’s presence a secret as much as possible.
Just as Luke had ambushed a careless High Priest, I wanted to entrust that role to Kaljak this time.
But unexpectedly, Kaljak offered his own opinion.
“No. If Huan is the High Priest, it would be better for me to just join the camp.”
“Why?”
“That alone will cause a change in his actions.”
“…”
A change…
As someone who knows the future, that wasn't exactly welcome news.
However, Kaljak spoke with a strangely confident expression.
“Ruan, trust me on this one. I can’t explain it well, but things won’t turn out badly.”
“Hmm…”
Kaljak was a former mercenary.
And veteran mercenaries had one thing in common.
Sometimes, they had a certain gut feeling that couldn’t be explained with words.
I had experienced it a few times myself.
A job that looked like easy money, but something smelled fishy, so I turned it down, only to find out all the mercenaries who took it were wiped out. Things like that.
“Alright.”
I nodded.
“Let’s go to the camp together. But let’s keep the fact that we met a secret.”
* * *
We headed back to the training retreat camp.
As Kaljak and I ran side-by-side through the forest, he suddenly spoke up.
“I’ve been wanting to say this since I first saw you.”
“What is it?”
“Did something happen to you too?”
What was he talking about?
When I tilted my head in confusion, Kaljak continued.
“I had an unexpected stroke of luck and even ate the Jewel Beast’s core, so it’s natural for me to get stronger in a short time. But it looks like you’ve made just as much progress.”
“…”
“No. It’s more than just progress… To be honest, you seem like a completely different person from that kid back then. Though you were no ordinary brat even then.”
As expected of a Sword Master Teacher.
His insight was extraordinary.
I chuckled and said, “A few things happened. I’ve been through hell and back, just like you. I also received a spirit medicine from the Family Head along the way.”
“A spirit medicine?”
“This.”
I took out the Spirit Orb I always carried in my pocket and showed it to him.
Kaljak looked slightly impressed.
“That’s a Spirit Orb. And judging by its size, it looks like a top-grade one.”
“Want it?”
“Want it, my ass.”
Kaljak shrugged at my joke.
“After eating the Sapphire Snake’s core, I don’t get along with fire energy anymore. You eat it all.”
“Aha.”
“By the way, that Delac fellow… he must have taken quite a liking to you. A spirit medicine of that quality could have been used in many other ways…”
We chatted about this and that as we returned to the camp.
“It would be awkward if we went in together, right?”
“Probably.”
“Then I’ll take a walk around for a bit. You go on ahead.”
“Okay. See you later.”
I parted ways with Kaljak and returned to the infirmary.
Junian, who was sitting at a chair writing something, looked up at me.
“You’re back. Did you accomplish your goal?”
“Yes. I’ve gained a reliable ally.”
“Is that so? Then I suppose you can finally tell me who this ally is.”
I had hidden from Junian that I was going to meet Kaljak.
Just in case I failed.
Now, it didn't matter if I told him.
“It’s Kaljak.”
Junian tilted his head slightly.
“…The Sword Master Teacher?”
“Yes.”
“When did he return to the estate?”
“About a week ago, I think.”
“Really?”
Junian thought for a moment, then said with a much-relieved expression, “If it’s the Sword Master Teacher… he’s more than qualified as an ally. Even against the High Priest, it will be a fight we can win.”
I glanced around, checking the time.
Since we had set out early in the morning, there was still plenty of time.
The cadets would be in their morning classes.
I remembered it was the Martial Arts Teacher’s class…
‘Wait a minute.’
A sudden thought struck me, and I looked at Junian.
“Instructor, do the instructors here also share rooms, two to a room?”
“Basically, it’s one person per room. Why do you ask?”
“One more thing, there are no communication crystals installed inside the instructor’s building, right?”
Junian looked at me with suspicion but nodded.
“Not outside the control room. The communication crystals are for monitoring the cadets in the first place.”
“I see.”
I looked at Junian and asked.
“By any chance, which room is Instructor Huan’s?”