Chapter 124
Chapter 124
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 124
Chapter Title: The Well and the Quiz
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"Hey, snap out of it."
"Ugh."
I shook my head.
I had almost reverted to the scoundrel Ruan Bednicker.
"There's something else besides the money to check out, so take a look."
Come to think of it, there was another box in the room besides the leather sacks.
Doing as Kaljak said, I approached it and carefully lifted the lid...
"This is..."
A silver-white suit of armor with an extraordinary aura came into view.
"It's armor made from the highest quality Sapphire Snake hide. Isn't it magnificent?"
"Hmm..."
Kaljak tilted his head, looking at my hesitant expression.
"What's with that look?"
"I don't think it's very compatible with me."
I replied, running my fingers over the armor's surface.
It was as cold as ice.
This armor. Setting aside its defensive power, the cold energy it emanated was unusual.
This meant it was unsuitable equipment for me, a practitioner of extreme yang arts.
"Would it be okay to just sell this?"
"It's a shame since you can't buy it even if you have the money, but it's yours, so do what you want with it."
With that, Kaljak reached deep into the box and pulled something out.
"If you don't like the armor, how about this?"
"What is it?"
"A belt."
A snakeskin belt...
I said with a reluctant face.
"It doesn't seem to be my sty—"
"Look at its function, not the design. It'll be quite convenient to have this."
"In what way?"
"It's fundamentally imbued with cold energy, so it'll keep you cool in the summer."
"More practical than I thought."
"Plus, it's incredibly tough and sturdy, so you can use it as a whip in an emergency."
As he said that, Kaljak swung the belt like a whip.
*Crack!* With a rather sharp sound, ice fragments crumbled off.
"See? Isn't it killer?"
"I think its length just increased..."
"That's one of its functions."
"Hmm."
A whip.
I have the Seven Sins Sword, but this wouldn't be bad as a secondary weapon.
Depending on how I use it, I might be able to catch opponents off guard... and more importantly, it looks like it would feel satisfying to wield.
"That's nice."
"I'm glad you like this, at least."
Kaljak nodded, then suddenly gave an awkward cough.
"Ahem... Sir Keian? Could you give us a moment?"
"Of course."
Keian gave a slight bow and obediently left, as if they had arranged this beforehand.
*Thud.*
Now, only Kaljak and I were left in the room.
Seeing Kaljak look at me as if he'd made up his mind about something, I beat him to the punch.
"Don't."
"...I haven't said anything yet."
"Weren't you about to apologize?"
"..."
Kaljak fell silent, then scratched his head roughly and said.
"You're right. My stupid mistake almost ruined everything."
"That it did."
"..."
I was deliberately teasing him, but there was no reaction.
His uncharacteristically sullen attitude actually took the wind out of my sails.
"I know you're sorry, but there's no need to dwell on it."
"Because it all worked out in the end?"
"That's not what I mean. You saved me in the mountains, Kaljak."
"But that was—"
"Forget about the circumstances back then or how it was the most rational choice. Let's just say we're even for the life debt I owed you."
"And you're okay with that?"
"A life debt can only be repaid with a life debt, right?"
Kaljak said in a dumbfounded voice.
"Funny. That's an adage you hear from the southern mercenaries..."
Come to think of it, this guy was also a former mercenary.
From the way he spoke, it seemed he'd spent his time in the south before becoming a Grand Master Teacher.
What was there to hide?
Before I was dragged to the Spirit Mountain, that gutter was where I had spent the most time.
"...Alright, I get it for now. But if you need my help, just say the word."
"Anything?"
"Yeah. Anything."
"..."
He was a flippant man, but he wasn't the type to joke about something like this.
I nodded and asked.
"By the way, I just remembered. What happened to my ring sword?"
"Sorry. I broke it."
"You're paying for that."
Kaljak let out a dry laugh, waved his hand, and turned away.
Watching his retreating back, I said.
"About Teacher Huan."
"..."
Kaljak's body froze.
"He might not have been crazy from the start."
"...Why do you think that?"
"I heard what the Demon King said."
I repeated the exact words of Tangtata, the green-tongued Demon King.
- Yesss...! The human before... said he had someone he loved....
- Wh-when I demanded his heart, the human wailed.... He said he could give me anything, anything else... b-but I couldn't do that. Th-the look on someone's face when they lose something precious... is the most fun, isn't it...?
I don't pity Teacher Huan.
To be honest, I think he got what he deserved by dying to the Demon King.
But regardless of my personal feelings, I felt Kaljak needed to know this truth.
"...Is that so."
Kaljak didn't turn around, but his head drooped slightly.
I'd told him the truth; how he chose to interpret it was up to him.
"Thank you, Ruan Bednicker."
I heard his short reply just before he left.
His voice was a little strained, but I pretended not to notice.
***
The next morning.
I woke up to a refreshingly pleasant morning for the first time in a while.
"Ah... this is nice."
After sleeping in the uncomfortable, cramped dormitories of the Spirit Island wing and the cold, inconvenient outdoors, I had finally gotten a good night's sleep in a proper bed.
Feeling refreshed, I immediately circulated my energy, then stretched my neck and left the room.
"Ah, Young Master. You're awake?"
"...Uh, yeah."
A maid I'd never seen before bowed her head.
Besides her, Cycad Hall felt bustling with activity.
Was everyone asleep yesterday because it was so late?
A quick glance showed people who looked like maids and servants busily cleaning the hallways, wiping the window sills, and watering the potted plants since early morning.
"You've risen, Young Master!"
"Good morning."
"Please let us know if you require anything."
Whenever I passed by, the servants would stop their work and bow respectfully.
Every maid I encountered also bowed their head in greeting.
It was a night-and-day difference from when I first came to the main house.
It made me realize just how much my own circumstances had changed.
'At this rate, maybe I won't have to go all the way to the main building for meals.'
With that thought, I headed to the dining hall on the first floor. The food wasn't set out yet, but an appetizing aroma filled the air.
A man who appeared to be the cook approached, bowed, and spoke.
"Welcome, Young Master. Your meal will be served shortly. Please let me know if there are any foods you dislike."
"As long as it tastes good, I'll eat anything."
"Very well."
As I sat at the table waiting for the food, I saw a familiar face.
It was Keian.
"Good morning."
"You're awake."
Keian said with a bow.
"How about a cup of tea before your meal? We have ginger tea, which is good for hangovers."
"Sounds good."
When I nodded, Keian began to brew the tea with a warm smile.
Does he enjoy the art of tea?
Looking at the rigid old man's profile, I felt like I was seeing a side of him that suited his age for the first time.
"Here you are."
"Mm."
I first savored the aroma, then took a small sip of the tea.
"Sorry. It seems like an excellent tea, but I don't have the words to describe it."
"Those words are the highest praise."
A short while later, the cook brought out the food, and I enjoyed a leisurely breakfast for the first time in a long while.
"What are your plans now, Young Master?"
Keian asked me after the meal was finished.
I answered while sipping my post-meal tea.
"I'm thinking of going to the academy."
"Is that so? Then your break won't be very long."
"Huh?"
"The carriage to the capital departs in one week. You'll have to leave then to make it in time for the special curriculum's schedule."
"A week... That's a good amount of time."
I nodded and asked.
"Do you happen to know who among the Spirit Islanders is going?"
"I'm not sure. Applications are accepted right up until departure, so the list will keep changing. For now, I know the maximum capacity is ten people."
Ten people...
I wonder if they'll even fill all the spots.
"What if more than that apply?"
"They'll be cut off based on their training retreat scores."
A very Bednicker-like solution.
I said as I stood up from my seat.
Now that I'm full, I should go outside and stretch a bit.
"What happened to the other Spirit Islanders?"
"More than half left this morning. The rest will either join Heros through the Bednickers or head to the academy."
"They're staying in the guest rooms on the first floor of the mansion, right?"
"That is correct."
Maybe I'll go see what they're up to.
I'm also curious how many of them are going to the academy.
With Keian in tow, I left Cycad Hall.
The sunlight was warm, but the wind was still chilly—the weather of late winter.
As I strolled through the still-bleak Bednicker garden, I found myself wanting to see newly bloomed flowers.
I suppose I'll be at the academy by the time spring arrives.
"Hah!"
Just then, a loud kiai reached my ears.
Beyond the garden, I could see two familiar faces standing in the training grounds.
Caron and Hector.
"Are they sparring?"
"It would seem so."
"Oho."
There's nothing in the world as entertaining as watching a fight.
Caron was wielding two daggers, while Hector's weapon was, of course, a sword.
At a glance, Hector seemed to have the upper hand. It wasn't an unexpected outcome. I realized it when we fought in the cave.
When it came to interpersonal combat, Hector was now clearly superior.
The fight didn't last long.
Caron, who had been on the defensive the whole time, dropped one of his daggers in a moment of carelessness.
Hector didn't miss the opening and instantly subdued Caron.
"..."
Caron ground his teeth, then tossed aside his remaining dagger.
It was, in effect, an admission of defeat.
"It was a good match."
Hector said curtly as he sheathed his sword.
The Spirit Islanders who were watching erupted in cheers. Charl's voice seemed particularly loud.
The moment Hector wiped his sweat away with a faintly pleased smile, Charl let out a scream.
"Kyaaaaah!"
What a fuss.
Caron picked up his dagger and left the training grounds, coincidentally walking in my direction.
The staggering guy flinched when he saw me.
"You..."
"Good morning."
"..."
When he didn't answer, I raised a fist and said again.
"Good morning."
"G-good morning."
Does this bastard not even know how to say good morning? I was more puzzled than offended.
Sometimes he seems to have less common sense than Mir.
"Enjoyed the match. You got completely wrecked, didn't you?"
"..."
"Must be eating you up inside, huh? Before the retreat, you were much stronger than Hector."
As I openly mocked him, Caron glared at me.
Meeting his gaze, I chuckled.
Am I becoming like my master?
I prefer a guy whose eyes stay alive like this to someone who grovels after taking a few punches.
"...My specialty isn't fighting people. It's hunting."
"I'm sure it is. But even that great hunting skill of yours will be surpassed soon enough."
"What did you say?"
I didn't reply, just jutted my chin for him to pass.
Caron clenched his fists and stormed past me.
'He seems like he could be useful if properly refined.'
Though Caron is also a guy with many puzzling aspects.
Right now, I've got my own problems to deal with.
'The underground library.'
If I leave the main house now, I don't know when I'll be back.
That means I have one week before I leave for the academy.
Within that time, I have to find it.
***
Even if it's temporary, the position of Young Family Head is convenient.
No one stops me from roaming this vast estate as if I own it.
"Right. It is my house."
When I had free time, I'd chat or eat with the Spirit Islanders staying at the main house.
Thanks to that, I got a rough idea of who was going to the academy.
The rest of the time was, of course, spent searching for the underground library.
I searched the main building, of course, as well as the annexes clustered around it, the servants' quarters, and the warehouses...
I searched every building there was, but I couldn't find the way to the underground library.
Places like the servants' quarters had basements, but they were mostly used for storage.
And on the third day, I reached a conclusion.
"It's impossible to find this by just running around on foot."
The only method left was to ask around.
The first person I went to see was the head maid.
The same head maid who had given me that meaningful remark before the retreat when I was looking for the library.
"I don't know its exact location. However, I do know that it exists."
The head maid spoke with her characteristic expressionless face, as if she had been waiting for me.
"Young Master, just because it's an underground library doesn't mean it must be accessed through a building."
"Ah—"
It was like a small wake-up call.
And from that day on, I stopped searching only the buildings and began exploring the entire family estate.
The passage might be somewhere in the [Butterfly Forest]... but if that were the case, I might as well give up.
The forest is huge.
'Still.'
I had a strange conviction.
That somewhere on the estate, not in the forest, there had to be a passage leading underground.
And two days later...
"..."
I finally found it.
Beyond the forbidden rear garden, in a place that connected directly to the forest without a wall.
Coincidentally, it was near the hut where I had met the Iron-Blooded Duke.
Behind the hut was a well, one that had long been abandoned, its water source dried up.
In other words, this well was a passage large enough for a person to pass through.
*Ssshhh—*
The weather had warmed up considerably, but for some reason, I could feel a cool chill rising from below.
"Hmm."
I guess there's no choice but to go down myself.
I rubbed the back of my neck, then leaped down into the well.
*Thud.*
"..."
The well itself was narrow, but the space below was much more spacious, with a rough-hewn dirt path stretching straight ahead.
A path wide enough for two or three people to walk comfortably.
You had to look closely to tell, but it wasn't a natural cave.
'This path looks like it was dug a while ago.'
*Step—*
For now, I pressed forward.
Just in case, I raised my guard, ready to react to anything that might jump out.
Before long, I came to a fork in the path... and in the middle of the fork, there was, of all things, a signpost.
The most bizarre part was the text written on the sign.
[1. Choose the correct divine beast of the Bednickers from the following options. (1 point.)
① Lion ② Wolf ③ Deer ④ Owl
※Warning※ Incorrect answer: one finger.]
...What the hell is this?