Chapter 246
Chapter 246
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 246
Chapter Title: Clan Invitations and the Chief's Summons
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After receiving the bundle of letters and returning to my room, I quickly skimmed through them all.
Counting them up, there were a whopping twenty-five in total.
“To think there are twenty-five all at once…! As expected of you, Brother! This must be the first time in Heros history that anyone’s received this many offers simultaneously! It gives me chills!”
Verita, who had naturally followed me into my room, made a huge fuss.
Personally, though, I got more chills from the fact that she had accurately counted the letters from quite a distance just by eyeballing them.
I held out the letters and asked,
“Do you know much about Heros’s clans?”
“Hm? Well, about as much as anyone else?”
“Then weed out any with bad rumors or that are picky.”
“Of course!”
She looked so thrilled even for a simple errand, her face beaming with a huge grin as she took the bundle of letters.
Then she pulled them right up to her nose and began scrutinizing them closely…
Her eyes bloodshot as she checked each one meticulously—it was so intense, like some emotional fanatic staking her life on her feelings.
Her attitude made me a bit uncomfortable, but I said nothing and waited silently… A moment later, Verita finished her check and held out the selected bundle toward me.
“Here you go!”
“So how many now?”
“Ten in total.”
“Hm.”
Still a bit too many.
Five would be ideal, but this was probably her best effort at trimming them down.
I took the bundle from Verita.
Letters each stamped with different seals.
I casually opened one, skimmed it, then shot it into the trash.
“Huh?”
“What?”
“Oh. Your reading speed is faster than I expected.”
“Didn’t finish reading it.”
“Huh?”
I pointed at the trash and said,
“The content was too clichéd. How should I put it? It was blatantly obvious they’d just followed the manual. Take a look.”
I recited a line from the letter I’d been reading.
“…And above all, every member of our clan was full of praise for the swordsmanship you displayed…”
“Oh.”
“Sword, my ass.”
The sword I’d only briefly drawn in the first clash against Hiro.
Even that wasn’t used well.
Because when I clashed it directly with the Seven Sins Sword, I was certain that trying to keep responding with the sword would leave me at a disadvantage against Hiro’s mighty blade, so I immediately sheathed it.
“…Yeah, it definitely lacks sincerity.”
Verita’s voice lowered, and the smile vanished from her face.
‘Is this girl about to go off again?’
I hurriedly cut her off before she could accelerate.
“No. But hey, it happens. From that clan’s perspective, I mean. How many recruitment offers have they sent out so far? They might’ve been sleepy while writing, or lazy, or just slipped up.”
“But daring to be so rude to you, Brother—I can’t tolerate it.”
Can’t tolerate it.
The moment I heard that, the one guy who shouldn’t make his presence known right now perked up his head.
Curiosity, that is.
“If you can’t tolerate it, what’ll you do? Storm the clan alone and fight them to the death?”
Not sarcasm—just pure curiosity.
I was curious how this madwoman would deal with a clan she’d marked as an enemy.
Verita smiled faintly and said,
“As if. Against an A-rank clan, even I wouldn’t have a chance in a head-on fight. So instead, I’d join that clan and slowly dismantle it from the inside. It takes time, but it’s the surest way.”
“…”
“I guarantee they wouldn’t even realize why their clan is declining.”
…Shouldn’t have asked.
I quickly apologized.
“Don’t do that. Please.”
“…Okay.”
Leaving Verita a bit deflated behind me, I continued reading the letters…
Then I spotted a familiar clan name and was slightly surprised.
“The Sky-Cleaving Sword Brigade’s here too.”
That Sky-Cleaving Sword guy was impressive in his own way.
Even after the Iron-Blooded Duke flatly refused right to his face, he had the gall to send another recruitment letter…
Takes some thick skin to pull that off.
Besides that, there were [Frostel], [Full Moon], [Brotherhood], and even the [Desert Scorpion] clan that Chain Sickle had mentioned.
I skimmed through only the benefits of joining each clan, tossing aside any that didn’t appeal…
But there was one I couldn’t handle that way.
Verita said with slightly dreamy eyes,
“That’s the legendary [Black Rose Letter]… Even I’ve never seen one in person.”
“…”
I almost said, What legend? but held back.
Most things involving the Iron-Blooded Duke came prefixed with ‘legendary,’ ‘mythic,’ or ‘unprecedented,’ after all.
“You’re going to join the [Black Rose Brigade], right?”
Verita said in a slightly regretful tone.
“Why the long face?”
“Well… If you join the Black Rose Brigade, I probably won’t be able to come with you.”
“Oh. Really?”
Music to my ears, honestly…
I looked down at the purple letter paper.
Sure, shaking off this leech of a woman was pretty appealing…
“…Putting it on hold for now.”
No matter how I thought about it, linking up with the Iron-Blooded Duke even in Heros carried too much risk.
From my position, both he and Verita were equally dangerous existences…
If anything, I could control Verita to some degree, whereas I had no clue what the Iron-Blooded Duke was scheming.
Especially now that Verita was clinging to me.
“Brother…”
Ignoring Verita’s touched gaze, I kept thinking.
Similar reasons made high-rank clans unappealing.
The higher the rank, the more powerhouses they’d have, and fooling those guys’ senses wouldn’t be easy.
“None of them appeal.”
In the end, I tossed all the letters in the trash, and Verita, standing beside me, nodded and said,
“Indeed. There’s probably only one group on the entire continent worthy of you, Brother.”
“…”
Yeah. And it sure as hell wouldn’t be some colorless faction.
As that thought crossed my mind, there was another knock.
Thinking today had an unusual number of visitors, I opened the door.
Not a welcome face at all.
A rather unexpected person was standing there.
“Sis?”
“…Yeah.”
It was Nero Bednicker.
“What’s up?”
“I have business.”
Nero, looking at me with complicated eyes, cautiously asked,
“But… did I interrupt something?”
She was glancing at Verita inside.
I quickly dispelled the annoying misunderstanding.
“Not at all.”
“Good. Then follow me.”
“I need to know what it’s about first.”
“The Chief’s summons.”
“The Chief…”
I muttered blankly, then snapped to attention.
“…The Headquarters Chief?”
* * *
Heros’s positions, ranks, and roles are more complicated than they seem.
Ranks are at least straightforward for outsiders, thanks to the clear grade system.
From S-grade to D-grade, anyone can tell who outranks whom at a glance.
But when a hero joins a clan, they get a special role on top of the standard ranks.
Even if it’s not clan leader or vice-leader.
Most clan leaders also take on the role of Branch Chief, which is unavoidable.
Every clan has a designated area, so serving as chief of a specific branch is part of the job.
Branch Chiefs are lumped together under that title, but they’re graded by the size of their area or the region’s danger level.
At the top of this convoluted system stands just one person among all the heroes.
Heros’s Headquarters Chief.
Naturally, their fame, honor, and power are on another level.
For example, they can reduce several cities to rubble with a single document, mobilizing that much force.
This Chief even meets face-to-face with the Emperor and Pope every ten years at the grand assembly.
Standing shoulder-to-shoulder with the pinnacles of imperial and papal authority says it all about the symbolism of the position.
As Nero Bednicker explained what I already knew or newly learned, I inwardly hid my unease.
‘That big shot summoned me?’
Purgatory Lord next, now Heros’s Headquarters Chief.
Mountains beyond mountains, literally.
At this rate, I might end up in an audience with the Pope.
Heros’s Chief was secretive in some ways even more than the Purgatory Lord…
I’d heard vague rumors of exploits here and there.
But nothing on personality, features, preferred weapons, or even appearance.
Not holed up in a palace like the Purgatory Lord, either—seemed to roam around a lot.
What I knew about Heros’s Headquarters Chief:
Name: Taon Glad.
Title: Golden Blood.
Currently serving as Chief for 100 years.
As the above indicates, not human.
“We’re here.”
I looked up at Nero’s words.
A large door labeled what looked like the Chief’s office, with a familiar face standing in front.
“Hiro?”
“…Hiro?”
“…Brother.”
Exchanging oddly glad greetings, I looked at Hiro.
Pale complexion aside, he looked surprisingly fine.
‘Well, yeah.’
No major injuries—just exhausted after pouring out all his energy.
My side, the victor, might have worse aftereffects.
Hiro, spotting the burn on my hand, asked,
“What’s with that hand?”
“Side effect from yesterday’s technique. It was pretty risky for me too.”
“Hm.”
Hiro grinned and said something out of left field.
“Then you could say it’s a scar I left.”
“Whatever helps you sleep.”
Anyway, he seemed to have business here too…
As we stood awkwardly wondering who’d go first, a voice came from inside.
“Come in.”
Probably both of us, right?
Hiro and I exchanged glances, then entered the Chief’s office together.
The fairly spacious room held two men: a blond one slumped at the desk, and a silver-haired one standing rigidly beside him.
Their looks and vibes were polar opposites in every way.
‘Who’s the Chief?’
Obviously the one at the desk, but…
I couldn’t quite believe it.
The young man practically sprawled face-down on the desk, drooling in his sleep, didn’t scream ‘Chief.’
“Ughhh…”
As he groaned and half-lifted his head, a wave of alcohol stench hit.
The frowning silver-haired man said,
“Chief, time to get up already.”
“Ugh… Already mealtime? Jerome, sorry, but grab some for me. Something hot and steamy, with tons of well-stewed radish…”
“Not mealtime. You summoned two Bednickers today, didn’t you?”
“…Bednickers?”
A groggy voice leaked out, and finally, the so-called Chief lifted his head.
The desk imprint on his cheek was… weightless, somehow. His half-lidded eyes even more so.
“Yeah… Right… Ugh, what a pain…”
“Wipe the drool off your face and please maintain some dignity.”
Jerome, standing beside him, said exasperatedly, but the Chief’s expression and posture didn’t change much.
He did roughly wipe the drool with his sleeve, though.
Still with those bleary eyes, he asked,
“…Why’d I call these two again?”
“You said it was about rank adjustments.”
“Oh… Right.”
Taon nodded, finally looking our way.
“Ahem… Hem.”
Clearing his throat.
Straightening his clothes a bit, the Chief looked at me and said,
“So… Ruan Bednicker?”
“Yes.”
“You caused quite the upset in yesterday’s promotion match? New heroes are always welcome… My respects for your achievements.”
“Thank you.”
“So, our hero friends debated all night in the conference room and reached a conclusion of sorts? But before implementing it, I had to get your opinions, so I called you here.”
I nodded.
“Go ahead.”
“First, Hiro Bednicker will be demoted to B-grade.”
I glanced surprised at the Chief, then reflexively at Hiro beside me.
He looked pretty shocked too.
“Demoted…?”
“Yeah. As you know, A-grade used to exclude demotions. But this time, that came up. Without demotions, A-grade heroes get complacent, lose ambition—stagnant water starts rotting, basically.”
“That’s…”
“Yeah, not true at all. Point is, enough heroes felt that way for it to reach my ears.”
“…”
“Of course, you’re still young. If anything, you’re fresh waves, not stagnant water… But yesterday’s defeat was the trigger, so you’re not entirely uninvolved. Thoughts?”
I looked at Hiro.
Maybe because he was still young, his face flushed slightly, breathing uneven.
Honestly, yelling here wouldn’t be out of place.
Being the first sacrifice of a demotion system sounded humiliating even roughly.
For a prideful guy like Hiro, it’d be hard to swallow.
“…Understood.”
Yet Hiro calmed his anger.
I glanced at him in slight surprise. For some reason, Hector’s face flashed in my mind just then.
“Good.”
The Chief nodded.
“We’ll retrieve your hero badge soon and issue a new B-grade one. Should be done by end of day at latest, so stick around headquarters.”
“Got it.”
“Good. You can go now, and Jerome? Step out for a bit.”
“Understood.”
What the hell flow is this?
While I stood dazed, Hiro and Jerome left… Suddenly, I was alone with the Chief.
Left by himself, Taon pulled a hip flask from his pocket and chugged heartily.
“Phew…”
Hangover cure with more booze. Drinking on an empty stomach’ll ruin his gut.
“Should I go too?”
“…Urp. No. Sit.”
A burp or hiccup, unclear.
Taon stood, clattering teacups in a way that didn’t suit him, and poured water.
“Like black tea?”
“Not really.”
“Yeah? What then?”
“Apple juice.”
“Hm. I’ll prep some next time.”
Smirking, Taon sat across from me and offered steaming black tea anyway.
Couldn’t refuse a superior’s offer.
I sipped the black tea with a reluctant face.
“How much do you know about Sister Razbet?”
I nearly spat the tea in his face.