Chapter 9
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 9
Chapter Title: Provocation Demands Full Retaliation
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Exclusive Knight Training Academy graduation ceremony.
Today marked the day they would head to their assigned posts and officially become Exclusive Knights.
Today was also the day Ision Calrad would transfer to the Ban Pellion Ducal Family.
A place teeming with all sorts of bizarre monsters.
He was used to it by now, but it had been a while since his last visit, so he was sure to run into all sorts of trouble.
He had steeled himself mentally.
'Beat down as many as I can, as hard as I can.'
The Ban Pellion family was extreme meritocrats when it came to anyone but women.
If you couldn't prove your worth, you'd be ignored to the bitter end.
'Still, since the Lady belongs to Ban Pellion...'
They'd demand he prove relentlessly whether he was a fitting Exclusive Knight for Ban Pellion.
So he had to prepare thoroughly and crush them.
"Ision."
As Ision pondered just how he'd crush them, a voice called his name, and he turned his head.
A boy with blue hair.
Airen Morblu.
The guy's eyes were filled with a melancholic glint for some reason, which soured Ision's mood.
Why the hell is he looking at me like that?
"Yeah."
"During the time we've spent together, I've learned so much from you."
I didn't really teach him anything.
"So remember this one thing."
Airen extended his fist toward Ision.
Is he picking a fight?
"No matter where you go, you're my rival."
The sincerity in Airen's eyes.
They were completely different from before.
Ision and Airen had been sworn enemies from way back.
That's why he remembered Airen's old gaze all too well.
A look that placed him far beneath him, full of disdain.
And mixed in with that, contempt for serving the Witch of Reverse Heaven.
But what about Airen now?
His eyes held admiration, anticipation, and the friendship of a true comrade.
It was utterly unlike the Airen Ision had known.
Ision knew exactly when Airen had started treating him this way.
But he had lived through the years.
Maybe because he'd seen more of the old Airen than this new one.
No matter how much his gaze or attitude changed,
in Ision's mind, Airen was still the one from his previous regression.
That's why his attitude toward Airen had always been poor.
To Ision, Airen had always been an enemy.
But was the current Airen still an enemy?
Someone showing this level of goodwill wasn't all that common.
Ision had experienced all sorts of relationships in his life.
He was still young, so things could change later.
But for now, his relationship with Airen was one of the most positive he'd had in his lifetime.
'I get it now.'
He finally understood why the Lady called regression a curse.
Airen truly saw him as a rival of the soul.
But because of the regression, Ision had looked down on him, ignored him, and scoffed.
Like, why the hell would you and I be soul rivals?
That thought hadn't changed even now.
Preconceptions rooted deep in the foundation weren't shaken off overnight.
Preconceptions from regression.
They warped his basic stance toward people.
Because he thought he knew them, he assumed they'd act a certain way.
That's why he avoided relationships before they even started, ignored possibilities, and shut them out.
'Of course, some relationships might end up the same no matter what.'
But was it right to predetermine every relationship?
Ision thought that was wrong.
Regression should be a tool to use, not something that decided everything.
The Airen standing before him was the same.
No matter the previous regression, this Airen and that one were different people.
So starting a new relationship from this moment couldn't hurt.
"Got it."
He couldn't change his attitude in an instant.
Preconceptions didn't vanish easily, after all.
But anyone could make the effort to change.
He raised his hand and bumped his fist against Airen's.
With that, Ision chose change as well.
"I won't forget."
Airen's eyes widened, then a bright smile spread across his face.
Airen could make a smile like that too, huh.
Seeing anything but his usual scowl felt fresh.
"Ision, what are you guys doing without us?"
"Airen, include us too!"
At that moment, the other trainees from behind rushed over and piled in.
Once they became Exclusive Knights, unless their lord attended the academy, they wouldn't see each other often.
Maybe that's why the trainees exchanged final goodbyes, boarded their respective carriages, and departed.
A carriage appeared before Ision.
It bore the black lion emblem representing Ban Pellion.
Black was originally Ban Pellion's signature color.
Part of the reason the Lady was shunned in Ban Pellion was surely her snow-white hair inherited from her mother.
That's why, later, when she allied with the heretics and dyed her hair pitch black,
she had shown a faint glimmer of joy, claiming she was finally one of them.
Only to annihilate the Ban Pellion family with her own hands right after.
"Please, come in. Ision Calrad, I'm the maid Marina, assigned to serve you starting today."
A familiar face appeared after so long.
Exclusive Knights held knightly status.
They were assigned a dedicated maid at the estate.
Marina had originally been Ision's maid as well.
She served with utmost courtesy.
She always made sure he lacked for nothing.
'But true to Ban Pellion form.'
She was skilled with the sword to a considerable degree.
Even their maids were selected as knights—that was Ban Pellion for you.
No wonder the world treated them like a den of monsters.
"Looking forward to working with you, Marina."
After greeting Marina, he boarded the carriage.
The training academy where he'd spent two years slowly receded into the distance.
Ision gazed at it for a moment before turning away.
Soon, he'd face the Ban Pellion Ducal Family.
He quietly anticipated what would unfold there.
Ban Pellion Ducal Family.
The place the world called a den of monsters.
But the estate looked perfectly normal on the outside.
Not flashy, but exuding a sense of refined luxury.
The knights guarding the estate all looked dependable.
Once the carriage arrived, Marina opened the door.
Ision stepped down using the footstool with his still-short legs.
As he disembarked, the knights' gazes briefly turned his way.
"He's the same age as the youngest Lady, ten, right? Bigger than I thought."
"Pretty sturdy build. You can tell he trained hard."
"That's the kid. The arrogant one who provocatively challenged the youngest Lady."
"Haha, wonder how long he'll last against the youngest Lady."
No one was pinning hopes on Ision.
They were just wondering how far he'd hold out.
Ban Pellion didn't promote women, true.
But separately from that, the knights fully recognized Ser Noxia's genius.
A talent so overwhelming that no one in Ban Pellion could ever look up to—no, anyone would have to acknowledge it.
Any knight could see it.
That's why no one held expectations for Ision.
They were merely curious when he'd realize how idiotic his provocation had been.
Of course, Ision couldn't care less.
"Then, allow me to guide you."
Marina ignored the knights' words and began leading the way.
Following her into the corridor revealed expensive solid wood furniture.
Ban Pellion minimized extravagance, but a ducal family was a ducal family.
Even practical items had to be top-quality.
'Yeah, this is the vibe it had originally.'
A scene he'd forgotten after it was reduced to rubble—long time no see.
They walked for quite a while like that.
"Hey."
Someone poked their head out from around the corner.
Ision looked up to see a boy with jet-black hair and wall-like eyes.
A boy just a year or so older than Ision.
Of course, he knew who it was.
Carnokt Ban Pellion.
The fourth son of the Ban Pellion family, one year older than the youngest, Ser Noxia.
Carnokt had always hated Ser Noxia.
The reason was simple.
The gap in talent.
Ser Noxia was a once-in-a-millennium genius.
Carnokt, with his average Ban Pellion blood, could never match that.
But Carnokt was a man.
At least his chances of inheriting Ban Pellion weren't zero.
His skills might fall short, but his rank within Ban Pellion gave him the edge.
That's why he'd relentlessly bullied Ser Noxia using that advantage.
Ision knew this well, so his face nearly twisted in disgust.
'Get it together. I just met Airen today and learned people can change.'
Negating his resolve from today would be like spitting in his own face.
"Ision, this is Young Master Carnokt Ban Pellion."
Marina introduced him first, so Ision placed a hand over his chest and bowed.
"Pleased to meet you, Young Mas—"
Before Ision could finish, a fist came flying at him.
Naturally, he pulled his head back to dodge, and Carnokt, who had thrown the punch, twitched his eyebrow.
"They said you're Ser Noxia's Exclusive Knight, but you're not completely useless, huh?"
Hmm, I see.
"I heard you provocatively declared you'd beat Ser Noxia?"
Carnokt let out an incredulous scoff and retracted his fist.
"Do Exclusive Knights these days have no manners?"
"Talking back to your lord without knowing your place. Frolicking in your little pond makes you think the world's yours?"
Carnokt had certainly awakened to the world's harshness early.
For him, Ser Noxia was an impossibly high wall.
So everything in the world must have irritated him.
Especially anything related to Ser Noxia.
Unease flickered in Carnokt's eyes.
As long as he couldn't surpass Ser Noxia, she had to remain a flawless existence.
Only then could he salvage his pride.
Like, "I had no choice; my little sister was just too strong."
'So my challenging his sister must have pissed him off.'
Ision had boldly thrown down the gauntlet to Ser Noxia.
Something the inwardly fearful Carnokt could never do.
And some mere Exclusive Knight had pulled it off, cracking his pride.
"That's right. I'm just a frog in a well."
Knowing this well, Ision offered a friendly smile.
Carnokt was still a child, so his defensiveness was strong.
His attitude was understandable enough.
"Then, before I meet the Lady, how about you show me the world beyond the well, Young Master Carnokt?"
But understanding and accepting were two different things.
"You."
Carnokt belatedly grasped his words, his eyebrows slowly furrowing.
Ision had politely declared he'd crush Carnokt first before seeing Ser Noxia, after all.
"You don't even know how frogs die, do you?"
Carnokt turned with fury on his face.
"Follow me right now. I'll fix that mouth of yours perfectly."
Ision watched his retreating back with a simple smile.
Wasn't it just earlier he thought reneging on today's resolve would be spitting in his own face?
Eh, a little spit won't hurt.