Chapter 323
Chapter 323
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 323
Chapter Title: The Second Outing (1)
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Shirone arrived at the Carmis estate, straightened his clothes, and walked toward the arch of the main gate.
Through the white iron bars, the uniquely free-spirited garden of the Carmis family stretched out before him.
The guards were the same as ever, their sharp eyes scanning the surroundings.
Sure enough, as Shirone approached, a right hand moved without hesitation to the hilt of the sword sheathed at his waist.
“Halt. State your business.”
The only difference from half a year ago was that they used formal language.
The guards of a noble estate typically rotated every four hours, and their posts changed monthly, so it was unlikely the same guards from back then were here.
Nevertheless, the reason they couldn't treat Shirone carelessly was that they sensed an extraordinary aura, one different from that of an ordinary person.
After a year at the magic academy, Shirone had shed much of his rustic, mountain-boy appearance.
Especially, the experience gained in real combat and the heightened mental fortitude from his training radiated an aura so palpable that even the guards, laymen to magic, could sense it.
“I’m a friend of Amy’s. Is Amy inside?”
The guards tilted their heads in confusion, then looked at each other, exchanging glances.
Half a year ago, Shirone had entered Amy's room, a domain forbidden to men.
But since that day, no one claiming to be Amy's male friend had ever been granted entry, so it was natural for the guards, unaware of that incident, not to believe him.
“There are no scheduled guests today. If you have business, please follow the proper procedures.”
It was the answer he had expected.
Shirone clicked his tongue and turned away.
He had come hoping he might be able to get in right away if he was lucky, but since things had gotten complicated, he had no choice but to write a letter and send it to the estate.
“It’s fine. Let him in.”
Just then, a welcome voice was heard from inside the main gate.
When Shirone turned back, Adel, the head butler of the Carmis family, was standing there with a smile on his face.
The guards' backs straightened instantly.
To them, who lived and worked in the mansion, the kindly-faced Adel must have seemed like a messenger from hell.
Leaning on his cane, Adel stepped through the main gate, stopped in front of Shirone, and looked intently into his eyes.
Remembering what happened half a year ago, Shirone braced himself.
The eye technique known as Pressing, which he'd experienced for the first time then.
Coming from the head butler of the Carmis family, it couldn't have been his full strength, so he had to be on high alert.
But Adel didn't use any technique. He simply bowed deeply at a ninety-degree angle, offering a polite greeting.
“Welcome, Young Master Shirone.”
Shirone, momentarily dazed as his tension eased, quickly came to his senses and bowed in return.
“Yes, have you been well?”
“Ho ho, an old man’s daily life doesn't change much. It seems you’ve come to see Lady Amy.”
“Yes, I apologize for coming without notice. Is she home, by any chance?”
Adel scratched his eyebrow, looking troubled.
“You must be aware of the situation. Perhaps because of it, Lady Amy has been feeling a bit unwell lately. Just the other day, Lady Seriel came to visit but had to leave without seeing her.”
“Ah, I see.”
Seriel was Amy's closest friend. To turn even her away meant Amy was serious.
But Shirone didn't give up.
“Please, just tell her I’m here. If she still says no, I’ll leave.”
Adel hesitated for a moment before nodding.
In truth, the atmosphere in the mansion had been dreadful ever since Amy failed the graduation exam. But she wasn't the type to show her frustration outwardly, so everyone could only walk on eggshells, unable to comfort her directly.
But perhaps Shirone could make a difference.
After all, this boy was the only male friend permitted to enter Amy's home.
“Very well. Please wait a moment.”
After instructing the guards to attend to Shirone politely, Adel boarded the carriage waiting in the garden.
‘It’s been about half a year. What on earth has he been through?’
As the carriage started to move, Adel's expression finally turned serious.
Using Pressing on the young men who approached Amy was a small pastime, a little bit of fun only the head butler could enjoy.
This time, however, he hadn't even dared to attempt it.
Shirone's spirit was far more sharply honed than before.
No, 'sharply honed' wasn't enough to describe it.
‘Chilling.’
The moment he met the boy's eyes to use Pressing, he felt the hair on his entire body stand on end.
His overall disposition didn't seem to have changed much.
The intelligent, bright, and kind nature was the same as the Shirone he had seen half a year ago.
But the energy felt in his gaze was subtly sharper.
‘Something else lives within him. A terrifying monster…’
This was something only a man of his caliber, the head butler of the great Carmis family, could perceive.
He couldn't guess what it was, but he knew that if he tried to harm the boy, it would surely leap out and devour him.
In that brief moment their eyes met, Adel realized such a situation must never be allowed to happen.
That's how violent and extreme the monster was.
‘Is it alright to let him in? Of course, he wouldn’t have come to visit a friend while harboring an uncontrollable inner demon…’
Adel reserved judgment on the matter.
Because it was impossible that the head of the family, Shakora, didn't know what he had just learned. And of course, the boy himself would know.
When his thoughts reached that point, a bitter smile formed on his lips.
‘…What an absurd boy.’
How long had it been since he'd felt a chill run down his spine, however briefly?
And Shirone had sealed such a monster deep within himself.
‘He’s grown even stronger in half a year. What incredible talent.’
The Carmis family was known for its bloodline of geniuses. Amy's talent, in particular, was unparalleled among her family members.
But the scope of Shirone's growth was beyond imagination.
If Amy was the fastest sprinter among humans, Shirone was a giant whose strides were on a completely different level.
‘What is it that drives him?’
As the carriage came to a stop, so did Adel's thoughts.
Carrying an unanswerable question in his heart, he opened the door to the mansion.
Although a fair amount of time had passed since the graduation exam, a solemn atmosphere still lingered.
For Adel, who had spent his entire life loving the vibrant atmosphere of the Carmis family, this was difficult to adjust to.
“My lord.”
Shakora, who was reading the newspaper, looked up.
“Young Master Shirone has come to see Lady Amy. However, the young lady has informed the butler’s office that she will see no one…”
“Hmm, Shirone?”
Shakora understood Amy's feelings.
His daughter, who was a bundle of pride, had completely messed up her graduation exam. How could she bear to show her face?
But with Shirone, there was room to reconsider.
Although Seriel was turned away, the feelings between a man and a woman were a different matter entirely.
Isis, who had been listening from the kitchen, came out and said.
“I’ll go ask Amy first.”
Isis went up the stairs and into Amy's room on the second floor.
The sound of a quiet conversation was heard for a moment, then she came out of the room again, approached the railing, and shook her head.
Receiving Amy's answer through that gesture, Adel bowed his head without a second thought.
“Then I shall send Young Master Shirone away.”
“No, let him in.”
At Shakora's words, Isis wore a worried expression.
“But dear, Amy…”
“It’s fine. Didn’t I tell him to visit when I saw him at the academy? It would be rude to turn him away like this. I want to see him. Let him in.”
“Understood.”
Relieved that he wouldn't have to disappoint Shirone, at least, Adel left the mansion with a much brighter expression.
Ten minutes later, Shirone arrived at the mansion.
Shakora was waiting on the sofa, and just in time, Isis brought out a tray of tropical fruits.
Shirone walked toward Shakora and bowed his head.
“Hello, sir.”
“Yes, welcome. Come, sit here.”
Shirone sat on the sofa and waited for the conversation to begin.
He had heard on his way in that the mood of the house was not good, so he refrained from bringing up Amy first.
Like Adel, Shakora also saw through to Shirone's subtly sharpened disposition at a glance.
During the graduation exam, he had been too worried about his daughter to look closely, but now that she had failed, he found himself interested in Shirone's achievements as a parent.
‘The kingdom’s most promising talent…’
Of course, that was an evaluation that excluded the graduating class.
But he didn't think Shirone's evaluation would drop much even if the graduating class were included.
He hadn't told Amy, but Shakora was the kind of devoted father who had been scraping articles about the magical society since she enrolled. And a student he had heard about until his ears bled was Dante.
When Shirone defeated Dante, the kingdom's number one, even a man like him couldn't help but be surprised.
But seeing him now, he confirmed it wasn't a fluke or luck.
In the eyes of this young man, who had achieved the mental state of a master monk, burned a desire that transcended the mundane world.
Adel had called it a monster, but Shakora thought differently.
That, too, was Shirone.
‘It’s not something one can just pick up somewhere. Was it a latent disposition that manifested later in life? But how?’
He had already heard the story of the harsh ordeal in the Kazra Kingdom. Even so, it was far too overwhelming an inner demon for an eighteen-year-old boy to contain.
Realizing a long silence had passed, Shakora returned to being a doting father and smiled bitterly.
“To be honest, she’s not that sick.”
“Yes, I know.”
He had thought as much.
But the reason he didn't think it was a lie was because she might be in a state more serious than any physical pain.
Shakora scratched his head as if this was difficult.
“Honestly, I don’t really know. She doesn’t seem to be struggling, exactly, but more… empty. You would understand, wouldn’t you?”
“Of course. I would have been the same.”
At first, it's bearable.
You might even resolve to start over, since it's already happened.
But the thought of having to repeat a whole year of grueling training makes the failure of the graduation exam cut to the bone.
With each passing day, the regret would grow heavier, and the self-loathing would crush her spirit endlessly.
“Amy is strong. She’s done her absolute best to get this far since she was twelve. That’s probably why the wound is so deep.”
“Yes, it’s probably best to leave her be for now. In any case, that’s how Amy is right now.”
Shakora shrugged, a declaration of surrender. It meant that with his daughter in such a state, there was nothing he could do to help.
Shirone glanced up at the second floor and saw that Amy's door was firmly shut.
It was as if he could hear the sorrowful cries he'd heard from outside her dorm room door the day the graduation exam ended.
“May I go up and see her?”
Isis said with a troubled expression.
“I already asked, but Amy said she was sick and to send you away. With her personality, if you just barge in…”
“Haha! Well, I guess I’ll just have to take a punch then.”
Shirone replied playfully. But it was also his way of conveying that he had no intention of giving up.
Shakora let out a thoughtful 'hmmm' and fell into thought.
Only Shirone could understand Amy's feelings 100 percent.
Furthermore, for a considerate boy like him to be so stubborn meant that Amy's condition was far more serious than they had expected.
If there was no other way, shock therapy might be a good option.
“Go on up to Amy’s room. You have my permission.”
“Yes, thank you.”
Shirone got up from the sofa and went up the stairs to the second floor.
Isis, watching him go, asked Shakora with an anxious look.
“Dear, what are you thinking? With Amy’s temper…”
“It’s fine. He probably understands Amy’s current state of mind better than anyone. Honestly, Shirone could just leave. The fact that he insists on seeing her means he knows things can’t be left like this.”
“What if it just makes things worse?”
“I told you, it’s fine. Above all, he’s a friend Amy trusts.”
Isis shot Shakora a sideways glance and pouted.
‘What’s with all the praise for a boy? Coming from a doting father like him…’