Chapter 18
Chapter 18
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: Promised Price (2)
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Rishir couldn't understand his master's words.
He grasped the context itself, but he thought he had misinterpreted the meaning contained within them.
"Anything you want from the Bendel Family...?"
Who could take those words at face value?
If he responded with something like, Then I'll take the Bendel estate and the family head's head, that would be the real problem.
Maybe I should adjust my bastard rating to A+? His growth is getting out of hand.
Lately, Rishir, the not-quite-ordinary young man, had been wasting time on trivial thoughts.
Keeping up with the movements of his mysterious dark elf master, who traveled with a talking book, wasn't easy for him at all.
"Wait, hold on! Who the hell are you?!"
A voice interrupted the exchange between the bewildered disciple and his beaming master.
"Oh, and who's this child?"
"This is my little sister, Roera, who insists 'no matter what anyone says, he's my brother.'"
"Ah!!! I told you not to say that, seriously!"
"Oh my. You two get along so well."
The bastard son and the lady who had escaped the Bendel Family immediately sought a place to hide.
The lady insisted they should leave Haeren as quickly as possible.
Haeren's guards were under Bendel's jurisdiction. A single gesture from the Bendel family head could seal off every entrance and exit in Haeren.
However, the bastard son urged her to head to the residence of someone who had offered to help him.
And that's how they ended up at this house, not far from the Bendel estate.
A collaborator for Rishir?
Roera's interest was piqued immediately. At the same time, it made sense.
The drastic changes Rishir had undergone lately. If they were all due to a third party's influence, it was at least understandable.
Roera had been exploring the house, eager to learn about this collaborator,
when she heard voices from the living room—Rishir talking to someone—and came to check.
"Hey—hey! Rishir! By the way, your collaborator isn't—"
"Ah. Let me introduce you. This is my master."
This is insane.
The noble lady expressed her shock with uncharacteristic elegance.
She couldn't hide her confusion and repulsion at the dark elf who had appeared before her.
"Nice to meet you like this? Roera."
Pamon extended her hand to Roera.
"..."
Roera stepped back, her hand instinctively going to the sword at her waist.
It was an unconscious reaction.
Anyone would react the same way if a dark elf they were seeing for the first time suddenly offered a handshake.
So Pamon didn't show any offense.
"Ah, sorry. You got startled, didn't you?"
Instead, she withdrew her arm with a lively smile and apology.
"Haa..."
Rishir let out a deep sigh from the side.
"Roera... I never raised you to be like this... Master, I'm sorry. As you can see, Roera is quite shy around strangers."
"No worries~ She's actually kind of cute, like a cat?"
Roera gaped, her mouth and eyes wide open, alternating glances between her master and brother.
Their casual familiarity. Finally, Roera scowled and yanked Rishir's arm toward her.
"Oh my. Look at her getting jealous. So cute."
"Ha... Roera. This kind of suppression only breeds strong backlash. We just bounced back from one big rebound, remember?"
"Shut up with the nonsense...! What the hell are you!? Don't tell me your collaborator is that dark elf!?"
"That's right."
"This is crazy—"
Roera's sword slid from its sheath.
She pointed it at Pamon.
"What did you do to my brother!"
"My brother..."
"Oh dear. Look at her worrying about her brother. My disciple... You had such a wonderful family?"
"By the way, Roera. A handshake is with your hand. Pointing a sword is no etiquette."
"Oh, just shut up and stay out of it!!!"
It was prejudice.
But it was also common sense.
Dark elves, who lurked in shadows, were sinister beings who spread curses around them.
Thus, it was right to be wary of dark elves.
Especially if one approached your family.
Roera responded in line with common sense.
But listening to their conversation, she felt like a fool for being so tense and guarded.
The genius knight's sharp vigilance was futilely disarmed by the priestess's harmless chatter.
In the end, Roera sheathed her sword again.
"Explain exactly what happened."
Rishir's explanation was over.
Roera had kept wary eyes on Pamon throughout the story, but from midway, she stared at Rishir like he was a madman.
At first, she thought a cursed dark elf had bewitched the worthless bastard with magic for some nefarious scheme.
But hearing the tale, it was the opposite.
"What's cognitive impairment magic? Is there such a convenient spell? Never heard of it. Not because of your weird constitution, just—... Huh? Where'd she go?"
"Looking for me?"
"Gyaah!!!"
Roera, having experienced a wider world and gained the insight to match, was no ordinary girl.
Even by her standards, the dark elf was extraordinary.
And Rishir's hidden talent was special even by that extraordinary dark elf's measure.
On top of that, Rishir's attitude toward the dark elf.
Bold, or perhaps reckless.
It was natural for the dark elf to feel interest and fondness from her perspective.
"Unbelievable. What if the dark elf had bad intentions and cursed or magicked you?"
"By that logic, humans can suddenly pull a knife from their bosom and stab you too, right?"
"..."
"..."
The eyes of the little sister and the master met.
A moment where emotions toward this mutant(?) transcended even species.
In the end, Roera let go of her wariness.
She bowed her head to Pamon.
And—
"S-So-Sor—"
"Roera! Even so, calling our master a crazy bitch is too much—"
"What did you say! I was trying to say sorry!?"
"Oh? Apologizing to me? Why?"
"Why... I pointed my sword at you right off the bat..."
"Ah. No worries~ It's nothing big. My disciple's the weird one; your reaction is perfectly normal, little sister. And above all, above all. Roera was just protecting her one and only brother, no matter what anyone says, right~? So I get it? How precious... Like a kitten..."
"Our baby Roera..."
"Kitten, baby, screw you! Get those creepy eyes off me!?"
Roera instantly understood how those two had gotten close.
Her brother's master is a dark elf!?
Having faced an out-of-spec event, Roera gained a confidence—not quite confidence—that nothing could surprise her anymore, and thought,
Might as well hear everything I can while I'm at it.
"...More nonsense?"
But that confidence proved unfounded; soon after the story began, Roera was back to a dumbfounded expression.
"I get it. I'm still navigating the fog of confusion myself. Understanding my wondrous existence... It's no easy feat. Oh, no easy feat at all."
The moment she heard Rishir's true nonsense, Roera was shocked.
Compared to that, his previous words weren't even nonsense.
In other words—
"You've only been learning magic for less than a week?"
Pamon excitedly began bragging about her disciple.
"As my disciple says, isn't it wondrous? My disciple's talent. Our little sister~? You can proudly boast about your big brother on this point?"
"Boast all you want..."
"No, I don't want to..."
She couldn't deny it was wondrous talent, but she had no desire to join the otherworldly vibe of the master-disciple duo.
Finally! A somewhat normal one has appeared.
A third voice chimed in then.
"Who's that now?"
"Ah. Late introduction. Roera? This is Duran?"
"He's a bit cheeky, but he's a good book at heart, so relax."
Yeah. Rishir's little sister? Unlike that rude brother, you're calm—I like that. Skipping the handshake. My body's like this.
"..."
The wine-colored hardcover on the desk spoke as if it were the most natural thing.
And Pamon and Rishir treated it as such.
A sentient object—an ego item.
Ego items themselves weren't that rare.
The Bendel estate even had a lock that recognized its owner and opened or closed on its own.
...But one that wielded its ego so freely?
Roera had never heard of such a thing.
Probably hard to find even in the mage tower's top floors.
"Ah. My head—"
Roera's mind hit its limit.
She was born with sword talent.
Everyone around her had always treated her specially, and she'd never once questioned it.
...Am I actually not that special?
Dark elf.
Talking book.
A mutant who befriended them and mastered magic in under a week.
Roera suffered intense upheaval in her values amid them.
Yet she steadfastly listened to their stories.
Humans are animals of adaptation, after all.
"Ah. So right now, you're coming back from single-handedly turning the Bendel estate upside down?"
As the story neared its end, Roera had become the incarnation of tolerance, able to say "I see" to anything.
"Oh my. How composed. Aren't you worried I'll be hated by my little sister because of this?"
"I guess it's fine— or something."
A family that thoroughly separated two clueless children for adult reasons.
Her disillusionment, worn but sturdy, meant Roera felt no particular emotion about the family calamity.
Not sad, not happy.
A bit ridiculous, maybe.
"Acting all noble as hero's descendants, scorning the bastard. Turns out that hero was a liar who sold his pride to the worst fiend for power to play hero? Ridiculous."
Roera let out an incredulous chuckle.
Soon, it turned into her characteristic sneer.
The result wasn't bad at all.
This incident would let her completely sever her near-obligatory attachment to the family.
The anxiety and guilt from impulsively aiding Rishir's flight vanished cleanly.
"Then— Master, what about that contract in the end? Since I'm no longer part of the family after this..."
"The Bendel Family will have to prepare a new price."
"And I can choose anything I want?"
"Of course. That's the meaning of calling it their most valuable treasure."
"Master. May I ask one thing?"
"Of course, my disciple~ Ask away~ Your master knows everything? Ask ten questions, I'll answer a thousand~"
That's not how it works.
Ignoring the simultaneous retorts from Duran and Roera, the master and disciple continued.
"Why give it to me?"
"I've already gotten what I wanted, haven't I?"
Pamon rested her chin on her hand, gazing at Rishir.
When he pointed at himself, she nodded.
"I'm more than satisfied with this outcome? So no more greed for me. Ah. This conversation—is it uncomfortable for little sister?"
"Me? Why?"
"You're the Bendel Family's legitimate heir, right?"
"Not inheriting it."
"Oh my. So bold."
Roera straightened her posture.
She pushed her chair back, crossing her long legs on the desk.
"Family register's a mess, house is in ruins. Perfect timing. Might as well cut ties with Bendel completely like him and live my own life."
"My disciple? Little sister's quite the firecracker?"
"That's what worries me. Who'll take such a fierce lady?"
At Rishir's words, Roera flashed a mischievous smile.
"Who? You took me out, didn't you?"
"..."
Rishir, unusually speechless, averted his gaze.
His little sister giggled at him.
"My goodness. Duran. Aren't our kids just too adorable?"
Who're your kids, you crazy dark elf.
Dark elf, talking book, Bendel bastard, Bendel lady.
They huddled together, discussing for a while.
What to do.
What to take from Bendel.
Conference attendees.
Conference agenda.
If a guard saw, it'd be a sight to make their eyes pop.
"Is something like that even possible? Him inheriting the whole family and becoming head—"
"Hmm. Possible, but with my disciple's temperament?"
"It might be too much for me. Above all, what I value most now is magical attainment."
"Or use this chance to learn Bendel Style—"
Roera trailed off, shaking her head. Ah, no—
"Yeah, that makes sense. You should keep learning magic. A lunatic who makes and shoots mana bullets in under a week—why swing a hunk of metal like a brute?"
"Exactly~ Making my disciple learn sword instead of magic... Huh? Wait. What did you say, little sister? Makes mana bullets and shoots them?"
"What? Didn't you teach him?"
"?"
"?"
"?"
Three pairs of eyes turned to Rishir.
One wasn't human but a book, but still.
"Wasn't conscious of it— in a desperate moment, I pushed what Master taught me to the limit, and somehow it happened..."
"I see~ Somehow this, somehow that, and you used formal magic~ As expected of my disciple~"
"Pamon, you idiot. That's not something to accept so easily."
"Right? My disciple? Can you recreate it here?"
"I'll try...! Roera, call me brother to help me recall that sensation...!"
"Never said that."
Rishir stood, assuming position.
To recreate that sensation, he hid the silver bead from Pamon in his left hand, drawing mana with his right—just like before.
He was considerably tense.
Humans in extreme situations exert power beyond their abilities, they say.
Wasn't that magic the same?
Would it work just because he tried to recreate it now?
Rishir focused.
Mana gathered above his left hand.
And— faltered.
"..."
Rishir's face showed doubt at the mana flow that failed to form a sphere.
"My goodness, my disciple~"
"What, it failed?"
"Huh? That wasn't success?"
"I remember it being a round orb back then?"
"Really? What's going on. My disciple? Don't be disappointed? That's already an impressive achievement."
They interpreted his expression that way—but
Rishir's thoughts were elsewhere.
He was accepting a new sensation.
Like a wall he'd perceived suddenly crumbling, opening a new path—
Soon, Rishir replayed his battle with Gerhen once more.
If it hadn't been sparring—
If Roera hadn't been there—
What would have happened.
What should I have done.
One thing clear: faster.
Fast enough to pierce Gerhen's thorough guard.
Unavoidable even if seen—
Like an arrow slicing through wind.
As the chain of thoughts concluded, an arrow floated above Rishir's hand.
—Shwooooooo
An arrow infused with swirling wind at its core.
"...Was it shaped like that?"
Tsk.
Roera narrowed her eyes and tilted her head.