Chapter 23
Chapter 23
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 23
Chapter Title: Warrior
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“Central folks lack endurance, don’t they?”
Derga scowled fiercely as he climbed the stairs to his study. It seemed all memory of the quite considerable time—and diligent effort—he’d put in had been erased. The butler gave an awkward smile as if he found it troubling too.
“Indeed. To quit so suddenly like this.”
“Is there a scholar from Bratz or Bariel University around?”
“I’ll look into it. Otherwise, we’ll have to bring someone in from elsewhere.”
What a hassle. Where else could he find someone from Bariel University to hire as a tutor for such a cheap price?
He wondered if he shouldn’t have frozen the salary for a few years. If he’d known this would happen, he could’ve raised it just enough to string him along. Well, it wasn’t about the money since the guy was leaving for research abroad.
“It’ll be expensive, won’t it?”
“Most likely. You’d probably have to pay at least ten times the previous tuition fees. And even then, the question is whether they’d agree to do it...”
Damn it! Derga stomped his foot in frustration. Just as he was nearly at the study, he suddenly remembered the aide who hadn’t shown his face at all yet.
“Is the aide still sleeping?”
“He went to bed at dawn yesterday, so he must be exhausted.”
“What a lucky bastard. Wake him up and send him home.”
Creak.
The moment he opened the door, Derga froze. The butler’s puzzled gaze didn’t matter. The scene, which had been picture-perfect every day, was subtly altered.
“…What the hell?”
It wasn’t his imagination. The aide lay sprawled on the floor in a spread-eagle position, surrounded by slightly disheveled stacks of documents. The butler, who had followed behind Derga, was so shocked that he covered his mouth.
“Good heavens! What is this! Is he all right?”
Unlike the butler, who immediately checked on the aide, Derga went straight to the desk drawer. He opened the hidden safe inside and confirmed that the seal and various valuables were all intact.
“Master! Shall I call the doctor?”
“…Is he dead?”
Derga’s voice was sharp as a blade. If the man had collapsed right in front of the desk, only one possibility came to mind. He’d gotten caught in a rat trap, just like the previous butler.
“He’s still breathing.”
“Call the doctor. And report to me the moment he wakes up. Assign someone to make sure he doesn’t run off.”
“Yes, understood. Hey! Someone out there!”
“What’s going on?”
Chaos erupted. While the servants rushed in and carried the aide away, Derga meticulously inspected every item in the study. Fortunately, nothing was missing or tampered with.
Was it because there was no damage? As his mind cleared, a surge of betrayal welled up.
“…The nerve of him!”
“Oh, Master, you mustn’t!”
“How I kept you on! And you pull this shit!”
Thwack!
Derga struck the unconscious aide’s face, unleashing his frustrated rage.
Meanwhile, Berik returned to the annex, biting into an apple.
“Noisy, huh. Didn’t they catch you?”
The laid-back servants had all been summoned and rushed into the main building. A carriage crossed the garden. It was probably the doctor. Ian leaned against the window, watching with interest.
“They did. The aide was inside.”
“Damn, you’re screwed. Your head’s gonna roll now.”
“Scared?”
“If you die like this, I’m the only one who gets screwed over.”
Not wrong. Ian burst into laughter at Berik’s words.
Ian snapped the wooden key in half, then handed Berik a small pouch. Inside was a tightly rolled denunciation letter.
“Burn the key somewhere no one will see once you’re out. And deliver this to Lord Molin. Directly, no exceptions. You know the address, right?”
It was the final touch. Berik tucked it into his bosom and nodded.
“Deliver to Lord Molin, get the gold, and on the way back, stop by the house and pass the message to Philia.”
“Perfect.”
It was a message to Philia, Ian’s birth mother.
The time had come at last. If she was ready to hide, she should disappear without a trace. Berik would let only Ian know her hiding place. Now, even crossing the border posed no issues.
“From tomorrow, let’s do proper sparring.”
“Once I complete the mission safely.”
“Deal? Don’t whine later.”
His expression said he’d get it done by any means necessary. Ian tossed him an apple with a grin.
“See you tomorrow.”
Creak.
The carriage was gone now.
All that remained was observing how the other side would react. On second thought, getting caught by the aide wasn’t entirely bad.
‘Even if he tidied up, in a rush like that, something might’ve been overlooked. Derga would’ve noticed for sure. I can shift the attention to the aide.’
If the aide woke and testified, it’d lead to another phase, but whether Derga would believe him was doubtful. While preserving his position, the count would draw his own conclusions, and those wouldn’t change even if the heavens split.
Knock knock.
Ian turned at the knock.
“Master Ian. I’m coming in.”
“Oh. Teacher.”
The tutor entered, sweating profusely. He looked drained, as if Derga had sucked the life out of him. The conversation between an employer desperate to retain him and an employee eager to leave was plain as day.
“Did you have a good talk with Father?”
“Y-Yes...”
“It’s a shame you said today’s your last lesson. Thank you so much for your excellent guidance all this time. As a token of appreciation, I’ve prepared a modest gift.”
Ian played it cool, pulling out a folded paper. It was a transit pass stamped with Bratz’s seal. The tutor let out a sigh of relief and repeatedly wiped his dry face.
“Phew. Good lord.”
“You don’t like it?”
“No, but when our eyes met earlier, couldn’t you have smiled or something? I was so terrified thinking there was a problem.”
The tutor clutched the pass to his chest like it was his lifeline.
“Go across the Blaster Sea and continue your great research. No one pays much attention, but it’s people like you who change the world.”
Ian encouraged him sincerely. The scholarship he’d devoted his life to would become Bariel’s foundation. And someday, it would power Ian’s ambitions.
The tutor fumbled, unsure how to respond, then rummaged through his bag.
“Here. The materials you asked for.”
It was a map of the Great Desert and projected weather patterns. Oasis markers, sand dune elevations—all meticulously noted.
“Based on the date you mentioned, there’s a high chance of a sandstorm forming in the northeast, around here. I don’t know the Cheonryeo Tribe’s exact route, but with luck, they’ll avoid it.”
The temperature swings were hellish, worthy of “fiery inferno” and “frozen hell” labels. Ian swallowed a sigh at the quantifiable hardships ahead.
“You don’t look good.”
“It makes me want to chuck it all.”
“But people live there too.”
Was that his way of consoling? Ian carefully folded the paper and put it in the drawer.
“Leaving right away today?”
“Yes. I can’t wait a moment longer.”
Ian extended his hand like it was a ceremonial farewell. The tutor hesitated, then clasped it. Smiles wishing each other luck formed on their lips.
“Oh, wait. Before you go.”
“Yes?”
What else was left? his expression said.
Ian pulled out the Cheonryeo Tribe letter he’d copied from Derga’s study yesterday. It was a sparse transcription of key words, not full sentences.
“Could you translate this for me?”
The tutor peered at the paper, then tilted his head.
“After the Ye tribe chief, who will come next?”
He read it as instructed, but laughed as if he had no idea what it meant. Ian was just as puzzled.
Still, being in the hidden safe meant it was an extremely important letter.
* * *
“Did you hear?”
“About the aide? Whew. The world’s a scary place.”
“No kidding. I heard something like this happened before.”
“You never really know people, huh? Shocking.”
The mansion was abuzz. The butler tried to crack down, but how easy was that? Servants gossiped about the aide whenever two or more gathered.
“…So, he still hasn’t woken up?”
“Yes, Young Master.”
Ian ignored the fading chatter of the servants and asked Hayna. The child trailed him, holding his outer coat. Behind her, Berik followed impatiently, laden with sandbags.
“The Count didn’t send him home. He locked the inner office in the study and posted guards: two in the hall, one at the door. Servants are strictly forbidden from approaching.”
Hayna whispered the intel she’d gathered. With all that mana pumped in, of course he wouldn’t wake easily. Hayna asked curiously, as if dying to know.
“What on earth did you do?”
Wondering how he’d knocked out the aide like that. Unaware Ian was a mana user, she was twisting with curiosity.
“Here. Take this.”
“Gasp! Gold!”
Instead of answering, Ian handed her a gold coin from his pouch. It was what Berik had brought back—proof the denunciation letter reached Molin safely.
“For your hard work and the carpenter’s share. Pass it on properly.”
“It’s too much. Wow.”
“Is it? Then give me change.”
“No, no. Heh heh. What are you saying?”
Her “too much” was mere politeness, not refusal. Hayna grinned, bit the coin with her front teeth, then swiftly pocketed it and stepped back casually.
“Berik. Hurry up.”
“But... proper training...”
“If that wasn’t proper? Should I add more weight?”
“...I’ll shut up.”
“You’re impatient, so this method suits you. Gradually raise your limits. Two more laps, then grab the sword.”
“You’ve got a great master!”
“Thanks. I’ve got a decent limb too.”
Berik glared at Ian with fiery eyes, then took a heavy step. With no more home tutoring, Ian could devote the whole day to training Berik. Derga hadn’t left the study since yesterday’s incident.
But then.
Clop clop—!
Hoofbeats came from the main gate. The doctor returning? But it sounded unusually rowdy. Ian stood blankly under the tree, fixing his gaze.
“Ah.”
He thought it was a black horse, but no.
It was a Kusille, essential for crossing the desert. A hybrid between horse and camel, the Cheonryeo Tribe’s signature mount. Which meant—
“Who are they?”
Ian paused at Hayna’s question.
Stout warriors astride the saddles. Faces painted with red pigment, announcing their presence with golden ornaments. They were...
“The Cheonryeo Tribe.”