The Poisoned Revelation
At Count Leon Benning’s words, the medical officer stepped forward in protest. “My lord, no matter who you are, interrupting while I am treating a patient—”
“Does my request truly sound like a simple favor?”
The medical officer froze at Leon Benning’s reply. The bald instructor glared sharply at the escort knight standing behind the Count and the monocled man beside him.
“My lord, what you are suggesting…”
“Do not make me repeat myself twice, medical officer.” Leon Benning’s voice dropped sharply, turning icy. “I asked you to make a little room so I might speak with Maxim Apparte. Will this boy die if you do not treat him this very instant?”
The medical officer shook his head heavily. “No, my lord.”
“Good. Then you understand. Take the instructor and step outside. It will not take long.”
“What exactly do you intend to do?”
The question came from the bald instructor.
Leon Benning regarded him with languid eyes. “You know, instructor, that is not your concern. You seem worried I might harm Maxim Apparte. Is that it?”
The bald instructor could not answer. He simply stood there. Leon Benning watched him for a moment, then let out a hearty laugh and waved his hand dismissively.
“Enough. Both of you, get out. I will do nothing that harms that cadet.”
The Count’s escort knight approached and practically shoved the pair from the room. Once the medical officer and instructor had been removed, the escort knight did not return. The infirmary door closed firmly, and the knight stood guard outside, clearly intending to control all access.
“They’ve left.”
Leon Benning murmured as he glanced at the closed door. Maxim clutched the scarred area on his body, his mind swirling with countless thoughts. Why was the Count, who should have been at his estate, here at the academy? How had he known Maxim was here? Why had he come at this exact moment? What business could he possibly have with him?
Maxim’s fingertips trembled violently. He could not even begin to imagine what was about to happen to him.
The Count sat arrogantly in the medical officer’s chair, legs crossed. He stared at Maxim in silence for a long time before opening his mouth in a dry voice.
“Maxim Apparte.”
The moment his name left those lips, Maxim felt as if the breath had been knocked from his lungs. Leon Benning tapped his temple lightly with one finger.
“Third son of the minor Apparte barony. Though a branch of a prestigious family, you split off so long ago that you might as well have no connection at all… Nothing more than a minor noble surviving on the meager lands your main house tossed you, living self-sufficiently as a provincial magistrate.”
He knew. This man knew everything. Maxim’s eyes grew chillingly cold.
“Yet the boy himself is a genius who learned swordsmanship from a wandering swordsman and passed the academy entrance exam with a style that isn’t even part of the official curriculum. Though his talent for mana is hardly exceptional, is it?”
Every instinct in his body screamed that he must stay on guard against Leon Benning. Maxim tensed every muscle, nerves stretched taut.
“Anything else? Ah, yes…” Leon Benning’s lips curved upward. “You are also the lover of my daughter, Theodora Benning. Correct?”
Maxim did not answer. Leon Benning shrugged at his silence.
“Well, I suppose that is no longer important to you.”
“What is the meaning of this?” Maxim spoke for the first time.
Leon Benning uncrossed his legs, pulled the chair closer, and drew near Maxim’s bedside.
“Why don’t you tell me? What exactly has happened?”
Leon Benning’s gaze slid downward to the wound Maxim clutched.
“Why you suddenly find circulating mana so difficult. Why you can no longer manifest your aura. Why the dungeon’s guardian was so unreasonably strong. Why it was set to target Theodora. What that mist was that poured out before you entered the final chamber.”
The words landed like a cold wind sweeping through the infirmary. Maxim radiated killing intent. The golden hue of his eyes had died, turning flat and lifeless. The monocled man, caught in that murderous aura, staggered backward in terror, but Leon Benning received Maxim’s killing intent with an indifferent expression.
A thud sounded as the monocled man fell over. Leon Benning glanced in that direction, then looked back at Maxim.
“To think you can still emit such killing intent in your current state.”
Leon Benning rubbed his hands together.
“It was wise of me to nip the bud early.”
Wearing a satisfied expression, Leon Benning leaned back in his chair.
“The Magic Tower and our house… have maintained a rather intimate relationship for quite some time. I also hold considerable influence within the academy. Therefore… it is entirely possible for me to involve myself to some degree in academy examinations that the Tower cooperates with.”
Leon Benning let out a sigh.
“Thanks to you, our family coffers have taken quite the hit. The cost of manufacturing the living armor, the funds to construct the dungeon, the money to lobby the academy… I never imagined Theodora would open her heart to anyone… You were a person who defied expectations at every turn.”
Maxim’s face grew even more savage as he stared at the Count.
“That potion as well. In truth, it was the second most expensive thing after the living armor.”
“…What do you mean?”
Maxim’s killing intent grew even sharper. A storm of razor-edged aura capable of tearing space itself erupted from him. Leon Benning instinctively leaned back. For the first time, a flicker of surprise appeared in those emotionless eyes.
“You already know the answer better than anyone.”
“What the hell did you do to my mana?”
The door burst open. It was the Count’s escort knight. He drew his sword and charged at Maxim, who continued radiating killing intent. Maxim ignored the knight and kept his gaze locked on Leon Benning. The knight pressed the tip of his blade against Maxim’s throat. The steel sliced his skin, drawing fresh blood.
“My lord!”
“Stand down. It is nothing.”
The Count waved a hand at the knight.
“My lord, but—!”
“I told you to guard the door outside. Can you not even manage that?”
The Count’s voice was frigid. Overwhelmed by that tone, the knight sheathed his sword.
“Get out.”
“My apologies.”
Once the escort knight had left the infirmary, the Count faced Maxim again.
“Now then, let us return to the main topic. The potion applied to your wound carried a curse.”
The Count spoke in a perfectly flat, casual tone.
“That curse reacts to mana. Even if left alone, it will slowly devour your body. You may survive. If you are careful and conserve yourself.”
Shadows seemed to swallow Maxim’s face.
“However, if you use an aura blade, I cannot guarantee your life. With luck, you will become a half-cripple. Without it, you will die.”
Maxim’s wound, his scar, began to throb violently.
“We cannot let Theodora know, can we?”
The fist Maxim clenched turned bone-white.
“Are you telling me that a man of your stature orchestrated all of this simply because of my relationship with Theodora?”
Leon Benning burst into laughter at Maxim’s words.
“‘Simply’? My, you really know how to make a person laugh. She is a child I have raised with such care. It would be a waste to hand her over to you.”
“Instead of going through all this, why didn’t you just come to me earlier and threaten me, you son of a bitch?”
Leon Benning laughed again. The sight of those eyes, utterly devoid of emotion, curving into a smile was utterly chilling.
“Maxim, I am better at reading people than you might think. I investigate thoroughly, after all… If I had approached you and politely asked you to break up with my daughter, would you have obediently agreed? If I had stuffed tens of thousands of gold into your arms, would you have happily left her? If I had promised you a position in the kingdom’s finest knight order, would you have said yes? Moreover,” his eyes flashed. Maxim’s murderous intent collided with Leon Benning’s presence. “If I had drawn a blade to your throat, if I had mobilized knights to threaten you, would you have tucked your tail and run? No, no. You know that is not the case, Maxim Apparte. If I had done such things, you would have grown wary of me instead. And you are annoyingly strong, so removing you quietly was never an option.”
Leon Benning tapped his fingers nervously.
“I, for one, despise it when things do not go according to plan. And you have been quietly obstructing my plans all this time. Now I can finally say it.”
Maxim did not want to hear what Leon Benning would say next.
“Break up with Theodora, Maxim. In the worst possible way.”
“For someone who claims to know me so well, that only makes me want to laugh.”
“How far do you want me to go? If you do not wish to see something even filthier, I suggest you do not drag this conversation out.”
Leon Benning called to the monocled man standing quietly in the corner.
“Emil, come here.”
The monocled man—Emil Bourdin—walked to Leon Benning’s side.
“Emil is the head of the Bourdin barony, a branch family of House Benning, and a court noble. A rather important figure in the secretarial office, at that.”
Leon Benning looked back and forth between Emil Bourdin and Maxim.
“I will arrange for you to be engaged to Emil’s second daughter. This is not a bad offer for your family, is it?”
Emil Bourdin looked at Maxim as he spoke. His blue eyes fell on Maxim like those of a reptile.
“Well, since it has come to this, I look forward to working with you, ‘son-in-law.’”
Maxim’s expression twisted like a vengeful demon. The killing intent that poured out once more—this time directed at Emil Bourdin himself—made the man stagger backward.
“The way you people think is lower than a dog’s.”
“I will take that as agreement.”
Leon Benning wore a thin smile.
“Still, I will give you time to sort out your feelings. The deadline is until graduation. You will inform her unilaterally and earn her hatred in the same fashion.”
“What exactly do you want from Theodora? What are you trying to achieve by going this far?”
Maxim’s voice trembled with hatred. Leon Benning shrugged.
“At the very least, should not the one who pairs with Theodora be a member of the royal family? Yet if Theodora refuses to give you up, and you refuse to give her up, then we must force the issue, must we not?”
The royal family. Their closeness to the Magic Tower. The branch family head who had infiltrated deep into the palace. Maxim ground his teeth audibly.
“You intend to use Theodora to swallow this kingdom whole, you bastards.”
“How disappointing. I even phrased it as finding her a better match.”
His insight was admirable. But even if he knew everything, there was nothing he could change, was there? Leon Benning chuckled softly as he spoke.
“Maxim, do not forget that my eyes are always watching you. Do not even think of abandoning your knighthood and running away.”
Leon Benning rose from his seat.
“Well then, since I have delivered everything I came to say, I will take my leave. Baron Bourdin will extend an invitation soon, so discuss the engagement with him separately.”
“I will kill you.”
Maxim spoke in a low voice.
“If you wish to make Theodora even more miserable, then by all means do so.”
Leon Benning opened the infirmary door as he spoke. “The sight of her former lover and her father killing each other, with the cause lying in herself. She would truly love that, wouldn’t she?”
The months until their breakup were a continuous stretch of agony for both Maxim and Theodora. Maxim constantly pushed her away, and though Theodora knew he was pushing her away, she kept coming back. Maxim kept delaying. He put off speaking until graduation drew near, delaying again and again. He reduced their sparring sessions. She might grow suspicious otherwise. He stopped answering her readily. He no longer sought her out first. When she said she loved him, he avoided answering. He stopped embracing her.
The end was approaching.
“Theodora.”
It was a day when snow fell. Maxim stopped in the middle of exchanging swords with Theodora in the training ground.
“Don’t say it.”
Theodora cut him off. Tears were welling in those stormy gray eyes.
“Don’t say it. Please.”
“Let’s break up.”
“I don’t want to hear it, Maxi. Let’s stop here for today.”
He had to do it. He had to seize her and throw her away cruelly.
“A few months ago, I got a fiancée.”
Theodora’s steps halted abruptly.
“No.”
“From the Bourdin family. She’s the daughter of a court noble.”
“Stop talking.”
“They said they would revive my family and me. They said I could live comfortably as a court noble without needing to be a knight or anything like that.”
“I said stop.”
Large teardrops fell from Theodora’s eyes, pattering down.
“Why… why on earth are you doing this, Maxi? Why…”
“From the beginning, I became a knight to succeed.”
Maxim was surprised by how dry his own voice sounded. Theodora was crying right in front of him, sobbing in pain, yet what he had to do was drive a nail into that wound.
“…Then can’t you just come to me? It was a joke back then, but you can really live as a son-in-law in our house. Our family isn’t some fallen house, and we have plenty of money.”
Theodora’s words became a sword, stabbing into Maxim’s chest. He could not show it. He must not show it.
“I… I’ll work harder too. I’ll become a knight who can help you succeed.”
“…I’m sorry.”
Her head snapped around. Theodora’s palm had struck Maxim’s cheek. It did not hurt. The emotion contained in that hand hurt far more.
“You… after you changed me like this.”
Tears fell endlessly from Theodora’s eyes.
“After you taught me what it means to cherish someone, what it means to love someone. After you made it so I could only look at you, after you told me to look only at you…”
Her words blurred as she reached the end.
“After you told me I could be loved too…”
Theodora cried. She cried and cried. If only he could have told her. If only he could have ignored the threat and held her, telling her it was all a lie. Snow was falling. It was the cold weather Theodora hated, yet it was the snow she loved.
Maxim opened his eyes. Even though much time had passed, the painful memory rose as vividly as if it had happened yesterday.
“Fuck.”
Why had he thought about it? Maxim pressed his lips together against the bitter ache in his mouth. What had happened after that? He had been assigned to the border, treated as a knight who could not use aura, pushed out in factional struggles, and demoted. The moment he had given up on everything was when he first received his assignment to the Raven Knight Order. The powerless years had taken away even his greed for the sword and his hatred for the Count, leaving only faint thoughts of Theodora before vanishing.
And then…
Knock, knock. The sound of someone rapping on the door reached him. Maxim rose from his seat and approached the door.
“What is it at this hour of the night?”
When Maxim opened the door, standing before him was a junior with rich, brilliant golden hair cascading down, smiling at him with green eyes. She stood there in her nightclothes.
“I can’t sleep.”
“May I come in for a moment?”