Chapter 106
Chapter 106
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 106
Chapter Title: Academy Raid: Begerton Antares (6)
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Roan Adenov had always admired knights.
His father was the greatest knight he had ever known.
—Savior Sword.
The continent's poets had bestowed that supremely honorable title upon the Empire's finest knight.
Many praised Klein Adenov's nameless sword.
Countless others idolized the captain of the Black Lion Knights.
Roan was no different.
He wanted to become like his father.
He dreamed of following in the footsteps of the Savior Sword and becoming a great knight.
A valiant knight who would be hailed as knightly by the masses, slaying evil and upholding honor.
"You've got talent. But that's all there is to it."
"Urgh...!"
And now, Roan—harboring such dreams—was being blocked by an unknown mercenary whose name he had never even heard before.
Kagagagak—.
Amid the sharp screech of blades grinding against each other, Roan's gaze fixed on the mercenary beyond.
The mercenary—Raintas.
The man who had seized the academy was a swordsman far stronger than Roan had imagined.
Strong enough to instill despair in a boy named Roan Adenov.
'Why... why isn't anything getting through...!'
Raintas was a seasoned mercenary.
He easily read Roan's shallow sword path, making a lifetime of honed technique look utterly pathetic.
Before Raintas, the Adenov swordsmanship lost all its luster.
In place of the valiant sword Roan had pursued his whole life, only weak, pathetic flailing of a third-rate amateur unfolded before his eyes.
"With a mindset like that, what do you think you're going to accomplish, you brat—!"
Along with Raintas's sharp shout, a sword strike thrust forth right before him.
Kclang! Kang—!
Roan gritted his teeth and withstood the shock transmitting through his palms.
Raintas, swinging his blade, wore a clear sneer.
Like twisting a child's wrist, he was relentlessly chipping away at Roan's sword.
"There were mountains of guys around me who were obsessed with their own talent. Some of them were even better than me."
"......"
"Do you know what happened to all of them?"
Kclang! Kang—!
Gripping his trembling wrist, Roan shifted his footing.
Upper. Lower. Upper again. Then, to the right—.
The blade moved erratically, relentlessly assailing Roan.
"Without exception, they all died before I did."
"Ugh...!"
"Because they trusted only their damn talent and never knew their place—!"
Raintas accelerated his sword further, a vivid smile on his face.
A storm of blades whipped about like a demon's fury.
Roan struggled to block it somehow.
Because right now, he wasn't alone.
Avery—.
His one and only childhood friend was behind him.
He had to protect her.
Until the darkness enveloping the academy lifted, Roan had to keep blocking Raintas.
"Uwaaaah—!"
Roan poured all his strength into his blade as it surged toward Raintas.
He had to break this flow somehow.
Kuduk—.
Gritting his teeth, Roan took a step forward.
His sword accelerated in sync with his advancing foot.
'I can't keep getting dragged along like this—!'
In this moment, Roan decided to gamble.
One step—.
Amid Raintas's strikes, Roan recklessly thrust his sword forward.
And immediately after, the price for his recklessness arrived.
"You're just trying to bulldoze through with brute force like an idiot."
"......!"
Kiiik—.
Roan's sword, locked in a bind, came to a halt.
Roan stared in panic at the stalled blade.
No matter how much strength he applied, Raintas's sword wouldn't budge an inch.
It didn't feel like clashing against man and sword—it was like pushing against a wall.
"What... what is this...!"
His bewildered eyes reflected Raintas.
He had never experienced this even against burly knights.
No matter how much force he used, the sword didn't twitch.
Was the man standing before him not human, but some sword-wielding monster—.
As Roan thought that, from his lower body, a knee shot up at blinding speed.
"If you get outmuscled, you just die—do you want that?"
"Guheok...!"
Kwoong—!
Raintas's knee slammed into Roan's abdomen.
After the shock stiffened his body,
A follow-up kick sent Roan's body flying.
Kwaaaang—!
Kicked by Raintas, Roan flew far and crashed into the wall.
"Kuaaaah...!"
"Roan—!"
Toward Roan embedded in the wall, Avery rushed over again.
Beyond Avery's shaking hair, Roan gazed at Raintas standing with sword in hand.
Strength surpassing human limits and seasoned skill.
Raintas was a mercenary who possessed it all.
Thud, thud—.
Raintas approached Roan, sword dangling.
Before this iron-wall of a man, Roan gripped his sword tighter to keep hold of it.
"You're lacking. And arrogant to boot."
"......"
"But I'll give you credit for your grit."
Kweek—.
A sharp groan escaped Roan's lips.
However, this wasn't the academy's training hour.
And the mercenary before him had no intention of going easy.
"Get up, brat."
"......"
Expecting more mercy from an enemy was a luxury.
Kweek—.
Roan staggered to his feet.
He raised his trembling sword, glared at Raintas, and assumed his stance again.
"Haa, ha......"
The swordsmanship Roan faced was like quicksand.
Each clash exposed Roan's pathetic, weak sides.
Raintas's sword pulled people down.
Even knowing that, Roan couldn't stop charging at him.
"......"
Because Avery was behind him.
That was the only reason.
Whiiik—.
Pain surged from bruises spreading across his body.
Roan suppressed it and aimed his sword.
"What's your name, brat."
Raintas's eyes, curved in arrogant amusement, fixed on Roan.
And Roan met them with unflinching resolve.
"Roan... Adenov—."
"Good name. Adenov... so that's who you are."
The two, having exchanged names, took their stances.
Their gazes locked.
As Roan prepared to lunge forward again,
Swish—.
A presence suddenly emerged from deeper in the corridor.
"......"
"......"
Roan and Raintas's eyes simultaneously turned toward the corridor.
Crack—.
Raintas cracked his neck and spoke.
"Looks like time's up."
"What......?"
Roan voiced his confusion at Raintas's words.
He couldn't grasp the meaning.
But soon, a figure emerging from beyond the corridor resolved his doubt.
Thud, thud—.
With echoing footsteps from deep in the darkness, someone appeared.
"Hmm—. Raintas, looks like some pests showed up after all."
A white-haired researcher with a somewhat eccentric air, wearing a monocle over one eye.
An ominous presence had arrived.
Toward the researcher, Raintas spoke of Roan, addressing him as 'Doctor.'
"Some rats came sniffing around, so I was just giving them a swat."
"Is that so? Hmm......"
The man called 'Doctor' by Raintas pondered briefly.
Click—.
Soon, adjusting his monocle, the Doctor's gaze turned to them.
"Ah, perfect—they've delivered themselves right to us. No need to go far. Lucky."
More precisely, he looked at Avery standing beside Roan.
Kekekeke—.
The monocled researcher eyed Avery with keen interest, then twisted his lips into a chilling smile.
"Raintas. That's the kid we've been looking for."
The Doctor's finger pointed at Avery amid his eerie laughter.
Right after, Roan and Raintas reacted oppositely.
Roan shielded Avery behind him and glared at the Doctor and Raintas with sword raised.
In contrast, Raintas looked annoyed and silently watched the two.
"That's the alchemist's descendant?"
"Yes. Descendant of Teliber, the alchemist once called the Golden Hand long ago."
Roan watched their conversation warily.
Teliber's descendant.
The intruder they were seeking.
The exchange carried an unsettling vibe.
Avery, sensing something ominous too, hid behind Roan with a darkened expression.
"So, Raintas. Grab that kid, and our business here is done."
"This is getting annoying."
Hearing the Doctor, Raintas scratched the back of his neck.
Roan tensed even more upon hearing them.
Kigigik—.
But Raintas dragged his lowered sword across the floor.
"That's how it is, brat."
The intruders were after Avery.
Realizing that, Roan went on high alert.
No matter what, he couldn't hand Avery over to them.
"I won't let you have Avery!"
"......"
"As long as I'm here, you won't lay a finger on her—!"
Roan and Raintas's eyes met.
Their gazes crossed.
As Roan braced to block Raintas's approach,
Swish—.
Raintas raised his head, his voice cold.
"Don't hate me too much."
"......!"
As his bloodshot eyes glared at the enemy,
Raintas vanished from Roan's sight.
So sudden Roan couldn't even tell when he'd lost him.
As Roan's panicked sword searched for Raintas,
Kwaaaang—!
An unexpected shock exploded in Roan's left abdomen.
"Guheok...!"
Agony raced through his body.
With it, Roan's body flew far away.
Thud—.
Roan's sword hit the floor from the impact.
And Raintas, who had sent him flying, now stood right before Avery.
"N-no, stay back...!"
"Well, it won't be a bad deal for a lady like you. The Doctor's quite capable despite appearances."
"Stop it! Don't hurt Roan anymore!"
Thud, thud—.
Raintas's footsteps advanced toward Avery.
Roan's hand frantically reached for his sword.
"......"
He couldn't stay down like this.
What had he learned the sword for? To protect whom?
Kwaak—.
Roan's desperate hand grasped the sword rolling on the floor.
"Stay... away from Avery...!"
"......Roan Adenov."
Roan rose on wobbling legs.
He lifted his chipped sword and glared at Raintas before him.
Avery was precious to Roan.
Someone he could never lose.
The boy gripped his sword and stepped toward the enemy.
"Not a hand... on Avery... Guhek...!"
"......"
Puk—!
In an instant, a flash gleamed before his eyes.
Roan's sword clattered to the floor, and he was sent reeling back from the shock.
Thud—.
Roan gritted his teeth against the pain in his back.
It was incomprehensible.
As if even their previous clash had hidden his true skill, Raintas now swung a sword Roan couldn't even chase.
"There are things will alone can't accomplish in this world. That's why you need to get stronger."
"......"
"So you can protect what you want—."
Raintas advanced on Roan, sword in hand.
Kweek—.
The taste of blood spread in Roan's mouth.
It hurt. His body felt heavy.
Every muscle ignored his commands.
Yet Roan arduously moved his arm to lift the sword from the floor again.
"Avery... I'll...!"
"......"
Kclang—!
Raintas's strike knocked Roan's sword away once more.
The blade slipped from his grip.
Roan's gaze fell to the floor.
His fallen sword awaited its master.
"Avery... I'll... protect you...!"
"......"
Kwaak—.
Roan's hand seized the sword again.
And toward that sword of Roan's, a sharp, precise strike whipped in.
Kclang—!
The heavy impact sent the sword clattering down.
"Avery......"
"......"
"Avery... I have to... protect...!"
Roan's hand reached for the floor again.
He picked up the fallen sword.
Kclang—!
Another sharp shock transmitted through his hand.
Roan's sword flew beyond his reach.
Kwoong—!
Raintas's kick slammed into Roan's abdomen.
"Guhek—!"
"Roan...!"
Avery's cry echoed from afar.
However, Roan's vision was already blurring.
"......"
Weak. Powerless.
Before a true powerhouse, he was nothing.
He wanted to protect the one he loved.
Yet here he was, helplessly slumped.
Roan's eyes looked up at the mercenary before him.
And from the mercenary's lips came Roan's name.
"Roan Adenov."
"......"
"You were splendid. Next time, it'd be good if you could withstand my blade."
That was all Raintas said.
He turned and approached Avery.
Thud, thud—.
Raintas hoisted the stunned Avery over his shoulder.
"Kyaa...!"
"Avery...!"
Raintas carried her down the corridor.
Hweeeu—.
Amid Roan's pain-filled groans, Raintas's voice drifted to his ears.
"Don't worry. We'll use her well without harm and send her back."
"......"
"If you can't wait, come take her back yourself."
Thud, thud.
In his fading vision, Roan stared at Raintas.
"Rain... tas...!"
His bloodshot eyes fixed on the blurring scene.
The Doctor and Raintas.
Their voices faintly echoed as they conversed.
"Raintas, you have a soft side too, huh......"
"Shut up......"
Blink, blink.
Each time Roan closed and opened his eyes, the intruders receded from his view.
Avery reaching out toward him faded too.
His vision blurred amid surging pain.
The battle's thrill had suppressed the agony, but now it assailed him all at once.
Kuduk—.
Even as his mind clouded, Roan desperately clung to one name.
"Raintasssss—!"
When the darkness shrouding the academy's skies finally lifted.
The boy faced a solitary morning alone.
Roan Adenov—.
The name of the boy who dreamed of becoming a knight.