Chapter 88
Chapter 88
Translator: XZY
Chapter 88: Baron (1)
***
Those who had received Derek’s teachings knew.
The noble young ladies who had been his disciples not only saw their magical skills rise by another level, but they also had a tendency for their way of thinking and behavior to become strangely closer to something raw.
It was clearly an influence from the rough mercenary, Derek, but it wasn't as if they went so far as to throw away the most basic etiquette that permeated the entire social circle.
However, Diella was a person who was not bound by such things.
She was the first to receive Derek’s teachings, the girl who had accepted his influence the most, and although she had learned to kill her personal feelings for the sake of the greater good, she would not bother to hold back when her own sister, Aiseline, was involved.
If she took one hit, she would return ten, charge in, crush them down, bite their ear, and stab their eye to ensure they would never dare to look down on her again.
That was her way.
“The military achievements of the Renuel viscounty are rising, so you think it’s all your merit, don’t you? You think your title will go up in no time, and the whole world will fall beneath you, don’t you?”
“Ahk!”
She grabbed the hem of her skirt and, with her heeled shoe, stomped on Lady Trisha’s chest, looking down at her with the eyes of a beast.
Trisha was a girl who excelled at insidiously and sinisterly crushing people.
She was skilled at chipping away at her opponent’s self-esteem while running away with excuses like, ‘it was a mistake,’ or ‘that wasn’t my intention,’ all while trying not to give them any grounds to find fault.
At least in the noble world, where dignity and grace were the foundation, such an ability might have been useful.
However, she had picked the wrong opponent.
Diella knew.
When one lived within the splendid and brilliant culture of the noble world, it was all too common to forget the fact that you could be beaten at any time.
Those men and women who, without realizing that cold yet reasonable fact, became obsessed with hollow authority and crossed the line, needed to be stomped on to come to their senses.
They say the one who’s been hit hits best. Diella knew well at which timing to charge in and fix their mentality to properly shock the opponent.
It is only when the opponent is convinced that you cannot even touch a hair on their head, when you think their sky-piercing arrogance has reached its absolute peak… that you must smash them to the ground for them to finally realize reality.
“This is why you’ll never make it.”
Slap!
As she slapped Trisha’s cheek once more, Trisha, finally coming to her senses, gritted her teeth and got up.
She grabbed Diella’s hair and, casting aside all dignity, screamed and charged.
“Wh-what is this! What are you doing! Kyaaak!”
“Let go! I said let go!”
She pushed Diella away, seething with anger, but Diella kicked Trisha in the lower abdomen with her heeled shoe.
Crash!
Trisha was once again sent tumbling to the floor, but she did not let go of Diella’s hair.
Diella was also dragged down and rolled on the floor, then bit Trisha’s wrist with her teeth.
“Kyaaaaak!”
As Trisha screamed and let go, she immediately got up and tried to grab Trisha by the collar again.
At that moment, startled servants rushed in and grabbed both of Diella’s arms, restraining her. If they left her be and someone got seriously hurt, no one present would be safe.
Crash! Bang!
“L-Lady Diella! Please hold still!”
“Let go! I said let go! That’s an order!”
Diella, growling and continuing to glare at Trisha, was thus held back by the servants.
Watching her, Trisha slowly got up, panting for breath. Her hair was already half undone, and she was drenched in sweat. Her trembling pupils were a mixture of half bewilderment and half fear.
“Wh-what is this… no matter what… to be so undignified…!”
“Dignity? Right. When someone crosses my line, I don’t care about dignity or anything else. But do you think you have any dignity?”
Diella glanced toward Aiseline, who was too bewildered to even speak.
Drops of black tea were still trickling down her cheek. Seeing that, it felt as if her anger was rising again, and Diella lowered her voice coldly and spoke.
“Rather than playing games and insidiously provoking people like that, it’s far more dignified to just land a refreshing slap. It’s hilarious for a two-faced opportunist to be discussing dignity.”
“Do you think you can get away with this after causing such a scene?”
“And what if I can’t? Has the Renuel viscounty already received a higher title or something?”
Trisha brushed off her clothes and stood up, then spoke with a regained composure.
“Since you seem to want me to speak directly, I won’t beat around the bush. It would be best for you to bow your head deeply and apologize to me right now.”
Her breathing seemed to have calmed, and Trisha let down the other half of her hair and spoke with wide eyes.
“At least in this Rosea Salon, I can push Duplein out sufficiently.”
Lady Trisha glared at Diella with cold eyes.
The immediate secular authority of the Duplein family might be far above that of the Renuel family.
However, it seemed certain to anyone that this difference in standing would be reversed before long.
The gazes of the followers do not follow such explicit authority. They are more swayed by who holds the real power.
The young ladies of the Rosea Salon would watch Lady Trisha’s mood. There might still be a good number of them who followed Aiseline, influenced by her character, but there would be no one who would give a sympathy vote to Diella, who had always acted recklessly.
And once you got on someone’s bad side in the noble world, the insidiousness of the bullying was beyond description.
Aiseline, who had experienced that hazing once before, knew better than anyone.
It would be a mistake to think that everyone was as open-minded as the young ladies of the three great families, and that they could properly distinguish between right and wrong.
More often than not, the masses move by following power and authority.
Especially the lower-ranking nobles with strong desires for power and advancement had a strong tendency to be swayed by such things.
“Still, Lady Diella, you are still young and your thoughts are shallow, so you can certainly make a mistake. It’s not impossible for me to benevolently think that you made a hasty judgment out of love for your family. However, I must receive an apology.”
“You want to die? If you run your mouth any more impertinently, you won’t be walking home today.”
“I didn’t even have any expectations for Lady Diella. However, you must bow your head for the mistake of your one and only sister, Lady Aiseline.”
Her gaze was directed at Aiseline.
Denise, who was quietly fiddling with the hem of her dress and watching the situation, frowned.
Trisha seemed to have clearly judged how to act in this situation. She had thought it would be far more effective to pressure the relatively gentle-natured Aiseline.
“Lady Aiseline, you must know well how harsh it is to fall out of favor with the salon nobles in the ruthless social circle. I know that well enough myself, so I want to forgive Lady Diella’s discourtesy as much as possible.”
From the beginning, what Trisha wanted was only one thing. To crush Aiseline and firmly imprint the difference in their status so that she would no longer be an obstacle to Trisha’s rise.
The message was that if she bowed her head and apologized here, she would let it pass.
It was clear that Aiseline, who tried to resolve everything peacefully and gently, would quickly bow her head. Trisha had already finished her judgment of the person named Aiseline.
“Aiseline Unnie! Stay still! We didn’t come to Ebelstein just to curry favor with the Rosea Salon! Don’t bow your head!”
She was born of the same bloodline as Diella, but she possessed the opposite disposition.
It was the moment she thought she could crush her without difficulty, and a satisfied smile spread across her face.
Drip, drip, drip—
Cold black tea flowed down Lady Trisha’s hair.
Not only Aiseline’s pure white dress, but also the hem of Trisha’s navy blue skirt began to be stained with black tea.
“Wh-what…?”
At that moment, Trisha’s eyes met Aiseline’s.
Her eyes, as she tapped the empty teacup over Trisha’s head, were cold.
The sight of her pressing her lower lip firmly and glaring at Trisha with upturned eyes… was an expression no one had ever seen from Aiseline before.
Aiseline was furious.
Drip, drip, drip—
“Wh-what is this…”
“Don’t cross the line. Lady Trisha.”
Even if it was the same cold voice, it was on a different level from the always-angry Diella.
The sight of Aiseline, who embraced everyone with a warm and benevolent expression, turning cold and serious was something even Elente and Denise were seeing for the first time. This time, both of them had to widen their eyes for a different reason.
She had tried to maintain her dignity even while drenched in black tea.
She carefully placed the empty teacup on the table, then pushed it together with the saucer to make it easy for the servants to clear away.
“I have heard well of the achievements the Renuel viscounty has made on Rodentz Island. You will surely receive a high title at the next imperial birthday celebration. On the other hand, our Duplein is a falling star. I will not deny that.”
The way Aiseline spoke, ticking off points as if arguing, was so unfamiliar that everyone gathered at the table swallowed dryly.
“But that does not become a reason to hold Diella’s person and threaten me.”
“Ha…”
“The apology should be made by you, Lady Trisha, not me. If you do not do so, I will have no choice but to get angry.”
Her tone was calm, but there was an unknown pressure to it.
The value of anger was different for each person.
Aiseline was a person who was always so positive and vibrant that one wondered if the emotion of anger was even restrained in her.
That was why her anger had a weight that pierced the opponent more heavily than that of any other person. At this point, Trisha had to take a step back.
However, she was blinded by the sky-piercing momentum of her family’s rising prestige, the arrogance peculiar to nobles, and her ambition to reach the top of the Rosea Salon, and she ended up making the wrong choice.
“You will regret this. Lady Aiseline. Do not think you can spread your wings in this Rosea Salon any longer. Whether you like it or not, it will be me who pushes Duplein out and sits in that spot.”
“…”
“When that happens, you will be on your knees, begging me to forgive today’s discourtesy. How pitiful your expression will be then… honestly, I’m already starting to feel sympathy. I suppose that’s how all young ladies of fallen families end up.”
Trisha said so and laughed out loud.
In any case, the lower-ranking nobles would side with the Renuel viscounty. There were already many who had been won over.
The taste of power is sweet. Leading people, wielding them, and having followers injected an unbearable ecstasy and pleasure into this noble’s heart.
It was then, as Trisha was about to tidy up her messy clothes.
‘I can’t just stand by any longer.’
It was the moment Elente was about to get up, thinking of pointing out Trisha’s arrogant behavior just a little.
The moment she was about to open her mouth, another person cut in and spoke. It was a voice she had never heard before.
“Is it because the weather is nice here that everyone is playing around, fighting over nothing? It must be because the crisis of death feels like a story from a distant land.”
“…?”
“Just because the land is abundant and fertile, doesn’t mean the people are always bright and good, it seems.”
Most of the people present did not notice the presence of the person who had newly interjected.
This was because she, a master of alteration magic, was a person who could achieve extreme speeds with just a little bit of mana.
Only those with a deep knowledge of exploration magic, the natural enemy of alteration magic, could notice her presence.
In other words, only Lady Denise could have recognized the form of the girl who had suddenly appeared.
Whoosh—
As Denise turned her head, a person she had never seen before had taken a seat in the chair where Trisha had been sitting just a moment ago.
Her build was petite. She felt similar to Diella.
She was wearing a mage’s robe embroidered with plenty of gold thread, so her face was not clearly visible, but from the collar of the clothes visible between the hem of the robe, she was dressed in a pretty and splendid dress.
“Wh-what? You, you are…”
At the sight of the girl suddenly sitting in the chair behind her, Trisha was startled and turned her body.
The girl who was wearing the mage’s robe slowly raised her small hand and pulled back the hood, and presently, white hair that flowed down like a wave was revealed.
Her skin was like white jade, and her eyes were also as white as the snow of the north.
Seeing a lock of hair flowing down between her eyebrows made her seem a bit clumsy, but she was a person who felt so elegant that even that was sublimated into purity.
It was as if a beautifully dressed bisque doll had come to life.
However, the moment she recognized the girl’s face… Lady Denise had no choice but to get up from her seat with a serious expression.
She was the disciple Derek had gone to teach on a business trip to the distant lands of the north.
Since Denise was the first to hear about Derek’s trip to the north, she could only swallow dryly.
“N-no…. Lady Siern… why are you here…?”
“…? Do you know me?”
Siern had no interest in the famous figures of the noble world.
She had accompanied her father to social gatherings on the frontier a few times, but she basically had no interest in any other noble young ladies besides herself.
However, Siern’s infamy was already high even in the southwest.
Her personality was bad, beyond the level of being arrogant. She would kill people if she was displeased.
The confirmation of that fact was not yet clear, but at least the prominent figures in the noble world had heard of Siern’s ruthless nature.
Siern Aleyna Rochest.
Hearing that name, the other people present also froze.
The fact that the girl who was stuck in the spire of the Rochest territory in the northern part of the continent had shown herself in the noble district of Ebelstein was an unusual event in itself.
“I was done checking the mansion, so I thought I’d at least see Aiseline Unnie’s face, but…”
Her voice was youthful, but the pressure was unusual.
She was calling Aiseline ‘Unnie.’ It was strange for her to call the young lady of a completely declining, fallen family with such a title of respect, but the group could not even feel that sense of strangeness.
Siern slowly got up and, seeing Aiseline’s condition, her crescent-moon eyes opened wide.
She strode over to Aiseline’s side and, seeing the completely wretched state Aiseline was in, bit her lower lip.
Next to her, the still-furious Diella could also be seen.
Diella on the left, Siern on the right.
Just looking at that formation, one could not help but swallow dryly. One had to wonder if there was anyone who could control these two girls, other than their teacher, Derek.
However, surprisingly, the girl in the middle, drenched in black tea and looking like a drowned rat, showed no signs of fear.
Rather, she looked slightly flustered. She had not expected Siern to suddenly rush into this situation.
“Lady Siern… you said you were going to check the mansion you’ll be staying in…”
“It finished sooner than I thought, Aiseline Unnie. But as expected…”
Siern glanced toward Lady Trisha.
The killing intent in her eyes was not that of a mere unruly brat. It was the gaze of a murderer who had actually killed many people, tinged with a madness a level above that.
Killing intent sometimes exudes a pressure that feels like a physical force.
Rumors about Siern had already been quietly spreading among the high-ranking nobles.
The moment she received the full force of her blood-scented killing intent, Trisha almost lost the strength in her legs.
The level of magic she wielded was already not normal. One could not even follow her movements.
.
Sensing that killing intent is a sense etched into the realm of instinct.
It was less the feeling of facing a strong-willed young lady in the graceful social circle, and more the feeling of facing a giant bear alone in a snowfield during a blizzard.
──Suddenly, if you closed your eyes and opened them, you were in the middle of a snowfield.
A red glow blooming in the darkness, white steam rising from a rough breath.
The bright red flesh visible between the growling beast’s fangs seemed to symbolize her own future.
“─”
While Trisha was stuttering, not knowing what to say, Siern once again looked toward Aiseline and asked in a whisper.
The question she posed was not of the peaceful and cute kind, like asking if she was okay or saying Trisha was mean.
“As I thought, I shouldn’t kill her, right? Since this is a public place.”
There was no great intention or meaning in those words. It was a literal expression.
It was not a bluff or an empty word. She was truly asking for permission.
If Aiseline were to shake her head, it seemed she would really do something── all the color completely drained from Trisha’s face.
“L-Lady Siern. Please calm down for now. I’m fine. Lady Trisha must have had her r-reasons for doing that. I-it’s troublesome if you act based only on what’s on the surface. S-social activities are all like that, you see.”
Aiseline even began to defend Trisha.
If Siern were to really lose the thread of her reason to anger, no one here could handle her unless they brought Derek himself.
“L-Lady Trisha, too… r-right? It’s not like you were trying to do something to me… it’s just… that… it was a mistake, right…?”
“Yes…?”
“R-right? Yes?”
“Ah, yes? Yes…”
Siern grabbed the hem of her robe and turned around to look at Trisha again.
She stared quietly at Trisha, who was stuttering from bewilderment, and finally recalled the etiquette that Aiseline usually taught her.
As she bowed her head with her small frame, the hair that was not properly tied back and was sticking out swayed.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you for the first time. My name is Siern Aleyna Rochest.”
It was just a simple, unremarkable greeting… but the words that followed were like a thunderbolt from a clear sky for Trisha.
“I think I will be making my debut in the Ebelstein social circle before late spring. I look forward to seeing you often.”
It was the news that the young lady of the Rochest family, led by the hero of the north, Melverot, was debuting in the Ebelstein social circle.
It was obvious that she would be entering the Rosea Salon.
Trisha’s expression began to harden once more.
<><><>
“Here, wear this for now.”
“…”
As Derek handed her the ring, Felinne stared at it with a look of utter disgust.
It was a reaction as if she were breaking out in hives, like receiving a proposal ring from a sibling she had spent a long time jostling with.
Of course, Derek felt the same way, so it was difficult for him to say anything to her. As for Derek, it seemed he was having a hard time enduring the itchiness all over his body.
“Derek… when you hand over something like this, don’t you say something romantic…?”
“Would you like me to?”
“…I just imagined it, and it was so horrifying that my mind is going blank.”
“Right, be grateful…”
The tavern ‘Veldern’s Tear.’
The two of them were sitting side-by-side at the bar table. It would be difficult for anyone looking at them to think they were nobles-to-be.
Thud!
“A celebratory drink. Take it. Seeing the members I considered my own children getting married and starting a family makes me feel good too.”
“…”
Jayden, who had brought out Felinne’s favorite apple wine and honey wine, was laughing boisterously.
Jayden knew well that these two did not see each other as members of the opposite sex in the slightest, so the current situation felt strangely amusing.
Of course, Derek and Felinne were just staring at the cups Jayden had brought out with expressions like they were chewing on sand.
“Lighten up. If you’re going to do something necessary anyway, isn’t it better to do it with a positive mindset?”
“Yes… anyway, I’ve finished all the preparations I can on my end to receive the title… so I should think positively.”
“Since your connections have been widening lately, and you’ve been getting a lot of attention from the nobles, our Veldern Mercenary Corps has been benefiting a lot too. Work is overflowing, and we’re getting a lot of requests from nobles… you’re a real treasure trove. I’ll never charge you for drinks, so you know.”
Jayden would never abandon his materialistic nature.
Derek, whose reputation was growing day by day, was like a magical being that summoned gold coins.
That was why his usual boisterous laughter seemed even more energetic these days.
Derek also quite liked Jayden’s satisfied appearance, so he didn’t say anything in particular.
“By the way, like when you brought the noble young ladies last time, and when the Margrave of Belmeade came looking for you himself a long time ago… since you started hanging out with the noble crowd, nobles have started frequenting our Veldern’s Tear more often.”
“The people I know are almost all young ladies from the noble district…”
“Is that so? A son from some esteemed family has been coming in lately and having a drink… is he someone you don’t know?”
Even if you say a son of an esteemed family, there are more than one or two.
Of course, nobles tend to look like nobles at a glance, so Jayden probably couldn’t treat them carelessly.
“For him to come all the way to our tavern to drink, I thought he was a gentleman with connections to you…”
“I wonder… do you not know his name?”
“I don’t. But he always runs up a tab, so it’s a headache. He has a strange air of nobility about him… but I wonder if he’s broke… and his status seems high, so it’s hard to be careless with him… it’s quite a dilemma.”
It was the first time he had heard of a noble who ran up a tab, rather than giving a larger tip.
Derek tilted his head and searched his memory, but he didn’t know any noble with such strange behavior as to come all the way here and run up a tab.
It was then, as he was sitting quietly at the bar table.
“Aigo, the master of the house is so heartless. I told you I’ll pay it all back when the time comes. Hic.”
Since when had he been in the tavern?
Even Jayden, who had a good eye for things, flinched in surprise. At that point, one couldn’t help but feel that something was unusual. Jayden was a mercenary who had made a living with his keen eye.
Weren’t they in the middle of gossiping about a noble?
Despite the awkward situation where the person in question had heard the conversation, the man who staggered and sat down next to Derek just hiccupped pleasantly. He didn’t seem to care about Jayden’s words and actions.
Long red hair tied back in a ponytail, and a patchy beard.
The clothes he was wearing looked quite expensive, but it was hard to say that his appearance was so tidy.
He suddenly threw an arm around Derek’s shoulders, picked up the honey wine in front of Derek, and shouted a toast.
“Hic… I thought the master and I had gotten pretty close… I’m hurt… so very hurt…”
“Ah, aigo… I’m sorry. I’m in a position where I live from day to day, you see…”
“I’ve been playing at the gambling tables for 7 years now… I’m starting to get a feel for it. I think I’m going to win big soon. When I get my chance, I’ll settle all my overdue tab, and I’ll treat all the customers here, so just cut me some slack. Ugh…”
And then he chugged the honey wine and, without any intention of wiping the alcohol that flowed down the corner of his mouth, burped again.
“Oof… I’m getting drunk. It’s sweet, but it’s damn strong. Young ladies who don’t know any better would take a sip and get swept off their feet. Wow, you can’t take this lightly. Is this Ronen mountain honey wine?”
“…”
“Aigo, right. Derek. You’re Derek, right? I’ve heard a lot about you. These days, there’s no one in the Ebelstein social circle who doesn’t know your name. Wow, I’m honored to see a celebrity in person.”
“Excuse me… who are you?”
“Didn’t the master of the house tell you? Did I never tell you my name? Ugh…”
Jayden met Derek’s eyes, then finally shrugged his shoulders.
“I’m sure I said it once… hmm… did I say it in a dream… it’s hazy because of the drink… was my tongue too twisted for you to understand…”
The man, who already reeked heavily of alcohol, scratched his greasy hair, then once again released his arm from around Derek’s shoulder and collapsed onto the bar table.
“It’s Linus, Linus. Right. Derek. I really wanted to meet you once. Keoheok. Ugh. I’m Linus, you’re Derek.”
Derek, who was quietly watching the man who was too drunk to even stay conscious, looked at Felinne as if he were dumbfounded. Felinne also had a look of disgust on her face.
She hated nobles, and she hated drunks. A drunk who was a noble was practically her fated nemesis.
‘His name sounds familiar…’
Linus. He seemed to have heard that name somewhere, but it was certain that this was their first meeting.
If he searched his memory well, he might be able to recall it, but nothing came to mind right away.
“…Let me ask you one favor. Derek. You’re crazy about magic, right? Then you might be interested too.”
In any case, he was a client.
In that case, his attitude had no choice but to change.
Of course, it seemed his ability to pay needed to be reviewed.