Chapter 145
Chapter 145
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 145
>Chapter Title: Rip Open My Belly
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Lortel's Patriarch's chamber.
A space made entirely of iron, without a single decorative flourish anywhere.
In this barren landscape devoid of any warmth, Patriarch Muhard was a single sword. No, he was steel itself.
And standing before that steel was a lone mage.
An existence that seemed infinitely fragile and feeble by comparison.
Seated upon a throne of steel, Patriarch Muhard took in the mage with bored eyes.
"Go back."
Eyes utterly devoid of color or scent, not a shred of emotion in them.
"Your efforts have been noted. I won't take your head."
With that, Muhard averted his gaze from Aster.
That was when Aster's mouth opened.
"...Pardon? Didn't quite catch that."
"I said you fell short of expectations. I'll let you keep your life, so get out."
It was then that Muhard's gaze returned to Aster.
"The Magic Tower and Sword Pavilion were intriguing enough. That intelligence network piqued my interest. But if this is what the Tower's master is like..."
Eyes utterly indifferent, holding neither contempt nor disappointment.
Muhard didn't finish his sentence, but it wasn't hard to guess the rest.
In a word... yeah.
'Not up to par.'
Right now, Muhard was judging the Tower and Sword Pavilion's capabilities based on Aster's presence.
It was the height of humiliation, yet at that moment, Aster's lips curled into a sly grin.
"So, I should be grateful just to walk away alive?"
Impudent words to utter before Lortel's master, but Muhard paid them no mind.
He never felt insulted by bugs or beasts, after all.
He simply affirmed it with silence.
That was when Aster barked out a laugh.
"Ha! What is this... are all you noble patriarchs just a bunch of thieves' bastards?"
It happened in that instant.
Clang! Sching!
Dozens of blades surging from the darkness!
The shadow knights, unable to stomach their lord's humiliation, leaped forth.
A truly dizzying sight.
No matter how dulled his senses were from internal injuries, to not sense dozens hidden in this wide-open space?
But.
Aster regarded the oncoming blade tips with a listless gaze.
Just as the shadow knights were about to shred him.
Muhard's mouth opened.
"Halt."
At that single command, the shadow knights froze their blades mid-air.
Aster jeered at the razor-sharp tips hovering before him.
"Nice, huh? Yeah? Some of us can't even whimper while getting our noses sliced off in broad daylight, but you lot draw swords the second someone mouths off, huh?"
"You're a madman."
"How could anyone stay sane? With the world being the shitshow it is?"
Kahk, ptui!
At that rude display, murderous intent rippled along the shadow knights' blades.
But.
"Damn, sharp. Huh? Gonna slice me? But what can you do? Master's saying stop. Tch, whatever. Not backing down?"
Aster pressed the nearest blade tip with his fingertip. Blood droplets fell from the keen edge, but he ignored it, staring down Muhard.
"Anyway, rip open my belly."
Aster flopped down flat on his back.
"I can stomach a lot, but not getting screwed over. Gut me. Kill me if you want, spare me if you will. Yeah?"
Even for Lortel, this crossed the line.
'These rotten bastards. If you're showing mercy, own it. What?'
Changing your tune now?
Hand over the magic armor Kallium, the Impir family intel, and even spar with your first sword.
He'd done more than enough.
"Whatever, I ain't leaving without that Infinite Chain. Your call."
With that, Aster sprawled out in a starfish pose.
Muhard took in the sight with impassive eyes.
But Muhard was a tough nut, as expected.
By now, even the coldest bastard would flinch or let out a hollow laugh in disbelief.
Yet he showed no emotional ripple whatsoever.
He merely...
"......"
Kept his lips pressed shut in silence, as if merely observing.
It was then that a voice whispered in Muhard's ear.
[Issue the order, my lord.]
The shadow knights' captain stood behind Muhard, eyeing Aster with sharp intensity.
[Command it, and we'll behead him at once.]
In truth, it was on the patriarch's orders that they'd drawn blades at Aster's insult.
A final test to see if the man merited even a single sword's approval.
Of course, now that the patriarch had deemed it 'disappointing,' the test held little meaning...
Still.
As the captain awaited Muhard's command.
Muhard's mouth opened.
"Tower Lord, you won't regret this?"
The captain tilted his head at his lord's question.
'...What?'
If the patriarch had decided on execution, he'd have simply ordered it. No need for such probing words.
So why?
'Could he be intrigued after all?'
It was possible.
Madness past a certain point turns extraordinary, and the Tower Lord's antics had surpassed even that.
Hence, another test?
If the Tower Lord showed backbone here...
That was when the captain had such thoughts.
Flick.
Muhard crooked a finger.
'......'
A simple signal, no explanations needed, but the captain—who had long served him—grasped its meaning instantly.
'...Not a test, then.'
From the signal, it meant this:
- Cut off his head.
If he claims no regrets, grant it as he wishes.
A fleeting interest, nothing more.
As the captain prepared to order his knights.
The Tower Lord sprang up.
"You mad? Actually gonna gut me?"
"Didn't you say you wanted to die?"
"Nah, that was just talk."
Grumbling, the Tower Lord brushed himself off and stood.
He straightened his clothes, then clicked his tongue and shook his head.
"Thought it over. Better to be a sucker than croak."
"Then?"
"I'll head out in one piece."
The captain furrowed his brow at the display.
'...What the hell is this guy?'
Frankly, up until moments ago, the Tower Lord's behavior had stirred even the captain's chest with awe.
Rage had boiled at the insolence before their lord, but few dared such brazen(?) defiance before a great house's master.
But this...
'The head of an organization? This clown?'
The bewilderment was brief, however.
The captain sought his lord's opinion once more.
[...We'll behead him.]
Not 'Shall we?'
He wanted to.
But why.
"Hmm."
Muhard rested his chin, murmuring.
The captain's eyes widened in shock.
'The patriarch... smiled?'
His face hadn't changed a whit, but the captain knew.
His lord was smiling now.
As those thoughts crossed the captain's mind.
The order came.
"All of you, leave us."
What did that mean?
"I will speak with the Tower Lord alone."
It meant treating him as a true organization's master.
[...As you command.]
The captain retreated smoothly from the chamber. The other shadow knights followed suit.
Amid it all.
The captain pondered endlessly.
'Why on earth?'
His mind was a tangle.
Meanwhile, Aster's thoughts were equally jumbled.
'...Fuck, what the hell?'
Did he change his mind? Gonna kill me?
A question most would keep buried inside. But Aster wasn't most people.
"Gonna kill me? Or... are you going to?"
It was then that Muhard's lips curved upward.
A somehow chilling smile.
Aster was certain.
'...Shit, you're gonna.'
......A blatant misunderstanding.
* * *
"Hey."
As the captain exited the chamber with lingering doubts, someone called him back.
The captain halted at the old knight's summons, who pierced his concealment in an instant.
"...Ilgeom."
"How'd it go?"
"What do you mean?"
The captain tossed the question with evident discomfort.
It wasn't about Aster. He just hated the way Hamellan eyed him.
Hamelan, whose name as 'Ilgeom' belied how frivolously he carried himself at times, had always rubbed him the wrong way.
But even at the captain's blatant distaste, Hamellan was unfazed.
"The Tower Lord, I mean. Since you all withdrew, it seems he pleased the patriarch..."
"You saw right."
"I heard him call it 'disappointing,' though. What made the patriarch reconsider?"
Ah, so that's what he wanted.
Only then did the captain grasp why Hamellan had waylaid him.
He'd overheard the patriarch's assessment before the doors shut, after all.
But if asked for the reason...
'Why, indeed?'
The captain wondered the same.
In his view, there was zero reason for the patriarch to reconsider.
'He had some guts, sure, but...'
Even that was mere bluff.
No, not even a bluff.
What to call it.
'His eyes didn't waver amid the shadow knights' assault. Not the gaze of one who cherished his life.'
He calmly met the blades hurtling toward him.
Had the patriarch not intervened then? He'd have been torn to shreds.
Yet the Tower Lord hadn't flinched.
The same when he'd insolently sprawled before the patriarch.
As if saying, 'Go on, gut me if you dare.'
So, not a bluff.
But then.
- You mad? Actually gonna gut me?
- Didn't you say you wanted to die?
- Nah, that was just talk. Thought it over. Better to be a sucker than croak.
That attitude...
Yeah, straight-up 'thought it over' and decided he didn't wanna die.
So, what to make of it.
Too pathetic for extraordinary, yet that rudeness bordered on the extraordinary in its excess.
Groveling?
'...Not even that.'
The captain tried to fathom Muhard's mindset but came up empty.
His face hardened as he pondered, and mistaking the expression, Hamellan pressed slyly.
"I'm not asking for some grand secret. Just tell me what you saw."
"Hm."
Hamelan stared intently at the brooding captain.
He was genuinely curious.
The patriarch rarely reconsidered, especially after deeming something 'disappointing'!
But.
"No clue. Ask him yourself sometime."
The captain stonewalled without elaboration and vanished in a swirl.
Left alone.
"...Hah."
Hamelan could only laugh hollowly.
"That little punk..."
Didn't get enough beatings as a kid?
'Me and his master? We go way back...'
Head got too big, ate his manners for breakfast.
Sure, that's probably why he led the shadow knights, but it still grated.
"Hmm, oh well."
Forgetting decorum, Hamellan plopped down before the chamber doors.
Asking the man himself—the patriarch—was out of the question, so he'd grill the Tower Lord directly.
How much time passed like that.
Creeeak—
The heavy iron doors swung open, revealing the Tower Lord.
Hamelan shot to his feet and approached. About to voice his curiosity.
"Hey, a word—hm?"
He'd barely taken a few steps before halting.
Because.
"......"
Unlike when he'd entered, his face was pale—frozen stiff. Clearly reeling from some massive shock.
As Hamellan puzzled over it.
"Tower Lord? The Young Patriarch requests you."
An attendant from the Young Patriarch led him away.
And then.
"Ilgeom, enter."
"......"
The patriarch summoning him into the chamber.
But why.
"Let's have a drink."
In stark contrast to the Tower Lord, his mood seemed extraordinarily good.
'What the hell... happened in there?'
Utterly baffling.