Chapter 44
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Translator: 8uhl
Chapter: 44
Chapter Title: Coveted Fellow (4)
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Since reincarnating as Roin Leyden, his mind had been consumed entirely by thoughts of his looks, his looks, and nothing but his looks.
To avoid ending up on the Lucas Leyden face tech tree, Roin had been obsessively fixated on his appearance to a pathological degree.
Even a tiny pimple on his cheek had ruined his mood for nearly a week.
And now, a crisis of epic proportions had struck him.
A wound... on his face!
Just from his expression, anyone could tell at a glance how utterly furious he was.
Remina had never seen him this angry before.
But something even more alarming caught her attention.
The intense aura waves enveloping Roin's entire surroundings.
The aura's fluctuations were so vivid that even third parties like Remina and Luem could see them clearly.
One could gauge a person's skill level to some extent by the density of their aura.
Remina swallowed hard.
Even top-tier knights whose skills are officially recognized can't emit aura like that...
At least, not according to Remina's common sense.
Of course, Luem's thoughts weren't much different.
Lord Roin's aura alone puts him way beyond senior knight level, doesn't it?
Pretty much.
Though there was that slight controversy over his personality(?).
The air had changed.
Even the mechanical tactical golems halted their movements for a moment.
But it didn't last.
They charged at Roin, Remina, and Luem once more.
Remina swiftly grabbed her weapon and sliced through the waists of two tactical golems.
Meanwhile, Luem seemed to find the dagger not suiting his hands and switched to bare-handed combat.
Hrah!
He grabbed a tactical golem's head with one hand and crushed it outright.
Shattering a tactical golem's head with grip strength alone was an incredible feat.
Yet even this accomplishment was completely overshadowed by Roin's exploits.
Come on, then! You pests!
Facing the horde of charging tactical golems, Roin conjured an aura blade even larger than before.
The aura blade stretched to nearly half the length of the corridor where they stood.
It was aura so potent that even the sword called Innis's blade could barely contain it.
The trembling sword body.
Roin gripped the hilt of Innis's sword tightly and growled.
Right now, I can't see straight, so don't you dare piss me off more than you already have.
At those words, Innis's sword instantly calmed down.
Roin swung Innis's sword, brimming with the aura blade, with all his might.
Whooooosh!
The tactical golems fell before the aura blade like moths diving into flames.
But Roin wasn't done venting his rage yethe stomped on the fallen golems one by one, crushing them.
Until every last one showing any sign of movement vanished from sight.
Roin's rampage didn't stop.
Remina shouted at full volume toward Roin, who kept swinging the massive aura blade.
Stop it! You'll bring the whole dungeon down!
Collapse for all I care! Damn it!!!
He had to vent this uncontrollable fury somehow.
Only after confirming with his own eyes that the last remaining tactical golem had shut down did Roin finally regain his composure, bit by bit.
The blood flowing had stopped too.
It had been just a tiny scratch to begin with.
Smaller than a fingernail.
Yet to Roin, it felt like he'd lost an entire arm.
The company that made these damn golems was called Nut, right?
Roin ground his teeth.
Remember that! I swear it!
Another target added to Roin's revenge list.
Meanwhile.
Having belatedly sensed the situation unfolding inside the dungeon, Barton and the instructors hurriedly prepared to deploy.
Before that, Barton warned the trainees waiting outside.
Some tactical golems might leak out of the dungeon, so you all stand by here! Suppress them the moment they emerge. I authorize it.
Yes, sir!
These trainees were knights before the others.
Juniors, sure, but full-fledged knights with a few real battles under their belts, so they moved to carry out Barton's orders without hesitation.
Barton grabbed his main weapon, the bastard sword, and was about to lead the instructors deeper into the dungeon.
But before he could.
Barton and the instructors sensed an unfamiliar presence.
......
Barton silently drew his sword from its sheath.
The instructors followed suit, gripping their own weapons.
Vermin whispered to Barton.
A tactical golem?
Who knows.
The people still inside the dungeon were one trainee who hadn't made it out, plus Roin, Remina, and Luem.
Four in total.
They had no word on any of them yet.
As Barton kept a sharp eye ahead, a bead of sweat trickled down his forehead along his cheek.
An indescribably potent aura filled the dungeon entrance.
There's no way a tactical golem could emit aura like this.
No, they were in rampage mode now.
If the limiters restricting their performance had been completely smashed, maybe this was possible.
But that's impossible.
Barton warned the instructors behind him.
Stay sharp. This is way bigger trouble than we thought.
Yes, Captain.
Whatever it was, even if Barton and the instructors all rushed it together, he couldn't guarantee they'd take it down.
As their lips grew parched with tension.
Finally, the silhouette of the entity that had the instructors on edge came into view.
A single boy walking toward them, step by step.
Vermin blurted out in stunned disbelief.
Roin...?
They'd assumed it had to be a tactical golem, sensing the aura and thick killing intent simultaneously.
But that assumption missed the mark spectacularly.
Seeing Roin's rigidly hardened expression, Barton asked.
What happened in there?
Roin pointed at Remina and Luem following behind him.
They'll explain it themselves.
With that, Roin brushed past them.
Vermin was floored by the sight.
If you're reporting, do it properly! What the hell is!
At that moment.
Enough.
Barton reined Vermin in.
Doesn't matter who reports. Remina will probably explain the situation better than Roin anyway.
True, but...
Cleanup first. Vermin, take the instructors and check the interior. Chefrin, tend to the wounded.
Yes, sir.
Vermin and Chefrin moved to carry out their respective orders from Barton.
Luem decided to help Chefrin transport the injured trainees to the infirmary first.
Now it was time to learn what had gone down inside.
What about the tactical golems? Status?
To Barton's question, Remina replied.
All functions ceased.
Power source overheated?
No.
Remina pointed at Roin's back as he stormed off toward the dorms with a face full of fury.
Roin took care of every last one.
......
Barton was at a loss for words.
If it had been any other trainee, he never would've believed it.
But.
With Roin, yeah. That tracks.
Because it was Roin, he bought it.
Right after the tactical golem rampage incident struck again.
Barton went straight to Oval.
Headmaster!
Bursting through the door, Barton wore a face brimming with rage.
Oval greeted him with a troubled look.
Guessing it's about the tactical golems.
What did I tell you! I said multiple times it's insanely dangerous to deploy unproven tactical golems in training!
E-easy now, have a seat. I get all your complaints.
As Oval said, they needed to at least assume a proper posture for discussion first.
Yelling unilaterally at Barton wouldn't solve anything.
You got the full report, right?
I did.
Then no beating around the bush.
Barton had just one demand for Oval.
No more tactical golems in training. Apprentice level or junior, doesn't matter.
Barton and most of the instructors had argued this vehemently from the start.
Tactical golems were still too riskydeploy them later, once tech and safety were assured.
Yet Oval's reckless push had led to two back-to-back accidents already.
And today's incident was anything but minor.
If it was just one or two rampaging, I'd get it. But every single tactical golem in the dungeon going berserk? Does that make any damn sense?
No, it doesn't.
Oval listened, right hand cradling his left, tapping his left hand rhythmically with his right index finger.
Of course, this was unmistakably Oval's and Nut's screw-up.
Even so, Oval's response felt lukewarm.
I'll talk to Nut again first, so hold tight. I'll let you know the outcome right away.
Outcome my assit's already decided, isn't it? Just notify them! Loud Swordsmanship Academy has no plans to deploy tactical golems for the time being!
Too many interests tangled upcan't just notify and call it done. Try to understand.
You might think that, Headmaster, but I don't.
No point reasoning.
Barton shot up from his seat and issued an ultimatum to Oval.
If you insist on using tactical golems in training after all this, I'll step down as head instructor.
No reason to linger where words fell on deaf ears.
Bam!
Barton slammed the door hard on his way out.
That's when he ran into someone waiting in the hall.
Lepid, the instructor in charge of apprentice training.
Looks like you had a blowout with the headmaster, huh, Senior.
......Wish that was it.
Then he might've felt a little better.
But Oval had already shut out eyes and ears.
Whatever Barton said, it'd be pointless.
That much had become clear.
Anyway, what brings you here?
Came to give the headmaster a piece of my mind too. Didn't expect you'd booked the slot first.
We took the hit directly. Had to.
Haha, yeah.
It was a given.
But Senior, doesn't it strike you as odd?
What. The headmaster?
The headmaster asidethe timing of the tactical golem rampages. No matter how I think about it, one thing doesn't add up.
Apprentice selection exam and today's junior dungeon mission.
The two incidents shared one commonality.
Namely...
Both tied to Roin. That's what's bugging me.