Chapter 19
Chapter 19
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 19
Chapter Title: Episode 005 (2)
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The sunset that had blanketed the mountainside had completely vanished, and darkness had already settled in before they knew it.
Screeech, click…
With the groan of old hinges, a single shadowy figure slowly made their way toward the back of the infirmary.
It was about ten minutes later when Kuhn returned to the infirmary.
For some reason, his steps seemed more pensive than usual.
As he walked, a snippet of his earlier conversation with the Chief Administrator replayed in his mind.
‘Before entering secluded training, I get one day to enter part of the Lion’s Library and take out a single book of my choosing…’
And they even provide training weapons suited to whatever martial art you pick—no need for it to be swordsmanship.
Another reward given to all trainees who passed the first trial.
Compared to their long conversation, it was a remarkably concise point.
Yet that was exactly why Kuhn kept mulling it over.
The name Lion’s Library
−Lion’s Library−
carried such immense weight.
『Lion’s Library』
Kuhn had heard of this archive, also called the Lion’s Library.
The countless wars and battles the Jordic Family fought to reach their current position.
Invasions of other families, subjugations, destructions, and seizures—a bloody chain of history.
The Lion’s Library was the place where fragments of that history were preserved.
To be more precise, it housed secret texts plundered or seized from the many families and organizations crushed by the Jordics.
Not just swordsmanship, but magic, alchemy, and other treasures the Jordics had collected over long years—information and records left from the evolution of family sword arts and secrets.
Rumors said the collection numbered nearly tens of thousands of volumes.
‘The right to pick one book from that library and take it out.’
Depending on the choice, it could yield astronomical value.
At the same time, even if only a portion, it was an excessively generous reward for trainees who had just passed the first trial.
‘The one worrisome thing is that even that “portion” likely holds thousands of volumes…’
Only one book could be taken from that vast collection.
And the time allotted was just one day.
‘Just one day.’
Far too little time to examine thousands of books and select the best one.
It was essentially leaving the choice entirely to personal ability and discernment.
‘Passing the trial and getting a reward that hides yet another test inside it.’
Nothing ever came easy… Kuhn shook his head with a mutter.
Of course, that didn’t negate its greatness as a reward.
Grumbling about it, he shrugged lightly all the same.
‘The trainees from the third den already visited the Lion’s Library during those past two days, I think?’
Perhaps in consideration of his time bedridden in the infirmary… Kuhn turned his head, gazed at the large moon beyond the window, then lowered it.
As he did, he felt the presence of the elixir he’d received from the Chief Administrator earlier, tucked firmly against his chest.
Even wrapped in cloth, its existence was vividly palpable.
Pushing that sensation aside, Kuhn continued his thoughts.
‘The Lion’s Library and an elixir.’
Even one alone would be more than enough for a trainee.
And this wasn’t even after passing the final gate—
‘I half-expected some elixir or manual as a reward…’
But both at once? That was beyond Kuhn’s expectations. He tilted his head quizzically.
‘Jordic Family, what on earth are you thinking?’
A soliloquy that would get no answer unless his reflection in the glass spoke back.
Lately, the family had gone quiet amid continental tensions and issues surrounding them, but the Jordics were infamous for never hiding their ambitions for continental hegemony.
Wasn’t that why some past Jordic family heads were called not Sword Emperors or Sword Saints, but Tyrants?
‘Then…’
Could this be seen as proof that the Jordics were stirring again?
Or merely part of their talent nurturing process?
Unfamiliar with the family’s internal affairs and the Lion’s Den system, Kuhn had no answers now.
But one thing was certain: these circumstances only aided his growth, never hindered it.
‘Loberian Dun Bringer.’
And the heads of the twenty-four vassal families who followed him.
As Kuhn chewed their names, a faint purple glow briefly spread around his eyes.
Whoosh—
It faded quickly as he forcibly quelled his anger and shook his head.
Come to think of it, there was one more issue demanding resolution.
‘The problem is… I have no idea how effective these elixirs will be on me.’
If he had a normal body, he wouldn’t worry.
But he bore the congenital curse of Dream of the Dead.
Thus, he couldn’t guarantee the efficacy of standard elixirs.
Of course…
If mere elixirs could cure it, 【Dream of the Dead】 wouldn’t be deemed an incurable curse.
The surest way was to test it directly.
But if it wasn’t just ineffective but caused adverse effects?
Irreversible side effects couldn’t be ruled out.
Better to purge all the death energy accumulated in his body first, then consume it.
It would take more time, but…
‘The elixir isn’t going anywhere.’
Muttering that, Kuhn slowly raised his head.
“Hoo.”
A choice made with even the remotest possibilities in mind.
Ask if he felt no regret? Hardly.
‘Still…’
Delaying intake compared to the others brought no sense of falling behind.
Guessing it stemmed from his final exchange with the Chief Administrator, Kuhn clenched his fist firmly.
The privilege granted to the top trainee who cleared the first gate, and the smile of one who achieved his desire.
‘For now, I’ll keep using the Lion’s Den like this to grow stronger.’
The enemies were so vast they still felt distant. But at this moment, he was steadily advancing toward revenge.
3.
Meanwhile, at the same time.
Veil Jordic, Chief Administrator of the Lion’s Den, who had sent Kuhn off, had a cigarette between his lips out of habit.
A sight befitting his notorious heavy smoking.
—Hooo.
Soon, white smoke filled the office.
A harsh exhale that stung the eyes and throat.
On Veil’s desk lay several scattered sheets of paper he’d pulled out moments ago.
“……”
A hefty stack, all densely packed with reports on a single trainee.
Papers Veil had retrieved from his drawer and placed on the desk after Kuhn left.
As Veil reached for one, about to pick it up carefully—
“Certainly…”
The Deputy Administrator, scanning the documents from a short distance away, spoke up.
“I can finally understand why we’ve been getting those kinds of reports all this time.”
Veil was known for his strict standards and stinginess with praise.
But even he couldn’t disagree this time.
He nodded slowly, and the Deputy clicked his tongue in amazement.
“To grow that much in just two years—”
Calluses thick on his palms, slender yet exquisitely sculpted muscles like clay molded by an artisan.
His frame was still a bit small, but not problematically so.
Recalling Kuhn’s physique from moments ago, the Deputy continued.
“He still carries a frail air, but for someone afflicted with Dream of the Dead… it’s simply unbelievable.”
No mere knowledge of overcoming the curse—or heavenly punishment—could yield such transformation.
It must have demanded immeasurable effort and toil over those mere two years.
“Frankly, even before being the Lion’s Den Deputy, as a fellow swordsman walking the same path, I felt pure admiration.”
But unlike his pounding heart, his reason dutifully fulfilled his duty.
‘One oddity: no way he cleared the first gate alone with that body…’
Unlike his prior praise, his eyes now dissected Kuhn’s condition minutely.
‘A decent physique, sure, but not overwhelmingly so.’
Reports confirmed his stamina ranked mid-to-low among third den trainees.
Factoring in his persistently sickly pallor, it was even lower.
‘Of course, stamina isn’t everything for a swordsman…’
No notable mana detected either.
‘Hm.’
He knew the Senior Instructor’s reports well.
They mentioned, at the final moment, an unidentified chilling mana surging through Kuhn’s body.
‘Some special aura breathing method?’
As such doubts clouded the Deputy’s face—
“That’s not all.”
A voice echoed from somewhere.
Not his, nor Chief Administrator Veil’s—an unfamiliar one.
It came from the shadows in one corner of the office.
Tssst—
The darkness parted like a stage curtain, revealing an elderly man.
Stooped back, age spots dotting a kindly face.
A healer in pristine white robes.
“You’re…?”
The Deputy, recognizing him, spoke cautiously. Ignoring it, the old man ambled forward leisurely.
As if in response, the shadows receded, and his appearance began to change.
One step: his stooped posture straightened.
As if he’d never been hunched, his gait natural.
Second step: stubborn resolve etched onto his kindly face.
And the third.
His white robe ignited into ash, transforming into elegant dark red robes.
—Roar!
No longer a kindly healer stood there.
Transformation complete, he turned to the Chief Administrator with eyes gleaming like he’d found something intriguing.
“Isn’t it?”