Chapter 224
The morning when the airship was set to return from Rikeion to Academia.
“Prince! You still need to be careful!”
“Fallon, it’s fine now. I can manage without your support.”
“Oh, Your Highness… You really should be cautious…”
Arterion, Fallon, and Lauga were trying to leave the infirmary.
The loyal Fallon kept pestering Arterion, who was refusing his help.
Arterion was painfully aware of what the concern was and how much Fallon worried about him, but he was completely healed now and had no inconveniences at all.
‘Flame of Corruption… That was quite a troublesome magic to deal with.’
If only it had just broken his arm or cut away some flesh.
The Flame of Corruption gnawed at his flesh without any breaks and brought unbearable pain.
Thanks to the quick surgery that removed the spreading skin before it could worsen, he avoided needing artificial skin.
“Hey, hey…!”
A female student called out to Arterion and his group as they were about to leave.
Arha, half-sitting up against the bed, nervously chewed on her nails.
She hesitated before speaking, as if she had something important to say.
It was the first time Arha had shown such timid behavior.
“If you guys go, then… Vargan will be going too, right? You’re not planning to stay behind or anything, are you?”
It seemed she was still traumatized from the match with Vargan.
Arha looked at Arterion with pleading eyes, hoping for a reassuring answer.
Arterion, however, said nothing and stepped outside.
“Hey…! At least tell me before you go! Hey—! Ah, ouch… my head… Why does he have to hit his head like that?”
Creak—
Ignoring the noise, they opened the infirmary door and noticed a woman.
Long golden hair cascading down in graceful curves.
It was Ocell Bui Edina.
“Looks like your wounds have healed.”
Edina looked Arterion over and said.
Arterion nodded slightly without a word, trying to continue on his way.
Fallon and Lauga, surprised by the unexpected presence, immediately bowed their heads and followed Arterion.
“I heard you can use the red aura now, but I didn’t know you had reached transcendence.”
“…….”
As Edina continued speaking, Arterion halted his steps.
After a moment of silent consideration, he turned to meet her gaze.
“It’s still a new and immature stage.”
“Well, that’s to be expected. You just reached transcendence. Still, many swordsmen can’t even reach that level.”
“…Sister, may I ask what brings you here?”
Arterion didn’t seem keen on letting the conversation meander.
“Did she not ask about her purpose?”
Edina lightly shook her head in denial.
“Just because we’re family, do we have to have a reason to visit?”
“……”
“Well, it’s true that we only talk when there’s something to discuss. But today is different. It’s hard to have a casual conversation at the royal palace, so I came to see your face.”
“…I see.”
“You really don’t seem to trust me.”
“I do trust you.”
Arterion, looking submissive.
He had never shown any rough emotions in front of Edina or other family members.
Always there, but not really there.
Just quietly doing what he needs to do as a younger brother.
“I wish he’d show a little less awareness.”
Though they shared the same father,
They were born from different mothers.
Unlike Edina, the daughter of the principal wife, Arterion’s status was that of a consort child.
A half-prince.
Edina had seen Arterion’s struggles since they were young.
She could sense his pain and judge his efforts.
To the casual observer, he may seem like a glamorous prince, but in Edina’s eyes, he was always the wounded finger fighting desperately behind the scenes.
Of course, Edina never expressed her thoughts externally.
She opened her mouth relatively calmly.
“Well… but honestly, I don’t have much to say. I’ll be late. You should go.”
“Yes.”
Arterion bowed his head again and left the room.
He didn’t leave any room for negotiation.
Once told to go, he really just leaves, what a ridiculous younger brother.
Edina gazed at Arterion and his companions disappearing into the distance.
He always replied with indifference, yet now, while talking with his comrades, his expression seemed a bit more relaxed… a little more at ease.
“Is he changing little by little?”
If that’s the case, wouldn’t it be nice to at least say it? No matter how awkward it may be, they have been facing each other for a long time.
“Anyway, it’s so dry.”
Edina moved with a somewhat wry smile.
The bright white sunlight flowed into the hallway of Rikeion.
It was a reasonably bright and warm feeling for a morning.
*
“How could you do this?! I’m really disappointed!”
—Slap.
Baragan’s knife halted due to Erlich’s outburst.
Juicy flavors dripped from the meat sliced by his knife.
He stared at Erlich, who was sitting across from him without having taken a bite.
Just how uncultured and ignorant did she look?
Baragan opened his mouth.
“Erlich. I have a lot to say, but first let me ask. Why are you sitting here?”
“Because there were no other suitable seats. I don’t know anyone here. Sorry, but excuse me for a moment.”
“So you’re saying you’re familiar with us?”
“That’s just too much! We participated together in the 32nd round! That means we’re acquaintances! And we’ve even had quite a few conversations. Oh, before I forget, let me return your handkerchief. Thanks for it back then.”
While Finn was busy gauging Baragan’s reaction, he unexpectedly received his handkerchief back.
A perfectly clean handkerchief, white and new. It had a subtle fragrance as if something had been sprinkled on it.
Finn stuffed it into his pocket and looked around cautiously.
Erlich’s sudden complaint directed at Baragan made both Erica and Alicia, who were sitting together, visibly uncomfortable.
As Finn pondered whether to intervene—Erlich spoke again.
“Anyway! I’m truly disappointed in you. Do you know how much I supported you? I even prayed for you! It was all a complete miscalculation! What have I been doing all this time…!”
“I totally thought I was dreaming! What have I been doing all this time…!”
“Well, that’s not even worth responding to. If you keep blabbering on about your embarrassing past, just go back to bed and cover your head with the pillow. Not sure if it would help, but I’ve seen that happen.”
“Y-Young Master? You’re not talking about the day I first visited the mansion, are you… you saw everything…!”
“I really wouldn’t do something so pathetic! Who would act like that!”
“…”
At Erlich’s response, Alicia silently closed her mouth and covered her face with her hands.
Vargan frowned. It was painful to hear nonsense from an outsider interrupting their meal.
“When delusions invade reality to that extent, it’s a sickness. Instead of bothering me with your ramblings, go find a doctor and get lost. I’m done speaking kindly.”
“That’s true…! I’ve always been one to have delusions and a victim mentality, letting my confidence plummet. But this time… this time…!”
“This time?”
“Yes, once again, it’s my fault. I know. I’ve been beating my own drum and now I’m here causing trouble for everyone. I’m really sorry.”
Suddenly, Erlich bowed her head.
Her lifted face had her pouting lips sticking out.
She knew it was solely her fault.
However, being inspired by Vargan’s resilience despite the tragedy, she wanted to express her dissatisfaction at least once without holding back.
After hearing the truth from Finn, she had felt suffocated and distressed.
“I do genuinely feel sorry. I apologize once more for being annoying.”
“First, put those sticking-out lips away and speak.”
“…Yes.”
Deflated, Erlich returned her lips to their normal position.
Using surprising force to whine at him, once she let it all out, her mind cooled down, and she realized she was being a nuisance.
“Why couldn’t I just hold back! How much do I even know… Ugh!”
That’s what you call a sudden outburst.
Realizing her own mindset, Erlich sat there blankly, unable to move or eat.
Vargan contemplated whether to just throw her out after cursing but sighed and threw out a question.
There was something he needed to confirm.
“Why are you here right now?”
“Huh?”
“I mean not at the table, but on the airship. Being here suggests you’ve strayed from Rikeion’s influence.”
A large airship heading from Rikeion towards Academia.
Along the way, Helion and Ferangis’s team members were also on board.
Erlich shook her head, insisting that wasn’t the case.
“I’ve decided to work as Ferangis’ assistant and gain some field experience. Even though I’ll be on leave for a year, I thought it would be a good opportunity, so I gratefully accepted.”
“You’ve managed to stick that on quite well.”
“Stick what on?”
“Never mind. No need to know.”
As Vargan shoved cut meat into his mouth, he thought.
Erlich, who was bound to the artificial spirit, hadn’t escaped from his grasp yet.
To be precise, she could only exert effort to keep the artificial spirit from surfacing.
And since only Ferangis could suppress it, she would remain in her shadow.
With the Hero Ranking’s second place holder Ferangis not being able to stay with Rikeion forever, Erlich had become his assistant under that pretense.
‘Though the person herself has no idea about the truth.’
Bargan looked at Erlich as if she were pathetic, while Erlich, not understanding, checked if there was something on her face.
“Ferangis really treasures her one disciple.”
Does that mean she doesn’t want to hurt him?
That’s quite the frailty for someone ranked second.
“…But may I ask something? How did you form a contract with Naias and Arcane…?”
“You can’t.”
“What?”
“There isn’t enough time to continue this conversation. My schedule is packed, so your time here is up.”
“But you haven’t even had a proper meal… Huh? When did you eat everything?!”
Bargan wiped his mouth with a handkerchief.
He didn’t respond and got up from his seat.
*
After finishing his meal, Bargan went to the training ground set up inside the airship.
Alicia and Finn had gone off to do their tasks, and Erika sat in a suitable corner, watching Bargan’s training.
It was a long-awaited lesson led by Helion.
“It’ll hurt a bit.”
“You say that like it hasn’t hurt before.”
“It’ll hurt ‘a lot’ this time.”
Having given a fair warning, Helion mercilessly drove his fist, wrapped in holy magic, into Bargan’s abdomen.
The indescribable shock made Bargan’s waist bend at an awkward angle.
He almost spewed out his insides.
No, he nearly lost the meal he just had.
At this point, wouldn’t it have been fine to be a martial artist instead of a holy mage?
That thought crossed his mind.
“Oh, you’re holding up well. As expected of Bargan.”
“You seem to be quite enjoying this… Is my suffering really that amusing to you?”
“It’s not about enjoying your pain; it’s about celebrating your growth. Your defense has improved dramatically compared to before. I’ve packed in quite a dense amount of holy magic.”
“…I’ve spent a considerable amount of time building my resilience since training with Helion.”
Back when he was training under Helion at the Central Church.
Bargan had endured Helion’s powerful holy magic with his whole body, reaffirming the need to boost his defense.
Training the Protector was also connected to this.
‘Plus, the dark energy I’m currently harnessing has consumed Seiman’s wings, so it would be odd if I couldn’t endure this much.’
He should instead be amazed by Helion’s monstrous output.
How strong can this guy be? The more he learns, the more his achievements seem far beyond what was depicted in the original story.
‘Monstrous fellow.’
As Bargan was hit in various parts of his body, he thought this.
Surely, if it weren’t for the Protector or Seiman’s wings, his bones would have broken.
“Shall we stop here for now?”
“…Aren’t you going to check how much my corruption magic has developed?”
Having taken quite a beating, Bargan thought it was now his turn and summoned the Flame of Corruption on his palm.
Watching this, Helion wore a friendly expression and said, “I understand, but let’s hold off on that for a bit.”
“Why’s that?”
“I have something to tell you about the Gamigin extermination squad.”
A major episode diverging from the original story.
As Helion was about to speak on this, Bargan extinguished the Flame of Corruption as if he had no choice.
While he had a strong personal desire to pummel Helion, the progression of the story mattered more.
Helion seemed to feel Bargan was ready and said, “Bargan, you won’t participate in this extermination.”
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