Chapter 173: Enough Verification Has Been Done (3)
When people get lost in desire, they often ignore their accurate instincts and lose their cool judgment.
Right now, Zvalter and Randolf were just like that.
In the face of discovering a new breakthrough to reach a higher realm, experience and gut feelings became useless.
The two were excited and immediately summoned the knights.
“Recently, Ghislaine has made some small realizations and improved our family’s mana circulation method. It’s said to be more effective than the previous way, so let’s all train together.”
At Zvalter’s words, the knights murmured nervously among themselves.
Everyone knows that the Grand Duke is quite powerful.
However, his outrageous behavior and unconventional actions made trusting him another issue entirely.
Mana circulation is a delicate field where even a slight distortion in flow can lead to serious trouble.
So, feeling anxious about the fact that the impulsive Grand Duke had improved it was inevitable.
Noticing the knights’ unease, Randolf confidently stepped forward and said.
“Don’t worry! This has been thoroughly reviewed by the Lord and me! We plan to conduct the training safely, so there’s no need to be afraid!”
Only then did the knights show a slightly relieved expression. If the Lord and the Knight Commander had reviewed it, it should be trustworthy. This is the power of trust.
However, there was one knight who did not believe the reassurances of the Lord and the Knight Commander.
That knight was Skoban, the Guard Commander of the Forest of Monsters.
“What? The Grand Duke improved it? No, that guy actually could do that. But to learn it? Is everyone crazy? Do they have any learning capabilities?”
He had come to the northern fortress to deliver supplies per Baron Homern’s orders and to share the news that Ghislaine had devoured a forest.
He had been at the fortress for quite a while, but Randolf had insisted he stay and keep watch since he was already there.
Due to the severe shortage of knights in the territory, everyone was forced into various roles regardless of their official positions, so he accepted it without complaints at the time.
But who would have guessed he would stumble upon Ghislaine’s sinister actions in the meantime?
“The Grand Duke said he improved it, so it should be better than before. But there will definitely be some backlash.”
Skoban was one of the knights most entwined with Ghislaine among Perdium’s knights.
Having felt the painful process every time, he was sure that the mana circulation method Ghislaine left behind wouldn’t be ordinary.
“It won’t be too late to learn once all the others have mastered it and the problems are resolved. I’m out!”
Having made up his mind, Skoban raised his hand and spoke.
“Lord! I must return now! There are too few knights in the territory. And honestly, shouldn’t we verify it a little more?”
The response came not from Zvalter but from Randolf.
“No, it came from Randolf.”
“Hey, you’re just lounging around all day, saying you’re guarding the Forest of Monsters. Where are you planning to go? You need to master this and go back to teach the remaining knights in the territory. And besides, I already verified it. What more verification do you need? Just do it, you brat.”
Skoban immediately sulked and lowered his head.
Randolf may not have caused any major accidents like Ghislaine, but when it came to being hot-tempered and impossible to communicate with, he was just as bad.
If a mountain got in the way on the road, he would hand the knights a shovel and have them carve it down—so impulsive and ignorant.
With someone like that speaking, there was no escaping.
With a sullen face, Skoban began to learn Ghislaine’s Mana Circulation Method along with the other knights.
The mana circulation methods learned by the knights varied greatly.
Some had learned Perdium’s method, while others learned different methods through their own family or master.
However, Ghislaine explained even how to easily switch from the previously learned mana circulation method to the upgraded one in his book.
By following that method, although each individual had different speeds, everyone gradually started to get used to the new mana circulation method.
‘Oh, this isn’t too bad!’
‘I can’t believe switching to a new method is this easy without conflicting with the existing one. Is this for real?’
‘The speed of absorbing and releasing mana has definitely increased a lot. It’s incomparable to before.’
Maybe because they had just started, the effects were clearly visible.
Those who thought there were no problems gradually increased the intensity of their training.
It was hard to stop because it was so enjoyable. Especially, seeing their destructive power significantly improved, they couldn’t help but become addicted to training.
‘Ah, I can see myself getting stronger. I have to be stronger than that brat.’
Strength is the virtue of a knight. Once competition started, the pace accelerated even more.
As everyone madly trained in the new mana circulation method, they reached a point where no one could stop them.
Zvalter and Randolf looked on with satisfied smiles.
“Ha ha, when was the last time everyone got so absorbed in training like this? Ghislaine really did something big. I can’t believe it’s actually effective. I’m proud.”
“Cough, Brother! I’m already itching for a fight with the barbarians. Why aren’t those guys coming to the fortress?”
Both were already advanced knights, so their progress was a bit slower. But they felt the walls breaking down bit by bit, which was satisfying enough.
There was a world of difference between being completely stuck and seeing a path.
One month of their mad training passed.
Then, problems began to arise with several knights who were the least skilled.
“Ueeek!”
“Cough!”
As they used mana, more and more knights suddenly collapsed, vomiting blood.
They felt better after a little rest, but if they stopped training, the accumulated mana would forcibly explode out of their bodies. Thus, they had no choice but to cough up blood again.
Under normal circumstances, using mana wouldn’t create such a problem. It was the explosive, overwhelming power that made their bodies unable to handle it.
Even if they tried to suppress mana usage, they couldn’t even control it properly, leading to severe conditions for all the knights.
“What, what is happening?!”
With all the knights collapsing, the Northern Fortress was thrown into chaos.
Zvalter, anxiously fidgeting, heard Randolf’s faltering voice. His complexion was as pale as Zvalter’s.
“Brother… I think we’ve been fooled by that Ghislaine guy.”
“Fooled? What do you mean fooled?”
Randolf shared his suspicions with the bewildered Zvalter.
Prga voiced his speculation.
“This guy is definitely messing around with the Mana Circulation Method. He’s trying to kill us all!”
“Killing us? Why on earth?”
“If we all die, he’ll take over the Perdium Territory! The heir with justification is none other than him! That little bastard!”
Zvalter pinched his forehead and staggered. Upon hearing it, it really seemed like a plausible reason.
The method was perfect. It wasn’t poisoning, and if everyone just trained themselves to death, it would be a perfect crime.
He felt like he wanted to shed tears of blood.
He never thought his somewhat trusted (?) son would pull off something so monstrous.
Despairing, Zvalter suddenly realized something strange.
“But we’re still okay, right?”
To say they were okay, they weren’t completely fine. Releasing mana powerfully left him feeling sick, and he had a trickle of blood at the corner of his mouth.
However, aside from that, there wasn’t really anything to complain about.
‘The internal injury might just be a backlash from the sudden mana surge.’
Zvalter really couldn’t be sure if the Mana Circulation Method was the problem. Even now, he was definitely getting a bit stronger.
But Randolf thought differently than Zvalter.
“We’re high-ranking knights, right? With more mana than the other knights, we’re still holding out! Eventually, we’ll fall too!”
At Randolf’s outcry, Zvalter couldn’t counter and closed his eyes.
No matter how important power was, thinking of killing the family’s knights was outrageous!
‘It’s a territory I’ll inherit anyway; can’t he wait for that? Ah, I must have raised my child wrong. Dear, it seems I’ll be coming to see you soon.’
But he couldn’t just sit and wait for death. He had to show that insolent son a thing or two.
Right away, he planned to gather all troops and strike the Penris Territory with the hammer of justice…
“Lord! Lord!”
Just then, a retainer rushed over and handed him a letter.
“What is this?”
“It’s from the Grand Duke. He said it contains important information and to check it immediately.”
“Did that bastard declare war?!”
“No, I didn’t hear that… I don’t know what the contents are either.”
Zvalter immediately checked the letter sent by Ghislaine. His expression gradually turned peculiar as his gaze dropped.
It seemed as if it predicted the current situation, listing the problems and solutions regarding the Mana Circulation Method.
In summary, it said that if they built up mana diligently and surpassed a certain realm, the problem would be resolved.
[And everyone at the fortress is slacking off on physical training. If you want to survive even a bit longer, you must train physically as well.]
In short, if they didn’t want to die, they had to train their bodies and mana like hell.
“Grrr! Then why didn’t you say so sooner!”
Zvalter grumbled, shifting his focus to the next sentence.
[If I had explained in advance, nobody would have wanted to learn the improved circulation method. Given the urgency to get stronger, it couldn’t be helped that this was kept secret.]
The sentence seemed to respond to his grumbling as Zvalter clicked his tongue and got up.
“Damn it! Everyone, get up! If you don’t want to die, you really need to train like your lives depend on it! Otherwise, you will actually die! Randolf, you too! Get up! Stop crying, you little brat!”
Zvalter, who usually acted solemnly, let harsh words slip since he was anxious.
If they lay around complaining of pain, they would genuinely weaken and die. He had never seen such a disgusting Mana Circulation Method in his life.
It was a relief that Ghislaine wasn’t trying to start a rebellion, but he was still boiling with anger inside.
Now the knights from the northern fortress would have to train desperately while also dealing with barbarians, all with fatigued bodies.
“Must face it.
He had truly fallen into an extreme training environment unprecedented in humanity.
Skoban thought, lying on the ground, vomiting blood and shedding tears.
‘No wonder I really didn’t want to do this… I told you not to get me involved…’
Unfortunately, regrets always come too late.
*
At that time, when chaos erupted in the northern fortress, the Penris Territory was noisy confirming the result of a wager.
The retainers of the territory began to gather one by one at the demonstration site.
Claude, the chief officer, couldn’t hide his anxious expression as he nervously bit his nails.
He asked Wendy, who was standing beside him, “Is it impossible? How long does it usually take to master mana?”
“It takes at least a few years unless you’re a genius.”
“Right? But there aren’t any geniuses among the mercenaries or the newcomers, right? Logically, it should be impossible.”
“Logically impossible, yes… But everything the Lord has done so far has been illogical.”
That was exactly why Claude felt uneasy.
Ghislaine always did the impossible and made logical people look like fools.
Claude squeezed his eyes tightly shut and shook his head.
‘No, still, this time it must be truly impossible.’
From what he checked intermittently, the knights all looked sickly, like the infirm. Surely their bodies had suffered from excessive training.
Once all the retainers were gathered, Ghislaine attended the demonstration last.
With a relaxed demeanor, Ghislaine looked around at everyone and raised his hand to declare.
“As promised to the chief officer, I will confirm whether the knights can use mana. From this moment, I will not accept any objections against marching, so be aware. Bring in the knights.”
At Ghislaine’s words, the knights who had been training came one by one into the demonstration area.
The retainers were startled upon seeing them.
“Wha, how…?”
“How could they be in that state…?”
They weren’t surprised because the knights looked cool; they were startled because a bunch of skeletons were wandering in.
The knights all appeared haggard and emaciated. While they had known their condition was bad from the occasional glimpses, it seemed even worse now.
Ignoring the reactions of the people, Ghislaine continued speaking.
“Now, the chief officer will call out and confirm.”
The role of selecting a knight and a weapon for the demonstration was to be Claude’s.
Given his suspicion, Ghislaine readily allowed it.
Claude pondered carefully and finally called out the one he was sure about.
As far as he knew, Gordon was in good health but lacked the ability to quickly grasp the Mana Circulation Method.
“Gordon! Come out and demonstrate!”
When his name was called, a scrawny bald man stumbled forward.
Claude looked him up and down a few times before saying, “What? I said Gordon! The muscle-bound coward Gordon!”
“I am Gordon…”
Upon inspecting his features one by one, it indeed was Gordon.
After a brief moment of confusion, Claude finally managed to speak.
“You… What happened to your body?”
Gordon replied, sniffling, “I’ve lost muscle due to illness…”
“…”
With a sympathetic look, Claude handed Gordon a sword.
“Use this to strike that over there.”
He pointed at a long, thick iron bar prepared for the wager.
Everyone in the demonstration area held their breath, tense as they watched Gordon.
He took the sword and stood before the iron bar, taking a deep breath.
“Hah!”
As Gordon focused his mind, a faint blue light shimmered along the sword blade.
Then, the blade came down hard on the iron bar.
Kang! Kang! Kang!”
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