Chapter 75 : Chapter 75
Chapter 75. Please, Meet Me
As the sun was setting, Adellian and I were strolling through the school garden.
“The semester schedule is being shortened. I heard it was decided after the 3rd Queen visited the school. It must be related to Hans, right?”
I nodded at Adellian’s question. If Hans hadn’t ended up like that, there would have been no reason for the 3rd Queen to come to the school. But what we should pay attention to is not that the 3rd Queen came to the school. It’s that she didn’t look for me.
“It seems the 3rd Queen doesn’t know, right?”
“Yeah, if she knew, she would have come looking for me.”
And not just coming alone. She would have come with a host of Royal Guards. She would have treated me like a criminal for what I did to Hans and dragged me to the capital. That was my first plan, too.
“That’s a relief. Isn’t it?”
“Not really.”
“……Right, how would I know what’s in your mind.”
Adellian wrinkled her nose and glared at me.
“Child, sometimes ignorance is bliss.”
“What’s with that old man-like tone?”
Because I actually am an old man. You brat.
If I had been dragged to the capital, I would have tried to have a private audience with the king. I was going to mention the 4th Prince along with the information that Uresra’s spies had infiltrated deep into the country. That way, he would look into the 3rd Queen’s conduct. I don’t know what measures would have been taken after that, but it would at least have been able to restrain the 3rd Queen’s movements. The nobles who had joined hands with the 3rd Queen would also have kept quiet, wary of the king.
I was planning to call Chris during the brief power vacuum. If he met the king in person and talked, he would be able to get the necessary troops and supplies.
Well, it all went down the drain due to someone’s interference.
“Who do you think hid it?”
“The Hoso Merchant Guild.”
Adellian’s eyes widened like the full moon.
“Are they targeting us?”
Knowing that they were connected to everything from the Amirios Clan to the Black Market, she reacted sensitively.
“No.”
They must be targeting me. Because I killed Gwanju.
‘We never forget a debt.’
Those were the words I heard when I killed the Homilia Sotolts bastards back in my Leonhardt days. Indeed, those bastards had persistently targeted me. And directly, at that.
Something about not being able to entrust a comrade’s revenge to others.
Rustle.
I felt a presence.
Adellian quickly drew her sword and looked at where the sound came from.
I, too, brought out a bit of mana to survey the surroundings. There was only one opponent.
“What are you two doing!”
It was Piontek.
“Aish, what the.”
Adellian, her tension released, sheathed her sword and shook her head.
“What do you mean, what? What are you two doing right now?”
“Can’t you tell by looking? Talking at night…….”
Adellian, who was explaining calmly, swallowed her words as if she sensed something strange.
“The two of you at night… Don’t tell me… are you dating?”
“Are you crazy?”
“You’re out of your mind.”
As Adellian and I reacted sharply, Piontek’s expression crumbled. What on earth was he thinking…….
“Do I look like someone who would waste time dating?”
“……I don’t know.”
Piontek answered bluntly.
“You don’t know? Then shall I make you know?”
I grabbed Dawn and my eyes flashed. People have said it since long ago. An idle body leads to idle thoughts. So I’m going to work this bastard so hard that whether it’s dating or whatever, he’ll pray, ‘Thank you for letting me breathe today.’
“Wh-what are you trying to do?”
“I’m going to educate a 1st Circle-level nobody. With the martial arts tournament just around the corner, I can’t let you go out there and embarrass yourself, can I?”
“Wh-why you? What’s it to you?”
“Think of it as camaraderie. Camaraderie.”
As I raised Dawn high, Piontek took out the weapon in his hand.
Chaang!
A palm-sized piece of iron made a loud noise and stretched out long.
“What’s this? Are you trying to change your main weapon?”
What Piontek was holding was not a sword, but a spear.
“I’m just trying it out. Just because.”
“What do you mean ‘just because’ for someone who’s supposed to become a knight? Don’t you know what it means to change the weapon you’re used to?”
Changing one’s main weapon means throwing away everything one has built up until now and starting over from scratch. From what I’ve seen of Piontek, he didn’t just pick up the sword after coming to the academy. It’s the result of holding a sword since he was young and practicing relentlessly. I can tell just by looking at the fundamentals of his swordsmanship. That’s why I thought he was decent, but now a spear?
“I know. I know, but since there’s no progress…….”
Come to think of it, Piontek had said he was a 1st Circle even before entering the academy. And he was still a 1st Circle. He had hit a wall in his growth too early.
He was helpless when fighting Gwanju, too. So I understand his desire to somehow overcome the wall before the martial arts tournament. But…….
“Yes, you’ve thought it through well.”
Adellian said.
I couldn’t understand Adellian’s reaction. So I looked at her with eyes asking for the meaning.
“His family is a family of spear knights.”
What is this now?
“He used to say that swords were cooler than spears since he was little. Said the posture for a spear wasn’t good? So he didn’t listen to his dad and chose the sword. He reached the 1st Circle faster than others, so he thought he was right, but he wasn’t. This is for the best.”
Thinking about it, Piontek’s techniques involved a lot of thrusting. Furthermore, his thrusts were stronger than his slashes. The same went for his lightning-based swordsmanship.
That’s why I had thought it was strange. If a sword is the main weapon, it’s normal for slashes to be stronger than thrusts. But if his family is a family of spear knights, then everything was explained.
‘Create distance with a slash and finish with a thrust. That’s the basic of a spear knight.’
Piontek was using the techniques of a spear while holding a sword. That’s why he couldn’t overcome the wall.
“Still, when it comes to being a knight, a sword is more fitting than a spear. The posture is better. And it’s much cooler.”
Piontek, holding the spear with both hands, made a bitter face.
So I clicked my tongue sharply.
“You really care a lot about what others think.”
“…….”
Piontek, his lips tightly twisted, bowed his head. It seemed that my remark was displeasing, but it was difficult to deny.
“Fighting is ugly. How can struggling to survive be cool?”
Piontek looked at me.
“Be true to your essence. Do what you’re good at. No matter how much you try to look cool, it’s all about slashing and stabbing in the end.”
It’s about slashing, stabbing, and killing others to survive. It’s something that shouldn’t be cool in the first place.
“I understand.”
Piontek trudged towards the training ground with slumped shoulders. It’s not that he doesn’t understand my words. He’s experienced what it’s like to struggle to survive. Still, he probably wanted to look good in front of Adellian.
“Ah! There you are.”
As Piontek moved away, a new person appeared from behind. It was Armand Blace. He was panting, his face flushed.
“What is it?”
“His Highness the 3rd Prince is looking for you.”
At Armand’s answer, Adellian’s eyes widened as she looked at me.
I shrugged my shoulders, implying it was no big deal.
“He’s looking for me, so what?”
“Huh? No, His Highness the 3rd Prince is looking for you.”
“So? The one in need should come himself. Who is he to tell me to come and go?”
At my reply, Adellian’s eyes widened even more.
Armand, too, looked flustered, his lips parting and closing as he repeatedly let out hollow breaths.
“Tell the person who needs me to come.”
“No, you can’t do that…….”
Was it because I had flatly refused the 3rd Prince’s will? Armand was fidgeting restlessly.
“Could it be… that the 3rd Prince was the one who hid the Hans incident from the 3rd Queen?”
Adellian asked in a very small voice.
I looked at Adellian with interested eyes. If what she said was true, it meant the relationship between the Hoso Merchant Guild and the 3rd Prince was deeper than imaginable. Perhaps Uresra was among the forces trying to put the 3rd Prince on the throne.
I should meet him in person.
“Please, can’t you please go? I’m really in big trouble. Huh?”
Armand said with a desperate face, clasping his hands together.
Well then, I can’t just let this slide.
“Sir, what price were you quoted?”
I clasped my hands together in a different sense from Armand and showed a kind smile.
“…….”
Armand and Adellian seemed to think something was strange, though. Well, they’ll naturally learn as they live a little longer. That a fond affection blossoms amidst the exchange of cash.
***
“Isn’t this an abuse of power?”
Standing in front of the door, I looked around and muttered. I’m a cadet, and the 3rd Prince is a cadet. But the difference in our living quarters is so great that it makes one forget the words ‘dirty’ and ‘cheap’.
Creeak.
The door opened.
“He said you may enter.”
The servant who opened the door spoke with a trembling voice.
I shook my head from side to side. He summoned me himself, yet he made me wait for 30 minutes. At that, standing in front of the door. And now he says I may enter? I liked his tone so much that I wanted to pull out all his teeth.
I let out a sound of ‘Ha!’ full of irritation and walked inside.
‘How much money do you have to throw around to get something like this?’
I thought a room would appear right away, but what actually appeared was a long corridor whose end was not visible at a glance. A very splendid corridor at that.
‘What a sight.’
Chandeliers full of candles hung in a row from the ceiling. Dozens of expensive-looking paintings were hung on the walls. That’s not all. There were also plenty of ceramics.
‘They said ranks don’t matter at school, is this what not mattering looks like?’
I clicked my tongue and continued to walk.
Splash.
I heard the sound of water. Then a hot, humid air and a strong scent of soap wafted over. So I tilted my head. According to Armand, the place where I would meet Dwight was his private study.
‘If this is a study, one’s brain would become very clean.’
I suppressed a hollow laugh. The place I had arrived at was not a study, but a bathroom.
“You’ve come.”
Dwight, inside a large bathtub, was looking at me with a languid face, without a single thread on him. And on either side of him, two naked women were clinging closely.
“Your Highness, what is this?”
“Oh my? Calling a child to a place like this. How lewd.”
The two boasted their coquettish voices and groped Dwight’s body.
Dwight gently pushed them away with his arms and got out of the tub.
I made a face of utter disgust. The sight of a man walking around completely naked, showing off his junk, was absolutely filthy.
“Would you care for a glass?”
Dwight asked as he poured wine. Just from his tone, he could be a king.
“I’m not old enough to drink yet.”
“Did you ever care about such things?”
It’s not that I care, but I don’t want to sip wine with a stark-naked man.
“Alright, let’s drink when the time comes.”
Dwight, who had gulped down a mouthful of wine, put on a gown and approached me.
‘What is this crazy bastard doing?’
I unknowingly took a couple of steps back.
“It seems my little brother misunderstands something. I did not call you today to scold you. It is to thank you.”
“……Ah?”
I don’t know what this crazy person is suddenly talking about.
“I was worried about what to do with that Hans fellow running wild, but you’ve taken care of him appropriately. It was a rather dangerous task, I must say.”
“Then was it your doing, Your Highness, that Hans was moved to his room?”
“Why? Is it strange? That I didn’t tell Mother even though Hans ended up like that?”
At Dwight’s question, I stared intently into his eyes.
“Did you do it yourself?”
“You don’t have to be so grateful. I was just returning the favor.”
I saw Dwight’s arrogant smile. He called me to thank me, but the favor has already been returned? This guy is interesting. And he told me that he had moved Hans himself, that even if the 3rd Queen found out the truth, it wouldn’t have much of an effect on him, ...yet he deliberately concealed it.
“Hmm? Why are you smiling like that?”
Since what I had suspected turned out to be true, since I have a powerful bait to catch the tail of the Homilia Sotolts bastards right in front of me, I can’t help but smile.
“It is truly a pleasure to meet you! Ha! Ha! Ha!”
I said cheerfully, grabbing Dwight’s hand.
It really is a pleasure to meet you. Bait.