Chapter 333

Chapter 333

“—that my father died?”
【Yes. This horrible scar is proof. I fell off a cliff after being sliced to pieces with a knife.
Hearing Lance’s question, Dharman rolled up his sleeve. It revealed a flesh far more horrific than the one on the outside. Sechika clamped her mouth shut, disgusted.
“Oops.”
【Your entire body is like this. No matter how much I tried, I couldn’t get rid of this mark.
Dharman snorted. Lance concentrated as hard as he could, waiting for an opening. After a moment of silence, Dharman spoke.
【But—By the look on your face, you don’t recognize me. Didn’t your father tell you about me, about the bloodbath at the Sword Festival?
“I don’t know, someone like you.”
【This is a shame. I thought we had a pretty good fight.
“Am I the only one who thought that? I’ve heard a lot of other people talk about it.”
Lance raised one corner of his mouth. It was a deliberate provocation. Of course, none of the stories Adeshan had told her about Ronan’s social saga had included Dharman.
[I see. That’s right. That’s right—.】
Dharman’s face hardened. It was as if he had struck a sore spot. Seizing the moment, Lance yanked on the hilt of his sword.
“Now!
The ballet that got him into Pileon as a senior was shot. Honestly, I was still baffled, but I knew two things. That the man in front of me was the perpetrator of the kidnapping, and that he was very dangerous.
The arcing blade was about to touch Dharman’s neck. Kagak! The sword stopped with a strong recoil.
“What the—!”
[Was this really the best we could do?
Darman opened his mouth, his expression grim. The blade remained fixed between his forefingers. Lance strained, but the blade remained stuck, as if it were stuck between rocks. Dharman, who glanced back and forth between Lance and the sword, smirked.
【You’re ridiculously slow, and even considering your age, you’re garbage compared to your father, whose back-alley punch was at least a kill.
“Ugh—Get off me!”
No.]
Suddenly, Dharman released his grip on the blade. Lance, who didn’t really know how to let go, lost his balance and stumbled. At the same time, Dharman lunged forward and drove a knee kick into his abdomen. Blood gushed out of Lance’s mouth with the sound of breaking bones.
“Kaboom!”
[Now be quiet, we’ll be done in a minute].
“La, lance!”
Lance leaned forward. Sechika chanted the spell almost reflexively. A dozen spears of wind were about to shoot toward Dharman. Shriek! His blurred form appeared from behind her.
【Don’t interrupt. On the subject of orderlies.】
“Argh!”
Dharman grabbed Sechika’s hair and twisted it around her head. She screamed in pain as the spell was canceled. Lance gritted his teeth as he rose to his feet, using his sword for support.
“Ugh—Sechika—.”
[The Archmage’s daughter is not much better. I hear your father has stopped the falling island. I suppose blood gets thicker with each generation.
“Don’t—don’t touch her. C’mon, your purpose is me anyway!”
【Not so fast, there’s someone who has a use for her. To the firstborn of the Mage Asel.
Dharman looked up with the words. His scarlet eyes, which bore an uncanny resemblance to Ronan’s, were fixed on the snake spinning.
Suddenly, with a vibration that seemed to shake the earth, the snake began to move. Its head emerging from the darkness reminded me of a mountain rising in front of my eyes. Finally, the snake looked up and opened its mouth.
[a—cell?
“Yes, master of the Flying Horse Pavilion, I have captured the daughter of your enemy.”]
[Yes—you do look like him, especially with that hair color—the one who took everything from me].
Its one remaining eye glowed in a grotesque fashion. Lance and Sechika cringed at the eerie voice that made the hairs on their bodies stand on end. Only then did they realize who had caused the wounds that covered the snake’s body.
“Oh, that snake my dad caught in the New World can’t be—!”
Sechika’s eyes widened. Marja had told her once. Around the time she was pregnant with her, Asel had caught an enormous snake in the New World. Covered it in ice and buried it in the depths of the ocean.
From the looks of things, it had to be the snake. Sechika chuckled, remembering how Asel had waved it off as no big deal.
What, Dad? That’s not a big deal?
The seal must have been broken by Dharman. It was her father’s seal, one that not even dragons could break on their own. Suddenly, the snake that had been glaring at her opened its gaping maw and lunged.
【I’ll swallow you whole! Aaaah!】
“Huh!”
Sechika’s eyes widened. He was lightning fast for his size. She gulped as she realized she was about to die. The snake halted as Dharman stepped forward, blocking her path.
[Dharman. What the hell is going on?
[We’ll be ready soon, so you’ll just have to be patient. Our goal is a full resurrection, not petty revenge].
[Heh— Hurry up or I’ll eat you too.
[Great, let’s get this over with and toast with the blood of these kids].
Darman bowed lightly. The snake glared at Sechika, then turned its head in disapproval. She drew in a sharp breath and opened her mouth.
“—You’re going to resurrect them, drain their mana, and get revenge on my parents.”
【Yes. Correct].
“But why did you only kidnap people on the fringes of the islands? You could have done it anywhere else and not gotten caught at all.”
To her rational mind, it didn’t make sense: why risk using the system as a hunting ground. Dharman raised an eyebrow in disbelief.
【You’ve got a good head, but since you’re going to die anyway, I’ll give you special instructions. The place where we gathered the sacrifices is not on the fringes of the islands, but where the war was fought.】
“War?”
【Yes. The abominable war between the Alliance and the Cult—The town has since been restored, but the mana that flooded it at the time has remained, accumulating in the bodies of its inhabitants. Does that make any sense?
“So you kidnapped mostly children—!”
Sechika understood, and was horrified. They were foraging in a former battlefield for pure mana. The corners of Dharman’s mouth turned up.
[Mana quality was more important than quantity].
“You devils. How could you do such a thing?!”
It’s all over when we’re resurrected anyway. And, child, if you’re going to act, you might as well do it well.
Darman turned his head, and Lance gritted his teeth as their eyes met; he had been approaching, waiting to deliver a blow while Sechika spoke.
“Oops.”
“Dude, you’ve been caught!”
Sechika was stunned. At the same time, Lance’s new model disappeared from view. Dharman’s eyebrows twitched.
【What—!】
The ship was faster than it had been a moment ago. He quickly took a defensive stance, but Lance’s sword was already slicing through his body. A long, red slash cut across Dharman’s chest.
“—Damn.”
Lance, covered in blood, chewed on his lower lip. The blade had gone in too shallow. Enraged, Dharman drew his sword.
[You son of a bitch!]
“Ah.”
A fine baldo, worthy of his position as Squadron Leucophos leader. Time slowed for Lance. The bizarre angles of his blows had once defeated even Jaifa.
“That’s it.
He could see the sword, but he couldn’t react. Sechika’s screams echoed in his ears, everything he loved flowing before his eyes like a river.
A sweet mom and a loving sister. Friends with whom I laughed and talked, and a father I still look up to today. Regret stirred in my heart as only the dying can.
“Why wasn’t I honest with myself?
I should have been more honest and loving. Especially if I knew it would end like this.
But it’s too late.
Finally, in frustration, Lance closed his eyes. Suddenly, a pure white light burst from his coat pocket.
[Cough?!!]
“Yikes!”
A blast of light so intense it lit up subspace, and Dharman froze, his blind blade about to split Lance’s head open. Kachang! With a ferocious metallic sound, Darman’s sword shattered.
[What!
Darman raised an eyebrow as he opened his eyes to see an all-white bird, more like a hawk than anything else, flapping in front of him.
“Whirlwind!”
[Bird? Wait, this is—.
Suddenly, Darman’s face contorted. A bizarrely colored shield had unfurled around the bird. The hemispherical shield that completely enveloped Lance and Sechika was familiar to him.
[You’re welcome, starry-eyed!!!].
Dharman was stunned. It was unmistakably the star’s favor. The power that had been lost since the deaths of the giants and the preceptor was unfolding before his eyes. Lance’s eyes widened.
“You are—!”
He could no longer feel the sphere in his pocket; he must have broken it. Lance stuttered as he helped the fallen Sechika up.
“Hey, are you from here?”
“Whistle!”
The bird replied. It was as if it understood human speech. Darman, who had been dumbfounded for a long time, was about to act again.
Chaaaahhh-!
The sound of a million sheets of paper tearing simultaneously echoed overhead. A dull light poured into the dark space.
[What the hell is this—!
Dharman looked up, stunned, and then froze. A starry sky stretched above the pocketed ceiling.
“Hey, it’s open! Ronan!”
In the center of it all, two men of different hair colors hovered. Asel’s voice echoed with sobs. Ronan, recognizing Lance and Sechika, opened his mouth.
“Found.”
“Oh, Dad?!”
Lance was frightened. So stunned was she that she forgot to call him father. Ronan, who landed in front of them with a bang, opened his mouth.
“Is everybody okay? Is everybody hurt?”
“Lo, Uncle Ronan. How did you get here—.”
“There was a drop of blood where you disappeared, and I followed it.”
Ronan gestured toward the ceiling. A familiar bird flapped its wings beside the relieved Asel. Sita spread her four wings and roared.
“Paaaaah!”
“Lance, you did it, didn’t you? Good job.”
Ronan, smirking, ruffled his son’s hair roughly. If it weren’t for Darman’s blood, the chase would have been very difficult, as he checked on the two of them.
“Wait a minute. Are you—.”
“Why, what’s wrong?”
“Are you hurt? Let me see.”
Ronan’s eyes narrowed. His sharp gaze locked on the bloodstain at the corner of Lance’s mouth. A closer inspection of the body revealed a couple of missing ribs.
He was silent for a moment, then looked back at Dharman.
“—Hey. Rags.”
[Finally, you’re looking this way. But rags, not too much—]
The smirking Dharman froze. Eyes the color of the setting sun glared back at him.
【——!】
I could only make eye contact, but I couldn’t move. Ronan, fixing the hilt of his sword, spoke.
“Did you do this?”
[Hmph, hmph–who would have thought. You’re in a different mood, Ronan, by the way. I don’t recognize you.
He looked like a completely different man from the one I had seen in Parzan in the past. His shoulders were heavy with the weight of life. When he finally regained his composure, he spoke.
【But I have also become stronger. I’ve gathered and absorbed the abandoned artifacts of the Sect, and I’ve built up my strength. It won’t be easy to defeat us here, allied with the White Lotus King—]
He turned away and was about to wink at the snake. Suddenly, a lump the size of a fist landed next to Dharman. It was the head of a huge, white snake.
[Hmmm—!
Darman gulped. The head of the once leader of the Fist of the Furies lay motionless, seemingly unaware of his own death. Puhhhhhh! The headless torso collapsed, spewing fountains of blood.
“Oh my God.”
“The ship, the snake—!”
Lance and Sechika were horrified. The snake’s decapitation coincided with Ronan’s entry into subspace, but none of them saw it. Dharman’s legs gave out.
[This is—this is ridiculous!
Something is wrong. Darman, sensing his mortal danger, turned to flee. Ronan gripped the hilt of his sword, and the colors of the setting sun flashed across the blade.
A crimson flash engulfed the collapsing subspace at the same time. When Darman closed his eyes once and opened them, he was standing in front of Ronan’s nose.
“By the way—.”
Darman hadn’t even gotten a chance to let out a terminal scream. Ronan’s arm disappeared, and hundreds of red lines drew across his body. Ronan twirled his sword once and grunted.
“You’ve been rambling on and on, who are you?”
[Well, the number is—.
Despair washed over Dharman’s face. Ronan had forgotten he existed. Before he could say a word, his six-dimensional body scattered in all directions.
“Ah—verge.”
Lance muttered, mesmerized. I knew my father was strong, but I didn’t realize he was this strong… Tsk! Ronan, who had spat on the blood, looked up and said.
“You pretend to know everything about nothing—Mr. Swordsman, please clean up the mess.”
“Sure.”
Then another voice called out. Then a handsome man landed in front of Lance. Dark blue hair and a sculpted appearance. Lance’s mouth dropped open again at the familiarity of the face.
“Auntie…?!”
“Long time no see. Lance.”
Schlieffen nodded. Officially the Duke of Gracia, he was Lance’s favorite relative. Schlieffen looked back and forth between Lance and Sechika and smiled weakly.
“You’re brave for a bird you haven’t seen, defending your woman while wounded.”
“What, Nae?! It’s not like that, Sechika is just a friend!”
“What are you talking about, you bastard? Oh, no—that’s right, who would date something like this?!”
They both let out a simultaneous yelp, their eyes immediately locking, Lance and Sechika blushing simultaneously. Turning around with a smile on his face, Schlieffen raised his sword.
“Whatever. Thanks.”
A whirlwind erupted from the ground and began to pulverize the bodies of Darman and the snake without leaving a trace. As they watched in awe, a different, yet familiar, voice rang out once more.
“Sechika! My daughter!”
“Uh, Mom?”
Sechika’s eyes widened. Marja, who was supposed to be on top, was running toward them, her golden hair whipping like a mane. She closed the distance in an instant, and pulled Sechika and Lance into a hug.
“You naughty little foal, you’re grounded for a month!”
“Kek! Sue, I’m choking—!”
“Ugh. I don’t know why—.”
Tears welled up in Marja’s eyes. Their faces pressed against his chest, they swayed. Ronan felt his heart sink at the sight, which reminded him of the old days.
“Good experience, son. I envy you.”
“Shh, shut up—!”
It was not until long afterward that they were freed from the violent bonds of his chest that the once-white bird landed on Lance’s shoulder, panting from lack of oxygen. Ronan arched an eyebrow.
“Huh? What’s this?”
“Ah—! I was born from a sphere my father gave me, what the hell did he give me—?
“What, did that wake up?”
Ronan’s eyes widened. If memory serves, it was Abel’s egg he’d handed him. It hadn’t changed in over a decade, and he’d given up on it, but now it had hatched.
The bird’s body was white as a snowfield, and its eyes were the same scarlet color as Lance’s. It was easy to tell whose dreams it had been born to drink. Ronan, still staring at the bird, nodded.
“Get along in this life. Dude.”
“Profit.”
The white bird cried in reply. The bird flew away and began to play with Sita, though it was impossible to tell if it understood.
WHOOSH! Soon after, the gradually lifting darkness vanished. At last, beyond the dissipated subspace, the moonlit sky, the fields, and the soldiers Schlieffen had summoned were revealed.
“This, this!”
“—Your Majesty the Emperor.”
The sight of people lying in a row and a whirlwind reaching for the sky stunned them. Ronan breathed a sigh of relief. He laid a hand on Lance’s stiffened shoulder and said, “We’ve taken care of the main culprits, we’ll clean up the mess.
“Then we should go.”
****
The subspace where Lance was kidnapped was spread out in the countryside on the fringes of the islands. It was already daylight when the carriage arrived at the house.
The light shining through the gaps in the buildings lit up the rich man’s face. Lan Xue’s mouth dropped open in a grimace.
“Did your mom—cry a lot?”
She still couldn’t believe what had happened. On the one hand, he realized what he’d done was inexcusable.
In the heat of the moment, I’d let Ronan, Arcel, and the rest of the Empire’s finest clean up shit. Ronan nodded without hesitation.
“Of course you are. You know how hard I tried to talk you out of coming with me, crying and blowing. You know, your mom’s usually so nice, but when she’s angry, she’s really scary.”
“Yeah—oops, again.”
“Thank your sister, man. If Erin hadn’t been home, I would have come after you, and I would have beaten the living shit out of your ass until you were a rag. In front of Sechika.”
“Yes. I’m sorry—.”
Lance’s head hung low. A thousand words were lost in his mouth as he stumbled along like a lamb to the slaughter. Ronan, scratching his head, spoke.
“Well, I’m sorry.”
“—Huh?”
“The commencement ceremony. I wanted to go, but I couldn’t find the time, and the disappearances were just starting. I didn’t really miss it on purpose.”
Ronan said in an impassive tone. Lance’s eyes widened as he realized what she meant.
“Why are you suddenly talking about that–I’m fine, I really am.”
“I don’t care if you’re okay with it, I’m sure you’d be disgusted if you were me, and I’m sure you’re thinking to yourself, if I had a bigger head, Ronan would never leave this son of a bitch alone. He’d be stabbing the pillow he named after me every night, huh?”
Ronan suddenly stood up and made a stabbing motion at the air. Lance waved him off.
“Well, I didn’t do that!”
“I’m kidding.”
“Ew! Ew!”
Ronan chuckled. Lance’s body shuddered as his rough hands patted his son’s back. Judging by his bones, he’ll be bigger than me in another decade. He chuckled softly.
“I’m proud of you. Son.”
“What? You’re saying—.”
“I’m proud of you, man. You did a great job in a situation where your balls would have shrunk, and you’re going to be an amazing person.”
With that, Ronan took the first step. Lance stared after him, dumbfounded. Is my ear broken now? He shouldn’t have said that.
“—Father.”
But apart from the embarrassment, I could feel my heart beating faster. The old feelings that had been there all along were rekindled.
I felt like I was going to cry. Ronan, who had reached the front door, added a word.
“Not as much as me, of course.”
“Oh, I’m impressed at best, how could you be?!”
“You can be a kid and save the world. Daddy’s coming in.”
Lance exclaimed in disbelief. Ronan chuckled and pulled the doorknob.
“Oh my God, Dad!”
The tears that had been threatening to escape were stifled. Lance stomped off as if to argue with her. With a smile on her face, of course.
The Academy’s Genius Knifeman
Really the end.
end