Reformation of the Deadbeat Noble - Chapter 188

WeTried Translations

Translator: Coughing Baby

Editor: Coughing Baby

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◈ Reformation of the Deadbeat Noble

Chapter 188

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What Happened (2)

Who was the strongest being on the continent?

For a long time, the answer to that question never changed.

Ian, Hall Master of Krono Fencing Hall. His rival, Kun. And Julius Hyul, White Knight Commander of the Holy Kingdom. For nearly thirty years, the three of them had held that towering glory between them.

So then, who possessed the greatest talent on the continent?

That question had sparked heated debate recently.

The title of youngest Sword Master in history, once thought unbreakable forever, had passed from Ignet to Illia Lindsay.

Voices from the five kingdoms famous for their swordsmanship, from the continent's west, and from a handful of hot-tempered types all claimed the young lady of House Lindsay held the greatest potential ever seen.

Not everyone agreed, of course.

Public opinion couldn't shift that fast, not when Ignet's achievements had piled up so high over so many years.

There was also the argument that comparing someone raised under systematic training from a great house since childhood to an orphan made no sense in the first place. That argument, too, tipped the scales back toward Ignet.

And then, late last year.

Julius Hyul, the holy knight revered across the entire continent, had thrown fresh fuel on the debate.

'Ignet is the type who blooms late. It's an odd thing to say about someone who reached Master at twenty, but the growth she's shown lately makes it true.'

Ignet's talent, he'd said, wasn't something that had already peaked in the past. It was only now coming into full bloom.

After that stunning remark, the Ignet versus Illia debate became the kind of thing you could hear argued over drinks anywhere on the continent.

So when Black Knight Commander Ignet Crescentia made her appearance,

when she walked right past the great Sevion Brooks of Phalanke and headed for a corner of the banquet hall, everyone assumed she was moving to confront Illia Lindsay.

But that wasn't what happened.

A blond young man rising slowly from his seat.

A black-haired sword fiend fixing him with a burning gaze.

Sensing the strange tension between the two, the crowd swallowed hard.

'Why...'

'Not Illia Lindsay, but Airen Farreira?'

'Do they know each other? "Changed a lot," she said...'

'What's going on?'

Airen Farreira.

One of the finest swordsmen the Proof Land had ever produced, and himself one of the figures setting the continent ablaze lately.

Becoming a Sword Master at twenty-two meant his pace had outstripped even the great Hall Master of Krono himself.

But no matter how impressive he was, his presence still fell short of the other two.

He'd reached Master later than either of them, and rumors still swirled that he'd relied on an artifact-grade weapon and Sorcery to win that controversial championship match against Illia.

Next to Ignet's blazing heat and Illia's chilling frost, Airen's impression felt blurry, faint, another reason people rated him lower.

But right now.

Fwooosh!

Ignet's already fierce presence surged even hotter.

"..."

And the blond young man facing it head on, showing not a trace of being cowed.

The crowd watching him finally understood.

Airen Farreira beating Illia Lindsay hadn't been a fluke.

"Are you not going to tell me?"

Under even heavier pressure, Ignet pressed him again.

The look shooting from her sharp, three-white eyes stung. Airen felt it like a red-hot iron skewer jabbing into him.

But.

'I can take this.'

He really could.

At least, compared to meeting Ignet back in the artisan city of Derinku, this was far easier.

Back then, every word she'd said, every move she'd made, had shaken him.

'I won't fall.'

He wouldn't break.

This wasn't the same as wanting to win.

Her gaze was hot enough to sear his heart, fierce enough to turn the blood in his veins to molten rock, but right now Airen consciously held down the fighting spirit rising in his chest.

That instinct was inseparable from being a swordsman, but this moment called for something else.

Trust in himself.

Faith in his own path.

Certainty in his own sword, and the conviction and belief that certainty gave birth to.

The flame that had bloomed in Airen Farreira through his long wandering, the flame built around the iron sword he'd forged across his past life and this one, burst outward like an explosion.

Fwoooosh!

Light flared bright in Airen Farreira's eyes.

Along with it, the presence that had seemed so flat and unremarkable flipped completely. Several people's eyes went wide.

Only Experts, and only the most seasoned among them at that, could recognize the will radiating from the blond young man. Only they could glimpse even a fragment of what he was.

And the one facing Airen's presence, his gaze, from the closest possible distance,

Ignet Crescentia tasted his will more vividly than anyone else in that hall.

It was nothing like the greenhorn she'd met a year and a half ago. Not even close.

It was a will as solid and immense as only someone who drove the tide of the age could carry, not someone swept along by it.

"..."

Fwooosh.

Ignet, who had been glaring at Airen with fierce intensity, suddenly withdrew her presence.

Airen's expression didn't change. If anything, the reaction came from somewhat farther away.

Gregory Griffin, Calven's knight commander, who'd been indirectly exposed to the Black Knight Commander's presence, broke into violent coughing.

Amira Shelton caught him, steadying him. Her color wasn't good either.

Watching that, Ignet bowed with proper courtesy and said, "Esteemed Sir Gregory Griffin, Knight Commander of Calven. My rudeness has disturbed your composure, and I offer you my sincere apology."

"Kaugh, kuff... heh. Next time, give a bit of warning first, would you? A man needs time to step back."

"I'll pay you a proper visit later to apologize for this lapse. Please, set aside your anger."

"Ha, think nothing of it. It was worth it, to feel the presence of the renowned Black Knight Commander."

At Calven's knight commander's generous response, Ignet bowed once more, then turned and moved on.

Where her steps came to a stop stood Phalanke's finest knight, Sevion Brooks, his expression frozen stiff.

"Forgive my rudeness here as well. There was someone here I hadn't expected to see, and I lost track of where I was."

"...It's fine."

"My apologies to Lavath's court mage as well. This foolish girl set the portal's coordinates wrong, and it's caused this whole mess."

"Oh, no, that's, that's nothing much..."

Perry Martinez stumbled over his words.

He'd seen Ignet once before.

Back when she'd just risen to the rank of knight commander, she'd been nothing like the composed, dignified figure standing before him now.

Even her way of speaking back then had called to mind some street tough.

Compared to that, the Black Knight Commander standing here now was flawless, without a single crack showing.

But that wasn't why he felt so intimidated.

'...It's this side that's changed a lot since I last saw her, isn't it.'

A presence fierce and savage, unhidden even by the armor and mask of her courtesy.

Ignet's air, exactly like someone who'd just stepped off a battlefield, left sweat beading on Perry Martinez's palms.

"If I may be so bold, my knights moved here straight from completing their mission, and all of us are quite worn out. If our host would permit it, might we be excused to retire and rest first, if that wouldn't be an imposition..."

"...I had no idea your schedule was so demanding. You there, show our honored guests from the Holy Kingdom to their quarters."

"Yes, my lord."

After a brief pause, Perry Martinez nodded, and the servants waiting off to the side moved quickly, careful not to provoke anyone, to prepare for escorting the Black Knight Order members.

Not just Ignet but every single knight among them gave off an aura far from ordinary, and hands trembled as they worked.

"Aww, and I was so looking forward to eating the party food!"

The odd little presence among their number was more than enough to fluster the servants too.

Fortunately, there was someone assigned to manage her.

"...You can order whatever you want back at the lodgings and eat as much as you like, so stop making a scene and quit whining."

"No."

"No or not, just bear with it a little."

"Can't. Kids can't bear with things."

"Why you..."

Vice Commander Georgu Poive took charge of the stubborn Anya, and the rest of the Black Knight Order members followed the servants' lead, filing off toward their quarters one by one.

But Ignet stayed in the banquet hall until the very last moment.

Her gaze remained fixed on Airen Farreira, who was still watching her.

"..."

The flame had dimmed some from before.

But it hadn't lost its heat entirely, still glowing like a bed of embers as Ignet quietly whispered something.

Her voice was so faint that only an elf could have heard it.

But the shape of her lips was enough. Airen could read exactly what she'd said.

'I'll keep watching a little longer.'

Ignet's interest, still not extinguished.

Confirming it, Airen nodded and moved his own lips in answer.

'Anytime.'

A conversation without a sound.

Their brief exchange finished, Ignet finally turned and walked away.

Everyone in the banquet hall watched her back disappear, leaving a thick weight of presence behind.

That attention didn't last forever, of course.

With her already gone, the crowd's interest shifted to the Black Knight Order's vice commander, and to the mysterious girl in the black dress.

But among them, one person alone.

Illia Lindsay, who had waited so long for this moment, couldn't help but keep watching the direction Ignet had vanished into, unable to look away.

"..."

Not a single word.

Not even a brief glance.

No wariness, no pity, no mockery, no anger. She had simply vanished, leaving nothing behind at all.

Illia couldn't even sort out what she was supposed to feel about that.

The silver-haired swordswoman, who had steeled her resolve and endured bitter pain and fear to reach this very moment, kept her eyes lowered, staring endlessly into a heart she couldn't quite read even herself.

Fwump.

That was when it happened.

The small figure who had been silently watching the whole scene unfold shot up from her seat.

And before anyone could stop her, she marched straight toward the center of the banquet hall.

It was a march, but her stride was short, so it took a good while.

"Hm?"

"Who's that? Coming for Anya?"

But that gave everyone plenty of time to notice.

By the time the girl reached her destination, she'd already captured the full attention of the nobles, and of Georgu and Anya as well.

"You."

Lulu, wand raised, pointed it straight at Anya.

"Me?"