Solo Swordmaster - Chapter 51

WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Hydrogen B

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

Chapter 51: A Kept Man Is a Bit Much, Don’t You Think?

──────

“...”

Rimon fell silent for a moment.

It was not merely because Li Qing-yu spoke of her own cunning as though it were something to be proud of.

She was the Black Dragon Princess, after all.

To the Black Dragon Clan, who made deception, conspiracy, assassination, and covert operations their trade, cunning was something to boast about, not be ashamed of.

Even so, Rimon was at a loss for words.

Because of the smile on her face.

The smile she wore as she claimed, as though it were only natural, that since the elders had tried to sell her out, there was nothing wrong with her casting them aside as well.

It was strangely sensual and alluring, on a face that had seemed nothing but fresh and innocent.

This girl...

It was as lofty as a thousand-year flower in full bloom.

As dazzling as a seven-colored bird spreading its wings.

As beautiful as it was chilling, like the first snowflake touched by the final light of sunset.

The moment he saw that smile, Rimon knew.

No, he was finally certain.

Of something he had vaguely sensed since first meeting Li Qing-yu.

She had the makings of a beauty who could topple kingdoms.

A phrase coined in ancient times for peerless beauties whose looks had bewitched kings and emperors and brought nations to ruin.

But Rimon had not reached that conclusion merely because Li Qing-yu was beautiful.

He was assessing her danger.

Just as a peerless beauty could shake a nation, she was someone capable of overturning the world on her own.

I knew she was extraordinary from the moment I heard she had practically sold off half the Black Dragon Clan to preserve world peace, but...

Was that only possible because she was a princess of the Seven Dragons Society? Was it therefore nothing worth praising?

What nonsense.

Just because something was possible, did everyone travel around the world?

Just because they could, did people easily pull the trigger on a war?

Just because they could, did everyone donate their entire fortune?

There was an enormous difference between something being possible and someone actually doing it.

The fact that none of the Seven Dragons Society's princesses before Li Qing-yu had accomplished anything like it proved that.

That was the difference in caliber.

The strength of a great vessel, one that placed no limits on its own potential and embraced anything it believed possible.

And in Rimon's experience, people with such vast capacity never led peaceful lives.

If she had been born into an age of chaos, she would have unified the realm. In a peaceful age, she could have ruined a perfectly fine country.

It was different from the makings of a hero.

It was different from the makings of a king.

Whether through beauty, charm, strategy, military talent, or scholarship, the direction did not matter. They would wield enough influence to overturn a nation.

That was why she had the makings of someone who could topple kingdoms.

A talent that could become either a blessing or a disaster, depending on how it was used.

That was why Rimon felt uneasy.

...But why is she using every bit of that extraordinary potential to guard against the Constellations?

He could be certain of it.

If Li Qing-yu had not been plotting for world peace, she could have overcome the other princesses and seized control of the Seven Dragons Society.

Yet she was pouring that remarkable talent into securing just one man, Rimon.

It was a colossal waste of talent.

Why does she trust me this much?

Li Qing-yu had even uncovered the weaknesses of her clan's elders.

Yet she made no attempt to find any weakness in Rimon, the person she should have been most suspicious of.

Instead, she had handed over the remaining assets of her clan and actively supported Rimon's goal of swallowing the entire Seven Dragons Society.

He could not help wondering what she was thinking.

“More importantly, how much have you seen?”

“Hm? Seen what?”

“The Constellations' purpose.”

That was why Rimon made an odd expression at Li Qing-yu's question.

It had come at such a perfect time that it was almost as if she had read his mind.

Still, despite his discomfort, Rimon answered honestly.

“I would not say I have seen all of it.”

It might have been different if he had managed to capture and interrogate it.

But his grudge against the snake was too deep, and it had fled too quickly. Even Rimon regretted not having had the chance to torture it.

Nor could he be sure whether the snake had targeted him of its own will or on behalf of all the Constellations.

“But there are two things I am certain of.”

“What are they?”

“One, if things continue as they are, Players will definitely prosper.”

“And the other?”

“...The prosperity of Players does not necessarily lead to the prosperity of humanity.”

Rimon recalled Park Hyeon-gun, whose body had been seized after being devoured by the snake, whose very soul had been consumed.

What if that was the price of contracting with a Constellation?

What if the time simply had not come yet?

What if every Player eventually met the same end?

No matter how much Players enjoyed wealth and glory or advanced the world, humanity would have no place in it.

Only Constellations wearing human skin would remain, along with human-shaped livestock raised to serve as their vessels.

“That is fortunate.”

“What is?”

“It seems even the Sword Duke feels the need to change the world.”

“...I had already made my resolve long ago.”

“But you did not have the same certainty you do now, did you?”

Perhaps because she had struck the heart of the matter, Rimon was silent for a moment before reluctantly speaking again.

“I have not yet decided to fight the Constellations. I am not certain I can win right now.”

Rimon was not such a fool that arrogance had rotted his brain.

Even though it had been an exceptional case, even the snake, which was not even a Monarch-class Constellation, had displayed strength beyond Lee Cheon-gi's.

What if a Monarch-class Constellation stepped forward?

What if he had to face thousands, even tens of thousands of other Constellations at once?

He had no intention of losing easily, but neither could he promise that he would certainly win.

All the more so in this Iron Age, when the world revolved around Players and it had become difficult to find companions willing to fight the Constellations alongside him.

“That is enough.”

Yet Li Qing-yu was not disappointed by Rimon's answer.

She merely smiled.

“If the Sword Duke has resolved to fight, then it is my duty, as your future bride in name only, to raise those odds of victory.”

Whether by threatening the elders.

Or by offering up the Seven Dragons Society itself.

Li Qing-yu smiled sweetly as she said that supporting Rimon from behind was her role.

Rimon looked at her with an odd expression for a moment, then eventually snorted and nodded.

“Well, since you put it that way, I suppose I can drop the ‘in name only’ from ‘future groom.’”

“While you are at it, I would like it even more if you let me drop the ‘future’ as well and call you my husband.”

“Oh? Why not get my seal on it while you are at it?”

Rimon asked in disbelief.

Li Qing-yu answered with a sweet smile.

“I would be grateful if you did.”

“...Forget it. I should not have said anything.”

For a moment, he looked at Li Qing-yu as though she were a brazen thief trying to take the goods without paying.

Then Rimon shook his head.

If he had said, even as a joke, “Fine, I will,” he felt certain she would have him by the scruff of the neck and make him stamp his thumbprint on a marriage certificate.

She truly was a future bride he could not let his guard down around.

Which made her all the more dependable, though.

Hm. At least I can trust her with the wedding preparations.

Anyone else might have worried him.

Given the Black Dragon Clan's skill with plots, the elders would not obediently fall in line just because someone had found a few weaknesses.

But if Li Qing-yu held those weaknesses?

Surprisingly, he was not worried at all.

A woman who had made even Rimon wave the white flag would have no trouble handling a few elders. If anything, he ought to pity them.

“So what am I supposed to do?”

That was why Rimon could ask so casually.

Unless she had no plan at all, if Li Qing-yu had already prepared everything and made her plans, he had thought he would only need to lend a little help.

At least, until he heard her answer.

“You do not have to do anything.”

“...What?”

“More precisely, I would prefer it if you did not do anything.”

Li Qing-yu repeated herself with a sweet smile.

Rimon stared at her blankly for a moment. He looked at the sky, then the ground, then back at Li Qing-yu. Once he realized he had not misheard her, he asked with a troubled expression.

“So while you persuade the elders, you want me to just sit around and play?”

“Your insight is truly remarkable.”

“Rather than some hollow compliment that would please a three-year-old or someone with dementia, I would like to hear why I should not step in.”

Rimon asked uneasily.

It was not something he liked to boast about, but he was a Sword Master.

An absolute being beyond anyone's reach, a strategic-class human weapon whose very existence was a threat.

Perhaps people of this age would not understand, but among those who knew his strength well, such as the elders of the Seven Dragons Society, even a word from him could have a major impact.

So why was she asking him to remain still instead of seeking his aid?

Li Qing-yu's answer was simple.

“Because the Sword Duke has no interest in schemes or stratagems.”

“Is using stratagems a given?!”

“That is the way of the Black Dragon Clan.”

The purpose of persuading the elders in the first place was to gain their recognition of her marriage to Rimon.

With the elders at the forefront, she would gather the support of the other clans as well. It was the first step toward building a foundation for her future rule of the Seven Dragons Society.

Rimon stepping in during that process would not be a good choice.

Threats backed by force might work in the short term, but they would only breed greater resentment.

Was it acceptable to blackmail them by finding their weaknesses, then?

Surprisingly, it was!

No, it was apparently something worthy of admiration!

The Black Dragon Clan, which took pride in conspiracy and cunning, considered skillful blackmail a perfectly legitimate strategy. Being caught with a weakness, on the other hand, was shameful.

This Black Dragon Clan, honestly...

Rimon once again clicked his tongue at the Seven Dragons Society's nature, which went beyond all common sense as if to prove they were descendants of dragons.

Li Qing-yu spoke calmly to him.

“If you truly wish to step in, I will not stop you. But you dislike displaying your strength when there is no need, do you not?”

“...Do you not know me a little too well?”

“I am the Sword Duke's bride.”

“Add ‘future’ to that. Future.”

Though he nitpicked Li Qing-yu's sweet reply, Rimon did not deny her point.

He never hesitated to draw his sword when necessary, but he did not draw it when it was not.

Considering his own principles, this case was clearly the latter.

He had only wanted to help as the groom. If Li Qing-yu could handle things well on her own, he truly had no desire to flaunt his strength.

Besides, Rimon could guess what she had not bothered to explain.

This is a matter of who takes the lead, is it?

Rimon was entering her household as a live-in son-in-law.

Was it not enough that he had secured shares in the Leviathan Hotel as a dowry? If he led the marriage arrangements too?

From a third party's perspective, it could look as though Rimon was forcing Li Qing-yu into the marriage through threats.

In that respect, it was unexpectedly important for Li Qing-yu to lead the effort to persuade the elders.

It would be proof that Li Qing-yu herself supported the marriage.

“More than anything, I have already made a promise to the Sword Duke.”

“Hm? What promise?”

Rimon had been nodding to himself as he understood the situation, but then he looked puzzled.

Li Qing-yu smiled and said, “I promised that if you married me, I would let you live without doing anything but playing around.”

“...Did you truly mean that?”

“Of course I did.”

She spoke as naturally as though asking him for help before they had even held the ceremony would violate the terms of their agreement.

Rimon gave her a complicated look.

“I appreciate the consideration, but if things go as you say, I will just become a kept man who lives off the assets of the woman he married.”

“Would that be so bad?”

“Are you really trying to make me a kept man?!”

“The Sword Duke is our secret weapon against the Constellations. One should not use a trump card carelessly, should one?”

“That is not exactly wrong, but...”

Rimon's expression turned complicated.

Strategically speaking, it was right to keep Rimon, who was practically a human weapon, ready for use at any time.

But was it really all right, as a person, for him to marry a much younger girl and live as a kept man?

As Rimon hesitated, Li Qing-yu spoke as naturally as ever.

“Besides, the Sword Duke is currently under suspicion of treason in this country. It would be better for you to refrain from public activities, would it not?”

“Ah, you do not need to worry about that.”

“Pardon?”

“It should be resolved soon.”

“...???”

A question mark seemed to appear above Li Qing-yu's head.

Rimon had not merely been framed. He had seized the president and livestreamed a spectacular hostage situation.

Even Li Qing-yu, with all her skill in plots and schemes, had thought there was no way to smooth this over.

Yet he said it would soon be resolved.

Naturally, she was puzzled.

But Li Qing-yu's confusion did not last long.

“Then... will the Sword Duke be able to act freely in public?”

“At least, I do not think anyone will come to arrest me.”