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Chapter 186
“Your name was Gordon Roswell, right?”
“You know me?”
“Picked it up somewhere. Heard you’re about to reach Intermediate Expert.”
“You’ve got an eye for talent.”
“Is that supposed to be a compliment?”
“You two bastards, really...”
A threatening aura began to seep out from around Gordon.
Noticing the tension, Farrell’s eyes sharpened.
“Are you participating too, sir?”
“No, I’m just here to watch.”
If I step in, Melissa loses her chance for real combat experience.
Well, to be honest, I also just didn’t feel like getting involved.
But it's true that I can't protect Melissa forever.
“Or are you scared?”
“Or maybe you’re backing off in case your true skills get exposed.”
Gordon mocked, and another person in the same military uniform sneered as well.
It was Karim Selvon of the famous Selvon family from the Coral Kingdom’s intelligence agency.
“So what’s it gonna be? If you say yes, I promise I won’t interfere while you’re dueling.”
At my words, Gordon’s face twisted.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“I’m showing respect since you’re calling it a duel. But if you back out now, give me one good reason why I shouldn’t just take you down here? I’d throw down the gauntlet myself.”
After all, there’s that wonderful aristocratic tradition of dueling—barbaric and simple—where, depending on the case, even killing your opponent isn’t necessarily a problem.
At my question, the suppressed aura around Gordon exploded once more.
“Oh? So you’re telling me to end all those ridiculous rumors here and now?”
As Gordon jerked his chin, Karim Selvon instantly moved behind me, holding a dagger to my neck.
“Leon Cascadia. You just died once.”
“Pfft!!”
Melissa couldn’t hold back her laughter and burst out.
“Ahaha! He said you died once! Ahahahaha!”
Her open laughter stirred a chilling bloodlust in Karim Selvon’s otherwise calm gaze.
It wasn’t just a threat—he clearly meant it.
Better keep your eyes respectful, pal…
“So? What’s your answer?”
I lazily turned my head toward Karim Selvon, who still had his blade to my neck, and asked again.
“What are you gonna do, Gordon?”
“What’s there to ask? Now that it’s come to this, we might as well kick out those annoying Bata bastards. Just leave that coward be. Goes to show how useless rumors are.”
I gently pushed the dagger away with my index finger and nodded for him to step back. Karim Selvon’s expression twisted in frustration.
“You’re lucky. Rumors won’t keep you alive forever.”
You really shouldn’t mess with me.
If you screw up, Melissa loses out on valuable experience—and that’s a major loss.
They needed to face Melissa at full strength.
After all, real combat against people offers better experience than any dungeon expedition.
Personal revenge could come later.
Once things had settled, Gordon left without hesitation, followed by the rest of the Coral group exiting the tent.
“Melissa, take this.”
Once they were gone, I pulled out a potion from my dimensional pocket and handed it to her.
“What is it?”
“Painkiller.”
“P-Painkiller?”
She looked uneasy—probably from past experiences.
I gave her a gentle smile.
“It could get a little ugly if you stay fully conscious.”
A lady still has to get married someday, after all.
The duel had come together quickly.
Of course, this wasn’t a fight to the death—killing was forbidden—but this had long since turned into a battle of pride between both sides.
To be honest, Coral had probably orchestrated this situation halfway, and I’d just played along.
And removing variables early is usually a good idea.
“Our lineup includes a swordsman who’s just reached Expert, an archer, and a spirit user with healing powers.”
Melissa was talking about the three aside from herself and Farrell.
Rinne Lobel of the Lobel Marquisate.
She controls a special healing spirit—her combat skills may be lacking, but her healing is exceptional.
Then there’s Ospa Decon from Decon County, a swordsman just stepping into the Expert rank.
And Gale Travan, who had just entered the Expert level as a bowman—not exactly the most reassuring lineup.
“In situations like this, you’re the one who lifts the log.”
“Log? What are you talking about?”
“You know how knights and soldiers train with those big logs, right?”
“Yeah, sure.”
“Well, this time, you’re lifting the whole thing by yourself.”
Even if Melissa bears the weight alone, the log won’t fall—it’ll just strain her more.
Farrell Berli is a 4-circle mage with plenty of experience, but even for him, this would be tough on his own.
“I’m really anxious right now... Are you sure this is going to be okay?”
“When have I ever killed you?”
“Well, you did put me through some pretty awful pain.”
Inside the tent set up by the undead and a few staff members, Melissa looked up at me with a nervous expression, wearing only light training gear.
“All right, turn around and sit.”
She was scared, but didn’t resist.
“Pay close attention to what I’m about to do. You might need this someday.”
Melissa had been trained in our family’s swordsmanship and aura techniques by our father from a young age.
And to be fair, Cascadia’s swordsmanship wasn’t bad.
But it wasn’t exactly a legendary technique either.
More importantly, the family’s style simply didn’t suit Melissa—not her physique, not her temperament.
So I began teaching her the Heavenly Demon Divine Sword Technique.
It’s a brutal, oppressive sword style that also values fluidity and flexibility.
But mastering both required her body to go through a certain amount of change first.
“You took the medicine?”
“I did.”
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“Then grit your teeth.”
Fwoooosh!!!
Without giving her even a moment to react to the mention of taking a painkiller, I pushed my aura straight into her.
She sharply inhaled in surprise.
"Khng?! Wh-why?!"
The painkiller she took was a strong military-grade one, known for its potent effects.
But right now, she was flailing and resisting as if she were in pain.
What I was doing wasn’t some ordinary Eastern-style ‘Punishment Rebirth’ training that kids from noble houses go through.
This was closer to scraping out everything that had accumulated in Melissa and reconstructing her physical body.
“It’s not just a matter of simple pain. If anything, it’s because the pain is gone that you're able to endure. If it weren’t for that…”
“Kkgh, ngh... if it weren’t?”
“You’d die. If you were unlucky, that is.”
“Are you out of your damn mind?!”
I don’t know about others, but I once attempted this alone and went into shock and nearly died.
Of course, I’ve gone through worse doing this all on my own, paving the way as I went.
Melissa gritted her teeth and endured it, but cold sweat poured down her like rain, soaking her clothes.
“See? Aren’t you glad I told you to wear something light?”
“Y-you bastard…!”
If she still has the energy to curse at her older brother, she must be doing okay.
When I smiled, her eyes widened in fury.
“W-wait a second! Brother! I was wrong?! Kkggggh!!!”
“You’ve been through hell getting beaten up until now. I guarantee—once this is over, you’ll be way stronger than before.”
“KYAAAAAAA!!!”
Ah, a crescendo.
I focused on my work, appreciating her scream like it was sweet music.
* * *
Inside the tent set up on the Coral faction’s side, Gordon Roswell and Karim Selvon sat together, awaiting something.
Before long, the artifact placed before them crackled with noise, and a voice came through.
—Aah, can you hear me?
Thump!! Thump!!!
At the sound of the voice, both Karim and Gordon snapped to attention, heels clicking as they stood rigid.
“Yes, sir! We’ll report the current situation!”
With the precision of soldiers, Gordon responded loudly.
They reported their analysis of Bata's forces as planned, along with the unexpected interference of Leon, and how that incident affected the situation.
—Hmm. What do you make of this Leon fellow?
“To be honest, he’s nothing special. He couldn’t even react to Karim’s attacks, and the power he holds was honestly underwhelming.”
—And the Eastern Continent’s side?
“They didn’t react much either. They didn’t exactly send us anyone cooperative.”
—The duel. Can you win it?
“Leave it to us! The two of us are more than enough!”
—I don’t bet on possibilities. I want a definitive answer.
“We are more than enough on our own, but the Eastern faction’s Cheon Ryeong has agreed to participate.”
Cheon Ryeong was the older brother among the siblings from the Eastern Continent.
—And the girl?
“Hwa Ryeong expressed no interest and opted out. As for Heavenly Demon, currently…”
—Forget about that monster. Didn’t I say from the start that we didn’t bring him as a combat asset? In that case, the three of you must win.
“Yes, sir!”
Both Gordon and Karim saluted toward the artifact as if it were a person.
—You must secure the Dragon's Essence inside. With it, we can gain control over the Dragon Soldiers. Coral’s long-held dream rests on your success. Understood?
“Yes, sir!”
As the artifact powered down, they slowly lowered their hands.
“We proceed as planned. We’ve gotten all the info we need from Bata. Let’s expel them quickly and move on to the exploration.”
“Right.”
They then headed toward the tent where the Eastern Continent’s members were staying. There, they approached a boy silently wiping down his sword.
There was something so deeply unsettling about him, something that instinctively put them on guard.
That must be the true pressure of a real powerhouse.
Not some fraud steeped in hype like Leon.
“Young Lord Cheon Ryeong.”
At Gordon’s call, the boy polishing his sword paused.
“We plan to drive out the Bata Kingdom during this opportunity.”
“Do as you please.”
“Of course, their abilities are nothing special. The only ones of note are Count Cascadia and the black sheep of the Berli Duchy, but with just the three of us—you, Karim, and myself—it shouldn’t be difficult to suppress them.”
At Gordon’s words, Cheon Ryeong quietly closed his eyes.
“‘Shouldn’t be difficult,’ you say…”
“Is there a problem?”
“No. Just a feeling. A promise is a promise. I will do my best.”
“And what of Lady Hwa Ryeong?”
“She only came to see Leon Cascadia. That’s all.”
Makes sense.
She was uncooperative from the start.
Still, Gordon and Karim weren’t concerned in the slightest.
Cheon Ryeong and his sister, Hwa Ryeong, both carried the legendary title of Sky Beyond the Heavens back in the Eastern Continent.
Even if there were some variables… it didn’t matter.
Even without Hwa Ryeong, no one could match Cheon Ryeong.
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