Reader’S Regeneration Life [EN]: Chapter 16

“Ah, Father.

This is Sir North, who will be my new escort in place of Sir Trey.”

Duke Lichten tilted his head as Sion introduced the knight who followed him in.

“Hmm?

I thought Sir North retired from his knighthood and went back to his hometown?”

“Actually, I sent someone to ask him to stay on as my escort knight a little longer.”

“…Well, even if it was his hometown, he didn’t have any family or acquaintances there. Welcome back, Sir North.”

“Ah, thank you.

Your Grace.”

North, who had been staring at Kim Yu-hyun, bowed his head to express his gratitude at Duke Lichten’s words.

Then, he glanced at Kim Yu-hyun, sending a strange look.

“Young Master Sion.”

“Lucia, you’re here too.”

Lucia greeted him with a bright smile. Sion also greeted her with a smiling face, which made Raido smack his lips and make a displeased face.

No matter how much he liked his daughter, even if Sion was an outstanding man unlike the rumors, it was inevitable that he would still be displeased from a father’s point of view.

Thinking that all fathers with daughters would feel the same way, Raido opened his mouth.

“Anyway, I judged that something strange might suddenly happen in the castle because of the incident at the temple.

So, I came to ask you, Lichten, if it would be okay for my disciple to stay in the castle until I’m sure it’s safe.”

“?”

“If you would do that, I would be grateful. But if that happens, you’ll have to investigate the temple alone, Raido. Are you okay with that?”

“I was originally doing it alone. That disciple of mine is hopeless when it comes to academics, so he’s no help at all. I’m enough for the temple work.”

“?”

While Raido and Duke Lichten were talking, Sion and Sir North were looking at each other, wondering if the ‘temple’ they were talking about was the same one they were thinking of.

“Father.”

Suddenly, Lucia poked Raido in the side. Then Raido let out a sigh and pointed to his daughter sitting next to him.

“And since we’ll need a skilled magician, my daughter is also planning to stay here. She’s excellent at detecting traces of mana [magical energy], even if she’s not as good as I am.”

“?”

The situation was getting stranger and stranger. Kim Yu-hyun staying in the castle was unexpected, but now even Lucia? Sion was flustered and stammering, wondering what was going on.

Duke Lichten opened his mouth with a slight smile, as if things were going well.

“Actually, my son mentioned something about Raido’s disciple. I was thinking of asking him for help in the upcoming war with the Nudia Kingdom.”

“To my disciple?”

“Yes.

My son is expecting him to be a great help in battle.”

“Hmm.

Your son has a good eye for people. He’s definitely a perfect killing machine that’s hard to believe is human.”

“…It’s a little awkward when my teacher says that.”

Kim Yu-hyun, who could face a hundred or a thousand people with just one sword, and Raido, who used to crush even regular knights with just one fist, were making ridiculous jokes, and only Lucia could laugh at it.

“Um, Father?

And Raido?”

Sion cautiously interjected. Duke Lichten asked if he had anything to say, and Sion glanced back and forth between Kim Yu-hyun and Lucia before opening his mouth.

“I don’t know exactly what happened, but is it such an important issue that the two of you have to stay in the castle?”

“What do you mean, Sion?”

“I’m saying that the knights of the territory might see it as not trusting them and bringing outsiders into the castle to take over security duties, Father.”

“Hmm… Certainly, bringing in an outside swordsman without saying anything to the commander of the knights would be a bit rude to him.”

“And to the family’s magician. It’s not that I’m ignoring Lucia or Raido’s disciple, Kim Yu-hyun, but if it feels like a rolling stone is kicking out the embedded stone [replacing someone already established], the inside could shake in an instant, right?”

Duke Lichten nodded repeatedly at Sion’s words, as if he thought it made sense.

Raido was also silent, but he seemed to be bothered by that part, so he was just sipping his tea.

“Young Master Sion.”

It wasn’t Kim Yu-hyun who broke the silence, but Lucia, who was sitting across from him.

“I understand your concerns. But the situation is quite serious, so I don’t think we have a choice. More than anything, it’s not something that should be known to many people.”

“Lucia is right, brat. The temple investigation is being kept secret, so the three of us, my daughter and my disciple, are conducting it. To be precise, my disciple is just looking around without doing anything.”

“Checking the surroundings is the most important thing, Master.”

“You never give in, you son of a bitch.

Anyway!

This is for you and your father, as well as everyone in this castle and the territory.”

Somehow, the energy that flowed out of that temple seemed to be sitting right next to him.

Sion glanced sideways at Sir North, or rather Lilith, who was standing next to him.

Then he recalled the conversation they had before coming to the reception room.

‘…Hey, you crazy bastard?’

The portrait Sion held out was none other than the face of a middle-aged man.

Lilith’s reaction was absurd, but Sion’s expression was calm.

‘He left this morning. He couldn’t have gone far yet, so you can catch up to him, Lilith.’

‘What are you talking about?

Are you telling me to kill him?’

‘No.

I’m just asking you to put a mind control on him so he can stay somewhere quietly for a while. It’s easy enough if you’re not trying to steal mana, right?’

‘It’s not that easy. It’s just less tiring. More than that, why a man!

There are a lot of women around!

I’ll turn into one of them!’

‘No.’

‘Why!’

‘What would they think if a guy who’s supposed to be reformed is walking around with a woman on his arm?’

Lucia was there.

Sion recalled the friendly gaze she had sent him last time, and he had a premonition that something bad would happen if Lucia saw him with another woman in front of her.

To be precise, it wasn’t that Lucia would cause trouble, but that her father, Raido, would cause trouble.

‘I’m going crazy.

It’s the first time I’ve been asked to turn into a man, a middle-aged man, in my succubus life.’

‘Then?’

‘Thin, chubby, short, tall.

Married woman, or young child…’

‘Stop.

That’s enough.’

Sion silenced Lilith and urged her to start working. Lilith sighed and quickly left the room, put a mind control on the knight who hadn’t gone far yet, and gave him the suggestion to help with work in a quiet place.

Since he had no acquaintances or family, he wouldn’t be suspected for a few days.

‘But, Sion.

Does anything change by doing this?’

‘What do you mean.’

‘It’s just a few days. I have to be by your side forever, so how am I supposed to live by deceiving them for just a few days? Even in the body of this shriveled old man.’

‘Don’t worry.

I have a plan.’

Lilith could only scratch her cheek and trust him because of Sion’s confident attitude.

That’s how Lilith quickly finished her work, and Lilith, who had transformed into Sir North, entered the reception room with Sion.

‘…But to think that Raido, Kim Yu-hyun, and Lucia were investigating the temple.’

In the original novel, Lucia, as well as Kim Yu-hyun, would have an uncomfortable relationship with the Klauzen territory because of Sion Klauzen’s moronic behavior.

Raido would have overlooked it once because of his relationship with Lichten, but he would have been grinding his teeth at Sion.

Of course, the three of them would have left the Klauzen territory immediately, and so it was forgotten until the knight of the Nudia Kingdom discovered the temple later.

‘The novel’s progress has already been slightly distorted.’

But the big picture hasn’t changed.

The war will happen anyway, and Kim Yu-hyun will also participate.

However, Sion Klauzen himself also participated in the war.

‘My goal is to survive, not to help the novel progress.

I have to stay within the big picture as much as possible, but I have to create as many cards as I can use in small places!’

When the kingdoms were at war with each other, and the tribal alliances were attacking the demons with terrifying momentum, the real enemy of the continent was sharpening its sword behind their backs.

And when humans, demons, and other races were exhausted, the attack began.

All that was left for those who had used up their strength in the wrong places was only blood, tears, and death.

‘Even if other guys get backstabbed, I’ll never get backstabbed.

Instead, I’ll smash the heads of the guys who are trying to backstab me.’

There are still more than a year left until that day.

It was tight to prepare perfectly, but it didn’t feel like it was lacking.

Even now, powerful characters in the novel who will later point their swords at the protagonist are living somewhere.

If I can recruit them all and keep them by my side, it won’t be difficult to survive.

Even if the world ends tomorrow, I will protect my land and grow apple orchards.

And I will sell the apples from the farm to the survivors at a high price!

That was the ‘wisdom to survive in a harsh world’ that Sion believed in.

“If that’s what Raido wants, then do as you please.

But there will come a time when we need to borrow Kim Yu-hyun’s strength.

At that time….”

“Do as you please.

I won’t stop you from roasting, frying, or boiling my disciple.”

Sion just smiled, following Duke Lichten, although he thought, ‘Would Kim Yu-hyun stay still when he’s being roasted, fried, and boiled?’

“Duke.”

Kim Yu-hyun, who had been listening to the conversation, finally opened his mouth to Duke Lichten.

“When is the departure?”

“The most appropriate time to attack when the enemies have just left the territory and reached the vicinity of the border would be at dawn two days from now.

And to prevent information from leaking, I plan to lead only the elite soldiers that I have carefully selected.”

“Is that so.

Then, I may sound rude, but I will say this.

When the battle breaks out, please stay away from me as much as possible.

Soldiers and knights may get unnecessarily involved.”

It was a statement that was more than just confident; it was arrogant, but no one laughed.

Sion, of course, knew Kim Yu-hyun’s sword better than anyone else, and Raido and Duke Lichten also acknowledged his strength.

“I will keep that in mind.

But before that, there is something I want to confirm.”

“If there is something you want to confirm.”

“As Sion said, the border is originally a closed-off place. It is a place where people send unfriendly glances to outsiders who suddenly appear.”

“…”

“So, how about having a light sparring session with my knights this afternoon?

If you show your skills there, my knights will no longer mention anything about outsiders.”

A light sparring session.

At those words, Kim Yu-hyun smiled intriguingly.

But to Sion, that smile looked like the devil’s smile, contemplating, ‘Should I destroy them all?’

Hoping that none of the knights in the territory would die, Sion offered a prayer.

“That’s not a bad idea.”

“Then I will prepare accordingly.

Ah, Miss Lucia….”

“Don’t worry about that part.

I can just go and say she’s my daughter.”

“…The secret could leak out. Are you sure you’re okay with that?”

“If they want to die, they’ll wag their tongues, and if they want to live, they’ll shut their mouths forever.

There’s probably no magician residing in the Hispania Kingdom who’s brave enough to ignore my warning.”

Raido’s dagger-like smile flew coldly and pierced him.

Sion swallowed hard.

No matter how crazy the magicians were, no one would dare to wag their tongues after seeing that murderous smile.

“Then I only need to prepare the knights.

How many people….”

“Duke.”

At Kim Yu-hyun’s call, Duke Lichten looked at him with a look that asked if he had anything to say.

Then Kim Yu-hyun slowly turned his head and looked at Sion before continuing.

“I want to fight that man once.”

“Hmm?”

“Eh?”

The person Kim Yu-hyun pointed to was none other than Sion.

It was not Sion, but Lilith, disguised as Sir North, who was standing next to him.

[Author’s Note]

So you’re good at fighting?

Follow me to the roof!