Reader’S Regeneration Life [EN]: Chapter 17

With the Margrave’s approval, things moved swiftly.

Though the knights might have been surprised by the sudden sparring match with an outsider, they seemed rather pleased. It appeared they were intrigued by the event, seeing it as a break from their monotonous routine of self-improvement and preparation for potential enemies.

‘More importantly, why did that bastard Kim Yu-hyun suddenly pick Lilith as his sparring partner?’

Sion clutched his head, groaning.

He wanted to tell him to stop talking nonsense and cancel the duel, but the Margrave, as the lord of the territory, had already given his permission, leaving him with no room to object.

Furthermore, it might have been different if North had refused, but no. Lilith, with a sardonic smile, fueled Kim Yu-hyun’s competitive spirit by accepting the challenge.

‘Damn it, this is driving me crazy. Why does it feel like everything is going wrong?’

It seemed like things were progressing similarly to the novel, yet at the same time, they weren’t. Even when he tried to think positively, he couldn’t shake off the unease, which frustrated him.

As Sion chewed on his lip, deep in thought, someone approached him.

“It’s been a while since you’ve visited the knights’ training grounds, young master.”

Sion turned his head as a middle-aged man spoke to him. The man, though his face was lined with wrinkles, had a physique that seemed stronger than most young men. He wore simple attire and had a sword at his waist.

After looking up at the man for a moment, Sion sighed and spoke.

“Lion, Knight Commander.”

“Yes, Sion, young master.”

“Weren’t you inspecting the knights’ training?”

“Well, I’m sure they’re all doing fine on their own. When someone of high status is around, even the best training can go awry.”

“…”

“Besides, it would be better to leave the area, especially with the upcoming sparring match. Hahaha!”

This man, who burst into cheerful laughter, was Lion, the Knight Commander of Margrave Klausen, and the man described in the novel as wielding two swords alongside Sebastian. Of course, Sebastian was officially the family’s butler, so the strongman known to the castle’s inhabitants was this man, Knight Commander Lion.

“More importantly, what the Margrave said about you changing seems to be true.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’m talking about you, young master. The Margrave told me yesterday that you, who had only shown disappointing behavior, had suddenly changed. It was sudden, but also reassuring.”

For the record, Knight Commander Lion was an old comrade and trusted friend of Lichten. The Margrave knew he was discreet, so he must have told him about his son.

‘Indeed. Sion Klausen never had the support of the knights. If he couldn’t get the support of the retainers, he should have at least gained the knights’ support, but he was consumed by an inferiority complex because he couldn’t use mana [magical energy], and instead mistreated and neglected them.’

The disregard of retainers and knights, and the ultimate act of patricide [killing of one’s father]. The Margraviate, which had defended the borders of the Kingdom of Hispania for over a hundred years across three generations, was shattered by one man who was worse than trash. Yet, that trash didn’t even realize he was trash and continued to act up.

‘Even being in the same body disgusts me, you less-than-human bastard.’

What if he had entered the body of another villain instead of Sion Klausen? Well, no matter what, he would have immediately lost an arm to Kim Yu-hyun and spent the day whining as an arm cripple.

“More importantly, a sudden sparring match with an outsider. I don’t know what the Margrave is thinking, especially with the war looming.”

“Do you think he’s an enemy spy?”

“No, I don’t doubt the Margrave’s judgment. However, it could certainly look suspicious to the knights or soldiers.”

“Don’t worry about that. They’ll see how pointless their suspicions were when they witness his sparring match today and his performance on the battlefield.”

Kim Yu-hyun slaughtered even the demonic forces with a smile. Against ordinary humans, he was practically a monster. The number of humans who managed to withstand him or gain a slight advantage in a fight could be counted on one hand.

“It seems you trust this Kim Yu-hyun a lot, young master.”

“The Knight Commander will understand once he sees him. There’s no reason to doubt him.”

“No reason to doubt him?”

“He’s a man who has gone through trials we can’t even imagine.”

“How can you be so sure?”

At that question, Sion paused, lost in thought. He couldn’t reveal the contents of the novel, and any other reason would sound absurd.

“I knew it the moment I met him in the reception room. He’s not someone to be trifled with.”

“…You made that judgment and are so sure after only a brief encounter?”

“I trust my gut. And I believe it’s never wrong.”

“…”

The Knight Commander Lion was speechless at the confident answer. He had been in the territory since Sion was born, watching the family’s young master grow up. And with each passing year, he felt disappointment and pity for the Margrave, his friend, for having such a son. Despite being the young master of the vast Margraviate, his words and actions were frivolous and thoughtless. Instead of embracing his half-sibling, who was much younger, he drove him away as if he wanted to devour him. And he skipped basic swordsmanship and military training every time, indulging in alcohol at a young age.

Lion was genuinely worried about the future of this territory and his friend. But in the past few days, the shadow that had been hanging over the Margrave’s face had disappeared. Not only that, but the young master, who used to avoid his older brother, was now smiling and looking for him. Stories about Sion, with subtly changed evaluations, were circulating among the people inside the castle.

‘Could he have finally come to his senses? Or is it really as the Margrave said…’

Was he deliberately acting like he was broken all along? If so, perhaps it was to cut off the flattering, self-serving forces in advance. Initially, there were sycophants subtly trying to attach themselves to Sion, hoping to be near a future power holder. But as time passed, Sion’s thoughtless words and actions continued, and as the Margrave’s worries deepened, the sycophants, sensing the change, naturally disappeared from Sion’s side. Those who had attached themselves to power, not to the person, had all vanished over the years, leaving no one by his side.

‘If he really had such a purpose in mind…’

Gulp.

Lion swallowed involuntarily. If he really had such a purpose in mind, it would be chilling. To deceive everyone around him for the sake of the ‘perfect’ picture he wanted, to reverse every situation, and then to secretly design his future without anyone knowing. He must have been tempted to give up because of the constant disregard and dirty rumors pouring in from all sides. But Sion persevered until the day he came of age, until all the self-serving people had fallen away from his side, honing himself while deceiving those around him. And when the moment came that he judged the time was right, the existence that had been crouching down spread its wings.

“Since you’re so sure, young master, I’m becoming very curious.”

Sion hoped that his curiosity would remain just that. Sebastian and Lido had engaged in close combat, but ultimately failed to defeat Kim Yu-hyun. If Lion, who was slightly inferior to them, fought, he might get beaten to a pulp by someone who was almost young enough to be his son.

“By the way, young master. I heard you’ll be participating in the upcoming war against Nudia.”

“…”

Oh, Father! This son just wants to live a long and quiet life! I don’t need anything, I just want to live in peace! I always ran away from street fights, let alone watching them, and now you’re talking about war!

“Yes, that’s suddenly what’s happening.”

“The soldiers don’t know yet, but some of the knights are secretly looking forward to it. They say there’s no way the Margrave would drag his son into that dangerous battlefield just because he’s his son. They say you must have something hidden up your sleeve.”

“…”

Damn it, don’t expect anything. There’s nothing to expect in the first place! What are you expecting when I haven’t prepared anything!

“…Well, it’s fine to have expectations, but tell them not to get their hopes up too high. The bigger the expectations, the bigger the disappointment.”

“No matter what anyone says, you are the Margrave’s eldest son and, barring any unforeseen circumstances, the future master who will be responsible for the Margraviate. It’s natural to have expectations, and even if they are disappointed, they can gradually correct themselves and move forward.”

Indeed, like attracts like. Knight Commander Lion, like Margrave Lichten, tended to view the world and people with a somewhat positive and hopeful outlook, unlike Sebastian, who had a cold demeanor, and Lido and Kim Yu-hyun, who were beyond question.

“Ah, young master. Let’s head over. The preparations for the sparring match should be almost complete by now.”

“I suppose so. Knight Commander Lion, do you happen to know the order of the sparring matches?”

“Hmm, I believe you’ll be sparring with a total of three knights. I think Lord Rothem will be the first to step up. He’s a fairly decent knight in both offense and defense, and he’s much better at handling a shield than his colleagues.”

Putting someone who is good at handling a shield first is definitely a wise move. They can clearly see the enemy’s sword movements, attack patterns, and even minor habits.

“What’s more surprising is that Lord North is included in that group. I don’t mean to belittle his skills, but he’s certainly not an outstanding one.”

“Well, perhaps he’s realizing his shortcomings and trying to change, even now.”

“There must be a reason why you held onto him after he left and appointed him as your personal guard. Maybe he’ll prove that reason in this sparring match, and the other knights will see him differently.”

Unfortunately, that’s not going to happen. After all, the contents aren’t that old man, but a scary older sister. After the war ends, Lord North will leave as he originally intended. Sion muttered to himself as he headed to the castle’s training grounds with Lion, where the duel would take place. They had a few more conversations along the way, but nothing of great importance. The only useful information was that Aden seemed to be smiling a lot these days.

“Young master, Knight Commander.”

As they arrived at the training grounds, two knights bowed their heads in greeting. Lion, after receiving their greetings, glanced at Sion. Originally, Sion Klausen had a strong tendency to mistreat the family’s knights. Even though they were subordinates, knights took great pride in upholding their honor and being treated honorably. The fact that their master’s son ignored them every time caused discontent to gradually build up.

But Sion, their future master, had indeed changed. He even had a faint smile on his face as he accepted their greetings.

‘Sion was a complete idiot.’

There was nothing more important to a family’s successor than gaining the support of the knights. Even he, as a reader of novels, knew the basics, but Sion Klausen didn’t even know that. Recalling that content once again, Sion even had a reasonable suspicion that the author who wrote the novel might have held a grudge against the name Sion.

“This way.”

Knight Commander Lion guided Sion to the spectator seats of the training grounds, where Margrave Lichten was already seated. But there were others sitting next to him.

‘Oh my. Aden and Countess Leona?’

His half-brother, Aden Klausen, and Sion’s stepmother, Countess Leona. There was only a 12-year age difference, so she was more like an older sister than a mother, but since she was with his father, Margrave Lichten, she was still his mother.

“Father.”

“You’ve arrived.”

Sion bowed respectfully and looked to the side. Aden was looking at him with a mixture of anticipation and worry, wondering if his brother had returned to his old self.

“If you call me ‘brother’ again in that creepy way, you’re in trouble.”

“Ah, okay! Bro!”

Thanks to Sion’s playful words, Aden immediately broke into a smile. Sion, sweating, replied to Aden’s whining about when they would play together again, saying that even his brother needed to rest a little.

‘And… really, this is really hard to say.’

Sion, groaning inwardly, finally uttered the title.

“Mother.”

At that, Countess Leona stared at him with wide eyes. Sion, wondering if he had made a mistake, remained silent. She smiled and nodded.

Meanwhile, Kim Yu-hyun appeared in the center of the training grounds. He was wearing his usual simple attire and holding a wooden sword instead of the sword he always carried. Knight Commander Lion was about to call out the opposing knight when…

“I would like to choose the first opponent.”

Kim Yu-hyun said, looking at the Knight Commander. Lion looked at Margrave Lichten, wondering what to do, and the Margrave nodded as if to say to let him have his way.

“Very well. Then name your opponent.”

“…Lord North.”

What the hell! Why does that bastard keep fixating on Lilith! He wanted her to at least see his skills with her own eyes and play along appropriately, but our protagonist wouldn’t even allow that. Kim Yu-hyun was staring straight at North, or rather, Lilith. Lilith, in North’s transformed state, tilted her head as if she didn’t like it very much and stepped forward.

“You keep singling me out since a while ago.”

“I wanted to spar with you.”

“…As you wish.”

Lilith, in North’s body, picked up a wooden sword. Kim Yu-hyun also raised his sword to face his opponent, and the duel began.

‘Damn it, damn it, damn it!’

Leaving Sion, who was anxious that Lilith’s identity would be revealed, behind.