Reader’S Regeneration Life [EN]: Chapter 78

78

Homeward

“…Hmm.”

Breathing in the refreshing morning air, Vice-Commander Schumacher slowly raised his sword.

Then, slowly composing himself and circulating the mana within his body, he focused his eyes and swiftly thrust the sword forward.

Swish!

Swoosh!

“Ha!

Haa!”

Thrusting, slashing, upward cuts, horizontal strikes, then diagonally slashing again and thrusting once more.

Defense is the quickest path to losing momentum; in wielding a sword, the most important thing is attack, and only attack.

“…!”

In a fleeting moment, Schumacher sensed someone watching him.

Though the sword couldn’t reach, he aimed it in that direction as a show of force.

Whoosh!

…Clap clap clap!

The sound coming from that direction was applause.

Schumacher sheathed his sword and finally saw who was standing there.

“…Young Lord Zion Klausen?”

“You are training very diligently from early morning. I am impressed, Vice-Commander Schumacher.”

It was unexpected.

At the very least, he expected it to be a knight under his command or a member of the Royal Capital Defense Forces.

If not, he thought it would be a knight or soldier from the estate, but it was Zion Klausen.

“It is still early, but I did not expect you to be out already.”

“Aren’t you doing swordsmanship training early in the morning, Vice-Commander?”

“Hahaha… Well, this has become a daily routine for me.”

As a knight, and not just any knight but the vice-commander of the Royal Knights who protect the royal palace, Schumacher couldn’t afford to waste a single day.

Knowing well that his sword was the shield and spear that protected the royal family, every day was a day of constant effort.

“But what brings you here, Zion?”

“Vice-Commander Schumacher, if it’s not too much to ask, could you teach me a thing or two?”

“…Pardon?”

“I asked if you could teach me a thing or two, Vice-Commander.”

“Young Lord Zion, that could be dangerous for you…”

Schumacher quickly shut his mouth, belatedly realizing that his words could be quite rude.

For someone who cannot manipulate mana at all to ask a knight who freely manipulates mana to spar is like running barefoot across a field full of knives.

But Schumacher knew that explicitly stating that could also be seen as openly insulting him.

“I apologize, Young Lord Zion. What I meant was…”

“No, it’s alright. I understand what you mean better than anyone. You’re worried I might get hurt, right?”

“Thank you.”

“But, I am a Klausen. I can’t always hide behind soldiers and knights, and I have no intention of doing so. You know very well that I went to the battlefield with nothing, don’t you?”

At Zion’s question, Schumacher nodded.

That was one of the reasons why most of the Royal Knights, including himself, considered Zion Klausen to be remarkable.

The battlefield is where hundreds, thousands of soldiers and knights engage in a cruel game where blood and lives are exchanged.

Any braggart or liar who goes there sheds all pretenses and reveals an ugly appearance, struggling only to survive.

But Zion Klausen was different.

With nothing, he went to the battlefield without hesitation.

And he accomplished everything he could, eventually leading to a great victory and gaining the deep trust of the soldiers.

‘Is that all? He has done so many other things. A man who has risen to that level without the help of mana, only with his own abilities!’

At least among the Royal Knights, there was no one who ignored or pitied Zion Klausen for having zero mana sensitivity.

Rather, there were even fanatics who set him as their life goal and worked even harder.

“Because I cannot manipulate mana, I am weak. But because I cannot manipulate mana, I was able to come this far. Without being complacent, always preparing and being ready.”

“Indeed. That is correct.”

“Therefore, I will acquire and explore anything and make it my own. It doesn’t matter if it’s difficult or impossible. If I try and it doesn’t work, I can just quit; I don’t think it’s right to assume and not do it before even starting.”

“…”

“So, I ask you to teach me.”

Schumacher couldn’t help but admire Zion’s attitude.

Wasn’t that the true attitude of a knight?

Not overestimating oneself, nor despairing, but silently looking ahead and striving forward.

The thought that such a young man would be the next Count of Klausen made him feel that it was a blessing for the country.

‘As expected, His Majesty’s insight was not wrong!’

Thinking so, Schumacher nodded as if to allow the sparring with Zion.

Zion gave a bright smile, handed one of the two wooden swords he had brought to Schumacher, and stood before Schumacher with the remaining one in his hand.

Looking at the smile on Zion’s face, Schumacher felt inexplicably proud.

Of course, the reason Zion was smiling wasn’t because he could receive instruction.

‘Nice. Got him. Won!’

Dealing with swords? It’s one of the things I want to avoid unconditionally.

Even now, sparring with Schumacher with wooden swords is barely enduring and enduring within the limits of what the body remembers.

Going directly into battle has now become the absolute number one thing I want to avoid.

So why did I bother to come out in front of Schumacher and say, ‘Let’s spar!’?

‘Because that man is a knight after all. Not a nobleman busy scheming, but a warrior who likes honestly wielding a sword and respects those who don’t run away from the battlefield and fight at the forefront.’

The way to gain favor with those who revere martial arts is extremely simple.

It is much more effective to prove it with one action, one decision, than with a thousand words.

And they don’t easily break a friendly relationship once it’s formed.

With a clear distinction between friend and foe, they are the type to trust their allies to the end once they believe in them.

‘There’s a possibility that Count Konean might be taken to the royal palace and talk nonsense. At that time, Vice-Commander Schumacher must step forward and say that all of this person’s words are false, and build enough friendship to say that he can testify to it!’

Schumacher had already conveyed that Count Sepher Kaschgar had shouted loudly, claiming that he had absolutely nothing to do with the rebellion and that Zion Klausen had given him the glass bottle.

Originally, suspicion would naturally have fallen on Zion himself, but most of the nobles, especially Princess Vanessa, actively defended Zion, and King Edgar IV also passed it over without much comment.

Once again feeling that life is easier with many reliable allies, Zion planned this opportunity to bring even the Royal Knights to his side as much as possible.

“I will go, Young Lord Zion.”

“I ask for your guidance.”

That’s what I’m saying.

Sigh, damn it.

There’s no choice.

Body.

Let’s suffer a little more.

―

“Princess, are you really going to be alright?”

“Yeah. I’m just going to stay by that human’s side a little longer.”

“But the Great King will be worried.”

“Explain it well to my dad. Tell him I’m doing fine.”

“Ugh… Still…”

“You’re not going to break the clan’s old traditions, are you? Me and all of us owe that human man a debt.”

“Then, rather, all of us could escort the Princess together…”

Winnie shook her head at the words of the three guards.

She had to convey the news that she was safe to her dad, who was working hard in every way to find his suddenly missing daughter, and above all, they still didn’t know that terrifying demon woman was by that man’s side.

‘I barely knew because of this mark.’

Stroking her forehead, Winnie shook her head as if she wouldn’t listen to any more objections.

Seeing their escort target showing a strong will of refusal, the three cat women drooped their ears and made weak cries.

Then Winnie urgently opened her mouth as if to say not to do this.

“Are you guys going to keep doing this? Won’t you stop? Stop it!”

“Yes, yes. Stop!”

“Haa… Don’t worry and go back. You’ve all suffered too much, going through things you didn’t have to go through because of me. I’m really fine, so all three of you should go back to your hometowns. I’m going to go back right away as soon as I judge that I’ve repaid the favor.”

“Are you really going to do that?”

“If the Great King leaves the house again, it’s really going to be a disaster!”

“I know. I know my dad’s personality better than anyone else.”

With that conversation, Winnie wagged her tail and lightly rubbed her cheeks against the cheeks of the guards.

Ending the Myoeun Clan’s unique greeting, she turned her back without regret and started running somewhere ‘wudadada!’

‘Human man. So the benefactor’s scent is coming from around here?’

Although not as much as the Wolrang Clan, the Myoeun Clan also had excellent skills in tracking opponents by scent.

Winnie jumped and quickly reached the second-floor balcony where the training ground could be seen at a glance.

And in front of it, there was a handsome young man who was sharing swords with a middle-aged man.

“You have to look at your feet, not your sword! Unless your feet move, your attack will never go forward properly! Like now!”

“Keugh!”

At first, Winnie thought that the middle-aged human man was attacking her benefactor because the young man was being pushed back so much, and she even tried to stop them.

But soon, she heard Zion’s voice shouting, ‘How about this!’ and confirmed the middle-aged man who was blocking it without difficulty and responding, ‘This attack was quite excellent,’ and quietly sat on the balcony and began to observe them.

The sparring that had been going on for a while ended with Zion’s defeat.

But both the winner and the loser were smiling as if they were satisfied.

“As expected, the Royal Knights are too strong. I can’t even compare them to the Nudia army.”

“Ahaha! I’m glad to hear that.”

In the meantime, Zion was subtly praising them without forgetting.

Looking at Schumacher, who was feeling good with just one word and bursting into a hearty laugh, Winnie wagged her tail with interest.

“More than that, I was surprised. I didn’t know you had honed your swordsmanship this much even though you can’t manipulate mana. If you could manipulate mana, you would have become a great knight. Heaven is so heartless.”

“It might be a relief instead. If I could manipulate mana, I might have overestimated myself and the current me might not have existed.”

“Ahaha! You are too humble! You can sometimes promote yourself a little!”

“I’m just a guy who doesn’t have anything to brag about.”

Zion was lowering himself to the end.

Winnie didn’t like the fact that her benefactor kept taking a low profile, but she caught the part that he couldn’t manipulate mana and made a growling sound.

‘He can’t manipulate mana? Then he’s incredibly weak. But that terrifying demon woman is next to him. Strange. Very strange!’

Lilith had already told the truth that she was staying quietly by Zion’s side for reasons that were not just to do something absurd, but Winnie didn’t believe it.

Rather, she was sure that the evil demon woman was plotting something strange again.

‘My benefactor is a weakling who can’t manipulate mana. But he saved me, saved my fellow tribesmen, and saved everyone else! But the evil demon woman is next to him and keeps trying to lead him down a bad path! I have to step in and stop it. If I can’t defeat that woman, I have to at least prevent her from approaching my benefactor carelessly!’

Thinking so, Winnie could see the way to repay the great favor she had received.

Nyaang!

The cat girl clenched her hands tightly as if she had made up her mind.

She was cheering herself on, saying, ‘Let’s do our best!’ but if others had seen the scene, it was a scene that would have made them exclaim and make a fuss about how cute it was.

“Anyway, please take good care of Count Konean’s transfer. If he says something strange…”

“Don’t worry. I am also someone who has seen with my own eyes how evil he is. If he talks nonsense, I will ask His Majesty for permission and cut off his tongue first, so you don’t have to worry too much, Young Lord Zion Klausen.”

“Then that’s a relief. Haha!”

Zion Klausen, Zion Klausen.

Winnie kept her benefactor’s name clearly in her head.

Then, she gently closed her eyes and thought about something, and when she slowly opened her eyes again, her golden eyes were shining brilliantly.

The Myoeun Clan’s crazy characteristic, Imprinting [a magical ability to form a strong, immediate bond], had been activated.

‘Hot! Zion Klausen! My benefactor! I’m going to repay the favor! Nyaaaang!’

“Ach!

“Young Lord, are you alright?