Reader’S Regeneration Life [EN]: Chapter 9

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“I’m suddenly feeling really shitty. Should I just throw down right here?”

“Even with age, your crude language remains the same.”

“I may have aged, but I haven’t grown up.

And frankly, I’ve been living well without it.

If you’re not happy, why don’t you try to make me grow up?”

“Truly, you haven’t changed a bit from the old days.”

Sion, anxious that they might actually start a brawl or fistfight, lightly tapped the table to draw the two old men’s attention.

“Sebastian.

I told you clearly to stop.”

He muttered with a slightly cold expression and tone, and Sebastian raised his eyebrows slightly before bowing his head and stepping back.

“…I apologize, Young Master.”

“And Raido.

In any case, this is Count Klausen’s estate.

Even if you are a valued guest, shouldn’t you show at least a minimum of courtesy?”

“What are you talking about?

You little brat.”

Of course, even as he spoke, Raido stepped back as well.

Sion already knew that neither of them were truly mortal enemies with deep-seated animosity, only growling at each other.

If they were really going to fight, they wouldn’t be arguing like this.

Both of them were missing dozens of screws in their personalities and mental structures, so if you touched their nerves, these old men would immediately lash out with swords or fists.

“First, Sebastian.

You were a member of the Royal Secret Guard?”

“That is correct.”

“Does Father know about this?”

“Of course.

The Frontier Lord is already aware of this fact.”

“I see.

Of course, he should.

If you concealed your identity from the lord of this territory, that would be a great offense.”

“…What about you, Young Master?”

“What do I think about you concealing your identity, is that it?”

Toc, toc, toc―.

Tapping the table, Sion pretended to ponder for a moment.

In truth, he didn’t care at all, but since Sion Klausen was known for being difficult and fussy, it was better to show a little bit of disappointment.

“To be honest, I’m not exactly thrilled.”

“…I see.”

“But well, doesn’t everyone have their own unspeakable circumstances?

Both me and Sebastian.

I don’t want to dig into it, and I wasn’t particularly curious about your past, so I’ll just let it slide this time.”

Sion waved his hand, indicating that he didn’t want to discuss it any further.

Thanks to that, Sebastian frowned slightly and had to think hard about something.

“Raido.

The fact that I won’t become your disciple is all for your sake.”

“What kind of novel bullshit is that?”

“As you said, Raido, I’m just a kid, a nobody who hasn’t accomplished anything.

Imagine if such a guy suddenly learns martial arts and becomes strong.

Wouldn’t that seem strange enough?”

“…That’s true.”

“You came all the way here to get away from the people who keep bothering you, Raido.

I don’t think you would give in to a moment’s temptation and expose your location yourself.”

At those words, Raido smacked his lips and nodded as if he understood.

He was a man who had thrown away his position as a court wizard for some reason and drifted to this remote area.

It was certain that he would be reluctant to have his identity exposed to someone else again.

“Of course, I would like to receive your teachings, Raido.

But I’m holding back because I’m worried that something might happen that would cause you harm.

So, I hope you can put aside any bad feelings you might have.”

Sion’s words were so smooth and polished, as if he had coated his tongue, lips, and even the spaces between his teeth with honey, and Raido only cleared his throat and nodded in agreement.

A few well-chosen words were worth not just a thousand *nyang* [Korean currency], but enough to captivate a thousand people. It was a moment when he particularly felt the worth of having honed his verbal skills while living a rough life.

‘…Damn it.

It’s still a shame, though.’

He had forgotten, but today he realized it for sure.

With this pathetic body, he could never become strong, even if he died and came back to life.

Unless heaven and earth were turned upside down, or he was struck by lightning, or he underwent a metamorphosis like Kim Yu-hyun, almost everything he could do with mana was completely blocked.

“But, aren’t you going to explain?”

At Raido’s sudden question, Sion turned to look at him.

“The reason you rejected my offer.

You said it was for my sake, but that can’t be the whole reason.

You’re not some saint, and there’s no way you would make such a big decision so quickly just out of concern for others.”

Should I tell him?

The truth is, I’m mana incompetent.

I can’t feel mana.

Please save me, Raido!

He wanted to say that, but Sion shook his head.

He had been told never to reveal his weaknesses to anyone, not even his family.

Regardless of whether he trusted the other person or not, there was no need to tell others about his Achilles’ heel.

Then there was only one problem left.

What reason could he give to dispel Raido and Sebastian’s curiosity in one go?

“There’s no special reason.

As I said, I’m a guy who hasn’t achieved anything.

I’m just livestock that has been living off my parents.”

“Young Master.”

“So, I want to do something on my own.

If I become strong, I want to become strong on my own, and if I grow, I want to find my own path and grow, even if it means suffering.

That’s why I rejected Raido’s offer.”

“…!”

At Sion’s answer, not only Raido but also Sebastian, who was standing next to Sion, momentarily faltered.

That immature eldest son of the Klausen family, that brat who was practically a wild horse, suddenly changed and said he wanted to become strong.

He wanted to do something and achieve something on his own.

It was an incredible change.

Or perhaps that was his true self, and he was wearing several layers of masks to hide that self from others.

‘Sion Klausen was this kind of guy?’

It was the first time that Raido and Sebastian’s thoughts aligned.

The thought that the guy they had thought was a fool was actually thoroughly hiding his true self and putting on an act sent a chill down their spines.

To be able to deceive such skilled individuals so casually!

“…Young Master, if you’ll excuse me, I’ll take my leave.”

“Go ahead, Sebastian.

Rest well and see you tomorrow.”

Sebastian was the first to leave.

As he left Sion’s room, he glanced at his young master and thought that what he had seen so far was just one of the many masks of that audacious young man.

He had only faced and dealt with the masked persona, so a slight flame of anger flared up, but it was closer to anger directed at himself than at Sion.

He had thought of himself as skilled and confident in seeing through others, but how long had it been since he had been so thoroughly backstabbed?

‘Just yesterday, I was worried about the safety of the Klausen family after Lord Lichten’s death, but now that’s no longer the case.

Sion Klausen.

I thought he was just a bug, but it turns out he was only showing a strand of hair to make himself look like a bug while hiding his true self.’

Sebastian moved his feet, thinking that things were about to become much more interesting from now on.

Meanwhile, after Sebastian left, Raido, who had been sitting silently for a while, also stood up.

“Are you leaving?”

“Yes.

I don’t want to see your face after you coldly rejected my offer.”

“I told you that there were circumstances…”

“Shut up.”

Raido began to draw a magic formula.

At first glance, it looked like he was just playing with his hands, but if you delved a little deeper, it was a magic formula filled with all sorts of formulas and calculations that even most magicians would find difficult to understand.

“Let me ask you something.”

“I’m listening.”

“What do you think of my daughter?”

“…Excuse me?”

Suddenly, a fastball at 180 km/h hit Sion’s head directly [baseball analogy for an unexpected question].

As he was stammering at the completely unexpected question, Raido frowned.

“There’s nothing more pathetic than a guy hesitating when asked about a woman!

You may be skilled at hiding yourself and deceiving others, but that’s not always beneficial in every situation, you damn bastard!”

“I-I’m sorry!

Sorry, sir!”

It was just an ordinary old man’s shout, but the killing intent it contained was sharper than any sword.

Sion apologized in an attention stance and then racked his brains.

As the time for deliberation grew longer, Raido opened his mouth as if to help Sion.

“If you don’t answer in 5 seconds, I’ll dismember you.”

You crazy bastard!

Sion decided to just blurt it out without filtering, as he thought he would really be dismembered.

“I don’t know.”

“…You don’t know?”

“It’s a pathetic answer, but I really don’t know.

I don’t know what kind of gaze or emotion I should have when I look at Lucia.”

It was an answer he gave, bracing himself for a severe scolding.

He was worried that a fist might fly at his face, but fortunately, that didn’t happen.

“Ha, damn… you’re really a messed up guy.”

Raido, clutching his forehead and muttering something more, finished the formula.

Then, before heading somewhere, he looked at Sion and said.

“You don’t need to call me ‘Sir.’”

“Excuse me?”

“I’m giving you special permission.

You can just call my daughter by her name.

You damn bastard.”

Whir!-

Mana fluctuated, and Raido’s figure disappeared from the spot in an instant.

A silence came after a storm had passed.

Sion, blankly looking around, collapsed on the spot as if his legs had given way.

“Haha… damn it, I’m screwed.”

His life was already different enough from the original Sion’s life in the novel.

He had faced Raido, whom he had never even met, and even received an offer to become his disciple, learned about Sebastian’s identity, and those monsters were even sending him strange glances.

He was worried that he might really get caught up in events that even he couldn’t understand.

But he couldn’t afford to fall into the pit that was clearly visible in front of him while worrying about an uncertain future.

‘I need to maintain the direction of following the novel’s flow, but I need to find my own way to survive.

In the first place, Sion Klausen was a guy who lived only to torment Kim Yu-hyun, so even if I try to live properly, it won’t change the history of the continent or cause a big change in the novel’s progress.’

And even if the progress in the novel changed due to his words and actions, Sion was thinking of shouting ‘Fuck off’ and finding a way to survive in that direction.

In the first place, the reason he fell into this absurd world wasn’t to help the protagonist or anything like that, but just to survive, so how could he have time to look after others?

If he made a mistake, he would die right away, and he was too busy trying to save himself.

“First, I need to do something about this weak body and mana incompetence… ha, damn…”

Not being able to handle mana was a fatal weakness.

Sion Klausen in the novel never overcame this weakness.

In fact, he hardly made any effort to overcome it, but in the first place, those who had no mana sensitivity at all were perceived as being similar to suffering from an incurable disease.

‘How do I overcome this?

Should I start mana training from now on?

Then wouldn’t there be some change, even if it’s just a tiny bit?’

If he had rolled his tongue to survive today, he would have to roll his body from tomorrow.

Among the many villains, the one with the worst reputation was undoubtedly Sion Klausen.

A rotten personality, disgusting pettiness and meanness, unnecessary jealousy, and dirty desires.

Thanks to that, he knew better than anyone what kind of hardships he had suffered against what kind of enemies and what kind of end he had met.

He didn’t want to die like that.

He didn’t want to live like that, like a moron.

I want to survive in my own way.

‘Let’s do it.

I will definitely survive and live better than the protagonist.

You damn author.’

―――――――――

Sarak―.

Lord Lichten Frontier was checking reports and various documents related to the territory.

Suddenly, his eyes flashed sharply, and his hand was placed on the sword hilt next to him.

“Stop it.

He’s not a strange guy who came with a strange purpose.”

At Raido’s appearance, Lord Lichten Frontier sighed, took off his glasses, and stood up.

“Lord Raido.”

“It’s been a while, Lichten.

It seems like I haven’t seen you in a year.”

“A year?

It’s been much more than 3 years.”

“Huh?

Is that so?

Damn it… am I really getting dementia?”

Lord Lichten Frontier burst out laughing at Raido’s mutterings.

How could an old man with dementia draw such complex and difficult magic formulas like a picture and teleport inside the castle with a great magic defense barrier without any problems?

“What brings you here suddenly?”

“I have a lot to tell you.”

When Lord Lichten Frontier offered him a seat, Raido threw himself on the sofa and continued.

“It’s about your son.”

“…Are you talking about my eldest son?”

“Yes.

The son you had with your deceased ex-wife.

Sion Klausen.”

“Why suddenly about my eldest son…”

“Do you know how much about that brat… no, no.

How much do you think you know about that child?”