Regressor Of The Fallen Family [EN]: Chapter 42

“Have you arrived, Lord Logan?”

“Ah, you look less tired than yesterday. Good. I’m looking forward to working with you.”

“I’m sorry you had to see me so embarrassed yesterday…”

“Why is that your fault? It’s all that Tower Master’s fault!”

Grick smiled uncomfortably. Then, Clayton stepped forward, much taller than Grick, and cut in.

“Young master, no time for slow greetings! Let’s go now. Don’t you want to get this done fast?”

“Master! *Ahem*. Lord Logan, please excuse him. My master is… very direct.”

“What?! What’s wrong now? Did I say something bad?”

“Master. Even so… Ouch.”

Grick quickly waved his hand. The disciples, who had been standing still, hurried forward. They grabbed Clayton’s robe and pulled him back.

Clayton’s thick eyebrows furrowed, like angry caterpillars. It looked like he was about to shout.

“Ugh. Alright, you brats. Let go! Let go, I said. I won’t say anything.”

Grick sighed softly, listening to Clayton grumble.

“Our master doesn’t worry about being polite. He might sound rough, but he has a good heart. Please try to understand.”

“Hmm…”

Wizards are often prouder than knights. Because magic is rare, even wizards from normal families see themselves as special. They sometimes look down on nobles who live in the countryside.

The receptionist at the Magic Tower yesterday was like that.

But Grick and his disciples were not arrogant.

They seemed to have suffered a lot. Maybe that’s why they didn’t seem to care about pride anymore.

Logan, who was paying them, was happy about this.

Why should Logan care how Clayton spoke? Clayton was a very skilled wizard, and he was helping for free!

“It’s no problem at all. I’m honored to have the Elder of the Magic Tower with us.”

Logan smiled brightly, putting Grick at ease.

Logan had prepared three carriages for Clayton and his disciples.

He had three carriages, each pulled by four horses. Each carriage was big enough for six or seven people to sit comfortably. They could spread out and travel easily.

Logan also spent a lot of money – 5,000 gold! – to hire good drivers from Gran’s Transportation Guild. He also got food and tents for camping.

This showed how thoughtful Logan was. He wanted to travel quickly, only stopping to eat and sleep until they reached their destination.

Even in these comfortable carriages, Clayton still looked annoyed. He kept telling his disciples to train, saying the comfortable journey was a good chance to practice.

Logan thought Clayton was being too strict. But the disciples smiled and did what Clayton said.

‘They look like subordinates trying to please a murderous boss to survive.’

That’s how it seemed. But most of the disciples’ smiles looked real.

Logan, who had been watching the scene with curiosity for a while, shook his head.

‘What do I care? I should focus on my own work.’

Whoosh.

Watching the bonfire burn, Logan pushed away his distracting thoughts. He thought about the Sword Master again.

Specifically, he thought about how the Sword Master used his sword.

He had thought about it before, when writing his sword fighting guide. But now, it was much clearer in his mind.

He could focus now better than ever. It was a quiet, starry night, and he was camping.

‘Here, like this…’

What the Sword Master showed that day was not just the Gravity Sword.

Golden light burst from Logan’s sword, even though he was just holding it. It made a blade of light you could almost touch.

This golden blade looked like it was made of power and balance. It had a clear shape, but it was still weak.

The flickering, uneven golden light disappeared.

“Is that… a real blade made of force?”

If the Sword Master had seen this, he would have been incredibly surprised.

Force is like energy. When you focus and squeeze it together, it becomes something new and powerful: Aura.

The Sword Master’s technique was just a weaker form of Aura. Normally, someone as skilled as Logan shouldn’t be able to copy it.

But somehow, this technique, using the power of stronger force, appeared in Logan’s hands, even though he was still not very skilled.

Bzzzt! Crackle!

The blade of light quickly disappeared. It didn’t last long. But even making it for a moment was amazing.

“I succeeded…”

He couldn’t shout with joy because of the others nearby. But he was so happy, he clenched his fist tightly.

He had copied the Force Blade! Only the best knights could do that, even for a short time.

Moreover.

Oooong.

‘Amplification, concentration, dispersion.’

Again, the force from his sword played with the bonfire flames. He made the flames move in circles and stretch into long lines.

This force felt like gravity itself.

This seemed very useful, just like the Sword Master had said.

Unlike the Divine Sword’s secrets, this didn’t use up much energy.

‘If I keep practicing, I think I can use this in a real fight!’

Gravity Sword.

Focusing on this secret for the last few days had made him forget about the complicated future for a while.

Maybe that’s why he learned it so quickly. He even wanted to use it right now!

‘I’m not a child…’

It felt childish to want to just swing his sword around now that he had this new power.

He had been feeling lately that his mind was becoming younger, just like his body had become younger.

‘Well, it can’t be helped.’

Only super strong people could keep their minds calm no matter what happened. It was almost like a joke.

He was happy with his new life. It was making up for the sad parts of his old life. Now, he was Logan McLaine, the son of the McLaine family, not just an old fighter anymore.

‘Just don’t forget the important things. The Imperial War. And the civil war.’

Even though it was night, it wasn’t very cold. Summer was coming. But Logan’s heart felt cold.

‘Now, there’s a year and a half left.’

The death of the king. And the beginning of the civil war.

He had to get ready and take his chance when it came.

‘I need to rise to power quickly. When no one is watching. To do that…’

The darker the night, the more worried he became.

“Ahem. That was a great skill, young master.”

Just then, a voice interrupted Logan’s thoughts.

“Lord Clayton?”

“I just saw something amazing.”

“Oh, no. It’s just a small trick.”

“I don’t know much about people who use Force. But I know that skill you just showed is not normal for someone your age.”

Clayton smiled, though his eyes stayed watchful. “You flatter me, Young Master Logan,” he said.

Clayton and the other wizards were not yet entirely allies.

Logan felt bad for showing his interest too quickly without thinking about the situation.

“I wasn’t myself yesterday. I was a bit grumpy. I’ve lived a rough life and don’t know much about politeness, so I hope you will understand, Young Master Logan.”

Clayton spoke. It was hard to know if he was apologizing or challenging Logan. He then sat heavily by the bonfire. Sparks flew up into the night sky as the wood crackled. The air smelled of smoke and pine.

“Those lads have suffered because they had a bad master before,” Clayton said, his voice rough. “I want to teach them as much as I can, while we are together.”

“You are already teaching them,” Logan replied. “Why are you telling me this now?”

“Even when we get to your estate and start working, I want my students to rest in turns,” Clayton explained. “They can train a little then. I will work extra to make up for it. Would you allow this?”

His tone was gruff, but Logan heard sincerity in his voice.

Logan had nothing to lose, so he nodded.

Suddenly, Logan felt a strange warmth around Clayton.

He began to see mana, the magical energy of the world, flowing faintly. It was ochre-colored, like the earth, and it came from Clayton.

‘Magic… so secretly?’

He was surprised by how subtle the magic was, and also by the warm feeling inside the mana.

He couldn’t be sure, but it seemed that Clayton’s mana was filling each tent with good energy.

Logan then noticed the small drops of sweat on Clayton’s forehead.

Clayton’s face looked even more tired than it had in the morning.

Logan had thought Clayton was just hot-blooded, but that wasn’t the case.

‘Did he have to go this far…?’

Logan was impressed and spoke without thinking.

“You care a lot about your students.”

“Haha. I’m their master, so I’m just doing what I should.”

“Come on. You even fought the Tower Master for them, didn’t you?”

“Well, the Tower Master’s behavior was not right……”

It was a weak excuse that didn’t match the warm feeling of mana still flowing into the students’ tents.

But there was something about him that made people smile.

Logan thought that the trip back home wouldn’t be boring after all.

Tap tap.

“G-Great Young Master!”

“Ah, greetings!”

“Greetings! Bow quickly, you too!”

As they arrived at the estate, the people greeted Logan differently than before.

They weren’t cheering like after the war, but Logan could tell his reputation had improved because they weren’t scared or running away from him.

However, he was worried that many of them didn’t look healthy.

“Mom… I’m hungry.”

“Just wait a little longer. Mom will go out to the field and get some potatoes.”

“Where’s Dad?”

“Dad… He said he’d be back after a hundred nights, right? Son, how many nights have passed?”

“I don’t know. I hate Dad. I’m hungry……”

Logan’s heart felt heavy as he watched the mother and child.

Poverty was making the wounds of war even worse.

The woman bowed her head quickly as he passed, and the confused child left a heavy feeling in Logan’s heart.

‘It’s just as I thought……’

Logan’s face grew serious.

The McLaine estate had lower taxes than other estates because it was struggling, but even a 30% tax rate made things difficult for the people.

It was a reminder that this was the time of year when food was scarce.

He had a way to solve these problems, but there were still many challenges.

‘Will Father even allow it?’

He was confident in his solution.

He had seen it work many times before.

But he couldn’t just say it directly, so he needed to find a way to persuade his father and others.

‘I need to get the people to help with construction……’

As he worried, he entered the inner castle and found someone else he needed to persuade.

“Did you have a good time, Young Master? I had a really hard time.”

Rick, still with cotton in his nose, greeted him with a thin face and a tone that seemed like he wanted to argue.

“Ah…… Haha. Rick, you rascal. Yes, I’m back. These people behind me are…….”

“The smell on my body won’t go away. Every maid I run into grabs their nose and runs away. Young Master, I don’t think I’ll ever get married now.”

Rick, with angry eyes, said only what he wanted to say, not caring about what Logan was saying.

Logan was nervous at the strong feelings hidden in Rick’s complaining.

“How are you going to make it right! Huh?! How long am I supposed to be that Karok……. Mmph?!”

Logan quickly covered Rick’s mouth and whispered in his ear.

“50 gold extra per week. Deal?”

Rick shook his head and glared.

“100 gold extra. That’s it.”

Rick, who had been fighting back, finally shut his mouth.

Relieved, Logan took his hand away from Rick’s mouth.

“Ptooey.”

Seeing Rick’s rebellious attitude and resentful eyes, Logan smiled.

“Rick, first, bring the guests in. I’ll go see Father. After that, we’ll decide where you will stay.”

“Yessir, yessir. I have to do as I’m told. Someone gets to have all the fun. Someone is stuck in a stinky place…….”

“Enough. I won’t let it go anymore.”

“Ahem. Guests, please come this way. I will take you there.”

Logan smiled at Rick’s quick change in attitude, and he felt strangely happy to be home.

Logan felt that his worries were not as important as he thought.

‘Right. I’ve never persuaded anyone with logic. If it doesn’t work, I’ll have to force it.’

With a lighter heart, he smiled and turned around.

“Clayton, please wait here for a moment. I will see my father and prepare a place for you to stay.”

“Wouldn’t it be better for us to go with you? Since it’s about money…….”

“No, you are still just my guests. I will tell you after I come back.”

Leaving the confused wizards behind, Logan walked into the inner castle with lighter steps.