Raon’s expression began to stiffen at the word ‘prostitute’—as if I had exposed a secret he desperately wanted to keep hidden.
“…What did you just say?”
“A prostitute’s son. You… you’re a Baron’s bastard, aren’t you?” I whispered into Raon’s ear.
The result of your father, Baron Linen, visiting a brothel and planting his seed. Isn’t that you?
Though unknown to the public, Raon held a deep-seated disgust for his own lineage.
Just as I expected, his expression froze. He momentarily forgot his role as a spy, and a faint trace of murderous intent seeped from him.
I scoffed and released Raon’s hand. Stepping away from him, I put on a friendly smile and said, “I hope you don’t suffer a serious injury in this spar, Sir Raon. Please guide me well.”
My voice was loud enough to be clearly heard in the spectator area. With those words, I returned to my position and began to warm up.
I glanced back at Raon and found him glaring at me with blazing eyes. He was clearly in a foul mood.
For a spy to be so transparent… He’s a different kind of idiot altogether.
Well, perhaps I was the bigger idiot for being spied on by such an imbecile.
I let out a hollow laugh and stood up. While collecting my bow, I broke a long spear in half, creating a short spear.
Those around me seemed curious about what I was doing, but there was no need to argue or explain now. After all, the best persuasion is showing them directly, isn’t it?
And I can deal with that rat while I’m at it.
Suppressing my bloodthirst, I picked up my bow and finished preparing for the fight.
The light armor I wore under my training clothes rattled with every step. I felt a sense of discomfort and pressed down on the armpit area, slightly adjusting the armor.
Just then, the Knight Commander announced the start of the spar.
“You may use Aura against one another. However, attacks intended to kill are forbidden. That understood, Raon? Do you understand, Young Master?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Very well.”
Hearing our replies, the Knight Commander nodded.
And so, the spar began.
As soon as it started, Raon charged forward with his long spear.
“Uraaaaaaagh!”
A typical thrust. But seeing that it contained no Aura, it was clearly a feint.
His eyes are already completely gone, but he’s using such a rigid technique?
There was no way. If I tried to evade that spear, he was bound to instantly use a killing blow to take my life.
No, even if that wasn’t the case, he would do his best to cripple me somewhere. And then he’d ask for leniency, claiming it was a mistake.
I won’t stand to see that happen.
I moved my feet, creating distance between Raon and me.
Clatter. Raon, startled by a reaction different from what he expected, roared, “You can’t do anything if you just keep running away!”
“I didn’t realize you cared about me that much, Sir Raon.” While saying that, I strung arrows onto the bowstring, firing at Raon.
The missiles flew without wavering, then broke against Raon’s spear, falling weakly to the ground.
Thud. Thump.
Raon, who had tensed up for a moment in case, soon realized my archery was nothing special and let out a sneer. “Now it’s my turn.”
He raised his spear and charged into my zone.
Another thrusting stance. But this time, it was different. Aura encased the spear, and it was a thrust that came in while I was retreating, making it difficult to evade.
In other words, it was a killing blow.
Raon thrust his spear with a cruel smile.
WHOOSH!
The spear darted towards my neck, slick as a snake. And at that moment.
CLANG!
I pulled out the short spear I was hiding and blocked Raon’s spear. Then, using his momentum, I retreated and moved behind him.
Tossing the spear aside, I reached for my bow. I nocked a single arrow—and split it with Aura.
In a blink, twenty arrows hovered on the string, born from the one, each trembling with sky-blue light.
I steadied my breath. The wind whispered against my fingers, and the faint scent of camellias drifted on the air.
Aura settled over the arrows—sky-blue and swirling, light as the breeze.
Upon witnessing the color and scent of my Aura, Father jumped up from his seat and stared at me with eyes wide in shock.
“…The Divine Archer?”
I ignored his exclamation and released the bowstring.
My arrows shot toward Raon, embedding themselves into his body like a porcupine’s thorns, creating coin-sized holes at the points of impact.
Crunch! Crrrrrunch!
“Kuaaaaaaaagh!”
Raon screamed, writhing on the ground.
I didn’t think he’d be in such pain from just this much. Compared to what I had suffered, this was merely child’s play.
I approached him with a sneer. On the way, I picked up the short spear I had discarded earlier. Then, walking up close to him, I raised the short spear.
“W-wait!” Raon panted in pain, shouting at me. He seemed to know what I was about to do.
“Fuck off.” I muttered just loud enough for Raon to hear and thrust the short spear towards his Achilles tendon.
Thwump.
“Kuaaaaaaaaaaaagh!”
Raon screamed into the air. His face was a mess of tears and snot, and his pants were soaked, as if he had wet himself.
“Hoo.”
Clink. I took a deep breath and dropped the short spear to the ground. Only then did those who had been watching cautiously rush over to move Raon to the treatment room.
He would likely never live the life of a knight again.
Raon disappeared, supported by others, and my father and the spectators looked down at me without saying a word.
I announced softly, “I won, Father.”
* * *
Meanwhile, a letter arrived at the Duchy of Artezia.
The Duke of Artezia crumpled the letter in his hand, grinding his teeth.
“…How dare they.”
Just then, his daughter, Hera Artezia, entered his office. The Duke’s mustache bristled as he threw the crumpled letter at Hera Artezia.
Thwack! The letter struck Hera’s head and fell with a soft thud to the floor.
“What is it with you? What can you do properly?! Is it so difficult to sweet-talk one idiotic Count’s son?!”
“…”
“Does it look easy to find an Aura Master?! Is that why you handled this carelessly?! If you have eyes, look! See what’s written there!”
Hera picked up the crumpled letter and unfolded it. She bit her lip, her fingertips trembling.
Seeing her reaction, the Duke sneered and shouted at Hera. “It seems your pride is wounded. Fine. What do you plan to do now? A wretch who was jilted by a Count’s idiotic son—what good are you now, I ask you?!”
“…”
“The Duchy’s prestige has fallen because of you. This matter hasn’t spread through the social circles yet, so you will personally go to Berg County and capture that idiotic brat’s heart. Understand?”
“…Yes.” Hera bowed her head deeply.
The Duke, trying to steady his excited breathing, turned his back.
“Get out. I don’t want to see you.”
“…Have a pleasant night.”
Hera exited the Duke’s office, biting her lip. To think a mere County would interfere with a Duchy’s affairs! And that, by Louis Berg himself!
Shame crushed her entire body, and fury burned in her chest.
I don’t know what you’re thinking, but let’s see if you can keep up the attitude after seeing me in person.
Hera gritted her teeth and walked to her room. It seemed she would have to go meet that imbecile herself.
* * *
I sat in the office, facing my father.
“…They say the knight you fought has regained consciousness.”
“That’s fortunate,” I replied, lifting the teacup placed before me.
I wanted to kill Raon with all my heart, but there were too many eyes watching. Had I killed him there, my father and the vassals would have pointed fingers, saying my profligate nature hadn’t changed at all.
My image had only just recovered. I couldn’t let it be ruined so pointlessly.
Besides, I needed to keep him alive for the hidden spies to reveal themselves, didn’t I?
When will they all come crawling out?
The number of spies currently hidden within our House was immeasurable. By crippling Raon, they would surely be provoked into approaching me, if only to seek revenge.
Of course, killing him would also be enough to generate revenge, but it might cause them to be cautious.
A small foe they could just about beat—that’s the image I needed to maintain for them to emerge from the shadows.
I should probably get rid of all those rats soon.
I took a sip of tea, contemplating my future plans. The tea leaves must have been good; the aroma was exquisite.
“The tea smells great,” I commented nonchalantly.
Father sighed at that. Then, he began to speak about the real reason he had called me here. “Son, have you ever met the Divine Archer?”
Hmm…
I closed my eyes for a moment and fell into thought. To be honest, I hadn’t only met him. Although I didn’t know it at the time, the master who taught me archery had been the Divine Archer himself.
Before my regression, my master had taught me the fundamentals of archery and some techniques. At the time, my body was already accustomed to spear fighting, so I couldn’t master archery completely.
Because of that, my master often muttered things like, ‘It would have been better if I’d found you sooner.’
Anyway. To return to my father’s question, I had indeed met the Divine Archer. But this was an event that hadn’t yet happened in this timeline. So, what could I do?
Since I couldn’t say, ‘I regressed!’, I could only shake my head.
I lightly shook my head and said, “I merely read a book he wrote.”
“You read a book?”
“I mistook the image of someone holding a bow for a picture of intercourse, and so…”
“…”
Hmm, he doesn’t seem to believe that.
My father stared at me with cold, flat eyes, then closed them and rubbed his forehead.
“…Alright, let’s set that aside. Then, did you learn that archery technique by yourself?”
“Yes.” I nodded readily.
“…Hoo. Originally, I intended to show you the practicality of spear fighting. Thus, I had hoped you would dedicate yourself more to the spear than to archery. However, you proved your talent and won the wager. A father cannot break a promise. Whatever answer comes back from the Duchy of Praha, I will somehow make the marriage happen.”
Father spoke with certainty.
“And one more thing. You won the wager, so there must be a reward. Is there anything you desire?”
Something I desire.
I fell into deep thought. What was it that I needed right now?
Even compared to other noble families, Berg County was financially comfortable. Wealthy and strong.
However, true to their moniker as a prestigious spear-fighting House, most of the treasures in the treasury were spears or related items. And as for money, it wasn’t something I immediately needed, knowing the future.
What should I choose?
As I continued to ponder, a thought came to mind.
The Duchy of Praha will accept the marriage. The problem is whether I can survive there.
Of course, I could protect my life. With archery alone, I could defeat most monsters, and with spear fighting alone, I could survive.
The problem was the harsh cold of the North and the frequent appearances of Orc legions in the northern mountains.
Putting the cold aside, with my current level of skill, I couldn’t defeat an Orc even if I died and came back to life.
My current prowess, to put it kindly, reached the bare threshold of Aura Novice.
You might think using Aura is enough, but that depends entirely on the user.
What good is being able to use only Aura when my physique is trash?
In my current physical condition, I probably couldn’t even beat a regular soldier in terms of stamina. Just slightly better than an average person. I had to somehow return this body, steeped in alcohol and drugs, to normal.
The original plan was to fix it through training… but if I can use the House’s treasury, that’s a different story.
I curled the corners of my mouth and began, “There is something I wish to have.”
“What is it?”
“Demonkin blood. That is what I wish to have.”
“…Demonkin blood?” Father echoed, confused.
It was understandable. After all, while Demonkin blood was rare, it wasn’t something with extraordinary effects.
Not for me, though, I thought with a sly smile.
The Divine Archer’s Elixir—to craft that highest-grade elixir, the most essential ingredient was none other than Demonkin blood.