Chapter 133
Rank 8 – Part 2
『 Translator – Divinity 』
On the night Beatrice met with Crown Prince Zeke,
With the king’s execution just a few days away, fires were lit in the Maktern domain and other territories on the northern horizon.
The Duke of Wei’s forces in the north and Crown Prince Zeke’s forces in the south.
Although Zeke’s side had more soldiers, including conscripted peasants, the Duke of Wei’s side had superior quality, with most of the regular army on their side.
And on the front lines, where torches and tension flared,
Beatrice, with her face hidden under a robe, was in the forest near the Maktern domain with Suzanne.
“Your Highness, even so, this is…”
“Be quiet, Suzanne.”
“…Yes.”
Why were Beatrice and Suzanne, who should be resting in their assigned quarters, here?
Unlike Beatrice, who had a determined expression, Suzanne, her escort maid, was restless. It was clear that they hadn’t received permission from Crown Prince Zeke to come here.
They had indeed snuck out after magically sealing their room. Then what was the reason?
The reason was approaching from the other side.
“…Amatriuss Delphia Beatrice.”
“You’ve come. Duke of Wei.”
“General Cartea’s words were true.”
General Cartea, with an anxious expression similar to Suzanne’s, and the scarred man who accompanied him.
Unlike the three who were hiding their appearances with robes or magic, the man didn’t conceal his appearance at all. As if there was no reason to.
The Duke of Wei. A Rank 8 martial artist.
He came to meet Beatrice after receiving a message from General Cartea. And practically alone, at that.
“I didn’t expect you to be the one requesting a meeting.”
“I have a matter to discuss. That’s all.”
“You don’t think you can just discuss your business and return, do you?”
“Of course not. If you try to kidnap me now, I’ll resist fiercely, since I promised my brother not to clash with you before the execution.”
“…That Zeke brat. Did he tell you everything?”
“I knew that you and my brother had some sort of agreement. But I just guessed that you wouldn’t clash before the execution.”
“I’ve been outsmarted. You’re quite perceptive. Of course, not as much as that talent, but still.”
The Duke of Wei’s eyes were filled with greed. He usually maintained a dignified appearance in front of his subordinates, but Beatrice knew that this was his true nature.
The embodiment of greed, endlessly pursuing desires, and with the ability to fulfill them. He was more than just greedy for wealth, fame, or power; he was an ambitious man who wanted to create a new dynasty.
The Duke of Wei’s desire for Beatrice wasn’t simply lust stemming from her beauty or the desire for fame for having two princesses as wives, but…
“That’s why I desire you, Beatrice. I have ever since I first saw you.”
“………”
“I’ll say it again. Come to me. I can cure that chronic illness of yours.”
“Can’t you see my current state?”
“I can see it very well. Creating an artificial organ within your body to contain external mana, or deliberately reaching a state of mana exhaustion. I don’t know how that’s related to your chronic illness since I’m not a mage, but—”
At the very least,
“I know it’s an incomplete treatment.”
“………”
“So take my hand. I’ll cure your illness, and you use that talent for me.”
The Duke of Wei’s desire for Beatrice was a desire for talent.
The overwhelming talent that was acknowledged by the Archmage of the Empire and reached a level close to Rank 7 in just half a year with an incomplete solution.
He coveted that talent.
It was the same offer he made to Beatrice in the past, when she was treated as a burden and useless in the royal palace because she couldn’t overcome her chronic illness.
And the current Beatrice also…
“I refuse.”
“…Beatrice.”
“I refused back then as well, didn’t I?”
…gave the same answer.
It was true that the Duke of Wei reached out to her when she was most desperate. Beatrice almost took his hand, tempted by his offer of ‘salvation’ in many ways. She was that desperate.
But someone intervened then.
“Are you still talking about that nanny?”
“It’s the nanny you killed.”
“And a talentless Rank 1 trash.”
It was the nanny who cherished Beatrice since she was young. The nanny, seeing young Beatrice facing the Duke of Wei, approached her out of concern.
When the nanny got close, Beatrice paused and looked back at her, and the Duke of Wei, thinking that Beatrice didn’t take his hand because of that,
Punched the nanny.
‘The nanny died after that.’
The punch from a Rank 8 martial artist, surprisingly, didn’t kill the Rank 1 nanny immediately. But it pulverized, twisted, and ruptured her internal organs.
Because of that, the nanny died in severe pain after a week, despite appearing fine on the outside.
However, the Delphia Kingdom didn’t punish the Duke of Wei for the death of a mere nanny. How many such incidents were buried, and how many people died?
Beatrice was young then. She didn’t even realize that the Duke of Wei was responsible for the nanny’s death. The nanny was punched, but there were no external injuries.
She only learned the truth from her brother Zeke later.
“You’re still terrifyingly greedy.”
“And you’re focused on trivial things. Just a nanny, just a Rank 1. You’ve had over ten nannies, and Rank 1s are a dime a dozen.”
“Coincidentally, I was similar to a Rank 1 while suffering from my chronic illness.”
“No, you’re not similar at all. The talent that the Archmage acknowledged is clearly visible to me now. You’re not someone who belongs among the ants that are Rank 1s.”
The Duke of Wei’s eyes flashed. It wasn’t just a curse or an insult.
He was also a Rank 8, the owner of a chosen talent.
“Power is everything in this world. If you have a high rank, even a lowly mercenary like me can gain the grand title of Duke of Wei, and that Human Slaughterer from the neighboring kingdom can hold the ridiculous position of Headmistress of an academy. If you have a high rank, everything is forgiven. All you need is a high rank.”
“………”
“You also gained power after overcoming your chronic illness. Isn’t that power sweet? You can do things you couldn’t do when you were powerless due to your illness. That’s what power is. Authority and wealth are also great, but pure power allows you to reign supreme.”
Thud.
A martial artist who had reached the Rank 8, one of only two, including the Headmistress.
The Duke of Wei lightly moved his hand, and General Cartea and Suzanne lost consciousness and collapsed. The aura he suddenly unleashed turned the Rank 6 and Rank 5 into utterly weak beings.
Beatrice, who had prepared her magic beforehand, was able to withstand it, but…
The Duke of Wei hadn’t even used his power properly yet.
“Look at them. Trying to start a ridiculous civil war. I alone can kill all those tens of thousands of soldiers.”
“…My brother is just pretending to fight.”
“That might be true. But that’s only because of my mercy. If I make a different choice for just one day, they’ll all die. In this world where an individual can overwhelm the masses, a high rank itself is a privilege.”
“So you’re saying I should join you?”
“You’re the only jewel among those trash. I’ll cure your chronic illness and help you reach Rank 8. You’ll become a powerhouse.”
“And I’ll submit to you in exchange.”
“We’ll have to get married. You’ll have to make a contract with me with all sorts of magic and restraints. I don’t want to be killed by the monster I raise. But besides that, you can reign as an overwhelmingly powerful being. Just like me now.”
The Duke of Wei lifted General Cartea and Suzanne with one hand each. He simply lifted them, but the scent of death emanated from his strong grip.
The Rank 8, the overwhelmingly powerful being, was smiling in front of the weaklings.
“I can kill someone.”
He tightened his grip on Suzanne. It was only slightly, but even that was enough to elicit a cracking sound.
“And I can let someone live.”
He let go of General Cartea. Cartea fell to the ground, but he didn’t die.
“You don’t have to take my hand now. They’ll all die by my hand at the execution anyway, and you’ll be dragged to me.”
“Didn’t you say you would show mercy?”
“I’m not feeling very merciful on the day of the execution. If you’re dragged to me then, you’ll be treated much more harshly. Of course, it would be much easier if you took my hand now.”
The Duke of Wei casually threw Suzanne, who was groaning in pain despite being unconscious, and glared at Beatrice.
His expression was filled with greed, anticipation, and a sadistic smile.
“Choose, Beatrice.”
“…Well then, you wouldn’t kidnap a Rank 1, someone you call so useless, would you?”
“Of course not. But why are you suddenly asking that?”
“Because I need to confirm. And that mercy on the day of the execution… it might not happen.”
“What?”
Before that…
The Mad Dragon might wipe out the entire Delphia Kingdom, regardless of the civil war.
The Duke of Wei, their only Rank 8, might be able to stop the Headmistress, but…
“Can I ask a sudden question?”
“Go ahead.”
“There are only two Rank 8 martial artists, you and the Headmistress, and I was at Grandis Academy until recently. Comparing you and the Headmistress…”
“Ask what you want to ask.”
The Duke of Wei’s expression changed, and he scratched the scar on his face.
As if recalling something, yet desperately trying to forget it.
“…I participated in the kingdom’s civil war when I was younger. I was a mercenary then.”
“The civil war where Akendelminos ascended to the throne?”
“I was Rank 7 then, and I was full of confidence. I was even called the Mercenary King and was quite successful in the mercenary world. I was a genius, and I never doubted my talent.”
“………”
“But after seeing that Human Slaughterer in the civil war, I realized…”
Only then did Beatrice realize that the Duke of Wei called the Headmistress the ‘Human Slaughterer’ instead of the ‘Mad Dragon.’
The Mad Dragon was also a title, but it at least held a degree of respect. However, the Human Slaughterer was a name that no one dared to utter in front of the Headmistress. Even without her presence, people referred to her as the Mad Dragon or the Headmistress, rarely as the Human Slaughterer.
Yet, the Duke of Wei was calling the Headmistress the Human Slaughterer.
As if there was no other name for her.
“The extent of what a Rank 8 powerhouse can do. How insignificant I was, even though I prided myself as a genius. That slaughterer is now the Headmistress of an academy? That’s ridiculous.”
“…Does the Headmistress know you?”
“No way. I wasn’t a remarkable mercenary, a young genius, or even a Rank 7 on that battlefield. I was just, just…”
Just a weakling.
The Duke of Wei, who had been clenching his fist so hard that it drew blood while looking down at the ground, turned his head towards Beatrice.
His eyes were different from the greedy look he had just a moment ago.
“That’s why I’m making this offer to you. Because you know what a Rank 8 is. Because you know very well what it means to have a Rank 8, someone like me, under my control.”
“………”
“You mentioned the nanny earlier. I was a lucky nanny then. A weakling who could die at the whim of the Human Slaughterer. Rising from a position where my life and death were decided by others to a position where I can make those decisions, that is the source of my greed that you speak of.”
While the Duke of Wei waited after finishing his words, Beatrice quietly confirmed her suspicions.
‘I wasn’t sure, but it wasn’t the Duke of Wei who kidnapped the Finance Director. Then it must be my brother.’
And the offer… how should she put it? The problem was that this wasn’t the time to be thinking about that.
Rather, the Duke of Wei’s words about the strong and the weak, Rank 8s and Rank 1s, kept echoing in her mind.
‘The Finance Director.’
Where was he, a Rank 1?
Her worry and fear for the Headmistress deepened.
***
“…There, please massage that area a bit more.”
“Yes! I will!”
“Here’s a drink.”
“Thank you. I’d like some ice in the next one.”
“As you wish.”
“How’s my juggling? I even earned quite a bit of money with this!”
“A sculpture can earn money?”
“My insides are hollow, so it’s easy to hide things! There’s no worry about being robbed!”
“Uh… well, that’s true. But the juggling is fun. Keep doing it.”
“Yes!”
What was this?
A kind maid was giving me a massage, a benevolent old man brought me drinks, and an innocent child was showing off his skills.
And not only was I lying on a soft bed, but a cunning officer was even fanning me with a displeased expression.
‘Why is this…’
…comfortable…?