TLed by NolepGuy
Chapter 51
Mikhail.
Silver hair.
A small height of 168cm.
A Beautiful Boy with Milky White Skin.
A righteous personality.
Handsome appearance.
A voice with a Boyish Tone.
Mikhail, the epitome of every element female readers love, was a character displaying an opposite charm to the Crown Prince with his Broad Frame and Ruin.
Unlike the Crown Prince with his domineering allure and the delinquent-like Ruin, he had a Righteous Conviction that ‘strength exists for the Weak Person’ and couldn’t stand injustice, making him a key character responsible for both Refreshing Turns of Events and Frustrating Situations in the novel.
He forgave the Antagonist who tried to kill him, unknowingly caused a friend to Darken wrongly in the latter half of the novel, and his Unnecessary Interference put the Heroine in danger—a pure Irritating Character who only knew honesty and justice.
That was the Mikhail I remembered and the evaluation of him.
I don’t know what Mikhail thinks of us, but what’s certain is that I don’t like Mikhail, and Mikhail doesn’t like me either.
The Young Lady and I ruined half of Mikhail’s 1st Year, and Mikhail ruined the Young Lady.
I hated him too.
A mutual relationship of hatred with Mikhail.
That was the relationship between Mikhail and me.
*
The Man with silver hair bathed in Moonlight exuded Killing Intent as he approached me.
Once at the fleeing Vagabond.
Twice, as he looked at me awkwardly standing there.
And three times, as he frowned at the bloodstains on the sword.
Mikhail blinked his sharp, cold eyes.
“Bastard….”
Mikhail spat a curse.
Would he want to say such words to an old Close Friend after a long time? Not even a simple greeting?
With a sigh at his cold demeanor, I unleashed Sword Energy toward the fleeing Vagabond. After all, calculations must be precise.
‘Ack…’ A scream echoed from beyond the alley, prompting Mikhail to grip the Sword Hilt. His stance showed he was ready to charge at any moment.
Mikhail shouted at me, who was swinging the sword emotionlessly.
“What are you doing right now?”
“Please be quiet.”
“I asked, what are you doing?!”
“It’s late at night, isn’t it?”
An awkward silence lingered.
Why Mikhail was here.
What Mikhail was thinking.
I could guess, but to confirm for sure, I decided to ask him directly. It’s more accurate to hear it from the person themselves than to speculate alone.
Brushing off the blood on the sword, I spoke to Mikhail.
“Mr. Mikhail, calm down.”
“You’re telling me to calm down after seeing this mess…?”
“I could be the Victim here.”
“Say something that makes sense.”
“That’s quite upsetting. I’m such a fragile person.”
Cold gazes were exchanged. ‘I hate you.’ ‘I hate you too.’ The meaning behind the silent greetings filled the desolate Alleyway.
I asked Mikhail.
“What brings you here? Should such a famous figure as yourself, the busiest man in the Empire, really be in a rundown place like this?”
“I didn’t want to come to where you live either… but I heard cries for help. Then, what are you doing here?”
“Hmm… Cleanup?”
At the word ‘Cleanup,’ Mikhail drew the Sreung Sword. It seemed he didn’t like me comparing people to trash. I had tried to soften the wording, but Mikhail’s reaction of drawing his sword felt disheartening.
I warned Mikhail.
“Can you handle it?”
Pause.
Mikhail stopped drawing his sword and looked at me. He understood what my words implied.
This place had neither people nor the Young Lady to mediate. It wasn’t the peace-and-order-loving Academy.
Just Mikhail and me standing in the silent Alleyway.
My question carried many implications.
A Provocation about whether he could win and a threat that this wouldn’t end with a simple Duel were packed into that short sentence.
If I, in a bad mood, unintentionally injured Mikhail severely, it could happen.
Though it’s unsportsmanlike for a Swordsman to go all out against someone incapable of using Aura, in my foul mood, I could certainly do it.
Whenever I saw Mikhail, I was reminded of the Young Lady.
Thinking of the Young Lady lying in bed, and the image of Mikhail coldly treating her back then, flickered before my eyes. I couldn’t hold back my anger.
Surprisingly, my mental state is fragile.
I can withstand Savage Insults.
I can even brush off insults aimed at me, being a magnanimous person. But if Mikhail mentioned the Young Lady’s name, I felt like I’d break the Sub Male Lead or whatever he was.
So, I asked.
Can you handle it?
If we fought now, I might beat him senseless without holding back. Honestly, just looking at his face disgusted me, and I wanted to leave the scene immediately, but if I fled now, Mikhail might report me to the Guards, or further misunderstandings would pile up, so I restrained my anger and asked.
Already, we were the targets of every possible grudge from the soon-to-be strongest person in the world. I feared provoking him unnecessarily, knowing the resentment that might come when the story concluded.
That’s why I stayed here, holding back my anger, and entertained Mikhail’s clumsy Provocation.
Mikhail drew his sword.
“Can I handle it?”
It seemed my heartfelt concern didn’t reach him.
With the blue Blade glinting, Mikhail slowly approached me. His muttering voice vividly reached my ears. ‘Body Acceleration. Physical Strength Enhancement. Shield.’ Witnessing Mikhail preparing Combat Support Magic, I gripped my sword tightly.
‘I wish he’d just leave quietly…’
Mikhail’s body emitted a faint glow.
Due to the Mana flowing around, his Hair fluttered, and I found the sight of Mikhail taking a deep, rough breath utterly ridiculous.
Should I say I was disappointed?
I was first struck by disappointment in Mikhail’s Martial Arts, which hadn’t grown as much as I anticipated. By now, I expected him to use Chantless Casting for enhancement magic, but he couldn’t even do that. He was flustered, glancing around awkwardly.
At this rate….
He might not successfully complete this Event.
Mikhail pointed the Tip of the Sword at me and said.
“You haven’t changed. You still bully the weak and treat murder as casually as eating.”
“People don’t change easily. Plus, one should live with Principles.”
“That kind of Principle is unnecessary. Stubbornness that involves tormenting others and an inability to forgive is evil.”
“If anyone heard you, they’d think you were a Priest. Always talking about forgiveness. Did you forgive us, then?”
Grinding. I could hear Mikhail grinding his teeth.
“You crossed the line.”
“But isn’t Mikhail the one who forgives even when lines are crossed? It’s not like this is racial discrimination.”
“Stop playing word games.”
“I’m not in the mood for games either.”
Mikhail spoke to me, almost accusingly.
“You said Cleanup… Did you call bullying those pitiful people Cleanup?”
I nodded.
“Yes.”
‘Crazy Bastard,’ Mikhail muttered. He glared at me with hatred-filled eyes. The same look I had seen back at the Academy.
It was the same look he gave me on the day our relationship officially started falling apart. Filled with disappointment, reminiscent of the past when he told me he thought I wouldn’t act like this.
-Did you kill them?
-…I had no choice.
-I’m asking if you killed them!
-…I’m sorry.
It’s a bad memory.
Mikhail asked me accusingly. He was still cold, filled only with Hatred and Grudge toward me.
“You’ve always been like this… If something doesn’t please you, you kill and crush them so thoroughly they can never rise again.”
“Wouldn’t there have been circumstances for that?”
“No, you’re different. You have no limits and always cross the line.”
To Mikhail, who spoke with such certainty, I gave a small smile. Standing still and waiting for him to approach felt like a waste of time, so I mixed True Feelings and Provocation as I spoke.
“Then, Mikhail, have you ever listened to my side of the story?”
“What?”
“At the Academy, and even now, you’re rushing to conclusions the same way. Without asking why I did what I did, you just judge what you see as bad. If I’m going to appear bad anyway, wouldn’t it be better to live wickedly?”
“Again…”
I looked toward the Deep Alleyway where the Vagabonds had disappeared and spoke.
“Do those guys look like good people to you?”
“Even if they’re not good, it’s true they’re pitiful people.”
“They might have killed someone. Maybe they did something even worse.”
“There might have been circumstances for that too.”
I let out a laugh as if I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.
“Pitiful? How can you say that when you don’t even know?”
“At the very least, they seem more pitiful than you, who torments the Weak Person.”
“If Yuria had faced Dangerous Work because of those guys, could you still say such things?”
“What?”
“Didn’t you hear from Yuria?”
Mikhail gripped his sword. Watching Mikhail muttering nonsense to tell me to shut up made me laugh. A fool who only sees what he wants to see, as always.
I raised my sword and approached him.
It seems clearing up the misunderstanding is impossible.
No matter what I say, he won’t listen, and if I keep talking to someone whose head is full of Justice, sympathy, and forgiveness, I might cross the line.
Looking at Mikhail shouting at me, I said.
“Shut up. You’re noisy.”
The moment the Red Aura wrapped around my sword, and the suffocating pressure engulfed Mikhail.
Mikhail’s vision went dark.