99 – Sepia Rebirth 9
The Emperor’s office.
As it was a place containing crucial documents of the empire, even the nobles couldn’t enter without the Emperor’s permission.
In the Emperor’s office, there were the Emperor, Duke Adelian, and Duke Freya.
If a knight or a wizard were present here, they would have shivered or tried to come up with something to say.
Duke Freya, renowned as the Empire’s Sword, and Duke Adelian, known for his unique use of magic, were present.
And now, both Duke Freya and Duke Adelian, respected by everyone.
“I watched the mid-term exam footage. Clara, you’ve become quite strong, even though you were ‘second.'”
“What did you say?”
“By the way, our Johanna has never missed the first place in practical exams.”
“Ha! What if Clara were in the second year or Johanna in the first?”
“No, the result wouldn’t change. Our Johanna is always the first.”
They were boasting about their children in the Emperor’s office.
The Emperor, looking at documents, tapped the desk and spoke.
“Ah… It’s fine if you two fight, but why chatter in my office.”
Though the Emperor spoke with a furrowed brow, the expressions of Duke Adelian and Duke Freya remained unchanged.
“We just came because we were bored.”
“I came because this guy called me.”
It was unbelievably casual to speak to the Emperor like that.
The Emperor, deepening his sigh, didn’t comment on the lack of formality. Since the three had fought together risking their lives at the academy, they could speak comfortably when no one else was around.
Of course, if there’s even one other person nearby, formal language is used.
“Sure, Clara narrowly missed first place! But the winner is my disciple.”
“He’s also Jim’s disciple.”
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The emperor, looking at the documents, immediately spoke as the Adelian Duke finished speaking.
“Why is he your disciple in the first place?”
“He was the one who requested to be taught first. If you have any complaints, take it up with him, not me.”
“Ugh! That’s right! You also invited him to the mansion without my permission!”
Unable to refute the emperor’s words, the Adelian Duke redirected the target to Duke Freya.
“Why should I need your permission to invite him?”
“Ah! Come to think of it, Loki, he won in a duel against Ascal, right? Just as expected from my disciple! hahahaha!”
“He’s also Jim’s disciple.”
The emperor pondered on how to pass all these documents to Lord Jaisang and spend time with the empress.
“Ascal losing! What nonsense! It’s only natural that our Ascal showed mercy!”
“Showing mercy is also a skill. I heard someone say that often at the academy, didn’t I?”
‘These guys are still the same.’
Thinking that he should give Lord Jaisang some tonic, the emperor chose the documents to hand over to Lord Jaisang.
“In the first place, I was the one who taught him how to fight, a guy who had no other way to survive.”
“………..?”
“What kind of talk is that again.”
The emotions felt by Duke Freya and the emperor upon hearing the Adelian Duke’s words were exactly the same.
Doubt.
To live? Loki, that guy?
The Emperor and Duchess Freyja recalled Loki.
Admittedly strong and intelligent, but he had never felt alive even once.
“Hmm. Come to think of it, when I first described Loki. I said he’s like a wild beast.”
“Ha! Stop it, did you really see such a guy for the first time in your life? A guy who handles life so freely.”
Pressuring others with life is different from pressuring others with mana.
Learning to pressure others with mana is possible.
But life is different. Using life is not written anywhere and cannot be learned from others.
“Well, now he doesn’t go around leaking life like he used to. But if that guy had done something like an assassin, we would have been quite annoyed, wouldn’t we?”
* * *
He looked around the surroundings covered in mist.
‘This should be enough.’
The mist had already spread widely and thickly enough that nothing could be seen from outside.
Though Da-run tried to escape after hearing what he had just heard, his arms and legs were already tied tightly.
He crawled desperately like a pathetic beetle to escape somehow, but his speed was as slow as a beetle.
“Eek! Please, spare me!”
Da-run, squirming and crawling, seemed to have judged that he couldn’t escape in this state and began to beg me.
“I’ll do anything! Please, just that!”
The mocking smirk he had when teasing Sepia earlier was nowhere to be seen. He poured out tears and mucus, banging his head on the ground, pleading.
‘I know.’
From now on, my actions will be entirely irrational and emotional.
‘I know very well.’
From now on, my actions will shatter the plans I’ve built up until just now, all at once.
The cameras outside the fog captured everything – the artifacts used by Duan’s subordinates to attack me.
Even if I didn’t strike Duan here, using that footage could push Duan to the edge of the cliff.
I am well aware that if I endure the mockery from Sepia, I can handle the situation more comfortably.
On the contrary, using that could even push Duan off the cliff.
No matter how I think about it, defeating Duan within the fog is not advantageous.
‘But what does that matter?’
There are things that one should not mess with, and Duan messed with that.
Would it have been different if there was a poker face?
‘No, that’s not likely.’
I asked myself and answered myself.
If Duan had heard what Sepia said and still thought rationally, I would have taken my own life.
I know that thinking rationally is better than being emotional.
But sometimes, humans have to act emotionally rather than rationally.
This is the privilege of being human, and I don’t want to live while giving up that privilege.
If someone close to me had faced such mockery, asking them to think rationally?
Just imagining it makes me sick, and I can’t bear it.
‘Logic over emotion. There is no act more foolish than crumbling what has been built over a single mistake.’
One of the few serious words uttered by the Adelian Duke, who taught me how to fight, came to mind.
If the Adelian Duke saw me, who was overturning a well-laid plan with just a single word, what would he say?
I couldn’t think of what he might say.
But even without thinking about it, I could imagine what the Adelian Duke would say if I remained silent after hearing that word.
“You idiot.”
Through the tragedy in the village of Daerun, I knew that such words should not be spoken to Sephia.
Yes, I already knew.
I knew, but hearing it made me feel much dirtier.
Sephia, who had endured such pain, should not hear such mockery from scum like him.
Sephia, who had tirelessly strived for revenge, should not be subjected to such ridicule.
“Please live…”
I wanted to kill Daerun, who was begging on the ground, with his head slammed against the floor, right now.
If this weren’t the academy, I might have killed him earlier.
I wanted to kill him, but death was too much of a luxury for this guy.
And above all, Daerun still had a lot left. Power, money, reputation.
I plan to take away all of that.
Much more cruelly and swiftly than originally planned.
But still, I should at least tell Sephia in advance.
From now on, my actions will be driven by revenge.
“Sephia.”
Even though I unintentionally used informal language, I didn’t particularly care.
Right now, that wasn’t important.
But it seemed different for Sephia.
“……..uh, yeah!”
Sephia responded, startled, and took a step back as if surprised.
It was so surprising that she let out a small gasp.
Speaking with a startled expression was cute, but the tears welling up in her eyes didn’t sit well with me.
I started walking towards Sephia,
And she, after hesitating for a moment, as if making a decision, stopped.
Before I knew it, the distance between me and Sephia had become so close that a slight movement forward would result in a collision.
As I reached out my hand towards her face, Sephia closed her eyes and trembled slightly, thinning her body.
I reached out my hand and wiped away the tears in Sephia’s eyes.
As my hand touched her skin, Sephia, who had shuddered, opened her eyes, staring at me with a puzzled expression.
As if to say, is this the end?
Staring at me with wide-open eyes, she resembled a rabbit.
What on earth was she expecting?
A small, sly smile escaped from my lips.
Whether she heard that small sound or not, Sephia bit her lip, glaring at me with a flushed face.
Seeing that figure, it seemed like a smile would once again escape, but I could endure it by placing my hand on Sepia’s head.
Sepia still glared at me, biting her lips, but she didn’t remove the hand on her head.
“I told you yesterday. I have no intention of taking revenge on your behalf. And you probably don’t want that either.”
I don’t know the name of the village where Sepia lived. I don’t know the people, the scenery.
I know nothing about the conversations Sepia had with the villagers, what she ate there, how she played. Nothing.
Maybe that’s why I shouldn’t take revenge on behalf of Sepia.
Revenge has meaning when done by someone who remembers.
“…………….”
Sepia didn’t respond to my words, but it was clear she was listening, so I continued.
“But now, it’s not someone I don’t know who’s hurt, it’s you.”
Betts is different from before.
I remember and recall Sepia.
At this point, maybe I have the right to seek revenge on behalf of Sepia.
Just like Sepia doesn’t entrust her revenge to others, I don’t intend to hand over my revenge to someone else.
“So, this revenge, there shouldn’t be any complaints if I do it.”
Sepia stared blankly at me without saying anything.
Sepia’s two eyes blinked repeatedly, closing and opening.
Watching that, my heart eased, but paradoxically, the desire for revenge against Daehoon deepened.
Sepia nodded without saying a word.
“Yeah, stay quiet here.”
I roughed up Sepia’s hair and walked towards Dallun.