Chapter 43: Return to the Academy

With the preliminary contract with Marga sealed, I returned to the village, clutching my newly acquired spoils.

Thanks to my Baldo that had decimated half the forest, I didn’t get lost in the woods again.

“Ugh…!”

As I neared the village entrance, the orange sunlight peeking over the horizon stung my eyes.

“Haaah~!”

A yawn escaped involuntarily, my fatigue from the battle with Lobo not yet fully dissipated.

Though I longed to rest at the inn for a day before departing, I had far too much to do.

‘I need to get my revenge first.’

I had to rush back to the Academy and challenge that political knight Peter, who lacked any semblance of chivalry, to another duel.

Rumors tend to snowball over time, growing far worse than the original gossip.

Just imagining how the news of my defeat might have mutated in that toxic environment made my hand instinctively reach for my sword hilt.

‘That barbaric hammer-wielding bastard… I’ll Baldo him when I get back.’

Peter seemed like the perfect test subject for my new katana, forged from Lobo’s materials.

The thought crossed my mind, but even I knew a bladed katana would kill anyone if I used Baldo seriously.

Moreover, I’d mastered the power of ley lines and increased my Baldo skill level.

If I unleashed Baldo with a sharp katana on Peter’s frail body, he’d be cleaved in two.

‘I wonder how magnificent this new katana will be…!’

Imagining using Baldo on Peter naturally led to thoughts of my new katana made from Lobo’s materials.

My new katana, crafted using the claws of Lobo – a magic beast rivaling a young dragon – and Pierre’s rapier and staff, both hailed as a sage’s weapons.

As a swordsman, just imagining how that katana would shine made my mouth water like anticipating a delicious meal.

I couldn’t kill Peter, but if a duel or war broke out with the Pierre family, I could kill as many as I wanted.

The thought of freely using Baldo when that day came brought an involuntary smile to my face.

I hoped they’d hurry up and come taste my Baldo, even before the new katana was finished.

“Hehehe…!”

As I walked, daydreaming about the Baldo I’d perform with my new katana, I heard someone calling out to me from afar.

“Si- Sir!!!”

The man calling me was the same one who’d given me information at the souvenir shop.

Panting heavily, he ran towards me carrying a slightly rotted wooden hoe that hadn’t been used in ages.

“Wh-what on earth happened?!”

“What?”

In contrast to my nonchalant question, the man shouted with a mixture of terror and outrage:

“What do you mean, what?! After you entered the forest, it suddenly caught fire and there was an earthquake! We thought Lobo might be coming to the village!!”

Behind him stood men of similar age, clutching old farm tools and wearing frightened expressions.

Their intention to fend off Lobo with those pitiful excuses for weapons was foolish, but their courage in coming this far was commendable.

“You worry too much. How could a dead beast come here?”

“What?! Dead? Was it already dead when you found it?! Well, after 200 years…”

“No, it was alive, so I killed it.”

Saying that, I pulled one of Lobo’s teeth from the pouch I’d been carrying and showed it to the man.

“This is Lobo’s tooth.”

The fang, having lost its magical properties after death, was only about twice the size of a normal wolf’s. The man looked at it with a mix of doubt and belief.

Though he didn’t want to believe it, the evidence of last night’s fierce battle right behind us left him no choice but to accept it, even if the proof seemed lacking.

“Did you really defeat Lobo?!”

“How else would I be standing here? Now move aside. I’m in a hurry.”

I’d initially humored him, but as drowsiness crept in, I found myself growing irritated.

Pushing past the man and the others behind him, I entered the village and headed straight for the stable where Silence was resting.

Seeing Silence’s carefree munching on the morning feed provided by the inn only made me sleepier.

As I led Silence out after he finished his meal, we passed through the village center where Pierre’s statue stood.

“Th-that’s him!”

An old man, seemingly the village chief with a balding head but bushy beard, pointed at me and shouted.

Many people had gathered near Pierre’s statue.

A rough count showed over 50 people, including children – it seemed most of the villagers had assembled.

Apart from the young men waiting at the entrance, everyone looked sleepy, as if they’d just woken up or stayed up all night.

As they rubbed their eyes drowsily, the bald chief began to make a fuss. I spoke before he could:

“Just to say in advance, don’t ask for heroic stories or give me a hero’s welcome. I’m too sleepy for that right now.”

“Huh? Oh, then we can offer you our finest inn…”

“I’m leaving, so just get out of my way.”

“Wait!!”

As I tried to brush past the chief, he grabbed my sleeve.

Annoyed, I glared at him with sharpened eyes. He broke into a cold sweat and said:

“D-did you find the grave too?”

“What?”

His expression, a mix of fear and anticipation, told me exactly what he was thinking without having to hear it.

Clearly, now that Lobo guarding the grave was dead, they planned to turn it into a tourist attraction like everything else.

The others seemed to share his thoughts, alternating glances between me and the chief with expectant looks.

‘Ponpon City…’

Or rather, Ponpon Village, since it wasn’t quite a city.

In life, Pierre had been an ATM for his mistress and her daughter. Now in death, he was an ATM for these greedy bastards.

The thought of Pierre, even in death, being used by people not even related to him by blood, filled me with a strange sadness.

Of course, it wasn’t their fault for not knowing the truth behind Pierre’s death, but that didn’t change the fact that they were profiting from it.

When this realization hit me, I found myself gently releasing Silence’s reins and approaching the bald chief.

“Um, my lord?”

“They say greed makes you bald…”

The moment those words left my lips, I struck the bald chief’s head.

-Smack!!

The crisp sound that rang out through the village as the sun rose was satisfying to hear.

“Huh?!”

As everyone, including the one I’d hit, stood stunned, I shouted at them:

“Earn your money by working, you f*ckers!! How dare you make a corpse do your dirty work!”

“What?! What?! Dirty work? What are you talking about…?”

As the chief and others reeled in confusion, I brandished Pierre’s hidden rapier and staff.

“Just as you thought!! I found Pierre’s grave!! And these are his rapier and staff that were stuck there!!”

“Ooh!!”

At those words, the fact that I’d just hit the chief was instantly forgotten, and cheers erupted from the crowd.

To make sure no one missed it, I climbed atop Silence and displayed the rapier and staff while speaking:

“But I’m not returning these to the Pierre family! Why? Think I’m going to display them in this village for other magic swordsmen to see?”

Amidst the sound of sharp intakes of breath and expectant gazes fixed upon me, I declared, betraying their hopes:

“Of course not, you thick-skulled idiots!! I’m taking these for myself!! Tell the magic swordsmen who come here for Ponpon hyung’s death anniversary!

Tell them Baronet Ian took the rapier and staff!!”

“What?! What?!”

“This pitiful rapier and staff, born in the wrong form, will be dismantled and reborn as a katana!! Tell that to the bastards who come here too!!

Got it?!”

“Wh-what nonsense are you spouting?! If you do that, neither the Pierre family nor other magic swordsmen will stand idly by!”

Surprisingly, it wasn’t the chief right in front of me who spoke up, but the souvenir shop owner who had taken my money earlier.

Despite drawing the attention of both myself and the other villagers, the man didn’t back down and continued:

“Many renowned magic swordsmen come to pay respects at the village! If you anger them all, this won’t end well for you!”

“What are you gonna do if it doesn’t end well?!! You half-assed magic swordsmen who are neither mages nor true swordsmen!! Tell them to come find me if they’ve got a problem!!”

With those final words, I dismounted Silence, pushed through the gathered crowd, and approached Pierre’s statue.

And then…

“I’m taking this too.”

I ripped off the staff clutched in Pierre’s statue’s hand and the rapier at its waist, taking them with me.

Watching this scene, the chief shouted at me in a voice completely overcome with rage:

“What the hell are you doing?! Do you know how much that statue cost?!”

“Don’t know, don’t care. And in case you lot don’t pass on my message, I’ll leave this too.”

On the pedestal beneath the statue, Pierre’s name and achievements were inscribed. Using the rapier I held, I carved a new message:

[Ray pon Pierre’s rapier and staff have been confiscated by me, Ian Barthow. Come to the Academy if you want them back.]

As a bonus, I changed all instances of ‘von’ to ‘pon’ in Ray von Pierre’s name.

After loading the staff and rapier torn from the statue onto Silence’s back, I made one final declaration before leaving the village:

“Pass on my exact words!! If they want the rapier and staff back, tell them to come find Ian Barthow at the Academy!!”

[raei: I have moved this novel to 6/week btw so one more later today!]