episode_0052

The day Bendict committed suicide after being tricked by a conman. I went to see a scammer.

“Why did you do that?”

“Why did you do that? No, before that, who were you?”

“He is Mr. Benrag’s son.”

When Bendict didn’t say anything, the man stroked his beard and spoke.

“Ah…you’re that guy’s son. It looks very similar. Hey Benrag, it’s not my fault he died. The guy who gave me money without even looking into it like a fucking idiot is an asshole.”

“My father died. He committed suicide because he didn’t want to pass on his debt to me. But I intend to repay that debt. You deceived my father, but I intend to repay you. If you are at least human, embroider. This means that you should go to the imperial court and be punished on your own feet.”

“Don’t be funny, you bug. If you want to honor your father, do it alone. Don’t make noise at me. Ah… didn’t I say that? That guy had cancer.”

“…?”

“If only I had the money for treatment, I could have been completely cured, but I guess I couldn’t go to the hospital because I didn’t have the money. As time went by, the cancer got worse and he even contacted me. However, that foolish bastard did not contact me to ask for his medical expenses, but to ask for money to repay his debtors. Do you know what I thought when I heard that story? As expected, an asshole gets treated like an asshole until the end. That’s what I thought. That’s what happens when you live so pathetically. There is a difference between being stupid and being kind.”

“Ah…”

When Bendict heard the man’s words, he lost all sense of reason and rushed at him recklessly. The conman, perhaps someone who had been training regularly, swung his sword and responded quite aggressively even at close range.

Bendict almost died because they were intertwined and engaged in a fierce battle, but luckily the last attack hit the mark and Bendict won.

Funny enough, at that moment, Bendict felt only one emotion as he looked at the dead con man on the ground.

You took revenge. Because I had the strength, I was able to avenge my father’s grudge.

‘If the impostor was stronger than me, I would have been killed by this guy after my father.’

Even as the Imperial Investigation Team members dragged Bendict away, he continued to think.

I want to become stronger. In the end, if the world does not protect me, the only thing that can protect myself and those around me is my own power. That’s what I thought.

Blind faith in power went beyond the level of faith for him and led to the level of madness.

Even in prison, he started training like crazy and tried to solve everything with force. I believe that it is the truth and the law. But what I met then was Leos.

When I first met Leo, he stayed quietly in the corner without saying anything. Bendict walked up to Leos’ side and spoke.

“I heard you came in by molesting a student? Have you seen all this trash? Do you know who I hate the most? They are the same type as you.”

Bendict attacked Leos, thinking he was a bad person. That day, Bendict was beaten to the point of death by Leos.

“Kahah…Kahah…”

Leaving behind Bendict, who was about to lose his breath, Leos spoke quietly.

“Is there no one around you who has suffered injustice? Don’t judge yourself and judge others. Because I have never done anything that goes against my beliefs.”

Bendict suffered more from his own foolishness than from the wound caused by Leos. Even though his father was wrongfully committed as a fraudster and ended his own life, he thought that in the name of realizing justice, he was trying to impose personal sanctions on people who may have been innocent by his own standards.

“Can you tell me a story?”

After that, Bendict heard all about Leos’ circumstances. How he lived, how he treated his students, and the entire process that led him to this point.

“…Brother…I know this is presumptuous, but…I have a question.”

Bendict, who had been reckless at first, began to treat Leos politely after hearing the situation. Similar to the attitude he had towards his father.

“Tell me, what are you curious about?”

“I have never seen someone as strong as you in my life. I can beat a guy with a sword or a guy with an axe. But I just can’t get over my brother. Why did you not take revenge even though you had such great power and were wronged?”

“…”

“With a power like your brother, even if the Imperial Investigation Team members flock in, wouldn’t you be able to kill that bitch Bellin somehow? If it were me, I would have retaliated because I was angry at being treated so unfairly. Of course…if I had as much power as my brother.”

“I’m going to wait. It’s easy to use force, but it’s difficult to control it.”

“A boy named Belin…I heard he laughed as he left after the trial…?”

“I’m not waiting for Belin. I’m going to wait for a call from my disciples. If there is even one person who believes in me, if there is someone who waits for me, I will return to wherever I need to be. If my sentence increases, it will be impossible to go back when I want.”

“No, this is crazy…! Aren’t you living too foolishly? Why do you live such a stupid life?”

When Leos glared, Bendict corrected himself with a wince.

“You have great faith in your colleagues.”

“I know I’m stupid too. At some point, I want to get revenge on all the people who didn’t trust me, but… sometimes I wonder what’s wrong with the kids who were just fooled, and I resent them for not listening to a word I said even though we were together for so long. And many emotions are going back and forth. But one thing is certain: the bond we built over a long period of time seems to have been bigger than I thought. I see that you still have expectations that you will trust me.”

“…It’s a bit hard to say this, but I don’t think I’ll be able to contact you again. There is still a lot of news related to Leos on TV inside the prison. Actually, I was skeptical until I heard the circumstances.”

“I don’t know. Now go somewhere else. Because I don’t want to get involved with a guy like you.”

“No, brother…please listen to my story. Aren’t you curious?”

“Not one.”

Bendict just slowly told his life story next to Leos, who did not respond. Living with my father, and my father taking his life after being tricked by a conman. And he ended up coming here by killing the impostor with his own hands.

Bentikt told his story for the first time. So, I was a little curious what kind of reaction would come. How will this story be received by a third party? However, rather than sharing his impressions, Leos gave advice for the future.

“Bendict, live your life now.”

“What is my life? Anyway, now I have been labeled a murderer and will rot in prison.”

Leos hit Bendict on the head.

“If you talk like that, what happens to me in the same prison?”

“No… Brother, aren’t you different from me? Honestly, if you are that strong, I think you can make a living no matter what you do.”

“There is no difference just because you are.”

“…”

Bendict was a little dazed after hearing Leos’ words. And then he slowly opened his mouth.

“Brother. Can you train me?”

“How can I use Ssambagjil after learning it?”

“To protect it.”

“…?”

“You never know, if I live hard, there might be someone I want to protect with my life. How sad would it be if that time came and you were too weak to protect it? The only thing I can learn in prison is this.”

Leos thought for a moment and then spoke.

“I’m not good at being moderate.”

“Do your best. I am always ready.”

Leos spoke to Bendict, who spoke with a determined expression.

“You have such a tough look and you are so big, making people feel scared when you make that kind of facial expression. It’s even worse because of the knife marks on his face.”

“…is that so? This knife mark was made by that fraudster…”

“Anyway. So, sometimes, relax your expression and act gentle. If you want to live well outside, you have to first get rid of the poison in your eyes.”

“Hehe…is it okay if I do it like this? Brother?”

“I’m not telling you to act like a fool.”

“I don’t know much about that because I’m so stupid! Well, if you do this, you won’t look scary to anyone, so it’s okay!”

“Do whatever you want.”

After that, Bendict sparred with Leos every day.

Bendict, who was covered in wounds, slowly got up, wiping away the blood, and looked at Leos with resentful eyes.

“Brother… aren’t you hitting me too hard…”

“I ask you to do your best. I’m not really good at doing things in moderation.”

“I almost died a few times.”

“If you’re that dissatisfied, don’t call for a fight.”

“…No, when did I say let’s fight! I asked you to tell me about the fight…”

“He said he wanted to become stronger. Please tell me about the fight. Then this is the only way. Fights in the empire often lead to the death of the loser. You can never acquire the sense of real combat through proper sparring.”

“ That’s right… Then, please ask me one more time, brother. Hehe…”

Training that lasted nearly 3 years. Almost every day, Bendict sparred with Leos. In fact, I almost died several times. As time passed, Bendict became stronger.

“Bendict. At least don’t use your power where I can see you.”

“Why are you doing this all of a sudden, bro?”

“Well, even though I taught you emotionally, I’m thinking that you might regret it because you’ve become so much stronger than I thought.”

“Regret? Why would that happen?”

“You continue to show that you wield your power as you wish, and if it is in the wrong direction, I may kill you to fulfill my responsibility for growing you.”

“…Brother, what are you saying such horrible things?”

“Promise me not to use your energy on personal matters in front of me.”

“Hehe…that’s all possible. But. So, if I get beaten up, will you take revenge on me? They told me not to put any effort into it.”

“Report at that time.”

“Hmm…Anyway, bro! Then I won’t bother with my personal matters. Instead, you can use it for someone else, right?”

“Do whatever you want.”

“Yep!”

*

corpses everywhere

Dozens of knights were rolling around on the ground, and Bendict was standing there.

He spoke quietly, looking around.

“A lot of people died.”

Although we talked leisurely, Bendict was now in a very disadvantageous situation. I don’t know exactly where Leos is. Since he was alone while out scouting and couldn’t even send a message, he thought that if they passed through him, Leos or his group might be left defenseless. To be exact, I wasn’t worried about Leos because he was strong, but I was worried about Hericia and the others.

That’s why I could never leave this place.

“Leos! Be careful! Enemies are here!”

Bendict shouted, but the knights had already placed sound-blocking artifacts around the area. The echoing sound was reflected back to its original state.

‘Damn it… I need to tell you quickly…’

I felt a sense of humiliation toward myself for not being able to properly complete a single reconnaissance mission.

Eventually, Bendict came to his senses and looked at the enemy in front of him.

These people mercilessly slaughtered ordinary people just to gain their own territory. There was no guilt or sympathy for killing them at all.

Bendict spoke while looking at the fallen knights with emotionless eyes.

“If there is someone you want to die first, go for it as much as you want.”

Eventually, Debigail walked alone, leaving the knights behind.

“If I were to deploy all the knights at the same time, killing you would be nothing, but it looks like you’re so full of bravado that you don’t know your own worth.”

Debigail whispered with a wry smile.

“I will show you for myself that I, who was the commander of the imperial knights, and you, who are nothing more than a civil servant, cannot even dare to pretend.”

Soon, sword energy began to bloom from Debigail’s sword.