SWNOVELXO Chapter 147
TLed by NolepGuy
Chapter 147
Inside the banquet hall where the Lee Cult’s raid had occurred.
“…”
Mikhail, regaining his senses, raised his exhausted body and placed a hand on his throbbing forehead.
‘What happened?’
He had no memory of anything after defeating the Archbishop of Blasphemy.
Was it a side effect of pushing his strength to the limit? The only memory lingering in the dimming darkness of his vision was Ricardo’s back figure.
-It’s over now.
-I can still fight…!
-You can’t kill him anyway, can you?
-Kill? You… don’t tell me…!
-Yes, it’s better to eliminate any loose ends.
“Ugh…”
His body ached as if it were breaking apart.
Most of the Academy students in the banquet hall had evacuated outside under Chartia’s command, and the only ones who had witnessed everything were Yuria, Hanna, and the Student Council President.
Unlike himself, who had collapsed, the Student Council President, Hanna, and Yuria were unharmed and under the protection of the Knights’ Order.
Mikhail decided to ask them about the truth of the incident later and let out a deep sigh slowly.
“Is it over…?”
It had been a tough battle.
Facing an opponent he couldn’t reach.
Feeling the ominous premonition that he might die for the first time since his days in the slum.
The battle against an opponent who used cursed magic had not unfolded as easily as he had hoped, and it was riddled with countless variables.
Above all, fighting while enduring Death’s Aura was terrifying. It was different from the Archbishop’s duels, which exuded thick killing intent and aimed to sever his breath.
Looking at his own weak self, Mikhail gritted his teeth and blamed his lack of skill.
If only he had been a little stronger, he could have protected everyone. The thought that casualties might have occurred if Ricardo hadn’t stepped in made Mikhail suppress the anger welling up inside him and clench his fists.
‘Damn it…’
‘Again… this time too…! Was it him? Damn it.’
Mikhail pounded the floor with his fist, venting his frustration. He was furious and trembling at the fact that he had received the murderer’s assistance.
The one who tormented Yuria and felt no guilt over murder. Someone with such power should have known how to help others, but instead, he rampaged for personal gain. The fact that he had once again received help from such a person made Mikhail’s anger surge.
Amid the flood of regretful emotions, Mikhail began to question Ricardo’s whereabouts.
Ricardo was nowhere to be seen in the banquet hall.
Mikhail lifted his head and scanned the banquet hall. He saw the Knights’ Order moving the corpses of the heretics and the collapsed ceiling in the center, but Ricardo’s figure was nowhere to be found.
Unable to find Ricardo despite searching, Mikhail clenched his fists.
Thinking that he had hidden again.
Ricardo, who caused incidents and then fled. Ricardo, who disappeared and avoided unfavorable testimonies. Mikhail clenched his fists tightly at the thought of him.
“Ricardo…!”
Amid the chaos of his swirling thoughts.
“Are you Cadet Mikhail?”
A knight with brown hair was walking toward Mikhail.
The stern-looking man was holding a notebook and pen. Seeing the golden emblem of the Empire engraved on the hilt of his sword, Mikhail realized that the knight before him was from the Imperial Knights’ Order.
With exceptional swordsmanship.
And as someone who had to graduate at the top of the Academy to become an Imperial Knight.
Malik opened his notebook and began questioning Mikhail.
“I need to ask a few things for the report. Can you cooperate?”
Malik was asking Mikhail about what had happened in the banquet hall, how the heretics had launched their surprise attack, and who they were.
-What were the exact time and date?
-It was around 7:20 PM, I think.
-What was the size and number of the enemies?
-…I’m not sure. I was too flustered.
-Hmm… I see.
Mikhail suddenly felt a sense of incongruity with the knight’s questions. While it wasn’t strange to ask questions to uncover the truth of the incident, he wasn’t asking about the most important thing.
Mikhail felt a sense of disconnect because the knight wasn’t asking ‘who’ had fought them, how the battle had unfolded, or who had made the greatest contribution.
Feeling the rising unease, Mikhail questioned the knight, who was calmly asking questions.
“Why aren’t you asking about the battle?”
“Hmm?”
“You’re only asking about the situation. Why aren’t you asking who fought whom, how the battle went, or the most important details?”
“Ah.”
The man closed his notebook with a snap and answered Mikhail.
“That’s already been investigated.”
“What?”
“Red hair. You know, don’t you?”
“…”
‘Ricardo.’
As soon as he heard the keyword ‘red hair,’ Ricardo’s face immediately came to Mikhail’s mind.
The one who had made the greatest contribution to this incident, the murderer who had carried out a merciless massacre. And the moment he heard the name of the man who had stepped back and refused to provide direct help, Mikhail thought the knight had received false testimony.
Ricardo was always a liar, someone whose thoughts were impossible to grasp.
Ricardo must have said something like this.
‘I did it all.’
That was what Ricardo always said, a response devoid of humility. Mikhail thought that the incident in the dungeon with Yuria had also been covered up because of Ricardo’s brazen testimony, and he believed Ricardo would have said the same thing this time.
However.
“That guy said this: If it weren’t for Mikhail, everyone would have died. He said you made the greatest contribution.”
“What…? What do you mean?”
“Exactly what I said.”
A foolish response escaped his lips.
He wondered if what he was hearing could really be true.
“In the battle against the one called the Archbishop of Blasphemy, you and Chartia worked together to achieve victory.”
“You also defeated the remnants of the heretics with the help of the Academy students. During that process, the wanted criminal Hans, a former Academy student, suffered serious injuries and fled.”
Mikhail looked at Chartia with trembling eyes, then at Yuria and Hanna.
With a look that begged them to explain what was happening, Mikhail sought answers from them with trembling eyes. However, everyone who met his gaze wore awkward expressions and avoided eye contact.
Chartia had a resigned expression, Yuria looked grim.
Histania Hanna had an expression that showed she was brimming with anger as she looked at him.
Mikhail, thinking ‘That can’t be true,’ questioned the Imperial Knights’ Order.
He insisted they had it wrong.
Saying there was no way Ricardo would say such a thing, that they must have misunderstood someone else’s testimony, Mikhail spoke in a weary voice.
“Wait a moment… I didn’t do anything like that. Most of the battle with the Archbishop was Ri…”
“The testimonies are already complete.”
“You should hear my testimony too.”
“No. While you were unconscious and collapsed, we received all testimonies from Yuria, the Third Princess, Histania Hanna, and Ricardo, so further testimony is unnecessary.”
The knight cut him off firmly and turned away.
Mikhail reached out with trembling hands toward the departing knight and spoke.
“Then Ricardo…!”
“Ah, that guy?”
Malik answered with a small laugh.
Smiling as he thought the boy before him was experiencing the same thing he had once felt, Malik replied.
“He said he couldn’t stay out overnight and went back.”
“What…?”
“Anyway, that’s what you should know.”
With a hearty laugh, Malik walked toward the banquet hall to wrap up the incident.
***
Today, the estate was peaceful as always.
Having successfully completed the quest and resolved the conflict with the heretics, I was feeding the Young Lady an apple in Hamel’s estate.
“Ah, open your mouth.”
“No.”
“Ah…!”
“Apples are tasteless. I like chocolate better.”
“We don’t have such things. Open your mouth.”
“Ugh… Ah.”
The Young Lady, crunching on the apple, nodded and gave her opinion on the taste.
“It’s good, right?”
“No. Don’t you have chocolate apples?”
“Such things don’t exist in this world.”
“Eeeek…! Make one for me!”
“I’ll try my best.”
“Okay.”
The Young Lady rubbed her sleepy eyes as she basked in the warm morning sunlight.
Having returned to Hamel’s estate after a long time, the Young Lady couldn’t easily shake off the travel weariness from riding the carriage all night.
For someone who loved sleep, a lack of it was a formidable enemy. Sitting on the bed, the Young Lady dozed off, swaying slightly as she fought off her drowsiness.
Three days had passed since the completion of the quest “Protect Yuria.”
The Young Lady still didn’t know that I could use magic.
I had kept it a secret, wanting to surprise her. I was curious about how she would react upon discovering that the idiot who couldn’t even cast a Fireball was actually a master of magic.
And I hadn’t checked the quest reward yet.
Information about vitality.
I had intended to check it immediately after the quest’s success, but I had been too busy and postponed it.
I should probably check it this evening.
As I placed another piece of apple into the Young Lady’s mouth, I spent some time pondering the nature of vitality.
Vitality.
The force that drives life.
“Hmm…”
Honestly, I had one guess, but I hoped it wasn’t that.
There was only one thing that came to mind when I thought of the word vitality.
I hoped it wasn’t what I was thinking, but if it wasn’t, then I couldn’t think of anything else.
“Lifespan.”
“Well, what’s the worst that could happen? Death?”
With a light heart, I fed the Young Lady her apple and waited for the evening to arrive.