Chapter 157
gY6“…Doesn’t matter. Must’ve been a cheap table.”MLaEjYB
9XM32Fernan stopped his fingers.TYp
HIO6pnzOf course, that didn’t undo the hole he’d left in it.9ZWFdZt
0NOg“Didn’t you say last time it was made from the finest noble wood?”7kjE
koMua“I changed suppliers to try something new. Golden Turtle doesn’t only trade in luxury goods.”wXj
Ov6To steer the conversation away, Fernan pulled a gold coin from his pocket and spun it.tSKnD
WHTU“…Back to the point, it’s not like I have to lend it to you. Money is like the blood of this world. Everyone needs it, and everything depends on it.”QS3AkVI
KpQlHe meant to say there were many businesses to invest in, many others he could lend money to.PLCap
HE44yLNThe coin spun and landed right in front of Aint.GvR1EBS
5Bl9“I’m only considering the possibility that you can’t secure enough funds. If that’s not the case, I’ve no reason to take the risk. I could lend it elsewhere at a higher interest rate.”TIIBAtC
5CTSeeing Aint nod slightly, Fernan smiled.duqr
qZIqn8yHis strategy of offering a low rate from the start was working.CBlh
Ctw— He didn’t say anything wrong.dTVK
0609JcY— In fact, these guys aren’t obligated to help you.jkzv
pxj9x‘So this is a real favor?’qJc
E984p5— A real favor? Not at all. He just wants you to defeat the demons more than anyone.o44l
Z5yvbA2Gardner could tell.JYbHj0
nAj— You saw what happened with the corrupted last time. Demons don’t care for money or jewels.594B
KI9e1— Thanks to that, the Pellenbergs made a fortune fighting them a thousand years ago. But coexistence has never been an option.E88
gbeJpThat’s why, a thousand years ago, Pellenberg ended up joining the first emperor.QC0
qnUyn— And of course, he’s also doing this to eliminate any other potential allies. He wants to cut out the competition.nkEy6z
7mL‘Competition?’pH1S
4pDf2US— You’re a rising hero. Think no one else’s interested in investing in Armian, even if it’s weak right now?zQfr
A9jY1wQEven so, Gardner believed it was best to shake Fernan’s hand.pMZ6
QsfAny other hyena would be even more desperate to devour Aint.F83RDO
Qa0kG6And if you had to be devoured, better by one lion—especially if that lion had unusually high generosity.8PAd
zrev— A 5% interest loan with a 15-year term was a great offer even a thousand years ago.iaIzu7w
mwXWm— Take it while he’s willing to lend. We don’t know when he’ll change his mind, so ask for as much as you can.YAuZ
Fx4XRUy“…Is your previous offer still valid?”P5RY6le
lQpTI0In the end, Aint said exactly what Fernan had wanted to hear.xtxh
l42‘That’s it! My lifelong goldmine!’Ekb
dpVzhoInside, Fernan celebrated, though outwardly he kept calm.1ShdWZV
teEgc“Of course. A merchant doesn’t turn away a client asking for a loan.”5lnsz9W
ohrsAint and Gardner might think it was a great offer. And they wouldn’t be wrong.TUl
T0yBut there were two things they hadn’t realized.e1E
CaUDjS‘Sure, that low interest rate made him ask for a huge sum.’mkK50
IdDFirst, that it didn’t matter how low the rate was if the starting sum was too large. It was like a snowball downhill.n7CHhzY
YXliIx‘Pay it all off in 15 years? Unless he raids a dragon’s lair, impossible.’Fk4Cm2
9BFacAnd with war on the horizon, it’d be a miracle if he didn’t end up borrowing more.h5agLdF
iMfAt first, the interest would consume the capital, and then would come collapse.xsE
KqvVDqj‘This is what’s called a money game. Money always draws more money.’ddWKxZF
TENThe other thing they didn’t know was that that money originally belonged to Aint.BU5
JvK3The low 5% interest wasn’t a favor. It was just a trap disguised as goodwill.RfXwVg
KHBAvFernan stifled the laughter threatening to escape.aVi
JuTL“Then let’s draft the contract.”GOB
Ce9qZlX“Yes.”XPNp
uLtOnce both signed, Fernan carefully tucked the document away.abI
d3z“By the way, is it true that Fridian has turned corrupted?”JlCp1YF
RYDq“Ask Aria. She’ll know better—she’s directly involved.”ahHgK
n1GywLaThe Fridian issue seemed trivial by comparison.TtxjX0f
xXe0‘Where should I keep this?’1T40nB
u7HxjOKNot a scratch could be allowed.gL0e7ux
MkL2R0‘It’ll have to go in the main mansion’s secret vault.’ykdQwdV
AcCHe had that vault built with the utmost care. As long as Pellenberg didn’t fall, it was impregnable.qd6xeUr
bBQ8“The money will be transferred in three days, as stated in the contract.”vVKi
c4sCT“…Such a large sum in just three days?”7b6
1C8“Don’t underestimate Pellenberg.”Xbb1O
YrFol4Fernan replied proudly, standing up from his seat.oDc
dTt“I’m off—I’ve got urgent matters. Like I said, there’s much to investigate regarding Fridian.”Fd8SR3
bemP0“Understood.”ei2XSvR
j1VJFernan left the room, calling out to Hyde.MG7
0ItT“Straight to the mansion. We need to cast a protection spell on this contract and store it immediately in the vault.”61Je
f1XThere was no more urgent task.8GaE43
10d***zW1
6JD“…It’s true. Gathering this much money in just three days…”G8T2dN
oYjThree days later, Fernan handed over dozens of subspace bags to Aint.f7bgI
Gt4KkFAll were brimming with gold coins.ZzIw3xA
oVKHow much was it, total? One thing was certain—it was more than Aint had ever seen in his life.Volsc
joR45MY— Pellenberg is Pellenberg, no doubt. To pull this off so fast…6GP
Pq8mlHNot bad. Not at all.pkFYUq
OGHFZj— Now you’ve got another reason to go home over summer break.pYe5h2
lZ3— But no matter how much money you’ve got, your father is still head of the house. You’ll need to talk to him and get his approval.owaP2G
74wExf“Yes, that’s the plan.”6k7svnp
c8oCHonestly, he felt a little unsure.u4prLP
ezKaQHis father had never shown ambition to regain power or expand the house. He was content to live in peace.DV1cfC
JQqTWould he accept the proposal?uyxh7
9fB‘No. At this point, it’s not about whether he accepts or not.’4V7W
jGjuvHe had to make him accept—no matter what.THZ8LA
hEBConvince his father, rebuild Armian. Whatever it took.ckX3
Fevw7“But now the problem is, where do I keep all this?”FmHd
mxxhWIjAint looked seriously at the pile of bags on the bed.T4Mim0
ALVDozens of subspace bags, all filled with coins and jewels. Just storing them was a problem.jr3
E1aVLAnd since you couldn’t put one subspace bag inside another, it was even worse.QitBn
hjjpHmThey said doing so would damage the magic circle and lose everything stored inside.5SR5ZiA
4CYVjyD— Best bet is to send them to your mansion. Even if Armian’s declined, they must at least have a vault.AaK
VQ0aThe problem was, Armian no longer had the strength to protect a fortune like this.Rwv1qe5
Fb1QhiUStill, if Fernan didn’t leak anything, it’d be hard for anyone to find out.MgOVF
6h4EBv“I guess you’re right… but the distance during the semester…”4WK
p1TTyCv— Don’t all the prince-electors have direct teleportation circles with the Academy?zmc7
FB6MA9— You could use one of those.t4fp8
wKlU“Eh… well…”H1C
xgmVLAint smiled awkwardly.otJNA
cC0pd“We used to… but not anymore.”MieE
PTUcCQy— What?iRC
5rAZj9z“As you know, our territory fell. We lost almost all of it—including the family’s original seat.”jjAp0
ZMRsiHCurrently, the Armian mansion was no longer the original.gjt
Myz8That area had fallen to Schwaben along with the loss of the throne.cEQLIYj
7um7c— But that was a century ago. Surely you’ve had time to build a new one?euHy6
sXRPjC“Sure, but there was no reason to. Like I told you, after losing the throne, I was the first to enroll in the Academy.”4nBQ
mbIofSince then, Armian had closed all its doors. Including to the Academy. No need to establish a new teleportation circle.gJN
e4aPSi— This really is a total fall from grace…dYQ1dEK
dEaE“But I’ll raise it again.”HQ0V1t
i6Z— As you should. Otherwise, how could I ever face the former emperor?kMGx
E1IyoMan and sword renewed their vow.LfBM
6ppXAint stored the bags in the wardrobe drawers.Rya6T5j
kYnGmYFor now, Ravidus Hall was one of the safest places to protect them.FtYXJ
w36Not a long-term solution, but it would do for now.UfnbvM
cu7Ul— Oh, I just remembered something.oJa
x4iiId— Among the things the emperor left at the Academy, there’s a giant subspace bag.nGW9zn
sOkNlYb“A giant one?”apQz7i
cD2L— Yeah. Big enough to fit all the gold and jewels you borrowed.aoLDl
WeIENRAnother of the measures the emperor had prepared for his successors.nmCd
lP8“And if someone else already took it?”zPiu8M
XvvzK1f— If they had, there’d be rumors. That bag, like the armor, is hidden. Only I can find it.IVC9q
Z0OmHearing that, Aint’s face lit up.kUI
MMpKv“Then I could use it to carry everything. But… what about the armor?”NP7m
Qlt2yd— Hm… that’s the problem. No, on second thought, the real question is whether you can beat Luina Bercheff this time.cE3FnZG
e62N— I got the sense she also had some sort of revelation.kFNR
r697tBoth fell silent, thinking about their next move.Mlg2
WmcX0***LNU5
VhErKTraining with Aint and Luina had become part of Verian’s daily routine.BQoCoQ
xLgHe would rise at dawn, spar with them, and then head to class.rsnT6
Op84awnAnd that’s why he felt it all the more deeply.XH66
CEYVe‘…These damned monsters.’gnApxUM
qlcGeBoth Aint Armian and Luina Bercheff.lW4XgY
3psEyYDNot only were they improving—they rose higher and higher each day, reaching ever more unreachable heights.FYZWgrf
R7L‘The world is unfair.’ysQd
JFzzItBDoes this make any sense? They were monsters before, people he hadn’t even dared to compete against. And now they were something even further beyond.sEmF
6noQTgEven if his own growth hadn’t been bad, why was the gap only widening?oiZkXs
JSUVY‘That damn Armian was weaker than me just a year ago! Does this make sense?!’6D3
E1TQjNJVerian Kalburdern had also once been called a genius in the Kalburdern territory.x96psi
xjecGHe wasn’t some small fry—he had proven that by placing second at the Academy.03H9lRP
axxuoNgSo why did it feel like he could never surpass those two?wxsFS4
aHc0YEMaybe it was because he refused to accept it.JEP
FWTN0jThat there was a colossal wall between them and him.MEQtw
qJVSfHe clenched his teeth hard.oL5r
M79Why was he the only one who felt stuck? Why was the difference so vast?2VMshs
ojgcEvery day, he swung his sword until his body screamed.okF
A8FwZAnd even though he fell again and again to Aint and Luina, he always got back up to try again.lwx
2NWBut the distance never closed.STP
1yrPAnd every day, he felt more dried up inside. Everyone was moving forward, and he was the only one who seemed frozen.IxZUz
30O“Why the dead-man face? Kalburdern didn’t collapse or something, did it?”68ki
BLgw3tUAria, the elf, sat down beside him with a bright smile.L60
qLxsr“Leave me alone.”bW1r
5DfwJ9T“You sigh constantly at the practice field. How could I not notice?”HgjPW
V8JAVVN“You’re the one who’s all chipper. Just a few days ago you had the same wrecked look I do now.”giI
1KNyPZ“Well, I fixed it!”Pids93
MqRdYQAria beamed.vg9
2CZ“You fixed it?”OUkS6A
QPpjqh“Well… not exactly. But they said they’d look into it. No, wait—they didn’t say it outright, but they said they’d investigate.”3jHwM
jic“You talked to senior Fernan.”wJvsSFP
8mOd“Yup. You were wrong.”2VHOol
dHjEw1“Now what?”1BKL
eV8“You said it was just my imagination, all in my head. But Fernan agreed to help me. And you still say it was just my mistake?”ITr4SO
hcuSgUdShe shrugged. And that attitude deeply irritated Verian.8G8Wly
aahZ“You must’ve paid him.”wtOV
agkWOSD“No. He said he’d do it because of our relationship—like a personal favor.”uigj7
2H1EcrThe response came naturally, but after knowing her for over a year, Verian had learned to spot her lies.bU7Y1w
2rDrdC“Right, like that stingy guy would do anything out of generosity.”T6N
ORzhfkQEven if he hadn’t known that, her story didn’t make any sense.i4v
CRBeqBL“Anyway, that doesn’t matter now, right? I’m doing fine and you’re a wreck. That’s what counts.”Yx12L
8Mtcw7“Neither of us matters, so get lost.”pPuxG
alAt2e1“Still frustrated about losing to Aint?”sIuQQWf
DbglLsRAria didn’t even wait for a response. She nodded on her own, as if she already knew.blRm
Ago621“Well, considering you were the only one who passed out in the Andromalius fight—it tracks.”m0ZQIyd
kSxjp37“…I didn’t pass out.”mGlPx
hPwYz2“Then were you just taking a nap?”I8zZwU
JVD3“I heard you ended up full of holes and barely able to move.”8Yj6t
QTWju0y“But I didn’t lose consciousness, at least.”FEpJfq
KNZYVerian thought about insulting her, but instead, he stood up silently.iBFdPuh
JjyCUFIf he kept arguing with Aria in that state of mind, he really would lose his temper.i08piNG
ADUUSAnd as if she knew, Aria didn’t stop him when he walked away.wIFdK
7HROCdN***0mu2tvr
oJKZVerian wandered aimlessly through the city.fRRewBA
EJiLComparing himself to strong people in the crowd was a habit of his when he felt frustrated.8jY5OO
5Xk1twZ‘Strong.’w7v
7UVJ7B‘I could probably beat that one.’LTnpgX
BPpBqkQ‘Weaker than Aint.’E6JXt
8yO‘I can beat that one.’JtFW
dIjNJUntil, without knowing why, he stopped in front of a general goods store.z1v
ngeThere wasn’t a clear reason.jzz
jfOIt was just that, outside the shop, an old, worn-out sword caught his eye.3Sj
z6F21“Welcome!”HlJ5
euj“Can I take a look at that sword?”gJ7g
bDEmc“Of course.”wRHAMr
osXw6It didn’t seem special in any way.XstQd
dhUBut without knowing why, his hand moved on impulse.zY94P
J1rcVAs he examined it, he noticed a tiny inscription on the blade.mOSX
P7Z“What does this mean?”NCPuK
4xykDB8“Oh, that. They say it’s in an ancient script, but no one really knows what it says. There are some old documents related to it, but they’re incomplete.”SfTVRb
wbWSNIU“Old documents?”e1g
qU9sas“Want to see them? I’ve got a book inside that talks about it. Better if you buy it, of course.”qyC9Eue
0XYpVerian stepped into the store.lAVR
rAmo2Zz“This one.”XdDH
gumodThe owner pulled out a very old book.tWUxo
W8AcLBUVerian brushed the dust from the cover and opened it.q5pf
0T1“There’s absolutely noth—”yAlJMv
g4YlBEwIn that instant, his mind went blank.pV7
gVoso‘…What is this?’CDma9
0ArZPPHis body no longer felt like his own.lWJc0
ycLHis thoughts no longer seemed his.HmO1x
vBy5SLike he was floating naked above the ocean, like he was ascending through the air.7Px
CDvL‘……’sR8
9l2And then, something strange—but familiar—slipped into his mind.xqAalZ3
0xEWEEDA sensation he had experienced many times.HvKoncV
2k8jQThe same one that had already ruined him once.kpn4
WpNnbKaA sticky, disgusting, vile energy.vdzPO8
9HRwJQQIt was demonic magic.RSOxPp
FvzHe snapped back to himself in a flash.tjLoVNT
BiSrqbEOnce, when he’d become corrupted without realizing it.P0Q
wryeAnother, when his memories had been tampered with and he repeated the same mistakes.yBKRZsa
4BXp0It had happened to him twice.eGlEA
nFgAnd that had made him stronger.cUAxJM8
3rcbSUHe activated his aura, resisting the demonic energy trying to invade his mind.RS5Y1L
KGvTT9MHis head felt like it would explode.BxX
1xTO2fHis insides were a mess, and he ended up coughing blood.hX2h
ztmzxGuEven so, he clenched his teeth.lHijx4
K421pAgain? You want me to become corrupted again?mWugE
6Y9wEAnd why is it always me, damn it?M0wAMq
TmZu1He fought, over and over, until finally—Q15
DMl“…You screwed me over twice! Think there’ll be a third time, you bastard?!”CXHKii
0AgVerian broke free from the attempted mental manipulation.7s5
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Jose Diaz
MortalGOAT