Chapter 181: Contact (1)
OSvvNThe dark underground was occupied by citizens who could see no light.C5F2FL
hb8O6PADana Shee – an underground city created by Dagda Mor, the Danann of Earth, in the distant past.azPy
IbeQoyThis enormous underground city, which had been made for fairies, was now the hiding spot of demi-humans who gathered in the city to escape persecution.XZeD3
7meAff-Clomp, clompgqS
Eo2ROiOAt the center of that underground world was a large temple-like building. It was a temple at the start – a temple built by the fairies to make offerings to the Danann of Earth who created the underworld of Dana Shee for them.2YHeRK0
Gd6ujwKWalking down the corridor, faintly lit by torches, the feline lady soon arrived at a room with numerous people, which she could see with her nocturnal eyes.gQFEk9W
MyZT“Wolf and Vampire. Even the Fairy elders were waiting.”9z4
TNjxtae“We’ve been waiting for you, Illusan.”gkH
x1fAEdnar glanced across the wide conference room. This temple, which used to host hundreds of believers at once, only had roughly 30 people.YuBM0Wy
FiVKOtGThe conferences held here were organized to direct the new pathway of the Demi-Human Union, so they had to choose their members with caution, but this was still fewer than normal.O116j
2x8“Looks like we’re missing a few.”zVIL
9HCJ“They’re dead. They were helping kids escape the Deadland and did not pass the Full Moon.”q5C
XxAEpwwDeadland… referred to Xeruem, the Chapel of the Old Faith. Demi-human hunts were still taking place away from the eyes of the New Faith and the royal family within the outskirts of the kingdom.gIjIlH7
ygijL“More rules have been coming into place against discrimination but these guys are acting like there’s no tomorrow. This is a bad omen.”gCp
Pi9lyAn old fairy Leprechaun shared their assumption alongside a lament. He managed a small shoe repair shop in the village but was the oldest fairy and was therefore the Chief Elder of Mound.9qsIq
DgJnJ4“Is it the Serpent again?”Xxwi
xMMR7U“…Yeah.”6bvJZ
6TXSerpent – that title was used inside Mound as both a derogatory and frightening term. Countless numbers of their comrades had been captured at the Deadlands and ripped apart by the Serpent.hlleR
bM7C“Damn, that little snake… We should’ve killed her back then.”7gthhh
Ca5jbA black dog growled from the crowd of the wolf and dog beastmen. However, the few who knew of the backstory simply sighed in response.x9a
MkI“…”HRuF
smWFMUA wolf with lustrous silver fur, the Wolf Elder of beastmen, Ku Shee, knew that this agenda was a negative one for him and kept his silence. That was when the Vampire Elder scoffed at him.lNi
5fPRMqK“All thanks to those little doggies that ruined everything ’cause of the Full Moon.”XwiA5
dyLQ8f“What? Glaistig…! Are you picking a fight with me right now!?”HfMnVB
JDuThe provocative statement of a vampire, a rival faction, incited the wolves and the dogs. The Chief Elder of Mound did not wish for a fight between the top two factions of Mound and intervened in their conversation.zov
hhte“Stop there. Blaming the past won’t get us anywhere. This too is one of our mistakes, and a sin we must wear on our shoulders.”6oQ9
6153Ednar didn’t bother commenting. The rage that formed due to that mistake that day was what had been scorching them for a decade.jTxX
QdjC6“As you all probably know already, the New Faith has been going through some serious changes.”bqIgxzb
cXCBefore talking about him, Ednar first shared what was going on around the world.bOCMz
f5Nyvj“…Right. The Saintess massacred the pope and the cardinals.”tFQCqA
YMDe“Wasn’t the Saintess… a supporter of peace?”2jI16a
dIWll“I can’t believe that girl smashed the pope and the cardinals to death.”zXowt
y92The Saintess’ rampage, which immediately changed the power structure of the New Faith was also a concern for Mound. Ever since the Witch Revolution 100 years ago, the Zeon Order had acted as a shield for demi-humans against open persecution.Wu2D
mvDFor the citizens of Dana Shee, who were only alive thanks to the permission of the Zeon Order, it was a concerning matter that they simply could not ignore.k2JG
CLS“…Considering how she was, the Saintess should be on our side though?”xCvCCj
B9G0owiKu Shee opened his mouth for the first time in the conference. He was perhaps one of the ones who benefited the most from the help of the Saintess, and despite him looking down on most humans, he did not do the same for the Saintess.EAza
peqHc“The Saintess is not the problem. What’s important is that the Zeon Order is being cleaned out. Cardinals and bishops alike.”NVH
zaCQpaT“…Don’t tell me…”pbt
uOWc“We found traces of Bishop Gress – the one who we had been supporting to become the next cardinal, fleeing to the Chapel of Xeruem.”fj6R
Iwe“…”3EV
LXCEveryone became silent just like Ku Shee.VEHG2
ffsOnly a few people of the Zeon Order knew of Mound, the union located in Dana Shee. The pope, the Saintess, the cardinals… and a very small number of bishops. Unfortunately, Bishop Gress was one of those few bishops.pRd
QkI“That’s massive trouble! If Bishop Gress speaks a word about Dana Shee…!”Ckv
rcKLdM“It will go into the ears of the Serpent.”9n7Bo
NJPlTThe elders of Mound could not conceal their distress. Ever since that incident, the Serpent had been indiscriminately hunting their comrades in search of them.3ho1SZ
x4C9Everyone in Mound knew upon seeing her irrationally stubborn hatred, that a conflict against the Serpent would not end until one of them disappeared from the face of this planet.lzxke
d4GCThe silence in the room of sighs and lamentations was broken by Ednar’s sentence.YkH
EdV“What if there was a way out of this?”QjWNrT
CDnx“What do you mean?”jnjvrVl
gBJfEdnar decided to share his message, earlier than scheduled. This was a very risky gamble.hbPsAKV
K5JX23n“Korin Lork. He reached out to me.”KUXq
pLIjWhich side would they decide to stand with, she wondered.DipAHS1
1gkQ『Tell them to elect a head of the union, Fairy King Finvarra. It’s an old tradition but that shoe-making fairy should know it.』31hxo
asIbzK『We can lend you a hand if you wish. Join us for the new world.』PLNj0
f5QKorin Lork and a Sage of the Forest, who had contacted them quite some time ago. Whoever they decided to side with, Ednar knew that it would lead to an earth-shattering change.LoJp0Q
wFGVlP***uAh
Z7PPyI recalled the fight I had against Tates Valtazar.9fr
RfQFNPO『Not bad! A bit faster this time!』fNMDRn
tQB0A repetition of Rearing Head of the Venomous Dragon and consistent use of the Domain. Each and every one of his actions was an eye-opening enlightenment.BEUyj4i
5c9Imjr『Don’t be overly conceited with the Domain. It’s not an invincible, overpowered technique. Repeated entry into the Domain sounds great, but there is always a little gap before the activation and reactivation.』Sveep
vj410ZHe commented, treating the Domain, which was the end goal of many warriors, as nothing more than a standard technique.bvaOc
rfWeOpHis strides; the way he held his spear; his sense of balance shifting with each strike and his artistic control over the weapon.JFvBr
Nu9KczCIt was an overwhelming defeat, not only in terms of physical stats but also in terms of control over the spear. I had met countless powerhouses until now, but I had only seen three people aside from him who dominated me in martial arts.UjTK7I
uwrVF3uSword Emperor, Garrand Arden.r8h8zh
j8RoNBhKing of Beauty, Eochaid Bres.EEpzIF
nVXAnd…R0E5eA
gio5T“Don’t lose your focus.”QFrQ9RR
Q852L9tSlam!kSYcP9k
hHfVNlnThe spear stabbed through the gap in my consciousness. Despite the non-lethalizing spell cast on the spear, the stab was still a heavy blow to my vitals.OCY8Fvf
hsC9GJ“Kuhk…!”WTn
Ec8INnRMy body powerlessly crumbled down. I instinctively protected my head to avoid concussion, but I could not breathe due to the stab to my solar plexus.TcYN
kJj“Korin…!”S1W0oO
1H6CThe last thing I saw was the Master hurriedly running towards me after seeing me fall. Now that I think about it, I had never beaten Master a single time until the very end…9N9
cxS………b4jLMs
MRye……SUgihQd
R3bIKs…sgRn
efwNOThere was a soft feeling behind my head. It felt like I was resting my head on someone else. When I opened my eyes, I found Master looking down at me from straight above.2xY
9FW1AJ“How long was I out for?”urdye
CxT0“Around 8 seconds.”aYio
Sp8d“You should have just left me be.”yCBE
5eHHOAI“How could I do that to you?”mAdj
Lj9p30NShe said while stroking my forehead with her soft hands. It was still unbelievable how she was one of the strongest spearmen, despite having such soft baby hands.acuV
z3E“More importantly, does it still hurt? I unconsciously put in too much power.”jzUK5
LAvoNm“I think you’re being too generous to me, Master. You should be more strict.”4L4UZpe
QbcJ“Fufu. Has the me in the future ever scolded you?”mzneo
MGkMHrW“Hmm… I don’t think so.”ox0CE1X
zgvju4“Of course~. Why would I need to be strict to such a wonderful and magnificent disciple?”Aar
xMJFM“…”EOI2Xq
dFidNIt may be nothing new, but this person… is way too doting.yxrsu
CRaCLOI had never heard anything negative or been scolded by her in my life.q6n041
0sjt5“But still~, why don’t you try pretending to be angry at least?”BmIIOS
IBNXg“Hmm…”q9DNns
Ex3av4She looked perplexed after hearing that. After rolling her hand, which was on my forehead, into a fist, she glanced back and forth between me and her fist before finally making a tough choice.J7O2zIg
b2e05F“Gyaooh…”MRzCj5
wbRbIKong!oE2U
7IXMaster said as she gently pressed my forehead with her fist.5pM
elbO4“…What was that?”Jj4l1W
xmDyFMaster embarrassedly shrunk a little in response to my question. She let out an empty cough to chase away the embarrassment but following that was a timid whisper.Z3t
00il“A, a tiger?”ZYtu8BV
FAEHrWas she trying to mimic a tiger just then?J5jfV
itkauIJ“Hahaha…”jOJovor
m6i261vIt was more like a cat than a tiger… a cat soaked in water, at that.I0q
POj“Ughh…”c6ouSrY
lDyuVMaster twitched her toes around, which made my head shake from the top of her lap. She could not straighten her back and her shoulders and instead shifted the topic to a different question.TFVa
heURC“B, by the way, what were you thinking about the whole time?”uuVbN
obV“The fight against Tates.”av7hH
JWul“Ah…”3tntGg
1yp2fg“He might be an enemy, but I have to admit it. He’s strong. Both in pure power and skill… I would need to improve a lot more to fight him on equal grounds.”3AIO5
JSK“I’m sure you can do it.”VWpbq
qCcdI had been dominated despite the 740% amplification. Considering how that was only possible thanks to Dun Scaith, Dumnorix and Eochaid Bres also being present… it would be much less than that in the actual final battle.bom
MqMGN‘The gap in our stats would drop if I make use of his Precept but…’TFFPQ
3QbXcPhysical stats isn’t the only difference in our caliber.nbfGA
R0SsHH“His strength is in his terrifying proficiency of spearmanship and…”qsJjT0b
fl1V“He possesses an otherworldly talent. Calling it simply ‘talent’ wouldn’t be enough.”dexRI
WIPHonestly, the difference between Tates and Master’s spearmanship wasn’t that big. There was only a slight gap between their proficiency in spearmanship but…DiD
OS2Qk“I would probably lose a hundred out of a hundred fights. We only won 80 years ago thanks to Clara’s help.”U62jg6
kchz3“What… exactly is it? I’ve seen Sword Emperor Garrand fight before, and I got a similar feeling from that when I was fighting Tates.”9NfpV0
dUuXHO“Do you know there’s a difference between being strong and being victorious?”Y3FG
iDQ9“…Is this about psychology?”7qlh
9j7kL2Master shook her head and replied.k1ls
veAi8“Sometimes, very rarely in the annals of history, there are beings that are born simply to fight.Bxurj
7SYUKrw“The Danann of Light, Lugh, who contended against Balor the King of Titans, the killer of the Previous God King Nuada, would be one such example.uykKT
V6qGsu“A mysterious talent to defeat a foe that should logically be undefeatable. An otherworldly talent that surpasses any difference in strength and technique – the fortune of victory. There are people who are born with the destiny of winning as if the entire era wants to give them victory as a gift.”nNKs
QJ7I… heard something similar before. From Sword Emperor Garrand Arden, Sword Master Lunia Arden… as well as from the previous iteration’s Master.rvwEa
TtF“You are also in possession of that disparate talent. Think back on your fights. Have you ever overwhelmed your opponent in any of your battles?”QOd4O0s
rcA“For most of them… no.”Sfzo
O2PuFor all my fights, I prepared myself as much as I could. There was the support from my Precepts, and I always strived to gather everything that would let me come out victorious. That was how I was able to win.YAP
Y2a3“Whether it be power, weapon, geographical location or fortune… There’s the talent of being able to pour everything into the sole purpose of victory—”1X7V
z14E—The talent of victory.glDwymN
MDFLyDThat was what she added.kvn
tf5o“Right now, you might be weak and inadequate. However, I can tell you for sure, that you have the destined talent of a hero. And your talents aren’t any worse than Tates’.”1wwv9I
bgjY“That doesn’t… feel real though.”SmOV4
sXmQI used to be a normal person on Earth, living a life far from violence.U1dj
YDkF1Do I really possess a talent like that?v1JDhSG
rqfDFn“Whatever the case, I need to awaken my talents as soon as possible, because I will be fighting against him in the near future.”kqRft
bOOYKc“Is that how it went in the future you’ve experienced?”Y3SVr5z
wIt“…Yes.”zs2YX1
bTZHThe unforgettable nightmare of you saving me with your life as the price.Pvk
i9NT“Dear child, my beloved disciple. Your Master will protect you no matter the cost. I have no doubts that your talents will bloom and that you will continue my legacy—”cKltM
EhViJrMI lifted my fingers and pinched Master on her nose.YsQlEg
UwUNkBI“W, what was that?!”q09ZRn
I6iEKT“I told you not to say anything like that.”cosh9ex
lRi“Uht… B, but I’m your Master…”LaIdVu
ZvLlzL“If you keep saying that, I won’t even treat you like my Master.”pWJOJKx
70Ev“T, that’s a mean thing to say.”gVfx
hJjBI pondered while looking at her reddened nose. This person was always so eager to sacrifice herself and I didn’t like that.iPIKxnU
BRmq18“You’re the one being mean.”EBoAlV
Lg5KTurning my head, I rubbed my face on her thighs and her belly to act like the ‘child’ she suggested I was.WHg3ke
X2X“Don’t die no matter what happens. If you do that again… I won’t forgive you.”isbZ
vNjOm“Htt…!”PjMki
PMmT“Answer me.”e31jL
zSjpxI“Haa… How can I say no when you say that?”Zleq3Y
p2NkOf course, you shouldn’t, and don’t try to beat your disciple in an argument!duZArNX
Dvs“Master, you have to live with me for an eternity. You have no choice but to live forever with your disciple here.”Q7AS7PQ
Wky5d1N“H, huh? T, that’s… Fuu…”bEe
SgMjP0For some reason, her voice sounded like a candy melted by sunlight. I turned my eyes to the sky and found her covering her bright red face with her two hands.r35SZp
802C“Master?”vSH2W
8qk6uXX“Ugh… Let’s, let’s stay like this for now.”lKQA
uKiaI wonder what’s wrong with her?bXMHiz
aW32UMThis did happen in the last iteration as well, but it was happening more often in this iteration. Well, that was what my Master was saying so I didn’t have any choice as the disciple. Besides, I could rub my face on her soft thighs so it was a win for me as well.2DEb8
CxfNj02-Jiing!Wh47
vZl“Oh dear.”G0dEJIs
Qh7pbgjUnfortunately, an end came to this joyous period of time.DOvHw4
CYz2fVI“Student Korin. As you said… What are you doing?”WA0pm
CBnaeI turned around and saw Lady Josephine looking at me with a frown.tgkYkDb
iCvba“Can you lend me your lap as well, Professor?”iN4stI
EkxSKcB“Haa… Now is not the time for this. Student Korin, everything went as you said.”VWd
7hSIDKT“So…”2nduhk
4MbB8“Yes. It’s looking slightly dangerous. We have to start moving.”pKZu5
JH3mR“5 days before the start of the new semester, huh? Later than expected.”p5S65
kcyxL1“Korin, is this about what you mentioned before?” Master asked.H5D0
Zp4k“Yes. Well, it’s still going according to plan.”iIPV
FhzErQWe didn’t even have to bother mentioning the specific details again to make sense of what was happening. For security purposes, it was a secret shared only between us three.1tqS
7Y2The final event that would be decorating this long summer holiday was picked up by Lady Josephine’s radar.csJ
4OzOm“Now, let’s prepare ourselves. It’s the final event before a new semester, so let’s get this done quickly. Do you still have the thing I gave you? Wear that on your head.”8MkBg
AGdL“Nn… I do have it because you gave it to me, but why?”oul
dMdIuhj“Don’t ask questions; there’s a reason for everything. You too, Professor Josephine.”j8Vf6b
MccY2C“…Wouldn’t a mask be better if we are hiding our identities?”Z8Jkj
XsD“It’s not like I’m planning to though?”DmaWQK
e2xR9I said while wrapping the cloth circlet around my head, making sure in the process to have the little scratch at the front.e3HM6x
F7I7b***xng
HaoHThey, who were attacking the freshman students who were returning to Merkarva Academy along with the new semester, were stopped by an unexpected foe.zzGX
Zk4sDespite standing before dozens of professional assassins, the young man didn’t seem frightened in the slightest. He looked young, but there was not a single light of caution or fear in his eyes.arKw
eKCuO“Hmm…”SRaP
1vCFkrC“Haa…”xcy84F
ff2w4FAnd standing behind him were two ladies wearing cloth circlets with a strange mark at the front. He, who appeared with a beautiful lady on each of his sides, waved at the student who had been the target of the group of assassins.hQFZ
Y12x“Junior Rashid. Long time no see.”8jw0wqx
CKG“S, senior? Chairman and Senior Professor?!”mNVTS
o5diThe target said with a stupefied face, which agitated all the assassins present. The chairman and the senior professor of the Academy? They didn’t know much about the chairman, but there was only one Senior Professor at Merkarva Academy, and that was the Dimensional Witch.Om4LTD
37Xzaa“Oi, you folks.”Thkq
q3Lc2The young man who appeared with such big shots behind him asked a question while gazing down at the assassins.SgP
txOyV“Do you know why we are strong?”SbGicy
hJGlZWhat the heck was this about? The assassins wondered, but before they could even say anything, the young man started shouting as if he had been longing for this moment and a chance to say the phrase.BvudWMa
2Y6DX“It’s because we are Rogue Ninjas— Uhk! Professor Josephine!?”3fFZGu
m12z“You’re embarrassing us so please stop doing that.”rM77CWw
Sz4“Clara… Why are you being so mean to Korin?”Ist
xRgXMK“…What?”k1YrW
IhpP““…””Rpg
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