Chapter 23:

Chapter 23:

The assault on the Wall of Glory had a devastating effect on the Empire, as Abel had predicted. It wasn’t that the enemy was overwhelmingly powerful or the defenses were particularly weak; it was the emergence of an entity with unique abilities that hasn’t been discovered yet and their intelligence.

It meant that the strategy for dealing with the Colossus and its forces would have to be thoroughly changed from the foundation. Even after a few days, there was still a lot of confusion.

Abel was given a few days of rest, along with the other cadets in the special class, with the promise of a great reward later. So far, it was expected, but there was one thing Abel wasn’t expecting at all.

‘It’s incredibly burdensome.’

Flaming red hair. He had an equally red beard, sharp eyes, and massive muscles that showed through his clothes. And a grim appearance. It was easy to recognize who it was. Abel cautiously opened his mouth.

“It is an honor to meet you, Duke Del Kior...”

The Duke of Del Kior. He was the lord of the Duchy of Del Kior and Hannah’s father.

‘Why on earth–’

Abel hadn’t expected a private audience with the Duke. The Duke’s visit to the Academy wasn’t all that unusual, as the Duke was known for loving his daughter incredibly, so it’s not unexpected that he’d come running to the Academy within a month after hearing about his only daughter’s near-death experience.

‘The question is, why did he single me out for a private meeting?’

Abel looked nervously at the Duke of Del Kior.

“Hmm”

The duke looked at Abel while stroking his beard and then spoke.

“You said you are Abel Klein, right?”

“That’s right.”

“They said that the damage would have been much if it wasn’t for you.”

“Oh, that... I just did the best I could do in that situation.” Abel stuttered for a moment, but thankfully, he could respond politely.

The Duke was silent for a while, then suddenly took out something and placed it on the table.

“I look forward to your future performance. This is my personal gift.”

“Ah... thank you.”

The suddenness of the situation took him aback, but he was able to respond in time. But what happened next was even more baffling because as soon as the Duke heard Abel’s answer, he stood up.

“Well, then. I’ll see you later,” He said, walking out the door.

Abel stared blankly at the door, lost in thought,

‘Why did he call me here?’

His mind seemed to be stuck on a situation he couldn’t understand. Abel scratched his cheek, and without thinking, he reached out to the pouch on the table and opened it, and an exclamation escaped his lips.

“Whoa. This is crazy.”

Inside were a bunch of gold coins.

»————- ★ ————-«

It was easy to see why the Duke of Del Kior had asked for a private meeting and why he had suddenly presented him with a pouch of gold coins. It wasn’t long after he had finished his meeting with the Duke that Hannah came to him.

“Whoa. You sure my Dad didn’t say anything weird?”

“Yes. But can I really have this?”

“Sure, he gave it to you. So, of course, you can take it. As long as you don’t say anything weird.”

Hannah said that and quickly left, saying she needed to catch up with her dad. This was what she said to Abel when she showed up unexpectedly after the meeting.

After the events of the Wall of Glory, Hannah had a conversation with the Duke and told him about Abel’s exploits. Hearing that, the Duke showed interest in Abel and asked for a private meeting with him as soon as he arrived at the Academy.

Abel watched Hannah’s back as she walked off into the distance and thought to himself, ‘She has a similar personality to the Duke.’

Especially in the way she says what she wants to say and then walks away. Abel looked at the pouch in his hand and stuffed it into his pocket first. It was a good thing, because the more money he had, the better. Even though he received some support from Count Klein, it was still nice to have a lot of money at his disposal.

‘It’s good I know where to spend my money on.’

Abel thought to himself as he slowly walked away. He hadn’t showered since he woke up, and his stomach rumbled from his time alone with the Duke. He went to the cafeteria, intending to eat first, but as soon as he walked in, the eyes of the cadets who were eating were focused on him.

There were many cases of him receiving attention before, but now cannot be compared to then. This time around it was on a whole different level.

‘I’ll get used to this.’

He didn’t feel overwhelmed or smug about it. This was nothing compared to what he had planned and aimed for.

“Abel!”

He put food on his plate and looked for a seat when someone called out to him. He turned and saw Daniel waving at him. It seemed he’d waited until he loaded his plate before calling him over. Next to him sat Charlotte and Lian. Abel walked over and sat down in an empty seat.

“How are you feeling?”

As soon as he was seated, Daniel asked a question. Abel nodded his head.

“Uh. I’m okay.”

After the battle, Abel passed out. It was because he used all the power he had and the power he didn’t have. Abel woke up 12 hours after he had collapsed, so it was only natural for him to be worried.

He had deliberately kept a sharp momentum since he stepped out of the carriage. He knew this street way too well because he belonged to this street until recently. No matter how low his life may be, he knows that no one will play with his life.

Kang, Caang-!

After walking for a while, he heard the sound of metal banging in the distance. Abel grinned at the familiar sound. As he walked to the place where he heard the sound, he saw a huge building that was incomparable to the shabby buildings around me.

He was used to big buildings now, but his jaw dropped when he first saw that building. Abel looked up at the workshop building and remembered his past. The first time he met Vulcanus.

‘I once asked him why a man with so much money will settle in a place like this,’

Vulcanus’s answer was simple.

‘One is only a real customer if they are willing to come to a workshop in a place like this. I have no intention of accepting fake customers.’

Abel gave him a dumbfounded look that time when he heard his answer. Abel smirked and walked toward the workshop.

Kang-!

The sound of hammering grew louder as he approached. Abel saw the name of the workshop above the large door:

[Vulcanus Workshop]

It was a very simple name. Abel approached the building without hesitation, opened the door, and stepped inside. The first thing he saw was a wooden cash counter and a woman standing there.

“Come on..... Oh my!”

She spoke in a tone full of annoyance, and when she spotted Abel, her eyes widened.

“Abel?”

“Yes. I haven’t seen you in a long time.”

“What’s the matter with your tone? I told you to speak formally.”

The woman grumbled, but she didn’t hide her pleasure. Her name is Kaya. She works at the workshop. Her job is to scan customers. If a customer comes, she gets annoyed. When she gets bored, she spreads out and sleeps.

Abel had wondered why she hadn’t been fired, but the reason was deceptively simple. It was because Kaya was the daughter of Vulcanus. Abel smiled at Kaya and said.

“Okay, I’ll try. Where’s the boss?”

“He’s inside. Go in.”

“Aren’t you going to get mad at me for interrupting your work?”

“Since when do you care about that?”

“That’s true.”

Abel chuckled and nodded in response to Kaya’s profound answer. Kaya was the only one in the workshop close to his age, so he felt pretty close to her. Kaya waved at Abel as he headed inside.

“Come back alive.”

“I’ll try.”

Abel waved back and headed inside. He could feel the heat getting stronger as he stepped inside the door. Then there was the sound of people talking. The Vulcanus workshop is as busy as it is huge. Inside, large men were bustling about, and when one of them spotted Abel, he opened his mouth in surprise.

“Uh, Abel!”

“Abel?”

They waved their hands from where they worked, showing signs of welcome.

“Long time no see, everyone!”

Abel continued to walk inward, accepting greetings in moderation. When he arrived at the innermost part of the workshop, he finally saw the person he had come to see.

“Vulcanus.”

Kang, cang, kang-!

Instead of answering, a sharp noise pierced his ears. Abel crossed his arms as he watched Vulcanus, who was sweating and hammering. Vulcanus only raised his head after nearly 10 minutes of hammering.

“You came too soon.”

Abel smiled in response to Vulcan’s question.

“Did you receive the package well?”

“Yes. If it wasn’t for that, I would have told you not to interrupt and come later.”

He smiled back. Vulcanus is an excellent craftsman. And, like any great craftsman, they were obsessed with rare materials. Abel asked to move all the Telesiums he ripped off from Karl last time to be brought here.

“What the hell do you want me to make with 11kg of Telesium?”

“Isn’t that already decided?”

Abel gave him an answer, which he had thought of beforehand.

“A weapon. A huge two-handed sword, please.”

Abel wanted a particular offensive weapon.

[To be continued.]