Chapter 84: Hilda Ragnar (4)
Kirsion was rubbing her temples once again, irritated by the unwelcome guests who had arrived at the crack of dawn.
“So...”
“Yes.”
“...Theo... that damned... No, I mean, our lo—lovely grandson... sent you, is that it?”
“That’s right...”
“And he offered to do it for ‘free’?”
“Yes, ma’am...”
Tremble!
Kirsion’s hand, which was gripping her long pipe, shook uncontrollably.
She had heard vague rumors that the 5th unit of the White Armored Dragon Cavalry had suffered heavy casualties.
But she never imagined those injured soldiers would be dropped right in front of her.
And for free, no less!
‘That brat... does he think I’m some kind of pushover?!’
The real problem was that she had no way to protest against Theo.
His influence was still skyrocketing.
Even her business ventures were riding the wave of the ‘Theo syndrome,’ growing steadily alongside it.
Of course, that rascal knew all of this, which was why he had dumped the responsibility onto her.
Meanwhile, the trainer and the injured soldiers, oblivious to these dynamics, exchanged uneasy glances.
‘Is this really going to be okay?’
‘Let’s just hold on and see.’
‘Right! Both Evelyn and Theo said it would be fine.’
On their way back after the battle to take Blanky Fortress, Theo had spoken to them as they worried about what might come next.
– Thank you for your words, but do you really think the Vasque Workshop will help? It seems unlikely to me.
– Why do you say that?
– We don’t have any money. And something like this would be expensive. If the master artisan takes it on... well, it’s way beyond the means of ordinary wage workers like us.
– Ah, so that’s what you’re worried about.
– Of course. It’s a legitimate concern for us.
– Don’t worry. Just go and tell her.
– What?
– Just say I promised to do it for free.
– ...?
– You’ll understand what I mean once you tell her.
At the time, they hadn’t understood what Theo meant.
But now that they were here, it all made sense.
‘Who would’ve thought that Lady Cecilia was the adopted daughter of Master Artisan Kirsion?’
‘So that makes Theo, the master’s grandson?’
‘Who knows how this will turn out!’
As the trainer and the injured soldiers’ eyes glimmered with anticipation,
“Haa... I suppose there’s no choice. Since you are my grandson’s... coworkers, I can’t very well charge you, now can I? Haha... Hahaha.”
Kirsion eventually forced a laugh, a strained smile tugging at her lips.
Watching this, the injured soldiers thought to themselves.
‘The master artisan is known to love money and gold, but it seems her affection for her grandson is even more extraordinary, isn’t it?’
A misunderstanding that wasn’t quite a misunderstanding began to spread.
Meanwhile, Kirsion was already calculating how to make the most of this opportunity.
* * *
「...What’s wrong?」
「Oh, my apologies. My ear suddenly felt itchy.」
「I don’t repeat concepts twice. Make sure to grasp it properly.」
「Understood.」
Swaaaang—
Theo and his companions were swiftly traveling toward their destination.
Along the way, Theo was receiving a lecture from Kleve.
‘Is someone talking about me?’
Theo momentarily brushed off the strange feeling and focused on Kleve.
After all, there were only a handful of swordsmen in the House of Ragnar who were qualified as “instructors.”
Evelyn was one of them, but her expertise was in a different field.
‘This is also a gift from the Black Dragon. I can’t let this slip by.’
「What do you think ‘thunder’ is?」
A fundamental question.
「It’s one of the most intense natural phenomena we can witness, or perhaps a natural disaster?」
「Let me ask more specifically. What do you think thunder is composed of?」
「Hmm... Thunder and lightning?」
「Wrong. It’s made of light and heat.」
* * *
‘Heat dispersion. If I mix this with the Wind God technique, I could even create an artificial heatstorm, couldn’t I?’
While Theo, after mastering the breathing technique, was contemplating how to integrate it with his existing skills,
‘He’s a genius...! How can someone have such a deep understanding of this?’
Kleve was utterly astonished by Theo’s extraordinary talent.
Theo was already emitting heat from his body.
The shimmering air rising above his skin was clear proof.
‘He even broke down the principle of heat resonance and applied it to create a derivation of the Nine Incantations.’
Gulp!
Kleve swallowed dryly.
His judgment, his talent—now she completely understood why the Black Dragon had been so agitated whenever mentioning Theo.
She wished that someone like him could have been her apprentice.
‘Our captain’s about to get even busier. Even Black Snow will have his eye on him now.’
Meanwhile, Evelyn chuckled as she imagined Julius pulling his hair out in frustration after seeing this, and Hazel clicked her tongue in amazement, realizing that the talent she’d only heard about was real.
‘He really might pass the promotion test after all.’
However, she remained cautious.
‘Still, it’s too soon to tell. Let’s watch him a little longer, at least until the mission is complete.’
As all the examiners marveled at Theo’s abilities, the group finally reached their destination.
The northeastern city of Kalhelm.
Even at the crack of dawn, lines of merchants had already formed in front of the city gates.
“It’s an artifact engraved with a perception-blocking spell. Everyone, put it on.”
Theo and his companions wrapped themselves in the robes handed out by Kleve. As soon as the embedded magic activated, it became difficult to distinguish one another.
“We can’t leave any record of our visit to Kalhelm, so we’ll sneak over the fortress wall. After that, we’ll immediately storm the ‘Breathing Hill’ inn and kill everyone inside.”
Theo, Evelyn, and Hazel nodded in agreement.
Kleve pulled the hood over her head.
「Then, let’s begin.」
With a telepathic command, the operation started.
Fwoosh!
* * *
Scaling the fortress wall wasn’t too difficult.
Kalhelm was a remote city with few forces interested in attacking it, so it was generally peaceful.
With the added benefit of the perception-blocking magic, they moved stealthily, unnoticed by anyone.
They soon arrived at an old, run-down inn that looked as though it had no customers.
Bang!
Kleve was the first to violently kick the door open and step inside.
“Huh? What’s going on?”
“Who the hell are these people...?”
The inn’s clerk, who had been dozing off at the counter, woke with a start, only to be met with a flash of light.
Shlick!
“Damn it, Antan! These bastards—!”
A companion next to the clerk realized the intrusion and tried to draw his weapon, but Evelyn appeared and decapitated him before he could react.
Sssshh!
After that, Theo and Hazel darted forward, splitting off in opposite directions.
Theo headed to the basement, while Hazel rushed upstairs.
They had already coordinated their movements beforehand—leaving no survivors was the objective.
“They’re upstairs! Block them—!”
Slash, slash!
Theo mercilessly cut down the men trying to rush up the stairs. With every swing of his sword, a heatwave followed, leaving black scorch marks on the walls and floor.
The fact that heat was already radiating from his attacks was proof that Theo had successfully integrated the heat resonance principle into the Thunderlight Breathing Technique.
The improvement in magic efficiency seemed to have increased not only his speed but also his attack power.
‘It even has explosive force.’
“Kraugh!”
“Gah...!”
“Taken down by a brat like this...! Ugh!”
The assassins that faced Theo fell like autumn leaves in a storm.
What made assassins fearsome was their mastery of stealth and their ability to remain hidden. However, in direct combat, they were no match for Theo.
Especially not against someone wielding a Zweihander that combined speed, strength, and range!
Boom!
Eventually, with an explosive blast of heat, the door at the end of the basement hallway burst open, annihilating the enemies in the vicinity.
“This... this can’t be happening...!”
Shudder...
The remaining assassins, paralyzed with fear, could not even think about approaching Theo.
Amid the charred floor, Theo stood, his body enveloped in intense heat, surrounded by pale steam and crackling yellow lightning.
He looked like a demon emerging from the inferno itself.