Chapter 8

Chapter 8 – Master

In order to live, you must kill your comrades.

You’d think there would be at least a little bit of hesitation.

Splurt!

“A-Argh! Taymun, you son of a bitch!”

“Shut up! You need to die so I can live!”

However, I gave them too much credit.

In the end, trash was just trash.

It reinforced my philosophy that people aren’t worth trying to change.

A carnage unfolded right before my eyes, and the last standing survivor was predictable.

“Huff, huff, huff.”

“So you’re not the boss for no reason.”

The survivor was Ben-Hur, the minion boss.

“Very well, I’ll let you live.”

“Th-thank you.”

“Stand by for a moment...... No. First, clean up these corpses.”

“Under...... Understood, sir!”

Ben-Hur’s face brightened, as if he was worried that I would break my promise, and he began to clean up inside.

“Master!”

I turned to see Harun staring at me with a twinkle in his eye.

“The hell do you mean, ‘master?’ Have you gone insane?”

“I should have called you master earlier, I apologize for being late. Please accept this disciple’s bow!”

With that, Harun slumped to the ground without a second thought.

Then he scrambles back to his feet and gives a thumbs-up.

“You’re the best! The best! I didn’t think you could even kill that knight!”

“.......”

At the sight of Harun’s antics, I laughed to myself.

Well, offering encouragement at times like this is part of being a true teacher.

“That’s the sword technique you’re going to learn.”

“......!”

Shiver.

The excitement on Harun’s face grew.

“You can do it, too. So work hard to learn it.”

“I’ll try really hard, I promise. Thank you so, so much.”

Harun’s eyes filled with tears.

I shrugged it off and deliberately touched the knight’s lying body with my toe.

“Alright, alright. Just don’t be like this guy.”

“Oh, right! By the way, didn’t you say earlier that there was a reason why these guys were allowed to run rampant?”

“I did.”

“What is it? The reason.”

It was a casual remark, and I hadn’t expected Harun to care about it.

“Because the world is generous to those who already have plenty.”

Conversely, the world is also infinitely harsh on those with nothing.

“Ah...... Then I’ll learn this sword technique and become a knight that’ll change that rotten world. That way, I can repay the master who taught me.”

“That wouldn’t be too bad.”

Having a goal, even if it’s impossible, is a great way to grow.

“What kind of swordsmanship did you learn, master? I’m sure you know even more amazing techniques than the one you taught me, right?”

“Of course I know many.”

“As expected!”

“You’re mistaken about one thing, though. I’m not exactly what you’d call a knight.”

“Huh?”

My next words startled Harun.

“Of course I’m skilled with a sword, but I’m also confident with other weapons.”

“H-Hold on a minute, master.”

Harun interrupts, confused.

“How’d you learn all this when we’re at the rock bottom of society?”

“I picked up little bits of this and that from here and there.”

Again, it was not in a warm home that I spent my past life, but on the battlefield of death.

Would your skills grow if you train to the death with just a sword?

In peacetime, perhaps.

Since you could simply spend your days relaxing and playing war games.

“Then?”

“There’s a saying that there are Three Heavens, Five Stars, and Twelve Superhumans in the continent of the recent past. They’re called the Twenty Strongest Masters of the continent, and they contain every single one of the masters of the empire.”

“Hmm.......”

I sighed inwardly.

As expected, the Empire had become even more powerful than it had been.

“Someone like me wouldn’t know much about them, but it’s said that the skill of the Masters, especially those called the Three Heavens, is beyond imagination. It’s to the point where literally calling them the heavens is justified.”

“Who are the Three Heavens?”

“Theorg, the Knight of Flames, Elunber, the Knight of Full Moon, and finally Eisenberg, the Undefeated Knight. That’s all.”

“.......”

My jaw dropped.

I knew all three of them.

The men who had driven me to my death.

They were the Eight Pillars of the Empire twenty years ago.

“So they’re all dogs of the Empire.”

“That’s correct, sir.”

My blood boils.

I’m grateful they’re still alive and kicking.

The higher you are, the greater the fall.

‘So, what should I do now?’

First of all, I need to gather power here, on the outskirts.

That hasn’t changed.

However, what I do next is important.

‘It’s not a bad idea to return to the homeland of this body after I’ve gained some power.’

I should take advantage of whatever is available.

After all, I’m a prince, aren’t I?

I don’t know exactly what the internal situation is there, but if I can become the ‘king’ of a duchy......

I could take on the Empire, country by country.

A small smile tugged at the corners of my mouth.

“...... Hey. The Heavens, Stars, and Superhumans or whatever— who the hell decides that? Unless the Masters have fought each other in battle, I doubt even the parties themselves would be able to determine the superiority of their skills.”

“It’s a result of them fighting each other directly. In the Masters’ Battle.”

“Masters’ Battle?”

“Yes. Don’t you know?”

Seeing me frown slightly, Ben-Hur quickly continues.

“It’s a kind of competition where masters from different countries compete against each other.”

“Oho.”

An exclamation escapes my lips.

This was a good opportunity to objectively evaluate my opponents.

“How often is this Masters’ Battle held?”

“Every four years, I believe, with this year being the third Masters’ Battle.”

If this is the third Masters’ Battle, it’s not that old.

If I’m going to use the Masters’ Battle to seek revenge, I’ll have to wait until the fourth or fifth time around.

I need at least that much time to regain my strength.

“What are the requirements for participation in the Masters’ Battle?”

“I understand that only one master from each country can participate, and they must be nominated by the king.”

“So it’s a battle of nations, of sorts.”

Then that’s the end of the story.

I can represent the Hart Kingdom in the Masters’ Battle.

I cannot return to this body’s homeland right now.

I don’t know what kind of harm the queen would do to an exiled, thorn-in-the-side prince if it became known that I had returned.

I would rather become a nobleman of a kingdom I have no ties to and a Master of the continent, and return to the Duchy of Meeke with gold.

‘I need to get a title first.’

To do so, he had to earn his way into the nobility.

However, you can’t just go to the king, show him your skills, and whine for a title.

But I also don’t feel like taking the academy exams and working my way up the ranks.

How shameful would it be to hang out with those greenhorns at my age?

“...... Wait. Come to think of it, didn’t you say that the person trying to buy us was a count?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Counts and higher are the so-called high-ranking nobles.

That means he must have a lot of connections to the capital.

A smile tugged at the corners of my mouth.

I had just thought of a good idea.