Chapter 6 - Raising the Count's Family (4)
Ron told Sir Ternoir the truth.
To say nothing had happened, the condition of Dein, Zenon, and Rotan was too poor.
Their bodies were limp, and their faces were swollen and discolored.
It was a state that couldn't be achieved without being punched.
"You should have endured it."
"If it was a problem that could be solved by enduring, I wouldn't have stepped in. As long as they don't believe in my skills, it was bound to happen at some point. Besides, you know as well as I do, sir, that distrust is like a plague, and it's best to deal with it quickly to avoid future trouble."
"That is true."
Radon had no choice but to agree.
To call it rash, the performance Ron had shown was incredible.
To hide his skills now would be to deceive his comrades.
Moreover, the three of them had attacked one guy and gotten beaten up in return, so they deserved it.
'He showed them.'
Everyone was half in doubt about Ron's sudden change overnight.
The kind of people knights were, they generally had a strong competitive spirit.
They were also arrogant.
For now, the afterimage of the attack remained, but they would likely try not to acknowledge Ron even though they saw it with their own eyes.
As with all things, avoiding it won't bring you paradise.
Ron had made the best response.
It was an unspoken threat that if they came at him without knowing their place, he would turn them into the likes of Dein, Rotan, and Zenon.
Radon was not pleased, but to reprimand Ron, practical problems held him back.
He was just resentful of the fact that Ron had deceived him all this time.
"You deceived me so perfectly."
"Rather than deceiving, I think you were the one who was excessively clear in separating public and private matters, sir."
Radon had not favored Ron over the other members just because he had raised and taught him.
Furthermore, unlike at home, he had kept a thorough distance in public.
As Ron pointed that out, Radon found it difficult to speak.
Interpreted literally, it was an impertinent rebuke, accusing him of hiding his skills without looking properly himself.
"Fine, it's all my fault."
"That's right."
"You're not even denying it now?"
"When did I ever deny it?"
"...I suppose not."
For all those long years, he had barely had any private conversations with Ron.
Only necessary words were exchanged in short answers.
"In any case, conduct yourself with prudence. Just because you've achieved something doesn't mean it will be seen in a good light."
"As long as the reason is just, by all means."
It seemed he had said this before.
But now it sounded like he meant he wouldn't stand still if things were unreasonable.
Seeing how the same words sounded different, he realized how wrong he had been about Ron.
Despite Radon's displeased expression, Ron was rather pleased.
'This is what I like about him.'
He might seem to act upright and inflexible as a knight, but Radon had a good reputation within the knight order.
If he had been a mindless, stubborn mule, he wouldn't have been able to maintain favorable relationships.
"So, what do you plan to do?"
"You told me a knight's personal opinion isn't important, so why do you keep asking?"
"Because I'm worried."
"Look at them, it was resolved well, wasn't it?"
Feeling Ron's gaze, Dein, Rotan, and Zenon flinched and turned their heads.
They looked like dogs beaten with mange.
Although he hadn't seen firsthand what kind of violence had been inflicted, its aftermath was visible and highly contagious.
Everyone else avoided his gaze, protesting that they had nothing to do with them.
Jjiing!
Radon's head throbbed.
He really couldn't understand how Ron had hidden such a personality until now.
They say you don't know the heart of a child you carried for ten months, and he had no idea what he had raised.
He had prided himself on his insight as a training instructor not being behind, but he felt like a blind man.
"I know what you're worried about, but my nature is like water. If I were to cause trouble in the knight order, I would have done so long ago. So there's no need to worry at all."
"Are you being sincere?"
"I am a proud member of the Dawn Knight Order who has no shame before the heavens."
Occasionally, he had gotten into fights, but they were resolved amicably like now.
If things didn't work out, he would improvise according to the situation.
'There's no need to only tell the truth.'
Ron didn't consider lying to be an act of betraying someone.
You have to be honest no matter what?
That often created more problems.
Lies and truths should be spoken according to the situation.
Of course, the lie could be revealed later and cause problems.
Whether to reveal it or not is a matter of choice, but there's no need to poke at a wound with the truth.
Above all.
'I can't be sure that I won't make mistakes either.'
In this life, he decided to be strict with others but lenient with himself.
It was a small but certain reward he was giving himself for the stressful life of his past.
'It was resolved well… was it? This wasn't what I intended?'
Hmm.
Just as Radon was about to wrap things up, thinking it was over, he felt like he had been played in the palm of Ron's hand.
Come to think of it, since the attack, he had been constantly dragged around and forced to believe him.
If you trace the lineage, Ron was just the son of a disciple he used to teach, and a trainee knight at that.
In contrast, he was a grand senior of the knight order whose shadow couldn't even be stepped on.
As they say, the fuller the ear of wheat, the lower it bows.
'Do you think the world is a joke?'
Radon decided to sound a warning bell to Ron's arrogance.
It was the truth of the world that not everything flows as one wishes.
"A man who calls himself a knight shouldn't be bullying the weak!"
Ron guessed the intention behind the old man's raised, admonishing tone.
The ears of a knight who has learned Aura are sensitive.
Moreover, all eyes were on them.
For the other knights, the meaning of "don't bully the weak," was, "you're all hella weak."
A knight who wouldn't be affected by hearing this was rarer than a natural monument.
What's more, as young trainee knights, even if they couldn't react in front of them, they would be seething inside.
It was a method of creating a public enemy.
'So that's how you're going to play.'
Social grace was a social contract not to call a scrub a scrub.
How flustered would the scrubs be if you just directly called them a scrub?
You had to maintain minimal etiquette and call them a scrub in a place with few people.
In truth, a knight's pride was a case of ignorance is bliss.
Since the adult threw the first punch, Ron now had a reason to respond.
"I heard that in the old days of the Dawn Knight Order, even trainee knights could emit Aura. To be struggling against mere assassins, what has become of this place, really! Tsk tsk tsk! Truly, the years are cruel. Perhaps, is it a lack of talent? Or maybe, I'd rather not say."
"...Are you saying my teachings were insufficient?"
"It is a lack of aptitude."
Ron was being humble.
"Right, I was never neglectful in my teachings!"
"My late father would know that too."
"...Keoheok!"
Radon, grabbing the back of his neck, had to control his rampaging Aura.
Ron's father, Edan, had ended his life without ever rising from the lowest ranks.
He had hit the wall of talent that he couldn't overcome no matter how hard he tried.
He was the owner of a desperate lack of talent, one that couldn't be filled by effort alone, one that made no progress no matter how much he was taught.
Among Radon's sore spots, Edan was the sorest.
As his regret and pity for him were projected onto Ron, he couldn't bring himself to say that it was because his father's talent was lacking.
Even though this would mean his teachings were poor.
It was a checkmate.
This kid was becoming scarier and scarier.
'Still, that's your father!'
How could he use his father like this?
If he's like this to the father who gave him life, could he even lord over him for raising him?
'Edan, what in the world did you help bring into this world?'
Now, it was hard to say he had grown up well, and strange to say he had grown up wrong.
The more they talked, the more he couldn't judge what kind of person he was.
Nevertheless, one thing is clear.
As much as he is brilliant, he has no manners.
'I suppose it makes sense that the young lady would take an interest in him.'
The young lady who hid her disposition for the greater good of the count's family and the sinister Ron who concealed his skills seemed similar in some way.
Does it take one to know one?
The Count will grab the back of his neck when he finds out.
How can I tell him the truth?
"The me of today would not exist if not for your teachings, sir."
"...Thank you for saying so."
"You are the motto of my life, sir. I'm just sad that my father couldn't grow despite receiving such excellent teachings."
"...I get it, so stop!"
"If only my father had tried a little harder, his son wouldn't have been left alone."
"Enough, will you not shut up!"
If he says shut up, he should shut up.
Ron, after showing due respect to his superior, obediently stepped back.
At Ron's composed attitude, Radon's head throbbed again.
It felt as if his lifespan had been shortened by a good ten years after one tantrum.
He vowed to never get into a war of words with this kid again.
'Still, I shouldn't get angry.... Huh?'
Before he could even reflect on the fact that he had flared up in a fit, the reactions of those around him were strange.
They were all bewildered, as if they hadn't heard anything.
'Could it be, an Aura Barrier?'
An Aura Barrier was a high-level technique that could only be used by an expert of the upper ranks, blocking off a space to limit sound.
However, Radon soon shook his head.
It didn't make sense.
There was no way Ron could be an expert of the upper ranks, and if he had spread an Aura Barrier at such a close distance, he should have felt it.
Even if he was getting old and losing his former senses, he wasn't that senile yet.
'I was being too sensitive.'
Just as Radon was about to end it with that self-reflection, he had to regret it again.
Because he saw Ron, who had been laying low until now, using Dein, Rotan, and Zenon as his personal guard now that his true nature had been revealed.
"I'm the only one who hasn't eaten, bring me my meal."
"...Ah, yes!"
"What's with the formal speech between peers."
"Got it."
"It's uncomfortable to hear you speak informally."
"Yes, sir!"
"Speak comfortably."
"I will."
"It's uncomfortable for me to hear."
"I will do so, sir!"
"It's comfortable, but uncomfortable, what should I do about this?"
Seriously, what do you want me to do!
Dein, Rotan, and Zenon also had to regret.
The fact that they only now realized why the seniors didn't mess with Ron.
They should have told them if they knew.
It was like shouting "Come out, lizard" in front of a dragon's lair.
The trainee knights, to avoid getting hit by stray sparks, not only avoided his gaze but also distanced themselves from Ron.
They felt firsthand that it was beneficial not to get involved with him.
'Commoner or not, it's best not to touch a disaster!'
For the first time, their opinions matched.
The comrades who had all played separately finally achieved a grand unity as members of the Dawn Knight Order.
"It's all thanks to me."
This is why you need to accumulate a lot of virtue.
Considering the virtue he had accumulated in his past life, even Admiral Yi Sun-sin would have to take a step back.
Or not?
Is the Admiral somewhere saving another country again?
"What a sinful life."
Radon lamented.
***
Sunlight passing through the window illuminates the room.
An antique scene unfolded.
Across a desk in an office decorated like a study, a middle-aged man with sharp eyes and a neatly trimmed mustache was having a private meeting with a typical knightly man in uniform.
It was Viscount Rehalt, the lord of the Compane Viscounty, and Guter Venton, the commander of the Storm Knight Order.
Hmm.
The viscount frowned.
If things had gone as planned, a message of success should have arrived by now.
"Even if they are knights, they're made up of fledglings, and Radon is old and not what he used to be. Was the Sword Shadow group just chaff, unlike what is known?"
"It happened within the Leonard County's territory, so it will likely take time to confirm. If you command it, I will take matters into my own hands."
"That's fine. If we try a failed operation again, we'll leave a trail and a difficult situation will arise."
Problems between nobles cannot be pushed with mere suspicion.
Now that the failed attack has raised their alertness, a trace could easily be left behind.
This operation was a measure prepared for the just-in-case.
Although the Leonard County's power had weakened compared to the past, it was a founding contributor family with a long history.
He thought they would only dispatch trainee knights since it was within the Torres territory, but he had overlooked Count Leonard's tendency to be a daughter-fool.
Well, he wasn't the kind of man to send his own daughter into a dangerous place.
Since it has come to this, he had to be certain.
Although he was disappointed about the stake in the mine, he shouldn't show any sign of disappointment when giving it up.
When you give, give without lingering attachment.
That was how Viscount Rehalt had survived in the world of nobility.
As with all things, doing something half-heartedly was worse than not doing it at all.
"Send the message."
"Understood."