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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 9
Chapter Title: Heavenly Death Star Became a Racist
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Bator, a member of the covert squad under the Ravelion Kingdom's Intelligence Department.
He couldn't hide his shock as he stared at the feral boy before him.
'He noticed my presence?'
Bator wasn't particularly outstanding in raw combat strength, but he was a seasoned tracker when it came to tailing targets.
Under the right conditions, even a Master-level powerhouse wouldn't sense his presence.
Of course, it was only natural that no one should detect it.
It was just that Enoch, who had abnormally honed senses from constantly trying to detect Rionne's presence, was the outlier.
Rumble—!
A thunderclap roared, and a blinding flash seared Bator's eyes.
From within that brilliant violet lightning burst a single ferocious beast.
By all rights, a clash of force shouldn't have happened here, but...
"Tch, gotta subdue him first..."
Bator drew his dagger in an instant and kicked off the ground.
Thud— With a light push, his lithe body vanished.
He rebounded off the alley wall once, then off a spray of debris, slipping behind Enoch in a blur.
[There he is.]
The spirit who locked eyes with him clicked her tongue.
[Why are you fighting so poorly!]
Even as his mind reeled, a flash sparked at his feet.
His startled gaze dropped to the ground.
A magic circle. Split-second judgment—he launched himself away.
Flash—!
Lightning surged skyward, charring one of his feet.
"Guh...!"
Bator gritted his teeth against the pain and looked ahead.
The boy was charging.
The lightning coiling around his hand was clearly a form of hand qi.
Bator hurriedly coated his dagger in sword aura.
Sword aura and hand qi.
Techniques to amplify destructive power using mana.
And symbols as well.
Emblems of Experts, the realm called the knights' pinnacle, the starting point of superhumans.
'An Expert at that age, and he even uses magic?'
Realm aside, the techniques were all too familiar.
Maybe the kingdom's assessment was right after all.
Bator cursed his own ignorance for dismissing it as absurd.
"Hup...!"
Clenching his teeth, Bator desperately swung his dagger.
Enoch countered effortlessly.
Creak—
Two fingers hooked like a claw, yanking the dagger toward him.
Bator's guard wide open.
Horrific lightning gathered in Enoch's other hand, shining blindingly bright.
"W-Wait...!"
As Bator desperately cried out,
"Enoch."
Killing intent vanished from Enoch's eyes like it had been washed away.
Soon, with round, cute eyes, he toddled over and hugged the voice's owner.
"Rionne?"
"What's going on?"
"That guy's been tailing us."
Enoch pointed at Bator.
Bator steadied his numb body and barely managed a bow.
"W-Wait! It's a misunderstanding!"
The Sword Queen was one of the more lenient superhumans.
In case of emergency, he had orders to reveal his identity.
Catching his breath, Bator continued.
"I'm Bator from the kingdom's Intelligence Department. We received word that the Sword Queen had taken a human disciple, so I... just in case..."
Rionne cut him off.
"Tell the king."
"...Yes."
"If you touch Enoch, it's war."
The Sword Queen was a family outcast.
It was an arrogant declaration to challenge a kingdom single-handedly, but Bator couldn't dare speak up.
Her prowess aside, his body physically wouldn't move.
>
It felt like every bit of air around him had turned into swords aimed at his throat.
Only after the Sword Queen released the pressure could Bator finally speak.
"...Yes."
"Get lost."
Bator obeyed without question.
Once the man was gone, Undine pounded on Rionne's arm in the ruined alley.
[Rionne! Rionne!]
"What... My head already hurts enough."
[That's not the point right now! That kid Enoch! What the hell did you teach him!?]
Rionne furrowed her brow.
What did she teach him?
She'd seen the whole thing—what was this about?
[Do you know what he said?]
The spirit spilled every word she'd overheard in vivid detail.
How this cocky brat had spouted racist drivel as naturally as breathing...!
Hearing it, Rionne was utterly appalled.
"Enoch...!?"
Enoch knew it too.
That this wasn't something to be praised for.
So he mumbled excuses.
"No... I mean, humans are inferior, right?"
"Enoch...!!???"
Rionne looked like she might faint on the spot.
The child she'd raised with such care, spewing racist nonsense...!
And Enoch himself was human!
"E-Enoch...! Racism is bad."
"...But elves are way superior to humans."
"No! Humans are plenty talented too! Look at the continent—humans control the most territory!"
Even if that was the achievement of one individual, not the race.
Still, humans did hold the broadest lands.
And Rionne was the one who'd taught Enoch that.
"That's 'cause the emperor's exceptional, not humans in general."
"Ah..."
"Mana affinity and spirit affinity are both way higher for elves."
"Ugh..."
"Physically superior too."
"Hng...!"
"And way better-looking. The race of beauty."
Since when did Enoch argue this well...?
Panicking, Rionne flapped her mouth wordlessly.
No.
This wasn't the time.
She had to talk Enoch down properly.
"B-But Enoch, you're human yourself, and you're way better than other elves your age. I couldn't do anything at your age!"
"That's 'cause it's me being awesome, not humans."
"Ah..."
True, but...
Rionne's eyes began to lose focus and tremble.
Nothing to say to that...!
And that was his opening.
Sensing it keenly, Enoch landed the finishing blow.
"Plus, humans don't even live a hundred years. Elves, beastkin, dragons, even those shortstack dwarves live centuries."
"...What? That puppy I raised back in the day lived over a hundred..."
No, wait.
She couldn't let herself be convinced.
"B-But Enoch! We're all intelligent beings. We live together, so that kind of view isn't good."
"Humans keep kidnapping elves, so relations are bad."
"..."
What have I been teaching him all this time...?
Thinking back, most of Enoch's common knowledge came from Rionne.
She realized her education had a massive flaw.
"No...? Wait. Humans don't even live a hundred years?"
She'd never taught him that.
She hadn't even known it herself.
Human lifespans weren't some big secret, but Rionne had zero interest in humans, so she'd never bothered learning.
She didn't even know how long forest honey badgers lived—why would she know about humans?
"Ah."
Enoch realized his slip and shut his mouth.
"Ugh..."
Rionne clutched her complicated head.
Anyway, the priority now was Enoch's moral education.
"Enoch, you can't discriminate like that. If I suddenly became powerless, would you ignore and discriminate against me?"
"No..."
"And honestly, elves aren't that superior either. Just look at dragons."
Dragons did tend to look down on other races for that reason.
"Anyway... this is a problem."
Rionne regretted her past offhand remarks dismissing dwarves.
Elves and dwarves had bad historical relations, so it was a habit.
Maybe that's what planted these ideas in Enoch.
"Enoch, come with me."
Rionne resolved herself.
She'd buy books on racism at the bookstore, study up, and guide Enoch's thinking straight.
But the tight-lipped Enoch had a different resolution.
Dragons superior to elves?
Unacceptable.
Make elves great.
If dragons were superior to elves, he'd just flip that around.
Then ignoring other races wouldn't really be racism, right?
[...What a mess this is.]
Haah...
The spirit watching from the side sighed as if the world were ending.
*
Back in the forest, Rionne immediately shelved all other lessons.
The top priority now: character education!
If Enoch veered further off course here, he might become a continental menace!
She studied racism and human lore, uncovering new facts.
'Oh, humans consider 20 the age of adulthood?'
Elves didn't have a fixed age.
Rite of passage makes you adult; otherwise, roughly around then.
That was the vibe.
As early as 80 for the rite, no later than 150 usually, so over 150 counts as adult.
Adulthood didn't change much anyway—just do it before marriage, elves figured.
'And most humans never even awaken to mana...? For real?'
Rionne tilted her head.
The village aunties back home coated kitchen knives in sword aura, sometimes even sword beams. It didn't click.
That passing elf? Expert. That one over there? Master.
Wasn't that normal?
She kept reading, and surprisingly, it hooked her—Rionne pulled an all-nighter.
The next day.
"Hmm... Maybe elves are a bit superior to humans after all...?"
[Hey! You lunatic!]
*
"Ahem. Anyway, Enoch. You can't divide people by value like that. Sure, there might be priorities in terms of combat power or national systems, but every person is a precious life."
"Uh-huh..."
Enoch seemed not to fully get it, but Rionne wasn't too worried.
With over a hundred years left...
"Ah...!?"
Oh no.
Enoch was 13 now.
Humans reach adulthood at 20.
She only had 7 years left to teach him...!