Episode 17
“Six.”
Thud!
Teo set the barbell down much more smoothly than before.
Though he was breathing heavily, he didn’t look as ragged as before.
Now he seemed completely accustomed to the movement.
“You succeeded today.”
Luke said in a dry voice.
Teo pouted at his reaction.
“Is that all the reaction I get?”
“I did what I was supposed to do. What more of a reaction do you need?”
“Cold-hearted bastard.”
Though he said that, Luke was satisfied inside.
Because Teo’s muscles were accepting mana much better than expected.
Talent truly was a frightening thing.
This much of a foundation was enough.
Now he just had to wait for the research on the secret manual in the laboratory to finish.
If he learned the genuine secret manual containing the essence of the Schnelden family, it would be like adding wings to an ogre.
And if he mastered that as well, only then could Luke teach him the new core formation method that he had been unable to pass down during his lifetime.
Luke hoped that day would come soon.
“Shall we stop the workout here for today?”
“Already? It’s only been an hour.”
Regret lingered in Teo’s voice.
“I have things to do.”
“You’ve been getting a bit neglectful of my training lately. You’ll be sorry.”
“Unlike you, Hyung, I have a lot to do.”
“What things? The maids do the housework. You just need to watch my exercise.”
“You don’t know we’re on austerity measures these days? You have maids because you’re the eldest son, but Sowol Hall only has a butler.”
“If you’re that short-handed, I’ll tell Rahitz to help you out.”
Just what did he usually think of Rahitz for words like that to pop out?
Luke mourned for Rahitz internally.
“I have a lot to do besides housework.”
“Like what?”
“Things for the family.”
“What are they?”
“Don’t pry so much into your younger brother’s private life.”
“Then spot me for just one more set before you go!”
“I’m busy.”
Luke spun around.
Then, as if he’d thought of something, he looked at Teo again.
“Why? You’ll do one more set?”
“No. I’m going to sneak out soon without others knowing, so tell Rahitz to keep it a secret.”
“What sneak out all of a sudden? Then what about my workout? I won’t allow that outing.”
“Why, are you afraid you’ll be bored without me?”
“W-what are you talking about!”
“Isn’t that it?”
“It’s because of my workout. It’s not like I mean anything else by it...”
“Oh, really?”
“What’s with that expression? Anyway, I won’t allow the outing.”
“Do I need your permission to go out?”
Luke grinned.
“And if you want to order me around, beat me in a spar first.”
“Damn it. Even if it’s out of spite, I’ll catch that bastard one day.”
Teo grumbled and lifted the barbell again.
Because he knew that to achieve that goal, he needed much more training than now.
How much longer did he exercise?
This time, he sensed a different presence.
At first he thought it might be Luke, but it couldn’t be Luke—someone who couldn’t even hide their footsteps.
As he expected, the presence was not Luke but a maid.
“Young Master Teo, a letter has arrived from Young Master Marun.”
“I told you I don’t read letters when I’m working out.”
“I’m sorry. But they said it was very urgent.”
It was a reply that would have earned her a slap in the past.
The maid squeezed her eyes shut without realizing it.
But Teo just sighed and held out his hand, showing no other reaction.
She carefully handed over the letter.
[Dear Lord Teo Schnelden, it is a time when unseasonably warm days continue in Norden. Should we not warm our hearts further so that the jealous blizzard of circumstance cannot seep into our collars? ...]
The letter was full of flowery rhetoric, but in summary, it was an invitation to drink and have fun since it was summer and the weather was nice.
At the word “alcohol,” his eyes sparkled for a moment.
It had been over two months since he’d secretly gone out to Norden and been caught by Luke, not a single drop touching his lips since then.
‘They’re calling me so persistently, should I go just once?’
Around the time he had that thought, he remembered something Luke had often said.
“One drop of alcohol costs 0.1g of muscle. Go ahead and drink your fill. You can just work out that much more.”
When those words came to mind, his body twisted in revulsion.
He’d been working out with such hellish effort, only for it all to go to waste...
Just from thinking about alcohol, he even had the illusion that muscle was already draining from his body.
Shouldn’t he at least endure until he finished building his body?
Once his thoughts reached that point, his desire for alcohol decreased significantly.
No, he almost began to feel revulsion toward alcohol.
“This won’t do. I should tell them clearly that I’m quitting drinking this time.”
He jumped up from the bench.
“I’m going to Norden, so prepare for it.”
“Yes, understood.”
The maid returned to Cheongsang Hall first.
And only after doing one more set of bench presses to shake off the guilt of thinking about alcohol did Teo finally leave Baek-eun Hall.
* * *
It was when evening was approaching that Luke came out of his room.
His body was soaked in sweat.
He looked just like a knight who had finished arduous training.
This was because he had been cultivating mana all day.
He had intended to do more, but something was bothering him.
‘Teo hasn’t returned yet?’
He couldn’t sense Teo’s presence in the main house at all.
It seemed he had gone out to Norden in the morning and hadn’t returned yet.
‘For some reason, this feels ominous.’
Luke headed straight for Cheongsang Hall.
A maid happened to be sweeping the garden.
“Second Young Master, hello? You don’t have swordsmanship lessons today?”
“Yeah, I just came to see Hyung, but it seems he’s not here. Where did he go?”
“Well... after finishing his workout, the Young Master went to Norden.”
“Don’t tell me, alcohol again?”
“He said he was going to tell his friends that he was quitting drinking.”
“Hmm...”
That was probably true.
He knew because he had raised many guys like Teo in the past.
The problem was that he hadn’t returned yet.
If it was just to deliver a message, he should have arrived by now, even if he was late.
“That’s a bit long for something like that.”
“He said he would come back before dinner...”
“Did Sir Rahitz go with him?”
“Sir Rahitz had wall duty today, so he did not accompany him.”
It was bleak.
To think that the family’s swordsmanship instructor had to take turns doing wall duty.
It was natural that the lower-ranked the house, the more one person had to do multiple jobs.
The current state of the Schnelden family was exactly that.
“Then I should go check instead.”
“Will you be alri...ght.”
She had habitually tried to stop Luke but caught herself.
With the person who handled Teo best in the estate right now going, what was there to worry about?
“Thanks for letting me know. See you later.”
Luke headed straight for Norden.
The reason he was hurrying so much was because he had an inexplicable sense of foreboding.
Not that there was anything to worry about with Teo, who could easily handle the Norden thugs.
Even so, this kind of foreboding had never been wrong.
* * *
As soon as Luke arrived in Norden, he tracked Teo’s aura.
A much stronger aura wafted over than before.
It was probably the effect of the harsh training.
Luke headed toward him, inwardly satisfied.
‘Who’s that?’
There, he found Teo and some red-haired boy.
And around them, he could see several guys who looked like knights.
‘Judging by appearances, they don’t seem to be friends.’
“Didn’t I tell you to stay out of sight? What, do you still think this is your city?”
The redhead sneered.
Luke worried that a punch might fly into the guy’s face at any moment.
Because the Teo he knew was someone who would do that and more.
But for some reason, Teo didn’t move.
‘No, can he not?’
Looking closely, Teo seemed to be in a difficult position.
‘A brat with red hair accompanied by knights... is that the Sharun side?’
Seeing that the garrison soldiers weren’t even thinking of moving despite this much commotion, he was probably right.
Even while Luke was analyzing, the Young Master of Sharun showed no intention of stopping.
“No answer? Should I just go tell my father?”
“We get it, your family is amazing, so let’s stop this.”
“Why, does it sting? Then try beating me up like you did that time. Let’s see what happens.”
The guy stuck his face right in.
Teo’s fist trembled.
Anyone could see he looked like his patience had reached its limit.
But the guy was confident that he would absolutely not be hit.
That confidence was correct.
At least, until that voice was heard.
“Yeah, let’s do that then.”
Crack!
In the blink of an eye, the guy’s face crumpled as he rolled on the ground.
“U-uh...”
Perhaps too surprised, he held his cheek and froze in place.
A young boy stood right in front of him.
Though his face couldn’t be made out because it was roughly covered with a rag, one could guess his age just from his voice.
“You said let’s see what happens if you get beaten? This is what happens.”
“Wh-what? Hey, what are you guys doing not protecting me!”
The guy shouted, looking at the knights behind him.
Shring!
“Who goes there!”
“How dare you, do you know who this person is!”
The knights drew their swords and threatened him.
But from what Luke could see, even if they all combined, they were weaker than Teo.
They looked like apprentice knights rather than full-fledged knights.
Well, if they attached formal knights to something as petty as alley-boss play, the Sharun family’s face wouldn’t survive either.
“You’re roughly on the Sharun side, but how great must you be to act like this to the eldest son of the Schnelden family?”
“This is Lord Rangkel Sharun, the third-generation sole scion of the Great Sharun Household.”
“Ah, so that’s why the garrison soldiers aren’t coming even with this commotion?”
“Hehe, now that you know who I am, are you finally scared?”
Rangkel slowly stood up and said.
He seemed to have regained his confidence with the appearance of the knights.
“Kneel right now and I’ll let you avoid summary execution.”
“So that means no one will be coming here for a while?”
Heh.
Rather, the corners of Luke’s eyes curved up.
That smile was so chilling that Rangkel unknowingly took a step back.
“Wh-where are you putting on airs? Guys like you need to get hit to come to your senses.”
“Need to get hit to come to your senses...”
Luke nodded in agreement.
A beating is the best medicine.
Wasn’t that the saying he’d always lived by?
“True words.”
“What?”
“Words that you’ll take from me.”
Thwack!
At the same time, Luke’s foot struck a knight’s head.
Spin!
His body spun like a pinwheel and collapsed on the ground.
Foam bubbled from his mouth.
“.......”
The other knights gaped at what happened in the blink of an eye.
“Thanks.”
Luke said, dusting off his pants.
“When the body is strong, the head doesn’t have to suffer...”
Luke’s eyes shone more purely than a child’s.
“Lately I’ve been using my head, which doesn’t suit me at all, and I guess I forgot that simple fact. You guys reminded me of it.”
He walked forward, loosening his wrist.
“I’ll execute you on the spot.”
The knights drew their swords from their waists and threatened him.
“Those guys are screwed...”
Only one person knew how this fight would end: Teo Schnelden.