Chapter 100

Chapter 33. Enemy or Friend

For a moment, Jin's heart sank.

‘Dante Hylan. Could it be... that he noticed my mana and spirit energy?’

Recently, quite a few people had come to know about that power.

However, it was still a force that shouldn't be known outside. Jin suppressed his flustered heart and met Dante's gaze.

"Hidden power? What are you talking about?"

"What, Jin. Could it be that you've already mastered the final technique of Runkandel?"

Veraldin immediately showed his interest. He had recently become a 7-star mage himself and was expecting Jin to have grown accordingly.

"Ah... it's just my intuition. In battle, my senses have never been wrong. I can tell from the moment our swords clash whether I can win or not. And even though it seems your sword skills are not as advanced as mine, I had a feeling I would lose."

"Is that so? That's amazing."

"Since I ended up losing, my intuition was right again. But if you have no hidden techniques or powers, I would have been deceived by my feelings and not performed at my best."

Dante's words made Jin smile quietly, but inside, he was quite surprised. It was truly an incredible intuition.

"Anyway, you can look forward to our next battle. I'll hold nothing back then."

"Jin, Dante. I feel the same. I look forward to the day when we will lead our respective families and fight."

The determination in Dante and Veraldin's eyes was intense, even as they sat in a circle, sipping their drinks.

It was inevitable that the three of them would one day face each other with swords.

Enemies and friends, friends and enemies. That was the nature of their relationship.

'But when that day comes, I wonder if I can really kill you.'

A moment of silence passed, and Dante had such thoughts.

"But after all the fighting, it might not be bad to just form an alliance. We can decide the winner and then get along nicely..."

Veraldin scratched the back of his head as he added this.

"I never imagined the next head of Jip would say such soft things."

"Just a wish, a wish! If things go wrong, you two will die at my hands, hehe. Oh, by the way, I recently had a rather absurd experience."

"What happened, Veraldin?"

When Dante chimed in, Veraldin clenched his fist.

"Have you heard of the Kingdom of Akkin? It's part of the Lutero Magic Federation. Last year, someone impersonated me there."

Jin almost spat out the drink he was sipping but managed to maintain a poker face.

"Really? That's true? To impersonate you in the land of the Lutero Magic Federation... that person must have had a lot of guts. What happened?"

"Surprisingly, we haven't caught the culprit yet. The guy who used my name seems to have destroyed a dark organization called Tesing, but then disappeared. Our family investigators can't find any leads."

"Have you considered issuing a wanted notice?"

"That would be Jip cutting its own prestige, Dante. It would be like advertising that a giant family like ours can't catch a mere impersonator."

Jin spoke calmly, and Veraldin nodded.

"Exactly. We've also recently lost Uncle Andrei... our reputation is already in shambles. Ah, Jin. I didn't mean to bring this up to make you uncomfortable. We haven't even confirmed that Runkandel is the one who killed Uncle Andrei."

"What if it is Runkandel?"

At Jin's question, Dante cleared his throat and looked around.

Veraldin, however, merely shrugged.

"We've killed many Runkandels too. It's a matter of settling debts. When the time comes, we'll settle it. And to be more honest, I didn't like Uncle Andrei. I actually disliked him."

"The next head of Jip disliked the deceased vice-head. That's not something to be spoken of lightly. What are you thinking, Veraldin?"

Jin, speaking matter-of-factly, was thinking about why Veraldin disliked Andrei.

'Was it because Andrei used the power of the Magic Stone to deviate from the path of a pure mage? Or was it because of his perverted nature? In any case, the Magic Stone is clearly a matter for the entire Jip family...'

Before that, did Veraldin even know about the existence of the Magic Stone?

'From what I've seen, Veraldin might have a personality that wouldn't find it strange to have a repulsion towards things like biological experiments or collecting gods with the Magic Stone. It's likely related to why he disliked Andrei.'

It wasn't something he could ask right away.

"Just a thoughtless comment. I just said I didn't like him. We're close enough to talk about such things, right? I believe we are!"

"Hehe... hearing you say that, I suddenly remembered some despicable people in our family. I'll get rid of them all with my own hands one day!"

Talking about family matters in front of an enemy was something a smart person wouldn't do.

'Dante might really be a fool, but Veraldin has a mysterious side that's hard to understand. He's definitely not an ordinary guy.'

Using the blood of Numerus on Dante.

Mentioning the deceased Andrei and emphasizing that he disliked him. It was a point that was hard to understand by Jin's standards.

"Oh, we got off track. Anyway! About that impersonator. We can't issue a wanted notice, but it feels wrong to just let it go... I'm thinking of deploying our top mages to search for him."

Veraldin soon raised his voice again, his face filled with anger.

"Oh, you can deploy 8-star mages to catch one impersonator? Jip is truly impressive."

"Hey, Hylan could do that too. Jin, what do you think?"

"If I were in your shoes, I'd manipulate public opinion to make it seem like I destroyed Tesing, not the impersonator."

"What?"

"According to what you said, the only thing the culprit did was impersonate you and destroy a dark organization. Did civilians suffer any harm?"

"No, quite the opposite. Akkin is in a festive mood every day now. Tesing's tyranny was apparently immense."

"Then it's a good story to cover with your good deeds. Besides, since the culprit hasn't been caught yet, they'll impersonate you again. The longer the tail, the easier it is to catch them. Deploying top mages would be foolish."

"Hmm, that's true. Maybe deploying top mages was too much? I'll have to think about it more when I get back."

"If you catch them, let me know. I'm curious about how fearless they are."

"Sure, Dante, come to our banquet soon. I'll send you an invitation."

The three of them continued to chat and clink glasses throughout the night.

However, unlike Dante and Veraldin, Jin tried to speak as little as possible, for one reason.

'If I get too close, it might be troublesome later.'

It was a short meeting, but.

It was a night that made him think it would have been better if they were truly friends.

* * *

"Master! Why did you use the blood of Numerus on Dante Hylan?"

"Moreover, Jin Runkandel should have been killed on the spot. It was a golden opportunity to eliminate a rival!"

"Keep Jin's survival a secret from Father. And this treasure box, take good care of it until we return to the family. Hehe, it's a very satisfying souvenir."

"What's so special about this treasure box? If you suffer a great loss because you don't have the blood of Numerus later, it's not our problem."

"Enough, enough. There's nothing bad about gaining favor with Dante Hylan. In exchange for a drop of Numerus's blood, we've increased the possibility that Hylan will be on our side when we fight Runkandel in the future."

"But...!"

"Also, I didn't kill Jin because there are a few things I need to confirm. I'll rest a bit until we reach the main house, so you two go out."

As the guards grumbled and left.

Veraldin sighed deeply.

'In the end, it will all reach Father and the elders. Even if I use the same excuse for the Numerus blood, how will I explain not killing Jin...? Should I say I thought I couldn't win? It's not a lie, but...'

Veraldin was already feeling bleak.

* * *

"I'm sorry, Grandfather. I didn't win this time and barely survived two life-threatening situations."

"To almost lose your life twice in that lowly tournament... what happened? Was your sword skill lacking, or were there hidden experts blinded by money and pleasure?"

Despite his words, the head of the Hylan family, Ron Hylan, had a rather kind expression.

He could tell the moment he saw his returned grandson. His beloved grandson, who was so dear that he wanted to bite him to death, seemed to have gained some enlightenment.

"My sword skill wasn't lacking, but my spirit was. There were no experts blinded by money and pleasure, but I met two boys who caught my heart."

"Hehe, if you say so, I'm curious. You, who never show interest in the most beautiful women who come to our family... what are the names of the boys who captured your heart?"

"Grandfather, I'm sorry, but I can't tell you their names... and I have one request to make, Grandfather."

"Brat!"

Ron suddenly hugged Dante and playfully choked him.

However, he didn't ask again for the names of the boys. He knew that breaking the resolve of a grandson who had made up his mind was as difficult as ascending to the throne.

"Keke. B, breath."

Of course, even a playful grip from a 10-star knight was quite painful.

"Coming back and making this old man feel neglected! But I forgive you. What is your request?"

"Please, in any situation, just once, let me save them."

* * *

"Hey, you're back? What's wrong, kid. Did you get beaten by some Dante or Donte? You look a bit gloomy. Isn't that right, strawberry pie?"

"Of course I won. I'm just a bit tired."

"Master, are you tired? Your face doesn't look good. Beating Dante is something to celebrate, but... did something worry you? Or did you lose energy to some kind of poison?"

"No, Gilly. I'm just a bit tired. Did everyone do well while I was gone?"

"Ah, Master Jin! You're back! Oh! You won the tournament again! Sign my shirt for a keepsake!"

Enya ran over, as usual, with a pen and her back outstretched, asking for a signature.

'A keepsake.'

Jin, holding the pen, stared at the shark bone trophy in his other hand.

'Stupid guys. Do they really plan to frame the gold coins or keep the dented treasure box as a memento?'

Scribble, scribble.

Jin chuckled and signed Enya's shirt.

"Thanks for always thinking of me specially, Miss Enya."

He felt grateful for the easy friendship he shared with people like her.